Khurram Parvez is a

Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to: * People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir * Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley * Kashmiri language, the language of the Kashmiris ethnic group People with the nam ...

human rights activist A human rights defender or human rights activist is a person who, individually or with others, acts to promote or protect human rights. They can be journalists, environmentalists, whistleblowers, trade unionists, lawyers, teachers, housing campai ...

. He is the chairperson of Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) and the program coordinator of Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society. Khurram is a recipient of the 2006

Reebok Human Rights Award The Reebok Human Rights Award honoured activists under the age of thirty who fought for human rights through non-violent means. Each year, the award was given to four or five individuals. Each received a grant of US $50,000 that was to be used to ...

. Parvez was included in ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

''s annual list of the 100 most influential people in 2022.

Education and work

Parvez holds a Masters in Mass Communication from Kashmir University. He was a

Chevening Chevening House () is a large country house in the parish of Chevening in Kent, England. Built between 1617 and 1630 to a design reputedly by Inigo Jones and greatly extended after 1717, it is a Grade I listed building. The surrounding gardens, ...

Fellow at

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

in 2005. He co-founded Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS) along with

Parvez Imroz Parvez Imroz is a Kashmiri human rights lawyer and a civil rights activist in Srinagar, the summer capital of the Jammu and Kashmir, India. He is the founder and President of the Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS) that works t ...

in 2000, and serves as its program coordinator. JKCCS works on building alliances among local civil society organizations and publishes reports on human rights violations in the territory. He serves as the Chairperson of Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances and the Deputy Secretary-General of the

International Federation for Human Rights The International Federation for Human Rights (; FIDH) is a non-governmental federation for human rights organizations. Founded in 1922, FIDH is the third oldest international human rights organization worldwide after Anti-Slavery International ...

. He holds the position of Distinguished Scholar at the Political Conflict, Gender and People’s Rights Initiative at the University of California, Berkeley's Center for Race and Gender. In 2023, Parvez was awarded the

Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders The Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, sometimes called "the Nobel Prize for human rights", is an annual prize for human rights defenders. It was created in 1993 to honour and protect individuals around the world who demonstrate except ...

Detentions

2016 arrest

On 14 September 2016, he was first stopped by Indian authorities at

New Delhi airport Indira Gandhi International Airport is the primary international airport serving New Delhi, the capital of India, and the National Capital Region (NCR). The airport, spread over an area of ,

to prevent him from attending the 33rd UN Human Rights Council Session in Geneva to brief UN bodies, including the

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is a department of the United Nations Secretariat that works to promote and protect human rights that are guaranteed under international law and stipulated in the Univer ...

, and foreign governments on the alleged atrocities committed by Indian state forces in

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory since 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered by India as a state from 1952 to 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (prin ...

during 2016 Kashmir violence. Parvez was later arrested on 15 September by Indian officials from his home in

Srinagar Srinagar (; ) is a city in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute is supported by the tertiary ...

. Later on 16 September 2016, Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society stated that Khurram Parvez has been detained without formal arrest or notifications, and in violation of his rights to information, and legal counsel. On 21 September, a day after a sessions court ordered his release, Khurram Parvez had been detained a second time under Public Safety Act (PSA). On 25 Nov 2016, Jammu Kashmir High Court quashed his detention, even then he was not released from prison. After 76 days of detention, on 30 November he was finally released from prison following the orders of

Jammu and Kashmir High Court The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh is the common high court for union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. It was established as the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir on 26 March 1928 by the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir. The s ...

Cases under UAPA

Parvez was arrested on November 22, 2021 by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). In this case, Parvez was accused of being part of a "larger conspiracy" that involved recruiting overground workers for

Lashkar-e-Taiba Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) is a Pakistani Islamism, Islamist militant organization driven by a Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist ideology. The organisation's primary stated objective is to merge the whole of Kashmir with Pakistan. It was founded in 19 ...

, a Pakistan-based organization designated as a terrorist group by India. His home and office were raided. In March 2023, Parvez was arrested in another case, nearly two and a half years after the FIR was filed, although he had already been detained since November 2021. Journalist Irfan Mehraj, alleged Hizbul Mujahideen commander Ghulam Hassan Ganai, JKCCS president

, and Natasha Rather, a member of the JKCCS, have also been accused in this case which was filed on 18 October 2020. As part of the evidence, the NIA referenced two human rights reports published by JKCCS, titled "Structures of Violence" (2015) and the "Torture Report" (2019), arguing that these reports promoted secessionism and harmed India’s image under the guise of human rights work.

Reactions to arrest

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

reported that his arrest "caused global outrage amid calls for his release." His arrest has been seen as a part of the authorities' ongoing human rights violations in Kashmir and criticized by several international human rights organizations. Some lawyers have voiced concerns, suggesting that treating Human Rights reports published by JKCCS as evidence of terrorism could deter other groups from investigating and reporting on human rights abuses. Civicus, an international non-profit, has stated that Parvez "has faced systematic harassment" because of his work.

Personal life

Parvez is married to Sameena Khurram and has a son.

References

Bibliography

* Listening to Grasshoppers: Field Notes on Democracy * Kashmir: The Case for Freedom {{DEFAULTSORT:Parvez, Khurram Kashmiri human rights activists People from Jammu and Kashmir Living people People from Srinagar Alumni of the University of Glasgow Prisoners and detainees of India 1977 births Date of birth missing (living people)