Activist ends 16-year hunger strike

LONDON: An Indian political activist who has been on hunger strike for 16 years has brought her protest to an end.

Food last passed the lips of Irom Sharmila on November 5, 2000 – since then she has been force-fed by tube.

She is believed to be one of the world’s longest hunger strikers, if not the longest.

Sharmila has been protesting against laws which let troops shoot to kill suspected rebels without fear of prosecution and to arrest suspected militants without a warrant.

The law is controversial, with many claiming the powers are abused and allow atrocities to occur under their guise.

Doctors say Sharmila might have to remain on a liquid diet for a few days before slowly starting on solids after she breaks her fast at a court.

She will then be allowed to walk free.

Her brother, Irom Singhajit, said: “We don’t know where she will go after her release. If she wants to come home and stay, we are ready to welcome her. But it is her desire.”

Sharmila’s sole aim is the repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act which affords the military powers to kill individuals they suspect are acting against the state in “disturbed areas” of India.

She was 28 when 10 civilians were killed and 42 others were injured by military who opened fire while waiting at a bus stop, in what is now known as the Malom Massacre. The activist, from the troubled state of Manipur, began fasting soon after.

Three days after she started her strike she was arrested for attempting suicide and has been rearrested and released repeatedly ever since. – The Independent