Introduction:

Manual scavenging is an inhuman practice which is caste based. Manual scavenging in India is the lifting and removal of human excreta manually, both at private homes and in toilets maintained by public authorities. Manual scavenging is done in either two ways; First it is through dry toilets, where human excreta to a place of disposal. Second, manual scavenger clean sewage pits.
Particularly, one caste group of people (BHANGI) are engaged with scavenging of human excreta and we can find this practice across India.

Background of Solapur visit:

National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights is a network of Dalit organizations, human right activists and are determined to address the caste based discrimination and violence. It has been involved in promotion and protection of Dalit Rights, through monitoring, legal interventions and advocacy for necessary change in the implementation of set policies and acts in 14 States.
In the year 2007, NCDHR and a few civil society organizations such as Safai Karmchari Andolan established a platform to complete eradication of the obnoxious practice of manual scavenging from India by the year 2010. The platform has come forward and selected ten States of India for direct intervention identifying the existence of manual scavenging in the ten states and making all efforts to put an end to this inhuman, obnoxious and illegal practice.
Therefore on 16th to 18th September 2007, NCDHR team conducted the survey of Solapur city and tram came across that safai worker of Solapur Municipal Corporation are doing scavenging work. Practices of manual scavenging i.e. cleaning the dry latrines by open hand and fetching the human excrete on shoulder and head. And mostly the Safai workers from Madagi, Walmiki & Meghwal castes are doing the manual scavenging which is caste based occupation.
By law the Manual Scavenging practice is abolished but still it is practicing all over the places like as Solapur city.  And it is disobedience of constitution of country which says that Right to life and work with dignity, also it is violation of human rights.
Hence NCDHR given complaint and application to district collector, SJC ministry but as usual no one was taken any kind of action. After that NCDHR did the state level advocacy and highlight Manual Scavenging issue in the Media.  And finally the Principal Secretary, Govt. of Maharashtra, Water Supply & Sanitation Department has given order of jointly resurvey of Solapur city. Therefore on 20th July 2008 there was a joint resurvey of Solapur city which focused on Presence of Manual Scavenging Practice.
Purpose of Joint survey:
Manual Scavenging is a caste based inhuman practice. Though it is abolished by law but still it’s exist in Solapur city. Voluntary organisation like NCDHR, SKA are build pressure and make accountable to government on issues of Manual Scavenging. Finally, government is ready for joint survey with voluntary organisation which is focused on Presence of Manual Scavenging Practice.
Participants of Joint survey:
• Participants from voluntary organisation:
1. Adv Keval Ukey –NCDHR, Maharashtra
2. Mrs. Vandana Chandanshive, DHRD Solapur,  NCDHR, Maharashtra.
3. Mr. Simon Gattu, Founder, Bhartiya Shramik Samaj  Bahuuddesiya Sewabhavi Sanstha, Solapur.
4. Praveen More, Alliance for Dalit Rights
5. Sameer Taware, Manuski, Pune

 
• Participants from government:
1. Chief officer of water and sanitation department
2. Officer from collector offices
Fact finding and details:
According to plan our team of around 20 peoples were gathered at Collector office at 6.00 am. Our team consist by government officers, representatives of different organisation, local activist, advocate and local activist of Bhartiya Shramik Samaj  Bahuuddesiya Sewabhavi Sanstha, Solapur.

Bhartiya Shramik Samaj  Bahuuddesiya Sewabhavi Sanstha is established by safai worker and working on issues of manuals scavengers and safai workers at Solapur. Best part of joint survey was people from same caste with us and they were guiding force to our team. And it was enormous support to our team to show the existence of inhuman practice of manual scavenging to government officers.

Pic-01: Investigating Team
Joint survey team visited specific areas of Solapur city such as Budhwar Peth, Municipal Colony, Forest Colony, Sadar Bazar – Saatrasta etc. We met safai workers of Solapur Municipal Corporation who are appointed as safai worker but busy with doing the manual scavenging at respective areas.
(team visited to Budhwar peth, from left Simon Gattu,
pravin more, siddarth and government officers )

We found that most of the safai workers belonging to Madagi, Walmiki & Meghwal castes were busy with manual scavenging work. Hence it provides evidence that particular caste of people is doing scavenging work therefore it is caste based inhuman practice. And scavenging practice is practiced by government also but in different name i.e. SAFAI WORKER.

Pic02: Safai worker at Budhwar Peth while scavenging the human excreta
By definiation “manual scavenger” means a person engaged in or employed for manually carrying human excreta and the expression “manual scavenging” shall be construed accordingly
Because of joint survey we are able to show and ask directly to government officers that existence of manual scavenging practice.
Woman is most sufferers because of manual scavenging practices, 90% women are engaged with this practice and most of them facing health problems. Also we found that within women there was high numbers of widower who were engaged because of death ratio among male persons is high from particular caste groups.

Health hazards, economic crises, high death rate, high dropout rate among school going children are serious problems of there people but considering an inhuman, apart from so called civilised society, dignity as human being are more concerning and burning  issues.

Meeting with government officers after joint survey:
After a successfully completion of joint survey we had meeting at collectors office with government representative (chief officer of water and sanitation department) Mr. Benbale. Mr. Benbale was accepted that practice of manual scavenging exists in Solapur and particular caste group of people are engaged with this practice.

Pic03: Meeting with government officers after joint survey, chief officer water and sanitation department Mr. Benbale, Kevel Uke, Simon Gattu, Pravin More and Mrs. Vandana

After discussion with activist government officers shows their interest in rehabilitation of those people who are engaged in Scavenging work. Therefore government officers of Solapur district planning to organise one day conference or discussion session on Rehabilitation of Manual Scavenger.

Joint survey and fact finding

Report On
Manual scavenging practice in Solapur

(Government of Maharashtra and Dalit organisations)

20 July 2008
Prepared by:
Sameer Taware,
Manuski

ShareThis

Though Osama is virulent anticommunist, he too can help communists in the anti-imperialist struggle either directly or indirectly. After the dissolution of USSR, Osama Bin Laden stood as one of the few people to struggle bravely against American imperialism that is present most ugliest evil. Though Marxists do not believe idealistic concepts directed by islam and other religions, Marxists do recognize the favor done by islamists in anti-imperialist struggle. Muammar Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi is another islamic leader who is standing against American imperialism. Gaddafi is fundamentally Libyan nationalist and not pan-islamist but he too had significantly influenced islamic world. Though Gaddafi has liberal inclinations, he is not explicit anti-communist like Osama Bin Laden. The another main problem with Osama Bin Laden is, his group Al-Qaeda rivals with other islamic groups though Al-Qaeda claims itself of pan-islamic group that advocates world wide islamic unity. Al-Qaeda is also helping an anti-Gaddafi terrorist group in Libya. Marxist internationalists wish to form United Front with islamists and other non-Marxist anti-imperialists against Anglo-American imperialism but the behavior of Osama Bin Laden is making other groups disinclined to form alliance.

ShareThis

The government of Mexico decided to close the largest landfill in Latin America, Bordo Poniente, located not far from the capital of the country. The landfill is set to be closed in January 2009.

The garbage range taking about 1,000 hectares of land became a target for local environment activists long ago. The liquidation of the landfill will mark the end of their long-standing struggle.

No one in the world knows what should be done with tens of thousands of tons of garbage, which appear every day. If mankind does not find a revolutionary method to process its own garbage, the consequences will follow during the upcoming several years.

