Caste oppression continues to be a feature of the agrarian belt of Vellore and Thiruvannamalai districts, and presents a challenge that is ingrained in the inherent complexities of India’s none-too-glorious history and scathing deficiencies of the current system. The economic and social development the country has witnessed since Independence has imparted a class character to urban India but in villages, caste equations still continue as fertile grounds for turmoil and conflict. Slowly but steadily, Dalits are organizing themselves and uniting to press intently for the rights that should have been theirs in any fair and democratic setup.
The process of Dalit upliftment ironically didn’t begin with an indigenous effort in Vellore district unlike in most other parts of India, but from an empathetic British District Collector in pre-Independent India. He studied the conditions of the poorest in society and ordered many lands in Vellore to be classified as Depressed Classes (DC) land. But the Dalits, illiterate and uninformed as they were, very few came forward to take possession of this land and it soon passed to the upper castes in society. As the higher castes in Tamil society moved to urban areas taking up jobs and other opportunities, the then backward castes like the Vanniyars for example, moved up the caste hierarchy to preserve the feudal agrarian order of Zamindar and tenant, landlord and landless farmer, peasant and tiller. With land reforms being hazily implemented in Tamil Nadu, the Green Revolution that was unfurled in the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s hit the Dalits who were tillers on others lands very badly, as mechanization reduced significantly the labour that was needed in agriculture, forcing some of them to migrate to cities in search of work.
It isn’t that caste tensions are prevalent across all villages in these two districts. They are most noticeable in those villages where the Dalits are in a minority compared to the upper castes. In such areas, Dalits live with a perpetual fear of clashes breaking out over land, women, festivals and use of common facilities like tanks, temples and toilets. At several places where Dalits are moving to reclaim their land, the lack of cooperation at all tiers of the bureaucracy and the antagonistic stance of the police force are very evident. It comes as no surprise that the stakeholders in agriculture, bureaucracy and the justice system are bonded by caste ties, a formidable combination that the Dalits will find increasingly difficult to pierce as they up the ante of their struggles.
There have been several instances in Vellore and Thiruvannamalai of Dalits who owned agricultural land or who newly won rights to land selling it back to their upper caste neighbours. In most cases they sold it back for amounts far below the market price, a bogey that is raised by the upper castes; they say it is pointless empowering the Dalits with land as they will not retain it. The Dalits in these districts say it is the fear of upper castes whose lands inevitably surround theirs and the obstacles placed in the way of their farming efforts that force them to do so. Dalit activists also admit however that many of their ilk begin to possess an immense desire for quick money; the option before them is to sell the land, but sadly the money is almost always squandered away in drinking and gambling. As a result, all new efforts at land reclamation are done with pleas to transfer pattas to Dalit women rather than the men.
Government efforts to generate employment in rural areas for the landless through the NREGS have brought significant relief to the Dalits. But here again caste discrimination is practised in subtle ways, through segregation of work, so that Dalits and Vanniyars don’t have to come into physical contact. Dalits also complain that they are made to do the physically more taxing work, while others get away more easily. Works done through NREGS like digging public borewells, irrigation and rain-water canals are also monopolized by upper caste landlords who ensure the water does not reach Dalits, like in the case of Muniyamma of Kadalaikulam village (Dalits fight to reclaim land in Vellore, Page 17). But the government response to land demands by Dalits has been characterized by red tape and unease with ruffling upper caste sentiments.
The worst form of caste segregation and oppression can be seen in “inter-caste marriages” (for want of a better term, as rarely do the relationships culminate in marriage). Though an unwritten agreement exists that Vanniyar men will keep to Vanniyar women and Dalits to Dalits fearing caste conflicts, the Vanniyar men are free to break this arrangement and get into physical relationships with Dalit women - often with the promise of marriage, and more often than not walking away from the relationship after saddling the women with their offspring. After interviewing a few women who had been thus promised and betrayed, it was obvious that the panchayat and police machinery sided with the errant men. Only recourse to strong legal action with the help of Dalit political support even gave them an outside chance to win alimony, forget about marriage. These women say that the men would have been ready to accept them, but for fear of ostracism from their community and the threat of disinheritance of ancestral land.
The Tamil Nadu government policy of 50% reservation for Backward Castes fails in rural Tamil Nadu as can be seen from the fact that these erstwhile lower castes have taken up the mantle of upper castes today and continue to perpetrate their hegemony over the Dalits through our existing democratic systems of governance. A crucial file relating to the Kandhaneri graveyard issue(refer above mentioned article) going missing and the sad case of M.Bhagyaraj of Karungali who was assaulted by 14 upper caste youth, but only one person was arrested and later released, despite him having made 26 visits in 18 months between May 2007 and December 2008 to various police officials in the district to press his case, all point to a parochial civil and political machinery, which treats the Dalits on the basis of their caste identity as lesser citizens of the country.
