SACW | 20-21 Aug 2004
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Fri Aug 20 20:41:02 CDT 2004
South Asia Citizens Wire | 20-21 August, 2004
via: www.sacw.net
[1] Bangladesh: Fundamentalists on the Rampage
against Ahmadiyas, Songs and the Press
- Fanatics fight with cops, attack Ahmadiyya base
- Bigots rally against Prothom Alo
- ICM threatens strong protest against Prothom Alo
- Threat To Prothom Alo Condemned
- Action Against Fanatics Demanded
- Letters Sent To Political Parties To Resist Zealots
- Body Vows To Thwart Bigots' Siege Plan
- Bomb Spree A Conspiracy Against Spiritual Songs
: Fakirs, Saints, Bauls Demand An End To It
[2] India: Creating Equal Opportunities: Say Yes
To Affirmative Action (Praful Bidwai)
[3] India: Beyond The Limits of Law (Ajay K. Mehra)
[4] India: Madhya Pradesh A mumbo jumbo cabinet (Editorial, Hindustan Times)
[5] India: Harsud Lost (Angana Chatterji)
[6] India: Hindi Children's Journals and
Nationalist Discourse (1910-1930) (Shobna
Nijhawan)
[7] India: Discussion on 'Manipur, the North
East and the Armed Forces (Assam and Manipur)
Specials Powers Act' (Bombay, August 25, 2004)
[8] India: Right To Social Security -
Education Activists Assembly (New Delhi, Sept
2-4, 2004)
--------------
[1]
[Bangladesh: Fundamentalists on the Rampage
against Ahmadiyas, Songs and the Press
(i)
The Daily Star - August 21, 2004
FANATICS FIGHT WITH COPS, ATTACK AHMADIYYA BASE
FIRM TO LAY SIEGE TO THE SECT'S BAKSHIBAZAR COMPLEX AUG 27
Staff Correspondent
Religious fanatics clashed with police and
attacked an Ahmadiyya Complex at Bakshibazar from
a procession yesterday demanding declaration of
the sect as non-Muslim in the run-up to their
planned siege to the complex on August 27.
Police used teargas and baton to disperse the
bigots who vowed to go ahead with the siege on
August 27 and termed the complex attack a warning
to the Ahmadiyyas and the government.
Three policemen suffered injuries in the clash
and the leaders of Amra Dhakabasi, the organiser
of the procession, claimed at least 70 of their
activists were injured, of whom 30 were admitted
to different hospitals and clinics.
About 400 fanatics brought out the procession
from Chawkbazar Shahi Mosjid area after Juma
prayers and marched towards the complex along the
western side of Chawkbazar Circular Road before
police barricaded them.
The agitators threw stones and shoes to the
police, triggering a few minutes of scuffle
before taking to the eastern side of the Circular
Road breaking the police barricade.
Chanting the slogans 'the Ahmadiyyas are
non-Muslim' they paraded through Nazimuddin Road,
Hosni Dalan Road and Bakshibazar Lane.
Barricaded by police in Bakshibazar Lane, the
agitators threw stones to the police who replied
with baton.
The fanatics then marched in three groups and one
group reached in front of the Ahmadiyya Complex
and attacked it with brickbats.
Police again used baton and teargas to bring the
situation under control and the authorities
deployed a contingent of police in front of the
complex after the violence to maintain peace.
Before bringing out the procession, the fanatics
staged a rally near the Shahi Mosjid in
Chawkbazar where the speakers warned the
government that it would have to shoulder the
responsibility if any untoward incident took
place on August 27.
"Either acknowledge Hazrat Mohammad (SM) as the
last prophet or declare yourselves non-Muslim.
Then you will be allowed to live in the country
peacefully as other minorities like the Hindus,
Christians and Buddhists. If you do so, we will
postpone our programme," said Shamsul Haq,
president of Amra Dhakabasi.
Referring to the recent press conference of the
South Asian People's Union against Fundamentalism
and Communalism (SAPUFC), he vowed to resist them
and demanded punishment to SAPUFC President Kabir
Chowdhury and others for talking in favour of
Ahmadiyyas.
Shamsul claimed police attacked their peaceful
procession and demanded removal of the
officer-in-charge (OC) of Lalbagh Police Station
for attacking innocent demonstrators.
Reacting to the attack, Tareque Mubasher,
spokesman of the Ahmadiyya sect, lauded the role
of police in fighting the bigots and urged the
government to take firm action so that the bigots
cannot reach Ahmadiyya complex on August 27.
Protesting the attack, Kabir Chowdhury said:
"This attack will not be able to scare away
progressive pro-Liberation forces. We stand by
our programme to resist them on August 27."
The SAPUFC in a press conference on Wednesday
vowed to resist the move by a group of religious
fanatics to lay siege to the Ahmadiyya complex.
They also sent letters to pro-liberation
political parties to join a gathering at the
complex on the day to resist them.
Police use baton to disperse fanatics who
attacked the Ahmadiyya Complex at Bakshibazar
from a 'shroud procession' yesterday. Amra
Dhakabasi staged the procession demanding
declaration of the sect as non-Muslim. PHOTO: STAR
(ii)
The Daily Star - August 20, 2004
BIGOTS RALLY AGAINST PROTHOM ALO
Staff Correspondent
Thousands of angry teachers and students of Kowmi
Madrasas demanded cancellation of the declaration
of the Daily Prothom Alo from a rally in Dhaka
yesterday amid concerns of journalists.
