SACW | 19 April 2005

[sacw]

South Asia Citizens Wire  | 19 April,  2005

[1]  Bangladesh: Ahmadiyya under attack
- Inaction has gone too far - Ahmadiyyas in dire strait (Edit., The Daily Star)
- Outrage in Satkhira (Edit., New Age)
[2] India - Pakistan: Peace road map is now out 
of the box (Siddharth Varadarajan)
[3] Indo-Pak Peace March - crossing the wagah border on 20th April
[4] India: Mumbai's bar girls and the question of morality (Flavia Agnes)
[5] India: Concerned Citizens Demand dismissal of 
Modi Govt. - text of statement
[6] India: A report from "Flashback Gujarat 2002"
[7] India: Let antiquated laws go and same-sex 
lovers be allowed to live in dignity (Saleem 
Kidwai)
[8] Publication Announcement:
'Pratidwandi by Sunil Gangopadhyay' [in English]

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

[1]


The Daily Star
April 19, 2005

Editorial
INACTION HAS GONE TOO FAR
AHMADIYYAS IN DIRE STRAIT
Last month, the administration sat idle while 
anti-Ahmadiyya bigots wielding weapons and 
threatening violence besieged the Ahmadiyya 
community in Bogra and intimidated the local 
police into hanging a sign on the wall of the 
community mosque, "warning" Muslims not to 
mistake it for a "real" Muslim mosque.

Emboldened by the fact that the government did 
not lift a finger to either protect the religious 
rights of the Ahmadiyyas or to punish those 
guilty of violence and intimidation, the bigots 
stepped up their campaign of hatred at Satkhira 
on Sunday.

As estimated 15,000 activists, armed with sticks 
and machetes, besieged the Ahmadiyya mosque in 
Satkhira, and threatened violence if the badly 
outnumbered and ill-prepared police did not 
acquiesce to the hanging of the offensive sign on 
the wall of the mosque. When the Ahmadiyyas 
attempted to resist, the mob hurled stones at 
them, injuring fifty people, including women and 
children.

Once the sign had been hung, the mob then 
proceeded to ransack the surrounding area, 
looting the houses of some local Ahmadiyyas. To 
add insult to injury, the injured also allegedly 
did not receive timely medical help from 
physicians at a local hospital.

The administration knew full well that this 
attack against the Ahmadiyyas was coming, as the 
bigots had announced their intentions well in 
advance, yet, once again, it did nothing to 
prevent this outrage.

This has gone far enough. It is not merely a 
question of the Ahmadiyyas' constitutional 
rights, which the government manifestly has 
little concern for. It is also a question of 
simple law and order. The government cannot 
permit baying mobs to threaten, intimidate, 
assault, and ransack with impunity. These are 
criminal offences, perpetrated in broad daylight 
in front of thousands of witnesses.

The International Khatme Nabuwat Movement 
Bangladesh, which organised the attack and has 
been at the forefront of the movement against the 
Ahmadiyyas, has been permitted to continue its 
unlawful operations without hindrance. The close 
ties between the movement and elements within the 
four-party ruling alliance are no secret.

So long as the government chooses to abdicate its 
responsibility in stemming this despicable and 
criminal conduct by religious extremists, it is 
no wonder that the image of the country around 
the world would be seen sliding. The 
administration's inaction demonstrates quite 
clearly that it has neither the will nor the 
inclination to keep the extremists in check.


