[Reader-list] First Posting:Shrinking Public Spaces in a City of Bunkers

[basharat peer]

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First Posting

Shrinking Public Spaces in a City of Bunkers

Dear Friends,

I am an independent Kashmiri journalist living in Sringar.Having grown up with the conflict I found myself thinking of ways in which it has changed both Kashmir and Kashmiris as a people.Here I attempt to share with you the story of my city:Srinagar. It houses torture chambers, graveyards and prisons. And the city and its residents are the prisoners of an unending war.Bunkers and armoured military vehicles have become a part of the landscape like the willows and the chinars.

Throughout the conflict, Srinagar has physically expanded its horizons as new neighbourhoods spring on its outskirts. But the space accessible to an individual has been shrinking with every blast, every encounter. Be it an old fort, an ancient temple, a library or a mosque the reasons of security limit the movement; visible and invisible ‘no entry’ signs make various parts of the city alien to its residents. 

And in the accessible spaces like restaurants and parks an invisible gaze, an unseen ear eavesdrops. Voices lower their tones and bodies try to be invisible. Young couples find moments of romantic refuge in cramped cubicles of cyber cafes as the Khaki clad policemen establish moral codes of conduct on its streets. Srinagar does not seem a city anymore.

I propose to explore this shrinking of public spaces in the backdrop of a conflict. How it affects the local traditions and how the people invent new ways of getting around these physical and mental barriers? What is lost and what is found in this process? I also attempt to discover the ways the older generation, which saw a pre-conflict Srinagar, perceive their relationship to what Srinagar has become.
And try to find out how the youth who grew up looking at their city as a city of bunkers, look at the city’s pasts they inherited through the collective memory.

I am exploring Srinagar on foot, in a car, on a local bus. Eat in its restaurants; surf in its cyber cafes; visit its colleges and libraries; loiter in its parks and visit its Sufi shrines, its Hindu temples and Buddhists stupas. And am trying to find out how they stand and how they are seen now. 

My methods are that of a participant observer and investigative journalist. I also intend to rely on historical research. I would be making audio recordings and intend to capture the images of the city on camera.

For the obvious reasons of “security”, any kartographic efforts would not be possible, but will try to collect maps of Srinagar from various libraries and museums. It will be an effort to understand and explain Srinagar beyond the headlines and newspaper pictures- a resident’s verbal portrait of certain facets of his city. I would keep you posted and hope to hear from friends interested in this story.

Best,
Basharat Peer,
Independent Journalist,
Srinagar, Kashmir
basharatpeer at rediffmail.com