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Internet Edition: November 16-30, 2005
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VOICE OF PARTY
WORLD |
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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 | | July 16-31 | August 1-15 | | August 16-31 | | September 1-15 | | September 16-30 | | October 1-15 | | October 16-31 | | November 1-15 |
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Condemn the perpetrators of the terrorist bomb strikes in Delhi! Statement of the Communist Ghadar Party of India, November 1, 2005 With deep anger, the Communist Ghadar Party of India condemns the organizers of the bomb blasts in Delhi on 29 th October. It extends heartfelt condolences and sympathies to the families of those killed, maimed or injured in these terrorist acts. The CGPI calls on the working class and people to maintain calm in the face of this terrible provocation and not to allow our class enemies to succeed in their evil game. Who stands to gain from this criminal and cowardly act? Past experience in our country and internationally has shown that indiscriminate acts of terrorism are used by imperialism and the reactionary bourgeoisie to push through their anti-popular agenda of enriching themselves at the expense of the toiling majority, in the name of economic reforms. Terrorism is a tool used by unpopular ruling classes to turn the attention and anger of the people away from themselves, to create tension and divisions among the ranks of those fighting against imperialism, capitalism and the anti-social offensive. It is a justification for taking fascist measures against basic rights and civil liberties. This is what the experience in India as well as in the US, Britain and other countries clearly reveals. The Delhi terrorist strike must be seen in the background of the growing and ever more united struggles of the workers, peasants and broad masses of Indian people in recent times. The past few months alone have witnessed a countrywide general strike of the working class and powerful actions of peasants in Mumbai and elsewhere – against the drive of the big bourgeoisie towards globalisation through liberalisation and privatisation. The struggle to repeal fascist laws, such as the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in force in the Northeast, has reached a point where the government is under pressure to concede something at least formally. There is a growing countrywide movement to punish the perpetrators behind the genocide of 1984, 1993 and 2002. There is increasing pressure on the Indian state to resolve the longstanding problems of the national identity and rights of the peoples of Kashmir, Manipur, Assam, Nagaland and others through a democratic process. The terrible tragedy caused by the earthquake in Kashmir and various parts of Pakistan has heightened the demand that the governments of India and Pakistan must stop being roadblocks and become facilitators for the reunification of Kashmir. There is growing opposition to the Indo-US strategic alliance and joint military exercises. The Indian big bourgeoisie is hell bent on pursuing an imperialist course, to sit at the high table of the big powers of the world. It looks upon any and every popular movement as an obstacle and a threat to its ambitions. It is therefore using all kinds of diabolical tactics to divert and divide the fighting forces and drown the peoples’ struggles in blood, and to whip up national chauvinism in favour of its imperialist ambitions. No section of our people stands to gain from such terrorists acts as the bomb blasts in Delhi. It is only the reactionary bourgeoisie and other imperialist powers that stand to gain. It is important that the working class and people understand this and do not get taken in by the bourgeois propaganda in the media, which is aimed at spreading suspicion among the people on the basis of religious and cultural differences. Immediately following the bomb blasts, the bourgeoisie is trying to whip up anti-Pakistan and anti-Muslim prejudices and suspicion by making allegations against various groups without providing convincing proof. Red alert has been sounded all over the country and the persecution of ‘outsiders’, migrants from neighbouring countries, Muslims and other minorities has been stepped up. Immense pressure is being mounted on the people not to come out on the streets and participate in mass protests. The working class, peasantry and other oppressed people can and must thwart the nefarious plans of the ruling class and its imperialist allies. We must persist with our united struggle against the anti-social offensive of the bourgeoisie. We must persist with the struggle in defence of livelihood and rights, against the globalization and privatization program of the rulers; and with the struggle against state terrorism including communal massacres, for the repeal of all fascist laws, for the punishment of those guilty of perpetrating crimes against the people. We must continue to develop the struggle for lasting peace between India and Pakistan on the basis of resolving the Kashmir problem in favour of the people of Kashmir, and in opposition to US imperialism’s interference in the region. We must continue to oppose the attempt of the Indian ruling class to build a strategic alliance with the United States. With respect to the bomb blasts in particular, we must demand that those in power and positions of authority must carry out their responsibilities. It is their duty to halt rumours, ensure prompt detection of the perpetrators by bringing all facts into public view, ensure adequately severe punishment for the guilty and ensure that citizens are not victimized and terrorized under the garb of ‘catching terrorists’. When they fail to convincingly establish guilt and punish the guilty, the working class and people have no alternative except to conclude that it is the rulers who have a hand in organising such crimes. |
