January-March 2007
the almost-a-rape of democracy in india
the almost-a-rape of democracy in india
March 20 2007 (Tuesday)
What happened last week in
Nandigram village in West Bengal state of India is one of the many
culminating results of a hideous obsession with a single top-down model of
development as initiated and thrust upon the country in the last decade by
the likes of prime minister of India, Manmohan Singh, finance minister P.
Chidambaram and deputy chairman of Planning Commission, Montek Singh
Ahluwalia.
In my understanding, many
many development projects and special economic zones (SEZs) are simply
excuses to loot the land and resources of India and its non-urban (and
urban-poor) people through a widespread abuse of democracy. Ecology
considerations are also given a reckless and dangerous go-by by the
central government of India and the country's various state governments.
The three newsreports whose
cut-and-paste I give below brings out some facets of the Gestapo-like
operation carried out in Nandigram village by the Communist Party of India
(Marxist)'s state government in West Bengal implicity supported by the
Congress-Allies-led central government in Delhi (this is not to say that
the Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP as it is commonly referred to as, or
other political parties in India, would have done anything different).
1] http://www.calcuttaweb.com/nandigram.shtml
That night in Nandigram
Soumitra
Basu, Editor, Anyaswar
Published
in : www.guruchandali.com
(in Bengali)
It
is a story of that horrific night. The night of 14th of March, 2007. After
the completion of "Operation Nandigram" in broad day light, CPM
called a local 12 hour strike (bandh) in Nandigram. A bandh was called in the evening hours in such
a remote place where people mostly keep themselves indoor after sunset.
Why was that called then?
After
the first bout of police action in the daylight when the news came that
around 60 were killed, the second phase and the most horrendous phase was
waiting to happen.
Meanwhile,
the number of casualties as stated by media gave rise to enough confusion.
Dainik Statesman (the Bengali Statesman) put
the number to 31. The TV channels [private] displayed 18. TARATV
correspondent Gourango, who was apprehended by the police and was handed
over to CPM goons and then (on live TV) was thrashed and foul-mouthed by
CPM, puts it off the record as 100+ and on the record as "could not
count". TARATV correspondent Subrata put the number as
"uncounted" as he explained no one could say and knew the exact
figure. The state government spokesperson (Mr Vora) went back to the
number 6 and then said that is what he was informed and he would inform
the press some time later!
Subrata
and Gourango of TARATV were in the field. This is the horrendous facts
that they had to say. They put self-imposed censorship on themselves as -
"I have stopped telling the media what I saw and ought to have told
them; there is no chance people and our viewers would believe. Their is a
limit to human belief. They will take me as a mad babbler! I myself am not
convinced of what I saw, heard and went through. It was like a nightmare
and I wish all that I saw and heard was simply a delirium."
As
a matter of fact, they vomited several times in the hotel they stayed, not
because of the threats by the CPM goons but because what they saw and
heard and the language of threats by the CPM goons who besieged them in
CPM party office in Nandigram.
"Bands
of CPM goons aided by platoons of Eastern Frontier Rifles and Commando
forces were entering every village and paras [mahallas]. They brought the
men out of home, they took no prisoners, no witnesses, they shot them,
bayoneted them, ripped apart their stomachs and then laid them down the
canal to the sea and confluence. They then brought out the young girls,
gathered them in open space, raped them multiple times till the girls
collapsed, they then tore their limbs, in some cases cut them to pieces
and let them down the Haldi river and/or Talpati canal. They made sure
that there were no witnesses. And even if there were some, they know that
the young girls in traditional Medinipur would never come out to say what
really happened and who will believe. Nobody will corroborate and those
who will speak out will be killed and tortured again. CPM and police then
wrapped the entire village with their red banners showing that the area
was secured and their writ will run. Those who fled the villages were
mostly apprehended on the outskirts or on the boundaries and no one knows
what happened to those poor souls. We could hear these facts only from
those who could crawl the whole way out through fields and forests. Even
that is difficult now as the fields are all dried up and the crops have
already been reaped. Anyone running is easily visible.
