[sacw] SACW Dispatch #2 | 18-19 Sept. 00

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch #2
18-19 September 2000
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

#1. Ardeshir Cowasjee's latest article in DAWN=20
#2. An account from Pakistan on how the 'Jehad' factory is bred & sustained
#3. A Tale of Love is Entwined With The Subcontinent's Past
#4. India: A letter from Delhi Feminists on final hearing of historic case
against Net En injectable contraceptives
#5. India is where Militant Hindus attack Christians.
#6. Karachi before 1947
-----------------------------------

#1.

DAWN
17 September 2000 Sunday=20=20
Cowasjee Column=20=20=20

GEN AGHA MOHAMMAD YAHYA KHAN - 4=20

By Ardeshir Cowasjee=20

THIS newspaper of record did us a great service by publishing the full text
of the 1974 Supplementary Report of the Hamoodur Rahman Commission the day
after it was released in the Indian press. We subsequently read that our
government intended to publish the 1972 Main Report of the HR Commission,
but this was swiftly denied. End of story.=20

There were three men principally responsible for the loss, at the end of
1971, of half of Jinnah's Pakistan. Firstly, Yahya Khan, head of state,
head of government, chief martial law administrator, C-in-C of the army and
supreme commander of the armed forces, who was held in captivity by his
successor, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, denied an open trial, freed by Zia-ul-Haq,
and died a sick and lonely man. Secondly, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who
commissioned and then suppressed the Hamoodur Rahman Commission Report, and
was deposed, tried, and hanged by his successor, Zia-ul-Haq. Thirdly,
Mujibur Rahman, first prime minister of Bangladesh, assassinated by some
rebel troops of his own army.=20

This month's issue of 'Newsline' has devoted pages to the HR Report and to
the loss of East Pakistan. One article, 'A nation's shame', quotes from the
statement made by that fine officer and gentleman, Admiral Syed Mohammed
Ahsan. The general who surrendered to the Indians, A.A.K. Niazi, has been
interviewed. And Brigadier F.B. Ali in his article, 'Conduct unbecoming'
has written on the subsequent revolt during the Bhutto regime by a number
of army officers, of which he was one.=20

>From 'A nation's shame':=20

"But who was responsible for creating this hostile atmosphere and hatred
among the people? The situation deteriorated further after General Yahya
Khan postponed the first session of the newly elected constituent assembly.
It became very clear immediately after the election results that the
generals were not prepared to transfer power to the Awami League. First the
delay in summoning the National Assembly session and later its postponement
confirmed the Bengalis' worst fears, that the election results were not
acceptable both to the generals and to the majority of West Pakistani
politicians. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto publicly called for a boycott of the
assembly session. Such a transgression was bound to further fuel public
resentment.=20

"The anti-Bengali bias of the military leadership was very obvious. There
was no representation from East Pakistan in the decision-making forums. In
his statement before the Commission, Admiral Ahsan, the former governor of
East Pakistan, aptly described the hostile mood of the military leadership
when they decided to postpone the assembly session and launch a military
operation in the eastern province. 'On arrival in Rawalpindi I was alarmed
to notice the high tide of militarism flowing turbulently.... There was
open talk of a military solution according to plan ', maintained Admiral
Ahsan. 'I was caught quite unaware in this atmosphere for I know of no
military solution which could possibly solve whatever crisis was supposed
to be impending in the minds of the authorities.'=20

"It was evident from the statement that the decision to launch a military
operation was taken without consulting the governor of East Pakistan who
was the only sane voice in the government. Ahsan went on to describe the
atmosphere at a crucial high-level meeting in Rawalpindi on February 22 197=
1.=20

" 'The president presided over the meeting of the governors and martial law
administrators attended as usual by the military and the civilian officers
of the intelligence agencies. It is relevant to record that among the tribe
of governors and MLAs I was the only non-army governor and the only retired
officer in the midst of active service men. I was the only person, though a
non-Bengali, who had to represent the sentiments of seventy million
Bengalis to a completely West Pakistani generalship,' said Admiral Ahsan.
'During the past 17 months, in meetings and conferences, my brief ran
counter to the cut-and-dried solutions of West Pakistan representatives and
civil servants. The president invariably gave decisions which accommodated
East Pakistan's viewpoint, at least partially. This made me unpopular with
my colleagues who probably thought I was 'difficult' at best and 'sold' to
the Bengalis at worst.'=20

