[sacw] SACW Dispatch #1 | 31 July 00

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch #1.
31 July 2000
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex

#1. Pakistan: Minorities - Joint or separate electorate?
#2. Pakistan: 30 Ulema arrested for opposing NGOs
#3. Sri Lanka: National Peace Council 'Avoid ethnic issue in election debat=
es'
#4. India: VHP stepping up its drive to Hinduise tribal belts of Bihar
#5. India: VHP and the Tehri Dam
#6. India: AICU Press Statement - Attempt to Abduct Nun in Sahibabad
#7. India: Website of AIDWA
#8. India: Book Release of 'The River of Life'
_____________________

#1.

DAWN
30 July 2000
Op-Ed.

JOINT OR SEPARATE ELECTORATE?

By Mohammad Waseem

THE issue of separate electorate for religious minorities in Pakistan is
hardly a matter about minorities. It is indeed all about mainstream
politics that is firmly couched in Muslim majority. Of course, there are
historical reasons for various mainstream politicians to believe that
separate electorate was somehow inextricably related to the Pakistan
movement and the Two-Nation Theory. For ulema, there are Islamic reasons to
support separate electorate inasmuch as politics is required to be
distinctly based on an understanding between communities of faith.

Even more significantly, there are political reasons - or more precisely
electoral reasons in a democratic framework - which push various contenders
for power in their bid to win a majority in the national or provincial
assemblies to render the minority community ineffective and irrelevant.

How does it happen? The obvious starting point is that there is no love
lost between the religious minorities and Islamic elements. The minority
communities of Pakistan, including Hindus, Christians, Parsees, Buddhists,
Sikhs and Ahmedis, are by definition not the constituency of Islamic
parties. The more the latter stress on their Islamic agenda and seek to
define the national destiny of Pakistan in terms of an exclusive Islamic
identity with a corresponding Islamic policy profile, the more the
minorities shy away from them. It is a net loss of votes for Islamic
parties. Their perceived anti-minority culture pushes Hindus, Christians
and others to look for security and assurance elsewhere. The loss of
Islamists becomes the gain of liberals and leftists. The former need to
stop the shift of minority votes to the latter. One way is to eliminate the
joint electorate and instead bring in separate electorate.

On the other hand, the Muslim League and other parties from the centre and
centre-right have been changing their stance on separate electorate,
sometimes opposing it and sometimes supporting it, depending on the game of
numbers on the floor of assemblies. The Muslim League in the early 1950s
typically, though not wholly, supported separate electorate, but in the
late 1950s and 1960s it upheld the cause of joint electorate. Finally, the
liberal-leftist parties and ethno-regional parties - ranging from the Awami
League, PPP and NAP to minuscule parties operating on the contemporary
political stage of Pakistan - attracted the vote of religious minorities in
the latter's search for security against the much-feared Islamic parties.

But realpolitik is not acknowledged to be of any importance to their
position on the issue, claim the Islamists. Their stance is, instead, based
on ideological considerations. They argue in favour of preservation of the
foundations of the state of Pakistan. For example, Jamaat-i-Islami has most
consistently argued over a half century in favour of separate electorate in
order to operationalize the link between state and religion. From Maulana
Maudoodi in the 1950s to Prof Khurshid Ahmad at the start of the new
millennium, the Jamaat has adhered to a firm position on this issue. It has
regarded joint electorate as a negation of the Two-Nation Theory and a
violation of the principles of Islam.

In his recent articles in Dawn, Prof Khurshid Ahmed has reiterated some of
the oft-quoted arguments on the question of electorate usually projected
from the Jamaat-i-Islami platform. These arguments are based on a view of
history which is characterized by a grossly subjective reading of men and
matters, often divorced from reality.

Following are some of the interesting points made in these articles: Under
a social contract two independent states came into being in the
subcontinent in 1947. Islamic identity, democracy and federalism are
symbols of the nation's consensus. Pakistan is a state of nationalities
rather than a nation. Ottoman caliphate was based on pluralism. The system
of election is not about the right of citizens but about the right of a
nation or a group to choose its representatives. In 1985, the National
Assembly and Senate (while still functioning under martial law and
struggling to pass the indemnity bill as 8th amendment for getting rid of
military rule at any price) revived the separate electorate as demanded by
Zia. The problem of minorities has increased all over the world and liberal
democracy has failed to solve it. These assertions subordinate logic to
ideological commitment and put history upside down. The uninformed nature
of these observations is mind-boggling.

