[sacw] sacw dispatch (27 May 00)

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Web - Dispatch #2
27 May 2000

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#1. BBC News | AFRICA | Kenya's Asian heritage on display
#2. Between Parivar & NDA's Govt in India: BJP in an uneasy truce
#3. India: VHP programme on `50 years of rebuilding Somnath temple
#4. India: academics, intellectuals & activists condemn action against
dalit scholar
__________________________

#1.

BBC News | AFRICA |
Wednesday, 24 May, 2000, 20:11 GMT 21:11 UK

Kenya's Asian heritage on display:
Some rail-road builders were killed by lions

By Ruth Evans for BBC News Online

In the Kenyan capital Nairobi, the National Museum is running an unusual
exhibition of historical photographs, documents and displays marking the
centenary of the construction of the Mombasa-Kampala railway.
I have always been uncomfortable about the way my people have been
represented Exhibition Curator Sultan
Somjee It is an unusual exhibition because it
shows the contributions made by the Asian labourers who came to Africa to
build the railway.
It is the first such exhibition of modern Kenyan life by the museum -
which is famous for the archaeological treasures that established East
Africa as the cradle of mankind.
The exhibition, which opened in March, has proved so popular that it has
been extended to run until October.
Indentured Indian labourers
A party of Kenyan school children steps gingerly onto a creaking replica of
a wooden dhow.
Boats like this brought the early Indian traders and settlers to East
Africa, establishing Asian communities all down the coast from Lamu and
Mombasa to Zanzibar and Dar es Salaam.
2,500 workers died during the
construction of the Mombasa-Kampala railway
It
was the building of the Uganda railway from 1896 to 1901 that brought the
biggest influx of Asians to Africa, with some 32,000 indentured Indian
labourers imported to East Africa by the British colonisers.
Many of the workers already had experience of building railways in India.
Nira Kapila's great grandfather was amongst them, arriving in Kenya with
three of his sons to work as a cashier on the railways.
"A lot of people were not aware of where their roots were, " says Nira.
"We are getting a lot of very interesting material that people are digging
out about their history."
Man-eating lions
The railway was notoriously difficult to build and the price paid was
enormous.
Now I know who I am. This has been the missing link
Young Asian at Kenyan exhibition
About 2,500 workers died during the construction of the railway -
four for each mile of track laid.
Much of the track ran through the inhospitable territory of what is now
the Tsavo Game Park, and some of the workers were killed by man-eating
lions.
Wonderfully detailed contemporary sketches by an Asian surveyors, Mohamed
Sadiq Cockar, displayed in the exhibition, show workers sleeping in trees
to avoid being attacked by wild animals.
Sultan Somjee, a fourth generation Kenyan-Asian, is both the creator and
curator of the exhibition.
The railway was notoriously
difficult to build
"I have always been
uncomfortable about the way my people have been represented," he told me.
"There has been a remarkable vacuum or lack of understanding in the way
African-Asians were represented and this is what I wanted to bring out in
this exhibition."
His efforts to put the record straight have taken six years to bring to
fruition.
Resentment
The author Shiva Naipaul once described the East African Asian as "the
eternal other".
A lot of young Africans have only heard about money-making Asians, but
now they realise that there are others who are as Kenyan as they are
Nira Kapila Anti-Asian
feelings and resentments, especially over their perceived economic
successes and commercial pre-eminence, were fuelled in the 1970s when
80,000 people of Asian heritage were expelled by Idi Amin in neighbouring
Uganda.
In Tanzania, anti-Asian feelings spurred the programme of nationalisation
in 1980, and in Kenya, Asian homes and shops were looted during the
unsuccessful coup attempt of 1982.
This prejudice against them has been inadvertently reinforced by the Asian
community itself, with its custom of holding itself culturally and
economically apart.
They tend to live separately, be educated separately, shop separately and
rarely mix or marry outside their own groups.
They are perceived as a homogenous and exclusive community, despite the
fact that the differences between the different religious and cultural
groups within the Asian community - between Hindus and Moslems, between
Goans and Punjabis - can be as deeply divisive and mutually exclusive as
those dividing Asians from their African neighbours.
All Kenyans?
So, can an exhibition like this do anything to improve understanding and
defuse the dangers of ethnically-based politics?"
There's a lot of excitement about this A lot of young Africans have only
heard about money-making Asians, but now they realise that there are others
who are as Kenyan as they are," says Nira Kapila.
"People think the photographs are splendid. They never realised they had
such a rich heritage. There's a lot of excitement about this. For Asians
themselves it is overwhelmingly emotive."
Exhibition organiser Sultan Somjee hopes that the exhibition will improve
understanding between the various communities in Kenya and enable
Kenyan-Asians to play a fuller role in their African home.
The organisers hope the exhibition will both reflect changing times and
challenge the stereotypes about the Asian community, acknowledging that the
Asian community is as much a part of modern Kenya, as any other tribe.
________

#2.

