Amnesty International has urged the authorities to immediately release a Kashmiri Boy, Murtaza Manzoor, 17, a resident of Zaina Kadal in Srinagar, who was unlawfully detained on January 21, this year, under the draconian law, Public Safety Act (PSA), by Indian police in connection with last year’s uprising. The Amnesty International in its recent report while quoting Murtaza’s family said that they had produced substantiated documents, which clearly mentioned the age of illegally detained youth as 17 years. “His detention clearly violates UN Convention on the Rights of the Child which stipulates that such detention should be in a separate facility for children, as close as possible to his family in order to facilitate family contact,” it added.The report mentioned the inability of Murtaza’s family to meet him in Kot Bhalwal Jail Jammu where he was lodged. “Murtaza’s father is a rickshaw driver and cannot meet the expenses for jail visits and legal proceedings for his release,” the Amnesty International maintained. Pointing out the deplorable condition of prisons, it said that among a large number of Kashmiris detained by the police during last year’s massive anti-India demonstrations many were aged below 18. Amnesty International has specifically sought an amendment in the Jammu and Kashmir Juvenile Justice Act especially with respect to the age factor and that all underage prisoners be treated as juveniles.
With Amnesty International spearheading ‘ Free Murtaza’ campaign,’ the social networking sites are flooded with messages and tweets urging the puppet Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah to stick to his promise of not detaining minors under the PSA.
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