Tuesday, June 30, 2009

WORLD: The Global Food Crisis is not over. Our obligations go beyond fixing the financial system," says UN Special Rapporteur


WORLD: The Global Food Crisis is not over. Our obligations go beyond
fixing the financial system," says UN Special Rapporteur


26 June 2009

(GENEVA   NEW YORK) The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the
right to food, Mr. Olivier De Schutter, calls on decision-makers
gathering in New York for the UN Conference on World Financial and
Economic Crisis not to forget the global food prices crisis. This
crisis is continuing in many countries. It is connected not only with
the financial and economic crises, but also with the
climatic/environmental crisis.

"Are we waiting for new food riots in order to take swift action?" is
the basic call of Mr. De Schutter, who started his UN mandate last
year amidst the peak of the food prices increases. Since May 2008,
the Human Rights Council has repeatedly asked him to report on the
global food crisis, as the right to adequate food is part of the
international human right law. Today, he asks decision-makers to
seize the momentum.

The food crisis is indeed far from over. The FAO has confirmed that
the total number of food insecure people is now above one billion
people. Food prices on local markets remain higher in May 2009 than
in May 2008 in more than forty developing countries, despite the
price decrease on international markets, as shown in a recent FAO
study. Moreover, the global food crisis has not unfolded in isolation
from the financial and economic crisis. Remittance flows, for example,
have been declining since late 2008, as a result of migrant workers
loosing their jobs. The consequences are increased food insecurity
for the communities these remittances support.

"Just like the collapse of large banks, widespread hunger entails
systemic risks. Less wholesome and less nutritious diets create an
economic liability for the future development", said Mr. De Schutter.
"If the coping strategies adopted by vulnerable households cause
reductions in the quantity and/or quality of diets at critical stages
of child growth or during pregnancy, this may have long-lasting
consequences on physical and mental growth". Some of the poorest
families have also been led to distress sales, including sales of
productive assets such as land or tools, thereby making recovery less
likely.

In this context, the Special Rapporteur recommends a greater
attention on the right to food framework. "The right to food is not
the right to be fed after an emergency. It is the right to access the
means to produce food or the means to an income that enables the
purchase of adequate food" said Mr. De Schutter. "The right to food
can act as a compass to guide possible responses at the national and
international levels" said Mr. De Schutter, who spent the first year
of his mandate translating the implications of the right to food into
concrete recommendations for areas such as trade or large-scale
transnational land investments. It is a tool to ensure that policies
are geared towards alleviating hunger and malnutrition and towards
building the resilience of the most vulnerable groups against risks,
shocks and policy changes. "This is totally different from the
outdated and misplaced strategy of a plain increase in food
production", said Mr. De Schutter.

Mr. De Schutter recommends five directions in order to prevent more
hunger and to progressively realize the right to food:


1. Fighting against volatility on international agricultural markets.
The Special Rapporteur warns again the risk of new periods of extreme
volatility on international agricultural markets such as the one that
sparkled food riots in dozens of countries in 2008. "There is a clear
need for improving the management of grain stocks at global level,
including coordination of global grain stocks to limit the
attractiveness of speculation" said Mr De Schutter, who also
recommends combating speculation on the futures markets of
agricultural commodities; and supports the establishment of an
emergency reserve allowing the World Food Programme to meet
humanitarian needs at pre-crisis prices.

2. Encouraging States to build social protection schemes thanks to a
global reinsurance mechanism. A significant number of countries
reacted to the global food crisis by establishing or strengthening
safety net programmes. Yet volatility on international agricultural
markets may affect the willingness of poor countries to engage into
such programs because they could fear not being able to commit to
such schemes when food prices increase. The Special Rapporteur
announced he supports a global reinsurance mechanism for countries
that engage in such schemes: "It would create an incentive for
countries to put in place robust social protection programmes for the
benefit of their population".

3. Channel resources towards the scaling up of sustainable
agriculture systems rather than simply increasing food production.
According to Mr. De Schutter, the food crisis has had one positive
impact: the renewed interest in agriculture. "Yet not all
agricultural production models are the same. States, donors and
international organizations should channel their support to
sustainable farming approaches that benefit the most vulnerable
groups and that are resilient to climate change and to the exhaustion
of hydrocarbons", said the Special Rapporteur. "Agroecological farming
approaches such as agroforestry or low-external input agriculture have
demonstrated their high potential, especially in the difficult
environments where vulnerable groups live".

4. Protecting agricultural workers rights. The international
community has vastly, according to Mr. De Schutter, underestimated
the importance of protecting the entitlements of the 700 million
agricultural workers, which also are particularly vulnerable as their
wages do not raise with higher food prices, and who are often not
protected by social protection schemes as they are often hired on a
seasonal basis in a largely informal sector. "Accelerating the work
towards a better implementation of the relevant ILO conventions in
the rural areas, in order to guarantee that those working on farms
can be guaranteed a living wage, adequate health and safety
conditions of employment, could be one of the best leverage to ensure
that those working on the agricultural sector are ensured access to
adequate food".

