[sacw] SACW #1. (07 Oct. 01)

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Wire | Dispatch #1.
07 October 2001
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex

------------------------------------------

#1. Pakistan: Another sectarian massacre (edit in Dawn)
#2. Questions and Answers ( Tariq Ali)
#3. A Pro-Taliban Rally Draws Angry Thousands in Pakistan (Rick Bragg)
#4. A Combustible Political Situation in Pakistan (Vilani Peiris)
#5. Taliban to take to the mountains
#6. Where's the war? (Pamela Philipose)
#7. The writing on the wall is a menacing message (Amitava Kumar)
#8. India, Pak Must Convert Tragedy Into Opportunity
#9. Action Alert from Narmada Bachao Andolan [India]

________________________

#1.

DAWN
6 October 2001
Editorial

Another sectarian massacre

The streets of Karachi were once again drenched with innocent blood=20
on Thursday, when masked gunmen riding motorcycles fired=20
indiscriminately at worshippers in an imambargah. Among the six=20
people killed were two children whose only crime was that they were=20
from a particular sect. During the last two years, over 200 persons=20
have been killed in incidents of sectarian violence across the=20
country. The scope of the violence has also widened in this period.=20
Where Sunni and Shia activists would once resort to tit-for-tat=20
killings, the new phase of violence increasingly targets worshippers,=20
prominent citizens and professionals such as doctors.
Reacting to this upsurge in sectarian violence, the government=20
recently banned two extremist groups from opposite ends of the=20
sectarian divide, the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and the Sipah-e-Mohammad. It=20
also put two parties, the Sipah-e-Sahaba and the Tehrik Jafria=20
Pakistan, under observation and issued a stern warning to them to=20
behave or face a similar ban. While this move was widely welcomed,=20
the action has not stemmed the tide of violence. In fact, police=20
officials suspect that Thursday's attack in Karachi was a response to=20
the arrest of certain prominent Sunni extremists. The government must=20
not allow such dastardly attacks to deter it from taking a hard line=20
against sectarianism. It must also urgently beef up its intelligence=20
apparatus as well as security at sensitive places of worship.
Pakistan's steady lurch towards religious extremism began in the=20
eighties under the patronage of the Ziaul Haq regime. The Iranian=20
revolution and the Afghan conflict both fuelled this trend and=20
radicalized a new generation of sectarian activists. Years of=20
inaction and appeasement by successive governments have now=20
emboldened certain sectarian outfits to a point where they have come=20
to believe they can kill their opponents with impunity. It is time=20
for the government to remove this impression and crack down hard on=20
those who commit such terrible acts. It is also time to reflect on=20
what sort of society we have become. How long can we tolerate a=20
situation where innocent people can be mowed down in mosques while=20
bowing their heads in prayer?

_______

#2.

Published in the London weekly, Tribune, 28 September 2001

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS / Tariq Ali

1. How can one analyse the evolution of Afghanistan since the Soviet
invasion and the victory of the Taliban?
The PDPA (---the Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan----AFghan Communis=
t
Party) which had a strong base in the army and airforce carried out a coup
d'etat in 1978, toppling the corrupt regime of Daoud. The people welcomed
the change. The PDPA was initially popular. It pledged important social
reforms and democracy. But the latter promise was never upheld even though
important educational reforms were pushed through such as free education an=
d
schools for girls. In the cities girls and boys began to attend the same
schools. Medical care was improved as well, but a bitter factional struggle
led to the victory of a Pol-Pot faction led by Hafizullah Amin. who embarke=
d
on a campaign massive repression. Meanwhile the United States decided to
detabilise the regime by arming the ultra-religous tribes and using the
Pakistan Army as a conduit to help the religous extremists. The Americans
were laying a bear-trap and the Soviet leadership fell into it. They sent
the Red Army to topple Amin and sustain the PDPA regime by force. This
further exacerbated the crisis and the United States gave the call for a
jihad against communism. The Pakistani military thought it would help the
jihad if a Saudi prince came to lead the struggle, but volunteers from that
quarter were not forthcoming. Instead the Saudi regime suggested Ossama Bin
Laden to the CIA. He was approved, recruited, trained and sent to
Afghanistan where he fought well. In one action Bin Laden led his men to
attack a mixed school (boys and girls) and kill all the teachers. The US
watched this approvingly. THe rest is history. The Soviet Union was defeate=
d
and withdrew its forces in 1989. A civil war followed and a coalition
government consisting of forces loyal to Iran, Tadjikistan and Pakistan cam=
e
to power. Instability reigned. Then Pakistan hurled the Taliban (students)
it had trained in special seminaries into the battle with oipen support fro=
m
the Pakistan Army. Kabul was captured and gradually the regime extended its
rule to the rest of the country. American think-tanks till a few months ago
were talking of using the Taliban to further destabilise the Central Asian
Republics! Now the US and Pakistan are waging war to topple a regime they
created. Who said that history had ceased to be ironical?

