Democracy as the best antidote to terrorism

Democracy as the best antidote to terrorism
Politicians and the Army are redefining their roles in Kashmir, and getting more cooperation in combating terrorism. Madhu Purnima Kishwar lauds Chief Minister Mufti's healing touch in the state, which has enabled reconciliation and restored faith in the political system.

For a long period the people of Kashmir were burning with rage on account of a series of rigged elections, uncontrolled corruption and political highhandedness. These abuses gave legitimacy to a secessionist–terrorist upsurge that Pakistan instigated and supported. The national media in India virtually abandoned the Valley during the violence and mainly just published propagandist press releases issued by the government and the Army establishment as news without any attempt to verify the veracity of those reports through their own independent investigations. This further eroded the faith of Kashmiri people in Indian democracy. During those dark days, a few human rights activists and concerned freelance journalists went and met the people of Kashmir, took note of their grievances, and tried to record charges of human rights violations as well as understand the socio-political causes that made the otherwise peace loving Kashmiris endorse terrorist politics. MANUSHI also contributed in a small way to this endeavor by presenting the grievances of estranged Kashmiris to concerned citizens and policy makers in India1. Such gestures helped build bridges of communication between Kashmir and the rest of India at a time when government policy attempted to isolate Kashmiris and leave the job of combating the insurgency mainly to the Army and paramilitary forces.

It was another matter that the Pakistani establishment made extensive use of our reports to caricature India's Kashmir policy, launch an international propaganda war that India was trampling upon the democratic rights of Kashmiris and justify its arming of jehadis to "liberate" Kashmir. The militants also felt emboldened that their cause was being legitimized by known and respected human rights activists of India. Many of us (including me) often took Kashmiri accounts at face value and published them as "nonpartisan" reports in good faith.

In those bloody days it was impossible to carry out genuine investigations into various allegations of excesses by either the security forces or the terrorists. In the process many truths, half-truths and exaggerations came to be projected together as "facts". Whatever the limitations of our reports of those unhappy days, they were a necessary corrective simply because for long years most of the mainstream newspapers reneged on their responsibilities and presented a very one-sided picture.

Opting for Democracy

Today Kashmiri people in increasing numbers are braving the writ of terrorists and risking their lives in their attempts to marginalize secessionist leaders who count on Pakistan supported terror brigades to enforce their political agenda on the people of Kashmir. This is evident in the unprecedented voter turnout for the recent municipal elections and the participation of a large number of women candidates for the first time ever in J&K. Even Delhi has never witnessed a 70-80 percent voter turnout in municipal elections, as happened in many constituencies in Kashmir this time. Areas where there used to be zero percent or negligible polling in earlier elections have witnessed huge turnouts, reaching as high as 89 percent. This has happened despite a severe winter, despite Id and Republic Day related tension, despite the call for a poll boycott by the Hurriyat, despite assassinations of several leaders and candidates and numerous grenade attacks on poll meetings by militants allied to the Hurriyat. Braving bullets and grenades, all ministers of the government as well as senior party leaders carried out a vigorous campaign urging voters to exercise their democratic right.

It is unfortunate that the terrorists have now begun killing elected candidates, including one who was expected to become the mayor of Srinagar. They have forced some others to resign under threat of death in order to sabotage the democratic verdict of the Kashmiri people. Some have had to take shelter away from their own homes and neighbourhoods, while others have been forced to issue advertisements in local newspapers or appear in Friday meetings in mosques to ask forgiveness for having participated in the elections and to promise to dissociate themselves from their respective political parties on whose ticket they fought the election.

The unprecedented voter turnout, notwithstanding the threats by Paksupported jehadis, has rattled the Pakistani establishment. They are now likely to demand an increase in the scale of violence from their agents. It is noteworthy that the last phase of polling, which took place after the assassinations of four elected candidates, nevertheless recorded a turnout of about 70 percent, an even higher average than in the earlier three phases, though these polls were held in areas considered terrorist strongholds. This suggests that voters are telling jehadis that they do not wish to be led by the gun any more. Pakistan rulers can no longer claim with the same ease before the international community that pro- Pakistan secessionist outfits, like the Hurriyat, alone represent the aspirations of the Kashmiri people. Nor are they likely to be believed, as in the past, when they claimed that India was holding down Kashmiris from joining Pakistan through brute force.

Stereotypes that Harm

Many human rights activists took great pains to try and understand what contributed to the horror in Kashmir during the period when respect for human rights in Kashmir was at its lowest ebb. We should be paying equal attention to understanding the factors that are now contributing to such a major change in people's mood and attitudes as reflected in the increased voter turnout in election after election after the PDP led coalition came to power in October 2002. Unfortunately, the Indian media – both print and television – are manifesting a curious and dangerous obsession. They focus only on bad news from Kashmir, while ignoring positive developments. This demoralises many of those working hard to restore peace and democracy in J&K, who are risking their own lives as well as endangering the security of their families.

Cause for Optimism

The PDP led government, despite all its limitations and flaws, is popularly perceived as providing a more responsive government than the State has witnessed before.

Ever since the October 2002 elections, there has been a steady improvement in the political situation and mood of the people in the Valley because the PDP led government, despite all its limitations and flaws, is popularly perceived as providing a more responsive government than the State has witnessed before. Many new development projects have been initiated, and investments have begun to trickle in. Hartaals in the Valley are no longer as regular an occurrence. The Chief Minister has personally worked hard to revive tourism and has actually taken it to new heights. Despite the fear of terrorist attacks, a record 9 to10 lakh tourists – including 5 lakh pilgrim tourists to Amarnath – visited the Valley last year, the highest number ever. Even in pre-militancy days, the figure never crossed 7 lakh. Serious attempts are being made to bring Kashmiri Pandits back home, with both the State and the Central Government providing them rehabilitation packages. The hitherto neglected Jammu and Ladakh regions have been given better representation and a stronger voice. In the last two years more work has been done on the Jammu-Srinagar railway line than was done in the previous 20 years. Land for the railway line was acquired and compensation given to villagers within months – that too without any protests over bungling and corruption. Yet, Delhi's metro has made a million times more news than the rail line being built in a tough terrain which will build a vital new efficient, all weather link between Srinagar and the rest of India. It hit the headlines only when terrorists killed one of the engineers and work came to a halt. No one paid attention to how and when the work was resumed. It is unfortunate that Kashmir becomes front-page news only when there is a bomb explosion, a grenade attack or dramatic encounters between security forces and jehadis.

