Shujaat Bukhari
Shujaat Bukhari was a human rights defender working for justice and peace in Kashmir Valley in the state of Jammu & Kashmir in India. He was a prominent journalist and editor-in-chief of the english language daily newspaper Rising Kashmir. Shujaat Bukhri was instrumental in organising peace conferences in Kashmir and was part of secondary diplomacy initiatives between India and Pakistan. He advocated for a revival of the Kashmiri language in educational and literary establishments in Kashmir.
Human rights defenders in India face a diverse range of attacks and harassment from state and non-state actors alike, including killing, physical assault, arbitrary detention, threats and judicial harassment. Police officials are often the perpetrators of violence against HRDs, which is usually carried out with impunity. Armed groups and private companies also target HRDs for work related to economic development projects and their impact on the local communities or the environment. HRDs are increasingly the targets of online smear campaigns by radical nationalists.
