Kashmir amarnath yatra: Vote politics, terror, communalism

Somebody said referring Jammu & Kashmir “Agar zameen pe jannat hai, to wo yahin hai, yahin hai, yahin hai ” (If there is heaven on earth, it is on this land, it is here, it is right here) but for the past 2 months this heaven was a blast furnace with emotions boiling high. The entire state machinery was on the threshold of breakdown.

The Amarnath Yatra is organised every year by the J &K Govt. during the month of sharavan (July and August); one has to trek a height of about 14,500 ft to reach Baba Amarnath Holy cave - http://www.amarnathyatra.org

At last the big fight over the amarnath land has shown some signs of cooling down. But what was this for. Who lost who won? Politicians and militants sitting in Kashmir, Delhi and Islamabad won but the poor and the common man lost their peace and livelihood. The thin trust between the two regions of the state Jammu and Kashmir was broken. However we try to mend it the crack will remain. An irreparable loss but nobody cares.

For years Pakistan based terrorists are targeting the pilgrims. The pilgrims had to face bombs, bullets, snow, and hard climate to reach the holy cave. Many got moksha (salvation) before they reached the cave thanks to our dear mercenaries (or fighters as few people would like to say). Still we are saying that India is a secular country where the majority can’t follow their religion (that doesn't mean that minority community can practice their belief with out any problem in other parts of country).

J&K govt gave Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) 40 acres of land of providing basic amenities to the pilgrims and hell loose out in Kashmir valley. All the opportunistic, separatist, “secular” the so called common mans leaders sensed an opportunity to play the dangerous game of politics. The militants and other hard lines poured oil into the bonfire and it was a hell with strikes, marches, violent protests. At last the govt had to rollback its order. This move transferred the action from Kashmir to Jammu with Shri Amarnath Sangharsh Samiti (SASS) spearheading the agitation against the reversal. The economic blockade of Kashmir valley followed and this led to more protests in Kashmir. The once dead “Azad Kashmir” demand resurfaced. Separatists were even successful in conducting a march to the neighboring country. For them the grass is green there!!! But it’s the strength of the Indian democracy which saved them. They want freedom from democracy and want dictatorship. What an irony.

Kashmiri leaders made others believe that Indian govt is trying to make them minority in their land and they should protect themselves from this invasion. But from whom? (Even if this was the plan) from the fellow Indians? Indian constitution gave the rights to each and every Indian to settle down in any part of the country. When any Kashmiri (I shouldn’t use this word, well resident of Kashmir would be a better usage) can go and buy land in any other part of the country why not the same in Kashmir. It’s the foul, cruel politics played by the politicians across the border for the past 60 years and for which the entire world is paying. Yes the entire world is paying for it. Almost all the major terror organizations in the planet originated from Pak or have some connection to it. What was this for? For containing India and solving the mother of all the problems on this planet by hooks or crook

The compromise formula was arrived with the SASB getting rights to lands for the three months of pilgrimage. But the solution and peace is very fragile and can break very easily.

चल पडा हूँ यारों उसकी याद में

चल पडा हूँ यारों उसकी याद में
ज़िन्दगी के नए सफ़र में
ना कोई किनारा है , ना कोई मंजिल
ना कोई दोस्त है, ना हमदम
फिर भी
चल पड़ा हूँ यारों उसकी याद में

ना दिन का सूरज है, ना रात की चांदनी
ना दील की धड़कन, ना खवाबों की बारात
दिन है, मगर रात का अँधेरा है
फिर भी
चल पड़ा हूँ यारों उसकी यादों में

मंजिल पुराना है , मगर सफर अंजना है
नए लोग नए सफर, मगर साथ किसी ने ना दिया
खवाबों का काफिला है, पर अकेला हू
फिर भी
चल पड़ा हूँ यारों उसकी याद में

सोचा था कोई साथ होगा जिसे अपना कह सकूं
मगर इस भीढ़ में सब अनजाने निखले
सब अपने ही दुन में है, बहुतों से पुछा पर किसी ने जवाब नही दिया
फिर भी
चल पड़ा हूँ यारों उसकी याद में

अब तो बस चलते ही जाना है
कोई साथ हो या ना हो,
रात हो या दिन हो,
सूरज की गर्मी हो या चांदनी की मिठास
मंजिल दूर है
फिर भी
चल पड़ा हूँ यारों उसकी याद में

lazy saturday

Another saturday ... time is flying.I just dont remember last 1 week it started and ended so soon. It a lazy saturday. feeling like writing a poem after a lot of days. somebody singing for me. Heart beating little different today.. the beats of passion :)

Work was little heavy this week. My astro says that my time is going to change to soon. lets see how true it is.

