Slum dwellers' demands met, Medha Patkar ending fast

There is good news from Mumbai.

The Maharashtra government has conceded Medha Patkar’s demand, paving the way for ending her nine-day old fast in support of the residents of Golibar colony,

A settlement was reached last night and it was agreed that the Maharashtra Chief Secretary would meet Medha today with an official notification incorporating the terms of the settlement.

Adv Kamayani Bali Mahabal writes:

A big thank you to our Chief Minister, Prithviraj Chavan! He has set the wheels of justice turning.

The Government has conceded to the demands of the movement. After nine days of fast by Medhatai Patkar and relay hunger-strike by nearly 1,200 people today at the
dharna site, and protests and demonstrations in different cities, and thousands of letters and faxes to the CM, the Government of Maharashtra agreed to constitute two new joint committees with the representatives of the civil society.

The following are the terms of the settlement:

1) Accepting the proposal for 25 settlements and some more to be given in next few days to be declared as slums under the Maharashtra Slums Act, 1971 after due process, within three months.

2) A meeting chaired by the Chief Secretary to be convened along with National Alliance of People’s Movement (NAPM) members, Central Government officials and state officials on June 10, to consider implementing the Rajiv Gandhi Awas Yojana.

3) Activation of the existing High Powered Committee, chaired by Chief Secretary, to amend or suggest new slum policies to government of Maharashtra.

4) Two Committees to be constituted - one four-member Committee for Ganesh Krupa Society and another five-member Committee to look into 15 societies / bastis where 3K projects are to be implemented – in Golibar, Antop Hill, Ghatkopar West, Kurla, Andheri West, Bandra East and others.

All demolitions will be halted until then.

We thank Medha and everyone who has supported this movement which reiterated that the Right to a Home is a basic right.

After the formalities are completed, the demolished homes will be repaired so our elders and children can be sheltered from the monsoon rains!

Adv Kamayani Bali Mahabal
+919820749204

Goof-up on terrorism front

BRP Bhaskar
Gulf Today

With multiple threats from domestic and foreign militant outfits, India is at the top of the list of terrorism-affected nations of the world. Reports that cast doubts on the efficiency of its security agencies and the efficacy of its counter-terrorism strategies are, therefore, a source of worry.

In March India had given Pakistan a list of ‘50 most wanted men’ which it claimed were hiding in that country. It included the names of Feroz Abdul Rashid Khan, who was said to be wanted in connection with the Mumbai blasts of 1993, and Khan Wazhul Kamar, said to be wanted in connection with the Mulund train blast of 2003.

When the report was being drawn up Feroz Abdul Rashid Khan was in Mumbai’s Arthur Road prison and Wazhul Kamar was living in Thane after having been arrested and released on bail. When Kamar’s presence in Thane was reported, the Central Bureau of Investigation, the premier investigative agency, sought to lay the blame for the goof at the door of the Maharashtra police, which, it said, had failed to inform it of the arrest of the man, for whom the Interpol had issued a red corner notice.

When Feroz Abdul Rashid Khan’s presence in jail came to light, the CBI was left with no escape route. For, it was the CBI which had arrested and lodged him there. It will be wrong to assume that the mistakes that crept into the list of wanted men are a sign of incompetence. They are more likely the result of lack of effective co-ordination among the many police forces under the state and central governments.

The CBI, which was set up as a special police establishment directly under the Centre with authority to investigate any case referred to it, has a pivotal role in tracking fugitives who flee the country as it is the agency that liaises with Interpol.

The faulty list of wanted persons given to Pakistan was drawn up on the basis of red corner and lookout notices the CBI had sent to Interpol. Every member country of Interpol has an obligation to arrest a person against whom a red corner notice has been issued if he is found in its territory.

About 550 red corner notices issued by the CBI are currently pending. Only a few of them relate to cases it is investigating. Most relate to cases being investigated by various states. When a state government has reason to suspect that a wanted person has left the country, it informs the CBI, which, as the nodal agency, issues a red corner notice or lookout notice to Interpol.

The first to come on the scene when an act of terrorism takes place is the state police. If it is felt necessary to entrust the investigation to a central agency, the CBI or the recently established National Investigation Agency may take over.

Apart from the investigative agencies of the central and state governments, intelligence outfits are also involved in the fight against terrorism. Among them are the Intelligence Bureau, which is under the Home Ministry, and the Research and Analysis Wing, which is under the Prime Minister’s office. The IB is concerned with domestic intelligence and RAW with foreign intelligence.

There have been occasions when central intelligence officials overstepped their authority and intruded into the area of investigation. An IB officer played a dubious role in the sensational espionage case in which two scientists of the Indian Space Research Organisation and two women from the Maldives were among the accused. Even after the Supreme Court upheld the CBI report absolving the accused, he had tried to revive the case.

The Home Ministry has initiated corrective measures in the light of the revelations of the past week. But there is nothing to indicate that the government is ready to review its counter-terrorism strategies which have been criticised for their likely counterproductive results.

In a report, published early this year, Human Rights Watch documented many instances of rights violations committed by state police and other authorities, including arbitrary arrest, torture, and religious discrimination. HRW South Asia Director Meenakshi Ganguly pointed out that such unlawful responses could alienate the people and allow the real perpetrators of crimes to remain free and pose an ongoing threat to public safety. -- Gulf Today, Sharjah, May 23, 2011.

Rally in Delhi to demand democracy in the forests

About 3,000 adivasis and forest dwellers from across the country gathered at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi, today to protest against the blatant and criminal resource grab of the Central and State governments.

The following is a communication from Campaign for Survival and Dignity, which organized the demonstration:

Braving intense heat and travelling for days on end packed in trains, our people came to Delhi to condemn the blatant criminal looting of our resources by these governments. Joined by leaders of the the Gondwana Ganatantrak Party, the CPI, the CPI(M), the CPI(ML) Liberation as well as other organizations, the protesters rallied at Jantar Mantar till 3 pm and then marched towards Parliament, where they courted arrest and were detained by the police.

Two delegations of the protesters presented the demands to the President and to the Secretary of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.

Simultaneously, more than 3,000 people joined a protest called by the Campaign's Odisha state federation in Bhubaneshwar, on the same issues, and presented a memorandum to the State Governor.

The participants in the Delhi protest had come from Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. They raised the fact that both the Central government and the State governments are brazenly violating the law and people's rights in order to keep their control over forests and forest lands. The government's entire agenda is dictated by the interests of capital - especially private industry - and the state machinery, particularly the Forest Department, and it will stoop to anything to grab more and more forests and lands for these interests. With every passing day, whether it is the POSCO project, so-called "afforestation" programs across forest areas or illegal eviction of forest dwellers in various States, the state machinery continues on its grossly illegal drive to seize control of our homelands.

CPI(M) Politburo member Brinda Karat, CPI National Secretary D. Raja,and Girija Pathak of the CPI(M-L) Liberation addressed the protesters and called for a joint struggle by the movements gathered today and all people's forces to demand that the government respect justice and the rights of forest dwellers.

Brinda Karat declared that the government was putting the entire burden of implementation of the law on to the people throwing the law to the winds.
Raja said the struggle for democracy in the forests is an integral part of the struggle for a true democracy in this country.

Girija Pathak condemned the government's neoliberal approach and the manner in which it acts as a handmaiden to private capital even in violation of laws and people's rights.

Hirasingh Markam, Dhirendra Singh and other leaders of the Gondwana Ganatantrak Party also addressed the protesters and called for an intensified struggle to secure justice for adivasis.

For 150 years the forest dwellers of this country have fought for justice and for democracy in the forests. Today was one more moment in that fight. With every day our struggle grows stronger and wider. The state and the ruling class must realise that the days of loot, plunder and pillage are numbered. The people are rising, and however many lies they tell about "development" and "conservation", however many times they break their own laws, however many times they beat and kill us, the struggle for justice cannot be crushed forever.

Demands of today's protest:

1. The Forest Rights Act should be implemented in all forest areas, including protected areas, and the rights of all forest dwellers must be recognised. All Forest Department interference, illegal demands for unnecessary evidence, and illegal rejections should be halted.

2. All rejections and cases where people received less than the area claimed should be reviewed.

3. The gram sabha's powers to manage, control and protect forests and other natural resources must be respected, and displacement should be halted.

4. PESA should be implemented and scheduling extended to all adivasi areas.

5. CFR rights should be recognised for all villages and habitat rights recognised for all PTGs.

6. Takeover of forest land for industries, plantations, so-called "critical tiger or wildlife habitats" and forced eviction of people must be stopped and those responsible for these acts should be prosecuted. The conhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifsent of the gram sabha for diversion and compliance with the law should be required in every case.

7. Joint Forest Management should be shut down. The money channeled to the Forest Department for JFM should be transferred to the Employment Guarantee Act and the rights and power of the community to manage forests should be recognized.

