SACW | 16 June 2006 | Kashmir's Frozen Peace; Pakistan TV debate on Hudood; Hindutva going strong in India

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Wire | 16 June, 2006 | Dispatch No. 2259


[1]  India, Pakistan and Kashmir: Stabilising a 
Cold Peace   (International Crisis Group)
[2]  Pakistan: TV Debates Take on Anti-Women Islamic Laws (Zofeen Ebrahim)
[3]  Sinister Hindutva plan to repeat Gujarat in J&K (Editorial, Kashmir Times)
[4]  India: Alchemy of Intolerance (Achyut Yagnik)
[5]  India: How genuine was the terrorist attack 
on the RSS Head Quarters in Nagpur? (Kuldip Nayar)
[6]  India: Convention "Myths, Lies and The 
Narmada Betrayal" (New Delhi, 18 June 2006)
[7]  Public Forum: War and Peace in South Asia (Vancouver, 24 June 2006)

___


[1]

International Crisis Group
Asia Briefing No.51
15 June 2006

INDIA, PAKISTAN AND KASHMIR: STABILISING A COLD PEACE

the full report as a PDF file is available at:
http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/getfile.cfm?id=2408&tid=4173&l=1


_____


[2]

Inter Press Service
June 15, 2006

PAKISTAN:
TV DEBATES TAKE ON ANTI-WOMEN ISLAMIC LAWS
Zofeen Ebrahim - Asia Media Forum*

KARACHI, Jun 15 (IPS) - Filmmaker Hasan Zaidi is 
an optimist. He is sure that debates currently 
being conducted over a private TV channel could 
help see the repeal of Pakistan's Hudood 
Ordinances -- a set of laws based on Islamic 
decrees, criticised as being anti-women.

''It will change things," the young filmmaker 
predicts confidently, referring to the ordinances 
that cover a range of crimes, the most 
controversial being one that requires a woman to 
provide four witnesses to prove rape, or face 
charges of adultery -- punishable by being stoned 
to death.

But the debates, conducted as part of the Zara 
Sochiye (Just Think) programme of Geo TV network, 
is the first serious challenge to the much 
reviled Hudood Ordinances, introduced 27 years 
ago by military dictator Gen. Zia-ul-Haq. ''We've 
taken a good, big risk but it is worth taking,'' 
said a Geo spokesperson. ''The responsibility is 
entirely our own, and we are very aware of that.''

The network has taken pains to convince people 
that the purpose behind the TV campaign is to 
provide "food for thought" and "highlight some 
problems with the ordinances". It is stressed 
that there is "no American hand, no government 
hand, no NGO hand or any other hand".

It is natural for many in this Islamic nation to 
look at the campaign with wariness. General 
elections have been set for 2007 and there are 
simmering internal conflicts, compounded by 
anti-U.S. sentiments that are at an all-time 
high. Across the border in Afghanistan, the 
Taliban is slowly regaining a stronghold in some 
key areas.

People have received the programme well, if for 
no other reason than that Geo TV has had the 
courage to bell the cat.

''I know some sceptics believe this campaign to 
have the backing of the government -- so that an 
atmosphere can be created for rethinking these 
laws. But even if that is so, it is an important 
precedent," is how Zaidi sees it.

Zulfiqar Shah, a labour activist, is one cynic 
who looks at the campaign as an exercise in 
futility. "Most such campaigns are coming from 
outside (donor driven) and till something happens 
inside, till we have a sound political basis and 
people have a say in government policies, laws 
such as these will remain."

"This is the first time that there is such an 
open and public debate on the laws -- previously, 
people and institutions, other than a handful of 
rights-based organisations and women rights 
activists, have shied away from even talking 
about such a blatantly discriminatory and 
shameful law, fearing the religious extremists,'' 
says Bushra Gohar, a rights activist.

Gohar hopes that, if nothing else, the debate 
would "at least educate the people about how the 
ordinances have reduced women's status in the 
country and have legalised open and blatant 
discrimination against them in the name of 
religion."