Not less than 60 million tons of household garbage have been dumped on Bordo Poniente during 13 years of its existence. The giant landfill comes second after the infamous Plastic Soup in the Pacific Ocean – the floating dump of up to 100 million tons of rubbish which takes about one million of square kilometers.

Ecologists say that the Mexican landfill shows an immense influence on the environment. It goes about subsidence first and foremost – the hole depth may reach 13 meters in some places. As a result, liquid products of decomposition penetrate into subterranean waters, making them absolutely unusable.

Such landfills are dangerous for several reasons. They poison ground waters and create hotbeds of decay, where methane often triggers massive fires which are very hard to extinguish.

The poisonous smoke emitted as a result of the open combustion of garbage produces a very harmful influence on people’s health. To make matters worse, landfills generate hundreds of extremely dangerous germs.

The international community does not have a clue to solving the recycling problem. The majority of people, who produce dozens of kilograms of garbage a day, sincerely believe that their garbage disappears itself immediately after they throw a garbage bag in a can.

An average person produces not less than 350 kilos of garbage a year. Ten percent of this amount will be burnt, eighty percent will be buried, and the remaining ten percent will be left on the ground surface. Mankind throws out up to 2.1 trillion tons of garbage a year. This figure continues to grow every year.

Specialists say that the garbage problem is as serious as the problem of the global warming or nuclear weapons.

The supervisor of the toxic program of Greenpeace in Russia, Aleksey Kiselev, said that the problem with garbage is very serious in Russia.

“Up to 97 percent of garbage is buried, and three percent is burnt. This approach is wrong, to put it mildly. Russia has both technological opportunities and financial means to solve the problems of recycling. Russian politicians need to realize the importance of this problem to give it a go,” he told RBC Daily.

Sources: nr2.ru and english.pravda.ru

ShareThis

The concept of honor and reputation has gone so foolish that even raped victims are killed by family members by alleging that the victim brought disgrace to their family. A Turkish girl named Yasmin (Jasmine) visted her sister’s house to meet her pregnant sister. While her sister was out of home, her sister’s husband raped her. When Yasmin informed her family members about the rape, no one believed her because the impression of rape brings bad name to their family. Even Yasmin’s beloved sister didn’t believe that her husband raped Yasmin. Yasmin’s brother who is very narrow minded found a so called final solution for this question. He murdered Yasmin because she lost her virginity before marriage. What a paradox? He was not able to believe that his sister was raped by the brother-in-law but he believed that his sister lost her virginity before marriage. Any person with minimal sense can wonder “How the the brother believe both of the points that inversely contradict each other?!”. I also wonder why do these people give so much higher priority to the concept of honor and reputation than family values!! In these so called civilised societies, uncivilised practices are commited in the name of honor and reputation. Those so called civilised brutes satisfy more with the concept of honor & reputation instead of preserving family values.

ShareThis

Michael Lucas Editor

Just last month U.S. Condoleezza Rice and her counterpart Karel Schwarzenberg of the Czech Republic signed an anti-missile shield agreement in Prague.

This NATO treaty will allow the United States to build a missile tracking radar station at the Brdy military district, southwest of the city of Prague.

NATO will also install interceptor missiles in Poland. Although Russian regime has protested (mildly of course) by Yevgeny Buzhinsky the Foreign Minister, the deal was signed, while Poland is demanding that USA give Poland $20 Billions in order to upgrade its Army. Every sell out has its price of course!

There is very strong opposition by people in the Czech Republic to this deal, with protests and demonstrations – much more than in Poland itself. The resistance in Poland is COMMERCIAL, because Poland gave immediate consent to NATO to install these missiles. US balked at this $$$ blackmail and said that Lithuania is also willing to get the missiles installed on its territory.

The only way that NATO and US imperialism is going to be stopped is for complete unity of actions by all the progressive forces in Europe. These NATO-USA plans are not only against present day Russia (who are playing a dangerous game) but also against all people of Europe and of the world. Of course it is aimed at Russia and other former Soviet Republics – one last push by US and its New World Order to dominate, once for all the rich resources of former Soviet Union and to get cheap labor workforce to slave for Imperialism.

Progressive mankind sees through this dangerous facade of creeping fascism. The bitter truth is that in competition with NATO and American imperialism, the ruling class of Russia and China are now reinforcing their nuclear military capabilities. Our world is facing an impending crisis – the threat of a Third World War – not between Socialism and Capitalism – but between capitalist states (no matter how they hide under the cloak of democracy or socialism).

This is nothing but an exacerbated and very intensifying scramble for natural resources - gas and oil – food, plus cheap labor force. On top of all this, imperialist US is undergoing a grave economic crisis plus a growing turmoil in its world financial system, and the declining US dollar is slowly putting the US into an economic recession.

Northstar Compass is sometimes criticized for commenting on the world progressive movements, communist parties and for the constructive criticism of not only Imperialism, but also the present dangerous policies of Russia. We feel that as friends of the Soviet people and the defenders of Socialism since 1918, when the organization “Hands Off Russia Committee” was established, we certainly have shown our dedication and have not changed our position since 1918!

The danger of all political struggles lies in disunity of actions. It Isn’t enough to quote, misquote, rehash, repeat, espouse Marx, Engels, Lenin or Stalin at every world conference, congress, meetings or in thousands of pages of analyses or books – as good and brilliant as they are - the desperate need for UNITY OF ACTION must supersede all.

Otherwise Imperialism, so well versed and adept – will utilize the DIVIDE AND RULE POLICY, which unfortunately at the moment is working in the world progressive movements!

ShareThis

Having a man (and regime) such as George W. Bush (and his lobby) in charge was always going to be a risk, for here is a figure (and a big-business pressure group) who belongs to the rich clique of corporate elitists who basically do what they want and if they make a mistake, daddy and his cronies handle it. Such is the notion of the law they grow up with.

Law, for these people, is something to be manipulated, to be broken if necessary because they know that in the hands of well-paid professionals, the law can be turned on its head, whatever the crime, from a misdemeanour such as misbehaving at a baseball match or killing someone while drunk behind the wheel of a car. Daddy handles it.

Therefore it comes as no surprise to see George W. Bush flouting the international law one minute, by recognising the Serbian province of Kosovo as an independent state and then lecturing Russia on how to handle two cases which do have a claim to statehood, namely Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Take about double standards, talk about one two-faced confused son of his mother.

How much longer does Washington have to humiliate itself with this sort of charade? How can anyone in Washington be taken seriously if its President can look the camera in the eye and say with apparent conviction that Kosovo can be independent and Abkhazia and South Ossetia cannot?

The problem is, as we have seen, the manipulation campaign in the western corporate media backs up such absurd notions and packages them as fact. How many western European and north American readers belive that Iraq was all about 9/11 for instance? We even had Jeremy Thompson of Sky News asking the US troops while crawling up their backsides with a mock American accent (“Hi, you guys!”) if they were looking for revenge for September 11th when they entered Iraq.

We had Sky News (again) and other media outlets recently failing to report the Georgian Armed Forces’ act of slaughter of 2,000 Russians in South Ossetia, or even manipulating photos, trying to make the Georgian atrocities look like they were perpetrated by Russia.

Therefore at the moment, journalists in the free press (such as PRAVDA.Ru) have to work overtime setting right the barefaced lies presented as the truth by people like George Bush and the sycoiphantic minions which dare to call themselves an independent Press.

