Humanitarian Crisis Unfolding in Gaza

Even after the scathing criticism by the United Nations, Israel is continuing with its brutal attack on the Palestinians. The missile assault on the schools run by the United Nations under pretext of attacking ‘hiding’ Hamas militants should be condemned by all who give any importance to human values and ideals. In the military attack on the Gaza strip, about 1,200 people have lost their lives, where one third is children and young people. Humanitarian groups have called for an immediate end to the conflict as people in the Gaza strip are reeling under pressures of hunger, power outages, lack of basic sanitation and medicine.

Human rights activism often takes no cognisance of political facts and always considers it beyond its own realm. Therefore we are not interested in knowing who is politically correct, the Israelis or the Hamas. The gross human rights violation perpetrated by the Israeli forces needed to be condemned in the strongest of terms. The United Nations has called for a war crimes investigation into the actions of the Israeli forces as their actions are nothing but genocide. In any war women and children are given exemption from killing by the warring forces. But in its assault, Israel made no distinction between men, women and children. They were just inclined towards killing and handing over maximum destruction to Palestinian people in Gaza and their infrastructure. As a result of the destruction of the infrastructure, there has been shortage of basic supplies like food, water and medicine. On June 28, the Israeli IAF bombed the major power plant in Gaza and hence electrical outages have become common. Hospitals, sewage treatment plants and water utilities are working on generators that are having outdated electronic parts and are in the verge of breakdown.

About 85% of people in Gaza are dependent upon the food handouts of the United Nations World Food Program. Because of the continuous bombardment of Gaza by Israeli forces, the aid workers of the United Nations are not able to carry out their responsibilities. The killing of a truck driver of the UN made it suspend all relief operations in Gaza. This has made matters worse for the Gazans and now a lot of those families are living on one meal a day. The situation would result in problems of chronic malnutrition for the children in Gaza and that would mean that the crisis can lead to some long term health issues to those children. Therefore it is important for the international community to find an immediate solution for the crisis in Gaza.

Another dismaying fact coming out of this crisis is that Israel had used white phosphorous as a weapon against the civilians of Gaza. The use of white phosphorous as a weapon has been banned by Third Convention on Conventional Weapons that deals with incendiary weapons. Israel is not a signatory of the agreement but still the use of such horrific weapons that cause burn from the skin to the bone to the civilian population must not be used under any circumstances.

Once the conflict ends, Israel administration will have some serious questions to answer. The attacks that have killed thousands of civilians, children in particular, are outrageous attacks on humanity. The international community has the onus to judge whether these attacks are war crimes and if they are the perpetrators should be brought to book. Humanitarian aid workers and organisations like the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross have a daunting task ahead of them even after the crisis is over. They have to provide aid to the people of Gaza who by now would have lost all hope. Human Rights organisations should also work in tandem with the aid organisations to bring relief and support to the ordinary people of Gaza.

I Congratulate Music Maestro AR Rahman for Bagging the Golden Globe Award

I congratulate the music maestro, Isaipuyal, AR Rahman for bagging the coveted Golden Globe Award for the original music score for the film Slumdog Millionaire. Thus he became the first Indian to win the Golden Globe. Rahman has given a great Pongal gift to all Tamilians and another reason for us all Indians to be proud being an Indian. Thanks for creating great musical scores all these years in the Indian wide screen and in the International arena.

In Cricket, Australian Unilateralism is Over

In the realm of international relations, this decade is one where all major economic powers in the world are asking for a paradigm shift from the unilateralism practised by the United States to a multilateral world where almost all countries have an equal voice in world affairs. But even a diehard optimist will accept that it will take some more decades before it actually happens. At the same time in the world of cricket one can be rest assured that the unilateralism and dominance of Australia is over. 

Australia had won last three world cups, in 1999, 2003 and 2007. And interestingly, in these three times, they had defeated the countries of the sub-continent, Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka respectively. As a result of this dominance of Australia in world cups, one joke that went on the rounds was that there is no need to waste time for other countries by playing the world cup and the International Cricket Council or the ICC can simplify the whole event of world cup by having just three ceremonies viz., inauguration, handing the trophy to the Australian team and then the closing ceremony. 