2. What is specific about the Islamism of the Taliban?
It is a virulent, sectarian, ultra-puritanical strain heavily influenced by
Wahhabism---the official state religion of Saudi Arabia. It was Saudi
religous instructors who trained the Taliban. They believe in a permanent
jihad against infidels and other Muslims (especially the Shias). Bin Laden,
too, is a staunch Wahhabi. They would like a return to what they imagine wa=
s
Islam in the 7th century, during the leadership of Mohammed. What they don'=
t
understand is that Mohammed was a very flexible prophet-politician as
Maxime Rodinson explains in his excellent biography.

3. What was the strategic aim of the United States in basing themselves on
the most hard-line wing of the Islamic resistance to the USSR, and more
generally groups such as that of Bin Laden in the Arab-Muslim world?

Throughout the Cold War the United States used Islam as a bulwark against
communism and revolution. Everywhere in the Islamic world, not just in Sout=
h
Asia. So we can say that the Islamism we witness is a product of imperialis=
m
and modernity.

4. The key to what will happen in the region is Pakistan. What sort of
regime is it, what are its goals and what are the contradictions it faces?
It is a military regime, but not a vicious one like its predecessor. It is =
a
regime which wants to supervise neo-liberalism in Pakistan. The Army,
ofcourse, is divided, but the exact strength of pro-Taliban currents inside
the Army is a matter of dispute. It could be anything between 15--30
percent. The Islamists are very weak in Pakistani society as a whole. Its
important to understand this fact. In successive elections, less people hav=
e
foted for zealotry in Pakistan than in Israel. That's why the Pakistan
Taliban decided to make 'entryism' inside the Army. If the United States
spills too much blood in Afghanistan then the consequences could be dire
within the Pakistan Army in a year's time.

5. For the moment President Musharraf seems to want to line up alongisde
the US. Is it possible that Pakistan would be a logistical support to an
American intervention against Aghanistan?
Pakistan has agreed to give logistical support. In fact the Pakistan Army i=
s
necessary for the whole operation. The United States planes and troops will
be stationed in the Gwadur base in Baluchistan which they built during the
Cold War. Don't forget that Pakistan was a cold war ally of the United
States from 1954-1992. Both sides know each other well. The Pakistani elit=
e
is delighted that the country's debt (36 billion dollars) has been cancelle=
d
and more money has been pledged. In return for this they are prepared to
see the Taliban defeated and disarmed. Trouble will begin if too many
bearded men are killed. In my opinion one reason for the delay in action is
that the Pakistan Army is trying to make sure that the Taliban do not resis=
t
the United States. The advice being given to the faithful is: shave your
beards and keep your powder dry. The West will go away and then we'll see.
Islamabad detests the Northern Alliance which it defeated via the Taliban
when it too Kabul. I cannot stress enough that the Taliban is sustained on
every level by Pakistan. What is switched on can also be switched off. The
problem for Pakistan is that a wing of the Taliban defected to Bin Laden an=
d
his praetorian guard of Arab anarcho-Islamists. These guys will probably
fight back whatever the odds.

6. If the conflict becomes regional what effects would this have on the
situation in the region and the attitude of countries like India, China and
Russia.
All three countries are delighted by the 'war against terrorism'. They are
all Americans now! India wants to crush the opposition Kashmir,The Turkish
military wants to a final solution to the 'Kurdish problem', Putin has
already destroyed Chechynia, China has the green light to do what it wants.
So it suits them all, but a great deal depends on how this adventure ends.
Are we witnessing yet another boost to and acceptance of US world hegemony
or will the Empire slowly triumph itself to death?

_______

#3.

