[sacw] sacw dispatch 3 Oct 99

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch
3 October 1999
-------------------------------------------
#1. Indian NGO's under attack from BJP govt.
#2. "Taraqqi", a new online web monthly
#3. Homepage of All Indian Peoples Resistance Forum
#4. The International Network for The Rights of Female
Violence Victims In Pakistan (INRFVVP)
#5. Call for Submissions: [...] South Asian Queers & Social Change
#6. Chaitime Chat on October 14th with Bapsi Sidhwa
-------------------------------------------

#1.

The Hindu
October 3, 1999
Govt. cracks down on 'political' NGOs

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, OCT 2. The Union Home
Ministry has cracked down
on certain voluntary organisations on
the grounds that they
have been indulging in activities which
were in some way
political in nature during the current
Lok Sabha polls.

It has slapped notices on these NGOs
asking them to show cause
why it should not be made mandatory for
them to obtain prior
permission of the Central Government
before accepting any
foreign contribution.

The non-governmental organisations and
associations have also
been asked to show cause why their
association should not be
``notified as an organisation of a
political nature, not being a
political party, under the provisions of
Section 5(1) of the
Foreign Contribution Regulation Act,
1976''.

The Home Ministry's directive, which was
issued on September
27 and is signed by the Director,
=46oreigners Division, Mr. Sanjiv
Datta, comes in the wake of a
controversy triggered off by an
advertisement given by 13 women's
organisations in the press
calling upon the people to defeat the
forces of communalism in
the ensuing Lok Sabha polls.

Prominent among the NGOs on whom the
notices have been
served are the Indian Social Institute
and the Voluntary Action
Network India (VANI), a platform of
several hundred voluntary
organisations and networks.

``In the run-up to the ongoing general
elections, your
association has been associated with the
release of certain
advertisements in the press and with
certain documents and
contents which are in the nature of
political comments,'' the
show-cause served by the Home Ministry
said.

At least two BJP spokespersons had
launched a scathing attack
on the 13 women's organisations for
issuing the advertisement
dubbing them as ``anti-national'' and
calling upon them to come
clear on the funding that they have
received from donor
agencies under relevant provisions of
the FCRA.

These statements were criticised by VANI
and the NGOs owing
allegiance to it. VANI, which had
earlier given the call for
transparency in foreign funding, once
again renewed the call
for the repeal of what it called the
draconian provisions of the
Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA=
).

It had also called upon all political
parties irrespective of their
ideologies and groupings to condemn the
anti-women attitude of
the BJP leadership.

The Home Ministry called upon the NGOs
to clarify their stand
especially as Section 5(I) of the
=46oreign Contribution
Regulation Act clearly stipulates that
no organisation of a
political nature, not being a political
party, shall accept any
foreign contribution except with prior
permission of the
Central Government.

``Under provisions of Section 6(1) of
the FCRA Act, the non-
governmental organisations can only
accept foreign
contribution to further any cultural,
economic, educational,
religious or social programme undertaken
by them,'' it pointed
out.

The Home Ministry has called upon these
NGOs to send in their
replies within 30 days.
------------------------------
#2.

"Taraqqi", a new online web monthly produced
by the Association of Indian Progressive Study Groups.

It is available online at the following url:
http://www.geocities.com/aipsg/taraqqi.htm

and is updated monthly. The first issue, released on September 15,
1999, is available now, and can be accessed without charge by anyone
with web access.

EMAIL ACCESS: If you would prefer to receive taraqqi regularly by email,
please drop us a note at ipsg@m..., saying "Taraqqi Email
Subscribe" in the header.

