[sacw] SACW | 5 Feb. 02

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Wire - Dispatch | 5 February 2002

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

#1. India Pakistan Arms Race & Militarisation Watch (IPARMW) # 64 | 05 Feb =
2002
#2. Motion in British Parliament regarding India Pakistan
#3. America and Anti-Americans (Salman Rushdie)
#4. All things to all people - The dilemma of being India's Musharraf=20
(Mani Shankar Aiyar)
#5. Press Release by All India Secular Forum
#6. WTC debris lands in India: Greens, Unions Concerned Over Contaminatio=
n

________________________

#1.

India Pakistan Arms Race & Militarisation Watch (IPARMW) # 64
05 February 2002
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IPARMW/message/75

______

#2.

Motion in British Parliament regarding India Pakistan
http://edm.ais.co.uk/weblink/html/motion.html/ref=3D633

_____

#3.

The New York Times
February 4, 2002

America and Anti-Americans

By SALMAN RUSHDIE

LONDON -- They told us it would be a long, ugly struggle, and so it=20
is. America's war against terror has entered its second phase, a=20
phase characterized by the storm over the status and human rights of=20
the prisoners held at Camp X-Ray and by the frustrating failure of=20
the United States to find Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar.=20
Additionally, if America now attacks other countries suspected of=20
harboring terrorists it will almost certainly do so alone. In spite=20
of the military successes, America finds itself facing a broader=20
ideological adversary that may turn out to be as hard to defeat as=20
militant Islam: anti-Americanism, which is presently becoming more=20
evident everywhere.

The good news is that these post- Taliban days are bad times for=20
Islamist fanatics. Dead or alive, Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar=20
look like yesterday's men, unholy warriors who forced martyrdom on=20
others while running for the hills themselves. Also, if the=20
persistent rumors are to be believed, the fall of the terrorist axis=20
in Afghanistan may well have prevented an Islamist coup against=20
President Pervez Musharraf in Pakistan, led by the more Taliban-like=20
elements in the armed forces and intelligence services =97 people like=20
the terrifying General Hamid Gul. And President Musharraf, no angel=20
himself, has been pushed into arresting the leaders of the Kashmiri=20
terrorist groups he used to encourage.

Around the world, the lessons of the American action in Afghanistan=20
are being learned. Jihad is no longer quite as cool an idea as it was=20
last fall.

States under suspicion of giving succor to terrorism have suddenly=20
been trying to make nice, even going so far as to round up a few bad=20
guys. Iran has accepted the legitimacy of the new Afghan government.=20
Even Britain, a state which has been more tolerant of Islamist=20
fanaticism than most, is beginning to distinguish between resisting=20
"Islamophobia" and providing a safe haven for some of the worst=20
people in the world.

America did, in Afghanistan, what had to be done, and did it well.=20
The bad news, however, is that these successes have not won new=20
friends for the United States outside Afghanistan. In fact, the=20
effectiveness of the American campaign may have made some parts of=20
the world hate America more than they did before. Critics of the=20
Afghan campaign in the West are enraged because they have been shown=20
to be wrong at every step: no, American forces weren't humiliated the=20
way the Russians had been; and yes, the air strikes did work; and no,=20
the Northern Alliance didn't massacre people in Kabul; and yes, the=20
Taliban did crumble away like the hated tyrants they were, even in=20
their southern strongholds; and no, it wasn't that difficult to get=20
the militants out of their cave fortresses; and yes, the various=20
factions succeeded in putting together a new government that seems to=20
have broad support among the people.

Meanwhile, those elements in the Arab and Muslim world who blame=20
America for their own feelings of political impotence are feeling=20
more impotent than ever. As always, anti- American radicalism feeds=20
off widespread anger over the plight of the Palestinians, and it=20
remains true that nothing would undermine the fanatics' propaganda=20
more completely than an acceptable settlement in the Middle East.

