SACW | 16 Dec. 2003 |Sri Lanka / Bangladesh/ Pakistan India / Communalism / N East India

[Harsh Kapoor]

======================================
South Asia Citizens Wire  |  16 December,  2003
via:  www.sacw.net
======================================


[1] Sri Lanka:  Communal Violence - Land Dispute 
Between Tamils and Muslims (M.I.M.Mohideen)
[2] 52,000 missing: Sri Lanka has no answers
[3] Bangladesh: Ahmadiyyas (Qadianis) Under 
Attack: Violating the Right to Freedom of Religion
[4] India - Pakistan: Peace bid welcomed [at Karachi meet]  (Shamim-ur-Rahman)
[5] India: The BJP isn't becoming normal or 
moderate. It's still rooted in Hindutva plus 
neo-liberalism
  It's still abnormal! (Praful Bidwai)
[6] India: Look East, but via the Northeast (Sanjib Baruah)
[7] India: Call to Join - Anti War-On-Iraq 
Memorabilia Exhibition - World Social Forum 
2004,Bombay
[8] India Upcoming Film Screening: 'The City 
Beautiful' a documentary by Rahul Roy (18 Dec, N. 
Delhi)


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

[1]

M.I.M.Mohideen
Chairman
Muslim Rights Organization
Sri lanka

KINNIYA FAISAL NAGAR - AL-IRFAN VIDYALAYAM LAND 
DISPUTE BETWEEN TAMILS AND MUSLIMS

Wednesday 08th October 2003

Communal violence erupted between the Tamils and 
Muslims at 10.00 am on Wednesday 8th October 
2003, in Faisal Nagar, Kinniya over a plot of 
land 3 acres belonging to Al-Irfan Mixed School. 
Fifteen Tamils were injured - fourteen admitted 
to Kinniya Hospital and One to Trincomalee for 
the treatment of minor injuries. A Muslim was 
abducted by the Tamils and a Muslim student was 
arrested by the police. In retaliation four 
Tamils were abducted by the Muslims. Muslim 
students stopped the ferry service between 
Kinniya and Trincomalee.

Faisal Nagar - 3857 Muslims and 217 Tamils, 3½ km 
East of Kinniya. Al-Irfan Muslim Mixed School - 
760 students conduct classes from grade 1 -10. 
Situated in a 3 acre plot. Adjoining this School 
is the 3 acre land in dispute. Originally this 
land belonged to Captain Sarawanamuthu of 
Trincomalee who owned more than 350 acres in the 
area. Under the Land Reforms, the land in dispute 
was vested with the LRC in 1972. Muslim Religious 
School - Madrasa and Hindu Vinayakar Kovil were 
jointly cultivating the said land for some time 
without approval from the LRC or permission from 
the Government.

The Al-Irfan Muslim Mixed School made an 
application to the LRC for the adjoining 3 acre 
land for the expansion of the School. Approval 
was obtained from the LRC, North-East Provincial 
Land Commission and the Land was surveyed by the 
Survey Department in 1998. Finally the said land 
was handed over to the School through the 
Education Department Kinniya Zonal Director by 
Kinniya Divisional Secretary on 22nd September 
2003. The School Development Society is 
constructing the boundary wall for the land with 
the funds allocated by the area Muslim 
Parliamentarians and Eastern Development Ministry.

When the Vinayakar Kovil Hindus - Tamils came to 
know the vesting of the land to the school, 
nearly 18 Tamils unlawfully  entered the land, 
blocked it into small plots and erected temporary 
fences. Immideatly the Principal informed the 
Zonal Director and the Zonal Director sent a 
registered letter to the Chaina-bay Police 
complaining of the unlawful occupation of the 
School land by the Tamils and wanted the police 
to take immediately action. In the mean time the 
principal checked at the Police Station and 
conformed that the Police station had received 
the letter sent by the Zonal Director. However no 
action was taken by the Police to remove the 
unlawful occupants.

The School Development Society also complained to 
the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission Trincomalee. The 
SLMM visited the place on 07th October 2002 but 
not taken any action to settle the dispute. When 
there was no action by the Police and the SLMM, 
Muslim School children protested in front of the 
Kinniya Divisional Secretariat and took the DS 
and the Police to the site at Faisal Nagar 
Al-Irfan School and removed the unlawful fence 
erected by the Tamils at about 10.00 am on 
Wednesday 8th October 2003 The Tamils who 
unlawfully put up the fence pelted stones in 
anger at the Muslim boys, four Muslims were hurt. 
In retaliation the Muslim attacked the Tamils and 
nearly 15 were injured.  None of the MPs were 
available in Kinniya.

