SACW | 11 July, 2003
Harsh Kapoor
aiindex@mnet.fr
Fri, 11 Jul 2003 04:41:41 +0100
South Asia Citizens Wire | 11 July, 2003
#1. Pakistan's experience more or less conclusively proves that for
Muslim societies to remain united, free and modern politics has to be
secular, with religion being kept strictly out of the state business.
(M.B. Naqvi)
#2. Bangladesh: Disturbing Moves against media (Mahfuz Anam)
#3. India: Crisis of Archaeology (Irfan Habib)
#4. India: a public discussion on the Politics of Ayodhya (12 July, New Delh=
i)
#5. India: Gujarat: The Good Life (Mukul Dube)
#6. India: An Open Letter to Shri L.K. Advani (Najid Hussain)
#7. India: Letters to President of India, Chief Justice , Supreme
Court and Chief Minister of Gujarat for Re opening Best Bakery Case
#8. Book Announcement: Home Truths: Stories of Single Mothers by
Deepti Priya Mehrotra
#9. Book Announcement: "We are Making Changes" a handbook for young
Asian women compiled by Amrit Wilson (Asian Women Unite)
--------------
#1.
Pakistan's experience more or less conclusively proves that for
Muslim societies to remain united, free and modern politics has to be
secular, with religion being kept strictly out of the state business.
M.B. Naqvi
[July 4 2003, Karachi]
It was a day of terror in Quetta on Friday July 4. Sectarian
terrorists struck and struck hard. Three assailants entered the
compound of a Shia Imam Bargah and mosque in the heart of the city
and opened automatic fire on the praying crowd and one among them was
a suicide bomber who also perished. The casualties from the two
assailants' indiscriminate firing were 53 dead and over 60 wounded.
If we add the three assailants also who were also killed the tally of
the dead goes up to 56, perhaps more as more information comes out
from the various parts of the city. It was clearly a sectarian attack
on a day that the six religious parties' alliance, MMA, was observing
as a day of protest against President Musharraf. Nobody knows who did
it and why.
The phenomenon is wellknown in Pakistan. Earlier Karachi used to be
the Terror capital of Pakistan. It looks like shifting to Quetta
where this massive attack is second within a month. The earlier one
had killed about a dozen police cadets belonging to the (Shia) Hazara
tribe with many more wounded. As usual, not one person could be
identified or the conspiracy exposed. One of the major similarities
in various sectarian attacks is that they are mounted on mosques at
prayer times when the casualties can only be high. Time was when a
mosque used to be a place of peace and safe asylum; anyone who take
asylum in a mosque used to be sure of protection even against the
police, food and a place to sleep. Now mosques and Imam Bargahs are
regularly attacked, though to be fair, Christian churches are also
attacked at congregation times. On Saturday some armed terrorists
shot and killed a Roman Catholic Cleric. This practice of Pakistani
terrorists is hard to find in other countries, though one is told
that a few such cases have taken place in Egypt and Algeria.
There are three ways of looking at the incident. First is of the
pragmatists, especially in the police forces, who generally take each
incident to be a separate one caused by a combination of local
circumstances, often personal animosity and tribal feuds. These
gentlemen take pride in being realists. For them it is only a law and
order matter. It is another matter that except in few cases the law
enforcement agencies (LEAs) have seldom succeeded in catching the
actual culprits or conspirators who generally walk away or ride away
safely. Later many arrests are often made, some cases are initiated
but more than half of them gets thrown out of courts for lack of
reliable evidence. So much for realism.
There is another group that links the incident to the current crisis
between the government and the MMA. Contrary to the earlier
expectations of unavowed but considerable sub rosa cooperation
between General Musharraf and the religious parties after their
spectacular showing in last October's election, it was widely
believed that the two are sure to cooperate. The very success of MMA
was seen as having been due to the help rendered by the
administration. Indeed they had come fairly close together over the
contentious issues that divide the MMA from the government:
acceptance of General Musharraf's fiat in amending the Constitution,
the amendments being known as Legal Framework Order (LFO), and the
question of Musharraf's taking off his uniform to get himself elected
normally as a President.
The MMA wanted to accommodate the General to the maximum extent. It
was prepared to help amend the Constitution generally in accordance
with the wishes of the General, provided only if he gave a date on
which he would take off his uniform. The MMA had given him a year to
do so. But the General wants to take everything anyone has to give
without conceding anything in return, nothing whatever. At length
the talks broke down. The two are now poised for a clash and Friday
July 4 was the first major protest day observed by the MMA.
Liberal opinion is still suspicious of both the General and the MMA.
It thinks that some day somehow the old links between them will
reassert themselves and a deal will be struck. It is noted by all
that the two cannot afford to alienate each other. Much rides on
their tacit understanding and unavowed cooperation. But that is for
the future to show. People should wait a while and see what does the
MMA do.
MMA's main parties are sought to be divided by the government. They
are Jamaat-i-Islami led by Qazi Hussain Ahmed, who also is the
friend, philosopher and guide of the Hizbul Mujahideen in India,
Kashmir and Pakistan. The second major party is Jamiat-i-Ulemai
Islam,(JUI) which has two factions led respectively by Maulana Fazlur
Rehman and Ex-Senator Samiul Haq. Both these factions had worked in
close mesh with the intelligence agencies and both had provided the
nurseries where Taliban were nurtured and sent out to Afghanistan to
rule it. They are the professors of the hardest view of Islam, more
or less akin to the Wahabi school of Saudi Arabia. The Mujahideen and
the Taliban who made history in Afghanistan are also more or less the
same people who are carrying out Jihad in Indian controlled Kashmir
in terms of faith.
