You made me a Martyr | Suhas Borker

Fr. Stanislaus Lourduswamy aka Stan Swamy, image by Sarah Modak, courtesy Article 14

You made me
a simple eighty-four old Jesuit priest
into a martyr
By demonizing me
By putting me in jail
By repeatedly denying me bail
By declining even a sipper
to my Parkinson’s torn body
You tormented and tortured me enough
But you could never imprison my spirit
a simple adivasi rights activist
fighting for my people’s human dignity.

Remember you will never be able to
wash the blood on your hands
till the day of judgment
You killed me - one Stan Swamy
But my sacrifice shall ignite fires in the hearts
of millions who shall sprout from my karmabhumi
to rise up and stand ramrod straight
with glistening sweat of their brow
aflame with the power of truth
to reap the harvest of our struggle
to fight for freedom against injustice
to fight for freedom against repression
to fight for freedom for INDIA’S PEOPLE
for which each and every one counts.

Your clock is ticking
Your time shall be up very soon.

— Suhas Borker

8 July 2021

[Suhas Borker is Editor, Citizens First TV (CFTV) and Convener, Working Group on Alternative Strategies based in New Delhi. He can be contacted at suhasborker[at]gmail.com]