The violence erupted when the Muslim students 
removed the fence put up by Tamils in the 3 ace 
plot belonging to Al - Irfan School in the 
presence of Police and Kinniya Divisional 
Secretary. Tamils abducted a Muslim teacher Mr. 
Anver of Al-Irfan Vidyalaya. In retaliation 
Muslims abducted four Tamils. Police arrested a 
Muslim Student at 2.00 pm. In protest the Muslim 
students stopped the ferry service between 
Kinniya and Trincomalee. The Tamils released the 
Muslim teacher in the evening at 5.00 pm and the 
four Tamil were also released by the Muslims. The 
Ulama Sabai safely handed over the four Tamils to 
the respective families. Police also released the 
Muslim student and the ferry service resumed at 
6.00 pm. The situation returned to normal in the 
evening.

Thursday 09th October 2003

At the boarder of Alankeni - Idiman, Tamils 
attacked the Muslims in the morning. LTTE 
Anpalakan invited the Ulamasabai for immediate 
discussion. When the representatives of the 
Ulamasabai went LTTE Anpalakan did not turn-up. 
However, Mr. Parimelalakan from LTTE Political 
division came. They met and dispersed. Soon after 
the meeting with LTTE Parimelalakan, the Tamils 
attacked the Muslims in Alankeni No.10, Situation 
became tense and Muslims in the boarder villages 
started moving out to the interior of Kinniya and 
Kuttikarachi.

SLMC Leader and Minister Hon. Rauff Hackeem 
visited Kinniya by Helicopter at 3.30 pm and met 
the local Civil Society Leaders and defused the 
situation. SLMM Trincomalee and SSP Mr. Daya 
Samaraweera have also visited the area. Local 
curfew was enfaced from 6.00 pm to 6.00 am the 
following day. No incidents during the curfew in 
Kinniya and the suburbs.

Recommendation:

Immediate inquiry should be held by the IGP or 
DIG Trincomalee as to why the Chaina-bay Police 
failed to take prompt action on the letter sent 
by Kinniya Zonal Director of Education.

SLMM Head Office should hold and an inquiry as to 
why the SLMM Trincomalee did not take prompt 
action on the complaint made by the Al-Irfan 
School Development Society.

Strengthen Security in the area

SLMM Trincomalee should coordinate reconciliation 
between the Tamils and Muslims with the 
assistance of Government Security Force, LTTE and 
Local Civil Society - Muslims and Tamils.

Forwarded by
SLMIC (UK)
150 Merton Road
London SW19 1EH


_____


[2]

52,000 missing: Sri Lanka has no answers
Champika Liyanaarachchi (OneWorld.net)
Colombo, December 11 [2003]

To coincide with Human Rights Day, the Organization of Parents and Family
Members of the Disappeared (OPFMD) in Sri Lanka, held a commemoration on
Wednesday for nearly 52,000 missing people, demanding punishment of the
guilty and compensation for their families.

The memorial service was held at Kotte, just three kilometers from the Sri
Lankan capital of Colombo.

The figure of 52,800 comprises 44,000 Sinhalese who disappeared during the
second youth uprising between 1987 and 1992 and some 8,500 people, mostly
Tamils, who went missing in the North and East provinces since 1995.

"There are no proper records of the disappearances that took place before
1987 in the South or the disappearances in the North and the East before
1995," says OPFMD general secretary Shantha Pathirana.

This is unfortunate given the fact that thousands in the South went missing
both during the first youth uprising in 1971 and the 18-year war in the
Northern and Eastern provinces, which continued till December 2001.

The list also excludes thousands of abductions made by the Liberation Tigers
of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the North and East, due to the difficulty in
collecting information here.

Despite the disappearance of such large numbers of people, the government is
yet to implement most of the recommendations made by the UN Working Groups
on Enforcement Involuntary Disappearances (UNWGEID) that visited Sri Lanka
several times and also by the Presidential Commission on Involuntary
Disappearances (PCID).

A demand to implement the recommendations of these bodies tops the petition
presented by the OPFMD on Wednesday to the opposition leader in Parliament,
Mahinda Rajapakse.

The petition is to be handed over to President Chandrika Kumaratunga, who is
also the leader of the main opposition party, the People's Alliance.

The OPFMD's other demands include the amendment of the Constitution
guaranteeing right to life. Despite being signatory to several international
conventions on human rights, Sri Lanka is yet to make the right to life a
clause in the Constitution.

Says Pathirana, "Since the Constitution was introduced in 1978, there have
been agitations to include the right to life. But we continue to live in a
country where this right is not guaranteed."

By way of compensation, the OPFMD has also demanded that the family members
of the missing be given US $2,000.

"But due to a variety of reasons a large number of people had not applied
for compensation for the disappeared," says the deputy director of the
Rehabilitation Authority, Ananda Wijepala.

Prime among them is the fear of exposing the fact that the dead were
involved in armed struggle. Many family members are also completely ignorant
of the compensation scheme.

