Rules of engagement

The full facts of the Bandipora tragedy that had led to the deaths of five porters hired by the army are yet to be established. But the very fact that it has caused anger and unrest in the region points to the need for an urgent and fair inquiry into its circumstances. The chief of army staff, General N.C. Vij, has already stated that the army will henceforth not hire civilian porters during counter-insurgency operations. But that is not enough. If indeed army personnel are found guilty of using porters as a human shield in their operations against militants in Bandipora, as has been alleged, they must face punishment.

There can be no compromise on the established rules of engagement in such matters, and the home ministry is quite right to remind the security forces that, even as they go about their counter-insurgency operations, they must take all possible precautions to ensure that no human rights violations are committed against innocent civilians. This would require the conscious internalising of the rules of engagement, so that every army and paramilitary platoon follows standard operating procedures — whether it is in frisking individuals, conducting search-and-cordon operations or mounting counter-insurgency strikes. A great deal is at stake. The success achieved by the government in bringing a modicum of peace and stability — as signified by the peaceful conduct of elections in October 2002 and the ongoing talks with the Hurriyat — has only upped the stakes for terrorist outfits operating in the area. Protecting this vital peace process then would require a judicious — if difficult — combination of targetting the insurgents while ensuring that local communities are not alienated.

Such alienation would make it extremely difficult for the moderates to influence public opinion in favour of peace. Already, we have the rather curious spectacle of Omar Abdullah, president of the National Conference — until a few months ago a member of the Central government — urging the Hurriyat’s Ansari faction not to talk to the Centre until there is action on the Bandipora killings. Such advice is prompted by Abdullah’s electoral compulsions, of course, but it nevertheless does have a deleterious impact on the ground. The only way to counter such insidious attempts to disrupt the peace process is for the Centre to signal its own commitment to ensuring that justice is done in the Bandipora tragedy.