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INDIA: Human rights activist facing death threats for working with Dalit and Backward Community

August 8, 2005

URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAM

9 Aug 2005
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UA-138-2005: INDIA: Human rights activist facing death threats for working with Dalit and Backward Community

INDIA: Human rights defenders;
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Dear friends,
 
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to bring to your immediate attention the situation faced by Dr. Lenin Raghuvanshi, a human rights activist working for the Dalits and the backward class in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India. Dr Lenin and his colleagues have been subjected to death threats from the upper castes to stop working for the dalit and backward classes.

Dr Lenin has been working in Belwa village, largely to provide education to children from the dalit and backward class who have been denied this right by the upper castes. The state government has not provided schooling for this community despite their long-standing demand.

The backward classes and the dalits have also been denied the right to vote. Belwa village and its surrounding areas are known for booth capturing and election related fraud. During the February 2002 election, people from these communities were brutally assaulted when they went to vote. Belwa will hold another election on 17 August 2005. Mr Giri, Dr Lenin's associate has filed his nomination and is expected to be a strong contender due to his popularity amongst the backward community.

On August 5, Mr.Rama Sharay Singh called Dr Lenin on his mobile phone (No: 9415810955) and demanded that Mr. Giri withdraw his nomination. Around the same time, Mr.Giri also received death threats in the village where he was working. Once again, on August 7, Mr Singh called up Dr. Lenin and said that if the nomination was not withdrawn, Mr Giri and his family would be shot dead.

Dr. Lenin recorded the conversation, made copies of it and is now meeting the Senior Superintendent of Police, Mr. Brij Bushan and the District Magistrate, Mr. Gokaran to lodge his complaint. Dr. Lenin has also faxed a complaint to the Chief Minister of the state regarding the incident.

In this context, the AHRC requests you to intervene and call upon the Government of India and the State Administration of Uttar Pradesh in particular, to provide full protection to Dr. Lenin, Mr. S. N. Giri and their families. An impartial inquiry into the incident must also be conducted immediately. Please also urge the State Human Rights Commission to conduct an independent inquiry into the incident and make public its report and findings. The district administration should immediately consider the long pending request of the Dalit and backward community of Belwa to open a public school for the children. The National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Backward Community should also look into the incident, conduct an inquiry into the situation of Dalits and backward community in Uttar Pradesh and recommend effective measures to the State as well as the Central Government in order to put an end to the existing caste based oppression and discrimination. And finally, the State as well as National Election Commission should inquire into the incident and take appropriate action against those who are threatening Mr. S. N. Giri to withdraw his candidature.

Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
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Case Details:

Since 2000, Dr. Lenin has been working with the dalits and the backward community in Belwa village, under the jurisdiction of the Phoolpur police station in Varanasi. One of the issues Dr. Lenin focuses on is education for children from the Dalit and backward community and the right to self determination for these community members. Dr. Lenin’s colleague, Mr. S. N. Giri is also involved in this work. Mr. Giri is an accepted person among the Dalits and the backward community in the village.
 
To provide education to the children from these communities, Dr. Lenin with the help of the benefactor families and with financial assistance from CRY, an international organisation, has started a local school where approximately 200 children receive primary education. It is alleged that the local village head Mr. Ranjedra Thiwari, who has held this position for the last 27 years, is opposed to the presence of this school. Since the post of the village head has been reserved for a woman, Mr. Thiwari’s wife is holding the post. It is also alleged that Mr. Thiwari in the past has publicly declared that the children from the Dalit and backward community do not have a right to education and that no one from this community has the right to cast their vote in any election. Mr. Thiwari comes from the upper Brahmin caste.
 
It is alleged that owing allegiance to the pressure from the upper caste community, the state government has not provided any school for the lower caste and backward community in this village despite their long pending demand. These children are also not permitted to attend other schools. On 26 August 2003, Dr. Lenin and his colleagues, together with the support from the local lower caste and backward community, organised a protest before the Sub Divisional Magistrate in Varanasi. Dr. Lenin was immediately arrested and detained by the authorities. The Sub Divisional Magistrate also comes from the same caste as Mr. Thiwari. Dr. Lenin was released after four hours of detention following a huge outcry from individuals and groups within the national and international community.

This village and its surrounding places are known for booth capturing and election fraud. In 2001, a people’s tribunal headed by Mr. Justice Sukumaran concluded after a public hearing that there is a clear denial of the right to vote for Dalits and the backward community. The tribunal in its report categorically stated that the police, administration and even the judiciary is biased against the Dalits and the backward community. Belwa was also in the news when there was rampant booth capturing during the 21 February 2002 election in which Mr. Ajay Rai was declared elected to the state legislative assembly. During this election, many people from the Dalit and backward community were brutally assaulted when they came to cast their vote. It is alleged that Mr. Rai is known for his involvement in numerous criminal activities.
 
Belwa will hold another election on 17 August 2005. Mr. Giri, Dr. Lenin’s associate has filed a nomination from Belwa and it is expected that he will be a strong contender in the election owing to his popularity amongst the poor, Dalits and the backward community. On August 5 at about 8 am, a Mr. Rama Sharay Singh called Dr. Lenin on his mobile phone (number 9415810955) and demanded that Mr. Giri withdraw his nomination. Dr. Lenin responded that to file the nomination and to stand for election is Mr. Giri’s right and that no one can object to that. Around the same time, Mr. Giri also received threats in the village where he was working and therefore immediately went to Dr. Lenin’s office in Varanasi. At about 8.35 p.m. on August 7, Mr. Singh again called Dr. Lenin on the same number and threatened that if Mr. Giri did not withdraw his nomination, Dr. Lenin and his family and Mr. Giri will be shot dead.
 
