Children in Indian-controlled Kashmir are no strangers to lockdowns. Curfews, strikes and school shutdowns are all part of growing up in one of the world’s most militarized zones. So when schools in the disputed region reopened after six months in late February, 9-year-old Jannat Tariq was overjoyed to see her friends and teachers. She had spent months under a strict lockdown that began in August 2019, when India scrapped the region’s semi-autonomous status, closed schools and colleges, and imposed harsh curbs on civil rights and communications, including a shutdown of the internet. In February, it finally was time to return to formal schooling. But Jannat’s happiness was short-lived. The following month, she was once again forbidden to go to school, but for a completely different reason: the coronavirus pandemic. Decades of insurgency, protests and military crackdowns have constantly disrupted formal schooling in Indian-administered Kashmir, where rebels have fought for decades...
from ABC News: International https://ift.tt/30qBSx1
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