>From the Niazi interview:=20

"Q. The Hamood Commission recommended that a coterie of generals - General
Yahya Khan, General Abdul Hamid Khan, Lt General S.G.M.M. Pirzada, Lt
General Gul Hasan, Major General Umar and Major General Mitha - be publicly
tried for the 1971 debacle. However, General Tikka, Sahibzada Yakub Ali
Khan and Rao Farman Ali have simply been exonerated. How would you respond?
Do you think they were innocent?=20

"A. I don't agree with the Commission's exoneration of these three. It is
surprising that no responsibility for the break-up of Pakistan has been
apportioned on Tikka, Yaqub and Farman. In fact, Yaqub's inaction as
Commander of the Eastern Command aggravated the situation in East Pakistan.
Having messed up everything, Yaqub deemed it fit to desert his post and
resign, while taking cover behind his conscience. I think he should have
been sent to the gallows for betraying the nation. Yahya demoted him.
However, Bhutto restored his rank and sent him as ambassador to the USA.
What a prize for desertion! The Hamood Commission exculpated him, thus
paving the ground for officers to resign instead of fighting the enemy
whenever a difficult situation develops. Similarly, Tikka has not been
mentioned in the Hamood report, although his barbaric action of March 25
earned him the name of the 'Butcher of Bengal'. The Commission has
overlooked his heinous crimes. For his failure to disarm the East Pakistan
Rifles and arrest the military brainpower, Tikka was removed from the
command of Eastern Command. His expulsion of journalists from East Pakistan
was a naive step that turned the international press against Pakistan.
Tikka's biggest fault was his inability to launch a counter-offensive from
the Western Theatre, which ultimately cost us the war.=20

"As far as Rao Farman is concerned, he was in charge of the Dhaka
operations. According to authentic press reports, tanks, mortars and
artillery were ruthlessly employed against the Dhaka University inmates,
killing scores of them. Rao remained military adviser to five governors and
had his finger in every pie."=20

>From 'Conduct unbecoming':=20

"Matters had not gone beyond the serious discussion stage when a traitor in
our midst, Lt Colonel Tariq Rafi, betrayed us to the generals. Early in
1973, a large number of army and air force officers were arrested in a
particularly brutal fashion, confined under very harsh conditions, and
tried by court martials in Attock and Badaber. Bhutto saw this as an
excellent opportunity to teach a lasting lesson to anyone else in the armed
forces who might think of acting against him.=20

"In spite of a superb defence led by Mr Manzur Qadir, the outcome was a
foregone conclusion: all the accused were convicted and many of them were
given long prison sentences, including life imprisonment for Aleem Afridi
and me. Manzur Qadir was ill but continued to defend us, even though we
could barely pay enough to cover his expenses (his normal fees were totally
beyond our means), and lived for long periods in primitive conditions in
the Attock rest house, as did his colleagues, Ijaz Hussain Batalvi, Aitzaz
Ahsan and Wasim Sajjad.=20

"The emotions that drove these young officers to contemplate such a drastic
step, involving grave risks, and then to stoically suffer such harsh
consequences, were poignantly expressed by Major Saeed Akhtar Malik in his
address to the Attock court martial trying him for his life. He said: 'When
the war became imminent, I took leave from the PMA and joined my unit, ...
thanks to the CO who requisitioned my services. The next day the war
started. But instead of glory I found only disillusionment. The truth was
that we were a defeated army even before a shot was fired. This was a very
bitter truth. With each corpse that I saw, my revulsion increased for the
men who had signed the death warrants of so many very fine men. Yes, fine
men, but poor soldiers, who were never given the chance to fight back,
because they were not trained to fight back. When they should have been
training for war, they were performing the role of labourers, farmers or
herdsmen, anything but the role of soldiers. This was not 'shahadat'. This
was cold-blooded murder. Who was responsible for this? I was responsible !
But more than me were responsible. What were some of these men, these
callous, inhuman degenerates, doing when their only job was to prepare the
army for war? Were these men not grabbing lands and building houses? Did it
not appear in foreign magazines that some of them were pimping for their
bloated grandmaster? Yes, generals, wearing that uniform (he pointed at the
court's president) pimping and whoremongering!' "=20