Praful Bidwai Column for May 29

BETWEEN PARIVAR & NDA: BJP IN AN UNEASY TRUCE

By Praful Bidwai

Those who thought that the power-tussle between the parliamentary wing of
the Bharatiya Janata Party and the sangh parivar's hard core, especially
the RSS, was settled once and for all after sarsanghachalak K.S.
Sudarshan's meeting with Atal Behari Vajpayee, had better think twice.=20
Sudarshan struck again on April 23, by calling for a second "independence
movement" to free India from foreign economic and cultural domination.
Although he did not specifically name the NDA government led by Vajpayee,
Sudarshan did not mince words when he accused successive regimes kowtowing
to global capital and agents of "exploitation" such as the World Bank, IMF
and World Trade Organisation.

Lest it be thought that Sudarshan was making a leftist statement, he
clarified that swadeshi is opposed to both socialism and capitalism. He
demanded that "Vande mataram must be made the axis of the swadeshi
revolution", which holds the key to India's emergence as a "superpower".
It is possible to look at Sudarshan's statement from a number of angles.
The RSS never participated in our first Independence movement. Indeed, a
supporter of its ideology assassinated the greatest leader of that
movement. The RSS would like to obliterate that by talking about a second
freedom struggle. Another angle is that the RSS wants to remind the
Vajpayee government that the BJP's agenda and the sangh's agenda are
different and this is Sudarshan's way of countering the Vajpayee group's
pressure on the RSS.

The Chennai national council of the BJP tried just this in December-with
bizarre results and contradictory interpretations of the formulation, "the
BJP has no agenda other than that of the NDA's National Agenda of
Governance". A third angle is that Sudarshan was trying to keep together
the flock of hardliners, dissatisfied with the NDA's compromised agenda.
Despite its rhetoric, the RSS has never shown that it really opposes
globalisation or India's growing dependence on foreign capital. When it is
Enron or WTO, it always gives in.

All three angles contain some truth. That is why the twin issues of the
BJP-RSS relationship, and the BJP-NDA relationship keep coming up. Two
other recent instances of these are the Sankhya Vahini, the Rs. 2,000-crore
computer network and database, which the RSS has attacked as an instance of
foreign domination; and Sushma Swaraj's statement that for the BJP, the
Babri mosque-Ram temple was only a political issue, not a religious one.
Important RSS leaders have repeatedly demanded that the Vahini project be
scrapped. It involves collaboration with Carnegie Mellon University; which
will control access to the proposed network connecting, universities,
laboratories and government offices. The RSS claims this could compromise
"security." VHP leader Acharya Dharmendra has let fly into Swaraj and
demanded an apology on the temple issue.

The BJP is under pressure from the Right within its own parivar. But it is
also being pushed from the rest of the NDA. Chandrababu Naidu, for
instance, has dug in his heels on the Sankhya Vahini issue, supporting it
as part of his "futuristic" Information Technology agenda. In this tussle,
all kinds of paranoid fears about "security" have taken over and the simple
issue of the absence of open bidding and the award of the Vahini contract
to an American university-promoted corporation without competition is
forgotten. The BJP is also under NDA pressure, not always consistent or
strong, to rein in parivar "hotheads" like the VHP and the RSS from overtly
communal and inflammatory activities. It is not only the secular
opposition, but NDA parties like the DMK, TDP and the Trinamool Congress
which joined hands to successfully demand the withdrawal of the Gujarat
order allowing its employees to join the RSS. However, on some occasions,
the NDA allies and parivar hardliners push the same agenda: e.g. a rollback
of budget increases in foodgrains prices and cuts in the fertiliser
subsidy. But usually, the NDA and the RSS clash.

