SACW | 03 March 2005
sacw
aiindex at mnet.fr
Wed Mar 2 19:57:23 CST 2005
South Asia Citizens Wire | 03 March., 2005
via: www.sacw.net
[1] Pakistan : amendment to Honour killings law rejected
- Pakistan rejects pro-women bill
- 'Karo-Kari' and fate of enlightened moderation (Editorial, Daily Times)
- In the name of honour (Editorial, The News)
- Pakistani religious law challenged (Scott Baldauf)
[2] People's forum for permanent Indo-Pak peace
+ A cross-border conquest of hearts
[3] India: An appeal from Movement Against Uranium Project in Andhra
Pradesh along with the latest news reports
[4] Publication Announcement :
"Dark Leaves of the Present" Edited by Angana P. Chatterji & Shabnam Hashmi
[5] Upcoming events:
(i) Amnesty International India is having a national day of action against
the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1958 (Agra, Bhubaneswar,
Chennai, Delhi, Imphal, Pune, March 5th, 2005)
(ii) On International Women's Day--Lecture by Sheeba Chhachhi
(Wellesley College, March 8th)
--------------
[1]
BBC News - 2 March, 2005
PAKISTAN REJECTS PRO-WOMEN BILL
Women rights groups want strict legislation against honour killings
The Pakistan government has allied with Islamists to reject a bill
which sought to strengthen the law against the practice of "honour
killing".
The parliament rejected the bill by a majority vote on Tuesday,
declaring it to be un-Islamic.
Honour killing is the name given to murders where the offender claims
the victim, usually a woman, had brought his family into disrepute.
The bill was rejected after being declared un-Islamic by a majority vote.
Law Minister Wasi Zafar told parliament that there was no need for
further amendments in the country's penal code after an amendment
bill was passed last December.
However, the opposition - along with several women members from the
government benches - has continued to call for further amendments,
arguing that the law remained riddled with many loopholes despite the
amendment.
Tuesday's bill was introduced by Ms Kashmala Tariq, a member of the
ruling Muslim League.
"Karo-kari"
Under the so-called Islamic legislation enacted by General Zia ul
Haq, Pakistan's Islamist military ruler in the 1980s, proven killers
could seek or buy pardon from the victim's family under the Islamic
principles of compromise.
Observers say Islamists still wield influence in parliament
The law has remained essentially unchanged since then.
Observers say that it has been grossly misused and has contributed
directly to an alarming increase in the practice of "karo-kari" or
the so-called honour killings.
Karo-kari is a tradition whereby a man can kill a woman, claiming
that she brought dishonour to the family, and still expect to be
pardoned by her relatives.
Once such a pardon has been secured, the state has no further writ on
the matter.
Women victims
Human rights agencies in Pakistan have repeatedly emphasised that
most women falling prey to karo-kari were usually those wanting to
marry of their own will.
Islamists have an uneasy relationship with the government
In many cases, the victims held properties that the male members of
their families did not wish to lose if the women chose to marry
outside the family.
Government and independent researchers estimate that over 4,000 women
have fallen victim to this practice in Pakistan over the last six
years.
In December last year, the government passed a bill making karo-kari
punishable under the same penal provisions as murder.
But it did not alter the provisions whereby the accused could
negotiate pardon with the victim's family under the so-called Islamic
provisions.
These provisions often in conflict with the Anglo-Saxon law inherited
by Pakistan in 1947.
Observers in Pakistan say that the defeat of Ms Tariq's bill is a
clear indication of the influence that the conservatives still wield
on policy-making in Pakistan, despite President Musharraf's liberal
outlook.
o o o o
The Daily Times - March 03, 2005
EDITORIAL: 'KARO-KARI' AND FATE OF ENLIGHTENED MODERATION
The National Assembly on Tuesday dismissed by a majority vote a bill
seeking to amend a law already passed in connection with
honour-killing or karo-kari. This effort was initiated by a PML MNA,
Ms Kashmala Tariq, to prevent the 'honour killers' from winning
impunity through the "Islamic" provision of diyat or blood money. The
government had blocked a more comprehensive bill against karo-kari
tabled by PPPP MNA Sherry Rehman in 2004 and instead passed its own
law allowing the killers a "getaway" loophole if the killer was given
muafi (pardon) by the wali (elder) or relatives of the victim.
