POST-370 KASHMIR ADVOCACY CAMPAIGN SOCIAL MEDIA TOOLKIT: (Updated 08.13.19)

Background 3

6 general ways to get involved 4

Review guidelines for campaigning 5

Link to Daily Social Media Content 5

What you can help with right away! 6 Share our social media handles and raise awareness 6

Media Coverage on International Week of Solidarity with Kashmir 8 Coverage on NYC Protests 8 Coverage on Berlin Protests 8 General Coverage on Protests 9

Share latest credible news sources 10 Media Sources From the Week of Aug 12th 10 Human Rights Watch (HRW reports): India Needs to Step Back in Kashmir 10 Prof. Mohamad Junaid’s, interview with TRT World Now 11 NYT reports: The reporters have no access to the news wires or social media. 11 The Daily Vox reports: Why Kashmir Is Still Under Lockdown 12

Media Sources From Aug 8th - Aug 10th 13 BBC Reports: Article 370: Tear gas at Kashmir rally India denies happened 13 NYT Reports: Inside Kashmir, Cut Off From the World: ‘A Living Hell’ of Anger and Fear 13 The Quint Reports: Kashmir: Are Foreign & Indian Media Reporting on the Same Place? 14 Media Sources From the Week of Aug 5th 15 BBC reports first on ground reactions. Kashmiris say: 'We've been pushed back into medieval times' 15 BBC Reports: Article 370: What happened with Kashmir and why it matters 15 DemocracyNow! Covers Kashmir 16 Professor Ather Zia Speaks About Articles 370 and 35A on BBC World News 16 Nitasha Kaul a London based Kashmiri Pandit, academic, writer and poet speaks to BBC about Kashmir Issue 17

Script for the Indian Embassy 18

Posters for Events Happening Around the Globe 19

Recommended 10 Books to Read on Kashmir 24

Appendix 25 List of additional links to articles and news pieces for posting 25 What’s happening right now? 28 Professor Ather Zia Speaks About Articles 370 and 35A on BBC World News 28 Discussions: 29 Quick Explainers on Kashmir Dispute: 30 Suggested list of social media targets 30

Background

6 general ways to get involved

Be a part of marking our social campaign go viral! We are constantly facing backlash from negative comments to reporting our pages until it’s shut down, so it’s necessary to help build and keep momentum!

● Follow, share, and repost Stand with Kashmir’s updates with your connections. Kindly use the following mediums: ○ Website ○ Facebook ○ Twitter ○ Instagram (due to constant reporting of page, it may be temporarily down when you access) ○ Email SWK

● Change your profile pictures on social media platforms to #RedforKashmir ● Trend the hashtag #StandwithKashmir ● Share articles, photos, videos, posts, and infographics on the issue (see 10 days of activism below for guidance) ● Tag influences and human rights organizations in posts (see suggested list of targets) ● Share the news of recent atrocities on your professional and educational social platforms (see library of downloadable content) ● Keep on the lookout for updated versions of this toolkit for the latest content, images, and event updates!

Review guidelines for campaigning

● Post Mindfully! If you are using our hashtags and tagging others, stick to the messaging in this toolkit and refrain from the use of strong language, name-calling, threats of violence, and other personal commentary ● Protect your own privacy! Be mindful of posting information that you would not want the public to see. ● Respect copyright laws! You should never quote more than short excerpts of someone else's work, and always attribute such work to the original author/source. ● Avoid redundancy and message fatigue! We encourage you to use the 10 Days format by posting across social media platforms and phasing them out through the day.

Link to Daily Social Media Content This section will be updated daily. Please look out for new content!

Open Link Here

Use this content for social media posts. The content is created keeping in mind Twitter’s word limit. Feel free to share the same on other social media platforms.

What you can help with right away!

Share our social media handles and raise awareness 1. Change your display picture to color red, to show support and solidarity for Kashmir

“Going red is an expression of solidarity with the Kashmiri people who are living under complete curfew with no window or voice to the outside world. India has cut off all communication in Kashmir. No one can step out of their homes. Meanwhile, Indians are celebrating the revocation of Article 370 as a victory while Kashmiris are living in cages.”

