[sacw] SACW Dispatch #2 | 19 July 00

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch #2
19 July 2000
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex
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#1. Appeal to The Sixth World Conference on The Culture of Peace
#2. Article on Bajrang Dal [Indias equivalent of Hitlers Youth]
#3. Extracts from minutes of Action Comittee Against Arms Race meeting
(Karachi)
#4. Consumer Rights Commission of Pakistan (CRCP) condemns phone tariff hike

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#1.
JULY 19, 2000

URGENT ATTENTION:

POLTICAL APPEAL TO THE SIXTH WORLD CONFERENCE ON THE CULTURE OF PEACE.

The Sixth World Conference on the Culture of Peace hosted by UNESCO was
held at Paris between July 8-13, 2000, and attended by many hundred
delegates from all over the world. The South Asian contribution at the
conference was dynamic and focussed.
On July 10, 2000, Teesta Setalvad, director of KHOJ a secular education
programme and Aman a South Asia Studies programme and also one of the
editors of Communalism Combat addressed a plenary session on 'Educational
Challenges for a Culture of Peace.' Before dealing with the question of
content and focus of the KHOJ and Aman programmes, she made a strong
political appeal to UNESCO, and through it to the United Nations,
international organisations and actors in different countries on the
critical and fast deteriorating political scenario in India.
The text of the appeal:

A FERVENT POLITICAL APPEAL TO THE UNESCO's, SIXTH WORLD CONFERENCE ON PEAC=
E

=46riends and Comrades,

As an Indian delegate facing this world assembly, as a journalist, an
educator and human rights' and peace activist I simply cannot afford to
waste this opportunity. To try, in just a few words to impress upon you
that the India that each one of you vaguely relate to, is no more. The
India of Gandhi and Nehru, who, while battling with poverty, stood proud
and committed to democracy, secularism, peace and non-violence has been
replaced, blatantly and insiduously, by an India where the rule of law is
being flouted every day, by goon squads claiming protection by the right
wing Hindu Party that leads the present government, the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP). A culture of macho violence and hate speech and propaganda
not to mention aggressive militarisation and nuclearisation is being
preached by the government in power and through groups that claim open
allegience to it, like the Rashtriya Swayamvekak Sangh (RSS), the Vishwa
Hindu Parishad (VHP), the Shiv Sena and the Bajrang Dal. I list these names
consciously. Because, one of these players, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP)
has some weeks ago applied to the United Nations Organisation (UNO) for
special consultative status claiming to be an NGO "that works for the total
welfare of humanity." This organisation has been at the vanguard of the
aggressive communal movement to demolish a 600 year old Mosque in northern
India in 1992. The systematic campaign to demolish a religious place of
worship was cleverly accompanied by hate propaganda that still continues,
even more openly than before, to lead and justify brutal acts of violence
against 11 per cent of the Indian population, Muslims. Today, the 'enemy'
of the hit squads of the Hindu right wing have included Indian Christians
as their major target. Just last month, a priest (Catholic) was brutally
killed, his cook an eye-witness to the murder, tortured to death in police
custody. Violent crimes against Indian Christians in the past two years
have crossed the 200 mark. These include the rape of nuns, the burning to
death of a pastor and his two sons, the vandalism of Churches and of Holy
Books.
"Christians are worse enemies than Muslims", "Ninety per cent of Muslims
are anti-national and criminals. Teach them a lesson." Writings, statements
and public exhortations like these by 'leaders' of 'Hindu communal outfits'
escape the arm of the law. We are witnessing a sharp shrinking of
democratic space accompanied by rampant evidence of a blatant anti-minority
bias in the Indian policeman. These serious developments combined by a
blatant attempt by the BJP government to influence the Indian armed forces
by recruiting members of these aggressive and rabid organisations as well
as their concerted attempt to vitiate the content of Indian text-books with
xenophobic and racist writings against large sections of Indians, have
convinced us struggling peace and justice within India, that we may be
actually be witnessing the onset of full-fledged fascism.
The fact we have the advantage of half-century-old institutions of
education, justice, media, even government, gives us some space for manouvre=
=2E
But, for how long?
Lived fascism is a reality in India today. Muslims and Christians are
forced, through violent means to confine residence to ghettos. The fact
that 160 million Indians, Dalits, remain oppressed by a hidden apartheid
despite the existence of the Indian Constitution is India's shame, a cross
we have to bear. But to violently further deny basic human rights to
another 120 million Indians, through a politics that overtly constructs the
superiority of the upper caste, Hindu and dubs Muslims and Christians as
foreigners 'who must learn to live in subjugation or else'."
How many of us know, or remember that the Gandhi who is still dear to
international organisations and governments for his deep and moral
commitment to non-violence, the Gandhi who inspired Martin Luther King and
Nelson Mandela, was shot dead by a man, a Hindu fanatic, who worshipped
Hitler and believed that Gandhi's non-violence had emasculated the Hindu
Indian and robbed him of his masculinity?
Gandhi said, and believed that in matters of conscience, the majority had
no place. Nehru believed (or should I say predicted?) that "Fascism in
India would come (or could come) in the garb of Hindu majoritarian and
communalism."
Many of us in this struggle believe that the majority is still on our side.
My worry is, their silence. Genocide is always and only possible with the
tacit compliance of the silence of the majority. And I, and many of us,
deeply worry that the majority has been silenced by the systematic
half-truths and hate propaganda that any fascist agenda enlists.
A friend, a renowned poet from India, Javed Akhtar, drew a chilling analogy
to the Indian political scene recently when he used the image of a frog
being boiled. If you were to throw the frog straight in boiling water, the
poor creature would react strongly, if only for a moment, before it is
scalded to death. If, instead, you were to drop the frog in water at
'normal' temperature and raise the heat ever so slowly, degree by degree,
the poor frog would come to its sad end without even being aware of it.
The situation friends, back home, is grim. My additional concern is the
attitude of western countries, with a vital monetary stake in globalisation
generally and the vast Indian market, specifically, who's interest it would
be to turn a blind eye to these developments in the interest of pure
profit. What is genocide or impending fascism in India when there is a hard
profit to be made? For the French government militarisation and
nuclearisation in South Asia could means arm sales to both India and Pakista=
n!
We Indians have a myth about ourselves. Every civilization has a myth about
itself. Ours is that we are the most non-violent and tolerant in the world.
Through pure self-interest and concern for hard profit, western countries
may just help us perpetuate this myth.

(Appeal written and read by Teesta Setalvad at the UNESCO conference on
July 10, 2000).
______

#2.

=46rom Baton to Bullets

by Ram Puniyani

Recently a training camp was organised at Ayodhya,( last week of June
2000) organized by Bajarang Dal to train its followers in the use of
firearms. This is one in the series of such camps which have been held
earlier in various places in UP. According to the organizers these camps
are necessary as the ISI activities are posing a threat to Hindus. As the
members of Sangh Parivar are feeling emboldened by the BJP led coalition
ruling at the center and the in UP where these activities have been
picking up at dangerous speed, the minorities and the secular groups are
feeling threatened by the very nature of activities which this progeny of
Sangh Parivar is undertaking.

Bajarang Dal:

Bajarang Dal (BD) is one of the late children of the Parivar, which was
formed with the initiative of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in 1984 in the
wake of the rising tempo of Ram Janmbhumi movement. Its proclaimed goal
was to make the Hindu youth 'bold'. And its emphasis has been
predominantly on physical training and actions. In contrast to RSS's
lathi, trident was BD's main weapon so far. BD has acted as a sort of the
'street fighter' for RSS like Black Shirts were acting for Hitler. First
time it gave the indication of its hysterical frenzy was when it offered
cupfuls of their blood to Lal Krishna Advani who was on the first step of
Rath yatra, in the prelude to Babri demolition. Its later bravado was
witnessed when its Chief, Mr. Vinay Katiyar, at the time when BJP was
giving promise to the Supreme Court and National integration council to
protect the Babri mosque, proclaimed that Babri mosque will be demolished
and its debris will be thrown in river Sarayu. That's precisely what
happened and this 'Hindutva warrior' was rewarded with the Lok Sabha seat
by the BJP.