Even
though innumerable, official count of rape could be obtained as six,
because these are the ones who survived to tell their tales and they are
around middle aged women who somehow were spared from being butchered and
minced to pieces. The process followed in villages after villages and to
our utter astonishment the process continued till next morning. All the
correspondents were removed. Sukumar Mitra, a journalist from Dainik
Statesman ran his way out amidst flurries of bullets. He was specifically
hunted and somehow could manage to sneak out. The ferocity of this attack
was so grizzly that the residents of that area was simply not believing
anyone to open their gab. Fear is made a weapon for a social-censorship.
Haripur
is a nearby subdivision. This area is earmarked for nuclear power plant.
People of that region has also come up in protest. Most of them are
fishermen. They have stopped going to the confluence and the sea. They
feel that human bodies are everywhere in the confluence and the worst is
that the crocodiles,gharials and sharks are now rushing towards
that spot from far away Sunderbans. These animals rush for fresh blood.
The fishes will be eaten away by these reptiles and there is a high
possibility of these getting netted instead of fishes. The Haripur will be
out of livelihood for at least a week or so, and this was premeditated by
the CPM administration to teach Haripur a lesson. Haripur is the place
which shooed out even Central teams and even bigger police forces. This
was a lesson to teach both Nandigram and Haripur together. No sign of any
dead bodies would ever be found, no proof of rape will be there. The real
number of casualties can only be revealed at least three months after, and
that too if peace comes into stay, and if the residents could come back
and then count the missing. But after CPM has "secured" and
"liberated" those areas, the evicted will not be allowed to come
back and these properties will be given to the CPM goons from Keshpur and
Garbeta and neighbouring places. The permanency of mopping up strategy is
how CPM will ensure that Nandigram and Haripur will be secured for
electoral battles in the future."
This
is more horrendous than partition story. The journalists all are aware of
this but they cannot come out with these stories. CPM will ensure that
these journalists are hunted down and wiped out of existence. They have
already started to threaten all journalists and intellectuals who have
gone against them.
Let
us not draw parallels from the history! I do not know who will believe how
much, but I have mentioned the sources and you all are welcome to verify
them through the references I have provided.
2] http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=227407
Villagers say more people died, many bodies removed after police firing in
Nandigram: Medha
by Subhendu Ray
Kolkata, March 18 2007: The death toll in Wednesday’s police
firing at Nandigram would go up if a proper investigation is conducted
into the cases of missing locals, social activist Medha Patkar today told
Newsline on her return from a fact-finding mission to affected villages.
Officials put the death toll at 14, but Patkar, who met
Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi today, dismissed the figures. She demanded a
judicial inquiry led by a sitting Supreme Court judge, and also sought an
official notification on withdrawal of the Special Economic Zone (SEZ)
project in Nandigram.
Patkar gave reports on the findings of National Alliance of
Peoples’ Movements (NAPM) to Governor Gandhi. NAPM comprises social
activists from across the country.
On her way back from Raj Bhawan, she told Newsline that the
organisation is opposed to industrialisation at the cost of livelihood,
food security and marginalisation of villagers.
“We were told by the villagers (in Nandigram) that many
locals cannot be traced since Wednesday’s tragedy,” Patkar said.
“The villagers fear these missing persons were killed and their bodies
were later removed. We want a detailed investigation into all missing
cases, with a house-to-house survey by an independent agency.
“The locals told us they suspect that the bodies have
been buried in trenches near Bhangabera canal — these should be
immediately dug up.
“People in Sonachura village said as many as 35 children
are missing as are many bodies of people killed in police firing that day.
There are cases of missing children from other villages, too.”
According to Patkar, many women in the area reported rape
by police personnel. She said women of Gokulnagar and Sonachura villages
told her that they are still receiving threats from local CPI(M)
activists.
According to Patkar, locals claim the police entered
Sonachura and Gokulnagar villages from Khejuri and Tekhali respectively.
Both Khejuri and Tekhali are known as CPI(M) bases in the area.
The Patkar-led team has also demanded the formation of a
concerned citizens’ committee with prominent citizens to begin the
process of restoring normalcy in the affected areas.
Meanwhile, expressing satisfaction over the Governor’s
stand on the issue — Gandhi had criticised the government machinery
after Wednesday’s incident — Patkar said, “The Governor should
intervene when any case of human rights violation takes place.”
The Indonesian Salim Group has been allotted space to set
up a chemical hub in Nandigram. The local Save Land Committee, led by
Trinamool Congress, is resisting the move, which has triggered several
skirmishes this year, finally snowballing into Wednesday’s incident.
