Happy New Year 2012

It is time to welcome a new year and this writer wishes all the readers of this blog a very happy and prosperous year ahead. Let the year 2012 bring in new hopes of peace, safety and tranquility all over the world.

End Chauvinism and Double Standard on Mullaperiyar

Those regular readers of this Candid Minds blog, who personally don’t know this writer may be worried on his safety, for in his last essay Build New Dam at Mullaperiyar or We’re Dead he spoke about his fear of being washed away by the deluge if Mullaperiyar dam collapses. If that was the case then this piece should assure them that this writer is still alive as Mullaperiyar hasn’t collapsed yet, but the danger of such a catastrophe is also still alive as no permanent solution for the issue has been found yet.

Before continuing with this essay this writer wants to put things in the right perspective and hence would say in unequivocal terms that he is not against the Tamilians as a whole, for he has many friends, sisters and brothers who are Tamilians, who have been bestowing on him affection of the supreme kind, which he is sure, thanking of no measure would adequately compensate. However Tamil politicians, from Vaiko to Stalin, from Jayalalithaa to Karunanidhi are all whipping up passion of the Tamil people to revolt against Malayalees on what they consider as unrealistic and unwarranted call of Malayalees for a new dam at Mullaperiyar. Voltaire would be laughing in his grave for most of the Tamil politicians are proving him to be right again. It was Voltaire in the 18th century who famously said ‘common sense is not so common’ and Tamil politicians defies common sense when they say that the Mullaperiyar dam, which was declared to have a life of just 50 years when it was made, is safe even after 116 years of functioning. They are giving the example of Kallanai, Grand Anicut dam that was made in the 2nd century to show that not all old dams are unsafe. However they are not considering the fact that Kallanai was made of using unhewn stone, while Mullaperiyar with lime surkhi which will weather down with time. Moreover comparing the Kallanai dam which is located only 5.4 m from River basin to 53.6 m high Mullaperiyar dam located at 881 m above see level is not reasonable but foolish. One would have to believe that there was some sort of conspiracy in making a lease agreement for 999 years for a dam that had just 50 years of declared life time.

In a classic example of double standards Tamil politicians are making a huge cry at Tamil Nadu against Koodankulam Nuclear Plant, which has been constructed using the latest technology that could even withstand a tsunami and all safety measures taken to prevent radiation. In order to prove their claim that Mullaperiyar dam is safe, Tamil politicians show studies conducted by various educational and technical institutions around the country that say the dam is safe. If we use the same logic they should approve of the safety of the Koodankulam nuclear plant which has been tested safe by many technical institutions in India and abroad. Should Tamilians need approval from any one more than APJ Abdul Kalam, the great Indian scientist who has said in more than one occasion that the Koodankulam plant is safe and there need be no concern on its safety? However Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa made a statement yesterday that said Koodankulam plant should be approved only after removing the “concerns of the people.” Let us not go to the merits of the arguments of the nuclear plant supporters or its detractors as that is not the purpose of this essay. But there could not be different standards for the Tamilians and for Keralites. As Jayalalithaa wants to remove the concerns of the people of Tamil Nadu before approving the nuclear plant, let her accept that she and her people need to remove the concerns of the Keralites before going against the construction of a new dam at Mullaperiyar.

It is understandable when a trivial regional political party like the MDMK under the leadership of Vaiko whip up chauvinistic sentiments to earn political points. However when the state committee of a national party like Indian National Congress speak on chauvinistic lines it shows how bad the political environment around Mullaperiyar has become and that was what happened yesterday at the meeting organised by Tamil Nadu Congress Committee. To make matters worse, in that meeting P Chidambaram (PC as he is popularly known among scribes), Home Minister of India made the ludicrous statement yesterday that he is sure that the Supreme Court decision on Mullaperiyar would come in favour of the wishes of the Tamil people. It is a matter of grave irresponsibility to see a Cabinet Minister in the central government stooping so low. In contrast take the case of AK Antony, the Defence Minister of India, who hails from Kerala and how gentlemanly a stand he has taken in this issue, where he hasn’t taken any position in favour of Kerala but is working for finding an amicable solution to the issue. In a federal democratic system it is incumbent upon Union ministers to take a nationalistic stance in matters regarding conflict between two states. It is difficult to believe that a politician like Chidambaram, who is not only known for his high intelligence but also known for his disdain for anyone who falls below his intelligence quotient, would make a mistake by making such a statement. It is sure that he has taken a very wise position to influence the court’s decision in favour of Tamil Nadu. Moreover PC is now surrounded by many problems including the 2G scam issue and this seems to be his shrewd plan to get the support of the Tamil people if he is fired from the Cabinet on the issue, so that he can claim that he has fallen victim for his support of the Tamil cause in Mullaperiyar issue and thus gain martyrdom. PC’s allegation that political parties in Kerala have kicked up the dam row keeping an eye on the by-poll from Piravom constituency shows his political depravity. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should show courage (though it is not his wont to show courage) to kick out such senseless ministers from his Cabinet.