The most important face of these Jihadis --- and Taliban for that
matter --- is that they double being sectarian terrorists. They are
such Islamic purists that any perceived deviation from the faith in
sectarian terms is utterly unacceptable. In terms of their faith the
deviationists become Murtads or apostates, deserving to be killed.
Indeed they think killing them is a matter of higher priority over
mere Kafirs. This is the kind of orientation that the Deobandi
School, the mainspring of these branches steered clear of
sectarianism by becoming more tolerant and advocating secular
politics. That was safer and Muslims could call themselves simply
Muslims because they did not emphasise the sectarian details of their
faith which is exactly the same as now being propagated by the
Jihadis and their mentors.
The third group links the sectarian terrorism to the basic
polarisations that have prevented Pakistanis from becoming a nation.
Quite early in the proceedings after partition, the Jamaat-i-Islami
Chief, Maulana Abul Ala Maudoodi, after having opposed Pakistan,
veered to the view that now that Pakistan has been created in the
name of Islam it must become a true Islamic State. This term, the
true Islamic State, has played havoc with Pakistan; it created a
fundamental polarisation within the polity: the majority of voters
led by more or less pro-west mainstream parties like Muslim League,
Pakistan Peoples' Party, and their various factions had talked loudly
and long about Islam in order to keep the Mullahs marginalised. But
the Mullahs' claim to know what Islam is made them a factor in the
polity. Other mainstream parties imperfectly represented all the
modernism there has been in Pakistan. But their rhetoric has
reverberated and has come back to haunt everyone. It was all very
well in 1950s and 1960s. The PPP and Pakistan Muslim League could get
away with mere rhetoric. By and by after the Americans gave millions
of dollars and arms for the first Afghanistan war in the 1980s, the
Ulema, supported by the undercover agencies, began to talk grandly:
We know what Islam is; these westernised types know nothing about it;
if Pakistan has to be an Islamic State we will have to tell them; it
will have to be based on Shariah. But unfortunately the Shariah among
the Muslims is a variable concept. There are hundreds of sects and
each one has its own Shariah. During British period, thanks to
Jamiat-i-Ulemai Hind, the sectarian differences could be contained,
though often incited by the British and their paid Mullahs. In
Pakistan Mullahs now scent power. They are going flat out for power
in their own right.
There are fears that General Musharraf, for all his undoubted power,
reinforced by the support of George W. Bush at Camp David, there may
be elements within the armed forces they would stand by MMA,
especially the JUI part of it. Even the Jamaat-i-Islami Chief Qazi
Hussain Ahmed seems to have a kind of confidence that is not
warranted by his ability to bring down the government through street
agitation. His relationship with General Musharraf has seen many ups
and downs and he has often said extremely harsh things about
Musharraf. It is an uncertain and fear inspiring situation.
Whether we relate the recrudescence of sectarian terrorism to
Musharraf government's tussle with MMA or to the basic circumstance
of Pakistan's creation in the name of Islam, the fact of the matter
is that the society is polarised and the sectarian consciousness now
amounts to what the Indians call communalism in their own context. It
is a fearful situation because it is also a fundamental polarisation
which is just one of the several basic ones. Briefly there are two
others among the main ones: concerning the civil and military
relationship and the foreign policy of making Pakistan a satellite
of America. These differences at the most basic level remain to be
sorted out. But the empty words spoken loudly and too frequently are
now taking their revenge. Few know how to square the various circles
that define the Pakistan polity.
Pakistan's experience more or less conclusively proves that for
Muslim societies to remain united, free and modern politics has to be
secular, with religion being kept strictly out of the state business.
Otherwise there would be troubles like we see in Pakistan, Algeria
and Egypt, not to mention many others
_____
#2.
The Daily star
July 11, 2003
Moves against media
Some disturbing new occurrences
Mahfuz Anam
Within the last three weeks warrants of arrests were issued against
five editors and one executive editor on defamation charges. First,
warrants were against the editors of Prothom Alo and The Daily Star,
then against the editor of Jugantar and finally against the editor,
advisory editor and executive editor of Daily Janakantha.
In addition to the arrest warrants, defamatory and utterly false and
fabricated charges were made against the editor of this newspaper
from the floor of parliament. In the second onslaught, exemplary
punishment for Star editor and reporter was demanded of the Speaker
for interpreting the Bangla word Bua as a maidservant which was
directed at the leader of the opposition by the PM's advisor on
parliamentary affairs during the latter's budget speech. The Speaker
accepted the petition and sent it to the House Privileges Committee
to examine and give opinion whether or not any member's privilege was
breached.
Only a few days back, police went to the studios of Channel-i and ATN
Bangla, two private TV channels, within hours of broadcasting a story
concerning the ammunition haul in Bogra. The story, which was also
run by other newspapers, said that police recovered huge quantity of
bullets and explosives from houses of both opposition and coalition
activists and suspected their involvement in the affair. Following
the police visit one station withdrew the story and another broadcast
the same blaming the opposition in place of a coalition partner,
which they did in the original version. On the following day, an
intelligence agency surrounded the whole office of Channel-i and
questioned the staff about the same story. A police team also visited
the Sangbad office in Dhaka and inquired about the sources of
follow-up items of the same news. The paper later withdrew part of
their earlier story.
