Daily Diary (DD) - Day 331 of 2022

1054hrs:

Day 175 at Maqbool Bhat Shaheed Square - Dadyaal.

0757hrs

Attendance = 100%

Punctuality = 63%

111 days on time or early of 175

Punctuality surplus = 15 minutes 

Punctuality Consistency Status = 7 days

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We're into our 3rd week of a weekly live transmission on JKTV, providing an update of the status of public affairs in our territory:

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Today we're witnessing local (municipal) elections in AJK for the first time in 31 years. Polling is being conducted in a phased manner - division by division - beginning with Muzaffarabad division today. 

Khurshid Uz Zaman Abbasi Sb has been kind enough to invite me to this marathon transmission today, broadcasting live from Washington USA: 

You can access the programme from this link too.

I took part in the discussion at 2:48:10 

I spoke in 2 batches before my connectivity totally gave way at around 3:27:00

From 3:01:40 to 3:08:30 and 3:11:29 to 3:19:25

Many thanks to former chief justice of the AJK supreme court Syed Manzoor Gillani and senior journalists Syed Tassaduq Hussain (living in Calgary, Canada and candidate for local elections there) & Ibrahim Gul (former PTV director for AJK and now living in South Korea) for their kind words too.

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My take on concerns about human rights in Qatar, given the attention received in the wake of the World Cup being hosted there:

Most global human rights groups are of the view that the World Cup being held in Qatar is a means to open engagement on all those issues that are regional in some respects and global in others. Qatar has a global media channel and wants to excel in hosting discussion on some of the most uncomfortable problems of the world. It has brought something into existence that didn't exist before. Global spotlight.

Furthermore..

FIFA president Gianni Infantino slams Western ‘hypocrisy’ against Qatar

Morality and Legality. 

Power and Principles.

Who can exercise what?

In our #PublicPolicyAJK approach to conflict resolution in the region we have understood that the public of JKA - without exception - have been denied  their right to exercise freedom of assembly, association, expression, movement and recourse to law including international law.

We include all our politicians and all claimants to nobility in this territory, as victims of this very well structured militarised governance module.

We apparently had no democratic, ethical, legal or peaceful outlet/forum to address our concerns.

But we do. 

What do our own legal experts say?

What would be the legal perspective of our 4 neighbours:

1) Afghanistan

2) China

3) India

4) Pakistan

AJK Public Agency Note: #194527112022

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Daily Diary (DD) - Day 226 of 2022

1820hrs:

Day 70 at Maqbool Bhat Shaheed Square - Dadyaal.

0748hrs

My punctuality deficit has decreased to 341 minutes.

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I honestly didn't know it would be so but it was. Here's my first video upload of the day:

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This was followed by another video update forwarded to JKTV:

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Then a relatively more comprehensive video was uploaded to this writer's YouTube channel, which also incorporates all the footage hitherto reported above:

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The day's proceedings did not finish here. The next appointment on this writer's schedule was participation in a highly distinguished online forum, hosted by Khurshid Uz Zaman Abbasi on his Washington (USA) based channel Zaman TV USA. The panel included a former chief justice of the AJK Supreme Court (Choudhary Ibrahim Zia), the foremost expert on the UN mechanism on JKA (Dr Nazir Gilani), a former additional chief secretary of AJK (Akram Sohail) and myself:

Here are some observations I made during the programme:

Dr Nazir Gilani at 1:09:00

Pakistan has no case if it does not recognise AJK as a local authority.

Dr Nazir Gilani at 1:10:00

Responsibility for surveillance was to be that of the United Nations, not the Pakistani State.

Further points clarified by Dr Nazir Gilani:

There is effectively no political representation currently in AJK..i.e. Pakistani political parties do not represent the public of AJK...thus, there is no people's reference here.

If the Karachi Agreement is valid then what particular UNCIP responsibilities has Pakistan undertaken? 

In reference to the Chief Secretary (posted as de facto Governor of AJK) Dr Gilani considers that we should be the ones appointing him and make him conform to local requirements.