5. Reforming the governance of the global food and agricultural
system. The Special Rapporteur highlighted the urgency to improve the
global governance. His suggestions for a renewed Committee on World
Food Security are currently being discussed in Rome. "I'm confident
more and more countries are ready to engage to time-bound targets in
hunger alleviation as well as to a monitoring mechanism, if such a
mechanism can at the same time lead to guidelines for improved
international coordination" said Mr. De Schutter.

Mr. De Schutter expects decision-makers to put the food issue back on
the international agenda at the highest level. "We've seen too many
summits whose only achievements have been a slight increase in food
aid commitments or in commitments to reinvest in agriculture. We face
a momentum. Our responsibility is to achieve structural improvements"
said Mr. De Schutter. "Solutions exist. We can shape food systems
that are productive, that create jobs and that are resilient to
climate change".

* * *

Olivier De Schutter was appointed the UN Special Rapporteur on the
right to food in 2008 by the United Nations Human Rights Council. He
is independent from any government or organization. He teaches
International Human Rights Law at the Catholic University of Louvain
(Belgium).

Press contacts: Olivier De Schutter Tel. +32.488.482004 - Federica
Donati Tel. +41.22.9179496

For additional information, please visit: www.srfood.org
<javascript:void(0);/*1246335949881*/>
 or www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/food/index.htm
<javascript:void(0);/*1246335941964*/>

# # #

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Twitter

No to torture, establishment of rule of law: an appeal on anti-torture day


No to torture, establishment of rule of law

 

The first Prime Minister of India Mr. Jawahar Lal Nehru states "Police is standing on quadrilateral from where it can protect and also violates human rights"

 

It is apparent that police is the biggest agency for the establishment of rule of law and human rights. However  police torture is prohibited under section 330 -331 of Indian Penal Code (IPC).  Forceful approbation of crime by police under section 161 C.r.P.C. that is not evidence under section 26 of evidence act; if the statement is not given before the magistrate, then question arise why police is taking the hold of torture? 

The main reasons of torture are feudal and colonial structure of police, scarcity of resources in the police department, political intervention and no investigation agency apart from police department which based on the scientific and impartial. Feudal society itself acknowledges the torture.  

Definition of torture of United Nation Convention Against Torture  Article (1): For the purposes of this Convention, torture means any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity. It does not include pain or suffering arising only from, inherent in or incidental to lawful sanctions.

(Please visit: http://www.hrweb.org/legal/cat.html

If we gaze the history of police torture in India the Police Act 1861 was established and formation of British colonial police system for not repetition of 1857 revolt and bruise in way suppressive way.  If we study the British police system that time British officers holds the post with the power and today the same power high official of Indian police is holding. The British police enforced them to torture Indian citizen and disciplinary action against Indian Police was on their desire. After the many decades of independence no amendment in the colonial Police Act 1861 that result now Indian police is following on the foot step of Britishers and bruising the democratic voice on the direction of anti-poor administration. 

Amended section 176 (A) of C.r.P.C. have provision for the investigation in the each case of custodial death, however this section does not implicate in any case of entire U.P and mutually under section 97 of C.r.P.C. magistrate may issue search –warrant if any person is illegally taken in the custody. Honorable Supreme Court issues essential guideline for the detention in the case of D.K Basu Vs West Bengal, which is mandatory for police to follow. In the encounter killing, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC,www.nhrc.nic.in) directed for the FIR on the police also and the fair investigation by independent agency. NHRC also directed to send the videography of post mortem report in case of custodial death. There is a provision of interim relief as compensation under section 19 of Human Right Act. Article 21 of Indian Constitution gave rights to live with dignity, which is against the basic principle of torture. 

If we look on the statistics, mostly poor, marginalized, dalits, minority and backward were being tortured. However big mafia and or anti –social element are not victimize of this, exceptionally one or two cases. Only common people are panic with the fear of police. Police jointly with the influenced criminal established the rule of lord through the corruption based discriminatory practices. So, no rule of law can be established without preventing police torture. Lets come together to enlighten the struggle to stop torture and establish rule of law. 

What you can do?

 

  1. Protest on 26th June, street play, discussions and to send the letter to the Prime Minister, press release in the leading newspaper and remit your activities to us.
  2. Indian Government signed the 1997 UNCAT; still it has not been ratified. Send letter to the Prime Minister and President of India put pressure through organizing demonstration, protest, discussion, rally for the ratification of United National Convention against Torture (UNACT) ,1997.
  3. To object on the torture happening in proximity and inform it to National Human Rights Commission, Faridkot house, Copernicus Marg, New Delhi.
  4. To write the letter to the editor against torture.
  5. To popularize about torture and its form, police torture reckoning the evidence related to facts and remitted through the newsletter to the commission, Government and PVCHR.
  6. To inform about the Honorable Supreme Court orders and guideline, laws and international declaration and convention.
  7. To implement report of police commission and make pressure for the formation of investigation  committee
  8. To make pressure on the Government for providing resources to police department for doing establishment of rule of law.