Bajarang Dal has kept the venom and intensity of its activities since then
and has been the most dominant SP progeny as far as the intimidation of
minorities goes. It is forthright and ruthless in its language, which
sends chills down the spine of minorities and sends the waves of secret
admiration and joy in the hearts of the saffronites.

Culture of Physical Training:

BD's grandfather the, the RSS began with a mix of intellectual sessions
and physical training. Its physical training revolved around how to use
lathi (baton) in the street violence. It was the time (1925) when the
hegemony of upper caste was weakening on the low castes because of
Phule-Ambedkar movement and the upper caste felt they will have to
'defend' their own selves as the low caste can no more be relied for
defending them from the anti- Hindus i.e. at that time mainly the Muslims.
That was also the time when Gandhi was training the volunteers of Indian
Nationhood in the non-violent struggles to free Indian Nation from the
clutches of British, Bhagat Singh and his comrades were training
themselves in the methods to intimidate the British empire, and Netaji
Bose was training his flock to take the might of British on the
battlefield. Lathi training in contrast was to take on the 'internal
threats' to Hindu Nation (not Indian nation) i.e. Muslims, Christians and
Communists (Golwalkar, the second RSS Supremo's formulation).

The Increasing Assertion of SP:

The intense communalization of society from 1980s has given big grist to
the mill of lathi wielders of yesteryears and over a period of time the
Parivar has also perfected its division of labor as per which the lathis
have started looking to be the slow weapon against the 'enemies of Hindu
Nation'(read minorities and those believing in secular values). The
followers of this politics have been using more intimidating techniques
but with the sure understanding that no action will be taken against them
because of the protective political umbrella being provided by the BJP and
the lack of will shown by other opportunist political parties in power. SP
has probably also come to believe that its project of Hindu Rashtra can be
expedited with the use of more dangerous weapons and so the present
training is being imparted to its own 'black shirts'.

Dangerous Portents:

The avowed aim of protecting Hindus is hogwash. ISI is a convenient
excuse for the minority intimidation. Do we have to believe that Indian
state's duties of law and order, which incidentally are being presided
over by the most powerful SP man, Mr. Advani himself, are being taken over
by this extra constitutional body. Which Hindus are being under the threat
of ISI? Who are the enemies of the Nation whom the State cannot deal with?
Is the state currently ruled by the BJP led coalition, planning to
abdicate its responsibility of protecting all the citizens including
Hindus? This stupid non-sense, which is being peddled, and being
patronized by the govt. is loaded with dangerous portents. As a matter of
fact last few years have seen that it is minorities, Dalit and women who
are constantly facing attacks from not only the individual Hindutva
followers but also at the hands of private armies like Ranbir Sena and its
different clones in many parts of the country, acting on behalf of
landlords/upper castes, which are posing a threat to these sections.

The Cult of Violence:

The minorities are in a bind. While the private armies in the villages and
small towns have been perpetrating violence mainly on Dalits, the
minorities have been victims of vicious and aggressive hate propaganda
and consequent violence against them. First for last four and a half
decades till five years ago Muslims were subjected
to the violence. Now from last three years or so Christians are getting
the flak. All this even when the most frequently used tools for
'protection of Hindus' (an Orwellian euphemism for anti Minority violence)
were lathis and tridents. With 'promotion of weapons', to the one's
passing through the barrel of guns the level of intimidation will be
qualitatively transformed. The BD's present moves blessed by its
affiliates like VHP and RSS and sheltered by BJP may be the last straw on
the camels back of tolerance of the weaker sections of society especially
minorities.