However, even if that settlement were arrived at tomorrow, anti-=20
Americanism would probably not abate. It has become too useful a=20
smokescreen for Muslim nations' many defects =97 their corruption,=20
their incompetence, their oppression of their citizens, their=20
economic, scientific and cultural stagnation. America-hating has=20
become a badge of identity, making possible a chest- beating,=20
flag-burning rhetoric of word and deed that makes men feel good. It=20
contains a strong streak of hypocrisy, hating most what it desires=20
most, and elements of self- loathing. ("We hate America because it=20
has made of itself what we cannot make of ourselves.") What America=20
is accused of =97 closed- mindedness, stereotyping, ignorance =97 is also=20
what its accusers would see if they looked into a mirror.

These days there seem to be as many of these accusers outside the=20
Muslim world as inside it. Anybody who has visited Britain and=20
Europe, or followed the public conversation there during the past=20
five months, will have been struck, even shocked, by the depth of=20
anti-American feeling among large segments of the population. Western=20
anti-Americanism is an altogether more petulant phenomenon than its=20
Islamic counterpart and far more personalized. Muslim countries don't=20
like America's power, its "arrogance," its success; but in the=20
non-American West, the main objection seems to be to American people.=20
Night after night, I have found myself listening to Londoners'=20
diatribes against the sheer weirdness of the American citizenry. The=20
attacks on America are routinely discounted. ("Americans only care=20
about their own dead.") American patriotism, obesity, emotionality,=20
self-centeredness: these are the crucial issues.

It would be easy for America, in the present climate of hostility, to=20
fail to respond to constructive criticism, or worse: to start acting=20
like the overwhelming superpower it is, making decisions and throwing=20
its weight around without regard for the concerns of what it=20
perceives as an already hostile world. The treatment of the Camp=20
X-Ray detainees is a worrying sign. Secretary of State Colin Powell's=20
reported desire to determine whether, under the Geneva Convention,=20
these persons should be considered prisoners of war was a=20
statesmanlike response to global pressure =97 but Mr. Powell has=20
apparently failed to persuade President Bush and Donald Rumsfeld.

The Bush administration has come a long way from its treaty-smashing=20
beginnings. It should not abandon consensus-building now. Great power=20
and great wealth are perhaps never popular, yet, more than ever, we=20
need the United States to exercise its power and economic might=20
responsibly. This is not the time to ignore the rest of the world and=20
decide to go it alone. To do so would be to risk losing after you've=20
won.

Salman Rushdie is the author of ``Fury: A Novel'' and the forthcoming=20
essay collection ``Step Across This Line.''

_____

#4.

Indian Express
Tuesday, February 05, 2002

All things to all people
The dilemma of being India's Musharraf

Mai Shankar Aiyar

Musharraf and Vajpayee are caught, each on the horns of the same=20
dilemma: how to kick from under them the ladder which took them to=20
their present eminence without themselves falling off the top rung.=20
In Pakistan, since at least the time of Zia-ul-Haq, the terrorists=20
trained for one task have found it easiest to turn their terror on=20
their creators. The Kalashnikov culture has converted Karachi from=20
the pleasant little city I once knew into the hotbed of hate it has=20
now become. The irony did not end with the death of Zia in a=20
mysterious air accident, very possibly engineered by one of the=20
homicidal spiritual movements he had patronised in the name of=20
Islamisation. Till the conclusion of the civil wars in Afghanistan,=20
the energies of these homegrown terrorists could be concentrated=20
substantially on foreign lands. But once Afghanistan was talibanised,=20
the terrorists had nowhere to practice their skills more expertly=20
than in Pakistan itself.