Unlike the Vanniyars, who have today more or less consolidated behind the Pattali Makkal Katchi(PMK) as that party’s political base, the politically active among the Dalits who make up 17% of the state’s population, remain divided among a handful of Dalit and Dravidian parties. The Dalit question and the caste system were glossed over by the Indian National Congress in the freedom struggle and the constitutional reform process that followed it. Caste consciousness is an integral part of the Indian mindset whether rural or urban, and the question remains as to whether the caste system can reorient itself towards practising equality of all castes including the Dalits, even as the nation progresses towards its goal of super-power status.
P.S: An analysis piece written for the college newspaper based on reporting done at Vellore and Thiruvannamalai districts. Wonder if I can get out of the urban trap and report from rural India when I come out. Around the time I was in Vellore, I was appalled but not at all surprised to come across these two opinion pieces on the caste system written by an honourable Supreme Court judge; I leave you to make your conclusions - Part-I and Part-II.
Sunday, 15 February 2009
Wednesday, 11 February 2009
"They have labelled me a traitor"
Sunanda Deshapriya, is a free-lance journalist for the Ravaya newspaper and previously was editor of the Balaya magazine, both publications in the Sinhalese language. He is in India following the attacks on Sri Lankan journalists who have dared to be objective or even-mildly critical of the Sri Lankan government. In an interview, he talks to Jiby Kattakayam and Karthik Ram on the authoritarian rule of Mahinda Rajapaksa, who has made a mockery of the democratic process in his country.
Q: Sir, what made you come to India?
SD: The government said that the media has to take sides. If we did not support the Sri Lankan government blindly, we would be denounced as LTTE supporters. My name was put up on the Defence Ministry website as a traitor. My office was set on fire. After the murder of Lasantha Wickrematunga and the brutal assault on Upali Tennakoon, my family asked me to leave, as they feared for my life. Sri Lankan journalists in exile avoid coming to Madras. Because I am here, I will be labelled an LTTE agent back home. But I doubt I will be able to raise public awareness on the atrocities being committed in Sri Lanka as effectively, elsewhere in India.
Q: Did you know Lasantha? Could his death have been avoided?
SD: Yes, we were friends and both of us were part of the Editors Guild of Sri Lanka. He had been attacked in the past and as there was a known threat to his life, Lasantha, should have been more careful. Probably, he didn’t take it too seriously as he was a close friend of Rajapaksa. I came to know that Rajapaksa was shocked by Lasantha’s murder. Atleast now, he should realize the monster he has let loose.
Q: In the last two years, 17 Sri Lankan journalists have been killed and many missing. After Lasantha’s death is there an outcry against the government from the citizens?
SD: The government is taking advantage of the huge pro-war sentiment to attack the press. The process of suppression started in 2006 in the North. Tamil journalists critical of the government in Jaffna were silenced. Then in 2007, the repression started in the South. There is no independent media left in the country today. Many journalists are in exile. Just yesterday four more journalists arrived in Bangalore from Colombo. Even acts of corruption by the government can’t be investigated by us. Our leaders have become so drunk with power, that Gothaba Rajapaksa, Mahinda’s brother, has said that international media like CNN, BBC and Al-Jazeera will be chased out. Have you heard anything like that in any war zone in the world?
Q: The Army has become very strong in Sri Lanka now. Do you think Gen. Fonseca would seize power?
SD: Fonseca has become a national hero. But then, why would they take over? They have everything while operating in a democracy. They also have the support of the people. Almost every Sinhalese family has a member in the army – the rich as officers, and the poor as soldiers. In Colombo, university students collect 500 water bottles daily to send to the army. Similarly in schools, children are encouraged to send biscuits.
Q: What do you think will happen after the LTTE is defeated? How will the Tamils react?
SD: The army will be stationed in large numbers in the East, like has been done in the North after the capture of Jaffna in 1996. Tamils will take the defeat of the LTTE as their own defeat. Sinhalese youth from poor, rural backgrounds form the core of the army and they lack a cultural understanding to effectively and humanely soldier the conquered areas. The war is far from over.
Q: What do you think is the future of the LTTE?
SD: If they can come back as political force, they and the Tamil population stand a chance. They will still be capable of inflicting damage through suicide attacks, but to build an organized movement again will take time.
Q: Will a political process be initiated in the East too, like was done in the North?
SD: Yes, a provincial government with very limited power would be installed in the East as was done in the North. The problem is that the Tamils have no credible political leaders around, who inspire confidence. But you can imagine what democracy the North and East will get, if even the people of the South have no meaningful freedom.
Q: After the war, do you think the government would return to a more benevolent form?
SD: I doubt it. The government will use the fear of suicide attacks to justify more army presence everywhere. And patriotism is strong and irrational. Everything else including political freedom and freedom of expression gets subjugated in its wake.
Q: One final question, sir. Is the global recession affecting Sri Lanka too?
SD: Yes, it is. I can give you one example. Around 300 apparel factories closed down. Once the current fighting is over, we will get a clearer picture on that.