Campaign for Survival and Dignity
Contact: 9873657844, forestcampaign@gmail.com

Medha Patkar detained, on fast at police station

Medha Patkar was detained by the Maharashtra police while on her way to the Golibar slum area where Shivalik Ventures demolished 11 houses yesterday and 12 persons were arrested.

Medha and about 50 slum residents who were with her were taken to the Kheruvadi police station. They are on an indefinite hunger-strike in the police station.

The following is a communication received from the National Alliance of People’s Movement in this connection:

“Today the bulldozers of Shivalik Ventures continued to demolish houses in the Golibar slum area, where yesterday 11 houses were broken down and nearly 12 people were arrested.

“Medha Patkar and nearly 50 people from other bastis were on their way to the Golibar area when they were detained and put in Kheruvadi police station. Frustrated with the constant violation of the laws and open support to the Shivalik Ventures which has been riddled with corruption, as mentioned in the letter written to Chief Minister Prithviraj Chauhan yesterday, Medha Patkar and others have started indefinite hunger-strike in police custody.”.

NAPL has appealed to all to write to the Chief Minister demanding immediate stoppage of the demolitions and release of all people arrested and detained yesterday and today.

For details, please contact Prerna Gaikawad 9221958763 in Golibar or Dinesh Shinde in Kheruvadi police station with Medha Patkar 9221001717.

Details regarding the Khar/Golibar struggle are available at http://khareastandolan.wordpress.com/

The following is the text of the letter Medha Patkar wrote to the Chief Minister:

Dear Shri Prithviraj Chavanji,

I have been reading about the good decisions of yours to review the 3-K schemes, rather scams and we welcome this courageous decision. While two of these are cancelled, enquiry of Shivalik Ventures is apparently, on. It is already an established fact that the builder, with the name changed many times and so was the enterprise (SVI Realties, Shivalik Ventures, Shi. Ventures Private Ltd., Lifestyle Realty) has committed serious criminal offences in the process of seeking approval. The Slum Rehabilitation Authority, to the Mantralaya, all have favoured the builder.

Its also seen and exposed from the letter of the Directorate of Income Tax that UNITECH has made 50% of the investment, that too by collecting advances through Neera Radia! It thus can be covered in the enquiry on the 2 G spectrum scam.

Another level of fraudulent sanctions is of the co-operatives in the Golibar region. Preparing fake documents of General Body meetings with false signatures, cheating the private owners and co-operatives member's, putting thousands of people in the transit camps, violating the rules, but also constructed on the land belonging to the Defence Ministry (Air Force) or the Railway Ministry etc......are also thoroughly assessed and exposed by us as well as the concerned authorities. FIRs filed are being investigated into, based on the High Court orders in certain cases.

In this context, while the Project deserves cancellation and legal action, its shocking that the Additional Collector, Mr. Rokhade is again issuing notices for demolition and tomorrow morning again the massive police force is to be deployed for the same. These colonies of families settled 70-100 years ago, are not "encroacher's slums", but pucca houses erected out of sweat and blood of toiling people.

The land grabbers, eyeing on this land, just 3 kms away from the airport, are up with all political pressures and interests, to not just evict, but destroy the lives of thousands of families. This must be stopped and questioned. While we are to fight the battle tooth and nail, as we did in January last, we expect you to issue immediate orders to stop the demolition during the inquiry and further take appropriate steps to cancel the Shivalik project at Golibar, to save life and shelter of the thousands of families from the jaws of land sharks. This battle, would otherwise catch fire with all the builders and all the affected shall join the people of Golibar with women at the forefront.

With Regards,

Medha Patkar

Nationwide action from May 22 to August 18 seeking repeal of AFSPA

The National Alliance of People’s Movement has called for nationwide action from May 22 to August 18, 2011 in support of the demand for repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, a colonial law which the Indian government still invokes 64 years after gaining Independence.

The following is a statement issued by NAPM in New Delhi on Tuesday in this connection:

On May 22, 1958 the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, a colonial law used against Mahatma Gandhi, was re-promulgated through an ordinance initially in the Naga areas of Assam (later divided between four states) and later in Mizoram, then in parts of Manipur and later in all of Manipur. The ordinance, after a brief discussion in Parliament, was endorsed and got the status of Act on August 18, 1958, despite stiff resistance from various quarters who challenged it as a martial and draconian law.

Since then it has been in force in one part or the other of the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Jammu and Kashmir (since 1991) -- even though continuation of the 'disturbed area' status under AFSPA in many parts of the country is illegal in view of violation of the mandatory six monthly periodic review directed by the Supreme Court in its 1997 judgment.

AFSPA continues to be the most potent repressive tool of the Indian state that empowers even a non-commissioned officer of the armed forces of the Union to kill on mere suspicion and provides him legal immunity from prosecution, thereby causing untold misery and agony to the peoples in the affected regions. The imposition of AFSPA is synonymous with heavy militarization leading to gross violations of civil and political rights including enforced disappearances, extra-judicial execution, torture, inhuman and degrading treatment, rape and other forms of sexual violence against women, arbitrary arrest and detention. All this together has meant severe economic, social and cultural cost including erosion of civil administration, lack of access to education, basic health care, destruction of properties and sources of livelihood, and environmental destruction and 'normal' functioning of democratic institutions in these areas.

The continued and selective use of AFSPA against communities who have been demanding self-determinations rights is a cause of worry in the context of the increasing militarization of the society in the subcontinent especially after 9/11 and the growing communalization of the polity in India as a whole and suppression of people's democratic rights in the name of national security.

This law is more draconian than its predecessor ordinance used by the British to suppress the Quit India Movement. On the pretext of controlling insurgency, this Act has helped to intensify the insurgency in the region and legitimized thousands of gross human rights violations like rape, torture, murder and “disappearances” of innocent people in the Northeast and J & K. The democratic movements in the Northeast and J & K have consistently demanded the repeal of the Act and demilitarization for decades.

Continuing with our efforts for establishing democratic values in the society and in solidarity with the struggles of democratic movements of Northeast and J & K National Alliance of People’s Movement (NAPM) calls upon the Government of India :

1. To repeal immediately
• The Armed Forces (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura) Special Powers Act, 1958 (as amended in 1972), and
• The Jammu and Kashmir Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1990

2. To refrain from inserting any part of the Acts into any other legislation granting unbridled powers to the armed forces of the union or the State police.

3. Immediately work out and announce a phased, time-bound demilitarisation plan to withdraw the Army and other paramilitary forces from internal security duties in NE states and J & K.

It needs to be noted that AFSPA is not only opposed by the movement groups and the rights bodies but also by the Government’s own commissions and committees appointed to look into the matter. For example, the Committee to Review the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, headed by Justice B. P. Jeevan Reddy in 2005, the Administrative Reforms Commission headed by Dr. Veerappa Moily in 2007 and several others have damned the use of AFSPA and demanded immediate measures for its withdrawal from civil areas.

Internationally, the UN bodies including the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and recently the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders have consistently urged its repeal. However, all these have gone to the deaf ears of the Government.

Along with the struggles of millions of people against the militarization and AFSPA, the fast by Irom Sharmila Chanu has crossed 10 years. She has been force-fed through her nose by the Government, arrested and charged with attempt to commit suicide, criminalized as a high security prisoner, denying her access to family, friends, supporters and the media. It is a shame that in this land of Gandhi, a non-violent protester has been subjected to such humiliation for more than ten years. Even as she continues her struggle along with many in the NE and J & K, we appeal to our comrades in human rights groups and people’s movements across the country to demand repeal of AFSPA along with other draconian laws like UAPA, MCOCA, CSPSA and others and resist the increasing militarization of democratic spaces.

You can join us by organizing

1. Public protests, dharnas, relay fasts in your area

2. Public meetings and seminars on AFSPA and Irom Sharmila demanding the repeal of AFSPA

3. Performances of the solo play `Le mashale’ on Irom Sharmila by Ojas S.V. Write to her meetojas@gmail.com or call 020 - 24251404
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4. Painting exhibitions on Irom Sharmila. The exhibition can be downloaded from: http://www.e-pao.net/epGallery.asp?id=1&src=AFSPA_Related/Neogene201102

5. Screening if films on AFSPA. Copies of the video films are available from: email: insafdelhi@gmail.com or phone: 011-26517814

6. Public signature campaigns and sending them to the Prime Minister, the Defence Minister, the Law Minster, the Home Minister and the National Human Rights Commission

7. Issuance of statements by well known writers, intellectuals, film personalities, theatre people, musicians and other artists

8. Any other form of action that you may find appropriate to strengthen democracy in this country

Medha Patkar, Sandeep Pandey, P Chennaiah, Gabriele Dietrich, Suniti S R, Sister Celia, Rajendra Ravi, Bhupendera Singh Rawat, Mukta Srivastava, Faisal Khan, Anand mazgaonkar, Madhuresh Kumar

http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

For details contact or write to napmindia@napm-india.org | 9818905316

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Mobile +91 9818 905316 | 011 2624 1167
email : napm.madhuresh@gmail.com | napmindia@gmail.com
Web : www.napm-india.org

Read NAPM's News magazine, Movement of India @ http://issuu.com/MovementOfIndia

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Understanding Civil Society action in the Binayak Sen case

By Ilina Sen
freebinayaksen.org

The case of Binayak Sen ( by this I mean the legal case as well as the whole body of civil society reaction across national and social boundaries) is in many ways a landmark in Indian jurisprudence. Apart from the personal pain and agony that I have gone through, in being witness to Binayak’s uncalled for incarceration and unjust conviction, the case has also intellectually challenged me along with many other citizens of my country and forced so many of us to look critically at the laws and statutes that govern our lives.