We will be the first to admit that we can and do make mistakes. That
is why we publish corrections, rejoinders and even apologise when
necessary. But why should the government send a police contingent to
a news organisation when the matter deals with journalistic work? The
principal information officer (PIO) under the information ministry or
some other official could have dealt with the TV channels and Sangbad
about any 'wrong' information they may have carried. Surely, there
was no need to send police followed by an intelligence agency if the
intention was a simply a 'correction' of the 'wrong' news. The link
between the visit and the quick change of the story is lost to no one.
So we have warrants against editors for defamation charges and police
and intelligence agency visiting TV stations and newspaper office.
What all this means and how such behaviour impacts on the freedom of
the media is a question best left unanswered. The question in our
mind is why this onslaught is against the independent media. Five of
the six warrants against editors came from cases lodged by ministers
or people holding such rank. Are we to understand that these actions
reflect the adoption of a more aggressive policy towards the free
media? If yes, then we can say without any hesitation that such a
policy will not be good for the country, the elected government and
of course, for the media in general, not to mention, for democracy.
One of our best 'faces' at the international level is our free media.
We proudly tell the world about it and say how our free and
independent media has helped us to strengthen democracy. We proclaim
to the world that we write fearlessly, and yet warrants are issued,
defamatory and fabricated statements are made on the floor of
parliament and police visit media organisations to ensure 'correct'
news. Will the government care to answer how all this reflect their
repeatedly proclaimed policy of unstinted support for media freedom?
Mere laws or public proclamations of adherence to it do not make a
free press. The attitude of the government towards it forms the most
important functional (as against statutory) component of the overall
environment in which a free media can flourish. This is all the more
important because pointing out government's failures and finding
flaws in its performance form a crucial part of public expectations
of the media's role.
US President Richard Nixon's 'Watergate' fame Washington Post Editor
Ben Bradlee once said "if a government is happy with its media then
obviously the latter is not doing its job". If a government cannot
accept and respect the "watchdog" role of the media, and asks "who
elected the media to pass judgement on us" then the latter cannot
fulfil the task people in a democracy entrust the media with. If the
government's approach is to strike and punish the press when it
criticises it then a free media cannot operate. And if free press
does not operate, neither will democracy.
Are we making an exaggerated claim because we form part of the media?
No. Just look into history or look around the present world -- is
there democracy anywhere without free and independent media? Need we
say more?
An interesting example of the question of 'attitude towards the
media' is provided by the current tussle between the British Prime
Minister Tony Blair and the BBC. The issue is whether or not Blair
actually exaggerated the intelligence reports on Iraqi weapons before
the war, which the BBC had accused him of. Blair termed the BBC
report "as serious an attack on my integrity as there could possibly
be". He added, "The charge is untrue and I hope they accept it. That
is all I am going to say." The British prime minister is not going
for a criminal defamation case, neither is he going to insist that a
warrant be issued against the editor concerned of the BBC, nor is he
going to send police or any intelligence agency to the BBC office.
What is Tony Blair doing when he says "The charge is untrue and I
hope they accept it"? He is giving the BBC a chance to re-examine its
story and correct it if necessary. The BBC can do so, or contrarily
say that it will stand by its story, as it has done. In fact, the BBC
has refused the prime minister's request to reveal its source --
another 'privilege' that democracies grant the free media to perform
its duty -- the RIGHT to protect its sources of information. Think
also of how the US media is attacking President Bush for his
statement about the Iraqi WMD. Nobody is sending the FBI to US media
bodies!
That is how free media in a democracy functions. The point we are
trying to make is nowhere in the Blair-BBC episode is there any
arrogant use of a government's power, neither is there even the
remotest hint of punishment or retaliation. That is the 'space'
democracy gives to the media because experience has shown that such
freedom given to the media ultimately contributes to an accountable,
transparent and responsible government. That critical 'space' comes
not only from public support and the legal framework but also from
the 'attitude' the executive branch of the State has towards the
fourth estate.
We, more than it may be apparent, are fully aware that this is not
Britain neither are we the BBC. But can we not be Thailand where The
Nation (Thai English daily) fought a head-on battle against Prime
Minister Thaksin Sinawatra on his stock scam issue. At no time during
the long drawn battle did the Thai PM use his government's power to
raid The Nation's office, issue arrest warrants against its editor or
reporters or have his intelligence agencies harass the media. The PM
was later exonerated from that charge but did not take The Nation or
its editor to court for criminal defamation. As a result, Thai
media's independence remains unfettered, democracy strengthened and
the PM more popular than ever.
It all boils down to the question of respect for freedom and genuine
belief in democracy both of which are prerequisites for respect for a
free press. When elected officials claim that only other elected
officials have the right to criticise them, then he effectively
denies citizens, voters, tax-payers, the media, writers and
conscientious objectors the fundamental rights of free expression
guaranteed in any democratic constitution, including, of course, ours.
A free press is still one of the brightest aspects of Bangladesh's
democracy and the world respects us for it. We should immediately
stop all such activities that constitute a threat to free media and
erode our credibility as a genuine democracy.
_____
#3.