Obsession with Bad News

This partiality for negative news hit me yet again when I visited Kashmir starting January 25th to witness how Kashmiris were responding to attempts at reviving democratic institutions at the municipal level. The contrast between what I saw at the ground level and the coverage of the Valley in our national media is worrisome.

For example, for almost all the national and regional papers, the big news of the 24th and 25th of January was: "Mehbooba Mufti escapes grenade attack." Nor a single paper went on to report how, despite the attack, Mehbooba, along with her PDP colleague Gulam Hasan Mir, did not suspend the election campaign and went on to address several more public meetings on that very day as well as on following days. It was heartening to see hundreds of people, including women, teenage girls and little children, come out to listen to them in the mohallas and villages they visited. Each one of these meetings was attended by several hundred people. This was happening at the very same time when many people were expecting the militants to successfully enforce their boycott of Republic Day celebrations through dramatic acts of terror.

Not too long ago, only officials and armed forces would attend flag hoisting on Republic Day because people felt seriously estranged from the Indian political system and Pakistani jehadis were able to convince many Kashmiris that any association with India was a betrayal of the Kashmiri cause.

After the People's Democratic Party (PDP) came to power, the Independence Day celebrations of 2003 witnessed the participation of 15,000-20,000 people in Srinagar alone. After a 15 year hiatus, school children, including teenage girls, sang and danced at the August 15 celebrations, defying the writ of the terrorists. Not too long ago, even politicians from mainstream pro- Indian parties – such as the Congress and the National Conference – did not dare be publicly associated with such symbolic gestures of allegiance to the Indian Union. In 2003 and 2004 Republic Day ceremonies were presided over by senior ministers in every district headquarter of the Valley with attendance ranging from 2,000 to 6,000. There were nearly 20,000 people at the main event in Srinagar in 2004.

This year, because of the impending municipal elections, the parties of the ruling coalition did not want to risk inviting the wrath of militants by mobilizing large-scale participation for January 26 in Srinagar, lest the elections, which were barely four days after Republic Day, get derailed. Yet, thousands of people spontaneously attended the celebrations in district headquarters despite the fact that the separatist leaders and their jehadi comrades, as usual, had issued a call for boycott. This was the first incident free Republic Day in the Valley.

Very few people outside Kashmir have yet noticed these changes in Kashmir because newspaper reports failed to highlight what a major breakthrough it represented. Some even gave Republic Day the kind of coverage that would cheer the heart of militants. The Times of India dubbed it a "Black Day in Kashmir" because "thousands of people in Kashmir stayed at home in the capital Srinagar to mark Republic Day as a ‘Black Day'" and went on to say that similar shutdowns were reported in other towns. The Hindustan Times declared that "Srinagar turned into a fort on Republic Day" and emphasized that searches were carried out by the army as a precautionary measure.

What Was Missed Out

Those who interpreted the closure of shops and absence of movement during Republic Day ceremonies on the streets of Srinagar on January 26, 2005 as proof of the continuing dominance of militants in the Valley seem to have forgotten that even in the capital of India, as well as in most towns and cities in the rest of the country, streets are deserted because all business and official establishments have to be kept compulsorily closed for that period during Republic Day. Very little public transport is available and therefore, most people do stay indoors, even in cities like Delhi. What ought to have made news is that as soon as the Republic Day celebrations were over, the streets of Srinagar and other towns in J&K did not remain deserted; even the election campaign was resumed.

In a Valley which was so dominated for 15 long years by the fear of death that even young men dared not hang around in the public spaces, where the mere sight of a jeep carrying security forces would make villagers hide in fright, the presence of women and children listening to election speeches ought to have been celebrated as a good omen. When women feel emboldened enough to come with children to attend political meetings, that is a bigger statement of faith in peace and democracy, than any amount of slogan shouting.

Similarly, when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Srinagar a few months ago, our national TV channels kept obsessively relaying images of a fidayeen attack. One of the channels on its own went ahead and announced that the public rally to be addressed by the Prime Minister had been cancelled, causing a great deal of confusion for the local people. Not one channel or newspaper celebrated the fact that despite guns booming barely a furlong away from the venue of the Prime Minister's meeting, nearly 20,000 to 25,000 people stayed to listen to Manmohan Singh, and several thousand more from far away places kept coming in even after the PM's speech was over. For hours on end we saw live coverage of the gun battle but not one channel bothered to show the expectant faces who had patiently gathered in such large numbers, nor asked the thousands who had gathered at the risk of their lives to explain what motivated them to come at such risk or gave them the courage to stay back to hear the Prime Minister of a country from which not too long ago they wanted to secede.

Yet again, when there was a fidayeen attack on Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad's house, the TV channels promptly told the viewers that the CM and his family had been whisked away under heavy security cover to safer places. Mufti was actually in Patna. His family had stayed in the house without any panic. Mufti says that when he returned from Patna later in the day he was amused to find how normal the town, including his own neighbourhood, looked. He saw children playing cricket in a neighbouring field and all the shops in the city, including those in the vicinity of the CM's residence, had stayed open. But the TV channels only gave images of attack and contingents of security men outside the CM's residence. Therefore, he asked that the security contingents be reduced so that media attention did not stay riveted on them.

Consequences of Media Failure

That the local press, working under the heavy incessant pressure of militant groups, with many local journalists on the payroll of Pakistani agencies, whose interest is served only by bad news, would indulge in negative reporting that generates fear and panic is understandable. However, when the bias is reflected in the national press, it makes one wonder why the media focus mainly on negative reporting from Kashmir, which keeps alive the stereotype of Kashmiri Muslims as rabid jehadis.