One solution pursued by the ISI was to export the terrorists to=20
Kashmir. But not enough could get across - or be persuaded to go.=20
With the result that far more of their terrorists are engaged in=20
hostilities with the Pakistan state than with India. The immediate=20
task for Musharraf has been to disarm his terrorists before they get=20
him. It, therefore, did not surprise me that Musharraf was only=20
minutes behind Jaswant Singh in declaring his undying loyalty to the=20
American cause. For the war on Osama gave him the cutting edge over=20
his own terrorists. Thus American pressure on Musharraf to show=20
himself the Ataturk of 21st century Pakistan was exactly what=20
Musharraf needed to fulfill the priority item on his own agenda since=20
the coup of October 1999, while winning from the Americans, for=20
himself and his country, some hugely remunerative brownie points.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Islamic terrorists see Musharraf as the main hurdle in their path,=20
just as the VHP and its myriad sympathisers see Vajpayee as the main=20
hurdle in their path
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Musharraf's problem is that he has to defang Islamic terrorism while=20
avowing the very objectives for which such terrorism exists in the=20
first place. To laud what the terrorists seek to secure while=20
depriving them of the means they use to do so is the circle he has to=20
square. Vajpayee's dilemma is no different. He is of the RSS, shares=20
their assumptions, is at one with them in their goals, depends on=20
them for ideological inspiration as much as for political=20
achievement, and has no differences with them over the ultimate aim -=20
which is the establishment of a Hindu Rashtra.

It was his comrade-in-arms for the last five decades, Lal Krishna=20
Advani, who converted the minor movement over Ayodhya into a=20
nation-wide crusade against Islam. Vajpayee was not a step behind any=20
knickerwallah in treating Ram Bhakti as the litmus test of=20
patriotism. His doubts were about the effectiveness of the means=20
employed by Advani to advance their common goal. It was an argument=20
over tactics, not over objectives. As a practicing RSS acolyte,=20
Vajpayee wants the Ram Mandir as avidly as any Bajrang Dali.

As prime minister of a shaky coalition, however, he knows that it is=20
either Ram or his gaddi. So, he says one thing today and quite=20
another tomorrow. He wants to be all things to all men: sweetly=20
reasonable to the secular middle-class, dedicatedly Hindu nationalist=20
to his own kind. Ideally, he would like the sants and sadhus to=20
endorse him. Not taken in, they want him to endorse them. Nothing=20
would please him more than a smile from Acharya Giriraj Kishore. But=20
to induce a smile out of the Acharya, Vajpayee would have to kiss=20
goodbye to Race Course Road. So he draws what comfort he can from the=20
Vishwa Hindu Parishad saying one day they have no desire to see the=20
last of the Vajpayee government and just 24 hours later insisting=20
that it is all one to them whether Vajapyee stays or goes, they must=20
have their mandir come March 12, hell, heaven or high water. And so=20
keen is their appetite for confrontation that their abuse of Vajpayee=20
from their platform makes this column sound like a paean of praise in=20
his honour.

Musharraf and Vajpayee are existential victims of the same dilemma.=20
Both need to repudiate their respective constituencies to pursue=20
their other objectives and remain in power. Their constituencies,=20
however, are loathe to accept that their role is to serve the=20
master's purpose only to be discarded when they no longer serve that=20
purpose. Their dedication to their narrow goals is just as=20
deep-rooted, possibly more, than the mukhautas they have thus far=20
worn. So, the internecine struggle assumes complementary dimensions:=20
the Islamic terrorists see Musharraf as the main hurdle in their=20
path, just as the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and its myriad sympathisers=20
across the spectrum of the sangh parivar, including the BJP, see=20
Vajpayee as the main hurdle in their path.

Therefore, every rejection by Musharraf or Vajpayee of the fanatics=20
they have nurtured is followed quickly by sops to prevent themselves=20
becoming victims of their own creation. Musharraf has the better=20
chance of surviving politically because he runs an efficient,=20
imaginative and supple dictatorship, but a worse chance of surviving=20
physically because the weapons he has supplied the terrorists are=20
quite as effective as the big stick he carries himself.