As regards Kosovo, it was the birthplace of the Serbian nation back in 1389. It was not the Serbs’ fault that every Albanian woman’s dream was to go there and breed like rabbits so that over time the population balance swung in favour of Albanians. It was not Serbia’s fault that the USA armed, aided and abetted the KLA terrorists to perpetrate atrocities against the Serb civilians to force Milosevic to put a stop to the international terrorism. (The USA then complains about Al Qaeda when it was doing exactly the same thing itself in the Balkans).

So Kosovo is not an independent state and it never will be unless Serbia decides so. Serbia is the only country that can pass judgement on the matter under international law, which respects the inviolability of frontiers. As the Russian Federation stated at the time, any new vector in international law which went against this principle would entail a new legal order, and this would have repercussions in places such as South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

A New Legal Order

International law cannot have double standards, or else it cannot be called law and the civilised world cannot be ruled by the law of the jungle, which is what Washington advocates. What Moscow advocates, and always has defended, is a multipolar world which respects the rule of international law, basing all crisis management situations on the UNO and its Security Council.

What Washington did in Iraq was to flout international law by attacking a sovereign nation based on barefaced lies, without the necessary second resolution needed under the UN Charter. What Washington did with regard to Kosovo was to draw a line on a map and to declare that a part of a sovereign nation was henceforth an independent (satellite) state. What Washington does in the case of Georgia is to ignore the 2.000 Russians murdered by Saakashvili’s forces (which are trained by the USA) and then to apply double standards, saying that Georgia’s territorial integrity is sacrosanct. What about Serbia’s? How can Washington think it can have it both ways?

And besides, what about Georgia’s obligation under the Soviet Constitution to hold referendums in Abkhazia and South Ossetia when Tblissi left the Union? Therefore it would appear that at the very least, these two Republics have more of a claim to independence than Kosovo, which under international law has none.

Unless of course the rest of the world recognises Alaska’s claim to independence, Texas as the Lone Ranger State, Aztlan in the southern states, Montana or the Dakota territories in the northern USA. And that would be the end of internationally recognised frontiers. Chaos. An Armageddon of micro-states and the end of the rule of law as we know it. Is this what Washington wants?

Therefore there cannot be two weights and measures as Washington advocates. It is time for a regime change in Washington, and the sooner, the better. It is time for someone in Washington to show some common sense, some respect for the law and due process and show the rest of the world that Washington can be a valuable and valued member of the community of nations.

Frankly there are many of us who yearn for the return of the prodigal son to the international fold.

Timothy BANCROFT-HINCHEY

PRAVDA.Ru

ShareThis

“The US Navy destroyer USS McFaul, which is currently docked in the Georgian port of Batumi, carries about 50 Tomahawk cruise missiles on board. They are outfitted with nuclear warheads and are meant to hit ground targets. The remaining NATO ships are currently concentrated in the northern part of the Black Sea,” a source in the military intelligence of the Russian Federation said.

NATO’s navy delivers weapons to Georgia under the guise of humanitarian aid.

Russian military intelligence officers informed that other NATO ships drifting in the Black Sea were armed with 64 anti-ship Harpoon missiles and about eight helicopters.

Washington insists that the ships, which appeared near Georgia’s shores, have been deployed there in accordance with George W. Bush’s decision, who ordered to deliver humanitarian aid to the Georgian military. Other NATO warships – Germany’s Luebeck, Spain’s Adm. Juan de Bourbon and Poland’s General K. Pulaski arrived to the shores of Bulgaria and Romania to participate in the military exercise that was scheduled along ago and has nothing to do with the conflict in Georgia.

“It is strange that such a large group of NATO warships has arrived for a joint exercise with Bulgaria or Romania. Usually, only one or two warships participate in such exercises, so the attempts to substantiate the presence of the naval group with a military exercise does not withstand any criticism,” the source said.

“It is clear that all statements made by the political and defense administration of NATO members are accompanied with outspoken militarist demarches. The use of nuclear weapons by NATO ships in the Black Sea is out of the question. The conventional weapons, which the NATO naval group has in the region, are more than enough to achieve any defense goals, which can be exemplified with Yugoslavia,” the source said.

The port of Batumi is the only port, which US warships can access on the Georgian territory. The port of Poti, which is larger and more convenient, remains under the control of Russia’s troops.

Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev said in an interview with Al-Jazeera in Sochi that Russia’s recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia had only one goal – to help the people living in the two republics.

“There are no other motives in our actions,” Medvedev said answering the question about Russia’s possible intention to destabilize the government of Mikhail Saakashvili and change the political regime in the country, RIA Novosti reports.

“We only want to help the people who find themselves in trouble today. As for Saakashvili and his regime, we do not like it indeed. It is obvious that he did not only make a mistake but committed a crime. He must account for this crime to the people of Georgia and to the international community,” Medvedev said.

Medvedev emphasized that Russia had acknowledged the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia to stop the extermination of their nations and help the regions to their feet. The president also stressed out that Moscow had completely carried out its pledges of the Medvedev-Sarkozy agreement. He added that the Russian troops had been pulled out from Georgia except for the so-called safety strip.

When asked whether Russian troops are still present in Georgia, Medvedev responded that such statements were not true to fact.

Russia is concerned about a possibility to deliver military hardware to Georgia on board NATO warships, which would only escalate the tension in the Caucasus.

“The absence of control over the cargoes, which NATO warships deliver to Georgia cannot but raise concerns with us. When there’s no control, there’s no guarantee that various weapons, for example man-portable missile systems, have not been or will not be delivered to Georgia. It can also be reconnaissance equipment including unmanned aerial vehicles,” the source said.

“We have the main attack force of NATO’s navy in the Black Sea, which acts under the guise of delivering humanitarian cargo or holding military exercises,” the source added.

In the meantime, Georgia is ready to single-handedly cut diplomatic ties with Russia. It will happen in response to Russia’s recognition of the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

Georgia’s Minister for Reintegration Timure Yakobashvili believes that Russia will not be alone in the implementation of the plan to dismember Georgia, as he said.

“It is quite possible that Russia has already won the support of some countries. But it is not ‘some countries’ that determine world politics. It is not an honor for Russia to be on the list with such subjects either,” he said.

The official added that Georgia would never put up with the loss of territories.

“The actions, which Russia has taken, will boomerang against it,” Yakobashvili said.

Source: english.pravda.ru

ShareThis

In the present capitalist regime of Russia, according to data gathered from the Russian press and information available from the United Nations Statistical Reports – here is what place Russia stands in the economic, social, criminal and health services.

1ST PLACE in murders. In 2005 alone there were officially registered 30,800 killings while 20,000 people disappear each year without a trace.

2nd PLACE for suicides – there are over 50,000 suicides each year in Russia, Lithuania is in first place.

2nd PLACE after the USA for people that are languishing in jails.

2nd PLACE after Iraq for journalists being killed –147 killed since 2005.

1st PLACE for the consumption of alcohol.

134th PLACE in longevity of Russian people. Men live to 58 years on an average while women live to 72 years.

1st PLACE in the world in the spread of AIDS.

3rd PLACE in the spread of religious, occult and other sects. In Russia there are close to 500 different sects existing – foreign and local.

1st PLACE in the world for smoking by children – with foreign cigarettes topping the list.

3rd PLACE in the world for the spread of child pornography. There are close to 12,000 cases of children being sold, due to the hard economic conditions.