New Age
April 19 2005

Editorial
OUTRAGE IN SATKHIRA
The attack on the Ahmadiyya community by a band 
of religious fanatics in Satkhira on Sunday 
demonstrates anew the national concern over the 
activities of the so-called Khatme Nabuwat 
movement. In the name of a defence of the Islamic 
faith, these bigots have for a long time been 
engaging themselves in activities that are a 
clear attempt to create chaos in the country. The 
irony in the whole situation is that when the 
country is trying to emerge from its existing 
social and political crises, the fanatics have 
somehow found the wherewithal to create a new 
problem that need not have been there. With the 
new attack, this time in a violent manner, on the 
members of the Ahmadiyya community, it becomes 
obvious that some very powerful forces are behind 
the bigots as they go from one atrocious act to 
another. It is in the fitness of things therefore 
that the authorities now go seriously and 
purposefully into the business of identifying the 
elements who may be patronising, morally, 
financially and in other ways, the Khatme Nabuwat 
in its campaign of creating disorder in the name 
of ensuring religious purity.
    It goes without saying that Bangladesh has by 
and large been a land of communal harmony. We 
will not pretend, however, that everything has 
been perfect in this country either before or 
after liberation in terms of a practice of the 
various faiths. But it is true that all 
governments and the entire Bengali nation have 
resolutely come down on any attempt by fringe 
elements to create the conditions which could 
upset the fabric of peaceful religious activity 
in the country. Of late, though, such bodies as 
the Khatme Nabuwat have demonstrated a hitherto 
unimaginable degree of audacity in their 
determination to have the Ahmadiyyas declared 
non-Muslim. For their part, the Ahmadiyyas do not 
appear to have said, done or propagated anything 
that could even remotely be construed as an 
incitement to trouble. The bigger problem in all 
this Ahmadiyya-related trouble is that some 
important people, including the khatib of Baitul 
Mukarram, have contributed their bit. Worse is 
the fact that the authorities have done precious 
little to take all these troublemakers to task 
even when it has been made clear that there is a 
patent threat to law and order here. All that the 
authorities have done every time Ahmadiyyas have 
come under siege anywhere in Bangladesh is to 
deploy police around their homes and places of 
worship for such time as their enemies bayed for 
their blood before going home. In Bogra, the 
police went quite a bit of the way to placate the 
bigots when they had the Ahmadiyya sign on a 
mosque replaced by one prepared by the bigots 
themselves. That was as outrageous as it was 
humiliating for the already beleaguered 
Ahmadiyyas. And now in Satkhira, matters have 
moved one more dark step forward. News reports 
speak of the homes of Ahmadiyyas coming under 
attack by the fanatics. As many as fifty women 
and children have been injured in the attack and 
their valuables have been looted by the 
marauders. The police were either powerless to 
prevent the violence or were clearly unwilling to 
come to the aid of those attacked.
    The authorities should be reading the writing 
on the wall. And for the country's civil society, 
the imperative is to build up a movement that 
will not only thwart the nefarious activities of 
any organised band of chaos makers but also 
ensure that this is a land where the freedom of 
faith applies equally to each and every citizen. 
Anyone who is uncomfortable with that inviolable 
truth must be dealt with by the law of the land.

_______


[2]

The Hindu
April 19, 2005

PEACE ROAD MAP IS NOW OUT OF THE BOX
By Siddharth Varadarajan

In the joint statement by Prime Minister Manmohan 
Singh and President Pervez Musharaf lie most of 
the elements of a roadmap for peace between India 
and Pakistan.


CLASP OF FRIENDSHIP: Pakistan President Pervez 
Musharraf and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh after 
making the joint statement at Hyderabad House in 
New Delhi on Monday. Photo: V.Sudershan.

THE LATEST meeting between Prime Minister 
Manmohan Singh and Pakistani President Pervez 
Musharraf is proof of the fact that in diplomacy 
- as in cricket - the results of a high-level 
encounter are often inversely proportional to the 
expectations that precede it.

If the excitement before the July 2001 Agra 
summit led to nothing but bitterness and rancour 
all around, the days leading up to Sunday's 
path-breaking summit had seen both sides 
consciously seeking to talk down the hype. At an 
off-the-record briefing a few hours before the 
General arrived in New Delhi, senior Indian 
officials cautioned that the impending summit was 
not really a summit or even a mini-summit but 
simply an occasion for the frank exchange of 
views. And yet, what transpired during the 36 
hours the Pakistani President was in the Capital 
was as momentous as anything the two countries 
have seen in recent years.

The joint statement read out by the Prime 
Minister in his deadpan style on Monday morning 
may seem anodyne to some but within its terse 
sentences and paragraphs - and the call made by 
General Musharaf and Dr. Singh in separate 
meetings with the press to make existing borders 
irrelevant - lie most of the elements of a 
roadmap for peace between India and Pakistan.

No turning back

Though the two sides wisely avoided formally 
capturing the notion of soft borders - the 
concept needs to be fleshed out and debated 
adequately in both countries - the joint 
statement is noteworthy in six respects. First, 
it stresses the irreversibility of the peace 
process now under way. The two Governments are 
saying that come what may, there will be no 
turning back from what has been achieved so far - 
the resumption and enhancement of cross-border 
traffic and people-to-people contact, including 
sports, and the ceasefire along the Line of 
Control and up in the Siachen Glacier. The 
self-imposed quarantine India brought about by 
cutting all air, raid and road links following 
the December 13, 2001 terrorist attack on 
Parliament will, hopefully, never again be 
repeated.

Secondly, it says that terrorism will not be 
allowed to disrupt the relationship. The specific 
formulation is worth noting: "The two leaders 
pledged that they would not allow terrorism to 
impede the peace process." Terrorism, here, is no 
longer a stick for India to beat Pakistan with 
but a problem which confronts both countries 
equally. If the statement implies that Islamabad 
will continue to work to ensure terrorist 
incidents are not planned or launched from 
territories it controls, New Delhi, too, has 
undertaken not to over-react to the odd terrorist 
incident that might still take place.

In other words, India and Pakistan have jointly 
resolved not to give terrorists the right to veto 
the peace process through dramatic acts of 
violence.

