UN experts urge India to restore internet, social media services in IoK

An estimated 31 reported cases of media bans in valley since 2012, UN experts

United Nations (UN) human rights experts have called on India to protect the right to freedom of expression in Indian-occupied Kashmir (IoK) instead of imposing undue restrictions.

Raising an alarm over the effect of the bans imposed by the Indian government in the disputed valley, the UN experts want authorities to pursue democratic channels to address the region's social and political conflicts.



In a press release issued by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), David Kaye, the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, and Michel Forst, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, insisted that the scope of the restrictions in IoK also undermined India’s “stated aim of preventing dissemination of information that could lead to violence.”

“The internet and telecommunications bans have the character of collective punishment [and] fail to meet the standards required under international human rights law to limit freedom of expression,” said Kaye.

Forst added, “Denying such access disrupts the free exchange of ideas and the ability of individuals to connect with one another and associate peacefully on matters of shared concern.”

Following widespread demonstrations in April, Indian authorities in Kashmir ordered internet service providers to block social media services for at least a month, while, 3G and 4G internet data services for mobile phones and other devices had already been suspended.

The authorities blocked access to 22 websites and applications, including WhatsApp (messaging service), Facebook and Twitter, said the press release.

Since 2012, there have been some 31 reported cases of social media and internet bans in IoK and such developments seemed to be a worrying pattern for curbing protests and social unrest in the region, the UN Special Rapporteurs said.



“We call on the Indian authorities to guarantee freedom of expression in Kashmir and to seek a solution for the social and political conflicts of the region through an open, transparent and democratic dialogue,” the experts stressed.

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) had also urged India to immediately withdraw social media ban in the occupied valley.

In a statement issued by the world’s largest organisation of journalists, it demanded that the ban order be immediately withdrawn and citizens’ rights to information and communication are respected.

Anti-India sentiments run deep in the predominantly Muslim Kashmir valley, where most people favour independence or a merger with Pakistan. Young Kashmiris have also used their mobile phones to record videos of killings and other rights abuses by government forces to upload on YouTube.