[sacw] SACW #2 (23 August 01)

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Wire / Dispatch No. 2
23 August 2001
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex

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[1.] Pakistan: Council of Islamic Ideology seeks to ban women from=20
seeing male doctors & from having their clothes sewn by men
[2.] India: Why Hindutva Loves "Science"
[3.] India: And Now, they peddle simple spoken Sanskrit
[4.] India ponders its civilisational malaise
[5.] Book Review: Kashmir-How Far Can Vajpayee and Musharraf Go?

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

#1.

Asia Times
August 23, 2001=20=20

A SLAP IN THE FACE FOR PAKISTANI WOMEN

By Muddassir Rizvi

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan's highest Islamic advisory body is the target of=20
ire from rights groups after issuing a pronouncement that seeks to=20
ban women from seeing male doctors and from having their clothes sewn=20
by men.
The rule, published earlier this month in the Urdu-language press,=20
has so infuriated some people that they are questioning the wisdom of=20
having such an institution as the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII).
"We call upon the government to ensure that the CII refrains from=20
formulating moral frameworks for women of Pakistan," reads a press=20
statement signed by dozens of rights groups in the country. "In=20
fact," it continues, "we urge the government to re-examine the=20
rationale and raison d'etre of having the CII at all, and its=20
advisory role."
Others have called on the military government to do away with=20
institutions that they say are retarding development by propagating=20
conservative views that have nothing to do with Islam - but only=20
reflect male chauvinism.
But some observers are advising activist groups to calm down, saying=20
that the CII's decree is not binding on the government. Says Hafiz=20
Azizur Rehman, who specializes in Islamic law, "The CII cannot issue=20
a decree fatwa. Whenever somebody approaches it with an issue, it=20
gives its opinion. The case in point is also an opinion and not=20
decree fatwa."
Others argue, though, that since the CII is a constitutional body,=20
whatever it says has considerable weight. Many were also upset to=20
note that the publication of the "opinion" coincided with a meeting=20
of the National Commission on the Status of Women, convened by two=20
rights groups, Aurat (Women's) Foundation and Shirkat Gah, in=20
Islamabad.
The commission was formed by the military government, headed by=20
President General Pervez Musharraf, to ensure that the voices of=20
women are heard in policy-making and their rights protected.=20
Interestingly enough, among the commission's members is CII chairman=20
S M Zaman, who boycotted the meeting.
An official at the ministry of women's development says, "We have=20
been contacted by some rights groups asking for the removal of the=20
chairperson from the commission. This is a sensitive issue as it may=20
bring the clergy head-on with rights groups."
The CII declaration came as surprise to many people as it follows=20
several decisions by the government that were aimed at promoting=20
women's role in governance and emancipation in all spheres of life.=20
The government has already inducted women ministers in federal and=20
provincial governments. Local polls held on August 2 also yielded=20
thousands of women councillors and at least three women who were=20
elected as district nazim (governors).
Now, many women see the CII declaration as a reminder to all elected=20
women of the odds they have to work against. "This is a typical way=20
of thinking of men to control women, sometimes in the name of=20
traditions and morality and others in the name of religion," says=20
Rukhsana Faiz, who was elected councillor of the Punjab town of=20
Sargodha. "But the only objective is to keep women subservient to=20
their desires."
Seconds Kaneez Zehra, an Islamabad-based consumer rights activist,=20
"The decree is nothing but the reinforcement of the typical mindset=20
of the religious right and the reiteration of their position on the=20
role they perceive for women." Zehra believes the CII's issuance is a=20
direct attack on a woman's right to choose services and service=20
providers. She argues, "Women have the right to be treated by a male=20
gynecologist, just as men can go for treatment to female doctors. In=20
this case the gender is not important, but expertise and competence."
The CII ruling has also irked the medical community, which believes=20
that it has put into question the sacred patient-doctor relationship.=20
Ahmed Sohail, who has a private clinic, says, "When a doctor sees a=20
patient all he cares about is the suffering of the person,=20
disregarding the caste, creed, sex or economic group."
He also says that in the first place the lack of female doctors in=20
suburban and rural areas could pose problems for those trying to=20
comply with the CII's pronouncement. "Not many female doctors go and=20
work in rural areas," says Sohail. "Even in cities, a majority of=20
female doctors do not opt for night shifts because of cultural=20
obligations. The other area is the specialization," he adds. "Not=20
many female doctors are specialists in fields other than gynecology."
Those, however, are not the only concerns covered by the CII=20
pronouncement. According to the council, women should not work in the=20
advertising industry and as airport protocol personnel. While the CII=20
allows women to work as flight attendants and in many other=20
professions, they have to do so wearing veils.
According to official figures, 29 percent of Pakistani women have no=20
real access to healthcare while an alarming 72 percent - as against=20
47 percent of males - are deprived of educational opportunities.
Struggling for the repeal of discriminatory Islamic laws introduced=20
by the military dictator Zia ul Haq 20 years ago, rights groups=20
maintain that spirituality and morality cannot be enforced through=20
legislation and policing, in the manner of Afghanistan's ruling=20
Taliban.
(Inter Press Service)