It is unfortunate that the courage and determination of those who are risking their very lives to combat the culture of violence and terror, those who are working hard to restore people's faith in democracy and revitalize institutions of governance in Kashmir, do not get even a tiny fraction of the media coverage given to Sania Mirza's nose ring and attire. This charming 18 year old is projected as a national icon and role model for India's youth all because she plays good tennis in international tournaments. As a consequence, our No.1 national paper invites her to be the guest editor of their newspaper. It will not be long before she is treated as an expert on every conceivable topic – from dams to defence, from economic policy to foreign affairs.

By contrast, a woman like Mehbooba Mufti is noticed only after a grenade attack on her. She is then asked for a few sound bytes to comment on whether the PDP's work for peace has been derailed. Very few have bothered to highlight how her example has motivated thousands of young women, including girls barely out of their teens, to contest municipal elections and to consider politics as a respectable option in Kashmir, where traditionally women have been kept away from politics. The fact that she maintains contacts with people throughout the State, that she travels to remote terrorism affected villages and mohallas,despite serious threats to her life, has emboldened numerous young women to stand for municipal elections with active support of their families and community.

There are serious consequences for the rest of the nation that arise out of the media's failure to highlight the increasing rejection of terrorist politics by Kashmiri Muslims.

There are serious consequences for the rest of the nation that arise out of the media's failure to highlight the increasing rejection of terrorist politics by Kashmiri Muslims. For example, activists working for reconciliation between Hindus and Muslims following the Gujarat riots are finding it difficult to convince prejudiced Hindus that all Muslims do not endorse the politics of jehadis while media fails to highlight the efforts of those working to strengthen peace and democracy in Kashmir. Therefore, Hindus all over the country have come to believe that wherever Muslims are in the majority, or come to acquire a significant numerical strength, they inevitably turn jehadis, eliminate Hindus and try to create many more Pakistans.

This makes the task of building bridges between estranged Hindus and Muslims much harder. We need to recognise that the fate of democracy in India is inextricably linked to restitution of peace and democracy in Kashmir, a peace that will also enable the Kashmiri Pandits to return to the Valley.

Charges of Rigged Election

It is ironical that some National Conference (NC) leaders, especially their President, Omar Abdullah, leveled charges of vote rigging against the PDP. It is well known that the NC, which once enjoyed huge popular support, in recent years has become an object of disdain for large sections of the Kashmiri people, especially its youth. This is because of vast corruption, mismanagement and authoritarian ways of handling citizen's disgruntlement when it was in power as well as its own love for capturing power through rigged elections. Not surprisingly, NC is feeling rattled by the democratic assertion of the citizens of J&K, and is joining the separatist Hurriyat leaders in questioning the poll verdict, alleging large-scale rigging. This newfound love between the NC leadership and Hurriyat leaders is a clear indication that the two serve each other's interests well in this situation. Both are upset at the steady improvement in the political situation in J&K after Mufti Mohammad Sayeed assumed power and is in turn trying to devolve more power to the people.

If there had been large-scale rigging we would not have seen so many first time entrants and independents win elections, indicating that people in mohallas often chose their own candidates who they think would serve their interests better. Even while PDP, as a mere fiveyear- old party, has given the best performance, they have not swept in every region and constituency of the Valley. Voters were able to elect candidates with a much larger range of political opinion than were ever before allowed an electoral presence in Kashmir. It is a common experience that rigging of polls is easier where there is a low turnout.

A large presence of voters make outright bungling extremely hazardous, especially in a politically surcharged atmosphere like Kashmir's, where people immediately engage in street protests over such fraud. PDP has acquired majorities with high voter turn out even in areas believed to be terrorist strongholds where there used to be total poll boycotts.

In almost all the elections prior to October 2002, poll rigging became a major cause of disenchantment with Indian democracy. This time complaints against malpractices are confined to a few booths and directed at local workers of all parties, including those in the opposition. The voter turn out would not have kept increasing with every phase of the poll if the PDP as the ruling party were popularly perceived as having rigged the elections. During the earlier regimes, there would be allegations that the security forces coerced reluctant people into voting. This time many people were upset because they did not find their names on the electoral rolls, which could not be updated in an efficient and timely manner because of threats by militants who targetted government functionaries in charge of preparing voters' lists. This was indeed a serious limitation of this election, one that legitimately caused some resentment.

The popular perception in the Valley was that the NC would gain from a low voter turnout because that is how traditionally they have won elections. The NC maintained a very low profile and did all they could to dampen the election mood. The consequences of their strategy can be seen in the election results. NC, which once had a large popular base, has been marginalised in most parts of the State and won only in those constituencies of Srinagar where, due to threat perception from militants, voter turnout was extremely low.

In most cases where there was high voter turnout, NC performed poorly while PDP won by huge margins. Most of NC victories were secured by negligibly tiny margins of 3 to 20 votes. The figures speak for themselves. In Srinagar, the only place where the NC did well, the party won 41 seats and polled a total of 33,000 votes, whereas PDP won 17 seats and polled 27,000 votes in the City. In the rest of the Valley, the NC has performed very poorly.

The absence of democratic institutions to respond to the civic requirements and political aspirations of its citizens contributed to Kashmiri alienation from Indian democracy. The revival of municipal institutions, which devolve a measure of power to local communities after 27 long years marks a historic turn in the politics of this strife-torn state. The following table shows the substantial increase in people's participation after the October 2002 election:

Making Space for Opponents

The Army is very impatient with the flip-flop policy of the NC and disdainful of Hurriyat's role because almost all of them are popularly believed to be on the payroll of various intelligence agencies, including those of the Americans, Pakistanis and even the Indians. And yet, one has seen Mufti argue with conviction on every possible platform that each and every political opinion must be included in the process of evolving a consensual permanent solution to the Kashmir problem, rather than attempt to buy temporary peace through isolating any group which will make them do desperate things.

He never utters one word against Pakistan and keeps reiterating how peace and friendship between the two neighbours is the only viable option for India and Pakistan. Yet, the actual import of his politics has been to drastically curb the influence and appeal of Pakistani jehadis, whereas NC leaders, with their exaggerated anti- Pakistan rhetoric in phases when they wanted to cosy up to the Centre, end up with making Pakistan appear as the "liberator" of Kashmir in the eyes of many Kashmiri Muslims.

