[sacw] SACW | 3 Jan. 03

Thu, 2 Jan 2003 23:08:13 +0100

South Asia Citizens Wire | 3 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. Pak-India Forum slates visa curbs
- The Pakistan delegation to the Asian Social Forum led by Asma=20
Jehangir, denied visa by India
- Gujral slams travel curbs on Pakistani nationals
-India's curbs on Pakistani visitors
#2. Prayers for peace at Pakistan border
#3. The Second Hindu Country? (Romi Mahajan)
#4. Our shared musical heritage (M V Ramana)
#5. Redressing Sexual Violence (Laxmi Murthy)
#6. Plight of the women (Kuldip Nayar)
#7. Public Discussion by India-Nepal People's Solidarity Forum (6=20
January , New Delhi)
#8. End of history (Amar Farooqui)
#9. Actors, writers meet to counter rightist threats to Marathi theatre

__________________________

#1.

2 Jan 2003

Press Statement
Pak-India Forum slates visa curbs

Lahore, December 31: The Pakistan Chapter of Pakistan-India Peoples'=20
Forum for Peace and Democracy expresses its concern and dismay at the=20
new visa restrictions announced by the government of India on=20
Pakistanis visiting India. These steps amount to fueling the=20
confrontation between the two countries at the cost of ordinary=20
people, may of whom have legitimate humanitarian reasons to travel to=20
the neighboring country. The Forum was hoping that with the start of=20
troops' withdrawal from the frontlines, the two countries would find=20
ways of restoring air and ground travel links between them in=20
accordance with the wishes of the people on both sides. These wishes=20
have again been disregarded. The Forum reiterates its view that the=20
people of India and Pakistan have a right and a duty to maintain as=20
regular a contact as possible and to contribute to the return of=20
sanity to their benighted sub-continent. It therefore calls upon both=20
governments to facilitate travel between their countries. Instead of=20
devising new restrictions they should immediately reopen air and=20
ground routes.

Iftikhar-ul-Haq I. A. Rehman
Secretary-General Chairperson
Pakistan Chapter of Pakistan-India Peoples' Forum for Peace and Democracy

o o o

[ Related news reports]

The Hindu
Friday, Jan 03, 2003

Asma Jehangir denied visa
By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD Jan. 2. The Pakistan delegation to the Asian Social Forum=20
here led by Asma Jehangir, leading women's and human rights activist,=20
has been denied visa by India. This was announced by Nirmala=20
Deshpande, Gandhian and Sarvodaya leader, at the opening plenary of=20
the ASF.

The announcement was greeted with a chorus of "shame, shame'', by a=20
large number of delegates. A disappointed Ms. Deshpande said the=20
Pakistani delegates would not be able to come as they had been denied=20
visas by India. She expressed the hope that the people's voice would=20
reach the powers that be in Delhi and it would be forced not to=20
repeat it.

- -

Yahoo News India
Monday December 30, 1:28 PM

Gujral slams travel curbs on Pakistani nationals
By P. Jayaram, Indo-Asian News Service

New Delhi, Dec 30 (IANS) Former Indian prime minister I.K. Gujral=20
Monday slammed the Vajpayee government for its move to put curbs on=20
visits by Pakistani nationals and warned it would be=20
counter-productive.
"Terrorists do no travel legally or on visas. This type of=20
restrictive practices and indiscriminate restrictions will do more=20
harm than good because they keep out those sections of civil society=20
which believe in building friendship between our countries," Gujral=20
told IANS.
Minister of State for Home Vidyasagar Rao announced Sunday that the=20
government would introduce new regulations restricting the movement=20
of Pakistani visitors to three cities, as against 12 now.
He said the government would also ask local sponsors to give a prior=20
undertaking about their guests from Pakistan till their actual return.
He said 11,208 Pakistani visitors had overstayed in the country and=20
2,324 of them could not be traced and the state governments had been=20
directed to launch a "special drive" to identify them to prevent them=20
from indulging in "anti-India activities."
"You need only one Osama bin Laden to cause a disaster," Rao said.
But Gujral, a strong advocate of people-to-people contact and who as=20
prime minister liberalised visits by Pakistanis to India, said: "My=20
faith in such contacts is abiding."
He said the minister should bear in mind that many Pakistani visitors=20
found it difficult to go back because there was no direct road, rail=20
or air links between the two countries, a result of tit-for-tat steps=20
taken by the two countries that nearly went to war this year.
"How do they go back?" he asked.
"Such generalised statements (as Rao's) do a great deal of harm to=20
friendly neighbourly relations," he said and added the minister's=20
statement would make bilateral ties "murkier.'
"Ultimately, we are neighbours and the prospects of good relations=20
should never be destroyed," Gujral said.
He said the entire world was against terrorism today. India has been=20
a victim of terrorism and Pakistan also was a victim of "internal=20
terrorism."
"Our best friends in Pakistan are members of civil society, many of=20
them outstanding people who have contributed a great deal to bring=20
our nations closer," he added.