Accusing the newspaper of a hate campaign against
unregistered religious schools, the protesters
threatened to hem in and burn down the daily's
headquarters and call a hartal if the editor and
the publisher were not arrested in the next 24
hours.
"No conspiracy against Kowmi Madrasas and Islam
will be tolerated," said Islamic Oikya Jote
Chairman Fazlul Haq Amini at the rally in front
of the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque staged by
Befakul Madaresil Arabia, the Kowmi Madrasa Board.
He pegged the editor and the publisher of the
Prothom Alo as the agents of American and Jewish
axis.
The mob burnt copies of the daily in front of the
mosque and paraded through Paltan Crossing, Zero
Point, Nayapaltan and Dainik Bangla and ransacked
the billboards of The Prothom Alo and The Daily
Star at Zero Point and Dainik Bangla
intersections.
Amini called upon 'the Muslims of Chittagong' to
cripple life in the port city with protests
against the daily.
Maulana Abdul Khalek called upon the participants
in the rally to protest the burial of prominent
writer Humayun Azad, who died in Germany on
August 12, beside National Poet Nazrul Islam at
the university graveyard.
"The Prothom Alo hurt the sentiments of Kowmi
Madrasas only once, but 20 lakh students of the
Madrasas will hit back 20 lakh times," said Abdul
Zabbar, secretary general of the Madrasa Board.
He asked the teachers and students of the
madrasas to take a vow to sacrifice their lives
for smashing the daily.
"Either we or The Prothom Alo will exist in this country," Zabbar said.
Chittagong Union of Journalists (CUJ) and
Chittagong Press Club (CPC) leaders expressed
deep concern over the threat of stopping the
distribution of the daily in the port city.
In a joint press statement, they demanded
administrative action against Sammilita Madrasa
Parishad (SMP), a platform of unregistered
Islamic schools, and the IOJ for issuing the
threat.
Criticising the SMP demonstration in front of the
Bangla daily's Chittagong office on Wednesday,
they said the organisation could go for legal
action against the newspaper if there were
anything wrong in it.
CPC President Abu Sufian, General Secretary Kalim
Sarwar, CUJ President Mostaq Ahmad and General
Secretary Shahidul Alam signed the statement.
A demonstrator takes away a billboard of Prothom
Alo-The Daily Star-GrameenPhone news service
yesterday, as thousands of religious
schoolteachers and students protested in Dhaka
what they said was a hate campaign of the Bangla
daily against non-registered madrasas. PHOTO: STAR
(iii)
The Daily Star - August 21, 2004
ICM THREATENS STRONG PROTEST AGAINST PROTHOM ALO
Staff Correspondent
The Islamic Constitutional Movement (ICM)
yesterday burnt copies of the Prothom Alo and
threatened to launch a vigorous demonstration
against the Bangla daily if it did not seek
apology for carrying stories on non-government
madrasas.
It also demanded cancellation of the declaration
of the mass-circulation newspaper and punishment
to its editor.
"Copies of the Prothom Alo will be burnt unless
the newspaper stops its anti-Islam role," said
ICM leader Hemayet Uddin in an address to a rally
in front of the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque
after Jum'a prayers.
The rally also urged people not to take part in
the funeral of prominent writer Humayun Azad, who
died in Munich on August 12.
"Humayun Azad was a self-proclaimed anti-Muslim
author, so he cannot be buried here
(Bangladesh)," said Omar Faruk, an ICM leader.
The ICM also demanded the passage of a blasphemy
legislation to prevent what it said was onslaught
on Islam.
"The person who will speak against Islam will be
forced to leave Bangladesh like Taslima Nasreen
and Daud Haider," Faruk told the rally.
The rally also demanded a ban on the books of
Azad pegging them as the embodiment of
anti-Islamic sentiments.
After the rally, the ICM supporters brought out a
procession that ended in front of the Baitul
Mukarram after parading some city streets.
Our staff correspondent from Chittagong adds:
Kowmi Madrasa Hefazat (protection) Committee will
stage a protest rally on Jamiyatul Falah Mosque
premises in Dampara after the Zohr prayers today.
At a press conference in Chittagong Press Club
yesterday it announced the programmes that also
include an agitation procession after the rally.
Recently students and teachers of unregistered
religious schools and Islami Oikya Jote had
formed the Hefazat Committee as a platform to
protest what they said the 'hate campaign' run by
the Prothom Alo against Kowmi madrasas.
The leaders of the committee told the press
conference that they should not be held
responsible if agitating people from the
procession attack the Chittagong office of the
Prothom Alo.
Hathazari Darul Ulum Madrasa teacher Abu Tayab
read out the written statement while Islami Oikya
Jote (IOJ) Chittagong city unit President Abdur
Rahman, Hefazat Committee leaders M Iqbal bin
Yeakub, Ishaq Al Gazi, Moulana Abdul Halim
Bokhari and Professor Khaled Hossain replied to
the queries of journalists.