Those who accuse Mufti of having "made a deal" with militants tend to overlook the fact that, without weaning away Kashmiri youth from terrorist politics, there can be no lasting peace. That is why, from its very inception in 1999, PDP leaders began to build contacts with the families of militants as well as victims of terrorist violence by following a simple, compassionate approach. Whenever they got a report of reprisal killings by the Army, allegations of torture or abuse by security forces, or death or maiming from an attack by militants, Mehbooba Mufti and other leaders would personally visit such families, even in remote, dangerous villages, to offer their condolences and help. They took up cases of those implicated or targeted by the Army on false charges to get relief and seek corrective measures rather than shout slogans and make political capital out of each incident as other leaders were prone to do.

This is what marginalised the Hurriyat – people could see how the Hurriyat was encashing the misery of Kashmiri people for personal gain and amassing wealth by diverting enormous amounts of money contributed to the cause to their personal accounts, though it was collected for waging the "freedom struggle" of Kashmiris. By contrast, PDP leaders tried to bring some redress and helped in rebuilding broken lives, including those of surrendered militants or the shattered lives of families of dead terrorists.

PDP also succeeded in building a measure of credibility with the Army establishment, because they do not indulge in hysterical exaggeration. Therefore, the Army began responding to their interventions and reviewing their own acts of commission and omission. At the same time, victimised families felt that there was someone interested in their plight. Thus the "healing touch" policy was put in operation even before the PDP fought the elections and provided muchneeded legitimacy to the 2002 polls. Two and a half years later, they are not facing an anti-incumbency reaction but instead are steadily gaining in popular appeal.

Politics of Compassion

One of the first things Mufti did on becoming CM was to provide monetary support to numerous widows of slain militants as well as victims of terrorist violence. PDP has supported the education of hundreds of orphaned children. In most instances of allegations of high handed action by security forces, either the CM himself, or senior ministers or party leaders accompanied by area commanders of the army under whose jurisdiction any allegation of atrocity are made, visit the affected families within a short time afterward. Enquiries are ordered and conducted with speed. There have been several instances of public apology by the army commanders in cases where a noncombatant got killed or harmed. In most cases, compensation cheques for those killed or maimed are delivered in their homes either by senior officials or ministers who go to condole the death so that the families do not have to face harassment in claiming the compensation money due to them.

It is through this compassionate route that Mufti has been able to win the trust of his people, including many families whose sons had taken up the gun. These families as well as fellow villagers have begun to pressure their sons to give up terrorism. Many have faulted PDP for being ‘soft' on families of dreaded terrorists. But Mehbooba has a sound explanation: "Men who take to the gun do not take permission from their children or even their wives and old parents. Why should a whole family be punished for the acts of one man? Whatever the label on those who carry the gun, the end result is the same. Many of these children and elderly remain in shock; many are destitute. It is hard to know if the orphans of militants are worse off when their fathers are alive but absent from the home, living on the fringes of society as outlaws, or when their fathers are dead. No one lends a helping hand to them, no one shows any compassion." It is this courage to build a politics of compassion, not revenge, that has played a major role in reducing the appeal of the politics of violence.

Difficult Balancing Act

Mufti has been able to perform another difficult balancing act. He is considered pro-Kashmir without being anti-Centre or anti-India. Any Chief Minister perceived as being close to the Centre is usually dubbed anti- Kashmiri. But Mufti has steadily built a non-confrontational relationship with the Centre, which has enabled him to take bold and unprecedented initiatives for peace, even while strengthening his appeal as a man who can defend the legitimate interests of Kashmiris.

For example, after becoming Chief Minister, he was the first politician to have persisted with the demand even after coming to power that the Srinagar- Muzaffarabad bus route be opened up for two way traffic. This demand used to be raised only by politicians who wanted yet another stick to beat up the Indian government. Therefore, the demand was seen as subversive by the Delhi establishment, given that Pakistan trained terrorists come into India mainly through the J&K Line of Control. Allowing divided families of the two Kashmiris to meet was considered a highly risky proposition by the Indian establishment.

And yet, within a couple of years of coming to power, Mufti succeeded in putting the issue firmly on the agenda of Indo-Pak negotiations. He could convince Delhi that such an opening will further reduce the attraction for Pakistan among Pro- Pakistan Kashmiris, while people from across the border will see for themselves that the situation in Kashmir is not what the Pakistani media make it out to be. Just recently India even accepted a controversial requirement that Indian Kashmiris will not use Indian passports but identity papers issued by the J&K state government for cross border travel.

A few years ago such a concession would have been unthinkable. It would have created a storm of official and popular outrage in India. Today, even the Army generals have endorsed this peace initiative with enthusiasm and are working hard to make the road safe for cross border travel by April.

Army's Changing Role

Infact, Mufti's clarion call – Na grenade se, na goli se, baat banegi boli se – ("Neither grenades nor bullets will solve our problems, only sustained dialogue can.") would not have gained popular respect if the military had not begun changing their methods of combating insurgency. Anyone who talked to the Army generals or even low and middle-ranking officers before the 2002 elections, which brought PDP's "Healing Touch" policy to the fore, could not help but notice their growing sense of anger and resentment at the fact that the Army had been called in to do a dirty job of dealing with the mess created by politicians. Therefore, even when they did not express political opinions openly, one could sense their disdain for the political establishment. Today, one senses a different mood. A significant section of the Army's top leadership have come to see the advantage of the "Healing Touch" approach and proudly talk of their constructive engagement with the Kashmiri people, an approach that takes them far beyond the ordinary call of duty as soldiers.

Not just in the Valley, but most Kashmiri Muslims even in Delhi will tell you that one significant achievement of the PDP led government is that people do not feel quite as terrorized by the security forces as they once did. For the first time the Army is responding to complaints of abuses with prompt action, summary trials and courtmartials against offenders. Officers are being dismissed from service and some even imprisoned in cases where allegations of abuses, including rape, have been proven to be true. People are no longer "disappearing" in large numbers after being picked up on suspicion by the Army.

