[sacw] SACW | 11 Jan. 03

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Wire | 11 January 2003

CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY -- GUJARAT 2002: A report on the=20
investigations, findings and recommendations of the Concerned=20
Citizens' Tribunal
on http://www.sabrang.com.

FOREIGN EXCHANGE OF HATE- IDRF and the American Funding of Hindutva
A report on the US-based organization -- the India Development and=20
Relief Fund (IDRF), which has systematically funded Hindutva=20
operations in India.
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex/2002/FEH/

__________________________

#1. Announcement: Program on South Asian Women in International=20
Security - 2003-2004
#2. Upcoming Seminar: Religious Mobilisation and Organised Violence=20
in Contemporary South Asia
#3. I, you, us (Kamal Haasan)
#4. Trade Has No Religion - Mr and Mrs Iyer foregrounds the relations=20
among Indians of various faiths (Ramachandra Guha)
#5. Important New Book
- Preface - The Gift of a Daughter: Encounters with Victims of Dowry=20
by Subhadra Butalia
- These Ladies Are Not For Burning (Khushwant Singh)

__________________________

#1.

DEADLINE for Applications Receipt: March 31, 2003

ANNOUNCEMENT
THE JOHN HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies
School of Advanced International Studies
SOUTH ASIA FORD FELLOWSHIP:
'SOUTH ASIAN WOMEN IN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY'
Academic Year 2003-2004

South Asian Women in International Security (SAWIS) offers an academic base
for professional women working
in the subcontinent to engage in study and research in the areas of peace,
security and international affairs.

The program is geared to helping women increase their capacity to play a
role in the political discourse of their respective countries and
transnationally commensurate with their potential to effect change. The SAW=
IS
program is designed to offer a vehicle for the development of leadership,
participation, visibility and networking in the areas of peace, security,
conflict-management, international affairs and human rights.
For those interested in applying for the Master of International Public
Policy (MIPP) SAWIS program invites
applications for the academic year 2003-2004, for professional women from
South Asia with the following
qualifications:

Applicants must be citizens of: Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri
Lanka, or the Maldives, and current residents of one of those countries.

Applicants must have nine years of work experience in traditional or
non-traditional areas of international security.

Applicants must have English language proficiency.

The MIPP program is intended for mid career professionals in a field
related to international security who desire a year of intensive study in
the international relations, international economics or some combination of
the sub fields of these disciplines. The details are available at the SAIS
website: www.sais-jhu.edu/programs.

For those interested in applying for the Visiting Fellow program, at SAIS
for a limited term of 3-6 months
SAWIS program invites applicants with the above qualifications, less the
work experience requirement.

Applicants must have a graduate degree and have published work in their
field. They must also submit a detailed written proposal with work plans
for the duration of the program.

DEADLINE for Receipt of Applications: March 31, 2003
For further information contact:
Nilofer Afridi-Qazi
Program Coordinator, South Asian Women in Security
John Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies
Foreign Policy Institute
1619 Massachusetts Avenue NW
Washington DC 20036, USA
Tel: 202 663 5729
Fax: 202 663 5769
Email: niloferaq@j...

______

#2.

Religious Mobilisation and Organised Violence in Contemporary South Asia:

Seminar for Nordic PhD candidates
Arranged by: Graduate School of International Development Studies,
Roskilde University Centre, Denmark.

Thursday 3 and Friday 4 April 2003.
Organisers: Ravinder Kaur and Christian Lund

Deadline for paper submission: 15 February 2003

Background:
Religious violence, also called communal violence, is often described=20
as a ritual or a 'pact of violence between social groups' that keeps=20
the community boundaries in place. At times the ritual turns from=20
symbolism into organised pogrom. This is sometimes explained, for=20
example, by the police agencies as handiwork of 'local criminal=20
elements', or as effects of deep religious passions and sentiments.=20
These explanations not only provide convenient excuses, but also=20
imply that religious violence be accepted as an inevitable feature of=20
the South Asian social fabric.

