I feel it even though I am thousands of miles away from the country of my birth-India.
It was among many heinous crimes against humanity. No true blue Indian,or anyone connected to India in any way or even humane people from around the world can afford to forget what happened 3 years ago. It's just like how one should and remembers/ prays for 9/11. Justice is long overdue.
Yes,sadly there has been no closure yet. But Prayers for Peace and Justice will be there always...Just pray and hope it happens soon.
Please view--
http://www.socialkonnekt.com/2611/candle.htm
A 26/11 tribute while asking people to light a candle in remembrance says:
"166 families grieved the inconsolable loss of loved ones. On those three dreadful nights and days, 166 people died, 300 others were wounded, many of them maimed for life. Someone's mother, someone's father, sister, brother, son, daughter, lover, friend.People of varied faiths(Hindu, Jew, Christian, Muslims et al) and even varied nationalities.
It is time to remember those who paid with their lives for the fanaticism of a few, to salute those who gave up their lives trying to shield others,and to honour those who survived the ordeal of terror.
It is time to light a candle, to show that something as heinous as that is neither forgiven nor forgotten.
It is time to light a candle; to show that as we move on, we cherish their memories, we value their sacrifice and we hail their courage."
For the uninitiated----
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Mumbai_attacks
"Eight of the coordinated attacks occurred in South Mumbai: at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, the Oberoi Trident, the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower, Leopold Cafe, Cama Hospital(a women and children's hospital),the Nariman House Jewish community centre, the Metro Cinema, and a lane behind the Times of India building and St. Xavier's College.There was also an explosion at Mazagaon, in Mumbai's port area, and in a taxi at Vile Parle. By the early morning of 28 November, all sites except for the Taj hotel had been secured by Mumbai Police and security forces. On 29 November, India's National Security Guards (NSG) conducted Operation Black Tornado to flush out the remaining attackers; it resulted in the death of the last remaining attackers at the Taj hotel and ending all fighting in the attacks."
The well made documentary from Europe for Channel 4,uploaded below will give more information as well as gory details.
Here's a tribute to the martyrs of the attack who very unfortunately went down shielding others. Also very sad is the fact that there has been no closure for their families and well wishers as yet. Justice has not yet been done. Actually there's no compensation for such noble sacrifices but then tributes are a kind of a little consolation---
http://www.rediff.com/news/mumterror08.html
http://www.rediff.com/news/report/slide-show-1-remembering-26-11-south-mumbai-jewish-centre-still-awaits-to-remove-26-11-scars/20111125.html
http://www.rediff.com/news/report/slide-show-1-remembering-26-11-by-not-hanging-kasab-we-are-sending-a-very-bad-message/20111125.html
http://www.firstpost.com/fwire/rich-tributes-paid-to-2611-martyrs-140929.html
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-11-26/india/30444008_1_perpetrators-of-mumbai-attacks-terror-speedy-justice
Please paste the links on your browser and also view Babetude's heartfelt homage last year for 26/11
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
http://thebabetudeblog.blogspot.com/2010/11/one-fateful-wednesday.html
Well, I don't live in that city any more,but I lived, studied and worked there for seven long years and was there when it happened. Also I have been an aware citizen and this will continue to affect me.
Though safe in suburban Mumbai,far away from the attacks,they will be always be etched in my memory,like how it has happened to many other Indians and Mumbaites.
Doesn't matter, even if people like us so far away right now.
The link below from Babetude's Indian Republic Day 2011 post. Putting the videos shot in 2009 up once again, as many I've known and seen have the Indian type of memory, i.e SHORT MEMORY.
http://thebabetudeblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/saluting-indias-real-heroes_26.html
"The families of Mumbai heroes are still grieving. It was not just another day in their lives. Good and compassionate citizens need to take out a little time and hope that some more people will grieve with them...And pray for justice too!
That's the least we can do...
I quite agree what the young Major's father said in the video that "the world changed only for them, the family and India went back to normal in a few days." I so wish people of the country would value a young son sacrificing his precious life much more and not make it look like just a personal loss of a family. There are some genuine sympathizers but the number is low.
