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‘Afghan Crisis: What’s Really Happening’ In a Panel Talk with Hum-Aahang

 

Hum-Ahang, a student-led society, has dedicated considerable efforts towards working and raising awareness, as well as promoting tolerance and diversity through panel talks and discussion forums on a variety of topics. These range from theoretical philosophical discourse to major socio-political developments around the globe. On August 22, 2021, Hum-Ahang hosted an imperative talk regarding the ongoing Afghanistan crisis that has unfolded after the takeover of the Taliban over most of the country’s districts. Whilst world media has covered Afghanistan extensively, be it the gut-wrenching pictures of Kabul Airport or the supposed ‘PR’ of the Taliban, the indigenous narrative has, in the process, been tragically sidelined.

Hum-Ahang invited four students studying in Pakistan, including a second-generation refugee from the Soviet-Afghan invasion and a Hazara community representative from the Pashtun belt. During the first half, the panelists made significant insightful comments. They first engaged in a general discussion on the history of the region. The panelists analyzed the controversy of the Durand Line, and how the lack of resources for Afghan refugees in Pakistan has led to a general criticism of Pakistan’s policies. This had led to a certain level of reluctance to embrace Pakistan as a true ally of the Afghan national government. They also explained, at length, how people in Afghanistan perceive the recent turn of events; the general public is not in favour of the Taliban taking over.

The crucial question of women’s rights was also raised, especially since under the new regime it is believed that women are being severely oppressed. To this, one of the female panelists expressed that the Western media is being biased; it has portrayed the Taliban as barbaric oppressors of women. She emphasized that there is a selective restriction on female mobility as hijab has been made mandatory. This information proved to be useful in debunking myths about the position of Afghan women under Taliban rule.

Additionally, the panelists shed some light on the imperialistic tendencies of the US, constantly weakening Afghanistan. They also discussed how the Taliban have ‘created a positive image’ for themselves this time as compared to the 90s.

The first half of the talk concluded with an exchange of hopeful, optimistic words, and with the promise that there will be more such informative exchanges between Pakistan and Afghanistan’s youth.

The second half of the talk moved towards a more conventional discussion between academics that have researched and significantly worked on topics like international security and Pak-Afghan relations. They conversed about the role of the United States in providing a contradictory policy with regards to the Taliban, shifting between outward hostility and the negotiation table. The academics engaged with many key areas of research that often get ignored in the Afghan discourse, including the Western portrayal of the Afghan woman and the role of the NATO forces in the region impacting Taliban mobilization and strategizing. The illustrious discussion was concluded by a short question and answer session where the attentive audience pitched in and put forth their queries regarding the topic going through most people’s minds these days i.e Afghanistan’s future.

Overall, the talk was highly enriching and provided a fresh perspective on a topic that continues to shape the future of this region in radical ways. We hope to witness similar initiatives being taken in the near future to evoke further awareness in the youth on topics of socio-political significance.

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A Return To The Dark Ages: Women Under Taliban Control In Afghanistan

Author: Javaria Ahmad

After a 20-year long occupation, the United States decided to fully withdraw its troops from the country, allowing the Taliban to refill the power vacuum. In the past two weeks alone, the Taliban have reassumed control of two-thirds of the country, including the major cities of Herat, Faryab, and Lashkar Gah. Following President Ashraf Ghani’s sudden departure, the city of Kabul swiveled right into the hands of the Taliban, who now enjoy unhindered access to the Presidential Palace. While the US is rushing to safely evacuate American officials and diplomats from Taliban-controlled Kabul, local citizens have no choice but to precariously cling to overcrowded airplanes in a desperate bid to flee the country, only to fall to their deaths. The USA’s war in Afghanistan has ended in the same way it had started 20 years ago: with the Taliban in control.

