In the name of charity

Come the holy month of Ramadan, the so-called charity organizations swing into action for minting money in the name of collecting money for orphanages. It is distressing to see these fake yateem trusts.

The armed conflict in the past two decades has brought miseries to thousands of Kashmiris. It is extremely unfortunate that some unscrupulous persons of our society want to use people’s sympathies as a huge business opportunity.

According to a 2014 study conducted by ‘Save the Children’, a London-based charity organization, the estimated population of orphans in Jammu and Kashmir due to conflict and the natural death of parents is around 2.15 lakh. About 15 per cent of these orphans live in orphanages across the region. The report said that 37 per cent of the orphans lost one or both parents due to conflict. 
An additional 55 per cent were orphaned due to the natural death of parents, and the remaining eight per cent due to other reasons.

Minting money through private donations has been a flourishing practice for the last 20 years. A particular class has seized this opportunity for befooling people.

Every household in Srinagar city witnesses the rush of collectors asking for donations in the name of orphanages. Some come in groups. Others start knocking at the gates or even doors as early as 8 am. The last bell rings a few minutes before Iftaar.
Some have become more sophisticated.

 They use mobile vans, makeshift stalls; and make shrill public announcements asking the faithful to donate generously during the blessed days.
It seems that the so-called yateem trusts (orphanages) have outnumbered the yateems (orphans). Everyone who asks for donations says of being associated with one religious organization or the other. He seems to be a moulvi, at least by his apparel.

I fully support genuine orphanages and other charity organizations seeking the help of people to serve destitute children. What makes me angry is the fraud being conducted in the name of fake orphan homes and trusts.

I am not the only one. I can see most Kashmiris highly resenting this fraudulent practice in our society.

Collecting donations and mushrooming of charitable trusts is not the only trend we Kashmiris are now witnessing. We are confronted with another unique trend.

Even little boys are handed over coupon books for collections. They stop vehicular traffic at busy junctions and collect money. In other words, the muntazimeen (management) are actually training these little angels for begging in the name of religion.

The people whom you find outside your main door during Ramadan are trained, legitimate beggars. Fake orphanages are proving to be a flourishing business for these beggars.

Now please visit these orphanages (if any exist). Many of them are hellholes. According to a rough estimate, orphanages are a 150 crore business (Rs). But no benefits reach the poor, helpless orphans. In a number of cases, the orphanage comprises of only an official address board outside a deserted room in a shopping complex.

The Police have cracked down on some fake orphanages in the past. But the mushrooming of these fraudulent institutions has not stopped. Since
People are also to be blamed for this mess. Those who donate in cash or kind are not interested in knowing whether the donation is being used for the right purpose. This is the principal cause for the mushrooming of fake orphanages, and the active recruitment of children to collect money for them.

It is a common feeling amongst people here that several organizations claim to run orphanages in the Valley. Those who claim that they are working towards the rehabilitation of these orphans are nothing but deceitful outfits trying to mint money.
According to an estimate, 3000-5000 NGOs (that run orphanages) are registered. Of these, only about 25-30 are genuine. This has led to serious apprehensions about their credibility. The safety and security of the orphans in these orphanages is a major issue.

It is a highly alarming fact that the orphans in these orphanages are often victims of abuse and exploitation, trafficking, beating, torture and psychological harm.

Even criminals under the disguise of charity organizations have been looting people. They take advantage of the fact that people want to do charitable deeds in the month of Ramadan, and on the eve of Eid.

A study conducted recently by International Journal of Education and Psychological Research (IJEPR) found that more than 26 per cent of orphans show high level of depression, while 46 per cent of them have average level of depression. “War, fear, death and destruction have taken a heavy toll on the mental health of orphans in Kashmir,” the study said.

Another study conducted by the Department of Education in the University of Kashmir reveals that orphans between the age group of ‘Up to 6 years’ and ‘6-14 years’ live in a state of depression and dreariness.

Another study conducted by the Institute of Jammu and Kashmir Affairs stated that 57.3 per cent of orphans in Kashmir have become fearful, 53.3 per cent suffer from depression while as 54.25 per cent cannot sleep properly.

Media Freedom: Myth Or Illusion?

But is this true? Is media really free?

 Or is media freedom illusory and a bit of a charade? If so, what are the constraining factors that militate against media freedom-globally, locally? Media or the fourth estate is supposed to have many functions- one of these is to check power and abuse of power especially by the state. This very function places the media at odds with the state. 

The problem is compounded by the fact that media is dependent on advertisement revenues- both state and non state. So, by virtue of this dependency, media freedom can be compromised. This is an in your face power that the state has in terms of constraining media freedom. The state can be more subtle in altering the policy of media; while stopping ads is the obvious mechanism but this can be obscured by other means.  

 This condition becomes more acute in conflict zones where the state is vested in propounding or at times muzzling discourses and narratives. The state, in these conditions, employs a range of means to either co-opt the media or muzzle it. These means can include overt pressure, threats, harassment or the plain old trick of withholding monies. Free media in these contexts becomes academic. This, however, is not the whole story. There are societal and cultural forces and factors at play too.

