“Violence, Nationalism and Gender”
Garrisoned Minds: Women and Armed Conflict in South Asia is a collection of twelve essays by journalists who explore the impact of violence on women in conflict zones. The essays aim to explore the complex and intricate relationship between militarisation and the ‘erotics of nationalism’ through their analysis offour conflict-affected zones of South Asia: Pakistan’s frontier provinces which share a border with Afghanistan; Nepal during and after its decade-long civil war; Northeast India under the evil shadow of AFSPA; and the Kashmir valley amidst the overwhelming presence of the Indian army. Issues of nationalism patriotism and gender are closely interlinked; the introduction of the book provides a theoretical framework and a review of literature available on challenges of violent constructions of nationalism and patriarchy.
According to eminent theorist Rubina Saigol, “…an important part of nationalism in South Asia has been the way women and their sexuality are treated as the symbols of culture, tradition and home. This is why in times of conflict and violence, women are violated in a sexually-specific way, that is, they are raped. Not only are they raped, their bodies are marked in particular ways that are meant as reminders of their being women, the honor of the community/nation.”
Women are humiliated, tortured, brutally raped, and murdered as part of the process by which the sense of being a nation is created and reinforced. The book is significant as it aims to engage with the mentioned issues through accounts of lived realities of women in conflict zones.
It also pays a tribute to their resilient spirit that refuses to internalize this violence and continues to wage peace. Eminent journalist Zahid Hussain explains the impact of the war on Afghanistan in Pakistan. Not only did it make Pakistan most vulnerable to terrorism, it also had to succumb to the international pressure of taking responsibility of erasing the rising violence of Taliban.
The increasing tension and conflict between Taliban and Pakistani military has led to the rise of violent extremism. Sectarian conflict, displacement and foreign interventions have contributed to mass erosion of culture and life and have had the most devastating effect on women and children.
ShaziaIram Gul paints a painful picture of the atrocities from armed men from both sides (foreign militants and Pakistani army) that have turned ‘homes’ into perpetual war zones stories. Farzana Ali’s article focuses on the gruesome killing of the dancer Shabana by the Taliban in the SWAT valley, it raises issues and challenges of the role of arts and culture with politics and gender ideologies.
Syed Ali Shah and Shaista Yasmeen’s essay focusses on the militancy, religious fundamentalism, poverty, tribal disputes and social barriers that have deprived women of basic human rights in the land of Baluchistan, yet, there is little information of these violations as their voices are silenced by fear and wide spread terror.
Yet, there is hope as the Hazare women continue to dream of a better world, the article carries a touching story of a Hazare woman aspiring to become the sport ambassador of her country. The essays on Nepal in the volume revolve around the role of women in the Maoist struggle to create a just society.
The essays by eminent journalists Deepak Thapa, Deepak Adhikari, Sewa Bhattarai and Darshan Karki focus on the tragedies in the lives of the women that have forced them to take the path of armed conflict.
They are doubly disadvantaged as they play the role of women insurgents forced into subservience sometimes even by their own comrades. The essays highlight the discrimination that they face during conflict and in the aftermath of conflict, when prospects of peacetime force them to assume the traditional roles ascribed to women. The essays contain disturbing description and relevant insights into deeply conflicting views on activism, motherhood and gendered roles played by the women Maoist revolutionaries. Essays from violence in Kashmir, speak of lack of meaningful dialogue and discussion and hyper militarization of the region to deal with democratic dissent.
Shazia Yousuf’s compilation of stories of families left behind by Ikhwanis, make an appeal for a sincere and an urgent rethinking of nationalist values that has sanctioned mass violation of human rights, devious means and brute force to suppress aspirations of peace.
Zahid Rafiq’s article explains the challenges of making the state’sarmed forces accountable for the irreversible damage done to social and political fabric of Kashmir. It explores the complexities of navigating through the complicated interplay between politics of memory and assertion of state identity as challenges to successful legal petition.
Three essays on conflicts in North East explain how the security forces continue to treat it as a colony committing heinous crimes by enacting the AFSPA, 1958. Among prolonged conflict, militarization, ethnic tensions, mutual suspicion and hostility Yirmiyan Arthur Yhome essay is an inspiring and moving documentation of intervention by women when there is a collapse of structure and civility.
From waving flags, going on fasts, stripping naked, weaving shawls and waving flags, the essay speaks of the indomitable spirit of women who refuse to remain victims and resist violence through sheer determination and formidable spirit. This book is a timely reminder of the violent times we live in; where notions of terror and militarisation are so internalised in imagination, thought, emotions and cognition thatits brutal and painful effects are tragically obliterated.