[sacw] SACW (19 Oct. 01)

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Wire | 19 October 2001
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex

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

#1. India: Say No To War: a cultural sit-in (New Delhi, 20 Oct)
#2. Pakistan: Join Demo. Against US bombing of innocent people of=20
Afghanistan (Karachi, 23 Oct.)
#3. A note from a well known NGO Activist from Pakistan
#4. Citizenship row festers in Nepal (Suman Pradhan)
#5. India: Outrage at Taj Mahal (Nalini Taneja)
#6. India: Human Chain Against War (new Delhi, 19 October)
#7. India: Note from Anthra & Yakshi on their campaign against the=20
war frenzy of the US
#8. India: Press Statement by Communists on Serious Provocation at Ayodhya
#9. India: Hate Peddlers & their Communal card, once again (Edit.=20
Hindustan Times)
#10. India: U.S. strikes raise fears of renewed Muslim-Hindu=20
violence. (Joanna Slater)
#11. ...Identity of every community is "socially constructed" or=20
"invented" (Rukun Advani)
#12. The National Network of Sex Workers, India.

________________________

#1.

SAY NO TO WAR

To reaffirm the commitment towards peace Assemble at a cultural sit-in
at Vithalbhai Patel House Lawns
Rafi Marg, New Delhi-110001

4pm onwards on Saturday 20 [October] , 2001

Readings and Statements: Arundhati Roy, Shabana Azmi, Prabhat=20
Patnaik, Zoya Hasan, Gitanjali Shree, Sharmila Tagore, Mansur Ali=20
Khan Pataudi, Praful Bidwai

______

#2.

JOIN PROTEST DEMONSTRATION AGAINST THE US BOMBING OF INNOCENT PEOPLE=20
OF AFGHANISTAN

Tuesday, 23 October, 4 pm
Assemble at Khudad Colony Bus Stop and March Towards Mazar-e-Quaid
(Sharae- Quaideen Gate) [ Karachi]

And express solidarity with the masses of Afghanistan suppressed under
Fundamentalist Rule and US Bombings

Called By:
CAMPAIGN FOR PEACE
A Coalition of Political Parties, NGOs and Professionals:
Labour Party Pakistan, Roots for Equity, APWA College, Karachi University,
UKPNP, International Socialist Group, Campaign for Peaceful Pakistan, Shelt=
er
for Shelterless, Lawyer Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Society for
Viable Social Change, War Against Rape, Women Action Forum

______

#3.

[EXCERPTS FROM A PERSONAL NOTE BY A WELL KNOWN NGO ACTIVIST FROM PAKISTAN]

Date: Tue, 16 Oct 2001 17:23:32 +0500 [ Karachi]
[...]
It's taken all day to arrive in Karachi, starting off originally at 9:30 am
at the airport (they're requesting everyone to arrive 1.30 hours in advance=
)
we finally touch down past 4 pm and decide that we cannot arrive at the
office before 5 pm and decide to call it a day. The delay has allowed us,
however, to set into motion the process of calling a national emergency
meeting on the 17th (tomorrow) on the request of two NGO coalitions in
Peshawar (JAC and SNI) to discuss the attacks on NGOs in the province and
elsewhere in the wake of the US-led military strikes in Afghanistan,
especially in NWFP, Balochistan, Bajaur Agency and Khyber Agency. At least =
a
dozen NGOs have been attacked by unruly mobs. Their offices have been
ransacked and burnt, and electronic equipment has been stolen. In a few
cases, the private offices and homes of individual NGO members have also
been attacked or threatened. The increasing threats and attacks on NGOs hav=
e
been acknowledged by the Federal Minister of the Interior, Lt. Gen. (Retd)
Moinuddin Haider, on national and international television who said this wa=
s
not to be tolerated. Unfortunately, no effective action seems to have been
taken to apprehend the culprits and bring them to justice, nor to provide
adequate protection to those under threat.

At home around 8:30, the image on TV (eternally so in every home now) is
suddenly distorted for a second or less, a few minutes later, it happens
again. You know that the bombers have just crossed over from the Arabian se=
a
going overland to Afghanistan to drop their bombs - the radars of some of
these being so strong as to disrupt local transmission.