Any meaningful legal enquiry into the development of religious=20
violence, therefore, is made redundant because violence with=20
religious overtones is considered outside the universe of criminal=20
offences. This raises questions about the role of state and the=20
institutions of law enforcement and policing. Do they hibernate at=20
such critical times or do they actively engage themselves in=20
violence? In Gujarat, state's withdrawal, or its active complicity at=20
times, has been clearly demonstrated where the state's Chief Minister=20
followed the internecine violence with a 'Gaurav Yatra', the=20
celebratory 'journey of pride' through Gujarat. The show of=20
restraint/remorse that is normally associated with the state=20
executive, in case of such turbulent events, was far from the chosen=20
strategy of justifying the killings as a Hindu reaction to repeated=20
Muslim provocation and mischief. The pretence of neutrality and=20
arbitration between communities has been replaced by a more openly=20
partial and 'ethnicised' stance in favour of the majority community.

How can we understand the face of violence characterised by a lack of=20
remorse combined with brash display of communal power? This question=20
opens the domain of religious mobilisation through sustained,=20
long-term programmes organised by the nationalist groups with=20
religious overtones and undeclared political ambitions. Rashtriya=20
Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), National Volunteer Organisation; Vishwa=20
Hindu Parishad (VHP), Global Hindu Organisation; Minhaj Ul Quran=20
(MUQ), Path to Quran; and Markaz Dawa-Wal-Irshad of Wahabi sect; are=20
some of the organisations in India and Pakistan that over some=20
decades have successfully mobilised urban men and women to=20
participate in the new Holy Wars fought on both real and virtual=20
turf. The impact of this mobilisation can be seen for example in=20
Gujarat where after the recent riots some VHP leaders congratulated=20
themselves for having 'successfully raised the Hindu consciousness'.

The significance of these riots lies not just in the brutality and=20
the number of people killed but also in the systematic destruction of=20
residential and commercial properties that belonged to Muslims. The=20
continuation of economic-social exchanges between the communities in=20
post-riots situation is now rendered impossible with the destruction=20
of homes and sources of livelihood. Similarly Islamic organisations,=20
especially the ones stemming from the Wahabis, seem to be engaged in=20
militant activities, suicide attacks etc, that are collectively=20
dubbed as Islamic terror networks'. With these transnational=20
networks, said to be rooted in South-Central Asia, the issue ceases=20
to be of mere national or even bilateral significance between India=20
and Pakistan.

The third and last theme is that of symbolism, scale and nature of=20
violence. The attacks on Hindu temples in Gujarat and Jammu in 2002=20
and the destruction of Babri Masjid (mosque) in Ayodhya a decade ago=20
augured a new kind of highly charged symbolic politics. The violence=20
is no longer represented as mindless act of fringe elements of=20
society but as well thought out strategies with years of mobilisation=20
behind it using to full effect the emotional power of TV media and a=20
strongly communalised vernacular press. The banning of electronic=20
media from Gujarat in March 2002, for instance, stands in stark=20
contrast to the highly charged news coverage in India of the attacks=20
on temples, or incidents in Kashmir.

This two day workshop attempts to cover the issues and questions=20
opened by the recent events in South Asia through comparative or=20
specific studies of religious violence, organisations and their=20
national/transnational linkages both at empirical and conceptual=20
levels. The range of suggested themes is:

- the mythology of religious violence that limits the scope of=20
enquiry to poor urban fringe sections of the society;
- organisations and processes of religious mobilisation that have=20
produced an intolerant and unapologetic constituency of the middle=20
classes;
- scale and nature of the new violence (e.g. Gujarat) that=20
significantly departs from the better known forms of religious=20
violence;
- the role of state and other institutions of law and governance such=20
as courts, police etc. that are not only seen as having withdrawn but=20
also as facilitators of violence.