Apathy is rampant. Someone with a sarcastic sense of humor had commented in an youtube video about how videos that has vulgar,improper or frivolous content gets much more views by people than the videos for patriots and martyrs!
Major Sandeep Unnikrishan, who I tend to remember most of the time would always be a personality close to my heart. Many people young and old, have felt connected to him, though they were not fortunate enough to know him before. Some feelings in life can't be explained and for me(an a few others),it was like losing a brother( that too a perfect one),I never had. My heart and many other hearts have bled for him many times.
I was in Mumbai that terrible day as a silent,weak, mute spectator and the pangs of guilt for not being able to do anything substantial will be there for a long, long time.The feeling of being powerless is terrible. How I wish I could have prayed harder, could have turned back time, could have changed the course of destiny...
Later I learned,he was a very humane person who donated much of his salary towards charity and various causes. When I look at his parents,I feel a lot of sadness.
http://www.mid-day.com/news/2011/nov/251111-Unnikrishnans-father-wants-to-start-orphanage.htm
He was the only son of his parents and they are ones in whose hearts the wounds would be fresh forever. His father carries forward his legacy and both parents look quite strong. But it's really hard to fathom the storm going on inside him...
Like I mentioned on this blog before,I do sympathize and feel for the others top. But many young people tend to remember this young man a lot because he was so much like the middle class Indian youth that others of his like know of-convent educated, cosmopolitan, from a simple but cultured family, one with ambitions, one who loves to travel, enjoys the movies, life and so on. He seems so much like the guy next door to us.
The difference was that he was far too giving, selfless, patriotic...
He was a happy-go-lucky young man next door,our friendly neighborhood guy who was extra ordinary and whose selflessness and sacrifice seems so out of the world in this materialistic world. A truly great man, so out of the world.
No amount of compensation and tears are enough for a sacrifice like that. He didn't need to do that, he could have chosen to live life like anyone his age. Instead he decided to protect people he didn't even know. A kind of attitude which is hardly found anywhere around.
He still lives on in the memories of the ones who really care...
His father rightly said, "By being alive for some more years he could have done so much more for India and people." A precious life like that of his son, should have been there...The country needed him so much.
There were many stories of terrible grief---
A veteran food critic and writer who was well known in Mumbai intellectual circles was attending a wedding and couldn’t make it out of the Taj Mahal hotel safely. An elderly cleaner at the CST railway station became a victim.A railway employee was shot at the station on Nov 26 and his son who was turning a year older that day says he'll never cut a cake for his birthday again.A cab driver's wife now says she'll not rest until the surviving terrorist's death sentence is carried out.
And yes,there were also three fishermen of the hijacked Kuber ship which the the monsters used to enter Mumbai.
The Rabbi,Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka Holtzberg were greatly mourned.
From Wikipedia---"Several high ranking American politicians released statements on the Mumbai attacks, specifically referencing Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg by name, including US President-elect Barack Obama, Senator Hillary Clinton, Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City, and Governor David Paterson of New York.
In December 2008, Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd told more than 1,000 people at a memorial service at the Yeshiva Center in New South Wales that Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife, Rivkah, had “devoted their lives to acts of goodness and kindness and compassion for others ... but they lost their lives in a senseless act of hatred. In the face of this terror we must not bow to fear. We must respond by spreading our own message of tolerance and respect for people of other backgrounds and other beliefs.” Federal Opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull and U.S. Consul-General Judith Fergin also spoke at the memorial service. A representative from the Indian Consulate was also present.In a speech to Federal Parliament, Michael Danby, a Jewish member of the ruling Labor Party, said it was important to remember the names of the innocent victims of Mumbai attacks, stating that “I raise my voice in this national parliament and praise the memory of those innocent kedoshim who were killed in the Chabad House in Mumbai only because they were Jews.”
The family's nanny, Sandra Samuel who saved their baby son Moshe showed exemplary courage and presence of mind. Samuel is currently helping to care for the boy in Israel.
The poor little boy didn't quite yet fathom the seriousness of what happened, where his parents suddenly disappeared...He just kept crying for mommy.
