[Reader-list] Life is cheap in Kashmir

[Pawan Durani]

Dear Anupam ,


You can not have a speed breaker on a Highway , no matter how many
people die because of accidents.

Regards

A Highway Authority lobbyist

On Thu, Jul 2, 2009 at 1:50 PM, anupam chakravartty<c.anupam at gmail.com> wrote:
> "To relate every such Justice, campaign with stone throwing and abusing the
> brave Jawans, is equally insane. This will get them no JUSTICE. Violence
> will only give them more violence in return."
> Dear all,
> I think the above statement by Aditya shows how many of us (i am trying to
> address the larger whole instead of categorically pointing out the Panun
> Kashmir lobby which has been actively putting these issues on the forefront)
> look at kashmir or for that matter any conflict zone in the nation, be it
> Lalgarh, Warangal, Churachandpur, Diphu, Deesa and recently Shopian. Jawans
> of Indian forces operating in Kashmir are brave, on the right side of the
> conflict, their actions: unquestionable. This argument has been also applied
> to north east, which obviously has a different set of issues in terms of
> conflicts, in terms of political aspirations. Although in case of Indian or
> Indian forces and people who decide on their deployment, use force as the
> last means quell conflicts. However, all these efforts to quell such
> resistance (Kargil War is not included here merely because a direct role of
> Pakistani forces has been reportedly established) have been disastrous. Mobs
> in Gujarat or mobs in Shopian or even the organised Maoist resistance
> Lalgarh are going to be the same -- ruthless, cunning and even merciless. To
> digress a little, we are yet to know what happened in Karbi Anglong in 2005
> or 2006 when karbis and dimasas fought each and within days there was more
> blood on the fields than waters -- unfortunately very was heard within
> Indian media or in the corridors of power centres. All we know about Karbi
> Anglong is that indian security forces have captured the banned Black Widow
> leader, Jewel Garlossa from Bangalore and the first train reached Haflong
> after two months of rail blockade. ( I am sure Garlossa knew that by calling
> his outfit Black Widow if not for anything else such as Dimasa Liberation
> Front will give him that kind publicity which he always wanted) The imagined
> bottomline that once the wheel has been turned, no matter how peaceful the
> foundations of a resistance is, it bound to become violent persists.
> However, whenever demands were made from different corners of this larger
> Indian whole, there were people within these quarters divided about the use
> of violent means.
> Cut back to Indian Paramilitary Jawan posted a checkpoint near Rangiya
> Cantonment of Assam Rifles, barely 30 kilometers from Guwahati. Besides
> being brave and other such things, he also has a family, probably a little
> bit of his kheti-baadi in some village near Uttar Pradesh or Punjab or
> Haryana. His folks sent him to paramilitary because it is a matter of honour
> to serve your country, protect the nation. In their imagination, this brave
> jawan of a son, the son of the soil, of the tiller of the earth is fighting
> for his land, protecting his people. Certainly, it is a matter of pride. And
> now he stands guard to keep a look out for enemies -- who are terrorists,
> extremists, militants, for some revolutionaries, guerillas, organised
> criminals, freedom fighters, you name them. They have already infiltrated,
> very much within the system, in fact these enemies are part of the system of
> governance. they are angry, discontent lot, loosers if you want to call
> them, unemployed (looking for work but not just a job), an outcaste -- no
> matter how much you want to convince them, they will have their way. they
> will keep killing. even the ones who have surrendered, save for a few, rest
> all of them just dont want to exist but want to become the centres of power.
> This jawan is not politically aspirational, he is brave enough to face a
> bullet and die or kill some of them. His bravery lasts for a few seconds,
> remembered for many years. By bravery, I only meant the Jawan's bravery. Not
> those four youths, who are armed with two carbines stolen from a local
> police station as the local cops quickly agreed to their demands. Now, they
> are advancing towards their same outpost where our brave Jawan guards. in a
> succession of few seconds, the pillion riders from hurl two or three
> objects, towards them as both the riders clench the fists to apply brakes.
> the moment these objects touch the ground close to the checkpost is the same
> moment when other Jawan, the brave one could not even shout, so that at
> least one of them could be not saved. such are these deaths that even brave
> men would fear for they may not have a split second to be what they are
> supposed to be. this was Assam in 1990s. They were not meant to die like
> this. These four youths, instead were considered brave within their
> community or their ranks. Please note that i am not dwelling on the premise
> a terrorist could a freedom fighter as well.
> So how does one sort these disparate yet significant crises of our times. It
> lies in answering the questiong as to Why do we have to link all forms of
> resistance (armed or unarmed) to a larger and more sinister, terrorism? Is
> it because while quelling these forms of resistance we need to first
> categorise them in certain ways so for the administrative hubris it becomes
> easier ? The negotiations that have between the resistance leaders and the
> government  -- are they published? Is it only about freeing other men from
> captivity? Do we like living under the shadow of the gun?
> What makes you say, Aditya, that "Violence will only give them more violence
> in return". Are you saying it from the point of view of a jawan who, even if
> we decorate him with medals and honours dies like an innocent lamb after
> these unruly mobs, the cunning of a guerilla unit attack him out of the
> blue? Is this brave Jawan happy with his recent posting in poverty stricken
> belt with the locals up in arms against not this Jawan but who he
> represents? And the remedial measure is what -- violence. for the mere
> reason that the grounds for negotiation, the atmosphere for bilateral talks
> or for working out a strategy to rehabilitate these people is not conducive
> enough and therefore violence?
> Lastly, how many deaths on particular junction of a road does it take for
> the administration to set up a speed breaker, traffic signal or flyover?
> precisely how many?
> i hope my questions would be answered some day.
> -thanks anupam
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