A grey plane flies overhead, its tail colours unreadable and an 8-9 year ol=
d
asks his mother: "Mama, is that a bomber? are they going to drop bombs on
us? Please, please don't let them bomb us." But what of the Afghan childre=
n
I think who know they will be bombed who await this possible death and
definite destruction and terror every night. It is also difficult to explai=
n
to this child why he can no longer go to KFC and McDonalds, why his school
is shut arbitrarily some days, why life has suddenly changed. Are we at war=
?
and with whom?

In the [...] meeting on Thursday, a plane flies overhead - one of the women
gets startled and wants to go outside and see which plane this is - no, no,
some of us reassure her - it's too low and too slow to be a bomber, it's a
commercial plane - relax. A friend's teenage daughter is so affected by the
whole war situation in Islamabad, she has taken to escaping into sleep and
has refused to let her family turn on the TV any longer - she no longer
wants to hear, to see, to fear what may happen...

On Friday those opposing the military strikes from the religious extreme
violence-prone right political groups and parties have called a strike - we
continue in our office with our meeting. At around 11:30 we hear the ranger=
s
have arrived to shut whatever businesses chose to stay open, to defy the
strike. We are not sure whether the auditors will be able to make it or we
to their place - but we're all on the same side of town, so there's actuall=
y
no problem. In the meantime we hurry to get all the [...] workers who made =
it
to office safely on their way home to avoid the chance of their being caugh=
t
mid-way and in violence before the Friday prayers end. At noon one of us wh=
o
went home calls to say all's quiet and even the police has disappeared,
However the KFC in one part of town has been torched or attacked - unclear
which. We continue our work. At 5:50 she calls again to say there's a
procession heading our way and to leave. We wonder whether we shouldn't
simply declare Friday a holiday and have either Sunday or Saturday as a
working day. We wrap up the meeting, get our things and start home and once
on the road try to assess whether there is a special rush/scramble or this
is the normal traffic trying to get home at the end of the day and week.

On Saturday we have our Collective meeting and whatever else, it's
refreshing to be all together again for a while even under these
circumstances with women we know and trust, and have shared so much. But
Monday is another strike call and schools are closed again, and transport
not available and the [...] office in Karachi stays closed for another day.
Even in Lahore - the quietest place in the country relatively - schools are
having drills to evacuate children as quickly as possible to the nearest
safest place and children are worried and their parents even more so.
[...]
F

______

#4.

