The governments in Srinagar and New Delhi have used stone pelting to justify police action on Kashmiri protestors. While many here say the force used is disproportiote, Haroon Mirani examines whether Kashmir is left with any space for peaceful protests.
On July 4 Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had a meeting with politicians and top bureaucrats at Srinagar in a bid to find a way to end the cycle of killings and protests.
While addressing the nervous gathering in a tense atmosphere, the chief minister said that in a democratic setup expression of views is the right of every citizen. However, Abdullah said, “Anger should not be expressed by throwing stones and disturbing law and order as there are other democratic methods (means) of registering protest.”
Less than 48 hours later on July 6, people from Batmaloo, Gangbug and Tengpora were sitting on roads to protest, in a democratic way, against the disappearance of a 17-year-old local youth, Muzaffar Ahmad Bhat. Muzaffar had gone missing allegedly after police and CRPF swung into action against people protesting MLA Nasir Aslam Wani’s visit to the area.
Police denied his whereabouts even as Muzaffar’s friends claimed to have seen police and CRPF chasing and apprehending him. Some heated arguments later, the infuriated mob tried to block the highway. The use of force followed. Meanwhile, police conveyed the news of recovering Muzaffar’s body from a nearby stream.
Thus ended a short saga of peaceful protests. What followed later was the outburst of simmering discontent that was dealt with deadly force. Bullets greeted the protestors and by the end of the day four people had died, three hit by bullets.
Chief Minister was not alone in advocating a peaceful protest. There have been calls from Delhi, and even from Washington, as US government also recently asked Kashmiri protestors to use peaceful means.
Earlier this moth US State Department’s deputy spokesman Mark Tone described the current crisis in Kashmir which has claimed more than 15 lives, as internal Indian matter, and urged the protestors to refrain from violence.
“In terms of the protest, we would just urge everyone to refrain from violence and conduct protest in a free and peaceful manner,” he said.
There is, however, one question that many in Kashmir ask – Does the government allow peaceful protests and demonstrations?
Analysts say the space for peaceful dissent and protest has been choked, leading to violent forms of expressions.
Two decades of insurgency have proffered sweeping powers to police and security forces in Kashmir. There are hardly any questions raised on their manner of operation, at least not where these matter – New Delhi. But many people in Kashmir blame security forces for using force first, or at least using it disproportionately.
There are instances, both recent and old, of government cracking down on peaceful assembly of people, for example in 2008 when strict curfews were imposed for days only to stop people from gathering for peaceful pro-Independence marches.
Police and paramilitary beat up people in localities, attacked ambulances, assaulted media-men, all to clamp down on pro-independence marches, which had evolved to become so peaceful and organised that volunteers would form a human chain on the street sides to avoid anyone from inciting or harming the paramilitary.
Most of the “democratic means of protest” are blocked by the government itself.
Separatists say that every time there is a call for a protest demonstration, no matter how peaceful, the police comes up with its set list of restrictions.
“Three weeks back we wanted to have a peaceful sit in, but we were arrested and our men were beaten up,” said Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Chairman of All Parties Hurriyat Conference (M). “They are not allowing us to protest, no matter how peacefully we want. They are intimidating the people.”
The history of a denial of the right to protest has according to analysts given rise to many problems.
Mirwaiz says that people are peace loving and they have been trying to hold peaceful protests but use of force by the government aggravates the situation. “During June 11 march towards Sopore, everything was peaceful for seven kilometres and situation deteriorated only after there was unprovoked firing on them,” he said.
Many youth share Mirwaiz’s views on the reasons for protest demonstrations turning violent.
“The biggest protests of our generation happened during 2008, when a million strong crowd moved from one place to another without a glitch,” said Irshad Ahmad, who claims to have taken part in some of those protests. “Separatist leaders asked for peaceful protest and everybody obeyed. But the situation changed when government decided to stop the peaceful protest demonstrations.”
Many analysts attribute the current trend of increased stone pelting to crackdown on 2008 agitation. Since then the government has rarely allowed peaceful protests rallies, and many of its measures have been pre-emptive like an undeclared curfew to thwart a planned separatist march.
Disallowing peaceful protests, says analysts, has created space for violence.
“People had to express their emotions which were suppressed. They tend to suppress the volcano but the lava finds the vent sometimes violently,” said Khurram Parvez, a human rights activist based in Srinagar. “For the time being they may contain it but in the end the problem is still there and it will erupt at any new spark.”
Rather than law and order considerations, experts say, the government “chokes” peaceful protests for political reasons. “India has a big problem with such protests, because they have political implications for them,” said Parvez Imroz, president of Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society. “India is telling the world that everything is ok in Kashmir particularly after elections but these protests negate that claim putting New Delhi in a corner.”
Imroz says that different power centres like Army, police, politicians and administration feel threatened by such protests and they come into play immediately to thwart these protests often with deadly force.
New Delhi based rights activist Gautam Navlakha has similar views, “First we need to know why the government is trying to suppress these peaceful protests. . . While India succeeded in reducing the strength of militants in Kashmir it has not been able to won their allegiance,” said Navlakha. “So that is why we are seeing no decrease in the strength of army and no decrease in use of force.”
Navlakha says that India is a “victim of its own propaganda” as it has been trumpeting normalcy from 2002. “Every time they raised the bar of normalcy by highlighting elections, tourism, development and so on,” said Navlakha. “Now when people came on roads in 2008, all that good image was under the threat to be broken and so they started the disproportionate use of force.”
