Human Rights
‘We should not tolerate suppression’, Harvard University campaigns for release of alumnus Shah Faesal
Harvard University’s paper has urged the students to support the campaign seeking the release of its alumnus and ex-IAS officer-turned-politician Shah Faesal.
The Varsity’s paper has noted that “Harvard University is a champion of the basic principles of democracy such as freedom of expression and due process of law. We as a community, should not tolerate suppression of civil and political rights through arbitrary detentions of voices of dissent, especially that of our students and alumni.”
“As members of the Harvard community, we should defend, support and empower young leaders who wage battles against unfair systems,” the paper says.
It has called for support to the release of the Harvard student, Shah Faesal, and asked people to join social media campaign #FreeShahFaesal.
The paper has asked students to write to the Prime Minister of India and ask for the release of Faesal, and asked students to talk to State Representatives and Senators about raising the issue of arbitrary detentions of non-violent dissenters in India.
A report in The Citizen, official newspaper of the Harvard Kennedy School, published on Monday, says, “HKS student Shah Faesal was detained in India in August 2019 from Delhi airport on his way to resume his studies here. His life has been remarkable in many ways. Hailing from Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) in India, he witnessed his father, a teacher, killed by gunmen. Yet, he resorted to peace rather than violence. He was the first Kashmiri to top the prestigious All India Civil Services exam. As a government servant, he was the pride of Kashmir and a symbol of hope to youth across the state – inspiring young people to believe that there are nonviolent, legal channels to bring peace into their lives.”
In 2018, Faesal was enrolled in the Mid-Career MPA program at HKS as a Fulbright Scholar. Simultaneously, he set up a political party – the Jammu Kashmir People’s Movement – in Jan 2019 and quit the civil services.
The report says the J&K PSA allows the State to detain a person without trial for 2 years, which is in itself a violation of Article 11 of the universal declaration of human rights (UDHR) where a person needs to be perceived as innocent until proven guilty.
“He has been detained since August 2019. Nine months have passed now. On May 13, 2020, his detention was extended again for another 3 months,” the report added.
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