It has brought into the limelight the outdated provisions of the sedition law in India, and today our Law minister has gone on record as saying that this law needs urgent revision if not scrapping, in keeping with the spirit of the times. Many of us who are not legal professionals have looked into our statute books and discovered horror chambers in sections penalizing thought / action against ‘any Asiatic Power’ in alliance with the government of India. This particular statute obviously dates from the time when the British crown and the crown in Moscow were locked into the ‘great game’ over the control of Afghanistan, and reminds us that the Afghan people have been pawned in many games but that no game player has historically succeeded in selling them down the river.

We have also been forced to look at the way our lower courts function – at the way the police and the prosecution work in tandem, at the way in which the established law of evidence is disregared, at bizarre new interpretations of established legal interpretations and positions. One’s mind begins to form a sneaking question whether the mandate of the court at this level is to support the police in keeping anyone labeled as guilty in custody for some years, and leave the finer points of the law of the land to higher courts of appeal.

One has seen countless cases of miscarriage of justice as well as the horrendous conditions in Indian jails at first hand.

However, Binayak’s case also stands as an example where the people of the world have stood up and said to governments ( their own as well those of their neighbours) that the state cannot get away with heavy handed authoritarianism and have the people accept that lying down. Ordinary citizens are never lawless people and appreciate the fact systems and legal structures keep us safe, yet when these same laws become instruments of injustice rather than justice , we all feel it is time for us to stand up and make our concern felt. Civilized democratic societies and established political structures are all products of a social contract between the people and the structures of governance, with the ultimate power resting in the will of the people. Here we have seen how in city after city – In India, Asia, Europe, Australia and America- people have stood up and said that is unacceptable for governments to exercise the power we give them in this way. I see this as a step in the re negotiation of the social and political contacts of governance, of which there are many other manifestations in our times. For me this has been the most important learning, the most important outcome of the case.

Binayak joins me in greeting all of you, many friends whom we have met, and many others whom we have not, yet who are together with us in a spirit of common good.

Sent for presentation at the UK Seminar on “‘Dr Binayak Sen and the use of ‘Sedition’ Laws to Persecute Human Rights Activists in India” on May 14, 2011.

People prevail over system

BRP Bhaskar
Gulf Today

Voters in four Indian states and one Union Territory which went to the polls over the past month demonstrated yet again that they are capable of choosing wisely, keeping in view the public good, even amidst cacophonous campaigns.

In West Bengal, they booted out the Left Front, led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist, which they had voted to office in election after election during the past three and half decades.

In Tamil Nadu they threw out the discredited government of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and gave a resounding victory to the All India Anna DMK, which has been alternating in power with it for decades.

In Kerala, they administered a rude shock to the Congress-led United Democratic Front, which was hoping for an easy return to power after five years in the opposition. As it happened, the UDF scraped through with 72 seats against the CPI-M-led Left Democratic Front’s 68 seats.

In Assam, they gave a rare third term to the Congress, with an improved majority which frees it from having to rely on a regional ally for an absolute majority in the Assembly.

In the Union of Territory of Puduchery (formerly Pondicherry), they dumped the Congress and plumped for the breakaway faction led by N Rangaswamy.

On a superficial view, these are mixed results but a close look reveals a common resolve on the part of the voters to rise above petty loyalties and transient sentiments and choose the best option in the given circumstances. Overcoming the cynicism engendered by the there-is-no-alternative theory propagated by political establishments of all hues, they adroitly engineered results that convey a clear message: don’t take us for granted.

The Left Front had established a solid popular base in Bengal’s countryside by initiating radical land reforms soon after it first came to power in 1977. There was no looking back thereafter. The CPI-M’s well-oiled machinery made sure that the alliance romped home every time elections were called. The opposition accused it of rigging but the Election Commission’s observers found no evidence of major irregularities.

The cosy situation that ensured the Left Front’s unbroken reign ended when the government, eager to generate employment opportunities, decided to acquisition farm land and turn it over to domestic and foreign promoters to set up industries. When farmers resisted, the police and CPI-M cadres unleashed a violent campaign to suppress the farmers’ resistance. The party was unprepared for the backlash it produced.

Mamata Banerjee, a Congress woman who had broken away from the party accusing it of pussyfooting, took upon herself the task of challenging the might of the Left. The Trinamool Congress, which she founded in 1998, soon outgrew the parent body, and became the state’s main opposition party.

The Election Commission staggered polling in the state over several days to ensure close and prevent malpractices. The Trinamool Congress registered an impressive victory, winning 184 seats in the 294-member house. The Congress, which accepted the role of junior partner, got 42 seats. The Left Front got only 63 seats.

The DMK faced the elections with its reputation sullied by corruption charges. A Raja, one of its ministers in the Central government, is now in jail as an accused in the 2G case. Chief Minister M Karunanidhi’s daughter and MP, Kanimozhi, is also an accused in this case. The DMK attempted to bribe its way back to power but was rebuffed. The AIADMK and its partners made a sweep with 203 seats in the new Assembly against the DMK-led alliance’s 31.

Every election held in Kerala in the last 30 years has resulted in a change of government. The LDF, which, under Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan’s leadership, launched a vigorous campaign this time for a second successive term, came close to breaking the established pattern.

The people voted the UDF to power by a slender margin, clearly showing signalling that the choice before them cannot be reduced to one of picking the two fronts alternately. They are ready to give a front a second term if it lives up to their expectations.

Having lost control of West Bengal and Kerala, the CPI-M now wields power only in the small state of Tripura, which has the same area and population as Lebanon.

While the Congress can rejoice over the gains in Assam, its dismal showing in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puduchery and in two by-elections held in Andhra Pradesh reflects poorly on the national leadership’s management of state party affairs. -- Gulf Today, Sharjah, May 16, 2011.

Green Warrior on the retreat

BRP Bhaskar
Gulf Today

Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh, who had earned the praise of activists by seeking strict enforcement of forest and environment laws, last week gave the go-ahead for two controversial projects, reversing his earlier decisions, apparently under pressure.

On May 2 he allowed Odisha (formerly Orissa) to make available 1,253 hectares of forest land to South Korea’s Pohang Iron and Steel Company (Posco), which is to set up a giant steel plant in the state. Land acquisition for the project had been stopped in August 2009 after he directed that there should be no diversion of forest land in violation of the Forest Rights Act.

On Friday he lifted the stop-work order issued to the Maheshwar Hydel Power Corporation Ltd last year as its promoters had not complied with the conditions of environmental clearance, especially those relating to relief and rehabilitation of persons affected by the project.

The Maheshwar dam is part of the massive Narmada Valley development project which provides for the construction of 30 large and 135 medium-sized dams. The project has been at the centre of a decades-long agitation by the displaced tribal population under the banner of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (Save Narmada Movement).

Jairam Ramesh’s new order refers to many letters Madhya Pradesh’s Bharatiya Janata Party Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan and former Congress Chief Minister Digvijay Singh had written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urging continuance of the project. It also mentions a series of review meetings convened by the Prime Minister’s Office. This indicates that he has issued the order under relentless pressure.

Environmentalists have charged that the centre with clearing the two projects on the strength of false declarations made by the states about relief and rehabilitation.

The Posco plant will deprive about 50,000 farmers of Jagatsinghpur, Keonjhar and Sundargarh areas of their means of livelihood. One of the large dams under the Narmada project, the Maheshwar dam is expected to displace about 35,000 people.

The agitations against the two schemes have attracted international attention. Civil society groups in South Korea are among those who have extended support to the movement against the Posco project. The US power utility Ogden Energy Group, which was to have funded 49 per cent of the equity for the Maheshwar dam, had pulled out in 2000 in view of the widespread local opposition. It was the fourth investor group to withdraw from the project.

Campaign for Survival and Dignity, a civil society group backing Adivasi movements in the country, has pointed out that the new order relating to the Posco project is against the Supreme Court-appointed committee’s recommendation that, instead of making piecemeal allocation, the land required for the steel plant and for mining must be assessed and a decision taken on land diversion after considering the impact on ecology and the rehabilitation and resettlement plan.

