Unethical treatment meted out to our martyred Soldiers

From the primitive times, ambitious people who wanted to rule had set boundaries in their imagination first which was then translated on the crust of earth. As the greed for these boundaries began more and more acute, human blood was used to draw them again and again. Brutality, cruelty and mass exodus of various communities took place at various places to find shelter at safer havens in this process. As the world progressed towards modernization, these boundaries were more recognized on the maps and internationally too. Gone are the days when warriors used to fight with sword in one hand and halter in the other. Now as more advancement has taken place modern techniques and technology is being used in wars to protect and to strengthen these drawn boundaries. In the process of defending borders it is none but the mankind that suffers, Brotherhood dies, motherhood ruptures, humanity takes a backseat and all this happens because the sense which Mother Nature gave us gets overwhelmed by the greed of land and the greed for power.

Wars cannot be avoided for one or the other reason particularly when a neighboring nation misinterprets the spirituality and values of our country as a sign of nuttiness which is not the case in any manner. Same is the story which is running for centuries at India - Pakistan border. India has been busy in showing her magnanimity while dealing with Pakistan which has done more harm than good. This continued till decades.

Now under a dynamic leadership India has changed its stand.  Recently our country carried out surgical strikes in the other side of our border, is a small example. Since Pakistan never used to be familiar with such a medicine, it is reacting in an obvious strange manner.

Heavy firing and shelling is being reported from both sides of the border. This was much anticipated but complete extinction of values on the part of Pakistan will be witnessed was never anticipated. One such heinous incident is the beheading of Indian Soldier Manjeet Singh of the 17th Sikh Regiment who was killed in an encounter with terrorists in the Machil sector along the Line of Control on 28th October’16.  These terrorists were able to flee back with the head of our great martyr into Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, under supporting fire cover by Pakistani troops. In a previous instance in January 2013, another Army jawan, Lance Naik Hemrajs body was mutilated in a similar, horrific manner, when Pakistan's Border Action Team breached the LoC and beheaded the soldiers dead body, and also mutilated the body of his colleague Lance Naik Sudhakar Singh. During the 1999 Kargil conflict, Captain Saurabh Kalia was tortured by his Pakistani captors who later handed over his mutilated body to India.  What is it that is being tried to be proved by these shameful deeds? Acts of cowardice indeed! An act which shows what a bunch of wolves can do if they found a dead Lion! Come on you cowards, fight us in the battle field! Prove your worth if you have, but to mutilate a dead body or to torment an injured soldier is a deed of an insane and timid so called disciplined army.

Beware India is now under an enlightened leadership and we cannot show the same magnanimity which we used to show previously. Beheading of a martyred soldier is an unethical act. When Pakistani soldiers die in our boundary, we Indians, with due respect handover their bodies to Pakistan. Our old inherent ethical feelings of motherhood and brotherhood take a plunge on us and thus, in the midst of a destructive war and violence, humanitarian values blossom in us and we abide by moral values. Such are the traits of any valiant force and any capable warrior. You cannot play with a dead person simply for the reason that you lack guts to fight a living soldier. No way…If it has been forgotten, let us make you remind what has been agreed in Convention (III) relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War. Geneva, 12 August 1949.

Under the Third Geneva Convention, prisoners of war (POW) must be:

• Treated humanely with respect for their persons and their honor
•  Able to inform their next of kin and the International Committee of the Red Cross of their capture
• Allowed to communicate regularly with relatives and receive packages
• Given adequate food, clothing, housing, and medical attention
• Paid for work done and not forced to do work that is dangerous, unhealthy, or degrading
• Released quickly after conflict ends
• Not compelled to give any information except for name, age, rank, and service number

In addition, if wounded or sick on the battlefield, the prisoner will receive help from the International Committee of the Red Cross.

When a country is responsible for breaches of prisoners of war rights, those accountable will be punished accordingly. An example of this is the Nuremberg and Tokyo Trials. German and Japanese military commanders were prosecuted for preparing and initiating a war of aggression, murder, ill treatment, and deportation of individuals, and genocide during World War II. Most of them were executed or sentenced to life in prison for their crimes.

Two 2 articles which need to be read by Pakistan military for immediate attention are

Article 17 & 20 of Geneva act

Art 17. Every prisoner of war, when questioned on the subject, is bound to give only his surname, first names and rank, date of birth, and army, regimental, personal or serial number, or failing this, equivalent information.

No physical or mental torture, nor any other form of coercion, may be inflicted on prisoners of war to secure from them information of any kind whatever. Prisoners of war who refuse to answer may not be threatened, insulted, or exposed to unpleasant or disadvantageous treatment of any kind.

Prisoners of war who, owing to their physical or mental condition, are unable to state their identity, shall be handed over to the medical service. The identity of such prisoners shall be established by all possible means.

The questioning of prisoners of war shall be carried out in a language which they understand.

Art 20. The evacuation of prisoners of war shall always be effected humanely and in conditions similar to those for the forces of the Detaining Power in their changes of station.

The Detaining Power shall supply prisoners of war who are being evacuated with sufficient food and potable water, and with the necessary clothing and medical attention. The Detaining Power shall take all suitable precautions to ensure their safety during evacuation, and shall establish as soon as possible a list of the prisoners of war who are evacuated.

If prisoners of war must, during evacuation, pass through transit camps, their stay in such camps shall be as brief as possible.

Those countries which are not following these international rules should be banned and deprived of all international socio economic benefits.

Having given vent to all my feelings, I would like to ask where are all those intellectuals who once returned the awards on account of growing intolerance in India. Where is Aamir Khan, Nayantara Sahgal, famous Urdu poet Mr. Munnavar and others who are indifferent to the torments suffered by Jawans fighting Pakistani army & terrorists on LOC in Kashmir? Why can’t they raise a voice here! Are they only able to see intolerance in their own imaginary perceived world?

For the sake of the country which is feeding you, please open up your eyes and conscience. India doesn’t have much harm from across the border but from these so called intellectuals who just for their vested interests support & create such a huge hyperbole. 

Shaheedo ki shahadat ko adab se rehne do, 
Janaza -e- tauluq kabhi tera hai kabhi mera hai.......

Adab-o-aehtram us Ma ka karle 
jiske ankho mai ansu kabhi tere hai , kabhi mere hai…...

Ki Kafn ke libas mai aaj jo leta hai..
vo ya to tera beta hai ya  mera beta hai…...

                                         Kailash Raina

(aehtram - Respect)