Having lost what we had, today we are trying to acquire territory we never
had. Our sole ally is the destroyed and dying Talebanized Afghanistan. The
weapons with which we threaten the world are the nuclear bombs combined
with obscurantism. End of story?=20

(Concluded)=20

______

#2.

(The below article was forwarded by Dr. Ishtiaq Ahmed of the PPAD network)

READY FOR JEHAD
A FIRST-HAND ACCOUNT FROM PAKISTAN ON HOW THE PROXY WAR IS BRED AND
SUSTAINED

By Ghulam Hasnain in Muzaffarabad and Karachi

Sitting cross-legged, facing the first Indian ridge at the border town
of Ath Maqam in Pakistan-held Kashmir, Abu Mahaz, 25, anxiously awaits
the moment when he would be behind that mountain. A Lashkar-e-Toiba
militant, Mahaz had been to India twice and returned home safely after
participating in various missions. But this time, this village school
dropout from Abbotabad in Pakistan's North-west Frontier Province
(nwfp) has been selected for a special task: a suicide mission, or what
the jehadi groups call fidai missions.
On an earlier operation in India, Abu lost one of his friends, Abu
Talah Hazarvi, who was killed during an attack on the 15 Corps
headquarters at Badamibagh, Srinagar. But not before Abu and his friend
gunned down Maj Purushottaman and two others. Recalls Abu, "Our target
was to kill Gen Krishan Pal. But somehow, we could not get hold of
him... This time, I am going on a suicide mission. And I am happy. I
will soon achieve martyrdom."
Indeed, this Pakistan-based mujahideen group launched the new strategy
of suicide missions soon after Kargil in an attempt to boost the
sagging morale of the militants and deliver deadly blows to the Indian
army.
Abu has been in the Lashkar for only three years but has already
witnessed the death of several friends in clashes with the Indian army.
His family has a tradition of militarism. One brother is in the
Pakistani army, another fought in Afghanistan and is now a religious
cleric in Abbotabad. His father is a farmer.
But not everyone has the same social background. In fact, hundreds of
other young Pakistani jehadis fighting the Indian forces in Kashmir are
from all strata of Pakistani society - innocent village boys, sons of
urban middle-class families and highly-qualified expatriates who
chucked their cushy jobs to rough it out in the strife-torn Valley.
What brings together these boys from diverse backgrounds is the
one-point agenda: the destruction of Hindu India and the renaissance of
Islam. For them, it's a brotherhood, secure as they are in the
knowledge that their families would be taken care of were they to be
killed in India. The families of the dead are provided a monthly
stipend. Usually, the militants are expected to marry the womenfolk of
their dead comrades.
The modus operandi is to recruit the future militant at an early age.
At a Lashkar madrasa in Karachi, children as young as eight are groomed
for the guerrilla warfare during their religious education. For
instance, every night, teachers issue a new code for each class and the
boys have to remember it for the next 24 hours. This, because the armed
guards at the gate of the premises would allow them in only after the
code is given. In the afternoon, the students listen to lectures on the
importance of jehad in a Muslim's life.
Pakistan's madrasas are the recruiting ground for militants. Pampered
and officially patronised during the 11-year regime of the late Gen
Zia-ul-Haq, the country has now over 2,000 madrasas spread across
Pakistan. Some of these religious schools are directly manned by the
jehadi leaders; most others recommend the potential terrorist to myriad
militant organisations.
The selection process is tough. A new entrant has to first undergo a
training for three weeks at one of the camps the jehadi groups have
established in Muzaffarabad and the nwfp. Here, basic training in
handling arms is imparted, as is a course of ideological
indoctrination.
Initial training completed, the boys are sent to their respective towns
and cities, where for the next few months they work as volunteers for
different militant groups. However, what the young militants don't know
is that during this period they are closely watched and assessed for
their commitment to the cause of jehad. Those selected are then sent
for a three-month commando training.
