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STATEMENTS and appeals on the CARNAGE
:
Update: April 23, 2002
.
PUNISH
THE GUILTY OF GUJARAT GENOCIDE Sign
the online petition ! (April
23, 2002)
Call for a National Campaign For Defence of the Indian Constitution
.
AMU
Old Boys Association Assault
on Constitution and Unity-
Gujarat
Carnage and Bangalore Resolution (April
7, 2002)
.
Udit Raj Press
statement-Dalits are forced & enticed to
fight against Muslims in Gujarat (April
6, 2002)
.
Mumbai
Public
Meeting on Carnage in Gujarat and POTA
(April 6, 2002)
. Mumbai
Gujarat
Carnage-Protest March
(April 5, 2002)
.
Maitree
Statement
-- Gujarat Communal Violence
(April 04, 2002)
.
Pilgrimage
of Compassion-Gujarat
Marching
for peace (April
02, 2002)
.
Communist
Party of India (Marxist) Press
Statement (April
02, 2002)
.
Ahmedabad
Music
for Peace and Harmony
(April 01, 2002)
.
All
India Christian Council Press
Statement (March
27, 2002)
.
People for
Peace and Secularism Relay
mass fast for peace and communal harmony
(March
27, 2002)
.
INSAF
Statement
on Gujarat
(March
27, 2002)
.
Coalition Against
Communalism March
for Peace and Justice in San Francisco (March
27, 2002)
.
Jagori
Hunger
fast in Delhi (March 27, 2002)
.
Suresh
Gandhi Hamara
Hindustan?
(March 27, 2002)
.
Gautam
Navlakha POTO
Rally (March
22, 2002)
.
CHRO pledge
10 point programme to
combat Hindutva's Fascism
(March
21, 2002)
.
South Asia
Solidarity Group and Asian Women Unite London
demo (March
19, 2002)
.
Writers,
Artists, Cultural Workers Against Communalism
March to Rashtrapati
Bhawan (March
9, 2002)
.
CHRO
complaint: Against Union Minister O. Rajagopal's
'Newtonian' logic
(March
9, 2002)
.
CHRO
Online petition:
To the
National Human Rights Commission
(March
9, 2002)
.
Raza Mir Appeal
for Relief (March
9, 2002)
.
Syed Firdaus Ashraf Protest in NY against Gujarat
government (March 9, 2002)
.
Citizens of Gujarat,Mumbai
& Kerela
Urgent Appeal to the Chief Justice of India
(March
9, 2002)
.
Citizens of
Gujarat-Mumbai Appointment of
Justice KG Shah Commission opposed
(March9, 2002)
.
Apoorvanand
Delhi meet to
protest Gujarat carnage (March 8, 2002)
.
KN
Panikkar
Press Statement from
Ahmedabad
(March 8, 2002)
.
SACH HUNDREDS
JOIN HANDS FOR PEACE
(March 8, 2002)
.
Ishtiaq Ahmed
Some Hindus Rescuing Muslims
(March 7, 2002)
.
Dr.Laxmi.N .Berwa,
Washington PEACE
RALLY IN WASHINGTON
D.C. (March 7, 2002)
.
IIM Staff, Cambridge Appeal
for Relief (March 7, 2002)
.
Movement for Secular Democracy
(March 7, 2002)
.
Marxist India Stop
Any Move For Appeasement of VHP
(March 5, 2002)
.
Citizens of Gujarat-Mumbai
Appeal to the President of India
(March 5, 2002)
.
Sadhu Samaj
Sadhu
Samaj condemns riots (March 5,
2002)
.
Inquilabi
Communist Sangathan Stop
the Riots in Gujarat Resist the Fascist VHP
(March 3, 2002)
.
SAHMAT
SAHMAT
CALLS MODI A ‘MASS MURDERER’
(March 3, 2002)
.
Communalism Combat & SAHMAT
Dismiss the Narendra Modi
government
(March 3, 2002)
.
Communalism Combat & SAHMAT
Declare
Gujarat a Disturbed Area (March
3, 2002)
.
Speak Up Now on
Gujarat Government's Behavior During Communal Riots
Sign the online petition !
(March
3, 2002)
.
Mahashweta Devi
Protect people in Gujarat, Mahashweta Devi pleads
with Narayanan
(March 2, 2002)
.
Asiapeace
(March
1, 2002)
.
Citizens of Gujarat
APPEAL FROM THE CITIZENS OF GUJARAT
(March
1, 2002)
.
National Alliance of
People's Movements
NAPM CONDEMN KILLINGS IN GUJARAT (March 1, 2002)
.
Shankaracharya Swami Shri Aadhog
Shajananda Teerthji Maharaj
Ban VHP: Shankaracharya (March 1, 2002)
.
Voice of The Exploited, Mumbai
Fire of Hatred?
(March 1, 2002)
.
Vikas Adhyan Kendra
Statement on Gujarat
(March 1, 2002)
.
Academic
and Student Community of
Mangalore University We call for a different nation
(March 1,
2002)
.