Karo-kari is a custom of killing (mostly) women who are accused of
having sexual relations with strangers. Karo is when a man is killed;
kari is when a woman is killed. The application of the custom is
quite broadly understood: rumours of illicit sexuality are kosher and
legitimate love marriages are not. But when Sherry Rehman fought for
her bill in the National Assembly last year, there was shameful
support of the custom in some powerful walks of life in the country.
The ruling PML was clearly divided in parliament last Tuesday but was
given support by the clerical MNAs of Mutahidda Majlis-e-Amal (MMA)
to achieve the numbers required to defeat the move. The PMLQ law
minister, Mr Wasi Zafar, and Ijaz ul Haq, the religious affairs
minister, both agitated against the amendment. So, too, did the MMA.
But the battlefield is extremely confusing. Honour killing and
karo-kari are supported by the ruling PML in so far it has allowed
"compoundability" or a let-off through pardon/diyat. In this it
stands together with the clergy, which is in keeping with its old
reflex of sharing the Islamic agenda of the religious parties. Thus
it has by 'happy accident' touched base with the feudals of Sindh and
sardars of Balochistan, too, who think that karo-kari is justice
because it is meted out by a jirga that works where nothing else
associated with state law works. The policy of not completely getting
rid of the ugly custom has pleased the PML's feudal allies in Sindh
while offending the more secular-minded MQM.
In July 2004, when the National Assembly was debating the bill
proposed by Sherry Rehman (that sought ten amendments in the Penal
Code to prevent karo-kari) the PML MNA from Jacobabad, Mr Salim Jan
Mazari, stood up and supported honour-killings, saying women could
not be allowed to "run away" to "dishonour" their families. Many
members across the political spectrum, including PML's Minoo
Bhandara, protested at Mr Mazari's statement, but it was applauded by
the MMA benches. When Mr Bhandara sought an explanation for the
speaker's neglect of his notices about a number of karo-kari
incidents in Sindh, the incidents were officially denied. The feudals
and the PML were clearly clinging to the Qisas and Diyat Ordinance
1979 which made honour-killing "compoundable". Regrettably, it has
never been anyone's concern that the Ordinance had completely failed
to achieve its legal ends and had merely offered the killers a
"facilitation".
The PPPP did nothing to promote such a bill while it was in power
twice. But it put up the Protection and Empowerment of Women Bill
early last year in which it sought more rights for women and a repeal
of the Hudood ordinances in light of the Women's Commission Report
2004. Today, however, the PPPP is in a slightly dubious situation. On
the one hand it owns up to this bill. On the other hand, it is in the
ARD together with the PMLN seeking to force President Musharraf to
step down and hold election in 2005. But this is the same PMLN which
refused in 1993 to support the PPP when it asked the PMLN to consider
the findings of the Women's Commission to render rights to women. It
was General Musharraf, the PPPP's current nemesis, who later got the
Women's Commission to render another report which again came out
recommending the removal of hudood from the statute books because
they were discriminatory to women and the minorities. But the report
landed in Islamabad when the PMLQ government (patronised by General
Musharraf today) was in power and shelved it.
The PPPP faces embarrassment from another direction. It hates the MQM
and sees it as its ultimate and irreducible rival in Sindh. The
PPPP's strength is not in the cities of Sindh but in the countryside
where it polls more votes than any other party. But it is the
city-dominating MQM which is now supporting its anti-karo-kari bill
while the feudals dominating the countryside - together with the MMA
- want the custom to continue. The rivalry between the MMA and the
MQM is understandable because it can be defined ideologically, but
the PPPP's desire to join the MMA in the latter's coming "million
marches" is less understandable. Equally, if President Musharraf
thinks that the PMLQ will help him realise his project of
"enlightened moderation" he is sadly mistaken. What he has with the
PML is a "marriage of inconvenience". His politician friends are with
him because it is politically convenient, not because they believe in
his liberal agenda. The same can be said for the PPPP.
This reflects the moral bankruptcy of politics in Pakistan. It also
explains why General Pervez Musharraf's agenda of enlightened
moderation will remain a cry in the wilderness if it isn't framed in
a more liberal political alliance. *
o o o o
The News International
March 03, 2005
EDITORIAL
IN THE NAME OF HONOUR
On the same day that the government and the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal
joined hands to defeat a private member's bill regarding amendments
to the bill to eliminate murder in the guise of honour killing, four
people were gunned down in upper Sindh over Karo Kari. Considering
the re-occurrence of such acts, serious action is needed at all
levels - the government, opposition, judiciary, local administration
and police.
The Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Bill sought to amend the
original law to make the offence of honour-killing non-compoundable.
Introduced by Kashmala Tariq, the bill proposed that the State should
act as a 'wali' (guarantor) in murder of any kind. The Minister for
Religious Affairs, Ejaz-ul-Haq, lent his support indirectly by
declaring that the State dons the role of 'wali' in all murder cases
under law in Saudi Arabia. The bill further proposed that a murder in
the name of honour should be treated as intentional murder, a point
supported by Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan who stated that murder should be
treated as a crime and no one should have the right to pardon a
relative or any one else who commits murder in the guise of honour.
Some members, like the Law and Justice Minister, opposed the bill and
were of the view that there was no need for further amendments as a
law was passed by parliament last year defining the custom of
honour-killing such as "karo-kari" as murder punishable by death.
Innocent people are killed on the pretext of this 'tradition' that
has roots in culture rather than religion. Islam does not condone
murder in any form and surely does not allow cold-blooded killings
for the sake of 'honour'. The government must rise to the occasion
and seek to tighten the law against grave crimes like honour
killings, gang rapes and cold-blooded murders in the guise of
tradition or religion. Exemplary punishments must be awarded so that
the number of such incidents declines.
As it is the judicial system in Pakistan suffers from inertia, with a
mountain of pending cases lying in the judicial pipeline. The
precious time of the National Assembly should not be wasted arguing
whether a law should or should not be amended, or whether a tradition
is religious or cultural. This time should be utilised to bring a
positive change in the lives of the masses, who have elected those
sitting in the two houses of parliament.
United and prompt action from the ruling and opposition parties is
needed if we want to eradicate such social and moral crimes from our
midst. It is important that our elected members stop dilly-dallying
on important issues like Karo Kari and work towards a better
understanding of the seriousness of the issue.
o o o o
The Christian Science Monitor - March 02, 2005
PAKISTANI RELIGIOUS LAW CHALLENGED
Rights groups condemn ordinances that call for harsh penalties for
adultery, drinking, and premarital sex.
By Scott Baldauf | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
KARACHI, PAKISTAN - On the evening that Basira Jiskani ran away from
her abusive husband almost a year ago, she felt relief for the first
time since she left home. But things only got worse.
Now, Basira faces charges of adultery - her husband alleges that she
ran away to marry another man - and a possible death sentence by
stoning. In addition, vigilantes may await her back home in southern
Sindh Province.
[Photo Caption and Credits] CHARGED: Basira Jiskani, who fled an
arranged marriage, faces a possible death sentence under Pakistani
religious law.
SCOTT BALDAUF
"I want to go back to my village, but I know I cannot," says the
19-year-old, whose parents consented to her marriage to a man twice
her age. "They want to kill me back in my village, the landowner, my
husband, and even my own family members. They have already declared
me an adulteress, so they can kill me anytime."
Basira Jiskani is just one of thousands of women facing trial in
Pakistan under the infamous Hudood Ordinances, religious codes which
were passed under the military dictatorship of Gen. Zia ul-Haq.
Unlike the system of "honor killing," which is illegal but common in
Pakistan, the Hudood Ordinances are the law itself. The ordinances
stem from Islamic law, which stipulates severe punishments for hudood
offenses ranging from adultery and premarital sex to alcohol
consumption. Not all Muslim countries have adopted hudood penalties
in their criminal justice codes, and Islamic scholars debate whether
such laws are a correct interpretation of the Koran.
Many Pakistani politicians, including President Pervez Musharraf, say
the laws should be reviewed - some say repealed - since they have a
disproportionate effect on women and the poor. But in the past 26
years, the laws seem to have become as unalterable as the Koran
itself, and activists say the only way to bring equal justice to
Pakistani society will be through a sustained campaign of pressure
and resistance.
"Pakistan is a patriarchal society, where the power of feudal lords
and tribal leaders has ugly manifestations in controlling women, such
as cutting off their noses or simply shooting them to protect the
honor of the family or the tribe," says Farzana Bari, director of the
Women's Study Center at Quaid-e-Azam University in Islamabad. "But
with the Hudood Ordinances, the state becomes a partner in this."
