I would suggest that in Kerala, it was not just the Lavlin case. The fundamental mistake occurred when the Left lost touch with the masses. The crudely self righteous sermons in favour of what they called 'Development' and the criminal insensitivity toward the plights of victims of a neo-liberal political agenda were never taken without a pinch of salt. This seems true not just of those directly affected by new forms of deprivation but also others, who expected sort of care for human rights and natural justice on such things esp from a Left set up. While these criticisms were totally ignored by the Party, the Kerala leadership( with the backing of the Polit Bureau) even rubbished them as a handiwork of some imagined 'bourgeois media syndicate'. Kerala saw an entire Party being mobilised to defend Pinarayi, in the context of clear accusation of huge misappropriation of public funds and charges of corruption (Lavline). Thousands of landless people, mainly dalits, occupying a big rubber estate land in Chengara (Pathanamthitta dist) demanding it to be distributed to them was seen by the CPI(M) less a land issue than a 'conspiracy' by (foreign funded) NGOs and psuedo intellectuals. Direct assaults were unleashed (ostensibly in the name of protecting the interests of rubber tapping workers unions, and by goondas masquerading as CITU activists) against poor dalits including women and children. An honourable negotiated settlement on the Chengara land struggle was never attempted and is still pending. By and large, the media has been sympathetic to this issue though the CPI(M) showed it as yet another proof of 'meadia conspiracy'. Perhaps many of us we could even visualize the worst- some thing like Nandigram developing. Apparently thanks to the intervention by an enlightened section within and outside the Left set up, that didn't happen. In relation to the electoral debacle of the CPI(M) and the Left, I like to quote a statement in an analysis by the CPI(ML) (Liberation): ''...The epicentre of the anti-CPI(M) political earthquake lies squarely in the Singur-Nandigram seismic zone where the CPI(M) has been punished for its arrogant and coercive attitude to the peasantry and the intelligentsia, for its ruthless attempt to implement the same economic policies that it claims to have been opposing all along.."
Though development like Nandigram did not happen here, land related issues in many places where people face threats of imminent eviction and brutal state violence are still continuing in Kerala. These have to do with issues connected with anti poor ,neo-liberal agenda often aiding Corporate land grabbings. -- http://venukm.blogspot.com/ --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ 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 -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
