Tuesday, October 4, 2011

[ZESTCaste] What actually happened in Paramakudi and how it happened

http://roundtableindia.co.in/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3784%3A-what-actually-happened-in-paramakudi-and-how-it-happened&catid=119%3Afeature&Itemid=132

What actually happened in Paramakudi and how it happened
Monday, 26 September 2011 14:26 Written by Karthik Navayan


[Karthik Navayan was a member of a fact-finding team that visited
Paramakudi town on 19th and 20th September, 2011, and interacted with
the victims and also with the district officials in Ramanathapuram.
This article contains his observations and analysis- Round Table
India]pkudi_13_copy

On September 11th the police killed six among the several Dalits who
had assembled in Paramakudi to observe the 54th death anniversary of
their leader, Immanuel Sekaran. Another 30 were seriously injured and
are undergoing treatment in various hospitals.

Among those killed were 1) R. Ganesan (65), 2) T. Panneerselvam (50)
and S. Vellaichamy (65). It is the argument of the police and the
revenue officials that these three old people had attacked the police
and burnt their vehicle and were hence shot at and killed! Three
youngsters called P. Jayapal (20), Theerthakani (25) and Muthukumar
(26) were also killed. Among the older persons, 65 year old
Vellaichamy was not killed by any bullets but died from the severe
lathi blows the policemen had inflicted on him. Therefore around forty
policemen accompanied his body to his village and threatened his
family that his last rites should be completed within fifteen minutes
and left the village only after the rites were completed, as ordered.
R. Ganesan, also 65, who had gone to Paramakudi on that particular day
with the intention of distributing his son's wedding invitation cards
as he thought he would get to meet a lot of relatives and
acquaintances on Immanuel Sekaran's death anniversary, was shot dead
before he even realized that trouble was brewing in Paramakudi.


All those who died in the firing were daily wage labourers.

They'd all gone to Paramakudi to pay respects to their leader,
Immanuel Sekaran, and not with any plans to create trouble or clash
with the police. On the other hand, it is the police who are now busy
conducting raids on several villages and are arresting many Dalits.
The victims are being harassed and implicated in false cases! This
can't happen without any political motives—it seems like the police
firing and the subsequent repression let loose on Dalit villages are
all part of a deliberate strategy to further marginalize the Dalits of
this region economically, politically.pkudi_11

According to Chandra Bose, leader of the Immanuel Peravai, the
immediate cause for the police firing was the Rasta Roko held by the
protesters on that day. On the 11th, the police had arrested the Dalit
leader, John Pandian, near a village called Vallanaadu and had taken
him away to an unknown destination. When the Dalits gathered in
Paramakudi learnt about this arrest, around two hundred of them
started holding a Rasta Roka demonstration. They demanded to know the
whereabouts of the arrested leader John Pandian and sought his
immediate release. They also expressed doubts that Pandian's arrest
was the result of a plan hatched by his political adversaries and that
he could be killed in a fake encounter. John Pandian's arrest and the
subsequent demonstrations were the immediate causes for the police
firing, but when you carefully examine the events that have been
unfolding since the first week of September in Ramanathapuram, you'll
realize that the killing of the Dalits wasn't an unplanned event.

The police and the Collector are trying to justify John Pandian's
arrest by saying that they had received some information that he was
going to create unrest at the Immanuel Sekaran memorial event. A
collector has to examine all aspects of a situation before arriving at
a decision based on such information. But who's responsible for the
decision taken to detain John Pandian, the resultant unrest and the
subsequent loss of lives? The officials thought that John Pandian's
presence at the event could cause a law and order situation. But it
was the detention of John Pandian that actually created the law and
order situation and led to the killing of the Dalits. The full
responsibility for this massacre lies on the shoulders of the police
and revenue officials whose inept handling of the situation caused
this tragedy.pkudi_1

The following three incidents make it very plain that the police and
revenue officials had acted in a very partisan manner since the
beginning of September. The first incident was the stabbing to death
of sixteen year old Dalit youth, Palani Kumar, in Pallapacheri. The
second was the removal of the banners erected by the Dalits, by the
police. The third was John Pandian's arrest. The fourth event, the
police firing, was the logical culmination of the first three
incidents. It was something the police had anticipated. There is clear
evidence for this conclusion. It seems to be a matter of common
agreement among lower cadre policemen, government employees and common
citizens discussing the event that the police firing happened as a
result of instructions received from 'above'. Common people seem to
veer toward the view that it was on the orders of Sasikala, Chief
Minister Jayalalithaa's companion and Thevar political leader. Who
should verify the degree of truth in these charges? Can CBI do that?
If these issues are investigated without political interference, the
common people's perceptions will be proven true.

The police and other public officials are trying to justify the firing
and the subsequent deaths, to the media and to the rights' activists,
by saying that the protestors had attacked the police and destroyed
public property. But it wasn't the intention of the Dalits, who had
come in lakhs to Paramakudi on that day, to destroy public property,
or to attack anyone. They had only gathered to observe the death
anniversary of their leader, Immanuel Sekaran.pkudi_12

Killings of Pallar/Mallar/Devendrakular Dalits have been happening for
over a half a century in southern Tamil Nadu. A short list of the
first killings:

• Immanuel Sekaran was killed on 11th September, 1957.

• On 13th September, five Dalits, including one woman, were burnt
alive in Arumkulam by a band of Thevar killers.

• On September 16th, Thevar groups killed sixty Dalits in Veerambal,
Arumbakan, Arunlandakatti, Samdakottai villages.

• On September 17th, police shot dead dead a Dalit in keeraMtai village.

• On September 18th, in Tamdikudi village, homes belonging to Dalits
of the Devendrakular community were burnt down. Similar attacks have
continued since then.

Who is Immanuel Sekaran?

Immanuel Sekaran was a prominent social reformer and freedom fighter.
A contemporary of Dr. Ambedkar, he was a Dalit leader who fought
against caste discrimination and untouchability in southern Tamil
Nadu. On 11/9/1957, this Dalit leader was killed by people owing
allegiance to the Forward Bloc leader Muthuramalinga Thevar, of the
Thevar community.

Immanuel Sekaran, who was martyred at the very young age of 33, has
attained demigod like status among the Dalits in the region. That's
why lakhs turn up on his death anniversary to pay tributes to him.
According to some estimates, over a million ordinary Dalits, apart
from many leaders, participate in the Immanuel Sekaran Memorial day
events. This has been happening regularly since 1988 but was never
reported in the mainstream media.

This year's anniversary marks the 54th since his death. This year too,
like every year, the Dalits started making earnest preparations for
the Memorial Day. But the Government and the officials of various
departments, like every year, started imposing many strictures and
placed many hurdles, and made all efforts to scuttle the event. They
did not permit the installation of food and water stalls. The Dalits
endured all that and remained immersed in their preparations.pkudi_2

The pre-September 11th series of events are part of a conspiracy

If we carefully examine all the events unfolding since the beginning
of September, we realize that the killings of Dalits in Paramakudi
were part of a meticulous plan orchestrated by the police and the
political leaders of the local Thevar community. It can't be said that
all the government officials and all the Thevar political leaders were
a part of this conspiracy, but one has to recognize that this plan
couldn't have been executed without the participation of some
political leaders, police officers and revenue officials. The fact
that the Dalit leader John Pandian (TMMK) was arrested in Vallanaadu
to prevent him from attending the memorial reinforces the impression
that a deliberate strategy was at work. Pandian's arrest resulted in
his supporters, around two hundred of them, sitting on a dharna near
the five road junction. The police could have easily rounded up these
two hundred Dalits conducting an impromptu Rasta Roko agitation, but
they resorted to firing instead, which clearly shows that the police
had no intention of arresting them. According to the District
Collector, two thousand policemen had been mobilised in Paramakudi on
that day. It is difficult to believe that those two thousand policemen
could not have controlled two hundred, unarmed Dalits.

Moreover, the Dalits were conducting Rasta Roko on only one road. The
police also diverted the traffic moving towards this road because it
would gradually be filled with people arriving for the Immanuel
Sekaran anniversary. So why did the police conduct a lathi charge and
then open fire on the Dalits in a street from which all traffic had
been diverted? It seems quite clear that John Pandian's arrest led to
the firing incident. Did the police have no inkling that John
Pandian's arrest could lead to a law and order problem? It needs to be
investigated whether such a tense situation was deliberately created.
The reasons cited by Arun Roy, the District Collector of
Ramanathapuram, for John Pandian's arrest seem implausible. The
District Collector's response to our fact finding team's query on the
issue was that John Pandian's arrival in Paramakudi would have sparked
off a law and order problem and hence he had to issue orders to detain
Pandian. But the law and order problem that arose out of Pandian's
arrest doesn't seem to have appeared as a problem to the police and
the authorities. Probably, whatever the problems that Dalits pose, in
those authorities' view, can be suppressed easily, without being
questioned. But why do problems of the upper castes or the problems of
the castes like the Thevars become problems of the police and the
authorities?pkudi_4

Similarly, the police removed the banners that the Dalits had erected,
on the Collector's orders, citing the reason that the local Thevars
found the text on the banners ('daiva tirumagaanar immanuyaal
saekaraN') objectionable. The collector ordered their removal after
the Thevars met him to complain. The Collector is very cleverly trying
to justify that decision by saying that it's the Dalits who have been
suffering the most in the continued conflict between the Pallars and
the Thevars over the last half century, hence he had ordered the
removal of the banners that angered the Thevars to prevent any new
loss of Dalit lives. The Collector seems to have great sympathy for
the Dalits and their lives, but there is no need for it now. Dalits
who are not lowering their raised heads even when their throats are
being slit don't need any sympathy. It would have been enough if the
Collector had respected his constitutional duties and performed them.
What the Dalits expect from a District Collector is not sympathy at
all.