The inaugural issue of Taraqqi contains a special on the 13th Lok Sabha
elections in India. Contents include:

- Editorial: Inaugural Issue of Taraqqi

Special: 13th Lok Sabha Elections
- Election Facts and Figures
- The Elections in Perspective
- 1999 Election Manifestoes
- President of Lok Raj Sangathan to Speak at Boston

=46eatures, News & News Analysis
- Duke Hindi Controversy Continues
- Puerto Rico: Disinformation in Front of Our Eyes
- Delhi: Hiroshima Day Protest Against War
- Economic Reforms: Status Report 1999
- A Page from Student Activism of the 60's
- The Vedas: The Most Ancient Record of Indian Civilization
- Ghadri Mela '99 Held in Toronto
- IPSG LA to host Indo-Pak Friendship Concert

------------------------------
#3.
Homepage of "All Indian Peoples Resistance Forum"
http://www.aiprf.purespace.de

Bulletin April-June 99 Pressrelease about Kargil 7.7.99 =20
Pressrealease about Narmada 24.7.99 Fake Encounters APCMS =20
Pressrelease about election 04.09.99 Manifesto East Timor =20
Kashmir fact finding =20
----------------------------------------
#4.
The International Network For The Rights Of Female
Violence Victims In Pakistan (INRFVVP)

I. Background of the Network
In January 1999, the B.B.C. aired, in England, a documentary entitled "A
Matter of Honour" about so-called "honour-killings" of girls and women in
Pakistan by their close male relatives. On February 15 and 16, 1999, ABC
Nightline presented the same documentary adding two commentators who answere=
d
questions asked by Forrest Sawyer, the presenter of the program.

The two commentators were Asma Jahangir and Dr.Riffat Hassan. Asma
Jahangir, currently the President of the Pakistan Human Rights Commission is=
a
lawyer who has represented a number of women in well-known legal cases in
Pakistan. Dr. Riffat Hassan, Professor of Religious Studies and Humanities a=
t
the University of Louisville in Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.A., has been engag=
ed
for twenty-five years in research on the position and rights of women
according
to normative Islam. Since 1990 she has been involved in translating the
findings
of her pioneer research into concrete projects on Muslim women's
empowerment and
has been a major spokesperson in this area at the United Nations Conference =
on
Population and Development at Cairo (1994) and the 4th World Conference on
Women
at Beijing (1995).

Both commentators pointed out in the Nightline program that the so-called
"honour-killings" of girls and women in Pakistan had nothing to do with the
teachings of Islam. Dr. Hassan further clarified that such crimes were relat=
ed
to a male-centred, male-dominated or patriarchal mindset which was being
challenged by many women's groups and young Muslims in Muslim societies.
In her
judgment a paradigm shift was taking place particularly at the grassroots
level
and amongst Muslim women and youth toward a human-rights-and-women's-rights-
centred understanding of Islam. It was this shift - to which very little
attention was paid by Western media - which made Dr.Hassan optimistic about
the
possibility of change in the future despite the grimness of the current
situation of many female violence victims in Pakistan.

=46ollowing the showing of the Nightline program, Dr. Riffat Hassan received
a large number of messages by E-mail, telephone, fax and letters from a
variety
of women and men in the United States. Two important sentiments that were
common to these messsages were a strong sense of outrage that vulnerable gir=
ls
and women were being subjected to so much brutality and violence in Pakistan=
,
and a keen desire to do something about this state of affairs. The idea of
having a network of concerned persons working together for the rights of
female
violence victims in Pakistan, and to eliminate the roots of such violence,
developed spontaneously or "naturally" out of the interchange between
Dr.Hassan
and those who communicated with her in the context of the Nightline program.

On February 26, ten days after the program was broadcast in the United
States, Dr. Hassan took the initiative of setting up a network to be called
THE
INTERNATIONAL NETWORK FOR THE RIGHTS OF FEMALE VIOLENCE VICTIMS IN PAKISTAN
(henceforth to be referred to as INRFVVP). The strength of the emotional an=
d
moral impulse generated by the Nightline program can be estimated by the fac=
t
that in less than four weeks since the announcement of the creation of the
INRFVVP, more than three hundred people have either joined the network as
members or have expressed sympathy and support for its aims and objectives.
Daily, this number is growing as more and more people see the documentary "A
Matter of Honour" in countries as distant as India and Australia, and as wor=
d
about the existence of INRFVVP gets around. In order to become an effective
body able to mobilise and channelise resources to help girls and women who
have
become victims of violence or are vulnerable to it, the INRFVVP has undertak=
en
to be registered as a non-profit, non-governmental organization. This
registration entails the outlining of a vision/mission statement as well as
the setting up of an administrative structure.

