SACW | Jan. 1-3, 2008 / Pakistan's Khaki President / End of the ceasefire in Srilanka / Fascists strike in Orissa
Harsh Kapoor
aiindex at mnet.fr
Thu Jan 3 09:06:22 CST 2008
South Asia Citizens Wire | January 1 - 3, 2008 |
Dispatch No. 2483 - Year 10 running
[1] Pakistan:
(i) My heart bleeds for Pakistan. It deserves
better than this grotesque feudal charade (Tariq
Ali)
(ii) Khaki president (Zia Mian and A H Nayyar)
(iii) HRCP assails vigilantes
[2] Sri Lanka:
- Abrogation of Ceasefire Agreement Will Escalate
Spiral of Violence (National Peace Council)
- War Against Terrorism is Leading to More Terror
[3] India - Freedom of Expression: Obscene
distinction (Editorial, Indian Express)
[4] India's AFSPA : Democracy, Hang Down Your Head And Cry (Nandita Haksar)
[5] India - Gujarat: Understanding the Electoral victory of the Hindu right
- Why Gujarat Is Special (Praful Bidwai)
- Congress' soft-Hindutva is destroying pluralism (Kuldip Nayar)
- Gujarat Elections And Aftermath (Asghar Ali Engineer)
[6] India - Orissa: Hindutva in Action
- Fascists strike in Orissa (Kashmir Times, Edit)
- Orissa: Anti Christian Violence (Ram Puniyani )
[7] Announcements:
(i) HRCP consultation National Agenda the civil
society (Lahore, 4 January 2008)
(ii) upcoming Telecast of Amar Kanwar's film
'Baphlimali 173' (on NDTV, 3 and 6 January 2008)
(iii) CNDP 3rd national convention (Nagpur, February 1 - 3 2008)
______
[1] Pakistan:
(i)
The Independent
31 December 2007
MY HEART BLEEDS FOR PAKISTAN. IT DESERVES BETTER
THAN THIS GROTESQUE FEUDAL CHARADE
by Tariq Ali, Pakistan-born writer, broadcaster and commentator
Six hours before she was executed, Mary, Queen of
Scots wrote to her brother-in-law, Henry III of
France: "...As for my son, I commend him to you
in so far as he deserves, for I cannot answer for
him." The year was 1587.
On 30 December 2007, a conclave of feudal
potentates gathered in the home of the slain
Benazir Bhutto to hear her last will and
testament being read out and its contents
subsequently announced to the world media. Where
Mary was tentative, her modern-day equivalent
left no room for doubt. She could certainly
answer for her son.
A triumvirate consisting of her husband, Asif
Zardari (one of the most venal and discredited
politicians in the country and still facing
corruption charges in three European courts) and
two ciphers will run the party till Benazir's
19-year-old son, Bilawal, comes of age. He will
then become chairperson-for-life and, no doubt,
pass it on to his children. The fact that this is
now official does not make it any less grotesque.
The Pakistan People's Party is being treated as a
family heirloom, a property to be disposed of at
the will of its leader.
Nothing more, nothing less. Poor Pakistan. Poor
People's Party supporters. Both deserve better
than this disgusting, medieval charade.
Benazir's last decision was in the same
autocratic mode as its predecessors, an approach
that would cost her - tragically - her own life.
Had she heeded the advice of some party leaders
and not agreed to the Washington-brokered deal
with Pervez Musharraf or, even later, decided to
boycott his parliamentary election she might
still have been alive. Her last gift to the
country does not augur well for its future.
How can Western-backed politicians be taken
seriously if they treat their party as a fiefdom
and their supporters as serfs, while their
courtiers abroad mouth sycophantic niceties
concerning the young prince and his future.
That most of the PPP inner circle consists of
spineless timeservers leading frustrated and
melancholy lives is no excuse. All this could be
transformed if inner-party democracy was
implemented. There is a tiny layer of
incorruptible and principled politicians inside
the party, but they have been sidelined. Dynastic
politics is a sign of weakness, not strength.
Benazir was fond of comparing her family to the
Kennedys, but chose to ignore that the Democratic
Party, despite an addiction to big money, was not
the instrument of any one family.
The issue of democracy is enormously important in
a country that has been governed by the military
for over half of its life. Pakistan is not a
"failed state" in the sense of the Congo or
Rwanda. It is a dysfunctional state and has been
in this situation for almost four decades.
At the heart of this dysfunctionality is the
domination by the army and each period of
military rule has made things worse. It is this
that has prevented political stability and the
emergence of stable institutions. Here the US
bears direct responsibility, since it has always
regarded the military as the only institution it
can do business with and, unfortunately, still
does so. This is the rock that has focused choppy
waters into a headlong torrent.
The military's weaknesses are well known and have
been amply documented. But the politicians are
not in a position to cast stones. After all, Mr
Musharraf did not pioneer the assault on the
judiciary so conveniently overlooked by the US
Deputy Secretary of State, John Negroponte, and
the Foreign Secretary, David Miliband. The first
attack on the Supreme Court was mounted by Nawaz
Sharif's goons who physically assaulted judges
because they were angered by a decision that ran
counter to their master's interests when he was
prime minister.
Some of us had hoped that, with her death, the
People's Party might start a new chapter. After
all, one of its main leaders, Aitzaz Ahsan,
president of the Bar Association, played a heroic
role in the popular movement against the
dismissal of the chief justice. Mr Ahsan was
arrested during the emergency and kept in
solitary confinement. He is still under house
arrest in Lahore. Had Benazir been capable of
thinking beyond family and faction she should
have appointed him chairperson pending elections
within the party. No such luck.
The result almost certainly will be a split in
the party sooner rather than later. Mr Zardari
was loathed by many activists and held
responsible for his wife's downfall. Once
emotions have subsided, the horror of the
succession will hit the many traditional PPP
followers except for its most reactionary
segment: bandwagon careerists desperate to make a
fortune.
All this could have been avoided, but the deadly
angel who guided her when she was alive was,
alas, not too concerned with democracy. And now
he is in effect leader of the party.
Meanwhile there is a country in crisis. Having
succeeded in saving his own political skin by
imposing a state of emergency, Mr Musharraf still
lacks legitimacy. Even a rigged election is no
longer possible on 8 January despite the stern
admonitions of President George Bush and his
unconvincing Downing Street adjutant. What is
clear is that the official consensus on who
killed Benazir is breaking down, except on BBC
television. It has now been made public that,
when Benazir asked the US for a Karzai-style
phalanx of privately contracted former US Marine
bodyguards, the suggestion was contemptuously
rejected by the Pakistan government, which saw it
as a breach of sovereignty.
Now both Hillary Clinton and Senator Joseph
Biden, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, are pinning the convict's badge on Mr
Musharraf and not al-Qa'ida for the murder, a
sure sign that sections of the US establishment
are thinking of dumping the President.
Their problem is that, with Benazir dead, the
only other alternative for them is General Ashraf
Kiyani, head of the army. Nawaz Sharif is seen as
a Saudi poodle and hence unreliable, though,
given the US-Saudi alliance, poor Mr Sharif is
puzzled as to why this should be the case. For
his part, he is ready to do Washiongton's bidding
but would prefer the Saudi King rather than Mr
Musharraf to be the imperial message-boy.
