Separatist strike shuts down Indian-controlled Kashmir

Separatist strike shuts down Indian-controlled Kashmir

2011-01-16 12:38:15 GMT+7 (ICT)

SRINAGAR, KASHMIR (BNO NEWS) - The Valley of Indian-controlled Kashmir was shut down on Saturday after a strike called by a separatist alliance, the Kashmir Dispatch reported.

The pro-freedom alliance Hurriyat Conference called the strike to protest against the alleged arrests of separatist leaders and youth in the region.

The chairman of the conference, Syed Ali Shah Geelani, urged people to observe complete shutdown "against the arrest of pro-freedom leaders and youth and the use of brute force on our children by police and other paramilitary forces," the newspaper reported.

All shops, business establishments, financial institutions, and private offices remained closed, although the participation at government offices remained thin. Vehicular traffic was also disrupted with public transport off the roads.

Groups of young people staging pro-freedom and anti-India demonstrations hurled rocks and clashed with paramilitary personnel and police which were deployed in advance. Police, however, said that the situation remained largely peaceful in the entire Kashmir Valley and that no injuries were reported.

Separatists in the region have been demanding the withdrawal of Indian military forces and the end of New Delhi's rule in the region. On Friday, Minister for Home Affairs P. Chidambaram announced a 25 percent troop reduction from Jammu and Kashmir.

Geelani responded: "The real issue that matters to Kashmiris is the presence of Indian occupation, which would last until the last Indian soldier remains on the soil of Kashmir. Therefore, our demand is that India should give up its rhetoric of Jammu and Kashmir being its atoot-ang (integral part), accept the state's disputed status, and announce a complete withdrawal of its forces. Then it won't matter if India goes for 25 percent troop reduction or more in the first phase," he said, as cited by the newspaper.

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