Amnesty
International
Equal protection to all citizens must be ensured in
Gujarat (March 1,
2002)
.
Rohit Prajapati & Trupti Shah
Press Release
(March 1,
2002)
.
All India Christian
Council Stop this madness
in Gujarat (March 1,
2002)
.
Citizens of Mumbai
Godhra killing condemned; Appeal
for Peace and Sanity (February 28,
2002)
.
Citizens of Gujarat-Mumbai
Citizens from Gujarat-Mumbai Appeal
to the President (February
28, 2002)
.
Muslim Ulema
Muslim ulema condemn the Godhra incident
(February 28,
2002)
.
Akhil Bharat Rachnatmak Samaj
APPEAL.
(February 28,
2002)
.
Concerned Citizens
Appeal to the Chief Justice of India.
(February 27,
2002)
Date:
Sunday,
April 07, 2002 6:22 AM
From:
Harsh Kapoor aiindex@mnet.fr
Convention
organised by AMU Old Boys Association
Gujarat
Carnage and Bangalore Resolution
Assault
on Constitutional Order and Unity of India
Sunday,
April 7, 2002
The
Speaker's Hall, Constitution Club, Rafi Marg, New Delhi-110001
10
a.m. onwards
ARJUN
SINGH MANI SHANKAR AIYAR
HARKISHAN SINGH SURJEET SOMNATH CHATTERJEE
A.B.
BARDHAN D. RAJA
UDIT RAJ
SHAHID SIDDIQUI
DINESH
TRIVEDI SWAMI AGNIVESH
REV. VALSON THAMPO
ARIF MOHAMMAD KHAN
SUMIT
SARKAR ARUNDHATI ROY
SHARMILA TAGORE
NIRMALA DESHPANDE
MJ
AKBAR
MARK TULLY
HARISH KHARE
AMIT SENGUPTA
NAMVAR
SINGH
GAUTAM NAULAKHA KAMAL MITRA CHENOY
MUSHIRUL HASSAN
JAWED
NAQVI KULDEEP
NAYYAR
Date:
Saturday,
April 06, 2002 1:57 PM
From:
satichou satichou@yahoo.com
Press
Release
DALITS
ARE FORCED & ENTICED TO FIGHT AGAINST MUSLIMS IN GUJARAT: UDIT RAJ
New
Delhi, 6th April, 2002
In
some definite localities like Dani Nimada, Gomatipur, Shahpur and Khanpur in
Ahmedabad, illiterate, innocent and unemployed Dalits were forcibly used against
Muslims. Initially they were persuaded to take on fight with Muslims by enticing
them while distributing money, liquor, weapons and other things and when they
refused then other tricks like pressure tactics were applied, according to
personal observation of Mr. Udit Raj.
The
ongoing communal violence in Gujarat is nothing but a game of power. In 1984 and
85 when a radiologist belonging to Dalit community was appointed under
reservation, there was a communal outbreak and Dalits were beaten, humiliated
and killed. In 1969 also there was communal violence with a view to brand Indira
Gandhi as a pro Muslim at the instigation of Sangh Pariwar while backing Morarji
Desai.
What
happened in Godhra on 27th February 2002 deserves to be condemned in the
strongest possible manner. And communal outbreak afterwards epitomises the
climax of barbarism. By the end of first fortnight of March 2002 it appeared
that the situation was getting cooled. Since Gujarat, as a Hindutva laboratory,
has to rescue the ruling class from crises, therefore, Hindutva has to be
consolidated by escalating communalism. Under this thinking, the second phase of
communalism began in Gujarat.
Mr.
Udit Raj visited Ahmedabad on 3rd of April 2002 and found it to be terrible,
startling, inhuman and stifling. Dalit localities are normally situated between
so called high castes and Muslims. Wherever communalism did not take place, the
workers and leaders of VHP and Bajrang Dal went into Dalits' localities and
enticed and provoked them to the extent that they were mentally prepared to
fight with Muslims. Initially VHP workers accompanied some Dalits to Muslim
areas and created some inflammatory situation and later on they disappeared
leaving alone the Dalits so that finally it was a fight between Dalits and
Muslims. It is also a fact that after the Muslims, the death toll of dalits is
highest. When Muslims were attacking dalit localities, the police watched and
did not stop them so that it could become a confrontation between Muslims and
dalits. Wherever dalits became victims of violence the newspapers highlighted it
with caste identity. Some newspapers even wrote that it were dalits and tribals
who could save Hinduism. Thus situation was created in such a way that Muslims
thought that dalits were their main enemies and vice versa.
The
leaders of the Confederation at Ahmedabad narrated the story that Sangh Pariwar
workers distributed liquor, money and weapons among dalits so that they could
take on the fight with Muslims. They also told that dalit Karsevaks who went to
Ayodhya were paid money. Most of them were not indoctrinated before they were
recruited for this purpose. The Sangh Pariwar could get good response from
dalits because they are less educated and unemployed. Mr. Udit Raj warned that
the Sangh Pariwar should desist from such anti- national activities. The
Confederation is at work amongst dalits in Gujarat to make them understand the
reality.
