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Internet Edition: July 16-31, 2005
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June 1998 - December 2004 2005: Feb 16-28 | Mar 1-15 | Mar 16-31 | Apr 1-15 | Apr 16-30 | May 1-15 | May 16-31 | June 1-15 | June 26-30 | July 1-15 |
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Condemn the ‘New framework for the US-India defence relationship’! NO to ‘strategic partnership’ with the United States! Statement of the Communist Ghadar Party of India, 7 July, 2005 The agreement on a “new framework for US-India defence relationship”, signed in Washington on 28th June by the two defence ministers, reveals the extremely dangerous course on which the Government of India is headed. The new framework speaks of “unprecedented levels of cooperation” involving escalated arms sales, co-production of weapons and expanding collaboration in missile defence. It involves the deployment of Indian troops in undefined US led ‘multinational operations’, with or without UN approval. The military agreement is envisaged as part of building a strategic partnership, which is expected to unfold further when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visits the US starting 18th July. The Congress Party led UPA Government is marching further on the dangerous imperialist road traversed by the previous BJP led NDA Government and those before it. It is taking to a qualitatively higher level the collaboration of India with US imperialism-the most aggressive, warmongering and dangerous power in the world, with the longest track record of crimes against humanity. In its eagerness to make India one of the big imperialist powers of the world, the big bourgeoisie of our country is placing the fate of the peoples of South Asia in jeopardy, subjecting them to increasing danger of war and US interference. The US administration is eager to sell F-16 fighter planes to India. It is reported that according to military analysts, the US decision to sell F-16s to Pakistan was a deliberate bait to capture the Indian market. The US is also hinting at sale of Patriot missiles to India in the future. It is fuelling an arms race between India and Pakistan as an effective way to open new markets for American arms suppliers, and enhance the clout of US imperialism in South Asian affairs. The forging of the US-India ‘strategic partnership’ is taking place at a time when US imperialism is becoming increasingly isolated and exposed on the world scale. Cultivation of India as a strategic partner is part of the attempt of the United States to avoid becoming isolated and firmly embed itself in Asia. It is also part of the long-term US aim of containing China and deepening the divisions among Asian states. It is part of the US imperialist strategy to refashion the global security architecture, to suit its ambition of establishing a unipolar world under its dictate. Ahead of the Prime Minister’s visit, representatives of the UPA Government have been carrying out behind the scenes negotiations with their US counterparts. It appears that the Indian representatives are bargaining with the US to obtain support for India’s bid to enter the UN Security Council, in return for agreeing to the strategic partnership. At a time when the crimes of US imperialism are receiving worldwide condemnation, becoming a trusted US ally is a course that is fraught with grave consequences for the Indian and other peoples of South Asia and the entire world. It will earn for India only hatred and enmity among the nations and peoples of Asia and the whole world. Stepped up arms spending and militarisation will further squeeze resources for productive investments and social spending. The arms race will undermine efforts towards a stable peace with Pakistan. The Communist Ghadar Party of India calls upon all Indians of conscience to raise their voices to condemn and halt the dangerous course being pursued by the Government of India, of allying closely with US imperialism in military and strategic terms, to achieve Indian imperialist aims. We, the working class and people of India, cannot and must not accept such a course being pursued in our name. |
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Violence and terror in London are aimed at diverting the peoples from their struggle against imperialism, its war crimes and its economic offensive Statement of the Communist Ghadar Party of India, 9 July, 2005 The Communist Ghadar Party of India condemns the acts of indiscriminate violence in London on 7th July, in which innocent people were injured and killed at the busy hour in the morning. What is the reason for targeting arbitrary people on their way to work? Who stands to gain from such an act? The bombs went off in London at a time when the leaders of the most powerful imperialist powers, the G8, were meeting at Gleneagles in Scotland. Tens of thousands of people had assembled to protest against the crimes of the G8 powers, and especially against Bush and Blair. The violence and terror in London has come as a convenient pretext for these leaders to divert the attention and anger of the people. Bush and Blair have responded by immediately blaming ‘Al Qaeda’ and ‘Muslim extremists’, even before the investigation has gathered any evidence. They want the