Pattern of Arbitrary Restrictions of Kashmiri Journalists and Scholars: NWMI
Image credit: The Pulitzer Prizes
The Network of Women in Media (NWMI) has condemned the refusal of the Indian immigration authorities to allow Kashmiri photojournalist Sanna Irshad Mattoo to travel abroad.
The Pulitzer award-winning photojournalist was to take a flight to Paris when she was stopped in Delhi “despite holding a valid visa”, due to the “restrictions” imposed by the Jammu and Kashmir Police. Mattoo had taken to Twitter on July 2 to give details of this incident.
The statement by the NWMI said: “Regrettably, a pattern has emerged whereby many Kashmiri journalists and scholars are being subjected to arbitrary travel restrictions and put on ‘no-fly list’ without reasons or even information given to them. This is a violation of their dignity, self-respect and right to mobility.”
“The latest episode involving Mattoo comes in the midst of what appears to be a nationwide crackdown on journalists and activists, the most alarming instances being the arrests of activist-journalist Teesta Setalvad and the co-founder of the fact-checking website Alt News, Mohammed Zubair, just in the past week,” it further read.
The NWMI has appealed to the Indian government to let Mattoo travel internationally without any restrictions and demanded that she be compensated for the inconvenience caused.
Read the full statement here.
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