(Tej
Singh Varun) Media Incharge
Date:
Saturday, April 06, 2002 7:53 AM
From:
Harsh Kapoor aiindex@mnet.fr
A
Public Meeting on the Carnage in Gujarat and POTA
On
Saturday 6th April 2002
At
YWCA, Madam Cama Rd. (Next to St. Anne's School, Near Regal Cinema. [Bombay])
5.00
p.m. to 7.30 p.m.
Speakers:
V.P.
Singh
Mahesh
Bhatt
Shabana
Azmi
Date:
Friday,
April 05, 2002 8:37 PM
From:
Ram Puniyani bmrrpia@cc.iitb.ac.in
Gujarat
Carnage-Protest March
Different
political parties and social groups have organized a Silent March to Governor's
residence to submit a memorandum demanding the dismissal of the Gujarat Govt.
The
marchers will be carrying placards on the theme of shame brought to the Nation
by the role of Gujarat Govt. in fanning the flames of communal violence, need to
dismiss this criminal govt. to restore peace etc. The march will start from Azad
Maidan on 8th April, Monday at 4 PM and will go via Metro, Opera house, Nana
Chowk, and Chowpatty and will terminate near Governors residence.
For
clarification and info. - 6423786, 5222654, 7574381
Date:
Thursday,
April 04, 2002 6:06 AM
From:
Harsh Kapoor aiindex@mnet.fr
Dear
friends,
This
is the Maitree statement on Gujarat. A further meeting on 6th April will discuss
future programmes.
Maitree
has already taken out a silent demonstration on 6th march and a demonstration on
8th March.
Soma
Marik
Statement
by Maitree on the Gujarat Communal Violence
Maitree,
a network of women's rights groups, NGOs and individual activists functioning in
West Bengal, is registering its protest against the large-scale devastation and
communal violence in Gujarat. The developments in Gujarat and in Ayodhya for the
last one month make it clear that this violence is not a riot in the traditional
sense, but an extremely planned, systematic, state sponsored, and one-sided
pogrom.
We
deeply condemn the Godhra massacre and the systematic and brutal violence
inflicted on members of the Muslim community in Gujarat subsequently. The
Hindutva forces had been seeking to communalise civil society, polity and
administration and educational institutions, and the preparation for the pogrom
and economic war along communal lines was going on for a long time. Godhra was
merely an opportune incident utilized by the extreme communalist forces to
unleash a pogrom. We emphasize that the Gujarat State Government has no moral
right to continue in office as it has not only actively encouraged and supported
those who have planned and perpetrated the violence, it has also justified these
acts of terror as "spontaneous outbursts" by citizens, and has failed
miserably to punish the criminals and bring back normalcy to the State. The Home
Minister also commended the role of the Narendra Modi government, for having
allegedly created a record of sorts by controlling the violence within '72
hours'. The theory of a spontaneous outburst of popular Hindu anger contrasted
to the pre-planned massacre of VHP 'pilgrims' by ISI funded Islamic
fundamentalists, lies at the core of the overt and covert justifications of the
pogroms, put forward by the RSS-VHP-BD-BJP. However, this has now been
thoroughly deflated, along with the role of the Modi government. The National
Human Rights Commission, as well as independent civil liberties groups like the
PUCL and SAHMAT's investigating team, have indicted the government, while even
the police has failed to provide any proof of ISI involvement in Godhra.
The
lack of will on the part of the State Government is encouraging communal flames
to spread further and it is the biggest offender of our constitution, which
guarantees secularism and denounces discrimination on grounds of religion. The
most glaring instance of such discrimination is evident from the differential
compensation package provided to the victims of communal violence; while the kin
of the Godhra incident is entitled to Rs 2,00,000/-, only half the amount has
been granted to those whose relatives fell prey to Gujarat violence. Needless to
say that Hindus constituted the former group while the latter mostly comprised
Muslims.
The
consequence of this government-backed communal terrorism has been unimaginably
violent. People have been murdered most brutally. Children have been butchered.
A great many women have been raped. Reports from everywhere attest to the
excessive brutalities including sexual violence against women and children and
burning alive of helpless people. An additional fall-out has been the economic
paralysis due to curfews and the utter helplessness of people belonging to the
unorganised sectors, who are getting no work and no pay, leading to suicides in
some case.
As
citizens of a 'sovereign, secular, socialist, democratic republic' we feel that
there has been a gross violation of civil rights and the security of our civil
society stands endangered today. The communal carnage, systematically carried
out, is part of a wider RSS -VHP strategy of forcing minorities to become
second-class citizens in India. This open violation of our constitutional laws
continues to this day and no appropriate measures have been taken as yet to
punish these offenders of law. We strongly protest against such atrocities and
demand punishment for all- individuals, religious or political groups,
institutions and even governments, who directly or indirectly participated or
supported such criminal activities.
As
peace-loving citizens of India we want your immediate intervention to ensure
that the mandate, principles and spirit of our secular constitution are upheld.