2nd PLACE for the Russian children being sexually molested and assaulted by foreigners.

3rd PLACE in the world in the growth of millionaires,  surpassed only by USA and Germany. There are now 53 billionaires in Russia. The richest one is Roman Abramovich.

The minimum official wage of a Russian Minister is over 100 times that of a worker. This is the biggest chasm in the world. Besides these wages of the government minister, they constantly steal   money from the state and this is normal practice.

Only constant struggle against capitalism will produce results and its overthrow!

ShareThis

An historical photo of Soviet Red Army liberating Sofia was printed as a postcard to commemorate this historical event in our history. But this historical victory over fascism in World War II is currently being presented by the reactionary anti-Slav propaganda as nothing else but a “Soviet occupation” and postwar “brutal economic plunder.”

But this photo shows how the Bulgarian people were welcoming the Soviet Red Army in September of 1944. Similar events followed later in Belgrade, Bratislava, Prague and in many other smaller and larger cities and towns on the way to the liberation of Berlin.

But just one example of the so-called “Soviet economic exploitation of Bulgaria”- the only bridge over the Danube was built by the Soviets in less than s a year and a half - during the hardest postwar ruins. But this present fabulous so-called EU has since 1999 been talking and talking. Huge volumes of data and economic development and industrial help that was given by the Soviet Union can be written about, in those that the reactionary elements call the “dark days of Soviet occupation.” These volumes can be written even by non-specialists who saw and see before their eyes what the Soviet Union did to help!

But now, even a single page to describe what is being done today would be too big.

Dear members of Editorial Board of NSC and members of the International Council.

Here are some of my thoughts as how to improve the NSC journal:

• I feel that there should be more interaction with the readers as to the topics to be covered and what they like and dislike.
• More planning of the contents should be undertaken and letters to the Editor should be continued since this will add dynamism to NSC. Also members of the Editorial Board should take a more active part in planning and writing.
• No prominent Anniversary or Date of the USSR should be left out. You should have covered the 85th Anniversary of the USSR.
• There should be more input by the Soviet comrades who write and publish the Russian Edition of NSC. This should be geared towards the younger generation there and over the world.
• The covers act also as posters but we get those issues a month later in Europe and you should plan it ahead so that we can get NSC in the month that the cover event took place.

Of course I understand that these suggestions will give you more problems, but I cannot see Michael Lucas doing more than he is as Editor of NSC and as Chairman of the International Council. He needs more help.

If I will have anymore ideas before the International Council Conference I will send them to you.

Until then I spiritually join you with my best wishes for good health and to go on still further with our work in the noble cause that unites us and also so many people around the world.

ShareThis

Andhra Pradesh: Struggle for land for poor.

West Bengal: Grab the land of poor and donate to corporate capitalists like Tata.

Kalinganagar: Oppose land grabbing in the name of SEZ.

Nandigram: Uphold land grabbing in the name of SEZ.

Mudigonda: Criticise police firings on poor people who struggle for land.

Nandigram: Encourage murders and rapes on poor people who struggle against land grabbing.

Report of Investigation Into Nandigram Mass Murders

ShareThis

That Bush and Rice are wholly incompetent to hold their jobs has been patently obvious from the beginning, when Rice started off by making insulting and derogatory remarks whenever she mentioned Russia, yet while as National Security Advisor prior to 9/11 failed to provide any national security whatsoever. Talk about being downright abrasive and rude, hardly the behaviour required for a lady diplomat, but then again, nobody ever expected any better because she is not a diplomat, never was, never will be. She is a cheap, dimwitted guttersnipe, an apology for a lady and a human being and wholly unfit to hold the office and serve her country, both of which her very presence insults.

As regards Bush, well, one has only to go to the Bushisms website and the man comes across as a vapid and abject joke. True, he looks pretty good holding a plastic turkey and does appear to have the ability to improvise with kids on the White House lawn when left alone with them, appearing to be on the same intellectual level. Kind of like a retarded uncle who hangs around the ranch saying inanities but who nobody ever takes seriously.

As for Cheney, this eminence grise learned a long time ago to shut the f. up and do his evil deeds behind closed doors. Nice man. After all, here is the man with all the contacts among his neocon friends, the corporate elitists whose policies dictate what Washington does and how many people its foreign policies kill. Nice man. Rumour has it that not even his own family speak to him. And how clever he was when all those contracts were allocated without tender after the US military forces targeted civilian structures in Iraq. Nice man.

If this pig-headed trio of crypto-fascists was to focus on its own country’s deeds, then nobody would have anything to say. It is, after all, up to the people of the USA to vote for whoever they wish to lead them, deceive them, act against their interests, get the country hated in the international community, screw up its economy…whatever turns you on.

However, the constant intrusion into Russia’s sphere of interests, the barrage of lies they sell to the corporate media parading them as the truth, and the stream of insults and provocations that come from these legions of Baal cannot and will not go unanswered.

Just who do Bush and Rice think they are, considering they can tell Russia when to take its troops out of Georgia? Has the USA taken its troops from Iraq? Has Russia got concentration camps like Abu Ghraib or Guantanamo Bay? Did Russia go after Saakashvili and hang him? Have Georgian soldiers been forced into human pyramids, had dogs set upon them, been raped, water-boarded, their food peed into or forced to eat disgusting things which go against their culture?

Did Saakashvili not declare a ceasefire and while he was doing so mass his troops, savagely attack Tskhinvali, destroy 85% of the city’s structures with military hardware and slaughter 2.000 civilians on 7/8 August?

In their failure to mention the cause of the current conflict once, Bush, Rice and the entire odious regime give their tacit approval to Georgia’s war crimes, just as they gave their tacit approval to the war crimes perpetrated in Iraq and elsewhere (CIA torture flights and ships, and Guantanamo Bay concentration camp).

Just how involved were the US military adviors that night when Georgian peacekeeping troops fired on their Russian colleagues and when the barrage of bombs and missiles killed 2.000 civilians, when Georgian tanks ran down old ladies, when Georgian US-trained troops threw grenades into basements full of huddled and terrified women and children? Was this what the US forces trained them for? And if yes, would anyone be surprised?

So, here it is, loud and clear, for Bush, Cheney and Rice to understand. If they think that like Goebbels, they can repeat the same lie time and time again until it becomes the truth, they are wholly wrong, as wrong as the miscalculated act of aggression against Russia, which led to the military forces they support being thrashed.

If they think that like Himmler, they can win hearts and minds through concentration camps and torture, history taught the Soviet Union (which lost 26 million of its sons and daughters freeing Europe from Fascist tyrrany) and the rest of the world a solemn lesson which forced the enlightened among us to vow never to allow the story to be repeated again.

Yet like Hitler, these three try. And they do not give up. And they keep on provoking time and time and time again.

Russia made a limited response to an act of provocation, its right under international law, in which 2.000 of its citizens were killed by US-trained Georgian troops in one night. Quite what this trio were thinking they would achieve that night, only they know. What they lost must have been big, given the soreness and arrogance in their voices today, and the attempts at self-justification.

And once again, Russia rules the roost, Russia calls the shots these days, Russia stands for respect for the law whereas Washington flouts it, Russia stands for peace whereas Washington stands for war, Russia defends debate, dialogue and disscussion while Washington favours antagonism, arrogance, bullying, belligerence, back-stabbing, chauvinism and skulduggery as its diplomatic tools, and Condoleeza Rice as its mouthpiece. What a sorry-looking business card.