3] http://theseoultimes.com/ST/?url=/ST/db/read.php?idx=4993
Alarm
Bells Sound in Nandigram for Indian Democracy
By Bobby Ramakant
Public Health Writer
The state of west Bengal has waged a
war against farmers with an intention of occupying their farm land, fish
ponds, homes and hearths. In spite of the rhetorical statements by the
Chief Minister of WB that he would consult and convince the people, the
State government claiming to be leftist by ideology, has resorted to
brutal and barbaric way of using police force and party cadres to attack
the unarmed, non-violent farmers, fish workers, labourers and artisans in
the district of East Midnapore for grabbing their land.
14 people, all villagers, were
reported to be killed. Civil society organizations claim there are more
than 50 dead so far in the mindless frenzy unleashed by police and
administration on people of Nandigram.
The people from generations old
communities who have a golden history of freedom movement and martyrdom
are being not only forced but killed by the "free Indian state"
which is shameful for the Indian democracy and its people. Imposition of
industrialization, with or without SEZ, as also real estate-development,
is to kill farm land and farming as a way of life.
This brutal attack is being condemned
by civil society organizations across India, and also expatriates with
forums as those of DailySouthAsian and AID India flooded with outcry to
lobby pressure for action and justice. "CPM must be compelled to stop
murdering farmers immediately and held accountable. Such state fascism and
corporate war against people can't and must not be tolerated" said
noted social activist Medha Patkar.
Medha continues to add that there is
going to be a demonstration in Delhi beginning on March 19 in support of
all people's movements against displacement in India. The charter of
demands include:
- That the Union of India and UPA
through the PM, Sonia Gandhi and others must immediately intervene and use
various restraining measures in their hands to compel the CPM government
to stop the murderous attack.
- Legal action must be taken against
all responsible for the killings including the CM, West Bengal
- That the National Human Rights
Commission will send a team for urgent enquiry and take action. We assert
that SEZ Act should be repealed and projects with conflict between the
state and the people should be put on immediate hold across the country.
An enactment on Development Planning, based on the draft submitted to the
National Advisory Council under the Chairmanship of Smt. Sonia Gandhi
should be taken for consultation with people's movements and approval.
The West Bengal state stands charged
with culpable homicide in Nandigram. The people's demands included:
- Immediate police withdrawal from
Nandigram
- Police officers be held accountable for the massacre
- Judicial enquiry into the massacre be conducted immediately.
- Due punishment be meted out to offenders
- Public apology by the CPM
- Halt land acquisition right now
- Repeal the SEZ act that has already caused so much blood shed
It is a shame that police
administration and our elected representatives continue to thwart people's
struggles and instead of protecting democratic rights of our people, they
are overtly active in protecting vested interests of corporations.
Another noted social activist and
Magsaysay Awardee 2002 Dr Sandeep Pandey reasserts that
"industrialization is not an alternative to agriculture." Even
pro-industrialists need food to eat, not machines.
Febrary 9 2007 (Friday)
I saw Parzania movie today. Its on a middle class family getting shattered in the horrendous genocidal violence inflicted by Gujarat's chief minister, Narendra Modi, on the minority citizens of Gujarat in February-March 2002. Parzania is a movie which I will not hesitate watching multiple times for the close-to-reality portrayal of the horrors of that time. In fact I would like to watch the uncensored version of the movie (what I saw in the movie theatre today had many cuts forced upon the filmmakers by the official Censor Board and more so by the hooligan unofficial censors emanating from Modi's team, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal, Bharatiya Janata Party and the wolf-in-sheep's-clothing Congress-cum-allies.
The only other film made on Gujarat Genocide 2002 is Dev which was released around two years ago. But what struck me particularly about Parzania is that it minces no words in illuminating some of the harsh truths (which I am sure would be more pronounced in the uncensored version). And in this respect it surpasses Dev. Also, the direction, music, acting in Parzania is competent and moving. Sarika is deeply moving in her portrayal of the missing boy's mother.
Parzania is a must watch. If it goes out of the theatres buy the DVD/VCD as and when available.
There is an excellent documentary film too -- Final Solution by Rakesh Sharma -- on Gujarat Genocide 2002 that is worth watching and whose DVD/VCD is worth purchasing.