We
demand:
l
The immediate dismissal of the Gujarat Government; the resignation of L.K.
Advani for giving a clean chit to the
Modi
government;
l
Relief, rehabilitation and compensation equally to all those in the
relief camps and those affected by the violence
l
Special protection for new-born babies and their nursing mothers in the
relief camps;
l
Immediate steps for the poorest layers, for example the daily
wage-earners who have not been getting wages for
close to a month
l
The setting up of a time-bound judicial commission of investigation under
one or more serving Supreme Court judges;
l
The registering of cases under criminal law against every minister,
official and police personnel mentioned by
survivors/eyewitnesses;
l
Immediate action under existing criminal laws against the VHP and BD and
any other organisations that propagate and
practice communalism and violence.
Date:
Tuesday, April 02, 2002 8:05 AM
From:
amarn amarn@actionaidindia.org
Marching
for peace
To
spread the message of tolerance and provide a healing touch to those affected by
the communal violence in Gujarat, nearly 70 religious leaders, noted Gandhians
and social activists will embark on a four-day multi religious "Pilgrimage
of Compassion'' to cover the riot-torn areas of Gujarat on April 1.
Date:
Tuesday, April 02, 2002 12:51 PM
From:
marxistindia marxistindia@yahoo.co.in
Press
Statement
The
Polit Bureau of Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the
following
statement:
NHRC
Report Confirms Gujarat CM Has To Go
The
preliminary comments of the National Human Rights Commission on the Gujarat
situation is a serious indictment of the Narendra Modi government in the way it
tackled the unprecedented violence which engulfed the state after the Godhra
attack. The NHRC has confirmed what is widely known about the culpability of the
BJP state government in its failure to protect the lives of citizens belonging
to the minority community and worse for the connivance of the State machinery in
the shameful incidents. The Central government must ensure that the
recommendations of the NHRC such as handing over of the investigations into the
worse crimes to the CBI and the setting up of special courts to try the
culprits.
The
NHRC's findings against the Gujarat government make it imperative that Narendra
Modi be removed from the Chief Ministership without which no credibility can be
restored in the state administration. The Polit Bureau of the CPI (M) is in the
process of consulting other secular opposition parties so that a united movement
can be launched to demand the removal of Narendra Modi from Chief Ministership.
The
reports from Gujarat show that the people affected by the violence living in the
camps are getting no proper relief, leave alone rehabilitation measures from the
state administration. The Polit Bureau appeals to all its state units to collect
medicines for the people living in the relief camps to be sent to Gujarat
immediately.
Date:
Monday, April 01, 2002 8:36 AM
From: willy willy@vsnl.com
MUSIC
FOR PEACE AND HARMONY (MSD)
A
programme ---MUSIC FOR PEACE AND HARMONY---- is going to be held on April 9 in
Ahmedabad. The leading artists of the city will participate in the programme. .
The detailed programme will be circulated soon, Pl. inform your friends and
circulate this news among the interested circle.
Movement
for Secular Democracy dnr@icenet.net
Date:
Wednesday, March 27, 2002 1:13 AM
From:
john dayal johndayal@vsnl.com
ALL
INDIA CHRISTIAN COUNCIL
79/B
I&II Floors, Street 8, West Marredpally, Secunderabad, Andhra Pradesh
President:
Dr Joseph D' Souza Secretary General: Dr. John Dayal
PRESS
STATEMENT
Bangalore,
26th March 2002
Sangh
guilty of genocide in Gujarat, Centre must take legal actions against Narendra
Modi, RSS top leaders.
The
following Statement was issued at a Press Conference by All India Christian
Council Secretary General Dr John Dayal, and Public Affairs Secretary Mr. Sam
Paul, in Bangalore on 26th March 2002. Dr Ambrose Pinto, well known Human Rights
activist, Mr. Kumar Swamy, and Dalit and Muslim leaders also addressed the Press
Conference.
The
images from Gujarat have seared the soul, and shaken the conscience, of every
civilized human being. Every Indian who raised his or her voice against the
burning alive of the 57 Kar Sevak passengers of a coach of the Sabarmati Express
at Godhra, is outraged at the State-sponsored genocide that is still going on in
various parts of Gujarat, including the state capital. Civil society in India, a
vast majority of it Hindus, has come together to challenge the crude
majoritarianism of the Sangh Parivar, and challenge and the physical and
economic terrorism that the armed Sangh cadres are now waging against the Muslim
population of the State. The Christian community, itself a victim of the same
terrorism in Gujarat and its contiguous states, expresses its solidarity with
the victims, and pledges its support to Civil Society in restoration of peace
and the rehabilitation of the uprooted and the traumatized.
The
All India Christian Council earlier this year called for an international ban on
the various subordinate organisations of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, and in
particular the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal. We also demanded
an international investigation into the Fascist ideology of these organisations,
their funding patterns and the evil programmes they have launched in various
parts of the country, and specially in the tribal belt.