Thirdly, the statement stresses that the purpose 
of having discussions on the issue of Jammu and 
Kashmir is to reach a "final settlement." In 
contrast, the September 24, 2004 statement issued 
in New York spoke of "possible options for a 
peaceful, negotiated settlement of the issue," 
while the January 6, 2004 joint statement spoke 
of the "peaceful settlement of all bilateral 
issues, including Jammu and Kashmir, to the 
satisfaction of both sides." However, the 
reference in the latest statement to a `final 
settlement,' though refreshing, is hardly new; it 
is, in fact, taken directly from the Shimla 
Agreement of July 2, 1972, Clause 6 of which 
commits both Governments "to discuss further the 
modalities and arrangements for the establishment 
of durable peace and normalization of relations, 
including the questions of prisoners of war and 
civilian internees, a final settlement of Jammu 
and Kashmir and the resumption of diplomatic 
relations." (emphasis added)

After conceding the need for such a final 
settlement as far back as 1972, India, somewhere 
along the line, chose to take the view that this 
was unnecessary. Reams of paper have been wasted 
on futile debates about whether Kashmir is a core 
issue or not. By returning to the Shimla 
language, India and Pakistan have wisely agreed 
to give the Kashmir issue the importance it 
actually has and not remain hostage to the 
linguistic sensibilities of those who do not know 
the diplomatic history of the bilateral 
relationship.

Trucks bearing fruit

Fourthly, having stressed the need for a final 
settlement, the statement suggests preliminary 
steps consistent with the notion of soft borders. 
Thus, it speaks of further measures "to enhance 
interaction and cooperation across the LoC," 
including passenger movement and trade.

Allowing trucks to cross the LoC - presumably 
laden with fruit on the outbound, and 
Pakistan-made consumer goods on the inbound - is 
a radical leap of faith for both India and 
Pakistan as it will eventually allow the economic 
geography of the region to revert to its 
pre-partition days. The position of Jammu as an 
entrepot, not just for the valley but also Poonch 
and Rajouri - once the road to Rawalakot in 
Pakistan is opened up (or even the old `Mughal 
Road' to the valley) - would be undermined, which 
could have unintended consequences for Jammu and 
Kashmir.

Fifthly, the joint statement undertakes to speed 
up deliverables, such as an agreement on Siachen 
and Sir Creek, and strive for greater business 
interaction. So long as Pakistan had the 
impression that India was using CBMs as a 
diversionary tactic to avoid reaching a final 
settlement on Kashmir, it was not interested in 
forward-movement on trade or fast-tracking the 
solution of specific disputes that have readymade 
agreements for the taking.

By not shying away from the Kashmir issue, India 
has achieved what it wanted: a Pakistani 
commitment to put easier problems on the 
front-burner.

Sixthly, Dr. Singh and General Musharraf have not 
only endorsed the proposed Iran-Pakistan-India 
pipeline in the face of U.S. criticism of the 
project but also expanded the scope for energy 
cooperation between their two countries.

Given the growing demand for energy in both 
Pakistan and India and the need for South Asia to 
access Iranian and Central Asian oil and gas, it 
is essential that the two countries start a broad 
energy dialogue.

Irrelevance of LoC

In his interaction with Indian editors, General 
Musharraf reiterated the proposal for soft 
borders made by him a few days ago. It is my 
belief that the Indian side - our leadership and 
the bulk of our media - has not yet understood 
the huge shift that the General's endorsement of 
soft borders along the LoC implies. To drive home 
the point, he reminded the editors of Pakistan's 
position that the LoC should not become the 
border, India's position that that there could be 
no redrawing of borders and the only possible via 
media between these two positions: "The LoC 
cannot be permanent, borders must be made 
irrelevant and boundaries cannot be altered. Take 
the three together and now discuss the solution," 
he said.

A soft border is the only administrative 
arrangement that allows India and Pakistan to 
maintain their respective de jure or de facto 
sovereignties in Kashmir while not coming in the 
way of the people of the divided State enjoying 
the fruits of a unified territory. The LoC need 
not be made permanent or redrawn; the solution is 
to make it irrelevant. Monday's joint statement 
contains six new elements that will enhance the 
irrelevance of the LoC. Future meetings between 
India and Pakistan must find many, many more.


______


[3]

INDO-PAK PEACE MARCH
Delhi to Multan, 23 March - 11May

Dear Friends,

As you all know, India Pakistan Peace March, Delhi to Multan is on
its way with great support of local citizens along the route. Since
last couple of days Pakistani marchers have joined Indian marchers,
the dream of walking together on roads of India and Pakistan is now
becoming a reality.

We had earlier planned to cross Wagha border on 18th April, but due
to administrative delays in visa processing, now we will be able to
cross on 20th April.

The ceremony for expressing solidarity in support of the marchers
will start at 10 a.m. on 20th April. The occasion will be marked with
inspiring cultural activities performed by eminent Indian and
Pakistani artists.

We all request you to be at Wagha and strengthen the cause of
Indo-Pak friendship, peace and harmony.


Regards,

Sandeep Pandey	Karamat Ali
India Pakistan Peace March Team

P.S. even if you are reaching as per earlier schedule on 18th April,
you will be participating in welcome programmes organised in
Amritsar.