A solution to the crisis is available. This would
require Mr Musharraf's replacement by a less
contentious figure, an all-party government of
unity to prepare the basis for genuine elections
within six months, and the reinstatement of the
sacked Supreme Court judges to investigate
Benazir's murder without fear or favour. It would
be a start.
o o o
(ii)
Himal - January 2008
KHAKI PRESIDENT
President Musharraf should step down before the 8
January polls. But since that seems unlikely,
Pakistan's citizens and the international
community must force him to make the elections
free and fair.
by Zia Mian and A H Nayyar
http://www.himalmag.com/2008/january/cover_khaki_president.html
o o o
(iii)
HRCP ASSAILS VIGILANTES
Lahore, January 01: The Human Rights Commission
of Pakistan (HRCP) has called for immediate
disbandment of vigilante squads maintained by the
establishment or its favourite political party as
their interference with citizens' normal affairs
is not only unlawful it would lead to chaos. In a
statement issued here today HRCP said:
On Monday night (Dec. 31) a most deplorable
incident took place in Gulberg area. A few young
girls, including Muneeza Jahangir, HRCP
Chairperson's daughter and a well-known TV
producer / reporter, accompanied by a couple of
young men, decided to take photographs of some
election posters. Suddenly a bunch of armed
toughs pounced upon them, mercilessly beat up a
young man, dragged the girls and shut them up in
the office of the son of the outgoing Punjab
Chief Minister.
The armed goons abused the girls and threatened
them by pointing their guns at them, and offered
the same treatment to Ms. Asma Jahangir when she
arrived at the scene to rescue the girls. These
men had no right or authority to resort to
violence and imprison their victims in private
premises.
Worse, the culprits seemed to enjoy local
authorities' patronage and were reportedly backed
by a couple of police constables in uniform.
HRCP calls for immediate disbandment of all such
private storm-troopers as their unlawful
activities will pose a serious threat to
citizens' life and security and plunge society
into a total chaos. The interim rulers must
probe the matter and call the guilty to account,
that is, if they have the power to do so.
Iqbal Haider
Secretary-General
HRCP
_____
[2]
National Peace Council
of Sri Lanka
12/14 Purana Vihara Road
Colombo 6
Tel: 2818344, 2854127, 2819064
Tel/Fax:2819064
E Mail: npc at sltnet.lk
Internet: www.peace-srilanka.org
03.01.08
Media Release 1
ABROGATION OF CEASEFIRE AGREEMENT WILL ESCALATE SPIRAL OF VIOLENCE
The government has announced that it will
abrogate the Norwegian-facilitated Ceasefire
Agreement (CFA) signed with the LTTE in 2002 on
account of the ground reality where conditions of
continuing war and terror prevail. For the past
two years the government and LTTE have been
engaging in a high level of hostilities
tantamount to war, including the overrunning of
forward defense lines, capture of territory,
artillery, sea and air bombing, and large scale
displacement of people and violations of human
rights.
The government's decision follows repeated
demands by the JVP and other nationalist parties
for the abrogation of the CFA. Government members
have said that the peace process and political
talks will continue with non-LTTE Tamil parties.
While there is a need to include non-LTTE Tamil
parties in political talks, it cannot be done at
the cost of eliminating the LTTE from the
dialogue. The danger inherent in the government's
position, especially in the event of a total
rejection of the past peace process with the
LTTE, is that it is paving the way for a fight to
the finish where the costs can be terribly high,
success is not guaranteed, and no fall back
position will be available.
It is also likely that the role played by the Sri
Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) established under
the CFA will also come to an end with the
abrogation of the Ceasefire Agreement. Although
the international monitors of the SLMM were
unable to prevent acts of war and human rights
violations from taking place, they were able to
be physically present in the conflict zones and
record incidents and report them to the
conflicting parties and the international
community. The Governmentís rejection of a UN
Human Rights field presence, the inability of the
Commission of Inquiry (COI) and the International
Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) to
make meaningful progress in discharging their
mandates, and the recent downgrading of the
National Human Rights Commission, combine to
place respect for human rights in Sri Lanka in
further jeopardy.
The National Peace Council regrets that the
abrogation of the CFA in the present
circumstances will deprive the hapless civilians
within the conflict zones with a credible
authority to lodge complaints. This will also
reduce the flow of credible information to the
world outside. This lacuna will constrain the
work of human rights and peace groups who have
been pressing the conflicting parties to address
the issues of impunity and end the violations of
human rights.
The National Peace Council is dismayed and deeply
concerned at the situation in the country at the
beginning of the New Year which has included the
assassination of an opposition politician
belonging to the largest opposition party who
spoke of the agony of the Tamil people, the
bombing of an army bus in the heart of Colombo
that killed civilians and now by the abrogation
of the CFA and the negation of the institutions
it set up. We can only pray and hope that this
period of war and terror will soon come to an
end, and rationality and concern for human rights
takes the conflicting parties back to the
negotiating table and to end all armed
hostilities, political assassinations and other
criminal acts.
Media Release 2
WAR AGAINST TERRORISM IS LEADING TO MORE TERROR
The assassination of Colombo district
Parliamentarian Thiagarajah Maheswaran inside a
Hindu temple in Colombo on New Year's Day is a
shocking manifestation of the utter disregard for
civilised norms that has taken a grip over the
country in the context of its civil strife. This
killing was similar to the one carried out two
years ago in a Catholic church in Batticaloa on
Christmas day when Batticaloa district
Parliamentarian Joseph Pararajasingham was
assassinated.
The National Peace Council condemns the
assassination of a politician who was dedicated
to non-violent politics and who was a member of
the multi ethnic and largest opposition party,
the UNP. As a former Jaffna district
Parliamentarian, he also had the courage to speak
out publicly about the sufferings of the people
of Jaffna, who are being subjected to a climate
of terror in the present phase of the conflict in
which extra judicial killings are taking place on
a regular basis. In his last televised interview
a few days ago, Mr Maheswaran said he would
reveal details about the Jaffna situation in
Parliament at its next sittings.
We should stress the fact that there is no
accountability today in this country since not a
single such assassination has led to the arrest
and conviction of the murderers. A climate of
killing with impunity has now taken hold. As the
alleged perpetrator is in custody in hospital at
present unlike in other cases, this provides an
opportunity to identifying not only the one who
carried out the assassination but also those who
ordered this killing. Maximum security needs to
be provided to him and an open and transparent
investigation carried out and concluded without
delay. Failure to do so would be a serious
indictment on the government on its commitment to
upholding the rule of law in practice.
The most important duty of a state is to enforce
the law and bring to book those who violate the
law. The failure of the Security Forces to
apprehend perpetrators of so many recent
instances of violence could cast reflection on
their inefficiency and capability, while
encouraging vigilantes to take action with
impunity. These situations would strengthen and
validate international pressure for a UN Human
Rights monitoring field presence in the country.
We also express our concern at the government's
practice of reducing the security provided to
politicians under threat and who have been
critical of the government. Mr Maheswaran's
security was reportedly reduced from 18 to 2
personnel last month. We note that Colombo
district Parliamentarian Mano Ganeshan , who has
championed the cause of the victims of human
rights abuses especially the disappeared and the
abducted, has appealed to the government to
restore his security, and is now reportedly out
of the country on account of the threats to his
life.
The killing of democratic Tamil politicians is
taking place alongside the government's attempt
to militarily defeat the LTTE. Mr Maheswaran is
the third Tamil parliamentarian to be
assassinated in the past two years, along with Mr
Pararajasingam and Mr Nadarajah Raviraj who
represented the Jaffna district and was
assassinated in Colombo. Investigations into both
these assassinations have not led to any
convictions by the government and remain
inconclusive.
