Fresh evidence of the brutal reign of state terror by the Indian armed forces in Kashmir has come in the form of the discovery of mass graves in the state.

According to the Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) mass graves of at least 940 persons have been found in 18 villages in Uri region of Baramulla District. The APDP is an association that was founded by mothers and fathers whose sons and daughters have been reported as "disappeared" in Kashmir. "Disappeared" is, in most cases, a tragic euphemism for cold blooded murder of the youth by the security forces after being taken into custody. For years on end, these parents have been searching for their loved ones, in the vain hope that they are still alive, or else, at least to find their bodies and give them a proper burial, and to ensure that those who murdered their children are punished.

The discovery of mass graves in Uri region, near the line of control between Pakistan and India, confirms once again that a systematic extermination of youth has been carried out by the armed forces over the years. The villages where these graves have been found are not accessible to people from rest of India without the permission of the armed forces.     

Families of the disappeared conducted a hunger strike in 2003. This forced Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed to admit that there were 3,734 cases of enforced disappearances in contrast to the 60 cases he admitted prior to the said hunger strike. Five years have passed since this admission. However, nothing has been done to either reveal the identity of those murdered or to find out which state security personnel were responsible for these murders.

Obtaining the truth through exhumation of remains of victims of human rights violations is a necessary step to punish the guilty. It is high time that the bitter truth is revealed, the perpetrators of these crimes are tried and punished and justice delivered to the victims and their families.

It must be noted that while the Indian Government signed the United Nations Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances, it has still to ratify the treaty and put in place an enabling mechanism to ensure its implementation! 

People's Voice fully upholds the struggle of the people of Kashmir to punish those guilty of murdering their youth, as part of the struggle of our people against state terrorism and all kinds of violation of human rights.