One hopes and prays that sanity prevails and the Govt. comes down with a
heavy hand on these anti-democratic moves of the SP progeny.

______

#3.

[Extracts from]

Minutes/decisions of ACAAR [Action Committee Against Arms Race] Meeting
held [in Karachi] at PILER office on Saturday, 15th July 2000

Dr. A. Aziz, in his introductory remarks, said that since the seminar on
'Prospects of Peace and development in South Asia in the context of
nuclearisation of India and Pakistan' held on 17th May 2000, with Admiral
Ramdas [from India] as Chief Guest, there has not been much follow-up work.
Now that the Hiroshima Day- 6th August is approaching, we should
reactivate ourselves and regain the missing momentum in our working. He
agreed with the views expressed in Mr. M.B.Naqvi's note which he had sent
to the meeting to make up for his inability to attend.

Dr. Tipu Sultan, representing IPPNW Pakistan Chapter, deplored the fact
that two of the world's largest democracies - India and the United States -
are flouting all international norms and are engaged in the testing of new
and more destructive missiles, provoking other nations to follow suit. He
called for strong international condemnation of these tests being planned
in the name of defence against imaginary missile threat from North Korea.
Mr. B.M.Kutty read out excerpts from messages received from international
anti-nuclear groups calling for protest demonstrations on 7th October to
condemn the American plan to militarise space and start a new Star War
programme, by staging another so-called National Missile Development (NMD)
test in October.

=46ollowing decisions were taken:

i Protest against American NMD programme

A letter of protest against America's new star war project, the
National Missile Development (NDM) system be sent to the President of the
United States and posted on the internet. Both the American missile tests
and the Indian missile tests be condemned in a resolution, and it may be
released to the press.

Cloth banner campaign

The proposal of CPC Islamabad (Foqia) to revive the cloth banner campaign
was approved. The participants of the meeting launched the campaign by
writing down their messages and signing around the slogan written on the
cloth banner. More banners with slogans were given to the participants with
the request to get messages and signatures in the coming days so that these
may be used in the demonstrations planned on Nagasaki Day - 9th August.
The names of all partner organisations of ACAAR will be displayed on the
banner.

Programme for Hiroshima Day - 6th August.

A meeting shall be jointly organised by ACAAR, IPPNW (Pakistan Chapter) and
Pakistani Doctors for Peace and Democracy (PDPD) from 5 P.M. to 7 P.M. at
PMA House, Garden Road, Karachi. Different aspects of the impact of all
forms of arms race including nuclear arms race and militarisation, upon the
people and their lives as a whole, and the specific impact on particular
sections of society shall be highlighted by the speakers. Tentatively, the
following themes and speakers were identified:

=46rom Medical and Social viewpoint - Dr. Tipu Sultan
=46rom Economic viewpoint - M.B.Naqvi / Dr. Asad Sayeed
=46rom Psychological viewpoint - Dr. Haroon Ahmed
=46rom working class viewpoint - Manzoor Razi
>From women=EDs viewpoint - Rehana Iftikhar / Sheen Farrukh

A video film on Hiroshima will be shown.

iv. Programme for Nagasaki Day - 9th August 2000

A demonstration shall be organised outside the Karachi Press Club at 4 P.M.
on 9th August. All the component organisations of ACAAR, IPPNW-Pakistan and
PDPD will ensure their effective participation by reaching the venue before
4.15 P.M. The demonstration will be peaceful and participants will display
the cloth banners and placards. After demonstrating peacefully for half an
hour, the participants will move out in a procession and march on Abdullah
Haroon Road and turn back from Regal Chowk and march through Zaibunnisa
Street and return to the Press Club. A handbill and other literature for
peace and against war and arms race, intolerance and violence will be
distributed.

