She must be hungry after 10 years...
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to belittle people who go on hunger strikes. It’s just that sometimes they should know when to quit and try other methods.
Meet Irom Chanu Sharmila (a.k.a. The Iron Lady of Manipur), a woman from the Indian state of Manipur. In 2000, she witnessed the killing of 10 innocent people by the army and decided to go on a hunger strike to campaign for the repeal of the act that allowed it – the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, which enables security forces to shoot on sight and arrest anybody without a warrant. It is admirable that she wants to make a change and save lives, but it’s been 10 years since her fast started and she has failed to achieve anything.
“She decided to continue with her fast-unto-death mission until the draconian legislation is repealed by the government,” said Babloo Loitongbam from local human rights group Human Rights Alert.
“She made her intentions pretty clear as she completed 10 years of hunger strike,” Babloo said after visiting Ms Sharmila on the 10th anniversary of the start of the fast on Tuesday.
“Militancy is still thriving. In other words, the Special Powers Act has miserably failed.”
What her supporters seem to have failed to realize is that Ms Sharmila’s hunger strike has also failed miserably. Even though it is said persistence is the key to success, if you haven’t gotten results in 10 years it’s time to give up and think of new methods to achieve your goal. It is obvious the government couldn’t care less about people dying, so in the end she’s doing them a favor by eliminating one more person who’s opposed to their ways.
