--- On Mon, 28/9/09, Sandeep Chavan wrote: > > UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva looks set to > recognize caste-based discrimination as a human rights > violation. > Read the inside story.. > > Nepal ditches India, says caste is akin to racism > Despite Indian Oppn, UN Set To Dub It A Human Rights > Violation > http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=TOINEW&BaseHref=TOIM/2009/09/28&PageLabel=1&EntityId=Ar00100&ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T > > > Nepal ditches India, says caste is akin to racism > Despite Indian Oppn, UN Set To Dub It A Human Rights > Violation > Manoj Mitta | TNN > > > New Delhi: If the recent genome study denying the > Aryan-Dravidian divide has established the antiquity of > caste segregations in marriage, the ongoing session of the > UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva looks set to > recognize caste-based discrimination as a human rights > violation. This, despite India’s opposition and following > Nepal’s breaking ranks on the culturally sensitive issue. > Nepal has emerged as the first country > from South Asia—the region where untouchability has been > traditionally practised—to declare support for the draft > principles and guidelines published by UNHRC four months ago > for “effective elimination of discrimination based on work > and descent’’—the UN terminology for caste inequities. > In a side-event to the session on > September 16, Nepalese minister Jeet Bahadur Darjee Gautam > said his country welcomed the idea mooted by the UNHRC > document to involve “regional and international mechanism, > the UN and its organs’’ to complement national efforts > to combat caste discrimination. This is radically different > from India’s stated aversion to the internationalization > of the caste problem.
Much to India’s embarrassment, > Nepal’s statement evoked an immediate endorsement from the > office of the UN high commissioner for human rights, > Navanethem Pillay, a South African Tamil. Besides calling > Nepal’s support “a significant step by a country > grappling with this entrenched problem itself’’, > Pillay’s office said it would “like to encourage other > states to follow this commendable example’’. The reference to India was unmistakable > especially since Pillay had pressed the issue during her > visit to New Delhi in March. Pillay not only asked India to > address “its own challenges nationally, but show > leadership in combating caste-based discrimination > globally’’. The granddaughter of an indentured labourer > taken to South Africa from a village near Madurai, Pillay > recalled that in 2006, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had > compared untouchability to apartheid. Adding to India’s discomfiture, > Sweden, in its capacity as the president of the European > Union, said, “caste-based discrimination and other forms > of discrimination based on work and descent are an important > priority for EU’’. If this issue continues to gather > momentum, UNHRC may in a future session adopt the draft > principles and guidelines and, to impart greater legal > force, send them for adoption to the UN General Assembly. The draft principles specifically cited > caste as one of the grounds on which more than 200 million > people in the world suffer discrimination. “This type of > discrimination is typically associated with the notion of > purity and pollution and practices of untouchability, and is > deeply rooted in societies and cultures where this > discrimination is practised,’’ it said. > India Isolated? > UN proposes to equate discrimination on basis of caste—on > grounds of work, descent—to rights violation India has > long opposed ‘internationalization’ of the caste issue > Nepal supports draft, first south Asian country to do so > UNHRC calls upon India to follow Nepal’s example > > > Thanks, > > Sandeep.