Their
blatant agenda is to communalize innocent people's groups, and to sabotage the
development process and the emancipation that it brings to the poor people of
these areas. We are today witnessing the result of the cumulative process of the
Sangh Parivar's well-funded operations in these areas. Tribals have been misled
into attacking minorities, and in urban areas, young men and women, taught hate
at the thousands of shakhas opened under state patronage, have looted and brunt
alive, men, women and innocent babies with calculated brutality.
The
Christian Council reaffirms its demand for a global scrutiny of this
organisation, which traces its inspiration from the fascist nazi, and fascist
doctrines of Adolf Hitler and Mussolini. We will strenuously pursue our demand
in national and international forums, and if need be, in international courts of
Justice and the United Nations Commission for Human Rights.
The
complicity of the Government of Gujarat is patent. Chief Minister Narendra Modi
has implemented his policy of engineering Newtonian reactions. Senior police
officers watched in impotence as BJP ministers took over command of the lethal
operations. Government staff, which had been last year, invited to join the RSS,
assisted in the carnage. Muslim police officers have had to hide their identity,
and even Muslim judges of the Gujarat High Court, have had to take refuge in
safe areas.
This
absolute breakdown of the secular state has become possible because of the
patronage of the Union government that looked on approvingly while Kupahalli
Sudershan, the present and future of the RSS, transformed the Sangh Parivar into
a killing machine with the singular objective to take over the entire polity of
the country. The escalation of the Ayodhya regime is one facet of it. Narendra
Modi, a senior Pracharak cadre, was brought to Gujarat with the express purpose
of communalising the electorate and delivering it to the BJP in the next
elections. He has fulfilled the task entrusted to him by his bosses, at the cost
of several thousands of Muslim lives.
The
Muslims are not the only victims, though they are the worst sufferers. Hindus,
who tried to save Muslims from the mad crowds, have also been butchered. The
Christian community is being coerced, its volunteers threatened in their relief
and rehabilitation processes. Chapels have been smashed and pastors beaten up in
Sanjeli and other parts of the state.
It
is obnoxious that National Commission for Minorities Member John Joseph has
chosen this moment to persuade some members of the Christian community in
Bangalore to engage in another session of a monologue from Kupahalli Sudershan,
author of such statements as "Minorities must earn the goodwill of the
majority community for the security of their life and property," and
"Christians and Muslims must rewrite their Scriptures." Sudershan used
this platform to reiterate his agenda of hate which makes Sikhs, together with
Muslims, Christians and Buddhists, into second grade citizens in their own
homeland. We again condemn his statements.
Senior
Bishops and Pastors of Bangalore and most Church correctly leaders did not
attend the meeting. The Council also congratulates men such as the Bangalore
police Commissioner, Mr. Sangliana, who came in his personal capacity as a
citizen, and challenged the poisonous thesis of Sudershan to his face. Sudershan
and his minions are, of course, just not interested in listening to any one.
Much less to those who dare challenge the half-truths, falsehoods and
misinterpretations of history that the Sangh Parivar uses to mislead and divide
people.
The
All India Christian Council has consistently welcomed dialogue with all people
of goodwill which will further religious freedom and democratic traditions of
India in keeping with the India's plural cultural identity.
But
the Council has always opposed any truck with the Sangh Parivar, which is now in
a position to impose with weapons and fire its diktat of One nation, One People,
One Culture. The Supreme Court has questioned, in its own way, the legitimacy of
the Sangh Parivar and its arrogance claim to represent the majority community.
It is time the Minorities commission and its members stop paying homage to the
political masters in the Sangh Parivar who appointed them, and take courage to
fulfill their Constitutional obligations. The Minorities Commission, and
specially Mr. John Joseph, have betrayed the minorities, specially the Christian
community. They must have the decency to resign.
Mr.
Justice JS Verma, chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, has shown
the path of how statutory commissions created to safeguard the innocent citizens
of this land, must behave. His visit to Gujarat has brought solace to the
victims, even though in the process, Mr. Verma has himself had to brave the
violent behaviour of the Sangh Parivar.
Christians
in Gujarat and throughout the country are in the forefront of the Human rights
movement. The names of Fr Cedric Prakash and Mr. Samson Christian are among
scores of priests, nuns and lay persons who have risked life and limb to
investigate and document the violence, bring succour to victims and take care of
refugees. Elsewhere in the country, the Christian community, as part of civil
society, has been taking part in daily protests, peace marches, relay hunger
strikes and peace vigils. The council salutes these brave men and women of
peace.
India
needs peace and goodwill among communities for its development, economic as well
as social, in this century. This peace can come only through justice, faith in
the Constitution and trust in the rule of law, guaranteed by a government that
is impartial and is not bigoted. These democratic processes are strengthened by
modern education, and not through the rewriting of history books, distribution
of millions of trishuls in villages and opening tens of thousands of shakhas to
turn out cadres for militant organizations. Any so-called dialogue with such
Organisations as the RSS gives them a semblance of creditability and insults the
victims of their carnage in Gujarat. It also insults the memory of those
massacred by the Sangh Parivar.