Of the 22,000 who have applied for compensation, 17,735 were declared
eligible for payment. But with a ceiling of US $500.

Another issue of concern for the OPFMD is the fact that many of those
responsible for the involuntary disappearances are still walking free.

"Nearly 3,000 perpetrators - mainly military personnel - have gone without
any punishment or cases against them," says the head of the OPFMD's northern
branch, Sittamparam Mohan.

Meanwhile, the Mothers Front of the OPFMD's northern branch held a protest
Wednesday in front of the Human Rights Commission office in Jaffna,
protesting against the human rights authorities' inaction in probing their
children's disappearances.

"Unlike the family members of those killed in war or insurgency, the
families of those missing were in a state of shock when they came before the
commission, years after the disappearances of their loved ones", says PCID
chairperson Manouri Muttettuwegama.

While some PICD recommendations regarding the issuing of death certificates
and compensation have been implemented to a fair extent, a lot still
remains.

"The culprits have to be booked and there should be a special program for
the families of the disappeared to look into their needs, especially
financial ones," stresses Muttettuwegama.

According to her, almost 90 per cent of missing persons hail from the lowest
income group, and the PICD has recommended that a special tax be levied on
the public to help the disappeared.

"There are genuine grievances of the family members, which have been
neglected for long. While it is imperative to include the right to live as a
clause in the Constitution even at this late stage, justice should be meted
out to the disappeared by carrying out independent and prompt inquiries,"
emphasizes Rajapakse.



_____


[3]

ALERT FOR ACTION !

[Bangladesh] Ahmadiyyas (Qadianis) Under Attack: 
Violating the Right to Freedom of Religion

In the last few months, the Ahmadiyya (Qadiani) 
community in Bangladesh has been subjected to 
repeated assaults on its mosques in several 
places and on individual members of the 
community. The two most recent events occurred in 
Dhaka, the capital city, on November 21 and 
December 5, 2003, when large mobs of thousands 
were instigated by  Moulana Mahmudul Hasan 
Momtaji, Coordinator of the Khatme Nabuwat 
Movement and Moulana Azizul Huq of the Islami 
Oikkyo Jote, to attack an Ahmadiya mosque in 
Nakhalpara. In previous incidents, mobs carrying 
banners in the name of  "Khatme Nabuwat Movement 
Coordination Committee" have attacked mosques in 
Jessore,  Kushtia, Jheniadah and Jamalpur.

In a hate demonstration on December 5, the 
anti-Ahmadiyya zealots, mainly under the banner 
of Khatme Nabuwat Movement and an organisation 
called "Jaish-e-Mustafa,"  announced a one-week 
ultimatum for the government to declare Ahmadiyas 
as non-Muslims. They also threatened to either 
burn down or take over the Ahmadiyya mosque and 
vowed to bring the country to a standstill if 
their demands are not met. Earlier, Moulana 
Azizul Huq, Chairman of the faction of the 
Islamic Oikyo Jote (IOJ), a coalition partner of 
the present Government, had called on the Prime 
Minister Khaleda Zia on  29 November 2003, and 
urged her to declare the Ahmadiyyas as 
non-Muslims. It had been reported in the press 
that the Prime Minister assured Moulana Huq that 
she would "look into the matter." This comment 
itself points to appeasement and gives more than 
tacit encouragement for the use of violence.

The increasing level of religious intolerance 
instigated by extremists and the corresponding 
indulgence of the Government, is a matter of 
grave concern. The lenience of the Government has 
resulted in a situation where religious fanatics 
terrorise communities they disapprove of, 
threaten violence and destruction if they are not 
appeased, and spew fanaticism and hatred with 
impunity.  The acts of arson and demolition of 
religious institutions, and instigations to 
violence breached the right to freedom of 
religion guaranteed under the Constitution,  and 
gave sufficient cause to the  Government to 
enforce the law and bring the situation under 
control. Instead the law enforcement agencies 
have delayed in arresting the perpetrators, and 
the government has  prevaricated, leading to 
apprehensions that the government is unwilling to 
act against the leaders of the Islami Oikkyo Jote 
(IOJ), who are members of coalition in 
government. The Government has thus allowed 
itself to play into the hands of organised terror 
groups. Moreover, the ominous silence of the main 
Opposition has created a major threat to peace 
and stability in Bangladesh.

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), as a human rights 
organisation based in Bangladesh which advocates 
in favour of access to justice of all 
marginalised groups, strongly condemns the 
attacks on the Ahmadiyyas as well as the demand 
to declare them as non-Muslims. This move can 
only lead to violence and anarchy and will be a 
gross violation of the right to freedom of 
religion.