A few stray incidents of violence against Tamilians in Kerala had been reported earlier, but now things are coming to normalcy in Kerala as the state government took some rapid actions to stop such vandalism by a minority. At the same time, violence against Malayalees is on the rise in Tamil Nadu. In Chennai, Coimbaore and Tanjavur many shops of Malayalees have been attacked; in Gudalor a Kerala bound bus was set ablaze by attackers after asking passengers to alight, to name a few incidents. Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and opposition leader VS Achuthananthan have written letters to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa to take steps to stop violence against Malayalees.

It is imperative for the Central Government to step in immediately and find an amicable political solution to the Mullaperiyar issue. Kerala has made the promise umpteen number of times that it is not against giving water to Tamil Nadu and even after building a new dam it is ready to give Tamil Nadu the same amount of water that it is drawing now. Kerala CM Oommen Chandy made the statement that Kerala’s stance is ‘water for Tamil Nadu, safety for Kerala.’ But Tamil Nadu CM, Jayalalithaa’s arrogance and intransigence have made it impossible for the central government to call upon both states for a discussion to find a solution to the issue. If the central government doesn’t have the political will to compel a state to come for discussion to solve an inter-state dispute, it is better for it to resign and go to exile.

I humbly appeal to the people of Tamil Nadu, our brothers and sisters, to not believe the misinformation propagated by the chauvinistic politicians and media of Tamil Nadu. (In Facebook I saw a Tamil brother saying that all the villages near the Mullaperiyar dam are above the water level of the dam and in the event of dam collapse water won’t flow upwards and therefore there is no need to panic in Kerala and all these are false propagation of political parties in Kerala; he can’t be blamed, may be that is how is being misinformed and made to believe.) We Malayalees are not against giving water to Tamil Nadu as many people there are made to believe by the unscrupulous politicians. We are ready to give water to your state in as much quantity as you are drawing now and what we want is only the safety to the life and property of the millions of people in our state living downstream the Mullaperiyar dam.

Build New Dam at Mullaperiyar or We’re Dead

Right now this writer is sinking; sinking in messages, discussions and appeals from all over the world from Malayalees on the subject matter of Mullaperiyar dam and the hazards it poses to four districts in Kerala – Idukki, Ernakulam, Kottayam and Alapuzha. The dilapidated dam that was built in 1895 holds 15 TMC of water. When the dam was built it was said that the life span of the dam was just 50 years and now it is more than 115 years. The dam can’t withstand an earthquake of magnitude 6.5 in ritcher scale and it compromises the safety of about 3 million people living downstream. If a new dam is not built sooner this writer would also sink in the deluge that would inundate central Kerala.

Kerala’s neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu which makes use of the water in the Mullaperiyar dam for irrigating their four districts is against Kerala building a new dam as they fear that they would lose control of the dam and hence the water. The water sharing agreement on the Mullaperiyar was signed during the British rule for 999 years. It defies common sense why an agreement for 999 years was signed for a dam that had a life span of just 50 years. When the British left India and we got independence in 1947 all agreements between princely states became void and hence the Mullaperiyar agreement also got void. But in 1970s Kerala government magnanimously re-entered into an agreement with Tamil Nadu for water sharing as farmers in that state were reeling because of lack of water for irrigation. Tamil Nadu uses the water from Mullaperiyar for agricultural purposes and for generation of electricity and accrues a profit of about 1200 crores a year and gives Kerala a meagre 30 lakhs as rent. Even now Kerala agrees that it will not reduce the amount of water given to Tamil Nadu even after building a new dam, but Tamil Nadu is obstinate that they will not allow a new dam. As the matter is pending before the Supreme Court and because of the clauses in the water sharing agreement Kerala is not able to build a new dam without the approval of Tamil Nadu. But growing indignation from the people of Kerala has forced Kerala government to look for legal loopholes in the agreement to build a new dam.

