---------- From: "cpimllib" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: [L-I] All India Peasant Struggle Committee, Appeal for Solidarity All India Kisan Sangharsh Samiti U-90, Shakarpur, Delhi - 110 092 Phone: 222 1067 Fax : 221 8248 Dear friend, Akhil Bharatiya Kisan Sangharsh Samiti (AIKSS) is an umbrella organisation of various peasant organisations who are fighting for radical transformation of agrarian conditions in the interests of poor and middle peasants at the state level. These sections have been the worst hit by the ongoing process of globalisation and Indian government's abject surrender to the imperialist masters in the World Trade Organisation. The cruelest outcome of this new phase is manifest in suicide deaths of peasants on the one hand and starvation deaths on the other, while FCI godowns are overflowing and foodgrains rotting. This process has resulted in a steep increase in the indebtedness of poor and middle peasantry, collapse of public distribution system, withdrawal of the government from the social sector, failure of the government to honour its commitment to purchase agricultural produce, flooding of the Indian market with foreign agrarian produce and complete erosion of self-sufficiency in foodgrains, edible oil and other important agricultural products. In the run up of WTO Ministerial Level Meeting to be held at Doha, it became clear that the rich countries led by USA were pressurising to start a new round while shirking from the obligations of implementing the due tariff concessions. The proposed measures to be adopted in the new round will further tighten the noose around the developing countries and the agriculture there will be mortgaged to the imperialists. This will provide the basis for robbing India of her residual sovereignty and completing the process of her neo-colonial subjugation. Therefore, in its Mansa session held on 10 September 2001, AIKSS decided to hold a massive peasant rally on 9 November 2001, the day WTO ministerial level talks are scheduled to start at Doha. Several other peasant organisations, including Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta) Punjab and BKU (Haryana) have also extended their support to the proposal. In the meantime, following the terrorist strikes of 11 September, the USA has started frenetically bombing Afghanistan in which hundreds of innocent men, women and children have already been killed and George Bush is threatening to bomb Afghanistan back to the stone age. We are aware of the danger that this war against 'terrorism' can at any moment spread beyond Afghanistan, and at any rate the USA has the objective of establishing strategic control over central and south Asia. Instead of raising the country's profile by taking the lead in voicing the third world's concern over America's Afghan war, the BJP rulers have shamed the country and harmed our sovereignty and dignity by serving as agents of the Bush administration. Simultaneously, India's saffron rulers are manipulating the present situation to advance their fascist agenda by creating warlike conditions around the border with Pakistan and imposing the communally motivated ban on SIMI resulting in a witch-hunt against the Muslim youth. Anti-war protesters are being harassed and arrested and the new anti-terrorism ordinance marks the beginning of a new war on democratic rights and civil liberties. A hated autocracy is maturing before our very eyes. We must resist this danger with all our might. In such a communally charged situation, movements on people's issues are the worst sufferers. The US-led imperialists and their Indian agents are trying to utilize this situation to put the surging anti-WTO movement the world over to rest and bulldoze any opposition to a new round at Doha by linking it with their war on 'terrorism'. However, the forces of peace and progress are getting organized world over against the ongoing imperialist war and devastation. While fighting against the exploitative and oppressive WTO process, we must launch powerful movement against the imperialist war in order to become a powerful constituent of the global camp of peace. We have, therefore, decided to call this rally as "Anti-War, Anti-WTO Rally" and appeal to all the like-minded forces to join in this massive protest against imperialists and their agents. We request you to participate in the rally, stand by the cause of the exploited Indian peasantry and express your solidarity by all possible means. _______________________________________________ Leninist-International mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] To change your options or unsubscribe go to: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/leninist-international
