Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances

 ENFORCED OR INVOLUNTARY DISAPPEARANCES (EID)

Waseem Gashroo 

Over the past 20 years forensic experts have been contracted or subcontracted to investigate mass graves by truth commissions, local courts and international tribunal, local and international human rights and family associations in more than forty countries across the globe.

         Jammu and Kashmir has also witnessed “enforced or involuntary disappearances” from over last two decades. The war waged by Kashmir’s against Indian occupational forces from 1989 has produced an immense humanitarian crisis in Kashmir. According to official figures more than 35000 people have been died in the ongoing struggle, but the human rights groups scripts the figure at around 75000, primarily in the age group of 18-35, detention and torture of more than 65000 persons, massacre, custodial killings, fake encounters, rape and molestation are some of the shocking results of this violent campaign of state terrorism carried by Indian occupational forces.

        In vast majority of cases EID (enforced or involuntary disappearances) people were detained during crackdowns, some persons were arrested as the only male members found in their homes during cordon and search operations. The Army, S.O.G, and government sponsored gunmen (ikhwanis) working with army have also been abducting people whose whereabouts remain unknown to this day. There are so many cases where unarmed kashmiris after detention have been killed in the false encounters at different places and labeled as foreign militants.

     A rough estimate says at least 2 lakh relatives of disappeared persons have been putting in untiring efforts to ascertain the whereabouts of their dear ones. Global human rights groups like Amnesty international and Asia Watch have been time and again denied permission to visit Kashmir.

     Commenting on the reason of disappearances in its February 1999 report, Amnesty international says,” Most of the people appear to be arbitrarily detained during crackdowns without any discernible reason. Some are arrested as the only male member found in their homes during raids; others appear to be involved in an armed opposition group to surrender. The most common motive for disappearing people in custody appears to be to intimidate young people not to join militancy or to frighten the general population not to shelter or associate themselves with the members of armed opposition groups”.

    Disappearances are a worldwide phenomenon. Human rights activists say that the phenomenon, as a war weapon, is prevalent in about 63 countries world over. United Nations general assembly’s declaration of December 18th 1992 states in its preamble “Enforced disappearances undermines the deepest values of any society committed to respect for the rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms, the systematic practice of such acts is of the nature of a crime against humanity”.

     Disappearances in Kashmir have an unparallel state in terms of fear, anxiety, and fatigue on the relatives of the victims. More importantly, the rate is increasing alarmingly of the half widows who resulted in a set of social dilemmas and financial stress to their families and the majority of those who got missing in custody were the bread earners for their families.

     I say enforced disappearances are a crime against victims and their relatives, but the United Nations general assembly has gone a step further. It has declared as a crime against humanity. There is a need to evolve a well thought out mechanism to fight out this human rights abuse which is desperately found wanting. The families of disappeared persons have united together under various banners. There is a need, urgent need to evolve such mechanism. These victims demand justice, not charity, isn’t that? This is a billion dollar question in itself……

 

Has justice been delivered?

While the justice is delivered to the victims of train carnage, justice to the post Godhra riots victims is either delayed or deniedWASEEM GASHROO

Sentencing eleven people to death and 20 others for life term, special trial court has finally delivered justice after 9 years to the victims of Sabarmati Express. But is justice really delivered, well that’s a puzzle to solve.

