---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Anindya Hajra <anindya.ha...@gmail.com> Date: 16 June 2011 15:00 Subject: REPEATED ATTACKS ON MANAS BANGLA BY SELF PROCLAIMED TRANSGENDER GROUP To: Aditya Bandopadhay <adit.b...@gmail.com>, Aditya Bondyopadhyay < adi...@bamon.org>
Governing Body Member Integrated Network for Sexual Minorities (INFOSEM) India REPEATED ATTACKS ON MANAS BANGLA BY SELF PROCLAIMED TRANSGENDER GROUP Dear Governing Body Members With a deep sense of anguish and trauma we wish to register our protest for the planned attack on the transgender staff member of MANAS Bangla (the network of MSM and Transgender community led organisations in West Bengal) and participant at the Community Consultation of Sexual Minorities for NACP IV in Eastern India, held at Kolkata on June 15, 2011 by some fellow participants who claim to be the only true representatives of transgender in West Bengal, by virtue of just being members of a transgender network. MANAS Bangla supports the process of separate TIs being for MSM and for Transgender/Hijra. We were also represented in the TG TI NACP IV Working Group. During the consultation, groups were divided between MSM and Transgender/Hijra identities. 2 of our staff members from MANAS Bangla who self identify as Transgender sat in the TG/Hijra group. During the discussion they shared their inputs in the TG TI design process based on their working experience in an MSM TI as currently there is no separate design available for TG TIs. At this juncture, some self proclaimed Transgender/ Hijra members associated with another network from West Bengal led a preplanned and unprovoked attack on the said member from MANAS Bangla, by instigating other participants from their association, gheraoing and physically assaulting her whilst shouting abuses. They deliberately created an extremely hostile environment threatening the organisers and participants with dire consequences if the said member from MANAS Bangla was not removed from the TG/Hijra group. They further threatened they will disrupt the entire process of the Community Consultation demanding no transgenders can be associated with an MSM network, saying they cannot be ‘true transgenders’ and that membership with their association alone ensures who can qualify as a real transgender. We are surprised to see how this association assumes the role of being the arbitrator of deciding who is is going to self identify as MSM/ Transgender/ Hijra. It was very disturbing to witness the unleashing of their terror tactics by a mob of self styled transgender leaders, who are continuing to do so in in democratic and peaceful community led processes repeatedly over a period of time including INFOSEM meetings. This is not the first time that this association has attacked MANAS Bangla, and several e groups of this country are witness to their malicious emails and unfounded accusations leveleld against us. MANAS Bangla has never responded to such baseless attacks over emails, neither have we counter attacked this association. MANAS Bangla has thus far cooperated with all community led processes as a responsible community initiative. In order to achieve the goals of the Community Consultation for Sexual Minorities for NACP IV MANAS bangla refrained from entering a slinging match during the consultation or afterwards. But we also feel that our silence should not be taken as our weakness. Many members of this association in the past and even now continue to work and earn their livelihood by being staff members of MANAS Bangla. The double standard of this association is stunning! MANAS BANGLA STRONGLY REGISTERS ITS PROTEST AGAINST THE PREPLANNED AND UNPROVOKED PHYSICAL ASSAULT ON OUR STAFF MEMBER AND THE NETWORK ORGANISATION. We therefore wish to bring to notice of INFOSEM, UNDP India and the local organising committee of Eastern India for this Community Consultation, this deplorable incident, which by all means seems to be preplanned and is now a constant feature by certain persons claiming their membership to this association. In the light of this incident, which is not a stand alone incident at all, given the series of attacks MANAS Bangla has been subjected to, we are left without choice toremove ourselves from any kind of coordination with the said association and persons in future. We would also be interested to know how INFOSEM or any other agencies will address such uncivil acts of vulgar muscle flexing in what are peaceful and democratic community led processes. In protest Governing Body members and Staff of MANAS Bangla Copy to: 1. Sayan Chatterjee, IAS, DG, NACO 2. Aradhana Johri, Additional Secretary, NACO 3. Dr. N Dhingra, DDG (TI), NACO 4. R Manilal, TI Division, NACO 5. Dr. Subhash Ghosh, TI Division, NACO 6. Elavarthi Manohar, INFOSEM (Community Consultation Process) 7. Alka Narang, UNDP, India 8. Ernest Noronha, UNDP, India 9. Project Director, West Bengal State AIDS Prevention & Control Society 10. TSU, West Bengal -- Anindya Hajra Calcutta, INDIA +91 9831031674 Alternate email: anindya.ha...@vsnl.net -- -- ADITYA BONDYOPADHYAY Development Sector Consultant Advocate (Regd. No. F-218/192 of 1997, Bar Council of W.Bengal, India) Website: http://adityabondyopadhyay.webs.com/ ================================ Notice to all recipients: Communication not intended for you but reaching you inadvertently needs to be treated as confidential and destroyed or deleted immediately. Use of such communication in a manner prejudicial to the interest of Aditya Bondyopadhyay and/or his principals, and/or his clients, and/or his agents respectively, may attract legal proceedings which may be of a civil or criminal nature. Aditya Bondyopadhyay and/or his principals, and/or his clients, and/or his agents respectively cannot be held liable or accountable for any and every communication reaching out through this email account that is an unaltered forward of another communication received by this email account, or a referred source available on the internet and accessible to the public.