We call upon the Government of Bangladesh to take 
immediate steps to prevent this incitement to 
sectarian violence. The Government's present 
indifference to the plight of religious 
minorities and marginalised communities exposes 
these communities to extreme vulnerability and 
insecurity. Moreover, there is fear that such 
communal intolerance in Bangladesh will impact 
negatively on the whole South Asian region as 
well.

We are reassured to read in the press today ( 9th 
December, 2003, Daily Star) that the State 
Minister for Religious Affairs, Mr. Mosharef 
Hossain Shajahan rejected the demand for 
declaring the Ahmadiyyas non-Muslims by saying, 
"None less than Allah can do it ... as the 
Minister concerned, I have no power nor am I 
entitled to do so." We also commend the State 
Minister for his fortitude in pointing out that, 
"Now they (anti-Ahmadiyya group) are demanding it 
... once the demand is met, they will want to 
capture a mosque, then a church ..."  We take 
great hope in the State Minister's comments and 
would like to be reassured that his comments are 
representative of the stand of the  Government of 
Bangladesh in favour of religious freedom of all 
citizens.

We call upon all conscientious individuals and 
human rights organisations to urge the Government 
of Bangladesh to uphold the constitutional 
guarantees of freedom of religion of all 
citizens, irrespective of sect or denomination, 
and to protect the rights of all minorities.

Please find attached herewith an excerpt about 
the Ahmadiyya community, taken from the 
Banglapedia   - National Encyclopedia of 
Bangladesh.  Also find contact details for the 
office of the Hon'ble Prime Minister of 
Bangladesh, the Hon'ble Minister for Home Affairs 
and the Hon'ble State Minister for Religious 
Affairs of the Government of Bangladesh.
You are invited to visit our website: www.askbd.org

Begum Khaleda Zia
Hon'ble Prime Minister
Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh
Prime Minister's Office, Old Sangsad Bhaban, Tejgaon, Dhaka
Phone : (880 2) 8828160 - 79, 9888677; Fax: (880 
2) 8113244 (Principal Secretary)
Fax: (880 2) 9133722 (Political Sec.); (880 2) 8113243 (Press Sec.)
E-mail: pmo at pmo.bdonline.com


Mr. Altaf Hossain Choudhury
Hon'ble Minister, Ministry of Home Affairs
Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh
Bangladesh Secretariat (Building No. 8), Dhaka
Phone (880 2)  7164611; 8614611 and 8614633
Fax: (880 2) 8619667; and 8614788

Mr. Mosharef Hossain Shajahan
Hon'ble State Minister, Ministry of Religious Affairs
Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh
Bangladesh Secretariat, Dhaka
Phone (880 2) 8610682
Fax: (880 2) 8615040

_____


[4]


DAWN
15 December 2003

Peace bid welcomed
By Shamim-ur-Rahman

KARACHI, Dec 14: The sixth convention of the 
Pakistan-India People's Forum for Peace and 
Democracy on Sunday called upon the two countries 
to settle the Kashmir dispute while respecting 
the aspirations of the people of Jammu and 
Kashmir on both sides of the LoC.
The Karachi Declaration, which was adopted on the 
last day of the three-day convention, also called 
for withdrawal of armed forces and armed groups 
on both sides, establishment of an effective and 
accountable mechanism to ensure protection of 
life and liberty of the people, particularly the 
women, of J&K.
During three days of deliberations delegates from 
the two countries appreciated the current efforts 
at rapprochement and called for building the 
people's movement to remove obstacles in the way 
of peace.
Delegates from the two countries unanimously 
declared that the future of the people of 
Pakistan and India as independent countries was 
contingent upon permanent peace and harmony so 
that they fought the imperialist machinations of 
subjugating and exploiting "the resources and the 
people of our countries."
The Karachi Declaration also reiterated call for 
global nuclear disarmament, and immediate 
'de-alert' and subsequent destruction of all 
nuclear weapons by the two countries, a 25 per 
cent reduction in conventional forces, and an end 
to the use of landmines. It also called upon the 
two countries to become signatory to the UN 
documents in this regard.
The convention also constituted joint committees 
to ensure systematic and concerted pursuit of the 
objectives of the Forum. The committee on Kashmir 
has been mandated to arrange for, and facilitate, 
a dialogue between people from both sides of the 
LoC, and interact with all organizations involved 
in the efforts to achieve a peaceful and 
democratic resolution of the Kashmir issue.
The delegates from India and Pakistan were 
convinced that the people of the world in general 
and South Asia in particular faced new forms of 
imperialistic globalization.
The committee would prepare an immediate and 
short-term people's plan for confidence-building 
and normalcy in the region and a long-term 
strategy for a just and durable peace in the 
subcontinent.
It would visit different parts of India and 
Pakistan and hold extended discussions with the 
various sections of society, including political 
parties, business community, workers and farmer's 
organizations, media professionals, women and 
minority groups, and representatives of the 
people's movements.
The convention also decided to constitute a joint 
committee on minorities to deal with the issue 
relating to the protection of minorities and 
their rights in the two countries.
It was of the considered view that there would be 
no justice without granting redress to the 
victims of human rights abuses, especially with 
the connivance of the state as in Gujarat.
The conference was convinced that people of the 
world in general and South Asia in particular 
were confronted with new forms of imperialistic 
globalization, that was increasingly aided and 
abetted by local interests and constituencies; 
imposed an iniquitous system on the developing 
countries; destroyed the livelihood of common 
people; undermined the political and economic 
independence of counties; directed violence 
against societies with different political and 
social ideals, particularly Muslim people; and 
terrorized entire countries in the name of 
fighting terrorism.
The conference also called for building 
"resistance against the IMF, World Bank and 
WTO..., and promoting strong trade and economic 
cooperation between the two countries and in 
entire South Asia to foster independent 
development".
The Karachi Declaration also held that 
"persistence of majoritarian politics and 
increasing communalization of the polity, pitting 
one disadvantaged section against another 
deprives the people of their right to 
self-realization."
It was of the view that without adequate 
protection of religious, cultural and political 
minorities, and women, there would be no 
democracy. The convention also resolved that all 
regimes and laws that deny human rights of the 
person without citizenship status, such as 
migrant workers and those who cross the border by 
mistake must be scrapped.
It also exhorted Pakistan and India to sign a 
protocol on exchange of prisoners and respecting 
the rights of refugees. It demanded immediate 
cessation of the harassment of fishermen. Those 
arrested must be repatriated immediately with 
their boats, equipment and property, it added.
The convention also called upon the two 
governments to remove all restrictions on travel 
between the two countries, and put in place a 
regime of issuing of visa on arrival.
It also emphasized the need for recognizing the 
universal right of divided families to reunion, 
and allow cultural exchanges and interaction 
between civil society organisations to counter 
the atmosphere of hate and distrust, remove 
restrictions on exchange of literature, films, 
music, and other art forms.