---
DAWN (Dec 30, 2002)
India to put curbs on Pakistani visitors
http://rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/fc/world/kashmir_dispute/news_stories/*http:/=
/www.dawn.com/2002/12/30/top11.htm

_____

#2.

The Boston Globe
December 29, 2002
Page A6

Prayers for peace at Pakistan border
By Victoria Burnett, Globe Correspondent, 12/29/2002

HANO CHAK, Pakistan - One year ago, the people of this dusty village=20
wept as they watched the last Samjhauta Express passenger train=20
depart for India before the border between the hostile neighbors was=20
closed.
Now Bhano Chak is dying. Unable to work in their fields because of=20
mines laid by the army, many of the village men pass the day at the=20
border crossing, hoping to catch some work from the trickle of trucks=20
that pass through. The railway station is deserted, the ticket office=20
shuttered, and the airy waiting rooms are empty.
Noor Mohammed, the station's yard master, used to dispatch several=20
trains a week in either direction, each carrying 500 to 1,000=20
passengers. The Samjhauta Express, named after the Hindi word for=20
''compromise'' or ''understanding,'' was the only passenger train=20
between India and Pakistan and ran between Lahore, just north of the=20
Pakistani border, and New Delhi, India's capital.
Now Mohammed sits in the sunshine on the silent platform with a=20
handful of co-workers. ''We try to fulfill our duties. We come here,=20
we sit, we chat,'' said Mohmammed, who still collects a salary.=20
''We're sick of being idle.''
A year after India and Pakistan suspended air, rail, and road=20
transport between the countries, villagers along the 1,100-mile=20
border are praying for an end to hostilities.
The standoff was sparked last year by the Dec. 13 attack on the=20
Indian Parliament by suspected Islamic militants, in which 14 people=20
were killed, including five assailants. Both countries massed=20
hundreds of thousands of troops on the border after India accused=20
Pakistan of planning the attack.
India and Pakistan have gone to war three times, twice over the=20
disputed territory of Kashmir, since Pakistan was created by=20
partition in 1947.
The continuing tension is felt by the residents of villages such as=20
Bhano Chak, in Punjab Province. Punjabi Indians and Pakistanis say=20
that though they have been sundered by politics and religion, they=20
are still the same people.
''If you cut our fingers - it's the same blood,'' said Munshi Khan, a=20
farmer in his 70s. ''Religion is the heart of the conflict.''

The restoration last month of civilian rule in Pakistan, three years=20
after President Pervez Musharraf took power in a coup, gave the=20
border residents hope. So did October elections in the=20
Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir, where the winning coalition has=20
pledged to engage with pro-Pakistani groups and has freed some=20
separatist militants.
''If they don't talk about Kashmir, it will always be like this,''=20
said Abdul Latif, who owns a book stall at the Wagah border crossing=20
near Bhano Chak. Business is slow, and Latif's stall is piled with=20
secondhand ''Lonely Planet'' guides to India and Pakistan.
But prospects of thawing relations between the two countries have=20
ebbed in the past few weeks, as the neighbors traded insults and=20
Pakistan called off a regional meeting scheduled for January that=20
could have been the setting for talks between President Pervez=20
Musharraf of Pakistan and Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee of=20
India.
Early this month, India's deputy prime minister, L.K. Advani,=20
challenged Pakistan to face India in out-and-out war instead of what=20
he called a proxy war through extremist groups in Kashmir.
Advani's comments followed an upsurge in violence in Kashmir that=20
claimed dozens of lives. India has long called on Musharraf to crack=20
down on terrorist groups that allegedly cross into Indian-controlled=20
Kashmir from Pakistan to commit attacks. Domestic pressure from=20
hard-line Islamic groups - who recently made an unprecedented strong=20
showing in national elections - has weakened Musharraf's resolve to=20
deal with Kashmiri terrorists.