For 27 years, the draconian laws have been 
opposed by political parties, rights 
organisations, women's groups and even the legal 
fraternity. Yet, they stubbornly remain on the 
statute books as they are based on Islamic 
decrees.

Enforced by Gen. Haq in 1979, as part of an 
Islamisation process, without public or 
parliamentary debate, the ordinances were 
supposed to work in tandem with the country's 
secular legal system. Subsequent governments 
tried to do away with them but could not get past 
the religious right. Even President Gen. Pervez 
Musharraf has shied away from attempting repeal.

Disturbingly, in this televised debates, the 
raucous voices of religious scholars are heard 
over arguments made by women's groups and 
recommendations from legal eagles that are 
against the ordinances.

The network's approach is to ride with the 
current. Says a Geo representative: "Our tag line 
asks -- Hudood Allah par behas nahin! Kya Hudood 
Ordinances Islami hain?" (There is no debate on 
the decrees of God but are the Hudood Ordinances 
Islamic?")

The decision not to give voice to women and 
rights organisations may be "strategic" as they 
claim. But the campaign, while quite vivacious, 
is conspicuous by the absence of female religious 
scholars. "It seems as if we don't have any women 
religious scholars who may also have a point of 
view," commented Samita Ahmed, an architect, at 
one of the debates.

One of the programme producers claims that half 
the battle has already been won. "Geo has brought 
various religious scholars to, at least, accept 
that the ordinances, as they are -- are not 
comprehensive or reflective of the Hudood set by 
the Quran and Sunnah."

Zaidi views it differently. "Geo has done a good 
job of exposing the shallowness of the arguments 
of the ordinances' proponents such as Mufti 
Muneebur Rehman. Hopefully, people can see their 
merit, or lack of it, for themselves."

"I can completely understand the sensitivities 
involved in questioning widely misunderstood 
religious dogma but I hope it does not mean a 
fait accompli amendment as opposed to a repeal, 
which is what really should happen to the Hudood 
Ordinances," adds Zaidi, saying the content of 
some of the interviews covers this particular 
weakness well.

"We leave it to the people to carry the debate 
further in whatever way they choose to. Good or 
bad, it's a conscious decision we have taken, to 
keep it a debate,'' said the Geo representative.

"Obviously, an electronic media campaign of this 
sort is positive as people get to view and listen 
to both sides of the debate. However, in the 
present political set-up, with the support of the 
mullahs crucial to the government, it is 
difficult to say whether it will have an 
immediate impact on our legislators who are in a 
position to have the law repealed," says Ayesha 
Azfar, a journalist.

"I support the campaign of Geo in as much as the 
campaign has started a dialogue and debate which 
was necessary," explains Justice Nasir Aslam 
Zahid, who, in 1997, had recommended a repeal of 
the ordinances in his famous 'Report of the 
Commission of Inquiry for Women'. "A large number 
of issues are taboo in our society for no valid 
reason. But with the great advances in the field 
of electronic media, it is not possible to keep 
the people ignorant about various so-called 
sacred issues and keep a ban on their discussion."

His words are endorsed by Farah Moazzam, an 
Islamic scholar who, while not in favour of a 
repeal, agrees that an amendment is called for. 
''The power of the media can never be 
underestimated. Politically, however, it may not 
serve much purpose unless there are hands behind 
this campaign or Pakistan miraculously becomes a 
true democracy and starts valuing the views of 
people.''

(*The Asia Media Forum is a space for journalists 
to share insights on issues related to the media 
and their profession, as well as stories, 
information and opinions on democracy, 
development and human rights in Asia.) (END/2006)

_____


[3] 