In this complex situation, although it is hard to tell who will prevail, it
is clear that the BJP does not call the shots. Its parliamentary leadership
is usually reactive; it plays an unsteady, balancing act. Such a situation
may or may not last for long. If the drought and the agricultural situation
reach a crisis point, the BJP's room for manoeuvre and compromise would
shrink. If attacks on Christians mount considerably, as is happening in
Mathura and Agra, the BJP would come under criticism >from its NDA allies
as well as the Opposition, which it has badly antagonised. If the likes of
Vaiko precipitate a new crisis over Sri Lanka by making openly pro-fascist
statements endorsing the LTTE, then the BJP would be under pressure to
distance the government from its closest ally in the south. Of course, if
all goes smoothly, then this balancing act could carry on. But in India,
such things do not happen. In the near future, at least three issues could
trigger off a major crisis leading to a breakdown of the delicate balances
that hold the present government and its external support systems together,
to which latter the RSS and the VHP are important. The first is economic.
The overheated stockmarkets are victims of reckless speculation, especially
in IT scrips. This has nothing to do with the real economy which is not in
a healthy state. A small event like a Nasdaq plunge, or a bear run on one
scrip, can have disproportionate consequences. A second issue could be the
Ram temple.

The BJP is getting desperate in Uttar Pradesh, where its chances in next
year's assembly elections are rated poorly. If the SP and Kalyan Singh join
hands, they could do extremely well. The BJP is toying with an
extraordinarily devious tactic: transport a replica or room-sized model of
the planned temple from Rajasthan to Ayodhya and generate huge hysterical
celebrations and mobilisation on the way, with aartis, fiery speeches, and
riotous utsavs around the shoba yatra. Since this is not the real temple,
but only a decoy, it gambles, no one will rally ban or oppose the whole
thing. At the same time, the decoy will deliver votes. This will pose a
wrenching dilemma for the NDA and also for the anti-BJP opposition: will
they go along with the deception and buy into legalistic myths, or will
they staunchly oppose the exercise because of its calculated objective of
widening the communal divide; promoting hate speech, and fomenting
violence?

A third issue is "internal" to the parivar: To put it bluntly, when will
the RSS take cognisance of the goings on in the PMO, especially the
activities of Ranjan Bhattacharjee, Vajpayee's adopted son-in-law, who
reportedly has a role in approving all major deals and contracts? The RSS
is not the embodiment of probity and rectitude. Its reputation has taken
more than one knock after some of its life-long pracharaks were recently
found to have amassed substantial wealth. Even so, it will not find it
palatable to have the open association of its creature, the BJP, with the
Bhattacharjees of the world. But how will it broach the issue with
Vajpayee? Can it afford to dump the BJP, or pull down the NDA? It is far
from clear how the different actors in this rather unseemly drama will play
out their roles. Matters could get gravely complicated if Vajpayee's
already delicate health takes a downturn or his attention-span further
shrinks. Even the talk of succession, leave alone any real calamity, could
precipitate a huge fight inside the NDA.

The BJP would be hard placed to find an acceptable substitute or deputy for
Vajpayee. Many others, including Fernandes, Naidu, Paswan and, of course,
Advani, will throw their hats into the ring. That's where the internal
differentiation in the NDA would come into play. Some members of the
Alliance have maintained their broadly "secular" political identity. But
people like Fernandes have emerged as Hindutva's apologists. That's why his
clean chit to Dara Singh and the VHP-Bajrang Dal in the Staines murder
case, his refusal to call the RSS and VHP communal, and his concoction of
an anti-NDA "conspiracy" in (of all things!) the anti-Christian campaign.
One thing is undeniable. There are serious tensions within the BJP, between
the BJP and the rest of the parivar, and between the BJP and the NDA. There
is no easy way of resolving or containing them. The RSS, the most
pro-active and self-willed agency among all, is itself on the horns of a
dilemma. It does not know whether and how to confront the NDA on issues of
identity without risking a total loss of power and marginalisation for
Hindutva. The dilemmas will be with us for some time. They, not political
principle, will determine the fate of the NDA.-end

________

#3.

newindiapress.com
26 May 2000

VHP PROGRAMMES ON `50 YEARS OF REBUILDING SOMNATH TEMPLE'
PTI
HYDERABAD: The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has decided to organise
programmes all over the country to mark 50 years of rebuilding ancient
temple of Somnath next year, according to Praveen Bhai Thogadia, general
secretary of VHP. Somanath temple, ruined by foreign invaders, was
re-built and renovated during 1950s, he told newspersons here. To mark
this historic sacred movement in over two lakh villages, Jalabhiseka
programme would be organised in Shanker and Bholenath temples, Thogadia
said. A final date for the programmes would be decided by Dhamsansad of
Sadhus and sants to be held in February 2001, he added. It was a historic
moment when the first president of India, Rajendra Prasad participated in
Pranpratishthan function of Somnath temple, he said.
________

#4.

