Press Release: One Year of Curfew in Kashmir
UK charity Muslim Hands has pledged to continue supporting families in Indian-administered Kashmir who still face severe food and medical shortages, one year on since the imposed curfew. Since 5th August 2019, which marked the removal of Article 370, mass curfews have left families vulnerable and facing restrictions to leave their homes. With rates of food, transport and accommodation increasing, poor communities are still in need of urgent help to get them through the long-lasting effects of the crisis.
Since the beginning, Muslim Hands has been on the ground in Anantnag and Pulwama distributing food parcels through our Emergency Food Relief Programme and the Eid al-Adha Qurbani project, which distributed meat to 35,000 people this year. Our ambulance project and medical kits have reached over 15,000 beneficiaries, WASH projects have supported over 18,000 beneficiaries, and collectively we have supported over 84,000 individuals with vital relief.
Our next phase of work is to focus on providing access to clean water and encouraging our donors to sponsor local orphans in the area, which are vital lifelines for the people of Kashmir who continue to suffer in silence. These projects will be part of our televised appeal on Islam Channel for Wednesday 5th August 2020 7.30pm {UK time}. To find out more about Muslim Hands and the work we do, visit our website muslimhands.org.uk or call 0115 911 7222.
Yasrab Shah, Director of Fundraising Director at Muslim Hands, says:
'We would like to send our warmest thanks to our donors who have been so generous in supporting the people of Indian-administered Kashmir and have helped us raise £457,000 to provide vital aid since the start of the crisis. We are also truly grateful that we have registered partners on the ground with over 25 years of experience working in the area, ready to distribute aid household by household. With the effects of the curfew still felt one year on, there is so much more that needs to be done'.
ENDS
Notes to editors
- Established in 1993, Muslim Hands is an international aid agency and NGO which aims to be at the forefront in delivering relief from poverty, sickness and the provision of education worldwide – regardless of race, religion or gender.
- Article 370 of the Indian constitution gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, a region located in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, giving it with the power to have a separate constitution, a state flag and autonomy over the internal administration of the state.
- Muslim Hands works in over 30 countries worldwide.
- Our partners on the ground have over 25 years of experience providing aid in Indian-administered Kashmir. They have been given the permission to distribute relief in the worst affected areas door-to-door and, where possible, deliver larger distributions in more rural and remote areas.
- Muslim Hands has been working in Kashmir since 1994 with its initial project; setting up medical and ambulance services for refugees and has gone on to constructing shelters, water wells, sponsoring orphans and distributing food aid.
- We rely on voluntary donations to continue our vital work. You can donate now by calling 0115 911 7222 or visit our website muslimhands.org.uk