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21st Anniversary of the genocide against Sikhs in India The struggle to ensure that the guilty are punished is mounting 21 years following the genocide of Sikhs, in Delhi, Kanpur and other towns of India, the guilty have not been punished. At the same time, the Indian people have stepped up the campaign on this issue both in India as well as abroad. Those fighting for the punishment of the guilty of 1984 are uniting on one platform with those fighting for the punishment of those who organized the 1993 destruction of the Babri Masjid as well as those who organized the Gujarat genocide. The people fighting state terrorism in the North East and Kashmir have also joined the campaign. The UPA government, like all the preceding governments, is trying its utmost to ensure that no action is taken. People are seething with anger as government after government has done everything it could to shield the guilty. In the aftermath of the Nanavati Commission report, many street demonstrations and meetings have taken place to demand justice. In our last issue, we reported on the panel discussion organised by Lok Raj Sangathan on “Prospects and Problems in Punishing the Guilty”. It is becoming clear that people are not satisfied merely with compensation to victims or punishment of some local policemen or goondas, but want to ensure punishment of the political leadership that was in command at the time of the genocide. The government has announced that it is reopening 10 cases for investigations by the CBI. These cases pertain to three Delhi state level leaders of the Congress party, namely Sajjan Kumar, Jagdish Tytler and Dharam Das Shastry. There is public opposition about handing over the cases to the CBI, which is known to be manipulated by the government of the day. It may be noted that several of those at the highest level of command have already died and cannot be punished any more. There is anger at the government’s decision not to prosecute various officials of the state under the pretext that they have retired from service! In a meeting organised by the Sikh Forum in the Constitution Club in New Delhi on 7 November, a resolution was passed to demand investigation under the direction of the National Human Rights Commission instead of the CBI. The resolution also demanded that investigations must be carried out against the retired officers who were responsible at the time. Kuldeep Nayyar said that punishment of the guilty is not an issue for Sikhs alone but for the entire Indian people. He said that it is not compensation that can heal the deep wounds inflicted by the massacre, but punishment of the guilty who were responsible for organising and executing the massacre. Others who spoke at the meeting included Prof. Rajni Kothari, Brinda Karat, H.S. Pholka and Tarlochan Singh. The participants in this meeting demanded that both houses of the Parliament pass a resolution of condolence and apology to the whole nation, especially to Punjabis and the Sikhs. They demanded reopening all 350 cases that were closed by the police. On November 6 a rally was held in Trafalgar S quare, London, to mark the 21 st anniversary of the genocide of Sikhs. It was organized by the British Sikh Federation, Sikh Youth Federation and many Gurdwaras. About 1000 people of Indian origin braved the rainy weather to forcefully put forward their demand for justice and emphasize the need to punish the guilty. Among those who addressed the rally were Salvinder Singh from Respect Coalition, the Anti-War Labour MP, Jeremy Corbyn, and Simon Hughes, the Liberal Democrat MP. Salvinder Singh spoke on the theme "Punish the Guilty". He further called for the abolition of the draconian anti-terrorist laws in India and the release of all political prisoners held without trial. Jeremy Corbyn spoke against the Anti-Terrorist legislation in the UK, and Simon Hughes spoke on justice for the Sikhs. In his address, Salvinder Singh pointed out that after the Second World War, an international principle of command responsibility was established and recognized by most countries. Military or civilian leaders giving orders resulting in genocide of innocent civilians must be tried and punished. Why did the Indian government not uphold this universally recognised principle? Further on he pointed out that the Indian state and political leaders get state protection for their crimes against the people. While criminals in the government go unpunished, thousands of innocent Sikhs and others are still languishing in jails without trial. “Let this rally send a message to the Indian State and its government that we will not wait another 21 years for justice to be given to victims of communal violence. The Sikh community has a proud tradition of standing for human rights of all. “We demand all those responsible for organising genocidal crimes against the people be immediately brought to trial and be punished! “We demand that all draconian anti- terrorist laws be abolished! “We demand release of all political prisoners held without trial!” |