The
minorities must feel secure, and not be made to feel second grade citizens at
the mercy of either the murderous hordes of the Sangh Parivar, or a ruling party
more interested in its electoral prospects than in its responsibilities to the
people. Sudershan's statements bully, coerce and threaten the minorities. He and
his associates are culpable under the law for criminal intimidation, for
conspiracy against communities and for inciting murder, arson and loot. It is a
moot question if the Government at the center has the courage to take action
against him, or against Narendra Modi. Such action is however imperative if
India is to tell the world that it is a democracy where people have the freedom
of their identity.
The
Union government must ban all organisations of the Sangh Parivar forthwith, and
in particular the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, the Bajrang Dal and their associates.
We call upon All State governments, especially those ruled by the Congress and
the non-BJP parties, to also initiate immediate steps to ban the VHP and the
Bajrang Dal in their respective States.
The
international community can also not shirk its responsibility in this regard.
India is a signatory to the Charter of the United Nations and to global Human
rights covenants. The international community must impress on the BJP government
hat it risks international ridicule and opprobrium if it does not act now.
Issued
by Dr John Dayal, for favour of publication. For further information, Please
Contact Mr. Kumar Swamy at 9845007088 or 9845314197
Date:
Thursday, March 27, 2002 11:54 AM
From:
CPD Delhi cpddelhi2001@yahoo.co.uk
Relay
mass fast for peace and communal harmony
Friends,
I
am posting below the appeal issued by the same groups/organizations and
individuals who organized the march on the 13th, in which so many of us
participated, under the banner of People for Peace and Secularism. Now a mass
relay fast has been planned, from 23rd of March (Muharram) to 28th of March (Holi),
at Mandi House circle, Delhi. The idea is that groups of 50 to 60 people every
day in that period will fast for 24 hours from 8am through the night to 8am the
next morning. Apart from appealing to citizens to keep the peace, the fast will
also be in support of the demands on which we marched (See appeal
below).
The
idea is that different groups take the responsibility to ensure at least 50 to
60 people each for the different days. Delhi University teachers have taken the
responsibility for 25th, women's groups for the
23rd,
and other groups for other days. For any further information/clarifications,
please contact Jagori
(6253629,
6257015). If you can commit to fast on the 25th with the Delhi University
teachers,
Please
call Javed Malik (3974893), Svati Joshi (2017469) or Nivedita Menon
(2202784).
Aditya
Nigam (for CPD)
People
for Peace and Secularism
RELAY
FAST FOR PEACE AND COMMUNAL HARMONY
23-28
MARCH, MANDI HOUSE ROUNDABOUT
AN
APPEAL TO ALL CITIZENS TO JOIN
We,
as citizens of India, have always been proud of our Constitution and of our
democratic heritage that
assures
equality, dignity and security to all citizens regardless of their religious or
political
affiliations.
Today, these ideals lie in the dust. We hang our heads in shame as we recall the
events of the
last
few weeks that have engulfed our country in violence. We have no words strong
enough to condemn
the
heinous attack on the Sabarmati Express at Godhra and the systematic
annihilation of Muslim communities in Gujarat, which has continued unchecked for
the last three weeks. More than 3,000 people have died – more than 100,000
have lost their families, their homes, their means of livelihood and their hopes
and dreams. It is a matter of national shame that the State Government has
actively encouraged and supported those who have perpetrated the carnage. It is
a matter of national shame that the acts of savagery carried out by gangs of
armed hoodlums have been defended and justified by those whose duty is to
control such elements and protect the lives and rights of citizens.
It
is a matter of national shame that the government is talking about integration
with the global economy
while
ignoring the deliberate and complete destruction of the livelihoods of thousands
of Muslims in Gujarat.
The
events in Gujarat are driven by the same forces as the militant mobilisation in
Ayodhya by religious
bigots
who openly declare their intention of driving away all non-Hindus from this
country. Those who claim
to
be acting in the name of Ram do not hesitate to shed blood in the pursuit of
their agenda. This is not
Hinduism
– it is not the religion of peace, love and non-violence preached by saints
and sages, and
practised
by millions. This is not nationalism – it is blind destruction of the very
foundations of our
nation.
These are not acts of faith – they are acts of terror.
People
of many faiths have lived together in peace and amity for centuries in our
country – we have
celebrated
Divali and Eid, Holi and Christmas together and with equal fervour. We have
taken pride in our
diversity
– indeed, the world has always recognised it as our greatest strength. Yet
today, on the eve of
Holi
and Muharram, we are faced with the prospect of blood on the streets.
It
is time for us to take a stand against the ideology of hate and those who
perpetrate it. We will no longer
tolerate
the politics of communalism. As citizens of India, we claim our rights to peace,
safety and
security
– we demand that the government ensure these rights for all citizens.
We
demand
- Ban on organisations like the VHP and Bajrang Dal that are propagating
communalism and violence.
-
Dismissal of the Narendra Modi government and the imposition of President’s
Rule in Gujarat.