Senthilvelan, an I.P.S officer, was appointed as in-charge of the
bandobast arrangements for the Immanuel Sekaran memorial event. It was
under his charge that a laathi charge and firing were conducted on the
Dalits. But the police started firing a mere five minutes after the
laathi charge had begun. No warning shots were fired into the air, no
precautionary shots aimed below the knees were fired, no rubber
bullets and no water cannons were used. The fact that none of those
regular precautionary measures were adopted, makes it very plain that
the police and the authorities were acting with the clear objective of
launching a lethal assault on the Dalits and their struggle for
self-respect.

Who are the Thevars?

The Thevar community is recognized as a Most Backward Class in Tamil
Nadu and its members are responsible for all kinds of oppression
practiced against the Dalits in southern Tamil Nadu. The goons who
attacked the Dalit students in the Ambedkar Law College in Chennai a
few years ago belonged to the 'Mukkulathor Manavar Peravai', a
students' organization also associated with the Thevars.

The SC/ST employees association of Tamil Nadu's transport department
had installed a banner at Immanuel Sekaran memorial day venue. On it
was written: 'Deshiya Thalaivar, Daiva Tirumaganaar, Immanuel
Sekaran'. Which means: 'National Leader, Son of God, Immanuel
Sekaran'. One Prabhakaran, belonging to the Thevar (Maravar) community
and leader of the 'Mara Tamilar Senai', unable to digest such high
praise being showered on Sekaran, a Dalit leader being eulogized as a
national leader, lodged a complaint with the local police station
demanding that the banner be removed. He also lodged a complaint with
the District Collector. It is their argument that only Muthuramalinga
Thevar of their community (Thevars), and no one else, could be
referred to as 'daiva tirumagaanar'. Makes one shiver thinking of the
kind of democracy we live in. Earlier, a Tamil film by the name of
'daiva tirumagaanar' also faced protests and the producer was forced
to change the title to 'daiva tirumagaan'.pkudi_5

This community, whose members act in such a barbaric, unconstitutional
and undemocratic manner, is even now recognized as a Most Backward
Class and avails itself of reservations. In the current Tamil Nadu
assembly, 90 MLAs belonging to different parties are from this
community (Maravar). This community, which has a prominent presence in
the fields of cinema, education, industry and politics, is indulging
in atrocities and killings in southern Tamil Nadu every day. Now that
Jayalalithaa has become the Chief Minister, they have become more
emboldened because Jayalalithaa's closest companion, Sasikala, also
belongs to the Thevar community. There exists a public perception,
based on information yet to be verified, that it's Sasikala's hidden
hand that's behind the killings in Paramakudi and a lot of atrocities
before that. The Dalits opposed the threats issued by Thevar leaders
and the police to remove the banners. Some Dalits working in
government removed the banners they had erected in deference to the
threats of the police and revenue officials. But rest of the Dalit
associations refused to oblige and their banners remained, and caused
annoyance among the police. It also made the police react in this
fashion: 'Because the Dalits are not co-operating with the police, the
police shall also not co-operate with the Dalits'. This reaction
signaled the tone of events, including the firing, to come.

The killing of Palani Kumar

On September 9th, a sixteen year old Dalit Intermediate student,
Palani Kumar of Pallapacheri village, was stabbed to death by some
Thevars from Mandalamanickam village when he was returning home after
watching a play staged in the village. They say he was killed because
he wrote 'Muthuramalinga Thevar is a eunuch' on the wall of the fair
price shop in the village. Despite being erased, there are still
traces of what was written on the wall, but they're at a height quite
above what a sixteen year old could normally reach. So it doesn't seem
possible that the Dalit youth could have written that.pkudi_16

Another important fact to remember is: in reality, Dalit villagers
from Pallapacheri are too scared to ever visit the village of
Mandalamanickam because it is totally Thevar dominated. While there
are around two hundred Dalit (Pallar) families in Pallapacheri, the
number of Thevar households in Mandalamanickam is around a thousand.
That is the main reason why the Dalits of Pallapacheri have been
demanding a direct access road to the main road because they don't
wish to travel to the main road through Mandalamanickam village. That
is also the reason why 49 Dalit students from Pallapacheri prefer to
study in a high school eight kilometres away from home, rather than go
to the high school in Mandalamanickam which is only a kilometer away!
Under such circumstances, it is very difficult to believe that a Dalit
teenager from Pallapacheri could ever have written a comment abusing
Muthuramalinga Thevar on the walls of the fair price shop in the
Thevar village of Mandalamanickam.

The villagers in Pallapacheri say that the police have registered the
murder of Palani Kumar, who was killed by the Thevars, as having been
committed by 'unknown persons'. No one has been arrested so far. This
murder had caused a lot of fear among the Dalits of Pallapacheri, and
they had invited their leader John Pandian to the village. But the
local police and revenue officials barred John Pandian from visiting
the village. John Pandian's visit could cause a law and order problem,
they said. Therefore John Pandian canceled his visit to Pallapacheri
and promised to visit the village after the Immanuel Sekaran memorial
on the 11th. But the police who arrested him on the 11th didn't
release him until the 13th. He was released by the police only after a
Habeas Corpus petition was filed in the High Court.pkudi_20

The partisan attitude of the government officials

When Palani Kumar, the Dalit student from Pallapacheri, was killed by
the Thevars of Mandalamanickam the police registered the offence as
committed by 'unknown persons'. This reflects nothing but a partisan
attitude.

It was the Dalits' democratic right to erect banners in honour of
their leader Immanuel Sekaran. But the police action of summoning them
to the police station and pressurizing them to remove the banners,
definitely indicates the readiness of the officialdom to serve the
local Thevar interests, in order to secure the patronage of the Thevar
political leaders.

There are indications that the Thevar political leaders' hands were
also behind John Pandian's arrest. Were the police and revenue
officials not aware that it would cause anxiety among the Dalits if a
Dalit leader was arrested on Immanuel Sekaran's memorial day, an
important annual event for them? Even if they were aware, they had
decided to follow only their political masters' dictates; and hence
they arrested John Pandian and killed six Dalits during the Rasta Roko
demonstration which naturally followed it. This was perhaps their way
of killing two birds with one shot.pkudi_21

It is clearly evident that in Tamil Nadu, the police and all the wings
of the administration are controlled by the Thevar (Maravar) leaders.
This is against the law and the constitution.

Conclusion

The Paramakudi killings bring to light once again the pervasive lack
of democratic consciousness and respect for human rights among those
wielding power in the state apparatus. There is an urgent need to work
for the spread of more democratic values and norms in governance.
Paramakudi is a good place to begin this mission. Political and civil
society needs to fight for the Government to undertake the following
remedial measures as a first step:

The police officials who participated in the Paramakudi massacre
should be arrested and tried for murder.

Immanuel Sekaran's memorial should be allowed to be observed without
any hindrance every year.

Government and police officials should act in an impartial manner and
follow the constitution and not the dictates of Thevar leaders.

There is a lot of evidence to prove that Dalits are being hindered
from joining the police force. On the other hand, unemployed Thevar
youth, even if unqualified, are being recruited into the police in
large numbers. This has resulted in lopsided representation in the
Tamil Nadu police department with the Thevars claiming 30% of all
positions. How can Dalit victims expect justice under such
circumstances? The Thevar employees who obtained jobs in the
department through questionable means should be removed.

The Thevars should be removed from the Most Backward Classes category.

Karthik Navayan is a Dalit human rights activist.

[Translated from Telugu by Kuffir. Pictures courtesy: Karthik Navayan]


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[ZESTCaste] No age relaxation for SC,STs if rules don't permit: SC

 

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/195441/no-age-relaxation-scsts-rules.html

No age relaxation for SC,STs if rules don't permit: SC
New Delhi, Oct 3(PTI)

Socially backward candidates like Scheduled Castes and Scheduled
Tribes cannot be granted age relaxation in jobs if the statutory rules
do not provide for such benefits, the Supreme Court has ruled.

A bench of justices J M Panchal and H L Gokhale said if rules do not
allow age relaxation, courts are not empowered to give direction for
relaxing it.

"If there is no age relaxation in the rules, the same cannot be
brought in by any judicial interpretation. In the circumstances we do
not find any error in the judgement of the Single Judge or that of the
Division Bench," the apex court said.

The apex court passed the judgement while dismissing the appeal filed
by Jamaluddin, an ad hoc Munsif in Jammu & Kashmir.