India enacted a series of laws to protect its forests and the environment at the instance of prime minister Indira Gandhi immediately after the Stockholm summit of 1972, which she had attended. However, corporate promoters of projects found it easy to bribe their way out of their legal obligations. The state governments often ignored the agonised cries of forest-dwellers and environmental activists. Appeals to the judiciary, too, yielded only partial relief.

Jairam Ramesh, on becoming minister in charge of Environment and Forests in May 2009, initiated a series of steps which gave rise to hopes of strict implementation of laws. While environmentalists began to look upon him as one fighting on their side, the development-at-any-cost school dubbed him a “green fundamentalist.”

Ironically, the Green Warrior has beaten a retreat even as the government claims to be pushing for tight controls. Last week the central government said in future it would not give environmental clearance for mining and industrial projects needing more than 40 hectares of forest land unless the promoters first obtained a certificate from the forest department stating how much forest would be diverted.

India, striving to catch up with the advanced nations, needs to remember that it is working under different conditions. The United States has about 30 per cent area under forest, as against 21 per cent in India. Its population density is only 34 per square kilometre as against India’s 324 per sq km. China, with a population density of 140 per sq km, is trying to raise its forest cover of 18 per cent to 26 per cent by 2050. --Gulf Today, Sharjah, May 9, 2011.

Partisanship mars democracy

BRP Bhaskar
Gulf Today

India’s successful conduct of massive elections has earned praise, and countries like Egypt and Nigeria are trying to profit from its experience as they seek to democratise their political systems. But, then, democracy means much more than holding elections at regular intervals. It calls for an ability to rise above narrow loyalties with common good in view.

When the Indian constitution, which incorporates the good practices that evolved in all democratic societies, was finalised, its chief architect, BR Ambedkar said, howsoever good the document might be, it would turn out to be bad if those called upon to work it were a bad lot. Six decades later those words ring ominously true.

As the country grapples with the menace of growing corruption, there is unabashed display of partisanship by both the ruling coalition and the disparate opposition. They are more interested in scoring political points than in bringing to justice those who loot the public.

The 2G scam, brought to light by the Comptroller and Auditor General last year, is the biggest corruption case in India’s history. In a 77-page report tabled in Parliament, the CAG had slammed Communications Minister A. Raja for causing the state a presumptive loss of Rs1,766 billion in 2007-08 through allocation of second generation (2G) and dual technology licences.

The 2G allotment irregularities were already before the Central Bureau of Investigation but it was dragging its feet. Public interest petitions brought the Supreme Court into the picture and its observations after scrutiny of relevant documents forced the CBI to act. Raja, who belongs to the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the ruling party of Tamil Nadu, resigned. He and several of his aides are now in jail awaiting trial.

The way the government and the opposition responded to the CAG report is a sordid story of political one-upmanship. Under the constitutional scheme, CAG reports are referred to the public accounts committee (PAC), which is headed by an opposition member and includes members from both the houses of Parliament.

The PAC’s mandate is to look into government spending and ascertain whether there had been any loss or irregularities. In view of the limited scope of PAC examination, the other opposition parties demanded the constitution of a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) to go into the matter. The government refused. Determined disruption of Parliament’s budget session by the opposition forced the government to yield.

As the PAC, headed by Bharatiya Janata Party leader Murli Manohar Joshi summoned officials of the Prime Minister’s office (PMO) to testify, JPC chairman PC Chacko of the Congress asked that it pull back. He argued there was no need for parallel investigations by two parliamentary bodies.

Joshi turned down the suggestion and speeded up PAC work to finalise its report before his term as chairman expired on April 30. (He was yesterday renominated as chairman for another year.) Congress and DMK members created a ruckus and blocked examination of PMO officials. Nevertheless Joshi went ahead and produced a draft report.

The PAC meeting called to discuss and adopt the report broke up in confusion. Joshi left the meeting with his supporters when he found that Congress and DMK members, who had won over Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party members, were determined to block the report. In the absence of the chairman and his supporters, the remaining members adopted a resolution rejecting the report. Yet Joshi forwarded the draft report to Speaker Meira Kumar. She must now decide what to do with it.

It is not unusual for parliamentary committees to divide on party lines. Such bodies often arrive at decisions not by vote but by consensus. The well established practice is to prepare a report incorporating the majority viewpoint and for those with reservations to append dissenting notes.

Both the majority and the minority in the PAC are in breach of convention. How the Congress party earned the support of two parties and chalked up a majority in the committee is not known. It should cause no surprise if it transpires that it resorted to means that do not accord with democratic norms.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who protected the tainted DMK minister until it became impossible to do so, too has not emerged as a reliable upholder of democratic norms. Politicians guided by partisan considerations are dime a dozen. The Prime Minister must be a statesman who is guided by considerations of public good. -- Gulf Today, Sharjah, May 2, 2011.

Tardy response to concerns

BRP Bhaskar
Gulf Today

It was a bridge player who once said “Learn all you can from the mistakes of others. You won’t have time to make them all yourself.” Indian policy-makers too can profit from this advice. Across the country, concerns over nuclear and other hazards are erupting into protests. The government’s tardy response to them betrays an inability to learn from other people’s mistakes.

In Maharashtra, people are agitating against a nuclear plant being set up at Jaitapur in the Ratnagiri district. Last week police fired on protesting villagers, killing one. Two former high court judges and a former Navy chief who were to lead a three-day march from Tarapur, near Mumbai, where the country’s oldest reactor is located, to Jaitapur were arrested.

Kerala is observing anti-endosulfan day today (April 25) to press the demand for a countrywide ban on the pesticide which has ruined the health of a large number of people. The issue has become a bone of contention between the state and the Centre, and Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan has said he will fast during the day.

India, which has 17 operational atomic power plants and two under construction, plans to boost nuclear energy output from 4,000 megawatt to 47,000 megawatt over the next 40 years to meet the country’s galloping power needs. The civilian nuclear agreement with the USA, concluded in 2008, cleared the way for its implementation by ending the embargo on nuclear trade imposed on the country in 1998 following weapons tests.

As the tsunami strike at Japan’s Fukushima installations heightened concerns over nuclear safety across the globe, the anti-nuclear and environmental groups in India urged the government to reconsider its plan.

Although Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asked nuclear scientists to review the safety systems but it soon became evident that a serious re-think is not on the cards.

The Indian government has repeatedly sought to reassure the public about the safety of the power stations. However, there are doubts about the wisdom of relying entirely on the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, which is under the Atomic Energy Commission and headed by one of its officials.

The government has ignored the demand to set up an independent body to oversee nuclear safety, as several other countries have done. The International Atomic Energy Agency has an integrated regulatory review service, which provides for peer review of member-countries’ nuclear and radiation regulatory infrastructure against international standards. India has not made use of this service.

The Jaitapur plant will have six reactors, each with a capacity of 1,650 megawatt. When completed, with a total capacity of about 10,000 MW, it will be the world’s largest nuclear power station. The estimated cost is Rs687 billion.

Anti-nuclear groups have questioned the viability of the project. According to them, power generated at Jaitapur will cost Rs5 to Rs8 per kilowatt/hour as against Rs2 to Rs2.5 for power produced at a thermal or gas plant. The Shiv Sena, a powerful regional party having entered the fray, the agitation against the Jaitapur plant appears likely to spread in the coming days.

The Kerala campaign for a countrywide ban on endosulfan coincides with the start of a meeting at Geneva where member-nations of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants are to consider the issue of a global ban on this pesticide. Endosulfan, banned in most developed countries, is still used in India and several other developing countries. It was sprayed extensively in a state government-owned cashew plantation in Kerala’s Kasergode district during 1976 and 2000, affecting at least 50,000 people. Many of them are still suffering from its after-effects.

A whole generation is growing up in Kerala with serious deformities attributable to the pesticide. The state government is faced with a demand for their rehabilitation. Kerala banned the pesticide six years ago but it is being smuggled in from other states as there is apparently big farmers want it. The state government, therefore, wants it banned all over the country.

The Central government, which is awaiting the findings of a study by the Indian Council of Medical Research, says that adverse effects have not been reported from any other state and that a countrywide ban of endosulfan is undesirable as no effective substitute is available. What is worse, at Geneva, it reportedly plans to oppose the proposal for a global ban.--Gulf Today, Sharjah, April 25, 2011.

Building BRICS of the future

BRP Bhaskarhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
Gulf Today

Foreign direct investment and development financing from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) to low-income countries are making a significant impact in some key areas, the International Monetary Fund said in a report released last week as leaders of these nations concluded a summit at Sanya in China.

The summit was the third in a series which began at Yekaterinburg in Russia in 2009 as an annual get-together of Brazil, Russia, India and China. In 2001, Jim O’Neill, head of economic research at Goldman Sachs, the global investment banking firm, had pointed out that these nations were doing better than the developed G-7 countries and predicted that the four would continue to grow faster than them in the decade ahead.

