India: Current information on the situation in Jammu and Kashmir; the ethnic groups that are experiencing difficulties and recourse available to them; whether members of these groups can relocate to another area of India
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 6 March 2002 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | IND38457.E |
| Reference | 2 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, India: Current information on the situation in Jammu and Kashmir; the ethnic groups that are experiencing difficulties and recourse available to them; whether members of these groups can relocate to another area of India, 6 March 2002, IND38457.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3df4be42c.html [accessed 30 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
The Kashmir-Jammu region of India remains tense as a result of continued sectarian/separatist violence and increased tensions between India and Pakistan following the 13 December 2001 terrorist attack on the Indian Parliament (AP 17 Feb. 2002; Reuters 17 Feb. 2002). The South Asian Terrorism Portal (SATP) reports that in 2001, 1,059 of 4,416 people killed in Kashmir-Jammu were listed as civilians (2001).
Hindus remain the predominant target of violence (BBC 21 Jan. 2002; Reuters 21 Jan. 2002; New York Times 16 Jan. 2002; USCR 2001). Recent attacks on Hindu civilians in the Kashmir Valley include: eight killed on 16 February in Rajouri (Reuters 17 Feb. 2002; AP 17 Feb. 2002), five between 1 and 15 January in Rajouri (New York Times 16 Jan. 2002) and ten in two incidents in Poonch in late December (Dawn 2 Jan. 2002; BBC 1 Jan. 2001).
As Jammu-based Daily Excelsior reported on 6 February 2001, Sikhs have also been the targets of attacks. The latest such attack, according to Rediff.com was four Sikh women killed reportedly by "terrorists" in December 2001 (17 Jan. 2002). Other occurrences include the killing of six Kashmir Sikhs by "unidentified armed youths" in February 2001 (Daily Excelsior 6 Feb. 2001). This was the second such attack following the March 2000 killing of 35 Sikhs in Chattisinghpora (ibid.; Hindustan Times 19 Apr. 2000; AI 21 Mar. 2000; Global IDP Project 2001). In this latter case, according to Le Monde Diplomatique, the Indian "National Rifles unit stationed close by failed to intervene" (Jan. 2002).
Further, Muslims are targeted by militant groups when they are, or are considered, sympathetic to, or working for, the Indian security forces (New York Times 16 Jan. 2002; BBC 21 Jan. 2002). The most recent example of this occurred in the Poonch District when 11 Muslim villagers were killed on 21 January 2002 (The Independent 22 Jan. 2002).
Freedom of Movement
The 2001 country assessment undertaken by the Immigration and Nationality
Directorate of the United Kingdom noted that
Indian citizens enjoy freedom of movement within the country except in certain border areas where, for security reasons, special permits are required. ... [T]here were no restrictions on movement from one State to another. Furthermore, there were no rules that one should register in connection with a move from one State to another. ... Indian citizens may emigrate without restriction (Apr. 2001).
According to the Chandigarh-based newspaper The Tribune reported that in order
to avoid any "undue harassment" by the police, a number of people, going outside the valley in connection with their businesses have been approaching the police and civil officials concerned for [their] character certificates. ... The character certificate issued by the Additional District Magistrate states that the person "bears good moral character and reputation. He is allowed to proceed to Delhi in connection with business". The "permission" to visit Delhi has also the photograph of the person affixed to it. ... The certificates were issued after police verification. ... (17 Jan. 2002).
The Tribune reports that South Kashmiris allege harassment, including arrests, of businessmen attempting to purchase property, and of students, labourers and contractors travelling to Delhi (ibid.).
With respect to emigration, the IND, citing the 2000 Department of State Report on Human Rights Practices and a 2000 Danish Immigration Service fact-finding mission Report, noted
Under the Passports Act 1967, the Government may deny a passport to any applicant who 'may or is likely to engage outside India in activities prejudicial to the sovereignty and integrity of India.' The Government uses this provision to prohibit the foreign travel of some government critics, especially those advocating Sikh independence and members of the separatist movement in Jammu and Kashmir. Indian citizens may emigrate without restriction (IND 2001).
Internally Displaced Persons
As reported by AFP on 7 January 2002, the exodus from Kashmir continues "amid fears of a full-scale conflict breaking out" between India and Pakistan and "60,000 people have reportedly fled their [Kashmir] homes." Previously, the United States Committee for Refugees (USCR) country report on India estimated that
As many as 350,000 Kashmiris, mostly Hindu Pandits, have been displaced since 1990 as a result of long-standing conflict in Kashmir. ... Some 250,000 displaced Kashmiris are living in or near the city of Jammu, both in camps for the displaced and in their own homes. An estimated 100,000 Kashmiris are displaced elsewhere in India, primarily in the New Delhi area (2001).