Hopes that the revival of parliamentary rule in Pakistan would lead=20
to an immediate thaw in relations were misconceived, says Samina=20
Ahmed, who heads the South Asia and Afghanistan unit of the=20
International Crisis Group.
A high level of distrust all but rules out talks between Bharatiya=20
Janata Party and the Pakistani military. But the stakes are high.
For Qamar Udin, a farmer from Bhano Chak, peace cannot come too soon.=20
Udin has a 10-acre farm, but since the Pakistani army planted mines=20
in his fields in January, he has been forced to scrape by doing odd=20
jobs for a dollar or two per day.
He cannot afford to pay off the remaining $290 of his loan from the=20
state agricultural development bank and lives in fear that the debt=20
collectors will have him arrested.
''Now I live by the grace of Allah,'' he said.

=A9 Copyright 2002 Globe Newspaper Company.

_____

#3.

CounterPunch
December 30, 2002

The Second Hindu Country?
by ROMI MAHAJAN

Some years ago, when I lived in Bombay, I sat in a meeting called by=20
a Non-Resident Indian business man. There were about 30 high-level=20
business leaders from India present and the NRI was explaining to=20
them the need to create "a group, a network" of Indian business=20
people who work together to create an economic block. "After all," he=20
said, "there are only two Hindu countries in the world, so we have to=20
stick together." One of the members of the audience, catching on to=20
the obvious point (strangely, not many did catch on) asked the rich=20
if unsophisticated NRI "Two Hindu countries? What's the second?," to=20
which the NRI responded "Oh, didn't you know, Nepal is a Hindu=20
kingdom." "Yes, " acknowledged the businessman somewhat=20
exasperatedly, "but as I asked, what's the second?" The NRI looked=20
puzzled and after a pregnant pause broke out into a big grin and=20
exclaimed "Oh I see what you are saying!" and, along with the=20
majority of the attendees, laughed the point out.

I am still not sure if he really got the point: India is not a Hindu=20
country, it is a secular country. And many of us will not retreat=20
from this point or concede any part of our minds to the Hindu Right,=20
currently drunk with power after its recent landslide victory in the=20
home of its latest pogrom: Gujarat.

But one must admit, its getter harder and harder. And for the victims=20
of the virulence in India, life is lived under siege. With regard to=20
religious minorities, Indian democracy is in shambles.

The news today tells the story well. In Delhi yesterday, BJP Party=20
chief M.V. Naidu told his party that the BJP would "replicate our=20
Gujarat experience everywhere." Quite clearly, Mr. Naidu is referring=20
to three related things here: first, at the literal level,=20
replication of the Gujarat experience would mean landslide victories=20
for the Hindu right all over India; second, moving one small step=20
below the literal level, it is clear that replication of the Gujarat=20
experience would mean authorizing and reveling in wholesale slaughter=20
of minorities and destruction of minority-owned property. After all,=20
the "Gujarat experience" for the 2000-plus dead muslims, the hundreds=20
of thousands forced to leave their homes, and for the women, upon=20
whom violence more widespread and brutal than was found in the recent=20
Balkan conflicts ( according to a recent fact finding mission ) was=20
perpetrated --to the general approbation of the complacent=20
middle-class and rich of Gujarat-- was a fairly grave matter. Third,=20
and this is the portent for things to come, the violence and=20
disenfranchisement of minorities and the landslide electoral victory=20
are related matters; in fact, the pogrom against muslims was used by=20
Modi, in typical Orwellian logic, to show how the threat of muslims=20
is imminent, grave, and must be dealt with--no doubt by the strongman=20
himself. Echoes of the Reichstag fire ring clearly.

One reads further that Modi's swearing-in ceremony, described by the=20
Deccan Herald as one of "the most pompous..in recent history," not=20
only cost the exchequer amounts it could ill-afford, but was attended=20
by no less a personage than Mr. Vajpayee, Prime Minister of secular=20
India. Present also were L.K. Advani and a whole host of regional=20
honchos, industrialists, and media personalities. I'm not sure, but=20
perhaps members of the Wehrmacht were there as well.