The Hindustan Times (India) July 5, 2003
Crisis of Archaeology
by Irfan Habib
Among the twenty issues framed in what is now termed the
Ramjanmbhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute, evidence is being currently taken
on the second issue at a Special Bench of the Allahabad High Court,
at Lucknow.
This is whether there was a Hindu temple at the disputed site before
the Babri Masjid was built, and "if so, its impact on the case".
While much evidence has been taken, as offered by the parties, the
Bench decided to collect evidence on its own as well - by having the
disputed site dug up to find whether or not there had actually been a
temple below the mosque. To a lay person this decision might seem to
weaken the force of the order of status quo that had been imposed by
the Supreme Court. That this possibility also partly weighed with the
High Court was reflected in its decision to obtain a geophysical
survey of the site before actually ordering the excavation.
The work of the survey was entrusted (at the invitation of the
Archaeological Survey of India, ASI) to Tojo-Vikas International
(Pvt) Limited, a company based at Kalkaji, New Delhi, with no
previous known experience in archaeological work. In its report the
conclusion was announced that the 'anomalies' "could be associated
with ancient and contemporaneous structures such as pillars,
foundation walls, slab flooring, extending over a large portion of
the site." The word 'pillars' immediately suggested to many the
existence of temple pillars, and little attention was paid to the
fact that on page 26 of its report the company expressly cautioned
that when it said 'pillars' there could actually be no pillars
underneath, but just debris or a boulder of a certain size! In the
event not a single pillar has turned up in the excavations of the
entire site, except for one belonging to the Babri Masjid's own
structure, one that had been broken by the karsevaks while
demolishing the mosque. Subsequently, even the ASI had to note
repeatedly that structures predicted by Tojo-Vikas through its
reported 'anomalies', did not in most cases match with what was found
upon actual digging.
Yet it was the Tojo-Vikas report which became the basis for the High
Court's orders on March 5 this year, requiring the ASI to begin
excavations immediately. Now any archaeological excavation is an act
not only of exploration, but also of destruction. One has to disturb,
remove and demolish what lies in the upper layers in order to reach
the lower. It has therefore, to be weighed very carefully whether
what one is likely to get below is worth as much as what one
necessarily destroys. At Mohenjo Daro, the great site of the Indus
Civilization, a ruined Buddhist stupa of no artistic merit stands
above a crucial part of the Citadel of the earlier city. Below it
might well lie an important Indus monument. Yet till date no proposal
to dig through the stupa ruins has been countenanced. This aspect was
totally ignored in the excavations at Ayodhya. The entire
surkhi-polished original floor of the Babri Masjid, as laid out in
1528, was removed together with most of the remaining lower parts of
its walls. Whatever the karsevaks had not been able to demolish in
December 1992 has thus now been destroyed. There can be no
justification for such destruction under any recognised principle of
archaeology.
Such being the case, what we have seen at Ayodhya is just 'crisis
archaeology' (a term used, tongue-in-cheek, for the Ayodhya
excavations by the US journal Archaeology, May-June 2003). The crisis
has been for archaeology itself: would the ASI perform in such
circumstances as a professional body, or simply set its sights at
finding what those in power wish it to find out: the remains of a
temple?
There is good reason to believe that the latter has, indeed, been the
case. Once the digging began, the ASI team's object seemingly has
been to look mainly for stones, bricks or artefacts that could
conceivably come from a temple and to forget everything else. No use
of the flotation technique to sieve out seeds, bone fragments and
other minute pieces of material has been made, so that much of the
excavation from an archaeological point of view has gone waste. There
has been a tendency to ignore medieval 'Muslim' glazed ware and
animal bones; the High Court had especially to direct on March 26
that such wares and bones be recorded and separately preserved. It
will be seen from the ASI's three reports so far submitted to the
Court that it has still paid scant attention to such finds. One
suspects that this is because these constitute strong evidence
against the existence of a temple at the time at the site.
Now that the ASI has excavated the site for over three and a half
months, and given its 'progress reports' to the Court for periods
ending April 24, June 5 and June 19, it has become amply clear that
despite practically the entire disputed site having been dug up, no
structural or sculptural remains identifiable with those of a temple
have been found. For one thing, lime mortar and surkhi, the
recognised marks of Muslim construction, are present in practically
all the excavated walls. The strong inference that the floor found
below the Babri Masjid's own floor and the walls connected with it,
belonged to an earlier mosque has now been confirmed with the find of
the base of an arched recess (mihrab) and of arched niche (taq) in a
connected wall. The find of lime -mortar and surkhi down to the
lowest layers of brickwork at Ramchabutra sets at rest speculation
about any pre-Muslim construction under it. An inscription which gave
some momentary excitement has turned out to be in modern Devanagari,
of no sacred import.
It is now left to the ASI to make the best of what it called
'structural bases' in its first 'progress report', but which in the
next two reports have miraculously turned into 'pillar bases'. As
described in the first report these are formed by "squarish or
circular =8A blocks of calcrete stone over three or four courses of
brickbats". What is astonishing about the nomenclature adopted for
them by the ASI is that in not a single instance are these 'bases'
associated with any pillar, in fact, as we have noted, no pillars (or
fragments of them) have been found. There are not even any marks of
depression on the surface of the stones surmounting the so-called
bases. In any case how can mere heaps of brickbats, uncemented by
mortar, carry any kind of weight? To call them 'pillar bases' or even
'structural bases' is absurd. They could just be low seats or, in
some cases, markers for shops or stalls as in the Lal Darwaza Masjid
at Jaunpur. The fact that some of these 'bases' are sealed, while
others are not, by the original floor of the Babri Masjid, shows that
they belong to different times, and most of them are demonstrably
subsequent to the phases of mosque construction at the site.
