In an era of technological advancement, science may have unearthed a therapeutic for most troubles.
However, it has discovered no cure for the nastiest of them all—the apathy of human beings.
Situated at the foothills of the Himalayan mountains lies one of the most beautiful places on the planet. Once known for its heavenly like setting, poetic beauty and Sufism, Kashmir has become a hotbed of political unrest with an uncertain future.
And yet, few know anything about Kashmir, identified by the United Nations as the most militarized region in the world.
So much aggression and so much apathy.
To be apathetic to human suffering—no matter whom it affects in the world—is what makes our humanity inhumane. For apathy is more hazardous than resentment or rage. While hatred or anger may propel human beings to react, apathy elicits no response.
The people of Kashmir do not need apathy. In fact, apathy is an acquaintance of the aggressor.
With both India’s and Pakistan’s continual refusal to admit that the Kashmir problem is not one between them, but one that concerns the human dignity of Kashmiris, the United Nations should seriously consider apathy as a crime against humanity. It is not only a crime, but it is also a punishment to those it neglects.
On August 1, Al Jazeera English published a special human rights spotlight on Kashmir (“Kashmir: The Forgotten Conflict”). A report detailing how television news stations are banned from reporting the news, Facebook accounts are constantly supervised, and prepaid phones cannot send or receive Short Message Service (SMS) reveals the dismal reality for the people who continue to live and survive under such adverse conditions.
In our truth-seeking study of the Kashmir dispute, we have full confidence in the concept of sedition pondered by Socrates. Socrates deplored the idea of pressuring people to accept a particular type of government and restricting their access to conceivable alternatives to the system under which they are subjugated. Concerning this issue of morality, he grew to be an enthusiast for rebellions the world over.
Considered to be the most peace loving people in the world, Kashmiris only desire the precise rights and privileges that we are fortunate to have safeguarded here in our own country. Through their unarmed demonstrations and other acts of nonviolent civic action, which Gandhi once called “the greatest and most activist force in the world” during India’s own struggle for independence from Britain, Kashmiris simply long for freedom. For what freedom do Kashmiris long? Kashmiris crave a freedom from fear, a freedom from injustice, and a freedom from apathy. Kashmiris want a freedom that encompasses some sense of accountability. An overwhelming majority of Kashmiris ardently desire self-governance and domestic sovereignty.
The international community often associates Kashmir with the snowcapped mountains and blue streams that are the focal region of contention between India and Pakistan. But what if we view Kashmir as a totality of individuals and families, deprived of their most fundamental rights as human beings? Clearly we see how human sensitivity can be transformed by the internal image we construct as opposed to that constructed by the scenic display, which, while profuse in beauty, lacks human emotion and response.