_________

2.

[Posted below is the original version of the article titled "The=20
Doublespeak of Vedic Science" that appeared in the Week, June 24,=20
2001 - sepcial issue on Lost Science of India.]

WHY HINDUTVA LOVES "SCIENCE"

by Meera Nanda

We can understand why the leading Hindutva ideas-men go around=20
calling themselves "intellectual Kshatriyas": they are at home in a=20
varna-defined world. But the Kshatriyas were only supposed to defend=20
dharma as a way of life. Why, then, are our Kshatriyas so bent=20
upon defending dharma as science? Why is it not enough for them to=20
have pulled off a coup against higher education in India by forcing=20
such absurdities as "Vedic astrology" into the college curricula? Why=20
must they also insist upon declaring astrology, and the entire Vedic=20
tradition, "scientific"?=20
Why this sudden love for "science" in the saffron camp?
We will solve this mystery as we go along. We will also=20
unearth a curious, although entirely unintended alliance between our=20
Vedic warriors and our postmodern Brahmins in universities and social=20
movements, both in India and abroad. We will find that postmodernist=20
condemnations of science and modernity, coupled with uncritical=20
celebration of "local knowledges" have created a climate in which=20
irrationalities of all kinds can thrive.
But first: some friendly advice to help you cope with what lies ahead=8A..
Get over whatever mental blocks you may have against this oxymoron=20
called "Vedic science," which pairs the archaic, mystical and=20
unfalsifiable worldview of the Vedas with science. Put away whatever=20
residual hopes you may still cherish that science could help=20
demystify and liberalize our culture=8A..
Instead, get used to the doublespeak of "Vedic science," for we are=20
going to hear a lot more of it. Be prepared for a flood of books,=20
TV-shows and even new computer programs extolling the virtues of=20
Hindu sciences. After all, big money is behind it: tax-payer's rupees=20
and large grants from private foundations (Hinduja Foundation,=20
Infinity Foundation) are pouring into "research centers" dedicated to=20
showing the scientificity of Hindu scriptures. If you thought that=20
Vedic astrology was merely a personal idiosyncrasy of Murli Manohar=20
Joshi and a handful of UGC bureaucrats, think again!
Everything Vedic - from yagnas to the gods of all things, to=20
reincarnation, karma and parapsychology will make a claim for the=20
status of "science." And everything scientific - from the knowledge=20
of quantum physics, to the laws of molecular biology and ecology -=20
will be declared to be already there in the Vedas. Modern science=20
will be treated as a Western corruption of the non-dualist Vedic=20
sciences which can synthesize science with god, facts with values,=20
etc. Mother India will be called upon to heal the wounds inflicted on=20
the entire world by the "violence" of soul-less modern science.
But - and here the plot begins to thicken - this will not stop the=20
BJP government from acquiring the most violent and the most=20
destructive products of modern science and technology. We are heading=20
toward a schizophrenic national culture in which the technological=20
products of modern science will be eagerly embraced, but the secular=20
culture which science was supposed to help create will be strenuously=20
denied. Instead of a genuine secular culture, which denies the=20
existence of gods in nature and the authority of god-men in culture,=20
the intellectual Kshatriyas are intent on declaring the dharmic=20
worldview, with its nature-gods and miracle-working gurus, to be=20
the essence of a "higher" science and "authentic" secularism.=20
Symptoms of such schizophrenia are already evident:
1. In April 2001, the Indian Space Research Organization made history=20
by successfully putting a satellite into the geo-stationary orbit,=20
36,000 km. above the earth. This same "space power" that takes=20
justified pride in its ability to touch the stars, will soon start=20
educating its youth in how to read our fortunes and misfortunes in=20
the stars and how to propitiate these stars through appropriate=20
karmakanda. For all we know, the satellites launched by the=20
much-celebrated GSLV might some day carry internet signals that will=20
make horoscopes easier to match!
2. The nuclear bomb tests in 1988 were justified and packaged in=20
dharmic terms. Hindu ideologues claimed that the bomb was foretold=20