_____


[5]

The Hindustan Times, New Delhi, December 12, 2003

The BJP isn't becoming normal or moderate. It's 
still rooted in Hindutva plus neo-liberalism
  It's still abnormal!
  BY PRAFUL BIDWAI

After the latest state elections, it has become 
fashionable to argue that the BJP has morphed 
into a fairly non-ideological, "normal", even 
"moderate" party solidly focussed on governance 
and "development". It has distanced itself from 
Hindutva and did not invoke/use Hindu-political 
issues and symbols during this campaign; it may 
even be about to cut its umbilical cord with the 
RSS parivar and emerge as a truly autonomous, if 
conservative, political formation.

The very first actions of the three new BJP Chief 
Ministers lucidly demonstrate this to be fanciful 
or wishful thinking, indeed apologia for the BJP.

Uma Bharati's swearing-in was nothing short of a 
mini-dharma sansad, with some 40 trishul-bearing 
sadhus in various shades of saffron occupying the 
centre-stage, edging out the 17 ministers under 
the approving gaze of L.K. Advani, Murli Manohar 
Joshi and Arun Shourie. Bharati touched her 
guru's feet before taking the oath of office to 
the loud chanting of "Jai Shri Ram". Not to be 
missed in the sea of saffron robes were the VHP's 
Giriraj Kishore, the Ramajanmabhoomi Nyas's 
Nritya Gopal Das, and the RSS's Madan Das Devi.

Although the ceremony violated all norms of 
solemnity and democratic decency, it was entirely 
appropriate that the elected leaders paled into 
insignificance beside RSS-VHP functionaries.

On swearing-in day in Jaipur, who should 
conspicuously stand by Vasundhara Raje and be 
exclusively photographed with her but Narendra 
Milosevic Modi himself? And in Raipur, the first 
thing Raman Singh did was to pay a tribute to 
assorted gods, including gau-mata. Singh is a 
hardcore RSS man, and Bharati proved her 
credentials again by tonsuring her head at 
Tirupati. Remarkably, both Bharati and Raje 
entered national politics in the Advani-led 
mandir-driven 1989 Parliament elections.

It is equally futile to pretend that the BJP's 
campaign was free of Hindutva's influence and 
totally focussed on secular issues like power, 
roads and water. Bharati's saffron robes 
themselves belie the claim. How can Bharati, with 
her pivotal "ek-dhakka-aur-do" role in the Babri 
demolition, ever be separated from Hindutva in 
the people's perception?

In any case, Hindutva isn't only about the temple 
or Article 370. It's also about macho, 
aggressive, majoritarian nationalism. As Advani 
himself says, conventional Hindutva's place has 
now "been taken by cross-border terror", which 
"satisfies the BJP's support base today".