“Going blue raised awareness of the Sudan crisis. Going red is doing the same. Social media is a critical medium of engagement globally and red being a provocative colour, is symbolic of the heightened tensions we are facing.”

“Red is the colour of our blood. Red is the colour of Kong and Chinar. Red is the colour of history. Red is all of us.”

2. Add @standwkashmir handle in your bio. For example see below.

Instagram: @standwkashmir Facebook: @StandWithKashmir Twitter: @standwkashmir

Media Coverage on International Week of Solidarity with Kashmir

Coverage on NYC Protests

1. Patch Media: Hundreds of locals gathered by the Consulate General of India building to protest the Indian government's intervention in Kashmir.

Link to Patch media’s report, Share it! Report credits, Jimin Kim

Some excerpts from this news, for quick copy paste and sharing on social media:

“Near the orange, white and green colors of the Indian flag hanging from the Consulate General of India building in New York City, hundreds of local activists on Friday, August 9 protested the Indian government's intervention in Kashmir.”

Coverage on Berlin Protests

2. Berlino Magazine: On Saturday afternoon, a peaceful protest for the freedom of Kashmir was held in Berlin Link to Berlino Magazine news, Share it! (Please note: You may need to convert this from German to English)

Some excerpts from this news, for quick copy paste and sharing on social media:

“A protestor confessed that, the last time he heard his brother by telephone, he had a trembling voice and could not speak freely because he was controlled by soldiers.”

Aamir Suhial Mir, a Kashmiri Computer Engineer in Germany says, "The objective of the protest is to ask the Indian military to withdraw from Kashmir and stop the genocide.”

3. Geo News: 'Don't know if our families are safe': occupied Kashmir diaspora in Germany worries about home Link to Geo news, Share it!

Some excerpts from this news, for quick copy paste and sharing on social media:

“A Kashmiri woman hailing from Srinagar told Geo.tv that she was unable to make contact with her family since Monday morning, unsure if her parents were even alive or not or if they had enough food available.”

“A Kashmiri protestor, Zeeshan, said he was concerned about his family's well-being and that he could not trust New Delhi's decisions. "Once India was colonised by the British, and, now, Hindu nationalist BJP-led government is trying to subjugate Kashmir," he said.”

General Coverage on Protests

4. France24 reports: Modi’s shock Kashmir move threatens India’s standing on world’s stage Link to France24 report, Share it!

Some excerpts from this news, for quick copy paste and sharing on social media:

“As India prepares to mark Independence Day on August 15, protests against PM Narendra Modi’s Kashmir status change and crackdown are set to keep the disputed territory in the spotlight. It’s a focus New Delhi would rather avoid.”

“The picturesque Himalayan region of Kashmir is dangerously contested territory, parts of it claimed by India, Pakistan and China. While the three nuclear armed nations have gone to war over territorial disputes over the past seven decades, the rights of Kashmiris and their dreams of self-determination have been

systematically sacrificed, like lambs to slaughter for the Muslim festival.”

“Outside India, protests broke out over the weekend in neighbouring Pakistan as well as outside Indian embassy and consulate buildings in Western cities such as New York, Los Angeles, London and Birmingham, home to a diaspora displaced by decades of conflict, with protesters chanting, “From Kashmir to Palestine, occupation is a crime”.”

5. For other latest videos on International Week of Solidarity with Kashmir check our Facebook Playlist News Coverage on International Week of Solidarity With Kashmir

Share latest credible news sources

Media Sources From the Week of Aug 12th

1. Human Rights Watch (HRW reports): India Needs to Step Back in Kashmir Link to HRW report, Share it!

Some excerpts from this news, for quick copy paste and sharing on social media:

“More immediately, the authorities should release political detainees, lift the communications blackout, allow proper access to media and independent observers, and order security officials to respect human rights.”

“While international law does allow governments to temporarily suspend some rights in exceptional circumstances, this cannot be allowed to become the new ‘normal.’ Unless it wants to inflame tensions in Kashmir for another generation, the Indian government needs to step back, and fast.”

2. Prof. Mohamad Junaid’s, interview with TRT World Now Mohammad Junaid is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Massachusetts College of Liberal Link to Prof. Junaid’s TRT World Interview, Share it!

3. NYT reports: The reporters have no access to the news wires or social media. “They cannot fact check anything online or make phone calls. They do their work the old-fashioned way, with notebooks and pens.” Link to NYT report, Share it!