The New York Times
October 6, 2001

PROTESTERS

A Pro-Taliban Rally Draws Angry Thousands in Pakistan, Then Melts Away

By RICK BRAGG

[Photo:] Robert Nickelsberg for The New York Times
A boy with a toy pistol was held aloft by an anti-American crowd at a=20
rally in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, on Friday.

[Photo:] Robert Nickelsberg for The New York Times
"We are not scared of the United States," said Mullah Fazlur Rehman,=20
head of Jamiat Ulema Islam, a hard-line Islamic party, at the rally.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

RAWALPINDI, Pakistan, Oct. 5 - A small boy of 4 or 5, his face as=20
blank as a doll's, rode the shoulders of an angry crowd through the=20
Raja Bazaar, his head wrapped in a black turban, one small hand=20
holding a plastic toy pistol in the air.

He did not smile or laugh, as children typically do in rallies=20
against the United States in this part of the world, as the crowd of=20
nearly 15,000 chanted "O-sa-ma, O-sa-ma," and "Tal-i-ban, Tal-i-ban."

His eyes highlighted with black makeup to make him more beautiful,=20
more perfect, the boy did not join in the now everyday chants of=20
"Death to America" or "U.S.A. is a dog." He just fired his imaginary=20
bullets in the air over and over, his finger tightening on a harmless=20
trigger, and rode a wave of anger and hatred up to the door of a=20
mosque where a holy man shouted into a tinny loudspeaker about the=20
destruction of his enemies.

Only then did the crowd let the boy down from their shoulders. The=20
child, as if trying to please, made a second gun from the fingers of=20
his empty hand, and fired it at the sky as well.

The thousands came to hear the words of Mullah Fazlur Rehman, who=20
heads Jamiat Ulema Islam, a hard-line Islamic political party that=20
supports Afghanistan's Taliban rulers. A former member of Parliament,=20
the mullah did precisely what the demonstrators, and a heavily armed=20
and armored cadre of Pakistani police officers, expected him to do:=20
he threatened.

"The United States is the No. 1 terrorist state in the world," said=20
the mullah, who has been known to wave a pistol - a real one - as he=20
speaks. "We are not scared of the United States, and we will teach=20
them a lesson if they attack Afghanistan."

This demonstration was notable because it was not in a border city or=20
a city strongly controlled by Islamic radicals, but just minutes away=20
from Islamabad, the capital, a region considered less friendly to=20
those who want to tie Osama bin Laden, the Saudi-born terrorism=20
suspect, so tightly to the Islamic faith that an attack on him would=20
be seen as an attack on Islam itself.

Rawalpindi is also where the Pakistani Army is headquartered, and=20
protesters, by marching here, were thumbing their noses at the=20
government - and especially at Pakistan's ruler, Gen. Pervez=20
Musharraf.

Hours before General Musharraf met with Prime Minister Tony Blair of=20
Britain in Islamabad to reaffirm their commitment to the war on=20
terrorism, supporters of the Taliban and Mr. bin Laden packed four=20
streets. Hundreds watched from windows and rooftops. Some held=20
posters with Mr. bin Laden's image on them. Others wore decals and=20
stickers of his face on their clothes.

The mullah, whom many in Pakistan call "Mullah Diesel" because he was=20
suspected of involvement in a diesel-fuel smuggling ring in the=20
mid-1990's, told the crowd that the United States was not after Mr.=20
bin Laden or the Taliban but Islam itself.

Muslims in Pakistan, he said, should ignore Mr. Musharraf's decision=20
to recognize evidence against Mr. bin Laden as conclusive. "Pakistan=20
has become an agent of the United States," the mullah said.=20
"Pakistan's government has deceived its people."

The mullah charged that Israel's Mossad intelligence agency was=20
behind the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States.

He blamed the Jews for most other terrorist attacks in American=20
history, and said that President Bush was in on the conspiracy.

His listeners appeared to agree with every word.

This crowd also appeared different from previous ones. It was not=20
trucked in, for effect, as some past crowds had been, but seemed to=20
filter in from all over the city.

Some came straight from work as janitors, cooks, vendors, furniture=20
makers and more, a cross section of working men who said they=20
believed that Mr. bin Laden was a champion of Islam, if not more.

"Osama talks to Allah," said Midrarul Haq, a janitor.