One of Modi's first acts was to but a minister for "Cow Protection"=20
in place in his new cabinet. The implications of this are too clear=20
to spell out.

Scanning the papers a bit more, one finds that Mr. Sajjan Kumar, was=20
acquitted of any wrongdoing, in the small matter of having presided=20
over the murder of 49 Sikhs in the Sultanpuri neighborhood in West=20
Delhi in 1984. To date, the perpetrators of the violence (that=20
resulted in 3000 Sikhs being slaughtered) have not been brought to=20
book despite the fact that everybody, literally everybody knows who=20
they are and what they did. No doubt the lack of legal recrimination=20
for obvious crimes against religious minorities further emboldens the=20
Hindu right and to talk about replicating the "Gujarat experience."

Lastly, and very relatedly, there is a report from Delhi's Hindu=20
college that two Dalit students were beaten mercilessly in their=20
dormitory. Their only "crime:" being Dalits. No doubt the assailants=20
were Hindu kids who believe they own the length, breadth, and depth=20
of the whole country. The warden of the dormitory told the Dalit=20
students not to report the assault. Untermenschen, its seems, can=20
belong to one's own religion as well, however low they might be in=20
the hierarchy.

The Hindu Right has been buoyed by a connivance of forces: inter=20
alia, its well-heeled and virulent diaspora, a global attack on=20
people of Muslim countries (Afghanistan, Iraq, etc.) led by Uncle=20
Sam, a new set of economic policies in India that has created=20
widespread unemployment and disenchantment, an increasingly casteist=20
bent in the polity, the Saffronization of education, and the adoption=20
of American values in the Indian elite. It has been on an upsurge for=20
more than a decade.

But it can be stopped--and not only by activism, protest, and by left=20
political formations, but also by the small acts of secular people,=20
outside of the organized political domain. The time is now for=20
affirmative secularism, for affirmative acts in defense of and in=20
revelry of our plural society. Lets not allow the Hindu right to=20
define the default settings of our society.

India is a secular country but will remain so only if we fight for it.

______

#4.

The Daily Times
Thursday, January 02, 2003
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=3Dstory_2-1-2003_pg3_2

Our shared musical heritage

M V Ramana

South Asians have traditionally been bad at dates. An example is the
confusion about the Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan's year of birth =97 some say
1902 while others record it as 1903. The end of 2002 and the beginning of
2003 is thus an appropriate time to celebrate the centenary of this exempla=
r
of the Patiala Gharana (school of music; for a short glossary of musical
terms and a wonderful archive of classical music in Pakistan see
http://www.sadarang.com/) and one of the greatest classical musicians of th=
e
20th century.

There is less doubt about his place of birth =97 Kasur in Punjab. Hometown =
of
the legendary Sufi poet Bulleh Shah, Kasur was also the birthplace of the
singer Noorjehan. Bade Ghulam Ali Khan belonged to a family of hereditary
musicians. His father Ali Baksh was a court musician in Kashmir. Though he
learnt from other musicians as well, Ghulam Ali's main teacher was his
father=92s brother Kale Khan. As a child, Ghulam Ali travelled all over Ind=
ia
with his uncle eventually moving back to Lahore.

It was during his stay in Lahore that Ghulam Ali matured into a musician
and, in particular, developed his wonderful style of voice production. Many
are born with a good voice. Though obviously a great asset, that alone does
not suffice for classical music. To reproduce the intricacies of classical
music with perfection, this voice has to be cultured through sustained and
careful training for many years. Khan Saheb did this ceaselessly and with
assiduous concentration.

When asked by Professor B R Deodhar, a renowned musicologist, about where
and how he trained himself, Khan Saheb reportedly said, "In Lahore there is
a palatial masjid on the side of a road. That is where I used to practise."
Apparently his uncle took him to that masjid when he could not reproduce
some taans (fast-paced patterns of musical notes). There Kale Khan
demonstrated that when he sang, his voice and the echo from the wall of the
masjid were "tonally perfect and identical"; Ghulam Ali could not do the
same. Thus it was that Khan Saheb chose that as his favourite place for
practice. And since the masjid was beyond the outskirts of the city (at
least in those days), no one objected to his singing at the top of his
voice.