The bench, however, asked the high court to consider on the
administrative side relaxing the rule since such an age relaxation is
provided for in the State's higher judicial services.

He was appointed as an ad hoc Munsif in the Jammu & Kashmir Judicial
Service on August 13, 2001. Subsequently, he applied for the post of
Munsif in the ST category when a notification was issued by the J&K
Public Service Commission on December 4, 2001 for regular
appointments.

The notification required the person to be of not more than 35 years
of age as on January one of the year in which the notification was
issued.

Jamaluddin's application was rejected as he was over aged by 11 months.
A single judge of the J&K High Court upheld the Commission's decision
and the Division Bench affirmed it, upon which he appealed in the apex
court.

Jamaluddin's contention was that the age limit for entering into
government service was upto 38 years for SC, STs, therefore his
application should have been accepted. He also pointed out that
similar age relaxation was granted for entry into the higher judicial
service.

The State, however, defended the rule saying the age group for the
higher judicial service from the general category was 35 to 45 years,
but for SC, STs and OBCs a relaxation in age of two years was
permissible as candidates from thesecategories were not easily
available for the Higher Judicial Services.

"We quite appreciate the submission made on behalf of the appellant,
and we quite see that there is some kind of anomaly in the sense that
there is no age relaxation at the level of Munsifs, though it is so
provided at the level of entry into the Higher Judicial Service," the
bench said.

It, however, hastened to add that the high court should consider
relaxing the rule for the Munsif posts too on the lines of the higher
judicial service.

"Although, we are not inclined to interfere with the order passed by
the high court on the judicial side, we do feel that the high court on
its administrative side should examine the issue as to whether age
relaxation should be provided to the candidates belonging to SC, ST
and OBCs appearing for the Judicial Service Examination at the Munsif
level as is provided to the candidates appearing for the Higher
Judicial Service Examination.
"We hope that this will be done without much delay," the bench said.

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[ZESTCaste] Govt may to link I-T history check to granting SC/ST benefits

http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_govt-may-to-link-i-t-history-check-to-granting-sc-st-benefits_1594758

Govt may to link I-T history check to granting SC/ST benefits

Published: Tuesday, Oct 4, 2011, 8:00 IST
Place: Mumbai | Agency: DNA

The Maharashtra government is contemplating checking the income-tax
returns filed by a person from the reserved category before granting
benefits under the Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) Act.

There are IAS officers belonging to the SC/ST category who admit their
children to private schools and expect benefits to be extended to
them, government pleader Dhairyasheel Nalavade informed the Bombay
high court on Monday.

"They can't be entitled to freeship. Those paying the tax should not
be given these benefits," pleaded Nalavade.

A division bench of chief justice Mohit Shah and justice Roshan Dalvi
was hearing a public interest litigation by Naresh Gosavi and other
parents whose children study in private aided and unaided schools
under the "free studentship".

The petitioners claimed that because the government has failed to
release the grants, the managements were not permitting their children
to attend school.

Earlier, the high court had asked the government to release grants for
free education of students from SC, ST, vimukta jatis, nomadic tribes
and Other Backward Class.

Gayatri Singh informed the court that the government had stopped
disbursement of fees since 2007. "As a result, several students have
dropped out of school," said Singh.

But, Nalavade contended that these parents [petitioners] have sent
their children to private unaided schools which charge high fees, and
the government cannot afford to pay thousands of rupees per month for
each student.

Nalavade informed the court that the government will place the fee
hike proposal before the cabinet on Tuesday.


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[ZESTCaste] Mirchpur nurses its wounds, untouched by poll frenzy

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/mirchpur-nurses-its-wounds-untouched-by-poll-frenzy/855286/

Mirchpur nurses its wounds, untouched by poll frenzy
Pradeep Kaushal Posted online: Tue Oct 04 2011, 00:48 hrs
Mirchpur, Haryana : Part of the poll-bound Hisar Lok Sabha
constituency, Mirchpur looks an island of silence amid the cacophony
created by a high-voltage campaign all around. Fleet after fleet of
cars passes by but no candidate halts to seek votes for the October 13
bypoll, being held following the death of former chief minister Bhajan
Lal.

"We don't want any politicians around and we have told them to stay
away," Chander Prakash, who currently leads the Jat community of the
village, explains to The Indian Express, "because our village has
fallen into its present state because of politicians."

Mirchpur is yet to recover from last year's violence. An elderly
Dalit, Tara Chand, and his physically-challenged daughter were burnt
to death on April 21, 2010, after a crowd of the dominant Jat
community torched a number of houses following a quarrel between some
youths belonging to both sections. A total of 97 persons were later
put on trial; 82 of them were acquitted while the other 15 were held
guilty under various sections and are waiting for their sentences.

Indian National Lok Dal candidate Ajay Chautala had made a programme
to visit Mirchpur for votes, says Chander Prakash, "but we told him
not to bother us". Chautala dropped the programme.

The Jats' first priority is to somehow buy peace with the Balmikis as
they plan an appeal following the conviction of youths of their
community. They have made several overtures, the latest being a
written invitation on the letterhead of a Haryana chief parliamentary
secretary to work out an agreement to ensure "amity" in the village.
The proposal has been jointly made by Chander Prakash, Devi Singh and
Balbir Singh, a retired CRPF DSP.

"There is no way we can accept the peace offer," says Rajmal, a Dalit
chowkidar. "What can we decide when a large number of people, who had
fled after the attack, have not returned to the village?" says Sanjay
Kumar, standing next to him.

The houses freshly built for Dalits stand out from the rest. Each is
painted yellow and numbered distinctly, and has the name of the owner
in bold letters. Several of them, however, are unoccupied. "Kamla w/o
Tara Chand," an empty house proclaims. The gates and doors are wide
open; wild shrubs on the compound stand testimony that the surviving
members of Tara Chand's family have never thought about coming back
since that night.

There is a permanent police post close to the Balmiki Mohalla and its
men can be seen all around. However, the Dalits have not yet overcome
their fear. "My nephew Ajmer Singh was beaten up after the court
verdict," Chander Singh says.

Praveen Kumar, husband of Mahendro, a Dalit member of the panchayat,
says the polling booth for Balmikis is very far from where they live
and they are scared of going there. "We don't know what might happen
to us on the way," he says.

Either section has a partisan view, and neither wants anything to do
with the election, but there is one striking exception. Suresh Balmiki
blames "anti-social elements on both sides" for the trouble. Over the
last few years, he has been swearing by peace and become a regular
feature among the band of followers who surround Haryana PWD Minister
Randeep Singh Surjewala. He accompanies Surjewala when he campaigns
for Congress nominee Jai Prakash. As such, Suresh Balmiki stands out
as an island within the island.


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[ZESTCaste] Banda rape victim undergoes medical test at AIIMS

 

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/banda-rape-victim-undergoes-medical-test-at-aiims/855467/

Banda rape victim undergoes medical test at AIIMS
Express News Service Posted online: Tue Oct 04 2011, 03:38 hrs
Lucknow/ New Delhi : Sixteen days after the CBI took over the probe
into the rape of a minor Dalit girl at Banda in Uttar Pradesh
involving a BSP MLA, the medical examination of the girl was carried
out at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), here on
Monday.

The special crime branch unit of Lucknow CBI had taken the rape victim
to AIIMS for medical examination. CBI Joint Director Javeed Ahmed said
the girl was taken to AIIMS to get an opinion from experts to know if
there was any possibility to corroborate the victim's allegation of
rape.

The girl was allegedly raped in December last year, but the CBI got
the investigation last month only following a Supreme Court order on
September 12.

The agency is trying to reconstruct the scene of the crime along with
examination of forensic evidence collected by the local police.

According to the FIR, the girl was raped at BSP MLA Purshottam Naresh
Dwivedi's residence in Banda during the day time on December 11 and in
the late night hours of December 12 and 13. Later, she was booked on
the charges of stealing some articles from the MLA's residence and was
sent to jail.

From the jail, she made an application to local court, alleging rape
and other criminal acts by the MLA and his men. On the court's order,
a case was lodged on January 12. The medical examination, which took
over a month after the incident, ruled out rape.

A CBI official said that besides the MLA, the girl had accused his
associates, namely Neta, Rajen Shukla, Ram Naresh alias Rawan and
Virendra Garg, of raping her at Dwivedi's house.

The girl also alleged the MLA, the then Banda SP Anil Kumar Das and
then SHO of the local police station Abdul Jabbar framed her in a
false case of theft.

The CBI Lucknow had registered the case of rape on September 16
following directives of the Supreme Court.

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[ZESTCaste] Quota not a must for success: Dalit businessman

 

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/dalit-becomes-entrepreneur-without-use-of-quotas/189929-3.html

Updated Oct 04, 2011 at 11:18am IST
Quota not a must for success: Dalit businessman
Kajal IyerKajal Iyer, CNN-IBN

Pune: Taking inspiration from the Black Capitalism movement in the US
in the 70's, India's Dalit community is now focusing on a parallel
Dalit capitalism movement. The movement started by a handful of Dalit
entrepreneurs, is slowly becoming the new war cry for progress in the
community.

Dalit entrepreneur Milind Kamble said, "If you are a true follower of
Babasaheb Ambedkar, you can't be a job seeker, you have to be a job
giver."