Kashmir Times
June 16, 2006

Editorial

A MURDEROUS PROPOSITION
SINISTER HINDUTVA PLAN TO REPEAT GUJARAT IN J&K

A day after the state BJP president repeated the 
offer of a prize-money of Rs. 1 lakh for a 
militant killed "in self-defence" the BJP leaders 
now in Jammu, in connection with the so-called 
Doda Satyagrah, have come up with a novel 
suggestion reminiscent of Hitler's "final 
solution" to the Jewish problem. They have held 
the Congress government responsible for the 
present Kashmir imbroglio, for having taken the 
Kashmir issue to the UN as well as for having 
failed to crush the present insurgency with a 
firm hand. Since repeated governments of this 
state -- of the governor, the NC and the 
PDP-Congress coalition -- have failed to tackle 
the situation in the last 17 years, they have 
suggested that J&K be handed over to the present 
Gujarat government of Narendra Modi for some sort 
of a 'final solution' to the on-going problem. Of 
course, one need not elaborate on what they meant 
by adopting the Gujarat model of which the world 
had some taste in the months following the sad 
incident at Godhra railway station. In Gujarat, 
however, the overwhelming Hindu mojority, aided 
by the state machinery in their control, had 
carried out some sort of a genocide -- "organised 
genocide" of the Muslims, in the words of none 
but the veteran RSS leader, Nanaji Deshmukh. In 
J&K, however, their task is quite different and 
far more difficult. Here the non-Muslims 
constitute a minuscule minority in militancy-hit 
regions of the state, while the militants are 
well-armed, organised and entrenched. In order to 
repeat a Gujarat in those districts the state 
government, obviously in cahuts with the centre, 
will have to seek the help of the state 
administrative machinery and deploy the police, 
the para-military forces and when necessary, the 
army for carrying out the dreaded genocide -- 
ethnic cleansing of the overwhelming majority, 
which has never been tried so far any where in 
the world.
Proponents of this vicious suggestion should 
remember that 'genocide' is now considered an 
international crime and quite a few leaders of 
former Yugoslavia, including its former 
president, Milosevic, were tried for having 
indulged in it. Besides, just think of the 
enormity of the crime involved, the number of 
people who have to be murdered or maimed to 
virtually reverse the population ratio and to 
permanently silence the present majority with 
exemplary acts of repression. Have the advocates 
of this suggestion thought of the likely 
repercussion of such cruelties in the rest of 
India, on the much-vaunted secular fabric of our 
society? How are the persecuted community going 
to re-act to the planned genocide? Look at the 
experience of the Russians in Chechnya and of the 
Western occupation forces in Iraq. State 
terrorism always sparks off wide-spread 
individual terrorism to which few states have so 
far succeeded in evolving a defence. Are we 
prepared for such wide-spread and continued 
militancy all over the country, bringing our 
present pace of progress to a virtual halt? Can 
we expect the international community to remain a 
mute spectator, while we indulge in mass murder? 
It did not stay quiet over Bosnia, Kossovo or 
Somalia? Besides, what about the long-term 
consequences of waging a war on a section of our 
own citizens? Till date not a single Muslim from 
India has been found active in any international 
terror organisation. That is because, despite a 
few occasional aberrations, we have maintained an 
inclusive social ethos. The more we talk of the 
Gujarat pattern of solving the communal problem 
the more we weaken our social foundation and 
antagonise the largest minority. Like the Blacks 
of the USA the 20 crore Muslims of India cannot 
be got rid of. In our own interest of peace and 
progress India has to integrate them within its 
plural society. Let Gujarat be forgotten like a 
bad dream that must not haunt us in future. 
Unfortunately, not many so-called secular parties 
have seriously come forward to face frontally the 
murderous proposals made by the champions of 
Hindutva.


_____


[4] 

The Times of India
June 16, 2006

ALCHEMY OF INTOLERANCE
Achyut Yagnik

The image of Gujarat in the rest of India and the 
self-image of Gujaratis are diametrically 
opposite. After the events of 2002, the rest of 
India perceives Gujaratis as a highly intole-rant 
and violent lot; but at home Gujaratis think that 
they are becoming more assertive and are ready to 
fight for their rights and for the development of 
their state.

The recent controversy around Fanaa and the 
impassioned boycott of Aamir Khan has once again 
reinforced these opposite images. There was a 
time when the outside image and self-image were 
identical.