Meanwhile, a group of madrasa students burnt
copies of the Prothom Alo and some other dailies
at Hathazari bus station area yesterday morning.
The students snatched those newspapers as soon as
those reached Hathazari from Dhaka at around
7.30am, sources said.
They reportedly threatened the newspaper agents
and hawkers not to sell the Prothom Alo in that
area.
(iv)
The Daily Star - August 21, 2004
THREAT TO PROTHOM ALO CONDEMNED
Staff Correspondent
Different political, social and cultural
organisations yesterday condemned the extremist
activities against the Bangla daily Prothom Alo.
Thousands of angry teachers and students of Kowmi
Madrasas on August 19 staged demonstration
demanding cancellation of the declaration of the
daily Prothom Alo and burnt copies of the daily
in front of the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque.
They ransacked the billboards of the Prothom Alo
and The Daily Star at Zero Point and Dainik
Bangla intersections.
Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ)
yesterday voiced strong disapproval of the
extreme attitude that the teachers and students
of Kowmi Madrasa showed in a demonstration
demanding cancellation of the declaration of the
Prothom Alo.
In a joint statement, leaders of the BFUJ and
eight other journalists' unions said the teachers
and students of madrasas could opt for legal
action against the newspaper if there were
anything wrong with the daily.
The BFUJ also expressed deep concern over the
government's being indifferent to such
destructive activities by the Islamic zealots.
Inactivity of the government raises question
whether the government itself is conspiring to
strangle the free press by allowing free rein to
the religious bigots, the BFUJ press release
added.
BFUJ President Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury and
Secreatry General Monjurul Ahsan Bulbul signed
the statement. Dhaka Journalists' Union President
Altaf Mahmud, General Secretary Shah Alamgir,
Chittagong Journalists' Union President Mustak
Ahmed and General Secretary Shahid ul Alam,
Khulna Journalists' Union President MM Zahid
Hossain and General Secretary Shaheb Ali, Jessore
Journalists' Union President Shajed Rahman and
General Secretary Moinul Haq, Dinajpur
Journalists' Union President Swarup Kumar Baksi
Bachhu and General Secretary Shahin ul
Islam,Rajshahi Journalists' Union President
Mustafizur Rahman and General Secretary Zaminur
Rahman Dulal,Bogra Journalists' Union President
AHM Akhtaruzzaman and General Secretary Mahmudur
Rahman and Mymensingh Journalists' Union
President Kazi Yaseen and General Secretary Ataul
Karim were the other signatories.
Bangladesh Workers Party at its central committee
meeting expressed concern over the activities of
the fanatics against the Prothom Alo.
The party will also organise a press conference
at Asad Auditorium today at 12 noon in protest at
the August 19 incident, press release said.
Sammilito Samajik Andolon strongly condemned the
teachers and students of Kowmi Madrasas for their
extreme and deplorable stance against Prothom Alo.
The leaders of the organisation demanded
immediate arrest and punishment of the culprits
to uphold the freedom of the press, a press
release said.
President of the Sammilito Sangskritik Jote Nasir
Uddin Yusuf said people should come forward to
resist the religious extremists.
Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal also condemned the
threats to shut down Prothom Alo by the teachers
and students of Kowmi madrasas.
(v)
The Daily Star - August 21, 2004
ACTION AGAINST FANATICS DEMANDED
Staff Correspondent
Workers Party of Bangladesh (WPB) yesterday
demanded of the government to take action against
the Islamic fanatics.
It expressed concern at the death threats issued
to journalists, teachers, intellectuals and
politicians by the fanatics.
At a discussion at the party office, WPB leaders
expressed deep concern over the activities of the
fundamentalists against the daily Prothom Alo.
They said the fundamentalists had burnt copies of
the Prothom Alo and ransacked its billboards in
the capital for publishing stories on the
involvement of madrassa students in the
activities of the Islamic zealots.
The fundamentalist have also obstructed the sale
of the daily at different districts and demanded
the cancellation of its declaration, they said.
The WPB leaders blamed Fazlul Haq Amini, leader
of the Islamic Oikyajote, for encouraging the
fundamentalists.
They expressed concern at the attack on different Ahmadiya mosques.
The party urged all progressive forces to stand
united against the fundamentalist forces.
Presided over by party President Rashed Khan
Menon, the meeting was also attended by General
Secretary Bimol Biswas, Akbor Khan Rono, Abul
Basar, Nurul Hasan Monoj Shah and Hajera Sultana.
(vi)
The Daily Star - August 20, 2004
LETTERS SENT TO POLITICAL PARTIES TO RESIST ZEALOTS
Staff Correspondent
The South Asian People's Union against
Fundamentalism and Communalism (SAPUFC) yesterday
sent letters to pro-liberation political parties
urging them to join the gathering at the
Ahmadiyya Complex at Bakshibazar in the capital
on August 27 to resist fanatics and initiate a
movement against fundamentalist forces.
"The recent and organised fascist display of
torture on religious and ethnic minorities is
repression on Ahmadiyya community. Major
coalition partners Jamaat and Islamic Oikya Jote
(IOJ) and their fundamentalist allies are
torturing Ahmadiyyas and capturing and defiling
their mosques, violating not only the Bangladesh
constitution but also the UN Human Rights
Charter," the letter reads.
