Pakistanis, Indians unite in US for peace

It was 35°F (-2°C) and three hours before snow was to hit the Greater Boston area, when over 100 people gathered on the steps of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to protest for peace in South Asia on March 3, 2019, reports foreign media.

The protesters gathered to oppose the escalating tensions between the nuclear neighbours and rivals, India and Pakistan. “I am a pacifist and I certainly don’t believe in war,” said Aruna Roy, a prominent Indian activist on why she decided to join the standout. She founded the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) and led the Right to Information campaign. “There are issues between the two countries that need to be settled. I also believe that those who are affected by terrorism should have a recourse – not through violence but through dialogue,” she added.

“It is interfering with people’s lives, particularly people who don’t believe in war,” said Cyma Firdous, a Pakistani physician on why she travelled from the neighbouring state of New Hampshire to join the Cambridge’s Global Standout for Peace.

The Cambridge Global Standout for Peace was held in conjunction with similar protests around the world in Bangalore, Kolkata, Karachi, New York, Washington DC and San Francisco. The event featured organisations like the Global Stand Out For Peace Community, Aazaad Lab, Answer Coalition, the Coalition for a Democratic India and Aman ki Asha.

Activists like Satyanarayan Ray Pitambar Mohapatra, who spoke on behalf of the ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War And End Racism) Coalition, raised questions about war profiteering and capitalism. He particularly criticised how “war between the two nations will be a “double whammy” for the workers and the farmers as they are the one who will be slaughtered at the front, and not the ruling classes of both the nations.”

“Say no to war between India and Pakistan. Resist the warmongers. Fight the ruling classes and not with each other,” he added.