The SATP reports that official Indian records indicate that there are 216,820 "migrants" in Jammu and another 143,000 in Delhi (2001). Thus far, the Indian government has not officially recognized those displaced in the Kashmir conflict as internally displaced persons (IDPs), but refers to them as migrants (Global IDP Project 30 Jul. 2001, 65; ibid. 14 Dec. 2000, 56; USCR 2000). In Forced Migration, Mahendra P. Lama notes that
Estimating the number of IDPs in India is problematic. Regular monitoring is not possible in such a huge country, which lacks a central authority responsible for coordinating data from central and state governments. ... Political sensitivities at state level prevent release of data on the exact nature and extent of displacement (Aug. 2000, 24).
The USCR noted in 2000 that of New Delhi's
some 21,000 displaced Hindu Pandit families (100,000 people) [a majority] are dispersed throughout the city, living mostly in private accommodations, though some 2,000 to 3,000 continue to live in 14 camps for the displaced.
Of those initially displaced to camps in the Jammu region, "many obtained rented accommodation in Jammu or Dehli or moved elsewhere in India or abroad" (ibid.). The SATP reports further that "[m]any of those registered at the [Jammu and Delhi] camps have also been dispersed according to the exigencies of employment and opportunities for education, trade or business" (2001).
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
Agence France Presse (AFP). 7 January 2002. Pratap Chakravarty. "Kashmir Village Stays Put as India, Pakistan Armies Face Off." (NEXIS)
Amnesty International (AI). 21 March 2000. "India: Human Lives Must Not Become Pawns on a Political Chessboard."
Associated Press (AP). 17 February 2002. Binoo Joshi. "Suspected Islamic Militants Kill 8."
BBC. 21 January 2002. Mahmud Ali. "Kashmir Family 'Killed by Militants'"
_____. 1 January 2002. "Hindus Killed in Kashmir."
The Daily Excelsior [Jammu]. 6 February 2001. "Chattisinghpora Picket Attacked: SOG Sringar Nabs 7 Ultras."
Dawn [Lahore]. 2 January 2002. "15 Killed in Kashmir Violence."
Forced Migration Review. August 2000. No. 8. Mahendra P. Lama. "Internal Displacement in India: Causes, Protection and Dilemmas," 24-26.
Global IDP Project. 30 July 2001. "Profile of Internal Displacement: India." Norwegian Refugee Council/Global IDP Project. Geneva.
_____. 14 December 2000. "Profile of Internal Displacement: India." Norwegian Refugee Council/Global IDP Project. Geneva.
_____. 2001. "Hindu Pandits Do Not Foresee Return to Kashmir (2001)."
Hindustan Times [New Delhi]. 19 April 2000. Arun Joshi. "Migration of Sikhs from Valley Begins."
Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND), Home Office, UK. April 2001. India: Country Assessment.
The Independent [London]. 22 January 2002. Peter Popham. "Militants Kill 11 Villagers Near the Kashmir Border." (NEXIS)
Le Monde Diplomatique [Paris, English Edition]. January 2002. Roland-Pierre Paringaux. "The Vale of Sorrows: Ordinary Villagers."
The New York Times. 16 January 2002. Somini Sengupta. "Fear and Flight in Deadly Kashmir." (NEXIS)
Rediff.com. 17 January 2002. Onkar Singh. "Dhindsa Concerned About Sikhs' Security in Kashmir."
Reuters. 17 February 2002. Sheikh Mushtaq. "Kashmir Violence Leaves Fourteen Dead."
_____. 21 January 2002. Sanjeev Niglani and Simon Denyer. "Pakistan Plays Down War Fear as 21 Die in Kashmir."
South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP). 2002a. "South Asia Terrorism Portal"
_____. 2002b. "The Institute for Conflict Management- An Inttroduction"
_____. 2001. "Jammu and Kashmir Assessment- Year 2001." The SATP is a project sponsored by "[t] he Institute for Conflict Management [which] is a non-Profit Society set up in 1997 in New Delhi, and is committed to the continuous evaluation and resolution of problems of internal security in South Asia. The Institute was set up on the initiative of, and is presently headed by, its President, Mr. K.P.S. Gill, IPS (Retd) (SATP 2002b). "The South Asia Terrorism Portal (www.satp.org) was launched in March 2000, with an initial 1,921 pages of data and information. By early 2002, this database had already grown to over 7,000 pages (SATP 2002a). The Tribune [Chandigarh, India]. 17 January 2002. Ehsan Fazili. "Operations Add to Kashmiris' Woes." United States Committee for Refugees (USCR), Washington, DC. 2001. "Country Report: India." _____. 2000. "Displacement from Kashmir." Additional Sources Consulted Forced Migration Review 1998-2001 International Migration 1996-2001 International Migration Review 1997-2001 Journal of Refugee Studies 1999-2001 Journal of South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies 1998-2001 Nationalities Papers 1999-2001 Netherlands Quarterly of Human Rights 1999-2001 Refugee Survey Quarterly 1999-2001 Internet sites including Amnesty International Brookings Project on Internal Development Forum Asia Global Internal Displacement Project Database Human Rights Watch Indo-American Kashmir Forum Rediff Refugee Studies Program [Oxford] Tribune [ Chandigarh] UNHCR US Committee for Refugees Virtual Homeland of Kashmir Pandits Search Engines Google.com Yahoo.com
