OtherIndia.org

Today a few newspapers have published the testimony of some police officers in the matter of Vanvasi Chetna Ashram activist Kopa Kunjam. I understand the compulsion felt by these police officers, for they have to follow the orders of our leaders. Our leaders have gobbled up crores of rupees as bribe from big corporations in return for turning over adivasi lands to them, and the hapless cops are now engaged in thrashing the adivasis to free up their land. As a first attempt in uprooting adivasis from their lands, Salwa Judum was initiated which resulted in hideous internecine fighting and thousands of adivasis houses were burnt. Responding to orders from our leaders, the cops raped thousands of (adivasi) women and murdered thousands of (adivasi) people including children. Frightened by these actions of the police and the Salwa Judum, lakhs of adivasis left their villages and hid in the forests.

[On the fateful day] I was sitting by the roadside under a tree in front of our house in Dantewada. Kopa was sitting in front of me and we were discussing preparations for the padayatra. That's when a lot of police vehicles came in and the cops apprehended Kopa right in front of me. Later I learned that he has been charged with the murder of a Salwa Judum leader, Punem Hunga. I remember how hard Kopa and I had tried, roaming in several villages, to save the lives of Punem Hunga and Jhadi Nagesh.

Kopa was my most beloved companion. He was always bursting with passion and a fine sense of humor and ready to take on the most difficult tasks. Kopa's popularity was very far-reaching. In particular, he was like a brother and son to adivasi women. If people in a village didn't get compensated for their labour, they would come complain to Kopa and he would fight with the authorities and lift the spirits of the workers by getting them their due wages. Thanks to Kopa's efforts, corrupt employees in ration shops, anganwadis and those involved in siphoning away money meant for midday meals became fearful. Since these days the profitable activities of contractorship and corruption are mostly undertaken by Salwa Judum leaders, Kopa became a worm in their eyes. A few days ago, the SP of Bijapur had asked Salwa Judum leader Madhukar Rao to kill Kopa, and Kopa had filed an FIR against them in this regard.

Today Kopa is in jail and I'm flooded with his memories. Often I absentmindedly call for him, and am left floundering when I realize that he is in jail. Kopa was Bastar's only apolitical adivasi youth leader working for justice and peace. Today when people are either with the Salwa Judum or the Naxalites, there is a need for youth like Kopa. However, by imprisoning Kopa the state is sending the message that it doesn't want peace but only to capture adivasi lands. Kopa was involved in rehabilitating adivasi villages. He was helping all those whose villages had been burnt, people murdered and children raped by the Salwa Judum. Kopa had not only challenged the violence of the Salwa Judum on the strength of his non-violence, but had also scared them. The Salwa Judum was indeed afraid of him.

I feel that we should launch an agitation against Kopa's illegal arrest as a basis for organising adivasis all over India, so that they can withstand the attacks upon them, protect their resources and save their lives.