"A video of Moshe crying at the funeral service for his parents and crying "Imma, Imma," which means "Mommy, Mommy" in Hebrew was widely published"
Here's the video of a song that was dedicated to him-----
http://www.ndtv.com/article/cities/26-11-best-revenge-will-be-moshe-returning-to-city-as-rabbi-68763
An elderly German couple's dream just ended in the so called city of dreams at the Leopold cafe frequented by intellectual conversation loving people...
http://news.rediff.com/slide-show/2009/nov/25/slide-show-1-anniversary-26-11-dilip-dsouza-on-a-dream-that-ended-sadly.htm
Innocent lives got lost just like that due to the demonic natures of a few.
My heart goes out with the ones who made us all(the thankful as well as the thankless ones)feel safe and sleep peacefully by risking their lives. The ones that did what the soldiers of a country do every day- protect the borders to ensure the safety of the civilians, so that the normal people can sleep peacefully at night.
The citizens just need to do their duties and show solidarity.Let's hope a few more people become sensitive to their environments despite being so caught up in their lives or worse still stuck in their dangerously selfish & ungrateful little worlds. But the way, this once again brings to mind how some people achieve great levels of greatness in their lives, are mourned time and again while some others go un mourned and are considered good riddance.
The saying is so right- A tyrant dies and his reign happily ends( read people rejoice), a martyr dies and his reign begins(he lives warmly in millions of hearts).
The pictures below are from a visit this summer(the slogans and a little graphic designs came with a little help from Photoshop).
As for my trip,even if it was just a week in the city,we made sure we say some prayers at the Taj Hotel,one very important spot that was attacked and pay a little homage.
But it's not like the 9/11 memorial of New York, Ground Zero in any way which has been so meticulously built.There's not much emotional elements and vibes seen around here.Many seemed to have moved on.
Sadly there are no proper remembrance,memorial spots et al to pay homage.Really sad. Maybe the passive ways of the Indian system shows off once again, in every thing that's done.
Well,I have heard there's some spots inside the hotel but going inside is also quite a lot of hassle right now,with the heavy security. It of course is a good thing, but sometimes people in power tend to trouble the honest citizen more than the real culprits! Sad, but true.
It's not like pre 2008(things seemed so much better),when I had been to various parts of the hotel for meetings and then for the Will Smith press conference,and when Brad Pitt- Angelina Jolie had visited.
I wanted to leave some flowers(the least I could do) but there was no spot to float them. So I ended up floating some in the nearby Arabian sea.
9/11 is commemorated in a huge scale. We all know that. The American President and other notable figures pay rich homage. In May this year they rejoiced the killing of a demon-Osama Bin Laden. Many hailed it across the world as 'good riddance'.But that's not the case for Mumbai.
The day is commemorated in a simple way by some who remember and care. By the way,it's not just on 26/11 that one needs to remember the victims and martyrs.They are ought not to be forgotten any day.
In fact there have been many other attacks thereafter too and that has made the city look, very, very vulnerable.
India shouldn't have made serious issues like these a habit. In fact 26/11 brought out into the open, the huge lapse in the security system,how the government failed the public and later even news such as the police officials not being given proper bullet proof jackets, guns etc.Constables with laathis( sticks from British days)were not capable of fighting well armed terrorists.
Wise folks say it's the corruption and the huge population, the lack of great leaders unlike in the past, of the calibre of Gandhiji, Bhagat Singh, Chandra Shekhar Azad, Netaji et al that has lead to a situation like this...
I have said this before and I am saying it again. Even civilians have lots of responsibilities.But many are only concerned about themselves. It's okay till a point as it's self preservation but when it crosses all limits and that attitude harms others in the process it becomes very dangerous. Many are ready to stoop to any level and harm if there’s a need, to do what they want to do. It's like in a city of 19.5- 20 million people,roughly 200 suffering isn't such a big deal.
The terrorists act out of hate and many like that around us do so the same though in a smaller way! They can't control their various vices of lust, greed, unhealthy attachment, envy, ingratitude,arrogance, sloth, selfishness, manipulation ,ignorance cruelty,and so on.
And if given a chance they would make the demons in them(someone very wise calls it 'lower nature') rise high and take over to make poor innocents suffer! After all, the terror and the violence like the values, start in the mind itself. Once all that is cultivated, it can really become dangerous.
