[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 724 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 724
Condemning the human rights violations taking place in Jammu and
Kashmir and supporting Kashmiri self-determination.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
November 21, 2019
Ms. Tlaib submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign Affairs
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RESOLUTION
Condemning the human rights violations taking place in Jammu and
Kashmir and supporting Kashmiri self-determination.
Whereas the United States Government seeks friendly relations and has long
shared an important relationship with the Republic of India;
Whereas the United States Government seeks to preserve peace and security in
Jammu and Kashmir;
Whereas the United States Government seeks to promote the human rights and
liberties of all people, including the freedom to practice, worship, or
observe one's own religion;
Whereas the Government of India has unilaterally changed the status of Jammu and
Kashmir without a direct consultation or the consent of the Kashmiri
people;
Whereas the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has
reported gross human rights abuses in Jammu and Kashmir;
Whereas the Government of India has enforced a strict curfew in Jammu and
Kashmir that has restricted freedom of expression, assembly, and
movement;
Whereas, on August 5, 2019, the Government of India enacted a communications
blockade in Jammu and Kashmir that includes the suspension of landlines
and shutdown of mobile phone networks and internet access, and service
has only been partially restored as of October 14, 2019;
Whereas Kashmiri Americans and Kashmiris around the world have had difficulty or
been unable to contact their family members since the imposition of the
communications blockade on August 5, 2019;
Whereas press accounts and human rights observers have documented that the
actions of the Government of India in imposing a communications blockade
have inhibited access to life-saving medical care;
Whereas international human rights observers have documented the security
services of the Government of India's excessive use of force against
civilians in Jammu and Kashmir, including the use of pellet shotguns,
tear gas, and rubber bullets against protestors, as reported by the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights;
Whereas the Government of India has used the arrest and indefinite detention of
thousands of people to control civilians of all ages, including minors
as young as nine, in Jammu and Kashmir using the Public Safety Act,
which violates article 9(2) of the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights;
Whereas the Government of India has detained Kashmiri civil society leaders of
all political perspectives without charge or trial and, as of September
25, 2019, prominent political and business leaders remain in detention;
Whereas detentions and harassment of journalists in Jammu and Kashmir has been
reported by independent observers and journalistic organizations;
Whereas the right to religious expression has been severely curtailed, including
the closures of mosques and religious buildings;
Whereas the Government of India has barred senior United States Government
officials and foreign journalists from traveling to Jammu and Kashmir
since August 5;
Whereas the actions of the Government of India are not reflective of the shared
democratic norms and values between the United States and India;
Whereas the actions of the Government of India constitute violations of the
United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights;
Whereas the Government of India has failed to hold its military accountable and
perpetuated a state of impunity for members of the Indian Armed Forces
and related security services, in part through the Armed Forces Special
Powers Act;
Whereas the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
issued reports in 2018 and 2019 calling for the Governments of India and
Pakistan to implement policy recommendations to safeguard human rights;
and
Whereas, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
``Update on the Situation of Human Rights in Indian-Administered Kashmir
and Pakistan-Administered Kashmir from May 2018 to April 2019'', the
militant groups Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Hizbul Mujahideen,
and Harakat Ul-Mujahidin have contributed to the harsh conditions and
dire human rights situation faced by civilians in Jammu and Kashmir:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) opposes any use of force against civilian populations
by governmental and nongovernmental actors alike;
(2) opposes and condemns the use of pellet shotguns and
rubber bullets as a crowd-control method in any case;
(3) affirms that any changes to the status of Jammu and
Kashmir must be made with the direct consultation of the
Kashmiri people, who must play a central role in the
determination of their future;
(4) urges the Government of India to immediately lift all
remaining elements of the communications blockade imposed in
Jammu and Kashmir, including restoring phone and internet
access and refraining from any interference with the provision
of medical treatment;
(5) urges the Department of State to facilitate contact
between Kashmiri Americans and their family members in Jammu
and Kashmir;
(6) reaffirms its strongly held belief that freedom of
religion is a central and inalienable right of all people as
promulgated in the United Nations Universal Declaration of
Human Rights and urges the Government of India to ensure
compliance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in
Jammu and Kashmir;
(7) urges the Government of India to exercise restraint
when performing security and policing operations and denounces
the widespread use of threats and excessive force against
civilians, protestors, and detainees;
(8) urges the Government of India to immediately release
unjustly and indefinitely detained people in Jammu and Kashmir
and to cease arbitrary and politically motivated detentions;
(9) urges the Governments of India and Pakistan to engage
in dialogue to deescalate tensions and protect human rights;
(10) urges the Governments of India and Pakistan to
renounce the use of force to settle the status of all disputed
territories between them;
(11) urges the Governments of India and Pakistan to grant
representatives of the Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights full and unfettered access to
their respective sides of the Line of Control; and
(12) urges the Governments of India and Pakistan to
implement the policy recommendations of the Office of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights contained in
its 2018 and 2019 reports.
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