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Mukhtar Ahmad in Srinagar
Ashiq Hussain, all of three-years-old, left his hometown Handwara in northern Kupwara district on Wednesday, with his mother Dilshada, to erect a memorial for his missing father he has never seen.
Hundreds of others, whose dear ones had gone 'missing', were also leaving their homes for the same purpose.
The monument is being built by the Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons, which said that between 3000 and 4000 people between the age group of 17-40 are missing in Kashmir since 1990 when militancy erupted in Kashmir.
Hussain was born a few days before his father was taken away by security personnel in civilian clothes from the main bus stand at Batmallo, with the assurance that he will be freed within minutes.
"We want to talk to him only for few minutes, you wait here," the cops told his wife Dilshada.
"I waited for several hours and he never returned. Later I returned to Handwara with my son," said Dilshada wiping her tears.
"We have so far documented 500 cases of missing persons," said the leading Kashmir lawyer Parvez Imroze, who is a founder member of the APDP.
"By building this monument, we have a simple message for the future generations and the rest of the world: never, never, never again will we allow our community to bleed this way," said Imroze.
Zahir-Ud-Din, another founder member, said that the association is campaigning for 'stopping this inhuman practice, repealing of impunity laws and taking the perpetrators to justice'.
Fayaz Ahmad Beigh, a photographer in the Kashmir University, was picked by the special operations group of the state police from his office in broad day light on September 6, 1997.
His father said that the police admitted his arrest, but later told him that he had run away from their custody.
He said an enquiry ordered by the deputy home minister confirmed the arrest of Fayaz.
"I later approached the state human rights commission. The commission chairman ordered the payment of Rs 500000 and also the registration of a case again SOG Pulwama. The report was sent to the state government and till date no action has been taken, " he added.
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