Several government leaders have described the New
Year as being one of war in which terrorism will
be finally defeated. However the remote
controlled claymore mine attack on a military bus
in the heart of Colombo's business area on the
day following New Year's day, and the killing of
at least four persons, three of whom were
civilians, is an indication of the high price
that the country will be called upon to pay. The
National Peace Council condemns this suspected
LTTE attack, especially as it was in a crowded
civilian area, and could have led to many more
fatalities to innocent life.
The violent incidents at the very beginning of
the New Year are likely to be an indicator of
worse to come not only in Colombo but also in the
conflict zones of the north and east. The
National Peace Council urges all parties involved
in the conflict to ensure the protection of
civilian lives by following the Geneva
Conventions. We also reiterate our long standing
call to the government and LTTE to stop the
bloodshed and resolve the ethnic conflict through
political means.
Executive Director
On behalf of Governing Council
_____
[3]
Indian Express
January 03, 2008
Editorial
OBSCENE DISTINCTION
Advice to reinstate Baroda dean is welcome. But
why be so apologetic about the artist's freedom?
The Indian Express
: The three-member committee constituted by the
Gujarat governor to investigate the row over the
'obscene' painting at Baroda's MS University last
year rightly recommends that the suspension of
Shivaji Panikkar be revoked. The acting dean of
the university's prestigious Fine Arts Faculty
was forced to step down when he defended his
student Chandramohan Srilamantula against the
attack mounted by a mob on the university
premises. The committee also does well to advise
that Chandramohan be taken back and judged for
his work. The indictment of the university
authorities for their dereliction of duty in the
face of hooliganism was also long overdue. Yet
the sense is unavoidable: the committee does not
go far enough. It bases its conclusions and
recommendations on the fact that Chandramohan's
painting was part of an internal examination. As
a report in this paper has pointed out, committee
members were of the view that the word 'obscene'
could have been used had the works been part of a
public display. This is a half-hearted defence of
the freedom of expression.
It is true that the fundamental right to freedom
of speech and expression is constitutionally
subject to reasonable restrictions. Yet, even a
cursory look at recent episodes when it has been
sought to be curtailed in our country would
illustrate how far the balance has tilted towards
an unreasonably restrictive environment. The onus
is always on the artist and writer to explain
themselves while the agitators who are acting in
the name of "the people" always roam free. First
the attack is carried out, and then before the
victim can react, cases are filed against the
victim and rarely against the perpetrators. These
cases - filed under some problematic sections of
the penal code that were intended as safeguards
against hate speech and are now mostly misused -
drag on. The hounding of M.F. Husain is a perfect
case in point.
This pattern repeats itself with the complicity
of the state. Governments in India, particularly
at the Centre, have repeatedly caved in before
the mob. The faint-hearted hospitality that the
UPA has offered to Bangladeshi writer Taslima
Nasreen is only the latest example. In such an
environment, an eminent committee comprising two
academics and an artist should have stood up for
Chandramohan's freedom to express himself in the
public space - and not just within the university
boundaries - without being threatened with
violence.
______
[4]
Outlook Magazine
Magazine | Jan 14, 2008
This extreme protest in July 2004 caught the
nation's eye, but was preceded by decades-long
atrocities under the Armed Forces Act
MY INDIA STORY
DEMOCRACY, HANG DOWN YOUR HEAD AND CRY
A young man's painful death in a Manipur village;
an indelible taint on the Indian dream ...
Nandita Haksar
It was in August 1982 when I first went to
Ukhrul, in Manipur, and saw that the India of
Nehru's dream was a nightmare for the Naga people
there. The realisation did not come all at once.
At first I thought incidents of torture, rape and
murder were isolated human rights violations by
Indian security forces. I realised much later
that what I witnessed 26 years ago was in fact
the dark, ugly side of nation-building in our
country.
I had gone to Ukhrul, home of the Tangkhul Nagas,
on the invitation of a Naga women's organisation.
It had invited a women's fact-finding team from
Delhi to document human rights violations
committed by Indian security forces, in the
aftermath of an ambush by the newly-formed
National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN).
We travelled to villages nestled in hills,
surrounded by a profusion of colourful cosmos
flowers amidst maize fields, and were overwhelmed
by their beauty.
One scene remains etched in my mind, vivid in all the grotesque details.
It was in a small wooden house where we witnessed
a young Tangkhul woman watch the slow, painful
death of her husband. The soldiers of the 21 Sikh
Regiment had beaten him so severely that the
x-ray revealed that his lungs, liver, heart and
stomach were irreparably damaged. The hospital at
Imphal had expressed helplessness, so the family
had brought him home. The couple had been married
for just six months. He was a healthy, strong,
handsome man, the captain of the village football
team. Now he lay with his stomach hideously
bloated, a living corpse.
We learnt that these atrocities were being
committed by the Indian security forces under the
protection of the Armed Forces (Special Powers)
Act, 1958.
Pt G.B. Pant, India's first home minister,
explained that the Act was needed to deal with
the "misguided Nagas" indulging in "mischievous
activities". Many legislators had then objected
to the Act because they felt it grossly violated
the letter and spirit
of the Constitution. One MP, Jaipal Singh, had
pointed out: "This problem began about eight
years ago when the prime minister himself refused
to meet the original rebel." Singh warned that
"martial law was being made into ordinary law."
Thus the Nagas lived under virtual military rule
in a democratic India. Their democratic
aspirations were sought to be crushed under the
heels of military repression.
I felt the real problem was to get the truth out
in the open. We released the report and the Nagas
were particularly happy to see that it got
widespread publicity. Perhaps encouraged by this
effort, the Nagas decided after long
deliberations to allow me to file two cases in
the Supreme Court. It was the first time that the
Nagas willingly submitted themselves to the
jurisdiction of an Indian court of law.
I had just started practising law and I deeply
believed in the legal system's ability to deliver
justice. I filed the two cases, one challenging
the constitutional validity of the Armed Forces
(Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) and another a habeas
corpus petition on behalf of two Tangkhul Naga
widows I had met in Ukhrul whose husbands had
disappeared after being picked up by the security
forces. It was the first case to have been filed
by the Nagas against the Indian armed forces. My
client was Sebastian Hongray, a member of the
then recently formed Naga Peoples' Movement for
Human Rights (NPMHR).
The Supreme Court gave its judgement in the
habeas corpus petition: the two widows were to be
given Rs 1 lakh each as compensation. It was the
highest award ever given and the case became a
precedent.
The Supreme Court did not, however, give its
verdict on the Act itself at that time. It would
take another 13 years before that judgement was
delivered. In the meantime, punitive actions
under the Act were taken in nearly every part of
the Northeast, leaving a trail of death and
destruction.
In 1988, the NPMHR once again called me to
represent them in another case. This time, the
Indian security forces had committed unspeakable
atrocities against Poumei Nagas living in Oinam
and its surrounding villages of Senapati district
in Manipur. The atrocities included forcing two
pregnant women to give birth in the open
playground in front of the jawans.
I gave up my practice in the Supreme Court and
went to Imphal to fight the case. It took over
three years of struggle in the courts of Gauhati
and Imphal to complete the proceedings, which
involved taking the judges through 10,000 pages
of evidence. But before the judges could give
their judgement they were transferred; both have
since retired. The people are still waiting for
justice.
Since we had exhausted all domestic remedies, we
decided to go the UN Human Rights Committee and
put our case before it. Sebastian and I lobbied
with the Committee in March 1991 in New York and
members of the UN Committee expressed their
apprehension that the AFSPA not only contravened
the provisions of the criminal law but also the
Indian Constitution and international human
rights laws.