by Lord Krishna in the Bhagwat Gita when he declared himself to be "=20
the radiance of a thousand suns, the splendor of the Mighty One. ..I=20
am become Death." They celebrated the bomb by invoking gods and=20
goddesses symbolizing shakti and vigyan. Even Ganesha idols turned=20
up with atomic halos around their heads and with guns in their hands!
This is how the secularist dream ends: with nuclear bombs in the=20
silos, and the Vedas in the schools; with satellites in space, and=20
horoscopes in our lives down here on earth.
This secularist nightmare is Hindutva's dream-come-true. From=20
Bankim Chandra to Vivekananda to today's Sangh-parivar, the=20
neo-Hindus have dreamt of uniting the industry and technology of the=20
West with the dharma of India. They have dreamt of a "Hindu=20
modernity" in which technology serves to glorify India's "natural"=20
spirituality.
This Hindu modernity, incidentally, bears a frightening similarity=20
with the reactionary modernism of Hitler's Germany, where high=20
technology was allowed to mix with a highly romanticized dream of=20
recreating an Aryan society. The Nazis, too, assumed that Germany=20
could be both technologically advanced and remain true to its "Aryan=20
soul".
But the Hindu ideologues face the same problem as the Nazis faced:=20
how to reconcile technological modernization with cultural=20
conservatism? How to prevent the science that goes into making the=20
technology from challenging the worldview sanctioned by religion and=20
traditions? The problem is truly serious for Hinduism, because=20
modern science, if taken seriously, can challenge the most=20
fundamental axioms of dharma which are based upon such "laws of=20
nature" as karma, rebirth and hierarchy of beings determined by=20
karmic cause-and-effect. If it is given the cultural authority as a=20
superior way of knowing, modern science has the potential to=20
demystify the hallowed truths of Hinduism itself, to say nothing of=20
the countless miracles and superstitions that are a part of everyday=20
life of average Indians. It is thus imperative for Hindutva that=20
science remains limited to technological gizmos, and does not spill=20
over into the larger culture.
Like the Nazi myth of "Aryan science," Hindutva is in the process of=20
creating a myth of "Vedic science" which can co-opt and absorb modern=20
science into Hindu traditions by simply declaring these traditions to=20
be scientific. Hindutva ideologues argue that just as modern "Western=20
science" is scientific from a Judeo-Christian perspective, Hindu=20
traditions of astrology, yagnas, ayurveda, vastu shastra, Hindu=20
ecology, Hindu meteorology etc. are scientific from a Hindu=20
perspective. Indeed "Vedic science" is declared to be ahead of=20
modern science, as it treats all entities in an integrated whole -=20
never mind that many of its "entities" (atman, the gunas, "hot" and=20
"cold" substances) and "subtle forces" (of mantras, meditation,=20
planets, karma) can't even be defined with any precision, let alone=20
measured and tested empirically with appropriate controls. But "mere"=20
definitions, measurements and controlled tests are declared to be=20
Western. Hindu sciences use "their own" methodology of meditation and=20
direct realization.
So now we know why the saffron Kshatriyas are so keen on defending=20
the Vedic lore as science. This is their way of taming what=20
threatens Hinduism the most, i.e. modern science. Hinduism has always=20
protected itself form the new and the alien by turning it into an=20
inferior aspect of itself, quietly metabolizing it until it is=20
absorbed into the existing belief structure. Turning modern science=20
into just a part of Hindu wisdom is merely a continuation of this=20
classic Hindu tradition of self-defense and self-perpetuation.=20
Hindutva gets a good name for "openness" and "tolerance," while the=20
end-result is as conservative as the Taliban could've hoped for. In=20
the end, the old decides what parts of the new will be fitted where,=20
and what parts will be unceremoniously thrown out. In the end, the=20
old has always won in India.
But there remains a philosophical problem. How to convince the=20
skeptics that the Vedas are as scientific - and indeed, even more=20
"objective" and even more "advanced" - than modern science? Our=20
Kshatriyas need some arguments to back up their bold assertions.
These arguments have been obligingly supplied by the secular,=20
academic critics of modern science and the Enlightenment. The leading=20