The results of this practice are apparent in Khan Saheb's music. Indeed, it
is his voice, more precisely its ability to accurately reel off complex
musical phrases that first strikes =97 and amazes =97 the listener. In anot=
her
musicologist and musician Vamanrao Deshpande's description, "after Abdul
Karim Khan no other singer except Bade Ghulam Ali Khan exhibited the
correctness of intonation with such fidelity... His manner of
voice-production was so satisfying as to be almost ideal. His voice had a
range which covered the three octaves and operated with equal ease in all
the three. Moreover the voice was deliciously sweet."

Classical music can be said to have two aspects =97 an intellectual one and=
an
emotional one. Khan Saheb tended to highlight the emotional aspect of
classical music, exemplified by his specialisation in thumris. (This can be
contrasted with the more intellectual style of his contemporary and another
contender for the title of the greatest classical musician of the 20th
century =97 Ustad Amir Khan of Indore.) Though known for his fast taans and
murkis, Ghulam Ali was also adept at elaborate and slow paced alaaps.
(Listen to, for example, his rendition of Puriya Dhanashree at:
http://www.sawf.org/newedit/edit03182002/musicarts.asp.)

Bade Ghulam Ali Khan was one of those rare few who live and die by music.
Being involved in ceaseless riyaz, he took little notice of other events. A=
n
incident, perhaps apocryphal, may illustrate this. Sometime around 1947 Kha=
n
Saheb arrived at the studios of All India Radio in Bombay for a recording
and was told that Mohammad Ali Jinnah was at the studio. To which Khan Sahe=
b
reportedly asked, "Does he play sarangi well?" When who Jinnah was and the
fact of partition was explained to him, he is said to have replied, "Can
anyone divide the heart of my land?"

Khan Saheb lived by this sentiment. Though he became a Pakistani citizen he
frequently returned to India. Visa rules being what they were, he could not
spend more than a few months in India at a time. For various reasons, of
which his devoted following in India was clearly one, he applied for and wa=
s
granted a permanent immigrant visa in 1957-58.

Khan Saheb was always in demand for concerts throughout the country. India
is unique in that it has not one but two systems of classical music, the
other being the Carnatic or the southern style. Khan Saheb was among the
relatively few that were popular in the south as well as the north. Indeed,
one of the greatest Carnatic musicians of the 20th century, G N
Balasubramaniam, was a great fan of his music. Khan Saheb was reciprocal in
his admiration for GNB's art.

Khan Saheb was also well known for his enjoyment of the pleasures of the
palate. G N Joshi, a connoisseur of music and Artists Liaison Officer for
the Gramophone Company of India, once described him as "rangila gawaiyya an=
d
raseela khavaiyya". Joshi also recounts an incident where Khan Saheb, who
was not in a mood for a recording, was eventually persuaded to record some
wonderful thumris, including such immortal pieces as Aaye na baalam and Pre=
m
ki maar katar, with the help of a bottle of Scotch.

All these testify to Khan Saheb's catholicity and open mind. For such a
person, it was not surprising that the boundaries of religion and
nationality meant little. One of his favourites was the song in raag Pahadi=
,
Hari Om Tatsat, on the Hindu God Vishnu. Such catholicity is the need of th=
e
hour. As we start a new year, let us remember our shared cultural heritage
and not be restricted by narrow national boundaries.

(M V Ramana is a physicist and research staff member at Princeton=20
University's Program on Science and Global Security.)

