Die for your government?

The summer of 2008, a very special summer for me. Apart from all the fun and games I also witnessed a series of events that added a plus point to my lifelong experiences. I always wondered why the people of Kashmir were rebelling against the government. I thought that the people must be crazy because to me India was such an amazing country. As I grew up, I heard alot of stories that were answers to my questions but I never really paid any attention to them. To me it was all a load of rubbish. The people were crazy and didn't know what was good for them. But all of that changed this summer. After the land transfer issue seemed to have settled down in Kashmir and all was back to normal, another drama came up. The people of Jammu began to protest against the cancellation of the land transfer and to let their actions do the talking, blocked the road connecting Jammu to Kashmir. Hence forth in the case of Kashmir, nothing goes out and nothing comes in. An economic blockade. Now who expects the people to sit in silence when they have no food or money. And whats money going to do when the shops have nothing to offer? Kashmir was than flooded with protestors form every corner of the state. From small neighbourhoods to the big city. People came from far off villages to join the protests. Ofcourse the protests were peaceful and all that the people wanted was that the road be re-opened. Since the government didn't seem very bothered nothing was actually done. Infact, the protestors were treated brutally by being shot upon. The death toll was rising day by day. Teargas guns that are meant to scatter people were used as shotguns. They actually shot people with teargas. But that didn't stop the people. It only made them stronger. More determined. They were not afraid to die. Die for what was right. Peaceful protestors were violently beaten and shot upon. A clear violation of human rights. Curfews were set and orders to shoot on sight were issued. But the people did not give up. They could not be stopped. They had no fear. My whole family saw all of this on local news channels, but what I find sickening is that the government banned national news channels from reporting or showing any of this. Noone and I mean noone actualy knows what is happening in kashmir. The people are suffering and the only way they can get their message across is through the media. Thank God that the new generation raised it's voice instead of guns and now the government is aware of the situation. But sadly noone else is. Now I know why the people rebelled. It wasn't because of the summer of 2008, it was because of how they were treating for so many years. Years of horror when innocent collage students were shot while returning home because they could have possibly been terrorists. When the army broke into peoples houses, ransacked them and threw them on the road so that they could set up their army bases. All these years of suppresion has now finally blown out with an unstoppable force. And now, all of Kashmir is under a curfew, all tv lines have been cut, no food, no money. Just sit at home or be slaughtered by the authorities. You will never know how it feels, till it happens to you. Never.
And to all those who died for what was right, I salute you.