"Coming to power, the defeated forces of 1971 are
now trying to turn a progressive and democratic
Bangladesh into an extreme fundamentalist state
in Taliban style," said the letter sent to the
chiefs of the Awami League, left-leaning 11-party
alliance and Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal.
Prof Kabir Chowdhury, SAPUFC president, requested
the leaders to mobilise public opinion against
the move by a group of religious fanatics to lay
a siege to the Ahmadiyya complex on August 27.
Expressing grave concern at the fanatics' move,
he urged the participation of pro-liberation and
progressive parties in eliminating fundamentalism
and communalism.
Fundamentalist and communal forces are getting
stronger and expanding their activities in an
alarming way, the SAPUFC president cautioned.
"The religious bigots will have to pass over our
bodies if they go to besiege the Ahmadiyya
complex," he said.
Meanwhile, anti-Ahmadiyya fanatics' body Amra
Dhakabashi yesterday announced it would bring out
a 'burial shroud' procession from Chawkbazar
Shahi Mosque after Juma prayers today and hold
demonstrations to drum up support for the August
27 planned siege of the Ahmadiyya Complex. They
urged people to join the procession 'to compel
the government to declare the Kadianis
(Ahmadiyyas) non-Muslim.'
(vii)
The Daily Star - August 19, 2004
AHMADIYYA COMPLEX
BODY VOWS TO THWART BIGOTS' SIEGE PLAN
Staff Correspondent
The South Asian People's Union against
Fundamentalism and Communalism (SAPUFC) yesterday
vowed to resist the move by a group of religious
fanatics to lay a siege to the Ahmadiyya complex
in the capital on August 27.
It decided to mobilise public opinion against the
fanatics' move and organise a massive gathering
in front of the Ahmadiyya complex on that day.
"Religious bigots will have to pass over our dead
bodies if they try besiege the Ahmadiyya
complex," General Secretary of the SAPUFC
Shahriar Kabir said at a roundtable on 'Attack on
religious minority and our responsibility' held
the Jatiya Press Club.
The government alone will have to bear the
responsibility if religious bigots to go on with
their offensive programme on August 27, he said.
"Religious and ethnic minorities in the country
are under thereat of extinction and passing their
days in insecurity due to the government's
repressive attitude towards them," Shahriar
alleged.
Speaking on the occasion, Justice KM Sobhan said
the government itself is violating human rights
and is also encouraging others to follow its path.
Article 40 of the constitution guarantees the
right to exercise religious belief independently
but the government has failed to uphold this
right, he said.
Prof Mir Mobassher Ali said religious bigots
would even seek a change in the country's
constitution to declare the Ahmadiyyas
non-Muslim. No Muslim country has done this, he
mentioned.
"They (religious fanatics) had requested the OIC
(Organisation of Islamic Conference) to adopt a
resolution to declare the Ahmadiyya as non-Muslim
but the OIC did not pay heed to their demand,"
Mobassher Ali told the roundtable..
President of the SAPUFC Prof Kabir Chowdhury said
all progressive political parties should come
forward to make its August 27 programme a success.
A group of people in the name of religion has
become active to take the country to backward, he
said.
The roundtable was also addressed by journalist
KG Mustafa, General Secretary of Bangladesh
Indigenous People's Forum Sanjib Drong, Prof
Borhanuddin Khan Jahangir, Prof Nim Chandra
Bhoumik, Abu Osman Chowdhury and former
ambassador Waliur Rahman.
Meanwhile, different rights bodies and social
organisations have served legal notice on the
secretaries of the home ministry and religious
affairs ministry and the inspector general of
police, demanding arrest and punishment of Khatme
Nabuwat leaders for planned attack on Ahmadiyya
mosques.
The organisations including Ain o Salish Kendra,
Bangladesh Legal Aid And Services Trust, Jatiyo
Ainjibi Parishad, Kormojibi Nari, Mahila
Parishad, Naripokkha, Nijera Kori and Sammilita
Samajik Andolon also served legal notice on the
deputy commissioners of Dhaka and Khulna .
They demanded immediate steps to protect the
religious rights of the Ahmadiyyas and punishment
of those responsible for violating their rights.
Khatme Nabuwat defiled of Ahmadiyya mosque in
Khulna in presence of police and threatened to
besiege the Ahmadiyya complex at Bakshibazar in
Dhaka, said a press release quoting legal notice.
(viii)
The Daily Star - August 20, 2004
BOMB SPREE A CONSPIRACY AGAINST SPIRITUAL SONGS
FAKIRS, SAINTS, BAULS DEMAND AN END TO IT
Staff Correspondent
Government indifference fuels the repeat of bomb
blasts, an organisation of spiritual singers said
yesterday.
Bangladesh Torikote Ahley Bayet held a rally and
cultural programme at the Central Shaheed Minar
to demand a stop to the bomb blasts and protest
what it said was conspiracy against spiritual
songs.
Leaders of the organisation alleged fanatics
blasted bombs without resistance in shrines,
including Hazrat Shahjalal Shrine in Sylhet and
blamed the explosion frequency on government
inactivity.