 

Appeal released by Peoples' Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR) for National Alliance on testimonial therapy (NATT)

 

PVCHR, SA 4/2 A, Daulatpur, Varanasi-221002, India

Contact: +91-9935599333 email:pvchr@pvchr.org

www.testimony-india.blogspot.com

 

Please visit:  
 www.pvchr.org
 www.youtube.com/pvchrindia
 www.pvchr.blogspot.com
 www.sapf.blogspot.com
 www.antiwto.blogspot.com
w.dalitwomen.blogspot.com
www.lenin-shruti.blogspot.com

 

Sample letter for PM :

 

Respected Dr. Manmohan Singh

Prime Minister

Prime Minister office, New Delhi

 

Sir,

 

Peoples' Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR) on the day of its establishment and International Day in support of torture victims heartiest greets for being elected second time prime Minister of biggest democratic country of world. All the citizen of India is expecting from your Government to stop the anarchy based torture and to establish the rule of law.

 

The first Prime Minister of India Mr. Jawahar Lal Nehru states "Police is standing on quadrilateral from where it can protect and also violates human rights" however today the negative aspects of police are unrestrained in the society. Most of the direct and indirect torture done by the police are belongs to marginalized communities. After so many decades of independence there is no amendment in the colonial police act, 1861. Which result now Indian police is following on the same foot step of Britishers with same spirit of censorship for silence and bruising the democratic voice on the direction of anti-poor administration.

 

We, Indian urge for the immediate and firm action to protect the human rights by using your esteem position in policy making with the view as police is biggest agency for the protection of human rights where the highest human rights violation happened. It can be stopped with the implementation of given below points:

 

  • To formulate police reform on the report of police commission
  • Torture bill should be enacted through the discussion among the public.
  • Ratification of UN convention against torture (UNCAT), 1997.
  • To establish the schemes for social, economic and psychological rehabilitation of survivors of torture and organized violence.
  • Post mortem should not be done or related with the schedule caste "Dom community" but by the trained personnel. Because Post Mortem report is important evidence before the court in criminal cases.
  • To amend as removal of the section 197 of Cr.P.C. and direct provision of case on the alleged government personnel and officers

 With Kind Regards,

 

Signature:

Name:

Address:

Organization:


 

Thursday, June 18, 2009

A wise step by Indian politician



Union minister Agatha Sangma who is from North East visited Irom Chanu Sharmila who is in custody at the JN Hospital where she has been undergoing a fast unto death for over nine years demanding removal of the AFSPA under which the people of Manipur are tortured & killed by the Indian Army, the Union minister gave a positive assurance to support the call for repeal of AFSPA from Manipur.Information came from Wide Angle,a partner of National Allaince on Testimonial Therapy(NATT).PVCHR calls to Indian Government for removal of AFSPA.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Solidarity appeal in favour of torture survivors

26 June is a day in support of torture victms.Come and put pressure on Indian Government for ractification of convention against torture and enactement of anti-torture act in country.

Dr.Amardeep Gupta and Ratndeep Gupta(Lawyer) Resident of S-11/24,Chaukaghat,Varanasi brutually beaten up by police of Varanasi under the leadership of Mr. Sansar Singh,CO,Cantt on 29.12.2007. Please visit: ...

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Indian Human Rights Activists Support Suu Kyi

http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=15750#comment

 

Indian Human Rights Activists Support Suu Kyi
By ARKAR MOE Thursday, May 28, 2009

Indian politicians, human rights activists, religious leaders and artists have appealed to the international community for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, and criticized the Indian government for its silence over the trial of the Burmese democracy leader.

A conference was held in the Constitution Club in New Delhi on Wednesday to show the Indian people's solidarity with the people of Burma and Suu Kyi, who is now on trial accussed of violating the terms of her house arrest.

At the conference, G. Devarajan, the secretary of the Central Committee of All India Forward Bloc, Nandita Das, an Indian actress and social activist, the former Samata Party President Jaya Jaitley, former Defence Minister George Fernandez, Sumit Chakravartty, the editor of Mainstream weekly, film director Amar Kanwar and other Indian artists called for the government to pressure the junta for the early release of Suu Kyi and to take proactive actions against the Burmese junta.

G. Devarajan said he was not optimistic that Indian politicians would respond to their call. A statement urged the government to break its silence and call for the immediate and unconditional release of Suu Kyi and express their concern about recent political developments in Burma.

Meanwhile, an Indo-Burma Solidarity meeting at the Gandhi Peace Foundation, organized by the South Asian Forum for Peoples' Initiative, was also held in New Delhi on Tuesday.

Sharad Yadav of the Janata Dal (United) party and a member of parliament from Bihar State in the Upper House said he supported the international community's call for the release of  Suu Kyi.

Dr. Tint Swe, the Information Minister of the Burmese government in exile, the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB), told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday that, "India is only focused on economic interests with the Burmese military regime. Now India neglects its responsibility toward democracy. We don't expect too much criticism or changes. There is a little chance because the Indian government has done a U-turn in the support for the democracy movement in Burma ever since Rajiv Gandhi."

Lenin Raghuvanshi, an Indian activist and director of the People's Vigilance Committee on Human Rights, a grassroots human rights advocacy group based in India's Uttar Pradesh, said Suu Kyi's arrest "will have very serious repercussions for the democracy movement in Burma," calling it a "blatant violation" of human rights.

He said India was wrong to remain silent on Suu Kyi's trial in Insein Prison, noting that she was the recipient of India's prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding.

He urged "India, China and other neighbors of Burma to oppose the military dictatorship and support the non-violent struggle for democracy. It is essential for the region to eliminate the atmosphere of terror perpetrated by the military."