In a paper, titled “Building Better Global Economic BRICs,” O’Neill considered four different scenarios for the period and concluded that in all four the relative weight of the BRICs rises, with China in the lead and the other three also growing relative to the G-7 countries.

The acronym BRICs which he coined gained currency. With South Africa’s entry into the group at Sanya the last letter (‘s’) also got capitalised. Ahead of the five-nation meet, the Chinese Communist Party newspaper People’s Daily said the BRICS nations’ rapid economic growth, populations and contributions to the world made them “the anchor of the global economy and politics”.

BRICS hold 40 per cent of the world’s population. In 2010, they together accounted for nearly 20 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product. Thanks to their faster growth rate, the combined economy of BRICS is expected to overtake that of the European Union this year and that of the US by 2014.

According to the International Monetary Fund’s projections, by 2016 BRICS will have a combined GDP of US$ 21 trillion against $18.8 trillion of the US. A BRICS document says they are projected to pass the combined G-7 output by 2035.

A declaration issued at the end of the Sanya summit voiced BRICS’ hopes and concerns. Their hopes centred on a role in global financial decision-making commensurate with their clout as nations which currently account for 45 per cent of the world’s economic growth. Their main concern was the high volatility of commodity prices which posed a threat to the global economy.

They called for quick realisation of the IMF reform targets agreed to at the G-20 summits so as to ensure that the international financial institutions reflect the new economic realities. They sought increased regulation of derivates markets to stabilise commodity prices. They wanted the international community to work together to increase production and provide funds and technological support to developing countries to establish “a more equitable and fair world”.

Glossing over differences among themselves, the five nations agreed to use their own currencies in place of the US dollar while issuing credits or grants to one another and called for reform of the United Nations system and to restructure the Security Council by including more emergent economies so that it can deal with new challenges successfully.

China, which has foreign exchange reserves worth $ 3 trillion, is an ardent advocate of increased use of national currencies in global trade. Russia, which has used its own currency in bilateral trade since the days of the Soviet Union, also favours it. Others do not share their enthusiasm fully because of reservations over currency valuation. India wants high priority for UN reform, but China is inclined to go slow on it.

The reference to Libya in the Sanya declaration indicates the group’s potential to evolve into a political force. Opposing the Western air strikes in Libya, it said, “We share the principle that the use of force should be avoided.”

The IMF report in low income countries (LIC), released on Friday, said that while the industrialised countries remained their dominant development partners, their ties with BRICS had increased rapidly during the past decade and become new growth drivers. BRICS financing had helped boost LIC exports and productivity, it added.

Interestingly, China, which has outstripped Japan and is way ahead of the other emerging economies, explained that promotion of BRICS did not imply antagonism to the West. “China is a developing country and that fact does not change because of its rapid economic growth,” the party paper wrote. “Therefore, China does not want to be the leader or even replace some developed country.” --Gulf Today, Sharjah, April 18, 2011.

Broad-basing democracy

BRP Bhaskar
Gulf Today

The issue of appointment of a Lokpal to deal with corruption, discussed off and on for half a century, received a new impetus last week with the Indian government constituting a committee with representation for the civil society to finalise a draft law.

The government’s hand was forced by Anna Hazare, a 73-year-old social activist from Maharashtra, who staked his life on the issue. Four days after he began an indefinite fast in New Delhi, it conceded his demands, yielding bit by bit in continuous negotiations.

With the New Media and private television channels playing up the Hazare campaign, it quickly caught the imagination of the people, especially the urban youth. Solidarity demonstrations erupted all over the country spontaneously. Shedding its proclivity to procrastinate, the government responded swiftly, apparently fearing the campaign may snowball into an Indian jasmine resolution.

The establishment of ombudsman-style mechanisms at central and state levels, styled as Lokpal and Lokayukta respectively, to look into complaints of corruption and maladministration was mooted in the 1960s by an administrative reforms commission headed by Morarji Desai. The Lok Sabha adopted a Lokpal Bill in 1969 but it did not become law as the Rajya Sabha did not pass it. Successive governments introduced similar bills in the Lok Sabha on nine more occasions only to let them lapse at the end of the life of the house.

Several states enacted legislation to set up Lokayuktas, headed by former high court chief justices, but the institution has not been a conspicuous state. Its main weakness is lack of authority to punish the guilty.

It can only recommend punitive measures to the government. For a long time the Lokpal issue was bogged down in a controversy over whether the prime minister must come under its authority. The governments were generally unwilling to allow the Lokpal to look into the prime minister’s actions.

Dissatisfied with the Lokpal bill drawn up by the government, India Against Coalition, a non-government organisation, drafted an alternative Jan Lokpal bill.

The government has now set up a committee comprising five ministers and five civil society representatives to study the two drafts and come up with one acceptable to both sides. While a minister is the chairman of the committee, a former minister, picked by Hazare and his backers, has been named co-chairman.

While Hazare hailed last week’s developments as a victory of the people, a government spokesman described it as a victory of democracy.

Hazare has put fight against corruption at the top of the national agenda through his campaign, which drew wide popular support because of the seething anger generated by the many scams reported in the recent past.

Ministers, judges and high civil and military officials are among those whose misdeeds came to light during this period. The electronic media played a big part in building up popular enthusiasm for the Hazare campaign by providing continuous live coverage. Its strident campaign lit up the screen with excitement during the short interval between the World Cup and IPL cricket matches.

The New Media’s role in the campaign has prompted some to dub the New Delhi venue of the fast as India’s Tahrir Square. Others, however, disapprove of any attempt to draw a parallel with the uprising in Egypt, insisting this was a movement of Gandhian vintage. Both viewpoints betray a tendency to romanticise the event and gloss over ground realities.

While the bill drafted by the government falls short of requirements, the alternative draft of India Against Corruption is based on woolly ideas like appropriating a role for civil society in the official mechanism. The law must have teeth but they must be in the right place. There is no ground to presume that civil society is lily white.

All those who jumped into the Hazare bandwagon cannot be accepted as credible crusaders against corruption. The Opposition parties and the corporate sector, both of which endorsed the campaign, fall in this category. Few parties active in power politics can claim a cleaner record than the Congress. Unscrupulous businessmen have contributed as much to the growth of corruption as unscrupulous politicians and officials.

Elimination of corruption is but a part of the task of broad-basing Indian democracy, now largely limited to holding elections once in five years. The content of democracy will be determined not by the televised battles fought in the cities but by the struggles waged by ordinary people all over the country which receive media attention only if they erupt into violence. -- Gulf Today, Sharjah, April 11, 2011

What is this Jan Lokpal initiative?

The following is a statement issued by the Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong:

Despite corruption being rampant in the country, India still does not have an independent and credible functioning legislative and institutional framework to deal with corruption. In addition, there are several other issues like the reluctance and often inability of the investigators to undertake a proper and time-bound investigation, poor prosecution and enormous delays in the courts that render making a complaint against corruption meaningless and often a demoralising experience in India. Above all, external interference and influences, both in the form of political and non-political interventions is yet another curse that any action against corruption would normally face in India at the moment.

Mr. Anna Hazare's fast, that started on 5 April and joined by hundreds of civil society groups across the country and abroad, and by even more number of ordinary individuals demands an end to the regime of corruption in India. A team of social activists, human rights defenders and ordinary people with extraordinary courage have come together and formed what is called India Against Corruption. The website of the group could be viewed at: www.indiaagainstcorruption.org (Due to overwhelming number of visits the server of this site might require multiple attempts to load.)

Details about who is this humble, but brave gentleman who has shown the extraordinary courage to challenge the regime of corruption in India through a most humble but extremely powerful form of protest of fasting is available at: www.annahazare.org

The Jan Lokpal Bill is a law proposed by the civil society in India, which they claim is a model law, if implemented is capable of dealing with corruption.

The salient features of this law as claimed by India Against Corruption are:

1. An institution called Lokpal at the centre and Lokayukta in each state will be set up;

2. Like Supreme Court and Election Commission, they will be completely independent of the governments. No minister or bureaucrat will be able to influence their investigations;

3. Cases against corrupt people will not linger on for years anymore: Investigations in any case will have to be completed in one year. Trial should be completed in next one year so that the corrupt politician, officer or judge is sent to jail within two years;

4. The loss that a corrupt person caused to the government will be recovered at the time of conviction;

5. How will it help a common citizen: If any work of any citizen is not done in prescribed time in any government office, Lokpal will impose financial penalty on guilty officers, which will be given as compensation to the complainant;

6. So, you could approach Lokpal if your ration card or passport or voter card is not being made or if police is not registering your case or any other work is not being done in prescribed time. Lokpal will have to get it done in a month’s time. You could also report any case of corruption to Lokpal like ration being siphoned off, poor quality roads been constructed or panchayat funds being siphoned off. Lokpal will have to complete its investigations in a year, trial will be over in next one year and the guilty will go to jail within two years;

7. But won’t the government appoint corrupt and weak people as Lokpal members? That won’t be possible because its members will be selected by judges, citizens and constitutional authorities and not by politicians, through a completely transparent and participatory process;

8. What if some officer in Lokpal becomes corrupt? The entire functioning of Lokpal/ Lokayukta will be completely transparent. Any complaint against any officer of Lokpal shall be investigated and the officer dismissed within two months;

9. What will happen to existing anti-corruption agencies? CVC, departmental vigilance and anti-corruption branch of CBI will be merged into Lokpal. Lokpal will have complete powers and machinery to independently investigate and prosecute any officer, judge or politician;

10. It will be the duty of the Lokpal to provide protection to those who are being victimized for raising their voice against corruption.

