The article is full of half truths, lies, illogical claims, and displays the Generals total lack of understanding of fundamentals of Human Rights. When activists argue, they are arguing for rights fundamental to all human beings including Kashmiri people and against Police state in the name terrorism. The tension is between citizens rights and need to fight terrorism. Sacrificing one for the other is the trap demagogues fall! If it is short duration of an emergency, it is understandable. But can an emergency continue for half a century? AFSPA in NE is for more than half a century!
- The fact that some of the NGOs are funded by foreign sources, does not make their arguments invalid nor their rights to raise the human rights become illegitimate.
- When some one argues against the state violating human rights, they are NOT arguing for"delegitimize its Counter Insurgency(CI) operation"
- Which CI strategy argues for violating Human Rights of the population? If the General is aware of rudiments of modern CI Strategy he should know or at least ought to have known that success of CI totally depends on upholding Human Rights. Please go read: COUNTERINSURGENCY (http://www.fas.org/irp/doddir/army/fm3-24.pdf) U.S. Army & Marine Corps Counterinsurgency Manual (U.S. Army Field Manual 3-24) Released December 2006 and available on "Secrecy News" blog of Federation of American Scientists. Obviously, the General who pontificates on Human Rights and state policy is not even familiar with his own field of COUNTERINSURGENCY, which he ought to be before displaying his stark ignorance of CI itself in public space and thus tries to sway the public opinion. What a pity! He is engaged in misleading public opinion and justifying an unjust law.
- The whole library of counter terrorism literature of the world is available her: http://counterterrorismblog.org/library/ Does it any where advocate State violating Human Rights in any counter terrorism operations?
- If CrPC 45 ( http://www.vakilno1.com/bareacts/CrPc/s45.htm) and CrPC 197 ( http://www.vakilno1.com/bareacts/CrPc/s197.htm) protects Army along with the Police, then why do you need AFSPA? His argument is 45 and 197 protects Police but not ARMY is patently false! (Please go and study the sections yourself, General)
- He says: "Its operations have to be within a legal framework, which sets the rules of engagement". This is a statement as true as mother and apple pie. The premise is correct but his conclusions that hence, AFSPA is legal and minimum needed for the Army is false. The truth is "AFSPA itself is illegal and takes away citizen's fundamental and human rights and such illegal framework is NOT needed for Army to use force! Gen Dyer to use massive lethal force of the colonial State in Jallianwallahbag did NOT need AFSPA. AFSPA does not legalize the force but immunizes the "lethal force with brutal regime of "shoot to kill" of innocent civilian population and brutalizes their right to life, property and freedom and that too with no remedy. With AFSPA, even Gen Dyer could have escaped all punishment because AFSPA provides total immunity. Just because Gen Dyer "acted in good faith" does not mean he is immune to laws! AFSPA makes him immune to all laws of the land.
- He says: This is precisely what the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) does and hence is a critical enabling legislation. It was enacted in September 1958 and has stood the test of time in its operations over the last six decades. He neither understands AFSPA nor the history of brutality AFSPA (http://ebookbrowse.com/afspa-booklet-cpdm-2010-pdf-d78202446 and http://www.panossouthasia.org/pdf/Frontpage_on_AFSPA.pdf) had released on the citizen and that too not for an emergency but for more than half a century.
- To say that it has stood the test of time is demagoguery (the methods or practices of a demagogue, a person, especially an orator or political leader, who gains power and popularity by arousing the emotions, passions,and prejudices of the people.)
- To say that " There is a concerted campaign that seeks to label this act as draconian" is pure demagoguery. It is draconian because it brutalizes a population by violating its fundamental rights and human rights with no remedy and that too for half a century ( and not for an emergency).
- To say : " In reality, it contains the bare minimal powers essential to deal with " itself displays total lack of understanding of counterinsurgency strategy and operations. The author needs to read Rules of Engagement & The Law of War in COUTERINSURGENCY ( http://www.fas.org/irp/doddir/army/fm3-24.pdf)
- He says: Because so many Arms, ammunition and grenades are found (over 80,000 AK series rifles; over 1,300 machine guns; over 2,000 rocket launchers; some 63,000 hand grenades and 7 million rounds of ammunition.), hence AFSPA is justified is itself irrational and illogical. To deal with those who take up arms against state, you do not need AFSPA ( AFSPA immunizes Army from law with NO remedy for citizen ) Cr P C and IPC is more than sufficient and you do not need AFSPA. ( http://delhicourts.nic.in/CrPC.htm and http://www.vakilno1.com/bareacts/indianpenalcode/indianpenalcode.htm
I have only answered his first three paragraph. It is full of false claims, irrational logic and false and misleading conclusions. I think it is more than sufficient to prove that he has not understood nor researched issues involved before making so called "authoritative statements". His logic is totally screwed up. He is misleading the public. One who does this is termed a demagogue.