Asia Times | October 19, 2001

CITIZENSHIP ROW FESTERS IN NEPAL By Suman Pradhan
KATHMANDU - A divisive row over citizenship is flaring up again in=20
the Himalayan kingdom of Nepal after the abrupt scrapping of a=20
controversial bill that aimed to simplify citizenship procedures for=20
more than 3 million southerners of Indian origin.
Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba early this week told parliament=20
that his centrist Nepali Congress government had withdrawn the bill=20
introduced by his predecessor early this year, and will soon replace=20
it with a "more comprehensive and less controversial legislation".
While the announcement has been welcomed by most opposition parties=20
and legal experts, it has not gone down well in Nepal's southern=20
Terai plains, where 3.4 million people of Indian origin are awaiting=20
citizenship certificates.
Without this document in this impoverished nation, one cannot buy or=20
sell property, get a government job or even pursue higher education.=20
For these reasons, critics have long decried the second-class status=20
of the madhesis, or southerners of Indian origin, and have demanded=20
prompt action to defuse the citizenship crisis.
According to the latest census carried out early this year, Nepal's=20
population has boomed to 23 million. A third of those reside in the=20
southern plains bordering India, where the ethnic makeup is largely=20
of Indian origin.
Terai-based political parties, notably the Nepal Sadbhavana Party=20
(NSP), has long pressured the government to immediately address the=20
citizenship issue. It was partly to address the problems that former=20
prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala introduced the legislation early=20
this year. The bill was passed by the Lower House, but met stiff=20
resistance in the Upper House where the opposition communists are in=20
a majority. Koirala simply railroaded the bill through the Lower=20
House again and sent it to Late King Birendra for his approval.
But instead, the monarch - who was murdered in June by his son -=20
sought the advice of the Supreme Court on the bill's=20
constitutionality. The Court ruled the bill unconstitutional. Matters=20
rested there until last week, when Deuba formally withdrew the failed=20
bill and promised to introduce a new piece of legislation "after=20
consultation with the opposition".
Many madhesis in Nepal see the maneuvering over the bill as=20
discriminatory, proof of the bias against them. "This is proof of the=20
hills people's bias against madhesis," says UK Chaudhary, a=20
legislator who represents a southern district. "This issue should not=20
be politicized, but rather resolved without delay."
A constitutional expert, former speaker of parliament Daman Nath=20
Dhungana, says that the government did the right thing by withdrawing=20
the dead bill. "Now they should ensure that the new bill is not as=20
controversial," he said.
The controversy over the bill clearly underscores the hills-plains=20
divide in Nepal. About two-thirds of the Himalayan kingdom comprises=20
hills inhabited by ethnic hill tribes and the ruling=20
Brahmin-Chhettri-Newar castes. The rest comprises southern plains=20
bordering India's northern states and the ethnic makeup there=20
reflects that reality.
Many thousands of ethnic Indian families have settled in Nepal for=20
generations - borders between Nepal and India are open - even=20
acquiring citizenship over the years. But many of the newer arrivals=20
have not, kicking up an explosive political issue.
Past governments tried to settle the issue by forming two separate=20
commissions in the late 1990s to look into the matter. Both the=20
commissions recommended speedy citizenship distribution to 3.4=20
million such madhesis, but the implementation has been patchy at=20
best. Besides, the courts in Nepal have been quite conservative in=20
dealing with citizenship cases.
The centrist Nepali Congress, which has been in power for most of=20
Nepal's 11 years of democracy, argues that it has been trying to=20
resolve the issue once and for all. But no one, not even the=20
madhesis, are satisfied with the Congress government's attempts. Many=20
see it as a vote-catching gimmick targeted more toward elections.
Tellingly, the NSP, the party that represents madhesis interests,=20
abstained from voting on the controversial bill when it was passed by=20
the House of Representatives early this year. NSP leader Hridayesh=20
Tripathi claims the bill was not as progressive as the party wanted.
But progressive it was. At present, a child can obtain hereditary=20
citizenship in Nepal only if the father has one. The mother's=20
citizenship does not count, another example of gender discrimination=20
in this heavily paternalistic society. But the just-scrapped bill=20
contained provisions that made it possible to gain citizenship if the=20
person could prove birth in Nepal. Also, the mother's citizenship=20
could also count, not just the father.
It was these provisions that were decried by other political parties.=20
They feared the provisions could be misused by unscrupulous local=20
officials and politicians, opening the floodgates to countless=20
"undeserving foreigners".
The main opposition party, the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified=20
Marxist-Leninist), first supported the bill but later turned against=20
it as opposition in the hill districts, including in the capital=20
Kathmandu, began to mount. Today, the party is staunchly opposed to=20
the bill, but also asserts that it too wants to defuse the=20
citizenship crisis.
"Our opposition is mainly against certain provisions which make it=20
possible to misuse the law," argues Subash Nembang, a communist=20
legislator. "But if the government incorporates our suggestions in=20
the new bill, we will support it to pass the legislation. We also=20
want the citizenship issue to be dealt with effectively."
(Inter Press Service)

______

#5.

OUTRAGE AT TAJ MAHAL by Nalini Taneja

At any other time the shocking incident in Agra, where the members of=20
the Bhartiya Janta Yuva Morcha went rampaging in the Taj Mahal=20
premises, misbehaving with tourists and Taj officials and defacing=20
the monument with their immortal signatures, would have caused a=20
worldwide furore, and strictures from world archaeological and=20
heritage- conservation bodies and the UNESCO. As it turns out, in the=20
midst of the preoccupation with the American war against Afghanistan,=20
the lumpen attack on one of the 'seven wonders of the world' has gone=20
almost unnoticed.