"Political parties, such as the People's Party and even the Pakistan
Muslim League, all say they would repeal the Hudood Ordinances when
they are sitting in opposition," she adds. "But when they get to
power, it is not a priority."
The Hudood Ordinances (hudood means "limitations or boundaries" in
Urdu) have now become the dominant law affecting women. Of the 7,000
women in jail around the country awaiting trial, 88 percent are
accused of crimes under Hudood, according to the Lawyers for Human
Rights and Legal Aid. Ninety percent of these women have no lawyer,
and 50 percent do not know they are entitled to contact one. Most
women accused of Hudood violations are acquitted, but lose an average
of five years to confinement, and lose their reputations as well.
Zia Awan, president of the Lawyers for Human Rights and Legal Aid, a
private legal aid group in Karachi, says that most Hudood cases in
the courts revolve around a woman's ability to choose her own spouse.
In a society where families usually choose spouses for their
children, defiance comes at a high cost. Many families, particularly
in traditional rural areas, file charges against their own children
for premarital sex, rape, or adultery, all in the name of protecting
family honor.
Hudood has also unwittingly become a major factor in rape cases. Many
rape victims refuse to file charges, because under Islamic law, four
male Muslim witnesses are required to prove charges of rape. Women
who cannot produce this many witnesses often end up in jail
themselves for adultery, a crime against the state punishable by
stoning to death.
"One of the first cases I took up 15 years ago, there was a woman who
was kidnapped by a man who promised to marry her," says Mr. Awan.
"Instead he kept her in a room and raped her. She escaped and went to
the police, and there, she was registered both as a victim and as an
accused under Hudood." The woman was later found innocent and the
kidnapper was found guilty, but by then she had spent 13 months in
jail.
Awan praises President Musharraf for other reforms - such as
introducing a separate legal system for juveniles, and new stricter
rules to control trafficking in children. But he calls Musharraf's
public promise four years ago to review the Hudood "half hearted."
Conservative Islamic activists and scholars say the Hudood Ordinances
cannot be repealed. To do so would be a rejection of the Islamic
system, they say, and an offense to Islam itself.
"Nobody can say that Koranic punishments are unacceptable," says Sen.
Ghafoor Ahmad, vice president of the conservative Jamaat-I Islami
party and supporter of the Hudood Ordinances. "If you believe in the
Koran, then these punishments are there. For theft, the punishment is
to cut off the hand. For adultery, the punishment is death."
But Senator Ahmad says that Islam "is not barbaric," but merciful.
The Prophet Mohammad brought out these punishments only in the later
stages of his prophecy, a time of greater prosperity and less crime
among the Muslim community. Ahmad believes that Pakistan should work
harder at attaining prosperity for its citizens before imposing harsh
sentences.
"If there is hunger or disorder in society, then the first priority
should be to solve these problems, not to insist on these
punishments," adds Professor Ghafoor.
As for Basira Jiskani, all this talk seems academic - and terrifying.
What is more real to her is the oppressive way that women are treated.
Sold into marriage on March 5, 2004, to Mohammad Yousuf Jiskani, the
nephew of a powerful landowner, Basira became a kind of slave to her
new husband, and to his wife.
On March 21, Basira told her family she was going to the market. The
wife sent an older daughter along to keep an eye on Basira, but when
the two were out of sight of the village, Basira dashed off. She made
it to her aunt's house, then to a human rights office in Hyderabad.
On March 31, she filed for divorce.
Back in the village, Basira's family filed charges against Basira as
an adulteress, saying that she had been kidnapped and forcibly
married to a man from a rival family. Local police have produced a
marriage document registering the marriage of Basira with this second
man. Basira denies getting remarried and her lawyer notes the
document does not bear her signature or thumb print.
In the meantime, Basira spends her days at a women's shelter in
Karachi. Together with other women escaping abusive husbands, she
learns embroidery and other skills.
"We talk about our troubles together, we cry together, we laugh as
well," says Basira. She looks down and becomes silent. "I just want
to have my life back."