"It is a moral issue for Burma's big trading neighbors, who on the one hand support, tacitly or otherwise, the military regime in Burma, while on the other opposing terrorism," he said.

India, which supported the UN position on Burma in the wake of 2007's Saffron Revolution, has made no public criticism of the ongoing trial.

Sajan George, the chairman of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), appealed to the Indian government to "condemn the arrest of Aung San Suu Kyi" and called for her        "immediate release."

He expressed the hope that she might celebrate her birthday on June 19 as a "free citizen of Burma."
 
Father Anthony, a Jesuit priest in Madurai (Tamil Nadu), said there is no "freedom of movement" in Burma and "torture of dissidents and political opponents is commonplace."

In recent years, India and Burma have increased bilateral trade and agreed on several major development projects, including Sittwe port and a Kaladan River project.

In 1994, India introduced a "Look East Policy" which is designed to work with Burma's military regime on economic projects.

Copyright © 2008 Irrawaddy Publishing Group | www.irrawaddy.org

South Asian Peoples' Declaration

January 27, 2005
South Asian People's Declaration

On January 15th, organizations from India, Sri Lanka, and Nepal convened to create a People's SAARC that would bring together people and organizations from South Asia that would focus on the needs of people of the region and influence policies to that end. This is a note from their gathering.

The People's Vision

  • We, the South Asian People' Forum, desiring that SAARC embodies the aspirations of the People, aver the need for greater efforts for promoting the sovereignty of the People and violence free South Asia through democratic values and structures.
  • We envision a SAARC that encompasses all people living in South Asia and promotes greater understanding and equal respect of all people to eliminate discriminations based on gender, creed, caste, ethnicity and color.
  • We also insist on declaring South Asia as nuclear free zone.

Our Mission
  • We promote peace and understanding of disputes, and efforts for settling them amicably at the popular level.
  • We firmly demand urgent and complete de-nuclearization of South Asia.
  • We uphold social democracy, secular values, economic equity and envision sustainable development.
  • We advocate greater efforts to prevent environmental degradation, and optimum and equitable utilization of resources for the benefit of the people, providing them adequate space to influence and participate in decisions on resource use and management.
  • We endorse the inalienable right of the People of South Asia to basic needs including food, clothing, shelter, health, education, social security and productive work.
  • We advocate people to people communication facilities and an end to travel restrictions.

Major concerns

Democracy

  • We cherish and uphold the Rule of Law, sovereignty of the people, a system of governance that ensures devolution of power, People' right to self rule and control over resources.
  • We advocate full independence of the judiciary, adhering to internationally recognized values and principles. Pro-people lawmaking has to be participatory, representative and fully transparent.
  • We believe that People have sovereign rights to take decisions on matters concerning their lives, and urge periodic review of all international commitments and national laws to enable people to exercise sovereignty.
  • We maintain that governance improvements have to begin and end with the People and that empowerment can result only when power is devolved through effective structural changes.
  • We also maintain that existing social, economic and political imbalances hinder nation-building and that the legislature, executive and the judiciary must be fully inclusive and accountable to the People.
  • We believe People are the real owners of resources and support mechanisms to make them rightful owners of resources through systems that ensure collective ownership and responsibility.
  • We uphold the People' right to information through participation in decision-making and governance.
  • We believe that internal and external displacement is caused by political, social and developmental factors and any attempt to end displacement should begin with addressing the root causes.
  • We assert that refugees are sovereign people with sovereign identities and they need to be provided guarantees of protection, dignity and access to basic services until final resolution and/ or repatriation.
  • We are concerned by the increase in human trafficking (including children, women and marginalized communities) in the region and call for receiving countries to take on responsibility for repatriation and compensation of the victims.

Discrimination
  • We affirm that discrimination based on gender, caste, creed, ethnicity and differently-abled is a major obstacle to meaningful participation of People.
  • We endorse patriarchy-free South Asia, and support the individual' right to self-determination and development and uphold their duty to national integration.
  • We resolve for an immediate and effective end to untouchability, the worst form of discrimination and demand interventions as follows:
  • Programs for the uplift of the Dalits and mechanisms to empower them for their rights.
  • Reservations, in public as well as the private sector, to ensure participation of all at all levels starting from primary schooling and across all spheres of life.
  • Reservations to enable at least 33% representation of women (including Dalits) in all spheres of private and public life and an end to all forms of discrimination against women.
  • Discrimination to be considered a real life problem.
  • Review of existing laws and modifications to incorporate the implementation of international instruments.
  • Equal respect for religious, ethnic and cultural minorities.
  • We appreciate the changes being discussed for the uplift of women by Islamic groups and will provide support to encourage and facilitate further changes.
  • We ask for inclusion of rights and security concerns of migrant workers in the SAARC Social Charter.

Food sovereignty
  • We believe the right to food is a fundamental right and must be assured through guarantees to equality in work, justice and uniform minimum wages, land
  • entitlement.
  • We recommend that relief and aid should be culturally sensitive and value adding, and uphold that hunger and starvation are unacceptable.

