What is going on in Kashmir, why is there such escalation?
Kashmir recently has seen a massive surge of violence from armed forces especially after the death of Mujahideen Commander Burhan Wani and his fellow warriors. We must remember that these killings against Kashmiris is nothing new. It doesn’t matter how old you are, where you are from or who you know. They kill indiscriminately. Everyone. But after Burahn Wani’s martyrdom, the common people came onto the streets protesting his murder, with some sources saying 500,000 attended his funeral. Civilians protested more than just his killing, but also the ongoing occupation, injustice and war crimes being committed in Kashmir. People protest, and are killed. People protest more because of the kilings, and get killed again. It is a vicious cycle. We currently have seen nearly 60 murders in a couple of weeks and 6,000 injured, with more than half critical injuries and hundred of victims with severe pellet injuries from pellet guns. These pellets enter the body and explode into small pieces with many losing their eyesight, some have these pellets stuck in their hearts, spine, and other important internal organs. In some cases, the armed forces try to kidnap the dead bodies in the hospitals so no one knows what they did. There is complete curfew in Kashmir, which means no movement, no shops, no food, no medicine, no water, no phone, no internet and no electricity. Even ambulances are smashed and injured people in ambulances are beaten more. Hospitals are raided and guns are fired, teargas are shot and now they have begun raiding peoples homes, destroying property and arresting young children on false charges or no charges.
Are the protests going on in 6 cities of Kashmir?
The protests are going all over Kashmir, with solidarity from every district, regardless of religion. No one is safe and everyone has suffered, making people angry and protesting more.
Who is Burhan Wani, is his killing the only reason of the conflicts? What was his importance?
Burhan Wani was a mujahid who used social media to convey his message. He was the poster boy (public face) for the militancy but never actually shot a weapon or killed anyone.
You could call him a spokesperson. His story of why he became a rebel is what attracted the people of Kashmir to him, because his story is similar to every person in Kashmir. He witnessed being harassed, he witnessed his brothers murder, he faces brutality and suffered occupation. He felt it was time he did something for his people. He was not an uneducated person from an under privileged family, his father was a respected teacher and he himself was a promising student. But because of the problems he faced, he decided to make a change. The suffering he saw is the same suffering every person in Kashmir has seen, and that is why the people loved him. Because he stood up against tyranny and oppression. He fought for the freedom and liberation of his people. He challenged the status quo.
How is the situation now? Killed, wounded people, any other damages, India’s treatment…
India have tried very hard to block all information relating to Kashmir on social media and mainstream media. But they have miserably failed. Even after blocking telephone lines, mobile internet and even electricity, Kashmiri people managed to get the truth out to the world. Otherwise we would be dying quietly but thankfully, many international mainstream news outlets and highlighted the recent Kashmir problem and have started to question India.
Even though we have seen numerous escalations in past years, this seems to be the biggest one, isn’t it? Did something like this happened recently? If true, why that much rage at this time?
We have seen major issues such as this in 2008, 2009 and 2010 with killings as usual in Kashmir by Indian armed forces. This is the biggest escalation in recent years because people have decided this time that we will no longer wait for our demands. Our movement has become a peaceful movement and the people are tired of no result in their agitation against oppression. The slogan people are shouting is “now or never”. There is a new generation of youngsters who are more educated, have more access to information and have better critical analysis and thinking. And they are taking charge of the movement and are unable to understand or accept the injustice and brutality of Indian rule in Kashmir. It must be understood that this is nothing new for us. We protest all the time. And not just for Kashmir, but for other nations be it Palestine, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Syria, Yemen, etc. In fact, several years ago Israel had done severe bombing in Gaza and the world was protesting but only one person was killed in the world protesting for Gaza, and that was a young Kashmir boy.
What do the Kashmiris need now?
All we want is our right, our Haqq, that was promised to us in 1947 and a legal demand of a plebiscite/referendum. We demand justice. We demand peace. We demand all the basic rights granted to every single human being in this world. If South Sudan and East Timor got their rights, why cannot Kashmir?
Is Kashmir neglected again by international community?
The problem with the international community is that on governmental level, they will not intervene or notice issues unless it directly correlates to their foreign policy. Individually or academic and news institutions may raise the issue as a news piece, but they do not have the power or resources or even mandate to carry and continue a campaign for Kashmir such as they do for Syria or Palestine etc. It is hugely unfair that just for economic or tactical reasons, the world does not condemn India for its war crimes in Kashmir. You can see the double standards in a recent example of the failed military coup in Turkey, on one side the world champions democracy and on other side were upset when a military coup did not happen.
Source: World Bulletin
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