Hundreds of RSS-VHP cadres were specially drafted 
into Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh 
to campaign for the BJP. The VHP even dominated 
candidate nomination in the Rajasthan 
constituencies bordering Gujarat. Such "election 
karsevaks'" role in similar constituencies in MP, 
where people like Modi overtly invoked Hindutva, 
was undisguised. The BJP's claim to 
"forward-looking", modern image also sits ill 
with Raje's quasi-feudal lineage and image.

This doesn't argue that the BJP didn't talk about 
"development". It did. But so did everybody else! 
The argument that the BJP/NDA's record of 
governance at (a rather distant) Centre outshone 
the Congress's performance in the states defies 
credibility. It falls flat on its face in the 
election closest to the Centre-in Delhi.

Power- and water-related grievances indeed made a 
big impact in MP. But in Rajasthan, squeaky-clean 
Ashok Gehlot's drought management was excellent, 
and his creation of 7 million-days of employment 
impressive. In Chhattisgarh, Jogi could be 
faulted for venality (as could Judev & Company), 
but hardly for his road-building, health and 
school programmes.

The reasons for the BJP's triumph lie elsewhere: 
in erosion of the Congress's social base, 
combined with voter-fatigue and anti-incumbency 
especially in the tribal belt ("negative" 
factors); and an amalgam of its ideological 
appeal, clever caste calculus and shrewd election 
micro-management ("positive" factors).

Thus, of the 99 constituencies reserved for the 
Scheduled Tribes in the three Adivasi-rich 
states, the BJP won in an impressive 77. The 
Congress won in only 16. As detailed analysis by 
Yogendra Yadav and his colleagues at the Centre 
for the Study of Developing Societies shows, the 
BJP's gains in the three states' Adivasi 
constituencies were substantial and 
across-the-board-undoubtedly the result of 
long-term groundwork by the RSS-sponsored 
Vanavasi Kalyan Ashrams.

MP is the only state in which the BJP scored a 
crushing, decisive, comprehensive victory 
in/among all regions and classes. There, popular 
dissatisfaction with Congress rule exceeded its 
satisfaction ratings by 12 percentage-points. The 
Congress' vote-loss was a high 9 percent. But the 
BJP's gain was only 2ˆ percentage-points.

Two other factors magnified the anti-Congress 
shift: the rise of the tribal Gondwana Ganatantra 
Party which ate into the Congress's vote and 
Digvijay Singh's gau-mata, gau-mutra, 
soft-Hindutva line. Asked to choose between 
soft-Hindutva and the genuine article, the 
electorate opted for the second-as in Gujarat.

In Chhattisgarh, Jogi's general satisfaction 
rating was a positive 13 percent (although 
sharply polarised between 70 percent positive 
Congress supporters and 22 percent negative BJP 
voters). In Rajasthan, Gehlot scored 12 percent 
(positive), out-rating the BJP on four counts 
including "good leadership" and "controlling 
corruption".

What mattered here much more than power and roads 
was the Congress' failure to build coalitions 
with non-BJP parties. Had it formed "secular" 
coalitions, that would have produced an outright 
victory in Chhattisgah and a hung assembly in 
Rajasthan. The NCP was secularism's worst spoiler 
in Chhattisgarh: its 7 percent vote far outstrips 
the BJP's modest one percent vote-swing!

Now consider the BJP's "positives". It astutely 
cultivated Rajputs, Jats and Dalits in Rajasthan; 
upper castes, OBCs and Adivasis in different 
regions of MP; and a combination of southern 
tribals and floating upper caste votes in 
Chhattisgarh. Remarkably, vigorous campaigning 
enhanced its gains by up to four 
percentage-points in the last phase.

The BJP's micro-management was brilliant, if 
Machiavellian: shrewd choice of candidates, 
focused campaigning, fielding of a galaxy of 
speakers, systematic encouragement of Congress 
rebels and other spoilers, and voter 
"mobilisation" (getting electors to booths often 
manned by bureaucrats willing to "guide" them 
with electronic voting machines). In Rajasthan, a 
pollster's leak helped the BJP identify weak 
spots and concentrate resources there. The 
divided, bumbling Congress showed lack of energy, 
intensity and tact in all these.

No less important was the BJP's ideological 
appeal. This lies in Hindutva, especially its 
crude, chauvinist, militant nationalism and 
rejection of pluralist tolerance, combined with 
neo-liberalism. The BJP has a muscular, 
combative, ideological personality. This may be 
intolerant, even distasteful, but it's distinct.

This personality can project the BJP as a party 
on the march. This greatly attracts the upwardly 
mobile, highly articulate, if numerically small 
strata (especially in the cities, and in the 
services sector) which are neo-liberalism's sole 
beneficiaries.