Globalization and International Finance and Trade
  • We believe the existing policies of multilateral aid and trade organizations are anti-people and perpetuate unemployment, poverty and inequalities.
  • We advocate that all aid and trade agreements and instruments be subject to public scrutiny to ensure transparency and accountability.
  • We uphold the need for collective SAARC representation and uniform standards for negotiations on aid and trade instruments and the formulation of a common social responsibility standard to govern FDI.
  • We oppose privatization, particularly that of social infrastructure.
  • We oppose Foreign Direct Investment without effective social controls and strongly endorse the promotion of small and medium enterprises through people' markets.
  • We believe the World Trade Organization is not ratified by the people and advocates only freedom of capital, and ask SAARC to work towards the democratization of the WTO through inclusion of civil society organizations in negotiations.
  • We ask SAARC to move towards the creation of an economic community to suit the people' interest and step back from free trade envisaged under the SAFTA, which is an extension of the WTO model.
  • We believe that the existing ownership of intellectual property and laws governing violations are flawed and advocate stiff penalties for those infringing into the
  • traditional knowledge and services belonging to developing countries.

Child rights
  • We uphold the Right of the Child as defined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child and believe the child is an integral part of society, has the potential to be an agent of social change and all children have the right to participate in issues concerning them and be heard.
  • We believe a child's right to survival and health is of paramount importance to the progress of the country, and maintain that the child's right to development be upheld through free and compulsory education, including vocational training, and recreation without discrimination for all and in a child-friendly environment.
  • We demand that a child's right to protection be upheld through the abolition of child labor, abusive forms of punishment and all forms of discrimination with special focus on differently-abled children.
  • We demand that the juvenile justice system be child friendly and be strictly implemented in the region. We demand immediate resolution of existing social, cultural, economic and political factors that promote the trafficking of children.
  • We advocate areas where children frequent be declared zones of peace to enable them to grow in peaceful and secure environments.
  • We oppose involvement of children in all forms of violent conflicts.

This group's contact is pvchr@yahoo.com

Posted by collective at January 27, 2005 06:51 PM
 
Comments

This is a historical start of south asian resistence agianst communal fascism and imperialism.

Sant Vivek das,Head priest-Kabir Chaura Math
Posted by: Sant Vivek das on February 6, 2005 06:44 AM

The South Asia People's Forum:" People's SAARC" held from January 15 to 17, 2005 brought together National and International social activists, intellectuals and secular and democrative forces interested in the preservation of the secular, pluralistic and democratic fabric of the South Asian society. The convention was organized by two Ashoka Fellows, one each Ashoka fellows from India (PVCHR- Dr. Lenin), and Srilanka (Wiros Lokh Institute- Dr. Darin) and human right defender from Nepal, Mr. Subodh Raj Pyakurel (INSEC).