How do minorities look at separate electorate? The Hindu-led minority
communities had opposed the second Basic Principles committee report in the
early 1950s because of its provision for separate electorate. The matter
came to a head in 1952 when the federal government amended the electoral
law under the 1935 Act as amended in 1947 to make a provision for separate
electorate for the scheduled castes, ostensibly to divide the Hindu voters.
The East Bengal minority conference at Comilla in 1952 condemned the system
as inherently divisive and opposed to national integration. The minority
leadership in East Pakistan supported joint electorate with reservation of
seats for under-represented minorities such as the scheduled castes and
Christians. The 1973 Constitution finally accommodated some of these ideas.

But whose right is it anyway to go for separate electorate, - the minority
community seeking security or the majority community imposing its will on
the former? When A.K. Brohi piloted the Constitution Bill in 1956, he
declared that if minorities wanted joint electorate, it must be given. But
to no avail. Already, people in East Pakistan had comprehensively voted the
Muslim League out of power in the 1954 elections, along with the party line
on separate electorate. Finally, the responsibility for legislating on that
issue shifted to provincial assemblies as per the 1956 constitution. After
that, the bill for joint electorate was passed by the East Pakistan
Assembly.

By 1957, after five years of bitter controversy, joint electorate became
the basis of the election system in the whole of Pakistan. The majority of
legislators finally thought that separate electorate was meant to safeguard
the interests of a minority, not a majority community, as in British India.
After all, non-Muslim members of legislatures voted just like their Muslim
counterparts for election of president (and later Senate) as well as for
legislation. Assembly votes, Muslim or non-Muslim, meant numbers on the
floor.

The 1962 constitution maintained the system of joint electorate. Following
that, general elections were held in 1962 on the basis of joint electorate,
finally deviating from the colonial heritage of separate electorate.
Subsequently, the 1965, 1970 and 1977 elections were also held on the basis
of joint electorate. While the 1956 constitution was unequivocal on the
issue, the 1962 and 1973 constitutions clearly provided for joint
electorate. In other words, none of the three constitutions provided for
separate electorate.

Under Zia, Islamic parties mounted a campaign against separate electorate
once again. The military junta believed that in any election held under the
1973 Constitution, religious minorities would vote for the PPP. The way out
was separate electorate which would ensure that non-Muslim votes do not go
in favour of that party. The 8th amendment enshrined the provision for
separate electorate. The subsequent elections were held on that basis.

Election observers from within and outside and the world opinion in
general severely criticized the system. It was alleged that procedurally
the election of minority candidates had become a farce because in many
cases their constituencies spread out to the whole country or a whole
province or otherwise extended over extremely large areas that they cannot
be handed easily by single candidates. The system was considered akin to
religious apartheid based on discrimination. Human rights organizations
condemned it as virtual disenfranchisement of minorities.But, argues the
Islamist lobby, minorities do get more seats in the assemblies under this
system than they otherwise would. For the minorities, the issue is larger
than formal representation in the parliament at the macro-level. This
system, with its strong bias in favour of religious differentiation weakens
the polity and national unity and sharpens inter-communal disaffection at
the micro-level - in the social, cultural and residential contexts. It
provides legitimacy to discriminatory practices in matters of education,
employment and social interaction. Minorities are denied access to
representation and participation at the local and higher levels because,
unlike Muslim voters, they do not have their territorial representatives in
legislatures.

Some Christian leaders supported separate electorate in the past,
especially Joshua Fazal Din. The idea was to placate the majority community
and hope for some generosity on its part. The past decade took away that
dream from the minority section of the Christian intelligentsia because of
the perceived irrelevance and powerlessness of minority legislators, in
addition to brutalization of inter-communal relations. The Ahmedi community
boycotted these elections any way. The system has failed to deliver
politically and morally by denying equal constitutional rights and civic
liberties to religious minorities with the Muslims.

=A9 The DAWN Group of Newspapers, 2000

______

#2.

The Frontier Post
29 July 2000

30 ULEMA ARRESTED FOR OPPOSING NGOS

SHANGLA (NNI) - At least 30 religious scholars were arrested Friday for
opposing the civil society organizations in Diamir, says a statement of
Majlis Ulema Council.=20
The statement said that apart from arresting the ulema, the personnel of
Scouts and Militia Force have also demolished bunkers in their houses.=20
It said a team of the council would visit the area soon, maintaining the
arrests were outcome of the ulema's opposition to IFAD project of the
NGOs in Diamir. There were reports of clashes and road blockades in
Diamir and Tangir.=20
Religious parties say that NGOs are damaging the social fabric in
Pakistan, while NGOs maintain that they are working for people's
welfare. The federal ministers - Javed Jabbar and Umar Asghar Khan -
have said that the government would protect NGOs.=20
After arrests, paramilitary troops are patrolling the area as the
tension is mounting.=20
Terming it a grand operation against ulema, MUC statement said the NGOs
should leave the Northern Areas as soon as possible, adding that
otherwise they would have to pay heavy price.=20
The statement said the NGOs are working for Zionist and American's
missions. "NGOs will have to leave, otherwise we have to use force
against them and its responsibility will lie with the administration,"
the statement said.=20
It said the paramilitary troops have also conducted house to house
searches.