The Congress, and other BJP rivals in the three 
states, projected no distinct personality, no 
appeal, to counter the BJP's. The voter had no 
idea what, apart from some umbrella-type 
pluralism or secularism(?), the Congress stands 
for, what its visions, policies and programmes 
are.

The point is simple. Secularists cannot defeat 
the BJP unless they fight it comprehensively and 
programmatically-not just on communalism, but 
through economic programmes and social visions 
that really answer the people's needs. This alone 
can prevent the BJP from building a social 
coalition beyond its narrow, elite, core-support 
base. If the Congress cannot project a 
people-oriented, modern, progressive, vision, it 
cannot defeat the BJP.

The BJP must not be allowed to obscure its true 
nature. Despite recent gains, it remains at 
extremist, abnormal, sectarian and obscurantist 
party, devoted to the Hindutva ideology, 
intolerance, economic elitism and social 
conservatism. It desperately craves 
"normalisation" and "mainstreaming". It must be 
denied that legitimacy.-end-


______


[6]

http://www.indianexpress.com/full_story.php?content_id=37048

The Indian Express, Friday, December 12, 2003

Look East, but via the Northeast

Without using the Northeast as a conduit, India's wooing of southeast Asia
will fail. China offers a model

Sanjib Baruah

In 1999, when China brought together experts, scholars and business people
from China, India, Myanmar and Bangladesh to initiate a regional economic
forum, it invited them to Kunming, the capital of Yunnan province.
The venue underscored Chinese intention to take advantage of Yunnan's
geographical location and of its cultural affinities with its neighbours
across the border - and to restore Yunnan's historical role as a bridge to
southeast Asia and south Asia.
Yunnan is well on its way. The road, air and rail links between Yunnan and
the rest of China and with its transnational neighbours are impressive.
The Kunming-Vientiane road connects Yunnan to Laos. There is a rail link
between Kunming and Hanoi.
There are air routes connecting Kunming with Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala
Lumpur, Hanoi, Yangon and Vientiane. The Lancang-Mekong river route links
China with Laos, Myanmar and Thailand.
The Yunnan provincial government gives incentives to foreign investors in
addition to those available in other parts of China. Kunming today is very
much a pan-Asian international city. Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam
have consulates in Kunming.
It is this willingess to rely on provincial-level institutions that
distinguishes Chinese efforts in southeast Asia from India's ''Look East''
policy. Thus while Yunnan's provincial government plays a direct role in
the institutions of the Greater Mekong Subregion, there is little room for
India's northeastern states in the Mekong Ganga Cooperation forum or in
BIMSTEC (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand Economic
Cooperation).
This is no small irony. After all, it is India and not China that has a
democratic and federal polity.
Even at the level of public diplomacy, when it came to India's turn to
host the Forum of Regional Economic Co-operation - created by the Kunming
Initiative - the meeting took place in New Delhi and not in Guwahati,
Shillong or Imphal.
There are of course good reasons why India would be hesistant about
turning northeast India into its actual gateway to southeast Asia. But it
is worth remembering that the ethnic diversity of Yunnan and northeast
India is not dissimilar. Yunnan's population, in Chinese official
parlance, is made up of 26 ethnic nationalities. This is not very
different from northeast India's demographic profile.
Whatever accounts for the difference between the two approaches, it is
China's reliance on regional institutions and not India's top-down method
that meets demands of the globalising economy. Models of economic
development that encourage capital and job concentration - leading to
internal social and cultural standardisation - have long given way to
models that put a premium on regional distinctiveness.
Flexible production systems, with myriad forms of outsourcing, depend
heavily on social relations. Outsourcing requires inter-dependent firms
that trust each other. Such ties are best forged at local and regional
levels.
Thus in Europe one sees efforts at forging regional systems of action.
These accompany consolidation of Europe-wide institutions. Coca-Cola's
description of itself as multilocal and not multinational is more than a
cute slogan. It is an example of the increasing significance attached to
regions and localities in modern business practices.
Is it possible that China is more in tune with the nuances of contemporary
capitalism - and with the differences between old and new capitalism
-precisely because it began engaging the world relatively recently and
with a clean slate?
WE have been reticent about using northeast India's history and culture as
a soft power resource in our ''Look East'' policy. While talking about our
shared cultural ties with southeast Asia, we refer endlessly to Buddhism,
Angkor Vat and the Ramayana.
But we do not talk about the southeast roots of the Tai Ahoms or the
Khasis. We scarcely acknowledge Balinese Hinduism and art forms are
probably closer to Manipur's than to those of the Hindi heartland.
Yet in southeast Asia itself there is growing awareness of northeast
India. Many northeast Indian cultural figures too are drawn eastwards.
For instance there is keen interest in Thailand in the culture of the Tai
Ahoms of Assam. Similarly, Tai-Ahom intellectuals in Assam are focusing on
the cultures of their ethnic cousins in southeast Asia.
The Tai-Ahoms or Ahoms are an offshoot of the Tai people who are called
Shan in Burma, Thai in Thailand, Lao in Laos, Dai and Zhuang in China and
Tay-Thai in Vietnam.
Recent conferences in Thailand on the culture of the Tai people have
routinely included papers on the Tai Ahoms by Thai scholars as well as by
ethnic Tai-Ahom Assamese scholars. Thai official interest in the subject
has been quite apparent. For instance Princess Galyani Vadhana not only
inaugurated one of those conferences, she presided over all its sessions.
The Tai-Ahoms most likely came to Assam from Yunnan. The Khasis of
Meghalaya too have a Yunnan connection. They pioneered rice farming in
Vietnam's Red River delta before losing out to the Vietnamese. They then
moved up the Red River across Burma into Yunnan before crossing into
India.
The communication revolution has bridged many gulfs in recent years. But
the distance between Yunnan and the Khasi Hills and between Yunnan and
Gargaon - site of the Ahom capital of Assam - is greater today than it was
centuries ago.
As the stalemate in northeast India continues, we must recognise India
will now have to pay a price in terms of its diplomatic agenda for a
bumbling Northeast policy that forces it to keep the door to the region
half-shut. By denying itself the use of its natural gateway, India is in
effect scaling back its ambitions in southeast Asia.
The author heads the Centre for Northeast India, South and Southeast Asia
Studies at the Omeo Kumar Das Institute of Social Change and Development
in Guwahati. His book India Against Itself: Assam and the Politics of
Nationality has been published in India by Oxford