______
[2]
The Hindu - March 03, 2005
New Delhi
PEOPLE'S FORUM FOR PERMANENT INDO-PAK PEACE
By Our Staff Reporter
NEW DELHI, MARCH 2. While welcoming the ongoing dialogue process
between India and Pakistan, the Seventh Joint Convention of
Pakistan-India People's Forum for Peace and Democracy that concluded
here on Monday resolved to work towards attaining "permanent" peace
between the people of both countries.
In the Delhi Declaration adopted by the Convention on Monday, the
Forum decided to appoint a joint committee to "deliberate the
question of establishing peace and goodwill between the peoples (as
distinct from the elite) of India and Pakistan on a permanent
basis''. The mandate of the joint committee includes thrashing out
suggestions on how the people of both countries should mobilise
themselves to bring about the conditions of "permanent peace,
participatory democracy and united struggle against neo-imperialist
forces''. "I was asking an official here whether the process of peace
will continue or not. And he told me that while things were going
well, there was always a danger of roll back. Instead, he said that
it was up to us to ensure that the process be kept alive and that the
roll back does not happen. We need to keep the doors open for
exchange,'' said a delegate from Pakistan, Anis Haroon, during a
press conference here.
The Declaration also calls upon the two Governments to repeal all
laws that are discriminatory against women, abolition of the visa
regime, granting dual nationality to Hindus who migrated to India and
Muslims who crossed the border and removing visa and movement
restrictions on persons who have contracted cross border marriages.
The Forum has also undertaken to develop a peace curriculum.
Reiterating that Kashmir was a political dispute, they called on all
parties, states and non-state to abjure violence. On the issue of
globalisation, the Declaration expressed its solidarity with ongoing
movements against the IMF, World Bank and WTO
o o o o
Hindustan Times
A CROSS-BORDER CONQUEST OF HEARTS
Manish Chand (Indo-Asian News Service)
New Delhi, March 1, 2005|11:33 IST
For over 600 Indians and Pakistanis who had assembled here for a
dialogue on bridging the cross-border divide, the experience of
meeting each other sans prejudices and preconceptions was a
transforming one.
Some of them were much too emotionally stirred to speak while others
waxed lyrical about the unstoppable march of peace.
"It's been a wonderful experience. We feel as though we have come
home. Dilli dilwalon ki hai," (Delhi belongs to creatures of the
heart)," gushes Mohammad Riaz, a lawyer who had come from Mirpur in
Pakistan-administered Kashmir to attend the four-day seventh joint
convention of Pakistan-India People's Forum for Peace and Democracy
(PIPFPD) which began on Friday at the Mavlankar Hall here.
This is the first time five people from Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir
(PoK) have been granted visas to visit India to attend this
convention. "Now we know that Indians are nice people. All the bad
policies are formulated by the governments of both countries, and
people suffer. People want peace," said Riaz, who has found his
passage to India a liberating one, freeing him from prejudices of a
lifetime.
Likewise, Munir Hussain Chaudhary, a lawyer and political activist
from Mirpur in PoK - an area that Pakistan calls 'Azad Kashmir' - is
excited at his Indian journey and new vistas of experience it has
opened for him. He is now praying that the Indian government extends
his visa to allow him to visit Rajouri so that he can be united with
his long-lost sister. If his wish is granted, he will be seeing his
sister for the first time in his life.
Over 100 Pakistanis, out of 320 who attended the convention, are
trying to get their visas extended so that they can soak in the sun
and sights of India for a little while more.
It wasn't just emotions and dramatic personal experiences. Weighty
issues with long-term implications for the future of the region like
Kashmir, human and civil rights, the status of minorities and
globalisation were discussed with passionate objectivity.
Tapan Bose, general secretary of the Indian chapter of PIPFFD,
recalls proudly how the organisation that started with just 100
delegates ten years ago has now spread to almost all sectors of
society and has become a mass movement of sorts.
Anis Haroon, a senior member of Pakistan chapter of the forum, sees
in the increased people-to-people contacts an affirmation of peace
lobbies by both governments.
It was perhaps as an acknowledgement of people power that External
Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh threw open the doors of Hyderabad
House - the stately venue of state banquets held for the heads of
state -- for the forum's delegates Sunday.
Last month, the Indian high commission issued over 10,000 visas to
Pakistanis coming to India. On an average, the Pakistani high
commission in New Delhi issues 8,000 visas every month.