Lecturers and discussants:
Paul Brass, Professor Emeritus, Washington, USA.
Jan Bremen, Professor, Amsterdam.
Dipankar Gupta, Professor, JNU, Delhi
Ian Talbott, Professor, Coventry, UK
Oscar Verkaaik, Lecturer, Faculty of Social Studies, Vrije=20
University, Amsterdam
Thomas Blom Hansen, Reader, Edinburgh, UK
Stig Toft Madsen, Associate Professor, IU/RUC
Bj=F8rn Hettne, Professor, Padrigu, Sweden
Staffan Lindberg, Professor, Lund, Sweden

Note for the Participants:
The seminar will run for two days. Presentations of papers by the=20
invited speakers will take place on the first day while presentations=20
by PhD researchers on the second day place in two or three parallel=20
workshops with the invited lecturers as discussants. The first day=20
will be open to the public, whereas the second day will be reserved=20
for PhD researchers and the invited lecturers.

PhD researchers are invited to present papers on theory or empirical=20
work related to the theme of the seminar. It is possible to=20
participate without a paper, but paper presenters will be preferred=20
in case too many people sign up for the seminar. The deadline for=20
paper submission is 15 February 2003.

Participation is free. The seminar will take place at Roskilde=20
University campus, and participants can buy lunch at the campus=20
cafeteria. Participants are responsible for their own=20
accommodation.For registration please contact Ms. Inge Jensen=20
<inge@r...>

______

#3.

The Hindustan Times
Saturday, January 11, 2003=20=20
=20=20=09=20
I, you, us
By Kamal Haasan
Yuppie cinema is all over the place. The audience laps it up like=20
cheese burgers. They have developed a taste for it, and an=20
after-taste, though 'aesthetic people' might find it all bitter in=20
the mouth. It is the equivalent of the communal bias which exists in=20
society, using the same populist techniques. I am using the same=20
techniques as my peers in my new film Anbe Sivam, to be released next=20
week.

The film doesn't flex muscles.

It talks about globalisation, plastic money, flashy TV channels,=20
people financing these TV channels, neem, basmati - but all this=20
works in the subterranean level. And if the audience was laughing all=20
the time in its first private screening in Delhi on Thursday=20
(organised by Sahmat), then I am sure they will go home and think=20
about it. Apart from other things, I have used the traditional idea=20
of Chakyar Koothu (court jester's play), but in a modern way.

The film's contrast is the contrast of our times. A reflection on=20
Indian reality, after and before Gujarat. It's a travel story of two=20
people. One is a trade unionist, a Marxist, in a faded shirt with a=20
scarred face. He looks like a bum. He is carrying a Rs 32 lakh=20
cheque, which he has won for the workers after a protracted legal=20
battle. He is doing an errand for CITU, trying to hurry with the=20
cheque to the workers. That is why he's taking a flight, perhaps for=20
the first time in his life.

The other man is a high flying jetsetting post-modern ad executive,=20
who travels in a long car, cell phone always ringing, lap-top forever=20
active, anxiously waiting for the delayed flight as he watches TV,=20
where his latest 40-seconder on Star is just about going to be aired.=20
He is also looking for new images. So there's this terrorists' image,=20
with pipegun etc, and a scar on the face. So which terrorist does he=20
find in the airport? The man in the faded shirt, holding a pipe-like=20
object, eating a cucumber. So that is how a social relationship in=20
contemporary India is established. And the first premise is guilt.

The trade unionist tells him, "These days terrorists don't look like=20
me. They look handsome." In this relationship, which moves from=20
Bhubaneswar in Orissa, the ad-guy realises the meaning of real India=20
where his Gucci shoes will have to wade through slush. That is how he=20
rediscovers himself, and his mindless trappings, all the objects and=20
hi-tech materialism which he carries all the time. So what is he=20
feeling?

Tirumoolar, a 10th century Shaivite poet, wrote about his times when=20
the Jains were prosecuted by the Shaivites. These were the times of=20
both retribution and introspection. The poet wrote that after seeking=20
the lord and truth through tapas, one must lean back and realise that=20
Shiva or God is nothing but love. Love is Shiva. The answer is love.

Yes, while making the film, Gujarat was on my mind. I think of what=20
happened in Gujarat as something which has been happening much=20
before. The Ides of March were waiting to happen. I was affected by=20
all this much before Gujarat. I had anticipated Gujarat because it is=20
also an acceptance of my impotence. If I say I had not anticipated=20
it, then it would be as perverse as the perversity of those who were=20
the actors in the killings.