trend in sociology of science in the last couple of decades has been=20
to deny that modern science is a distinctive body of knowledge, which=20
has succeeded in attaining higher standards of objectivity and=20
reliability than other, pre-modern, magical-religious ways of=20
understanding nature. Abusing the ideas of Thomas Kuhn and Paul=20
Feyerabend, two well-known scholars of science, radical critics=20
have claimed that non-Western, traditional ways of knowing are as=20
scientific in their social context as modern science is in the=20
Western context.
These ideas have found great favor among prominent left-oriented=20
critics of the West in India associated with a host of populist=20
"alternative science" and "alternative development" movements, with=20
Gandhian, environmentalist, and even some Marxist elements. All=20
these groups believe that the problems of modernization in India=20
stem from the very nature of modern scientific ways of thinking about=20
nature and human beings. They see the content of science - and not=20
just its application - to be Western or Orientalist, and believe that=20
real decolonization will only come with development of indigenous=20
sciences.
Interestingly, Hindutva intellectuals make exactly the same arguments=20
in support of Vedic sciences that abound in the=20
alternative/postmodern science literature. Indeed, they often even=20
cite the same sources (especially the much-maligned late Thomas=20
Kuhn), but only replace "the people" or "the oppressed" with=20
"Hindu" ways of knowing.
Take for example the argument for scientificity of astrology. It is=20
the neo-Gandhian Ashis Nandy and his followers who have long argued=20
that astrology can't be condemned as a superstition. On the strength=20
of the argument that all "ethno-sciences" are equal, and that modern=20
science has no greater claim to objectivity, Nandy has argued that=20
modern science is the myth of the imperialist West, and astrology is=20
the myth of the weak, who are the victims of the West. If that is=20
granted, Nandy argues, the weak should have the right to challenge=20
the "myth" of science.
One finds a similar argument in the Hindutva literature. They=20
criticize scientists for being closed-minded and Westernized for not=20
allowing Hindu science a chance to challenge the Western idea of=20
science, and for writing off astrology without studying it! (One=20
wonders how many more refutations will it take to satisfy the Hindu=20
ideologues? Astrology must the most rigorously falsified body of=20
"knowledge" in the entire history of ideas).=20
The more sophisticated Hindutva advocates, including=20
US-based/returned scientists like Subhash Kak, David Frawley and N.S.=20
Rajaram argue that the conceptual categories and methods of science=20
must be organically connected to the rest of the culture of a=20
society. On this account, different cultures will have different idea=20
of what is reasonable and true: thus, the supernatural is declared to=20
be real and true for Hindu science. This idea that standards and=20
methods of rationality differ with different cultures is borrowed=20
from the postmodernist critiques of science.
Secular intellectuals and progressive social movements, which should=20
have been at the forefront of defending scientific temper, have for=20
too long decried it as a ploy of Westernized elites. At a time when=20
modern science needed to establish its cultural authority so that it=20
could set new norms for public discourse and provide a more rational=20
worldview, it remained besieged from all sides. Ever since the=20
scientific temper debate in early 1980s, which marked the beginning=20
of the end of the Nehruvian consensus over secularism and modernity,=20
there have been very few voices in the public sphere that have=20
actively challenged the many signs of unreason and arbitrary=20
authority in our society. Vedic sciences are only the chickens=20
coming home to roost.
A recovery of secularism will need a recovery of respect for science=20
and scientific temper. The Vedic astrology episode ought to be a=20
wake-up call to all who are concerned about the future of a secular=20
India.
Meera Nanda is a fellow of the American Council of Learned Societies=20
at Columbia University, New York. She is the author of Prophets=20
Facing Backward: Postmodern Critiques of Science and the Rise Of=20
Reactionary Modernism in India, Forthcoming from Rutgers University=20
Press (USA) and Permanent Black (India).

