War, Conflict, and Human Rights Violation: People’s Narratives from the Borders of Northwest India

The memories of violent incidents of war and conflict during the partition of India and Pakistan in South Asia as two independent nations in August 1947 are still alive. It is estimated that nearly 1 million people died, and 20 million were displaced between the two countries in complete violation of their human rights to live and survive well. For those living in the areas of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) on the northwest Indian side of the international border and the Line of Control (LoC), a de-facto border that still remains disputed, the memories reflected in their narratives get pronounced with every fresh incident of conflict or war in the recent times. People living in the villages along the LoC have faced the violence and trauma of major wars between India and Pakistan (1947-48, 1965, 1971, and 1999) and continue to suffer due to incidents of border skirmishes, firing, and shelling from across the border. Each ‘war’ and ‘war-like situation’ has forced people of all ages and genders to migrate to safer places for a longer or shorter duration. This has resulted in the violation of their human rights of livelihood, education, health, and housing, among other things. This paper argues that unsettled and prolonged conflict with uncertain goals impacts the lives of people at the borders severely and violates their basic human rights. Their voices remain at the margins in the grand discourse of nation and nationalism. The paper draws from the experiences of villagers living near or close to the border (LoC) between India and Pakistan in the Jammu district of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It focuses on the narratives of people as expressed through their collective memories of partition, wars, conflict, and migration and the coping mechanisms used by them in the process.