Nath
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Logical errors are, I think, of greater practical importance than many people believe; they enable their perpetrators to hold the comfortable opinion on every subject in turn. Source: Bertrand Russell, A History of Western Philosophy (Book-of-the-Month Club, 1995), p. 93.
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NEW DELHI: The AFSPA debate in this country has recently been ramped up by many decibels.
There appears to be a concerted campaign on the part of some foreign-funded NGOs to demonize the Army and delegitimize its Counter Insurgency(CI) and Counter Terrorist (CT) operations.
It must be remembered that the Army is the instrument of last resort of the state and it has successfully tamed insurgencies in the northeast and vicious terrorist movements in Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir. It is brought in only once the local police and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) have failed to control the situation. Its operations have to be within a legal framework, which sets the rules of engagement, and also provides basic protection from prosecution (as available to the police under Section 45 and 197 of the CrPC) for personnel acting in good faith. This is precisely what the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) does and hence is a critical enabling legislation. It was enacted in September 1958 and has stood the test of time in its operations over the last six decades.
There is a concerted campaign that seeks to label this act as draconian. In reality, it contains the bare minimal powers essential to deal with highly militarized and well-armed terrorists and insurgent groups, with extensive foreign support and sanctuaries. The scale of militarization of the current internal conflicts is not generally understood. In J&K alone, the Indian Army has since 1990, recovered over 80,000 AK series rifles; over 1,300 machine guns; over 2,000 rocket launchers; some 63,000 hand grenades and 7 million rounds of ammunition.
This is no peaceful civil protest - it has turned J&K into a virtual war zone. Few people are aware that since 1990, the Indian Army has lost 5,108 officers, JCOs and jawans fighting Pakistan's proxy war. The Army conducted concerted operations and eliminated over 20,000 terrorists, a large proportion of whom were foreign terrorists. The constitutional validity of this act was challenged in the Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights versus Union of India (UOI) case. A five-judge constitutional bench of the Supreme Court of India upheld the validity of the act.
In fact, having considered the real circumstances under which the armed forces have to act, the honourable court extended the scope of the powers vested under Section 4 and 6 of the AFSPA and added the power to interrogate a person arrested and retain the weapons seized. The Supreme Court, thus, did not find the powers excessive but short of what was really needed. The SC is the most respected institution in this country and has upheld the need and validity of this law. Far from being draconian, AFSPA is the bare minimum warranted in view of threats faced by the security forces.
The Supreme Court's appraisal was realistic and took note of the ground realities. It is a great pity that some foreign-funded NGOs have brazenly put themselves above the Supreme Court of the land; in demonizing the Army, they are also trying to discredit this magnificent institution in which the nation reposes so much faith.
There is a concerted campaign to question the validity of this act and thereby delegitimize the operations of the Army. The Indian scene cannot be seen in isolation from the rest of the world.
After 9/11, the US and its allies have waged a war against terror. There are 13 International Counter Terrorism Conventions in force, ranging from hijacking, piracy and intelligence sharing. The UN Security Council resolutions have called for legislative reforms by countries to combat terror. These are resolutions that are binding on member states.
In response, democratic countries like the USA, UK and European Union states have enacted stringent anti-terror laws to includepreventive detention, control orders and warrantless searches. After 9/11, these laws were made even more stringent and included provisions to track funds and tap phones. The US Patriot Law is far more stringent than the AFSPA. The result is for all to see, after 9/11, there has not been a second terrorist attack on the soil of continental USA. Unfortunately, in India, it has now become commonplace for 2-3000 citizens to perish each year at the hands of the terrorists and Maoist insurgents.