If Mullaperiyar dam gets demolished as a result of an earthquake the water from the dam will reach the Idukki dam, which is situated just 36 kilometres away, in 45 minutes time. Idukki dam has a capacity of holding 70 TMC water and 79% of it is already filled. Hence it won’t be able to hold the water coming from Mullaperiyar and it would also collapse leading to a flood of enormous magnitude which would wash away four districts of Kerala. The people in these four districts of Kerala are living in perpetual danger as a water bomb is hanging above their heads. It is estimated that if the dam collapses the destruction it would cause would be 180 times as severe as the destruction caused by the atom bomb in Hiroshima.

All over the four districts in Kerala everywhere people are discussing about the dangers of the dam collapse and thinking about saving themselves and their loved ones if and when such a calamity occurs. Tamil Nadu shows scientific studies done by some experts which show that there is no danger to the Mullaperiyar dam and is saying that politicians and people in Kerala are foolishly panicking for something that is not going to happen. But they are oblivious or pretending to be oblivious of the grave danger that the dam holds as a result of the weathering down of the lime surkhi mortar used to build the dam. The increasing number of tremors in the dam region recently has added to the danger to the dam.

The time to act is now and if the Central Government won’t take immediate steps to find an amicable solution to this dam row we are on to something extremely terrible. If Tamil Nadu government doesn’t agree to a new dam to be built by Kerala they will have to take the responsibility of 3 million lives that would be lost when the dam collapses. There is no time to wait and the people of Kerala are up in arms in a bid to save their own lives. The catastrophe of a dam collapse can happen anytime and this could well be this writer’s last essay. We, the people of Kerala, are not against our brothers and sisters in Tamil Nadu, but no one can stop us from fighting for our lives and fight we will.

The Folly of Celebrating Contempt of Court

MV Jayarajan, a leader of the CPI (M) who was sentenced to 6 months imprisonment by Kerala High Court for contempt of court is out on bail and he was given a rousing welcome by the party cadre and leaders. When the High Court ordered to put Mr. Jayarajan behind the bars without giving him bail or time to appeal against the verdict, legal experts pointed out that it is against principles of natural justice as in Indian legal system bail is the rule, jail is the exception. There is no doubt that the verdict of the Supreme Court in quashing High Court order and granting bail to Mr. Jayarajan is a victory for the CPI (M); however to celebrate the release on bail of a person convicted of contempt of court is an absolute folly which has no place in a democracy like India.

It must be noted that the Supreme Court of India has only upheld Mr. Jayarajan’s right to bail and hasn’t given any verdict on the charges of contempt of court. The celebration on account of his release on bail was made in a magnificent fashion as if he was acquitted of all charges. It is for the leaders of the party to think how morally or politically correct it is for a political party working in Indian democracy to do such a thing. In a democracy it is quite true that political parties carry the greatest worth as they directly represent the people. But it is incumbent upon all political parties and their leaders and activists to respect other democratic institutions, particularly the court. By no stretch of imagination is it a matter of pride for political parties to celebrate the deeds of someone who has been convicted of contempt of court. In the past, during pre-independence period, it was certainly a matter of pride as the courts were illegitimate institutions governed by laws and rules made by the British, who were unlawful occupiers of our country. However in present day courts are democratic institutions established under the constitution of India and any denunciation of such courts is the denunciation of democracy, denunciation of the constitution.

Having said that this writer is not at all making an impression that democratic courts are above criticism, but one should maintain certain level of decency in the choice of words in such criticisms. Mr. Jayarajan crossed all boundaries of decency when he used the Malayalam word “shumbhan” (that roughly translates to fool) to describe judges of the court. He made further mockery of the Indian judicial system when he unsuccessfully made arguments by bringing Malayalam and Sanskrit professors from colleges to establish that the word didn’t mean fool but have some positive meaning.