_________

3.

The Hindu
Wednesday, August 22, 2001

NOW, IT IS SIMPLE SPOKEN SANSKRIT

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, AUG. 21. After the controversy over Vedic astrology, the=20
University Grants Commission (UGC) has now come under fire for=20
seeking to recruit teachers for a new course on `simple spoken=20
Sanskrit'.

In an advertisement put out in a recent edition of the Government's=20
Employment News, the agency has sought applications from graduates=20
proficient in spoken Sanskrit for appointment as teachers in the=20
`Simple Sanskrit Speaking Centres' that are to be started by it in=20
various universities and colleges. The centres would conduct=20
certificate courses on a part-time basis to encourage students of any=20
discipline to learn spoken Sanskrit, the advertisement said.

The move has come in for criticism particularly on the ground that=20
recruitment of teachers was not part of the UGC's mandate, as its=20
role was merely that of a funding agency - providing grants to=20
universities.

Mr. Eduardo Faleiro, Congress leader, who made a special mention on=20
the issue in the Rajya Sabha today, said that it was alarming that=20
the UGC was throwing established norms to the wind by inviting=20
applications directly bypassing universities and colleges.

Addressing a press conference, he said the advertisement was silent=20
on the number of teachers to be recruited and it prescribed only=20
graduation as the minimum qualification required.

Charging that it was a clear attempt to help in ``a largescale=20
infiltration of friends of the ruling BJP into academic=20
institutions'', he said that most universities and colleges already=20
had Sanskrit departments and there was absolutely no need for=20
starting the new centres in the present situation of resources crunch.

Mr. Faleiro said several Parliamentarians had come together cutting=20
across party lines to create a forum for education and culture. Its=20
objectives would include efforts to mobilise opinion, both inside and=20
outside Parliament, against moves to misuse education and culture for=20
promoting sectarianism and obscurantism, and to highlight distortions=20
if any in the objectives and functioning of academic and cultural=20
institutions. It would also campaign against moves to privatise=20
higher education.

The forum's activities would include publication of a newsletter and=20
it would maintain a website. It would be inaugurated by the Congress=20
president and Leader of Opposition, Ms. Sonia Gandhi, here tomorrow,=20
he added.

_______

4.

Asia Times Online (atimes.com)
August 17, 2001

INDIA PONDERS ITS CIVILISATIONAL MALAISE

By Sultan Shahin

NEW DELHI - A horror a day is virtually routine in India. The gory=20
spectacle on prime time television of dead bodies lined up after a=20
caste-based massacre do not churn our stomachs; they merely serve as=20
appetizers for a population virtually inured to violence.

But some horrors may be so extreme and so many of them may converge=20
on a day that they start preying on our near-dead consciences,=20
forcing some editorial writers to ruminate on a civilization's=20
malaise. The past few of days have been such a time for India.

Twenty-eight mentally impaired inmates of the Bathusha asylum at=20
Yerwadi town, in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, were burned to=20
death, chained to poles so they could not escape.

This may have happened in distant Tamil Nadu, but similar inhuman=20
forms of "treatment" are given to mentally disabled men and women in=20
asylums all over the country. At Pingla Ashram, in Patiala, in the=20
north Indian state of Punjab, for instance, some 175 destitutes, many=20
of them sick, live in the most abject conditions. Some 20 of them,=20
said to be completely insane and violent, are kept chained to beds or=20
in locked rooms. Others are chained to the trees outside. Tied to=20
their beds and trees, they defecate and eat where they are held.

Similarly, close door to Delhi, in the state of Rajasthan, as the=20
Indian Express reports, "kill-or-cure" treatments are given to the=20
mentally disabled. Some vignettes follow. A group of women stand=20
immersed in a concrete tank. They are performing the kundiwala bhog,=20
both bathing in and drinking the filthy, urine-laced water. A woman=20
with matted hair crouches over a nearby garbage heap, collecting=20
scattered grains of puffed rice. Another squats over a basket of dung=20
cakes whose smoke she has to inhale for hours.

At Alinagar Ka Majra village in the north Indian state of Uttar=20
Pradesh (UP), family members and villagers hanged a 20-year-old=20
youth, Vishal (an upper-caste Brahmin) and his 18-year old beloved,=20
Sonu (from the backward Jat caste) as they belonged to different=20
castes and had been caught talking to each other.

