Kashmiri opposition figure says freedom 'in sight'

By Zahid Rafiq

SRINAGAR, Indian-held Kashmir

Top Kashmiri resistance leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani on Friday said freedom was “very much in sight” in what was supposed to be his first news conference since the two-month-long pro-Independence uprising began in Indian-held Kashmir.

“The current phase of the freedom struggle has provided a powerful push towards our goal of freedom, which is very much in sight,”Geelani said in a statement that his office released Friday around noon.

The statement was part of an address that Geelani was supposed to make in his first news conference since the pro-Independence uprising began on July but the Indian-backed government in the region stopped journalists from reaching his residence in the Hyderpora neighborhood of Srinagar.

Geelani added that between Kashmir and its “freedom stood half a million Indian guns only” in the statement.

“Our occupier [India] has the world’s third largest army. It has the world’s largest paramilitary force, most of which is stationed in Kashmir. We are a people’s resistance. We have no resources. We have no army. We have no media. But our greatest strength is our truth, unity and our determination to free ourselves from the yoke of this evil occupation,” Geelani said.

Geelani urged the Kashmiri people to stay united in mass pro-independence protests against Indian rule in the disputed Kashmir valley which took place for more than 60 days.

Civilians killed

So far, at least 74 civilian protestors have been killed by the Indian forces and over 9,000 people, according to data gathered from Kashmir’s major hospitals, have been wounded in the last two months.

“From the streets to the leadership we are all united in our freedom struggle against India and no matter whether the Indian occupying forces keep us under curfews or arrest us in prisons or in our homes, they will never succeed in severing the cord that joins us in our collective yearning for our freedom. We are and we must stay united; our unity is the death o6f our enemy,” Geelani said.

While Geelani is under house arrest, other top separatist leaders -- Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Yasin Malik and Shabir Shah -- are all in Indian prisons in the disputed region.

Geelani also thanked Pakistan saying that the country had “once again proved that they are our friends and well-wishers. Pakistan and its people shared our pain and raised their voice in our support”.

He also thanked Turkey for supporting "Kashmiri freedom struggle".

"We are thankful to Turkey for its unambiguous support to our just struggle for freedom from Indian occupation,” he said.

The current unrest was triggered by the killing of a Kashmiri militant commander, Burhan Wani, by Indian forces on July 8.

Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full.

The two countries have fought three wars – in 1948, 1965 and 1971 – since they were partitioned in 1947, two of which were fought over Kashmir.

Since 1989, Kashmiri resistance groups in IHK have been fighting against Indian rule for independence, or for unification with neighboring Pakistan.