Politicians are supposed to be the role models, watching and emulating whom the younger generations of a country would become ideal citizens. However the standards set by present generation of politicians is so poor that it is always better for the young people not to make them their role models. Politicians cutting across party lines use such bad and terrible words in their criticism of their opponents that it is honourable not to speak about it. Kerala, a state that prides itself of far better social indicators and education in comparison to other states in India, has been greatly ashamed by the recent conduct of politicians - of UDF as well as LDF - who have used foul language and did uncivilised deeds in the legislature and outside. If they don’t mend their ways sooner, Keralites would lose the trust in them and that would not be a good sign for the state of democracy in Kerala.

Certainly the CPI (M) has set a very bad example in democratic India by celebrating the release of a leader who has been convicted for contempt of court. By doing that the party has sent a message to the civil society that contempt of court is not a crime but a matter of great pride and glory which anyone and everyone can follow and gain appreciation of the crowd. Had it been so that MV Jayarajan had accepted his mistake or the court found that all allegations against him on matters of contempt of court were void, it would have been fine to bestow on him such lavish praise; but incidentally it is not the case. Freedom of speech and expression that Indian constitution grants us comes with reasonable restrictions. Therefore the claim that what Mr. Jayarajan did was upholding that freedom holds no water. This writer wants to point out that getting behind the bars for contempt of a constitutional institution is a matter of shame and disgrace and not pride, if anyone holds such a view.

It is precisely true that politicians epitomise all the vices that human ingenuity could invent, a fact proven time and time again by the politicians of all hues in Kerala. Some sort of shock treatment from the people is needed for these politicians to understand their mistakes and blunders. Whenever anyone criticise the politicians for being unscrupulous they would make a huge cry saying that such opinaions and criticisms would belittle the whole tribe of politicians in the eyes of people which would be inimical to the existence of democracy in the country. But they themselves often use harsh words to criticise the judicial system in the country knowing very well that rubbishing courts is as inimical to democracy as is belittling politicians, as they claim. Politicians in our country often behave as spoilt brats and are incorrigible to a great extend and the day that they would have a rude awakening is not any far off as people have reached their threshold of patience.

What Should the World Offer to its 7 Billion Population

The global population has reached the dubious number of 7 billion according to some UN estimates. This news has raised alarm bells among many population experts as they see this as a matter of concern, for the natural resources that would support this bludgeoning population is shrinking at an alarming pace. If radical and drastic measures are not taken immediately this perilous situation would run out of control. World leaders at the forthcoming G20 meet at Cannes would brainstorm on finding solutions that would kick-start actions for sustainable development in the world.

The force of the 7 billion population is gathering steam as is evident from the various instances of street protests that we see around in the different countries of the world. The realisation about the superiority of democracy over other forms of government is driving people to fight against the autocrats who had usurped power from them through unscrupulous means. The defeat of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia, Hosni Mubarak in Egypt or Muammar Gadhafi in Libya is a sign of this growing people’s power. The lesson we have learnt is that whenever people tend to have trust deficit on their rulers they will get out on to the streets and can bring down powerful rulers.

The Census Bureau estimates show that about 255 people are born every minute whereas about 106 people die per minute. With the advancement of science and technology and the subsequent improvement in health facilities around the world life expectancy of people has increased. High quality health care provided by welfare governments in the various countries of the world has accounted for such an improvement in human life. Even then there are millions of people around the world who die every minute because they don’t get access to good health care facilities. With population increase every government has this additional responsibility to make sure that the whole population get the health care benefits offered by them. Insofar as the plight of the millions of poor people of the world is concerned, there is much left to be done.

Growing economic uncertainty in the world, coupled with market volatility and increasing inequality result in losing trust of the people on their leaders as well as the public institutions. In many countries people believe that the government works for the rich and often forget the poor. The bailing out of big banks by governments when they were in financial trouble because of their poor management of finances has caused much indignation among people. The moral force behind movements like ‘Occupy Wall Street’ comes from such public fury. Governments around the world have got their task cut out, for unless and until they stop this growing tide of people’s legitimate discontent, they are sure to perish.