Rajwinder Kaur Matharu, a 26-year-old widow, testified before a=20
Mumbai court against her parents because they had allegedly murdered=20
her husband and in-laws, on the grounds that they belonged to a=20
"lower caste".

In a caste-based gang war, 18 members of a backward caste (which=20
incidentally rules the eastern state of Bihar) criminal gangs were=20
reportedly poisoned to death by an upper-caste gang at Pachbighia=20
village in Bihar.

Horrors emanating from the northern Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir=20
are even more routine - four separate massacres of civilian groups=20
took place in four different places in a week, killing more than 50=20
civilians.

Given the relentless horrors, even hardened souls despair. And what=20
has shocked some observers even more is Home Minister L K Advani's=20
response. He proclaimed in parliament that security forces had=20
achieved "success after success after success" in the past three=20
months. The militants' body count, according to him, is the index of=20
success - 217 were killed in the month of June and 233 in July.

While most politicians are not bothered with reports of death - other=20
than the killings in Jammu and Kashmir - most newspapers have tried=20
to focus the nation's attention on the gruesome goings-on. The main=20
thrust of their arguments is that both the central and state=20
governments, as well as other concerned agencies, have been aware for=20
some time of the plight of the mentally ill in the country. Almost=20
all of them have cited a report given a year ago by an expert panel=20
from the Institute of Mental Health that chronicles the unhealthy=20
conditions in which the mentally disabled are treated. A survey of=20
mental asylums in Yerwadi was conducted by the Tamil Nadu State=20
Mental Health Authority. Its report gave a graphic account of the=20
conditions that prevailed there, but the findings were not made=20
public and never acted upon.

It is clear from both these and other reports that all laws have been=20
flagrantly violated by the authorities for many decades. Expressing=20
great indignation, India's second-largest circulated daily, the=20
Indian Express, points out that in the early Nineties, the Supreme=20
Court, responding to a writ petition, intervened to end the practice=20
of throwing the mentally ill into jail after it came to light that 19=20
non-criminal mental patients had died in Kolkata's Dum Dum central=20
prison in 1991.

The government-administered facilities that exist are clearly=20
inadequate, both in terms of infrastructure and resources. Many=20
states have not even bothered to set up a state mental health=20
authority as they are required to do under the Mental Health Act.=20
According to one calculation, less than 20 percent of districts in=20
the country have a psychiatrist in public service.

On the issue of the murder of young lovers from different castes by=20
their own parents, the Indian Express predicts that "the killers of=20
Sonu and Vishal will in all probability escape unscathed, just as=20
hundreds of others guilty of such crimes in villages of Haryana, UP=20
and Punjab have, because of the unwritten law that if one person=20
kills another he or she becomes a murderer, but if many are guilty of=20
the same crime, they are considered innocent".

All this prompts India's largest circulated newspaper, The Times of=20
India, to address the country's apathy. If the manner in which a=20
civilization treats those it condemns to the margins is any=20
indication of its moral well-being, it says, then there are reasons=20
to be gravely concerned about the anemic health of ours.

"The problem, verily, goes to the core of our identity as a=20
civilisational entity, not to mention a modern nation-state. For far=20
too long, we have allowed ourselves to revel in a false and inflated=20
sense of nationalist pride. This attitude of contrived smugness has=20
not just impelled many to cynically rewrite our history but it has=20
also blinded us from critically reflecting on our present. The=20
tragedy of Yerwadi is simply a logical extension of that apathy and=20
indifference. Be it alternative sexuality or physical handicap,=20
blatant caste consciousness or gender discrimination, our moral=20
sensibilities today are invariably colored by our nationalistic=20
pretensions. Little wonder, our politicians will not tire of=20
righteously reminding us that in the tolerant Indian ethos the whole=20
world is but a family - vasudaiva kutumbakam. Not realizing the irony=20
that a family which treats its own with such cavalier disregard is=20
not worth the noble name."

The Indian Express, however, is more down-to-earth, "It is precisely=20
because scoundrels take the law into their own hands in the name of=20
caste and community honor that they are allowed to get away every=20
time and that caste killings of this kind proliferate. It is because=20
village panchayats [councils] are allowed to pass judgments in=20
sentencing 'errant' couples to the most horrible punishment from=20
humiliation to excommunication to death, although they have no legal=20
right to do so, that such pernicious practices have almost become the=20
norm.