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Trial reveals the state’s agenda of justifying state terrorism targeted at people of the Muslim faith On December 22, 2000, two soldiers guarding the Red Fort were killed along with a civilian by unidentified gunmen. On October 24, 2005, a Delhi Special Court convicted Pakistani national Mohhamed Ashfaq and 6 Indian nationals on charges including waging war against the nation, murder, criminal conspiracy while it acquitted four others. On October 31, 2005, the court pronounced death penalty for Ashfaq, life imprisonment for Nazir and Farooq, and seven year rigorous imprisonment for the other four found guilty. The sentence, coming immediately in the wake of the terrorist bomb blasts in Delhi which claimed over seventy lives and injured nearly 200 others, was immediately hailed by the bourgeois media as a “victory against terrorism”. The instantaneous “analysis” of a 5-year long case reveals the complete connivance of the big bourgeois media in promoting the “war against terrorism” of the Indian state. It brings out the lack of any genuine interest in actually finding out who are responsible for the Red Fort attack, or the Delhi bomb blasts of last week, or any of the other terrorist killings that have taken place in the country which have resulted in the loss of innumerable innocent people. Instead, as if on cue, the calls are being given justifying intensified state terrorism, as well as enactment of new laws like the now repealed POTA. Accused accuse the accusers The lawyer for the defence has declared the trial and sentence as a “travesty of justice”. “Hang me from the Red Fort but spare my husband,” declared Rahmana Yousuf Farooqui, the wife of Ashfaq in the court. Rehmana alleged that there was a bias against Muslims, including her, standing trial in the case. She declared “I will not get any justice from this court,” As Rehmana termed the judgement as “shame for India,” four other accused carried placards that read — “victims of state terrorism” — around their necks. Almost at the end of the trial, Judge Saini asked Ashfaq, "Do you want to say anything more?" In a four-page reply that Judge Saini recorded, Ashfaq said: "I used to work for the Research and Analysis Wing since 1997. In the last days of June 2000 I had come to Katmandu to give some documents to Sanjeev Gupta. "In Pakistan, there is a political party called the Pakhtoonmili Party, which RAW has been supporting for the past 30-35 years. Sagir Khan was a member of that party and he, along with my younger brother, was arrested by the Pakistan police. I received this news in Katmandu. I spoke to Gupta in this regard. My cousin had also advised me not to return to Pakistan for the time being. "Thereafter Gupta advised me to go to India and accompanied me up to Rauxol. I came to India by train. Ashfaq accused the Delhi police of fabricating the case against him. He was arrested and tortured and made to sign blank documents by the Delhi police. "I am innocent and I have been implicated in this case simply because I am a Pakistani national. I was tortured in the jail at the instance of police for about three months. I was also attacked by fellow inmates." Ashfaq’s defence plea was rejected out of hand by the judge. Intensified state terrorism and persecution of Muslims in Delhi since the Red Fort attack The Red Fort attack was a signal for escalation of attacks on people of the Muslim faith in Delhi. Fake “encounter” killings of Muslim youth, who had been previously picked up, became routine. For example, in the Jamia area of Okhla, the Delhi police arrested three students from Batla House and killed one of them. Later they declared the dead to be a dreaded terrorist involved in the Red Fort case. A massive protest was organized by the people of the area led by the local councilor in which the people alleged that far from there being any “encounter”, the boys had been picked up from their homes by the police and tortured, leading to the death of one. The shootouts and killings in Ansal Plaza, wherein an eye witness revealed that two people were pulled out by the police from a police car in the parking lot and shot dead and then declared dead in an encounter in the Plaza, as well as killings of people on the Tughlakabad range are all part of one pattern. The aim has been to create a frenzied atmosphere wherein every Muslim is considered a terrorist, who can be tortured and killed. The aim has been to create a fear psychosis in the minds of the people so that state terrorism is justified. The police claimed to have cracked the Red Fort case