_____



[7]

Dear [...],

To briefly introduce myself - I am a bombay based 
filmmaker, currently involved in curating the 
exhibition mentioned below. [...]
Please forward this call letter to anti war 
groups/ artists/ filmmakers/ media professionals. 
[...]
Looking forward to hearing from you,
peace,

mamta,

on behalf of the culture group, WSF04

   ANTI WAR-ON-IRAQ MEMORABILIA EXHIBITION

World Social Forum 2004, INDIA

Calling all campaigners who came together all 
over the world to make history in 2003
who spoke, 
wrote, painted, screamed, photographed, sang, 
shot and walked against the US led invasion of 
Iraq. Let’s celebrate that show of strength!

That music video which just HAD to be made,

That installation which had to be put together,

That nasty Dear Bush Email which had to reach everybody in your contacts

That graffiti you scrawled defiantly on McDonald's walls

That long
 real long banner that u laboured overnight over

That moving photograph of the massive demonstration in your city
.


.. send them to us. We are planning an 
exhibition of anti-war art, campaign materials 
and documentation produced during the worldwide 
protests and demonstration against the attack on 
Iraq. All the materials collected would be 
curated for a show by the committee on culture at 
the World Social Forum 2004. We can even work 
with jpeg images and reproduce them in India to 
avoid physical transportation. Any necessary 
transportation costs can be reimbursed.

Write to wsf04 at hotmail.com or 
wsf_mamtamurthy at rediffmail.com with a description 
of the material you possess (item/ creative idea/ 
size or duration/ weight etc.). Display, 
transport and other terms will be discussed in 
each case.For more information on WSF 2004 check 
www.wsfindia.com


____


[8]

You are cordially invited to the screening of 'The City Beautiful',
a documentary by Rahul Roy

Venue: Main Auditorium, India International Centre, New Delhi

Date: 18 Dec 2003
Time: 6:30 PM

Synopsis:

The City Beautiful, 2003, 78 minutes: Sunder 
Nagri (Beautiful City) is a small working class 
colony on the margins of India's capital city, 
Delhi. Most families residing here come from a 
community of weavers. The last ten years have 
seen a gradual disintegration of the handloom 
tradition of this community under the 
globalisation regime. The families have to cope 
with change as well as reinvent themselves to eke 
out a living.

The City Beautiful is the story of two families 
struggling to make sense of a world, which keeps 
pushing them to the margins.

Radha and Bal Krishan are at a critical point in 
their relationship. Bal Krishan is underemployed 
and constantly cheated. They are in disagreement 
about Radha going out to work. However, through 
all their ups and downs they retain the ability 
to laugh.

Shakuntla and Hira Lal hardly communicate. They 
live under one roof with their children but are 
locked in their own sense of personal tragedies.

Festivals:
The Leipzig International Documentary Festival, 2003, Germany

Contact: Rahul Roy, A-19, Gulmohar Park, New Delhi 110049. India

Tel: 91-11-26515161. Fax: 91-11-26960947. Email: 
<mailto:khel at vsnl.com>khel at vsnl.com



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

Buzz on the perils of fundamentalist politics, on 
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Asia. SACW is an independent & non-profit 
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