The teachers at the training centres are former Afghan veterans or
senior mujahid who have spent a good part of their life fighting in the
Valley. Under them, the boys learn to use AK-47s, handle explosives and
participate in mock attacks on dummy Indian convoys and positions. In
all, it costs Rs 1 lakh to train a militant.
Their final test is an endurance test. The selected boys walk and climb
for 72 hours without food and water and are allowed a few hours' nap.
Once they pass this test, the recruit is ready to cross the border.
The jehadi groups seek the permission of parents before sending the
militant to fight across the border. Often, though, the indoctrinated
boys force their parents into allowing them to wage the jehad.
Take the case of Gulzar Ali, 40, a labourer from Okara in Punjab. He
wanted his son Rizwan Ahmed to seek a job in the Gulf. Instead, Rizwan
joined the Pakistan-based Al-Badr organisation. He died in Sopore, 60
km from Srinagar, in 1997, at the age of 16. Says Gulzar, "I thought
that he will become my right hand. However, he was adamant to go there.
My wife was also in favour of his going. So I let him go. He was so
young that no jehadi group was willing to take him to India. Finally,
Al-Badr gave him the chance." Ironically, Gulzar is now himself a
member of Al-Badr and wants to fight Indians.
There are families here which have committed their sons to fight India.
For instance, Syed Rizwan Ali, 70, a retired draftsman, sent three of
his five sons to Kashmir. Two of them, Arsalan and Yassir, died there;
the third, Irfan, is now the chief launching commander of Al-Badr in
Muzaffarabad. "I don't feel any regret or guilt. Instead, I'm ready to
commit my other sons too," says Rizwan Ali, himself an activist of the
Jamaat-e-Islami.
Karachi-based Parveen Akhtar, who lost her son Rashid in Kashmir, has
no regrets either: "When I was told about his death, I wept like any
other mother. But then it's a big honour for me. I am thankful to god
that I have produced a warrior who died fighting the infidels," she
adds.
Every year, hundreds of young volunteers from across the country go
through a rigorous guerrilla training for three months at the
Muzaffarabad-based Maskar Abdullah bin Masoud training facility of the
Lashkar. In the odd hours, the hills surrounding the city echo with
gunfire or explosions. People here know that another band of mujahids
is being prepared to fight Indians.
There are 18 or so jehadi organisations operating out of Pakistan. And
none denies they enjoy official patronage. The bigger jehadi groups -
such as Lashkar, Al-Badr and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen - have their own
training facilities in various Pakistani cities. There are camps at Ugi
in Mansehra, nwfp; smaller groups, including those of the Kashmiris,
send their boys to government-run training facilities.
Obviously, the isi plays a crucial role in sustaining the jehad
factory. Everyone agrees that jehad can't be carried on without the
support of the isi. Indeed, the isi's stranglehold over these groups is
such that even an irresponsible press statement by a jehadi leader can
put him in trouble. "Sometimes you find a junior-level isi clerk
knocking at your door, carrying a clipping of your press statement,
asking for an explanation. It's humiliating," recalls the once-powerful
chief of the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, Maulana Fazlur Rehman. "Therefore, I
am always cautious while talking to the press," he says.
Adds another militant, "The moment the isi feels a jehad body is
becoming powerful, it incites trouble in that party or tries to split
it. Breaking the bigger groups by throwing money, arms and vehicles and
putting new leaders in the driving seat is their style."
However, the groups fall in line as they can't operate without the
institutional help the isi provides. This was proved true in
Afghanistan; and there is consensus that the Kashmir movement would
collapse were the isi to withdraw its patronage. "It will be a tragedy.
We could still operate in the absence of the government's help but the
movement will soon die out," says a senior jehadi leader.
Currently, there is some heartburn among the militants that Maulana
Masood Azhar is the new horse the isi has put its bet on. Azhar, who