The female is sooooooooo 1980s…

For two weeks now, they have been telling Russia what to do. Two weeks on, Russia is doing what it understands it must do and will leave Georgia as and when it sees fit. If Bush and Rice want to continue making fools of themselves by repeating the same thing over and over, it just proves their utter impotence to gain anything from yet another failed Washington policy. Has there ever been a successful one?

Timothy BANCROFT-HINCHEY

PRAVDA.Ru

ShareThis

The North Atlantic Terrorist Organization has committed yet another spectacular massacre in Afghanistan. Bullseye! A direct hit on a number of civilian houses in the village of Azizabad, Herat Province in Western Afghanistan on Friday. Eye witnesses report that the damage is massive and the victims were gathered together in a funeral wake.

The US Armed Forces initially denied responsibility for this blatant act of terrorism, then started to issue disinformation, as is the norm, saying that 30 militants had been killed in a military operation in the area. Now they admit the “loss of life”. What next? Will they use Israel’s excuse during its massacres in the Lebanon (which the Bush regime failed to condemn once) and say “Well, they shouldn’t have been there, should they?” Or will they simply ignore the facts, as the Bush regime did when Saakashvili’s Georgian US-trained armed forces slaughtered 2.000 Russian civilians in one night and Bush and Rice did not have the decency to mention this one single time?

Winning hearts and minds through massacres of defenceless children

Is this how NATO wins hearts and minds? Today a child, tomorrow a terrorist, is that the norm? And what is NATO anyway? Set up on 4^th April 1949, NATO is an anachronism from a different era. Sensing the growing aggressiveness of this belligerent organization, the reaction from the eastern bloc was to set up the Warsaw Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance on May 14^th 1955.

When the Soviet bloc disintegrated (the voluntary dissolution was provided for in the Soviet Constitution), the need for the Warsaw Pact ended and therefore it was dissolved in 1991. At the time, NATO had given reassurances to the Russian Federation that it would not expand eastwards.

NATO lies

Shortly before Germany was reunified, Chancellor Helmut Kohl pledged to Mikhail Gorbachev that NATO installations would not be placed in the eastern part of Germany. This pledge was almost immediately broken. When the Warsaw Pact disintegrated, private assurances were given to Moscow that the ex-Member states would not seek membership with NATO. They lied through their teeth. So what is NATO, other than an out-of-date, lying terrorist organization which serves one purpose, and one purpose only, namely to serve as a marketplace for the arms lobby in Washington/Tel Aviv?

How can Russia be expected to trust such an organization? Clearly its intentions are hideously antagonistic, as we see in the hostile and aggressive statements of the US State department and in the very presence of its Secretary of State on a daily basis, as we see in the missile defence shield placed on Russia’s western flank. Certainly, in the event of conflict such installations could be carpet-bombed and would serve for nothing, as indeed any concentration of troops and equipment on Russia’s borders could be neutralised by blanket attacks with missiles, blasting a crater 100 kilometres wide around such military formations.

In this scenario, after the wholesale destruction of its offensive capability on Russia’s borders, NATO would be faced with a stark choice: launch nuclear weapons against Russian cities and be carpet-nuked in retaliation, destroying the civilised world, or stare defeat in the face and surrender. But does anyone believe NATO, this murderous, callous, lying clique of fat-cat elitists which perpetrates massacre after massacre after massacre and tries to deny the facts, would not go all the way?

If NATO is serious about including Russia in an integrated security system in Europe, it is going about it the wrong way. Inclusion is the step forward, not exclusion or antagonism and antagonism passes by the admission of new member states such as Ukraine or Georgia. Does NATO really want to start a civil war in Ukraine? Does NATO really support the Saakashvili regime which slaughtered 2,000 Russian citizens in one night?

Politicising the issue

How democratic is NATO? Does NATO ask the citizens of its member states about its policies, even though these dictate the core of foreign policy? No, it does not. It is a supra-national, grey, faceless organism which overtakes each and every fibre of democratic control, placing the Washington/Tel Aviv arms lobby above the national governments and unanswerable and unaccountable to its peoples.

So supposing the democratization of NATO entered the political agenda, and supposing the citizens of its member states brought the issue onto the party political platform? Does my party stand for inclusion in NATO and thereby control by the arms lobby and very possibly a nuclear war, or does my party stand for a dissolution of NATO due to its very nature as an anachronistic dinosaur belonging six decades in the past and as an undemocratic institution which has no right to jurisdiction under every norm of Constitutional Law?

The continuation of NATO as a military bloc is an insult to the citizens of Europe. It is time they took up the gauntlet and stood up for themselves once and for all.

Timothy BANCROFT-HINCHEY

Source: english.pravda.ru

ShareThis

Civilians are worst affected by the ongoing bloody war in the north of Sri Lanka, where the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) runs its own affairs in a de facto state where close to 400,000 people live.

According to the latest reports emerging from the Vanni district in the north, half of the population have been displaced and living under subhuman condition for the past two-and-a-half months as Sri Lanka stepped up daily sea, land and air attacks on these people.

The three-decades-old civil war in Sri Lanka has killed at least 215,000 people, mostly Tamils according to the surveys done by the UN World Health Organisation.

Sri Lanka consists largely of Sinhalese Buddhists, who are a majority, and Tamils, a minority who struggling for the right to self-determination for the last 60 years and who are mostly Hindu.

In January, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, disavowed a 2002 ceasefire that Norwegian mediators had negotiated between the government and the LTTE. Ceasefire monitors from several Nordic countries were sent back by the Sri Lankan government and it escalated the military attacks on Tamils in the country’s north and east.

The LTTE responded with attacks on Sri Lankan Army forces in these areas, as well as bombings in the capital, Colombo.

The government has opted to attempt to end the conflict by escalating its bloody military advancement into the LTTE-run areas in order to win the war. Political and military leaders speak of crushing the Tigers by the end of the year.

Amnesty International has reported that within the past 24 months, hundreds of people have reportedly been abducted by the Sri Lankan Security Forces or armed groups in the north and east of Sri Lanka, as well as elsewhere in the country, including Colombo.

Meanwhile, New York-based Human Rights Watch has cited rights abuses such as enforced mass abductions, mass disappearances, unlawful execution-style summary killings, mass murders, tortures, rapes, destruction of personal, public and cultural properties, forceful displacements and the unwillingness and inability of the Sri Lankan state to control the worsening rights situation as the reasons for its call for a UN monitoring mission.

The Asian Human Rights Commission has statedthat, “The government fearing that international reports on violations of human rights may lead to the sending of UN human rights monitors or other forms of intervention, rather believes that silencing critics is the way to avoid the situation. Thus, aggressive rhetoric has become a characteristic of spokesmen for the government.”

The reality is Sri Lanka is responsible for large-scale disappearances, abductions and killings of Tamil civilians and has failed to take all steps necessary to stop the practice of state terrorism.

Asian powers China, Pakistan and India are competing for influence in Sri Lanka. These reasons alone help further prolong the region’s longest armed struggle as solutions to the conflict become more complex.

The UN, US, EU, India and many other world powers agree that the conflict must be resolved politically, not militarily, and that a lasting solution will require Singhalese leaders to concede meaningful and substantial self-rule to the Tamils in the combined north and east of Sri Lanka.

