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UPDATE (India): Another human rights activist threatened for working with Dalits in Uttar Pradesh

August 11, 2005

UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAM

Update on Urgent Appeal
11 August 2005

[UA-138-2005: INDIA: Human rights activist facing death threats for working with Dalit and Backward Community]
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UP-95-2005: INDIA: Another human rights activist threatened for working with Dalits in Uttar Pradesh

INDIA: Human rights defenders; Threats and intimidation; Government and police inaction
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you that further threats have been made to a colleague of Dr. Lenin Raghuvanshi, who we reported on only two days ago as having received death threats (See further UA-138-2005).

The AHRC has confirmed information that further to this earlier threat to Dr. Lenin and his colleague Mr. S. N. Giri, the same people have now threatened Ms. Anupam Nagvanshi, who likewise works in Belwa Village for the dalits and backward people. On 10 August 2005, Ms. Anupam was surrounded by Mr. Ranjendra Thiwari, his son Mr. Gudu Thiwari and their men, while she was talking to the villagers in Belwa. The following is Ms. Anupam’s statement of what happened:

“I work with Dr. Lenin at the PVCHR. Yesterday while I was working with the villagers in Belwa, I was surrounded by Mr. Rajendra Thiwari, his son Mr. Gudu Thiwari and their men. Then Mr. Ranjendra Thiwari asked me why I was telling the daliths and the backward people in the village that they can also cast their vote in the coming election? He further said why I should worry about the local body election in the village and why I should educate the daliths and the backward community in the village? He said that my work and that of my orgnaisation and my colleagues result in loss of free manpower in the village. They said that the daliths and the members of the backward community do not have a right to be educated and to participate in any election.

They threatened me that they would murder me if I ever dared to come to this village and that they are not happy of outsiders like me and my colleagues coming and talking to the daliths and the backward community in Belwa village. I am scared that these people will murder me even if I am not in Belwa village. Later Mr. Baba Singh, the elected Block Development Head came and met me and said that I am like a daughter to her and that I should never enter Belwa village. I said that I would complain to the police regarding all these to which he said that the police and the administration is only to serve Mr. Thiwari and himself and they would not take any action upon my complaint.”

The situation in Belwa and neighbouring villages is such that the might of the upper caste is prevailing over those working for human rights in the area. Human rights activists are fearful for their lives, particularly since the local administration has not yet extended their support in preserving law and order in the region. The immediate retaliation of the caste Hindus with the support of the local civil administration is to suppress any act that might liberate the dalits and backward community from their servitude.

Despite this incident having been brought to the attention of the state and central administration, no action has been taken by the government agencies to safeguard life and preserve law and order in Varanassi and the surrounding villages, where human rights activists are engaged in working with the lower caste community.

In light of this, we request that you write to the relevant authorities listed below seeking their intervention in this case. The state and central government must take immediate action in this case, including affording protection to Ms. Anupam, Dr. Lenin and Mr. S. N. Giri in particular, and human rights activists in general.

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Sample letter:

Dear _______________,

RE: INDIA: Another human rights activist threatened for working with Dalits in Uttar Pradesh

I write to voice my dismay that yet another human rights activist in Uttar Pradesh has been threatened while the government and police sit by and do nothing. How far must these threats go, before the government or the police are willing to intervene?

On August 10, only five days after her colleagues Dr. Lenin Raghuvanshi and Mr. S. N. Giri were threatened, Ms. Anupam Nagvanshi was surrounded by the same persons who made the initial threat demanding to know why she insisted on educating the dalits and backward people in Belwa Village how and why they should vote. Mr. Ranjendra Thiwari, his son Mr. Gudu Thiwari and their men, threatened Ms. Anupam that if she did not stop her work, they would murder her. When Ms. Anupam spoke to Baba Singh, the elected Block Development Head, he advised her not to enter Belwa Village again and that if she were to complain to the police, the police would not take any action upon the complaint.

Evident from this case and the blatant inaction by the government and police is that the upper caste of Belwa and neighbouring villages are overriding the basic human rights of the dalits and backward people. Furthermore, they are also overriding the rights of other people who choose to defend the dalits and backward people. Not surprisingly, human rights activists are now fearful for their lives and are aware that they cannot rely on the local administration to enforce law and order in the area.

I am aware that this incident has already been brought to the attention of the state and central administration. I am also aware that no action has been taken to safeguard the lives of those who have been threatened in recent days. Again, I ask, how far must these threats go before the state or the central government intervene?

I therefore call for your urgent intervention in this case. The state and central government must take immediate action in this case, including affording protection to Ms. Anupam, Dr. Lenin and Mr. S. N. Giri in particular, and human rights activists in general. An impartial inquiry into the incident must also be conducted immediately.

I also request that the State Human Rights Commission conduct an independent inquiry into the incident and make public its report and findings. 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.

I trust that immediate action will be taken into this incident.

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND TO:

1. Mr. Mani Shankar Aiyar
Minister of Panchayathi Raj
Sastri Bhawan
New Delhi
INDIA
Tel: + 91 11 23381462
Fax: + 91 11 23386118
E.mail: manishankar@sansad.nin.in

2. Mr. Krishnamurthy T. S
Chief Election Commissioner
Nirvachan Sadan
Ashoka Road
New Delhi
INDIA
Tel: + 91 11 23717027
Fax: + 91 11 23711023

3. Office of the Chief Electoral Officer
Navin Bhavan,
Sachiwalaya
Lucknow
Uttar Pradesh
INDIA
Tel: + 91 522 2238129
E-Mail: sla_uttarpradesh@eci.gov.in / rss1954@yahoo.com

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

5. Mr. Gokaran
District Magistrate
Varanasi
Uttar Pradesh
INDIA
Tel: + 91 542 2508585

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

7. 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

8. 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

9. 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

10. 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

11. 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 Update
Document ID :
UP-95-2005
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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.