-
Relief and rehabilitation on equal terms for all those affected by the carnage
in Gujarat.
This
may be our last chance - if we keep silent now, our democracy may not survive
the wounds that have
been
inflicted on it in the last weeks!
Date:
Wednesday, March 27, 2002 10:57 PM
From:
Hari Sharma sharma@sfu.ca
Statement
on Gujarat
Dear
friends:
INSAF
affiliates in the Boston area ("Alliance for a Secular and Democratic
South Asia") have finalized a statement reproduced below.
In the Name
of God
For
a week this March, Gujarat burned. For a week, murder and mayhem gripped the
state as mobs of Hindus instigated and led by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP)
systematically hunted Muslims all over Gujarat, set their homes on fire and
reduced their communities to ashes. Brutality reigned, dividing people from one
another. The killings at Godhra deserve our condemnation and the guilty must be
punished in the court of law. But who will punish the VHP and the Hindutva
forces for perpetrating terror on innocent people? Who will punish the
government of Gujarat that actively aided and abetted the carnage unleashed by
the VHP? Who will punish the Indian State that ceaselessly assaults our humanity
in the name of religion? We will not be intimidated by people who rationalize
systematic planned killings of innocent people for the simple reason that they
pray to a different God. We will not let people, who unleash violence to appease
their Gods, speak for our communities. We stand in solidarity with the people of
India who have steadfastly and resolutely opposed the forces of religious
fundamentalism. Together we will continue to struggle for a just, secular and
democratic India.
Signed:
Abha
Sur, Shalini Nataraj, Nurul Kabir, Daya Varma, Shree Mulay, Kalpana Seshadri-Crooks,
Mriganka Sur, Rajiv Jain, Indira Peterson, Chukka Srinivas, Jayanta Dey, Kamala
Visweswaran, Abira Ashfaq, Gautam Premnath, Kasturi Ray, Modhumita Roy, Robert
Crooks, Romir Chatterjee, Rajini Srikanth, Naomi Baum, Fahad Ahmad, Vasanthi
Venkatesh, Mona Chopra, Rajesh Kasturirangan, Sunaina Maira, K. S. Srikanth,
Ravi Dixit, Raja Swamy, Nikhil Aziz, Sekhar Ramakrishnan, Dolores Chew, Ansar
Fayyazuddin, C. Kumar, Cathy Kumar, Chhavi Sachdev, Justine Sammanasu, Doug
Kline, Pallavi Rastogi, Areendam, Asad Naqvi, Kavita Philip, Manureet Brar,
Vinod Mubayi, Chandana Mathur, Banu Subramanian, Dharma Kannoly, Harsh Kapur,
Partha Mitra, Shalini Gera, Girish Agarwal, Heather Miller, Sara Driscoll,
Jennifer Bannister, Mohan Rao, Laxmi Rao, Syed Riaz Mahdi, Aradhana Sharma,
Sucheta Majumdar, Biju Mathews, Sangeeta Kamath, Hari Sharma, and more.
This
statement will be published in the Hindustani and Gujarati newspapers of UP and
Gujarat, for which the space will be paid for.
On
an urgent basis I forward it to you: KINDLY CONSIDER ADDING YOUR NAME TO IT (if
you have not already done so). It must be done by this evening. Kindly respond
immediately.
You can send
your reply here or directly to: "Abha Sur" asur@mit.edu
Buying
space in the newspapers will cost money. We appeal to you to kindly contribute
some money for it ($25.00, or more, if you can).
At the moment, just make a pledge, and you could send the check later on.
If you are not in a position to make a money commitment, please still sign on.
People in the
USA should send the check to:
The Singh
Foundation
c/o Dr.
Sekhar Ramakrishnan,
50W 97th
Street,
Apt. 15T,
NY, NY 10025.
Those in
Canada should send it to:
CERAS,
2520 Lionel
Groulx,
Suite # 13,
Montreal,
Quebec
H3J1J8.
PLEASE,
URGENT RESPONSE IS NEEDED.
Hari Sharma
PS:
Kindly note that efforts are also being made to raise funds for the relief
efforts for the tens of thousands of victims of carnage in Gujarat. You will
hear about it soon.
Date:
Date:
Tuesday, March 27, 2002 1:35 PM
From: Avi Singh avisingh@yahoo.com
March
for Peace and Justice in San Francisco
I
am enclosing the links for our Press Report for our March 23 Gujarat Protest
March in San Francisco.
Press
Report:
http://www.geocities.com/akhila_raman/filedir/guj_pr.htm
Do
feel free to call Akhila Raman (510-649-8719) or me (415 637 6578) if you have
any questions.
Thanks
Avi
Singh
An
appeal for peace and justice in Gujarat made at San Francisco
Coalition
Against Communalism gathers to condemn the violence and demand justice for all
victims in Gujarat; Indian Consulate presented with petition bearing 4,233
signatures asking the National Human Rights Commission to
ensure
human rights and justice in Gujarat; Gathering draws 250.