Perhaps a solution of creating two nations, where both Singhala and Tamil nations live side by side, would help maintain a permanent peace.

Sir Hugh Cleghorn wrote in June 1799 to the British government on the Tamils and Singhalease: “Two different nations from a very ancient period have divided between them the possession of the Island. First the Sinhalese, inhabiting the interior of the country in its Southern and Western parts, and secondly the Malabars (Tamils) who possess the Northern and Eastern Districts. These two nations differ entirely in their religion, language and manners.”

Refusing to accept this reality and attempting to resolve the conflict with high risk military operations against the Tamils has currently embarked on — can only produce more suffering for all people of Sri Lanka, with serious consequences for generations to come.

[Reprinted from http://www.tamileelamnews.com.]
From: International News, Green Left Weekly issue #764 27 August 2008.

ShareThis

The People’s War has today come to be identified as another militant outfit, another sore on India’s troubled landscape. You are being equated with the insurgents of the North-East and Jammu and Kashmir. How is your fight different from theirs?

The movements of NE and JK have a very restricted aim. They are nationalist movements. They are fighting to protect their nationality interests. The PW, on the other hand, is leading a protracted people’s war. Our aim is to dislodge the imperialists with the gun. The party, which is based on communist ideology, is building a movement that will bring forth the rule of the proletariat. Proletariat dictatorship. In that sense we have a wider, all-encompassing view.

Why have you chosen the path of violence? Why not democratic means to achieve your aim?

Because the rule of the masses cannot be achieved through normal political methods. The Indian people have only one way to usher in modern democracy: armed struggle. You cannot get anything for the poor from the existing democratic system. Despite millions taking up armed struggle in various forms, despite the so-called democratic methods, the so-called parliamentary procedures, the people are not able to enjoy even basic rights, leave alone political power. Such is the state of the State, the Establishment, the System.

The feudal system is still continuing here. Indirectly, the rule of imperialists is on. They are ruling through proxies, brokers. In this kind of system, it is not at all possible for people to empower themselves politically through conventional means.

We are leading what is basically an armed people’s struggle. It has been launched by the people. It is natural that the ruling classes have to be overthrown for the downtrodden to come to power. Be it in America, Britain, Germany or Russia, the same thing applies, the same thing holds true. And this will be so in the future also. Even a small country with a tiny population of a few hundred thousands cannot escape this truism.

The Establishment has been labelling us revolutionaries variously as anti-social elements, extremists, terrorists etc in its bid to isolate/distance/sever us from the people. We shall counter such propaganda politically.

The land should belong to the one who tills it, not the landlord. They (the landlords) have kept vast tracts of land in their vice-like grip. They have been living off, pestering and frustrating the peasantry for ages. Will they give up land if normal methods are used? No. This problem has never been solved by any commissions constituted by Parliament. Nowhere in the world has this problem been appropriately resolved. So why should we lay our faith in such a system?

Another point is imperialist investments. These are sucking the Indians dry. Reducing them to pulp. The imperialists are looting the natural resources, riches and skilled human resources of this country. The middle-classes and even the bourgeoisie are being looted. All the development and production now happening in India are variously described as state-of-the-art, ultra-modern, wonderful, fantastic etc. But the fact is that these are nothing but characteristics of a neo-colony. All this so-called development is not happening for the good of the natives; it is certainly not happening with an intention to harness people’s skills. I mean, the resources are ours, the labour is ours, but the capital is not ours. And the production is not for our people.

In such circumstances, will the imperialists go away if asked to leave, leaving behind their shops? It is on these very issues that the CPI and CPI-M fought elections for the last 50 years. But what is the result? The imperialists’ investments have only risen, not dropped. Prior to 1947, it was only the British that were in power in India. After August 15, 1947, every imperialist country in the world has barged into India and looted it, just like that, to their heart’s content. Why will they leave now like gentlemen if asked to?

How then can we fight by laying our faith in this parliamentary system?

Likewise, the big bourgeois. These guys have mortgaged our nation’s interests to the imperialists. They are making their pot of gold in the process. The Tatas, the Birlas, the Dalmias, the Singhanias and several other capitalists with other names, companies — these people are looting the country by suppressing the small and the middle-classes and the downtrodden. They are keeping their cut and passing on the major cut to their imperialist bosses. If we, the victims merely request an end to their rule, will it end? Is it possible to do it using parliamentary methods? If yes, why have not the CPI and the CPI-M been able to do it in the last 50 years? So, it is clear that solutions are not possible through ordinary means.

Both the State and your party are using violence. And caught in the crossfire are innocent Indians. Innocent proletariat Indians. Are you being fair to them?

Terming our activities as violence is not correct. Ours is counter-violence. Ours is a resistance struggle. We are resisting the violence unleashed by the State on the proletariat. Again, I would like to remind you that it is not the PW who is fighting the imperialists. It is the masses against the State. The PW is only leading them. So it is the people against the repression. It’s the people’s war. And who else will be killed in a people’s war but people? Over 1,300 people have been killed in the crossfire. Of this, only a very small number were guerrillas. The rest were all prey to the violence unleashed by the State. The State is responsible for their deaths.

How have you changed the landscape — social, economic and political — of your areas of operation?

The PW adopts reformist ways to create awareness among the masses. On the political level, the PW has created awareness among the masses by exposing the selfish aspects of the so-called democratic political parties.

On the economic level, we believe in adopting self-sustenance methods. We mobilised people for several struggles. When the crops failed recently, we collected and distributed Rs 3.6 million among the farmers. In North Telangana, we had captured a lot of land from landlords. Due to repression, these lands were uncultivated. This year, we organised the peasants to cultivate on 2,000 acres of captured land. In Dandakaranya, due to our struggle, the tendu leaf pickers and bamboo workers are earning a decent living.

Our developmental committees took up several struggles demanding schools, teachers, buildings etc. All these struggles were taken up in areas where the people faced severe repression. Still we achieved remarkable success through sacrifices and blood.

Yet, 30 years after the Naxal movement started, your organisation is still confined to only a few pockets in Andhra, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Isn’t your movement dying down?

This question was posed to us in 1980, in 1985, in 1991, in 1995 and now again in 1998. Our mass base has been expanding all these years. We are spreading to several areas. Simply alleging that the PW is limited to this part or that part without considering the spread of our mass base is not fair. It is a fact that we are not growing fast. But it is also a fact that we are a growing force. We are spreading. When we started, we were a few individuals in Telangana. Now we have a full-fledged organisation. With this merger, our party is spreading further.

Students, an integral part of any revolution, are not with your party today. Why is this so?

It is true that the student movement has decreased in AP. But if you consider the situation in the country as a whole, their movement is gaining strength. It is growing in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Delhi, Bihar, Bengal etc. The revolution is rejuvenating its forces. The trouble is that the party is not in a position to consolidate the entire movement and transform it into a unified struggle. This is because of the severe repression we are facing now.

The major reason for the students to be at a low ebb in AP is that we lost around 100 student comrades in the last 10 years. The students faced as severe a repression as that faced by the peasants. For the peasants, the terrain and the movement are conducive to survival. In the case of students, this is not true. Their area of operation is limited, as they are all concentrated in urban areas. The middle-class also contributed to this. The upper middle-class is now more secure, more affluent. But sections in the middle-class are facing more problems. After the new economic policies and privatisation, the lower and middle middle-class are feeling insecure. I will give you an example.