They threatened to launch a tough demonstration
through rallies and processions and file cases
against the government if it fails to control law
and order downslide and ensure security of
spiritual singers popularly known as bauls.
Fakirs, saints and bauls have become the target
of bomb blasts and receive death threats from
fundamentalists as the government played down the
rise of fanaticism, the leaders said.
"Fanatics move freely and get bail after arrest,"
said Reza Mahbub Chisty, president of the
organisation, adding 170 people died and 550 were
injured in a series of blasts across the country
in the last five years.
"About two lakh bauls live in insecurity and feel
jittery singing folk songs at any place," said
Abul Kasem Chisty, general secretary of the
organisation.
The fanatics continued to destroy the mazaar near
the High Court and Sha Ali Mazaar in Mirpur and
handed down fatwa, he said.
A bomb blast at Hazrat Shahjalal Shrine on
January 12 killed five people and a second
explosion on May 21 killed three and injured 70
others, including British High Commissioner to
Bangladesh Anwar Choudhury.
Alam Dewan, general secretary of Bangladesh Baul
Shilpi Samity, alleged the government handpicked
Bangla Bhai, operations commander of a vigilante
outfit in the north, to kill progressive people.
Hundreds of bauls brought out a procession from
the Golap Shah Mazaar that ended with a rally at
the Central Shaheed Minar.
[Photo Caption]Abdul Latif Bayati sings baul
songs at a cultural programme at the Central
Shaheed Minar in Dhaka yesterday, organised to
protest a series of bomb blasts at shrines and
death threats to spiritual singers. PHOTO: STAR
______
[2]
The Praful Bidwai Column - August 9, 2004
CREATING EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES: SAY YES TO AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
by Praful Bidwai
In 1990, at the height of the anti-Mandal
agitation in India's Northern states, us
editorial page writers of The Times of India were
divided over the issue of reserving government
jobs for the non-savarna backward castes (OBCs).
Our differences sharpened as upper-caste students
immolated themselves in protest against the new
policy. So some of us decided to conduct a survey
of the staffing practices of our Delhi office.
The results were stunning. There were no Dalits
and just 3 OBCs among the 300 journalists of the
newspaper group, most of them Brahmins, Kayasthas
and Banias. This was not due to conscious policy:
it was just how things were-"naturally",
"spontaneously", as a manager put it, emphasising
that "merit" alone guided recruitment and
promotion. It is astounding, and of course
incredible, that the upper castes, who form a
tenth of the population, concentrate within
themselves nine-tenths of India's entire pool of
"merit". But that's the nature of the
discrimination in this super-hierarchical
society, where ritual purity assigned by the
varna system is far more important than
educational achievement, professional talent or
diligence.
Fourteen years on, this systematic discrimination
and denial of social opportunity has not changed.
The Times of India group only embodies a trend
that's pervasive in all private business.
Contrast this with the frankly capitalist United
States. There, two-thirds of all newspapers with
a circulation of 100,000-plus, draw 15 to 20
percent of their journalists from
racial-linguistic minorities like Blacks and
Hispanics. Thus, 16.2 percent of The New York
Times' staff belongs to such minority groups. The
proportion is 19.5 percent for The Washington
Post and 18.7 for The Los Angeles Times.
Presumably, "merit" counts as much in these
papers as in the Indian press! Even the
ultra-conservative Wall Street Journal has 17.1
percent minority recruits.
This change hasn't come about through government
directives, but through a 1978 decision of the
American Society of Newspaper Editors to raise
the minorities' representation from a pathetic
3.95 percent to the same level as their share in
the population. This was done through special
programmes such as diversity promotion,
scholarships, ethnic and racial censuses,
training schemes, and job fairs to recruit
historically disadvantaged minority groups. The
key is affirmative action or positive
discrimination.
This worthy principle must be strongly commended
and adopted in a horrendously unequal society
like India's-where discrimination is so deeply
ingrained and pervasive that anthropologists like
Louis Dumont were tempted to posit a new category
of social organisation to describe it-Homo
hierarchicus. India is marked by cascading
inequalities. If you are born underprivileged,
you face growing discrimination in education,
freedom, employment, income, etc.-each step of
the way. In most people's case, the injustice is
never compensated. This denial of social
opportunity destroys the very possibility of
realising the human potential of millions of
people. It can be effectively countered by
levelling the originally tilted
playing-field-through affirmative action.
This is the framework in which we should debate
the reservations issue, which is being raised
afresh in respect of the private sector
(especially in Maharashtra) and of Muslims. In
Andhra Pradesh, 5 percent of government jobs have
been declared reserved under a policy initiated
by Mr Chandrababu Naidu and continued by his
successor. The policy of extending reservations
for SCs and STs to the private sector is part of
the UPA's National Common Minimum Programme. It
promises to "initiate a national dialogue [on
this] with all political parties, industry and
other organisations" to "fulfil the aspirations
of SC and ST youth". This is unexceptionable. But
reservations for Muslims as Muslims may be
undesirable.
The proposed affirmative action in the private
sector has drawn a negative industry reaction.