While in power 20 years ago, the Taliban enforced stringent laws that prohibited women from working outside, seeking education after the age of eight, and being seen in public unveiled and without a male guardian. Moreover, young girls were forced into marriages to encourage chastity, not allowed to appear on television or radio, and often deprived of adequate medical services because the Taliban deemed it inappropriate for women to be treated by na-mehram male doctors. Defying these laws entailed swift and harsh punishments which, for the sadistic pleasure of the Taliban or to teach a cautionary lesson, were meted out publicly, before a crowd of petrified spectators. While much has changed in the last twenty years, the Taliban most certainly have not, and the recent takeover threatens to once again relegate the women to the sidelines.

As an extremist and militant Islamist group, the Taliban harbor primitively misogynistic views on women and their involvement in the public sphere. In just a few days of their return to power, they have started whitewashing the pictures of female models outside beauty parlors and jewelry shops. The erasure of the visuals of the female form from the public domain is symbolic of the physical erasure of women from the social sphere that the Taliban takeover foreshadows. According to reports, teachers have started to bid farewell to their female students in schools and universities as education for women is being forbidden in many areas. Working women are being expelled from workplaces to be replaced by their male relatives. Furthermore, the mandatory observance of purdah also reneges on a right that Afghan women have earned after years of struggle: the right to choose for themselves and their bodies. Forced marriages are also expunging on the women’s right to decide for themselves as unmarried girls between the ages of 15 and 45 are being coerced into matrimonial arrangements with Taliban soldiers, confining them to a life of servitude, submission, and marital rape. Numerous Afghan women are losing sleep over the horrors that await them under the new regime; horrors that some of them have already countenanced once, years ago.

“I did not expect that we would be deprived of all our basic rights again and travel back to 20 years ago. That after 20 years of fighting for our rights and freedom, we should be hunting for burqas and hiding our identity.”

“Women in Afghanistan are the most at -danger or most at-risk population of the country… those who [have been] upset with women becoming powerful in the last 20 years.”

“I stay up late at night, sometimes till one or two in the morning, worrying about what will happen. I am afraid that because I am rejecting the burqa, soon I will have to stay at home, and I will lose my independence and freedom.”

These statements taken from The Guardian and NBC News reflect the fear and apprehensions that have been paralyzing Afghan women since the USA abandoned the country. Although the Taliban have assured that their assumption of power will be peaceful, people who are aware of the Taliban’s previous history in Afghanistan are desperate to flee the country in fear of their retribution. Many women have gone into hiding, lamenting the fate that awaits them now. From concealing diplomas, certificates, and books in their houses to buying burqas, Afghan women and girls now prepare for a life that they had worked so hard to shirk off.

In these difficult times, it is important to speak up on the matter. In order to help, you can donate to @AfghanAidHQ emergency relief fund or @rescueorg.

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Uncovering the Past: The Discovery of Unmarked Graves in Canada and the Plight of Indigenous Communities

Author: Javaria Ahmad

After news broke out about the discovery of 215 unmarked graves of children at the Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia, the Cowessess First Nation decided to use the same ground-penetrating radar to scan more areas. Towards the end of June, they announced the additional discovery of 751 unmarked graves on the premises of the former Marieval Indian Residential School in Saskatchewan province. Last month, 160 more such graves were found on Penelakut Island, now referred to as Kupur Island. Notably, these graves mostly belonged to indigenous children.

From the 1800s to the mid-1900s, indigenous children were enrolled in these residential boarding schools of Canada. They were mostly taken away from their families without consent and were forced to live with the fact that the school was trying to instill “superior” Euro-American values and culture within them. In these Catholic, church-run boarding schools, young students were subject to abuse and extreme neglect; from not being allowed to speak their own languages to being targets of rampant physical, sexual and emotional violence. According to the accounts of survivors, many students died because of alienation and torture for being considered “heathens”, with many girls being impregnated by priests and students being subject to severe punishments for minor mistakes. Several students vanished as well, for which the possible explanation is that they died and their graves are now being discovered. Numerous children also died during their efforts to escape, while others committed suicide.