______

#5.
Herald
2 January 2002

Redressing Sexual Violence
By Laxmi Murthy

After ten months of battling the absence of national political will=20
to apply existing laws and redressal mechanisms to ensure justice for=20
the victims of the attacks on the Muslim community in Gujarat since=20
February 27, 2002, several women's groups in India launched an=20
International Initiative for Justice in Gujarat (IIJ).
The Panel of feminist jurists, activists, lawyers, writers and=20
academics from various parts of the world visited Gujarat between=20
December 14 and 17 and investigated the violence - particularly the=20
physical and sexual - in the light of existing international laws,=20
conventions and norms. The Panel also addressed the complicity of the=20
State in the violence, the lack of effective redressal for the=20
victims and the implications of the recent BJP victory in the State.=20
Members of the panel visited Ahmedabad, Baroda, and Panchmahals and=20
met with affected people, support workers, lawyers and government=20
officials. They also held confidential meetings with women impacted=20
in different ways.
"The Panel is not simply a 'fact-finding' mission, but an attempt to=20
support efforts toward achieving justice for the survivors, as well=20
as to support the prevention of future attacks against minorities,=20
particularly women," said Chayanika Shah, a member of the Forum=20
Against Oppression of Women, Mumbai, one of the main organisers of=20
the Initiative. The correlation between what has happened in Gujarat=20
- particularly to minority women - and the massacre of various=20
cultural, religious, and ethnic subgroups around the world prompted=20
the convening of an international panel.
The pattern of sexual violence in Gujarat, while echoing situations=20
in Rwanda and Bosnia, was different in some ways, feel the panelists.=20
'We were struck by the public nature of the violence, the social=20
sanction to it and the continuing threats we witnessed soon after the=20
announcement of the electoral victory of the BJP," said Nira=20
Yuval-Davis, Professor of Gender and Ethnic Studies at the University=20
of Greenwich, UK.
Biases of the police, the medical and legal systems, as well as those=20
of their families and communities who seek to hide their 'shame' have=20
silenced many women victims of sexual violence. 'We met many mothers=20
who admitted that they had been compelled to send their daughters=20
'away' or marry them off to men they knew to be unsuitable. The=20
failure of State agencies to prosecute perpetrators of violence means=20
that rapists are free to continue threatening and taunting women on a=20
daily basis," said members of the Panel.
Healing the wounds of, and building future security for the women has=20
been impossible due to the denial of justice. A high placed police=20
official who did not want to be named admitted to the Panel that=20
legal redressal was negligible. While 2,200 cases were instituted in=20
Gujarat, all 10 that have been dealt with in the Panchmahals led to=20
acquittals. He estimated that convictions were likely in only about=20
five cases in all. "The results of the recent election in Gujarat=20
give the instigators and perpetrators of violence in that state the=20
power and potential to continue their campaign of hate and terror=20
against the Muslim community," said Sunila Abeysekara from Colombo.=20
Abeysekara has been involved in monitoring the on-going peace process=20
in Sri Lanka, and promoting the participation of civil society,=20
especially women, in negotiations at the local level.
"The post-election scenario in Gujarat exposes the fallacy of India's=20
claim to be the world's largest democracy and raises a clear question=20
about whether a 'free and fair' election alone is a sufficient=20
indicator to guarantee and assert the existence of democracy in any=20
society," said Farah Naqvi, an Indian panelist urging that the 'sham'=20
of Indian democracy be exposed.
The Panel's Interim Report voiced strong concern. "Inspite of the=20
totally inadequate legal and other responses to the violence in=20
Gujarat, the government has continued to deny permission for=20
international scrutiny of the situation... In a pluralist society=20
such as India, ensuring equal representation and participation of all=20
communities and guaranteeing the rights of women and of minorities=20
are among the most important tests of a genuine democracy. The=20
propagation of fear and hatred among communities is anathema to these=20
principles and is inconsistent with both national and international=20
law." Panel members also called for specific measures with regard to=20
the issues of justice, the continuing impact of the violence, and the=20
marginalisation of the Muslims of Gujarat.
(WFS)

______

#6.

Dhaka Courier
27 December 2002

Plight of the women
By Kuldip Nayar

Murder of women is now done with impunity -- for protest against=20
forced marriage, merely being alone with a man, a glance which may be=20
misconstrued to indicate other than an innocent relationship. Then=20
there is "bride burning." Human rights organisations and women's=20
bodies are more or less helpless. This sounds like a report from any=20
part of India. But this is a dispatch from Pakistan, "where crimes=20
against women are rising alarmingly." The reason given is that "the=20
prosecution rate is negligible and men know they can get away with=20
it." How similar is the situation in India! Once in a while there is=20
a serious discussion as happened recently when a medical student was=20
raped only a few yards away from her college in New Delhi and a few=20
hundred yards from the Delhi Police headquarters. Parliament was also=20
worked up. Home Minister L K Advani lent his voice to the demand for=20
death penalty to rapists. Newspapers wrote editorials over the=20
helplessness of women. But as the noise died down, the crime against=20
women receded into the background.