II. Preamble To The Vision/Mission Statement

The veil of secrecy and shame which has been draped over the issue of
domestic violence for centuries is gradually being lifted. Ever-increasing
amounts of statistical data pertaining to domestic violence - the major
targets
of which are women and children - makes it indisputable that such violence
is a
global phenomenon of large proportions which is not confined to any one
region,
country, community or culture in the world.

In the West where Islam and Muslims are often stereotyped in negative
terms and associated with violence, one of the commonest ways of "Islam-and-
Muslim-bashing" is to point to ways in which girls and women are discriminat=
ed
against in Muslim societies and cultures. It is understandable that Muslims,
especially those living in the West, feeling that they are continually under
assault, react defensively to anything which appears to reinforce the negati=
ve
stereotype or the association of Islam and Muslims with violence.

Certainly there is nothing at all in normative Islam embodied in the
teachings of the Qur'an and the Prophet of Islam - the two highest sources =
of
the Islamic tradition - which authorizes or legitimizes the use of violence
particularly toward disadvantaged human beings. On the contrary, the
Qur'an and
the Prophet of Islam were extremely mindful of the fact that at the time of
the
advent of Islam in a society in which female infanticide was practiced, girl=
s
and women were victims of serious discrimination and degradation. So centra=
l
was gender-equality and gender-justice to the worldview of normative Islam
that
it gave girls and women not only the right to live and other fundamental
rights
given to all human beings, but also many special rights which - taking accou=
nt
of their weakness and vulnerability in pre-Islamic Arabian society - were
intended to safeguard them from any kind of abuse, oppression or injustice.

Unfortunately, due to a number of reasons especially the fact that the
major religious traditions of the world developed in male-centred and male-
controlled or patriarchal cultures, in Muslim countries and communities -
as in
other religious and non-religious countries and communities - there is a
big gap
between professed ideals and actual practices when it comes to the rights of
girls and women. This is why in recent times, through world conferences on
human
rights and women's rights, and numerous documents of the United Nations and
other world organizations, so much emphasis has been placed on identifying a=
nd
eliminating various forms of discrimination against girls and women. There c=
an
be no doubt that acts of violence such as are represented by so-called "hono=
ur
killings" constitute a very serious form of discrimination toward girls and
women and that such acts which violate the sanctity of human life - the most
fundamental of all human rights - cannot be condoned in the name of any
culture
or religion.

The so-called "honour-killings" of girls and women by their male relatives
constitute a crime which - by no means - is confined to Pakistan or even to
Muslim countries and communities. It has its roots in ancient tribal customs
which became incorporated in many cultures. Nevertheless, it is profoundly
regrettable that such a crime should be so widely prevalent in Pakistan, a
country whose very name - "Land of the Pure" - denotes the idealism of the
Muslims of India who engaged in a long and arduous struggle to establish a
"homeland" in which the lofty principles of Islam could become actualized an=
d
institutionalized.

Many Pakistanis have reacted negatively to the documentary "A Matter of
Honour" and called it "biased," "anti-Pakistan" and "anti-Islam". What is
important to remember in this context is that regardless of the intentions o=
f
those who made or broadcast this film, the fact remains that the female
violence
victims shown in this film are real human beings who are speaking in their o=
wn
voices and whose intense pain and agony we see with our own eyes. By denying=
,
ignoring or obscuring the occurrence of horrible crimes ranging from having
acid
thrown on one's face to being set on fire to being physically mutilated to
being
murdered - which are documented not only in "A Matter of Honour" but in the
findings of many highly-credentialed researchers - one is neither taking the
high moral ground nor advancing the best interests of Pakistan.

