Irom's
Iron In The Soul
By Kavita Joshi
29 November, 2006
Countercurrents.org
On 24th November 2006, Irom Sharmila
refused all medical attention. Sitting in her tiny hospital room in
the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS, Delhi), she resolutely
withdrew the force-feed tube from her nose against all medical advice.
Sharmila Irom has been on
a fast-to-death for over six years now. Six years without food, without
a drop of water touching her lips. Six years of being held under arrest
repeatedly on charges of “attempted suicide” by the government,
and being forcibly nose-fed.
Sharmila’s demand is
simple – repeal the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act 1958. But
this is a demand the Indian government is not prepared to listen to.
The Armed Forces Special Powers Act is a drastic piece of legislation
that gives the authority to India’s armed forces, to arrest, search
or destroy property without warrant; to shoot – and even kill
– on suspicion alone. What’s more, it gives the armed forces
near-total immunity against any judicial action. Sharmila’s home
state of Manipur has been reeling under this act for decades now. So
have large parts of North-Eastern India.
On 4th October this year,
once she was released from custody, Sharmila came from Manipur to Delhi
in secret, under an assumed name; only to continue her epic fast on
the streets of Delhi. For days and nights, she camped and slept and
fasted on the footpaths at Jantar Mantar. Thereafter, in a characteristic
midnight swoop, a force of over a 100 police personnel picked up Sharmila
and detained her at AIIMS. Once again, her crime was – attempted
suicide.
Sharmila is currently under
arrest in Delhi, at AIIMS. To date since her arrest, in violation of
her legal rights, she has not been produced in court.
*
MANIPUR, SEPTEMBER 2005:
An eye: piercing, intent.
A nose, covered by a swatch of medical tape, as a yellow tube forces
its way in. Lips, stretched tight as if in pain. A woman sits against
a bare wall, huddled under a blanket, tightly hugging herself. This
is my first impression of Irom Sharmila as I walk to her hospital bed.
She is incarcerated at the security ward of JN Hospital in Imphal, Manipur,
in custody of the Central Jail, Sajiwa. It takes her immense effort
to speak, but she tries her best. “How can I explain? This is
not a punishment. It is my bounden duty at my best level.”
Irom Sharmila has not eaten
for several years now. For this, she has been locked up in jail by the
government under very dubious charges and is being forcibly nose fed.
Since November 2000, Sharmila has been on a fast-unto-death, demanding
the removal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act 1958 (AFSPA).
AFSPA is a law that can come into force in any part of India declared
as “disturbed”. The act allows anyone of any rank in the
army or a paramilitary force under its operational command to shoot,
arrest or search without warrant; and to kill on suspicion alone. Furthermore,
there
is little scope for judicial remedy. The whole of Sharmila’s state
— Manipur — has continuously been under this law since 1980
(with minor exceptions in recent times).
It’s been six* years
since that day which changed her life. November 2, 2000 was just another
Thursday. Till, that is, a convoy of Assam Rifles was bombed by insurgents
near Malom in Manipur. In retaliation the men in uniform went berserk:
10 civilians were shot dead. You could say that
neither the killings nor the brutal combing operation that followed
were new to the people. Manipur had been ravaged by umpteen number of
such incidents in the past. But for Sharmila, Malom was the proverbial
straw that broke the camel’s back. “There was no means to
stop further violations by the armed forces,” she says. She began
her epic fast.
From then to now, Sharmila’s
frail body has become a battlefield. Within days of her fast, she was
arrested on charges of ‘attempted suicide’ and put in jail.
She refused bail; she refused to break her fast. For five years now,
she has been in custody, being forcibly nose-fed. Time and again, the
courts have — rightly — released her. But she resumes her
fast and is invariably re-arrested each time.
In the years that she hasn’t
eaten, Sharmila’s body has begun to get damaged. She lives with
the nagging pain of a tube thrust into her nose. She is 35 but has become
feeble and looks older. What’s more, for five years, Sharmila
has not seen her ageing mother. In her mother’s own words, “I
am weak-hearted. If I see her, I will cry. I do not want to erode her
determination, so I have resolved not to meet Sharmila till she reaches
her goal.”