The exuberance and energy circulating in Mavlankar Hall bespoke this
collective longing for peace on both sides of the border. If for Amit
Chakravorty, a banker from Kolkata, the convention is the place to
refresh his perspectives about life across the border, for Shahjehan,
a teacher from Islamabad, it was a revelation of the power of
dialogue unshackled by biases and state lies.
"It's the common people who bear the brunt of peace. They are the
ultimate sufferers. Let's talk and live peace," said the man who
tutors a brand new generation in Pakistan in the culture of peace.
______
[3] [Posted below is an appeal from the Movement Against Uranium
Project (MAUP) in Andhra Pradesh along with the latest news reports]
To,
The Member Secretary,
AP Pollution Control Board,
Paryavaran Bhavan,
A-3, Industrial Estate, Sanathnagar
Hyderabad -500 018
Sir,
Sub:- Uranium Mining in the close vicinity of Nagarjuna Sagar Reservoir
- Right to Information & Transparency
We wish to bring to your kind notice
that two Environmental Public Hearings (EPH) were held on 19 th
August 2003 at Peddagattu and P A Pally, regarding the proposed UCIL
projects for Uranium Mining at Lambapur-Peddagattu and the Uranium
Processing Plant at Mallapurm-Dugyala of PA Pally Mandal in
Nallagonda district.
The Movement Against Uranium Project
(MAUP) and many other organizations and individuals from all over the
country orally and in writing raised various objections against the
proposed projects. The local population overwhelmingly opposed and
vociferously expressed against both the Uranium Mining and Processing
projects during the Public Hearings.
The public has an important role to play
in EIA process and the agencies concerned are obliged to respond to
issues and concerns raised during public hearing. and convey back to
the public the decisions taken. But unfortunately the public, to
date, has not been informed about the final decision taken regarding
the above projects and whether their objections have been considered.
This only indicates denial of information to the public, lack of
transparency and utter disregard to the public opinion, on the part
of the State Administration.
In the absence of any information even
after one and half years since EPHs were held and the Notification
issued by APPCB to conduct EPH on 3 rd March 2005 in respect of UCIL
proposal to relocate the Uranium Processing Plant to a new site at
Seripally village, Devarakonda Mandal, it is logical to conclude that
UCIL is going ahead with Uranium Mining Project at
Lambapur-Peddagattu of PA Pally Mandal abutting Nagarjuna Sagar
Reservoir.
The UCIL is reported to have proposed to
relocate Uranium Processing Plant to a new site at Seripally village,
Devarakonda Mandal, keeping in mind the Supreme Court judgment on the
water reservoirs of Gandipet and Himayatsagar, as the originally
proposed site at Mallapurm- Dugyala of PA Pally Mandal, falls within
the 10 km radius of Nagarjuna Sagar Reservoir which is also a
drinking water source for the city of Hyderabad
-2-
It is of significance to note that Lambapur and
Peddagattu plateau regions, with maximum and minimum elevation at 340
mRL on the west and 240 mRL on the east respectively are right
above Nagarjuna Sagar Reservoir, and the area at extreme south and
east is predominantly occupied by Reservoir limits of Nagarjuna
Sagar, with maximum water level at 180 mRL. The general drainage of
the area from all sides is towards Nagarjuna Sagar and a number of
ephemeral streams flow down to Nagarjuna Sagar from plateau regions.
. Therefore, how can the Uranium Mining Project at
Lambapur-Peddagattu plateau, which is of hazardous nature and
abutting Nagarjuna Sagar Reservoir limits as stated above, can be
permitted in violation of the Supreme Court judgment and the
Precautionary Principle which is universally accepted ? The Supreme
Court, in its judgment has clearly established that the right to
access safe drinking water is fundamental to life and it is a duty on
the State, under Art 21 of the Constitution, to provide clean
drinking water to its citizens.
It is therefore requested that before going
ahead with the proposed EPH on 3 rd March 2005, the public be
informed whether UCIL was granted permission for the Mining Project
or not ? In case the Mining project is cleared, the public has the
right to know, how their fundamental right to safe drinking water
free from radionuclide contamination from Nagarjuna Sagar Reservoir
is taken care of, with Uranium Mining taking place right abutting the
Reservoir ?