Sustainable growth and development should be the slogan of the welfare states around the world. For improving the lives of people and to lift them from the pits of abject poverty it is essential for governments to increase welfare spending on infrastructure development. However many governments struck by financial troubles are looking for fiscal austerity, which results in reduced government spending. This would automatically result in reduced developmental activities which would pull down countries further down to economic instability. Governments must continue investing on developmental policies and programmes including women and children’s health, agricultural growth as well as gender equality.

Women and young people are taking to the streets and asking for economic and political improvements in their life. They constitute two-thirds of the world population and governments around the world can no longer exist without hearing their voices and demands. Even some Islamic countries are making amendments in their constitutions to give greater representation of women in the political arena. Their involvement in many recent pro-democracy movements in the world is worth mentioning. The world recognised the growing involvement of women in the societal improvement of many populations by naming three women for this year’s Nobel Prize for Peace.

7 billion is a mere number but the human lives that it signifies are our hope for the future. Now is the time for making the hard choices and with wisdom, foresight and commitment we can start on the path of sustainable growth and development. We have squandered many such opportunities in the past but let us not waste anymore, for it is now or never.

Join Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon

(For Amnesty International)

Around the world many governments incarcerate human rights defenders by closing them behind the bars, where they are tortured and their lives put in jeopardy - their crime, they spoke against state sponsored human rights abuses.

Your words have got enormous power and can bring the spotlight on to the dark chambers where these human rights defenders are being tortured. Your letters of support and solidarity can bring in hope in these forgotten 'prisoners of conscience'. Join with me and hundreds of thousands of people around the world in marking International Human Rights Day on 10 December by taking part in Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon, the world’s largest human rights event. Through our letters, post cards and more we take action to demand human rights are respected, protected and fulfilled around the world and show our solidarity to those who suffer human rights abuses as well as to those human rights defenders who are languishing in state prisons around the world.

Join Amnesty International’s Write-a-thon by going to the following link and by pledging your letters and your support. You can find all information and resources in that page.

Join Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon

December 3-11 are the key dates for writing the letters, but feel free to start earlier or later. Let us come together and save lives and protect human rights around the world.

Myanmar: Political prisoners must be freed - Amnesty International

(Amnesty International Appeal)

On the third anniversary of the violent crackdown on the “Saffron Revolution”, Amnesty International calls on the Myanmar government to immediately and unconditionally free all political prisoners arrested for their peaceful activism.

The Myanmar authorities continue to imprison over 2,200 political prisoners—more than double the number held before the August 2007 protests against sharp fuel and commodity price rises.

“While the international community, including Myanmar’s ASEAN neighbours, has been calling for free, fair and inclusive elections there, the plight of thousands of political prisoners has been overlooked,” said Benjamin Zawacki, Amnesty International’s Myanmar Researcher.

Amnesty International believes the vast majority of those held are prisoners of conscience who are being punished merely for peacefully exercising their rights to free expression, assembly and association.

The Myanmar government will hold its first elections in 20 years on 7 November 2010 against a backdrop of political repression and systematic violence. Under Electoral Laws enacted in March 2010, no political prisoner can take part in the elections or hold membership in any political party.

International attention in recent months has focused on the power-play between the military and the government’s proxy parties on the one hand; and the armed ethnic minority groups, the National League for Democracy, and a small number of new opposition parties on the other.

“The long-standing problem of political imprisonment in Myanmar remains very much at the heart of the political impasse in the country”, said Benjamin Zawacki. “These prisoners constitute a significant part of the political opposition”.

In the largest show of public discontent against the military government in Myanmar since the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, tens of thousands of protesters—led by Buddhist monks—took to the streets in August and September 2007, demanding economic and political reforms.

The peaceful country-wide demonstrations were violently put down by the authorities in late September 2007. At least 31 (and possibly more than a hundred) people were killed—with many more injured and at least 74 disappeared—and thousands detained.

The brutal crackdown provoked international condemnation, including an unprecedented expression of revulsion and demands for change from the UN Security Council, the UN Human Rights Council and the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Yet even as Myanmar prepares for its first elections in two decades, as part of what it calls a “Roadmap to Democracy”, it continues to repress political opposition.