Love you always ...

Even if i searched the whole world
The best place to be would still be...
in your arms.

Rape:The national crime of India and other countries

Congratulation guys!!! You have done it by sheer hard work. Rape has become the national crime of India (well I would say almost all countries). Almost every 30 minutes one women is raped in India (for those statisticians, one every 2 minutes in United States).Majority of the cases go unreported. There nothing to be proud of. We should be ashamed of ourselves. This is not a problem of one country. This is universal problem irrespective of the geography, religion language or education.

Quoting Justice Arjit Pasayat - “While a murderer destroys the physical frame of the victim, a rapist degrades and defiles the soul of a helpless female."

Not even a single day passes without any such incident in media. The ever news hungry media sensationalize these issue for publicity and makes the rapists a national hero. Seldom have they thought of the trauma and tragedy the victim and her family has to undergo. The only thing they are bothered about is their ratings and viewership. Why should we blame media? We should start protest against this uncontrolled yellow journalism. We all how the Indian media handled the recent case of teenage girls murder in Delhi. They molested even her character and soul.

Yesterday there was news about how the blue chip company employee was molested by 10 people. What a team effort!!! We can’t produce enough Olympics medals in team games (or any event) but here we will be among the best!!! Is this the same country where the women is considered as Shakthi and worshipped? Why this conflict? Has the human race degraded so badly that they have no sense and become animals? How could I compare these demons to poor animals? It will be biggest cruelty from my part.

When you read this you might not know the seriousness of the situation.

Law should be amended so that death punishment could be given to these criminals. They are not fit to considered humans. They should be stoned to death or hanged or whatever may be punishment but they should be eliminated. My sisters and mothers don’t think that all are like these demons. There are humans also in the male gender. I feel so helpless when I hear these tragic stories which the creator of life of earth, the most wonderful creation of God has to undergo everyday.

Women must find the courage to report the rape. They must find support from their families and friends to deal with the stress, anger, and fear they experience. Most of all, women must never feel guilty or blame themselves. For there is no need to accept shame or blame for a crime committed by another. Not all men are bad but there are few bad apples. Lets educate and treat these bad apples.

Facts
Rape is the fastest growing crime in the country, according to data for 2006 released by the home ministry's National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) recently. A rape is being reported every 30 minutes, an alarming increase of nearly 700% since 1971 when the NCRB started recording them.

These figures are revealed even as reports of sexual crimes, including those against foreign tourists, come in from different parts of the country.

Every hour, 18 women become victims of crime directed specifically at them -- rape, kidnapping and abduction, dowry-related crimes, molestation, sexual harassment, eve-teasing, etc. Rape has grown from seven cases a day in 1971 to 53 in 2006. In comparison, all other crimes have grown by 300% since 1953 when the NCRB started keeping records.

What is alarming is that the offenders were known to their victims in 75.1% of rape cases (14,536 out of 19,348). Parents/close family members were involved in 3% of cases (431 out of 14,536), neighbours in 36.8% of cases (5,351 out of 14,536) and relatives in 7.6% of cases (1,106 out of 14,536).

According to the NCRB data, among 35 cities with a population of over 1 million, Delhi topped the list of crimes against women, with 4,134 cases (nearly one-fifth of the total number of crimes against women). One-third of all rapes and a fifth of molestation cases took place in the city. Hyderabad was the second most dangerous city for women, with 1,755 cases.

Among the states, Andhra Pradesh recorded the highest number of crimes against women -- 21,484 cases, or 13% of the total number of cases in 2006. Uttar Pradesh was a close second, with 9.9% of such crimes. Madhya Pradesh reported the highest number of rape cases, at 2,900, and also molestation cases.

