Reacting to reports that security forces used lethal force against protesters in Rawalakot, Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir, on the first day of the regional election, Isabelle Lassee, Amnesty International’s Acting Regional Director for South Asia, said:
“The disturbing reports emerging from Rawalakot are consistent with the Pakistani authorities’ long history of unlawful violence against protesters in Jammu and Kashmir. A prompt, independent, and transparent investigation must be ordered into the security forces’ use of force against protesters. So long as an internet and mobile services blackout remains in place, it will severely impede the independent verification of the full extent of the situation on the ground. We urge the Pakistani authorities to restore all communications access and allow media and independent observers into the area.
We urge the Pakistani authorities to restore all communications access and allow media and independent observers into the area
Isabelle Lassee, Amnesty International’s Acting Regional Director for South Asia
“Tensions around this election are being heightened by the unlawful ban on the Jammu and Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC). Amnesty International has repeatedly called on the Pakistani authorities to lift the ban on this protest movement and stop weaponizing anti-terror laws to silence and arbitrarily detain JAAC members and supporters. The ban cannot be used as an excuse to mete out deadly violence against protesters.”