Very surprisingly, the liberal lobby in India has taken the very opposite approach. While there is an outcry about the human rights of the terrorists, the liberal lobby demonstrates a blase attitude towards the lives of their innocent victims. Kasab and Afzal Guru are the causes celebre of this bleeding-heart lobby.
This lobby even exerts pressure on the government to scrap the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) and the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA). The only act now remaining in the state's armoury is the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act of 1967 (which needs to be greatly strengthened).
Having got rid of TADA and POTA, the foreign-funded NGOs have set their sights on the AFSPA. There is a concerted assault upon the state's will to use legitimate force to protect its citizens from violent armed groups whose lethality is increasing by the day, in terms of the support they get from state actors like Pakistan and China.
World over, the approach of nations in tackling terrorism and insurgency is akin to the one followed by our own government. To that extent, it was incorrect on the part of Omar Abdullah (CM of J&K) to ignore the written advice of his military commanders. The entire Pakistani terror infrastructure is intact and thriving. There are some 2,000-2,500 terrorists in training camps. Some 700-850 are on the launching pads and hold camps near the Line of Control (LoC). Around 230 terrorists made 35 attempts to infiltrate this year.Nearly 50 terrorists have been killed in 2010 so far, 19 in the last two months alone.
The situation is clearly not conducive to premature declaration of victory and we need to guard against any sudden deterioration.
The Americans are withdrawing from Afghanistan in 2014. In 1989, once the Soviets left Afghanistan, a massive number of out-of-job HUA (Harkat-ul-Ansar) and HUJI (Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami) terrorists had been diverted to J&K and all terrorist training camps had shifted from PoK to the AfPak border region. Will history repeat itself after 2014? It is highly premature to lower our guard.
Partial removal of AFSPA from selected districts only creates sanctuaries, which the terrorists exploit to the hilt to rest, regroup and strike again. The CM has stated that the Army has not operated in Srinagar and Budgam for over three years. This is incorrect. Each morning the Army and eight companies of the CRPF sanitize the strategic road through the city for our logistic convoys to Kargil and Ladakh for the critical winter-stocking tasks.
Not only the road, an area of nearly 3 sq km on either side has to be sanitized. The airfield in Srinagar is a critical target and a 2km cone on either end has to be sanitized to ensure that no SAMs or RPGs are fired at the aircraft.
Srinagar is the pivot of all political activity in J&K. All the terrorist command-and-control and financial (hawala) networks operate from here. Most intelligence, even about LoC crossings, is gathered in these urban centres. Premature removal of the act from these areas would be highly counterproductive. Once removed, AFSPA cannot, in practice, be reimposed in a hurry.
In a quiet summer, the state government should have consolidated its position on governance and delivery front. Unfortunately, the hunt for populist gimmicks has prompted the beleaguered state politicians to target the Army in a most irresponsible manner. They have tried to manufacture causes for the separatists to exploit. It is a tribute to the tenacity of our Army that terrorism has been so drastically curtailed in J&K. We have won all the battles on the ground. We should not lose the war by self-inflicted goals and premature declarations of complete victory.
There is a concerted campaign that seeks to label this act as draconian. In reality, it contains the bare minimal powers essential to deal with highly militarized and well-armed terrorists and insurgent groups, with extensive foreign support and sanctuaries. The scale of militarization of the current internal conflicts is not generally understood. In J&K alone, the Indian Army has since 1990, recovered over 80,000 AK series rifles; over 1,300 machine guns; over 2,000 rocket launchers; some 63,000 hand grenades and 7 million rounds of ammunition.
This is no peaceful civil protest - it has turned J&K into a virtual war zone. Few people are aware that since 1990, the Indian Army has lost 5,108 officers, JCOs and jawans fighting Pakistan's proxy war. The Army conducted concerted operations and eliminated over 20,000 terrorists, a large proportion of whom were foreign terrorists. The constitutional validity of this act was challenged in the Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights versus Union of India (UOI) case. A five-judge constitutional bench of the Supreme Court of India upheld the validity of the act.
In fact, having considered the real circumstances under which the armed forces have to act, the honourable court extended the scope of the powers vested under Section 4 and 6 of the AFSPA and added the power to interrogate a person arrested and retain the weapons seized. The Supreme Court, thus, did not find the powers excessive but short of what was really needed. The SC is the most respected institution in this country and has upheld the need and validity of this law. Far from being draconian, AFSPA is the bare minimum warranted in view of threats faced by the security forces.