Going back in history, the communal riots that broke out in Gujarat between Hindus and Muslims that followed just after the train carnage left more than 1200 people dead i.e. the deaths of about 790 Muslims and 254 Hindus. Why were the kar sevaks mostly attacked in the Godhra train who were coming back from the Ayodhya? Kar sevaks (Hindu religious volunteers) on their way back from a ceremony organised by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad at the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi / Babri Mosque site. Here it seems that the train carnage has its roots connected to the issue of Babri Masjid demolition. The court of additional session judge itself said, “The motive of murders was anger against kar sevaks, who were coming back from ayodhya”.  A rumour spread that a Muslim girl had been abducted, which was later found to be baseless made the time so violent.
 The riots that broke out after Godhra train carnage led to huge massacre in Gujarat. Well the court has brought the culprits of train carnage to book but who were the people who lead to such massacre in post Godhra riots, who were the perpetrators behind this anti-human act, this is the question that the judiciary has to deliver and make it public.
Denial of justice to the victims of post Godhra victims may fuel the feelings that justice is not balanced against the countries minorities. The Gujarat Government, in consultation with Central Government appointed Justice Nanavati and Shah to investigate Godhra and post-Godhra incidents. Nanavati Commission took a lot of time in talking to thousands of people including victims and eye-witnesses, interviewed thousands in an independent manner, and finally concluded that Godhra carnage was not an accident but the coach was set on fire by a mob, allegedly Muslims. They also gave a clean chit to Narendra Modi and noted that the efforts done by Government to take control of the situation were appreciable. But it is believed that some Hindu radical groups are behind the riots. They are enjoying their life and are roaming freely. By this verdict several sections of society raised their eye brows and are questioning why justice to post-godhra riots victims is delayed. And it is the same court which has acquitted Maulana Hassan Umarji, who was regarded as the “prime accused” or the “mastermind” of the train burning plot.
Calling the investigation “dubious” and the judgment “lopsided”, human rights activist Swami Agnivesh said the verdict would be challenged in the high court. The question whose answer everybody wants to know is how investigating agencies have summed up their theory of train carnage so fast and yet failing to nab the perpetrators of post Godhra massacre? Here the justice is delivered to the victims of train carnage and justice to the post Godhra riots victims is either delayed or denied.
Whom can we blame this time, politicians who are trying to secure these killer’s for their personal interest or the investigating agencies which are still far away to nab them or the judiciary which is bound by political system?
Summing up all questions, we need to take an initiative to maintain the communal harmony. This is one of the worst communal riots in independent India and the verdict itself, sentencing highest number of death sentences in any rioting and murder case.

Media in conflict zone Kashmir

Media in conflict zone Kashmir 

 Mohammad Waseem Gashroo

Whether it is electronic media or print media their objective is to present a situation to the audience or reader as objectively as possible. Media is called as the fourth estate of any democratic state. In conflict zone like Kashmir where media and press are guarded by national interest and gun culture, presenting truth as objectively as possible is important, otherwise you can mislead your audience for short term gain which may result in long term repercussions.

Whenever there is conflict in any part of earth, it is media which portrays its real image. Media has become a powerful institution nowadays, apart from being the medium of communicating news and so on. The huge strength of the press is the product of its long history of development and continual struggle for freedom of expression.

Indian media can be credited with taking on the issues of corruption, communalism, and dowry system etc. thus upholding the very spirit of fourth estate of democracy but when it comes to Kashmir, brazen facts were overshadowed by the clouds of national interest. The reportage in Kashmir is mostly from a government perspective. A survey shows that 78% of journalists had their sources in the government and only 7% depended on other local sources.

During the land row agitation in 2008, national newspapers, national news channels at first telecasted the whole turmoil but later abruptly stopped that and even the local media had to face restrictions in telecasting the situation; the circulation of news papers were stopped at that time about for a week. Imposing such restrictions on media, Press Council of India in1954 recommended that government handout must not be supplemented by classifying essential points necessary for the proper understanding of the issues. The fact on the ground is whether Indian media has been able to portray Kashmir issue in its right perspective to its audience in India on the international scene.

The newspapers sometimes have played with the emotions of the public by publishing the pictures of death and gory but sometimes there is not even a mention of major human rights abuse incidents. The local media, which mostly comprises of the print media, has also shown no consistency in reporting the human rights abuses. In the earlier years of armed uprising almost all the newspapers carried the reports of human rights excesses but now they have to rely on the official press releases for reporting about the daily killings.

A leading national news channel New Delhi Television (NDTV) telecasted the snowfall in Kashmir on the day when Zahid Farooq of Brain Nishat was brutally killed by a BSF personnel on the orders of his commandant. Thus, diverting the attention of people of Kashmir and outer world. Media persons in Kashmir state the reason for this inconsistency as the threat, intimidation and insecurity from both the militants and security forces.

No doubt media persons here are working under fear. It is a fact that some persons have lost their lives as well. In  August 2001, Hindustan Times photographer Pradeep Bhatia died in a car bomb attack in Srinagar and nine others were injured. There are very other cases in which journalists have lost their lives and were injured while covering crisis scenes but somebody has to get the pain to bring out the reality.

 But unfortunately Indian media has not only tarnished its own credibility, it has also failed to serve the Indian state’s vital interest as well - that of keeping its people informed of the happening in Kashmir.

India’s well known writer and booker prize winner Arundhati Roy says, “Indian media is suffering from schizophrenia as its reports portrays zero reflection about the reality in J&K. Indian media is busy in painting a rosy picture of normalcy, which is absolutely false.” Another writer Cooper writes that media can make of the terrorist “a saint or a monster”.