Despite demands from people in the Northeast and
criticism of the international community, the
Supreme Court upheld the constitutional validity
of the AFSPA in 1997. By that time, a similar Act
had been extended to Jammu and Kashmir and it had
been used shortly in Punjab. I had personally
visited both the states and seen for myself the
barbaric acts committed by our armed forces there.
Seven years later, the entire country woke up to
find a shocking, dramatic photograph plastered on
front pages of newspapers: some 40 naked Manipuri
women with a massive banner screaming: "Indian
Army Rape Us". They were protesting the rape and
murder of a 32-year-old Meitei woman, Thangjam
Manorama, by the Assam Rifles.
The Centre was forced to set up a review
committee on the AFSPA. The government promised
to repeal the Act, but before that the provisions
of the Act were incorporated into the Communal
Violence (Suppression) Bill, 2005. The entire
country could now be effectively placed under
martial law. The Indian dream is turning into an
Indian nightmare.
Nandita Haksar is a Supreme Court lawyer and human rights activist.
______
[5] Gujarat:
The Times of India
2 Jan 2008
WHY GUJARAT IS SPECIAL
by Praful Bidwai
It's impossible to understand the reasons for or
the magnitude and quality of the BJP's stunning
victory in Gujarat without moving beyond 'normal'
electoral arithmetic and campaign strategies, and
looking at some factors which have shaped
Gujarati society and politics over the decades.
Three of these are pivotal: a deep-rooted social
conservatism laced with rabid Hindutva;
aggressive, intensely chauvinist subnationalism;
and growing receptivity to an authoritarian
personality cult.
Although 'Hindutva laboratory' Gujarat has been
under full or partial BJP rule since 1990, its
communalisation goes back a long way. Modern
India's first recorded communal riot occurred in
Gujarat, in 1713. No less important was the
Hindu-Muslim violence of 1893 at Somnath, whose
effects were felt nationally and debated in
London, leading to the famous Hunter inquiry. The
politics of revenge for perceived past injustices
struck deep roots in Gujarat under the influence
of Dayanand Saraswati's Arya Samaj and the
'shuddhi' (reconversion from Islam) movement
active in the 1920s, led by Swami Shraddhanand.
The ground had been prepared in the late 19th
century by the invention of an 'Aryan' identity,
towards which the emerging Brahmin-bania middle
class gravitated. Cow protection societies and
Ganesh festivals became sites of communal
association and action. Under competitive
politics, religious identity-based contestations
only sharpened further. So powerful and recurrent
was the violence that formed the backdrop to
politics that even the Bardoli satyagraha and
Dandi March took place amidst Hindu-Muslim
clashes. From the landmark riots of 1969 to the
pogrom of 2002, Gujarat saw increasing Muslim
ghettoisation and disenfranchisement.
Gujarat also witnessed the early consolidation of
an alliance between patidar land-owning farmers,
and urban Brahmins and banias. This divided it
between 'Bhadra Gujarat' and 'Aam Gujarat', say
social scientists Achyut Yagnik and Suchitra
Sheth. "The expanding and modernising middle
class of Gujarat has been looking for a new
identity to validate its present and protect its
future". Hindutva furnished it.
Gujarat's social conservatism is thus an amalgam
of Hindutva and near-complete upper-caste
domination untempered by social reform,
especially after Mahatma Gandhi's withdrawal in
1930 from Gujarat. Gujarat is India's only major
state where there's no power-sharing between
'savarnas' and plebeians and no successful Dalit
or OBC self-assertion. The first attempt at this
was the Kshatriya-Harijan-Adivasi-Muslim
coalition under the Congress, which swept the
1980 elections.
The savarna reaction was a violent agitation
against Dalit reservations and dilution of
bhadralok power. The second factor at work is
best understood through the Gujarati middle
class's sense of hurt over the perceived "loss"
of Mumbai when the old Bombay state was
reorganised, and even more, over long delays in
clearance for the Narmada dam projects. Parties
across the spectrum turned the dams into an issue
of supreme iconic significance - the key to
unbounded progress and prosperity, despite their
high economic, human and ecological costs.
Elite resentment rose sharply after the World
Bank withdrew from the Sardar Sarovar Project
following the Morse report, and the Narmada
Bachao Andolan launched an agitation against
displacement-without-rehabilitation of highly
vulnerable people. Medha Patkar was vilified as
Gujarat's 'enemy'. 'Human rights' became a term
of abuse. Defence of the underprivileged was
demonised as effete and machismo about 'Gujarat's
glory' and 'avenging' insults to the state
replaced rational discourse. Modi cynically
fashioned these misanthropic sentiments into the
'Gujarat Gaurav' ideology, lacing it with
chauvinist venom and maligning any reference to
justice for the victims of 2002 as an injustice
and insult to Gujarat itself.
Of a piece with the total absence of middle-class
remorse for the 2002 massacre is the spread of
intolerant and authoritarian ideas and respect
for despotic 'decisiveness'. Modi is the man who
'gets things done' by means fair or foul. If
Bt-cotton is to be promoted to please big
business, it'll be rammed down the throats of
peasants, no matter that 500 farmers have
committed suicide. If fertile land is to be
procured for a toxic chemicals plant in
Ankleshwar or Baroda, it will be acquired no
matter how reluctant the owner is to sell. If
labour unions demand the minimum wage, they must
be smashed.
The admiration this ruthless decisiveness evokes
among the middle classes is similar to the spell
that Hitler and Mussolini cast by ensuring that
'the trains run on time'. This speaks to an
unprecedented cult of personality, and a
quasi-fascist personality at that. Why else would
thousands of Modi supporters choose to suppress
their own individual identities by wearing masks
moulded after his face?
The tragedy of Gujarat is magnified by the strong
likelihood that Modi will acquire a high-profile
national role within the BJP, relentlessly
pushing it further to the right; and that
mal-developed Gujarat will be lauded and promoted
as a model-state by the captains of Indian
industry. In 2002, the CII at least registered a
mild, soon-to-be-withdrawn protest against the
collapse of law and order. Today, even supposedly
'enlightened' industrialists lavish praise upon
Modi.
The writer is a political commentator.
o o o
The Asian Age
December 31, 2007
CONGRESS' SOFT-HINDUTVA IS DESTROYING PLURALISM
by Kuldip Nayar
Cassius told Brutus that the fault was not in
their stars but in themselves. After losing
Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh in a row the
Congress Party should realise that the fault lies
with them, their strategy, not in their campaign.
In both the states, it is the Congress that has
lost. The party should analyse why. I concede
that there was the incumbency factor in Himachal
Pradesh. But the same factor did not help the
Congress in Gujarat. The party has become too
uncertain.
I do not know why the Congress changed its
strategy not to take on the communalists in
Gujarat. Party president Sonia Gandhi rightly
characterised chief minister Narendra Modi and
his supporters as maut ke saudagar (merchants of
death). How else can they be described when they
have fattened themselves on the sufferings of and
denials to Muslims? After having effected an
ethnic cleansing in Gujarat, Modi and the BJP
continue to ostracise the Muslim community. It is
boycotted economically and socially, and is
treated in a manner that it seems as if the nine
per cent Muslim population in the state does not
exist. It is the best specimen of the BJP's best
governance.
Up to a point, Sonia Gandhi stuck to her remark
of maut ke saudagar and told the Election
Commission of India that calling a spade a spade
did not violate any code of election. But then
she herself watered down her stand. Whoever
advised her, did great harm to the party and its
cause.