Some excerpts from this news, for quick copy paste and sharing on social media:

Pic credits: @nytimes → Link to article “On Friday afternoon, Sameer Bhat, a newspaper designer, was preparing to report to work. As Mr. Bhat stepped outside, he said, shotgun blasts rang out. Mr. Bhat tried to cover his eyes. He was hit in the face and stumbled down.”

4. The Daily Vox reports: Why Kashmir Is Still Under Lockdown Link to Daily Vox report, Share it!!

Some excerpts from this news, for quick copy paste and sharing on social media:

Marina Sofi, an American Kashmiri says, “There are restrictions on medical and food supplies into the area. Sofi says there have been reports that the supplies are running out. Many people outside of the area are unable to get in touch with their loved ones. They can’t communicate with from the outside world.

Communications remain down with certain curfew restrictions relaxed for the Eid-ul-Adha festival.”

Media Sources From Aug 8th - Aug 10th

1. BBC Reports: Article 370: Tear gas at Kashmir rally India denies happened Link to BBC’s report, Share it!

Some excerpts from this news, for quick copy paste and sharing on social media:

“Thousands of people took to the streets in Srinagar after Friday prayers, in the largest demonstration since a lockdown was imposed in Indian-administered Kashmir.”

“The BBC witnessed the police opening fire and using tear gas to disperse the crowd. Despite that, the Indian government has said the protest never took place.”

2. NYT Reports: Inside Kashmir, Cut Off From the World: ‘A Living Hell’ of Anger and Fear Link to NYT Report, Share it!

Some excerpts from this news, for quick copy paste and sharing on social media:

“Correspondents for The New York Times got one of the first inside views of life under lockdown in Kashmir and found a population that felt besieged, confused, frightened and furious by the seismic events of this week.”

“People who ventured out said they had to beg officers to cross a landscape of sandbags, battered trucks and soldiers staring at them through metal face masks. Several residents said they had been beaten up by security forces for simply trying to buy necessities like milk”

“On Friday afternoon, witnesses said tens of thousands of peaceful demonstrators were moving through the streets of Srinagar, chanting freedom slogans and waving Kashmiri flags, when Indian forces opened fire.”

“Afshana Farooq, a 14-year-old girl, was nearly trampled in the stampede.

“We were just marching peacefully after prayers,” said her father, Farooq Ahmed, standing over her as she lay shaking in a Srinagar hospital bed. “Then they started shooting at us.” ”

“At the Lala Ded hospital, sick people had traveled more than a day to get here, only to find a skeleton crew. Many doctors couldn’t get to work. Many patients were curled up on the floor.”

“It’s a living hell here,” said Jamila, a doctor who goes by one name.”

3. The Quint Reports: Kashmir: Are Foreign & Indian Media Reporting on the Same Place? Link to The Quint’s report, Share it!

Suggested supporting text: While GOI is trying to pass a tale of normalcy, the international media is illuminating the reality of unrest in Kashmir.

Media Sources From the Week of Aug 5th

BBC reports first on ground reactions. Kashmiris say: 'We've been pushed back into medieval times'

Link to BBC’s report

BBC Reports: Article 370: What happened with Kashmir and why it matters Link to BBC’s report, Share it!

DemocracyNow! Covers Kashmir

Link to DemocracyNow’s Kashmir Coverage Link to Apple Podcast Link to Google Podcast Link to Spotify Podcast

Professor Ather Zia Speaks About Articles 370 and 35A on BBC World News

Link to Prof. Zia’s BBC Interview Also see, Link to Prof Zia’s Indus News Interview

Nitasha Kaul a London based Kashmiri Pandit, academic, writer and poet speaks to BBC about Kashmir Issue

Snippet to Nastahsa Kaul’s BBC Interview

Script for the Indian Embassy

Call the Indian Embassy today to express your outrage! #StandwithKashmir

Posters for Events Happening Around the Globe This section is updated daily. For all latest events visit our Facebook Event Page

If you are in DC, Norway, London, Detroit, Kansas City, please post the following. More cities to come! If you know a group organizing a demonstration, contact us at [email protected] and we can help you with posters/infographics!

Link to download these posters