Records reveal that 7,618 women were killed for dowry in 2006, an increase of 12.2% over 2005. Uttar Pradesh, with 1,798 cases, had the highest number of such deaths, followed by Bihar with 1,188 cases.

And these are just the cases that have been reported; the number of unreported cases may be much higher.

Links
http://www.endesastres.org/files/ENGLISH_Rape_Prevention__CONCID_.pdf

The dark story of war - mass rape

I was proud of India army with its discipline and moral behaviors. But recently there were allegations against them in Congo. (The United Nations has accused the Indian Army troops of sexual exploitation, including child abuse, while on peacekeeping duty in Congo. http://www.hindu.com/2008/08/14/stories/2008081459661200.htm) Then I heard about the some more dark side of the war which I have heard many times but didn’t notice much. The dark story was always in dark waiting for the world to accept the brutality of war and its consequences.

The world is at war everyday. The number games of dead, wounded or seriously injured is familiar to us. In this epic story of hide and seek, victory and defeat, life and death there are many hidden plots and tactics which never surfaces. The most successful and brutal of these is mass rape, the mass humiliation of human race. No body notices these state (not only state all the parties in a war) sponsored terror. If we look at the history of all the aggression we can find many such untold grime stories of death and shame.

The biggest mass attack on the women’s dignity which I knew was that of Pakistan’s army in 1971. When they raped around 2,00,000 Bangladeshi (East Pakistan at that time) women. But then it still repeated in Congo, Sudan, Bosnia and all those known and unknown places in much larger scale.

Gita Sahgal, of Amnesty International - "Rape is often used in ethnic conflicts as a way for attackers to perpetuate their social control and redraw ethnic boundaries""Women are seen as the reproducers and carers of the community," she said. "Therefore if one group wants to control another they often do it by impregnating women of the other community because they see it as a way of destroying the opposing community."

The same tactic was used in a "very strategic attack" by state-backed Pakistani troops during the fight for Bangladesh's independence in 1971, Ms Sahgal said.

"They were saying 'we will make you breed Punjabi children'," she said, with the aim of weakening the integrity of the opposing ethnic group.

History

The Hebrew Scriptures describes the rape of the women of conquered tribes as a routine act. Foreign woman were often kidnapped as spoils of war, and forced to marry their captors/rapists. This was probably typical behavior in the Middle East during that era. In ancient times, rape was considered to be a crime against the victim's father or spouse -- whoever owned her. "The ancient Greeks and Romans would rape and enslave women after they had conquered a city."

In Nanjing, China, during 1937 & 1938, Japanese soldiers were responsible for massive levels of rape among the local Chinese population. There were "over 20,000 rape victims...when the soldiers themselves were not raping the Chinese women, they took great pleasure in forcing fathers to rape their daughters and sons to rape their mothers."

Millions of women victims raped by Russian soldiers during the last months of World War II. Anthony Beevor's book "Berlin -- The Downfall 1945" documents rape by Russian soldiers. "Beevor's conclusions are that in response to the vast scale of casualties inflicted on them by the Germans the Soviets responded in kind, and that included rape on a vast scale. It started as soon as the Red Army entered East Prussia and Silesia in 1944, and in many towns and villages every female aged from 10 to 80 was raped."

Random rape by soldiers during wartime has been a common phenomenon, particularly when there has been a lack of army discipline. "From [recent] conflicts in Bosnia and Herzegovina to Peru to Rwanda, girls and women have been singled out for rape, imprisonment, torture and execution. Rape, identified by psychologists as the most intrusive of traumatic events, has been documented in many armed conflicts including those in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Cyprus, Haiti, Liberia, Somalia and Uganda."

Author Maria B. Olujic - "Rape was a weapon of terror as the German Hun marched through Belgium in World War I; gang rape was part of the orchestrated riots of Kristallnacht which marked the beginning of Nazi campaigns against the Jews. It was a weapon of revenge as the Russian Army marched to Berlin in World War II, it was used when the Japanese raped Chinese women in the city of Nanking, when the Pakistani Army battled Bangladesh, and when the American G.I.s made rape in Vietnam a 'standard operating procedure aimed at terrorizing the population into submission'."