formed his own jehadi organisation, Jaish-e-Mohammad, after he was
released in exchange for the hijacked passengers of IC 814, has an
ambitious plan to raise an army of 5,00,000 volunteers to fight in the
Valley. The Maulana has been successful, largely because he took over
the offices and facilities of his parent party Harkat-ul-Mujahideen,
whose in-house publications he edited once.
Indeed, the ranks of the militants swelled following the withdrawal of
the Soviet forces from Afghanistan, which allowed the veterans of the
war there to shift their attention to Kashmir. Thus, most jehadi
outfits, with the exception of a few Kashmir-based groups, are being
overseen by the Afghans.
There's no dearth of new recruits for these groups. Often, it becomes
difficult for them to handle the pressure trained militants mount for
crossing the border. No wonder the Hizbul Mujahideen's ceasefire
shocked these Pakistani groups. Even now, they are angry with those
Kashmiri leaders who wanted to hold peace parleys with New Delhi. They
have now been dubbed as traitors. "There can't be any peace while India
remains intact. Cut them, cut them. Cut them so much that they kneel
before you and ask for mercy. Only then can we think of any talks,"
roared Prof Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, chief of the Lashkar-e-Toiba, at an
independent rally in Karachi. Warns Bakht Zameen, 'amir' of Al-Badr,
"Syed Salahuddin (the leader of the Kashmiri-dominated Hizbul
Mujahideen) should not try to become Yasser Arafat."
An in-house publication of Al-Badr warned thus, "Salahuddin should make
it clear that it is not just the Kashmiris who shed their blood for
Kashmir. There are thousands of Pakistani families whose boys have
nurtured the Kashmir movement with their blood... Don't fall in the
trap of America and India."
Hizb leaders have now become suspect in the eyes of other jehadi
groups. Its chief Salahuddin has been accused of being a traitor by all
- from Jamaat-e-Islami to outfits like Al-Badr and Lashkar. The
ceasefire interlude has also brought the undercurrent of hostility
between Kashmiri and non-Kashmiri jehadi outfits to the fore.
"Earlier, we used to work together with the Hizb. But our casualty rate
was abnormal. It appears that someone was leaking information. So we
decided to operate independently. Since then, we are not facing that
problem," remarks an Al-Badr leader in Karachi. But Abdul Musawir, a
former Hizb leader, counters, "Kashmiris should be left alone to decide
their own destiny. Pakistan should not impose its will on them."
Indeed, the Pakistani and Kashmiri militant groups have started pulling
in different directions. Hizbul leaders confirm that Salahuddin is
bringing together all the Kashmiri groups in the hope of evolving a
consensus on how to deal with India and find a solution to the Kashmir
problem. Once this is achieved, the Hizb would then approach the
Pakistan groups.
Meanwhile, the Lashkar last week decided to give another twist to its
strategy of fighting the Indian army. The militants have been asked to
attack the Indian army's convoys and its facilities. "The Indians are
already disturbed over the attacks on their camps and military
facilities," boasts Abu Omair, a militant leader, who has fought in
India.
Inside India, various jehadi groups often fight together or carry out
joint missions against the Indian army, but at home they are bitterly
divided on sectarian lines and desist from sharing a common platform.
Thus, a student from a Deoband madrasa would prefer to join the
Harkat-ul-Mujahideen or any of its splinter groups; those owing
allegiance to the Ahle Hadith (a sect which believes in the primacy of
the Quran and the Prophet's tradition) would opt for the Lashkar.
Despite these internecine squabbles and emerging differences between
the Kashmiri and Pakistani groups, there's no denying that what keeps
the Kashmir cauldron on the boil is the machinations and institutional
support the Pakistan establishment renders to the militancy there. But
then, as long as the jehad factory in Pakistan-held Kashmir continues
to have fresh recruits, and churns out hardened militants willing to
risk their lives for that intangible and inexplicable dream of
martyrdom, peace in the Valley will remain elusive.
(The writer is a Pakistan-based journalist)
______

