Dear Kavita wish you a merry Christmas and season's greetings. Have you read Ozymandias of Egypt = ashort poem by Shelly It isa beutiful poem That will by Christmas Gift for HR Activists kgk
On Sun, Dec 13, 2009 at 2:09 PM, Kavita Srivastava <[email protected]> wrote: > THERE IS NO STOPPING THE DANTEWADA PADYATRA > > IT WILL TAKE PLACE AS PLANNED > > > > APPEAL TO ALL ACTIVISTS TO GET THEIR ACT TOGETHER > > > > JOIN THE PADYATRA FROM 14TH TO 26TH DEC. 09 > > JOIN THE SATYAGRAH FROM 25th DEC. '09 > > JOIN THE JAN SUNWAI, 6-7 JAN. '10 > > > > Jaipur, > > 13th, December, '09 > > Dear Friends, > > > > Himanshuji and other friends of Dantewada have brought to our notice the > latest attacks of the Chhattisgarh Police and the State Government on the > VCA. Many of us are aware that on the 10th of December, '09 on Human Rights > Day, Kopa, a VCA tribal activist, and Alban who is also a tribal and a human > rights lawyer from HRLN, were both picked up, illegally detained and badly > beaten. Alban was released next day but Kopa was arrested on charges of > being involved in the murder of Punam Honga who was abducted by Maoists on > June 2nd and later his body was found in a mutilated condition. > > > > Kopa being charged for the murder of Punam Honga is absolutely rubbish. This > arrest is part of the same series of arrests as was of Binayak in 2007, Ajay > TG in 2008, Sukhanth in July, 2009 and now before the end of the year Kopa. > The point is only one. If you disagree with the Chhattisgarh Government and > try putting across another point of view then you will be removed from the > scene. This is Chhattisgarh. And the Government of India ? It will watch in > silence. > > > > Kopa and the his work with the VCA > > > > It is also very important to know that Kopa has spent more than 13 years of > his life with the VCA. He is a brilliant singer and orator. Before joining > VCA, he was with the Gayatri mission where he motivated people through his > songs to stop drinking alcohol. It was his singer's voice which got him a > job in VCA where he not only continued to spread his anti liquor message, > but now he also started organising kala jathas. On foot he and other workers > started mobilising people to demand entitlements related to their Right to > Food and Health and saving and reclaiming their Natural Resources. A very > effective worker, he was responsible for putting together more than 750 > community workers on these issues and more than forty main trainers in the > district of Dantewada and Bijapur which is the work area of the VCA. > > > > Kopa became uncomfortable for the administration and police since 2008. He > took the courageous step of initiating the resettlement and rehabilitation > work as per Supreme Court order of all those villagers who had left their > villages due to the atrocities of the Salwa Judum and SPOs. He was the > Rehabilitation coordinator of VCA. It was not just this work, he also > exposed the Matwara massacre of 18th March, 2008 where three tribals were > brutally killed and their bodies mutilated in a salwa judum camp. Kopa > helped the families initiate legal proceedings in the High Court. He also > got the widows of the three to file a complaint in the police station, which > never got converted to an FIR. > > > > He also exposed the Singaram massacre of 2009, where four girls were raped > and murdered. Fifteen men were also murdered in this episode. Kopa got the > families to initiate legal proceedings in the High Court and also got them > to file complaints in the local police station. In 2009, he also exposed and > took cudgels with the district administration regarding corruption in NREGA, > including non-payment of wages to tribals. He was constantly fighting for > people's rights to get their share of PDS from ration shops, the only agency > of the Government existing in the villages. Otherwise it is only the police > and security forces. > > > > The abduction of Nagesh Jhadi and Punam Honga, the 2nd June incident > > > > Please recall that on the 2nd of June when Nagesh Jhadi and Kopa were > returning from the Basaguda camp in Dantewada, their motorbike was stopped > and Nagesh Jhadi the Panchayat secretary of Mallepalli was picked up by the > Maoists. Kopa ran around chasing the abductors in the forest. He was unaware > that Punam Honga (former Sarpanch), who was traveling in a mini truck, had > been picked up later by the Maoists. Kopa decided to lodge a complaint about > the abduction of Nagesh soon after, but then he was harassed by the SPOs and > detained at the police station. So the next day Himanshuji went and brought > Kopa out and they both decided to make their own enquiries about Nagesh's > abduction in the forest areas. But they were then led into a trap at > Lingagiri by the SPOs, from where they managed to escape and drove hundred > kilometres through forest areas and got out into the Bhadrachalam side of > the forest where with the support of the late Sh. Balgopal of HRF, Himanshu > addressed a press conference on the whole episode ( please see attachement- > Himanshu's statement from Bhadrachalam). We also know that Kopa had nothing > to do with either the abduction of Nagesh Jhadi (he was released later) or > the abduction and killing of Punam Honga, even then he had said that his > life was in danger as he was being targeted for his work in exposing the > Matwada and Singaram massacres and in trying