The Supreme Court's appraisal was realistic and took note of the ground realities. It is a great pity that some foreign-funded NGOs have brazenly put themselves above the Supreme Court of the land; in demonizing the Army, they are also trying to discredit this magnificent institution in which the nation reposes so much faith.
There is a concerted campaign to question the validity of this act and thereby delegitimize the operations of the Army. The Indian scene cannot be seen in isolation from the rest of the world.
After 9/11, the US and its allies have waged a war against terror. There are 13 International Counter Terrorism Conventions in force, ranging from hijacking, piracy and intelligence sharing. The UN Security Council resolutions have called for legislative reforms by countries to combat terror. These are resolutions that are binding on member states.
In response, democratic countries like the USA, UK and European Union states have enacted stringent anti-terror laws to includepreventive detention, control orders and warrantless searches. After 9/11, these laws were made even more stringent and included provisions to track funds and tap phones. The US Patriot Law is far more stringent than the AFSPA. The result is for all to see, after 9/11, there has not been a second terrorist attack on the soil of continental USA. Unfortunately, in India, it has now become commonplace for 2-3000 citizens to perish each year at the hands of the terrorists and Maoist insurgents.
Very surprisingly, the liberal lobby in India has taken the very opposite approach. While there is an outcry about the human rights of the terrorists, the liberal lobby demonstrates a blase attitude towards the lives of their innocent victims. Kasab and Afzal Guru are the causes celebre of this bleeding-heart lobby.
This lobby even exerts pressure on the government to scrap the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) and the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA). The only act now remaining in the state's armoury is the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act of 1967 (which needs to be greatly strengthened).
Having got rid of TADA and POTA, the foreign-funded NGOs have set their sights on the AFSPA. There is a concerted assault upon the state's will to use legitimate force to protect its citizens from violent armed groups whose lethality is increasing by the day, in terms of the support they get from state actors like Pakistan and China.
World over, the approach of nations in tackling terrorism and insurgency is akin to the one followed by our own government. To that extent, it was incorrect on the part of Omar Abdullah (CM of J&K) to ignore the written advice of his military commanders. The entire Pakistani terror infrastructure is intact and thriving. There are some 2,000-2,500 terrorists in training camps. Some 700-850 are on the launching pads and hold camps near the Line of Control (LoC). Around 230 terrorists made 35 attempts to infiltrate this year.Nearly 50 terrorists have been killed in 2010 so far, 19 in the last two months alone.
The situation is clearly not conducive to premature declaration of victory and we need to guard against any sudden deterioration.
The Americans are withdrawing from Afghanistan in 2014. In 1989, once the Soviets left Afghanistan, a massive number of out-of-job HUA (Harkat-ul-Ansar) and HUJI (Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami) terrorists had been diverted to J&K and all terrorist training camps had shifted from PoK to the AfPak border region. Will history repeat itself after 2014? It is highly premature to lower our guard.
Partial removal of AFSPA from selected districts only creates sanctuaries, which the terrorists exploit to the hilt to rest, regroup and strike again. The CM has stated that the Army has not operated in Srinagar and Budgam for over three years. This is incorrect. Each morning the Army and eight companies of the CRPF sanitize the strategic road through the city for our logistic convoys to Kargil and Ladakh for the critical winter-stocking tasks.
Not only the road, an area of nearly 3 sq km on either side has to be sanitized. The airfield in Srinagar is a critical target and a 2km cone on either end has to be sanitized to ensure that no SAMs or RPGs are fired at the aircraft.
Srinagar is the pivot of all political activity in J&K. All the terrorist command-and-control and financial (hawala) networks operate from here. Most intelligence, even about LoC crossings, is gathered in these urban centres. Premature removal of the act from these areas would be highly counterproductive. Once removed, AFSPA cannot, in practice, be reimposed in a hurry.
In a quiet summer, the state government should have consolidated its position on governance and delivery front. Unfortunately, the hunt for populist gimmicks has prompted the beleaguered state politicians to target the Army in a most irresponsible manner. They have tried to manufacture causes for the separatists to exploit. It is a tribute to the tenacity of our Army that terrorism has been so drastically curtailed in J&K. We have won all the battles on the ground. We should not lose the war by self-inflicted goals and premature declarations of complete victory.
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