Lodging: Guru Arjun Dev Niwas, Golden Temple, Amritsar

Contacts in Amritsar:
Bhupinder Singh Sandhu: 09815394623

Contacts in Delhi:
Harshavardan: 09322696617, email: mumbaikar100 at gmail.com
Shree Prakash: 9818030423, off. 55663958

______


[4]

Asian Age
April 19, 2005

MUMBAI'S BAR GIRLS AND THE QUESTION OF MORALITY
by Flavia Agnes


Suddenly the dancing girl from Mumbai's beer bars 
is everywhere. In newspaper headlines, talk shows 
on television channels, the corridors of power in 
Mantralaya, in the capital city and before 
various commissions - in fact, in all places that 
matter. She is out of her closeted existence and 
out on the streets, demanding her right to work.

Her photographs are splashed across the tabloids 
and television screens. She is discussed 
everywhere, at dinner tables in middle class 
homes, in street corners and market places and in 
the ladies' compartment of local trains. Everyone 
has an opinion and a strong one at that. In her 
favour, or, more likely, against her. Saint or 
sinner Š worker or whore Š spinner of easy money 
and breaker of "good middle class homes" or sole 
supporter of an entire family Š earning her 
livelihood or posing a security threat to the 
nation? The debate on sexual morality and 
debasement of metropolitan Mumbai seems to be 
revolving around her existence (or non-existence).

No one has answers to the myriad queries: Is 
drinking beer (or hard liquor) in public (in a 
bar) immoral? Are drinking and dancing in public 
immoral? Or while drinking in public, witnessing 
the imitation of an erotic "item number" of a 
Hindi movie immoral? Is throwing money at a 
dancer while she performs the "item number" 
immoral? Is performance of a cabaret dance 
immoral? Are corporate parties in five-star 
hotels where belly dances are performed, immoral? 
In a society where traditionally the entertainers 
are always women and the entertained always men, 
and where entertainment always has an 
undercurrent of sexuality or erotica, what are 
the ingredients which render an act moral at one 
time, place or for one section of society and 
immoral at another time, place or another section 
of society?

How and when did the dancing girl suddenly spring 
on to the political realm of the state and the 
nation? How did she become the talk of the town 
amongst the city's elite social circles and enter 
the debate in middle class homes? What are the 
stakes involved for the bar owners, the 
bureaucrats and the politicians?

She is part and parcel of a city which thrives on 
its night life. The Mumbai that never sleeps. The 
city which is hailed as the crowning glory of the 
nation's entertainment industry. The proposed ban 
will change the texture and quality of this 
industry and the city's night life. It will also 
violate her fundamental right to work and earn a 
livelihood under Article 21 of the Constitution, 
as well as her right to carry on a legitimate 
profession under Article 19. Are we moving in the 
reverse towards 19th century Victorian puritanism 
in the globalised world of 21st century?

The city's dancing girls are not a new 
phenomenon. When Bombay (the erstwhile state) as 
well as the newer state of Maharashtra came out 
of its prohibition era and started issuing 
licences for "permit rooms" and "beer bars," 
simultaneously, it also started issuing licences 
for "floor shows" permitting cabaret performances 
and also for "dance floors" where female dancers 
could dance to recorded music or live orchestras. 
The licences were issued under "Rules for 
Licensing and Controlling Places of Public 
Amusement (other than Cinemas) and performances 
for Public Amusement including Melas and 
Thamashas, 1960." The state also evolved 
elaborate rules to regulate and monitor the 
functioning of these bars and permit rooms.

The Eighties witnessed a proliferation of these 
permit rooms and dance bars and many women who 
were traditionally dancers or women needing to 
earn a livelihood, came to the city and sought 
work in these bars legitimately as dancers. The 
others were children of mill workers. With the 
sole earner having lost his job, the young girls 
entered the job market to support their families 
using their supple bodies and the appeal of their 
youth.

The reasons which are trumpeted for this 
arbitrary action range from "depravation of 
public morality" and "corruption of the youth" to 
"trafficking of minors for the purpose of 
prostitution by bar owners" and "inability to 
monitor and regulate bars." The rhetoric of 
morality rings hollow when the state suddenly 
wakes up to "defending the morals of its youth" 
after 20 years during which the bars - both 
licensed and unlicensed - have been allowed to 
proliferate in the city and on arterial roads. 
The state has either earned a considerable 
revenue or its corrupt officials and politicians 
have amassed great wealth through this very 
activity.

The dances are not provocatively choreographed by 
the dancers. Their movements, gestures and 
garments are a mere imitation of what they see in 
Hindi films, television serials, fashion shows 
and advertisements. All these industries have 
used the woman's body for commercial gains. There 
is sexual exploitation of women in these and many 
other industries. But no one has ever suggested 
that you close down an entire industry because 
there is sexual exploitation of women!