in a record 4 days. The prime accused, Mohhamed Ashfaq, was shown on TV soon after his conviction, claiming that he was a Pakistani LeT militant trained by the ISI who had organized the attack with the aim of making India and Pakistan break their ceasefire in Kashmir. Obviously he was tortured and tutored into these “confessions” which he has now rejected. The hand of the state lies behind terrorism The Indian bourgeois media as well as the Indian courts, like their counterparts in other countries, recognize state terrorism only of other states. For instance India routinely accuses Pakistan of terrorist attacks in India and Pakistan does the same with respect to India. But all of them try to hide from the people that they themselves, many a times, organize terrorist attacks against their own people in pursuance of their own nefarious aims. For instance, a number of reports have pointed out that the hand of the British state were behind the London bomb blasts during the Gleneagles G-8 Summit. The London blasts were immediately followed by stepped up terrorist and fascist measures by the Tony Blair government against the people. They came at a time when mass protests involving lakhs of people of all faiths and national origins against the anti-social offensive were leading to great isolation of the Blair government. The Indian state is extremely experienced in carrying out terrorist attacks to advance its agenda of fasication and crush the opposition of the people. It has used whipping up of chauvinism against Pakistan as well as hysteria against Muslims to strengthen the state and divide and weaken the peoples resistance struggles. It would be foolish to rule out the hand of Indian intelligence agencies in organizing the Red Fort attack or the recent bomb blasts in Delhi. If we look at who benefited from these terrorist attacks, the answer comes out loud and clear. The working class, peasantry and justice-loving people must reject the current wave of anti-Muslim hysteria being orchestrated by the state and the media in the wake of the Delhi bomb blasts and the Red Fort judgement. |
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Serious flaws in the political process point to the need for its thorough overhaul Day to day developments in the political arena are reinforcing the fact that the existing system of democracy and its political process are seriously flawed. The elections to the Bihar Assembly were to be held in 4 phases spread over nearly two months, allegedly for security reasons. Now this is turning out to be 8 phases for all practical purposes, as in each phase, the election commission is setting a separate date for a set of constituencies, again citing security as the reason. What this has ensured is that the big bourgeois parties are able to influence the voting pattern through “exit polls” and other gimmicks. Massive deployment of Central Armed Forces in each and every polling booth has been a striking feature of these elections. The armed forces have admitted to killing innocent persons mistaken to be “booth capturers”. Another feature is the low voter-turn out. Lakhs of poor people have been struck off the voter list in the name of deleting bogus voters. The partisan role played by the ruling party in New Delhi in the political process at the state level, through the Governor acting as its agent has once again been exposed in Bihar. It may be recalled that these elections were prompted by the dramatic dissolution of the Bihar Assembly on a Sunday night following the recommendation of the Bihar governor, with the President signing the dissolution proclamation while on a visit to Moscow! The Supreme Court declared the dissolution invalid. However, the Supreme Court declined to restore the old legislative assembly, even though its verdict was given before the elections began. The Governor acting as a stooge of the party in power at the centre is just one of the numerous flaws in the political process. It enables the ruling party at the centre to use its dominant position in the power structure to manipulate the political process in any state. If a rival party is seen to have prospects of forming a government in a state, then that state assembly can be dissolved by manufacturing an appropriate report from the Governor and using Article 356 of the Constitution, thereby forcing fresh elections to be held. This has been done in Bihar in 2005, as also in many other states numerous times. What is becoming clear, not only from the ongoing Bihar election experience, but also from the experience of repeated elections to different state assemblies and to the central Parliament, is that people have only a marginal role in the political process. The people have no role in selecting the candidates; the leadership of political parties decide who the main contestants will be. During the election campaign, people are marginalized by the unleashing of money power and muscle power by the main parties and their candidates, accompanied by the official fire power of the armed forces. Voting patterns are also influenced by the media controlled by the big business houses. Once they cast their vote, people have no role in deciding who will be asked to form the government. Nor