 Societal sensibilities and cultural mores, at times, either lead to self censorship by media in deference to these sensibilities. As such, pure freedom of media gets compromised. This is more salient in traditional and conservative societies. In this sense, journalism –print or visual- is easier in the West wherein cultural pressures do not exert such pressures.

I am Kashmir, A tale of atrocities

I do shed the tears, but then I'm back to normalcy. You call it inhumane, I call it living ahead for the alive but remembering dead who sleep in my gut, my bosom my limbs, my minds, everywhere.

Mine ( Kashmir)  is an unending tale of atrocities, enforce disappearances, false encounters,  widows and half widows, orphans, and half orphans, depressed and tired bodies, graveyards wherever you see.

There's every reason to worry for me, for my people. But, the International community always turns the blind eye towards me. May be I don't have oil fields. Or, may be I'm of no political importance to them. They talk humanity, humans suffer here too.

Why this intentional discrimination to me?

What is life all about

A little pain, a little pleasure,A little heaping up of treasure,Then no more gazing upon the sun,All things must end that have begun.     
---- John Payne

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Have you ever thought what life is about....? Life, no one has yet been able to properly define what life is. May be it is true that things that matter most to man are the most difficult to explain.
One definition of life makes it a period between birth and death of an organism. And yes, life is about a beginning and an end. Something we all know but often forget.

The other definition of life says that a thing that grows and shows signs of movement is alive. If one is active he is alive and if dormant as if dead. All living things are engaged in activities. Humans are intelligent beings and by their efforts have made this earth suitable for living a civilized and comfortable life. Had it not been for it we would have been wondering around like animals in the jungle. Thus life is about performing the right kind of activities….!

Apart from people who are saints and wanderers, who reduce their needs and withdraw from the world, the common man has to be engaged in doing things that benefit him and in turn benefit other fellow human beings. One has to choose an activity, an occupation and develop his skills. To choose an engagement one must find the right guidance and inculcate good principles.  

Every profession requires dedication and discipline. And doing good work is part of living a good life. It doesn't matter what work you choose what matters is how well you do what you choose, like they say even if you are a sweeper, sweep so well that people say here lives the greatest sweeper in the world. “Work well done, does good to the man who does it, it makes him a better man”.  Life is about excelling in ones profession…!

Being proficient in ones profession is important, but there are many such good professionals. Shouldn’t there be something that makes you stand apart,lets you imprint your foot steps on the sands of time. Yes, there should, and this desire to do something that has never been done before can be called your dream.

 One has to have a dream in life, a dream to do something greater, to leave his name behind as an innovator, a discoverer, an inventor or just a dreamer. But life is about having a dream…..!

All along life, being good at work and moving towards your goals, you need someone to share your joys and sorrows. Here is a man who is good at what he does, he is living his dream, but he has neglected his relationships. He has not taken time to be there for people, to appreciate or uplift them and the result is that when he looks back he finds himself lonely. 

In life one should always try to have a good social standing. Every relation requires respect, understanding and a sense of bonding together. This requires time and effort but it is a good investment for it pays well. Life is about having a great family and good friends….!

There are people who have all these beautiful things in life but still are not happy. What could be the cause of this? Well, heart has its reasons that reason knows not of. What makes you happy is a question that one has to answer by himself. No one can bring you peace but yourself. But being happy is important. They say,“the most wise is the man who is the most happy”. You have to find out what makes you smile and try to do those things. 

Do things that uplift, elevate and give you satisfaction. You are responsible for your happiness and you can create it. Life is about being happy…!
In the end, I would say life is about choosing a role, playing it well on the stage of life and doing things that make you happy. Be yourself, be happy but never forget that it is your activity and your contribution that makes you have successful life. 

Here is to life, living as it needs to be lived.

JKLF stages protests against govt’s ‘anti-Kashmir policies’

Srinagar: Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) leaders and activists today organized various protests throughout the valley against construction of separate settlement colonies in the name of Kashmiri Pandits, separate colonies for ex-army men.

Following the joint program announced by JKLF, Hurriyat (G) and Hurriyat (M), JKLF leaders and activists led by vice chairman advocate Bashir Ahmad Butt staged a peaceful protest sit-in near Budshah Chowk Lal Chowk. Besides JKLF leaders and activists a large number of people also joined this protest sit-in, the party said in a statement issued here.

With play cards in their hands, the participants of the protest sit-in raised slogans against conspiratorial plots of India and its Kashmiri stooges especially proposed construction of separate colonies for Pandits, ex-army men, industrial policy, arrests, raids and other oppressive measures including recent custodial killing of a young Kashmiri Tanveer Sultan Sheikh of Bemina.

In his address Butt said that today’s joint protest program is against various conspiratorial designs of India and its stooges and also against oppression unleashed by police.

He said that so-called industries ministers’ statement has exposed their hypocritical politics and blatant lies that are only being spread to hoodwink public opinion and reduce public anger on these issues.

Butt said that all these conspiracies are being hatched by PDP/BJP coalition for implementation of RSS anti-Kashmir and anti-Muslim agenda and only goal of these conspiracies is to hurt Muslim majority character of Jammu Kashmir and turn majority into minority here.