i endorse in solidarity - Salim T.K, Dammam, Saudi Arabia. On Mon, Jan 25, 2010 at 8:44 AM, jenny rowena <[email protected]>wrote:
> We a group of concerned academicians and activists belonging to the Kerala > Feminist Network have come to know that Chithralekha, a Dalit woman who is > making a living as an auto driver, has been harassed by the CITU and the > police in Payyanur, Kannur District, Kerala, on 20th January 2010. It is > also extremely disconcerting to note that while the general apathy of the > police continue, the trade unions of the CPI (M) has resorted to other ways > of demoralizing the struggle of a woman for just and equal, civil, political > and human rights. > > > > *BACKGROUND* > > > > Chithralekha, a Dalit woman, from Payyanur in Kannur, Kerala, was one of > the first woman auto drivers to enter a workplace dominated by men from > higher castes. Right from the beginning there was a strong resistance to her > and there was a three month delay in giving her a membership of the union. > Later, when she went on to become an efficient and extremely popular auto > rickshaw driver, the resistance against her took a violent turn. Soon she > was subject to many acts of workplace harassment by her fellow auto drivers. > On one occasion, the hood of her auto was torn off, she was called > derogatory caste names, and a fellow driver even tried to run her over with > his vehicle. Chithralekha protested against this, lodging complaints with > the police and even managing to get one of the workers arrested with the > help of a local Dalit activist. In the course of her protest, she also > brought to light the fact that her district and locality still practiced > untouchability, albeit in modern forms. Once the issue went outside the > purview of the local auto stand, the CITU and the local CPI (M) goons > adopted a new tactic and started tarnishing her image with wide spread > poster campaigns. Through these posters, Chithralekha was branded as a > sexually loose woman, a woman who drinks, whose mother was a sex worker, who > talks like a man, who does not listen and who does not know how to behave. > With such a campaign, Chithralekha lost all support in the locality. > > > > On December 30th, 2005, they burned down her auto, depriving her of her > only source of livelihood. However, Chithralekha continued with her struggle > and managed to procure a new auto through her association with various > Dalit, Feminists and Citizen’s initiatives in June 2008. Chithralekha had > been slowly trying to get on with her life, though she and her husband were > often being attacked in various ways by the local CITU. It was at this point > that the current incident occurred. > > * * > > *THE CURRENT INCIDENT* > > > On the morning of 20th January 2010, Chithralekha (along with her husband > Shreeshanth) who was about to park her auto rickshaw in front of a medical > shop, was asked to move her vehicle from the parking spot by one Mr > Ramachandran who is an office bearer of the CITU auto rickshaw Union in > Payyanur. When Chithralekha protested, an altercation followed between them > and the CITU workers started beating her up. Soon, a police jeep arrived and > bundled the couple into the vehicle. They were taken to the police station > and severely beaten up. Later she was allowed to go without even registering > a case!! She has visible wounds all over her body and has had to go to the > hospital twice after the incident. Moreover, she is unable to move out of > her house or drive her auto as she is afraid of further violence. Shockingly > there is very little media coverage of this issue and no local support > available to her in defending against the attack. > > > > In this context, we strongly demand the State Government to: > > * * > > Ø *Take immediate steps to ensure the fundamental rights of > Chithralekha to be able to work and live in her own native place, free of > mental and physical torture. * > > * * > > Ø *Implement the provisions of the Vishakha Guidelines on Sexual > Harassment at the Workplace for Chithralekha, an auto rickshaw driver.* > > * * > > * * > > Ø *Take stringent actions against the CITU workers and police > officers on duty who inflicted violence on Chithralekha during the incident. > * > > * * > > Ø *Constitute an Independent Judicial Commission to conduct thorough > investigation into the whole issue* > > > > > > Chithralekha Solidarity, > > Kerala Feminist Network > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Green Youth Movement" group. > To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > [email protected]<greenyouth%[email protected]> > . > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth?hl=en-GB. > -- sAlIm -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To post to this group, send an 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.