do they have any control over the person who has been elected from their constituency, and no influence over what he or she will do or fail to do after being elected. One of the most serious flaws in the political process is that the elected representatives in the state assembly and in the central Parliament are accountable to their respective parties and not to those who elected them. Another flaw is that those who head the judiciary are nominated by the ruling party or coalition and not elected by the people. The entire political process needs a thorough overhaul if all its major flaws are to be addressed. What is to be done to change the situation? How can the people become the masters and decision makers, from their present condition of being totally excluded from political power? This is the crucial question that is demanding an answer today. The bourgeoisie has been debating a slew of electoral reforms to give the impression to the people that the flaws in the political process are being addressed. However, it must be noted that electoral reforms can be approached from two diametrically opposite points of view. The point of view of the working class and the majority of people, who are excluded from power in the existing order, is that the domination of big moneyed interests and their parties must be ended, while space must be created and expanded for the people to exercise their political rights. The point of view of the ruling class and its political representatives is to tinker at a superficial level so as to pacify the people, while retaining the basic feature of excluding the people from power. The former perspective takes forward the movement for the empowerment of the working class, peasantry and all the oppressed. The latter leads to the prettifying of the existing system in the name of ‘good governance’, so as to preserve the status quo of the vast majority of people being excluded from power. A thoroughgoing overhaul of the political process involves changing the laws and rules governing elections, so that the right to select candidates is taken out of the hands of political parties and placed in the hands of the people, organised in constituency committees. It involves establishing the right of the people to recall their elected representative at any time and to enable them to propose new laws and changes in the existing laws. It must restrict the role of money power in election campaigns, by requiring the state to fund electoral expenses, outlawing use of private funds and providing equal facilities for all candidates. The program for a thoroughgoing overhaul of the political process has emerged out of the struggles and experience of the people in all corners of the country. It is being developed by communists and other political forces in the course of organising the people to fight for their rights. It is an essential and component part of the overall movement for the democratic renewal or Navnirman of India, whose aim is to replace the rule of the bourgeoisie with the rule of the workers and peasants. This will open the path to a bright future for Indian society. That bright future is a socialist society on Indian soil, a society that ensures prosperity and protection for all its members. |
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Mounting opposition to US imperialism in its own neighbourhood Tens of thousands of Latin Americans met George Bush, the US President, with slogans of “No to Bush!” and militant protests, when he arrived in Argentina to attend a summit of leaders from North and South America on November 4-5. Apart from the continuous street protests and demonstrations, which were led by the Argentine football hero Diego Maradona, the anti-US campaign was also manifested in a rally of more than 25,000 people at a stadium near the venue of the Summit. Among the protesters were many who had come from the US, including families of Americans killed in Iraq. Bush had come with the agenda of imposing his scheme for a “Free Trade Area of the Americas” on the countries of Latin America. This was a complete failure, and despite prolonged behind-the-scenes negotiations, no agreement on this could be reached, and Bush hastily left the meeting before it ended. Among the governments that have expressed opposition to the scheme are those of Brazil, Argentina, Venezuela, Paraguay and Uruguay. They have pointed out the hypocrisy of the US government demanding complete licence for its multinational corporations to penetrate the Latin American market while protecting its own agriculture through massive subsidies at home. Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez, who addressed the protest rally while the Summit was in session, declared that the people of Latin America would “bury” the FTAA, and spoke extensively against US imperialism. Under US pressure, Fidel Castro, the President of Cuba and the seniormost leader in the region, had been excluded from the Summit. What this shows is that despite throwing its weight around in its own region, US imperialism is unable to prevent the growth of opposition to its policies in Latin America. Over so many decades, Latin America has borne the brunt of US aggression and domination, and the people there are fed up. The US has tried repeatedly to assassinate the Cuban leader Castro; it has organised coups in Chile and other countries, supported bloody dictators, financed and armed reactionary insurgent groups in Nicaragua, interfered in Haiti, invaded Granada, and so on. The list of its crimes is endless. However, what the people of Latin America have experienced directly and over many decades is becoming the common shared experience of the peoples the world over, as the brazen aggression and bullying tactics of US imperialism are being extended over wide areas all over the globe. The protests against US imperialism are spreading in Europe, Asia and other regions. Sustained and active opposition to US imperialism is today a key component of the struggle of the peoples for peace and freedom all over the world. | |
An attempt to divert from the crimes of US imperialism in Iraq A big hue and cry is being raised in India over the report by the UN-appointed committee headed by Paul Volcker. The report claims that the Indian Foreign Minister Natwar Singh and the Congress Party were among those who received commissions and paid kickbacks to the government of Saddam Hussein during the UN-run “Oil-for-Food” program between 1996 and 2003. The BJP-led NDA group of parties is demanding the resignation of Natwar Singh, while Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Congress have criticised the Volcker report for providing insufficient evidence. The “findings” of the Volcker committee actually appear to be closely connected with the whole campaign of lies and disinformation organised by US imperialism to divert attention from and whitewash its own crimes in Iraq. This much is obvious from the background to and working of the Committee. Background From 1991, when Saddam Hussein was defeated by the US-led coalition in the Gulf War, until the US invaded Iraq in 2003, Iraq was placed under a most brutal regime of sanctions, unprecedented for any defeated country in recent history. This was imposed by the pressure of the US, but was formally carried out under the aegis of the United Nations which, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, was being manipulated more and more to implement the dictate of US imperialism. Under these sanctions, Iraq was for a number of years forbidden to sell its most valuable resource – oil. Starved of its most important source of revenue, Iraq and its people suffered terribly. The people were deprived even of basic necessities such as food and medicines. It is a documented fact that lakhs of Iraqis died as a result of such deprivation, and the most affected were children and the old and weak. Faced with a huge outcry from international public opinion against the situation in Iraq, the US was finally compelled to agree in 1996, on “humanitarian” grounds, to a highly restricted program to allow Iraq to purchase certain minimum necessities. Iraq was allowed to sell only that much oil which was required to purchase some necessities and that too at a dictated price lower than the market rate. The whole program, termed the UN Oil-for-Food program, was strictly monitored and did not even suffice to alleviate the suffering of the Iraqi people. Right from the beginning, the US orchestrated a propaganda campaign against those involved in the Oil-for-Food program, from the companies buying from and selling to Iraq, to the UN and its Secretary General. What is the Volcker Committee? In April 2003, the US imperialist-led coalition invaded Iraq. A year later, in April 2004, the UN Secretary General, whose own son was accused by US agencies of benefiting from the Oil-for-Food program, was compelled to appoint a 3-man committee to look into the workings of the program. Its head was Paul Volcker, none other than the former head of the US Federal Reserve. According to Volcker himself, the main documents consulted by his committee were documents from former Iraqi government ministries, such as the Ministry for Oil. The credibility of such “documents”, procured while the US was and continues to remain in occupation of Iraq, and which have not been seen by anyone else, is highly suspect. On the basis of such “evidence”, the Volcker committee has now come out with its report. What is the main controversy in the report? It claims that over 2,000 individuals and firms from a large number of countries had paid “kickbacks” to Saddam Hussein in order to participate in the buying of oil or selling of goods to Iraq. What is termed as kickbacks by the Committee were categorised by the then government of Iraq as “inland transportation costs” to cover the cost of transporting the oil from its source to where it was lifted by the contracting parties, as well as other service charges. According to the Volcker report, persons like Natwar Singh (then not a minister) were “non-contractual beneficiaries” who earned commissions as go-betweens. The real issue While a big debate is being conducted in the Indian media and political circles about whether or not Natwar Singh and his family were indeed “non-contractual beneficiaries” of the Oil-for-Food program, the larger issues involved in the Volcker Committee report are being mainly ignored. As a part