Gender violence overshadowed by national security

What is normalcy for Kashmiris?

Snow capped mountains or bared fences and boundaries,

Curfews and gun shots or silent perennial flowing rivers,

Disappearances and suppression or freedom from strife ,  

Angst and terror or hope and levity ,

Worthless metallic badges or helping hands of humanity?

   The situation in Kashmir is like chalk and cheese. What is reality for these people is completely opposite to what we have always taken for granted.

  The amount of gender violence in the Kashmir valley far exceeds than any other states in India.  Furthermost the cases of sexual violences are unreported to preserve the ‘Standards of Morality’ of the Indian Army. The most sadistic and brutal instance is the 1991 Kunan Poshpora case in which more than forty women were raped by the 4^th Rajputana Rifles. No one was spared between the age group of 12 to 80 years old. However the incident was labelled as a “massive hoax” by the inquiry committee setup by Government. This shows the loopholes in our judiciary system which overlooked the vast number of rape victims and all the classified witnesses of this inexorable case were dismissed and the verdict served justice to no one.

   In the name of the Army’s pretentious display of bravery, courage and ‘National Security’ they snatch the pride and dignity of the women in this state. The despair and agony of these women has been overlooked for over a decade just to retain the pride of the infamous Indian Army.

Another stark form of gender insecurity is the conditions of the ‘half women’. They are more often the unidentified faces of women sufferings in Kashmir. Not only they undergo extreme mental and social stigma to be born as beings who are not accepted in society readily but they also face everlasting economic hardships as well. They are often ineligible the government’s various support and pension schemes.  In many instances they are separated from their children who in return undergo extreme desolation and loneliness. 

  Furthermore the militarization of this zone places these half widows in a vulnerable position exposed to extreme form of sexual harassments and assaults. They require immediate actions and the culprit must be castigated in order for justice to prevail in this society. But the irony is that these cases of gender violence are neglected and never under the radar to prevent these heinous crimes to take place again. The plight of the women of the valley are deserted and not spoken off in many peace and security conventions in Kashmir.

   However the Kashmiri women do have skeletal support from local organisations mostly run by women who have faced similar situations but it is not adequate enough to look after so many cases without much Governmental backing. It is high time for the government who is barring itself the voice of the lakhs of disgruntled women in Kashmir. The Government must hammer for massive changes in the state as the toll of illicit crimes against women is creating an image of the state which runs totally contradictory to its factual demographic landscapes.