Vajpayee can keep the VHP dangling so long as the numbers on his side=20
in the ranks of BJP MPs remain larger rather than smaller. At the=20
same time, he has to keep the most marginal of his NDA partners=20
satisfied that he is not reverting on Ayodhya from the NDA agenda to=20
the BJP back-burner. To this end, he has tasked the most discredited=20
member of his government, George Fernandes, who is as reviled outside=20
the NDA as he is adored within, to keep the partners on leash, while=20
the RSS boss-men keep the BJP treasury benches whipped into line.=20
However, the NDA partners are such an opportunistic lot that it is=20
not Vajpayee's fate but their estimation of their own which will=20
determine whether they follow George or abandon him. As for the BJP=20
MPs, so long as Vajpayee looks like he will survive, they will be=20
there - albeit without enthusiasm, but if Advani decides that this is=20
the moment of his tryst with destiny, the BJP will split down the=20
middle and the nation will find itself back at the hustings. The=20
struggle is between the True Believers and the Faint Believers. The=20
jehad against the kafirs within the sangh parivar is gaining=20
momentum. It has penetrated the restive ranks of the BJP. I think it=20
would be prudent to begin preliminary preparations for the 14th Lok=20
Sabha elections

______

#5.

Rashtriaya Secular Manch

(All India Secular Forum)
Mumbai Office-C/o CSSS, 9-B, Himalaya Apts., 6th Rd. Santacruz (E),
Mumbai:- 400 055
Ph 6630085, 6149668, Fax: 022-6173624, e-mail csss@v...
______________________________________________________________________
Patron Date: 04-02-2002
Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer
(Bombay)

Convener
Lajja Shankar Hardenia Office: 45 Bangalows, Journalist
colony,
Bhopal Bhopal (M.P.)

Press Release
---

Recently (On 29th of January), while deposing before the Liberhan
Commission, the Home Minister Mr. L.K. Advani said that Sikh riots were
worse that the Babri demolition. We are deeply shocked about this
comparison between the two tragedies, the grading of social misery in such
a casual manner. What are the parameters to compare the crimes against
people whose only crime is their belonging to a particular religion.
Anti-Sikh pogroms followed the murder of Indira Gandhi in which thousands
of innocent Sikhs were mercilessly butchered. In the wake of Babri
demolition, communal violence followed in Mumbai, Bhopal, Surat and many
other places in which again thousands of innocents lost their lives. Both
these episodes are condemnable as the victims of these acts were mostly
innocents and they were done to death as an aftermath of politically
motivated actions. Advani's attempt in projecting Anti-Sikh riots as worse
than Post Babri riots seem to be a clever political ploy to distract the
attention from the violence which took place because of the Ramjanmbhumi
campaign, lead by his own self. Every crime against the innocents is
equally condemnable. And this selective condemnation is due to the
political motives of Mr. Advani, whose role in Babri demolition is being
investigated. Needless to say this demolition had the political goals due
to which Nation witnessed the regular outburst of violence. From Rath
Yatra to Post Demolition phase, communal violence has been a painful
nightmare for the country. Rath Yatra left a trail of blood in its
aftermath and its culmination came with the Mumbai riots in which close to
a thousand innocent, poor people lost their lives, 80% of them being
Muslims. Both these acts require equal condemnation. We condemn Mr, Advani
for his efforts to undermine the tragedy of Post Babri violence by his
shedding 'selective tears' for Anti-Sikh pogroms.

Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer Lajjashankar Hardenia Dr. Ram Puniyani
(Patron) (National Convener) (Editor-Newsletter)

______

#6.

GREENPEACE INDIA PRESS RELEASE

WTC debris lands in India: Greens, Unions Concerned Over Contamination

04 February, 2002, New Delhi/Mumbai-At least 30,000 tonnes of scrap=20
from the World Trade Center wreckage has been exported from the=20
United States to Sabari Exim Pvt Ltd of Manali, Chennai. Concerns=20
over the potential contamination of the steel scrap has alarmed=20
trade union and environmental groups in India and the United States=20
who say that uninformed workers may be exposed to the harmful=20
toxins while handling the scrap. If the rest of the debris at=20
Ground Zero is any indication, it cannot be ruled out that the WTC=20
scrap may be contaminated with cancer-causing asbestos,=20
polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins, furans, mercury, lead=20
and other heavy metals. Greenpeace calls for an immediate=20
investigation into whether the shipments are contaminated and a=20
halt to further moving of the scrap until it is proven that the=20
shipments are entirely safe for the workers handling it and the=20
environment.