You might call me a doomsayer. Gujarat is not the end. There is much=20
more coming. The screenplay has changed. It's a constant thing. You=20
look at old journals of the British government. Say 1902,=20
Hindu-Muslim riots. The scene has not changed.

All those who rule are the same. Yes power corrupts. All governments=20
are oppressors. We keep blaming the politicians, but what about us?=20
What about me? Do I understand the value of individual satyagraha.=20
Not only Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, I would say that thousands of=20
Indians did individual satyagraha to liberate India from the White=20
man. That spirit was contagious.

Who is this politician who is destroying our country? On which street=20
is his house? What is his address? It is me, you, him, her. I live in=20
that address. I am that politician. I am that hypocrite. I have=20
allowed things to come to such a pass.

The individual has to wake up and face the reality of his own self,=20
his own capacity to change the world. I have no right to adopt a high=20
moral ground on Gujarat because I anticipated it and still did=20
nothing about it, while they did exactly what they were supposed to=20
do. The lazy deserve to die. Let's not even talk about the prime=20
minister, or this party or that. Let me (and all of us) first stand=20
before the national flag and promise to myself that I will not allow=20
another Gujarat to happen.

Who is this Hindu-Muslim? It is me. And you. No party can do=20
Hindu-Muslim riots if we don't want it. I am not Michael Jackson. I=20
have not bleached my skin. My skin is this, this is my skin. Can=20
anyone deny me my skin?

Green, blue, red, saffron, all these colours will be mixed. But they=20
will come for each one of them one by one. Then they will come for=20
the Dalits and adivasis. There is no end to this badly-conducted=20
Arthashastra. (Kautilya was a genius of his time, but from my vantage=20
position, Arthashastra is redundant.)

So what should I do? I can always lean back and show armchair=20
sympathy. But isn't it our individual responsibility to stop this=20
bloodshed? So where are the communists now? Where were they when the=20
Babri masjid was demolished? Why don't they practise what they preach?

I am not boasting, but I was the first actor in Tamil Nadu who=20
protested against the Babri masjid demolition. I had said, "So how=20
can I look into the eyes of my daughter now?"

In this era, everything is populist, including communalism. The=20
voices which will come against it, will also have to be populist. We=20
can't talk philosophy with them. We can't wait for a Mahatma, an=20
E.M.S. Namboodiripad, a Nehru to arrive yet again. We have to become=20
like them. This is the new street theatre of our lives.

They can brand me as an activist, I don't care. I will do what I must=20
do. Filmmakers and actors can do a lot. Look at Sunil Dutt, how=20
relentlessly he works. We have to show the film industry where it can=20
intervene. In Tamil Nadu, I have publicly said that I need fans, but=20
I don't need fan clubs. I have inverted the Nazi oath and asked my=20
fans to do some good work - 50,000 pairs of eyes have been donated,=20
35,000 have given blood, and nine free open-heart surgeries of the=20
poor have been done.

This is a drop in the ocean, but there will be many more such drops=20
if each one of us do what is expected of us. We can't wait for an=20
earthquake or a riot. It's an everyday struggle. As a journalist, if=20
you know a riot is being planned in Rajasthan, and you don't write an=20
editorial, then you don't deserve to be there. If you can't save=20
human lives, then what's the use of your life? You are already dead.

In these times, we should say what Gandhi said: "Do or die." Let us=20
not blame the political parties and feel happy. It is my blood which=20
flows inside my daughter's body, inside your body, inside my friends'=20
bodies. It's the same human blood. If this blood is shed in India, as=20
in Gujarat, then it will be a free for all, a happy hunt.

All those silent, the middle-class, that's me. I am that silent=20
majority. It is from this middle-class in Porbandar that a Mahatma=20
arrived. Adolf Hitler too arrived from this silent mass. The=20
revolutionary and the criminal - they are both here amidst us. That's=20
also me.