#3.

Masala Mag @ masala.com

A TALE OF LOVE IS ENTWINED WITH THE SUBCONTINENT'S PAST

by Mahnaz Fancy

Salt And Saffron=20
by Kamila Shamsie=20
Bloomsbury=20
pp 246=20
$23.95=20

Kamila Shamsie
=20
=20=20
Kamila Shamsie=92s second novel, Salt and Saffron, opens in an airport =97 =
the
center of global cultural exchange in what Shamsie has aptly named =93the A=
ge
of Frequent Flyers." As an international parade of peoples rub their
proverbial shoulders at the baggage carousel at Heathrow, our young
narrator, Aliya, begins to weave her tale of her blossoming love for the
boy she met on the plane. This plot unfolds against a backdrop composed of
the mingled stories of her family history and the saga of Partition in the
Indian subcontinent. Shamsie creates a powerful subplot here, one that
constantly threatens to steal the show from the story of Aliya and Khaleel,
the American-Pakistani boy without the =93appropriate=94 social pedigree. I=
n
the course of the novel, the young story-teller from the proud Dard-E-dil
family tree is forced to confront her family legacy and its curse of
=93not-quite-twins=94 in order to negotiate a truce between the burden of h=
er
history and her future.=20

In a style that sometimes spills into indulgent displays of erudition,
Shamsie spins a seductive tale in the manner of that =93Master of Gup,=94 t=
he
prototype for Anglo-Indian modern fiction, Salman Rushdie. She adeptly uses
the theme of repetition to structure this magical-realist narrative that
nimbly doubles back in time to weave a story, that is simultaneously myth
and history. Unlike the seamier world represented by another young
Pakistani writer, Mohsin Hamid, in his first novel, Moth Smoke, Shamsie=92s
description of Pakistani culture glows with a forgiving warmth that the
former forsakes.=20

This young Pakistani writer=92s talent is most apparent in her use of humor=
,
and particularly, of parody. There are several moments in the book when the
reader cannot help but burst out in laughter because her depictions of this
decadent and yet comforting world where people shift between languages
mid-sentence are so familiar. The narrator enchants the reader with a voice
that is infinitely recognizable to all those who come from some point of
origin in South Asia and now circulate in that cosmopolitan circuit of
planes and e-mail that links the subcontinent with the US and the United
Kingdom. Most significantly, Shamsie has created sympathetic and
realistically complex main characters, through whom readers can scrutinize
the vexing questions of our generation as it negotiates a new South Asian
identity. Finally, the book enables the reader to take a more introspective
look into the residual bitterness of Partition, the unapologetic snobbery
of some elements of the community and, despite it all, the warmth we still
feel for this persistent idea called home.=20

Mahnaz Fancy is a freelance writer.

(2000-08-29 00:00:00)

_____

#4.=20

Dear Friends,

This is to inform you of what is definitely a historic event. On 24th
August was the final hearing after which the Net En case has finally come
to a close. Yes - the historic case against the injectable contraceptives
Net En filed by Stree Shakti Sanghatana, Saheli and others in 1986.

Although we feel as petitioners we have come out of this long-drawn out
case honourably, we find it a bit difficult to say we have "won" the case
because the order can be interpreted as a"victory" by both sides. However,
as our counsel Murlidhar and Ganesh point out (and we concur) given the
fact that there have been major changes in the economic, social and
political climate since the case was filed 14 years ago, this is the best
order we could have got. At that time, the plea was to obtain a stay on
the Phase IV clinical trial of Net En, and prevent its entry into the
Family Planning programme. Subsequently, Net en became available in the
private market, raising other issues - over-the-counter availability,
misuse, indiscriminate use by NGOs etc, which were outside the scope of the
case.=20

The case was closed after we as petitioners accepted the following 2
paragraphs of the GOI affidavit:

" Para 4 . That perusal of the report* shows that interim recommendations
with regard to (DMPA) are that it should not be allowed to mass use in
National Family Planning programme and its use should be restricted to
women who would be aware of all the implications of its use. It is
submitted that the said drug and also Net-oen although available in the
market against prescription but they are not included in the family
planning programme.

Para 5. That as directed by this Hon'ble court Net En was under examination
for clinical trials with ICMR and a Technical report had already been filed
before the court after finalizing their trials. Thereafter the Department
of Family Welfare have also filed an affidavit indicating that the Ministry
of Health and Family Welfare is proposing to introduce Net En injectable as
a new contraceptive in National Family Welfare Programme in such places
only where adequate facilities for follow-up and counselling are available.=
"

This statement clearly shows that a restriction is recommended, and mass
use of injectables is not advisable.