The Sangh Parivar kicked off its election campaign with an attack on=20
the most well known architectural symbol of what it sees as 'Muslim=20
tyranny' on "Hindu India". It is an unforgivable act of pure=20
vandalism and in keeping with the kind of 'training" that youth=20
organisations of political parties like the BJP and the Congress as=20
well receive from their respective parties, and as some people have=20
pointed out, this is not the first time that youth rallies and mass=20
meetings has culminated in rampaging and lumpen acts on the part of=20
such collectivities. But in this particular matter there is an=20
important distinction that needs to be recognised, which comes=20
through in the general tenor of slogans, the site chosen for these=20
actions, and the accompanying images of anti-Muslim sentiments=20
expressed.

Thousands of members of the BJYM, the BJP's youth wing, descended on=20
the Taj Mahal yelling slogans like "Jai Shri Ram", "Ek ek baccha Ram=20
ka, janam bhoomi ke kaam ka" "mangal bhavan amangal hari, Atal=20
Behari, Atal Behari" , and staking claims through marking their names=20
and symbols on the marble of the mausoleum. They smashed flowerpots=20
and indulged in a free for all and the police had to resort to a=20
lathi charge to disperse them.

The immediate inspiration for these actions, as is evident from the=20
speeches at the mass meeting, came from the well known RSS leaders=20
like Uma Bharti, Pramod Mahajan and Home Minister Advani himself, who=20
have already forced the administration to give false statements. Mr.=20
Advani set the ball rolling with identifying Pakistan as the main=20
enemy in fighting terrorism. It is state sponsored terrorism, so the=20
Pakistani state must pay for it. He directly linked the September 11=20
events to Muslims and Muslim organisations in India. He justified the=20
ban on SIMI and arrests of its members, while praising the Hindu=20
organisations. "We are not concerned if anyone supports us or not" he=20
pronounced. An idea of what he considers the direction for the Yuva=20
Morcha to take was clarified by him in the statement: "Three months=20
ago I came to Agra for the Indo-Pak summit and I returned today once=20
again for a different occasion. The difference and the achievement of=20
the government within a span of three months is before you".

We all know what the government has been doing these three months,=20
and now what Advani means by good governance and nationalist actions=20
of the BJP government. Doubt less the cadres knew it too, and=20
proceeded to the Taj even before the "Mahaadhiveshan" was over.

"The demolition of the Babri structure was comparatively a minor job.=20
A more important job is the construction of the temple at the site",=20
thundered Pramod Mahajan. He reminded the audience that as early as=20
1988, at Agra itself, he had given the call for the temple. Uma=20
Bharti, not to be outdone, displayed her entire repertoire of=20
histrionics and rhetoric to "inspire" the 62, 000 brave youths,=20
collected at Agra to chalk out their programmes. Her entire speech=20
was objectionable, culminating in the 'prophecy' that her Parivar is=20
no doubt committed to making true: "The US has announced that it=20
would take on all those who harbour terrorism. I say that the=20
religion that promotes terrorism will be destroyed". Sushma Swaraj=20
and Venkat Naidu were also there to inaugurate the Party's campaign=20
for the coming polls.

Thundering applauses accompanied these rabble-rousing speeches and=20
'education' and 'entertainment' were carefully chosen for the=20
occasion. A BJYM member from Maharashtra, dressed as Hanuman pranced=20
about shouting "Jai Shri Ram" accompanied by chants of "Mandir Yaheen=20
Banaenge" (we will build the temple here come what may).
The raid on the Taj took place immediately afterwards amidst cries of=20
"Vande Mataram" and other such slogans.

While the RSS linked historians and archaeologists, beginning with=20
Sitaram Goel and PN Oak, have laid claim to every medieval monument=20
as site of a former temple, the destruction of Babri masjid has begun=20
the trend of sanctioning such vandalism. The raids on Budangiri=20
dargah in Karnataka, in common places of worship in Jammu and=20
destruction of a mosque and two mazaars in Rajasthan a few months ago=20
are direct result of the sanction that such acts receive from the BJP=20
government, and from the antics of the RSS leaders, guilty of the=20
Babri demolition, now Ministers in the government.