We can't write clever letters to the editor and feel that our job is=20
done. We have to take individual responsibility for the fate of the=20
nation. Because my daughter is also your daughter.

The writer is a filmmaker, actor and dancer (As told to Amit Sengupta)

_____

#4.

The Telegraph
Saturday, January 11, 2003

TRADE HAS NO RELIGION
- Mr and Mrs Iyer foregrounds the relations among Indians of various faiths
Ramachandra guha

A moment of truth

When Aparna Sen's film Mr and Mrs Iyer came to Bangalore, my wife and=20
I bought tickets for the first night. We hadn't read the reviews, but=20
had liked her 36 Chowringhee Lane. The title of this new film was=20
intriguing. It suggested a sort of social comedy, perhaps a story of=20
a Tamil couple marooned in Bengali-speaking Calcutta.

The morning of the day we were booked to see the film passed off=20
well. We had two meetings, with a businessman and a property lawyer.=20
In both cases our work was done with a superb mixture of efficiency=20
and courtesy. The lawyer, especially, had great charm and a winning=20
manner.

After the meetings had ended, and we drove home, it struck me that=20
the men we had dealt with that morning had both been Muslim. This=20
realization sparked a related thought: that while these men had done=20
their jobs very well, they had done them with an air of relaxed=20
assurance. This was because their religious faith and ours were both=20
irrelevant to the transactions. But, I wondered, would Muslim=20
businessmen or lawyers in Ahmedabad have been able to function so=20
openly and so naturally with Hindu clients? Indeed, do Muslim=20
entrepreneurs and professionals in that city have any Hindu clients=20
any more? Have not those clients shunned them, or even, in some=20
cases, exterminated them?

Bangalore and Karnataka have not been wholly free from communal=20
riots. There have been Hindu-Muslim clashes in the city, as well as=20
in the northern part of the state. But these have been sporadic=20
rather than endemic, and relatively localized and of short duration:=20
qualifying as communal "incidents" rather than as communal "riots".=20
In Bangalore, Muslims play a rather prominent part in economic and=20
social life. The city's most successful software entrepreneur, who is=20
also its most generous philanthropist, is a Muslim. Bangalore's most=20
successful firm of builders is owned and run by a Muslim family. For=20
years the most influential politician in the city, a long time (and=20
still serving) member of parliament and senior Union minister, was a=20
Muslim. In other trades too, Muslims are handsomely represented. From=20
that community have come some of this state's finest lawyers,=20
teachers, scholars, writers, and cricketers.

Bangalore has a reputation for cosmopolitanism that is largely=20
deserved. What I have said of Muslim participation in public life=20
holds good for Christians too. Whatever your personal religious=20
affiliation, this seems to scarcely matter when taking up a job or=20
holding a profession. Whether lawyer or doctor, engineer or=20
architect, a Muslim or Christian in Bangalore can go about his (or=20
her) business with a reasonable degree of safety and security.

How long will this last? That question is prompted more generally by=20
the recent happenings in the state of Gujarat, but also by the film=20
that my wife and I saw at the end of a day spent in the hands of=20
outstanding Muslim professionals. Mr and Mrs Iyer takes up different=20
and (dare one say) larger themes than did 36 Chowringhee Lane, but=20
the characterization is done with the same kind of subtlety and=20
attention to detail. Speaking as a Tamil, I must say I was deeply=20
impressed by the authenticity of Mrs Iyer's accent, and the idiom in=20
which she chose to express herself. Her real - as opposed to=20
fictitious - husband, who has a cameo role towards the end of the=20
film was also brilliantly portrayed. His look, his manner, his=20
speech, his dress - all suggested a hardworking but socially bigoted=20
Tamil Brahmin male. I have met dozens who looked and thought exactly=20
like him.