The face of Gujarat for the rest of India was its 
merchants. At home the hegemony of the merchant 
community transformed local ethos into a 
mercantile ethos resulting in a self-image of a 
peace-loving and accommodative people, normally 
avoiding conflict and finding the middle path.

Mahatma Gandhi built on this foundation, 
developing satyagraha as a medium of protest 
where non-violence and negotiation were the 
cornerstones.

But changing political economy, social dynamics 
and politics of culture have contributed to the 
metamorphosis of Gujarati ethos into its present 
cocktail of Hindutva, parochialism and violence 
where the space for debate and dialogue has 
disappeared.

The first assertion of Gujarati identity after 
Independence was the Mahagujarat movement for a 
separate state. This movement led to the 
bifurcation of the bilingual state of Bombay and 
establishment of Gujarat in 1960.

Communal riots followed a few years later in 
1969. Though these were the first large-scale 
riots after Independence the episode hardly 
created ripples outside the state and the 
following decade remained peaceful.

In 1980s, violence erupted again when medical 
students of Ahmedabad started an anti-reservation 
agitation. The first agitation in 1981 targeted 
Dalits and in its second phase in 1985, though 
the issue was quota for OBCs, the victims were 
again Dalits and later Muslims.

From mid-1980s, Hindutva forces gradually 
perfected the politics of yatras and were able to 
mobilise various sections of Hindu society, 
including OBCs and Dalits (who were earlier 
alienated by the two anti-reservation riots), 
under the banner of the Ramjanambhoomi movement.

Parallel to the yatras of sangh parivar another 
agitation was taking shape under Narmada Bachao 
Andolan, first for just and proper rehabilitation 
of Narmada dam oustees and later for scrapping 
the dam.
  To counter this agitation, which was 
internationalised, successive ruling parties of 
Gujarat popularised the slogan of deve-lopment of 
Gujarat and the Sardar Sarovar project as 
lifeline of Gujarat.

As the state had experienced three years of 
severe drought, it was not just the urban middle 
classes but also the rural population who 
increasingly viewed the Narmada project as the 
only solution to overcome water scarcity and to 
ensure development of Gujarat.

In such a climate, Chimanbhai Patel and BJP 
emerged as an alternative to Congress and formed 
a coalition government. It was essentially the 
combination of two seemingly contradictory 
agendas - Hindutva and Gujarati parochialism.

While sangh parivar consolidated Hindutva for its 
own political gains, Chimanbhai sharpened 
Gujarati parochialism where pro-Narmada dam 
mobilisation provided political capital.

Through the twists and turns of state politics 
and shifts at the Centre, selling the dream of 
bountiful water from Narmada to people of Gujarat 
continued in early 1990s, as did violent Hindutva 
mobilisa-tion.

Significantly, the generation that was coming of 
age then internalised this potent mix of 
violence, Gujarati chauvinism and Hindutva 
rhetoric.

In the 1995 assembly elections, BJP emerged as 
the majority party and formed government, 
inheriting Gujarati pride in the Sardar Sarovar 
project as a legacy of previous regimes.

With the flag of Hindutva in one hand and banner 
of Sardar Sarovar in the other they continued to 
march on. After the rout in the 2000 panchayat 
elections, the BJP high command decided to change 
guard to prepare for the 2002 assembly polls. 
Narendra Modi, who had been general secretary of 
Gujarat BJP in 1980s, was brought in.

For Modi, the Narmada issue was not relevant as 
Supreme Court had given the green signal for 
completing construction after a delay of many 
years.

  But he developed the idea of Gujarati pride that 
the project embodied and soon after becoming 
chief minister he coined the slogan 'Our Gujarat, 
Unique Gujarat'.

Later, when he was criticised for his inaction, 
and even complicity, during the violence of 2002 
he deflected accusations as attempts to tarnish 
the pride of 'five crore Gujaratis'.

Gujarati media made its contribution by echoing 
this sentiment, projecting Gujarati 'asmita' or 
identity and giving no space for dissent of any 
kind.

Modi's demagogy paid off and ensured political 
success for him, but in the process Gujarati 
parochialism became the order of the day.