"Although there is clear evidence of the most horrible human rights=20
violations occurring as a consequence, the state has strangely been=20
loath to take quick action. The reason for this is not hard to seek.=20
Many of these caste-based communities enjoy the protection of=20
powerful political interests, which is why it is even more important=20
that those responsible for the deaths of Sonu and Vishal are brought=20
to book."

The Indian situation, however, is not so simple. The blame cannot be=20
put merely on corruption and lethargy of the administration. Nor can=20
it be explained as the crisis of Indian civilization alone. What has=20
been going on for the past 50 years of independence is a veritable=20
clash of civilizations, Indian and Western, with neither making an=20
effort at dialogue.

It was with the advent of British colonialism that interference in=20
the Indian civilisational norms began. But the British were quite=20
circumspect, and apart from tinkering with India's social laws here=20
and there, such as banning the practice of sati - the burning of the=20
widow on her husband's funeral pyre, for instance - they left Indian=20
civilization intact.

But since India's freedom movement was waged largely by a=20
Western-educated elite, the post-independence Indian constitution was=20
framed by them. It is an amalgam of ideas and laws taken from the=20
American and European constitutions, and it is not in consonance with=20
India's age-old ethos and its common laws.

No wonder, then, India has nothing but contempt for these laws and=20
considers them merely an inconvenience. Those charged with the task=20
of implementing these laws, barring the few Western-educated elite at=20
the top, also feel nothing but contempt. It is not without reason=20
that the Indian judiciary has to hide behind the laws, dishing out=20
stringent punishment for contempt of court day in and day out.

The problem with the Western-educated elite is that unlike the=20
British, it considers itself representative of India and thus=20
entitled to impose its laws. This is why it has never tried to=20
propagate the superiority of the Western civilization and convert=20
Indians to their ways of thinking. It merely wants to impose its laws.

If this elite were to have its way, however, almost 90 percent of=20
Indians would have to be imprisoned and many of them given death=20
sentences. The need of the hour is dialogue between the two=20
civilizations, and the onus is largely on the modern Western-educated=20
elite who should be able to understand the problem.

They should listen to the sound bytes of Sonu and Vishal's parents=20
and the hundreds of villagers who witnessed their murder. Sonu's=20
father told a television channel, "It may be wrong in the eyes of the=20
law, but we have done no wrong in the eyes of the society."

A deeper understanding of this dichotomy is needed, and the educated=20
elite alone can initiate the dialogue required.

(c)2001 Asia Times Online Co, Ltd. All rights reserved.

_______

5.

Book Review

Name of the Book: Kashmir-How Far Can Vajpayee and Musharraf Go?
Editor: Karan R. Sawhney
Publisher: Peace Publications, S-123 Panchshila Park, New=20
Delhi-110017 [email: peacepubs@y...]
Year: 2001
Pages: 240
Price: Rs.250
ISBN: 81-87345-00-4
Reviewed by: Yoginder Sikand