These 'pillar bases' have another feature: they are easy to assemble.
A series of complaints have been submitted to the judicial observers
appointed by the Court on May 21 and subsequently, showing how
brickbats that lay scattered under lime-surkhi floor of the Masjid,
along with sandstone blocks, obviously to provide a stable base for
the floor, have been re-arranged by the ASI excavators to provide
evidence for 'pillar bases'. Many of these 'pillar bases' are,
therefore, likely to be not genuine at all.
It is saddening that one should be obliged to speak in this manner of
the work of the ASI that was once an institution in which the country
could take justifiable pride. Today, one can only say that if it did
not do worse at Ayodhya, part of the credit goes to the numerous
archaeologists from many places in India, who maintained a constant
vigil at the excavations. They did so only out of a loyalty to their
profession and to secular values. When one thinks of them, one cannot
help feeling sentimental about a country which, amidst all its
troubles, can still bring forth such men and women.
Sentiment must, however, also nestle with cynicism. Now that the
excavations have proved such a disappointment one suddenly hears once
again the demand for 'compromise'. Both the time and circumstances
make the demand most suspect. Now that everything has been destroyed
and dug up, why not just wait for the court verdict and obey the law?
(The writer is one of India's most eminent Historians.)
_____
#4.
SAHMAT
8, Vithalbhai Patel House, Rafi Marg
New Delhi-110001
Telephone- 3711276/ 3351424
e-mail-sahmat@vsnl.com
9.7.2003
You are invited to a discussion on the Politics of
Ayodhya on Saturday, 12
July, 2003 at 3.00pm at Dy. Chairman Hall,
Constitution Club Rafi Marg, New
Delhi.
Speakers : Prof Irfan Habib
Seema Mustafa
Rajiv Dhawan
Chair : Prabhat Patnaik
Nirmala Deshpande
Syeda Hameed
_____
#5.
Indian Express (India) 7 July 2003
The Good Life
Mukul Dube
Sheikh Zahira Habibullah was last seen in the benevolent protective
custody of the BJP MLA Madhu Shrivastav while she retracted, in the
court trying the Best Bakery case, the testimony she had given dozens
of times last year. She was the principal witness in the case. Many
other witnesses too turned hostile, and the rest were not examined.
The judge threw the case out.
The Best Bakery of Hanuman Tekri, Vadodara, was burnt down,
together with the 14 or so human beings in it. Those who witnessed
the fire now say that they do not know who caused it - but they all
can name many people who they say did good and kind and brave things
but who were nevertheless charged by the police and the prosecution
with the foul deed.
The investigating and prosecuting individuals in the Best
Bakery case are unconcerned that they made such terrific asses of
themselves that the judge spoke of "not an iota of evidence" against
the accused. For it was calculated. They will live very well indeed,
these useful members of society. And no more harm will come to those
unfortunates who were charged with heinous crimes but were let off by
the judge, who saw neither evidence against them nor anything strange
in so many witnesses' turning dramatically hostile.
A witness is easily suborned who has nothing left to lose and
something at least to gain, even if it be bare survival. The dead are
gone, but the living must live on, the "reasoning" goes, the
blandishment, the threat. Come, let us make your life good for you,
Zahira, say the orphaned girl's benefactors. Or else you know what
will happen to you: you described it yourself last year.
"Our three Hindu servants' stomachs were slit open," Zahira
had said. "Two of my brothers were burnt alive; two others were tied
up and torched. They are struggling for their lives in the hospital.
=2E.. In all, 14 persons were burnt and killed, including my two
sisters and my bhabhi. My chacha's entire family and one sister were
burnt alive. All the attackers were from the mohalla. ... The main
culprits are the policemen in the police van from Panigate police
station who passed by our bakery and our house at around 9.30 p.m.,
stopped briefly and then drove away. ... If the police had done its
job, this tragedy would not have occurred."
The attackers remain in the mohalla, you see, Zahira, and
there are policemen still at the police station. You really have no
choice, Zahira, except to be sensible.
The Best Bakery trial is a resounding national disgrace, but
those who orchestrated the macabre farce do not care for such things.
The good, the proper, the just - these have no meaning for them. They
deal exclusively in death and lies. "Justice be damned. Our boys did
fine work and must come to no harm."
In their Hindu Rashtra they will deal only in death: lies
will no longer be needed.
_____
#6.
[4 July 2003]
An Open Letter to Shri L.K. Advani
Dear Sir:
I am writing this letter to you after a long consideration. Ever
since the deliberate targeting and killing of my father-in-law and
the former Member of Parliament, Ahsan Jafri during the Gujarat
violence of 2002, my family is not the same. His brutal and untimely
death has taken the highest toll on my wife and Jafri's only daughter
who continues to swing wildly between the extremes of faith and
hopelessness, brotherhood and utter disbelief in humanity, our
ancient values and wisdom, and the displayed dance of immorality and
violence in Gujarat. She even confronts her roots and religion.