Mr and Mrs Iyer succeeds as entertainment. However, it seems clear=20
that, as with 36 Chowringhee Lane, Sen wished also to keep us=20
thinking long after we had reached home. That earlier film had=20
foregrounded the sometimes callous treatment of the elderly by the=20
young. This one foregrounds the relations between Indians of=20
different religious affiliations. How, it asks, how would we respond=20
to a situation of great fear and insecurity, such as that created by=20
an attack by fanatics on a mixed crowd in a bus? Would we give up=20
some of our fellow passengers to a certain death, if we knew them to=20
be of a different faith?

The answers that the film provides are not straightforward. One=20
passenger reveals the identity of an old Muslim couple, but this is=20
done to protect himself, for as a Jew, he too has been circumcized.=20
Mrs Iyer saves a Muslim by passing him off as her husband; yet,=20
through the long nights and days that they are together, her attitude=20
towards him alternates between affection and distaste. Sometimes he=20
is the man who gives her and her baby comfort and security; at other=20
times he is the alien Muslim who might infect her with his touch and=20
his water bottle.

The film's message - such as it is - was presented in more=20
straightforward form in a short clip we saw before it started. This=20
came in the sequence of trailers and advertisements that preceded the=20
main show. This particular "short" juxtaposed scenes of a man praying=20
on a mat in a mosque, a choir singing in a church, a group of Sikhs=20
eating langar in a gurudwara, and a procession outside a temple. No=20
sooner did the church follow the mosque, than my wife and I=20
simultaneously commented: "National Integration". That, indeed, was=20
what the advertisement intended to convey. However, what was notable=20
about this didactic effort was that it was the handiwork of a private=20
life insurance company. Once, we would have looked to the government=20
of India to commission and promote films, whether short or long, on=20
the theme of inter-communal harmony. Tragically, with the kinds of=20
men who now rule India, this task has been left to creative artists=20
and to broad-minded companies in the private sector.

In theory, commerce knows no religion. The successful promotion of=20
capitalist enterprise requires it to disregard the caste or faith of=20
those who produce as well as those who consume. Sales and profits=20
absolutely require social peace and the rule of law. Riots are always=20
bad for business. This message came out, very weakly, in an=20
advertisement put out by the Ambanis after the Gujarat riots. It was=20
articulated more strongly, and with conspicuous bravery, by one=20
Gujarati industrialist, Deepak Parekh, in a newspaper interview that=20
he gave shortly after the brutalities began.

On the other hand, capitalists always want to be seen on the right=20
side of those in control of the state. Businessmen of all shades and=20
- it must be said - all religions have shamefully sucked up to Bal=20
Thackeray. Except for Deepak Parekh, no captain of industry spoke out=20
directly against either the Godhra incident or the subsequent doings=20
of Narendra Modi and company, and even Parekh was instructed to keep=20
shut after his first interview. I myself believe that although=20
sensitive film-makers and socially responsible industrialists can=20
(and must) help, the maintenance of social harmony is ultimately the=20
responsibility of the government of the day. Only it can effectively=20
and reliably guarantee that citizens live, work and move about=20
without fear of discrimination according to region or religion.

Aparna Sen's film ends with a telling last line. In saying goodbye to=20
her companion in torment, Mrs Meenakshi Iyer addresses him, actually=20
a Muslim called Jehangir Chowdhury, by the name which he had assumed=20
in his bus and train travels with her, "Mr Iyer". This made me recall=20
how, between 1988 and 1992, in the bloody days of the Ayodhya=20
campaign, a friend of mine who is a distinguished historian of Uttar=20
Pradesh had always to travel under an assumed Hindu name while going=20
home or while doing fieldwork. That, verily, is the ultimate fear,=20
that one has to change one's name to protect one's life in one's own=20
country. Thankfully, most Muslims in Bangalore or in Calcutta do not=20
yet have to resort to this subterfuge. It is up to us to see that it=20
stays that way.

____

#5.

The Gift of a Daughter: Encounters with Victims of Dowry
by Subhadra Butalia
Published by Penguin India
ISBN 0143028715
Date: 10/15/2002
pp, 170, Rs. 200
http://www.penguinbooksindia.com/

o o o

The Gift of a Daughter: Encounters with Victims of Dowry

Preface

This small book is neither a memoir nor a book about dowry. A memoir=20
would have had large chunks of my life in it, but these are missing=20
here. A book about dowry would have had much more background=20
information, analysis and history; this has none of these. What then=20
is this book about and why should the reader be interested in it?=20
This is a question I often asked myself while writing. Let me try to=20
answer it here.