But all that has changed in the last one and a half years and the credit for that should go to some of the finest cricket being played by some other countries in the cricketing world, like India and South Africa. At the same time one should admit that one of the main reasons for Australia’s decline has been the retirement of two of the greatest bowlers of the modern era – the leg spin legend Shane Warne and the lanky fast bowling great Glenn McGrath. The team was so much dependent on these great players that their absence is a gap that the Australian team is finding very hard to fill. With the absence those two players, Australia is finding it difficult these days to take 20 wickets of the opposition team, which is a must for winning test matches. In the last few series Brett Lee had been nothing but below par on international standards. Mitchell Johnson is just an emerging international player and there is a real dearth of quality spin bowlers to replace the class of Warne. New spin bowlers in the team like Jason Krejza and Nathan Hauritz are not of the same mould of that of Warne.

Some people like it or not, the fact of the matter is that Ricky Ponting is not a great captain. They say that a captain is only as good as his team and if that is the case then Ponting has stooped from a great captain to an ordinary captain with the retirement of Warne and McGrath. But in the history of cricket there had been some great captains who were able to extract extraordinary performance from his ordinary players. Former Australian captain Allan Border and Pakistani captain Imran Khan were two of those brilliant captains who were able to do this. But now we know that Ponting neither has the extraordinary ability of these two captains nor has the leadership abilities shown by his own captains Mark Taylor and Steve Waugh. At the same time there is no doubting the batting abilities of Ricky Ponting where he is one of the greatest batsmen of all times.

After failing to retain the Border-Gavaskar and after losing the home series to South Africa, some heads are sure to roll in the Australian team. The first casualty is surely going to be the beleaguered southpaw, the burly opener, Mathew Hayden who had been ridiculously out of sorts and managed an average of less than 20 in the series against the Proteas. Michael Hussey was not also at his best in the recent series as he also ended up with a very low batting average. Though Michael Clarke was not good against the Indians, he regained some of his confidence against South Africa. Brett Lee and Stuart Clark are out of the team owing to injuries. The only silver lining as far as Australia is concerned in the recent series was the emergence of Peter Siddle as a lethal bowler, but it is too early to confirm his place in the team or in the league of good fast bowlers.

For the first time in history, South Africa won a test match series down under, but failed to secure a white wash. This has helped the Aussies to maintain their number one position in ICC test rankings, but time is not far when teams like India and South Africa, who are playing good cricket these days, usurp the number one position from the Aussies. If they have to maintain it in the future too, they have to make some serious changes in their team as well as in the way they play their cricket. 

India and Pakistan, after the Mumbai Siege

It has been one month since some ten miscreants from across the border, from Pakistan, emerged in the city of Mumbai via the sea route and held the whole of India under siege for about three days. The audacious attack carried out by the criminals of the terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba had the full backing of the ISI or the ex-officials of the organisation. As a result of this gruesome attack, India and Pakistan are at loggerheads and the diplomatic relationship between the two nuclear states is at a very low level. But instead of going on with deploying army at the border between the nations, India has taken the diplomatic route to pressurise Pakistan to take actions to dismantle the terror infrastructure in Pakistan. But the Pakistan government doesn’t seem to be in a mood to do this or doesn’t have the required power and authority to do this.

There are a lot of reasons to believe that the terror strike by Lashkar in Mumbai is a handiwork of the Pakistan army. Pakistan army is waging an unpopular war in the Afghan border against Taliban fighters of Pakistani origin. Under extreme pressure from the United States, Pakistan is forced to fight alongside NATO forces in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. This is a war that the Pakistan army loathe to fight as they are fighting against Pakistanis against the popular wish. They are in look out for an excuse to retreat from the Afghan border and a war with India will be a great excuse for them to withdraw from the western border and redeploy the army in their eastern border with India. A war against India will be a great morale booster for the Pakistani army that is under great stress fighting their own people in the western border. As it is evident from the present scenario, a war or a prospect of war with India is perhaps the only unifying force for the Pakistanis. Right now we are seeing that all political parties in Pakistan as well as army and even Pakistani Taliban are speaking in the same voice against India. So all in all a war can be a great benefit to the army in the pursuance of their ambitions. This is exactly the reason why India is not keen for a war with Pakistan and this is the reason why the United States is also interested in having a peaceful solution to this impasse.

