Category: Activism

Anna Hazare and the Great Indian Middle-class

First of all, I do support the Jan Lokpal Bill. Many Indians would, because we have seen corruption from small to large scale here in India and got tired of it. I do like the fact that there is this one man, Anna Hazare, who could mobilize people across country to join in support of him against corruption. I thank him because not many would have been aware of this Bill if it wasn’t for his efforts. In the end, at least it seems like this could be a beginning of change though the irony is that the government in charge is the most corrupted one in the history of India.

The support that Anna Hazare has got from the public was praised as the beginning of Indian middle-class involving themselves in national issues. Media celebrated a more politically active middle-class and it’s youth. “War on Corruption”, “People’s Victory” – the new headlines kept popping up in the news channels every hour. People were tweeting, changing their Facebook profile picture, putting Gandhi caps and some even did fasting for a day in support of Anna Hazare.

But there is something that stinks about this middle-class political activism. It is because the selective issues that the Indian middle-class and it’s youth choose to fight. From the days of “Youth for Equality” to “War on Corruption”, it is quite evident that the Indian middle-class activism is centered on an India where they have an upper hand. Where they will have their future built (and it is this middle-class India that the upper-class can also bank upon hence the support from the top notch CEOs, Industrialists and celebrities). That is why corruption, terrorism and reservation are the favorite subjects of these middle-class crusaders (yes, corruption is an evil that all classes of India would want to root out, but for the middle-class and their nationalism, corruption is a shame before international community, not an evil in itself). And issues like North East India, Dalit, Tribal, etc never come to their focus.

There is a Manipuri woman who has been fasting for the last 10 years here in India, but those who shed tears for Anna Hazare chose to ignore her and her cause. Why? Because she is not a proclaimed Gandhian and she is not from the mainland India. Her cause is often described as anti-India while what she fights for is justice to the common man. This proves that the Indian middle-class ignores everything that is propagated as anti-India. Their morale is not built around human values, but a pseudo-patriotic feeling. In their quest to bring “justice”, they do not care about the details of the human right fights. So they easily tag the fights of Manipuris as separatism, Binayak Sen for them is a naxal apologetic and every single tribal who complains against the government is a naxal.

What we see right now is a biased urban Indian middle-class fighting “their” cause and trying to downplay the larger issues exist in India. For some of them, it is just a passing-over exhibition that is inspired by the authentic fights of Egypt, Tunisia and Libya. An attempt to do a cinematic remake of these other movements worldwide. After all, our activism is always inspired by Bollywood (Munna Bhai style Gandhigiri, Rang De Basanti style candle light vigil etc) than life and it’s reality.

PS: After a fight that is said to bring more “power to people”, comes this comment from Shanti Bhushan – “Ultimately, the power is with Anna, so whatever Anna says has to be accepted.” Birth of new demi-Gods in Indian system?

Social media revolution?

You know, at times I feel that we are taking ourselves too seriously. By us, I am referring to the blogosphere, twitterati, facebook and such social media platforms. I do agree about the good things that social media can do in our times, but I think sometimes we stretch this pride too far. One recent example is the change in the ruling system of Egypt.

Many people attribute the victory of Egyptian struggle to social media. But I don’t really get it. Were those people who marched towards Cairo actively participating in social media? How many of the Egyptians who live in Egypt have an internet connection or a smart phone? What help did social media do that the traditional wall posters or leaflets couldn’t do in this struggle?

Revolution can only happen when people actively participate in it. On the road. Many of the people whom I have seen participating in such struggles or agitations locally have come from the offline socio-cultural groups. Most of them seldom use Internet. Just clicking on a ‘Like’ button in a Facebook page or RT-ing a tweet would only make it armchair solidarity and nothing else. It would be interesting to take the statistics of how many of this “I Support!” guys have actually went on street for any such issues. Just ask these social media evangelists to participate in a local meeting to protest the arrest of Binayak Sen, for example. The first question from them would be, “you think I have nothing else to do with my life?” or a comment like “our people are too much politicized and there is too much unemployment that people go to these stupid meetings“.The same lot would be eager to register their protest on other issues by clicking a Like button in Facebook or by changing their Twitter profile pic.