Had he listened to his father, who was a teacher, Milind Kamble would
have fulfilled the Dalit dream of a 'safe' government job. He,
however, chose to use his engineering education to build a Rs 70 crore
construction company in Pune with no help from 'quotas'.

"Till when the Dalit youth keep fighting captialists? We need to stand
up and become captialist ourselves. Being followers of babasaheb, we
will not indulgde in exploitation but we can still earn lots of
money." said Kamble.

Despite initial financial hiccups, Kamble is now fairly successful in
an industry where Dalits are mostly labourers. With sheer
determination he has now joined the ranks of India's first generation
Dalit entrepreneurs.

According to the 61st round of the national sample survey in 2004-05,
29 per cent of urban Dalits were self employed, whereas, in rural
areas, 7 per cent Dalits were entrepreneurs. The 2006-07 census of
MSMEs (Micro, Small and Medium enterprises) said that Dalits account
for 7.7 per cent of the 1.55 million MSMEs in India.

To represent these entrepreneurs, Kamble created the Dalit Chamber of
Commerce and Industry (DICCI) in 2005. The forum has around 1000
members across the country and caters to training and funding needs of
Dalit businessmen.

Today the construction business is seeing the rise of many Dalit
entrepreneurs, businessmen like Kamble who no longer rely on caste
quotas for jobs but have made their way up in the private sector
through open competition.

This December DICCI plans a three day conclave in Mumbai which
business leaders like Ratan Tata and Adi Godrej are expected to
attend. While the new entrepreneurs admit quotas help, they say its
time now for Dalits to blaze their own trail.

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[ZESTCaste] BJP woos dalits, ignores their leaders

http://www.asianage.com/india/bjp-woos-dalits-ignores-their-leaders-686

BJP woos dalits, ignores their leaders
Oct 04, 2011 - Amita Verma |

Age Corespondent

Lucknow


The Bharatiya Janata Party is now trying to make a conscious effort to
woo dalits and OBCs in Uttar Pradesh but the party does not have an
acceptable dalit and backward face to project and promote in the
coming Assembly elections.

The party, at a recent Dalit and OBC Sammelan in Lucknow, discounted
the efforts made by UP chief minister Mayawati for dalit upliftment
and promised to give dalits and OBCs the due credit if the BJP came to
power in UP.
The party made spirited efforts to project itself as a dalit and OBC
friendly party and cited its support to Mayawati as an example.
The BJP leaders delved into history, picked up dalit leaders like
Uppaiya, Banke Chamar, Uda Devi, Jhalkari Bai, Chetram Jatav and
Veeran Kori — all of whom had been ignored by the Mayawati government
— and promised to give them due credit.
"When the BJP is voted to power in UP, we will include the
contribution of these dalit and OBC leaders in the text books so that
our children can learn about the role and contribution of dalits and
OBCs in the country's freedom movement and development," promised
Rajnath Singh.
Ms Uma Bharti, in her speech, recalled how she had convinced her party
leaders to support Mayawati as chief minister in 2002. "After that,
Mayawati forgot me and also the dalits," she said.
Interestingly, the BJP in UP does not have any recognised dalit face
in the party that can address and win over dalit voters. Leaders like
Bangaru Laxman and Ramnath Kovid have faded into the background and so
has Ramapati Shastri — once known as the dalit face of the party.
Another senior dalit leader, Sangh Priya Gautam, has already left the
BJP.
Interestingly at the OBC Sammelan, last week, BJP's prominent OBC
leaders in UP like Vinay Katiyar, Om Prakash Singh and Premlata
Katiyar were conspicuous by their absence and it was left to Ms Uma
Bharti, again, to hold the torch at the function.
A senior backward leader, while talking on condition of anonymity,
said, "When it comes to major decision making in the party, it is the
upper caste leaders who call the shots. We are not showpieces meant to
be displayed during elections only. And it is because of this that we
kept away from the sammelan. The dalit leadership in the BJP has also
wilted due to the same reason."


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[ZESTCaste] Grassroot democracy still eludes Dalits

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Madurai/article2508425.ece

MADURAI, October 3, 2011
Grassroot democracy still eludes Dalits
D. Karthikeyan


The village square built using granite stone at caste Hindu dominated
C.Nattapatti in A. Pudupatti Panchayat near Usilampatti.
The Hindu The village square built using granite stone at caste Hindu
dominated C.Nattapatti in A. Pudupatti Panchayat near Usilampatti.

Women, Dalit representatives face hardship in villages dominated by
local political and social elite

The 73rd Amendment to the Constitution instituted a policy of
political reservation in local government for historically
disadvantaged social groups, including Dalits and women. The move was
hailed as a breakthrough in bringing about a vibrant system of
participatory democracy at the grassroots and a paradigm shift in the
process of development.

Almost three decades into the enactment of the amendment and elections
around the corner, an analytical perspective on the functioning of
grassroots democracy in and around Madurai reveals effects of such
democratic governance have failed in most cases to serve the purpose.

The governance environment here could be termed as a space where
elements of inequality, local power relations and factors like gender,
caste and patriarchy come together. Indeed, it is the sum of these
factors that tell the stories of both women and Dalit representatives
who have faced difficulties in villages dominated by the local
political and social elite.

Pranab Bardhan, political economist based in California, says, "While
democracy tends to empower local people, and thus increases the
accountability of the local government, the decentralised nature of
grassroots democracy may make it easier for local elites to capture
the local politics. Democracy does not necessarily lead to a fairer
provision of public goods."

As a case study, C. Ayyankoilpatti, in A. Pudupatti panchayat of
Chellampatti panchayat union, is a village with a predominant Dalit
population most of whom are highly literate and in better government
jobs.

Despite such upward mobility in terms of education, they felt that
they were being discriminated against just because they happened to be
Dalits. Demanding basic amenities, the Dalits in the village observed
a fast on September 25 and 26 and also threatened to boycott the
elections.

Madurai Veeran (38) said that all welfare schemes meant for Dalits
were usurped by the dominant caste, so they had to protest and go on
fast. After the intervention of Revenue officials and promises to look
into the issue immediately, they decided to give up their protest.

R. Pandian said that their demands include retrieval of 45 cents of
land meant for a drama stage and restoration of the Kaliamman Temple,
balwadi and a community hall. However, within the same panchayat,
discrimination is tangible. The caste Hindu dominated C. Nattapatti
has all the facilities — a village square a drama stage with granite
floor built at a cost of Rs.2.25 lakh. A fact-finding report by the
Tamil Nadu Federation of Women Presidents of Panchayat Government,
Dalit Panchayat Presidents Federation of Tamil Nadu and Panchayat
Presidents Coordinated Federation- Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, found
that the meaning of grassroot democracy and local governance was still
elusive for the elected Dalit representatives.

Allegations include compulsion to sign blank cheques without giving
details of their utilisation; non-cooperation of dominant caste
members in panchayat councils; prevention of Dalit presidents from
passing resolutions and denial of access to panchayat records, account
books and registers. Panchayats like Keeripatti, Pappapatti and
Nachikulam in Madurai, which have Dalit representatives, had faced
discrimination many times.

A large number of elected Dalit and woman panchayat presidents
suffered humiliation at the hands of the vice-presidents and
co-members and even government officials. In many cases, it was found
that the Dalit presidents had to take orders from caste-Hindu leaders
and that a substantial number of woman presidents were acting de-facto
for their husbands or other men of their families.

For rural women and Dalits, most of whom were elected to these posts
for the first time, it was an uphill task. Fear of facing hostile
people prevented them from even convening the mandatory gram sabha
meetings.

R. Thilagam, State Coordinator, Dalit Women's Right to Political
Participation in Rural Panchayat Raj Programme, Madurai, said that
decentralisation of political governance was indeed a boon for the
marginalised, especially Dalits and women. It ensured the
participation of people who were hitherto not part of the political
process. However, if there was no reservation system in place they
would not have had the space as local governance largely dealt with
gender, caste and patriarchy.

The programme did empirical research and found that not many women who
were holding posts were aware of their rights. Statistics revealed
that women were mostly victims of gender and patriarchy and their
democratically elected posts were being usurped.

There can be no second thoughts on the fact that the 73rd Amendment
had provided the much needed space for women and Dalit women in
particular to come out of their domestic confines and be part of the
public sphere and these changes were possible because of this local
governance.

Ms. Thilagam was of the view that the problems lie in the
non-implementation of programmes and lack of proper monitoring system.
Moreover, there was lack of will on the part of the bureaucracy to
support the panchayats. She also opined that the reserved panchayats,
for both women and Dalits, be allotted more funds for deep
democratisation.


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[ZESTCaste] Three Books That Convey The Complexity Of Caste

http://www.npr.org/2011/10/03/137789270/three-books-that-convey-the-complexity-of-caste

Three Books That Convey The Complexity Of Caste

by Miranda Kennedy
As India has embraced its economic successes, it still grapples with
social change.
istockphoto.com


October 3, 2011

There's been a glut of India books in recent years, most of them
excitable narratives with titles like Billions of Entrepreneurs that
look at how the country's fast-changing economy is revolutionizing
global business and the Indian lifestyle.