What India need from Pakistan is pretty simple. We want Pakistan to handover the terrorists behind the Mumbai attack to us so that they can produced under a court of justice. The lone terrorist captured in the attack, Muhammad Ajmal Kasab, has told the interrogators that he is from Pakistan and has detailed them about the training that he received from Lashkar at their centre at Muridke in Pakistan. Moreover the precision and planning with which Mumbai attackers had gone on with their assault show that they had received training from people in the army or ex-officials of the army and the ISI. But Pakistan is going on with their denial that Kasab is not a Pakistani and says that Pakistan has no hand in the Mumbai attack.

The only option available with India to pressurise Pakistan into acting against the terrorist infrastructure in their mainland is by carrying out a diplomatic offensive. India has gone to the security council of the United Nations with the demand of banning the terror outfits in Pakistan. As a result of this United Nations had banned the sister organisation of LeT, the Jamaat-ud-Dawa or the JuD. India is also working with the United States to pressurise Pakistan into taking actions against the terrorists. Indian government is also trying to rope in China as well as Saudi Arabia into its diplomatic offensive to coerce Pakistan into doing something substantial in the fight against terror. India hasn’t taken the diplomatic step of calling back its High Commissioner from Pakistan or stopping the Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) between the two nations. But the Indian government has called off the cricket team’s tour of Pakistan in the wake of the Mumbai terror strikes.

Pakistan is continuing with its denial rhetoric saying that the Mumbai attackers are not Pakistanis and hence they can’t take any actions against them. They say that they want more evidence from India, proving that the perpetrators of the Mumbai attack are from the Pakistani soil. But India is not interested in sharing the evidences with Pakistan as it is known that if we share the evidences with Pakistan they will use these evidences to help the terrorists to escape from international security forces, as is the experience of the past. In the past, when India shared evidences of the crimes committed by Pakistani nationals, Pakistan had taken some actions for the name sake and the acquitted the criminals under pretext of lack of tangible evidences against them.

Pakistan is a failed state where full-fledged democracy is still a distant dream. If someone thinks that with the arrival of democratic government in Pakistan, the grip of Pakistan army on the policy making of Pakistan is over, then they are thinking so only at their peril. Even now the army calls all the shots in Pakistan and this is evident from the way the Pakistani establishment had responded to the Mumbai attack. At first, President of Pakistan, Asif Ali Sardari promised to send the Director General of ISI to India to help in the investigation of the attack, but immediately had to backtrack following pressure from ISI and the army. So India should have no hope that Pakistan will act against the perpetrators of the Mumbai attack who have the backing and support of the ISI and the Pakistani army.

The Mumbai attack of 26/11 and the way in which Indian security forces and Mumbai police responded to it had shown to this world and the terrorists that India is a strong state with brave and courageous people. Though we were shocked for a short period of time, we have come back with more resolve and grit. At this point of time, we should also thank and salute the brave commandos and cops of India for saving thousands of people and for saving the pride of this nation. As an NSG commander has said, we hope that such an attack will not happen again in India, but if at all it happens we will make sure that the perpetrators of such crime will not go back safely. War with Pakistan is not a first option, but if that country is not ready to take actions against the terrorist infrastructure prevailing there, then we will have to resort to that last option. But till then, we have to go ahead with our diplomatic offensive and corner Pakistan and force them to take actions against the perpetrators of this heinous crime.

