>Dear Ajit, > >You may not remember my friend ela from D. school, Sanjoy Ghose is >her brother and an old acquaintance of mine. Can you please circulate >this message on your various discussion groups? regards, >sanjay > >An Appeal >For the Release of Sanjoy Ghose > >We the undersigned are deeply distressed and concerned over the abduction >of Sanjoy Ghose, social worker, by suspected ULFA militants in Upper >Assam on Friday 4th July 1997. Sanjoy was abducted along with Chandra >Doley, a colleague from their place of work in Bongaon on Majuli Islands >in the Brahmaputra. Chandra Doley after being roughed up escaped from the >abductors and returned the next day. A graduate from the Institute of >Rural Management, Anand (IRMA), Sanjoy Ghose for the last year and half >was involved with the setting up and running the Association of Voluntary >Agencies for Rural Development ( AVARD ) North East. > >From 1986 to 1995 Sanjoy did pioneering work in Western Rajasthan. He set >up URMUL Trust in 1986 in Bikaner with the chief objective of >empowering the local people to address their own development needs. By >1995, URMUL expanded into a network of organisations addressing the >concerns of the poor in the districts of Bikaner, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer >in western Rajasthan. Sanjoy's activities in the field were matched by >the writer in him who wrote extensively and spiritedly on development >issues. Sanjoy was one of the first to realise the need for media >advocacy for the NGOs and struggle based groups, and established CHARKHA >as an interface between NGOs and the mainstream media. > >It was the same pioneering spirit that took him to the Majuli Islands in >upper Assam along with Shumita a women's activist and also his wife and >Dr. Sunil Kaul who after having resigned from the Indian army chose >to work as a health worker in the rural areas. In the course of the last >year and a half Sanjoy and his team established an excellent rapport >with the local community especially the women and the youth. They became >an inspiration for the young adults on the Islands who joined them in >attending to the needs of the community. They motivated the community to >volunteer labour for various activities, including checking soil erosion >on the island. They were also involved in initiating a continuous >dialogue on "Development" with voluntary organisations and individuals >from most of the North East states. > >More significantly, the local community began to ask uncomfortable >questions not only of those who had grown rich by skimming off the money >meant for the development of the poor, but also of the prevailing gun >culture.When a series of anonymous but slanderous allegations began to be >raised against AVARD-NE, the Majuli group decided to hold a public >meeting and audit of all development works in the area. The meeting on >June 1, 1997 was very well attended and opinions were expressed openly by >a cross section of society. The vested interests and militant outfits >were obviously affected by this process.. > >There can be no justification for abducting an individual who was >initiating a process of dialogue and debate of even the works and efforts >initiated by the organisation he represented. We appeal to the conscience >of the ULFA militants and urge them to release Sanjoy Ghose immediately. > >We express our solidarity and extend our moral support to Shumita, the >AVARD- NE team and the women and youth who have been urging ULFA >militants to release Sanjoy. > >This appeal is from friends of Sanjoy Ghose in Rajasthan. Please >circulate it as widely as possible and send the signed copy to newspapers >and to AVARD- NE at P. O. Box 91, Jorhat 785001, Assam, India .Tele/fax >: 0376-325528. >Majuli camp office telephone no : 03775- 3451. E.mail: Sanjoy@ >avard.unv.ernet.in > > >Name >Organisation >Signature > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >
