'Ceasefire Must Be the First Step': Over 1,000 Feminists from India and Pakistan Call for Dialogue

Together the signatories called on the governments of India and Pakistan to consolidate the May 10 ceasefire, desist from cross-border violations and defuse rising tensions by keeping channels of communication open.

The Wire Staff

ceasefire must be the first step over 1 000 feminists from india and pakistan call for dialogue

Illustration: Pariplab Chakraborty.

New Delhi: A dozen organisations from India and Pakistan, and nearly 1,000 people, have issued a statement calling for immediate de-escalation, dialogue, and justice in the wake of renewed hostilities between the two countries.

The signatories include feminists, peace activists, artists, journalists, academics, students, grassroots organisers and other professionals from India and Pakistan.

The statement unequivocally condemns the recent terror attack in Pahalgam. It highlights how such attacks are cynically used to inflame communal tensions and justify militarisation, while silencing those who call for peace.

Signatories from Pakistan include Amar Sindhu, Arfana Mallah, Beena Sarwar, Bushra Gohar,Farzana Bari, Jamila Gilani, Jugnu Mohsin, Khawar Mumtaz, Nasreen Azhar, Naveen Hayat, Neelam Hussain, Nighat Said Khan, Rukhshanda Naz, Saba Gul Khattak, Salima Hashmi and Tahira Abdullah.

Signatories from India have among them Anamika Haksar, Cynthia Stephen, Hemlata Mahiswar, Jayati Ghosh, Kalyani Menon Sen, Khalida Parveen, Lalita Ramdas, Maya Rao, Navsharan Singh, Rita Manchanda, Shabnam Hashmi, Syeda Hameed, Uma Chakravarti, and Vani Subramanian.

The signatories have also expressed their disappointment at India’s unilateral decision of suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty; and the retributive decision by both countries to cancel medical and short-term visas causing distress and leading to family separation, especially of children from their mothers. The statement expresses deep concern for the loss of life on both sides and emphasises that wars have no winners.

Reflecting on the fact that the past year has seen a global surge in armed violence, and devastating images from Gaza and other conflict zones that have become so routine on social media platforms, the statement says that ‘we are tragically getting desensitised to the true horrors of armed conflict’.

It further states: "The ceasefire must be the first step in a long, difficult walk towards justice and peace".

The signatories also denounce the naming of India’s military operation as “Operation Sindoor” and call it a deeply patriarchal invocation that exploits female-coded symbols for nationalist ends. It emphasised that war "only benefits arms dealers while devastating women, children, and marginalised communities."

Together the signatories called on the governments of India and Pakistan to:

To consolidate the 10th May ceasefire, desist from cross-border violations and defuse rising tensions by keeping channels of communication open;
To jointly initiate an investigation, including international representatives, into the Pahalgam attack with a view to bringing the perpetrators to justice;
To refrain from unilateral actions such as disrupting the Indus Waters Treaty; and
To prioritise and engage in dialogue and diplomacy to resolve differences;
To work towards resolving the core political issue of Kashmir that lies at the heart of the conflict.

Pakistan organisations like the Aurat March (Islamabad and Lahore) and Women’s Action Forum (chapters: National, Hyderabad, Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, and Quetta), and India's All India Democratic Women's Association, All India Feminist Association (NAPM), All India Progressive Women's Association, ANHAD, Forum Against Oppression of Women, Hazrat-e-mamuli Zindagi and Saheli Women's Resource Centre are among organisations who have signed the statement.

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