India and The Partition
The “partition” of India was the division of British India in 1947 after nearly three decades. Here two seperate dominions were created, India and Pakistan. Even today there is an atmosphere of hostility and suspicion between India and Pakistan due to the violent nature of the division.
The partition affected many but in most majority women. From her book “Unsettling Partition: Literature, Gender, Memory,” author Jill Didur wrote the following,
“The contradiction between the Assembly’s resolution that ‘people should be given every opportunity to return to their homes and the life of their choice’ but that women ‘must be restored to their homes’ is symptomatic of the patriarchal norms that privileged the rights of male citizens at the expense of women at the time of the partition” (131).
During the partition around 100,000 women were kidnapped and raped. It has been recorded that twice as many Muslim were abducted compared to Hindu and Sikh women. The partition created displacement among citizens, assault opportunities, and murder. This created tension between the Muslim community and the Pakistanis. These rival communities targeted women by humiliating them, or as mentioned before, by raping them. Didur also has this to say in regard to the abduction of women,
“Feminist scholarship on ‘abducted’ women’s treatment during and after partition put pressure on the seemingly benign humanism that underpins the resolution and Bill to disclose it as an alibi for the community and state’s manipulation of women’s bodies, sexualities, and identities to serve their mutual patriarchal interests” (132).
The partition created riots, and mass casualties. Violence grew due to the sense of belonging for most citizens. 14 to 16 million people were displaced from their homes and forced to walk by foot, train, or carts. Although the partition took places years ago its effects still linger in today’s society. Julie McCarthy from the news program All Things Considered in the National Public Radio commented the following, “I mean, there’s killings, there’s rapes, abductions, suicides on both sides of the border. But the most significant thing in partition is that it literally carves up the Indian subcontinent. And they live with the repercussions of that today.” McCarthy said this after traveling to India and listening to multiple stories from the affected people themselves.
Today not many know about the partition of India and the many lives it ended and ruined. Regardless, people should become educated in regards to it and together as a nation help those in need. Today India’s and Pakistan’s differences still pushes them apart just as it did years ago, in order for improvement we must all come together to help one another, maybe then events like these can be prevented.