I can’t write much more about these. This is a real horror much bigger than the holocaust or anything heard of till now. This is the worst punishment. And this is happening almost everyday. We the “cultured” human society are not doing anything to prevent this? Animals are far better than us.

Hey warlords, please spare our sisters and mothers. Fight with dignity like real men.

LINKS:

1. The Greatest Mass Rape in History: http://209.85.175.104/search?q=cache:oRzuO9ARMccJ:library.flawlesslogic.com/massrape.htm&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=in&client=firefox-a
2. U.N.: Brutality against women in Congo 'beyond rape': http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/africa/07/30/congo.rape.reut/index.html
3. Japan's Mass Rape and Sexual Enslavement of Women and Girls: http://www.cmht.com/cases_cwcomfort2.php
4. “Not Women Anymore…” The Congo’s rape survivors face pain, shame and AIDS http://www.msmagazine.com/spring2005/congo.asp
5. The silent story of Bosnia: http://www.haverford.edu/relg/sells/rape/rape.html
6. Democratic Republic of Congo: Mass rape - time for remedies: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/AFR62/018/2004/en/dom-AFR620182004en.html
7. Human Rights Watch/Africa : SHATTERED LIVES:Sexual Violence during the Rwandan Genocide and its Aftermath http://www.hrw.org/reports/1996/Rwanda.htm
8. "News from Washington Coalition for Comfort Women Issues, Inc.," at: http://witness.peacenet.or.kr/e_comfort/newsletter/wccw.htm
9. Heather A. Blackburn and Stacey M. Thomas, "Rape Warfare," 1998-FEB-25, at: http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/Research/
10. "Sexual violence as a weapon of war," UNICEF, at: http://www.unicef.org/sowc96pk/sexviol.htm
11. Maria B. Olujic, "Women, Rape, and War: The Continued Trauma of Refugees and Displaced Persons in Croatia," Anthropology of East Europe Review, Volume 13, No. 1 Spring, 1995; Special Issue: Refugee Women of the Balkans
12. Colleen Hsia, "Nanjing Massacre: A Retrospective," at: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/ccba/
13. John Baird, "Rape of Nanking: Remembering the horrors of World War II," at: http://www.wpi.edu/News/TechNews/article.php?id=210
14. Peter Almond, "Feature: Book on WW II rapes upsets Russia," at: http://www.cdi.org/russia/johnson/6043-11.cfm
15. Anthony Beevor, "Berlin -- The Downfall 1945," Viking, 2002.
16. Dahlia Gilboa, "Mass Rape: War on Women," at: http://www.scrippscol.edu/~home/
17. Valerie Oosterveld, "When women are the spoils of war," UNESCO, at: http://www.unesco.org/courier/1998_08/uk/ethique/txt1.htm
18. "International Law Relating to Rape in Armed Conflict," http://www.alliancesforafrica.org/
19. "Rape in Times of Conflict and War: A resolution from the General Board of Global Ministries approved by the 1996 General Conference of The United Methodist Church," at: http://gbgm-umc.org/mission/resolutions/rapewar.html
20. From: Stefan Blaschke, "History of Rape: A Bibliography," at: http://www.geocities.com/history_guide/horb/horb-t08.html

North Pole could be ice free in 2008

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0S6oyTdkOWc

Mission accomplished: Year 2013 no ice cap on North Pole

The meltdown in the Arctic is speeding up and as a result the North Pole could be ice-free by 2013 instead of in 60 years' time as earlier predicted, scientists have warned. Their apprehensions are based on computer studies of satellite images that reveal that ice at North Pole melted at an unprecedented rate last week -- the disappearance is said to have exceeded the record loss of more than a million square kilometers in 2007 as global warming tightened its grip.

Scientist Professor Peter Wadhams of Cambridge University: "When we did the first climate change computer models, we thought the Arctic's summer ice cover would last until around 2070.”It is now clear we did not understand how thin the ice cap had already become -- for Arctic ice cover has since been disappearing at ever increasing rates. Every few years we have to revise our estimates downwards. "Now the most detailed computer models suggest the Arctic's summer ice is going to last for only a few more years -- and given what we have seen happen last week, I think they are probably correct."