26 May 2000
Message from Abha Sur

--------Forwarded Message--------
=46rom: Kaushik Sunderrajan <kaushik@M...>
This was forwarded by Anveshi.

THE DALITS AND THE OBCS HAVE A RIGHT TO SPEAK AND BE HEARD

We -- the undersigned academicians, writers, intellectuals and political
activists-- condemn the action of the Registrar of Osmania University, Mr.
Pannalal, who, in a letter to Dr Kancha Ilaiah, Associate Professor of
Political Science at the University, has taken unreasonable exception to
the renowned dalitbahujan intellectual's writings. In a letter dated May 6,
Mr. Pannalal drew Dr Ilaiah's attention to an article of his published in
the Hyderabad-based Deccan Chronicle, `Spiritual Fascism and Civil Society'
(February 15, 2000), stating that ``writing such articles and debating on
such issues (as caste system) is definitely an accepted way in civil
society... (but) while doing so, it is absolutely essential to bind
ourselves within the basic canons of conduct of our profession.''

We feel that the Registrar has exceeded his brief in issuing such a crude
warning to an academician who has been discharging his duties only too
well. Unlike sinecures in the academia who hardly contribute much by means o=
f
generating debates in academic circles, let alone in the civil society at
large, Dr Ilaiah, as an organic dalitabhujan intellectual, has been
producing stimulating writings in journals such as Economic and Political
Weekly and Mainstream and in newspapers such as The Hindu, The Hindustan
Times, Pioneer and Deccan Chronicle. His celebrate book `Why I am Not
Hindu: A Sudra Critique of Hindutva Philosophy, Culture and Political Econom=
y'
(1996) is a classic widely used in the classrooms of both Indian and
foreign universities.

Mr Pannalal takes the liberty of instructing Dr. Ilaiah, who was earlier a
=46ellow at the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi, that
``Basically being teachers, we are bound to contribute to the uplift of
every segment of society, promote social harmony and emotional integration.
We have to positively ensure that either our writings or any other action
do not in any way lend a slant in accentuating existing prejudices and
inflame hatred among different section of people.'' And the intimidatory
letter ends with a warning: ``You are requested to keep these in mind and
discharge your role a teacher with greater vigour and vitality to the
betterment of society as awhole.''

To impose on Dr Ilaiah, or for that matter any academic, what Mr. Pannalal
thinks as ``the basic canons of conduct of our profession'' and to instruct
him what his writings should be, is a clear infringement on an
academician's freedom and a blatant violation of a citizen's basic right to
freedom of expression. It is shameful and sad that an academic who has been
doing more than merely ``teach'' is being victimised. The status-quoist
brahminical and hindutva forces have been constantly targeting those who
ask uncomfortable questions, and the curbs sought to be imposed on Dr
Ilaiah's writings by the Osmania University Registrar are very much part of
this larger tendency towards intolerance.

We demand that the Vice-Chancellor of Osmania University direct the
Registrar, Mr Pannalal, to immediately withdraw his offensive letter dated
May 6 and to apologise to Dr Kancha Ilaiah. We would also like the
University authorities to rein in and censure Mr Pannalal. We hereby assert
that the Dalits and the OBCs have a right to speak and be heard.

Chennai
19 May, 2000

(PS: Those who want to sign on could also fax the LAST PARAGRAPH of the

above memorandum to the Vice-Chancellor of Osmania University at this
number: (040) 7018003/ 7018704. Postal address: VC, Osmania Univ,
Tarnaka, Hyderabad - 50007. You could also send the same message as a
telegram to the AP chief minister, Mr N Chandrababu Naidu at the
Secretariat, Hyderabad.)
Mr P Chandragesan, President, Dalit Sena
Mr M Punitha Panidyan, Editor `Dalit Murasu'
Mr Anand, Journalist
Dr MSS Pandian, Senior Fellow MIDS, Chennai
Mr S V Rajadurai, Human Rights activist
Mr K Rajenderan, General Secretary, Periyar Dravida Kazhagam
Dr Saraswati R, Women's activist
Dr Anandhi, Women's activist, scholar
Ms Shiren D Asha, Dalit activist
Ms Alice, Dalit activist
=46r P B Martin, social activist
______________________________________________
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