One of the reasons mentioned by the state for the 
ban includes inability to monitor the activities 
that go on in "dance bars." The inability to 
monitor cannot be a pretext to revoke the 
licences and deprive women of their livelihood. A 
government which has failed to halt the activity 
of brothel-keeping and extreme sexual 
exploitation of minor girls within these 
brothels, has no authority today to issue a death 
knell and bring to a grinding halt a legitimate 
profession practised by thousands of women and 
deprive them of their livelihood on the ground 
that it might lead to "sexual exploitation."

Banning dance bars will not solve the problem, 
but only aggravate it further. Women driven to 
starvation will be compelled to resort to 
activities where there is even greater sexual 
exploitation, and the government will not be in a 
position to either monitor or regulate these 
activities. A government which is genuinely 
concerned for the welfare of its women, will not 
resort to such mindless activity of revoking the 
licences of "dance bars."

The government is only using the rhetoric of 
morality to get the support of the middle class. 
But there is more to this move than meets the 
eye. There seems to be a feud between the bar 
owners and the politicians and huge stakes are 
involved. The bar girls have been caught in this 
cross-fire and their meagre livelihoods are being 
snatched away to settle larger scores.

Bombay (or Mumbai) has always prided itself on 
its cosmopolitanism. Migrant workers have flocked 
this city over 300 years with the onset of 
industrialisation to work in the mills. And with 
the workers have come the entertainers. The city 
belongs as much to the mill workers, entertainers 
and slum dwellers who have come from "outside" as 
the multinationals, BPOs, five-star hotels and 
the emerging service industry. The state's vision 
of Mumbai - as the new gleaming metropolis - free 
of "slums" and "sleaze" is one whose violence is 
hidden under the rhetoric of morality and 
progress.

Flavia Agnes is a lawyer with expertise on 
gender, human rights and minority concerns. She 
is also the founder of Majlis, a legal advocacy 
programme for women based in Mumbai


_____


[5]

Communalism Combat
HATE HURTS HARMONY WORKS

16 April 2005

We are sending you this statement that will 
launch a signature campaign. please send your 
consent immediately to
sahmat at vsnl.com
sabrang at vsnl.com

A STATEMENT

The harrowing tales of the victims of the Gujarat 
genocide and their long-drawn out struggle for 
justice were recounted on April 16, 2005 at a 
convention in New Delhi [organized by the 
Citizens for Justice and Peace, Mumbai, Safradr 
Hashmi Memorial Trust, New Delhi and Human Rights 
Law Network, New Delhi] at the Speaker's Hall, 
Constitution Club New Delhi. These testimonies 
once again highlighted the stark fact that as 
long as Narendra Modi remains at the helm of 
affairs in Gujarat, the perpetrators of the 
Genocide have little chance of being brought to 
book. If justice is to prevail, a necessary 
condition for this must be created through the 
dismissal of the Modi government under Article 
356 of the Constitution.

For justice to be finally ensured, for the major 
carnages let alone the hundreds of major crimes 
that took place in Gujarat 2002, the process of 
struggling for justice needs to be supported by 
the state and its administration. Instead, key 
witnesses of the major carnages, three years 
after the horrors that lost them near and dear 
ones cannot step back into their villages or 
localities simply because they have chosen to 
fight for justice. This is the stark and shameful 
reality of Gujarat, three years after the 
Genocide where at a rought estimate about 61, 000 
persons remain internally displaced within 
Gujarat, of which all or most belong to the 
minority community.

Eye-witnesses who are also victims, of incidents 
like the Gulberg massacre [28-2-2002 wherein 68 
persons were slaughtered including former Member 
of Parliament, Shri Ahsan Jaffri and 10-15 girls 
and women subjected to brute sexual violence], 
Naroda gaon and Patiya [28-2-2002 wherein over 
120 persons were similarly exterminated while a 
complicit police and elected representatives 
watched and led mobs respectively],

Sardarpura [1-3-2002] wherein 33 persons were 
brutally killed and in another incident 14 burnt 
alive, and the Ode killings in Anand district on 
1-3-2002 to 3-3-2002 in which totally 27 persons 
were killed recounted their life stories. Many 
eye-witnesses like a key witness from Naroda gaon 
and his family members have been thrice or four 
times penalized on account for their desire to 
struggle for justice and utterly false criminal 
cases slapped against them. The attempt is 
clearly to intimidate all those who stand for the 
struggle for justice. Over 65 witnesses from the 
major massacres have filed affidavits in the 
Supreme Court of India pointing out these gross 
facts, due to which the criminal trials in these 
cases have been stayed by the SC since November 
21, 2003. Pleas for re-investigation by the CBI 
have been pending and need to be heard forthwith.