Sunday,
24th March, 2002, San Francisco, CA: On Saturday, 23rd March, 250 people
gathered at the Gadar Memorial, a tribute to the movement that Bhagat Singh
belonged to, and marched to the Indian Consulate in San Francisco to
present
a petition bearing over 4,233 signatures from across the world asking the
National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to safeguard the human and
constitutional rights for all residents of Gujarat – regardless of religion or
ethnicity. It asks the NHRC to ensure the following:
·
Setting up of an independent and impartial judicial enquiry. It rejects
both the charter and the constitution of the current
judicial
enquiry.
· Immediate government assistance to victims.
·
Equal and fair compensation to all victims, whether of the Sabarmati
Express or of the communal violence.
· Gujarat Government to condemn, not explain, the violence.
· The Dismissal of the Police Commissioners in cities worst affected by
the violence.
· The Resignation of the Gujarat Chief Minister, Narendra Modi
· That the recent decision not to apply POTO to the current violence is
commendable, and needs to be sustained.
· An immediate end to all measures to curb the freedom of, and acts of
violence against, the freedom of the press.
People
who signed the petition included film-maker Anand Patwardhan, former Chief of
Indian Navy, Admiral Ramdas, social activist Lalitha Ramdas, author Chitra
Divakaruni, Magasaysay award winner Rajendra Singh, Narmada Bachao Andolan
activist Shripad Dharmadhikary, human rights activists Dr. Vineeta Gupta and
Mukundan Menon, university professors Dr. D. N. Jha (Delhi University), Dr.
Kamal Mitra Chenoy (Jawaharlal Nehru University), Dr. Raka Ray (University of
California, Berkeley), Dr. Rafiq Dossani (Stanford University), Dr. Hari Sharma
(Simon Fraser University), independent film maker Ali Kazimi, journalists
Arundhati Parmar and Beena Sarwar, and leaders of Indo-American organizations
Srikanth Nadhamuni (former President of Indians for Collective Action) and
Pradeep Kashyap (Director of the Indian American Foundation).
(For
a copy of the complete petition, please see http://ektaonline.org/cac/resources/petitions/gujarat.htm.
A copy of the
petition
with all the signatures will also be sent directly to the NHRC).
The
march, orchestrated under the banner of Coalition Against Communalism, was a
reflection of India in all its diversity – with representation from all its
religions, brought together by the carnage in Gujarat.
It was also a representation of an often silent majority of Indians
living in the San Francisco Bay Area, who were outraged by the events in
Gujarat, and believed
that
their voice needed an expression, and wanted to show the people of their support
in these troubled times. On
reaching the Indian Consulate, the marches observed a minute of silence to honor
and respect all the victims of Gujarat.
The
march included a talk by Shalini Gera, the author of the petition, who debunked
many of the myths perpetuated on what happened in Gujarat, and Why? According to
Gera, this violence was neither spontaneous, nor expressive of a sentiment among
the Hindus in Gujarat. It was
pre-planned, meticulously executed, and often carried out in collusion with the
civic, administrative, and political bodies.
Furthermore, the government has been both biased and negligent in its
provision of relief to victims of the riots.
Gera also took exception to the claim by the Sangh Parivar to be both
patriots and pro-Hindu, saying they neither represent Hindus in their distortion
of its beliefs, nor the country in their rejection of its founding principles.
Hindus and Muslims, as with other communities in India, live together
peacefully, and the recent violence was a deliberate and malicious provocation
by people opposed to that fact. (For
more information on the facts, please see
http://ektaonline.org/cac/resources/articles/myths+facts.htm.)
The
Sangh Parivar, and in particular its more extreme bodies that function outside
the political process – the VHP, RSS, and Bajrang Dal, were condemned by those
who marched. There were several
slogans against the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), which is active in the Indian
community in the US, and has been directly linked to both the instigation and
the execution of the violence against Muslims in the India. The speakers also made this point. Raju
Rajagopal, an activist in the Indian community, spoke of the need for Indians
everywhere to speak up against the violence. Gurdip Ankhi,
who
spoke in Punjabi, and has been active in politics in Punjab, spoke of the
government forcing Indians everywhere to hang their heads in shame by their
failure to uphold this most basic right of all citizens – the right to life.
Samittar Uppal, of the Indian People’s Cultural Association drew
parallels between the challenges of today, and the work of the Gadar Party
in
fighting both for India’s freedom, and their vision of a secular and
democratic India. Manzoor Ghori and
Omair Farooqui of the Indian Muslim Relief Committee read a statement condemning
the violence. Syed ji of Hyderabad
spoke of the fact that Muslims in India were Indians to the core, rejecting the
Sangh Parivar argument on the external origins of Islam. Avi
Singh
also spoke of the need for holdings those responsible accountable under the rule
of law, and the responsibility everyone shared in preventing these tragedies
from reoccurring. Other speakers
included Sanjiv Mahajan and Professor Angana Chatterji.
Professor
Praveen Sheth and Manzoor Ghori
presented the petition to the Consulate, The Vice Consul
Saxena, on behalf of the Consul General, received the petition.
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