As you know, Gujarat tragedy had all the signatures of a man-made
catastrophe that was deliberately let loose by a few in their power
pursuit. As a result, those families who have lost their near and
dear ones have been the true sufferers. It is not only the Muslims
of Gujarat who have suffered the fallout of this immoral dance, but
many Hindus have suffered enormously including the families of those
innocent people who died in the Sabarmati coach and later in
Akshardham temple.
Their pain is further compounded by the fact that there is no closure
for the family members of so many who died in the riots because their
bodies were totally annihilated and could not be found. Financial
assistance did provide some help, but only to a few and that too
temporarily. Families at large continue to languish in pain and
miseries, knowing their loss is irreversible and permanent. As the
one who has suffered that loss, who is trying to cope up with the
pain, and still helping others in the community to move forward, I
can tell you it is not easy.
Under these circumstances, the issue of justice is very important to
such families. Since our loved ones were killed, the killers must be
found and properly punished. Proper justice alone can provide some
comfort and closure to our loss. Families of Godhra and Akshardham
victims have an advantage as every individual who was suspected of
even an association with the crime is booked under POTA and case
against him or her is vigorously and relentlessly being pursued, just
the way it should be. However, the course of law is deliberately
being subverted in cases against the perpetrators of the mass murder
in the rest of Gujarat using a series of tactics including neglecting
the evidence against them, fabricating statements, falsifying FIRs,
misrepresenting testimonies, freeing the suspects on bail,
intimidating or influencing the witnesses through coercion or money.
We all know about the disrepute brought to the credibility of the
Nanavati Commission investigating Godhra and post Godhra riots. And
now we know the fate of Best Bakery trial where all 21 accused in
brutalizing and burning of 12 to 14 innocent people including women
and children in the bakery are set free.
In the aftermath of Gujarat carnage, you have often said that Gujarat
will remain a blot on your conscious and that of the BJP governance.
That it was "outrageous'' and "indefensible.'' There is nothing to
doubt your sincerity when you say this. We also know how you feel
about what took place in your constituency. Even if your feelings
about the communal integrity, unity and harmony were somewhat
different in the days prior to forming the NDA government at the
center, or before the extremists carried out the violence on innocent
people in Gujarat, I think the magnitude of the human tragedy during
these riots has severely impacted your conscious. You do feel sorry
for the needless pain and miseries inflicted upon the innocent people
of your constituency and you do feel outraged at the Gujarat
administration's apathy in controlling the violence.
This is the time to act on those humane feelings. I appeal to you to
ensure that justice is now done in Gujarat. The communal bias shown
by the Gujarat government has been obvious to all of us including
perhaps you. Whether it was the issue of denial of its involvement
in the post Godhra carnage, or the issue of the amount of
compensation declared for the Godhra victims and others, or the issue
of justice for Hindu victims and the rest, Modi government has shown
consistency and has come under severe national and international
criticism. This has also tarnished India's image in the world.
Employing a communally divisive agenda even if pays some near term
dividends, in a long run it will produce more harm and damage to your
government and the country.
You have the power to stop that. And you should stop that. You
should direct the Gujarat government to uphold the constitution that
promises equality and human dignity to every citizen of India,
regardless of race, religion, or color. Ensuring this is also
important if you have to succeed in your dream of bringing Ramrajya
to the Akhanda Bharatvarsha.
Please direct Modi government to stop subverting the judicial system
and misusing the state machinery to deny justice to those who have
already suffered so much and lost so much for no fault of their own.
Allow justice to take its course. Please ensure that the
perpetrators of Gujarat violence are brought to justice, or the
justice is brought to them. In any case justice must be served.
Thank you
Sincerely,
Dr. Najid Hussain
_____
#7.
-Letters to President of India, Chief Justice , Supreme Court and
Chief Minister of Gujarat for Re opening Best Bakery Case
To,
Chief Justice,
Supreme Court of India,
New Delhi.
Re : Best Bakery Case in Gujarat
Sir,
We, the undersigned are deeply grieved on learning about the outcome
in Best Bakery case heard by the fast-track court at Vadodara,Gujarat
The Gujarat Government has totally failed in nabbing even a single
culprit in a crime in which 12 persons were burnt alive, building
looted and put to fire by a mob of thousands and the ghastly act
continued for hours.
We, appeal to you to intervene and direct the delivery of justice as
per the provisions of Indian Constitution in the cases filed against
the rioters whose actions brought about deaths of a number of human
beings and damage to large properties during the Godhra and post
Godhra incidents.
We annex our appeal to the Chief Minister of Gujarat for your
Lordship's information.
We hope and eagerly await directives issued by your Lordship in the matter.
Yours sincerely,
Gujarat's aggrieved persons,
Chunibhai Vaidya, President, Lok Samiti
Ila Pathak(Ahmedabad Women's Action Group - AWAG)
Prakash N. Shah,Editor (Nireekshak)
Dwarikanath Rath ,Movement for Secular Democracy
Abhinav Shukla, Activist
N.B.Same copy is sent to President Of India
The copies will be handed over to NHRC at Barod 0nD. 8-7-03
03 July 2003
To,
Chief Minister,
Government of Gujarat,
Sachivalaya,
Gandhinagar.
Re : Verdict in Best Bakery Case
Sir,
We, the undersigned, draw your attention to the Best Bakery Judgement.