Fewer and further between are those that acknowledge that the
country's progress toward social change has been stuttering and
uneven. And it's even more unusual to find authors willing to admit
that the ancient Hindu caste hierarchy still defines much about modern
country. But these three don't shy away.
Untouchables

Untouchables
My Family's Triumphant Escape from India's Caste System

by Narendra Jadhav

Paperback, 307 pages

The subtitle of this memoir makes the journey sound easier than it
was for Narendra Jadhav's family to escape the oppressive expectations
of caste. Jadhav is one of India's 165 million Dalits, or
"untouchables" — the group of Indians who were literally outcaste from
society for centuries. In some ways, little has changed: Dalits are
still disproportionately impoverished, malnourished and illiterate.
Jadhav's father, Damu, makes his living guarding the bodies of the
dead, hauling away animal carcasses and cleaning the village toilets.
But Damu's political awakening takes him out of his backwater village
to the teeming metropolis of Mumbai. There, his son, Narendra, not
only attends college but becomes chief economist at the Reserve Bank
of India. In this, Narendra's telling of his family tale, we see just
how much mettle it takes to transcend the lines of caste in today's
India.

The White Tiger

The White Tiger
A Novel

by Aravind Adiga

Hardcover, 276 pages

The rustic hero of Adiga's Booker Prize-winning novel, Balram,
shares something with Jadhav's father, Damu. He is an uneducated,
low-caste villager determined to find his way out of "the Darkness,"
as he calls rural India. In Delhi, he sheds the restrictions of his
caste and lands a well-paying job as a chauffeur for a rich man.
Here's where the similarity to Damu ends, however: In the name of what
Balram calls "social entrepreneurship," he murders his boss and takes
off for Bangalore, the tech capital of India, hoping to start his own
business and get rich. But joining the new economy doesn't mean he
overcomes his grudge against rural India — ruled by a corrupt elite.
"In the old days," he says, "there were one thousand castes and
destinies in India. These days, there are just two castes — Men with
Big Bellies, and Men with Small Bellies. And only two destinies: eat —
or get eaten up."

Nine Lives

Nine Lives
In Search of the Sacred in Modern India

by William Dalrymple

Hardcover, 275 pages

William Dalrymple, who has been chronicling life in India for 20
years as a travel writer and historian, sets out here to show us the
deeply religious rural population. One of Dalrymple's strengths is his
refusal to render judgment, but when it comes to the question of
caste, he throws in the towel. In a section about a sacred dance form
called theyyam, he tells us that the performers who take on the aspect
of the gods are "the shunned and insulted Dalits." When the performers
remove their costumes, he tells us, they're no longer treated like
gods but, once again, like untouchables: "In the presence of persons
of the upper castes," he writes, "Dalits are still expected to bow
their heads and stand at a respectful distance."

Although Adiga's gutsy portrayal of the ugly inner lobes of modern-day
Indian life won him great acclaim, for the most part the image of a
caste-ridden society still goes against the popular narrative of a
booming India. But these three books show us an India still committed
to its religious traditions, even as it surges ahead to join the
globalized world.

Miranda Kennedy is an editor for Morning Edition and the author of
Sideways on a Scooter: Life and Love in India.

Three Books... is produced and edited by Ellen Silva with production
assistance from Rose Friedman and Sophie Adelman.


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[ZESTCaste] Pachery's Dalits to boycott civic polls

http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/tamil-nadu/article2511485.ece

RAMANATHAPURAM, October 4, 2011
Pachery's Dalits to boycott civic polls
C. Jaishankar

Police failure to arrest remaining accused in murder of Dalit boy

The residents — all Dalits — of Pachery village, part of the
Mandalamanickam panchayat, where a boy was murdered allegedly by a
group of caste Hindus recently, have decided to boycott the local body
elections.

They have cited police failure to arrest the remaining accused (other
than the five already arrested) in the murder case and denial of
access to a road by caste Hindus.

The decision comes amid allegations that the president and
vice-president of the panchayat have been 'selected' through
'auctioneering' at a price of Rs.15 lakh.

Though two ward members can be elected from Pachery village, part of
the Mandalamanickam panchayat, no nominations have been filed. The
process is over and there will be no representation from the village
in the panchayat.

The boycott decision was taken at a 'village meeting' held at Pachery
recently, to protest continuous "harassment and torture" by caste
Hindus and failure of the government in addressing their grievances.

Though the Mandalamanickam panchayat, which has eight villages
(hamlets) under its jurisdiction, has been categorised as reserved,
the Dalits of Pachery allege that the caste Hindus have been following
illegal and undemocratic methods of selecting a 'puppet' candidate
from another Dalit community, which has very few in numbers in the
entire panchayat.


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[ZESTCaste] Cong. ignoring dalits: MP

http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=2&ContentId=9076

Cong. ignoring dalits: MP

Rajahmundry: The Congress party is neglecting dalits and tribals who
are instrumental in bringing the Congress party to power for the
second time in the year 2009, said Amalapuram M P Harsha Kumar here on
Tuesday. He found fault with the party which did not invite such an
experienced north Andhra leader like Kishore Chandra Dev for the
merger meeting, Uttarandhra Congress Garjana meeting held in Vizag.

Speaking to reporters, Mr Harsha Kumar reminded that he was
instrumental in reviving the Congress party in the region by
organising Malala Simhagarjana before elections. It is unfortunate
that the party is neglecting dalits, said sought the intervention of
high command to set things in order in the party.

Making veiled remarks on Chirnajeevi and Botcha Satyannarayana, Harsha
Kumar said that the party should not neglect dalits and tribals while
giving priority to others in the party.

He advised the party not to sideline its traditional supporters.
However, he said that he was not against the merger of the PRP with
the Congress. He made it clear that he would complain to the Congress
president Sonia Gandhi about these unfortunate developments.

Speaking about Telangana issue, Mr Harsha Kumar opined that the
people's representatives should not interfere in the strike of the
government employees. He said that the government was capable of
handling things as it had done in the case of Group-1 examinations.
He expressed confidence that the government would protect the
employees irrespective of the region.

Saying that he was not against the separate State of Telangana, he
made it clear that the issue of Hyderabad should be solved amicably
before that. He opposed the idea of imposing President rule in the
State.


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[ZESTCaste] Muslims, Dalits hone skills to join citys police force

http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_muslims-dalits-hone-skills-to-join-citys-police-force_1594755

Muslims, Dalits hone skills to join citys police force
Published: Tuesday, Oct 4, 2011, 10:30 IST
By Manoj R Nair | Place: Mumbai | Agency: DNA

Around 60 young men and women have been training at a ramshackle
school in the Shivaji Nagar slums in Govandi for a year now to become
constables in the Mumbai police.

The school's stone-strewn ground is training ground for practising the
5-kilometre run, the 100-metre dash and the long jump — the components
of the physical test to select police constables.

For two hours daily in the evening, volunteers of the local mohalla
committees teach the police aspirants written Marathi and discuss
current affairs, apart from the athletic training.

Almost all the candidates are Muslims and Dalits, beneficiaries of a
project by community groups, Magsaysay award winner Jockin Arputham
and Mumbai police that aims to increase the representation of
religious minorities and backward castes in the city police.

This month, the state police department advertised openings for 16,900
posts of constables, including around 3,500 in Mumbai. The volunteers
are hoping that atleast a dozen candidates will make it.

It took them a lot of visits in the area to convince families to allow
young undergraduates, especially women, to consider jobs in the
police. "Since we train the candidates free of cost, there was a lot
of suspicion about what we were doing," said Parveen Shaikh, a member
of the mohalla committee.

Yunus Mukadam, another member said that many Muslim youngsters did not
want to apply because they were sceptical whether they would be
selected. "But if a large number of Muslims take part in the
selection, a few will be selected," said Mukadam.

The misgiving among aspirants is voiced by Nisar Patel, a 19-year old
second year BCom student. Patel has studied in a Marathi-language
school and is confident about clearing the exams. "But Muslim students
do not apply for a policeman's job because they feel their
applications will be ignored," said Patel.

ML Sonkavde, a retired college lecturer teaching the students how to
write essays in Marathi said, "Nearly 70% are Muslims who are not very
fluent in Marathi."

Arputham said, "These young people are idealistic and want to join the
police force to serve society."