You will think that in another 5 years some how we will do something.
Now the most shocking part. The ice cover may disappear temporarily this year itself according to scientists. Shrinking ice cap in the Arctic Ocean even produced a new sea route from the Bering Strait to Oslo last summer. Maritime enterprises in some industrial nations such as the United States and Britain have started mulling on how to use it to cut cost over the past six months!!! Still they haven’t learned. Their greed will kill us all. The rich developed nation will somehow protect them but what about those poor people in the developing & under developed countries. They will be massacred with no fault of them or their ancestors.

Imagine the tragedy when this happens. Floods, droughts and even war for fresh water.
Millions of people could be forced from their homes and suffer increasing disease, cyclones and floods caused by global warming. Chronic food and water insecurity and epidemic disease may impede economic development. And all this because of the greed of human race. And still they are not learning. Now everybody got china and India to blame. The biggest polluter United States is hiding behind them and blaming them. They say they will reduce their emission only if china & India also share the responsibility. China and India says that they don’t have to reduce any emissions since their per capita emissions are far less than United States!!! What a vicious cycle? But this never ending blame game will turn our green planet into a water world with even Everest under water. That would be a great achievement indeed. Shame on the world leaders. There won’t be anything left to fight for. It the time for action rather than blaming each other. Let put pressure on our peers, our government and the entire human race to protect our green plant not for our children grandchildren but for us.
Don’t wait for The Day After Tomorrow (movie by Roland Emmerich). Act now….

A night for exploring the meaning of Love

It’s another boring and dead weekend. I could understand the real meaning of shaans song.
tanha dil, tanha safar
dhunde tujhe phir kyun nazar
aankhon mein sapne liye
ghar se hum chal toh diye
jaane yeh raahe abb le jaayengi kahaan
mitti ki khushbu aaye
palkon pe aansu laaye
palkon pe reh jaayega yaadon ka jahaan
manjil nayi hain
anjaana hai kaarava
chalna akele hai yahaan

Shirlz adviced me spend some time with sis. Unfortunately she also not here. Shirlz really another original masterpiece (or malfunctioning). She keeps on giving me all those advice. Poor girl she got stuck with her java certifications.

But thanks to Kush I got something to think about other than the codes this weekend. Well I saw a walk to remember. Saw it on Saturday morning 12:30 am. Next two hours I was in a dream world. I felt I was a character in the film. I don’t know how & why I liked this film so much. May be I was watching one after so long or may be I was watching, understanding the tender bond of love with the protagonists. I would recommend it to anybody. Sandy also wanted the CD. If I am not late tomorrow I will give her.

I can’t explain the voyage, I took for that two hours. I would describe that as a voyage of high emotions. The pure love touched my heart. I asked myself whether I would be able to do something similar. Hmmmmmm I should be able to do that if required. Living for one love and dying for one love wow so great. So romantic, so sweet but too strong. We need the mental courage and strong willpower to do so. Nobody can decide on this it has to happen automatically. We need a pure heart to appreciate that. Why society is against this most of times I don’t know. I simply can’t understand. Maybe they are trying to guard against all the new generation one minute love. Now days you find the use and throw system of love. You break with one and the next moment you are with another or may be it’s already in shifts. Most of them are pure fantasies. The pure love is becoming a rare breed almost on extinction. Love should be feeling like the warm air around us giving us life. We can feel it but cannot touch it. Love never demands anything just empowers us to bring the best in us. I believe it should happen only once in a lifetime. Quoting Landon from A walk to remember “Love is always patient and kind. It is never jealous. Love is never boastful or conceited. It is never rude or selfish. It does not take offense and is not resentful.”

The full version from Bible I Corinthians 13:4-7, TLB.
“Love is always patient and kind; it is never jealous, love is never boastful or conceited; it is never rude or selfish; it does not take offense, and is not resentful. Love takes no pleasure in other people’s sins but delights in the truth; it is always ready to excuse, to trust, to hope, and to endure whatever comes. Love does not come to an end.”