This mass discovery of unmarked graves in Canada is not an isolated event, it is a part of continuing systematic discrimination, prejudice, injustice, and racism against indigenous communities across the globe. Their values and culture have systematically been sidelined and many communities are pushed to the peripheries to inculcate Euro-American traditions and culture.

There is no denying that this was a crime against humanity. Although Canada has pledged millions of dollars for the search for remaining burial sites and is supporting the survivors and pressurizing the Catholic churches to compensate the victims of the residential schools, the truth remains that the pain children had to face while being taken to boarding schools against their will cannot be compensated. While the First Nations are still systematically silenced and sidelined, they have managed to survive and embrace their culture. They continue to thrive in many aspects, despite their past struggles. A daughter of a survivor said: “The whole residential school system was meant to destroy an entire people, but now I’m seeing young Indigenous becoming doctors, lawyers, and scientists. They’re becoming leaders. The fact that we can do these things and still know who we are and where we came from means the residential school system failed”.

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The Sins of a Nation

We are often reminded in our endearing history books that the glorious Taj Mahal was built by 20,000 workers who worked day and night for 20 years. The story concludes in a blood-curdling manner; the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan orders the men to have their hands chopped down in hopes that the Taj Mahal remains the only such majestic enterprise. The validity of the story is flimsy, however, the idea is quite straightforward; there is a human cost for what we create, what we use, and what we revere. One can see this human cost when it comes to landmarks, but how does one reconcile when a similar idea is presented in constructing a state? The standard response is an ode to the fallen heroes, men (because women are more often than not erased from such narratives) that sacrificed their lives so that we could have a better tomorrow. The same heroes are then remembered when something goes awry; did the martyrs of our nation fight for autonomy so that you could create a rather half-witted Tiktok? Whilst I of course do not deny the legacy of those that died on the frontline, there is something missing that renders the picture of history incomplete. And as you would see, it is more than just a blot in history; it continues to be the paradox that haunts those in power.

The United States was formed in 1776. The founding fathers Washington and Jefferson had apparently created the first nation built upon principles of freedom and liberty. In 1791, the 2nd Amendment even allowed citizens to bear arms, in the prediction that they may need to resist a future tyrannical regime. It was the alleged blueprint for a democratic nation, but alas the reality was a stark reminder of wishful thinking that many conservative commentators continue to evoke. In many states, around 1/5th of the population consisted of slaves, shipped mostly from Western Africa, against their will of course. Whilst more than 20% of them died aboard the disease infested ships, the remainder didn’t have much of a life anyway. Forced to work on cotton plantations, the men served as the actual backbone into building the US economy that relied on cotton as a major export. The women were separated from their men, and often worked as domestic workers, with reports of rampant sexual and mental abuse. Indeed, as Jefferson talked about the liberties of man and even about the oppression of blacks, he is reported to have freed only 7 out of more than 200 slaves he had power over. It is undeniable that these people were brought against their will to a foreign land, with most never returning to their homes. They were systematically abused as people and were coerced into developing the economy and subsequently the American nation. Most people acknowledge these wrongs, but that is precisely the problem. By accepting it is wrong in the past, it remains just that. Something that warrants disgust and anger when reading about it or watching a documentary, but then thanking God that we passed through that. Except many would argue that we didn’t.

There are ways that the enduring legacy of the slave-trade is beyond just the legislature or even the cultural discourse of the times. As slavery was outlawed after the Civil War, racist oppression took a new form. Organized groups like the KKK lynched black people without remorse and even after this practice faded away there was no respite. The Jim Crow statutes continued to deny black people the space to sit, travel, or even to think. But that was the 1950s and 1960s. More than half a century has passed, and the fact that a black jogger can be killed in broad daylight, and his killers prosecuted only after a leaked recording and subsequent public outcry, means that the racism is alive and well. Even as the George Floyd protests rage on, observation is often posited by many people including ourselves; “America seems more obsessed with race than most countries”. Many conservative commentators would follow a similar line of thought. If anything, I think it is the perfect answer. Only, the obsession here is not only warranted but also a means for any change to a broken system. It is this obsession that drives folk to drown the statue of Edward Colston in England, symbolically drowning the symbolic endearment of the slave-trade. It is an obsession that drives John Boyega, a Hollywood actor to vilify the legacy of white supremacy, risking his career in the process. And it is surely obsession that drives the George Floyd protestors to press on, as they are drowned in tear gas, labeled as thugs and looters, and are at risk of contracting the coronavirus. It is this obsession that will surely continue until Confederate statues stand tall whilst the slaves remain mere clandestine figures of history, until the police choke, maim and murder black people until the specter of discrimination reigns supreme. However, the United States is no exception to this. Every nation has this specter, and as it is chained and hidden, fear the day it breaks free and seeks revenge. As an African proverb resonates strongly,” The axe forgets but the tree remembers”.  This tree has taken many forms of the oppressed. The Kashmiris of the Subcontinent, the Kurds in the Middle East, the indigenous people of the Americas; the list, unfortunately, has no end. And these trees remember what happened to them, and what continues to happen to them as they are chopped down. As black people around the world protest to claim their rightful place in the past, present, and future, the oppressed of the world watch them. The question of them asking for their legacy is not a question of if but when.

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What you need to know about the Hong Kong protests.

 

Hong Kong has had a flurry of protests against Chinese rule. These protests have involved a huge number of people ranging from teenagers to retired men. These are some of the most consistently large numbers we’ve seen at a rally  in the region recently. Independent estimates say there have been between 500,000-800,000 people at the largest rally on June 16th.

 

In attempts to crack down on these rallies, there had been warning shots of live fire by the Hong Kong police. Xi Jin Ping said “Anyone who attempts to split any region from China will perish, with their bodies smashed and bones ground to powder”. In total, it is widely reported that there have been only 8 deaths and all of them have been caused by suicide.These protests were initially peaceful with protestors in different neighbourhoods singing “Glory to Hong Kong” and taking to the streets. However due to no response from the Chinese governments, protests have been getting increasingly violent. Protestors have thrown petrol bombs and make-shift explosives at the Hong Kong police. Local markets and shops have been set ablaze.

Why is this happening?

The protests began due to the passing of Fugitive Offenders and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Legislation (Amendment) Bill 2019, which would allow mainland Chinese law to be implemented in Hong Kong. Hongkongers feared this could lead to a crack down on civil liberties and prosecution of innocent locals.

Hong Kong was transferred by the British to China in 1997, who maintained its status as a special administrative zone. As a result of being a special administrative zone, it has significantly more economic and social freedom than most of China. Laws regarding censorship and protectionism in trade have not been present nearly to the same scale. It is the primary means for foreign investment inside of China which has allowed large numbers of multinational corporations to setup inside the region. Hong Kong holds the largest concentration of ultra-high-networth individuals than any city in the world.

Hongkongers fear this liberty and economic status being taken from them.

What happens next?

The Chinese government is likely to do one of two things.

Either:

  1. They increase crackdown upon Hong Kong

OR

  1. They negotiate based on the demands of the protestors but with increasing economic and social pressure.

In the case that they increase crackdown in Hongkong: the Chinese government might bring the People’s Liberation Army from China to Hong Kong to replace the police of the region. This is likely to result in the use of much more force than is currently being used. Some of the protestors are likely to be murdered. However it is uncertain whether this will prevent future protests in the region considering the massive scale of people violently protesting at rallies even right now. The history of privileges the region has enjoyed are unlikely to be let go by the locals easily considering they have never seen life without them. This can mean that there has to be a prolonged stay of the People’s liberation army in the region in order to prevent future protests. This is likely to take a large toll on the Chinese economy which is currently not looking its strongest. In recent years, China’s economy has taken a dive for the worse. The One Belt One Road initiative by them has made them start construction projects and give out loans to countries throughout Asia and Africa. This coupled with the fact that the USA is attempted to wage a trade war against China whilst banning Huawei products and reduce its reliance on Chinese trade means that China is in no position to be directing excessive funds towards the People’s Liberation Army’s potential stay in Hong Kong.

In the case that they negotiate based on the demands of the protestors but with increasing economic and social pressure: there is a loss of face that Xi Jin Ping’s rule will have to bear. The protestors now are not only demanding a retraction of the extradition bill but also an apology, a release of protestors and the right to vote for all locals in the Hong Kong elections which were previously open to a select few. Xi has also declared public statements threatening the region and succumbing to their demands in which case the Chinese state seems much weaker.

 

 

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Jaabirana Rajneeti

by Taha Iqbal

“We have taken this decision as a family. A new era has begun,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi proclaimed in an address to the nation on August 8, 2019. It is not lost on me that families are extremely important to the vast majority of South Asians. But, maybe sometimes irrelevant family members should shut up and allow individual members to make decisions about matters that affect them the most.

On Monday, August 5, 2019, Minister of Home Affairs and President of the Bharatiya Janata Party Amit Shah informed parliament that President Ram Nath Kovind had signed a decree effectively abolishing articles 35 A and 370 of the constitution. Article 370 allowed India’s only Muslim majority state to make its own laws in all matters except for communications, defence, finance and foreign affairs. Jammu and Kashmir was legally exempt from the Indian constitution. As a result, the state was able to establish a separate constitution and flag. Crucially, it enabled the Kashmiri government to deny property rights to outsiders. Article 35 A can be understood as an extension of Article 370. It allowed the state legislature to define permanent residents of Jammu and Kashmir. In doing so, the local legislature was given the authority to forbid outsiders from permanently settling, buying land, holding local government jobs or winning education scholarships in the region. Furthermore, female residents (and their future children) were barred from property rights if they married individuals from outside the state. In short, both these constitutional provisions allowed Kashmiris to decide how they wanted to govern themselves and enabled them to prevent demographic change that would compromise their ability to actualise the former. The Lok Sabha also passed the Jammu and Kashmir (Reorganisation) Bill, 2019 with 370 votes in favour and 70 against it. The Jammu and Kashmir state will now be divided into two “union territories” directly ruled by New Delhi. The Jammu and Kashmir union territory will include the Hindu-majority Jammu region and will have a legislative assembly. The Buddhist-majority Ladakh region, which has a considerable population of Shia Muslims, will also be a union territory, but without the privilege of its own assembly.

Before Monday’s decision, prominent Kashmiri leaders were jailed or put under house arrest. Reuters reports have put the number of arrested at approximately 500. Internet and communication services along with cable networks were also shut down in anticipation of widespread unrest. An additional 38,000 troops were deployed in the region. Reports suggest that Indian law enforcement used tear gas and pellet guns to disperse a crowd of 10,000 protesters that had gathered in the state capital of Srinagar. One can write a book on how Kashmiris are caught up between the interests of different states that are unwilling to hear what they have to say. However, amidst the overblown ultra-nationalistic and at times jingoistic responses to the new status quo from either side of the border, there is an urgent need to examine the justifications given by the Indian government for the steps taken and the more obvious reasons for why this was done. The Bharatiya Janata Party led government coalition claims that articles 370 and 35A have resulted in Kashmir becoming a breeding ground for separatism, nepotism and corruption. All of this has led to Kashmir being left behind the nation in terms of development.

Our general assumptions about the state largely fall in line with this government argument. In the popular imagination, Kashmir largely resembles a less intense war zone with regular occurrences of spontaneous or planned violence. The only difference between the imaginaries of populations across the border seems to be about which actor is responsible for the violence: the Indian military or Pakistani supported terrorist militias. However, dear reader, you might be surprised about how developed Jammu and Kashmir actually is. According to census data, the state’s poverty rate stood at 10.35% in 2011-12 compared to the national average of 22%. Bihar, Assam, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat (where Mr. Modi hails from) all had poverty rates higher than Jammu and Kashmir’s. Per capita income in the region is also higher than that of Bihar, Assam and Madhya Pradesh. The state does even better in terms of social indicators. Life expectancy in Kashmir is 73.5 years while the national average is 68.7 years. Kashmir does better than all of the states mentioned earlier in this category. The infant mortality rate in Kashmir is also significantly lower than the national average and is lower than the states mentioned bar Maharashtra. 8.7% of women between the ages of 20 and 24 years were married before the age of 18 years, compared to the national average of 26.8%, according to data from the National Family Health Survey IV. In Bihar, this figure was 42.5%, and in Gujarat 24.9%, data shows. Mr. Amit Shah also alleged in his speech that Kashmiri children were being denied an education because of the state legislature’s decision to not accept the Right to Education Act. However, he failed to mention that children in the state are provided free and compulsory education until Class 8. The gross enrolment ratio in senior secondary schools is also higher than the national average. Jammu and Kashmir has 23 colleges per 100,000 residents which is much better than Bihar’s 7 and Assam’s 14.

Mr. Shah is correct about two things though. The state does have a high government debt burden and fares poorly in attracting private investment. However, both of these are a consequence of the security situation in the region. The state has to borrow capital from the central government because of its huge security expenditure. Private investors are also weary of entering a market that is plagued with violence-induced uncertainties. What is apparent at this point, however, is that Kashmir is not necessarily underdeveloped and even the areas in which it is lagging behind have nothing to do with Article 370 and Article 35A of the constitution. So, what about separatism then? There are many reasons for why separatist tendencies exist in the Kashmiri population. The first and most obvious one, is oppression at the hands of the Indian state. According to Mr. Modi himself, 42000 people have died in the last 3 decades due to violence alone. There are reports of illegal detention, torture and rape at the hands of security forces. I won’t explore this issue further because of precisely how well documented this is. What is relevant is that members of the population resort to violence against the state because of the actions of the state and the unwillingness of the state to change its behaviour and hold criminals operating within it accountable. Pakistani support for violent groups is also a reason for why members of the population become terrorists. Pakistani patronage gives violent dissidents access to resources that they otherwise would not have had. Notice however, that not only do both these broad reasons have nothing to do with both articles of the constitution, they will only be exacerbated further in response to the Indian government’s actions. With most of their political leaders in some form of state-mandated confinement and a crackdown on media, communication services and any form of peaceful organisation, the separatist sentiment in Kashmir will only get worse. This will also increase pressure on the Pakistani government to do something, given how important Kashmir is to Pakistani identity and therefore the Pakistani population and may lead to further support being given to these groups if the states current attempts at taking the issue up at international forums fails.

Why would the Modi government do this then? Jammu and Kashmir has been a focal point for Hindu nationalism ever since Partition. While Jinnah and the Muslim League considered that being a Muslim-majority state it should have been part of Pakistan and that Partition would remain unachieved so long as the whole of Kashmir remained under Indian rule, for the Hindu nationalists the state was inseparably a part of India. The transfer of one more state to Pakistan would make it stronger and India weaker. The Bharatiya Janata Party has a history of opposition to Article 370. In 1953, Syama Prasad Mukherjee, died in a jail in Srinagar where he was detained by the Sheikh Abdullah government for protesting against Kashmir being an autonomous republic within India. A year before his death, Mukherjee was the president of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh – the predecessor of the present day Bharatiya Janata Party. He saw it as a threat to national unity and famously proclaimed, “Ek desh mein do Vidhan, do Pradhan aur Do Nishan nahi challenge.” There is a strong element of territoriality within the ideology of Hindu nationalism and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Hindutva is not only based on ethno-religious categories but also on the belief that India occupies a sacred land whose frontiers matter as much as religion and language. Hence the demand for Akhand Bharat (complete, undivided India), which emerged in the 1950s and which implied that Partition should be undone to restore the natural extension of the sacred land that is Bharat. Such measures inevitably allow the BJP to secure its more hard-line electoral base. These actions will also appease party activists and politicians who lean towards the extreme right. Splitting Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories can be viewed as a unique attempt at gerrymandering to prove electoral outcomes for the BJP. We would be remiss however to exclusively focus on the Hindu right wing as has been the case with most coverage on the issue. Commentators have pointed out that this may also be an attempt by the BJP to divert criticism from India’s lack lustre economic performance. India’s economic growth cooled sharply in the first three months of this year. Gross domestic product increased 5.8 per cent from the same quarter the previous year, down from the 6.6 per cent growth rate recorded in the last quarter of the 2018 calendar year. The Indian economy also faces three huge problems: an ever-increasing population, deteriorating infrastructure and public sector corruption. Therefore, economic growth does not necessarily translate into a better quality of life for the vast majority of Indians. Triggering controversy in Kashmir takes media and public focus away from this difficult conversation and enables the BJP to dominate positive headlines. And yes, most headlines are positive. Comparing the Indian media to the work of Pewdiepie would be a disgrace to Pewdiepie (although he too has given shout outs to fascist organisations). There is also a crackdown on dissenting voices. The founders of NDTV, a channel that has been quite critical of the Modi government were prevented from leaving the country because of a “money-laundering” case. Videos published by the BBC have been called “fake news” by elected officials. As a result, most Indians are currently accessing news that portrays this as a move that was long overdue and will be in the national interest.

We must remember that Kashmiris are the primary stakeholders in this situation. They have been historically discriminated against and oppressed. They have not consented to Article 35A and Article 370 being revoked. They have been denied access to information, which is a fundamental right in any democracy. They have been stripped off their right to protest against this decision by a government that is framing its actions as necessary for the prosperity of these people. What has happened to Kashmiris historically and what is happening to them currently is unjustifiable. No actor has cared about their dignity as human beings, has respected their autonomy or stood up for their right to self-determination. We should all be outraged by what is happening in Kashmir. But we must also remain cognisant of our own shortcomings. Because there are parts in Pakistan where citizens disappear never to be seen again. There are elected representatives of vulnerable communities who have been jailed for simply trying to make things better. There are criminals amongst those responsible for protecting all of us who have not been held responsible for their actions. We must criticise the actions of oppressors, but we must also introspect, lest we have our own version of Kashmir soon.

 

 

 

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A new road for Kashmir

By Salar Tarar.

(The views expressed in this article are entirely those of the author and are not necessarily reflective of PLUMS)

Prime Minister Imran Khan, on his tour to the US, marked Kashmir as having the only road to lasting peace in South Asia. Perhaps it is then no coincidence that the BJP juggernaut has hurriedly looked to align Mr. Khan’s road sense – backed by thousands of soldiers and a revoked constitutional provision. Peace will now need a whole lot of infrastructure.

The Indian Government has explicitly chosen destruction and despair over lasting peace.

Banaris Hussain, a cook working in Muzaffarabad, looks increasingly worried as tensions flare up around the Line of Control. His family lives in the small town of Jora right next to the border. The constant shelling from the Indian side has led his family, consisting of three daughters and two small sons, to spend the night outside in an open area far away from home. “There is no way to contact them at the moment,” he says. This sheer anxiety and fear is confronted on a daily basis by many families living on the Pakistani side of the conflict. The recent use of cluster bombs, in direct violation of 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions, adds further to the lengthy list of atrocities carried out by the Indian side.