The complete text of this model law could be downloaded here. Jan Lokpal Bill

The Government of India has also proposed a law. It is widely held as a week law, often also referred to as 'eyewash' legislation. The features of this law, once again provided by India Against Corruption are the following:

1. Lokpal will not have any power to either initiate action suo motu in any case or even receive complaints of corruption from general public. The general public will make complaints to the speaker of Lok Sabha or chairperson of Rajya Sabha. Only those complaints forwarded by Speaker of Lok Sabha/ Chairperson of Rajya Sabha to Lokpal would be investigated by Lokpal. This not only severely restricts the functioning of Lokpal, it also provides a tool in the hands of the ruling party to have only those cases referred to Lokpal which pertain to political opponents (since speaker is always from the ruling party). It will also provide a tool in the hands of the ruling party to protect its own politicians;

2. Lokpal has been proposed to be an advisory body. Lokpal, after enquiry in any case, will forward its report to the competent authority. The competent authority will have final powers to decide whether to take action on Lokpal’s report or not. In the case of cabinet ministers, the competent authority is Prime Minister. In the case of PM and MPs the competent authority is Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha, as the case may be. In the coalition era when the government of the day depends upon the support of its political partners, it will be impossible for the PM to act against any of his cabinet ministers on the basis of Lokpal’s report. For instance, if there were such a Lokpal today and if Lokpal made a recommendation to the PM to prosecute A. Raja, obviously the PM will not have the political courage to initiate prosecution against A. Raja. Likewise, if Lokpal made a report against the PM or any MP of the ruling party, will the house ever pass a resolution to prosecute the PM or the ruling party MP? Obviously, they will never do that;

3. The bill is legally unsound. Lokpal has not been given police powers. Therefore Lokpal cannot register an FIR. Therefore all the enquiries conducted by Lokpal will tantamount to “preliminary enquiries”. Even if the report of Lokpal is accepted, who will file the charge sheet in the court? Who will initiate prosecution? Who will appoint the prosecution lawyer? The entire bill is silent on that;

4. The bill does not say what will be the role of CBI after this bill. Can CBI and Lokpal investigate the same case or CBI will lose its powers to investigate politicians? If the latter is true, then this bill is meant to completely insulate politicians from any investigations whatsoever which are possible today through CBI;

5. There is a strong punishment for “frivolous” complaints. If any complaint is found to be false and frivolous, Lokpal will have the power to send the complainant to jail through summary trial but if the complaint were found to be true, the Lokpal will not have the power to send the corrupt politicians to jail! So the bill appears to be meant to browbeat, threaten and discourage those fighting against corruption;

6. Lokpal will have jurisdiction only on MPs, ministers and PM. It will not have jurisdiction over officers. The officers and politicians do not indulge in corruption separately. In any case of corruption, there is always an involvement of both of them. So according to government’s proposal, every case would need to be investigated by both CVC and Lokpal. So now, in each case, CVC will look into the role of bureaucrats while Lokpal will look into the role of politicians. Obviously the case records will be with one agency and the way government functions it will not share its records with the other agency. It is also possible that in the same case the two agencies arrive at completely opposite conclusions. Therefore it appears to be a sure way of killing any case;

7. Lokpal will consist of three members, all of them being retired judges. There is no reason why the choice should be restricted to judiciary. By creating so many post retirement posts for judges, the government will make the retiring judges vulnerable to government influences just before retirement as is already happening in the case of retiring bureaucrats. The retiring judges, in the hope of getting post retirement employment would do the bidding of the government in their last few years;

8. The selection committee consists of Vice President, PM, Leaders of both houses, Leaders of opposition in both houses, Law Minister and Home minister. Barring Vice President, all of them are politicians whose corruption Lokpal is supposed to investigate. So there is a direct conflict of interest. Also selection committee is heavily loaded in favour of the ruling party. Effectively ruling party will make the final selections. And obviously ruling party will never appoint strong and effective Lokpal;

9. Lokpal will not have powers to investigate any case against PM, which deals with foreign affairs, security and defence. This means that corruption in defence deals will be out of any scrutiny whatsoever. It will become impossible to investigate into any Bofors in future. Whereas a time limit of six months to one year has been prescribed for Lokpal to enquire, however, subsequently, there is no time limit prescribed for completion of trial;

10. It does not deal with corruption of Bureaucrats. Corrupt bureaucrats continue in their job without any actions against them;

11. It does not talk of investigation of complaints against judges;

12. Speaker would decide which complaints shall be enquired into by Lokpal;

13. Our entire governance system suffers from inadequate public grievance redress systems, which force people to pay bribes. Lokpal bill does not address this issue;

14. Large number of people raising their voice against political corruption is being murdered. Lokpal does not have any powers to provide protection to them;

15. Nothing has been provided in law to recover ill-gotten wealth. A corrupt person can come out of jail and enjoy that money;

16. Under the present law, there is Small punishment for corruption- Punishment for corruption is minimum 6 months and maximum 7 years.

The text of the government's Bill could be downloaded here: Lokpal Bill, 2010

The AHRC joins hands with this monumental initiative. The AHRC along with some of its partners in India has issued a statement yesterday in support of Hazare's fast, entitled: A responsible government will listen to the people. The AHRC will continue providing more updates and analysis about the issue.

Please visit www.indiaagainstcorruption.org or www.annahazare.org, and express your solidarity by joining the campaign. You can send letters -- a draft is provided at www.indiaagainstcorruption.org -- and if you are outside India, like the AHRC, you could still join the campaign by organizing activities in support of the movement in your city.

A responsible government will listen to the people, says AHRC

The following is a statement issued by the Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong:

Veteran human rights defender and anti-corruption activist, Mr. Anna Hazare has started an indefinite fast in New Delhi, on 5 April, demanding the Government of India to legislate the Jan Lokpal Bill without any further delay. The Bill is a model law against corruption, drafted and proposed by the civil society in India to the government. The Bill, if enacted by the Parliament, would create two independent institutions in the country, the Lokpal in the centre and the Lokayuktha in the states, mandated to accept complaints from the general public concerning corruption, and to investigate and prosecute persons suspected of corruption. The Lokpal and the Lokayuktha, if constituted, are conceived to be independent bodies like the Supreme Court and the Election Commission and to remain immune from any form of external influences. Several civil society groups in India have joined Hazare in his struggle.

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) along with the above named organisations expresses solidarity to the struggle and joins hands with the rest of the civil society in the country in the fight to create an environment to constitute a corruption free India. We believe that the civil society initiative in India will lead the way and will form the bedrock of inspiration for similar movements in South Asia.

Dealing with corruption is a taboo for governments that holds fort in New Delhi and at the state capitals. For the past 42 years, a draft Bill to constitute a Lokpal has been pending before the Indian Parliament. No government was interested in dealing with the subject, or if interested, was unable to get the law passed. Even though the country's economy advanced to become the fourth largest in the world in terms of GDP dollar estimates derived from purchasing power parity, India still does not have an independent functioning mechanism to deal with corruption. In that, India is one of the alarmingly corrupt countries of the world, being ranked 87 consistently for the past nine years, by global corruption monitoring agencies like the Transparency International.

Corruption and the concept of a socialist, secular and democratic republic cannot go together. Corruption undermines justice, liberty, equality and fraternity, the core values of India's constitutional framework. Freedom and sovereignty has no purpose or meaning should corruption remain the central cord with which the social fabric of a country is woven and if corruption determines the balance of power in interactions among the people and between the people and their government. Social evils like caste-based discrimination can be only addressed adequately in a corruption free environment. Rightly conceived social welfare measures will deliver timely results should corruption be brought under control. Effective control of corruption could be the silver bullet with which poverty can be eliminated. Corruption undermines fair trial and thus sustainable development and progress. A corruption free environment is thus the dream of every aam admi and in that perspective Hazare's protest represents the whole of India, including those who have formed the government and those who opposes it.