This is why Aamir Khan's championing of rights of 
those displaced by the Narmada dam has touched a 
raw nerve and intensified the persecution mania 
whipped up by the political elite, local media 
and academics.

Neither Hindutva nor Gujarati chauvinism shows 
any signs of abating in the foreseeable future - 
any comment on this will only be interpreted as 
an attempt to denigrate the fair name of Gujarat.

The writer is a journalist and human rights activist.

_____


[5] 

Deccan Herald
June 16, 2006

POLICE FARCE
DRAMA IN REAL LIFE
By Kuldip Nayar

How genuine was the terrorist attack on the RSS Head Quarters in Nagpur?


A FACT-FINDING team from Maharashtra has 
questioned the authenticity of terrorists' attack 
on the RSS headquarters at Nagpur earlier in the 
month. The team believes that the killing of 
three assailants was a put up show by the police 
to get a pat on the back for fighting against 
terrorists. The police never cooperated with the 
team. Even when it wanted to read the First 
Information Report (FIR), it was refused.

The police behaviour does create doubts. But it 
is becoming a familiar pattern. We know from our 
experience how the police have staged false 
encounters to eliminate people, especially those 
against whom they have no evidence to pursue in a 
court of law. The attack on the RSS headquarters 
may well be a thought out plan to kill the three. 
There is no reason to disbelieve the fact-finding 
team's version because the members comprising it 
are known social workers and human rights 
activists. The fact that the police did not 
extend them any help for the probe is all the 
more reason to believe that they had something to 
hide. The letter which the police have written to 
the team before entertaining its request for 
assistance is a questionnaire which is primarily 
directed against the team and its composition.

I am not surprised to find that the attack story 
is doubted. A few years ago, two persons were 
killed at the Ansal Plaza complex basement in New 
Delhi. The police version was that they had been 
killed in an encounter. A doctor, who was an 
eye-witness, said that the police brought "the 
terrorists" in their van and bumped them off. I 
filed a petition with the National Human Rights 
Commission questioning the police version. The 
NHRC merely forwarded the complaint to Delhi 
Police which naturally confirmed its men's 
version. What is the purpose of such probes? The 
commission should have appointed some independent 
authority.

Understandably, the RSS has not said anything. It 
fits into their propaganda that terrorists are 
roaming all over India since the exit of the Atal 
Behari Vajpayee's government. Therefore, the 
announcement by Gujarat chief minister Narendra 
Modi to give Rs 10 lakh to the policemen who 
killed the three assailants is not a surprise. 
Modi's announcement is followed by another BJP 
chief minister from Madhya Pradesh. Shivraj Singh 
Chauhan's reward is also for a similar amount. 
How are they justified in announcing rewards for 
protecting the RSS headquarters which is in 
another state, Maharashtra?

They may have wanted to placate the RSS 
leadership or to make it public that the building 
at Nagpur is the BJP's Vatican. But what the two 
have done amounts to interference in the affairs 
of Maharashtra. Law and order is a state subject 
and, according to the constitution, even the 
Centre has no say in it. Trying to interfere in 
the affairs of another state is a serious matter 
and Parliament should take notice of it. Today it 
is the reward; tomorrow it can take another 
shape. The BJP chief ministers may take upon 
themselves the responsibility of protecting the 
RSS headquarters and sending policemen from their 
states as guards.

Look at this matter from another angle. If Modi 
and Chauhan are justified in announcing the 
reward, Maharashtra chief minister can say that 
his state will honour the odd policemen who 
protected the Muslims during the pogrom in 
Gujarat. Things can go still farther. One state 
may begin to commend or condemn the law and order 
situation in another state. The two BJP chief 
ministers are treading on thin ice. Modi's 
reaction to the killing of some Gujarati tourists 
in Kashmir was equally outlandish. Modi said that 
Kashmiri goods should be boycotted. It is a 
verdict worse than that of a Kangaroo court. Some 
terrorists aim to disturb the tourist season in 
Kashmir. Modi is playing into their hands.