Even if Sonia Gandhi had not made the remark,
Modi would have turned the polls into a
Hindu-Muslim conflict. Communalism is the only
field in which he and his kind excel. The
person-to-person propaganda against Muslims had
already begun in Gujarat. Sonia Gandhi's
observation gave Modi a chance to bring it out in
the open a day or two earlier than the timing he
had in view. The Congress needs no introspection.
It needs courage to challenge the Hindutva forces
within and outside the party. It is shirking a
confrontation with the communal forces, without
realising that at stake is our pluralistic
society, the bedrock of our democratic polity.
In fact, Modi and the BJP's ideology of Hindutva
are dividing the country into two communities,
Hindus and Muslims, or maybe three, because the
Vishwa Hindu Parishad, a front organisation of
the RSS, like the BJP, is also targeting the
Christians. It is a shame what the VHP did in
Orissa with the connivance of the state
government, an ally of the BJP.
Communalism is bad enough, but worse is the BJP's
attack on the ethos of our freedom struggle.
India's independence was won on the resolve to
keep it pluralistic and democratic. Muslim
leaders like Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Khan Abdul
Ghaffar Khan (the Frontier Gandhi) and Sheikh
Abdullah (the Kashmir Gandhi) made as much
sacrifice as Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and
Sardar Patel did. Pluralism is our proud
heritage. The Congress is diluting this heritage.
For improving chances in elections it has even
embraced erstwhile BJP members. This has harmed
the Congress most.
A Pakistani friend has written to me, "The
Gujarat election debacle should open our eyes. I
mean the eyes of those who ask for vote on the
basis of abstract values and value system." I beg
to differ with him. Election is the means, not an
end in itself. Even if you may win elections
without adhering to values, you are creating a
society where there would be no elections one
day. The value system is what distinguishes a
democracy from other systems. There can be no
letting down of the fight against communalism,
because if it succeeds, fascism is bound to
emerge.
Gujarat is not a state anymore. It has become an
ideology. It is a "Hindutva laboratory" as chief
minister Narendra Modi had put it when the state
went to polls. He reduced the whole campaign to a
single point: if you are a Hindu, you vote for
me. In fact, it is a slur on Gujaratis, because
he sells them Hindutva in the name of Gujarat
pride.
The development part is all right. The Gujaratis
inside or outside the state are pouring so much
money and skill into the state that a new Gujarat
was emerging despite the government. The credit
is due to him that he did not come in their way,
something which is happening in many states. Yet,
his whipping boy is a Muslim. During the election
campaign, he went on emphasising on the fake
encounter death of Sohrabbudin Sheikh, although
the case is pending before the Supreme Court of
India. At different gatherings he brought the
crowd to such a pitch of frenzy that they said in
response, "Kill him, kill him." These are fascist
tactics.
I sympathise with the Gujaratis, for Modi has
fouled the atmosphere in the state so much that
any liberal thinking or dissent is difficult. He
has made them believe that India is part of
Gujarat. I heard the slogan, "Gujarat is India."
This is reminiscent of the Emergency days when
India was Indira. Modi has done great harm to
Gujaratis by mixing their achievements with
Hindutva. Their economic progress has been
dwarfed by Modi's large-size anti-Muslim bias. I
feel that Gujaratis need to be retrieved. Modi
has given them a bad name in the country and
abroad, as if they are a community of fanatics,
totally opposed to pluralistic thinking.
L.K. Advani, the prime minister-in-waiting, has
said that Gujarat will be a turning point in
national politics. He is mistaken. The turning
point is going to be the re-thinking on the part
of BJP's allies. Except the Shiv Sena from
Maharashtra, there does not seem to be any party
agreeing to BJP's Hindutva. They have, by and
large, secular credentials. They cannot go to the
voter with Modi who is the BJP's mascot.
The Congress is still learning its lesson from
Gujarat. Sonia Gandhi is a crowd-puller, but not
a vote-catcher. No use re-emphasising that Rahul
Gandhi is not making any impact. Younger leaders
in the Congress and persons like Lalu Prasad
Yadav who are on the side of the Congress might
have done better if they had campaigned.
Yet the biggest drawback with the Congress is
that - this is not in Gujarat alone - it does not
come across as an unequivocal exponent of
pluralism, as it should. The party gives the
impression of being Hindutva's soft version.
Expected to carry the ethos of the freedom
struggle, the Congress should not compromise with
the ideals. The BJP is understandably against
secularism, but a diluted, half-hearted Congress
can only do harm. It is sad that the party is not
conscious of this.
o o o
GUJARAT ELECTIONS AND AFTERMATH
by Asghar Ali Engineer (Secular Perspective January 1-15, 2008)
Gujarat has made history. Gujarat is in news ever
since genocide of 2002. For every small or big
development it remains in news. Gujarat carnage
was unparalleled in the history of India and it
will continue to be discussed for a long time to
come. Like partition of our country it cannot be
easily forgotten. Any election in Gujarat will
draw into discussion Gujarat carnage. Modi, I
maintain, could not have won 2002 election
without organizing that carnage nor the 2007
election could he have won without it.
In my opinion it is wrong to maintain that he won
election due to economic development he helped
achieve in Gujarat. Gujarat is as much polarized
today as it was in 2002. Even if Modi had not
mentioned anything related to Hindutva, he would
have won. Question is only of margin. Now the
congress leaders also have admitted it publicly
that we had not kept Sonia Gandhi in any illusion
about victory in Gujarat. We had told her we
cannot win. Only thing is we did not expect him
to win with such majority.
He won with such majority for number of reasons
one of which was Mayawati’s candidates. In many
constituencies Dalits voted for Mayawati
candidates and in those constituencies congress
candidates lost by margin of not more than 5000
votes. Congress would have undoubtedly won in
these constituencies had Mayawati not set up her
own candidates taking away Dalit votes.
I would also like to throw light on the question
as to why Modi continues to appeal Gujarati
voters so much that he can win hands down even
five years after genocide of 2002? The answer
lies in paradigm shift in political ideologies
throughout the world. Unfortunately no analyst so
far has seen Gujarat election in this perspective.
Up to eighties socialism and socialist ideologies
had great appeal for the people. When Indira
Gandhi, in late sixties of last century, gave
slogan of quit poverty (Gharibi hatao) it had
electrifying effect on Indian masses; and she
instantly emerged as great leader in her own
right and all Congress stalwarts like Kamraj,
Morarji Desai and Atulya Ghosh and others fell by
the roadside. She was voted to power with
overwhelming majority.
Similarly in Pakistan when Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto
gave slogan of Roti, Kapda Makan (bread, cloth
and house). He acquired charisma of his own and
Ayub fell by the roadside. To this slogan he
added, after Bangla Desh war thousand-year war
with India and he emerged as an unquestioned
leader of Pakistan. However, the basic mantra was
roti, kapda, makan. Even in Arab countries slogan
of socialism brought Jamal Abdan Nasir and
Mohammad Ghaddafi to the fore.
But now there is complete paradigm shift in
politics. Socialism no longer has any charisma.
It has been replaced by religious ideologies or
religious fundamentalism throughout the world.
Until late eighties Hindutva had no appeal to
Indian masses or Islamic ideology to Pakistani
people. Today it is politicized religious
discourse which has strong appeal.
Also, slogans of basic needs have been replaced
by ‘development’ discourse and development never
means fulfilling basic needs like roti, kapda
makan but development of the rich, increase in
the wealth of the haves as today in liberalized
economies in the globalised world. For Gujaratis
trade and economic prosperity has been their
lifeline. Even among Muslims of Gujarat Bohras,
Khojas and Memons are rich traders and they will
be as much attracted by the development discourse
as upper caste Hindu Gujaratis. It is for this
reason that Narendra Modi tried to win over
Bohras and Khojas by his development discourse.
He even had special section for Muslims (Bohras,
Khojas etc.) in the economic exhibition arranged
by him to showcase his development.
And today in the Hindutva laboratory that Gujarat
is combination of economic development and
Hindutva ideology is a sure guarantee for
political win. And who knows this better than
Modi? Modi thus combined development discourse
with Hindutva mantra and won elections hands down.
The BJP maintains that Modi was using only
development discourse for his campaigning and it
was Sonia Gandhi by her remark of ‘maut ka
saudagar’ that compelled Modi to use Hindutva
card and then whole nature of campaign changed.
This can hardly convince any reasonable mind. In
fact it was planned that Hindutva discourse will
be the last minute mantra. Development discourse
was thought to be effective but perhaps there was
lurking doubt and to dispel that doubt Hindutva
discourse had to be use very tactically, throwing
entire blame on the opposition after all.
What Mrs. Sonia Gandhi said was in no way
contrary to facts. There was enough proof to
maintain that Modi had used death and destruction
to win 2002 election (which in all probability,
he would have lost). In that election there was
no reference to any development. 2002 campaign
was heavily loaded with Hindutva discourse and he
had earned enough bad publicity throughout the
world. He could not afford to deploy pure
Hindutva discourse in this election.
The Election Commission was also watching and he
could not afford to be on the wrong side of law.
He, therefore cleverly crafted his winning
strategy – to use development and Hindutva at the
last stage and hang the blame on Soniaben's 'maut
ka saudagar' peg. If he was so sure of
'development factor why did he not use it in 2002
election? On the contrary he is enjoying its
after effects even in this election.
There is now another question: will the Gujarat
model be as effective in other states? I have my
doubts. Even after 2002 win the BJP was saying we
will repeat Gujarat model in other states but it
lost in several states. The fact is that BJP is
in power in M.P. and Rajasthan by itself like in
Gujarat and yet these two states have yet to go
Gujarat way i.e. they have still not become
'Hindutva laboratory' like Gujarat.
It is an important question: why M.P. and
Rajasthan, like Gujarat, could become Hindutva
laboratory. Obviously conditions in these two
states and caste and community equations are very
different. Neither M.P. nor Rajasthan can ever
become Hindutva laboratories like Gujarat. Nor
development a la Gujarat can be effected in these
two states. Obviously Gujarat model cannot be
repeated even in these two BJP held states, much
less in other states of India.
India is a highly diverse country – bewilderingly
diverse, and what is possible in one state cannot
happen in other states. Even CPM cannot repeat
its model in states other than West Bengal and
Kerala otherwise it would have captured other
states long ago. Gujarat is more suited for
Hindutva as West Bengal and Kerala are more
suited for left ideology. In Gujarat similarly is
more suited for rightwing Hindutva ideology for
number of reasons.
Traders are generally very conservative and are
known to be supporters of conservative religion
and traditions. For the same reason Gujarat,
unlike Maharashtra and other states, never saw
any reform movement. The reform movement which
brought into existence Swaminarayan sect, itself
was very conservative religious reform movement.
Today Swaminarayan movement is most popular and
hegemonic in Gujarat. Swaminarayan temples are
being built wherever these Patel Gujaratis live
spending crores of rupees. Huge complexes have
come into existence.
Thus Gujarat never experienced modern reform
movement like Bengal or Kerala or Maharashtra or
Karnataka. And hence the vice-like hold of
conservative religion on Gujarat. Narendra Modi
has shrewdly exploited this for his political
rise. Also by organizing 2002 carnage of Muslims
he built his charismatic image and now he is
shrewdly combining it with his development
discourse.
M.P. and Rajasthan also will face election soon.
These states are very different both in economic
and political sense. M.P. has already seen change
of three chief ministers and the present one
carries the stigma of being corrupt as he is
facing serious corruption charges. He cannot
claim charismatic position as Modi enjoys in
Gujarat. Same is the story of Rajasthan. Both in
M.P. and Rajasthan still feudal culture is quite
strong and modern capitalistic development does
not have attraction as Gujarat has.
In Rajasthan VHP tried its best to convert into
Gujarat and often held out this threat but it
never succeeded. Mrs. Vasundhara Raje Scindia
could hardly employ Hindutva discourse as she
comes from a ruling family of Gwalior and has
very different experience. Modi, on the other
hand, belongs to low Hindu caste of Gujarat and
in order to rise to higher status, can employ
reactionary religious ideology without any qualms
and seek his own revenge for being humiliated all
through history.
In U.P. there is no question of BJP using Gujarat
model. It has, in Mayawati, met more than its
match and she is going strong and has
Dalit-Muslim and a section of upper caste votes
also. Also, leaders like Rajnathsingh or Kalyan
Singh hardly can claim charisma as Modi enjoys.
And in present day U.P. it is not possible for
BJP to organize Gujarat like genocide to gain any
charisma.
Thus it will be seen that Gujarat is what it is
on account of its own specificities and BJP's
dream of repeating Gujarat can hardly be
fulfilled in other states.
______
[6] Orissa:
(i)
Kashmir Times
January 2, 2007
Editorial
FASCISTS STRIKE IN ORISSA
Secular political parties must expose their designs
The persistence of trouble in Western Orissa
after the shameful incidents that started on
Christmas eve with the damage to churches and
attacks on the Christian minority by Hindu
fascists, that continued despite the curfew, is
not only a cause for concern but is also an eye
opener, revealing how deep the sectarian and
communal divide is being deliberately allowed to
flourish in this country. This is especially so
in pockets where the Hindutava organizations have
been able to spread hate soaked ideology based on
prejudices and myths, and left un-countered by
the secular forces on the scale that these should
be opposed. Barring a handful of groups working
on the ground against the hatred and violence
perpetrated in the name of caste and religion,
this evil of communalism and sectarianism,
threatened more by majoritarian fascism, is
allowed to persist. The secular parties in this
country fail to go beyond the lip sympathy or the
electoral battles in trying to defeat the fascist
forces, and often miserably fail, allowing the
fundamentalists to gradually infiltrate into
positions of power - be in assemblies, civic
bodies or other grassroots institutions. The
malaise obviously exists because it is not being
treated on a war footing in any part of the
country.