While having a legislation that envisages the constitution of independent and capable institutions is a prerequisite to contain corruption, it will be devoid of legitimacy, should it lack adequate consultation in the process and if the law does not receive the support of effective implementing entities.

A good law must ideally represent the will of the people, for which they must be heard. The collective wisdom of Indians must be thus held supreme and the civil society must take the lead to therefore consult the people, gathering opinion of what they wish to have as a corruption prevention entity in the country. The Parliament cannot and must not be held the sole representative body for this purpose, since many members of the Parliament lacks moral and legal legitimacy as they have benefited from the existing corrupt environment. It is thus for the civil society of the country to take the lead, in consultation with the government, to decide upon a transparent and mature process through which an all inclusive and time bound consultation could be held to deal with the subject.

The AHRC is of the opinion that having a law unaccompanied by an effective implementation framework is destined to fail. To begin with, the present entities in India that deals with corruption must be thoroughly scrutinised. Of particular importance are: (1) the Central Bureau of Investigation, (2) the Central Vigilance Commission, (3) prosecutorial agencies and (4) the local police. In any jurisdiction of the world where corruption has been successfully prevented, the police have been kept away from the entire process. Within Asia, like in Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea, where the governments have been successful in keeping corruption relatively low, the corruption prevention framework has completely excluded the police from playing any investigative role on allegations of corruption. On the contrary, it was the police who have been brought under the scanner and prosecuted in the first phase of controlling corruption in all the four countries. Even today, these countries keep a watertight separation between policing and corruption prevention. If the success in these countries could be emulated in India, which has been the case also in some of the western countries, the presence of police officers on deputation, irrespective of their ranks must be prevented in the whole corruption prevention apparatus. Once the corruption within the police is controlled, it is relatively easy to deal with the failing rule of law environment, that must be revived to effectively deal with corruption.

A drive against corruption must also reflect its seriousness within the prosecutorial service. The hard work and labour of an investigation will be futile should the prosecutor fail in her job. The existing standard of prosecution in the country is not capable in discharging its legal mandate. The practice of appointing special prosecutors in selected cases must be dropped. Instead, the entire prosecution service must be reviewed and its standards improved drastically, to fit a justice system that guarantees fair trial. In the excuse of easing the job of the prosecutor, processes once suggested by shortsighted government committees like the one that was headed my former judge, Mr. Malimood, must not be adopted.

The appointment of the members for the proposed Lokpal and Lokayuktha must be open, transparent and practical. It must not be based on the sheer pleasure of the government or of seniority in service, as it is the case for the CVC, nor should it be cumbersome as suggested by the Jan Lokpal Bill. A simple, transparent process must be devised. In most jurisdictions where independent and capable corruption prevention agencies exist, such processes also have been devised. Similarly, both institutions must have its own independent staff to function, appointed not on deputation from other government services as it is currently the case concerning the human rights commissions, but selected on the basis of merits and trained and equipped to discharge their job.

Indeed such processes would entail heavy expenses, which could not become a tenable excuse for a country like India, nor can the government deny such spending since it would smother the very functioning of an essential institution that the country need for its very survival and if it respects democracy as one of its founding norms. Indians might be poor India is not.

In addition to the above suggestions, an effective law against corruption must also guarantee time-bound investigation and trials. One of the curses of India's justice apparatus is the inordinate delay in investigation and adjudication, which together can take more than 20 years. In cases concerning corruption, the experience so far is that the investigation itself could take more than two decades. The law could also consider providing a wider interpretation and definition to the term 'corruption'. In today's context, corruption need not necessarily be limited to financial corruption. The country's governments are notorious for formulating polices with corrupt or otherwise malicious intentions. In that, policies that illegally profits any government or entities therein implemented through corrupt means or with malafide intentions must also be brought within the scope of corruption. Contrary to the mistaken perception that such wider definition of corruption would defeat the law, it has been successfully implemented in many countries, that has helped to bring in added responsibility and accountability within governments.

Contrary to what has been repeatedly projected by some of the political parties in the past few months, corruption in the country and its magnitude today cannot be held as the fault of any single government. Every political party in the country has an unshakable responsibility in deteriorating the conditions in India to the levels as it is today. Those political parties that pledge support today to the movement led by Hazare, understandably for sheer political mileage, have their own rotten skeletons inside their wardrobes. Yet this does not mean that these entities must not be consulted during the people's consultative process. As a citizen of the country, everyone, including those who are part of the ruling coalition today, has a right to be part of the consultation, as individuals. Preventing corruption, for that matter is not the vested agenda of any particular political party. It is a decisive cause for the country, in which every political party that believes in democracy has a responsible role to play.

The AHRC wishes Hazare good health and supports him and his colleagues in this unique movement, which has the potential, not only to change the destiny of Indians, but also that of the region for a better tomorrow. It is also the responsibility of all civil society groups inside and outside India to join the campaign and extend support to Hazare and his friends.

The AHRC call upon the government of India to ensure that all necessary steps are initiated to ensure that Hazare's fast finds a meaningful end. By doing so, the government is not succumbing to the sloganeering of the political opposition, but is respecting its people and thus fulfilling its mandate.

The Asian Human Rights Commission is a regional non-governmental organisation that monitors human rights in Asia, documents violations and advocates for justice and institutional reform to ensure the protection and promotion of these rights. The Hong Kong-based group was founded in 1984.

Opening up relations

BRP Bhaskar
Gulf Today

Days after the Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan gave a kick-start to stalled relations between the two countries at a summit on the sidelines of the World Cup cricket semi-final at Mohali, a question is already in the air: can the spirit of camaraderie generated there prevail over the long-standing animosities?

Manmohan Singh took the initiative for the summit as soon as the semi-final fixture became known, unmindful of the jingoistic build-up which accompanies cricket matches between the two countries. Yousuf Raza Gilani’s swift, positive response suggests the Pakistani leadership shares his desire to put India-Pakistan ties on an even keel.

Relations between India and Pakistan have been on roller-coaster since they emerged as free nations as the British divided and quit the subcontinent in 1947. In the first 25 years of existence they fought three wars, two of them over Kashmir. Since then nearly four decades have passed without a war. Since 2003 the guns have been silent even on the icy heights of Siachen, which has witnessed skirmishes from time to time. The period of conflict has left more vivid memories than the period of comparative quiet.

A serious peace process, which began in 2004 with emphasis on trust building, was still on when Pakistan-based terrorists struck Mumbai on November 26, 2008. India was exasperated by Pakistan’s unwillingness or inability to meet its demand for action against terror groups which it believed were behind the attack.

While the situation precipitated by the Mumbai carnage — 166 persons, including several foreigners, were killed in the attack — was not conducive to continuance of the peace process, responsible sections on both sides knew all along that there can be no solution to outstanding problems except through talks. Accordingly, efforts to resume the peace process were initiated last year.

A new road map for dialogue was drawn up at official-level talks held in February. It provides for discussion of a number of issues including Kashmir, terrorism and trade. A meeting of Home Secretaries had already been scheduled when the prime ministers met and gave a boost to the process.

The Mohali summit is a personal triumph for Manmohan Singh, whom a US diplomat put down as ineffective in a leaked WikiLeaks cable. At a time when he is under pressure domestically in the light of exploding scandals, he has demonstrated that he has the capacity to act in a statesmanlike manner on a sensitive matter.

Credit is due in equal measure to Pakistan’s civilian government which took the proffered hand of friendship. The message from Mohali is that while internal problems may cramp the style of the political leadership on both sides and limit their freedom of action they remain committed to development of good-neighbourly relations.

Even as the prime ministers were meeting at the cricket stadium, Indian security personnel picked up a Pakistan high commission driver who was found in an unauthorised area not far from there. As word of the incident reached Islamabad, Pakistani security personnel picked up an Indian high commission driver in apparent reprisal.

While the matter ended with the release of the two men, the incident served as a reminder of not only the fragile nature of the ties but also the tendency towards knee-jerk reactions on both sides which can imperil the peace process at any time.

Although new generations with no personal experience of the traumatic days of partition have come up in India and Pakistan, the Establishment on both sides is weighed down by political baggage dating back to the years of acrimony.

As Prime Minister, AB Vajpayee, leader of the Hindu rightwing Bharatiya Janata Party was in a position to deal with Pakistan without fear of attracting the charge of appeasement, and he made a bold but unsuccessful attempt to improve relations between the two countries. The circumstances in Pakistan are more favourable now than in Vajpayee’s time inasmuch as the country has a civilian government which is not as dependent upon communal elements for survival as the militant rulers of the recent past were.

With the best of will, leaders on both sides can only hasten slowly. Carefully drawn-up measures are needed to reinforce the new-found faith in bilateral talks, which was evident at Mohali. Manmohan Singh’s reported offer to his Pakistani counterpart to evolve a cooperative strategy to deal with the highly uncertain regional and global environment opens up the possibility of fashioning the relationship between the two countries on a new basis. -- Gulf Today, Sharjah, April 4, 2011.

