Janhastakshep : A campaign against Fascist Designs
Public
Meeting on Human Rights Day, 10th December, 2014 at 5.30 p.m. at
Gandhi Peace
Foundation, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg, Near ITO, New Delhi
Subject: Challenges before the Human Rights
Movement
Dear
Friends,
We
are passing through a critical phase of history in terms of erosion of
democratic values and shrinking democratic space. In the recently concluded Lok
Sabha Election BJP, the political wing of RSS secured a clear majority with
support of corporate media and big capital.
The Central Govt. has made many announcements in favour of corporates
and advancing economic reforms in support of MNCs. Government is trying to
amend Land Ceiling Acts, Labour laws, Land Acquisition Acts to facilitate loot
and plunder of natural resources and unhindered exploitation of workers by the global capital. On many issues they
get support from various ruling class parties but when government is not in a position to amend the laws of the land due to lack of majority in Rajya Sabha, they are changing the rules
to make various provisions of law
ineffective specially those which are in favour of poor workers,
farmers, tribals or marginalized section of the society and in favour of big
corporate. We are sure that people will offer resistance as they are doing for
last many years to such policies and Govt. will deal with such protests with
iron hand.
The
present Govt. is trying to communalize all aspects of life as many Hindu
organizations are propagating against cow slaughter, coined a term love jihad
and indulging in moral policing. The
present Govt. is splanting their
nominees in various institutions and redrawing education syllabi. They are trying to impart communally distorted version of
history. Like previous Govt. , the
present regime is also targeting educated muslim youth branding them as
terrorist and putting them behind the bar without evidence. Unfortunately, top echelons of bureaucracy,
armed forces, police and political power have chauvinist communal mind set
which is posing a greater danger to the composite culture of India. The intent of the government is to keep
people divided on caste and communal lines so that a joint struggle of these
sections against the new liberal policies can be prevented. We apprehend that
they will continue to target religious minority, the glimpse of which we have
already seen in what has happened in
Muzaffarnagar, Saharanpur, Shamli and other places in Western U.P. in the recent past and communal polarization occurring in city
of Delhi.
Central
Govt. is focusing on suppressing people struggle specially those which are
against displacement. They have deployed more central force in the state of
Chattisgarh and Jharkhand to counter resistance
offered by the people against displacement due to clearance given to
mining projects of big corporate and
MLCs. Resistance is being met by severe
repression including fake cases against the activists of the movements and
their arbitrary arrest. Latest case being the arrest of the one of the leaders
of the peaceful anti-displacement movement of the Adivasis of Niyamgiri against
the land grab for mining by Vedanta. Supporters of the anti-displacement
movements are subjected to various forms of harassment including arrest under
the Draconian laws like UAPA. Glaring examples are the arrests of journalist
Prashant Rahi, human rights activist, Prof. GN Saibaba, cultural activist, Hem
Mishra. Thus the displacement, in the name of development that renders millions
homeless and bereft of the source of livelihood without appropriate
rehabilitation and poses the threat to the food security, is one of the major
concerns for human rights groups.
Yet
another alarming issue of human rights is, women’s right as human, seriously
threatened by the jugglery of love jihad and moral policing by the obscurantist
RSS outfits as self claimed custodians of
“Indian Culture”. Another menace
to women’s right as human that at times, culminates into heinous crimes like
the honor killings under the dictates of regressive institutions like Khap
Panchayat or old feudal patriarchal order of Indian society which keeps women
enchained to keep caste and faith line pure.
Another
danger to the civil and human rights of ordinary people and intellectuals is spreading
fascist trend of intolerance of dissenting opinions that has further aggravated
after the acquisition of the power at center by the Hindutva forces. There is continued presence of Army and
para-military forces armed with draconian black laws like AFSPA, UAPA and
others in North Eastern states, Chhatisgarh, J&K, Jharkhand and other
states to suppress people resistance against oppressive economic policies and
nationality struggles. Democratic rights
of the people of these states are trampled under the foot.
On this international day, Janahastakshep seeks
a wider debate on the pressing issues of threats to human rights among the
democratic forces in general and human rights organizations in particular, to
be able to objectively comprehend the gravity of the situation and to chalk out
strategies to fight out.
Please
join us in the deliberations.
Ish
Mishra
Convener