UN chief asks India to end use of pellet guns on Kashmir children

Indian forces have extensively used shotgun pellets to subdue Kashmiri protesters, many of them young men and teenagers.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has expressed concern over “grave violations” in Indian-administered Kashmir and has asked the Indian government to end the use of shotgun pellets against children. “I call upon the government to take preventive measures to protect children, including by ending the use of pellets against children, ensuring that children are not associated in any way to security forces, and endorsing the Safe Schools Declaration and the Vancouver Principles,” he said in the UN Report on Children 2021 (PDF). “A total of 39 children (33 boys, 6 girls) were killed (9) and maimed (30) by pellet guns (11) and torture (2) by unidentified perpetrators (13) (including resulting from explosive remnants of war (7), crossfire between unidentified armed groups and Indian security forces (3), crossfire between unidentified armed groups, and grenade attacks (3), Indian security forces (13), and crossfire and shelling across the Line of Control (13),” said the UN report, referring to the de facto border that divides Kashmir region between India and Pakistan.