We quote from the statement of NHRC chairman, Justice A.S. Anand.
"The acquittal of all the 21 accused in the Best Bakery case in
Vadodara by a special court was prima facie a "Miscarriage of
Justice".
In addition it is stated :
"The Gujarat Government must appeal against the verdict and if it
does not, the relatives of the victims and complainants can also seek
permission of the court and file an appeal against the acquittal".
In the opinion of Justice Anand, "It is an opportunity for the
Gujarat government to re-establish its credibility".
We request the Chief Minister of Gujarat, the head of the government,
to appeal against the judgment of acquittal in the Best Bakery Case.
The Govt.of Gujarat failed to nab the culprits and framed false
charges against some who had to pass their days in custody, in
nightmarish apprehension of death sentence or face life
imprisonment. The Govt failed to deliver justice as a result of poor
investigation by the police.So we request transfer of the other
pending cases to CBI as per the recommendation of the NHRC, which are
quoted below
(i) In view of the widespread allegations that FIRs have
been poorly or wrongly recorded and that investigations are being
'influenced' by extraneous considerations or players, the Commission
is of the view that the integrity of the process has to be restored.
It therefore recommends the entrusting of certain critical cases to
the CBI. These include the cases relating to the
=97 Godhra incident, which is at present
being investigated by the GRP;
=97 Chamanpura (Gulbarga Society) incident;
=97 Naroda Patiya incident;
=97 Best Bakery case in Vadodara; and the
=97 Sadarpura case in Mehsana district
(ii) The Commission recommends that Special Courts should try
these cases on a day-to-day basis, the Judges being handpicked by the
Chief Justice of the High Court of Gujarat. Special Prosecutors
should be appointed by as needed. Procedures should be adopted for
the conduct of the proceedings in such a manner that the traumatized
condition of many of the victims, particularly women and children, is
not aggravated and they are protected from further trauma or threat.
A particular effort should be made to depute sensitive officers,
particularly officers who are women, to assist in the handling of
such cases.
(iii) Special Cells should be constituted under the concerned
District Magistrates to follow the progress of the investigation of
cases not entrusted to the CBI; these should be monitored by the
Additional Director-General (Crime).
In addition we request that the witnesses in still pending cases be
provided protection so that they feel free to give evidence and are
not pressurised.
We eagerly await your response to the above and the measures you take.
Yours sincerely,
Chunibhai Vaidya, President, Lok Samiti
Ila Pathak(Ahmedabad Women's Action Group =96( AWAG)
Prakash N. Shah,Editor, (Nireekshak)
Dwarikanath Rath ,Movement for Secular Democracy(MSD)
Abhinav Shukla, Activist
_____
#8.
Book Announcement
Home Truths: Stories of Single Mothers
by Deepti Priya Mehrotra
Penguin-India, June 2003.
Pp260, Rs 250
A sensitive study of the lives of single mothers
Home Truths, the first book of its kind, focuses on single mothers
and explores their lives, with their attendant dilemmas and
challenges. The author details a phenomenon that is fast becoming
common. Deftly using a free-flowing narrative, she raises questions
about marriage, children and relationships.
In the vast canvas that the author explores are the stories of
seventeen `single mothers' - women rearing their children outside the
`normal' structure of marriage - who may be divorced, widowed,
separated or unmarried. Through their radically different personal
histories, which are usually unheard, they challenge received
knowledge and subvert entrenched patriarchies, and emerge as
quintessential survivors. Being ordinary women with extraordinary
courage, they challenge the dichotomy between home and world, women
and men, emotion and rationality.
Lucid and forthright, this seminal work draws attention to `truths'
that usually lie buried in the rubble of daily life and conventional
social sciences. It gives insight into silence and dissent,
sexuality, motherhood, rights and responsibilities. A must for those
interested in gender issues, family and women's studies, Home Truths
is refreshingly unusual, with `truths' relevant to all of us -
mothers or not, single or not, women or not.
_____
#9.
Book Announcement
"We are Making Changes"
a handbook for young Asian women
We Are Making Changes is a handbook by and for young Asian women,
compiled by Amrit Wilson with artwork and design by Kiran Patel. It
is the first publication of Asian Women Unite! an umbrella
organisation of Asian women's groups across Britain. In just
twenty-two A4 pages it covers a whole range of issues which affect
young Asian women here in Britain, including for example power
relationships in the family, education, sexuality, self harm. It is
written in a clear, concise and accessible form with a fictional
character (Awara) who 'takes things apart a bit and puts them back
together again'. Based mainly on the words of young Asian women aged
between 14 and 18 with some additional facts, questions and ideas,
the handbook is an invaluable source of information and a useful
thinking tool.
At a time when most young women's magazines are telling them how they
should look and how they should behave, or how they can have the
'best' wedding with the 'perfect' man, this handbook looks behind
some of these ideas.
Most important of all, the booklet opens up debate on areas which
don=92t often get discussed. Subjects like the `control of sexuality=92
are introduced via the group discussion of 16 year olds in West
London on pages 8 and 9:
T: My mother is always saying cover your legs. She's alright when I
am at home, but as soon as I walk out of the door she says, `wear
something that you look good in.=92
P: It will only be a suggestion, it won't be blatant, it's kind of
cold outside, maybe you should wear or why don't you iron that and
wear something else instead.