Mr. Haq said he hated the United States. "Why are they so upset?" he=20
asked of the Americans. "Five thousand, six thousand killed. How many=20
did you kill in Iraq? Do you think only Americans are people? We are=20
people, too. But we are poor, so you do not treat us as people."

But what some people in the capital had feared might ratchet into a=20
major confrontation between anti- American demonstrators and the=20
Pakistani police passed without any significant violence.

One man in the crowd, Abdullah Saeed, picked out Americans and warned=20
them. "You have two days," he said, but would not elaborate. "We will=20
live with Osama," he said. "We will die with Osama."

Such demonstrations begin with noon prayers, and usually finish in a=20
few hours. Here, the demonstrators lingered until 5 p.m. Only then=20
did the streets return to normal.

Vendors sold dates and pastries, instead of pictures of Mr. bin=20
Laden. Steel riot doors that had been slammed down to guard shops=20
when the demonstrators gathered clanked open, for some late Friday=20
business. Men and boys squatted on the asphalt, poking through piles=20
of cheap watches, cassette tapes, jewelry.

It was as though the demonstration had never been. The only things=20
clutched in the fingers of little boys were cobs of roasted corn,=20
sesame cookies or a father's hand.

_____

#4.

wsws.org
Friday, 5 October 2001

A Combustible Political Situation in Pakistan

By VILANI PEIRIS

As the U.S. prepares for war in Afghanistan, the military junta
in Pakistan headed by General Pervez Musharraf is facing an
increasingly volatile domestic situation, with protests against
his support for Washington continuing to mount.

Full text at : http://www.wsws.org/articles/2001/oct2001/pak-o05.shtml

______

#5.

Asia Times
October 6, 2001

Taliban to take to the mountains
By Syed Saleem Shahzad
KARACHI - Information arriving from the Taliban-occupied areas of=20
Afghanistan confirms that they are prepared to lose the capital Kabul=20
and that they are concentrating all of their energies in preparing=20
for a guerrilla war in the rocky mountains of the eastern provinces=20
and around the city of Kandahar.
Sources close to the Taliban have told Asia Times Online that they=20
acknowledge that they will not be able to resist the revitalized=20
forces of the Northern Alliance, which have been pledged Iranian and=20
Russian assistance in their fight for control of Afghanistan.
Even though a Taliban delegation was on Friday believed to be in=20
Islamabad for talks with Pakistani officials, the Taliban have make=20
it clear that they are not prepared "to share anything with anybody".=20
This is in regard to plans being made by the United States and=20
Pakistan for a broad-based government in which the Pakistanis would=20
like to see some of the more moderate figures of the Taliban regime=20
included.
According to sources, most of the prominent Taliban figures have=20
already left Kabul, leaving behind only a secondary military line to=20
provide at least some resistance to the Northern Alliance, whose=20
forces are concentrated about 40 kilometers to the north. The entire=20
Taliban arsenal of artillery missiles, rockets and armored vehicles=20
has been shifted to the mountainous Logar, Paktia and Nanaghar=20
provinces.
It has been proven over many years that in this inhospitable region=20
it is not men but the terrain that fights the might of powerful=20
armies. This is especially so when snow starts to fall in=20
mid-November, making it impossible for opponents to stage military=20
raids. On the other hand, the Taliban could descend from their=20
mountain bases onto Kabul for lightning raids, and play havoc with=20
any broad-based government with which they do not agree.
Sources say that the Taliban have already started exercises involving=20
the 4th and 9th brigades in the three provinces under the eye of=20
Minister of Defense Molvi Ubaidulla. The brigades are commanded by=20
Mullah Rockety, who shot to notoriety for the kidnapping of a group=20
of Japanese tourists from the Pakistani territory of Balochistan.=20
They were eventually freed after being held hostage in Afghanistan.
In addition to these developments, the ethnic Pashtun Taliban are=20
also cementing support among the Pashtun population on both sides of=20
the border with Pakistan. Pashtun tribes of Afghan origin have been=20
told by the Taliban that any indifference on their part could lead to=20
the establishment of a non-Pashtun secular government in Afghanistan,=20
and it this happens, the tribal leaders will be inviting the wrath of=20
God. This approach is paying off, with support for the Taliban in=20
Pakistan's tribal belt increasing.
Thousands of Afridi tribesmen take to the streets in highly religious=20
and populous Kyber Agency every other day to shout their support for=20
Osama bin Laden. On Wednesday, Maulana Sufi Mohammed of the Tehrike=20
Nifaze Shariat-i-Mohammedi, a group based in Malakand Agency and=20
equipped with the latest military equipment, including anti-aircraft=20
guns, rocket launchers and other heavy and light weapons and=20
dedicated to turning Pakistan into a Taliban-style state, announced=20
that he had enlisted 5,000 people to go to the defense of=20
Afghanistan. Militant organizations such as the Lashkar-i-Taiba, the=20
Jaish-i-Mohammed and the Harkatul Mujahideen are are also sending=20
their men.
To reinforce their internal strength, the Taliban are banking heavily=20
on such outside Pashtun support, particularly from the tribes settled=20
in key strategic areas along the Pakistan-Afghan borders.
By playing the ethnic Pashtun card the Taliban are also causing some=20
unease within the Northern Alliance, which is dominated by ethnic=20
Tajiks. Well-placed sources in Peshawer say that pro-Pashtun=20
sentiment is strong among a number of field commanders.