. It is requested that the proposed EPH scheduled
to be held on 3 rd March regarding relocation of Uranium Processing
Plant, be kept in abeyance till the above clarifications are given.
Yours Sincerely,
(Your name / organization)
Copy to: 1) The Secretary , MOE&F, GOI secy at mnef.delhi.nic.in
2) Chief Minister, AP Govt cmap at ap.nic.in
3) Chief Secretary, AP Govt. csap at ap.nic.in
4) Principal Secretary
Dept of Env. & Forest, AP Govt. tchatterjee at ap.gov.in
5) Member Secretary APPCB as at appcb.org
o o o o
The Hindu - March 03, 2005
http://www.hindu.com/2005/03/03/stories/2005030312110300.htm
Andhra Pradesh
UCIL under fire
Surendra Gadekar and Sanghamitra of Sampurna Kranti Vidyalaya,
Gujarat, visited the UCIL mining site at Peddagattu on Wednesday.
Speaking to The Hindu on their return from the area, the couple took
exception to the UCIL's move to take up the project without going for
a health study.
``The UCIL is in the habit of arguing that there is no health hazard
due to the project. If we complete a health survey before
establishing the plant, it will help us to make a comparison at a
later stage,'' they said expressing their opposition to the mining of
uranium.
Dr. Surendra, who did a survey on the radiation levels at Jaduguda,
alleged that the UCIL was least bothered about locals, its employees
and officers. They couple found fault with the Atomic Energy
Commission's "desperate attempt'' to extract uranium from all
available sources. Activists of Movement Against Uranium Project --
Kishan Rao and Ambika -- accompanied the couple.
o o o o
The Hindu - March 03, 2005
http://www.hindu.com/2005/03/03/stories/2005030312200300.htm
Stage set for public hearing on proposed uranium plant
By Our Staff Reporter
DEVARAKONDA (NALGONDA DT, ). MARCH 2. The stage is set for Thursday's
public hearing on the Rs. 372-crore uranium processing plant proposed
to be constructed at Seripally in Devarkonda mandal by the Uranium
Corporation of India Limited.
The Jana Vignana Vedika and the Movement Against Uranium Project have
made all-out efforts to mobilise public opinion against the plant,
which according to them can pose a great risk for local people. The
UCIL is countering the argument with the help of those who were taken
for a field visit to its main plant at Jaduguda in Jharkhand.
The UCIL has been broadcasting video clippings containing the
versions of the 30-odd locals, who spoke for the project on their
return from Jaduguda, in Siticable. According to sources, an UCIL
official met them a couple of times in the last week to impress upon
them to mobilise tribals in favour of the plant during the public
hearing.
Meanwhile, the irate villagers of Seripally allegedly burnt down UCIL
posters after preventing its supporters from entering into their
village last evening. Following the incident, the Pollution Control
Board is said to have decided to organise the public hearing near the
main road, not in Seripally village as was announced by it in its
notification. A large number of policemen are drawn to deploy in and
around the venue suspecting trouble from the villagers.
In an attempt to educate people on the ill-effects of uranium, the
JVV activists staged street plays and asked people to participate in
the public hearing in large numbers. The Lions Club also extending
support to the movement against the plant.
However, A. Madhusudan Rao, the UCIL official, who was at Devarakonda
yesterday said: "Opposition from locals is a common thing for any big
project. While 90 per cent people support it, the remaining 10 per
cent will always oppose it.''
______
[4] [Publication Announcement]
TITLE: Dark Leaves of the Present
Edited by Angana P. Chatterji & Shabnam Hashmi
This volume is a lament, a partial biography of the challenges facing
the nation. Published by ANHAD (Act Now for Harmony and Democracy) in
New Delhi, January 2005, for the public at large.