60th Anniversary of Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Today, 10 December 2008, marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Back in 1948, on the same day, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the declaration which has since become one of the most important documents of the civilised world. The Commission of Human Rights, a standing body of the United Nations, was composed for the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The commission was broadly represented by the delegates of the global community under the Chairmanship of Eleanor Roosevelt.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaims that the inherent dignity and equality of human beings is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace and forms the basis for the peaceful coexistence of different people in this world. The declaration also aims at promoting equality and social justice for all men and women irrespective of their caste, creed, race, nationality, colour, language, religion, national origin, social status, political opinion and birth or other status. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights also aspires to end slavery and other similar inhuman practices as well as cruel and degrading treatment or punishment.

There are 30 articles in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the basic principles of those articles are dignity, liberty, equality and universal brotherhood. The articles set forth the various principles of human rights in the realm of individual rights, rights of individuals in the political and civil society, public and spiritual rights as well as social, cultural and economic rights. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is not a legally binding treaty on the member countries of the United Nations but the declaration had a major influence on the constitutions of almost all countries since 1948. It is also the foundation for a number of universal treaties and has a very important influence on the laws of various international organisations.

Though the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted in the year 1948 and 60 years had passed since then, human rights violations are still going on in various parts of this world. Organisations like the United Nations, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch are constantly trying to pressurise governments of various countries for the strict adherence to the principles proclaimed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But there are a lot of rogue states in the world that are continuously violating the basic tenets of the declaration. Such states should be diplomatically convinced by the international community to follow the principles of human rights as envisaged by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

It is not only the responsibility of nations or international organisations, but that of all human beings to understand, disseminate as well as follow the basic principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. As the declaration itself advocate, adoption of the various articles of this declaration is paramount to the achievement of international peace and universal brotherhood. So let us make a promise that we will follow those principles all our lives as well as voice our disapproval with courage whenever the basic tenets of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are violated by individuals, organisations or nations.

The Quintessential Lady

A humming bird sings and flies past me,

Then comes back and flies round and round,

Her humming, quite mirthful, quite jocund,

So does my beloved sister speak,

With a sound, quite mirthful, quite jocund,

My sweet, new sister, with whom,

I have vowed to share the stage of this life,

In her affectionate heart, an indelible pain,

On her charming face, an indelible smile,

For she had learnt the art of veiling,

Agonizing incidences of appalling yore,

Under pretexts of affable humour.

During vexatious days, befriended her parents,
And told them, “at times life can get painful,
Yet we mortals have to live on and on,
Like the sun that sets westwards every dusk,
Only to rise in the east every morn afresh”,
And she, my beloved sister, goes on in life,
As a dutiful wife, for her life’s companion,
He, her better half, lives so merry, so easy,
Often proclaims, “Life is simple when she’s near”
She to her son, a mother, so special, so great,
And all mothers are so special, so great,
God wisely sent to build heaven on earth.

In this world, where made are promises,
To be broken, shattered or forgotten,
I, being a poet, possess an emotional heart,
And words so honest, truthful and earnest,
Makes a conscientious promise and swear,
To my sweet, new sister, with whom,
I have vowed to share the stage of this world,
“Even while I would rest in my sepulchre,
Old, decrepit and dead, my sincere soul,
Will be encumbered with a brotherly affection,
Coveted by the angels in the heaven,
And the devils beneath the blue sea.”

I stand upon this world, pleased and awed,
To have done a thing often held implausible,
And now with pride to the world I announce,
I have discovered the quintessential lady.

(Written on and dedicated to my new sister who is perhaps the greatest woman I have ever met in my life, next only to my mother. Her story is an inspiration to all who know her and knowing stories like her's make us understand that this life is worth living, though it is besmirched with pains and troubles)

I Pray for the Victims of Mumbai Terror Strikes

I pray for the victims of the Mumbai terror strikes. This is a time when we Indians should stand united and take a pledge to defeat terrorism in all its manifestations. The spirit of Indians will stand the test of times and we will defeat the heinous ambitions of terrorists of all hues.