______

#3.

Sunday Oberver (Sri Lanka)
Politics
30 July, 2000

'AVOID ETHNIC ISSUE IN ELECTION DEBATES'

The National Peace Council has stressed the need for a bipartisan consensus
for constitutional reforms and calls for the ethnic issue to be avoided in
the political debates in the forthcoming General Elections.

A peace council statement said:

"Much public attention these days is focused on the prospects of a
bipartisan consensus regarding constitutional reforms. However, a major
military confrontation with prospects for great violence and bloodshed
looms on the national horizon.

"With regard to the situation in Jaffna, we appeal to the international
community to do their utmost to assist the conflicting parties namely the
government and LTTE find non-military ways to ensure the democratic right
of the people to govern themselves without destroying the city of Jaffna
and its people. We also appeal to the political parties, and in particular
to the ruling PA and opposition UNP, to de-politicise the search for a
political solution to the ethnic conflict.

"The National Peace Council is concerned that with the approach of the
general elections the political parties are entering into their customary
confrontational mode that bodes ill for both consensus on political reforms
and a peaceful polls. We ask that in the context of the bipartisan
consensus presently arrived at the ethnic conflict be taken outside the
area of party political debate at the forthcoming genera elections. Such an
agreement could lead to a joint political effort to avert the impending
tragedy in Jaffna.

______

#4.

The Hindustan Times, New Delhi, 29 July 2000

VHP STEPPING UP ITS DRIVE TO HINDUISE TRIBAL BELTS OF BIHAR

by Ashish Sinha
(Ranchi, July 28)
A senior VHP functionary of south Bihar has said that the creation of small
states like Mizoram and Nagaland in the northeast, as also Kerala and Goa,
has made the Hindus there =ECsecond-class citizens=EE.
The VHP, and organisations sympathetic to it, have been holding a series of
'special programmes' in the region that began with a Sarna (tribal
religion) meet at Bedo (near Ranchi) nearly two months back. Local pahans
(priests) attended the meet that was dubbed by some Adivasi groups as =ECan
attempt to Hinduise' the tribals and their religious practices, a charge
VHP vehemently denies.
Soon after, a training camp of Bajrang Dal volunteers was held in the city,
followed by VHP working committee meeting where an 'action plan' was
decided.
The Govansh Rakshan Parishad (Save Cow Council), which held a meeting this
month, has planned another function at Hazaribagh in August. While Sanskrit
Bharati, a cultural organisation, said to be close to the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), held a programme in mid-July, the Swadeshi Jagran
Manch recently organised a state-level meet. The Durga Vahini too has
already announced that it would hold a state-level training camp soon.
VHP's state vice-president and chief of publicity Ganga Prasad Yadav said:
"Our people are being targeted by the missionaries. At least two VHP
activists were killed in the Khunti region. The Catholic Church has found
the need to create four dioceses - Ranchi, Khunti, Simdega and Gumla, out
of the earlier one Ranchi diocese. The sole intention is to convert more
and more people. We have information that they want to construct one church
in every village. We have accepted the challenge. Our fight will continue
till conversions, fuelled by foreign funding, come to an end."
Asked if their activities had any relations with the likely creation of a
new state, the VHP functionary said, "Christian missionaries want to emerge
as a new force in the new state. They are centralising their strength. We
are consolidating our force and expanding our reach."
Mr Yadav said the VHP=EDs concept of ekal vidyalayas (one-teacher schools)
has been a =ECbig success=EE in the villages. =ECTill date, nearly 400 such
schools are functioning in rural Jharkhand. We plan to increase their
numbers. Ekal vidyalayas can best counter the designs of the Church because
they impart education based on Hindu samskara,=EE he added.
The number of schools (Saraswati shishu mandir) run by the RSS in Jharkhand
is approximately 10,000, though these are situated in urban areas.
The VHP functionary alleged that the missionaries were on a =ECland-grabbin=
g
spree=EE in some areas of Jharkhand. "We have information that 50 acres of
government land was grabbed by some fundamentalist Christian groups in
Khunti. These people simply came and erected a cross in the fields
belonging to tribals. Similar instances have been reported from other
areas."

______

#5.

