Dyed in the Same Colour

We are being told
that terrorism is on the wane
and that most local ‘boys’
have surrendered or been killed
and that all that is left
are the foreign mercenaries.

Frankly I never could tell
one from the other
for they all look alike
in their battle -dress swagger,
rough and tough and gruff,
bearing beards, guns and grenades.
And they all act alike,
be they our own Kashmiris,
Pakis, Arabs, Sudanese
or the battle-hardened Afghanis.

Even in death
when they get killed
in encounters or accidents
or in internecine wars
and are shown lined up like sausages
for the TV news-cast
or in the daily newspapers,
they all look alike-
dyed in the same colour
of their own blood
and the blood
of their innocent victims.