of its drive to dominate the world and bring all countries and peoples in line with its own policies and interests, US imperialism has been resorting to the practice of demonising individuals and states, categorising them in terms of “rogue”, “evil”, etc., to justify aggression against them. It also applies pressure through more subtle but similar methods, against others whom it wants to censure or whom it wants to fall in line. This is achieved through the enormous power of its media as well as through other methods, which include the formation of so-called inquiry committees which are adept at manipulating lies and half-truths to come out with prescribed conclusions. Sometimes these committees carry out their work under the name of international agencies like the UN or the IAEA, but in today's world no one can be in doubt about who sets the terms of reference and directs the proceedings. Who can forget, for instance, the findings of the committee which claimed that Saddam Hussein was harbouring “weapons of mass destruction”, which have still not been found by the US forces occupying Iraq? No one would be in the least surprised to find out that Natwar Singh, or Saddam Hussein, or anyone else, earned money through the Oil-for-Food program. However dubious, this is the normal practice and method for conducting business deals throughout the capitalist world. Despite its high-sounding name, the Oil-for-Food program was not some charity, but the purchase by the government of Iraq, through its own revenues, of commodities on the international market. What is astounding is how, in this entire episode, the role and tactics of US imperialism are being ignored by the media and analysts. Its carefully orchestrated propaganda – against Saddam Hussein, against the UN, and against a whole host of people and organisations around the world including in India – is being swallowed lock, stock and barrel. That certain parties paid bribes and earned commissions is being highlighted. But there is complete silence about the fact that at the same time the US was organising a ruthless blockade of a whole people for 13 long years, only to then cap this crime with invasion and occupation. Today, after more than 2 years of bloody occupation of Iraq and an even longer occupation of Afghanistan, carried out under the cover of lies and deceit, US imperialism stands more discredited than ever before. It is trying to divert from its own crimes in Iraq and elsewhere, by pointing the finger at just about everyone else. No one should be fooled that this is an “independent” inquiry by the UN which does not have the hand of the US behind it. As part of its drive to establish a unipolar world, US imperialism is putting pressure on various countries, including India, to completely fall in line with its policies. While the ruling circles in India use the issue to try and settle scores among themselves, the Indian working class and people should be clear that the main significance of the Volcker report is the pressure of US imperialism that all states should fall in line with its dictate. | |
Campaign for rights and electoral reforms successfully concludes
The campaign highlighted the fact that the rich have been getting richer and the poor poorer even after many years of formal independence. The anti-people policies of liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation have led to a steep deterioration in the living conditions of people, rising unemployment, devastation of the peasantry, increasing insecurity for women, dalits and minorities, rapacious plunder of the land and resources of India by Indian and foreign multinationals, and the total marginalisation of people from decision making and governance. Among many demands, the campaign particularly demanded that the state should ensure the basic rights of the people, provide security of livelihood for the millions of unorganised sector workers, reject the GATS agreement in the forthcoming WTO Ministerial at Hong Kong and provide comprehensive rehabilitation for the flood affected victims. A significant aspect of the campaign was that it took up the issue of the reform of the electoral process and demanded that people should have the right to select and elect candidates of their choice and the right to recall them if they do not perform. It also demanded that the state should finance the electoral process and that political parties be prevented from accepting funds for their electoral campaigns. People’s Voice hails the successful conclusion of the campaign. The demands raised by the campaign have the potential for advancing the struggles being waged by people’s organisations for the reorientation of the Indian economy, the thoroughgoing renewal of the political process and for the establishment of the rule of workers and peasants. The fact that thousands of workers and peasants condemned the present system and expressed their complete solidarity with the demands raised by the campaign points to the possibility of further strengthening the worker-peasant alliance and mobilising the workers, peasants, youth and women of India to establish a system without exploitation and oppression. | |
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