India bars Kashmiri journalist from leaving for US to receive Pulitzer Prize

Indian authorities have barred Kashmiri journalist Sanna Irshad Mattoo from flying to the United States to receive the Pulitzer Prize.

Mattoo said on Thursday that on Tuesday night, she had been on her way to New York to attend a ceremony in which she was set to receive one of the most prestigious awards in journalism when she was barred from traveling by authorities at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in the capital, New Delhi.

The 28-year-old photojournalist was awarded the Pulitzer for her role in coverage by the news agency Reuters of India’s devastation last year during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I was on my way to receive the Pulitzer award (@Pulitzerprizes) in New York but I was stopped at immigration at Delhi airport and barred from traveling internationally despite holding a valid US visa and ticket,” Mattoo wrote on her Twitter account, attaching her airline ticket with a “cancelled without prejudice” stamp.

“Being able to attend the award ceremony was a once in a lifetime opportunity for me,” she said.

Mattoo, who lives in Srinagar, in the Indian-controlled Kashmir, and holds an Indian passport, is part of a four-member Reuters team that won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize in May for Feature Photography for their coverage of the COVID pandemic in India.

Mattoo’s other colleagues, who were going to fly to the US with her, were allowed to board the flight, The New York Times said in report, adding that her colleagues were not from Kashmir.

In a statement, Reuters expressed its dismay that “Mattoo … had not been allowed” to fly to the US “alongside her peers,” saying that it had not received any explanation from Indian authorities yet.

“We have not been offered an official explanation as to why she has not been allowed to leave the country, but we believe that journalists should be able to travel freely,” it said.

It was the second time in four months that the photojournalist was prevented from flying out of the country. Back in July, Mattoo was going to fly to Paris to take part in a book launch event and photography exhibition displaying her photos from Kashmir but she was barred by Indian authorities at the Indira Gandhi International Airport.

Journalists in Kashmir have long been under the close scrutiny of local and national authorities, who also strictly control access for reporters from other countries to visit the contested region.

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The government of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi revoked the self-autonomy of Kashmir in 2019, in a move described by neighboring Pakistan as illegal. Since then, India has imposed more internet shutdowns and other restrictions in the region.

Kashmir has been split between India and Pakistan since their partition in 1947. Both countries claim all of Kashmir in its entirety and have fought at least three wars over the territory.

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