President Obama and His Road Ahead

The euphoria that aroused all over the world after the election of Barrack Obama as the 44th President of the United States seems to have ended for now. That the US has a coloured man as the President within half a decade of Martin Luther King’s famous ‘I have a Dream’ speech is in itself a matter of great pride for the Americans. But now its time to analyse the various challenges that Obama has to face at the helm of American Presidency. Let us discuss the various areas where he would have to concentrate if his promise of change has to become a reality.

• The Economy

The international economy is in serious turmoil and many American MNCs are destined to be doomed if there are no immediate financial package to bail them out of the sub prime mortgage crisis that they are facing. So Obama’s most important and urgent task should be to find a solution to the financial crisis. The American Congress has already announced a bail out package for the financial companies that are afflicted by the financial crisis. But now the automotive sector is also asking for a similar bail out package. The financial crisis has been the most important factor in this US election and therefore Obama has no other option left but to confront the gravest financial crisis that is all set to engulf America and the world since the great depression of 1930s.

• Domestic Health Care System

The domestic health care system in the US is in an absolute mayhem. The number of people out of the health care insurance net is increasing day by day and is going to become quite unmanageable in the near future. In a country where the cost of health care is ridiculously high, health care insurance is an absolute necessity. So it is imperative for Obama to take some immediate steps towards normalising this discrepancy. It is a very important step that he has to take for gaining the trust of the middle class as well as the blue collar workers.

• Internal Security

At a time when the gun culture is quite vibrant among the students and internal violence is on the rise, internal security is a very important concern of the Americans. The remarkable electoral victory that the centrist Democrats have won over the conservative Republicans would give Barrack Obama some serious moral authority to establish some fool proof regulations that would put an end to the reckless use of guns by the ordinary people. This would go a long way in making some headway in matters of internal security. At the same time other aspects of internal security will be taken care of by getting advice from the experts in the field.

• War on Terror

Since September 11, 2001, no American President would dare to forget the war on terror. From that day, capturing of Osama bin Laden and his fellow perpetrators of the heinous crime has been the most important task of any US patriot. But Obama has some serious ideological differences with the way George W.Bush had fought the war on terror. He was against going to war against Saddam Hussein’s Iraq under the pretext of Weapons of Mass Destruction, which the Bush regime claimed Saddam had. In line with such an idea, Obama thinks that the real war on terror should be fought at Afghanistan and not at Iraq. He believes that Osama is hiding some where in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border and hence pursuance of Osama should be directed at Afghanistan. Obama believes that the war front at Iraq is redundant and hence army should be recalled from Iraq. He also thinks that there should be an actual time frame for the troop withdrawal from Iraq. That is be an action that he is quite keen to take.

• Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib

Barrack Obama believes that Guantanamo Bay prison is one of America’s most loathsome historical mistakes and wants to close it down before it creates more damage to America’s moral standing in the world. The prisoners at Guantanamo are denied even basic human rights and a lot of politicians in America and human rights activists all over the world have been condemning the US for continuing with the prison. Flouting all international rules and regulations and human rights laws, the US administration under George W.Bush has been keeping the terror suspects without any legal trials or legal benefits. If Obama has to keep his promise of change and to show this world that he is a man who keeps his word, he has to act quickly in this regard.

Abu Ghraib and the gross human rights violations that were committed in that prison by American soldiers are fresh in the memory of this world. Though the US administration was able to instil some sense by bringing to book the soldiers that committed the violation of human rights, it is important for US to close down the prison and improve their moral standing in this world. Obama seems to be the right person to bell the cat and he is armed with sufficient public support and congressional backing to do the same.

• Foreign Policy

Barrack Obama has a very different foreign policy outlook from that of George Bush . He is not averse to talking to leaders of countries that Bush thought are too bellicose to talk to. Obama has already made his ideas clear by saying that he will talk to the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad without any pre-conditions. In this regard his ideas were different from both Hilary Clinton and John McCain, who were opposed to this very idea of diplomacy offered by Obama. As Obama has almost decided to make Hilary Clinton as his Secretary of State, it is to be seen how he is going to move forward on this promise he has made.