History
Navlakha says that use of force against protests started steadily from the last year. “There was a direction from Prime Minister to security forces that these protests should be checked and contained,” said Navlakha. “The biggest announcement was from GOC of Northern Command who sent a message to all the soldiers by dubbing the protestors as agitational terrorists.”
The labelling of protestors as “agitational terrorists”, according to Navlakha give security forces a free hand to deal with these at par with armed combatants. “During encounters with armed men they use gun to kill, so are they doing with these unarmed protestors.”
Many feel that the repression is giving justification to the violence. “When people are not allowed genuine peaceful protests, people loose faith in the system,” said Engineer Rasheed MLA Langate. “It automatically spirals into violent forms of protests as people have to somehow register their voice which is not allowed in a peaceful way.”
Rasheed advocates the right to expression, which is also 
enshrined in the constitution. “When genuine peaceful protests for genuine causes are not allowed, people find other ways of protest which are often destructive,” said Rasheed. “So you must respect the right of expression otherwise the denial gives logic to violence.”
In their zeal to curb on any voice of dissent the security agencies have been testing the untrodden waters too. From closing mosques for Friday prayers, barging into hospitals to targeting the funeral processions and bodies, they are doing it all.
Police fired on the funeral procession of Muzaffar Bhat at Batamaloo, whose body was being carried to Martyrs Graveyard Edigah for burial, killing one Fayaz Ahmad, 35, an employee of floriculture department and injuring another. Similarly the funeral of Faizan was fired upon and another youth was killed in Baramulla.
What could have been a simple burial, with people at maximum raising high pitched slogans, turned into a saga of more bloodshed. News spread and more vigorous protests followed.
Siddiq Wahid, vice chancellor of Islamic University said, “There was just one killing on June 11 and as a reaction to it people started protesting only to be dealt with force and now we have more than 15 deaths.” Wahid says that situation seems bad when we see, “during this time there has not been a single shot being fired from the protestors. It has been firing from just one side.”
With government not only disallowing the peaceful protests but also using different hard tactics to deal with the present situation, people feel being pushed to the wall.
“The curbs on media, civil society, and use of draconian laws is pushing the people to the wall,” said Imroz. “They are longing to freely express themselves, the denial of which is increasing the outbursts like we are seeing today.”
Imroz feels that the current outburst is also manifestation of similar government methods to suppress the people.
According to Imroz, “if entire dissent in a society is gagged by harsher laws, using force, pushing and all that, it will ultimately explode with a deadly force by finding some vent.”
Instigation
The government’s inaction or inability to act tough on human rights violations adds to the problem.
The current spate of killings started when separatists called for protest against fake encounter killing of three Kashmiris by army in Machil.
This is a broad daylight crime still a court can’t summon the accused army officers as army is haggling for its own court martial. “In fact nothing has changed substantially in Kashmir as all these things have been going on during the last twenty years,” said Navlakha.
He adds that if people don’t protest then the “atrocities” on them will continue. “Unless they come out to protest nobody gives a damn to them,” said Navlakha.
He also cites the example of relatives of disappeared persons, “These people have been peacefully protesting for the last 20 years to retrieve their missing relatives. Has government ever listened to them and have their protests bore any results.”
These things make people helpless and they anyhow want their voice to be heard.
Denial of justice, he says, adds to the helplessness. “Even courts can’t help the people. They release a person only to be arrested back under PSA by police,” said Navlakha. “Government of India does not inspire confidence in people.”
Navlakha warns that people are angry and the situation is explosive especially as the third generation has taken over the “resistance”.
But the reasons behind protests turning bloody are seldom talked about, says social activist and poet Zareef Ahmad Zareef. “There is anger among the people particularly the youth. Somebody talk to them as why they are angry and why are taking such a course,” said Zareef. “Instead they are being pushed to corner with brute force.”
Future:
With the crisis hardly making any positive change in governance, many are painting a dismal picture of future.
MLA Rasheed accuses the government of acting like a repressive regime. “The system is responding violently to crack the current situation which in turn leads to counter violence. It is simple that violence begets violence,” said Rasheed.
Citing an example of the system, Rasheed said, “Some youth from Sopore were arrested and then money was demanded for their release. I brought that in the notice of CM and others, but nothing happened as nobody is listening here.”
“All these tactics are creating a dangerous situation as they impact collective psyche of the society,” he adds. “With New Delhi equally doing nothing, I can see darkness looming large on Kashmir.”
Imroz says that the current situation points to a worse future ahead.
However he adds that the use of force on people has not worked anywhere. “May be it will bring some short term peace but then it will explode again with more force,” said Imroz. “The use of force will lead nowhere as it will only generate more heat.”
Rasheed adds, “I see only darkness. Nobody is caring. In Delhi people just talk and do nothing on ground. No initiative is being taken.”
Mohsin Mohi-Ud Din, a Kashmiri-American human rights activist says that the lack of justice and accountability in Kashmir is suffocating its civil society.
“For every boy like Tufail that is killed, there is a risk of more youth getting radicalised and taking up arms as a result of legislated political and physical oppression,” said Mohiudin.
Even after being subjected to brute force, people are getting bolder. “They are becoming suicidal, they don’t care for their lives,” said one police officer preferring anonymity. “Earlier they used to throw stones from distance now they bare their chests and mount on our vehicles with just stones, they try to hammer us and throw stones from every hole on the vehicle.”
