*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*
July 1, 2008
The Honorable Condoleezza Rice
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
2201 C St. NW
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Secretary Rice,
It has come to our attention that the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Mr.
Narendra Modi is once again planning to apply for a visa to enter the United
States. We urge the State Department not to allow Mr. Modi to enter the
country under any conditions, as the circumstances under which he was denied
a visa in 2005 remain largely unchanged, and the minority communities in his
state continue to face systematic human rights violations.
The United States should not unwittingly be the platform from which these
unrepentant and yet ascendant forces in India exploit the opportunity to
rally the support base among Indian Diaspora communities and raise
international legitimacy and standing. It would be dangerous at this
juncture of Indian political process to give Mr. Modi that long denied and
therefore much coveted window.
Not only was Mr. Modi responsible for the deaths of over 2,000 Muslims and
the displacement of 200,000 more, but six years after the Gujarat-state
sponsored violence, the Muslim community in Gujarat is subjected to a
devastating economic and social boycott, institutionalized at every level.
Most have received little, if no compensation for the deaths of loved ones
and loss of property; thousands are still displaced, without homes, work, or
access to decent schools for their children. At the level of the courts too,
Muslims in Gujarat have received little justice, barring a few exceptions;
and the few that have managed to push their cases forward have met with
threats, physical harm and harassment.
As recently as April 2008, Mr. Modi enacted the anti-conversion law in
Gujarat that effectively bars religious conversions, thereby crippling the
provisions of religious freedom in the state.
In a recent expose by the investigative magazine Tehelka, the Gujarat state
prosecutor appointed by Mr. Modi was captured on video confessing to
protecting the perpetrators of the 2002 violence. Further, one of the
accused involved in the killings, confessed to Mr. Modi having transferred
several court judges as to protect him from any convictions.
Noting the prejudice extending at every level of the state apparatus, the
Supreme Court ordered cases related to the 2002 massacres to be moved out of
Gujarat.
Mr. Modi has not only expressed no remorse for the 2002 violence; but he has
continued to justify them, as he has a spate of extra judicial killings
(fake ‘encounter killings’) by his police. And, the state continues to
persecute civil society groups who have been trying to speak up for the
victims under very difficult circumstances.
Attached please find the reports of human rights organizations and related
references on Gujarat.
Sincerely,
*Coalition Against Genocide*
CC:
Bureau of Democracy
Human Rights and Labor
Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs
India Desk
Democracy and Global Affairs
The *Coalition Against Genocide* includes a diverse spectrum of
organizations associated with Indian Americans that have come together in
response to the Gujarat Genocide to demand justice and accountability. This
letter has been endorsed by the following constituent organizations of
the *Coalition
Against Genocide*:
1. Alliance for a Secular and Democratic South Asia (ASDSA)
2. Association of Indian Muslims of America (AIM)
3. Campaign to Stop Funding Hate (CSFH)
4. Coalition for a Secular and Democratic India (CSDI)
5. Dalit Freedom Network (DFN)
6. Dharma Megha Inc.
7. Friends of South Asia (FOSA)
8. Gujarati Muslim Association of America (GMAA)
9. Hindu Vaishnava Center for Enlightenment
10. India Development Society
11. India Foundation Inc.
12. Indian Buddhist Association
13. Indian Muslim Council-USA (IMC-USA)
14. Indian Muslim Educational Foundation of North America (IMEFNA)
15. Indian Muslim Relief & Charities (IMRC)
16. International Service Society
17. International South Asia Forum-NY (INSAF-NY)
18. Muslim Vohra Association
19. Muslim Youth Awareness Alliance (MYAA)
20. Non-Resident Indians for Secular and Harmonious India (NRI-SAHI)
21. Seva International
22. Sikh American Heritage Organization (SAHO)
23. South Asian Progressive Action Collective (SAPAC)
24. Supporters of Human Rights in India (SHRI)
25. Vedanta Society of East Lansing
*CONTACT:*
Dr. Hyder Khan
Phone/Fax: 443-927-9039
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
*REFERENCES:*
*Five years on - the bitter and uphill struggle for justice in Gujarat*
Amnesty International Report, published on March 2007, 19 pages.
http://amnesty.org/en/library/asset/ASA20/007/2007/en/dom-ASA200072007en.pdf<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001tPhWogZraFFUIsOytWQbdEw1swdbmGoQTk3-ipnVMILuOTeOpcyOo13zw21mQ0Gx2kakrwwkhImJpHDvM2xsgPAZCshph0Tw08T1Hynrx1pJh9tqbgb_Dx2QytOM3xAed1ZOC4NVvzvNlwQLZsxTLkwONwg_PiYQD1MleTc_tBTyMIoY0_RcND80P-KG6NlQxceELGb_VyE=>
*India: A pattern of unlawful killings by the Gujarat police*
Amnesty International Briefing, published on May 24, 2007, 15 pages.