Beginnings of Redressal

General Patankar, who retired last year as General Officer in Command of the region and former Army Chief Vij are widely credited with starting the process of making officers and soldiers act with greater professionalism, respecting the rights and protecting the well being of citizens. For example, when Pir Abdul Qayuum Shah of Darwah Wagoora in Baramula district was gunned down on the night of June 15, 2003, a quick enquiry by the Army revealed that he was wrongly targeted. Finance Minister Muzaffar Hussain Beig promptly visited the village along with General Patankar who publicly apologised to the family. In addition, Shah's son was given a government job and there was prompt monetary compensation provided to the family.

Similarly, a young man named Tahir Hussain Mukhoomi was picked up a day after his wedding on September 12, 2003 by the 22 Rashtriya Rifles on suspicion of harbouring terrorists in Sopore. On September 15, he was found dead. This was just before the PDP government came to power. Within a few weeks, the enquiry was completed and once again General Patankar accompanied the Chief Minister and Mehbooba Mufti to the victim's village. He is reported to have touched the feet of the dead man's father to openly express regret over the death. He embraced the victim's younger siblings and assured the father of the dead man that the Army would extend all help in rehabilitating the family. The compensation cheque was personally delivered by the CM who also got involved personally in helping the family rebuild their lives.

A few further examples: Captain Tewatia of 12 Rashtriya Rifles, operating in Banihal, was found guilty of rape committed in village Nougam. He was promptly tried and sentenced to seven years of rigorous imprisonment. Lance Naik R K Yadav of 13 Rashtriya Rifles was found guilty of sexual molestation on August 23, 2003. He too was promptly tried and dismissed from service. Havildar Krishan Bahadur was found guilty of misconduct with one Hakim Jan on December 20, 2004. He was not only dismissed but also sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment and handed over to the civil police within seven days of the incident on December 27, 2004.

Terrorism And Human Rights

Category: Home \ Miscellaneous \ Human Rights
Article: “Terrorism And Human Rights: Role Of The Security Personnel And The Police”

Today, both the world at large and India in particular, face daunting challenges in the task of protecting human rights of common people regardless of the country they belong to. No country in world can be said to be free from the deadly scourge of terrorism. With the grim spectre of terrorism continuing to target innocent and defenceless people, the task has been ever challenging for the institutions around the world. A peaceful society rest on the pillars of justice and individual accountability. The concern for justice has been the paramount objective of this topic while dealing with vexed issue of terrorism. These are turbulent times in many parts of world. It has become apparent that in many ways, the world has become complicated, to say the least. The destinies and the interests of the nations and their citizens have become interlinked to such an extent that, invariably, the action of the one has adversely affected the other, leading to strife and suffering. In all such tragic situations, it has been mostly the common people, men, women and children whose rights have been violated. This is the greatest challenge, which all of us are faced with. In their constant endeavour for better future, nations and their citizens should always respect the human rights of the people who could be affected in the process. But experience has shown that more often it is not so. The result is that innocent people all over the world, irrespective of their colour, religion and creed, have suffered the most. It is important to understand the nature of terrorism and the way or the manner in which terrorism is treated by the world and the countries deploying the counter-terrorist measures belong to which school of thought.

The technology of inflicting large-scale violence is becoming easier to obtain, and - per quotient of lethality - less and less expensive.
This in turn yields three lemmas:
a. The target country has to be equipped to counter the entire spectrum of violence: to take the current examples from the United States - from aircraft being used as missiles to anthrax;
b. It is almost impossible in an open society to block a determined lot from acquiring the technology they want by blocking the technology itself - the only practical way is to be a leap ahead of the technology the terrorist acquires;
c. All this is certain to cost the target country a great deal - but that is the price one has to pay to survive in the world of today; to cavil at it is no better than an elderly couple that grudges the locks they have to put on doors in a city marred by crimes against the elderly.

The Two Schools of Thought
There are two schools of thoughts according to the strategies adopted by the countries in countering terrorism or on which counter terrorist strategies are based. The British school considers terrorism as a crime. How this school considers it as a crime is the strategy it employs such as there is more of police work along with intelligence services. These school patrons the protection of the individual rights i.e terrorist are handled through standard criminal justice system. This school has developed a nexus with the international organizations such as the Interpol and various other institutions to handle the situations of terrorism with co-ordination.On the other hand we have the second school of thought which considers terrorism as a War which is also known as a American school. Why is it called as an American school is evident from the notorious activity of America in handling terrorism i.e. by waging war. This school Treats terrorism as an existential threat and believes in using military assets and operations, Individual liberties are frequently threatened. Terrorist are either shot or imprisoned without judicial recourse, Based upon looking entire terrorist group(s) as a enemy rather than looking at each terrorist as criminal and bringing to the books. Example of this school can be Israel, Russia where as for British school it is Spain, India etc

Therefore, in my opinion a British School is preferred. The reason is that given a strong legal system, it is always better to de-legitimize the political agenda of the terrorists. At end of the day, the Madrid Bombers and the 7/7 bombers were pure and simple mass murderers. Why allow them to retain the cover of either religious or political reasons? Secondly, as evidence has confirmed, following the American school means international opprobrium. While the short term benefits of the American School are clear – you have a direct way of handling terrorists, you shoot them and they be damned, no silly rules of evidence collection, etc. – the long term impact on society, the international standing and respect, the diminution of the respect for law and order and finally the strong element of hypocrisy charges all combine to make this a less suitable option

Terrorism as threat to human rights and development
India has had its share of terrorist attacks and is learning to live with it. Today, not only Mumbai and Delhi are high on list of terrorist but hi-tech hubs like Bangalore and Hyderabad have already begun to beep on the terrorist radar. If Mumbai was shaken by the serial blasts in the local trains which left hundreds dead and injured and Delhi was in shock at the bombing that took place in crowded shopping area, the attacks in India’s emerging high tech hubs like Bangalore and Hyderabad in previous years came as an eye opener.