to ensure justice to the > families of those killed. In August, '09 too Kopa was picked up and beaten > up by the SPOs. See attachment of his interview published in Hari Bhoomi > saying that his life was in danger. > > > > On 20th October, '09 Kopa, while addressing the meeting of the Citizen's > Initiative for Peace at Constitution Club in New Delhi, said that his life > was in danger and that he would be arrested for his work. > > > > Why the Arrest of Kopa now? IS Himanshu going to be the next one? > > > > The arrest of Kopa has been made just five days before the padyatra that was > to be undertaken under the leadership of Himanshu. The timing of the arrest > completely gives away the Government's motives. It is clear the Government > does not want the padyatra to happen. They do not want the misdemeanours of > the police, CRPFand other security forces to be exposed which the yatra will > do as it will bring into the eyes of the public stories of people from areas > where nobody has gone till now. > > > > They also want to put the fear in the tribals of Dantewada that their fate > may be the same as Kopa and Sukhnath if they connect with VCA. It is clearly > an effort of trying to destroy the VCA completely. They felt that after the > demolition, the VCA would shut up. But the VCA reorganised itself in > Dantewada, the district headquarters. So the next attack was the arrest of > Sukhnath on 30th July, '09, who they arrested under CSPSA on flimsy charges. > The police thought that now the activists would lie low, but they were > proved wrong. Nothing seemed to abate the resolve of the VCA in its > endeavour to ensure justice to the people, so when the operation Green Hunt > began in the forest areas of Dantewada, Himanshuji and his workers took the > message all over the country. They facilitated the entry of groups and > journalists to these areas who came for fact finding. They traveled > thousands of miles to Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai and spoke to > thousands to people and built a public opinion on stopping the ongoing war > and potential genocide. They provided evidence of police and SPO atrocities > by bringing the victims of these attacks to the fore. Media covered all > this. Under the pressure of the public opinion thus generated, even the Home > Minister P Chidambaram had to meet Himanshu and agreed to come to Dantewada > if a public hearing got organised. To top it all, the Supreme Court also > issued notices when a case got filed there on the basis of the testimonies > of the victims of the police operation. > > > > This development and the announcement of the Padyatra, Satyagraha and Jan > Sunwai was the last straw. Hence Kopa was picked up on false charges of > committing murder and supporting Naxalites. > > > > And now the next person on the radar of the police and the SPOS is Himanshu. > A rally of Salwa Judum and SPOs, taken out on the 10th of December had as > its main slogans 'Himanshu ko maro”, 'Himanshu bhagao, Bastar bachao', 'VCA > ke karyakarta bhagao, Dantewada Bachao’ and “maro salon ko”. > > > > Himanshuji informed me on the 12th morning that between 11th and 12th, the > Thana Incharge of Dantewada sent police 6 times and also came himself > investigating yet another false story that a jeep had left Himanshu's house > in the evening at 6 pm on the 11th and some of the persons in the jeep had > tried to abduct one SPO who was on the road. The Thana incharge claimed that > the SPO escaped under the pretext of wanting to urinate. On charges of > attempt to abduction, this investigation is being carried out. > > > > The latest incident of the Collector of Dantewada getting the Danteshwari > Sarwajanik Dharmashala to return the money that VCA had deposited for > booking rooms during the Satyagraha period, clearly shows that the State > will not allow any other voice to express itself. > > > > So friends, there is a clear cut war in Chhattisgarh. Whoever speaks out > against this will be cleared from the scene. > > > > This is a wake up call for all of us. > > > > Come support the Padyatra, Satyagrah and the Jan Sunwai!!! See the attached > announcement for details. > > > > You can send volunteers, blankets, food and money and, of course, above all > come to Dantewada!! You can send your Cheques or Demand Drafts to Vanvasi > Chetna Ashram payable at Dantewada. ( see details below.) > > Please circulate this message to others. > > > > > > With regards > > > > > > Kavita Srivastava > > > > (PUCL, National Secretaty) > > > > > > > > 1. Name and address of the bank : State Bank of India > > > Dantewada (C.G.) > > 2. Bank A/C No. : > 10753239968 > > 3. Bank A/C Name : Vanvasi > Chetna Ashram > > 4. Branch Code No. : 0545 > > 5. IFS Code : > SBIN0000545 > > 6. MICR : > 494002006 > > > > -- > Kavita Srivastava > (General Secretary) PUCL Rajasthan > > Address for correspondence : > > 76, Shanti Niketan Colony, Kisan Marg, Barkat Nagar, Jaipur-302015 > Tel. 0141-2594131 > mobile: 9351562965 > > -- > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "humanrights 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/humanrights-movement?hl=en. > -- K.G. KANNABIRAN National President, PUCL Plot 300, Street 6, E. Marredpalli Secunderabad 500 026, AP Phone: 040-27730632 -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "humanrights 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/humanrights-movement?hl=en.