The government has made amendments to the decades-old law to see that=20
the raped women are not humiliated in the court by the arguments that=20
the defence offers. The entire exercise lacks the response which the=20
situation demands. The NGOs in India have continued to focus=20
attention on rape or the burnings of brides. But why have they failed=20
to arouse the society? Is it because it has been so much brutalised=20
for such a long period that it has lost the feeling of hurt. After=20
seeing rapists and murderers going scot-free, people have, indeed,=20
become cynical. Nothing shocks them any more. The society has become=20
insensitive. How to stir its conscience again is the problem that we=20
face.

Women in the countryside are not even aware of their legal rights.=20
But those who know the law -- mostly in the urban areas -- have=20
realised that even the most horrifying cases take a strange twist by=20
the time they come up for prosecution. There is some loophole=20
somewhere that helps the culprits. The society does not get so angry=20
as it does on the matter of religion or castes. The wrongs against=20
women fail to evoke indignation even among the women. They are too=20
tied to wrong tradition and too used to suffering. They show all the=20
traits of a patriarchal society where women are often little more=20
than slaves.

One does not have to go back very far. Only a year ago we faced the=20
rumpus over filming the plight of widows living in Varanasi. The=20
society had not felt guilty over their life that was worse than death=20
but got angry when their plight was sought to be narrated through a=20
film. People, who said at the top of their voice at that time that=20
they would force the government to improve the lot of widows, are now=20
nowhere to be seen. The matter was forgotten as soon as the producer=20
abandoned the project. Why do women have to pay the price for male=20
chauvinism or prejudice is apparent because it is a male-dominated=20
society in India? Even the evil of Sati is still eulogised. In one=20
recent incident in Rajasthan many men, some from even the family,=20
were party to a widow sitting on the pyre. The police as usual=20
reached late. The law fails to stop such practices because it is not=20
deterrent enough. But the worst part is that the society does not=20
show anger or horror over such incidents. Somehow the belief persists=20
that tradition sanctifies the practice. Why to stick one's neck out?=20
The Hindutva supporters should be trying to eliminate such evils=20
instead of planning another Gujarat somewhere else in the country.=20
Any reform has to come from within. But most men are not interested.

Kalpana Kannabiran, a leading social worker, brings to light how the=20
issue of sexual harassment and violence has entered the mainstream=20
discourse in different ways. Masculinity and feminity continue to be=20
constructed in strictly regimented ways with very little space for=20
women students particularly to raise questions of discrimination,=20
harassment or derogatory or obscene representation. In fact, the=20
violence has become increasingly strident, an instance being cited of=20
a campus on the subcontinent where the hundredth rape on the campus=20
was celebrated! The positive side of this is that there is protest=20
and resistance and persistent campaigning by women's groups and small=20
groups of men and women -- teachers and students -- on campuses, in=20
Delhi and Rajasthan, for example. Being at the lowest rung of the=20
ladder in the society, women suffer the most in all sorts of=20
tragedies, earthquake, riots and floods. A report by Concerned=20
Citizens on the Orissa super cyclone says that more women died in the=20
cyclone than men. Men survived the tidal wave in some areas by=20
climbing to high places. In the aftermath of the disaster men=20
migrated to towns in search of work, leaving women in charge of the=20
surviving children and to fend for themselves. The destruction of=20
houses exposed women to severe difficulties.

The worst was that there were hardly any programmes of rehabilitation=20
specially geared towards the needs of women. The women's movement in=20
Orissa is very weak. So there was no voice strong enough to plead=20
their case. There was no definite proposal aimed at assisting the=20
cyclone-affected women. There were many possibilities for designing=20
horticulture and other plantation programmes, rural craft training,=20
animal husbandry and programmes in education, health and sanitation.=20
The poverty eradication programmes could have been reoriented in the=20
context of the cyclone -- taking women as the key players. But=20
nothing like that happened. In fact, nothing like that happens=20
anywhere else in India.

_____

#7.