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[ZESTCaste] Fwd: The People's Movement has been Hijacked ( BEWARE OF FORD FUNDED DALIT STOOGES )

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Ranjit Ranjith <ranjit.ranjit@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, Oct 2, 2011 at 8:56 AM
Subject: The People's Movement has been Hijacked ( BEWARE OF FORD
FUNDED DALIT STOOGES )
To:


http://www.countercurrents.org/chossudovsky260910.htm

"Manufacturing Dissent": The Anti-Globalization Movement
Is Funded By The Corporate Elites

By Michel Chossudovsky

26 September , 2010
Global Research

The People's Movement has been Hijacked

"Everything the [Ford] Foundation did could be regarded as "making the
World safe for capitalism", reducing social tensions by helping to
comfort the afflicted, provide safety valves for the angry, and
improve the functioning of government (McGeorge Bundy, National
Security Advisor to Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson
(1961-1966), President of the Ford Foundation, (1966-1979))

"By providing the funding and the policy framework to many concerned
and dedicated people working within the non-profit sector, the ruling
class is able to co-opt leadership from grassroots communities, ...
and is able to make the funding, accounting, and evaluation components
of the work so time consuming and onerous that social justice work is
virtually impossible under these conditions" (Paul Kivel, You Call
this Democracy, Who Benefits, Who Pays and Who Really Decides, 2004,
p. 122 )

"Under the New World Order, the ritual of inviting "civil society"
leaders into the inner circles of power --while simultaneously
repressing the rank and file-- serves several important functions.
First, it says to the World that the critics of globalization "must
make concessions" to earn the right to mingle. Second, it conveys the
illusion that while the global elites should --under what is
euphemistically called democracy-- be subject to criticism, they
nonetheless rule legitimately. And third, it says "there is no
alternative" to globalization: fundamental change is not possible and
the most we can hope is to engage with these rulers in an ineffective
"give and take".

While the "Globalizers" may adopt a few progressive phrases to
demonstrate they have good intentions, their fundamental goals are not
challenged. And what this "civil society mingling" does is to
reinforce the clutch of the corporate establishment while weakening
and dividing the protest movement. An understanding of this process of
co-optation is important, because tens of thousands of the most
principled young people in Seattle, Prague and Quebec City [1999-2001]
are involved in the anti-globalization protests because they reject
the notion that money is everything, because they reject the
impoverishment of millions and the destruction of fragile Earth so
that a few may get richer.

This rank and file and some of their leaders as well, are to be
applauded. But we need to go further. We need to challenge the right
of the "Globalizers" to rule. This requires that we rethink the
strategy of protest. Can we move to a higher plane, by launching mass
movements in our respective countries, movements that bring the
message of what globalization is doing, to ordinary people? For they
are the force that must be mobilized to challenge those who plunder
the Globe." (Michel Chossudovsky, The Quebec Wall, April 2001)

The term "manufacturing consent" was initially coined by Edward S
Herman and Noam Chomsky.

"Manufacturing consent" describes a propaganda model used by the
corporate media to sway public opinion and "inculcate individuals with
values and beliefs...":

The mass media serve as a system for communicating messages and
symbols to the general populace. It is their function to amuse,
entertain, and inform, and to inculcate individuals with the values,
beliefs, and codes of behavior that will integrate them into the
institutional structures of the larger society. In a world of
concentrated wealth and major conflicts of class interest, to fulfill
this role requires systematic propaganda. (Manufacturing Consent by
Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky)

"Manufacturing consent" implies manipulating and shaping public
opinion. It establishes conformity and acceptance to authority and
social hierarchy. It seeks compliance to an established social order.
"Manufacturing consent" describes the submission of public opinion to
the mainstream media narrative, to its lies and fabrications.

"Manufacturing dissent"

In this article, we focus on a related concept, namely the process of
"manufacturing dissent" (rather than "consent"), which plays a
decisive role in serving the interests of the ruling class.

Under contemporary capitalism, the illusion of democracy must prevail.
It is in the interest of the corporate elites to accept dissent and
protest as a feature of the system inasmuch as they do not threaten
the established social order. The purpose is not to repress dissent,
but, on the contrary, to shape and mould the protest movement, to set
the outer limits of dissent.

To maintain their legitimacy, the economic elites favor limited and
controlled forms of opposition, with a view to preventing the
development of radical forms of protest, which might shake the very
foundations and institutions of global capitalism. In other words,
"manufacturing dissent" acts as a "safety valve", which protects and
sustains the New World Order.

To be effective, however, the process of "manufacturing dissent" must
be carefully regulated and monitored by those who are the object of
the protest movement.

"Funding Dissent"

How is the process of manufacturing dissent achieved?

Essentially by "funding dissent", namely by channelling financial
resources from those who are the object of the protest movement to
those who are involved in organizing the protest movement.

Co-optation is not limited to buying the favors of politicians. The
economic elites --which control major foundations-- also oversee the
funding of numerous NGOs and civil society organizations, which
historically have been involved in the protest movement against the
established economic and social order. The programs of many NGOs and
people's movements rely heavily on both public as well as private
funding agencies including the Ford, Rockefeller, McCarthy
foundations, among others.

The anti-globalization movement is opposed to Wall Street and the
Texas oil giants controlled by Rockefeller, et al. Yet the foundations
and charities of Rockefeller et al will generously fund progressive
anti-capitalist networks as well as environmentalists (opposed to Big
Oil) with a view to ultimately overseeing and shaping their various
activities.

The mechanisms of "manufacturing dissent" require a manipulative
environment, a process of arm-twisting and subtle cooptation of
individuals within progressive organizations, including anti-war
coalitions, environmentalists and the anti-globalization movement.

Whereas the mainstream media "manufactures consent", the complex
network of NGOs (including segments of the alternative media) are used
by the corporate elites to mould and manipulate the protest movement.

Following the deregulation of the global financial system in the 1990s
and the rapid enrichment of the financial establishment, funding
through foundations and charities has skyrocketed. In a bitter irony,
part of the fraudulent financial gains on Wall Street in recent years
have been recycled to the elites' tax exempt foundations and
charities. These windfall financial gains have not only been used to
buy out politicians, they have also been channelled to NGOs, research
institutes, community centres, church groups, environmentalists,
alternative media, human rights groups, etc. "Manufactured dissent"
also applies to "corporate left" and "progressive media" funded by
NGOs or directly by the foundations.

The inner objective is to "manufacture dissent" and establish the
boundaries of a "politically correct" opposition. In turn, many NGOs
are infiltrated by informants often acting on behalf of western
intelligence agencies. Moreover, an increasingly large segment of the
progressive alternative news media on the internet has become
dependent on funding from corporate foundations and charities.

Piecemeal Activism

The objective of the corporate elites has been to fragment the
people's movement into a vast "do it yourself" mosaic. War and
globalization are no longer in the forefront of civil society
activism. Activism tends to be piecemeal. There is no integrated
anti-globalization anti-war movement. The economic crisis is not seen
as having a relationship to the US led war.

Dissent has been compartmentalized. Separate "issue oriented" protest
movements (e.g. environment, anti-globalization, peace, women's
rights, climate change) are encouraged and generously funded as
opposed to a cohesive mass movement. This mosaic was already prevalent
in the counter G7 summits and People's Summits of the 1990s.

The Anti-Globalization Movement

The Seattle 1999 counter-summit is invariably upheld as a triumph for
the anti-globalization movement: "a historic coalition of activists
shut down the World Trade Organization summit in Seattle, the spark
that ignited a global anti-corporate movement." (See Naomi Klein,
Copenhagen: Seattle Grows Up, The Nation, November 13, 2009).

Seattle was an indeed an important crossroads in the history of the
mass movement. Over 50,000 people from diverse backgrounds, civil
society organizations, human rights, labor unions, environmentalists
had come together in a common pursuit. Their goal was to forecefully
dismantle the neoliberal agenda including its institutional base.

But Seattle also marked a major reversal. With mounting dissent from
all sectors of society, the official WTO Summit desperately needed the
token participation of civil society leaders "on the inside", to give
the appearance of being "democratic" on the outside.

While thousands of people had converged on Seattle, what occurred
behind the scenes was a de facto victory for neoliberalism. A handful
of civil society organizations, formally opposed the WTO had
contributed to legitimizing the WTO's global trading architecture.
Instead of challenging the WTO as an an illegal intergovernmental
body, they agreed to a pre-summit dialogue with the WTO and Western
governments. "Accredited NGO participants were invited to mingle in a
friendly environment with ambassadors, trade ministers and Wall Street
tycoons at several of the official events including the numerous
cocktail parties and receptions." (Michel Chossudovsky, Seattle and
Beyond: Disarming the New World Order , Covert Action Quarterly,
November 1999, See Ten Years Ago: "Manufacturing Dissent" in Seattle).

The hidden agenda was to weaken and divide the protest movement and
orient the anti-globalization movement into areas that would not
directly threaten the interests of the business establishment.

Funded by private foundations (including Ford, Rockefeller,
Rockefeller Brothers, Charles Stewart Mott, The Foundation for Deep
Ecology), these "accredited" civil society organizations had
positioned themselves as lobby groups, acting formally on behalf of
the people's movement. Led by prominent and committed activists, their
hands were tied. They ultimately contributed (unwittingly) to
weakening the anti-globalization movement by accepting the legitimacy
of what was essentially an illegal organization. (The 1994 Marrakech
Summit agreement which led to the creation of the WTO on January 1,
1995). (Ibid)

The NGO leaders were fully aware as to where the money was coming
from. Yet within the US and European NGO community, the foundations
and charities are considered to be independent philanthropic bodies,
separate from the corporations; namely the Rockefeller Brothers
Foundation, for instance, is considered to be separate and distinct
from the Rockefeller family empire of banks and oil companies.

With salaries and operating expenses depending on private foundations,
it became an accepted routine: In a twisted logic, the battle against
corporate capitalism was to be be fought using the funds from the tax
exempt foundations owned by corporate capitalism.