“It beggars belief that the government can attempt to burnish its democratic credentials by holding elections, while it also holds more than 2,200 political prisoners behind bars and out of sight of the campaigns and polls”, said Benjamin Zawacki . “The international community should point out to Myanmar that these practices cannot be reconciled under any genuine Roadmap to Democracy”.

Political prisoners in Myanmar are held in deplorable conditions

Many of those who took part in the Saffron Revolution, such as labour rights campaigner Su Su Nway, monk leader and activist U Gambira, and 88 Generation Student group members Min Ko Naing, Htay Kywe, Mie Mie, Ko Mya Aye and Zaw Htet Ko Ko, are in poor health. In the past two years, at least 238 political prisoners have been moved to extremely remote prisons, restricting their access to relatives, lawyers and medical care. Reports of torture and other ill-treatment are rife. The International Committee of the Red Cross has been denied access to prisons in Myanmar since late 2005.

“On this third anniversary of the Saffron Revolution, Amnesty International calls on world leaders to demand that the Myanmar government free all political prisoners at once, and ensure human rights protection throughout the elections period and beyond”, said Benjamin Zawacki.

Visit the following URL and add your name to this petition calling on the Chairman of the newly-established Myanmar National Human Rights Commission to press the President of Myanmar to immediately and unconditionally release all prisoners of conscience.

http://amnesty.org/en/appeals-for-action/Myanmar-must-release-all-prisoners-of-conscience

Meet the Nobel Laureates 2011

The Nobel Prize for the year 2011 in the field of Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, Peace and Economic Sciences was announced recently. Just a note on who those Nobel laureates are and their contributions in their respective fields that made them the winners.

Nobel for Physics: Nobel Prize for Physics for the year 2011 was shared by Saul Perlmutter, Brian P. Schmidt and Adam G. Reiss for their discovery that the universe is expanding at an ever-accelerating rate. They made the discovery based on their studies on distant supernovae or the exploding stars.

Nobel for Chemistry: Israeli scientist Daniel Shechtman won the 2011 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his discovery of ‘quasicrystals’, a mosaic-like chemical structure that scientist earlier thought would not be possible. Contrary to what was earlier thought that atoms were packed in crystals in symmetrical patterns, Prof. Shechman showed that atoms in a crystal could be packed in a pattern that could not be repeated.

Nobel for Physiology or Medicine: Three scientists shared the Nobel for Physiology or Medicine for the year 2011 for their discoveries about the immune system that opened new avenues for the treatment and prevention of many infectious diseases as well as cancer. One half of the Nobel would be shared by Bruce A. Beutler and Jules A. Hoffman for their discovery concerning the activation of innate immunity and the other half by Ralph M. Steinman for his discovery of the dendritic cells and its role in adaptive immunity.

Nobel for Literature: Tomas Transtromer bagged the 2011 Nobel Prize for Literature. According to the Nobel Committee the Swedish poet was awarded the Nobel because through his condensed, translucent images, he gives us fresh access to reality.

Nobel for Peace: The 2011 Nobel Prize for Peace was awarded jointly to Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Leymah Gbowee and Tawakkul Karman for their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Leymah Gbowee bagged the coveted prize for organising women for ending the long war in Liberia and Tawakkul Karman for her leading part in the struggle for women’s right, democracy and peace in Yemen.

Nobel for Economic Science: Thomas J. Sargent and Christopher A. Sims won the Nobel Prize for Economics for developing methods to answer questions regarding the causal relationship between economic policy and different macroeconomic variables such as GDP, inflation, employment and investment.

Source: Official website of the Nobel Prize and The Hindu newspaper

10 Years of Afghan War

Today on 7th October 2011 it is 10 long years since the start of the Afghan War initiated by the United States and now under the aegis of NATO. The United States is at their longest war in the history, longer that the Vietnam War and the number of American causalities has reached around 1,800. Add to this the millions of Afghans who lost their life in this destructive war and a million others who have become physically incapacitated. The most terrible news is that we are not any near to an end to this war and the NATO apparently has no genuine strategy at their hands for the withdrawal of the troops from the Afghan soil.