Confederation of Indian Industry chief Anand
Mahindra "welcomes" a dialogue, but says
"reservation without reference to merit may have
a distorting effectŠ" Some magnates have
threatened to relocate in case Maharashtra goes
ahead with the move. This is bizarre coming from
business families in which birth and inheritance
count infinitely more than "merit".
Indian business families jealously guard their
lineage and privilege at the expense of all
else-as the latest controversy over Priyamvada
Birla's will shows. Efficiency and "merit" aren't
exactly the forte of India's business culture. Or
else, we wouldn't have 250,000 private factories
lying closed, with tens of thousands of crores
tied up in non-performing assets. Nor would we
have scandals in every major industry. In private
business, most people are recruited on the basis
of contacts, sifarish, loyalty and political
influence, not "merit".
However, the strongest argument for affirmative
action derives from the persistence of cruel and
often barbaric forms of discrimination against
marginalised groups such as Dalits. This
discrimination enjoys the sanction of the
Dharmashastras. One only has to take a fleeting
glance at the Manusmriti to note the hierarchy it
stipulates and the gruesome punishment it
prescribes for the Shudras (including Dalits and
most OBCs), who must forever obediently serve the
other, twice-born, varnas. They must be "gentle
in speech" and "free from pride", and own no
property "other than donkeys and dogs".
Should a Shudra try to place himself on the same
seat with a man of high caste, say the
scriptures, "he shall be branded on his hip and
banished. If out of arrogance, a Shudra spits on
a superior, (the king) shall cause both his lips
to be cut offŠ If a Shudra threatens a Brahmin
with a stick, he shall remain in hell for a
hundred years; he who strikes a Brahmin, shall
remain in hell for a thousand yearsŠ A Chandala,
a village pig, a cock, a dog, a menstruating
women must not look at the Brahmin when they eat.
The Chandalas shall be outside the village and
their dress shall be the garments of the deadŠ
they must always wander from place to place. A
Shudra who sleeps with a maiden of the highest
caste shall suffer capital punishment".
To this day, inhuman and degrading casteist
practices prevail in India: Dalits must take off
their shoes and their women must uncover their
faces while passing through an upper-caste area;
their dead cannot be carried through savarna
streets. In many states, Dalits are banned from
making ghee. In Andhra and Tamil Nadu, they have
been punished for asserting their legal rights by
being forced to eat human excreta. One only has
to read the reports of the SC/ST Commissions to
verify this. Such vile discrimination against
Dalits and most OBCs cannot be eliminated by
calling for equal opportunity-among unequal
people whose starting conditions are grossly
unequal. Correcting them demands affirmative
action.
Affirmative action's principal function is not
individual betterment, but acknowledgement of
historic injustice against a group and
compensation for it through preferred
recruitment, etc. So long as anti-Dalit
discrimination persists, we must continue with
reservations. For the same reason, the Mandal
principle cannot be faulted. However, we must
recognise that reservations or quotas are a
particularly strong form of affirmative action
and pose practical difficulties. It won't be easy
to implement them in the private sector, which
creates very few new jobs. The organised private
sector accounts for just 8.4 million jobs-down
from 8.8 million in 1998. The whole organised
sector employs just 27.2 million.
What might be preferable to reservations are
other forms of positive discrimination, either
voluntary or promoted through bodies like the
remarkable Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission of the US. By fighting for employment
for ethnic minorities, EEOC has brought a major
change in countless industries and occupations
like automobile dealerships and even TV
anchorship. It ruled that 5 percent of all
government purchases must come from minority
suppliers.
Thus, major Fortune-500 corporations like
Exxon-Mobil, General Motors and Wal-Mart recruit
16 to 23 percent of their workers from among the
minorities. GM and Ford have been buying
components from minority suppliers for years. IBM
has 15 percent of its staff drawn from the
minorities. Over one-third of the faculty of
Harvard Medical School belongs to such groups. By
contrast, Dalits and Adivasis (23 percent of our
population) have abysmally low representation:
just 7.1 percent in factories, 3.1 percent in
construction, 4.1 percent in trade, 3 percent in
transport, and 3.4 percent in domestic industry.
India must emulate and adapt affirmative action
methods from the US and post-apartheid South
Africa too. To start with, we must ensure jobs
for Dalits and Adivasis roughly in proportion to
their share in the population.
Finally, a word on reservations for Muslims. In
recent years, many Indian Muslims have suffered
discrimination, especially at the hands of the
state. But they don't fall into the category of
Dalits who face historic injustice. Nor are
Muslims homogenous. They will be better served
through education, especially for girls,
modernisation of madrassas, opening up of special
state services (e.g police intelligence and RAW)
which are closed to them, and conscious
recruitment of professionals through EEOC-type
programmes.
Given the history of communal conflict and the
active social-political presence of the sangh
parivar, there will be a strong backlash to
reservations-through screams of "appeasement".
Instead of reservations, the Andhra government
should announce affirmative action for Muslims in
education and job training.-end-
______
[3]
[ on sacw.net | August 21, 2004 ]
Reproduced from Mainstream, August 14, 2004
[India] BEYOND THE LIMITS OF LAW
by Ajay K. Mehra
As Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh unfurls the
country's tricolour from the ramparts of the
historic Lal Quila on India's 58th independence
day this 15th August, the country is still
mulling over the most unlikely political scenario
thrown up by India's tumultuous politics.