http://amnesty.org/en/library/asset/ASA20/011/2007/en/dom-ASA200112007en.pdf<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001tPhWogZraFF7BlLqcovQTbweX1Yre4fdWzGk6esxO2lFroygAxCc1msJdIBErgVPk-mZiM3oGt8iz7zT94iS3APQ-slRAteiu-i9c36JDwS_GcxN4mxpubjip6Scjw9otSJFEkHJNl8_D4LS_CP1EzhMb-KtI-ccEKtAHyYfzTAuyAERYRIXWrt1fqUtmFsca4dq4otuBWc=>
*India: Gujarat Chief Minister Endorses Unlawful Killings*
Human Rights Watch, December 7, 2007
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2007/12/07/india17510_txt.htm<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001tPhWogZraFFRlyA4j3Oorgxxc-GZvXt7o8kPSyfyfBqEpf-ldL6MAvhjXEqXI54-i1voECO3_Y2ecscaezVY_rlzLrmSE6Mnl1Egecgp8yiI9M8aLbkYWHdrDi6zpZ2YTrB1Czlf42FbDXJ1mzXNMAMozlrqbK87sNAjCyS1Nb0=>
*Gujarat state fails to protect women from violence*
Amnesty International Report, published on 27 January 2005
http://amnesty.org/en/library/asset/ASA20/001/2005/en/dom-ASA200012005en.pdf<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001tPhWogZraFGBWXg0l9Kr-2cyOgINQj3rQAlLn5m4VfIlhFTVQ0dhC6PLBYAdZ--G6UZTqh-9U_4rnLI_q7ibThjoCjZfAYn2g_o1LjFOOKCuX3eQlUpsh1lw-AeyYW7ByPwxctyH6jKUu909H6Dk7Z-vBr9u8MrvDLWv_qMbzObkdJURzp50kWPqHIb0Mf-kZzdtd90Drec=>
*DISCOURAGING DISSENT: Intimidation and Harassment of Witnesses, Human
Rights Activists, and Lawyers Pursuing Accountability for the 2002 Communal
Violence in Gujarat*
Human Rights Watch Report, published September 2004, 30 pages.
http://www.hrw.org/backgrounder/asia/india/gujarat/gujarat0904.pdf<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001tPhWogZraFGLtyW_MWdYVo_R0gDyB96kh3zQwFMvKvHJhdpAiHIiIbwyEszPFsa1z0ixA1pMZzTxqL__76CNkYjcO3f6YOepq_8N6skIWRwtgVK_Pjhqh-OZt8JIKrBf3V7RkT6XxL74IChVFhfCkXupseIfJOtPRlkfvOyrRnyKD_fgnM3QaA==>
*Devil's Advocate*
*(Transcript of Gujarat Advocate General Arvind Pandya confessing to
protecting the perpetrators of 2002 Gujarat massacres, captured on a hidden
camera by Tehelka Magazine in a recent expose)*
http://www.tehelka.com/story_main35.asp?filename=Ne031107DEVIL.asp<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001tPhWogZraFE3ZvzVM_r93htOZB1D9jJOHImhg4H6v_tLZrKhqEEV2rOg_KwoF78P9a-CP6KMukm7RAB7uU5fhDg3Sb2knVLZORAqE7gKYX0KW0xK7_I7dIpRv-E1RRiwbjquyv4oYslMVfRYZhYKF2Xo4CtgYHhB0WSnca7gyiBKqZPD59xj7A==>
*VIDEO CONFESSION:*
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9KlevWeYrE<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001tPhWogZraFEsKnriloTa6sWH6GLvS6Lnm0jY1MQWEcJsQYIozKUpSTNm1IaYHlr1I9mt7AlDITU_MEi7LWvEI2ACvat5xac05pOfDUiQ7LdhisDi3B3bpcH1dweNMX4TbdNuA5AYQcQNKGCZOaJ4rA==>
*"After Killing Them, I Felt Like Maharana Pratap"*
*(Transcript of Babu Bajrangi's confessions caught on a hidden video camera
by Tehelka Magazine in a recent expose)*
http://www.tehelka.com/story_main35.asp?filename=Ne031107After_killing.asp<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001tPhWogZraFFiWweUgEyXQ8B_0UJOATXHaz05NF_SjuRCHdrKULluUOd-lJngrR8MSUtj6rkyvcjtdgWXaUI2dy9eSg5qTfhYcAeSIJ85AxuBsFMJaHWjyP__qosENlfIW3sejxOWbRiHt7vv7XiXuYORKb29i0mM_p2V1TAVfgP5JJ2GbR69Bi5qr1Y5ARP7>
*VIDEO CONFESSION:*
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfnTl_Fwvbo<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001tPhWogZraFHqM_REOsOi77JFlkyoFasJeKsFZyH9dZ2H6wH1645u84UVzjhavui-IT-wr_If0BcH3CcNOJab1t6-PuzvZQVHpWd5fxxqtvIG_vmBarFMEtFKOp7EBgDPqYO9udUvWoQE9RXNjiUK6g==>
*
<http://ui.constantcontact.com/sa/fwtf.jsp?m=1101137246150&ea=sjprashant%40gmail.com&a=1102156386780>
*
--
--
+ Savad Rahman
Subeditor
Madhyamam Daily
Kochi,Kerala
India-682018
cell:9995431420
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
"I am only one, but still I am one;
I cannot do everything, but still I can do something;
And just because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the
something that I can do." -- Helen Keller
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"Green Youth Movement" group.
To post to this group, send email to [email protected]
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
For more options, visit this group at
http://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth?hl=en-GB
-~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