Hkkjr&usiky tu ,drk eap
India-Nepal People's Solidarity Forum

Dear friend,
For the last few years Nepal is in continuous turmoil. The=20
developments taking place there after the failure of talks in=20
November last between the government and the Maoists have raised=20
serious problems for the democracy in Nepal. The people and various=20
political parties in Nepal are demanding reopening of dialogue with=20
the Maoists so that a peaceful solution to the problem could be=20
found. The growing US interest in Nepal has particularly upset those=20
who are keen to see the strengthening of democratic institutions in=20
the country.
Two eminent senior politicians and intellectuals of Nepal, Sri=20
Shailendra Kumar Upadhyay and Sri Hiranya Lal Shreshtha are currently=20
in India. Sri Upadhyay is former foreign minister of Nepal whereas=20
Sri Shreshtha has been incharge of foreign relations and human rights=20
cell during the Communist regime. Both these scholars are keen=20
observer of South Asian politics and written many books on=20
India-Nepal relations. They have also taken initiative to find a=20
solution to the problem of Bhutanese refugees nagging the country for=20
the last 12 years. Sri Pramod Kaphley, a prominent human rights=20
activist of Nepal, has also accompanied these two scholars. It is to=20
be noted that Sri Kaphley's organization is also engaged in finding=20
a meaningful solution to the problem of Bhutanese refugees.
We are pleased to inform you that 'India-Nepal People's Solidarity=20
Forum' has organized an interactive session with these eminent=20
politicians and activists of Nepal. We are inviting a select audience=20
to this meet so that various segments of this problem in Nepal could=20
be discussed and understood.
We hope that you will make it a success by your presence.

Date : 6 January, 2003
Time : 3 pm to 6 pm
Venue: Gandhi Peace Foundation, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg (near ITO)

Anand Swaroop Verma
On behalf of Convening Committee

Contact Address:
C/o Q-63, Sector-12, Noida-201301/ e-mail: vermada@h...
[...].

_____

#8.

The Hindustan Times
January 3, 2003
End of history
Amar Farooqui
When the first batch of school textbooks for social sciences=20
published by the NCERT were released in October, one almost felt=20
cheated.
[...]
Eminent educationists, social scientists and political activists (for=20
there are political issues at stake) have raised serious objections=20
to the textbooks. One would like to make a few observations about the=20
social sciences textbook for class VI in order to indicate that many=20
of the objections are valid. [...].
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/printedition/030103/detIDE01.shtml

_____

#9.

The Times of India
January 3, 2003

Actors, writers meet to counter rightist threats
Times News Network [ Thursday, January 02, 2003 10:45:56 Pm ]

MUMBAI: Marathi theatre producers are meeting in Dadar on Sunday to=20
discuss ways to counter threats from fundamentalist groups to disrupt=20
plays, which allegedly show disrespect to Hindu deities.

The situation has become unbearable with a number of producers=20
receiving threats, Macchhindra Kambli, producer and chairperson of=20
the Marathi Natya Parishad, told TNN on Wednesday.

A newly-formed organisation, the Hindu Janajagriti Samiti, comprising=20
members of the Bajrang Dal and the VHP, had threatened to burn down=20
Gadkari Rangayatan at Thane, if a performance of the play 'Bighadale=20
Swargache Daar', was staged there on Wednesday. However, the=20
performance was staged under police protection.

Last week, an unruly mob sought to disrupt a performance of the play=20
at Ponda in Goa, leading to the cancellation of a subsequent show at=20
Ratnagiri. Also, under threat is the phenomenally popular Malvani=20
play 'Wastraharan' a parody of the Mahabharata. The play has had=20
4,055 shows so far, said director and actor Machhindra Kambli. It is=20
absurd that the self-appointed guardians of culture are taking the=20
law into their own hands, Kambli said.

The government should take stern action against the forces of=20
intolerance, said Kishore Jadhav, president of the Vidrohi Sanskritik=20
Chalwal, an organisation opposed to communalism and upper caste=20
dominance in the field of culture.

Subodh More, general secretary of the Chalwal, said recently Hindutva=20
forces disrupted a two-day conference of the Shiva Dharma Parishad, a=20
new body seeking to launch a humanist religion, distinct from=20
Hinduism, at Talegaon near Pune.

Hindutva forces are organising a rally of adivasis in Nandurbar along=20
the Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh border this week-end, in a bid to woo=20
adivasis into the Hindutva fold. "We will oppose this trend in our=20
fifth Vidrohi Marathi sahitya sammelan to be held at the same town on=20
January 11 and 12" More said. Presiding over the sammelan is Atmaram=20
Rathod, a writer from nomadic tribes and author of the novel 'Tanda',=20
later translated into Bengali.

Growing intolerance of sectarian forces toward culture will also be=20
reflected in the mega Marathi literary sammelan to be held at Karad=20
near the picturesque Y.B. Chavan memorial from January 10 to 12.

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