This is not the first time that Dr. Lenin and his colleagues have come under the line of fire of the upper castes. On 13 November 2001, Mrs. Durga, an activist associated with Dr. Lenin’s organisation and her husband Mr. Adya Prasad were attacked by Mr. Thiwari and his armed men. A month ago, on October 23, Dr. Lenin and his wife Mrs. Shruti were attacked by Mr. Thiwari’s men for organising an educational campaign. Immediately after the incident, Mr. Thiwari called Dr. Lenin and informed him that he would be murdered along with his family if he continued his work. Mr. Thiwari has also threatened that he would kill Ms. Asha Devi, a teacher in the local school for educating Dalit children.
 
This incident is yet another glaring example of how the upper caste dominates the lower caste and the backward community in India and exposes the poor defence that the Government of India continues to use when challenged on caste issues.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Varanasi and the surrounding region was, in the past, known for Lord Buddha’s work and his early activities. However, this region is now known for hardcore and often fanatic upper caste Hindu religious activities and propaganda. The region is infamous for upper caste atrocities against the lower and backward castes such as bonded labour, systematic oppression, feudal systems of punishment where the entire village is punished in the most inhuman way for alleged acts of disrespect by the members of lower caste and also for destruction of statues of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, in Dalit and backward class villages.

For centuries, education has been denied to the children from the Dalit and the backward community. Even political leaders who have been elected in this region have publicly stated that the children from these communities must not be provided education and members from this community should not be allowed to participate in elections. It is within this environment that Dr. Lenin and his colleagues are working for the Dalits and the backward class.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please send a letter to the following people urging them to immediately order an impartial investigation into this incident.

Sample letter:

Dear ___________,

Re: Human rights activist facing death threats for working with the Dalits and backward community

I am deeply concerned with the situation faced by Dr. Lenin Raghuvanshi, a human rights activist working for the Dalits and the backward class in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India. Dr Lenin and his colleagues have been subjected to death threats from the upper castes to stop working for the Dalit and backward classes.

Dr Lenin has been working in Belwa village, largely to provide education to children from the Dalit and backward class who have been denied this right by the upper castes. The state government has not provided schooling for this community despite their long-standing demand.

The Dalits and backward classes have also been denied the right to vote. Belwa village and its surrounding areas are known for booth capturing and election related fraud. During the February 2002 election, people from these communities were brutally assaulted when they went to vote. Belwa will hold another election on 17 August 2005. Mr Giri, Dr Lenin's associate has filed his nomination and is expected to be a strong contender due to his popularity amongst the backward community.

On August 5, Mr. Rama Sharay Singh called Dr Lenin on his mobile phone (No: 9415810955) and demanded that Mr. Giri withdraw his nomination. Around the same time, Mr.Giri also received death threats in the village where he was working. Once again, on August 7, Mr Singh called up Dr. Lenin and said that if the nomination was not withdrawn, Mr Giri and his family would be shot dead.

Dr. Lenin recorded the conversation, made copies of it and is now meeting the Senior Superintendent of Police, Mr. Brij Bushan and the District Magistrate, Mr. Gokaran to lodge his complaint. Dr. Lenin has also faxed a complaint to the Chief Minister of the state regarding the incident.

I thereby call for your urgent intervention. Please provide full protection to Dr. Lenin, Mr. S. N. Giri and their families and immediately conduct an impartial inquiry into the incident. The State Human Rights Commission should also conduct an independent inquiry into the incident and make public its report and findings. The district administration should immediately consider the long pending request of the Dalit and backward community of Belwa to open a public school for the children. The National Commission for Scheduled Castes and backward community should also look into the incident, conduct an inquiry into the situation of Dalits and backward community in Uttar Pradesh and recommend effective measures to the State as well as the Central Government in order to put an end to the existing caste based oppression and discrimination. And finally, the State as well as National Election Commission should inquire into the incident and take appropriate action against those who are threatening Mr. S. N. Giri to withdraw his candidature.

Yours sincerely,
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SEND A LETTER TO:

1. Senior Superintendent of Police
Mr. Brij Bushan
S.S.P Varanasi
INDIA
Tel: + 91 542 2500441/ + 91  542 2501450

2. Mr. Gokaran
District Magistrate
Varanasi
INDIA
Tel: + 91 542 2508585

3. Mr. Mulayam Singh Yadav
Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh
Chief Minister's Secretariat
Lucknow
Uttar Pradesh
INDIA
Fax: + 91 52 2223 0002 / 2223 9234

4. Justice A.P. Mishra
Chairperson
Uttar Pradesh Human Rights Commission
6-A Kalidass Marg
Lucknow,
Uttar Pradesh
INDIA
Tel: + 91 52 2272 6742
Fax: + 91 52 2272 6743

5. Shri Justice A. S. Anand
Chairperson
National Human Rights Commission of India
Faridkot House, Copernicus Marg
New Delhi-110001
INDIA
Tel: + 91 11 23074448
E-mail: mailto:chairnhrc@nic.in

6. The National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
Government of India
5th Floor, Loknayak Bhawan
Khan Market
New Delhi 110003
INDIA

Tel: + 91-11 2462 0435
Fax: + 91-11 2462 5378

7. Ms. Hina Jilani
Special Representative of the Secretary General for human rights defenders
Att: Ben Majekodunmi
Room 1-040
C/o OHCHR-UNOG, 1211 Geneva 10,
SWITZERLAND
Tel: + 41 22 917 93 88
Fax: + 41 22 917 9006

8. Mr. Ambeyi Ligabo
Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression
Att: Ms. Julie De Riviero
Room: 3-042
C/o OHCHR-UNOG 1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: + 41 22 917 9177
Fax: + 41 22 917 9006 (general)


Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-138-2005
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.