What exactly is fueling this new wave of unprecedented violence and infringement of rights against the Kashmiris? Yashwin Sinha, the former finance minister and previously a senior leader of the BJP, has a simple answer: “What the government of India has done with Article 370, and Article 35A, is nothing more than pure politics.” Mr. Sinha believes that the upcoming state elections of Haryana and Mahastra in September/October are playing heavily on Mr. Modi’s mind. There is, however, an alternative answer.
In 1953, Syama Prasad Mookerjee, president of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, died in a jail in Srinagar where he was detained by the Sheikh Abdullah government for protesting against Kashmir being an “autonomous republic within India.” The Bharatiya Jana Sangh is the predecessor of the present day Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Observers argue that Mr. Modi is simply adhering to the underlying ideology of the party that has seen a landslide win in the recent polls. Modi’s campaign speeches were full of several stern warnings hinting firmly about such a radical course of action. While Mr. Modi looks to have enshrined his legacy after completing the BJP’s prophetic mission; he may have, however, permanently stained India’s biggest one liner: The biggest democracy in the world.

Pakistan now faces the throes of a potentially huge political crisis. The demography of the LOC, little known to common outsider, makes the task even harder. As the Indians have strategically fenced the whole border and massively reduced the population levels across the areas directly facing the enemy side; Pakistan has had little space to maneuver. Confined to a single viable main route that crosses directly in-front of many Indian controlled mountains, invaluable human loss is inevitable when confronted with attack. India knows that it can cause persistent loss by carrying a series of surprise attacks every once in a while. Maybe victory can then be attained on another battlefront – one that has to do with diplomacy.

The opposition has quickly rallied behind the government, asking it to immediately take the matter to the UN Security Council. The Pakistani government has started with a robust statement clearly saying that it will “exercise all possible options to counter the illegal steps”. The government must bring its heavyweight allies up to speed with proceedings and use as much diplomatic leverage as possible to squeeze India into a corner of isolation. This might prove to be futile exercise. India’s supreme market outreach and global weight has turned this into a gross mismatch. However, Pakistan buoyed by its recent cordial dealings with the United States, Turkey and Malaysia can certainly transform into a Goliath. In order to achieve such a feat, it must be prepared to answer some tough questions in this quest. What will now happen with Azad Kashmir and Gilgit/Baltistan as India’s new decree comes into practice? Is there a real prospect of war? What really can Pakistan do? One thing is certain though. From now on, Pakistan can only look to construct its own road to peace. As a certain neighbour is determined not to give way.

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4th World Inter-universities championships barcelona

23 No, 2018: The LUMS sports team just landed back in Pakistan after participating in the 4th World interuniversities Championships held in Barcelonaa, Spain from 14th to 18th November. The championships included thirteen sports and included around eight universities from thirty countries. LUMS was the only representation of Pakistan in the mega event. LUMS teams participiated in Tennis, Futsal, Badminton, Swimming and Volleyball. The seventeen member LUMS squad included Taha Nadeem, Nubira Khan, Altamush Saeed, Emaan Yousuf, Maira Abid, M Waqas Majeed, Zohaib Yousaf, Hammad Mansoor, Syed Muhammad Maaz, Ali Shayan Sikander, Ayman Irfan, Ali Bin Rizwan, Aliza Khan, Zainab Salman Anwar, Momina Hashmi, Muhammad bin azhar, Muhammad Zaid Maqsood
We witnessed sportsman spirit and the drive to win in every match. LUMS teams did fairly well in all sports. Star performances came in tennis, where LUMS’s Muhammad Bin Azhar (Class of 2018) defeated Lille University France 10-5 in a very well fought out match. LUMS also gave a very good fight in Futsal, where it lost to defending Champions from Slovakia 1-4 after keeping the scoreline 1-1 till the second half. Vice Captain of the football team, Ali Shayan (Class of 2019) scored the only goal.
It shows that LUMS students are not just limited to academic excellence but they can also compete in sports at the biggest platforms in the world. The 5th edition of the championships will be held next year in Paris, France.