[,,,]
Dr. Singh has begun on the right note by giving a
call to turn attention to the institutions of
governance and the need for institutional
correctives on issues like criminalization of
politics, rather than knee jerk reactions and
solutionless partisan hullabaloo.
Even though the police have not been separately
mentioned in the need for reforms in institutions
and administrative practices stressed by him,
given the controversies surrounding the police in
India for the past three decades - incompetence,
corruption, brutalization, human rights
violations, communal partisanship, et. al. - and
consequent discourse on reforms in the police and
criminal justice system prevailing in the
country, it is important that issues relating to
the malfunctioning of this crucial institution of
governance are highlighted and flagged for
further discussion.
. . . the police behaviour during the Gujarat
riots (and of course in several preceding them)
brings up the question of policing the Indian
'diversity' in a democratic milieu. Trust,
consent and accountability (social, political and
administrative) are key to policing generally and
more particularly in a multi-cultural situation.
The need for a police organisation representative
of the larger society has been discussed in this
context. Though this is a complex question
without a definite answer, a highly skewed
composition of the police, tilting in favour of
the majority community, has resulted in biased
behaviour in critical times. It is important,
therefore, to study this dimension and introduce
correctives. Further, in order to judge the
police behaviour in India in recent time,
deficiency of the police personnel in each of the
above three elements needs to be juxtaposed to
the explicit expletive language of the political
leadership in Gujarat against the minorities and
the discourse on 'cultural nationalism' unleashed
by the national leadership in the past decade and
a half, projecting a significant section of the
population as the 'other'. The question is
whether the police in the country would feel the
need to win the trust and consent of the society
and remain accountable to their duty under such a
surcharged atmosphere, particularly when the
minorities are not well represented within the
organisation.
[...]
The police alone among the civil agencies of
government have functions which can be broadly
described as coercive, and they, therefore, stand
in the public mind as ultimate symbols of the
brute power of the state. Since in the nature of
things those who have coercive powers and the
authority, under legal sanction, to use force are
occasionally apt to abuse or exceed their powers,
organisational and legal mechanisms are created
to obviate such possibilities. The high rate of
brutality and custodial crime by the Indian
police suggests that such mechanisms are either
non-existent, or weak and non-functional. In the
introduction to its report on Custodial Crimes,
the Law Commission of India observed: 'Members of
the weaker or poorer sections of society are
arrested informally and kept in police custody
for days together without any entry of such
arrests in the police records.... The relatives
or friends of the victim are unable to seek
protection of law on account of their poverty,
ignorance and illiteracy.... This situation
gives rise to a belief that the laws' protection
is meant for the rich and not for the poor. If
the incidents of custodial crimes are not
controlled or eliminated, the Constitution, the
law, and the State would have no meaning to the
people which may ultimately lead to anarchy,
de-stabilizing the society.' The NPC had
attributed custody torture, at times leading to
death, to weaknesses in training in investigating
crime and pressure of volume on an overstretched
police. The investigations by civil rights
groups like the People's Union for Civil
Liberties have corroborated organisational
weaknesses leading to such aberrations. However,
they also blame attitude of highhandedness
embedded in the police psyche in India, where
non-compliance is not tolerated. The brutal
reaction does not only lead to torture, but also
fabrication of case against the victim. Of
course, the democratic concepts of the rule of
law are trampled in the process.
[...].
(The writer is Director, Centre for Public Affairs, Noida, UP)
[Full Text at URL: www.sacw.net/hrights/ajayMehra20_82004.html ]
______
[4]
Hindustan Times, August 21, 2004 | Editorial
A MUMBO JUMBO CABINET
August 20
Miracle cures are subjects of fantasy. But when
the Madhya Pradesh State Aids Control Society
starts promoting the cause of quacks, a nightmare
scenario seems to be unfolding. At a time when
modern medicine is taking leaps and bounds and
several possible vaccines for Aids are in the
human trial stage, Uma Bharti's government is
busy recommending patients to one Baba Shree
Nirvikar Path, who claims to have a spiritual
cure for Aids. This is reminiscent of Sanjay
Paswan, an ex-minister in the NDA government, who
championed the cause of ojhas (exorcists). Who
said the Dark Ages were over?
The state's hand in the proliferation of quacks
is three-fold. First, it simply has not done
enough to improve health facilities in rural
areas, let alone the pathetic state of urban
health centres. While clinics, where they exist,
are poorly maintained and offer questionable
services, in some areas, people have no choice
but to travel many miles to reach the nearest
hospital. Second, in many cases, those wielding
power have a vested interest in promoting such
activities. In Uttaranchal, for instance, a
recent raid on the flourishing Neeraj Clinic,
which offered banned drugs as a sure-fire remedy
against epilepsy, has opened a can of worms, with
some ministers in the state government suspected
of patronising the illegal clinic.
Third, in a country like India there is need for
awareness programmes against irrational and
superstitious beliefs if health standards have to
improve. But now, it seems, such a plan will have
to target those who head governments themselves.