They do not want any Kashmiri to do anything with 
the rest of India. How is an average Kashmiri 
responsible for the misdeeds of terrorists who 
are probably not even Kashmiri? Modi's remedy to 
punish the innocent Kashmiri for the murder by 
the terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir is 
pernicious. This kind of reprisal was heard only 
during Hitler's Nazi regime in Germany.

What the BJP general secretary Vinay Katiyar said 
and rationalised afterwards beats all. He 
announced a prize of Rs 1 lakh for any civilian 
who kills a militant. The pressure by the BJP 
leaders forced him to make his observation 
equivocal. But there is no doubt that he said so. 
This is what is on record: "ŠWe all want to fight 
terrorism. It is because of this that we made an 
announcement today that anyone who kills a 
terrorist- civilians, we are not talking of 
security forces -- will get Rs 1 lakhŠ" Left to 
Katiyar, he would convert Jammu and Kashmir into 
a theatre of civil war. His observation only 
underlines the fascist tendencies that some 
leaders in the BJP have. All this is a sad 
reflection on New Delhi. When Modi says and does 
anything illegal and gets away with it, where is 
the centre's responsibility to uphold the 
constitution? It means that the Manmohan Singh 
government has come to adopt convenience as its 
policy, not compliance with what the rule of law 
demands.


_____


[6]

"MYTHS, LIES AND THE NARMADA BETRAYAL"

on

Sunday 18th June 2006
10:30 am- 4:00 pm

Indian Social Institute
3rd floor auditorium
10 Lodhi Institutional Area (behind Sai Baba Mandir), New Delhi


The day will be structured around 3 main sessions:

10:30-11:00 am:  Inauguration

11:00-12:00 pm  FAILURE OF GOVERNANCE IN THE NARMADA

This session will include exposing the myths and lies, with testimonies
from the Valley, and interventions by academicians and policy specialists.
The session will cover:

- the silence and 'games' of the government, including failed responsibility
- the denial of the Group of Minister's report: why?
- the modus operandi of the Oversight Group and its shortcomings

12:00 - 1 pm:	FAILURE OF LAW AND VIOLATION OF JUSTICE

This session will reveal how the Supreme Court orders have been flouted
and how the SC has also succumbed to political pressure in complete
violation of the law. It will also discuss the continued denial of justice
not just by the Courts, but by all government agencies, including the case
of recent evictions in Delhi.

1-2 pm:     Lunch

2 - 3:00 pm:  THE POLITICS OF DISPLACEMENT

The politics behind the Sardar Sarovar dam are indeed complex and ugly. A
panel of select representatives of political parties and NBA activists
will share their views and discuss how human rights and the Constitution
are violated for meeting petty political interests, not just in the
Narmada, but in all projects involving displacement and evictions.

3:00 - 4:00 pm:	Questions and Open Discussion

We request you to participate in this convention and express your views on
the issue, also keeping in mind the broader implications of, and
connections with, large-scale displacement and forced evictions that are
taking place all over the country. It is important for us, more than ever
before, to come together, join forces, and develop effective strategies to
counter the anti-people and undemocratic powers that be.

We look forward to your active participation and support.

in solidarity,

Vijayan MJ, Shivani Chaudhry, Rajendra Ravi, Shree Prakash
(on behalf of Delhi Solidarity Group for NBA)

For more details, please contact: 9868 114470, 9818 030423, 98682 00316,
9868 165471


Context:

Dear Friends,


As you know, the struggle of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) reached a
high point in March-April with the month long dharna and hunger strike
in Delhi. Despite three activists putting their lives on the line for
justice, despite the Group of Ministers' report on failed rehabilitation,
and despite scathing evidence against the lies of the MP government, both
the Supreme Court and the central and state governments have chosen to
ignore the truth and side with the powerful pro-dam lobby thereby silently
sanctioning the devastation of the Narmada Valley and over 35,000
families.