peoples of the world to believe that the main danger today is not from the big imperialist powers that are attacking and occupying sovereign nations and imposing the dictate of capitalist monopolies everywhere, but from some mysterious groups of ‘Islamic fundamentalists’. The demonstrations against the G8 summit have been of a size and militancy never before seen in Scotland. Hundreds of thousands came out to accuse the G8 leaders, their governments and their policies of being the primary cause of world poverty. In this context, the bombings on 7th July were targeted to create alarm and panic, to divert the people’s attention and cover up the crimes of Bush, Blair and their governments. History has shown that terrorism has always served the interests of imperialism and reaction. Terrorism has been used as a tool against the people’s struggles since the 19th century and throughout the 20th century. It was deployed by Czarist Russia to stave off the revolution. It was used by Nazi Germany to whip up chauvinist and racist hysteria in support of aggression and conquest of other nations. It has been used by the American CIA and the intelligence agencies of other imperialist and capitalist powers. In India we have seen its use in Punjab, Kashmir and elsewhere, to subvert the struggles of the people for national and social liberation. The terrorist act in Ayodhya also serves such a political purpose. It took place precisely at a time when the US administration and the Manmohan Singh government have signed an unpopular military agreement and further steps are afoot to forge a US-India strategic partnership. It took place at a time when the privatisation and liberalisation program is facing mass opposition within India. A terrorist attack in Ayodhya serves the aim of diverting the people’s anger away from the economic offensive. It serves to divert their attention from the dangerous course of India entering a strategic alliance with the US. The Ayodhya event is being portrayed in the bourgeois media as “an attack against Hindus”, allegedly by some mysterious ‘Muslim extremists’. In this case, too, allegations are being made even before the investigation has gathered any evidence. As all the assailants were killed in the incident, there is little or no trail left for the investigation to follow. The Indian working class and people must remain vigilant and not be swayed by the disinformation spread through the bourgeois media. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh says that our common struggle is against those who do not respect the “rule of law”. What about the US imperialists who have broken every international law and norm of civilised behaviour among nations? Should we not wage a common struggle against the US imperialists? Why then is the Prime Minister eager to embrace them? One of the aims of terrorist acts such as has been seen in London and Ayodhya is to make the people accept the further fascisation of society, a police raj, in the name of strengthening security. Another aim is to enable the inflaming of passions, including the inciting of racist or communal violence against particular sections of the people. Yet another aim is to make the people passive and thereby submit to all kinds of attacks on their rights and their livelihood. The overall aim is to break the growing political unity of the people against imperialism and its program of globalisation, fascism and war. The working class and peoples of the world must not allow terrorist acts and the disinformation campaign in the bourgeois media to divert them from their common struggle. The common struggle is against imperialism and its drive towards the globalisation of capital in the interests of the monopolies, through fascism and war. Only by stepping up the struggle to end imperialism as a system can the working class and peoples secure a future free from terror and unjust wars. We must persist in building our political unity against imperialism and prepare conditions for the working class and people of each country to take power in their hands and usher in a world free from exploitation, oppression and terror. |
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Demand Immediate Repeal of Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act 195
The powerful and united struggle put the Indian government on the back foot. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was forced to admit that “AFSPA was a draconian law” and set up a committee to review the act. The Armed Forces were withdrawn, from the historic Kanglie fort. However, the peoples have vast experience in the methods like the establishment of ‘Review Committees’ to blunt the struggle. The very composition of the review committee on AFSPA, dominated as it is by representatives of the Armed Forces and Intelligence services, is indicative of the commitment of the Indian state to continue on its fascist anti-people course and drown the aspirations of the peoples of Manipur and other peoples in blood. It has been reported in the media that the committee has recommended that “AFSPA should be repealed but its provisions retained in Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the provisions should be applicable to entire country, northeastern states should not be discriminated against (sic)”.