Today what is new is the act that the terrorist has become more sophisticated and knows how to attack in places where it would hurt the most. Take for instance, the Mumbai blast orchestrating the seven blasts in a public transportation system is not the job of the amateur. The terrorist knows that India is globally emerging as an economic superpower in IT, BPO and even conventional businesses. Over the last couple of year, intelligence agencies have continually sent warning signals of militant groups planning attacks in Bangalore and the city going on high alert. Bangalore, where all the global giants like Intel, IBM, Motorola, HP have development offices, has more than 1,500 It and BPO firms. Several Indian defense, space and scientific research institutions are also based in Bangalore.

There are three reasons for terror activities in high –tech centers:
(1) Terrorist feel they are sending signals to international investors that India may not be the safest place to be.
(2) A significant number of US firms have operations here and when the militant tendency is to get back at the US, this is the one way of getting back.
(3) Security is not as tight as it could be.

The terrorist is looking at the other means of attack i.e. through technology. There are many companies here that are working on mission critical applications for US firms. To hit back at the US government, all you need is to cripple the operations through technology and data theft.

We have in the last 15 odd years, seen 5 different kinds of terrorisms emerging in India. Of course the most significant one is the one we see on account of cross border insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir. The second is the Punjab which we saw in the 1980’s and was fortunate to have been able to overcome. The third we saw a severe problem in the south from the LTTE. Problems in the north east is continuing and the latest to join these categories is the kind of terrorism spread along the various parts of central India the Maoist insurgency from Andhra Pradesh.

In the four conventional wars that we have fought including the latest being Kargil war the total number of people who lost their lives i.e. security personnel is 9857, In last 15 years the number of civilians who have lost their lives to terrorism is 62,221, a figure almost 6 to 7 times more than those who have lost their lives in conventional wars. The security personnel killed in various terrorist actions is again over 9000. The total amount of money spent and this doesn’t include the amount that we spent on our security forces, army and so on, on merely relief and rehabilitation, on special Para military forces that we deploy for anti-insurgency the figure now crosses Rs45,000 cores.

More than 45,000 corers is what is deprived to our villages in terms of electricity and power, in terms of health care, in terms of education and in term of roads. The increase in budget on agencies involved in fighting terrorism since early 80’s is 2600 percent. Strong anti terrorist measures and methods which are employed as part of counter terrorism, the end result is what is normally a phrase used in areas affected by terrorism, a sense of alienation. When security forces act, the kind of propaganda which builds up results in alienation of people. despite that a sense of alienation can built in, because when terrorist strike them, people don’t like investing , where jehadis are moving with guns, even tradition income avenues suffer, sense of security suffers.

Role of security personnel in protection of human right
Section 2(d) defines as the right relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual guaranteed by the constitution or embodied in the international covenants and enforceable by the courts in India. Since there has been an increase in number of cases of terrorist activities, communal riots, activities of naxalism the role of security forces have become paramount and necessary. These forces although play an important role in protecting the borders their requirement is even more necessary in controlling civil unrest, enhancing the security at the important places and also control and maintain law and order whenever required.

The United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on December 17, 1979 that all security personnel shall respect and protect human dignity and uphold the human rights of all persons as well it applies to the armed forces, they have to abide by the international conventions against torture and other cruel punishments, principles of international cooperation in the detention, arrest, extraditions and punishment against humanity.

Implementation of security legislations led to a gross violation of human rights in several states. Widespread abuses of Armed Forces Special Power Act in the North East states drew a lot of criticism for ignoring impunity issues and recommending use of the Unlawful Activity Prevention Act. At least 400 people remained in jails under the repealed POTA and several continued to face special trials of proceedings of which failed to meet fair trial standards . The project deems to cover various issues relating to the violation of the Human rights by the security forces whether armed or unarmed. In the Guise of security cover violations are taking place.

The painful issue of how to protect human rights in times of terrorism and insurgency confronted the National Human Rights Commission within days of its establishment with the tragic death of civilians in Bijbehara, in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, in the course of a firing by the Para - military force. The commission took suo - muto cognizance of the incident and after examining the reports, for which it had asked, concluded that excessive force had been used. There has been a strict vigilance by the commission on such kinds of violations. To cover more on the violations by the security forces and the kinds of complaints the NHRC has been receiving and also the measures taken by the commissions on such complaints we will make a brief study of the NHRC reports.

Role of police
On 13 December 2001, a white ambassador with at least five armed men entered the Parliament complex. In the ensuing gun-battle, all the five attackers and nine others, including eight security personnel, were killed. The police investigation was concluded in a fortnight and four persons – one Mohammad Afzal Guru, his cousin Shaukat Guru, Shaukat's wife Afsan Guru (alias Navjot Sandhu) and SAR Geelani, a Delhi University Arabic lecturer were arrested; while three others (including usual suspects Ghazi Baba and Masood Azhar) were declared the masterminds of the attack. The designated POTA court convicted all four, sentencing all but Afsan Guru to death . Geelani and Afsan were later acquitted by the High Court and their acquittal was confirmed by the Supreme Court. Shaukat's sentence was commuted by the Supreme Court while Afzal's death sentence was upheld.

Arundhati Roy's introduction to this collection lists 13 disturbing questions that remain unanswered over five years and three court judgements after the incident . These include why the close circuit television (CCTV) recordings of the incident were never released; what was the role of the Special Task Force (STF, part of the J&K Police) in this incident given that Afzal was a surrendered militant and admitted to working for the STF; what was the 'incontrovertible evidence' that led the Government to amass soldiers on the border with Pakistan and why all we know about the five dead attackers is the (then) Home Minister L K Advani's statement that they looked like Pakistanis? Cumulatively, she argues and alleges that the unanswered questions suggest complicity, collusion and involvement of either the Government or some intelligence agency in the attack rather than mere incompetence in the subsequent investigation.