The way Manmohan Singh and the UPA government subverted the law and
succumbed to political pressures, shocked many. The report of the three
Ministers' team  the first of its kind to the Narmada valley  vindicated
what the NBA has been saying about the failure of rehabilitation, but was
conveniently swept under the rug, while Manmohan Singh refused to take
action or stand by his Cabinet colleagues; findings.

Worse still, the Supreme Court after postponing its decision for two
months, violated its own former orders and gave a clean chit to the
illegality and injustice being perpetuated by the ongoing construction of
the dam. The one alarming message that emerged from the Supreme Court's
order was an assurance to governments that they could fearlessly continue
violating the law, even when such a violation was entirely
unconstitutional and jeopardized the lives and livelihoods of thousands.

The last eyewash in this undemocratic process was Manmohan Singh's
appointment of the Oversight Group headed by V.K. Shunglu  which is
merely a means to delay and deny justice to the people. While the
construction of the dam continues in violation of the Narmada Water
Disputes Tribunal Award and Supreme Court orders of 2000 and 2005, and
while the Group of Ministers has already clearly reported non-compliance
with rehabilitation laws, the survey being conducted by the Oversight
Group under the auspices of the NSSO has little purpose, apart from
allowing the construction of the dam to be a fate accompli.

The Shunglu Committee is almost done with its survey in MP and is expected
to submit its report by 30 June 2006. However, the Committee's mode of
operation and its survey methodology have been highly problematic. Surveys
have not been exhaustive or comprehensive. Instead they have been carried
out very hurriedly, in few areas, and without adequate consultation with
the people. Ignoring the suggestions of the NBA, the Committee did not
visit Gujarat and Maharashtra, which are also affected by the dam; neither
did it agree to submit an interim report of its findings.

By the time the Committee completes its final report and by the time the
Supreme Court reconvenes on 10 July to take stock of the situation, the
dam would have reached 121.92 metres and, by then, the monsoon would have
intensified in the Valley. Neither the Court, nor the Oversight Group can
control the rains. A normal monsoon would spell doom to thousands of
adivasi and farmer families, would submerge their houses, fields, and
villages, and would destroy rich archeological treasures and forests.

The situation is indeed grim.

With every democratic process failing to provide them with a just
recourse, representatives of the affected communities from the Narmada
Valley will be coming to Delhi on June 18 and 19 to stage a dharna at
Jantar Mantar, and to once again, raise their voices against this ongoing
injustice, perverse political posturing, and complete failure of law and
governance.

We, the Delhi Solidarity Group for the NBA feel that the gravity of the
current situation calls for a larger discussion on the issue with civil
society, social movements, representatives of political parties,
academicians, and other supporters.

It in this context that we would like to invite you to join us for a
Convention as mentioned above.

_____


[7]

In conjuction with the World Peace Forum being held in Vancouver

SANSAD invites the members of the community to a

PUBLIC FORUM: WAR AND PEACE IN SOUTH ASIA

Saturday, June 24
Langara College, 100 West 49th Ave, Vancouver (Canada)
Room: A 122 A
2 pm to 6 pm
Admission Free


The US, in "stretegic partnership" with India, 
offers it a nuclear treaty; intensifies arms race 
in the region.
In Nepal the 200-year old monarchy is facing its 
end as a result of people's struggles.
The conflict in Kashmir simmers but shows hope of resolution.
Pakistan is deeply troubled with the US dictated bombings in Waziristan.
Ruthless suppression of the struggle for autonomy in Balochistan.
Peace process in Srilanka threatened.

Presentations on simmering conflicts in South 
Asia, and the Quest for Peace with Justice
by:
         Aziz Baloch, Hassan Gardezi, Imran Munir, 
Haider Nizamani, L. Pahmayohan, Promod Puri, Sam 
Samarakoon, Abi Sharma, Hari Sharma, Yoga 
Yogendran


Open, Interactive discussion by the members of the community

Organized by South Asian Network for Secularism and Democracy
sponsored by Langara College Continuing Studies Department.

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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/

DISCLAIMER: Opinions expressed in materials carried in the posts do not
necessarily reflect the views of SACW compilers.