A seminar titled “The Iron Lady of Jammu & Kashmir” was organized under the auspices of the Centre for Development and Stability (CDS), in which the Director General of CDS, Dr. Irfan Ashraf, participated as the chief guest. The seminar aimed to highlight and call for raising a collective voice for the plight of women in Occupied Jammu & Kashmir.
According to Kashmir Media Service, Dr. Irfan, while addressing the seminar, said that women have played a crucial role in movements around the world. If we examine the history of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, countless women from Habba Khatoon to Asiya Andrabi have played a historic role for the state.
He stated that there is a significant difference between the lives of women in Azad Kashmir and those in Occupied Kashmir, and many aspects of this can be discussed. He highlighted that the women in Occupied Jammu & Kashmir are victims of the brutality of the Indian oppressive forces.
Tragedies like Kunan Poshpora are evidence of the Indian army’s cruelty and tyranny against Kashmiri women. Thousands of women have suffered dishonor at the hands of India’s barbaric forces, including the arrest of their husbands, extrajudicial killings, and enforced disappearances, all of which are deeply painful for Kashmiri women.
Even now, many Kashmiri women, including Asiya Andrabi, are imprisoned in Indian jails. On the other hand, women in Azad Kashmir are living in a peaceful and free environment. Efforts are also being made at the governmental level to empower women in Azad Kashmir.
He emphasized that we must become the voice of the women of Occupied Jammu & Kashmir. Dr. Irfan appealed to the women participating in the seminar to raise their voices about the plight of women in Occupied Jammu & Kashmir and the serious human rights violations taking place there.
At the end of the seminar, a certificate distribution ceremony was also held for the Vocational Training Center launched with the support of Dr. Irfan and the Pehla Qadam Foundation. Chairman of Pehla Qadam Foundation Qazi Tanveer, Basheer Ullah Inqilabi, and Dr. Irfan encouraged the students.