In AP, there are 300,000 government teachers. There are about 200,000 qualified teachers. These people, many of whom are postgraduates, are now working as casual labourers. This situation is leading to great dissatisfaction and frustration among them. Such happenings are growing day by day. This will ultimately lead to anti-government movements again. The wave will come in the near future. The teachers are now almost ready to lead the students into struggle.

Another point: Earlier, the student movements of our organisation were concentrated in urban areas. Today, these have taken roots in rural areas too. We expect a rapid growth.

Which are these rural areas?

Areas of North Telangana, South Telangana and certain places in DK.

The middle-class intellectuals who once formed the backbone of your party have grown apart from you. Today they label you as ‘romantic fools.’ They say you are chasing mirages. Can you explain this transformation?

First, the middle-class and middle-class intellectuals are not our backbone, never have been our backbone, and never will be our backbone. Our party’s backbone is always the proletariat, the agricultural labourers and the poor peasants. Not the middle-class and middle-class intellectuals — not in the past, in the present or in the future. We agree they played an important role in our movement. In future also, they will play an important role as an alley of the revolution.

What happened in the past was that some sections of the middle-class and upper middle-class came in a wave into the revolution with a lot of romantic thoughts. And then they went back. That happened. But now the lower and middle middle-class and intellectuals are coming closer to the movement. The number of such people who have relation with the party is growing day by day. We have several all-India level mass organisations. All these organisations are mainly manned and led by the middle-class. These exist even in AP, where we are facing severe repression — not openly as our front organisations. We are building many such organisations. This shows that the intellectual and middle-class base of the party is not decreasing but increasing.

If that’s the case, why is the trend not visible?

You can’t see this trend because we are not in a position to reveal it. We are organising them under different covers. It is not the objective conditions alone that are making the middle-class come back to the party. The party is consciously putting effort into this. We have started many organisations for this. This effort is in its beginning. So we can’t reveal details now. But we are certain that in the near future you will be convinced of the truth about this.

Near future is a relative term. Can you specify a time frame?

We can’t give dates at this point.

Are you claiming that there is no alienation of the middle-class from your movement? That they are still with you as they were in the 1980s?

No doubt, a section of the upper middle-class and the middle-class intellectuals have moved away from the revolution. This is due to the penetration of the imperialist policies into the country. On the other hand, there is the lower middle-class and middle-class. The distance between these sections and the revolutionary movement is closing day by day. This positive action more than makes up for the alienation of the upper middle-class sections.

The upper middle-class and the upper middle-class intelligentsia — and here I include the NRIs, who form the majority of your readers — do not at present have a good opinion of our party. But we believe their opinion can be changed. We are sure that the ongoing crisis in the world will bring about a change in their view. They will be disillusioned with the existing system of imperialist government. Already in Germany, movements against the Turks have started. And in America and other capitalist countries, fascist and racist forces are growing. Soon the people, the NRIs, will become the targets of fascist and racist movements. This will make them recognise the real nature of imperialism. They are bound to become pro-people and pro-democratic.

If the NRIs are not enemies of the revolution, why is it that the PW opposes investments from them?

We do not consider all NRIs who invest in India as allies of imperialists. We do not oppose the NRIs as a whole. A section of them colludes with imperialists. It is the capital coming in from this section that we oppose. We welcome capital from NRIs who are not imperialist agents.

A recent PW document says you are planning to target banks for funds and would tax the traders operating in your areas. Is that justifiable? The banks, after all, have the deposits of the poor and the middle-class. And how do you expect small traders to pay tax to you as well as the government?

It is true the PW released a document saying we would target the banks for funds. But the State-controlled press highlighted only this point, to defame the party. They only gave details regarding this sensational aspect. They completely neglected the other aspects like how we would collect funds from other enemies, and how these funds would be used for the people’s cause.

The banks are supposed to repay the money to the people. They can’t say the PW looted the bank, so we will not pay you back. If we find that they are not repaying their depositors, then we may reconsider this decision.

Regarding the taxation of small traders, the party will tax only those traders who are above middle-class. We will not touch the poor and the middle-class. We will impose tax only on those who can afford it — namely the higher middle-class and rich traders.

The authorities allege that the PW has relations with many anti-Indian groups like the ISI and LTTE.

(Laughs) We deny the ISI part. We do not have any relation with them. That’s State propaganda to discredit us.

What about the LTTE?

We have had no relations with the LTTE till now. But we are not against having relations with them. We will certainly have links with them if an opportunity arises. We feel that such a relation would be conducive to the revolutionary movement.

Are you exploring the possibility? Have you sent any feelers?

No, we haven’t.

The LTTE is not a revolutionary party. Why, then, should you be interested in them? How will they be able to help your cause?

We support all parties/organisations in the world that are suffering due to the exploitation of the imperialists and the comprador bourgeoisie. In Sri Lanka, the Sinhalese are oppressing Tamilians with the help of the Indian ruling classes and other imperialists. As communists, we support all genuine national movements. So we are supporting the Tamil national movement. The LTTE is the leader of that struggle. However, that does not imply that we support all the tactics and politics of the LTTE. Our support is basically to the Tamilian nationalist cause.

You said you haven’t had any relations with the LTTE. Are you denying that LTTE instructors conducted training camps for your squads?

They were not LTTE. They were ex-LTTE. What happened was that these people came to India after leaving their organisation and formed communist groups. The PW had relations with these groups. As part of that, they held training camps for us.

You said links with the LTTE would be good for your cause. How?

We will know the advantages only after we have relations. Without having relations, how will we be able to say?

What are you expecting out of the relationship?

Such a relation would bring solidarity between the masses of the two countries. It will also prove a major morale booster for all nationalist fighters.

If that is the case, why are you not actively pursing the possibility?

There are many organisations in South East Asia that the PW would like to have links with. But our resources are limited. We would not be able to maintain relations with all these movements at this stage. Once the revolution progresses, we will certainly try to have relations with such movements, including the LTTE. It is part of our policy to have relations with all communists and nationality struggles.

What kind of international relations do you have?

All communist parties will try to have relations with other parties having similar ideology. The PW too has developed relations at different levels with different militant communist organisations across the world, which follow the ML thought. We are now developing primary level relations with some other parties.

What are the parties with which you have relations? In which countries?

All I can say about this is that we have good relations with some strong parties that are following the correct line.

What kind of aid do you receive from these parties?

That’s a technical point. I don’t want to answer it.

Coming back to insurgent groups, what is the PW’s basic criteria for having links with them?

Let me make one thing clear: Our support to any nationalist movement does not mean that we support all the activities of that organisation. We will support an organisation only if they support the ongoing revolutionary movement. We support only those struggles that we know are genuine nationalist struggles. There are struggles in Jammu and Kashmir, the struggles of the Nagas in the NE. We assure all of them the right of self-determination. On this basis alone we would hold relations with these people.

Wouldn’t the right to self-determination lead to the disintegration of the country?

No. That’s an untruth preached by parties with narrow nationalism, like the BJP. When nations are forced into a political system, there will always arise fresh national movements. You cannot hold on to nations that do not want to be part of your set-up. Force will always lead to division.

On the other hand, a voluntary federation of nationalities with the right to secede will lead to unity. That’s what we want. The kind of federalism advocated by the ruling classes is not the right kind. Our federalism is based on equality, not bargains like the one that Chandrababu Naidu is talking about. That is why we support the Telangana movement. That’s why we put forth the slogan of democratic Telangana.