In times that are inured
to violence, Sharmila’s protest is remarkable for its insistence
upon the Gandhian ideals of ahimsa and satyagraha. And though her protest
is ignored every day in the world’s largest democracy, Sharmila
is resolute — “Unless and until they remove the AFSPA, I
shall never stop my fasting.”
In a rare interview to Kavita
Joshi for the film Untitled: 3 Narratives — On Women and Conflict
in Manipur, Sharmila unravels her heart, slowly, like a stream of amazing
struggle and hope amidst intense despair.
KJ: Why did you start upon
this fast?
IS: For the sake of my motherland.
Unless and until they remove the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act 1958,
I shall never stop my fasting.
KJ: Could you tell me something about the incident that sparked this
off for you?
IS: I had gone there (to
Malom) to attend a meeting. The meeting was towards planning a peace
rally that would be held in a few days. (pauses… after a gap)
I was very shocked to see the dead bodies on the front pages of the
newspapers. That strengthened me to step on this very threshold of death.
Because there was no other means to stop further violations by the armed
forces against innocent people. I thought then, that the peace rally
would be meaningless for me. Unless I were to do something to change
the situation.
KJ: But why choose this particular method? Why a fast unto death?
IS: It is the only means
I have. Because hunger strike is based on spirituality.
KJ: What about the effect
this has on you, your health, your body?
IS: That doesn’t matter.
We are all mortal.
KJ: Are you certain that
this is really the best way? To inflict this upon your body?
IS: It is not an ‘infliction’.
This is not a punishment. I think this is my
bounden duty.
KJ: How does your family
react to your fast?
IS: My mother knows everything
about my decision. Although she is illiterate, and very simple, she
has the courage to let me do my bounden duty.
KJ: When did you last meet
your mother?
IS: About five years ago.
There is an understanding between us. That she will meet me only after
I have fulfilled my mission.
KJ: It must be very hard
on both of you…
IS: Not very hard…
(pauses). Because, how shall I explain it, we all come here with a task
to do. And we come here alone.
KJ: Just why are you in custody?
Why exactly?
IS: It is not my will. But
the State insists it (the hunger strike) is
unlawful.
KJ: But the government is
saying that your fast-unto- death is attempted suicide, which is an
offence…
IS: Although they may think
so, I am in no mood for suicide. In any case, if I were a suicide-monger,
how could we communicate like this, you and I? My fasting is a means,
as I have no other.
KJ: How long are you prepared
to go on like this?
IS: I don’t know. Though
I do have hope. My stand is for the sake of truth, and I believe truth
succeeds eventually. God gives me courage. That is why I am still alive
through these artificial means. (Indicates the tube going into her nose.)
KJ: How do you spend your
day in the hospital?
IS: A lot of the time I practice
yoga. It helps me keep my body and mind healthy. (She points to the
tube again.) It is circumstances that make things natural. Though this
(tugs the tube) is unusual, it is natural to me.
KJ: What do you miss the
most?
IS: The people. As I am a
prisoner here (in hospital), everyone is restricted from meeting me
without permission. So I miss people a lot.
KJ: If you had one wish that
was yours for the asking, what would it be?
IS: My wish? We must have
the right to self determination as rational beings.
KJ: Do you think the AFSPA
will be repealed? Will you get what you are fighting for?
IS: I realise my task is
a tough one. But I must endure. I must be patient. That happy day will
come some day. If I am still alive. Until then, I must be patient.
(Our time was over, and the
crew and I were preparing to leave, when Sharmila stopped us.)
Will you help me? I would
like to read about the life-history of Nelson Mandela. I have no idea
about his life. Will you send me a book about him? It is full of restrictions
here. Make sure you address it to the security ward. If not, I may not
receive it.
(We sent Sharmila the book
from Delhi. Her friends tell us that it has reached her.)
Kavita Joshi can be reached
at kj.impulse AT gmail.com.
More information: http://kavitajoshi.blogspot.com
Updated version of article,
reproduced courtesy Tehelka.
Read the original article
here:
http://tehelka.com/story_main17.asp?
filename=Cr032506_Iroms_iron.asp
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