The oppression that is meant to break the will of the oppressed and force them into submission sometimes does the opposite: brings people together, reaffirms their resolve to fight back, and unites them as one people. When the fate of each individual is linked with that of other, both at the receiving end of the power, not only do they come together to resist, they also support each other in suffering. Even in extremely distressful conditions, forgetting their own pain, ordinary people show extraordinary courage. Such people can be killed, but they cannot be defeated.
Here, I am sharing with you a handful of such instances from the 2010 Civil Uprising in Kashmir. Names have been purposefully avoided for security matters.
An old couple
On a curfewed night in the summer of 2010 civil uprising in Kashmir, an old couple, living alone at their home in Srinagar city, were in distress. For the past few days, a strict curfew had been imposed in the city to prevent any protests from people. The old couple needed some life saving medicine which they were unable to get due to the strict curfew imposed outside. No medical shop was open. No one was allowed to move out of their homes.
A friend, known to the old couple, called that evening. He wanted to know about any possibility of arranging the required medicine at that hour for that old couple. A message was posted on social networking sites, mentioning their home address and names of the medicine required by them. Surprisingly, the message evoked an overwhelming response from unknown people on the social networking site. People living around that area in the city were quietly informed and mobilized by strangers elsewhere. The required medicine was quietly being arranged for the old couple.
After an hour, the old couple called up the friend again. This time they asked him not to seek more help. Near their door, the old couple informed him, some strangers had dropped packets of all the medicine they required, in fact more than what they required. They could not thank people enough, sending out their prayers for all those who helped them at that hour in the night. They profusely thanked all those who brought medicine for them, taking the risk of moving out in curfew. The multiple packets of medicine dropped near their door, the old couple later informed the friend, will last for one year.
A diabetic patient
It was a curfewed summer morning during the 2010 civil uprising. Everyday, there was some tragic news of boys being shot at on the streets by the government forces. An old man, a diabetic patient, came out of his home and started knocking at every door in his neighbourhood that was known to be indifferent to the protests carried out by other neighbourhood boys against the government forces. The old man wanted people to come out of their homes and, like other people from neighboring muhallas, register their protest. He was even willing to lead that small protest in their neighbourhood. At a time when young, unarmed boys were shot at and braving bullets of government forces on the streets, the old man could not sit and watch all this from the safety of his home. He could not contain himself. He came out of his home and started knocking at the doors of all his neighbours, politely convincing them to come out of their homes and lodge their own protest. “Let us start the protest from my home. Let them break the windows of my home, let them break our bones…,” he told all his neighbors at their doors, “but we should not sit silent…”
Seeing a diabetic patient willing to be at the front and lead the protest, all the young and elderly people slowly trickled out of their homes. The protesting group gathered in the neighborhood streets. Raising anti-state and pro-freedom slogans, the protest travelled through the lanes and by-lanes of their neighborhood. The protest even extended to other neighborhoods in the vicinity. The small but symbolic protest ended up near the modest one storey home of that old man. Every eye was moist in that group. And everyone hugged the old man after the protest. From then onwards, that neighborhood acquired a new-found respect among people from neighboringmuhallas.
A car mechanic
During the 2010 summer uprising, in a middle class neighborhood in Srinagar, a car mechanic was struggling to survive without work. For many weeks, he was unable to earn enough for his family because of the frequent curfews. He didn’t express his grievance to anyone in his neighbourhood, except for a few friends who came to know of his condition. When this was brought to the knowledge of some of his neighbours, they took it upon themselves to support this poor man in distress.
Without telling him, they went from door to door in their neighbourhood, seeking help for him. They told the neighbours that one of their poor friends, who they did not name, needed their help in these difficult times. Some of the neighbours donated money, while others gave rice and other essential items which was then put together and quietly sent to that mechanic, out of work and in distress.
Blood donation
When government forces unleashed a reign of terror on the streets during the 2010 civil uprising, besides over 100 deaths, hundreds of people were injured. The blood bank of SMHS hospital in the city was running short of blood. Due to the strict curfew, people found it difficult to reach the hospital. Some doctors sought help from people living in the vicinity of the hospital, urging them to come forward and donate blood for the injured. Some doctors posted messages on social networking sites, requesting people to donate blood. Within a short time, they were flooded with calls of people, all wanting to reach the hospital to donate blood. Later, two blood donation camps were organized in Rajbagh and Jawarhir Nagar area in the city, drawing an overwhelming response from people despite the curfew and restrictions imposed by the state government.
One of the doctors, who helped organize the blood donation camps, later had to send out another message, requesting people not to donate more blood: “Aug 2, 2010 – Today forenoon 42 pints for BJS Hospital and 32 pints for LD Hospital were donated at Jawahir Nagar. Having liaison with the concerned, there is NO shortage now… and no further storage facility available.”
Few boys in Shopian
One day in the summer of 2010 civil uprising in Shopian district of south Kashmir, some boys, who were always on the run and hounded by police and CRPF troops, gathered more boys from neighboring muhallas. This time they had come together for another, more important purpose. For police and CRPF troops in that area, these boys were some misguided youth who created trouble for them by regularly pelting stones at them.
This time, these youth mobilized other boys from neighboring muhallas. Together, they wanted to help the people of Srinagar city reeling under a strict week-long curfew imposed by the state. There was shortage of essential food items in many parts of the city. People were facing the brunt of a strict curfew for many days now. The boys collected food items, rice, vegetables and other aid from people in their nearby neighbourhoods. They arranged a truck full of vegetables, rice and other eatables which was later dispatched to Srinagar and distributed among people who were in need of essentials.
When the boys would go from door to door collecting aid in their neighbourhood, even young kids would come forward with their own contributions – their little pocket money they had saved.
