The Hindu Business Line : Forgotten duty

WHILE most commentators dwell at length on the need for strategies and mechanisms to combat terrorism, they make scant mention of the corresponding duty of governments, civil societies and international agencies to mitigate the sufferings of the civilian casualties of terrorist activities.

Whoever be the perpetrators, whether jihadis, naxalites, ethnic malcontents or religious fanatics, their barbaric acts not only leave a trail of destruction of public and private property, but also cause loss of innumerable precious lives of innocent people, utterly devastating the families concerned.

In all such cases, the families of the victims belonging to security forces or official outfits are well looked after, but others are either left to fend for themselves or driven from pillar to post for getting even the meagre assistance that is initially promised only to be soon forgotten.

One of the factors leading to the neglect of innocent civilian victims of terrorism in a country like India is their inability to organise themselves so as to become a force to reckon with. This is in contrast to the determination, persistence and drive shown by the persons affected by similar outrages in industrial countries.

For instance, the relatives and friends of victims of the Lockerbie tragedy in which a bomb planted in a PanAm plane killed hundreds of passengers mid-air formed a close-knit organisation and, by applying unrelenting pressure on the US Government, saw to it that condign punishments were awarded and the families were amply compensated by the Libyan Government.

Likewise, following 9/11, the kin of the victims banded themselves and pressured the federal and state authorities to announce generous compensation packages and comprehensively revamp the intelligence and security apparatus.

They have engaged lawyers to sue the Saudi Arabian Government (whose nationals form the majority of the accused) for heavy reparations.

Those involved in this organised effort are said to have been puzzled by the lack of any show of interest on behalf of around 250 Indian Americans or persons of Indian origin killed in the attack, and by the difficulty encountered by them even to obtain the full details of the victims from official sources. So much the pity!

B. S. Raghavan

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