At the same time foreign policy experts are quite interested in knowing the policy that Obama would adopt against old rivals Russia and China. The relationship between US and Russia that became sour after the recent Russia-Georgia war and the rhetoric that followed needs some immediate remedy. After the war, Russia has become quite confident to impose its supremacy in the Caucuses, where as the US is hell bent not to allow it. In the post cold war era, after the fall of the USSR, there is more or less a unipolar world where the US is the sole super power. Hence the US doesn’t want Russia to again emerge as a world power lest their supremacy would end. But the resurgent Russia, under Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev, is getting ready to usurp their appropriate position in this world as an answer to the US’ hegemonic ambitions. Barrack Obama would do good to reinvent the cordial relationship with Russia, because this world can ill afford another cold war.

The United States consider China as a threat in Asia and are quite interested in countering that country’s emergence as a super power. It is the main reason why the recent US Presidents were quite interested in improving the relationship with India. The US foreign policy think tank believes that economic and political revival of India can effectively defy China’s hold in Asia. The Indo-US nuclear deal should also be seen in this light.

The importance of India vis a vis China makes a lot of experts believe that Obama would continue the good relationship with India that George Bush started. Moreover the growing clout of Indian-Americans in US strategic and economic space makes it absolutely difficult for US Presidents to ignore India and its aspirations. The United States also want to invite India to its strategic embrace, so that they have a larger involvement in this region.

Obama believes that Pakistan should have a larger participation in the war on terror and is not that happy with its present level of unresponsive involvement. He wants Pakistan to focus more on their western borders along Afghanistan and not at the Indian side of Pakistan border. Hence Obama believes that India and Pakistan should discuss the Kashmir issue among them and find a solution to it. At the same time Obama has also said that he would resort to using force in Pakistan internal territory against the suspected terrorists even without the approval of the Pakistan government. But that would be a decision that he might have to rethink on after discussing with his foreign policy experts because it can cause serious damage to America’s moral standing in the world.

• Non-proliferation

Barrack Obama is a strong advocate of nuclear non-proliferation and believes that a world with no nuclear threats is the best possible option for a peaceful co-existence of various countries. He strongly supports the signing of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and thinks that US should first sign it and then push other countries to do the same. India should not have any problem in signing the CTBT if other countries like the US, China and Pakistan sign it.

Right now the President-elect Barrack Obama is busy making his team for governing the country. The promise that he has made, the promise of change, to the Americans as well as to the world, is a very difficult one to satisfy. The expectations on him are quite high as well. But for the sort of person he is - committed, honest, brave and confident - we believe and trust that he would make some effective steps towards improving the moral standing of the United States as well as the future of this world.

Salute the Dada of Indian Cricket

Sourav Ganguly, India’s most successful test captain has retired from international cricket. This is the time for us to celebrate the cricketing career of this legendary cricketer, whose legacy extends far beyond the runs that he had accumulated in international cricket. The number of brave hearted young cricketers that he offered to Indian cricket, the sense of competitive spirit that he presented and the degree of mettle and self confidence that he imparted to the team are the real contributions made by the Bengal Tiger to Indian cricket. The southpaw, called the “Lord of the Off Side”, for his flamboyant stroke play through the off side had been a terror in the minds of bowlers all over the world. As he retires from international cricket, we can rejoice on his astounding career, as a batsman as well as captain, and wish him all the best for all his future endeavours. But we will surely miss the Dada.

Congratulation to Barack Obama for Becoming the 44th President of the United States

Now it is official, Barack Obama is the 44th President of the United States of America. He has made tryst with the destiny and has become the first black President in the history of world’s oldest democracy. The message of change that he put forward reverberated all over the country and gave him a thumping victory over John McCain, the Presidential candidate of the GOP. But as the new chief executive of the United States he would have to confront problems of historic proportions. Issues in regards to ailing economy, awful health insurance sector and increasing terrorism against their citizens to name few, will test his character and ability to lead. Hopefully he will bring the much needed change to US policies which will have a positive effect on all nations of this world. Congratulations to him for achieving this great victory.