The Orissa case merits special attention. Human
rights activists and grassroots organisations
working on harmonious relations between different
communities and ethnicities have already warned
that after Gujarat, Orissa may be the next
laboratory for the propagators of Hindutava. In
1999, Australian misisionary Graham Staines and
his two sons were brutally murdered by the
Hindutava followers. And that may not be the only
incident in the recent past. Western Orissa,
dominated by upper caste Hindu landholders and
traders, has been a deliberately chosen area for
preaching of communal ideology and promulgation
of Hindu militancy. Coupled with this, its tribal
areas are bogged by aggressive Hinduisation
through conversions in the last one decade. There
are about 30 dominant Sangh Parivar organisations
in Orissa that are targeting Christians,
Adivasis, Muslims, Dalits and other marginalised
sections, mostly by rhetoric based on propaganda
but sometimes these tirades also assume violent
forms. The followers of Hindutava, like
fundamentalists from any groups or religions, do
not hesitate in perverting and defaming history
with concoted lies and injecting several myths
that seek to brand the Muslims or Christians as
'other', 'foreigner' and 'terrorists', Dalits as
'filthy' and tribals as people who were once
Hindus and need to be re-converted. So when on
Christmas eve, the Hindutava forces chose to
attack the Christian minorities in Western
Orissa's Kandhamal district, it should have come
as no surprise even as the scale of violence was
shocking. However, shock and condemnation alone
cannot amend things or reverse the trends that
this pernicious ideology has unleashed, whether
it is Orissa or anywhere else. The malaise is too
deep to be treated superficially or simply leave
it to electoral politics, that has only
contributed in creating further polarization
between communities and castes. In fact,
electoral politics, as of Gujarat, has had larger
ramifications, not only in that state but
elsewhere in the country where the fabric of
communal harmony is too fragile. This problems
that has dangerous repercussions needs a
consistent strategy and a grassroots networking
to be countered.
The Hindutava ideology, or any other fascist
propaganda, can be competed only if the secular
forces are willing to beat the fascists at their
own game. The Sangh Parivar has been working for
decades, capitalizing and flourishing on the
social insecurities and panic in a land of
inequalities. It has woven a solidarity network
on basis of myths propagated about glorious past
of Hindus, essentially upper caste Hindus, and
lies about the other castes and communities. Much
of this is done in the name of social work,
promotion of culture and often through perverting
the school curriculum and books introduced in the
large number of schools run by the Hindutava
organizations. Though human rights groups have
been working very successfully in certain pockets
of the country to counter this trend, these
groups do not have the kind of grassroots
networking as the secular political parties do,
and this is what has been left un-utilised. Cue
can be taken from the past. After Mahatama
Gandhi's assassination in January 1948, it was
Congress led by Jawahar Lal Nehru who sought to
use the political machinery of the party to
counter the threat of communalism. Nehru
mobilized Congress committees that were virtually
converted into anti-communal fronts to make
people aware about the dangers of the pernicious
ideology of the RSS and its other sister
organizations. Other secular fronts and
individuals were also involved. Govind Sahai of
the Congress took on the task of monitoring this
awareness campaign and toured throughout the
length and breadth of the country, distributing
pamphlets and holding rallies to educate people
and warn them against the devious designs of
fascists. Amidst xenophobic tendencies of a
growing number of groups, we need to adopt a
similar strategy and follow it with the
conviction and consistency that it demands.
o o o
ORISSA: ANTI CHRISTIAN VIOLENCE
by Ram Puniyani
Gladys Stains is a name etched in our memory for
wrong reasons. Her husband and two sons were
torched to death around a decade ago in Keonjhar
Manoharpur Orissa. She wrote to Prime Minister
Man Mohan Singh recently, to ensure that communal
peace is restored in Orissa. This she did in the
backdrop of the scattered attacks on Christians,
over 40 churches torched in Orissa (24 Dec.
2007). In the violence which broke out, many of
the people have been severely injured. Some of
the priest and laity have run for shelter,
leaving their homes and hiding in the forests in
the biting cold. All this has happened in the
Adivasi area in and around Phulbani and
Kandhamal. The timing is around the Christmas
celebrations, 2007.
It is no coincident that the BJP is part of the
ruling coalition in Orissa, and those involved in
the vandalism are part of some or the other
organization directly affiliated with the RSS.
The major such are Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram, Bajrang
dal and their local variants. While the media
reports are sketchy, the Citizens Inquiry team,
which was to visit the area has been denied
permission to visit the districts and was
escorted out of the area.
The attacks on minorities and weaker sections is
launched for short term or long term political
goals, but the care is taken that a pretext is
manufactured and then the attacks are unleashed.
In this case it has been said that Swami
Lakkhanand was attacked by Christians and so the
retaliation. One is supposed to believe that a
Swami from the majority community, with sizeable
following, will be attacked by the section of
miniscule minority!
The Christmas season is the chosen time for anti
Christian attacks. Earlier also such occasions
have been chosen for beating and attacking the
Christian community, notably in Dangs in 1998.
This time in Phulbani area the declarations being
made by the Swami and associates is that the
presence of Christians will not be tolerated in
the Adivasi areas.
The visible attacks on Christian minorities
started from 1996. The areas selected for these
attacks have spread over from Gujarat, Dangs on
the extreme West, to the Orissa on extreme east
of the tribal belt. It is in these areas that
anti Christian violence have been going on in
scattered form since then. Most of these acts of
violence have a bit different characteristic,
i.e. unlike the anti Muslim violence which is
more in the cities and occurs as spurts of
killing hundred or thousands in a single go, here
the cauldron is kept boiling continuously, The
intensity is that of a slow but sustained
intimidation and attack.
The most ghastly anti Christian violence was that
done by Bajrang Dal activist, Dara Singh, who
instigated the Adivasis and led the burning of
Pastor Graham Stewart Stains. He and his
organization kept propagating for months that
pastor has come from Australia for converting the
gullible Adivasis to Christianity, that his work
amongst the leprosy patients is just a ploy to do
his ?real work? of conversions. The Wadhwa
commission, appointed by the NDA Govt. with
Advani as the Home minister, in the aftermath of
this brutal killing, concluded that the pastor
was not involved in any conversion activities and
that the percentage of Christian population in
the area has remained static despite the Pastor
working in the area.
At national level the attacks on Christians have
been investigated by different civic groups,
compiled in 'The Politics behind Anti Christian
Violence' (Media House, Delhi) Most of the
reports conclude that the attacks have been
deliberately stepped up in the Adivasi areas. The
main targets of these attacks are the Christian
missionaries working in the area of education.
The contrast is very glaring. The city based
Christian mission institutions are upheld and
respected for their contribution in the area of
education, while in the Adivasi areas the same
are being hounded out. The reports also observe
that the RSS affiliates have been trying to do
anti Christian propaganda along with Ghar Vapasi
(re-conversion in to Hinduism) campaign. The
major work of Ghar Vapasi has been undertaken in
the BJP ruled states, or in the states where BJP
has been sharing power. The subtle assistance of
the state machinery in the anti Christian tirade
is always at the service of RSS affilaites. The
Ghar Vapasi asserts that Adivasis are basically
Hindus, who had to flee to the forests to escape
the conversion by Muslim invaders, so they are
'nationally' Hindus, who have forgotten the Hindu
rituals and gods and so have fallen low in the
hierarchy of Hindu religion. This ritual of
re-conversion is supposed to religiously restore
them to their old Hindu glory!
The case of Orissa was specifically investigated
by India Peoples Tribunal, led by Justice
K.K.Usha (retired) of Kerala High court in 2006
(Communalism in Orissa) This tribunal forewarns
about the shape of things to come. " The tribunal
assessed the spread of communal organizations in
Orissa, which has been accompanied by a series of
small and large events and some riots?such
violations are utilized to generate the threat
and reality of greater violence, and build and
infrastructure of fear and intimidation." It
further notes that minorities are being grossly
ill treated; there is gross inaction of the state
Govt to take action. Outlining the mechanism of
the communalization, it points out, ?The report
also describes in considerable detail how the
cadre of majoritarian communal organizations is
indoctrinated in hatred and violence against
other communities it holds to be inherently
inferior. If such communalization is undertaken
in Orissa, it is indicative of the future of the
nation? the signs are truly ominous for India?s
democratic future.? (p 70)
In these Adivasi areas swamis have made their
permanent Ashrams, Lakkhanand, in Orissa,
Assemanand in Dangs, and followers of Asaram bapu
in Jhabua area to name the few. Also Hindu
Samgams, congregations, are being held, the
culmination of which was the Shabri Kumbh in
Dangs where thousands of Adivasis were brought.