This was a historical convention which resulted in creation of the "South Asian People's declaration", which we aim to submit to the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) Summit involving Heads of States of the seven South Asian countries that make up the SAARC, being held in February, 2005.
" I was pleased to learn about the January Convention, and appreciate very much the invitation to take part……………….I hope it is successful."___ Noam Chomasky, Massachute Institute of Technology, Department of Linguistics and philosophy, Cambridge, USA
The delegation of the South Asian People's forum desiring people based policies for SAARC, (People's SAARC) met the SAARC Secretariat on 20th Jan., 2005.Ashoka fellow, Dr. Darin Gunesekara of Sri Lanka and Dr. Lenin Raghuvanshi of India, and Mr. Sajay of PVCHR called on Mr. Wijeratne, the Sri Lanka Director at SAARC in Kathmandu.Dr. Gunesekera and Lenin are signatories of the " Colombo Declaration" which preceded the Convention held in Varanasi creating the South Asian People's Forum (SAPF) and resolving the People's SAARC memorandum: South Asian People's Declaration. Human Rights commission of Pakistan, LOKOJ (Bangladesh), People's forum for Human Rights (Bhutan), Wiros Lokh Institute (Sri Lanka), PVCHR (India) and INSEC (Nepal) are members of working committee of SAPF.
They presented Mr. Wijerantne with the memorandum with a request for circulation to the member country Directors. They also handed over to him the original banner of the Child Rights March that was held to inaugurate the Convention in Vararnasi. The Marchers and children signed the Banner. These included persons from all of the SAARC countries excepting Tsunami stricken Maldives.
The Memorandum is attached and included a statement of Child Rights as considered most pressing amongst Child Rights activists in the SAARC region.
The Memorandum highlights the considered opinions and views of over 40 leadings activist groups who assembled in Varanasi. The issues are stated in concise form and are stated as topics. The Forum demands further consideration of these issues.
Since the start of SAARC, there has been a need for the voice of the people to be directly heard in the region. And this, SAPF said, was the start. The Forum would be organiasing a rising tide of opinion and views for the development of a people's SAARC movement. SAPF wanted the politicians and opinion leaders to take note of the rise of a new phenomenon in South Asia. The People's SAARC, SAPF advised, will be the mainstay of the future of SAARC, not trade arrangements, which have little to say beyond globalisation. But people issues are bigger than that. SAPF advanced that the issues of the future are the Globalisation of sensitivities.
I have attached the Declaration and Resolutions and will greatly appreciate you comments, feedback on it.
South Asian people's Declaration
The People's Vision
We, the South Asian People's Forum, desiring that SAARC embody the aspirations of the People, aver the need for greater efforts for promoting the sovereignty of the People and violence free South Asia through democratic values and structures.
We envision a SAARC that encompasses all people living in South Asia and promote greater understanding and equal respect of all people to eliminate discriminations based on gender, creed, caste, ethnicity and color.
We also insist on declaring South Asia as nuclear free zone.
Our Mission
We promote peace and understanding of disputes, and efforts for settling them amicably at the popular level.
We firmly demand urgent and complete de-nuclearization of South Asia.
We uphold social democracy, secular values, and economic equity and envision sustainable development.
We advocate greater efforts to prevent environmental degradation, and optimum and equitable utilization of resources for the benefit of the people, providing them adequate space to influence and participate in decisions on resource use and management.
We endorse the inalienable right of the People of South Asia to basic needs including food, clothing, shelter, health, education, social security and productive work.
We advocate people to people communication facilities and an end to travel restrictions.
Major concerns
Democracy
We cherish and uphold the Rule of Law, sovereignty of the people, a system of governance that ensures devolution of power, People's right to self-rule and control over resources.
We advocate full independence of the judiciary, adhering to internationally recognized values and principles. Pro-people lawmaking has to be participatory, representative and fully transparent.
We believe that People have sovereign rights to take decisions on matters concerning their lives, and urge periodic review of all international commitments and national laws to enable people to exercise sovereignty.
We maintain that governance improvements have to begin and end with the People and that empowerment can result only when power is devolved through effective structural changes.
We also maintain that existing social, economic and political imbalances hinder nation building and that the legislature, executive and the judiciary must be fully inclusive and accountable to the People.
We believe People are the real owners of resources and support mechanisms to make them rightful owners of resources through systems that ensure collective ownership and responsibility.
We uphold the People's right to information through participation in decision-making and governance.
We believe that internal and external displacement is caused by political, social and developmental factors and any attempt to end displacement should begin with addressing the root causes.
We assert that refugees are sovereign people with sovereign identities and they need to be provided guarantees of protection, dignity and access to basic services until final resolution and/ or repatriation.
We are concerned by the increase in human trafficking (including children, women and marginalized communities) in the region and call for receiving countries to take on responsibility for repatriation and compensation of the victims.
Discrimination
We affirm that discrimination based on gender, caste, creed, and ethnicity and differently able is a major obstacle to meaningful participation of People.
We endorse patriarchy-free South Asia, and support the individual's right to self-determination and development and uphold their duty to national integration.
We resolve for an immediate and effective end to untouchability, the worst form of discrimination and demand interventions as follows:
Ø Programs for the uplift of the Dalits and mechanisms to empower them for their rights.
Ø Reservations, in public as well as the private sector, to ensure participation of all at all levels starting from primary schooling and across all spheres of life.
Ø Reservations to enable at least 33% representation of women (including Dalits) in all spheres of private and public life and an end to all forms of discrimination against women.
Ø Discrimination to be considered a real life problem.
Ø Review of existing laws and modifications to incorporate the implementation of international instruments.
Ø Equal respect for religious, ethnic and cultural minorities.
We appreciate the changes being discussed for the uplift of women by Islamic groups and will provide support to encourage and facilitate further changes.
We ask for inclusion of rights and security concerns of migrant workers in the SAARC Social Charter.
Food sovereignty
We believe the right to food is a fundamental right and must be assured through guarantees to equality in work, justice and uniform minimum wages, and land entitlement.
We recommend that relief and aid should be culturally sensitive and value adding, and uphold that hunger and starvation are unacceptable.
Globalization and International Finance and Trade
We believe the existing policies of multilateral aid and trade organizations are anti-people and perpetuate unemployment, poverty and inequalities.
We advocate that all aid and trade agreements and instruments be subject to public scrutiny to ensure transparency and accountability.
We uphold the need for collective SAARC representation and uniform standards for negotiations on aid and trade instruments and the formulation of a common social responsibility standard to govern FDI.
We oppose privatization, particularly that of social infrastructure.
We oppose Foreign Direct Investment without effective social controls and strongly endorse the promotion of small and medium enterprises through people's markets.
We believe the World Trade Organization is not ratified by the people and advocates only freedom of capital, and ask SAARC to work towards the democratization of the WTO through inclusion of civil society organizations in negotiations.
We ask SAARC to move towards the creation of an economic community to suit the people's interest and step back from free trade envisaged under the SAFTA, which is an extension of the WTO model.
We believe that the existing ownership of intellectual property and laws governing violations are flawed and advocate stiff penalties for those infringing into the traditional knowledge and services belonging to developing countries.
Child rights
We uphold the Right of the Child as defined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child and believe the child is an integral part of society, has the potential to be an agent of social change and all children have the right to participate in issues concerning them and be heard.
We believe a child's right to survival and health is of paramount importance to the progress of the country, and maintain that the child's right to development be upheld through free and compulsory education, including vocational training, and recreation without discrimination for all and in a child-friendly environment.
We demand that a child's right to protection be upheld through the abolition of child labor, abusive forms of punishment and all forms of discrimination with special focus on differently-abled children.
We demand that the juvenile justice system be child friendly and be strictly implemented in the region.
We demand immediate resolution of existing social, cultural, economic and political factors that promote the trafficking of children.
We advocate areas where children frequent be declared zones of peace to enable them to grow in peaceful and secure environments.
We oppose involvement of children in all forms of violent conflicts.
Varanasi, 17 Jan. 2005
Endorsed by INSEC (Nepal), PVCHR (India), Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, LOKOJ (Bangladesh), Wiros Institute (Srilanka), People's forum for Human Rights (Bhutan) and nearly 250 prominent organisations and individuals of South Asia
Date: 17-1-2005
Resolutions
Resolution-1
The Gandhian Institute of Studies, Varanasi, established by Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan, is one of the premier Social Science Research Institutions of India, which aims at linking people's movements with social sciences. This Institute has been struggling against the regressive action of the former central government, which stopped its grants and locked the Institute offices. Now the Institute is returning to its normal function in the camp office with the positive efforts made by the present central government. However main building of office, guesthouse, etc. are still locked, which is hampering research and other activities of the Institute.
We, from South Asia People's Forum appeal central government of India and SAARC countries to stopped such regressive action against democratic public institutions and demand immediate restoration of normal functioning of the institute in the interest of the people.