This outrage on the Taj Mahal is an indication of things to come,=20
and, more specifically, of what the election campaign is likely to=20
entail. It is not a coincidence that the meeting, of which the=20
assault on the Taj was an integral part, marked the beginning of the=20
BJP's election campaign in Uttar Pradesh. In a way the election=20
campaign was flagged off with an assault on the great monument. The=20
cadres were neither controlled nor censured by the Ministers=20
concerned, nor by Prime Minister Vajpayee, who reached there to=20
address the concluding session of the BYJM programme. In fact,=20
incredible statements defying the visible evidence in the form of the=20
damage done and sights that scores of people saw with their own eyes,=20
the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) official, NC Sharma, says on=20
behalf of the Sangh Parivar that " he was present at the Taj till=20
2030 hours and did not witness any such untoward incident there." The=20
Agra district magistrate, Kumar Kamlesh, denied that the BJP youth=20
activists had resorted to any hooliganism in the complex. Senior SP=20
Pramod Tewari, echoed the same. (Indian Express, October 15, 2001).

Nor must we forget that our PM, Mr. Vajpayee, has recently declared=20
that he is going to "solve" the Ram mandir "issue" by March 2001, the=20
deadline set by the RSS and the VHP, and has also 'reopened' and=20
reactivated the Ayodhya cell of the government, despite the fact that=20
the matter is pending in the Court. The Ministers directly involved=20
in the demolition of the masjid--Mr. Advani, Uma Bharti, Murli=20
Manohar Joshi--are to be given back a forum where they can upstage=20
the Liberham Commision and also influence the NDA partners' response,=20
and through which they can ensure that the Ram Mandir becomes an=20
election issue.
The "grand youth show" on behalf of the Sangh Parivar has announced=20
its war on the nation's sensibilities through the assault on the Taj=20
Mahal, a symbol of composite cultural heritage and our pluralistic=20
traditions, as much as of love-an it should be understood as such,=20
and not reduced to an act of simple vandalism by unruly boys and=20
their unruly ways.

>From <http://pd.cpim.org/>People's Democracy

______

#6.

HUMAN CHAIN AGAINST WAR

Date: 19th Oct (Friday)
Time 5.30 pm
Place: Amar Jyoti, India Gate, Delhi

We request everyone to join in large numbers

______

#7.

Date: Thu, 18 Oct 2001 16:15:55 +0530

We the members of Anthra and Yakshi had taken up a campaign against=20
the war frenzy of the US government. ANTHRA and YAKSHI along with=20
several other organizations have organized a peace vigil on the busy=20
Tank Bund in Hyderabad [India] on the 25th of September with=20
posters, placards, songs and lit candles for peace. Around 300 people=20
participated in this event and we collected signatures condemning=20
war. We had circulated an appeal for peace through our collaborating=20
organizations and networks. They inturn held meetings in the villages=20
and collected signatures. Around 550 signatures were collected in 10=20
villages of Chittoor district. We are sending copies of all the above=20
signatures to the Governor of Andhra Pradesh, Indian Prime Minister,=20
Indian President and The Secretary General of UN.

Madhoo and Sagari

______

#8.

October 18, 2001 | Press Statement

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued=20
the following statement:

SERIOUS PROVOCATION AT AYODHYA

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Bajrang Dal have once again=20
blatantly defied the law and conducted illegal activities in Ayodhya=20
with the state government and the administration looking on. The=20
Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal workers led by Ashok Singhal=20
and other leaders entered the Babri Masjid site in which the=20
makeshift temple stands and performed religious ceremonies in=20
defiance of the Supreme Court directive. They were allowed to do so=20
without hindrance and none of them were arrested afterwards. The site=20
is under the control of the central government. The BJP-led=20
government both in UP and the Centre have to answer for this=20
provocative and illegal act.

The activities now being indulged in by the VHP regarding the Ayodhya=20
dispute have received encouragement from the Prime Minister's=20
statement some time back in Lucknow when he claimed that a solution=20
would be found by March 2002 and talks were on for this purpose. The=20
Prime Minister has followed this up by reviving the Ayodhya cell in=20
the PMO after a meeting with top VHP leaders.

The BJP-RSS combine has embarked upon a deliberate campaign of=20
provocative speeches and acts regarding the Ayodhya issue with a view=20
to create communal polarisation to pursue its narrow electoral aims=20
in Uttar Pradesh. The responsibility for worsening the communal=20
situation is thus squarely upon the VHP and its patrons in the=20
BJP-RSS combine.