While there are legitimate apprehensions among 
many about the use of Article 356, lest it may 
set a precedent for the Centre to get rid of the 
government in Opposition-ruled states, the 
Gujarat case is an exceptional one in so much as 
the state government has been seriously 
implicated by the National Human Rights 
Commission [NHRC] and even the Supreme Court, in 
what is perhaps the most inhuman, horrendous and 
un-Constitutional acts in the history of 
post-Independence India. In the past few months 
courageous statements of serving police officials 
have lent voice to the outrage expressed by these 
institutions and hundreds of groups and 
individuals. These stands by serving policemen, 
that been made public that clearly show that 
orders were issued by none less than the present 
chief minister, Narendra Modi that minorities who 
resist or protest should be exterminated. Put 
together, the imposition of Article 356 in 
Gujarat is warranted not only on grounds of 
humanity and Constitutional propriety, but for 
the very maintenance of the country's unity, 
integrity and secular fabric.

We the undersigned social and political 
activists, artists and members of the legal and 
academic professions demand that the Modi 
government be dismissed forthwith under Article 
356.

M.K. Raina		Vivan Sundaram		Rahul Bose
Javed Akhtar		Rajendra Prasad		Prabhat Patnaik
Zoya Hassan		D.N.Jha			Madhu Prasad
Madhukar Upadhyay				Madan Gopal Singh
Shamsad		Ram Rehman			Teesta Setalvad
Anil Dharkar		Nikhil Wagle			Jaidev Hattangady
Sumedh Jadhav	Suresh Bhosale		Cedric Prakash
Javed Anand		Indira Chandrashekhar	Mahesh Bhatt

Sabrang Communications & Publishing Pvt. Ltd.
P.O. Box 28253, Juhu Post Office, Juhu, Mumbai ñ 
400 049. Tel: (91 22) 26602288/26603927, Fax: 
26602288
Email: sabrang at bom2.vsnl.net.in.    Web: www.sabrang.com


______


[6]

  "Aaj bhi ham hamare mukkam par nahi ja ke rah sakte," Eye-witness Aiyubmiya, 
witness to the massacre wherein 33 persons were killed from Sardarpura 
village. Mehsana where they lived for decades says the village is no more 
their home.
  "Jab ham bach ke nikle, aath ghante ke baad, aur laash aur laash hamare ghar 
ke chabootre par giri hui thi; jakar kaanpte kaanpte ham police van me 
baithe, to police wale ne kaha, ' kya itne log bach gaye hai, kya? Hamne 
socha sab khatm hue!'" Smt Zakia Jaffri, wife of former Parliamentarian 
Ahsan Jaffri.
  'Mera bees saal ka bacche ko police ne nanga kar ke  bithaya, peeth mod kar, 
goliyon mar mar kar police ne khatm kiya. Aaj bhi hamara case wase hee pada 
hai, sessions court mein." Zahid Kadri, father

These were only part of the harrowing tales of the victims of the Gujarat 
genocide and their long-drawn out struggle for justice, recounted today at a
convention in New Delhi -Flashback Gujarat 2002-The Indian State and Mass
Crime" [organized by the Citizens for Justice and Peace, Mumbai, Safradr
Hashmi Memorial Trust, New Delhi and Human Rights Law Network, New Delhi] at
the Speaker's Hall, Constitution Club New Delhi on 16th April 2005.   These 
testimonies once again highlighted the stark fact that for justice to be 
finally ensured, for the major carnages let alone the hundreds of major 
crimes that took place in Gujarat 2002, the process of struggling for 
justice needs to be supported by the state and it's administration.

Instead, key witnesses of the major carnages, three years after the horrors 
that lost them near and dear ones cannot step back into their villages or 
localities simply because they have chosen to fight for justice. Many are 
both victims of the massacre and key eye-witnesses as well. This is the 
stark and shameful reality of Gujarat, three years after the Genocide where 
at a rough estimate, about 61, 000 persons remain internally displaced
within Gujarat, of which all or most belong to the minority community.

The consultation was hugely attended by a wide spectrum of groups, citizens 
and even members of the political class.  Polit bureau member of the CPI(M), 
Sitaram Yechury said that the occasion was a sharp reminder to the political 
class to revive it's campaign on the breakdown of constitutional machinery
in Gujarat and bring it back into national focus. Congress spokesperson, 
Anand Sharma said that it was the duty of members of the political class to 
support the struggle for justice. Brinda Karat, vice-president, AIDWA and 
member of the polit bureau CPI(M), urged that the plea for re-investigation 
by CBI be urgently heard by the Supreme Court and that the political class 
train attention on the issue of attempts to intimidate witnesses and 
re-location of thousands of internally displaced persons within Gujarat. 
Former governor, Romesh Bhandari urged that the battle for secularism be 
taken to the grassroots.