One of the biggest mistakes done by the United States when they started the war was that they entered into war in a country about which they didn’t had any in-depth knowledge. The socio-cultural fabric of Afghanistan was quite different from what had been understood by the United States. As the retired US army general Stanley McChrystal remarked recently the United States began the Afghan war with a “frighteningly simplistic” view of the country. A war that was started by the US with the popular support of the American public on account of their outrage after the 9/11 attacks by al-Qaeda has disintegrated into an unpopular war in the United States mainly because of the high causality of the war and the financial burden on the exchequer. Barack Obama during his campaign trail promised troop withdrawal as one of the main items of his presidential agenda. But he has failed miserably to keep up with his promise and the Afghan War is being considered as one of the main failures of his foreign policy. The killing of the al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden seems to be the only noteworthy result of the Afghan War for the United States.

In this 10th year of the Afghan War one must analyse what changes have been brought about in the country as a result of this long war. The Taliban that was in power in Afghanistan was heavily influenced by the Deobandi fundamentalism and enforced one of the strictest interpretations of Sharia law, which came under heavy criticism from the various Muslim scholars all over the world, particularly for their treatment of women. With the fall of the Taliban there have been vast improvements in the living condition of women. There has been reduction in the discrimination against women and greater access to education and health care. In Afghanistan many laws were enacted that gave equal status for men and women and set apart a quarter of parliamentary seats for the women. There has been improvement in the condition of human rights in the country, yet corruption and mismanagement have put many of these improvements in jeopardy. The new Afghan government has fallen well short of expectation and is not able to improve the sense of security among the people of Afghanistan.

Though the Taliban is out of power they still exist in many pockets of Afghanistan and find many hiding places in Pakistan. From these centres they are still fighting the NATO troops and killing common Afghans in large numbers. Suicide attacks have increased manifold and are putting Afghan lives in danger. The outrageous suicide attack by Taliban that killed peace negotiator Burrhanuddin Rabbani shows the murderous ability that the Taliban still holds. Afghan authorities blame Pakistan for harbouring the deadly Taliban commanders in different places in that country. It is commonly believed by many international security experts that the plot for killing Rabbani was hatched in Quetta, Pakistan, which is considered as the headquarters of the Taliban in Pakistan with the support of the Pakistani spy agency, the Inter Service Intelligence or the ISI.

One of the most important facts that the United States and the NATO have now recognised and realised is that the Afghans largely resent the existence of foreign troops in their soil. Many Afghans have taken to the streets demanding the immediate withdrawal of the foreign troops from Afghanistan. They protest against the continuous existence of foreign troops and condemned the killing of the civilians. At the same time many Afghans believe that once the foreign troops leave the country the Taliban would come back to power and establish their cruel and oppressive government in the country. The trust of the Afghans on the Afghan police and army that are driven by corruption, illiteracy and drug use is quite minimal and many believe that they will not able to fight against the battle-hardened Taliban forces for long.

Anyways the United States and NATO are planning for a phased exit from Afghanistan with NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen claiming that the overall security situation in Afghanistan has improved and that the Afghan forces have taken lead in maintaining security in seven provinces and districts in Afghanistan. US President Barack Obama announced this year his plan to withdraw 10,000 US troops by year end and another 23,000 more by next summer.

10 years, without any doubt, is a very long time for a war to continue and therefore it is imperative for the United States and the NATO to strategise to leave Afghanistan after giving the responsibility for security to the Afghan troops. The later it becomes the graver would be the causality of the war, not to mention the increase in the enormous financial resources that should be committed for the war.

What have we Achieved from the Hartals?

It has been more than one month since this blog has been updated as this writer has been busy with some personal preoccupations. However the recent hartals in Kerala (one in his city of Thiruvananthapuram and the other all over the state) and the subsequent violence have left this writer with no other option but to hit the online world with an essay damning hartals and the violence associated with it. The essay wants to put a question to all those who support violent hartals on what they have achieved from it.