Roy calls for an impartial and independent inquiry into the Parliament Attack to reveal the truth about the incident. A similar call is voiced in a number of the other essays too. Given the otherwise ubiquity of committees and commissions set up (at last count three had investigated the Godhra incident, and at least five investigated various aspects of the 1984 Massacre of Sikhs in Delhi), it is surprising, to say the least, that none has yet been appointed to investigate the Parliament Attack. In fact uncharacteristically, not even the lapse of security, which allowed the white ambassador right inside the Parliament complex, has been investigated by an independent body. The Special Cell of the Delhi Police was curiously preferred by the Home Ministry to investigate this case over the CBI which would be the otherwise first choice agency . That and the absence of a virtually mandatory 'Commission of Inquiry', if nothing else, make it tougher to reject the 'collusion and complicity' argument as a mere leftist 'conspiracy theory'. In this collective national disinterest (and arguably selective amnesia), is played by the fact that a scapegoat is available. Not only has the judgement of the Supreme Court upholding Mohammad Afzal Guru's guilt and death sentence become the Holy Grail for all nationalists and self-declared protectors of the nation from terrorism; but the microscopic 'truth' that the Court has offered is deemed to be sufficient for most citizens. With the Supreme Court itself rejecting Afzal's 'confessional' statement as unreliable and also acquitting Geelani, there is no support to the police's sequence of events leading up to the incident. The 'mastermind' theory too is put to rest as the Supreme Court has not found Afzal to be a member of any terrorist organisation. . Afzal's arrest was suspicious. Though the police claim that Geelani led them to Afzal, according to court records the police flashed an alert for Afzal and Shaukat on 15 December at 5:45 a.m. – a full four hours before Geelani was arrested in Delhi. Afzal was eventually arrested at 11 a.m. the same morning in Srinagar, but his arrest and seizure memos are signed by Geelani's younger brother – in Delhi. The laptop allegedly recovered from him was not sealed for a month and accessed even after sealing by the police – enough time to add whatever they wanted. The evidence about Afzal purchasing the SIM card is unconvincing and the policeman who claimed to have recorded the phone instrument (IMEI) number stated in Court could not say how he knew the number. The call records produced in Court were dubious at best – they even showed that two calls were made at one particular time from two different instruments using the same SIM card. Cloned SIM or doctored records? Your guess is as good as mine. The identification of Afzal by various shopkeepers was not done by the usual test-identification parade but he was in fact taken to the shops by the police.

Non-recognition of poor legal representation of Afzal was not the only failing of the Courts. Upon his own acquittal, SAR Geelani remarked, as quoted by Haskar, "The acquittal of an innocent man is not an occasion for celebration, but a cause for reflection". Such reflection, as Haksar's essay shows, reveals this: though the Delhi High Court found no evidence whatsoever against Geelani and Afsan Guru and further observed that the police had not followed the procedures of arrest and even forged recovery documents and lied on oath, it still did not pass any strictures against the police officers, nor did it initiate or suggest any reprimands or other action against them. The failure to hold the police accountable was further compounded by the Supreme Court's unfortunate reference to 'needle of suspicion' while upholding Geelani's acquittal.

Since 2005, Chhattisgarh, especially the Bastar-Dantewada forest area, has witnessed escalation of violence between the Maoists and the Salwa Judum . Civilians were routinely targeted on both sides, resulting in at least 300 deaths. Also, 45,000 adivasis displaced from their homes have been forced to live in special camps putting them at increased risk of violence. The Chhattisgarh state government claimed that it enacted the CSPSA (Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act) to take action against the Maoists. Human rights organizations in India have demanded the repeal of CSPSA as it contains several provisions similar to those in POTA. These include:
• Violation of the principle of certainty in criminal law (including vague definition of membership and support to terrorist or unlawful organizations);
• Absence of pre-trial safeguards (including insufficient safeguards on arrest, the risk of torture, obstacles to confidential communications with counsel);
• Virtual impossibility of obtaining bail as there is no provision for remedy of appeal or review of detention;
• Threats to freedom of expression and
• Threats to freedom of association.

Mentioned above are few instances where the police has been either negligent in conducting investigation or are colluding with the criminals. As declared by The United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on December 17, 1979 that “all police officers shall respect and protect human dignity and uphold the human rights of all persons as well it applies to the armed forces, they have to abide by the international conventions against torture and other cruel punishments, principles of international cooperation in the detention, arrest, extraditions and punishment against humanity”, which is paramount in the functioning of the police is not abide by. Since time immemorial police have not been able leash it’s atrocities in spite of the commendable job done by them. Time and again National Human Rights Commission has been show causing the officials of the police as to why an action should not be taken against them.
It is of utmost importance to understand various human rights of the individuals, the situations in which violations are likely if sufficient care is not exercised and the likely allegations or charges against personnel of Armed Forces as well the police. Laid down below catalogically are certain rights enshrined under Article 19 of the Constitution and how these rights are violated which further violate Article 14 of the Constitution.

HUMAN RIGHTS SITUATIONS OF VIOLATION LIKELY ALLEGATIONS ON PERSONNEL

Human Rights Situations Of Violation Likely Allegations On Personnel
1. All human beings are born equal and free in dignity and rights. No one shall be subject to arbitrary arrest, detention. Forces cannot arrest unless ordered by the magistrate acting under Armed Forces Special Power act. During aid to civil authorities while combating insurgents, culprit may have to be apprehended:
(a) During cordon and search operations for suspected terrorist.
(b) While dealing with mob indulging in looting arson etc.
(c) Persons threatening peace in an area or inciting the public against Armed Forces.
(g) Illegal Arrest
(h) Arrest of innocent persons.

2. No one shall be subject to prolonged and unlawful detention. The apprehended person should be handed over to the police and shall not be confined for the purpose of interrogation. The Police and Armed forces may be tempted to keep a person in confinement in following situations:
(a) For interrogation
(b) To prevent a dangerous insurgent from escaping.
(c) Detention of person for identification.
(a) Wrongful confinement
(b) Illegal treatment
(c) High handedness
(d) Rape, Molestation, etc.

3. Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of persons. Armed Forces may inadvertently cause death/injury to other persons in following situations:
(a) During crossfire between Armed Forces and insurgents in a crowded area.
(b) In self defence
(c) Due to any accidental firing
(d) On being ordered to fire at mob for maintaining law and order.
(e) On check post
(f) During cordon and search operations. (a) Murder
(b) Causing death/injury due to negligence.
(c) Death in custody
(d) Torture
(e) Inhuman and degrading behaviour
4. Everyone has right to well being to himself and his family. On humanitarian grounds medical help and care has to be provided to sick and wounded of even an enemy as laid down in the Geneva Convention. Medical assistance is likely to be denied by the Armed forces under:
(a) Due to shortage of medicines and doctors.
(b) Priority of looking after one’s owns sick and wounded rather than others. (a) Inhuman behaviour
(b) Cruelty to fellow human beings
(c) Death due to carelessness and negligence of Armed forces.
5. Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.
Movement restrictions curfew may be imposed without proper authority due to:
(a) To check movement of terrorist/insurgents during aid to civil authorities.
(a) interference with right to work and earn living
(b) Harassment




Recommendations
Police transformations: lessons from Ireland
Northern Ireland provides a striking illustration of the intimate link between the dynamic of institutional change in a post- conflict society and the organic connection of policing transformation to that process. Training is the key vehicle to deliver institutional transformation to policing and as well as training to inculcate a culture of human rights into police organizational praxis.

In police organizations the traditional emphasis has been on training rather than education. In many western societies training has tended to focus on the formal equipping of police officers with the necessary knowledge of the law and development of practical skills to do their job.

“Police have had training for the human rights yet it didn’t begin to train them in human rights. The organization has assumed the training in this area was done. It reinforced that the human rights are a criminal’s charter “. A discursive exploration of the policing problems and training question is obviously warranted. However, the response of many societies has been to equate police effectiveness with modernization and professionalization and to pose the question solely in these terms. Although this standard police response partly engages with the human rights challenges, it cannot fully meet it. The danger inherent in a narrow managerialist discourse that frames both policing problems and solutions within a compartmentalized and highly skewed technical framework need to be monitored particularly carefully in a transitional context. Northern Ireland has been able to identify the areas in which more focus has to layed on the important lessons that have not been fully taken on board and that might impede not only progress towards acceptable policing arrangements but also progress in the broader peace building process.

(a) location of training
The physical location in which training takes place is important. A police force that values community partnership will be better able to build these partnerships if its members are themselves embedded in communities.
(b) Training and organizational culture
Revaluation of the traditional policing role is necessary
(c) Training, Education and Development strategy
(d) Human right training

Humanitarian aspects during the phase of defence
The aspect of defence which deploys lethal armaments like in the offensive phase is quite different in character. Here one is deployed more often then not on one’s own home territory, defending it. However, the armament used is still lethal and may harm the civil population around forces own deployment. Therefore to counter these problems various measures should be adopted such as:
1. Choice of defence positions
Location at the time of defence should be as far away from the civil population and objects as possible.

2. Weapons
While in the conduct of defence, the choice of weapons to be used should be such that which creates minimum collateral damage to the general environment of the defence location.

3. Removal of civilians
The removal of civilians from the vicinity of defended objects shall take place preferably to locations they know and which present no danger to them.
This is one of the aspect which should be taken into consideration while tackling the problem of violation of human rights as protection of life of the innocent civilians is of a great importance apart from the code of conduct that the personnel has to keep in mind while handling such situations.

The above mentioned recommendations should be employed by the police during the phase of encounter with the terrorist or any other criminal, they have to pay heed to the protection if the civilian population.

Other forces also have such code of conduct but only solution that can be reached to counter the problem of violation of human rights is by proper implementation of the proper conduct. The above mentioned violations are not only crimes listed in the Indian penal Code but are also violate the Constitution of India. As our Constitution adheres to the principles of Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Violation of our own Constitution is in a way non adherence with the international conventions and declarations. The enactments such as POTA and TADA or Armed forces Special Powers Act are draconian laws and would not solve the purpose of a secured society, there has to be the proper implementation of the Constitutional guarantees to it’s citizens, special status to the security forces has always led to the misuse of their powers as we have witnessed from the reports of National Human Rights Commission and various other sources. In the name of security so many innocent people are rounded up, taking the example of Punjab Mass burial case as to what happened when TADA law was implemented, mass killing of innocent people, security forces having special powers to rape, molest, torture, murder, and what happened at the end when the TADA was repealed, the conviction rate was just 1.8%. With these examples we can understand that security issues cannot be improved by giving special powers to security personals.

Human rights violation as a catalyst for terrorist activities
A history of colonial subjugation, slow economic development, and years of dictatorial rule has left many states in domestic turmoil, both politically and economically. The rapid rate of globalization over the past several decades has exacerbated, if not highlighted many of these domestic inadequacies and inequalities.

(a) Political rights and terrorism
Citizens who are able to protest within their regime are less likely to resort to terrorism. The more open the political system, the less likely individuals are to go outside system to participate in political process. Conversely a citizen in a state with limited political rights is less likely to have an opportunity to work within the system to effect change.

(b) Security rights of the individuals
The second category of human rights is security rights when security rights are violated an incentive is created for the people to seek extra- systemic means of political expression. When state uses violence against its citizens, opposition groups often feel justified in responding in kind. Red Brigade in Italy for example argued that their use of violence was justified because the state had resorted to violence.

(c) Subsistence rights of the individual
Many a times the states violate the basic human needs most often refers to inability of the government to provide for citizenry and suggest not proactive abuse, but rather neglect. This neglect can be intentional in many cases (Zimbabwe, for example) or simply a result of the state’s inability to provide basic human needs, regardless citizens suffer. Combining the violation of political rights, security rights and suboptimal levels of basic human needs, the conditions are ripe for terrorism. We need a powerful security regime as far as terrorist is concerned and finally we need a very strong and powerful legal regime.

(d) Invoking section 166 Indian penal Code
We has very easily overlooked at the pertinence of this section which has got more value than making legislations which are draconian in nature. First invoke this penal section against the public servants (security personnel) who perform there duty arbitrarily only then there can be a stop to this vicious circle of terrorism and again draconian laws then again terrorism. There is an urgent need to put a break somewhere. As the great legend Mahatma Gandhi rightly said “An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind “. The judiciary has to play an active role in first bringing down the atrocities of the security personal with the quintessence character of this section of the Indian Penal Code.

Beyond such practical steps, there must be a will to ensure their effectiveness. We have to convince not just the formal institutions of government and the police, but also the public that true security comes