  Eye-witnesses who are also victims, of incidents like the Gulberg massacre 
[28-2-2002 wherein 68 persons were slaughtered including former Member of 
Parliament, Shri Ahsan Jaffri and 10-15 girls and women subjected to brute 
sexual violence], Naroda gaon and Patiya [28-2-2002 wherein over 120 persons 
were similarly exterminated while a complicit police and elected 
representatives watched and led mobs respectively], Sardarpura [1-3-2002] 
wherein 33 persons were brutally killed and in another incident 14 burnt 
alive, and the Ode killings in Anand district on 1-3-2002 to 3-3-2002 in 
which totally 27 persons were killed recounted their life stories. Many 
eye-witnesses like a key witness from Naroda gaon and his family members 
have been thrice or four times penalized on account for their desire to 
struggle for justice with false criminal cases being slapped against them. 
The attempt is clearly to intimidate all those who stand for the struggle 
for justice.

Over 60 witnesses from the major massacres have filed affidavits in the
Supreme Court of India pointing out these gross facts, due to which the 
criminal trials in these cases have been stayed by the SC since November 21, 
2003. Pleas for re-investigation by the CBI are pending and need to be heard 
forthwith.

Senior jurist, Shri Shanti Bhushan urged that a clarion call emerge out of 
this consultation on the shameful breakdown of constitutional machinery in 
Gujarat that is a fit case for the invocation of Article 356 of the 
Constitution. He even urged that it was the duty of the present government 
to follow this mandate following the historic verdict of the Supreme Court 
in the BEST Bakery case and dismiss the Gujarat government.

While there are legitimate apprehensions among many about the use of Article 
356, lest it may set a precedent for the Centre to get rid of the government 
in Opposition-ruled states, the Gujarat case is an exceptional one in so 
much as the state government has been seriously implicated by the National 
Human Rights Commission [NHRC] and even the Supreme Court, in what is 
perhaps the most inhuman, horrendous and un-Constitutional acts in the 
history of post-Independence India. In the past few months courageous 
statements of serving police officials have lent voice to the outrage 
expressed by these institutions and hundreds of groups and individuals. 
These stands by serving policemen, that been made public that clearly show 
that orders were issued by none less than the present chief minister, 
Narendra Modi that minorities who resist or protest should be exterminated. 
Put together, the imposition of Article 356 in Gujarat is warranted not only 
on grounds of humanity and Constitutional propriety, but for the very 
maintenance of the country's unity, integrity ad secular fabric.

Other speakers included advocates Kamini Jaiswal, Mihir Desai, Suhel Tirmizi 
Teesta Setalvad and citizens and activists like Fr Cedric Prakash, 
Ahmedabad, former president western region CII, Anu Agha and film artiste, 
Rahul Bose. A widespread signature campaign on the issues raised at the 
consultation is now being considered by a wide spectrum of groups all over 
the country.


Teesta Setalvad
  Citizens for Justice and Peace


    Nirant,Juhu Tara Road,Juhu,Mumbai -400049 Phone:26603927/26602288
                       e-mail: <mailto:cjp02in at yahoo.com>cjp02in at yahoo.com

______


[7]

Outlook
Magazine | Apr 25, 2005

TIME TO BREAK SHACKLES
LET ANTIQUATED LAWS GO AND SAME-SEX LOVERS BE ALLOWED TO LIVE IN DIGNITY
Saleem Kidwai

"We are not living in the time of the 
inquisition," the poet Firaq Gorakhpuri told a 
homophobe in 1937, advising him to rid himself of 
his 'pedestrian prejudice'. It's time to remind 
ourselves of this advice, now that a plea to 
remove discrimination against millions of Indians 
has for the first time reached India's highest 
court. It is for the Supreme Court now to decide 
whether those who love people of their own sex 
will be allowed the basic right to live in 
dignity.
Recently, the Delhi High Court was asked to 
strike down Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code 
which criminalises homosexuality.