The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) demands immediate steps to arrest of=20
those who have committed this provocative act under the relevant=20
provisions of the law. The Home Minister has to be accountable for=20
such activities at the site which is under the jurisdiction of the=20
Centre.

_____

#9.

The Hindustan Times, 19 October 2001 | Editorial

COMMUNAL CARD, ONCE AGAIN
It may be a mistake to regard the crudely provocative act of the VHP=20
leaders in barging into the makeshift Ayodhya 'temple' as an isolated=20
incident. What is far more likely is that this despicable attempt to=20
raise communal tension is part of a wider design in which the entire=20
Sangh parivar, including people in power, is involved.

Nor is it difficult to identify the objective or the compulsion=20
behind such reckless tactics. The objective is to bolster the BJP's=20
position in the UP elections and the compulsion is born of the fear=20
that the party's prospects are not too rosy at the moment. Indeed,=20
many of the BJP's and the Sangh parivar's recent acts - the fixing of=20
quotas for most backward castes in UP, the ban on SIMI, the refusal=20
to ban the Bajrang Dal and the tampering with voters' lists - are all=20
part of a desperate ploy by the parivar to boost its electoral=20
chances.

The antics of Ashok Singhal and his cohorts have to be seen in this=20
context. The purposeful defiance of the judicial order against=20
entering the 'temple' may have been meant to test the limits of what=20
the VHP can or cannot do in connection with its plan of starting the=20
construction of the temple in March next year. But, the provocative=20
act was also probably aimed at widening the Hindu-Muslim divide at a=20
time when the war in Afghanistan is believed by the Sangh parivar to=20
have helped in consolidating the so-called Hindu vote. Although the=20
BJP leaders are maintaining, for form's sake, that the anti-terrorist=20
campaign has nothing to do with Islam, there is no doubt that, at the=20
ground level, the Hindutva activists make no distinction between the=20
two. Hence, the vandalism by them at the Taj and renewed calls by the=20
RSS to scrap Article 370 of the Constitution.

None of these acts, including Mr Singhal's defiance of the law, would=20
have been possible without a wink and a nod from the Centre and the=20
government of UP. Nothing underlined this tacit collusion better than=20
the reported directive by the Centre to the UP home department to=20
take action against those policemen who allowed the VHP leaders to=20
get through the barricades. Had the Centre been serious, it would=20
have called for action against Mr Singhal and the other VHP=20
stalwarts. It is now up to the judiciary to rectify this deliberate=20
lapse on the Centre's part and make it abundantly clear that those=20
who break the law to whip up communal tension would receive exemplary=20
punishment.

_______

#10.
Far Eastern Economic Review | October 25, 2001

INDIA: Surface Tension
The U.S. strikes raise fears of renewed Muslim-Hindu violence. It's=20
been relatively calm so far
By Joanna Slater/MUMBAI
http://www.feer.com/2001/0110_25/p028region.html

_______

#11.

The Telegraph | 19 October 2001

BEARDING THE SARDAR by Rukun Advani

When a Sikh is mistaken for a hirsute Afghan in a turban and killed=20
as a consequence of the possible activities of Osama bin Laden, as=20
has just happened in the United States of America, the temptation is=20
to feel ever more certain that the average American is not just more=20
cretinous than most average people but also, to use the vocabulary of=20
the cretinous, more visually challenged. Unfortunately, Americans are=20
no more guilty of blindness to ethnic and sartorial difference than=20
the large majority within more or less every civilization in history.

For the Greeks, the world beyond their horizon consisted of barbarian=20
tribes who all spoke equally indecipherable varieties of "bar bar".=20
For some of the descendants of those tribes, who make up the cow belt=20
of north India, "the South" is not much more than an aggregation of=20
sambar-slurping Madrasis, and any man who shaves his moustache but=20
not his beard is a Mussalman. It's a mercy we're not at war with=20
people who have high cheek bones, narrow eyes and Mongolian features,=20
because we only know them indistinguishably as Japs and Chinks. So if=20
a couple of Mizos or a Naga or two were to get slaughtered by=20
mistake, it would only be their own fault for looking that way, and=20
the sangh parivar would not just forgive us but even reward us for=20
thinking they weren't really Indians at all.