The Statesman
30 July 2000
Editorial

TEHRI DAM VHP DISCOVERS A NEW CAUSE

THE construction of a megadam in the ecologically sensitive Tehri-Gahrwal
region has been controversial from the start, with noted environmentalist
Sunderlal Bahuguna spearheading the campaign against it. In response to
fears about the safety aspects of the dam, the UP government appointed a
panel of experts. But when their report was submitted, the government
rejected two crucial recommendations, asking for tests to see whether the
dam could stand up to earthquakes of the intensity expected in this
earthquake-prone region. Instead, it appointed another panel, presumably
more amenable to its views; nevertheless, the second panel backed the views
of the first. Ecologists warn that any breach of the dam by an earthquake
could wash out cities in western UP like Hardwar and Rishikesh. This is
where the VHP get into the act, bringing in, their familiar fundamentalist
angle: dams on the Ganga sully its purity and lead to damnation.
Two criticisms may be made of the twist the VHP plans to give the
movement. One, the decision to build or not to build the dam should be made
on the basis of the interests of the people as determined by scientific
criteria. For this reason, it is imperative that the safety tests
recommended by experts be carried out. Two, if its primary objection to the
dam is that the Ganga is being sullied, then its anti-dam commitment is
questionable and in the nature of a political stunt, since it does not
question the myriad other ways in which the Ganga is being sullied. This is
corroborated by the fact that its sister party, the BJP, controls the UP
government and is merrily going ahead with dam construction. Predictably,
Mr Bahuguna has distanced himself from the VHP; his followers have labelled
it a "communal stunt". Lacking substantive issues, the VHP appears
desperately on the prowl for new ones.

______

#6.

ALL INDIA CATHOLIC UNION
(Representing the 1.6 Crore catholic laity in India)
President: Norbert D' Souza
National Secretary for Public Affairs: John Dayal
Contact: Phone 2722262, Mobile 9811021072 Fax 2726582

URGENT PRESS STATEMENT

NEW DELHI, July 30, 2000

ATTEMPT TO ABDUCT NUN IN SAHIBABAD

Sister escapes from kidnappers' Maruti van near Loni Road Three men in a
Maruti van abducted a Catholic Nun of the Holy Angels Convent in Sahibabad
near Delhi this afternoon. The nun escaped from the van when it stopped to
take on a fourth accomplice near Loni Road. She was later found in a
condition of shock by a parent of a student of her school who brought her
back to the convent. Fr Donald HR De Souza, Deputy Secretary General of
the Catholic Bishops Conference of India, described it as a `shocking
crime in the backyard of the capital." The All India Catholic Union
National secretary John Dayal called on the Director general of Uttar
Pradesh police to take urgent action and apprehend the culprits. In her
complaint to the Sahibabad police, Sister Celine John of the Missionary
Sisters of the Immaculate with its headquarters in Hyderabad said, "I was
walking towards the Holy Angels School in Sector III Sahibabad, District
Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, to collect the notebooks of children for
checking. Just 10 meters away, near the gate, a white Maruti van stopped
and three men dressed in black shouted `You are Christians." They covered
my face, caught me by the neck and dragged me inside the vehicle. I was
trying to shout but they were covering my face and saying `We will kill
you" several times. They reversed the van and then turned towards Loni
Road. After a kilometer or two, another man on the road waved his hand and
stopped the van. As the van stopped, I managed to open the door and ran
out. They shouted after me `Don't leave her'. But I ran from them. The
fourth man then got into the van and it drove away. A parent of one of our
students saw me on the road in a daze and asked me why I was standing
there. I narrated to him the incident and he brought me back to the
convent. I went to our Principal, Fr John Prakash, and reported the
matter, and he advised me to report to the police.' The FIR was
accepted by sub inspector GS Rawat of Sahibabad police station.

______

#7.

Check out the website of All India Democratic Women's Federation
http://www.alternatives.ca/sai/aidwa
______

#8.

Dear Friends,

We are pleased to inform you that we have just published Sanjay
Sangvai's book,

'The River and Life: People's Struggle in the Narmada Valley'.

The book will be formally released by Admiral L. Ramdas at a press
conference at the Press Club on Tuesday, 1st August, 2000 at 1.45 p.m.
The Press Club address is: Glass House, Azad Maidan, Mahapalika Marg,
Mumbai 400 001 (opp. Mumbai Municipal Corporation, near V.T.)
Later in the evening, on the same day (1st August) at 6.30 pm, there
will be a reading session from the book and a panel discussion --
followed by an open discussion -- at 'Crossword' bookstore, Mahalaxmi
Chambers, Bhulabhai Desai Rd. (Warden Rd), near Mahalaxmi Temple.
All are cordially invited to attend the above functions. Please do
inform any others you know who may be interested.

Yours sincerely,

(Bharat Mansata)
for Earthcare Books,
2 Anand (Gr. floor), 17 Carmichael Rd, Mumbai 400 026.
Phone: 496 4825, E-mail: earthcarebooks@v...
bharatmansata@h...

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