The court dismissed the petition on technical 
grounds. A Special Leave Petition is now before 
the Supreme Court, which asks the government why 
the Delhi High Court should not be asked to 
reconsider the petition.
This
is encouraging. The Supreme Court has shown it is 
ready to intervene in matters of citizen's 
rights. This is one occasion when it must. The 
rights of millions are at stake and a serious 
health crisis is being aggravated. Hopefully, the 
Indian government too will dump 'pedestrian 
prejudice' before it presents its opinion to the 
court. The last government told the high court 
that Indian society and culture did not accept 
homosexuality.
Could there be a better example of uninformed 
'pedestrian prejudice'? On what did the 
government base its assertion? Did it counter the 
widely available evidence of tolerance? Or was it 
speaking on behalf of a moral brigade whose acts 
of harassment and vandalism attract so much media 
attention but no punishment?
And even if one were to accept society's 
disapproval as the basis of law, would the state 
cite the same reasons if asked for its views on 
inter-faith and inter-caste marriages?
The government must respond with urgency to the 
health issues raised by the petition. Perhaps it 
should re-brief itself with what AIDS activists 
have to say about Section 377. Homosexual and 
bisexual men are as vulnerable to hiv as 
heterosexuals. Lesbians are at least risk. But as 
long as male-male sexual intercourse is deemed 
criminal, ignorance will continue and the spread 
of hiv will increase. Even the most preliminary 
of statistics show that its occurrence is much 
wider than most people believe. hiv and AIDS are 
easily preventable but due to shame, guilt and 
fear, homosexual men in particular, fail to 
inform or protect themselves.
The law harms millions of Indians who are 
attracted to their own sex and benefits no one. 
The destructive effects of prejudice against 
same-sex love and the price society pays for it 
in terms of psychological health are well known. 
Many heterosexuals close to or related to gay 
people also suffer because of this prejudice. It 
forces many growing children to feel stigmatised, 
maladjusted, suicidal and incapable of realising 
their true potential. Parents seeking a 'cure' to 
this 'illness' find homophobic doctors who 
recommend horrific and highly questionable 
treatment for young adults, damaging them for 
life.
Irrational prejudice forces adults to live in 
secrecy and enter into marriages where the truth 
is never told. Unhappiness is built into a 
supposedly 'sacred' union. Women in these 
marriages are twice victimised because they are 
vulnerable to hiv through their closeted gay or 
bisexual spouses. Removing the law might also 
stop young women from committing joint suicides 
because they want to stay together and society, 
with the help of law, makes that difficult.
The law stigmatises homosexuals. Without it, it 
would be easier for them to deal with personal 
issues of self worth. Its removal would empower 
people to fight discrimination in health, 
employment or housing. To retain a law that is 
rarely used and yet causes so much harm makes no 
sense.Instead, the government should concentrate 
on making firm laws on rape and child abuse, both 
same sex and cross sex.
Section 377 is defunct yet dangerous. Cases of 
people charged under the section rarely come to 
court. Yet, it is widely used for harassment and 
blackmail, both material and sexual, very often 
by the police themselves. The government cannot 
prosecute people for being homosexual unless it 
turns vindictive. And society must not leave such 
weapons around for any future witch-hunts.
The law punishes certain acts that are a part of 
the sexual repertoire of both homosexuals and 
heterosexuals. However, it is used mostly against 
homosexuals and bisexuals. Technically, it could 
target heterosexuals too. Heterosexual married 
couples can be punished with rigorous 
imprisonment for oral or anal sex. It's time the 
government withdraws from the sexual life of 
consenting adults.
Homosexuals were first deemed criminals by a 
colonial government that has decriminalised them 
in its own country. We removed their statues; why 
cling to their destructive statutes? India is 
perceived as one of the leaders of the third 
world because it is a functioning and innovative 
democracy. It should take the lead in this matter 
too. This would give hope to activists not just 
in South Asia but also in the rest of the 
developing world.
The large band of dedicated activists who have 
energised this initiative must be prepared for 
the worst. Expectations were high. In fact, the 
sudden dismissal came as a huge disappointment. 
What if 'pedestrian prejudice' prevails again? 
The fight has been long and must continue.
People who resent discrimination but keep quiet 
must state their stake against this law. They 
have to stand up and be counted, for numbers 
matter in a democracy.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Saleem Kidwai is a Lucknow-based writer and 
co-author of Same-Sex Love in India: Readings 
from Literature and History.)


______


[8]   [BOOK REVIEWS]


TITLE:  Pratidwandi
Author:   Sunil Gangopadhyay (translated  by Enakshi Chatterjee)
Series:     Literature in Translation

The Book
Pratidwandi, meaning 'adversary', is the English 
translation of the Bengali original by Sunil 
Gangopadhyay. The story is about a family living 
in Calcutta during the 1960s--  the mother, two 
sons, the daughter, and an uncle, who moves in at 
the death of the father. Having lost their tea 
estates, they are undergoing a severe financial 
crisis. Siddhartha, the central character, was 
able to complete his graduation, because his 
sister ,Sutapa, was persuaded to take up a job 
but at the cost of her own education. Siddhartha 
wishes to become a doctor, but there is not 
enough money to fund his studies at medical 
college. Attempts at getting a job prove futile 
and his sense of frustration and obligation 
deepen. The apparent immutability of the 
situation leads to constant bickering and fights 
in the family. Sutapa, forced into the role of 
selfless breadwinner, is fed up and in trying to 
find an escape route brings dishonour to the 
family-- the final blow to their dignity. The 
bleakness of the narrative is relieved by a 
streak of romanticism and an idealistic vision of 
a world once inhabited by Siddhartha. Satyajit 
Ray made this story into a film, drawn by the 
compelling characterisation of Siddhartha.

The author
Sunil Gangopadhyay is a highly successful writer 
of fiction, His latest forays also include the 
two-volume historical novel Purba Paschim. He is 
also a poet and in the 1970s edited a poetry 
magazine, Krittibas.
Enakshi Chatterji is a bilingual writer and has 
translated a wide spectrum of literature 
including Sat Patro, the Bengali translation of 
A Suitable Boy  by Vikram Seth.

(Paperback/103pp/ISBN 81-250-1902-2/Rs. 195.00)

Distributed by: Orient Longman Pvt. Ltd.
www.orientlongman.com


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

Buzz on the perils of fundamentalist politics, on 
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