______

#6.

Indian Express
September 30, 2001

Straight Face

Where's the war?

by Pamela Philipose

IT is a truth generally acknowledged that there is nothing quite like=20
a visceral, eye-stabbing, gut-wrenching, heart-pounding,=20
ear-splitting, head-swirling war to keep us from worrying endlessly=20
over rising prices, the coming recession and all the other inanities=20
that drive us to boredom. Consequently, there is a distinct=20
disappointment in Middle India over the fact that the promised Third=20
World War hasn't begun and the Americans appear to be taking an=20
unconscionably long time to fly their B-52s in Afghan skies.

All the amateur generals and pop strategists (and we have some 900=20
million of them) whose artillery of analysis has got a little rusty=20
since the Kargil encounters ended, are getting extremely edgy in=20
fact. They've studied the Afghan terrain, made a quick calculation=20
about collateral damage, have come to their conclusions on how the US=20
should approach The Enemy, and are now waiting for an opportune=20
moment to release their ammunition - but that moment, alas, continues=20
to elude them.

I realised how dangerous this state of uncertainty is for the=20
national psyche when I took a little stroll the other day. The first=20
person I encountered was Mrs Mehta, who lives down the road.
''Arrey, tell me, why haven't they started?''

''Who?'' I asked, wondering whether she was referring to the=20
neighbourhood plan about starting a general cleaning drive.
''The US soldiers, of course. Their battleships must have left their=20
Diego Garcia base by now and must be anchored some 200 km from=20
Mumbai. From there they will probably use their F-16s to penetrate=20
Afghan airspace.''

I managed a feeble nod and attempted to move on but Mrs Mehta held me=20
with her glittering eye, ''Perhaps they'll do it tonight. But I hope=20
it's not before Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi. I want to know if=20
that wicked Payal will be exposed and tonight's episode should reveal=20
that. After that I'll be free to switch to CNN for live coverage of=20
the war. I believe they did a marvellous job during Operation Desert=20
Storm....Arrey, look who is here, it's Rajinder!''

Before I could make good my escape, Major (retd) Rajinder Tomar was=20
upon us. ''Good evening, ji, wonder if they'll strike tonight,'' was=20
his opening salvo.''It's not a full moon night and the weather is=20
perfect for a Stealth operation.''

This got Mrs Mehta very excited. ''Will they come in from the Arabian=20
Sea side or from Kyrgystan, d'you think?'' she demanded to know.
That was just the strategic opening Major Tomar was waiting for and=20
he struck with awesome firepower, ''Well, ji, if I were Colin Powell=20
I would advice the Pentagon to launch a series of what I term as wave=20
manoeuvres. I would fly in from Tajikistan using Pakistan airspace=20
and drop my ground troops in the foothills...''

With great stealth I tiptoed out of this war council - Mrs Mehta and=20
Major Tomar didn't even notice my exit because they were within=20
striking distance of Osama bin Laden himself. But the moment I walked=20
into Jaichand Das Grocery Store I knew I had made a mistake. ''Didi,=20
mark my words, I know the Afghans. They will fight to the last man.=20
This is going to be a long war, didi, and the price of dried fruits=20
will rise. That is why, I am telling, Amrikans must use big bombs and=20
finish quickly,'' he began, as he instructed his teenaged assistant=20
to get 3 kilos of sugar and 2 kilos of basmati rice.