I have been working, for many years now, with women who are victims=20
of domestic violence, battery, assault, rape and, principally, dowry.=20
When I began work, I did not expect that much of it would focus on=20
dowry. Over the years I found that we (in Karmika, the group in which=20
I worked) focussed more and more on appeals for legal action or=20
redress by parents of young women who had been cruelly and callously=20
done to death for not having brought enough dowry and requests for=20
help with recovering dowry after a woman had been thrown out of her=20
marital home. We found parents who were in a continual state of=20
crisis because they were unable to meet the recurrent demands for=20
dowry; we had to deal with the desire, on the part of young women,=20
for a dowry, something they could call their own; and much more. As=20
we got deeper into the work we had taken on, I began to realize=20
exactly how widespread dowry was and what an amazing patriarchal=20
consensus there existed on the ground between men of all kinds, from=20
all classes and backgrounds that dowry was their just due and that it=20
was the task of the woman they married to provide them with this.=20
Whether it was husbands, fathers, policemen, lawyers, judges, indeed=20
even lawmakers, politicians or anyone else you cared to name, they=20
all subscribed to this view.

Part of the desire to write this book grew out of this realization,=20
which I wanted to communicate. But there were other things too: I=20
thought it would be useful to share the kinds of experiences we had=20
been through in our group and, as I began to put down case history=20
after case history, I realized how useful the exercise was for me too=20
in attempting to understand the system of dowry. Our work in Karmika=20
grew out of more activist, street-level protest where we attempted to=20
raise awareness about dowry and the devaluation of hundreds of women=20
as a result of the increasing importance given to this. We took out=20
demonstrations, marches and protests of all sorts, and finally put=20
together a street play on dowry. As we took the play from place to=20
place, people came to us with their problems, seeking advice, legal=20
counsel or just an ear to listen to. And we responded to this by=20
setting up Karmika. Thinking we were answering a felt need, we had=20
also naively imagined that we would be able to make a difference. The=20
many years that have passed since Karmika was set up have made me=20
realize the enormity of the task we had set ourselves, and its near=20
impossibility.

For what we have learnt is that it takes more than just a women's=20
group to make a difference. Indeed, we need a gargantuan effort-one=20
that must involve more than just women's groups, more than just=20
women, more than just our social institutions or the state or the=20
judiciary-to address this problem, which every day adds to the=20
violence being perpetrated on women and which is spreading so fast=20
that it is difficult to know how to control it.

It is for this reason that I have put together this book. For the=20
most part it contains a history of one attempt to address the issue=20
of dowry. I have tried to do this by exploring my own growing=20
understanding of the problem, as it manifested itself in my life, and=20
then my thoughts as I saw its much uglier manifestations in the lives=20
of the many women we came across or whose tragic stories we heard. In=20
many ways what you will see in this book are the stories of those=20
women who have faced, and some who have tried to fight, this problem.=20
I do not know if these stories will help to develop an understanding=20
of dowry or of what it is that impels people to demand it and give=20
it. But my attempt to put this book together-inspired, I have to say,=20
by my children urging me to do so as they sat around our dinner=20
table-is born out of a wish, a hope, that this is what this book can=20
begin to do.

Alongside the stories of women caught in the web of dowry, this book=20
tells the story of the struggle of a small women's group to find its=20
feet and to continue to do its work. Our work in Karmika was not at=20
all political-indeed when we began, we told ourselves we would keep=20
away from politics and would not allow ourselves to be caught=20
particularly by party politics-but even so we faced so much=20
harassment and opposition that it makes me wonder how much more the=20
openly political groups would have to face.

