British Indian community leaders gathered outside the UK Parliament in London to condemn Pakistan's ‘state-sponsored terrorism and human rights abuses’, which continue to destablise the region. In this collective statement, the groups reflect upon the key messages and motivations behind their protest this week.
Members of the Jammu and Kashmir diaspora in the UK staged a protest in front of the UK Parliament, condemning Pakistan's state-sponsored terrorism. In particular, members of the Hindu community shared their experiences of the brutalities they have endured due to Pakistan's terrorism infrastructure, which specifically targets them.
They were joined by large numbers of the Indian diaspora, who empathised with their fellow kinsmen and stood in solidarity with those who have also fallen victim to terrorism — whether as members of the Indian Army or during Hindu pilgrimages such as the Amarnath Yatra or Shiv Khori in Reasi, Jammu.
The protest was organised in response to Pakistan’s deceptive propaganda event on Kashmir, held in the UK Parliament on the same day. The event, crafted to further Pakistan's agenda, ignored the realities on the ground in Jammu and Kashmir, including its illegal occupation of parts of the region without any basis in international law, and its continued use of both state and non-state actors to institutionalise terrorism — a menace that still plagues the region today. Furthermore, the event notably excluded key stakeholders from Jammu and Kashmir, such as Kashmiri Hindus who were ethnically cleansed from the region, as well as Dogras, Gujjars, Bakarwals, Paharis of Jammu, Sikhs, and the Buddhists and Shia Muslims of Ladakh.
Several prominent community members addressed the protest. Ms Krishna Bhan, President of the Indo-European Kashmir Forum, highlighted the plight of Kashmiri Hindus over the past 35 years, which has largely been overlooked in Western discourse about the region. Her remarks focused on raising global awareness about the suffering of Kashmiri Hindus, who were forced to flee their ancestral homeland due to Pakistan-sponsored Islamic terrorism in the 1990s.
Manu Khajuria, Founder of Voice of Dogras, condemned the sham event organised by Pakistan in the UK Parliament, highlighting its ongoing obsession with Jammu and Kashmir through invasions, proxy wars, and attempts to radicalize local youth. She stressed that the real issue lies in Pakistan's illegal occupation of Jammu and Kashmir and the severe human rights violations there.
A member from Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK) echoed these concerns, citing suppression of dissent, arbitrary arrests and poor socio-economic conditions, including inadequate healthcare and education.
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A digital van campaign was also launched across the city to inform the British public about the historical and current realities of Jammu and Kashmir. This collaborative effort aimed to expose Pakistan's state-sponsored terrorism, which continues to destabilise the region, as well as the human rights abuses in the occupied territories by Pakistan.
The protesters called on parliamentarians and other institutions to take a stand and help end Pakistan’s use of terrorism as a state policy in Jammu and Kashmir. In unison, they asserted that Pakistan's agenda is to undermine peace and progress in the region, with little regard for the well-being of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.