The young major had put hypocrisy, sycophancy, apathy and lack of compassion as 'turn offs' on his social networking profile. And majority he sacrificed himself for are still ruled by these terrible vices.It's really so very sad.
Here was a young man(and a few others) who gave up all to shield total strangers. And the so called normal people around can't even be a little humane and kind to people they know and are supposed to be close to! Just look at the contrast...Very, very sad.
Also it's very painful for any honest citizen of the world to see that Justice is taking way too long. The fact that there's no closure yet, is very painful.The lone surviving terrorist and the masterminds of the attack of November 2008 are yet to be punished for their heinous and demonic crimes against humanity. Martyr and lion of a man,police constable Tukaram Omble had got about 20 bullets pumped into him to catch the lone terrorist. If he had not done that,there would have been much more havoc on the roads. Since he was caught,a lot of truths about him and his connections with Pakistan could be revealed and established. We can't bring the heroes back but the supreme and noble sacrifices like that should bear at least some fruit.
The delay in delivering justice is not setting a good example and giving out a very wrong message.All aware citizens agree that it has made the country look even more vulnerable. How can one be sure that there won't be any more repeats? Making the Indian system look very passive and slow, so unlike the US, the UK and first world nations.
One Face Book fan of 'Indian Army fans' that did beautiful online homages and organised candle light vigils in many places across India such a Pune,Jaipur,Noida et al said---"Kitna candle jalayenge(how many candles will we burn?). Just hang that guy"
A small time celebrity/actress/activist Gul Panag rightly tweeted a Hindi adage,'Yahaan der bhi hai aur andher bhi"( there's both a long wait and darkness here...)
In one of the news articles,where one of the ministers gave quotes about how much sympathy he has with the families, what is being done right now,what talks are on with Pakistan to bring the perpetrators of the heinous crimes to justice someone wisely commented---"Reciting the same old lines like a parrot.Typical politician...'
Speeches and talks in the parliament and elsewhere are not enough for a wounded country,more so for the families.It's action that matters.
The whole sad scenario is like what the scene from this meaningful movie'Rang De Basanti' said more than 5 years ago,about the level of corruption in India(all aware citizens of the world know such is the case in India and other 3rd world countries), of things never changing, of the system suffocating the honest citizen and so on...
What Sir Winston Churchill said more than 64 years ago seems to be coming true:
"Power will go to the hands of rascals, rogues, freebooters; all Indian leaders will be of low caliber & men of straw. They will have sweet tongues & silly hearts. They will fight amongst themselves for power & India will be lost in political squabbles. A day would come when even air & water would be taxed in India."
BUT WE HAVE TO LIVE IN HOPE. Don't we all have to do so sometimes?
These verses from HOLY BIBLE help---
Psalm 23
A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. 3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name's sake. 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever.
Ezekiel 25:17:
And I will execute great vengeance upon them with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall lay my vengeance upon them.
Popular media, inspired by the Holy book: "The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who,in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness. For he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you."
And here's a verse from the HOLY BHAGAVAD GITA which gives ample hope----
A promise from God---
"Yada Yada Hi Dharmashya
Glanir Bhavathi Bharata
Abhyuthanam Adharmasya
Tadatmanam Srijami Aham
Paritranaya Sadhunaam
Vinashaya Cha Dushkritaam
Dharma Sansthapnaya
Arthaya Sambhavami Yuge Yuge.."
"यदा यदा ही धर्मस्य ग्लानिर्भवति भारत, अभ्युथानम् अधर्मस्य तदात्मानं सृजाम्यहम् |
परित्राणाय साधुनाम विनाशाय च: दुष्कृताम, धर्मं संस्थापनार्थाय सम्भावामी युगे युगे ||"
Translation---( A promise from GOD)
Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice/decay of righteousness,O descendant of Bharata,and a predominant rise of unrighteousness-at that time I descend Myself to safeguard, deliver the pious and destroy the evil doers and to re-establish the principles of religion. It happens every millennium.
So let's keep praying and working for peace and justice in India and the world. Amen to that.
P.S -Babetude's pics of the little candle we lit and the flowers we used in memory and honor,while saying prayers for peace and justice.