Two comprehensive non-film reports on Gujarat Genocide 2002 are here and here. Such events are a part of a vicious cycle of violence that our Earth's human inhabitants have been carrying out against each other for thousands of years. Yet when I see it happening it at close quarters in my country I can not but feel anguished. When the brutal bomb blasts took place in Bombay's suburban train in July 2006 I wrote something about the factors, causes and the vicious cycle.
"in SEZ scheme the tax exemption amounts to a loot..."
January 7 2007 (Sunday)
I attended a public discussion day before yesterday (January 5 2007, Friday) in Bombay's Xaviers College on 'State, Development and People's Movements' in which Medha Patkar was one of the speakers. I present below some excerpts from her talk which I could jot down in my notepad. at the discussion a note on the Singur issue was handed out which can be read here (in English) or here (in Hindi).
Medha Patkar: "after the secular-communal divide in the country is the divide on the issue of development...its not about Singur (in West Bengal where Tata Motors has been illegally given a 1000 acres fertile land belonging to farmers) only...in Weste Bengal itself, 38,000 acres of land is being given to New KolkataInternational Development Pvt Ltd (name cleverly changed from Salim Group of Indonesia against whom the government was made to back out earlier)...another 40,000 acres is being given for a nuclear plant...things are changing fast in the name of development...in fact, it is looting...things have reached at such a serious state that in in Narmada, Singur (West Bengal), Pune and Raigad (Maharashtra), Punjab and Haryana, landowners or land cultivators, whose lands are sought to be grabbed under the Special Economic Zones Act or for dams and other development projects, are forced to say that they will resort to anything but not give up their lands...meanwhile arrogant state talk on SEZs continue...
what we are seing today is that the state powers-that-be are playing out a dangerous game against the people themselves from whom they got the power in the first place...the legalised noose of land-grabbing is hanging on all our heads...do not the people have a right on the natural resources around them?...land-grabbing is done strategically and cunningly by politicians, industry and their agents...in Lonavla (Maharashtra), for example, the agents of politicans and industry heads are buying lands on the periphery of the disputed SEZ-declared area...every acre of land is a land of 'sabyatha' for farmers...when i and few others went to Nandigram (where a chemicals SEZ is being set up) in West Bengal we were continuously, without-a-break, accosted and watched by state police forces as if we were terrrorists...but i say that even the policemen and policewomen who are set after us day in and day out are victims of the state policies...
in SEZ the tax being exempted for the industry is a loot in disguise...the fights you read about in the media between Chidambaram and Kamal Nath or between Kadam and Deshmukh on the tax issue are not genuine fights...they do not emanate from conceptual oppositioin to SEZ...
talk of accountability is selective...if the ransacked office of CPM (Communist Party Marxist which is in power in West Bengal) office in Nandigram open to everyone (police, media and pubic) for investigation then why is Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure imposed on Singur making it illegal for anyone to even visit the area...if this goes on then there will be no choice but for protests like that seen in nandigram to take the shape of a confrontation...
equitable and sustainable land use policy is needed without delay..."
newsreport on gorai special economic zone
January 5 2007 (Friday)
One more SEZ (special economic zone
scheme of the central government of India) approval that is manipulative and illegal. This one is at Gorai area (at Borivli-Bhayander West) in Bombay.
Here is a newsreport in Bombay's 'Afternoon' newspaper on the
matter:
Medha to lead protestors at Gorai
BY A STAFF
REPORTER | Thursday, January 04, 2007
11:30:50 IST
Like the Shingur incident, a similar
controversy may grip
The rally would be organised
protesting the allotment of 5,000 acres of land of eight villages to the Pan
India Tourism ltd (Essel World) by the government, under its controversial
scheme. This would be affecting over 75,000 residents living in the area since
decades. The residents are furious as they would be displaced as soon as the
land is allotted.
Manori, Gorai, Uttan, Dongari, Pali,
Tarodi, Chowk and Morva, are the eight villages that would be affected. The
Koli community, tribals and slat producers mainly inhabit these villages.
Lourdes
Dsouza, Head, Dharavi Beth
Bachao Samiti, said, "Today in the evening members of Jagatik Virodhi
Kriti Samiti Maharashtra (JVKSM) will visit these areas and
will join our protest. We have been doing our business here since many
decades
and we will not leave our land at any cost." JVKSM had recently visited
the Pen area in Raigarh which is being planned to be allotted to the
Reliance
group under the SEZ scheme.