[...]

vii. National Convention

The idea of organizing a national convention of anti-nuclear, anti-arms
race peace activists was discussed. It was suggested to organise it in
November or January because December will be consumed by Ramazan. The venue
suggested is interior of Sindh. Hashim Khoso of JSM renewed the offer to
host the Convention in Sann. Members have been asked to consider this
proposal and convey their views to the President / Secretary.

B. M. Kutty / Rehana Iftikhar
15-7-2000

______

#4.

Join CRCP Efforts Against Unwarranted Increase in Phone Tariff

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, July 19, 2000 (CRCP):
Consumer Rights Commission of Pakistan (CRCP) condemns and contests
proposed increase in phone tariff by the Government of Pakistan which owns
about 80% shares of Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL).

It is quite dismal to note that the General Musharraf Regime, in its bid to
act as a corporate entity, is trying to comply with the norms of free
market economy regardless of local realities in terms of market forces,
consumers' profiles and efficiency of the PTCL staff. CRCP is contesting
this case with Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) on behalf of its
members and domestic consumers.

PTA has proposed to increase phone tariffs that will increase the telephone
line rent from Rs. 235 to Rs. 280 and reduce the local telephone call
duration from 5 minutes to 3 minutes. This proposal for upward revision is
pending with PTA which is likely to grant it within one week. CRCP has
submitted its observations and suggestions on the PTCL proposal to PTA
during the public hearing held on July 15, 2000. The most pathetic part is
that CRCP is being denied to cross-examine those reports on which PTCL is
basing its case. Proposal submitted by PTCL is totally unexamined,
speculative and not supported by relevant data.

PTCL is playing very smart to fool and hoodwink the consumers by saying
that it is a tariff re-balancing exercise which is aimed at abolishing
cross subsidies and tariff distortions. Whereas available data sufficiently
establishes that it is an upward increase and not mere re-balancing of the
phone tariff. With the proposed increase, the revenue to the Government of
Pakistan will go up to the tune of Rs. 19,110 million from Rs. 17,500
million during this year.

Pakistani citizens and consumers are not only being cheated and hoodwinked
on the pretext of abolishing cross subsidies and privatization of PTCL, but
their right to access information is also being denied by PTA by not
providing relevant reports and data to independent public interest
organizations to examine the grounds and justification for phone tariff
re-balancing or increase by PTCL. For example, PTCL during its presentation
stated that its study suggests that 79.4% consumer will not suffer by
reducing local telephone call duration as they make a phone call for less
than 3 minutes. CRCP has demanded to make this report public so that
consumers could cross-examine its validity. Even the last phone tariff
increase, which raised the local telephone call charges from Rs. 1.40
paisas to Rs. 2.10 paisas and increased the telephone line rent from Rs.
180 to Rs. 235, was granted my PTA to PTCL without enlisting public opinion.

The whole exercise of tariff determination negates the very rational of
privatization of public assets and establishment of regulatory bodies in
Pakistan.

CRCP requests the concerned citizens and public interest organizations to
join hand with CRCP on this crucial issue of economy and public interest to
make government and corporate sector socially responsible.

The copy of the proposal submitted by PTCL for increase in phone tariff and
the reply given to PTA by CRCP can be obtained from CRCP office through
e-mail or snail-mail. In this regard, CRCP is also arranging a press
conference on July 20, 2000 to brief the press on this very important
issue.

Abrar Hafeez
Secretary-General
Consumer Rights Commission of Pakistan (CRCP)
P.O. Box 1379
Islamabad, Pakistan
Phone & Fax: 92-051-854574
Website: http://crcp.sdnpk.org

=46or more information, comments and suggestions, contact CRCP
or JRC: Journalists Resource Centre (JRC), Suite 15, 5th
=46loor Davis Hytes, Sir Aga Khan Road, Lahore, Pakistan.
Telephone: 92-42-6306998 - Fax: 92-42-6369898
Website: http://www.syberwurx.com/jrc

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_________________________
Harsh Kapoor
SOUTH ASIA CITIZENS WEB
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex
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