Resolution-2
Women in Afghanistan have been victims of extreme and systematic discrimination over the years having been denied even the most basic of rights. Revolutionary Association for Women of Afghanistan (RAWA) has been working for the rights of millions of these invisible Afghagan women, whose voices have been stifled while being subjected to inhumane treatment behind closed doors. RAWA'S courage under these difficult circumstances is commendable and we the South Asia People's Forum would like to extend our full support to their cause of democracy and women rights. We the members also express strong solidarity with RAWA's movement for a secular and democratic Afghanistan. We also like to draw the attention of the Afghanistan Government to ensure the security and free movement of RAWA activists.
Resolution-3
Military rule in Pakistan has established a controlled democracy which is a contradiction in it self. We members of South Asia People's Forum demand that as guaranteed by the constitution of Pakistan "Principles of democracy" are upheld and the state should only be allowed to exercise its powers through the representatives chosen by the people through a free fair electoral process.
We also recommend that the Oath of Judges under the Provisional Constitution Order (PCO) should be termed unconstitutional and Judges should take fresh Oath in order for the judiciary to be independent. We also demand that Politics and Religion should be separated only a secular state can only guarantee rights of all the minorities. South Asia People's Forum also raises its voice against existing discriminatory laws against women and minorities, which should be repealed. International instruments ratified by the government (CEDAW & CRC) are respected and implemented in policies for the women and children.
Resolution-4
We the members of the South Asia People's Forum urge the Indian Government to actively co-operate and assist in solving the Bhutanese Refugee problem as Bhutan's Foreign and Defense Policy are in India's hands. We also demand that repatriation of all Bhutanese Refugees with safety, security, dignity and honor to their original home state.
Resolution-5
We the members of South Asia People's Forum condemn the attempts to privatization of water, water linking and international water laws in the region and instead declare that water be declared a common human resource in every region.
Resolution-6
Despite the very bad experience of the Asian Crisis and collapse in ASEAN affecting all the workers and poor adversely SAARC Nations have been following the same policies of absolute free capital markets.
So we the members of South Asia People's Forum declared that SAARC Nations should foster people's stock exchanges and governments ensure that freedom in capital market does not lead to a collapse due to international financial manipulations.
Resolution-7
Pepsi and Coca-Cola bottling is a threat to under ground water resources which belong to the common people. 6 liters of water is required for producing 1 liters of Coca-Cola and Pepsi cola. Such drinks are not healthy. The bottling has displaced a large number of self-employed people and village-based industries.
Therefore the member of South Asia People's Forum appeal to all concerned to boycott Coca-Cola, Pepsi Cola and other related drinks.
Posted by: Shruti on February 6, 2005 11:37 PM
 

Saturday, June 13, 2009

site information of voice of marginalized

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: shabana khan <shabana@pvchr.org>
Date: Sat, Jun 13, 2009 at 10:57 AM
Subject: site information
To: Lenin Raghuvanshi <pvchr.india@gmail.com>


PVCHR creates a blog on the free space for the marginalized i.e. www.pvchr.blogspot.com. The profile of the organization can be viewed http://www.zoominfo.com/Search/CompanyDetail.aspx?CompanyID=177963509&cs=QHKm4H1Bc. In the month of May, 2008 total visitor of the blogspot was 33564166 and it increased in November, 2008 with the view of 36526213 and site rank was 19. The number of visitor view start increasing and now the site ranking of this blogspot is Monthly Unique Visitors: 49,261,893, Site Rank: 14, Trust Rating: Trusted .



--
Shirin Shabana Khan
Assistant Director (Communication)
PVCHR/JMN
Email: shabana@pvchr.org
 

Friday, June 12, 2009

In Elections, Rural India Rules:With 65% of Voters, Heartland Again Plays Pivotal Role

washingtonpost.com
 
In Elections, Rural India Rules
With 65% of Voters, Heartland Again Plays Pivotal Role

By Emily Wax
Washington Post Foreign Service.
Thursday, April 16, 2009

KURUL, India -- Just six months ago, Ranganath Tiwari, 38, was a pea farmer in debt, eking out a living for his wife and six children in this dusty village of half-finished brick and bamboo-roofed shelters.