[* Report of the special meeting of the Drugs Technical Advisory Board
held on 16th February, 1995. The objective of this meeting ordered by the
Supreme Court was to examine the recommendations of the technical
sub-committee on certain issues raised by the Drug Action Forum in their
petition. The recommendation relevant to DMPA is in Para 7: "The members
had agreed for continued private marketing of Depo Provera injection. The
drug, however, is not recommended for inclusion in the Family Planning
Programme."]

The GOI appears to be following the strategy outlined at the IRR meeting
last year - the phased entry of injectables. We have been hearing strong
rumours that injectables (some say only Depo ) is soon to be introduced in
the FP programme. The word going round is "Now that the case is finally
over, we can peacefully introduce injectables."
However, the order clearly states some kind of restraint, and cautions
against mass use. We need to emphasise this fact. It is also important to
remember that the Drug Action Forum case (in which Depo Provera is one of
the drugs) is still pending. The recommendation of the DTAB in this regard
(quoted above) is clearly against mass use.=20

If anyone of you ahs any new information about introduction of injectables,
please let us know. As of now, we do not have any immediate plan of action,
except disseminating this information. Please pass on this information to
others.

In solidarity,

Vineeta, Vani and Laxmi

Saheli
Above Shop 105-108,
Defence Colony Flyover Market,
New Delhi 110 024

16 September 2000

=20
_____

#5.

The Wall Street Journal
Friday, Sept. 15, 2000
Weekend Journal

HOUSES OF WORSHIP

Subcontinental Divide=20
MILITANT HINDUS ATTACK CHRISTIANS IN INDIA.=20

BY TUNKU VARADARAJAN=20
Mr. Varadarajan is a senior editorial page writer for The Wall Street
Journal.=20

In certain parts of India, Christians have come under physical attack from
Hindu religious chauvinists intent on cleansing the country of a faith
they regard as alien. The attacks have led to the destruction of
churches--invariably small, shabby structures, where local Christians,
often from the poorer sections of society, worship as best they can--as
well as to murders of priests and missionaries.

The assailants, in every case, have belonged to Hindu groups that have
ties--tenuous ties, no doubt, but ties all the same--to the ruling
nationalist government in New Delhi, whose prime minister, Atal Bihari
Vajpayee, is currently on a state visit in Washington.

Although no one suggests that Mr. Vajpayee's administration has had a hand
in the attacks--indeed, the prime minister has never failed to express his
regret whenever news has reached him of an assault--almost no government
action has been taken to curb the violence.

At the root of the problem lies the baseless contention that Christianity
is a "foreign" religion in India. Christianity's presence in India can be
dated back to the first century, and historians believe that St.
Thomas--"Doubting Thomas"--came to south India in A.D. 52 from Palestine.
In his book "Discovery of India," Jawaharlal Nehru, the country's first
prime minister after independence, wrote: "Christianity in India is as old
as Christianity itself."

Ironically, I received in the mail recently a book about Bishop
Vedanayakam Samuel Azariah (1874-1945), the first Indian bishop of an
Anglican diocese. Written by Susan Billington Harper, it is called "In the
Shadow of the Mahatma" and documents the travails of Christianity in
British India.

In this impressively researched book, I found a prescient observation made
by Bishop Azariah in a sermon in 1938: "[Indian] nationalism is apt to be
identified with loyalty to the ancient religion of the land; and this
identification might easily look with suspicion and disfavor on any
religion which is not supposed to belong to the soil, and which, in
addition, is pledged to propagate itself among all outside it."

The present anti-Christian violence in India is in many ways a reaction to
the evangelical vocation that Bishop Azariah describes in that last
phrase--"pledged to propagate itself." As Ms. Harper illustrates in her
book, the bishop's evangelism earned him the enmity of Mahatma Gandhi, who
feared that the conversion of low-caste Hindus to Christianity would erode
his power base, as well as dilute his (markedly Hindu) moral and political
agenda. As a result, argues Ms. Harper, "conversion . . . became a highly
charged political as well as spiritual act."