I recall this funny quote I read in a friend’s FB page – “I don’t understand how Tunisians got their freedom without me filing an e-petition or changing my Twitter profile pic!“. That’s how we have become a socially concerned social media generation.

Also read – The myth of Egypt’s butterfly revolution

Liu Xiaobo – A saint or a hypocrite?

I have never heard of Liu Xiaobo until he got the Nobel Prize for peace. A number of articles on Liu followed after the Nobel prize and the world once again has turned it’s attention to China and the human rights violation in the country. Liu is still under arrest and people continue to register their protest on his arrest. A saint was born. Everything was good. Until I read the Wiki article on Liu, another article in Counter Punch by Tariq Ali and a good one at Guardian. And I was surprised.

I was not surprised that the Chinese government arrested Liu Xiaobo, because everybody knows how Chinese government curbs the freedom to criticize their government. Everybody knows about Tienanmen Square. But I was surprised and shocked to hear that the Nobel prize was awarded to a hypocrite disguised as a human rights activist who support bloody and unnecessary wars in the world. And his pro-war statements lead us to suspect that this man is somebody who is looking for a political overthrow in China in the future and to claim his stake.

Liu was arrested for his involvement with Charter 08 Manifesto. Liu was just one of the several authors of the manifesto. I hope the other authors are genuine people who stand for human rights, but Liu’s involvement is suspicious. Liu has served as the President of Independent Chinese PEN Center, an organization funded by the National Endowment for Democracy which is an American non-profit organization.

So how did Liu return his favors for the American funding?

  • He wrote an article titled “Victory to the Anglo-American Freedom Alliance”, in which he praised the U.S. led post-cold-war wars as “best examples of how war should be conducted in a modern civilization.”
  • “During the 2004 US presidential election, Liu again praised Bush for his war effort against Iraq and condemned Democratic party candidate John Kerry for not sufficiently supporting the US’s wars.“
  • He said that “The major wars that the US became involved in are all ethically defensible.“[Source: Wiki]
  • Liu has also said that “The Korean and Vietnam wars fought by the US were wars against totalitarianism and enhanced Washington’s ‘moral credibility’.“

Agreed, Liu has stopped students from rioting in Tienanmen to prevent student deaths. But how do you call this war-mongering guy a human rights activist while he on one hand tries to protect people from getting killed (in his own country) and then go ahead and cheer the murder of innocents in other countries? So is it like, it’s not okay in my country (because it is where I live in, plus as a pro-western guy I could have stake in the future when something against the current government happens in the future) but it’s okay in any other country, because I don’t give a damn about it? You cannot trust people like these hypocrites with human rights. I am baffled (or rather not) that the Nobel committee chose to ignore this. But then they must be having their own politics too.

Tariq Ali says:

The Norwegian jurist Fredrik Heffermehl argues that the committee is in breach of the will and testament left behind by the inventor of dynamite whose bequests fund the prizes:

‘The Nobel committee has not received prize money for free use, but was entrusted with money to give to the pivotal element in creating peace, breaking the vicious circle of arms races and military power games. From this point of view the 2010 Nobel is again an illegitimate prize awarded by an illegitimate committee.’

Also read:

Do supporters of Nobel winner Liu Xiaobo really know what he stands for? (Guardian.co.uk)
Does Liu Xiaobo Really Deserve the Peace Prize? (Counter Punch)

Queer Pride Keralam

Today will be marked in the history of Keralam as the first queer pride parade in Keralam is happening at Thrissur today. It starts from Regional Theatre, Thrissur at 4 PM today and will come back to a public meeting at 6 PM. Why today, July 2nd? Their blog says, “July 2nd of 2009 is the day when the Delhi High court decriminalized homosexuality by rereading section 377 of Indian Penal code. We celebrate pride on this day as we see the judgment as a historical moment in the lives of queer people.”

I think it will be really interesting to see the response of common public to this event, particularly in a conservative society like Keralam. It wouldn’t be so surprising but still, the shock treatment would begin today.

Checkout their blog here.