A Walk to Remember ...the miracle of love

As usual it was an ordinary day. I wanted a break from the daily schedule. I made plans to do a jungle safari. Not to Africa somewhere in forests of Wayanad or idukki. Was excited about the trip but nobody volunteered to come with me

I can’t say nobody Kush said he will join me wherever I go at last I am not alone at least one person :) there for me.
I should have said a lot of things to few people but then the clouds of indecision still hanging over my head.

But that was not the highlight. Went to kushy's place. We had Ghee roast dosa together. Talked about our future. He was ready to kill me. He complains that I am not a human with normal feelings. In fact I don’t have any feelings!!! Well certainly not

He suggested that I watch "A Walk to Remember”. He even transferred few soundtracks from his mobile.

The review of the movie left me in tears. Can this happen in real life or is this only in reel life. Don’t know. Can anyone love like this? May be this still happens in this world. A love which uplifts you, envelopes you with the happiness and empowers you even when you know that it’s going to end soon. Well that what i say To love when it can be lost....

Plot (from wikipedia)

When a prank on a fellow high-school student goes wrong, popular but rebellious Landon Carter (Shane West) is threatened with expulsion. His punishment is mandatory participation in various after-school activities, such as tutoring disadvantaged children and performing in the drama club's spring musical. At these functions he is forced to interact with quiet, bookish Jamie Sullivan (Mandy Moore), a girl he has known for many years but with whom he has rarely ever spoken. Their differing social statures leave them worlds apart, despite their close physical proximity.

When Landon has trouble learning his lines, he asks Jamie for help. She agrees to help him if he promises not to fall in love with her. Landon laughs off the strange remark, believing Jamie to be the last person with whom he would ever fall in love. After all, Landon has access to the prettiest and most popular girls in town; and between her shy demeanor and old-fashioned wardrobe, Jamie doesn't exactly fall into that category.

Landon and Jamie begin practicing together at her house after school. The two form a tentative friendship, and Landon learns that Jamie has a wish list of all the things she hopes to do in her life, such as getting a tattoo and being in two places at once. One day, Jamie approaches Landon at his locker, where he is hanging out with some of his friends. When Jamie asks Landon if they are still on for practice that afternoon he smirks "In your dreams". His friends laugh and Landon's smirk falters as Jamie's face fills with betrayal and embarrassment. That afternoon Landon arrives at Jamie's house, hoping that Jamie will still agree to help him. But she refuses to open the door. When she eventually does, she sarcastically remarks that they can be "secret friends". She slams the door in his face when he agrees. Landon eventually learns the script by himself.

During the play, Jamie astounds Landon and the entire audience with her beauty and voice. Landon kisses Jamie during the play, which was not in the script, and Landon tries to get close to Jamie, but she repeatedly rejects him. It is only after a mean joke played on Jamie by Landon's friends that Jamie agrees to get to know Landon, and the two pursue a relationship. He takes her out to dinner and dances with her, something he never did for anyone else. When he discovers that Jamie has a wish list, he sets out to help her accomplish them. One memorable date had Landon taking Jamie to the state line. He excitedly positions her on the line in just the right way, and when Jamie asks him what he's doing he tells her "You're in two places at once". Her face lights up with joy, as she realizes that Landon set out to make her impossible dreams come true.

Jamie finally tells Landon that she has terminal leukemia and has stopped responding to treatments. As Jamie is hospitalized, Landon fulfills various wishes on Jamie's list, such as building her a telescope so she can see a comet. Through this process, Landon and Jamie learn more about the nature of love. The movie ends with Jamie's death, but only after the couple are married in the same chapel as was Jamie's deceased mother, the event that topped Jamie's wish list. Landon himself becomes a better person through Jamie's memory, achieving the goals that he set out to do, like she did.

Four years later, Landon visits Jamie's father. It is obvious that Jamie helped him to focus and become a better person. For example, he reveals he has finished college and been accepted to medical school; prior to meeting her he had no plans for life after high school. He tells Jamie's father that he is sorry he could not grant Jamie's wish to witness "a miracle" before she died. Her father says "She did. It was you".