This politicized perception of missionary activity, and of conversions
from Hinduism to Christianity, persists in India. Unlike the Gandhians,
however, today's Hindu nationalists are prepared to use force to "halt"
Christianity and prepared to deploy poisonous propaganda.

Consider these extracts from an anti-Christian pamphlet, "The Assault on
India by Christian Missionaries," taken from a report in the Times of
India: "For years, Christian padres have always abused Hindu gods and
goddesses and spread hatred against Hinduism. Christian and Muslim
countries are sending [millions of rupees] to India in order to enslave
the country through conversions. Hindus will soon become a minority." (For
the record, Christians in India number a mere 23 million, and are mostly
impoverished, in a country of a billion people, about 85% of whom are
Hindu.)

The same pamphlet contains this stark assertion: "Because missionaries are
utilizing the mercenary press to spread dozens of lies against Hindus,
they have no right to live in India."

I am a Hindu. I am also a member of the "mercenary press." I am not a
liar. I do believe that missionaries have a right to live in
India--especially as most of them are Indian.

Perhaps one of the people who have the good fortune to meet India's prime
minister in Washington today will ask Mr. Vajpayee what can be done to
ensure that India's Christians receive the full protection of the law, and
of the secular Indian constitution.=20

____

#6.

[Posted on the Desi mail]

Karachi before 1947

From: "HOMI KAIKOBAD" <homik@p...>=20

Karachi ki an-kath kahani
=20
Read a recent posting on sabzi mandi in karachi (Posted in Desimail=20
about 6 weeks ago) and the aromas thereof.

I speak of bygone days and maybe they will interest no one, for=20
guzri raat ka sapna, jis mey koi nahi apna.

Karachi before partition ended at tekri, where the mazar stands.=20
Folks used to go there during day for hawa-pani and used to hurry=20=20
back by evening because believe it or not foxes would come out and=20
hunt. Everything behind was no man's land and no one ventured there=20=20
except the people who went to areo club to fly, i don't know if it is=20
still there. There was no sabzi nor mandi then.
=20
In town every night many main roads were washed by trucks with a=20=20
contraption at the back, pipe with holes for water to flow, just=20=20
after womenfolk came by with flat steel plates to clean the streets,=20=20
and you could hear the screech scratch as you lay in your bed, and=20=20
then the splash of the truck as it went by. the gutter system caught=20=20
the water and it went all the way to what is now the swamp land next=20=20
to the cotton exchane.
=20
Each year around new year the fire department sent out the tenders to=20
wash main buidings, laxmi bldg, frere hall, ilaco house, high court=20=20
with its jodhpur redstone and it was fantastic to watch them cpme=20=20
alive with renewed color.
=20
Karachi ended with gora kabrastan, tekri, teen hatti which led to=20=20
graveyard, a journey to end all travels, and at napier bridge after=20=20
which only keamari came and then the sea. manora island was a place=20=20
of pilgrimage and picnics. Trams and buses connected the outposts and=20
one got to know the conductors and they got to know you and it was=20=20
customary to help elders get off at the right station and their folks=20
come get them by hearing the clang clang of the tram bell.
=20
One day when I was there about 20 years ago and went walking along=20
bunder road and stopped at the crossing with garden road, there I saw=20
a supervisor overseeing workers who were breaking down the horse=20=20
trough where counteless animals had quenched their thirst. I saw them=20
breaking the plaque which said in gujerati, in holy memory of so and=20
so built by her son or husband. The supervisor asked why I seemed sad=20
and if I was connected with the site. I said yes and read the=20=20
inscription for him and he said was she related to me and I said no=20=20
and he said what then was the matter, I looked like someone had died.=20
and I said someone did and he said who and i said my old karachi.
=20
Karachi now is for those who are there now and her fate is in their=20
hands and theirs in hers. In olden times there was a radio program=20
where the last clincher was dekhta chala gaya. I took the cue and=20
did the same.
=20
With best wishes to all who read this and do desimail.
=20
Arya.

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