Punjab Human Rights Organization is concerned about the Government of India’s reaction to the recent calls by US Congress for protection of human fights in Punjab and against proliferation of atomic weapon in south East Asia.
New Delhi sharply reacted to the amendment passed by the US House of Representatives recommending President Bush to ensure that International Military Education and Training Program covered an enhanced appreciation of human rights by India’s security forces but it kept silent on human rights aspect of the US debate.
Instead of responding to the American Secretary of State James Baker’s request to check human rights abuses New Delhi arrogantly tried to rebuff the purpose of the US amendment saying that Indian armed forces need no lessons from others in compassion morality and application of human rights and humanitarian standards.
Similarly New Delhi took no notice of the US State Department 1990 report which had indicted Indian security forces for significant human rights abuses in Punjab and Kashmir. There is no let-up in state repression rather it has been stepped up in the recent past.
PHRO is also concemed that New Delhi did not pay any heed to the UN recommendations to review its anti-terrorists laws which violated international covenant on civil and political rights. These special laws according to the UN Human Rights Committee gave security forces the right to shoot at sight conduct summary trials and detain persons without a warrant.
PHRO understands that Japan a political power backed by its newly-acquired economic clout put up politico-military conditionalities including the one of respecting human rights before it gave aid to India only because of India’s poor record in the field of human rights especially in case of Punjab and Kashmir.
Significantly India did not ensure even one conviction for the violations of human rights in hundreds of cases involving killings of innocent persons and other excesses against civilians despite the continued international pressure during the past few years. Most often the registration of cases was designed as a means to neutralize outside pressure rather than to punish the wrong-doer. Often such wrong-doers were publicly honored.
During the month of April-May 1991 the security forces killed 436 active Sikhs
in Punjab alone according to PHRO record Most of them were killed in stage-managed encounters. Some were eliminated allegedly in inter-group rivalry and a number of them were killed either by police cats or state sponsored vigilante groups.
Besides this the Indian army killed six Sikh devotees in May at Sangha village in Tarn Tarn police district of Amritsar. Gang rape and molestation of women followed the army action. The entire village was ransacked. The army and paramilitary forces were motivated by the urge to teach a lesson to the villagers in the border district of Amritsar for sustaining militancy and generally to execute the threat given by Army Brigadier R.P.Singh to decimate the Sikhs and to breed a new race.
This 48-page booklet (PHRO watch for April-May1991pp.41-88) is a compilation of various PRHO investigation reports and a narration of national and international events concerning human rights. It contains reports on the killings by police cat’s cases of rape both by police and
Individuals in militants’ garb the policemen as kidnappers and extortionists etc. besides the systematic liquidation of Sikh youths by the security forces.
PHRO during June 1991 produced a40page booklet ‘Character Shekhar’s multipronged offensive against Punjab’ which covered the first quarter of 1991.
D S. Gill Chairman PHRO
A PHRO Watch April 1991
India suffered a major setback in US Congress over her nuclear policy on June 131991 when the House of Representatives voted by a huge margin to put her on the same boat as Pakistan and deny American aid unless New Delhi obtains a Presidential certification that it is not developing additional nuclear explosive devices.
The law makers decision to extend the India the Pressler law that has so far been applicable only to Islamabad came in the form of an amendment to the foreign assistance bill covering two fiscal years beginning October 1991.
The vote on the amendment jointly sponsored by Republican Robert Lagomarsino and Democrat Charles Wilson was 242 to 151 among those who voted in favor of the amendment were 126 Democrats 115 Republicans and one independent. 106 Democrats and 35 Republicans voted against
Article extracted from this publication >> August 23, 1991
