Artwork by Musrat Reazi.
Cover story by Deepti Priya Mehrotra, author of Burning Bright: Irom Sharmila and the struggle for peace in Manipur. Irom Sharmila has been on a fast unto death for ten years, demanding a repeal of the draconian Armed Forces Special Powers Act in Manipur, India. Ten innocent people were mowed down by security forces in Malom, in November 2000. The perpetrators were not punished, protected under the AFSPA, which empowers military and paramilitary personnel to arrest, shoot, even kill, anyone on the grounds of mere suspicion.
In response to this tragedy, Sharmila, a young Manipuri, began an indefinite hunger strike. The government arrested her and force-fed her through nasal tubes. She has been released and re-arrested innumerable times since then, but has stood by her demand, steadfastly refusing to eat until the act is repealed.
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