ISBN#81-88833-14-2
Contents
PREFACE By Shabnam Hashmi
NARRATING THE NATION: DARK LEAVES OF THE PRESENT. An Introduction
By
Angana P. Chatterji
HINDU SOCIAL ORDER AND THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF DALITS By Sukhadeo Thorat
COMMUNALISM AND THE VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS By K. N. Panikkar
IROM SHARMILA: Profile in Courage. An Interview
QUEER RIGHTS: Issues in Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity By
Arvind
Narrain
THE TRIBAL WORLD By Ajay Dandekar
VULNERABLE CHILDREN, INSTITUTIONALISATION, AND THE LAW By Harsh Mander
and Vidya Rao
GENDERED VIOLENCE IN HINDU NATIONALISM By Angana P. Chatterji
SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY AND THE CLIMATE OF IMPUNITY IN INDIA By Ravi Nair
POTA: A REMEDY WORSE THAN THE DISEASE By Colin Gonsalves
POTA: Production of Terrorist Act, Gujarat By Mukul Sinha
REFLECTIONS: PAINTINGS, PHOTOGRAPHS AND POEMS -- Paintings by Sudhir
Patwardhan, Vasudevan Akittam, Kalla, Jyoti Bhatt, Yunus Khimani,
Molina Khimani, Roy Thomas; Photographs: Sahir Raza; Poems: Anshu Malviya,
Baburao Bagul, Ashok Chakravarty
Hard Cover
Price: Rs 750/-
Copies are available through ANHAD. Limited number of copies.
To order:
anhadinfo at yahoo.co.in
anhad_delhi at yahoo.co.in
Delhi: 011-23327366
Delhi: 011-23327367
_______
[5] [Upcoming events]
(i)
Amnesty International India is having a national day of action against
the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1958 on March 5th, 2005.
We invite you to come and take part in different actions going on
throughout India in AGRA, BHUBANESWAR, CHENNAI, DELHI, IMPHAL, & PUNE.
We need your support to speak out against this draconian human rights
violating act.
RALLY TO REPEAL!!! - Saturday, March 5, 2005
Agra:
Silent Sit-In Protest
3 - 7 pm at Sanjay Palace (near Speed Colour Lab)
Contact: Gitegen - 9897349044
Bhubaneswar:
Silent Sit-In Protest
3 - 6 pm at Lower P.M.G. Square
Contact: Sasmita - 9437036081
Chennai:
Silent Sit-In Protest
3 to 7 pm at Valluvar Kottam (near Temple of Chariot Wheel)
Contact: Guru: 9841426067 Ching 9884110977 Shyamsunder 9841529552
Delhi:
Sit-In Protest, Speeches by Social Activists, & Street Play on AFSPA
3 to 7 pm at Jantar Mantar (near Parliament Street)
Contact: Neil: 9873366305 Onil:91-11-51642501 & 26854763 - onilrights at gmail.com
Imphal:
Human Chain
1 - 6 pm at Kangla Fort (near Western Gate)
Contact: Munindro: 9436031331 Bhavesh: 9436021229
Pune:
Street March & Candlelight Vigil
3 - 7pm Starts at Police Ground (opposite Rahul Theatre)
Ends at Rang Mandir (March via SC road and JM road)
Contact: Oishik 9822317068
[The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act of 1958 (AFSPA) is one of the
more draconian legislations that the Indian Parliament has passed in
its 45 years of Parliamentary history. Under this Act, all security
forces are given unrestricted and unaccounted power to carry out their
operations, once an area is declared disturbed. Even a
non-commissioned officer is granted the right to shoot to kill based
on mere suspicion that it is necessary to do so in order to "maintain
the public order".]
______
(ii)
On International Women's Day--March 8th
Collins Cinema, 6:00 - 9:00pm
Lecture
Sheba Chhachhi
One of India's premier installation artists Sheba Chhachhi, who lives
and works in Delhi, uses photographs, text, sculpture, found objects,
video, sound and light. Her work relates to women's issues, peace
issues and female divine figures in India and South Asia.
Collins Theatre, Davis Museum and Cultural Center
Wellesley College
106 Central Street
Wellesley, MA 02481-8203
Directions:
http://www.wellesley.edu/DavisMuseum/information/directions.html
_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/
Buzz on the perils of fundamentalist politics, on matters of peace
and democratisation in South Asia. SACW is an independent &
non-profit citizens wire service run since 1998 by South Asia
Citizens Web: www.sacw.net/
SACW archive is available at: bridget.jatol.com/pipermail/sacw_insaf.net/
Sister initiatives :
South Asia Counter Information Project : snipurl.com/sacip
South Asians Against Nukes: www.s-asians-against-nukes.org
Communalism Watch: communalism.blogspot.com/
DISCLAIMER: Opinions expressed in materials carried in the posts do not
necessarily reflect the views of SACW compilers.
More information about the Sacw
mailing list