Indian military is inflicting blinding as collective punishment on Kashmiris.
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By Atta Rasool Malik
06/11/2016 in Islamabad
Life goes on even through natural calamities and man made disasters like civil wars and occupations. However, the color and taste of such living is often heart breaking. I am talking about the current state of life in Indian administered Jammu and Kashmir. In such like areas, one also comes across families whose life virtually freezes/stuck when their loved ones are denied to live or severely disabled. These are mostly mothers and fathers who relate subsequently all their life events from the signposts of brutal past. Their calendar changes, point of reference changes. They can’t forget their loved ones even in their routine conversations. Like, Aleezah married two year earlier to death of Junaid. I started this job an year after death of Junaid. When my 13 years old daughter Aleezah got blinded due to pellet guns of Indians security forces; the year when Burhan Wani was killed in Kashmir.
The death of Burhan Wani, a young Kashmiri freedom fighter is also a similar event. As it shook the entire besieged valley of Indian Occupied Kashmir. People stood firm to shun the yoke of slavery from their oppressors but innocent Kashmiris don’t know they are fighting the racist Hindu beast. If not tagged for a hate speech, am sorry to narrate what is a common saying in subcontinent; Indians are good servants but very bad masters. Pellet Guns usually made for animal hunting are being brutally used to disperse the unarmed protesters which have caused hundreds of youth to lose their eyesight. U.S journalist ELLEN BARRY, covers South Asia for The New York Times, visited Shri Ram Hospital Srinagar and interviewed doctors and blind victims of Kashmir. She tells that people in Kashmir remember year 2016 ‘the year of blind eyes’.
Today, India under BJP is undergoing a very difficult phase; theocracy, ultra-religious nationalism, use of proxies and non-state actors. Minorities are disgraced and their place of worship bulldozed. Sikhs are oppressed in Punjab and Kashmiris are denied what was promised to them by past congress leaders. India will surely implode and fragmented maximum by next decade if current policies continued but before it reaches to that point millions of people will suffer and humanity shamed. Today, a known mass murderer and racist tea boy, Modi is the elected leader of 1.10 Billion people. What else is the proof that common sense in the secular India of Gandhi has vanished and collective wisdom of the nation evaporated?
On-going International alignment and realignment of nations, in defence and opposition to unipolar world, are not likely to put pressure on India to resolve this long standing humanitarian issue. Many nations of the world, media channels and leading newspapers are also mesmerized by the vast Indian market and their embedded economic interests. Nations selling military hardware to India are not ready to annoy Modi government. The Kashmir’s major stakeholder, advocate and supporter Pakistan is also not in a good shape.
Pakistan suffers from terrorism in different parts of the country along with political instability and corruption, weak state institutions and poor diplomacy. Such fault lines of Pakistan also weaken the cause of hapless Kashmiris. Kashmir is unresolved agenda of partition of subcontinent. The Afro-American President Mr. Obama, the symbol of intellect and fair play, even failed in giving any relief to the Kashmiris. If woes of Kashmiris could not be soothed by Obama administration; what we can expect from Ms. Hilary Clinton or another racist Donald trump?
Around 600 million people of India are middle class and have reasonably good purchasing power and they are source of attraction for multinational companies and big vendors to invest. But very few know and ponder that remaining; over 400 million people are left to go in open for toilet and aren’t blessed with 2 times meal a day. Should such a government aspire to purchase ‘Rafael’ the French bombers to satisfy its ego? Its rulers would achieve nothing except adding further misery and poverty to its own people. India cannot fight and win against china. Its economy cannot equate that of Chinese economy? India cannot undo Pakistan or treat it like Bangladesh or Nepal.
Pakistan army has recently defeated the RAW sponsored and funded Taliban mercenaries in its tribal areas and has unquestionable consent of the nation to use even nukes against Indian threat if it again tries to repeat 1971 tragedy? India should learn to accept the ground realities. It should genuinely make peace with Pakistan and should be willing to give Pakistan a fair share and even then it would be a winner. India should behave worthy of its landmass and respect the diversity of its own people. Why should Narendra Modi Hinduize everyone when one third of its population is non-Hindu? A theocratic Pakistan may survive but India will surely disintegrate because of its typical demography.
Maltreatment of Muslims in general and Kashmiris in particular must come to an end. It is a sizable population and India is fortunate that this large body is not radicalized yet. The role of ISIS is almost over in Middle East as designed by its inventors. It has devastated the Middle East. Oil wealth of Muslims is well under control of western powers and there is no one to look into the eyes of Israel. The so called International terror group would soon be jobless. The next destination for sure is somewhere in South Asia. India might find spill over of these Jihadis. Indian atrocities /RSS will radicalize the Indian Muslim community sooner or later and would expedite the fragmentation of India.
Instrument of accession of Kashmir to India by Hari Singh was rejected by people of Kashmir and they will confirm it through their right of self-determination in a near time to come. India must hold plebiscite in Kashmir to ensure its credibility and ambition to become a great nation worthy of Security Council. The present uprising in Kashmir is indigenous and should be seriously viewed by the international community. It’s in the best interest of peace and harmony in the world. Permanent members of Security Council are supposed to be the custodians of peace in the world. It is therefore their moral obligation to ensure an end to Kashmiris’ suffering and ensure an early plebiscite as promised in U.N resolutions on the issue.
Indian media is busy twisting stories, portraying stone thrower youth dangerous than occupation forces. Their theme/line is unfortunately salable because of prevailing Islamophobia crafted through anti-Islamist groups like ISIS. Ultra nationalist Indian media may continue to project an image of shining India but large number of Kashmiri youth whose eyes have been blinded, for a very long time, will keep reminding independent visitors to Kashmir valley of illegal occupation of the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
The author is currently pursuing PhD in International Relations and can be reached at: attarasul@hotmail.com
Related links
- Scarred by pellets, Kashmir girls face uncertain future - Azad Essa & Rifat Fareed (ALJazeera)
- An Epidemic of ‘Dead Eyes’ in Kashmir as India Uses Pellet Guns on Protesters (NewYorkTimes) http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/29/world/asia/pellet-guns-used-in-kashmir-protests-cause-dead-eyes-epidemic.html
