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PoJK Activist Slams Rally for Yasin Malik as Militant-Civil Rights Blur

Amjad Ayub Mirza, a PoJK activist, has strongly condemned a protest rally in Muzaffarabad demanding the release of jailed JKLF leader Yasin Malik. He specifically criticized the participation of civil rights leader Shaukat Nawaz Mir, calling it a dangerous convergence that weaponizes legitimate activism. Mirza alleges this fits a pattern by Pakistan's security establishment to redirect local governance dissent into outward militant narratives. He warns this undermines genuine reform and revives a harmful discourse of violence.

Key Points: PoJK Activist Condemns Rally for Jailed Yasin Malik

  • Condemns rally for jailed militant
  • Warns of blurring civil rights and militancy
  • Criticizes civil leader's participation
  • Alleges pattern by Pakistan's establishment
2 min read

PoJK activist Amjad Ayub Mirza condemns Muzaffarabad rally seeking Yasin Malik's release

Amjad Ayub Mirza condemns a Muzaffarabad rally demanding Yasin Malik's release, warning of a dangerous merger of civil rights and militancy.

"By sharing a platform with a JKLF leader whose actions contributed to decades of bloodshed, the civil rights movement has been reframed, weaponised and delegitimised. - Amjad Ayub Mirza"

London, February 2

Political activist from Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Amjad Ayub Mirza, condemned the participation of civil rights leader Shaukat Nawaz Mir in a protest rally held in Muzaffarabad demanding the release of jailed JKLF leader Yasin Malik, calling it a dangerous convergence of civil rights activism and militant politics.

In a video statement, Mirza said the rally marked a deeply troubling moment for the civil rights discourse in PoJK, noting that Yasin Malik is currently imprisoned in India following convictions related to terrorism and crimes against civilians.

Mirza expressed strong disapproval of the presence and speech of Shaukat Nawaz Mir, leader of the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), at the rally. He said that Shaukat Nawaz Mir, who had previously led a large-scale civil rights movement in PoJK, publicly declared during the rally that it was now the responsibility of JAAC to raise the issue of Yasin Malik.

"Until recently, this individual was leading the largest civil rights movement in PoJK, mobilising thousands of people on issues of governance and rights. However, when a rally was called for Yasin Malik, only a few dozen people attended," Mirza said.

According to Mirza, the episode reflects a deliberate attempt to blur the distinction between civil rights advocacy and political militancy in PoJK.

He stressed that civil rights movements are built on moral clarity, inclusiveness and universal principles, whereas militant political movements rely on polarisation and the romanticisation of violence.

"By sharing a platform with a JKLF leader whose actions contributed to decades of bloodshed, the civil rights movement has been reframed, weaponised and delegitimised," he added.

Mirza further alleged that the development fits a long-standing pattern employed by Pakistan's security establishment in PoJK, including allowing public anger over misgovernance to grow, channelling it through civil movements, and later injecting militant narratives to redirect dissent outward rather than towards local accountability.

He said the insertion of Yasin Malik's narrative into a civil rights space undermines legitimate demands for governance reform and repackages them into what he described as an outdated militancy discourse that has already inflicted severe harm on generations of Kashmiris.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

P
Priya S
It's a very insightful analysis. For too long, the common Kashmiri's voice has been lost between these two extremes. A civil rights movement should focus on roti, kapda, makaan (food, clothing, shelter), not on freeing convicted terrorists. Their priorities seem misplaced.
R
Rohit P
The part about Pakistan's security establishment channeling public anger is spot on. Classic diversion tactic. Instead of fixing their own failed administration in PoJK, they try to point fingers elsewhere. The low turnout for the Malik rally says it all—people are tired of this.
S
Sarah B
While I agree with Mirza's main point, I think we must be careful not to dismiss all dissent in PoJK as engineered. There are real grievances there about rights and development. The challenge is to address those without legitimizing violence.
V
Vikram M
Yasin Malik is a convicted terrorist responsible for killing innocent Indians, including IAF personnel. Any movement that aligns with him loses all moral standing. Shaukat Nawaz Mir should know better. Jai Hind.
K
Kavya N
This is why development and integration are so important. When people have stakes in peace and progress, these militant narratives find no takers. Hope the people across the LOC can one day live in peace and prosperity, free from these manipulative politics.

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