‘The political and economic instability the country is facing may dilute the severity of the repression’

The recent times have seen many defections and surrenders from the PW? Isn’t this a sign that your party is losing hold?

That is not true. Defections and surrenders are not increasing. They are coming down. They occur mainly because of repression. It happens in all revolutions, all over the world. It happened in China. When the revolution is at its ebb, defections do take place.

Another reason was the flaws in our selection and training. Some comrades left because of that. Committees at various levels have identified these mistakes. Now we are rectifying them. We cannot expect the majority of the masses who join us to be ideologically enlightened. It is not possible to have all the people ideologically enlightened at the same time. Ideological enlightenment will take place hand in hand with the party’s growth. Now the party is moving forward. As a result, surrenders and defections have decreased.

Do you have any statistics to prove this?

It is a fact. We can give you the statistics later.

How do you account for the massive transformation in many of the people who have left your organisation? From being a person ready to kill and die for the party, some of them became Naxal hunters. A case in point is Jadala Nagaraj. After his surrender, he re-joined your squads, shot dead one of your leaders and escaped.

This is a strategy to suppress the revolution. The imperialists are not directly fighting the masses. They are using the State to fight their fight. Through the State they use degenerated revolutionaries like Nagaraj to assist them. It is not surprising. It happens everywhere.

Nagaraj’s case is not a common phenomenon. We are not worried about such people. We have to worry only if the phenomenon becomes common, which it will not. We can minimise such recurrences by proper education, proper selection, recruitment, proper testing etc.

What action do you propose against Nagaraj?

The punishment for such betrayals is death in every revolution. But I cannot tell you when it will be executed. That depends on circumstances.

What do you have to say to the allegation that you indulge in mindless violence?

We deny it. We do not resort to mindless violence.

What else is blowing up railway lines and tracks?

All our operations are carried out with a purpose. Blowing up railway stations and tracks are for specific reasons. Categorising such actions as mindless violence is grossly incorrect. Such actions are the counter to State violence. We resort to such actions to protest against some incidents of repression. Sometimes, we do it to get our comrades who are in police custody released. It is the usual practice of the police to kill Naxals. We do it to save their lives.

In future, when our movement has reached higher levels we will have to undertake such actions as military tactics. For instance, to sabotage the supplies to the army. In all our operations in public areas, we will try to ensure that the common people are not hurt. We will take all possible precautions.

At what level is such decisions taken?

The political actions are taken by the regional or state committees.

You categorise annihilating somebody and blowing up tracks as political action?

We consider actions taken with political motives as political actions. Only the implementation is military.

What kind of discipline has been built into the party to stop excesses?

Excess is a relative term. We consider all acts that might hamper the people’s mobilisation and consciousness as excesses. We have all types of checks to prevent such excesses. From demotions to expulsions. Considering the recent incidents, the party is very serious about such checks.

How do you view Advani’s meeting with the chief ministers of the four states and the consequent formation of a central co-ordination committee to check Naxalism? You have suffered heavy losses after this. What’s your strategy to counter it?

This is very serious. Compared to the ‘85 and ‘91 offensive of the enemy, this third offensive is different. This repression shows a qualitative change. Now they are using highly developed communication systems, modern weapons. With World Bank loans, they are building a large network of roads. They are using helicopters and modern weapons. And the central government is involved in the repression much more than before. We comprehend the threat.

But we require some time to educate the people and prepare them to resist this offensive. Meanwhile, we will face some loses as we are facing an enemy hundred times stronger than us. It is inevitable. You have to understand the recent loses in this context. But we are confident that we can repulse this attack.

In any revolution, it is the ruling class that first starts the attack. People have to understand this. We have learned many lessons from the previous repression. Not only did we survive, we expanded also. In the second wave of repression in 1991, they used the ITBP (Indo Tibetan Border Police) and the BSF (Border Security Force). Initially, we were confused and suffered severe losses. But by 1995, we were in a position to strengthen our movement and spread. In the same manner, we will withstand the present wave of repression also. Our base is the masses. With their help we will tide over this repression.

Another aspect is that we have the experience of two offensives. We will certainly step up our resistance and recruitment also.

What do you think is the reason for the BJP’s all-out hatred for your party?

Let me make one thing clear: we do not hold the BJP government responsible for the present wave of repression. They are only tools in the hands of the imperialists. All the previous governments used to be tools of the imperialists, trying to suppress nationalist struggles for them. The BJP is also implementing the same repressive policy. Besides, the BJP is based on communalism and reactionary ideology. So they will try harder to suppress our movement.

The two State actions which you faced in the ’80s and early ’90s were tame ones compared to what the BJP is capable of unleashing. Even then, men, not only squad members but top leaders like Kondapalli Seetharamaiah and Sathiyamoorthy, broke under the stress. Many were killed. What will stop such a break-down again?

I say again that the BJP is not the root of the heavy repression. Even if the BJP loses power tomorrow, the repression will continue. The next government that takes over will go ahead with it. Those same break-downs you mentioned are our strengths today. We have learned from experience. And with that experience we will be able to prevent such recurrences.

How long do you expect this offensive to go on?

Generally, it goes on for a long time. But today, the political and economic instability the country is facing may dilute the severity of the repression and curtail its duration.

Do you think you will be able to hold on to the North Telangana guerrilla zone during this offensive? If not, what is your action plan? Retreat to Dandakaranya ( the PW’s second guerrilla zone)?

We are confident we can defeat the offensive by mobilising the masses. If we fail, we will have to retreat. Whether we will retreat to DK or the Eastern Ghats, or some other place, depends on the circumstances. Even if we have to retreat, we are confident of coming back. We have a vast country and vast masses. We are confident that we can create lot of struggle areas like North Telangana even if we lose it. It is the enemy who has to decide whether they want to face us in the NT and DK of today or in NTs and DKs throughout the country.

What are your plans for the future? Where do you see the revolution going from here?

We have started serious efforts to take the guerrilla zones of North Telangana and Dandakaranya from the primary level to the higher level. We are also eyeing the South and the East — that is Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, East Godavari. Here the movement is in preparatory stage. We have to turn them into primary level guerrilla zones. Besides this, we will try for unification also.

Your strategy appears to be ‘unite and conquer’. In this light, do you see yourself having any relations with the CPI and the CPI-M?

There is no possibility of any union with them as they are revisionist forces. But we do not rule out the rare possibility that we may co-operate with them in certain fields. Like, for instance, creating awareness among the peasantry. For the broader interests of the peasantry we may support their cause at the cadre level. But there will be no union.

The PW does not have a public face. Since Kondapalli Seetharamaiah was ousted, you have been working as a faceless organisation. Why?

Even if a revolutionary party wants to project someone as leader, it is not possible as we work underground. Under certain conditions some persons may achieve fame. The lessons we learned from the crisis in our party (mainly the ousting of Kondapalli Seetharamaiah and the defection of Sathiyamoorthy) spell out that public faces are not the correct thing to have. Our decision is that the party should be projected, not individuals. If a person tries to project himself, that should be checked. That’s the party policy.

Do you see the revolution succeeding in your lifetime? How long will it take to ‘overthrow the imperialists’?

I am optimistic. But it is impossible to set a time frame.

Will you, under any circumstance, arrive at a compromise with the ruling classes of today?

No.

At a personal level, do you ever see yourself moving away from the organisation?

How can that be? I cannot be separated from the party.

ShareThis