______
[5]
[ on sacw.net | August 21, 2004]
Reproduced from: Asian Age, August 18, 2004
INDIA: HARSUD LOST
By Angana Chatterji
"They stood there, the guards, and ordered me to tear down my home. It felt
like my bones were breaking." -- Sunder Bai, Harsud, 2004
[ Full Text at the URL: www.sacw.net/Nation/angana21082004.html ]
______
[6]
The Economic and Political Weekly
August 14, 2004
HINDI CHILDREN'S JOURNALS AND NATIONALIST DISCOURSE (1910-1930)
The heightened public attention towards
children's education and the implementation
of children's rights, as visible in a number of
recent publications, is not a genuinely new one.
A century ago, politicians, educators, editors
and writers also debated 'what was best for the
child'. With the growth of print culture in the
early 20th century, a journalistic venture
emerged in the Hindi public sphere that was
closely tied to the nationalist
project: children's journals. Hindi children's
journals propelled the view that it lay in the
hands of children to support and eventually
accomplish Indian independence. The editors of
children's journals staked out an agenda that
emphasised character formation and argued against
superstition and materialism. This agenda was
characterised by a self-reflexive application of
new discourses in child pedagogy. It also
attained to the requirements of the mainstream
nationalist ideology.
Shobna Nijhawan
[Full Text at URL:
www.epw.org.in/showArticles.php?root=2004&leaf=08&filename=7560&filetype=html
]
_____
[7]
DISCUSSION ON 'MANIPUR, THE NORTH EAST AND THE
ARMED FORCES (ASSAM AND MANIPUR) SPECIALS POWERS
ACT'
Date: August 25th, 2004. Time: 4 p
Venue: Press Club, VT. [Bombay]
Speakers:
Adv. Nandita Haksar, Human Rights advocate in Supreme Court, Delhi
Artex Shimrey, Advisor, North East Students Organisation (NESO), Assam.
Chair:
Nikhil Wagle, Editor, Mahanagar, Mumbai.
On July 15, around forty elder women, ages 50 to
65, held a naked protest against military
violence in Manipur in the North East and shocked
and shamed the entire country. They held a banner
that screamed- Indian Army rape us! The protest
was sparked by the death of 32-year-old Thangjam
Manorama whose bullet ridden body was found on
July 10. Witnesses say Manorama was picked up by
soldiers of the paramilitary Assam Rifles from
her home on the charge of alleged links with
separatist rebels. Protests led by a coalition of
women’s organisations in Manipur have since been
escalating, primarily demanding the repeal of the
Armed Forces (Assam and Manipur) Specials Powers
Act which has been in force since 1980, under
which almost anyone from the security forces can
arrest any person on suspicion of being a
militant or a supporter to the militant cause.
The person can be detained for months without
being produced in court. There is almost no
accountability.
The events in Manipur and the North east raise
issues that are important to all of us. We have
therefore invited two speakers who have been
associated with the region for many years, well
known Supreme Court advocate Nandita Haksar, and
Atrex Shimrey who is a leading activist with
NESO. The presentations will be followed by a
question and answer session. Nikhil Wagle will
chair the meeting. Please make it convenient to
attend, and please publicise this meeting and
post it on all email lists.
Organised by:
Media for People, Majlis, Akshara, YUVA, Focus on the Global South,
-sd-
Yuvraj Mohite
_____
[8]
RIGHT TO SOCIAL SECURITY
Education Activists Assembly
September 2-4, 2004
Bhartiyam Grounds, Nizammudin East, New Delhi
August 12, 2004
Dear
Bharat Gyan Vigyan Samiti is holding a three-day
assembly on Right to Social Security from 2nd to
4th September 2004 at Bharatiyam Grounds,
Nizammudin,, New Delhi.
Around 4000 activists coming from different
states are expected to participate in this. We
would be very pleased by your presence at the
Assembly.
Most of the participants would be the literacy
and education volunteers of the Total Literacy
Campaigns. As you know the literacy campaigns in
the country have faced several ups and downs
during the past few years. However, much of the
spirit of the early nineties still sustains in
the hearts of millions of learners and
volunteers. They have been fighting to go beyond
literacy by linking it with various elements of
social security viz. education, health, gender
equality, food security and so on; as also as a
struggle against communalism and neo-liberal
economic policies.
The Assembly, we hope, will facilitate sharing of
experiences and also help to evolve a strategy to
develop a larger and more broad based movement,
for Right to Social Security. Apart from the
literacy activists, we are also inviting a number
of other organizations and individuals to
participate in the programme.
We would certainly like you to be with us.
With warm regards,
(M P Parameswaran) (Vinod Raina)
President
Secretary
BRIEF PROGRAM
September 2: 11 a.m. - 01 p.m. *
The Journey in making India Literate.
03 p.m. - 06 p.m * Planning for a 'People's India'.
September 3: 10 a.m. - 06 p.m. *
MKSS, Right to Food Campaign, Eklavya, Jan
Swastha Abhiyan,Nirantar, NAPM, AIKS, L.C.Jain,
Nandita Haskar, Swami Agnivesh, Teesta Setalved,
Sitaram Yechury
September 4: 10 a.m. - 01 p.m. * Demand Note on Education.
* Minister HRD, Sh. Arjun Singh's response & address.
_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/
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