Those killed in New Zealand in a Masjid, and those killed inSri Lanka in a Church are all one – Humans. Members of the Lord’s own family.The killers are only killers – neither Christian nor Muslim.
The response to the terror attack from the government, and the people of New Zealand was impressive. It generated a wave of brotherhood and amity among the two communities – Christians and Muslims.
The Prime Minister of New Zealand emerged as an example of courage and humanity. Her conduct was exemplary, as she unambiguously denounced the attack as an act of terror, and stood wholeheartedly with the victim.
The images of how the people and the leadership of New Zealand stood with the victim will serve as guiding light in this pitch dark world of violence and terror.
The terror attacks in Sri Lanka, at the time of Easter, at places where our Christian brothers celebrate the occasion, are far more horrible, not just in scale.
They are more reprehensible as some self styled groups call it as a vengeance on what happened in New Zealand. Who gave them this right to have this vengeance, and how where those innocent people in churches and hotels responsible fo what happened in a mosque in New Zealand. And how do these barbarians appropriate themselves the right to represent the Muslims world over.
It is perversion of mind, corruption of souls, and an illusion of high order. Muslims world over are no part of this terror, and Islam has nothing to do with what these terrorists do in the name of this religion.
“The Compulsiverepresentatives of Islam and Muslims” as Ahmed Javid calls them, represent thedarkness of soul, mutilation of mind, and bestiality of intent. It is a warwhere such beasts are on one side and God and His family – Hindus, Jews,Christians, Buddhists, Muslim, agnostics, and atheists – are on the other. It’sa contest between humans and inhumanity.
What engenders this inhumanity, this cold violence, is aquestion confronting all of us. If this question is approached unbiasedly, andwith the sole aim of retaining one’s humanity, we can position ourselves betterto isolate the culprit.
ISIS is a baby delivered from the womb of an ugly alliancebetween a structure, and an idea. The two are sleeping together for decadesnow. They enjoyed a long honeymoon in Afghanistan and then went to places.
First, the structure. This is the modern nation-state and the huge military industrial complex standing atop it. These states, and the militaries they raised, divided the world into unnatural, anti-historical, compartments.
What we call borders are actually unnatural, and unbearable, prohibitions mounted on people. In most of the cases these borders have been imposed on Muslims lands, and Muslim societies.
Second, the idea. It is the exclusivist, and extremist interpretationof Quran, and the Muslim history. This interpretation has been used to the hiltto justify the creation of armed groups. And now we are all reaping theharvest.
An active nexus between the two is no more a realm of fantasy. Conspiracy theory aside, the way intelligence agencies, private owners of violence, and the religious radicals are forming an alliance of sorts, is attaining a far too dangerous proportion.
One shudders at the prospect of Kashmir becoming another active turf for such forces.
It is not a war between Good and Bad, it looks like a fixed match between one bad and another bad. People are only getting divided under the impact of a false, but immensely powerful propaganda. This is at its peak right now in India through TV channels.
And in a targeted population among Muslims. In Kashmir, it is happening through virtual and actual medium of communications. The online streaming of violence and a virulent form of preaching, both are creating are nurturing an extremist mindset. And the policies and actions of the state are contributing to this in a huge way.
If this alliance between the bad and the bad is to be defeated, people on all sides must break the imaginary, compulsive, but actually a false ring of loyalty. The institutions of a state where humans work, need to question the political masters who make them take wrong decisions.
The members of a political party who are swept by demagoguery need to ask a few small question to their fiery speakers. The journalists, and writers, who work for different media organisations have a tough job to perform.
This profession – journalism – is pumping fuel into the already raging fire. Search for some source of water and carry it to douse the flames. A bucket of a story, a container of a feature, a handful of an essay – and pour it all on the menacing flames.
On the other side is a bigger evil – the modern state and its meta-politics. If we have come to this pass it is because political leaders stuffed this belief into the citizenry that borders are sacred.
There is a nation-God inside these borders, and there is a satan outside. This diabolical distinction is enough to produce reasons, and justifications, for the bombs to explode; for the humans to be killed and maimed.
The states and the non-state actors have together waged awar against us – the people.