For the first time in half a decade, Michael Chakma saw the sun. He had escaped, but he could barely remember where to go or who to call. Five years prior, Chakma was abducted by Bangladeshi intelligence, and from that day on, he was subjected to torture, stuck in the darkness, and only able to […]
Tag: kashmir
Dissent and Democracy: Prime Minister Modi’s War Against the Indian Press
The violent unrest in Kashmir and Prime Minister Modi’s calculated decisions backsliding journalistic freedom have recently come to a head with Modi’s decision to press charges against author and activist Arundhati Roy. Roy commented on Kashmir’s relationship with India in 2010, and in response, Modi’s government has brought back a colonial-era sedition law to justify […]
Is Biden’s Absence Proof of ASEAN’s Fall Into Vestigiality?
On September 5th, the leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) met in Jakarta, Indonesia, under the guidance of Indonesian President Joko Widodo. The Southeast Asian bloc’s 43rd meeting commenced under tense conditions, including Beijing’s release of China’s newly declared territory map and the marked absence of United States President Joe Biden. Of […]
Promising Progress, Never Peace: The Weapons Crisis in Kashmir
On Monday, January 2, 2023, six people, among them two children, lost their lives in a blast attack on the Kashmiri village of Dangri, which is in India-controlled Kashmir. The attack occurred mere hours after two gunmen shot at three houses in the same village, where five were injured and four died. Later known as […]
Years in the Making: How Hindu Nationalism Has Shaped Indian Policy Towards Kashmir
A phone blackout. Military troops deployed to enforce a statewide curfew. Foreign journalists banned from entering a region the size of Idaho. Thousands arrested — including protesters, activists and politicians. In the Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir, this has been the reality since August of 2019. And it could get worse. Jammu & Kashmir […]
Is the Kashmir Lockdown a Ticking Time Bomb?
On August 5th, 35,000 paramilitary Indian troops mobilized to join the 700,000 already stationed in Jammu and Kashmir, the Indian-controlled state in the Kashmir region. Soon after the move, the entire state was put under intense lockdown, which the Indian parliament claimed was in response to a new and violence-prone political movement that had emerged […]
Kashmir Amidst Neighbouring Political Gains
The following article was written for Berkeley Political Review as part of a collaboration with Davis Political Review. Legend says that on the great Mughal Emperor Jahangir’s deathbed, he was asked what his life’s most treasured experience had been? To this he replied; “Kashmir – everything else is worthless.” Given to his deep love for Kashmir, he […]
Quit Kashmir: Ending the Brutal Occupation in South Asia
In 1947, the political landscape of South Asia transformed as the fight for independence triumphed. The demands of Indians everywhere who had taken to the streets and implored the British to “Quit India” were finally heard. British colonial rule of India came to a complete halt with the passage of the Indian Independence Act, commonly […]
Front Lines: The Weak Defence for ‘Human Shields’
Picture this: a young man, branded with a nondescript sign on his chest, being paraded through villages and neighbourhoods as he only just manages to stay on the jeep that he has been so carelessly tied to. The use of civilians as ‘human shields’ in times of conflict and war is not novel or particular […]
Kashmir: One of the World’s Longest Ongoing Conflicts Re-Ignited in 2016
Since July, tensions between India and Pakistan have flared up over the disputed region of Kashmir. While tensions never fully go away, given that there have been three wars over the region, this bout has lasted longer and been more deadly than other recent incidents. The most recent clash saw 7 Pakistani soldiers killed, the […]