Pakistani political parties have over-ridden Article 257 (of their own constitution), indeed in the words of Dr Nazir Gilani they have "superseded" it.

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It didn't finish there! For a day that started just before 0700hrs has still not finished at 2300hrs! We remain in Washington for the following Twitter Space, hosted by Washington Group and which also includes world renowned activists:

https://t.co/VTs18CRSmC

— Washington Group (@WashingtonGrp) August 14, 2022

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There were plenty of other incidents in various parts of AJK which gave a very clear message to the Pakistani occupiers on their so-called day of independence. Here's an example from the LOC in Keran, Neelam Valley:

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In the following example from Mandhol near the LOC in Hajeera, Poonch the locals prevented the Pakistani army from taking the local schoolchildren out to a parade to celebrate their so-called independence:

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The capital of AJK viz. Muzaffarabad wasn't to be left out either. Echoes of 'Kashmir Banega Khud Mukhtar' (Kashmir will be independent) resounded throughout the city:

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Daily Diary (DD) - Day 318 of 2021

2233hrs:

Engagement with the public has been incessant today. It has no sign of receding until at least midnight at the earliest.

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The following relates to a speech by Beverly Hill at a conference organised by Kashmir Global Council, at Middle East Institute in Washington DC on November the 11th 2021.

Beverly Hill background in short:  

She is a doctor by profession, an human rights activist, a politician and a close friend of Hilary Clinton. She is very well connected in official circles and has travelled the world including India on official invitations. She also commands great respect amongst law makers)

Here are some excerpts from her speech:

(Washington DC)

“I stand here to express my solidarity with the people of Kashmir and endorse their call for independence."

"It is time to free Kashmir from a binary choice, forced on it in haste, by a departing colonial overlord. Nearly 75 years have passed since Great Britain left. The question is no longer whether Kashmir should accede to Pakistan or to India, but rather, how can Kashmir release itself from all powers to become an independent country."

"I will continue calling upon my fellow Americans to make US foreign policy consistent with our democratic principles." 

"We will continue urging Congress to create a pathway toward Kashmiri independence." 

 “When elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers. Let us send the elephants home.”

An Urdu translation of her speech can be read below:

The whole event can be watched here:

 

 

(Update: 15/11/21)

Reactions to the above were being felt where it mattered:

 

So much so, that I had to make the following comment myself:

Well, I consider this to be progress in some shape or form. I hope these events connect to a sustained meaningful dialogue amongst all shades of opinion in Jammu Kashmir & Allied areas (JKA), whereby a measured national narrative encompassing all concerns within this territory can be easily interpreted in the 4 capitals quoted above - but include a 5th namely London - where the genesis of this issue can be located. Thank you Beverly for taking these steps. 

(Update: 18/11/21)

A week after this event Beverly Hill made the following comments embedded below: 

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Daily Diary (DD) - Day 233 of 2020

1315hrs:

Almost 70 hours later, we are still at a standstill in reference to the Pakistani flags hoisted at Maqbool Bhat Shaheed Square. 

The Dadyaal administration had asked for 48 hours to bring down the foreign symbols of disrepute in a neutral territory. They do not have the strength to bypass Pakistan's (now not so) clandestine agencies. The latter are on vigilance at the square 24 hours a day. 

Thus, we need to open up the issue on even wider parameters, as this aggression traces its steps back to Rawalpindi and Islamabad but not before passing through London, Beijing, Washington and Delhi.

This will assist us in obtaining closure on many fronts.

Our judiciary is the only institution that remains to be engaged in what is essentially a legal, constitutional issue.

All other aspects of society are well engaged and ready to assist in clarifying the legal status of this territory.

I've said as much on Facebook too:



All the people in this picture and their well wishers are responsible for fulfilling the agreement made between JKLF and the local administration.    

Daily Diary (DD) - Day 329 of 2019

1701hrs:

Rolling along.......