I hurriedly picked up my shopping and made a hasty exist but not=20
before I stumbled on 14-year-old Ashish, who had come to buy a packet=20
of chewing gum. He evidently had a school project on Afghanistan and=20
wanted help from me - the neighbourhood journalist - on how many=20
soldiers, tanks and missiles the Taliban had. ''Aunty, I just read=20
that USA's F-16 has testfired a modified AGM Maverick missile. Cool,=20
isn't it?'' he said.

I extracted myself in as aunty-like a manner as I could muster and=20
walked a few furlongs more to the local multiplex to pick up some=20
tickets for the evening show. Sure enough, I had barely entered the=20
premises when I came across a maniac sporting a completely shaved=20
head and a t-shirt that read: 'The US Marines' across the chest.
He seemed to be directing operations somewhere above Kandahar over=20
his cellphone.''Yeah, and then they could mobilise their F/A 18=20
Hornets from the USS Theodore Roosevelt but before that they would=20
need real time intelligence, or else they could get swarmed...Yeah,=20
yeah. Germ warfare? Nah. Not now I'd say. Yeah, yeah. Sure, sure, you=20
need to smoke him out but you could do that by supplying Stingers to=20
the Northern Alliance...''

By now it was as if the entire US airforce was circling above my=20
head. The guy who said jaw-jaw is better than war-war had better come=20
over to my neighbourhood. Here, in this land of Gandhi, jaw-jaw is=20
war-war and we certainly are ready for action in Afghanistan. Before=20
winter please.

_____

#7.

Centre Daily Times
Saturday, October 6, 2001
O P I N I O N

The writing on the wall is a menacing message

By Amitava Kumar

On a recent Sunday on Interstate 70, barely an hour outside=20
Washington D.C., I was passing through the typical, sunlit landscape=20
of early fall. The leaves on the trees in the surrounding hills were=20
touched with the colors of autumn. Yellow, gold, red, russet and,=20
here and there, quiet explosions of orange.

I stopped at a McDonald's for coffee. The Stars and Stripes as well=20
as the red-and-yellow flag of the fast-food chain hung on half-mast,=20
mourning the deaths from the attacks on Sept. 11. My companion went=20
to the women's room. On the walls of the toilet, she found fresh,=20
neatly printed slogans in a school-girlish hand: "God Bless America,=20
Home Sweet Home," "No Freeloaders" and "America Love It or Leave It."

In a few minutes, we were back on the highway, the car passing hilly=20
meadows where horses gently plucked on grass. But, this serenity, so=20
becalming, was deceptive. Like the language of the graffiti, tinged=20
with innocence, it hid a deep disturbance. This disturbance can be=20
given a name: It is a nationalism that is laced with grief and=20
anger. Its assertion of pride arises out of a just sadness, but it=20
is also underlined with menace. It serves as a warning to those who=20
would dissent.

The British writer Martin Amis has commented that the United=20
Airlines Flight 175 was "an intercontinental ballistic missile"=20
aimed at American innocence, an innocence which was revealed to be=20
"a luxurious and anachronistic delusion."

But, Amis is wrong to say that innocence ended on Sept. 11. I say=20
this because innocence persists all across this grieving nation.=20
Let's go back to the graffiti. What could be more innocent than the=20
understanding that the only way of being a valuable part of a nation=20
was through unquestioning love?

Does even being in love mean that anymore? Did it ever?

We need to be skeptical of innocence, especially at the level of=20
language. We cannot take signs for wonders. Indeed, such skepticism=20
is practiced even by the intelligence authorities when they comb=20
through the messages of those that they have been watching. I read=20
in The New Yorker recently that officials "look for telephone calls=20
using code words to warn that something is going to happen,=20
sometimes innocuous phrases such as 'There is a wedding tomorrow' or=20
'You should come home.'"

I advocate skepticism or doubt as an alternative to fundamentalism.=20
Doubt and concern can be a weapon against the absolutism not only of=20
the terrorists but of those who would wield terror in return. We=20
need to read, against the grain, the loose use of words such as=20
"freedom" and "justice." Freedom to bomb from on high or the freedom=20
to live lives free from attacks? Justice in terms of fierce=20
retribution or justice as the right to live without duress?

