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We demand demilitarisation of Kashmir beginning with immediate repeal of the AFSPA

6 October 2010

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We strongly condemn the recent spate of state perpetrated violence in Kashmir and its persistent framing as a law and order problem. Surely the unrelenting struggles of millions of Kashmiris must force us to question the reprehensible language of externally induced disturbance—indeed, if the most ordinary people are pelting stones on the streets of Kashmir, certainly they would have something very urgent on their minds. But over the years, the Indian state has consciously and deliberately chosen to turn a deaf ear to their voices. Instead, it has declared a state of permanent emergency by the imposition of the AFSPA since 1990.

This has claimed the lives of almost a hundred people in the last three months alone; 60,000 have been killed in the two decades since its imposition. Long spells of curfew and severe restrictions on movement have become the order of the day; and the presence of the military has acquired an uncanny normalcy on the State’s landscape. Overall, Kashmir is suspended in a perpetual state of exception, with every moment being marked by fear and uncertainty.

Ironically for a nation that claims to be the world’s largest democracy, this everyday violence and unfreedom is a result of precisely that claim, albeit articulated by the Kashmiris. Indeed, it is their unquestionably democratic demand for self-determination through the slogans of Azadi that is forcing Kashmiris to pay with their lives. We condemn the state’s utter insensitivity towards this, as evidenced by its persistent refusal to repeal the AFSPA, and its despicable inability to understand the issue from the eyes of a Kashmiri. Unfortunately, this fanatical claim to national pride is orchestrated by the mainstream media as well, which seems to have entered into a holy nexus with the state.

Given the urgency of the situation and the ever increasing brutality of the state, we enlist the support of progressive members of civil society in underlining the necessity of building pressure to demand demilitarisation of Kashmir beginning with immediate repeal of the AFSPA. We especially reach out to the women of Kashmir who are often subject to the most brutal and quiet forms of this violence. We hope that they are left to breathe freely, animate a democratic realisation which is free from brutal state obstruction and is unhinged from nationalist chauvinism.

Saheli, AIPWA, Narjees Nawab, advocate, Warisha Farasat, advocate, Dr Uma Chakravarti, Dr Lena Ganesh. Dr Navsharan Singh, Dr Ajitha Rao, Pyoli Swatija