In those areas the Hindutva organizations spread
the intimidating rumors that those who do not
attend these functions will be dealt with in due
course. Interestingly these are precisely the
areas which are the poorest; these are the areas
where the problem of land, education, water and
food is the highest.
Anti Christian violence is in the continuation of
RSS agenda of Hindu Rasthra, Pehle kasai Phir
Isai (First the Muslims then Christians). There
is an additional factor in the anti Christian
violence. One concedes that there may be many a
Christian groups who might be focusing on the
conversion work, within the bounds of Indian
constitution, of course. But one has to note that
in India, over all population of Christian
minorities is declining over a period of last
four decades, ( 1971-2.60%, 1981-2.44% ,
1991-2.34%, and 2001-2.30%). While Christianity
is a very old religion here, during last nineteen
centuries or so only 2.odd percent have become
Christians.
The major problem is that the effort of
missionaries to reach education to the adivasi
areas. Educated Adivasi, empowered Adivasi will
be more aware of her rights and that's precisely
what RSS combine cannot stand.
That the tiny minority can be a threat to the
huge majority of Hindus is quiet a concoction.
There is a need to deal these violations of human
rights firmly, there is a need to curb the hate
other propaganda in these areas and of course the
need to promote modern education and other
welfare schemes in these areas. Christmas which
should be a festival of joy is being turned into
an annual ritual of violence and mayhem by the
RSS combine.
--
Issues in Secular Politics
January 2008 I
______
[7] ANNOUNCEMENTS:
(i)
Dear
Friends,
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP)
invites you to a Consultation on the National
Agenda the civil society should like to put
before the political organizations.
The meeting will also assess the programmes made
by the political parties that are participating
in the general election as well as the stand
taken by parties that are boycotting the polls.
The meeting will take place at Dorab Patel
auditorium (107, Tipu Block, New Garden Town,
Lahore) on January 04, 2008, from 10 a.m. to 2
p.m.
We regret the notice is short but the party
positions became public quite late and our plans
to meet on 29 December were upset by the 27
December events.
Kindly confirm your availability to the undersigned.
Outstation participants will have their air fare
reimbursed and will be offered hospitality for
one night, if needed.
Looking forward to your participation.
Zaman Khan
Coordinator
--
(ii)
Dear Friends,
My film ' Baphlimali 173 ' is being telecast on
NDTV tomorrow .The film will air on Thursday,
January 3rd, at 9:30 pm and repeat on Sunday,
January 6th at 1:30 pm on NDTV 24x7.
The film is being telecast to mark the
anniversary of the 14 tribals killed in police
firing on January 2nd, 2006 in Kalinga Nagar,
Orissa, during protests against Tata Steel.
'Baphlimali 173' is a film about the resistance
movement of the Kashipur adivasis in South Orissa
against bauxite mining and aluminum companies.
'Baphlimali 173' helps us understand tribal
consciousness in the face of present day
globalisation by providing a glimpse into one of
the first anti-mining tribal resistances that
began around the hill Baphlimali which contains
173 million tons of bauxite.
Please inform those who may be interested.
regards
Amar Kanwar
New Delhi
India
Email :
<mailto:amarkanwar at gmail.com> amarkanwar at gmail.com
--
(iii)
Dear Friend, December 31, 2007.
The Coalition for nuclear disarmament is holding
its 3rd national convention during February 1 - 3
2008 at Vasant Rao Despande Sabhargraha in Nagpur.
The convention is divided into plenaries and
workshops. The programme including the proposed
chairs, speakers and initiators for the workshops
is attached herewith.
Knowing your deep commitment and expertise in
your area of interest, we are requesting you to
kindly accept and confirm your participation in
the assigned plenary / workshop.
Please note that all speakers are being allotted
15 – 20 minutes maximum. The chairperson will
introduce and sum up.
Unfortunately we are not in a position to pay for
the travel. All participants have to arrange for
themselves. However, our hosts in Nagpur are
taking care of accommodation and food at their
expense.
Do confirm your participation by phone or email or post to:
CNDP office.
A- 124 / 6 1st Floor
Katwaria Sarai,New Delhi 16
Phone – 011- 26517814
e mail – <mailto:cndpindia at gmail.com>cndpindia at gmail.com
Local contact in Nagpur
Jammu Anand – 09923022545 and Prakash Meghe - 09823014009
Yours fraternally
Anil Chaudhary
For & on behalf of the NCC – CNDP
Day 1: Feb 1, 2008
9:30 – 10:30 Registration
10:30 Welcome
10:45 Explanation of Programme and the functions
of the various necessary standing committees
dealing with various process during the
convention.
10 50: Concise report of CNDP activities since the last National Convention
11: 00
Session 1: "Nuclear Disarmament - The State of the World"
Chair - Admiral Ramdas
Speakers -
1. J. Sri Raman 2. Jean Dreze
3 Abdul Nayyar 4. N.D.Jayprakash
5. M.V. Ramana
13: 00 LUNCH
14 : 30
Session 2: "Indo-US Nuclear Deal".
Chair - Aruna Roy
Speakers
1.. Praful Bidwai 2.. Sukla Sen
3.. Prabir Purukayastha 4.. Kamal Mitra Chenoy
5.. Sandeep Pandey 6. G. Subramaniam
Note :
Achin Vanaik is a standby in case of
unavailability of any speakers in session 1 & II
John Hallam as standby speaker for 1st plenary
17:30 Cultural activities / Rally
2nd Day : Feb 2,2008 Parallel workshops
Session 1 10:00 – 13:00
1.. Palestine issue
Irfan Engineer & Feroz Mithiborewala
2.. Iran -
Qamar Agha, Mazher Hussain & Christopher Fonseca
3.. Millitarization / Nuclearization of South Asia
Anuradha Chenoy, A.S.Verma, Kavita Srivastava & Karamat Ali
4.. Terrorism issue and its misuse for US imperial purpose
Achin Vanaik & Anil Chaudhary
Session II – 14:30 - 17 :00
1.. Nuclear Energy – Developments in India and the World
D. Raghunandan, M.V. Ramana, Michael Koberlein & Praful Bidwai
2.. Uranium Mining in India
Satyalakshmi, Sri Prakash, Ghanshyam Biruli & Illina Sen
3.. Health and Radiation issues
Dr. Shakeel Ur Rahman & Sangamitra Gadekar
4.. Peace Education
Lalita Ramdas, Shalini Advani, Anuradha Sen & Sandeep Sethi
17 :30 – cultural activities
3rd Day : Feb 3, 2008
10.00 - 13.00
(The process of the deliberations will be decided
in due course of time and through wider
consultation)
1. Discussion on organizational matters:
i.e. structure, sharing of responsibilities, role
of state chapters, and their relationship with
national coordination committee, functioning of
secretariat of NCC, and finances.
2. Discussion on 'boundaries' and/or 'limits' of CNDP mandate.
3. Presentation and discussion on
resolution(s) facilitated By - Drafting committee
: (Sukla Sen / Achin/ Subhu/ M.V.Ramana)
_____
_____
_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/
Buzz for secularism, on the dangers of fundamentalism(s), on
matters of peace and democratisation in South
Asia. SACW is an independent & non-profit
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