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Privatising Delhi water supply while feeding the people with false promises
Early in 2005, it seemed as if Sonia Vihar would become a reality. However, by the middle of the year, it became clear that there is a serious problem. The Government of Uttar Pradesh is supposed to provide the water to be treated by the plant at Sonia Vihar. And the Government of UP is unable to guarantee this supply in the face of the demands of farmers and peasants in western UP. The people of Delhi have been kept in the dark about the complexities and contradictions surrounding this project. When Shiela Dixit fed the people with the election campaign promise that she would gift them with 140 million gallons of water every day, she did not tell them that she was counting on the Government of UP to supply the raw water for treatment, at the expense of the needs of villages in western UP. She did not tell the people either that a deal was in the making with a French multinational company called Suez Degremont, for building and operating the water supply system in Delhi for a 10 year period. The deal between the Delhi Jal Board and Suez Degremont is in the nature of a build-operate-transfer (BOT) contract. It is reported that Rs. 188 crore has been paid to Degremont for setting up the plant. The Delhi government has also given Degremont a counter-guarantee of assured returns (no one knows exactly how much) for the contract period, along with productivity incentives. Degremont is believed to have assured a 90-95 per cent ratio of treated to raw water. While the company is getting the raw water for free, the amount it will get as fee for treating the water will be much in excess of what the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) is currently charging consumers for water. The contract between Degremont and the DJB for the treatment plant appears to have a clause that states that “in the event of non-availability of raw water to the facility, the DJB shall be liable to pay to the contractor the base service charge, contribution towards reserve fund and charges for inventory holding – all of this amounting to Rs.3 crore a year.” From all aspects, Suez Degrement is in a win-win situation – if water is there they make a profit, if it is not available then the loss will fall on the heads of others (the people of Delhi)! Degremont expects to be supplied water from the Upper Ganga canal of the Tehri Dam project, near Muradnagar, Uttar Pradesh. The water, which will be consumed by three million inhabitants of the city, will actually be weaned away from the villages, which have been putting it to irrigational use. The trial run of the Sonia Vihar water treatment plant took place in January 2005, and continued for about 75 days. The Uttar Pradesh Government released 80 cusecs of water per day for the trial run of the Sonia Vihar plant; earlier, the U.P. Jal Nigam constructed the conduit for the transportation of the raw water from Muradnagar to the plant through a 30-km long conduit. However, the Uttar Pradesh government has since refused to give additional water from the Upper Ganga canal in Muradnagar. The Uttar Pradesh Jal Nigam denied having ever committed to give water to Delhi for running the Sonia Vihar plant Work on the pipeline had attracted strong protests from farmer groups. Farmers from 12 villages from both sides of the Upper Ganga canal, that is, from Hardwar to Muradnagar, were up in arms against the laying of the pipelines. The diversion of water to Delhi is expected to adversely affect their crop yields in lean seasons. Several farmer groups gathered in Sonia Vihar on August 9 2003 and gave the call to Degremont to quit India. Said Satpal Choudhury, vice-president of Dehat Morcha: “After channelisation, only 30 per cent of the water will be available to us for agricultural purposes.” The deal with Degremont cannot be justified on any score. The Delhi Government has been rightly accused of striking a secret deal for the privatisation of water supply, while keeping the people in the dark and feeding them with sweet sounding promises. Facts have revealed that a very steep hike in water charges is in store for the residents of Delhi if and when the Sonia Vihar Plant commences operations – so that recoveries can cover the cost of the processing charges to be paid to Degremont. |
