Despite participating in the stone pelting, this young footballer is devoted to furthering non-violence in the valley through sports.
A series of occurrences on a Tuesday afternoon in late April saw one of Jammu & Kashmir’s most promising female football coach, Afshan Ashiq, join the increasing crowd of outraged stone-pelters in the valley.
The protest, that took place in Srinagar’s Tourist Reception Centre ground by the Jhelum, ended in injuries for over 50 students and a few policemen with numbers of students lashing out against police officials. Multiple eyewitnesses recall seeing Ashiq pelt stones at the security forces.
Trained at the acclaimed National Institute of Sports, Patiala; 21-year-old Afshan Ashiq has been well-regarded in the valley for her dedication towards the game. Her contribution to her team in the past year where she served as a coach has also won a lot of admiration for both her players (varying between ages 12 to 22) and as well as herself.
Ashiq had maintained a very non-violent stance towards the issue, hoping to end the hostility and adopting a neutral and peaceful approach towards resolving the issues in the valley. However, a single act of brutality on a regular afternoon compelled her to put her foot down and resort to pelting stones at the policemen.
According to a report from The Scroll, Ashiq was escorting a group of 10 to 16 girls on a regular 15-minute walk from the Government Girls Higher Secondary, Kothi Bagh around mid-afternoon on April 24th, when demonstrations broke out on Exchange road nearby.
Ashiq was left with a difficult choice to make, between standing up for justice or setting an example of weakness for the young girls. According to the report, she told the policeman, “we cannot slap you because you are in uniform, but we will show you what we can do.” After making sure the girls were at a safer distance, she picked up her first stone and flung it at the policemen.
Ashiq continues to maintain a tactful outlook towards the Kashmir issue and is against separatist forces demanding independence for the state. Attributing the development in Kashmir to the Indian government, her approach calls for giving communities the space to resolve the animosity on their own terms and claims that sports can play a significant role in achieving that.
Looking at sports as an effective tool for non-violence, she believes that the steps that have been taken by the government to support sporting opportunities for Kashmiri youth will lead to furthering peaceful resolution in the Valley.
While her dreams for Kashmir are aimed at achieving harmony, her aspirations for herself have remained the same – to represent the country on the football pitch.
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