The NGOs were caught in a straightjacket; their very existence
depended on the foundations. Their activities were closely monitored.
In a twisted logic, the very nature of anti-capitalist activism was
indirectly controlled by the capitalists through their independent
foundations.

"Progressive Watchdogs"

In this evolving saga, the corporate elites whose interests are duly
served by the IMF, the World Bank and the WTO, will readily fund
(through their various foundations and charities) organizations which
are at the forefront of the protest movement against the WTO and the
Washington based international financial institutions.

Supported by foundation money, various "watchdogs" were set up by the
NGOs to monitor the implementation of neoliberal policies, without
however raising the broader issue of how the Bretton Woods twins and
the WTO, through their policies, had contributed to the impoverishment
of millions of people.

The Structural Adjustment Participatory Review Network (SAPRIN) was
established by Development Gap, a USAID and World Bank funded NGO
based in Washington DC.

Amply documented, the imposition of the IMF-World Bank Structural
Adjustment Program (SAP) on developing countries constitutes a blatant
form of interference in the internal affairs of sovereign states on
behalf of creditor institutions.

Instead of challenging the legitimacy of the IMF-World Bank's "deadly
economic medicine", SAPRIN's core organization sought to establish a
participatory role for the NGOs, working hand in glove with USAID and
the World Bank. The objective was to give a "human face" to the
neoliberal policy agenda, rather than reject the IMF-World Bank policy
framework outright:

"SAPRIN is the global civil-society network that took its name from
the Structural Adjustment Participatory Review Initiative (SAPRI),
which it launched with the World Bank and its president, Jim
Wolfensohn, in 1997.

SAPRI is designed as a tripartite exercise to bring together
organizations of civil society, their governments and the World Bank
in a joint review of structural adjustment programs (SAPs) and an
exploration of new policy options. It is legitimizing an active role
for civil society in economic decision-making, as it is designed to
indicate areas in which changes in economic policies and in the
economic-policymaking process are required.
(http://www.saprin.org/overview.htm SAPRIN website, emphasis added)

Similarly, The Trade Observatory (formerly WTO Watch), operating out
of Geneva, is a project of the Minneapolis based Institute for
Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP), which is generously funded by
Ford, Rockefeller, Charles Stewart Mott among others. (see Table 1
below).

The Trade Observatory has a mandate to monitor the World Trade
Organization (WTO), the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA and
the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). (IATP, About
Trade Observatory, accessed September 2010).

The Trade Observatory is also to develop data and information as well
as foster "governance" and "accountability". Accountability to the
victims of WTO policies or accountability to the protagonists of
neoliberal reforms?

The Trade Observatory watchdog functions does not in any way threaten
the WTO. Quite the opposite: the legitimacy of the trade organizations
and agreements are never questioned.

Table 1 Minneapolis Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP)
largest donors
(for complete list click here)
Ford Foundation $2,612,500.00 1994 – 2006
Rockefeller Brothers Fund $2,320,000.00 1995 – 2005
Charles Stewart Mott Foundation $1,391,000.00 1994 – 2005
McKnight Foundation $1,056,600.00 1995 – 2005
Joyce Foundation $748,000.00 1996 – 2004
Bush Foundation $610,000.00 2001 – 2006
Bauman Family Foundation $600,000.00 1994 – 2006
Great Lakes Protection Fund $580,000.00 1995 – 2000
John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation $554,100.00 1991 – 2003
John Merck Fund $490,000.00 1992 – 2003
Harold K. Hochschild Foundation $486,600.00 1997 – 2005
Foundation for Deep Ecology $417,500.00 1991 – 2001
Jennifer Altman Foundation $366,500.00 1992 – 2001
Rockefeller Foundation $344,134.00 2000 – 2004

Soruce: http://activistcash.com/organization_financials.cfm/o/16-institute-for-agriculture-and-trade-policy

The World Economic Forum. "All Roads Lead to Davos"

The people's movement has been hijacked. Selected intellectuals, trade
union executives, and the leaders of civil society organizations
(including Oxfam, Amnesty International, Greenpeace) are routinely
invited to the Davos World Economic Forum, where they mingle with the
World's most powerful economic and political actors. This mingling of
the World's corporate elites with hand-picked "progressives" is part
of the ritual underlying the process of "manufacturing dissent".

The ploy is to selectively handpick civil society leaders "whom we can
trust" and integrate them into a "dialogue", cut them off from their
rank and file, make them feel that they are "global citizens" acting
on behalf of their fellow workers but make them act in a way which
serves the interests of the corporate establishment:

"The participation of NGOs in the Annual Meeting in Davos is evidence
of the fact that [we] purposely seek to integrate a broad spectrum of
the major stakeholders in society in ... defining and advancing the
global agenda ... We believe the [Davos] World Economic Forum provides
the business community with the ideal framework for engaging in
collaborative efforts with the other principal stakeholders [NGOs] of
the global economy to "improve the state of the world," which is the
Forum's mission. (World Economic Forum, Press Release 5 January 2001)

The WEF does not represent the broader business community. It is an
elitist gathering: Its members are giant global corporations (with a
minimum $5 billion annual turnover). The selected non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) are viewed as partner "stakeholders" as well as a
convenient "mouthpiece for the voiceless who are often left out of
decision-making processes." (World Economic Forum - Non-Governmental
Organizations, 2010)

"They [the NGOs] play a variety of roles in partnering with the Forum
to improve the state of the world, including serving as a bridge
between business, government and civil society, connecting the policy
makers to the grassroots, bringing practical solutions to the
table..." (Ibid)

Civil society "partnering" with global corporations on behalf of "the
voiceless", who are "left out"?

Trade union executives are also co-opted to the detriment of workers'
rights. The leaders of the International Federation of Trade Unions
(IFTU), the AFL-CIO, the European Trade Union Confederation, the
Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), among others, are routinely invited to
attend both the annual WEF meetings in Davos, Switzerland as well as
to the regional summits. They also participate in the WEF's Labour
Leaders Community which focuses on mutually acceptable patterns of
behavior for the labor movement. The WEF "believes that the voice of
Labour is important to dynamic dialogue on issues of globalisation,
economic justice, transparency and accountability, and ensuring a
healthy global financial system."

"Ensuring a healthy global financial system" wrought by fraud and
corruption? The issue of workers' rights is not mentioned. (World
Economic Forum - Labour Leaders, 2010).

The World Social Forum: "Another World Is Possible"

The 1999 Seattle counter-summit in many regards laid the foundations
for the development of the World Social Forum.

The first gathering of the World Social Forum took place in January
2001, in Porto Alegre, Brazil. This international gathering involved
the participation of tens of thousands of activists from grass-roots
organizations and NGOs.

The WSF gathering of NGOs and progressive organizations is held
simultaneously with the Davos World Economic Forum (WEF). It was
intended to voice opposition and dissent to the World Economic Forum
of corporate leaders and finance ministers.

The WSF at the outset was an initiative of France's ATTAC and several
Brazilian NGOs':

"... In February 2000, Bernard Cassen, the head of a French NGO
platform ATTAC, Oded Grajew, head of a Brazilian employers'
organisation, and Francisco Whitaker, head of an association of
Brazilian NGOs, met to discuss a proposal for a "world civil society
event"; by March 2000, they formally secured the support of the
municipal government of Porto Alegre and the state government of Rio
Grande do Sul, both controlled at the time by the Brazilian Workers'
Party (PT).... A group of French NGOs, including ATTAC, Friends of
L'Humanité, and Friends of Le Monde Diplomatique, sponsored an
Alternative Social Forum in Paris titled "One Year after Seattle", in
order to prepare an agenda for the protests to be staged at the
upcoming European Union summit at Nice. The speakers called for
"reorienting certain international institutions such as the IMF, World
Bank, WTO... so as to create a globalization from below" and "building
an international citizens' movement, not to destroy the IMF but to
reorient its missions." (Research Unit For Political Economy, The
Economics and Politics of the World Social Forum, Global Research,
January 20, 2004)

From the outset in 2001, the WSF was supported by core funding from
the Ford Foundation, which is known to have ties to the CIA going back
to the 1950s: "The CIA uses philanthropic foundations as the most
effective conduit to channel large sums of money to Agency projects
without alerting the recipients to their source." (James Petras,The
Ford Foundation and the CIA, Global Research, September 18, 2002)

The same procedure of donor funded counter-summits or people's summits
which characterized the 1990s People's Summits was embodied in the
World Social Forum (WSF):

"... other WSF funders (or `partners', as they are referred to in WSF
terminology) included the Ford Foundation, -- suffice it to say here
that it has always operated in the closest collaboration with the US
Central Intelligence Agency and US overall strategic interests; the
Heinrich Boll Foundation, which is controlled by the German Greens
party, a partner in the present [2003] German government and a
supporter of the wars on Yugoslavia and Afghanistan (its leader
Joschka Fischer is the [former] German foreign minister); and major
funding agencies such as Oxfam (UK), Novib (Netherlands), ActionAid
(UK), and so on.