"We admit that the steel scrap may not at all be contaminated. But=20
it is better to be safe than sorry, and the burden of proving that=20
the scrap is safe is on the US exporter and Government," said=20
Manu Gopalan, Greenpeace's Toxics Campaigner in India.

Greenpeace, PUCL (Tamil Nadu-Pondicherry) and the Central trade=20
unions such as CITU, HMS and AITUC have written to the US embassy=20
demanding an investigation into the matter. They have also=20
condemned the US Government for its "continued inaction" in=20
stemming the export of wastes and scraps to industrializing=20
countries and have called it "a consistent pattern in keeping with=20
USA's tacit, if not active, support for toxic trade."
"We're totally opposed to the US and other rich countries using=20
India as a dumping ground for all kinds of wastes and rejects. Such=20
dumping of steel scraps are adversely affecting the major steel=20
plants in our country, apart from causing whole environment and=20
health problems" said the Secretary of Centre of Indian Trade=20
Unions from New Delhi.
"We demand that the US Government immediately provide evidence that=20
the steel scrap sent to India was free of contamination by=20
furnishing analytical reports that prove the absence of asbestos=20
dust/fibres, polychlorinated biphenyls, dioxins/furans, cadmium,=20
mercury and other toxins. In the event that your evidence points=20
to contamination, we hope you will live up to the memory of those=20
killed in the September 11 disaster and arrange for the re-export=20
to the US of the steel scrap already sent to India," the groups=20
said in their letter to the US embassy and copied to the Ministry=20
of Environment & Forests.

Although steel scrap is legal trade, the conditions under which the=20
scrap at the World Trade Center was created raises concerns about=20
toxic contamination. "This is not ordinary steel scrap. Everything=20
in the World Trade Center, from the mercury-containing tube lights,=20
the carcinogenic asbestos insulation, PVC articles, and computers=20
were incinerated after 91,000 liters of jet fuel ignited in the=20
buildings," said Mr.E.Deenadayalan, of the New Delhi based=20
organisation, The Other Media. "If the WTC debris were safe, why=20
would the American fire- workers who are clearing up the site be=20
dressed up in full-body protection and gas masks?"

The WTC site from where the steel scrap was extracted is sought to=20
be characterized as a Superfund (highly contaminated) site owing to=20
the elevated levels of poisonous substances found there. There are=20
no safe levels of exposure to cancer-causing substances like=20
asbestos, PCBs and dioxins, and toxic metals like cadmium, mercury=20
and lead. Also, like cadmium and mercury, once ingested or inhaled,=20
they resist degradation or excretion and tend to build up to=20
dangerous levels in the body over the long run.

Attempts by citizens' groups in Chennai to get the Port Authorities=20
and the Chennai Customs to take action on the matter seem to have=20
failed as well. "Port and customs authorities in Chennai have=20
remained insular to any attempts on the part of citizens' groups to=20
seek information and action. In fact, they seem more intent on=20
passing the buck to each other rather than conduct a real=20
investigation into whether or not the scrap is contaminated," said=20
Chennai-based advocate and activist T. Mohan.

The first consignment of the scrap arrived in early January onboard=20
a Maltese vessel Brozna. Two other ships, Shen Quan Hai and Pindos,=20
have subsequently arrived with a cargo of "scrap." While the=20
latter two are suspected of carrying WTC scrap, no confirmation has=20
yet been possible. Pindos is reportedly berthed in Chennai Port=20
and is slated to sail on 7 February.

For more information, contact:
Doris Rao, Mumbai-0-9820190278 Email: doris.rao@d...
Manu Gopalan, New Delhi. 011-6536716. Email:=20
manu.gopalan@d...
Website: http://www.greenpeaceindia.org

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

SACW is an informal, independent & non-profit citizens wire service run by
South Asia Citizens Web (http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex) since 1996. To=20
subscribe send a blank
message to: <act-subscribe@yahoogroups.com> / To unsubscribe send a blank
message to: <act-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com>
________________________________________
DISCLAIMER: Opinions expressed in materials carried in the posts do not
necessarily reflect the views of SACW compilers.