Meet Masarat Daud

I have a thing against the Burqa. I think that thing represents a system of oppression designed by religion and men. Burqa, in my mind, has always remained to be a symbol of oppression, no matter how much those religious folks try to justify it by calling it a way of “protection”. So I was slightly amused when this Burqa-clad woman followed me on Twitter and had a look at her profile and there she is – A Burqa-clad woman who is fighting the very same thing that I think Burqas represent – Oppression.

Meet Masarat Daud, who is working to set girls of our rural areas free from oppression using education as a tool and bringing an event like TEDx to India’s villages, even with fighting the religious orthodoxy. Masrat runs an educational program called 8 Day Academy. She is changing the face of education in rural India through her work and is responsible for hundreds of girls getting the opportunity to attend schools. Since February 2009, Masarat has held three sessions of 8-Day Academy in her hometown Fatehpur, Rajasthan, training teachers and students from a local school in Computers and in Public Speaking & Communication skills. After eight days of Computers training, the team was able to use MS Word, MS Paint and know the theory of computing. All this by people who had never seen a computer before!

And then she brought TEDx to Shekhavati and you can read/listen more about her exciting and inspiring stories here and here . Also see her TEDx Shekhavati speech below:

The Story of Bottled Water

From the house of “Story of Stuff”, now comes a new video which again makes you think. That makes me think, why are we not demanding to the Government for clean and safe drinking water for us all? Though we had a good news recently when an expert panel setup by the Kerala Govt suggested taking label steps to realize Rs. 216 crores for multi-sectoral damage in Plachimada, we have to wait to see it in action. Plus, we need to make sure that our politicians and bureaucrats do not eat up that money and would rather spend it on ensuring clean water available to all.

Developments on the development

If the wealth of mineral extraction is funding social welfare spending, The Economist should ask why ordinary rural communities, like those I met in Jharkhand’s Karanpura valley, persist in a six year struggle to keep coal mining companies and thermal power plants from their land. And too why resistance groups like Jharkhand Mines Area Coordination Committee would sooner face imprisonment than capitulate to myths about development. People living in places like the Karanpura valley are not stupid. They have seen their mineral wealth shipped out to benefit others. They understand better than anyone else that local communities must be at the forefront of the decision making process if they are ever to challenge the powerful interests that exploit Jharkhand’s wealth and continue to deny human rights to those who are being forced from their land.

We have heard it before and we keep hearing. And we keep believing all those big talks of how they help in protecting our future or how much they spend on enhancing our lives. Now, head over to see and read this excellent photo essay at Tom Pietrasik‘s blog on the reality of mining in India.

The Mudcake

Dr. Gaurva Chhabra had shared a link to his 2 minutes long short film through FB. The short film is titled The Mudcake. Watching the video has brought a smile (as most of us can relate to the childhood memories of playing with mud – I don’t think that kids these days do it though) and it certainly left something to think about towards the end of the video. Garurav has submitted this video in a U.S. Govt, Video contest @ Exchanges Connect and he needs around 150 more votes before 28th Dec (10 AM, 29th Dec, IST) to go to next stage. Voting happens when you ‘Rate’ the film. It requires a ‘Sign up’, ’email confirmation’ by clicking on the sent link and then ‘Rating’ by clicking on ‘Stars’. Go ahead and do it if you like the film. I just did.

JANANEETHI needs your support


There is an NGO called Jananeethi in Thrissur that works in many areas such as micro-credit, self-help groups etc. and their primary focus is on bringing help to poor people for legal assistance. For the past 2 years, they are in a financial crisis and even the staff is working without salaries. They are looking for more project funds from government and other sources, but in the meantime to survive they need private donations.

Now they have come out with a plan and are looking for a contribution of Rs. 5000 per year and for 3 years. Those who would like to make monthly installments of payment can also do so. The bank account details are as follows:

SB A/c No. 9387, Catholic Syrian Bank, Main Branch, Thrissur – 680001.

Jananeethi is a charitable society registered under the provisions of the Travancore-Cochin Literary, Scientific and Charitable Societies Act XII of 1955, Reg. No. 193/92 TCR. All contributions can avail tax exemption granted under 80 G of Income Tax Act, 1961.

Here is their website for more info: http://www.jananeethi.org