A number of people who have come forward to create the INRFFVP are of
Pakistani origin or friends of Pakistan who love Pakistan and would never
engage
in "Pakistan-bashing" to please an anti-Pakistan or anti-Muslim faction or
agency. The sentiments of the young Pakistanis who have volunteered to be a
part
of the INRFVVP are well-expressed by the young woman who said, " I have
joined
this network because I want Pakistan to be what it was meant to be. Iqbal,
the
great poet who is considered to be the spiritual founder of Pakistan had
dreamt
of a land where people could actually exercise the rights given to them by
God.
Pakistan was created in the name of Islam and to me the essence of Islam is
compassion, justice and peace. Even though I live in the West, Pakistan is
part
of my heritage and I want to reclaim it. The only way I can reclaim it is b=
y
joining other like-minded persons who want to work towards eliminating the
wrongs and violence being done to women and girl-children in Pakistan"

III. Vision/Mission Statement

The INRFVVP will work to create an heightened worldwide awareness of the
degree and nature of the violence being done to girls and women in Pakistan.
Recognizing the fact that female violence victims, most of whom are poor and
illiterate, are not able to change their situation without the assistance
of the
international community, the INRFVVP will seek the help of agencies and
persons
engaged in collaborative efforts to secure the rights of people who are
seriously disadvantaged in the societies in which they live (as was the case
with victims of apartheid in South Africa or female genital mutilation in so=
me
countries and communities).

The larger long-term goal of the INRFVVP is to examine the root-causes o=
f
violence toward girls and women by a systematic and scientific analysis of
both
theoretical and empirical data and to identify factors which make such
violence
so widely prevalent. Once the underlying factors have been discerned and
understood, the INRFVVP will strive to create an environment from which the
root-causes of violence toward girls and women have been eliminated. The
INRFFVP
believes that such an environment would be enabling and empowering not only
for
girls and women but also for men and families and will lead to the social an=
d
moral upliftment and advancement of the community or society at large.

The INRFFVP also believes that the findings of the research done in the
context of Pakistan will be of benefit to girls and women in other countries
especially those who, like the female war victims in Afghanistan or Bosnia,
are
faced with exceptionally difficult circumstances. It is particularly hoped
that
the initiative taken by the INRFVVP will inspire and encourage Pakistani
society
and communities, as well as other Muslim societies and communities, to root
out
evil practices such as =EChonour-killings=EE. These and other acts of viole=
nce
toward girls and women not only bring a bad name to themselves and to their
religion, but are also in stark opposition to the central teachings of
Islam as
well as universally accepted conventions on fundamental human rights.

An immediate objective of the INRFVVP is to provide direct help -
including humanitarian, medical, legal and educational assistance =F1 to fem=
ale
violence victims in Pakistan, through fund-raising by members, as well as
through collaboration and networking with supportive and philanthropic
agencies
and persons.

IV. INRFVVP Administrative Structure

Board of Directors:
Professor Dr. Riffat Hassan (Founder / President)
Professor Dr. Lilialyce Akers
Professor Dr. Salim Akhtar
Dr. Mary Arnett
Professor Dr. Ibrahim Imam
Professor Dr. Fariyal Ross-Sheriff
Professor Robert Stenger
Professor Dr. Leonard Swidler
[. . .]

INRFVVP Mailing address and contact numbers

INRFVVP
P.O. Box 17202, Louisville, Kentucky 40217, U.S.A.
Email address: inrfvvp@i...
Phone: 502-637-3717 ; Fax : 502-637-4002.
---------------------------------------
#5.
Chaitime is having a Chat on October 14th with Bapsi Sidhwa, the
author of Cracking India, which is the basis of the newly released movie
Earth!

C H E C K: http://www.chaitime.com for the exact time and listing
---------------------------------------
#6.
III. Call for Submissions
Re-arranging the World: South Asian Queers and Social Change

ANUJA MENDIRATTA: anuja@y..., MARK HASLAM: mhaslam@y...

or write to us:
c/o 37 Melbourne Ave.,
Toronto, Ontario, M6K 1K4,
Canada
Tel: 416-537-7742
web: http://www.trikone.org
_________________________________
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citizens wire service run by South Asia Citizens Web
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