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I was getting ready to go to sleep when I came across this video. The presider was none other than an old friend of mine - James Astill - who was with me in Iraq in 2005. How the world has progressed in my absence while I'm........didn't allow me to sleep for a while:



One will notice that throughout this conversation there was very little mention of the internal narratives in Jammu & Kashmir. There was a lot about what India, Pakistan and the international community may or may not do. This is the missing part of the conversation which will actually help all of us navigate our way towards a solution.

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We've been encountering some problems with my assistant Saddam Sheikh's Facebook account. Our daily videos since the 21st (of November) were being uploaded to his Facebook account which has been suspended for 30 days. He has created another account to circumvent this issue but of course Facebook isn't handling billions of accounts using rudimentary technology. I'm not sure why his account was suspended except that a post of his that had a portrait of Yasin Malik was deemed - by Facebook - to be against community guidelines. We asked them to review their decision and I've also asked Saddam to refrain from creating further accounts as he will not be able to avoid detection. As a result of this dilemma, I am unable to embed a couple of posts related to today's activity at AJK University.

Thus, I am providing links for those of you who wish to watch them:

At the Main Campus of AJK University in Muzaffarabad after discussing a proposed lecture, pending since December the 21st 2018.

A Welcoming Gesture for Fresh Students by Law Student Saleem Wani

Today was Day 5 of our current journey in Muzaffarabad.

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Opening Bal. 0

X:
86 - Easypaisa fees
34 - Towards SS2 easypaisa debt.
500 - Diesel
470 - Breakfast/lunch for 3 - (Rice and Pothi dhaal for 2 and Chicken Haleem with roti for 1 and kahwa x 2
39,720 - Spouse
70 - Printouts
20 - Tyre pressure
20 - 7 photocopies
250 - B & H cig
20 - Dry dates
100 - Paperwork
100 - Capstan and sweets
500 - Diesel
500 - Hotel room
230 - Dinner (with eggs and dhaal/roti/kahwa x 2)

Y:
5,000 - Spouse 
39,720 - (200 pounds incl. 70 pounds from MR in UK and the rest viz. 130 pounds from family KSA UK)

Material/in kind support:
Kahwa x 2 - AM 
Bakarkhaani - at AJK University - Main Campus - MD
Kahwa - MD
Kahwa x 3 and Kulchas x aplenty - MD
300 - Paid towards hotel room - AM
Dry dates - KA

SDF (Self Determination Fund - in other words 'public funding' requests):
MD - ?

Abbreviations:

Bal. - Balance
X - Outgoing
cig. - cigarettes
Y - Incoming
MR - Mirpur
UK - United Kingdom
KSA - Sehnsa
AM - Athmaqam
MD - Muzaffarabad
KA - Khuiratta

Closing Bal. 2,100
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Daily Diary (DD) - Day 295 of 2019

0803hrs:

A beautiful morning on the banks of the Kishenganga in Muzaffarabad. A huge contrast to this day in 1947.

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While all hell broke loose in Muzaffarabad in the afternoon, a young Kashmiri Pandit woman was preparing her testimony of the internal J & K narrative for a congressional hearing in Washington, later today:



(Update: 03/11/19 at 0930hrs)

As the following tweet of the 24th of October is directly related to the video above, it is added here for meaningful context:

خدا کی کرنی دیکھیے، وہی پنڈت جن کو حزب المجاھدین قتل کرتی رہی،وہی پنڈت جن کے بارے میں لشکر اور حزب المجاھدین مساجد میں علان کرتے تھے

Look at God's work,The Same #KashmiriPandits whom Hizb-ul-Mujahideen use to Kill, the same pundits against whom Lashkar and Hizb-ul-Mujahideen+

— #SaveRiverSaveMuzaffarabad (@khawajaatteeq) October 24, 2019

 
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Meanwhile, what we didn't want to happen happened. Here is an activist taking cover in a graveyard while our police were commanded to disperse the PNA crowd with tear gas:

Muzafarabad(POK):Police shelling on #PNA peaceful marchers. You can kill us but national independence is our birth right#IndependentJK #ریاستی_دشتگردی_نامنظور#PNAmarchtowardsMuzaffarabad #quitJammuKashmirMovement ⁦@UN⁩ ⁦@UNHumanRights⁩ ⁦@AJEnglish⁩ pic.twitter.com/0tC2zwU9wG

— JKPNP (@JKPNP3) October 22, 2019

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The dispersed crowds made their way to other points in the city where they had an advantage over the police. In this following notable event at Chela - on the main road road between Muzaffarabad and Neelam - the public felt no option but to prevent an entourage of UNMOGIP vehicles returning from Neelam Valley, from proceeding back to their office, at least not before they promised to file a report of today's brutality:

Video 1 of 2:



In the heat of the moment, some members of the public passed on unconfirmed reports of further deaths of civilians. It should be clarified that only 1 casualty occurred as a direct result of police baton-charging and shelling ref. Qazi Aslam. However, many dozens were injured, some seriously.

Video 2 of 2:



There is some speculation that the Pakistani State wanted to avoid embarrassment in front of the UN and hence they took the measures they did to prevent PNA's rally from proceeding beyond Laal Chowk - through the city - to the Assembly Secretariat. In other words, they were fearful that the PR (Public Relations) effort they had put in to take UN officials to the Neelam Valley, in order for the latter to observe the damage inflicted by Indian firing/shelling in the preceding days, would be washed away when the very same UN officials would observe thousands of civilians in AJK marching and protesting against Pakistani occupation.    


It is assumed that they were anxious that the Pakistani mono-narrative imposed in AJK would be further exposed!

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AJK's diaspora - particularly in the UK - was very quick off its feet in not only condemning what was happening in Muzaffarabad but also in arranging a demonstration in the UK, to counter Pakistan's behaviour in AJK:

Please join hands with brave leadership of #PNA . We have organised a protest on 24 Oct in front of Pakisnti high commission London,UK. #NoIndia #NoPakistan #StopKillingUs #QuitJammuKashmirMovement #IndependentJK #PNA #StandWithPNA pic.twitter.com/0H2fQQNvtz

— JKPNP (@JKPNP3) October 22, 2019

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As if what the police had done in the afternoon was not enough, towards the evening they decided to storm the central press club while the PNA leadership were inside, in discussion with journalists:



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Daily Diary (DD) - Day 223 of 2019

1052hrs:

Making some headway now..........almost ready to shift to top gear.

Today is a Sunday and also Eid in the UK.

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There remains no doubt that India's seemingly unilateral move on the 5th of this month has ignited an unprecedented levels of protests within the UK, AJK and many cities throughout the world. We may even have a list for you soon!

Meanwhile, here's another message for the UK parliament:

Kashmir tensions spill over to Britain’s Pakistani and Indian communities https://t.co/GpsziElzFK - My comment: Well, they needn't. The #UKParliament should take its share of responsibility in this avoidable dispute.

— Tanveer Ahmed (@sahaafi) August 11, 2019

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The leader of the political party that divided India in 1947 through an act of the British parliament, tweeted on the situation in Kashmir today:

I think #UKParliament has a far more significant role 2 play. Pls refer 2 Hansard n 5th July 1947. Ur party was n power thn. N d words f d late political history professor & poet Nazir Anjum, "If #India & #Pakistan came into being via IIA, Y do u put UN resolutions n front f us?" https://t.co/gg8P6RxlXI

— Tanveer Ahmed (@sahaafi) August 11, 2019

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Returning to the venues of protests for Kashmir throughout the world since the 5th of August, here's an attempt to list them:

- Multiple protests throughout each of the 10 districts of AJK
- Multiple protests throughout the UK. There is even one being prepared for Trafalgar Square on the 15th of August.
- Washington (D.C.) - USA
- Toronto - Canada
- Tehran - Iran
- Dhaka - Bangladesh
- Sydney - Australia
- Brussels - Belgium
- Delhi - India
- Lahore - Pakistan
- Paris - France
- Dallas (Texas) - USA

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