In India over the past few years, "identity politics" - which has=20
usually meant the assertion of economic and territorial demands by=20
separatist groups using the argument that they possess a distinctive=20
cultural identity- has been partly responsible for historians probing=20
the ways in which culturally distinct community identities came into=20
being in the first place. The assumption which underlies the work of=20
such historians is that there is nothing timeless or permanent or=20
static or "given" about the identity of any community.

Like tradition, or like reality itself, the identity of every=20
community is "socially constructed" or "invented" by coteries or=20
elites or powerful groups within a region. These groups then expand,=20
their authority grows more absolute. Outright conquest as well as=20
what historians call "hegemonic" processes (that is, slow=20
brainwashing) are the methods by which these elites take over the=20
life of a region, economically as well as intellectually.

Deploying the ideas of thinkers such as Foucault, Gramsci, Habermas=20
and Said on the manner in which social, intellectual and public space=20
is appropriated by groups which manipulate the largest resources=20
(including technology and social-science knowledge), historians have=20
shown, for example, how the Ahomiyas came to be what they are today;=20
or how the identity of the Chipko movement derives from distinct=20
traditions of dissent in Kumaon-Garhwal; or how the Sikhs happen to=20
flaunt an identity today which was unheard of just 200 years ago.

Professional historians in India now tend to write, regrettably, only=20
to impress other professional historians, because that - rather than=20
the acclaim of the serious reading public-is the route up the=20
academic ladder. Issues such as the construction of modernity,=20
communalism, and community identity have become important within the=20
guild of history-writing, but most monographs on these subjects are=20
inaccessible to serious general readers. However, there is at least=20
one which has been written more lucidly, approachably and altogether=20
brilliantly than most. Titled The Construction of Religious=20
Boundaries: Culture, Identity, and Diversity in the Sikh Tradition=20
(1994), it is by Harjot Oberoi, a professor of Sikh Studies at the=20
University of British Columbia in Vancouver.

Oberoi's book asks one central question: in everyday terms, what did=20
it mean to be a Sikh 200 years ago? How distinct would an adult=20
non-Muslim living in the region of Punjab have seemed from his Muslim=20
neighbour at that time? Or, to relate his question to our context, if=20
you were hostile to an Afghani Muslim in the early 19th century,=20
would you have been likely to shoot a Sikh dead by mistake?

Oberoi's answer is that it would have been much easier to make that=20
mistake in the early colonial period because it was much more=20
difficult then to distinguish a sardar from a hirsute, turbanned=20
Afghan. "It is all very well", he says, "for historians of religion=20
to think, speak and write about Islam, Hinduism and Sikhism, but they=20
rarely pause to consider if such clear-cut categories actually found=20
expression in the consciousness, actions and cultural performances of=20
the human actors they describe." Oberoi's vast and microscopic=20
investigation of the actual lived experience of ordinary folk (the=20
jargon word for such folk is "subalterns") suggests, rather, the=20
absence of clear-cut religious, sartorial, and cultural categories.

The injunction against tobacco and the prescription against the=20
depilation of bodily hair, which we know as the two greatest taboos=20
of Sikh tradition, were the social engineerings of a later date. In=20
early 19th-century Punjab, the naked eye would not have distinguished=20
a Sikh from people of another creed. Thousands of Hindus and Sikhs=20
went on pilgrimages to Muslim shrines. Conversely, it would have=20
taken a very sharp eye to differentiate the daily behaviour patterns=20
of Muslims - including their way of dressing and looking - from those=20
of their non-Muslim neighbours. Even as late as during the 1891=20
census in Punjab, 1.35 million Sikhs declared themselves Hindus. At=20
the installation ceremony of the head of a major Muslim pilgrimage=20
centre in that period, participants in the ceremonial included people=20
from neighbouring faiths.

So how did people who were then loosely part of a loose Punjabi ethos=20
come to adopt radically divergent ways of life and shed all=20
resemblance with each other? Oberoi shows that religion as a=20
systematic unit which demands absolute loyalty and stringently=20
prescribes visible markers of separateness is a relatively new=20
development in India. Even terms such as "Hinduism", "Sikhism" and=20
"Buddhism" were coined as recently as the 19th century.

