A Place where Human Rights are Violated!

Goodman Naorem *

Dear friends!

By now, some/most of you might have heard about the 'Iron Lady of Manipur' [Ms. Irom Chanu Sharmila] who had been fasting unto death since 4 November, 2000 till now against the most savage law in the world called Arms Forces Special Power Act [AFSPA] still imposed in Manipur, other North-East states and Jammu & Kashmir in India that gives all powers to the Indian Army to arrest, torture & kill anyone, anywhere, anytime with legal immunity!

About Ms. Irom Chanu Sharmila:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irom_Chanu_Sharmila

About AFSPA:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armed_Forces_(Special_Powers)_Act,_1958

Human Rights Violations in Manipur & elsewhere in India:

Manipur is currently a federal state of Indian Union merged with India controversially in October 1949. Within some years of the merger with India, insurgency movements started in Manipur at low levels.

To fight such insurgency movements, Indian Government passed & imposed this inhuman law called Arms Forces Special Power Act [AFSPA] in 1958 in Manipur & other states in the North-East India that gives the Indian Army all the powers to encroach upon the basic human rights of the common people i.e. disturb people anytime, anywhere; arrest without warrant; torture & kill anyone suspicious with full legal impunity for whatever heinous crimes army can commit upon the civilians; in the name of fighting insurgency in Manipur, other North-East states and Jammu & Kashmir in India.

About Manipur:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manipur

India's Hypocritical Democracy:
India, claiming to be the largest democratic country [in terms of population] in the world and preaching the world of democratic values & human rights, needs to set her house in order first before talking about democracy & human rights to others in the world as a hypocrite!

USA's Faulty Human Rights Policy:
USA should not blindly issue a clean chit to India about human rights issues until India totally scrap this outdated, barbaric & the most undemocratic law in the world called Arms Forces Special Power Act [AFSPA].

Fault with the Political Leaders:
Political leaders of India, both from the Central Government & the State Governments of Manipur, other North-East States and Jammu & Kashmir in India; should have thrown away this most undemocratic law [AFSPA] to the dust-bin long time ago or better this law should have never been passed & enforced at the first place! Because of the patronage of the respective governments [both central & states], this most undemocratic law is still there violating the democratic rights of the people in this so called the largest democratic country of the world [India]. What a shame: India!

Individual Initiatives:
When leaders are no longer reliable or accountable for the welfare of the common people, individuals start initiating lone crusades using personal will power just as Ms. Irom Chanu Sharmila is doing since 10 years: hunger strike unto death until AFSPA is removed totally from India but the deaf & blind governments [both central & states] are neither listening nor waking up to the justice yet!

While she had been doing such a non-violent democratic protest for the higher good of the entire humanity i.e. protecting the fundamental human rights of the people; she is charged as a criminal for trying to commit suicide by fasting; kept under arrest since and kept just alive by force-feeding through nose while her overall physical health had been crumbling down over the years since when she, as a young girl of 28 started the fast unto death against AFSPA in 2000.

Consequences of Imposing AFSPA:
Just at the time of imposing AFSPA in Manipur, there were hardly one or two insurgency groups in Manipur but with the imposing of AFSPA, the number of insurgent groups increased every passing year and by now there are at least thirty [30] insurgent groups in Manipur and the number is still counting up! The same is more or less true in other North-East states and in Jammu & Kashmir as well.

AFSPA was imposed to fight, control and finish insurgency in Manipur, other North-East states and in Jammu & Kashmir but the result is the total opposite i.e. AFSPA is fuelling the increase of insurgency in these regions of India!

Then, why this condemned law by all people should still remain?

Only people without conscience i.e. not fit to be called themselves as human beings only will support this law!

Mr. Anna Hazare & Ms. Irom Chanu Sharmila:
When Mr. Anna Hazare recently protested with fasting for a few days against corruption, people supported him because corruption is bad for humanity as a whole.

Is Ms. Irom Chanu Sharmila's fasting against the violation of human rights not concerned for the humanity as a whole?

Let us Revolt against Corruption & Human Rights Violations:
Please, friends who supported Mr.Anna Hazare against corruption; please support Ms.Irom Chanu Sharmila against Human Rights Violation, now.

Please, friends in India & around the world, let us support this fight against human rights violation of Ms.Irom Chanu Sharmila and defeat AFSPA and any other acts that violate human rights anywhere in the world.

Please support both Mr. Anna Hazare & Ms. Irom Chanu Sharmila and let us stop corruption and human rights violation in India and everywhere in the world.