Big Brother is watching

BRP Bhaskar
Gulf Today

When organisers of an election meeting in Kerala turned up at the venue on Saturday they found a camera team at work. The team was recording the scene at the instance of the Election Commission’s observers.

Elsewhere in the state, observers, acting on a tip-off, stopped a truck and seized election posters of a political party. The posters bore the name of a press in Thiruvananthapuram but were probably printed in neighbouring Tamil Nadu.

In Assam and West Bengal, tax officials seized more than Rs 75 million in cash from six persons. They were acting on information that the money was to be used for election purposes.

These incidents are indicative of the unprecedented measures taken by the Commission in the states of Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal and the union territory of Puducherry, which are going to the polls next month, with a view to ensuring free and fair elections.

It has set up an elaborate monitoring system to keep track of what the parties and the candidates are doing. But for the country’s democratic framework and the context of the elections, the eagle-eye watch may have raised Orwellian fears.

The Commission has already deployed General Observers and Expenditure Observers. It plans to post Micro Observers to observe the proceedings at the polling stations on the day of the poll.

In Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, it has appointed Police Observers to keep a watch on the law and order situation. While polling in Kerala and Tamil Nadu is to be completed in one day, in Assam it will be held in two phases and in West Bengal in six phases.

West Bengal, which has 294 assembly constituencies, is the largest state figuring in the election calendar. Polling in the state has been spread over a period of more than three weeks to facilitate tighter control over the process than elsewhere, taking into account allegations that the Communist Party of India-Marxist, which heads the Left Front that has been in power continuously for more than three decades, had been resorting to rigging.

The Commission has ordered that all critical election-related events be videographed. The district election officers have been asked to arrange a sufficient number of camera teams and video and digital cameras for the purpose.

The expenditure an Assembly candidate can incur is fixed by law. After the elections each candidate is required file a statement showing the expenditure he incurred. In the past, many candidates are known to have spent more than the permitted amount and withheld items of expenditure to keep his spending within the ceiling.

The scheme devised by the Commission seeks to address complaints of laxity in enforcement of the law. It has asked the candidates to open separate bank accounts for election purposes. It has also suggested that they appoint ‘expenditure agents’ to keep track of all poll-related spending.

Video teams deployed by the Commission’s observers are moving around recording campaign scenes. A ‘shadow observation register’ on spending by each candidate is being maintained. It will be available to be produced as evidence in the court if there is an election case.

District-level media certification and monitoring committees are poring over newspapers and scrutinising television programmes for evidence of ‘paid news’.

The Election Commission started looking at the ‘paid news’ phenomenon following allegations that during the 2009 elections in Maharashtra some candidates bought space in the news columns of dailies.

The Big Brother is watching. But will the new election regime work? The Bharatiya Janata Party has complained that a news channel in Assam, of which the wife of a state minister is the managing director, is doing propaganda for the Congress and that this comes within the mischief of ‘paid news’.

While the Commission has met with some success in dealing with ‘paid news’, it is aware that the problem is a complex one. Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi has stated that self-regulation by both the media and the political parties offered the best chance of eliminating it altogether.

The camera crew at the meeting venue in Kerala were thrashed by party workers. A politician with business interests caught with cash in West Bengal claimed the money was meant for his business.

The real problem is the high level of political dishonesty and low level of democratic decency, which are problems which do not admit of easy solutions. --Gulf Today, March 28, 2011.

WikiLeaks puts Manmohan government in tight spot

By Brp Bhaskar
Gulf Today

The Indian parliament was paralysed last week as the highly regarded newspaper, The Hindu, began dishing out reports based on United States embassy cables obtained from WikiLeaks.

The very first installment contained juicy material like differences between the prime minister and the national security adviser on relations with Pakistan and differences between India and the US on matters such as sharing of information relating to the 2008 Mumbai terror attack.

One report drew said the US ambassador had informed his principals that a just concluded cabinet reshuffle was “likely to be excellent” for US goals.

Both the Right and the Left came down heavily on the government. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Jaswant Singh, who was external affairs minister in the AB Vajpayee government, wondered whether India’s foreign policy was drafted in the US.

He demanded that the government either deny the reports or take action. The opposition cannot be faulted for seeking political benefit from the leaked cables. However, it cannot be said to have assessed their worth properly.

The media probably contributed to the emergence of an exaggerated view of the importance of the cables by the way it handled them.

While the team of experienced journalists who produced The Hindu’s reports demonstrated good professional judgment, its Editor-in-Chief N. Ram hyped them as “a series of unprecedented insights” into India’s foreign policy and domestic affairs, “encountered, observed, tracked, interpreted, commented upon, appreciated, and pilloried by US diplomats.”

He observed that “the trained diplomat’s eye is almost always on the ball” and went on to elaborate: “These American diplomats have been trained to listen, probe and prod, massage egos, milk sources, report, and write (supplying accessible and, at times, witty and elegant headings and sub-headings) to inform, analyse, and amuse — as though they were full-time journalists.

“Many of them work like wire service beavers: long lunches, yes, but very often, same day reports of important meetings. Few things escape their notice.”

However, some readers, in letters published by the newspaper, revealed sound understanding of the nature of diplomatic intelligence.

“Should our media, the public and MPs spend so much time over such news?” asked one.

“The observations pertain merely to interpretations of what diplomats heard and gathered from small talk and gossip,” remarked another.

The most damaging document to emerge from the India cache was not about foreign or domestic policy as such but alleged use of bribery by the Congress party to save the last United Progressive Alliance government after the Left parties had withdrawn their support in a bid to block the Indo-US nuclear deal. The cash-for-vote charge was not new.

In 2008, three BJP members had created a sensation by bringing into the Lok Sabha currency notes which they said were part of Rs30 million offered to them to vote with the government.

A parliamentary probe into the incident was inconclusive. It ended with a recommendation for further investigation.

The leaked cable said a Congress minister’s aide had shown a US embassy official two chests of currency notes kept ready to buy MPs’ votes.

The BJP and the Left parties were not impressed with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s argument that the parliamentary committee which probed the matter had found no evidence of payments. The BJP demanded his resignation.

The next day it was the BJP’s turn to squirm with the surfacing of a cable which said its leaders had told US diplomats not to read too much into their criticism of the UPA government for subservience as it was political rhetoric meant to score points.

Only about 50 of 5,100 cables accessed by the newspaper have seen the light of the day so far. It is not known how many more weeks of titillation lies ahead and how much embarrassment is awaiting whom.

While the authenticity of the cables can be questioned, the government cannot use it as an excuse to evade its responsibility to investigate crimes like vote-buying. It is another matter whether the system has the capacity to bring high-level bribe givers and takers to justice. -- Gulf Today, Sharjah, March 21, 2011

December 9 to be Human Rights Defenders Day

Dr. Lenin Raghuvanshi, Executive Director and Secretary General of Peoples' Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR), Varanasi, has demanded that December 9, the day on which the United Nations adopted the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders in 1998, be designated Human Rights Defenders Day.

He made the suggestion at a meeting of human rights defenders from different parts of India held in Varanasi under the aegis of European Union, Research and Rehabilitation Centre on Torture and Peoples Vigilance Committee on Human Rights.

He said protection of human rights defenders was a need of the hour. The state cannot evade its responsibility to take care of rights activists in the light of Article 2 of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, he added.

Mr. Chitaranjan Singh, National Secretary of Peoples Union for Civil Liberty, who presided over the meeting, asked the National Human Rights Commission to strive to be an independent investigating mechanism that can promptly and impartially investigate cases of rights violation.

Many human rights defenders like Budhiram Toppo, a young tribal activist from Sonebhadra, Govidsharan from Allahabad, Mangal Singh from Mahoba, Parvez from Kaushambi, Sanjay Singh from Jalaun, who were all victimized for their activities, narrated their experiences.

Budhiram Toppo was sent to jail in false cases, tortured and threatened for working on land rights and other rights of the tribal communities.

Sanjay Singh, who had worked with his father Lalla Singh who was killed in the course of his work as a human rights defender, was presented the Jan Mitra Samman’ at the function.

Harishchandra alias Bhothu Musahar, a victim of police torture, was also honoured and given a shawl and a cash award of Rs. 5,000.

Anil Parashar, Joint Registrar of NHRC, who was present at the meeting, said the NHRC was aware of the plight of human rights defenders and was sending its recommendations to the Central and State governments from time to time regarding steps to be taken to protect the rights of victims by way of compensation or action against the perpetrators.

Sunil Sahasrabuddhe, a reputed Gandhian activist, said it was ironic that human rights defenders faced hostilities. They were being harassed and implicated in false criminal cases. As for right to life, the situation was going from bad to worse day by day.

It was decided to convene a national level meeting on Varanasi on December 9 this year to mark the Human Rights Defenders Day and raise awareness about the rights of human rights defenders.