Despite this, however, the work has to go on, and just as I have=20
found myself getting depressed and frustrated by the way in which=20
women get caught in this net, sometimes willingly and sometimes=20
through coercion, I have drawn hope from the many young women who=20
have resolved to fight violence in their lives and have grown strong=20
in the process. This book is as much for them as it is for their=20
sisters whose lives dowry has destroyed. If these words that I have=20
penned in the twilight of my life-I am eighty-one years old now and=20
continue to work in Karmika-can help make a difference to their=20
lives, even if it is only minuscule, that will be enough for me.

o o o

The Telegraph
January 11, 2003

THESE LADIES ARE NOT FOR BURNING

THIS ABOVE ALL KHUSHWANT SINGH

Will he have to worry about her dowry?
Sometime in the Seventies, Subhadra Butalia and her husband, both=20
emigrants from Pakistan, built themselves a small house in Jangpura,=20
New Delhi. Facing their home was a large house belonging to a=20
successful Sikh entrepreneur in which lived three generations of his=20
family including his son and his newly married wife Hardeep Kaur and=20
their baby. Subhadra often heard Hardeep crying after she had been=20
beaten by her husband. One afternoon she heard her screaming and=20
smoke billowing out of the house. Neighbours collected round the=20
house. A taxi drove up and Hardeep was taken to hospital, where she=20
died.

Not a word about the tragedy appeared in any paper. Later, some women=20
activists arrived on the scene, interviewed neighbours including=20
Subhadra and filed a report with the police. Hardeep's husband and=20
his family were arrested on charges of demanding dowry, torturing=20
Hardeep and then setting her aflame. No neighbours were willing to=20
give evidence; even Hardeep's brother (her father was by then dead)=20
backed out of the case. Only Subhadra refused to be bought out. It=20
was on her evidence that Hardeep's in-laws were convicted and sent to=20
jail.

That began Subhadra Butalia's (she is now 80) active involvement in=20
helping newly married women who fail to meet demands for money made=20
by their in-laws, are tortured and often forced to commit suicide or=20
are murdered. Their numbers run into the thousands every year. In=20
Delhi alone, an average of four to six married women end their lives=20
by hanging themselves from ceiling fans or burning themselves: of the=20
latter, the usual explanation given is the bursting of a gas cylinder=20
or clothes catching fire by accident.

The fact of the matter is that in one way or the other all of us who=20
do not raise our voices against this crime against humanity are=20
guilty of indifference towards the plight of our daughters: parents=20
who meet demands for dowry and bar their doors against married=20
daughters, in-laws who behave like ravenous beasts, neighbours who=20
are nosy and yet refuse to give evidence, the police, lawyers, the=20
judiciary and everyone who thinks it is none of his business. The=20
more galling fact is that the crime is more prevalent among the=20
literate middle and lower-middle classes than among the uneducated=20
poor, more among Hindus and Sikhs than among Muslims and Christians.=20
When looking for brides, the two things uppermost in the minds of a=20
boy and his parents are the girl's looks and the money she will bring=20
as dowry. Among the worst offenders are the cream of our civil=20
services. Butalia writes: "During our visit to the Lal Bahadur=20
Shastri National Academy of Administration at Mussoorie, we were=20
shocked to learn that the majority of the probationers who get=20
married after joining the service, openly take dowry, negotiated by=20
themselves or, with their knowledge and consent, by their parents.=20
The amounts involved are usually staggering. We understand that some=20
have received up to Rs 30-35 lakh, with recent promises even=20
extending to Rs one crore, while Rs 15-20 lakh are said to be=20
commonplace. The sums vary according to the probationer's caste,=20
community and state of origin and are pushed up further by the state=20
of allotment (that is, the area/state to which the person is sent to=20
work). The rates are openly discussed among the probationers without=20
the slightest shame or hesitation - indeed, with pride - regardless=20
of the fact that the taking of dowry is a specific offence under the=20
Dowry Prohibition Act, as well as under the conduct of rules of the=20
All India and Central Services. They set the pace too for the=20
escalation of dowry all over the country."

Read Subhadra Butalia's The Gift of a Daughter: Encounters with=20
Victims of Dowry and ask yourself:

"Have we any right to call ourselves civilized?"

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