One can hear that note of doubt, a skepticism voiced against the=20
righteousness of our rulers, in a public letter to President Bush=20
written by the parents of one who has been missing in the rubble of=20
the World Trade Center. Phyllis and Orlando Rodriguez wrote in their=20
letter: "Your response to this attack does not make us feel better=20
about our son's death. It makes us feel worse. It makes us feel that=20
our government is using our son's memory as a justification to cause=20
suffering for other sons and parents in other lands."

The twin towers were like alphabets linked to words such as=20
"America" and "power" and "security." The towers were destroyed by=20
men who fiendishly read that meaning in a clear way. For them to be=20
doubtful would have meant an openness to possibilities about the=20
contrary meaning of the buildings. Then, they would have had to=20
concede that in those towers were ordinary men and women with their=20
irreplaceable lives.

The hijackers held close to themselves their own form of murderous=20
innocence. Now, the rest of the world, particularly President Bush,=20
must not blithely parrot that same language when they seek to "bomb=20
Afghanistan back into the Stone Age."

Amitava Kumar teaches at Penn State University and is the author of=20
Passport Photos (University of California Press).

=A9 2001 Centre Daily Times

______

#8.

Outlook
October 15, 2001
India, Pak Must Convert Tragedy Into Opportunity

We must address the economics that underlies geopolitical crises,=20
says Shahid SHAHID JAVED BURKI

http://www.outlookindia.com/full.asp?fodname=3D20011015&fname=3DColumn+Burk=
i+%28F%29&sid=3D1

______

#9.

3 October 2001
Message from Medha Patkar (Narmada Bachao Andolan) [India]

Action Alert Action Alert Action Alert Action Alert Action Alert Action Ale=
rt
18th October Black Day

Dear Friends,

You might be well aware about the situation in the Valley for the=20
past one year after the unjust Supreme Court verdict on 18th October,=20
2000. The Supreme Court through its majority judgement, which stands=20
exposed now, permitted Gujarat government to go ahead with the dam=20
construction. But it has been proved on every platform that the=20
rehabilitation of affected people till 90 meters is yet to be=20
completed due to paucity of agricultural land, while the dam=20
construction was completed upto 90m, thanks to the Supreme Court.=20
Inspite of this the Governments could not get sanctioned further=20
construction though the Gujarat Government illegally constructed=20
three meters as safety humps without necessary clearances from=20
Narmada Control Authority.

After the Supreme Court verdict the people of the valley have=20
embarked on a path of relentless struggle both within and out of the=20
valley. The Governments instead of providing answers have resorted to=20
repression on many occasions to try and stop the NBA=EDs struggle=20
against the destructive SSP. You may also be aware of the recent=20
unprovoked police beatings in Nimad where the people were seeking=20
answers to relevant questions surrounding their life.

Now on the verge of a year since the 'BLACK JUDGEMENT' we are=20
witnesses to the violations permitted by the Supreme Court. The=20
court has also asked viciously and blow in an undignified way, on the=20
issue of criticising the judgement and the judiciary. While Prashant=20
Bhushan and Medha Patkar were acquitted from the contempt=20
proceedings, legal action initiated against Arundhati Roy is also=20
unjust and against fundamental constitutional right to expression.=20
You already have NBA=EDs official position on the judgement made public=20
soon after the judgement. The same in published in the book, People=20
Vs Verdict i.e. 'Lok banam faisala' [Hindi] and is on the website=20
[www.narmada.org].

October 18th therefore, it would be important to spread=20
knowledge about the Supreme Court=EDs grave folly that has placed the=20
lives of thousands of adivasis, peasants and farmers in peril. You=20
can hurry up and plan any of the following or something were=20
important and creative:=20

1. Organise a protest / banners / posters / badges / photo exhibition
2. Panel Discussion on various court judgements, gave impact on=20
adivasis, dalits, other downtrodden toiling sections
3. Seminar on the judgement and Freedom of Expression OR Right to Justice
4. Letter Campaign directed to President and Prime minister=20
urging them to act
5. Candle light vigil=20
6. Painting Exhibitions, video shows on Narmada in various=20
schools / colleges

MAKE YOURSELF HEARD ON THIS DAY!

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SACW is an informal, independent & non-profit citizens wire service run by
South Asia Citizens Web (http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex) since 1996. Dispatch
archive from 1998 can be accessed at
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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in materials carried in the posts do not
necessarily reflect the views of SACW compilers.

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