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G8 Conclave at Gleneagles No cure from the gods of plague! The summit of the heads of government of the G8 (US, UK, Russia, Germany, France, Japan, Italy and Canada) was held in Gleneagles, Scotland between July 6-8. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh along with leaders of China, Mexico and Brazil were special invitees at the Summit this time. The agenda of the Summit included two main themes of “assisting Africa” and “global warming”. The Summit was accompanied by massive protests by people in Scotland over a number of days. At the end of the Summit, even the chieftains of the G-8 could not bring themselves to claim that they had indeed achieved anything worthwhile with their confabulations. As if on cue to dissipate, divert and disorient the protests against the imperialist chieftains and their moribund system, bomb blasts killing scores of innocent people and injuring hundreds more were organised in London on the 7th of July 2005. The G 8 claimed at the start of their annual summit that they would do something substantial about the abysmal conditions in many parts of Africa, with several countries reeling under back – breaking debt. It is the colonialists of yesteryears, precursors of today’s imperialists who are responsible for the abysmal conditions in Africa and elsewhere in the world, which they have plundered over the centuries. They systematically plundered Africa, killed, raped and enslaved millions of people during their conquests. In the whole period since the end of colonialism in Africa, the imperialist powers have worked overtime to keep these countries enslaved in neo-colonial bondage, and stopped at no infamy to ensure continued loot of the rich natural resources of this continent. They have organised numerous bloody coups in different countries across the continent as well as plunged the continent into civil wars in order to safeguard as well as enlarge their areas of plunder of the rich natural resources of the countries of Africa. In fact it is the greed of the imperialist multinationals that is the driving force behind the Africa plan of the G-8.The hypocrisy of the imperialists knows no bounds. In 2004, Africa accounted for 19 % of all arms sales to third world countries. Indeed, their focus on Africa means that they have more ruinous plans in store for the peoples. The conflicts among the imperialists, as to how to re divide the continent and the world, can lead to more savage wars with their attendant scourges of famine, disease, death and destruction. The G 8 confabulation agreed to increase aid and cancel the debt of the 18 poorest nations in Africa in return for assurances of “good governance” and western style democracy. Increased “aid” and “debt relief”, the Communiqué announced, will only go to those countries that are prepared to accept the demands of the G8 to open up their economies and adopt political systems approved by the big powers. Even the poorest countries are now resisting this programme. All the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries that have qualified for “debt relief” have already been forced by the World Bank to accept massive privatisation programmes. In Tanzania, for example, the capital city’s water supply was privatised in a deal led by the British company Biwater. The Tanzanian government have since been forced to strip Biwater of its contract after the supply of water deteriorated. On the question of the environment, all that the imperialists could manage was a damp squib proclamation “recognizing” that global warming was an “issue” requiring discussion. Tony Blair acknowledged that the disagreement over implementation of the Kyoto protocol, due to the intransigence of the US imperialists, had not been resolved. For all their professed unity in the face of challenges from the world’s peoples, the internal contradictions amongst the G-8 powers arising from their insatiable greed prevailed. It is futile to expect cures from the imperialists, the gods of plague. The working class and peoples of all countries must unite and organise to end imperialist oppression and exploitation. Imperialist marauders must be thrown out of Africa, Asia. Latin America and the Caribbean!
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Militant protest actions in UK mark G8 Summit It is becoming increasing clear with every passing month to larger and larger numbers of people around the globe that it is indeed imperialism that is the source of fascism and war. It is becoming apparent that there is a definite connection between hunger, poverty, disease and worst scourges that mankind faces today, and the insatiable greed of the imperialists. The summit of the G 8 held at Genoa, Italy, in 2001 was the scene of some of the most massive protests ever seen in Europe till that time. Since then, care has been taken to isolate the leaders of the G 8 and hold their annual summit at remote and inaccessible locations. This has not deterred the people protesting against the imperialist chieftains, who turn out in ever-larger numbers. 
