Concerns raised at UNHRC over PoJK protest violence

Geneva [Switzerland], March 18 (ANI): At the ongoing 61st UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva, serious concerns were raised over the alleged crackdown on peaceful protests in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK).
During an oral intervention, Javad Ahmad Beigh, a Kashmiri activist, highlighted what he described as the suppression of democratic rights and excessive use of force by Pakistani authorities.
Beigh drew attention to the killing of Anzar Javed Bhatti, a mathematics teacher who was shot dead on October 1, 2025, in Muzaffarabad.
According to the statement, Bhatti, who was unarmed and participating in a peaceful civic protest, has since become a symbol of the risks faced by civilians exercising their right to lawful and democratic expression.
The protest was organised by the Jammu and Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee, a coalition representing various professional and civil society groups.
Demonstrators had presented a 38-point charter of demands focused on essential socio-economic issues, including access to education and healthcare, fair electricity tariffs despite local hydropower generation, infrastructure development, and equitable food subsidies.
Beigh emphasised that these demands were legitimate and aligned with basic human rights standards.
However, he alleged that authorities responded with disproportionate force.
More than 2,000 police personnel from Punjab, along with 167 platoons of the Federal Constabulary, were reportedly deployed, effectively militarising the region.
The use of live ammunition during the protests resulted in at least nine civilian deaths and multiple injuries, according to the intervention.
Beigh asserted that such actions reflect Pakistan's failure to meet its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, particularly with regard to the right to life, freedom from inhuman or degrading treatment, freedom of expression, and the right to peaceful assembly.
He warned that the incident points to a broader pattern in which peaceful protests are met with militarised responses while accountability for state actions remains absent.
Calling for international attention, Beigh urged the Human Rights Council to take serious note of the situation and address what he termed a culture of impunity.
He cautioned that continued inaction could embolden further violations and weaken global human rights norms.
He also appealed to the international community to closely examine the human rights situation in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir and ensure that fundamental freedoms are protected in line with international law. (ANI)