But in the run-up to India's month-long elections -- which start Thursday -- Tiwari said he feels more like royalty, wooed by the ruling Congress party with a farm loan waiver program, saving him the $400 he borrowed to buy two dairy cows.

"The farmer is like an emperor this election," said Tiwari, dressed in a traditional wraparound lungi, with a scarf tied around his forehead to shade him from the baking midday sun. "We just hope they remember us when election season is over."

When Indian voters in 124 constituencies go to the polls Thursday, they will be kicking off the world's largest democratic exercise. The election will be held in five phases, ending May 13, with up to 714 million voters casting ballots at 828,000 polling stations. Votes will be counted May 16, and a new government will be formed by June.

The election will determine who leads the world's second most populous country, and experts predict that the mood of rural India -- known in Hindi as Bharat -- will once again play a decisive role. Despite the presence of megacities such as Mumbai and New Delhi, India's vast heartland is home to about 65 percent of voters, according to registration data.

During the last general election, in 2004, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance's loss was attributed in part to its "India Shining" slogan, which was designed to highlight the country's fast-growing outsourcing hubs and its thriving urban technology corridors. But farmers such as Tiwari, here in the badlands of Bharat, were insulted by a campaign that they viewed as absurd. How could India be shining, they asked, if they still lived in villages without indoor plumbing?

"Shining India was bogus," Tiwari said, lounging on a rope cot outside a one-room rural outpost of the Congress party. Other farmers laughed and shooed away the flies. "What were they even talking about?" he said.

This year's election has centered on the economy, terrorism and development. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has charged that Congress and its leader -- Prime Minister Manmohan Singh -- are weak on fighting Islamist extremism, citing the November attacks in Mumbai. Congress counters that it is the only party that represents all Indians, including lower-caste Hindus and Muslims. It has focused its campaign on promising to spread the benefits of development.

Rural voters say they care about the basics: electricity, running water, schools and health services, which remain far from the reach of many hamlets across the country and here in Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state, with 190 million people and 80 seats in Parliament.

"How can we be a superpower if most of the country is still fetching well water and worried about feeding and getting decent health care for their children?" said Anup Srivastava, a researcher with the People's Vigilance Committee on Human Rights, which is helping educate voters in the countryside about their rights. "Could America be a superpower if only New York and California were developed and Middle America could barely eat and didn't have 24-hour electricity? Unless we fix Bharat, 'India Shining' will be just a great marketing campaign for corporate Indian boosters."

This election season, Congress not only wooed Tiwari through his wallet but also flattered his faith. The party put up lights and cleaned up trash along the Ganges, Hinduism's holiest river. It was a powerful gesture, because the BJP typically courts Hindus here. "It looked first-class," Tiwari said, beaming.

In addition, the government recently started an affordable train line to New Delhi called the Garib Rath, or "the poor's chariot," with formerly unheard-of luxuries -- such as air conditioning -- to court the "aam aadmi," or common man.

There are signs that economic conditions in areas outside cities, especially in the sprawling suburbs, have improved in the past five years.

On roads all across those areas, women in saris can be seen loading freshly baked bricks atop their heads to build houses and replace mud shelters. The country's first rural shopping mall recently opened in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, and it does brisk sales on cellphones, tractors and television sets.

Still, the latest Global Hunger Index said the malnutrition level in Madhya Pradesh was comparable to those in Chad and Ethiopia. Some economists say that the spread of the mobile phone, along with the string of good monsoon rain seasons, has done more to improve rural development than government programs have. About 60 percent of India's workforce is still employed in agriculture; the majority are landless day laborers.

Although land-owning farmers such as Tiwari have benefited from loan waivers, landless farmers are still hustling to eat. About 42 percent of children younger than 5 are malnourished in India, compared with 7 percent in China, according to a recent report by the United Nations.

Past a highway lined with fields of wheat and 30 miles from Tiwari's village is the congested town of Varanasi, Hinduism's holiest city. It is also a battleground this year, with undecided voters in the town as well as the outlying farms.

During the 2004 election, Congress won a prestigious Parliament seat here, toppling the BJP. Also competing for the Varanasi seat this year is a regional party run by the state's chief minister, Mayawati, the country's most famous Dalit, or untouchable. But even among Dalits, Mayawati and her party are controversial here. She is accused of corruption and a fondness for building expensive parks filled with statues of herself. For the Varanasi seat, her party has nominated an accused mafia don-turned-politician, Mukhtar Ansari, who is campaigning from jail about 200 miles away. Still, her party could be a factor in the national race, and it is anyone's guess who will win the local seat. But one thing is clear in Varanasi: Aspirations are rising, as is evident from the dozens of billboards that advertise "Call Center English and Corporate manners taught here."

That is in stark contrast to the scene just an hour's drive away. Up and down the crumbling roads, it is common to see young women hauling heavy jugs of water, their backs hunching under the weight.

Lalpi Devi, 32, who lives in a nearby Dalit village, sees the election as a simple affair.

"I will vote for whoever gives me water," she said, putting her plastic-bangled hand on her jutting hip, as a child tugged on her bright-blue sari. "Right now, we have 25 families using one well. We have to save water, drop by drop. I will vote for whoever gets us running water by April 16. I'm waiting."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/15/AR2009041500392_pf.html

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