On the evening of July 3, 2005, the Stop the War Coalition organized a “Naming of the Dead” at the Monument on Calton Hill in Edinburgh. In a moving ceremony, people took turns reading the names of children, women, soldiers and others killed in the war and occupation of Iraq. Participants denounced US chieftain Bush and British Prime Minister Blair, demanding that they be held accountable for their crimes. On Monday, July 4, 2005, an all day blockade of the Faslane Naval Base, which houses Britain’s fleet of Trident nuclear submarines was organised. By asking the civilian staff of the base not to come in to work on that day, the authorities themselves contributed to the victory of the blockade. The North and South main gates, and two other entrance gates were blockaded during working hours. One of the biggest protest actions was held on July 6, 2005, the day the G 8 summit opened. Over seven thousand people gathered for the “Another World Is Possible” convergence on Gleneagles. Sixty bus loads of people left from Edinburgh alone, and buses also left from Glasgow, Dundee and other places. People started to gather in the morning in Auchterarder, a village of 6,000 people in the Scottish countryside, about two miles from Gleneagles. However, the police arbitrarily stopped the buses almost 18 km away from the village and unilaterally declared that the protest march had been “cancelled” for “security reasons”. They however were forced to lift their ban in the face of the uncompromising resolve of the protestors, and the buses were then allowed to proceed to Auchterarder. The people of the village warmly greeted the protestors and expressed their support for the campaign against the G-8. The march started in an extremely festive and comradely mood. The people marched up to the heavily guarded entrance to Gleneagles. About a thousand activists climbed over the small perimeter fence of the fields of a farm, close to the G8 summit venue and the police suddenly found themselves unable to cope with the flood of colourful people with flags and banners. Riot police were flown in several times with Chinook military helicopters, which circled at low level before landing in strategic points to disgorge their forces. Both mounted and riot police were deployed on the move as if they were fighting a war against a heavily armed and deadly enemy. Despite this, the people still continued their protest action as before, with dancing and chanting, and lampooning of the G 8 chieftains. The people finally had the last word, and the protesters moved back into Auchterarder for a final militant rally and a call that the struggle will continue until the G8 leaders have been made to answer for their crimes.
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Protests greet Bush in Denmark
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Rozgar Adhikar Yatra reaches Delhi To ensure the right to employment we have to fight for the right to make and implement laws On the occasion of the completion of the ‘Rozgar Adhikar Yatra’ (march for right to employment), People’s Action for Employment Guarantee organized a programme at the Constitution Club in New Delhi on 2 July, 2005. Many organizations - of dalits’, women’s, students’, workers’, and indigenous peoples’ - from different parts of the country working on various issues participated in the programme besides politicians, MPs, professors, lawyers, journalists and others. The ‘Rozgar Adhikar Yatra’, which had earlier started from Delhi on 13 June 2005 traversed ten states across the country and reached Delhi on 2 July. The aim of this Yatra was to consolidate the campaign for a full-fledged, universal and irreversible Employment Guarantee Act and to generate substantial awareness on the issue among the working people in different parts of the country. Working people from all corners of the country have been fighting for an Employment Guarantee Act since many years. They have been demanding an Act that would ensure employment for every adult in the country. Right to employment is a fundamental right of any citizen and it is the duty of the State to ensure employment for all. The National Rural Employment Guarantee Bill 2004 (NREGB 2004), which is a result of the relentless fight put up by the people, will be tabled in the coming Monsoon Session of the Parliament. But unfortunately the proposed bill does not have even a semblance of the full-fledged, universal and irreversible Employment Guarantee, that is a fundamental constitutional right, that people have been fighting for since so many years. The proposed bill talks about employment only for the unemployed in the rural areas, that too just for three months in a year for any physical work, at the minimum wage fixed by the State Government. Financial resources required for implementing this are nowhere in sight. The limited scope of this bill clearly indicates that the Indian State is not at all concerned about the unemployed. Rather by using sweet-sounding terms such as Rural Employment Guarantee Bill it wants to dupe the people who have been bravely fighting for years for this fundamental right. Many participants at the meeting pointed out that the struggle, under the slogan of, ‘Har Haath Ko Kaam Mile! Kaam Barabar Daam Mile!’ (Provide work for every hand! Ensure wages according to work!), has been for full-fledged and universal employment. But the NREGB 2004 completely overlooks this just demand. Many speakers compared NREGB 2004 with the Food for Work programme of the State being implemented in rural pockets. This programme has been rampant with irregularities and corruption on a very big scale. Workers have not been getting minimum wages. Besides, several malpractices such as the number of working days being understated, embezzlement of funds by preparing false documents with thumb impressions and forged signatures, etc., are a regular feature. There are many such laws in our country that are meant to be for the welfare of the people. None of them are being implemented to serve the interests of the people as the power to implement these laws rests with the bourgeoisie and not with the working people. All the laws favouring the bourgeoisie are properly implemented and the State ensures complete security to the bourgeoisie. The prevailing capitalist society in India cannot remove unemployment nor can it guarantee the fundamental and constitutional right to employment to all the working people. This is because for the capitalists to reap maximum profits, super exploitation of the working people is the necessary condition. To make workers work in inhuman conditions at very low wages, it is very important for the capitalists to have a large pool of unemployed people at their disposal. It is evident that the State is protecting only the interests of the capitalists. While debates and discussions on the NREGB are on, the State is going ahead, full force, privatising the public sector industries and services rendering thousands of people jobless. The demand, for the right to employment to be made a fundamental and constitutional right, is a completely justified demand and people from all corners of the country are raising this. Our experience shows that for this demand to become a reality the working people have to first organize themselves and create conditions where laws are made and implemented by the toiling masses and the working people. Only then can we ensure that laws would actually fulfil the demands and needs of the working people and only then would they be implemented to serve the interests of the working people. This can be achieved only with the working people coming to power. |
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On the attack on the disputed site in Ayodhya: Who has gained and who has lost? Two civilians including a man and a woman and five attackers were killed and four security personnel injured in the attack on the disputed Ram Janma Bhoomi site in Ayodhya on 5 July, 2005. As usual, rehearsed statements holding a particular terrorist organisation belonging to a particular religion responsible for the attack, were issued by the Indian security agencies. Past experience makes one suspect these kinds of statements. It is very obvious that the attack on the Akshardham temple in Gujarat in 2002 and the present Ayodhya attack are similar in many ways. First, the increasing political crisis of the Indian bourgeoisie; second, on both the occasions attackers targeted an extremely sensitive religious site of a particular faith; third, both were unsuccessful attempts despite using a suicide bomber and fourth, all the attackers being killed by the security forces to eliminate clues, if any. ‘Who would have benefited from this attack?”, many of us would have asked this question. It is important to note that this attack has taken place at a time when thousands of people have come out protesting against the increase in prices of fuel, unavailability of electricity and water besides steep increase in their prices. Many intense struggles are already going on in the states of Orissa and other places against privatisation of basic resources used by the people. Toiling masses from all the corners of the country are demanding the right to employment raising slogans such as ‘Har haath Ko Kaam Do! Kaam Ko Sahi Daam Do!” (Provide work for every hand! Ensure wages according to the work!). Many questions are being raised on the strategic alliance of the Indian government with the US and people have expressed their anger on the proposed agreement. The crisis of the present state is further deepening with the increasing crisis of the political parties, their indifference to people’s basic needs and the inability of the central and the state governments to fulfil people’s needs. Under these circumstances, when attacks such as that in Ayodhya happen, the first casualty becomes the peoples' struggles, as an atmosphere of terror and uncertainty sets in. Some political parties try to incite violence against a particular community. Deployment of security forces is increased resulting in further fascist control over people’s lives and the common people as usual are left to helplessly watch the situation. All such incidents directly benefit the bourgeoisie and not the toiling masses. All the mainstream political parties have, as usual, advised the people to maintain religious harmony. They have yet again tried to prove that people are the ones who are communal. The common people know very well that such statements are made by political parties only to cover up their involvement. The ruling political forces of the present state, which is based on religions and castes, are giving a call for refraining from politicising such incidents. These very ruling forces have a record, since independence, of reaping huge political benefits by playing the same politics. The toiling masses and the working people should be extremely cautious of such incidents. These incidents help in keeping the present political system alive. Only the workers and peasants of this country can stop such inhuman, anti social activities that are carried out to set people against one another. Workers and peasants have to accelerate their organised struggle and develop the movement to make society free of exploitation and terror. |
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