Remarkably, an International Council member of the WSF reports that
the "considerable funds" received from these agencies have "not
hitherto awakened any significant debates [in the WSF bodies] on the
possible relations of dependence it could generate." Yet he admits
that "in order to get funding from the Ford Foundation, the organisers
had to convince the foundation that the Workers Party was not involved
in the process." Two points are worth noting here. First, this
establishes that the funders were able to twist arms and determine the
role of different forces in the WSF -- they needed to be `convinced'
of the credentials of those who would be involved. Secondly, if the
funders objected to the participation of the thoroughly domesticated
Workers Party, they would all the more strenuously object to
prominence being given to genuinely anti-imperialist forces. That they
did so object will be become clear as we describe who was included and
who excluded from the second and third meets of the WSF....

... The question of funding [of the WSF] does not even figure in the
charter of principles of the WSF, adopted in June 2001. Marxists,
being materialists, would point out that one should look at the
material base of the forum to grasp its nature. (One indeed does not
have to be a Marxist to understand that "he who pays the piper calls
the tune".) But the WSF does not agree. It can draw funds from
imperialist institutions like Ford Foundation while fighting
"domination of the world by capital and any form of imperialism"
(Research Unit For Political Economy, The Economics and Politics of
the World Social Forum, Global Research, January 20, 2004)

The Ford Foundation provided core support to the WSF, with indirect
contributions to participating "partner organizations" from the
McArthur Foundation, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, The
Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, the W. Alton Jones Foundation, the European
Commission, several European governments (including the Labour
government of Tony Blair), the Canadian government, as well as a
number of UN bodies (including UNESCO, UNICEF, UNDP, ILO and the FAO)
.(Ibid).

In addition to initial core support from the Ford Foundation, many of
the participating civil society organizations receive funding from
major foundations and charities. In turn, the US and European based
NGOs often operate as secondary funding agencies channelling Ford and
Rockefeller money towards partner organizations in developing
countries, including grassroots peasant and human rights movements.

The International Council (IC) of the WSF is made up of
representatives from NGOs, trade unions, alternative media
organizations, research institutes, many of which are heavily funded
by foundations as well as governments. (See Fórum Social Mundial). The
same trade unions, which are routinely invited to mingle with Wall
Street CEOs at the Davos World Economic Forum (WSF) including the
AFL-CIO, the European Trade Union Confederation and the Canadian Labor
Congress (CLC) also sit on the WSF's International Council (IC). Among
NGOs funded by major foundations sitting on the WSF's IC is the
Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) (see our analysis
above) which oversees the Geneva based Trade Observatory.

The Funders Network on Trade and Globalization (FTNG), which has
observer status on the WSF International Council plays a key role.
While channelling financial support to the WSF, it acts as a clearing
house for major foundations. The FTNG describes itself as "an alliance
of grant makers committed to building just and sustainable communities
around the world". Members of this alliance are Ford Foundation,
Rockefeller Brothers, Heinrich Boell, C. S. Mott, Merck Family
Foundation, Open Society Institute, Tides, among others. (For a
complete list of FTNG funding agencies see FNTG: Funders). FTNG acts
as a fund raising entity on behalf of the WSF.

Western Governments Fund the Counter-Summits and Repress the Protest Movement

In a bitter irony, governments including the European Union grant
money to fund progressive groups (including the WSF) involved in
organizing protests against the very same governments which finance
their activities:

"Governments, too, have been significant financiers of protest groups.
The European Commission, for example, funded two groups who mobilised
large numbers of people to protest at EU summits at Gothenburg and
Nice. Britain's national lottery, which is overseen by the government,
helped fund a group at the heart of the British contingent at both
protests." (James Harding, Counter-capitalism, FT.com, October 15
2001)

We are dealing with a diabolical process: The host government finances
the official summit as well as the NGOs actively involved in the
Counter-Summit. It also funds the anti-riot police operation which has
a mandate to repress the grassroots participants of the
Counter-Summit, including members of NGOs direcly funded by the
government. .

The purpose of these combined operations, including violent actions of
vandalism committed by undercover cops (Toronto G20, 2010) dressed up
as activists, is to discredit the protest movement and intimidate its
participants. The broader objective is to transform the counter-summit
into a ritual of dissent, which serves to uphold the interests of the
official summit and the host government. This logic has prevailed in
numerous counter summits since the 1990s.

At the 2001 Summit of the America in Quebec City, funding from the
Canadian federal government to mainstream NGOs and trade unions was
granted under certain conditions. A large segment of the protest
movement was de facto excluded from the People's Summit. This in
itself led a second parallel venue, which some observers described as
a "a counter-People's Summit. In turn, with both the provincial and
federal authorities that the protest march would be move towards a
remote location some 10 km out of town, rather than towards the
historical downtown area were the official FTAA summit was being held
behind a heavily guarded "security perimeter".

"Rather than marching toward the perimeter fence and the Summit of the
Americas meetings, march organizers chose a route that marched from
the People's Summit away from the fence, through largely empty
residential areas to the parking lot of a stadium in a vacant area
several miles away. Henri Masse, the president of the Federation des
travailleurs et travailleuses du Quebec (FTQ), explained, "I deplore
that we are so far from the center-city.... But it was a question of
security." One thousand marshals from the FTQ kept very tight control
over the march. When the march came to the point where some activists
planned to split off and go up the hill to the fence, FTQ marshals
signalled the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) contingent walking behind
CUPE to sit down and stop the march so that FTQ marshals could lock
arms and prevent others from leaving the official march route."
(Katherine Dwyer, Lessons of Quebec City, International Socialist
Review, June/July 2001)

The Summit of the Americas was held inside a four kilometer "bunker"
made of concrete and galvanized steel fencing. The 10 feet high
"Quebec Wall" encircled part of the historic city center including the
parliamentary compound of the National Assembly, hotels and shopping
areas.

NGO Leaders versus their Grassroots

The establishment of the World Social Forum (WSF) in 2001 was
unquestionably a historical landmark, bringing together tens of
thousands of committed activists. It was an important venue which
allowed for the exchange of ideas and the establishment of ties of
solidarity.

What is at stake is the ambivalent role of the leaders of progressive
organizations. Their cozy and polite relationship to the inner circles
of power, to corporate and government funding, aid agencies, the World
Bank, etc, undermines their relationship and responsibilities to their
rank and file. The objective of manufactured dissent is precisely
that: to distance the leaders from their rank and file as a means to
effectively silencing and weakening grassroots actions.

Funding dissent is also a means infiltrating the NGOs as well as
acquiring inside information on strategies of protest and resistance
of grass-roots movements.

Most of the grassroots participating organizations in the World Social
Forum including peasant, workers' and student organizations, firmly
committed to combating neoliberalism were unaware of the WSF
International Council's relationship to corporate funding, negotiated
behind their backs by a handful of NGO leaders with ties to both
official and private funding agencies.

Funding to progressive organizations is not unconditional. Its purpose
is to "pacify" and manipulate the protest movement. Precise
conditionalities are set by the funding agencies. If they are not met,
the disbursements are discontinued and the recipient NGO is driven
into de facto bankruptcy due to lack of funds.

The WSF defines itself as "an open meeting place for reflective
thinking, democratic debate of ideas, formulation of proposals, free
exchange of experiences and inter-linking for effective action, by
groups and movements of civil society that are opposed to
neo-liberalism and to domination of the world by capital and any form
of imperialism, and are committed to building a society centred on the
human person". (See Fórum Social Mundial, accessed 2010).

The WSF is a mosaic of individual initiatives which does not directly
threaten or challenge the legitimacy of global capitalism and its
institutions. It meets annually. It is characterised by a multitude of
sessions and workshops. In this regard, one of the features of the WSF
was to retain the "do-it-yourself" framework, characteristic of the
donor funded counter G7 People's Summits of the 1990s.

This apparent disorganized structure is deliberate. While favoring
debate on a number of individual topics, the WSF framework is not
conducive to the articulation of a cohesive common platform and plan
of action directed global capitalism. Moreover, the US led war in the
Middle East and Central Asia, which broke out a few months after the
inaugural WSF venue in Porto Alegre in January 2001, has not been a
central issue in forum discussions.

What prevails is a vast and intricate network of organizations. The
recipient grassroots organizations in developing countries are
invariably unaware that their partner NGOs in the United States or the
European Union, which are providing them with financial support, are
themselves funded by major foundations. The money trickles down,
setting constraints on grassroots actions. Many of these NGO leaders
are committed and well meaning individuals acting within a framework
which sets the boundaries of dissent. The leaders of these movements
are often co-opted, without even realizing that as a result of
corporate funding their hands are tied.

Global capitalism finances anti-capitalism: an absurd and
contradictory relationship.

"Another World is Possible", but it cannot be meaningfully achieved
under the present arrangement.

A shake-up of the World Social Forum, of its organizational structure,
its funding arrangements and leadership is required.

There can be no meaningful mass movement when dissent is generously
funded by those same corporate interests which are the target of the
protest movement. In the words of McGeorge Bundy, president of the
Ford Foundation (1966-1979),"Everything the [Ford] Foundation did
could be regarded as 'making the World safe for capitalism'".

© Copyright 2005-2009 GlobalResearch.ca

--
Ranjit


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