Sikhism as we know it now came into being with the rise of a group=20
called the Khalsa Sikhs, which gradually exercised sway in the=20
region, and by the end of the 19th century was the undisputed=20
Brahminic elite in Punjab. What the Khalsa, as the dominant group,=20
ordered by way of community identity became religious code and social=20
law. But until these became authoritarian, there was room for great=20
variety. Through the 19th century, Sikhs could belong more freely to=20
sects such as the Udasi, Nirmala, Nanak-panthi, Sahajdhari, Kuka,=20
Nirankari and Sarvaria. As against the Khalsa norm, many of these had=20
neither much time for the respect given by the Khalsa to unshorn hair=20
nor for its zeal in maintaining the other external symbols of being=20
sartorially Sikh.

Over the closing decades of the 19th century the Singh sabha, a=20
wrangling religious body of the Khalsa panth, began to reinvent Sikh=20
tradition and - to use a metaphor much milked by social scientists -=20
"homogenize" all Sikhs. The idea of forging a socially obvious=20
identity resulted in Sikhs looking more and more like each other and=20
less and less like everyone else, to the extent that we do not even=20
conceive a time when they looked rather like the rest of the people=20
in their region.

When Oberoi published his book he was, in fact, hounded by the=20
wealthy immigrant community of Khalsa Sikhs for so clearly=20
demonstrating that their appearance was not divinely ordained but=20
socially invented over a relatively recent historical period. His=20
excellent book, and the recent tragic error in America of confusing a=20
Sikh with an Afghan, both remind us -in their very different ways -=20
of a time when we could have been pardoned for making the same=20
mistake.
=20=20=20=20
______

#11.

THE NATIONAL NET WORK OF SEX WORKERS, INDIA.
The National Network of Sex Workers is a network of sex workers'=20
organisations from West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, kerela, Andhra pradesh,=20
Maharasthra, Orissa, Gujrat and Delhi working for the empowerment of=20
sex workers and improvement of their social, economic and health=20
conditions. There is also the Regional Network of Sex Workers with=20
sex workers organisations and allies from Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri=20
Lanka and Pakistan. The network operates in two -layers. Sex workers'=20
organisations form the core of the network and other organisations=20
working on related issues form the support network.

The NNSW key Objectives
=85 Fundamental Human rights of Sex Workers
=85 Community participation and empowerment through HIV/ AIDS intervention
=85 Decriminalisation of sex work and social acceptance of sex workers

The NNSW believes achieving these key objectives will help the fight=20
against trafficking, violence against women and other injustices and=20
ensure fundamental rights of other sexually, economically and=20
socially mirginalised groups.

The NNSW Activities
=85 HIV/AIDS intervention through community participation
=85 Providing counseling and treatment to HIV positive people
=85 Social marketing of condoms
=85 Anti trafficking activities to prevent entry of minors into the sex=20
trade and prevent abuse and violence
=85 Improvement of sex workers' and their children's quality of life by=20
providing education, health and sanitation facilities, financial=20
security through cooperative societies, vocational training etc.
=85 Promotion of civil rights of sex workers

The NNSW immediate Demands
=85 Self regulatory boards in red light districts to prevent trafficking
=85 Favourable policy by the government to ensure sex workers' human rights
=85 Access to information and basic services like drinking water and=20
sanitation facilities and equal opportunities for education and=20
employment

NNSW believes that only through networking and lobbying right to a=20
life of dignity can be ensured.
NNSW invites all organisations committed to the struggle of human=20
rights of all disadvantaged communities as only such alliances can=20
change power relations and create a more socially just society.

The NNSW Advocacy Centre
NNSW has started an Advocacy Centre to further the objectives and=20
demands mentioned above. The Centre at present is operating with=20
support from the Centre for Feminist Legal Research (CFLR).
An Advocacy Programme Coordinator will be working at
=85 Lobbying and alliance building with the government, media and other=20
sectors for positive policy formulation
=85 Networking with other organisations to strengthen the sex workers movem=
ent
=85 Building public awareness and support for social acceptance of the=20
sex workers' demands and rights

For more information on NNSW activities please contact the Advocacy=20
Programme Coordinator at

Flat 5, 45 Friends' Colony (East) Email : NNSW2001@y...
New Delhi - 110065. Phone: 91-11-6320499/6327303

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