After what is widely believed to have been a fiasco at Agra,=20
India and Pakistan are back to where they started, with neither=20
country seeming willing to budge from its hardline position on=20
Kashmir. Yet, as is increasingly becoming clear, and as this book=20
seeks to assert, a willingness to compromise on Kashmir is essential=20
if the two countries are to at all make any headway in improving=20
their bilateral relations. But, given that both Musharraf and=20
Vajpayee are ultimately constrained by domestic public opinion, how=20
far can they actually move in inching towards peace? This is what the=20
contributors to the book=97almost thirty scholars, journalists,=20
political activists and social workers, from India and Pakistan and=20
from both parts of Kashmir---deal with from a variety of perspectives.
This book is the outcome of a seminar held at Gurgaon last=20
year, in which several leading activists from India and Pakistan and=20
both parts of Kashmir participated. In his opening chapter, Sawhney,=20
director of the Delhi-based International Centre for Peace=20
Initiatives, insists that dialogue is the only way out to resolve the=20
Kashmir issue. All three sides to the dispute=97India, Pakistan and the=20
Kashmiris=97must understand that the use of violent means can only=20
result in further destruction, and can only make the chances of=20
settling the Kashmir dispute even more remote. This stress on=20
dialogue as the only way out is also echoed in the other=20
contributions to this book, including, surprisingly enough, in a=20
short message by the Amir of the Jama=92at-e-Islami of Kashmir, Ghulam=20
Muhammad Bhat.
Clearly, as several contributors assert, the primary=20
responsibility of resolving the dispute rests with the governments of=20
both countries. The willingness to dialogue, they seem to suggest,=20
must be accompanied by a willingness to compromise, else, like the=20
Agra summit, future dialogue efforts would be doomed to failure.=20
Amitabh Mattoo, director of the Core Group for the Study of National=20
Security, suggests that in addition to talks with Pakistan, India=20
also start dialoguing with Kashmiri militant groups. This, he says,=20
may not be restricted to options within the Indian Constitution,=20
although he does suggest the possibility of converting the Line of=20
Control into the international border as a solution to the dispute.=20
However, he says, all sections of opinion among the people of Jammu=20
and Kashmir must be consulted in coming to any final decision--from=20
all regions, ethnic groups and religious communities, Those who make=20
the loudest noises are not necessarily the most representative=20
leaders, after all. In addition, he says, the Indian state must=20
consider providing full autonomy to Kashmir, respecting its unique=20
cultural identity of Kashmiriyat, promoting civil society initiatives=20
for peace and curbing human rights violations. With the cessation of=20
violence, the Kashmiri Pandits must also be encouraged to return to=20
their homes. The same appeal for dialogue and peace is made by=20
several other writers, including Justice Rajinder Sachar, former=20
president of the Peoples=92 Union for Civil Liberties, Alexander Evans=20
of Centre for Defence Studies, London, and Tahir Mohideenn of the=20
Srinagar based Urdu weekly 'Chattan'. Much of what they have to say=20
is the same, with little new information which regular newspaper=20
readers would not already know.
Perhaps the more interesting contributions in this volume are=20
those that provide an understanding of many Kashmiris and Pakistanis=20
see the Kashmir issue and the possibility of its ultimate resolution.=20
Sikand, for instance, shows how the discourse of the Kashmiri=20
movement has undergone a noticeable transformation in the last=20
decade, with advocates of Kashmiri nationalism being increasingly=20
marginalised by pan-Islamist militants, such as the=20
Lashkar-e-Tayyeba, seeking to impose their own agendas. Mumtaz Khan,=20
organiser of the Canada-based United Kashmir National Peoples=92 Party,=20
opines that while militant Islamists have indeed been greatly=20
strengthened in recent years, moves towards peace are gradually=20
isolating them from the general public, weary as it is of the=20
seemingly never-ending conflict in which the Islamists are now one of=20
the major actors. Furthermore, as the Pakistani commentators Akbar=20
Zaidi, Assef Ahmed Ali, Khalid Ahmed, Zaffar Abbas, Ejaz Haider and=20
Ayesha Siddiqa-Agha suggest in their own contributions, many=20
Pakistanis, too, are increasingly veering round to the conclusion=20
today that military involvement in Kashmir has won for their country=20
even greater international isolation, internal strife, economic=20
chaos, sectarian militancy and the spread of the now pervasive 'gun=20
culture', without any tangible benefits accruing to the people of=20
Kashmir.
The book concludes with a lengthy resolution passed at the=20
end of the seminar whose papers are included in this volume. The=20
resolution calls for an immediate halt to violence, respect for human=20
rights and pluralism and a solution of the vexed Kashmir dispute in=20
accordance with the will of the people of the region.
For a general understanding of the background and intricacies=20
of the Kashmir dispute this book provides little new information. Its=20
chief merit lies elsewhere=97in the earnestness with which its many=20
distinguished contributors appeal for dialogue and compromise, peace=20
and sanity. For, as Shabbir Shah, chairman of the Jammu and Kashmir=20
Democratic Freedom Party, writes in his message which is included in=20
the book, 'Let bygones be bygones' let the bitter past be forgotten=20
in a generous manner and positive concrete measures be taken to=20
resolve the Kashmir dispute=85.through a process of dialogue involving=20
all the concerned parties.'. This, he says, "is the only way to=20
peace", the only alternative being war and destruction, drowning all=20
of South Asia into never-ending strife.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

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