Contrary to those supporters of violent hartals who claim that those who criticise hartals are chamchas of the UPA government and are in support of the petrol price rise, this writer wants to say that it is not so and we, those who damn violent hartals, are equally outraged as the supporters of hartals at the anti-people stand of the UPA government in increasing the price of petrol which is intended to help the private fuel distributors. We are also for protesting against this injustice to the people of India but we don’t believe in violence in any such protests. As this writer had already pointed out in another essay, hartals were used during India’s independence struggle by the non-violent freedom fighters as a successful form of protest as in those days the produce of various economic activities in India used to go to the United Kingdom. Therefore when you protest using hartals, by not working on that day and by closing down your shops, you were preventing the United Kingdom from getting the benefits of the economic activity. So that made sense. But when you use the same form of protest now against our own Indian government, you should know that you are hampering your own prosperity as the produce of economic activities doesn’t go to any other country but to your own country.

Statistics has shown that the state lost around 200 crores as a result of the hartals including 5.5 crore loss for KSRTC. Hartal supporters damaged many state vehicles and other state properties and it must be remembered that the state would use tax payers’ money to purchase new vehicles and rebuild those damaged state properties. As if the burden of increased petrol prices is not enough, these hartals have put an additional monetary load on the millions of poor people of our state. In the mindless violence that the hartal supporters unleash, there have often been occasions of individuals getting hurt. A poor man who drives KSRTC buses to make both ends meet was severely hurt during one of the stone pelting incidents that happened in the recent hartal at Thiruvananthapuram. Private vehicles are not left alone by hartal supporters either and they often threaten those who venture outside for urgent errands. It is a general rule in the political circle of the state that a hartal could be considered successful only if people are blocked from travelling freely in the state and therefore the hartal supporters will do whatever is possible to make sure that it happens. They will create blockades on the road, threaten people and even attack them to achieve this and after the hartal ends the political leaders would make tall claims in the media that the hartal had been a success and people had acquiesced with their hartal which was evident from the fact that there had been no significant traffic on the road. Quite laughable indeed!

Now the question that needs to be re-asked is what have we achieved from the hartals? The petrol price remains as high as it was earlier and the central government has no intention to reduce it. The state government of Kerala decided to forego the additional revenue which it would have got from the price rise. And how much that is? 70 paise, which means you would save only Rs. 7 on filling 10 litres of petrol; a savings of Rs. 7 in Rs. 690 (Kochi price). So when you are sure that hartals won’t result in any concrete change and you are protesting for the sake of protest, is it not sensible to find a less violent form of protest than hartal? If your intention is just to show your protest, you could have sit in for a fast for a day, you could have gone for a peaceful demonstration in front of the Secretariat or district headquarters or conducted a seminar against petrol price hike. Whenever people speak against hartals those who support it challenge them to come up with a more effective alternative to hartal (as if hartal is a very effective one). That is for the politicians to discover and promote, that is their responsibility and that is for what we Indians elect them and call them leaders. However this much is true, contrary to what a leftist leader in the state said, many things can be achieved by peaceful protest as was shown by Anna Hazare’s peaceful protest for Janlokpal bill. For the many flaws it had, Anna Hazare’s protest was a mass protest that got significant support from the different walks of life.

It is high time politicians understand that there is no place for violence in the Indian society. Being people who have seen and learnt how Mahatma Gandhi’s peaceful sathyagraha decimated the arrogance of mighty English and achieved independence for the country, we Indians can never be cajoled by the evanescent strength of violence. All those political ideologies that are based on the supremacy of armed struggle and violence would certainly sink into the oblivion of Indian history sooner rather than later.

What we need is a new law that would put all the responsibility of monetary loss to the state and personal attacks on the people on a hartal day to the party and its leaders who call for it. As of now no one can be held responsible for the damages and this encourages political parties to call for hartals as and when they fancy. Politicians who oppose such a law often come up with the argument that the opposition parties may commit a crime on a hartal day to defame them and put the blame on the party that has called for the hartal. But that is the risk that they take on calling for a hartal and a party should call for a hartal only after taking into consideration such a turn of event. Having said this much, this writer holds no such hopes for a law of that kind to come up in our Parliament, for laws are created by these politicians only (rightists, leftists and the centrists) who are still very much convinced about the possibility of gaining political points out of a hartal. We Indians are destined to such a poor fate of falling prey to the treacherous intentions of these unscrupulous politicians all our lives.