C: Then you feel embarrassed and say Ok I'll wear something else.=92
or
'In Southall you know the community, you know everyone. There 's
loads of Asian factories where women get together and work. If they
see someone's daughter just talking to a bloke, they think she is
doing something wrong (especially if they are old fashioned) then
they might bring it up even if it is not true and she might end up
not even getting married . They think she's doing things behind her
parents back - so thats not a good family'
The handbook's style of production and writing sheds the 'fear of
deep thinking' so widely exploited and promoted by the commercial,
competitive and consumption-oriented culture today. For example the
concept of Patriarchy is explained by showing how it affects everyday
life. After the comment by R from Hounslow where she says: For ages
women have been the second class citizen, whereas the man, the first
citizen has always been in control, there is a box with a the
following text: `Patriarchy: Rule of the father, male dominance, a
system that discriminates against and oppresses women.' Awara's
response to this is: Yes we all know what that means =96 when you
aren't allowed to go out for an evening though you've made all the
plans =96 and then your brother just goes =96 no questions asked. Or your
parents or teachers say you! should take up nursing =96 because it's
easier=92 =96 when you know you have it in you to be a doctor.
With Awara as your guide you will engage with a variety of materials
(all by Asian women) and reflect on the beautiful and original art
and design work which also makes this booklet so unique. There are
intense art works by young Asian women students which not only
carefully illustrate the text but speak volumes in themselves. A
painting on the war entitled `Unseen tragedy in the twin tower
tragedy=92 by Sadia Chowdhury and portrays a woman who does not have a
face. Below a young Asian woman from Dewsbury speaks of her
experiences of taking on racism: My brother and I shared experiences,
we would argue. I thought we should stand up to racists. I'd walk on
my own past racist houses. The boys would walk the other way. On one
occasion me, my brother and 3 others, were playing rounders and they
started following and abusing me. I ! turned round and told them to
fuck off, this is my street. I used to get mad for having to run
away. I was never ashamed of my colour. I thought that they were
nasty, horrible people. This Nigel, 6 or 7 years older than me, he
started a campaign to terrorise me=85.He'd say "I am going to kill you
with my dog!" One of our neighbours had a large Alsatian, it loved
me. It would give us its paw because it was not allowed to lick us.
One day I saw Nigel when I had this dog and said "look my dog is
bigger than yours"
In another section, entitled `East is not East=92 there is a
discussion on how identity is defined and shaped =85 here you also find
a painting of a young woman's face, with half her head covered in a
dupatta and the other half uncovered. The whole face is framed with
small drawings of animals, flags, places of worship, written script
and above it is a statement by a young woman from Southall `Some
people argue that you can't be Indian and British at the same time,
either be one or the other, and with many of us we do sort of live in
a westernised way. We'd rather wear track suits and jeans than salwar
kamiz. Maybe it is the environment we've been brought up in. But in
the end we are just us =96 we don=92t change if we dye our hair red,
stuff like that parents get upset=85..The inside may not have
changed=85But they only look at the outside. It is like judging a book
by its cover. (L, 16 Southall)
This is a handbook you will not only read but find yourself
constantly dipping into for information, ideas, facts and figures. It
has a list of all the main Asian women's groups in the country, it
has phone numbers of helplines, it makes references to Asian women
who have resisted in history, and it draws on so many different kinds
of sources (from artwork, poetry, discussions and interviews with
young Asian women, to research, drama, extracts from books and
exhibition)
As well as the ease with which this booklet draws you into thinking
deeply about the issues, it's full of hope and leaves you feeling
empowered. This poem on the inside cover of the booklet by
<http://by2fd.bay2.hotmail.msn.com/cgi-bin/compose?mailto=3D1&msg=3DMSG10575=
94343.87&start=3D2064433&len=3D74581&src=3D&type=3Dx&to=3DTeens%40NAWP&cc=3D=
&bcc=3D&subject=3D&body=3D&curmbox=3DF000000001&a=3D872b26de941cac46338db7ba=
2ee57f70>Teens@NAWP,
a young Asian women's group in Newham reflects the current running
throughout the booklet.
We make changes
We stick up for ourselves
We challenge the stereotype of Asian women
We have a fantastic history
We have rights and make choices
We are powerful
We are survivors
We are mothers, sisters, lovers, daughters and friends
We are Asian women
We have a bright and brilliant future
Teens@NAWP
This handbook costs =A31 for individuals and =A33 for organisations and
can be ordered from Londec on: 0207 424 9535 /
<http://by2fd.bay2.hotmail.msn.com/cgi-bin/compose?mailto=3D1&msg=3DMSG10575=
94343.87&start=3D2064433&len=3D74581&src=3D&type=3Dx&to=3Dlondec%40hotmail%2=
ecom&cc=3D&bcc=3D&subject=3D&body=3D&curmbox=3DF000000001&a=3D872b26de941cac=
46338db7ba2ee57f70>londec@hotmail.com,
293-299 Kentish Town Road, London NW5 2TJ
_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/
SACW is an informal, independent & non-profit citizens wire service
run since 1998 by
South Asia Citizens Web (www.mnet.fr/aiindex).
The complete SACW archive is available at: http://sacw.insaf.net
DISCLAIMER: Opinions expressed in materials carried in the posts do not
necessarily reflect the views of SACW compilers.
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