P.S: We had read about the murder of Sri Lankan editor, Lasantha Wickramatunge and almost forgotten about it. A few days later a classmate sent me his last editorial, written before he died. In it, Lasantha had coldly prophesized his death but passionately defended his work. It fired us up to protest the atrocities against journalists and the tamil population of Sri Lanka. The protest we organized and the march that followed was a success if I should call it that; hopefully it awoke in all who participated a realization that journalism and activism can and should definitely overlap. More than a week has gone by since then; what still remains in me are doubts on whether all this current idealism will be shorn off, working for the media establishment.
Q: Sir, what made you come to India?
SD: The government said that the media has to take sides. If we did not support the Sri Lankan government blindly, we would be denounced as LTTE supporters. My name was put up on the Defence Ministry website as a traitor. My office was set on fire. After the murder of Lasantha Wickrematunga and the brutal assault on Upali Tennakoon, my family asked me to leave, as they feared for my life. Sri Lankan journalists in exile avoid coming to Madras. Because I am here, I will be labelled an LTTE agent back home. But I doubt I will be able to raise public awareness on the atrocities being committed in Sri Lanka as effectively, elsewhere in India.
Q: Did you know Lasantha? Could his death have been avoided?
SD: Yes, we were friends and both of us were part of the Editors Guild of Sri Lanka. He had been attacked in the past and as there was a known threat to his life, Lasantha, should have been more careful. Probably, he didn’t take it too seriously as he was a close friend of Rajapaksa. I came to know that Rajapaksa was shocked by Lasantha’s murder. Atleast now, he should realize the monster he has let loose.
Q: In the last two years, 17 Sri Lankan journalists have been killed and many missing. After Lasantha’s death is there an outcry against the government from the citizens?
SD: The government is taking advantage of the huge pro-war sentiment to attack the press. The process of suppression started in 2006 in the North. Tamil journalists critical of the government in Jaffna were silenced. Then in 2007, the repression started in the South. There is no independent media left in the country today. Many journalists are in exile. Just yesterday four more journalists arrived in Bangalore from Colombo. Even acts of corruption by the government can’t be investigated by us. Our leaders have become so drunk with power, that Gothaba Rajapaksa, Mahinda’s brother, has said that international media like CNN, BBC and Al-Jazeera will be chased out. Have you heard anything like that in any war zone in the world?
Q: The Army has become very strong in Sri Lanka now. Do you think Gen. Fonseca would seize power?
SD: Fonseca has become a national hero. But then, why would they take over? They have everything while operating in a democracy. They also have the support of the people. Almost every Sinhalese family has a member in the army – the rich as officers, and the poor as soldiers. In Colombo, university students collect 500 water bottles daily to send to the army. Similarly in schools, children are encouraged to send biscuits.
Q: What do you think will happen after the LTTE is defeated? How will the Tamils react?
SD: The army will be stationed in large numbers in the East, like has been done in the North after the capture of Jaffna in 1996. Tamils will take the defeat of the LTTE as their own defeat. Sinhalese youth from poor, rural backgrounds form the core of the army and they lack a cultural understanding to effectively and humanely soldier the conquered areas. The war is far from over.
Q: What do you think is the future of the LTTE?
SD: If they can come back as political force, they and the Tamil population stand a chance. They will still be capable of inflicting damage through suicide attacks, but to build an organized movement again will take time.
Q: Will a political process be initiated in the East too, like was done in the North?
SD: Yes, a provincial government with very limited power would be installed in the East as was done in the North. The problem is that the Tamils have no credible political leaders around, who inspire confidence. But you can imagine what democracy the North and East will get, if even the people of the South have no meaningful freedom.
Q: After the war, do you think the government would return to a more benevolent form?
SD: I doubt it. The government will use the fear of suicide attacks to justify more army presence everywhere. And patriotism is strong and irrational. Everything else including political freedom and freedom of expression gets subjugated in its wake.
Q: One final question, sir. Is the global recession affecting Sri Lanka too?
SD: Yes, it is. I can give you one example. Around 300 apparel factories closed down. Once the current fighting is over, we will get a clearer picture on that.
P.S: We had read about the murder of Sri Lankan editor, Lasantha Wickramatunge and almost forgotten about it. A few days later a classmate sent me his last editorial, written before he died. In it, Lasantha had coldly prophesized his death but passionately defended his work. It fired us up to protest the atrocities against journalists and the tamil population of Sri Lanka. The protest we organized and the march that followed was a success if I should call it that; hopefully it awoke in all who participated a realization that journalism and activism can and should definitely overlap. More than a week has gone by since then; what still remains in me are doubts on whether all this current idealism will be shorn off, working for the media establishment.
Monday, 9 February 2009
No Honeymoons In The Time Of Recession
Barack Obama has an unenviable task at hand. Not only is he staring at the worst economic crisis that has hit the US since the Great Depression, but he has also to help America pull out of two unwieldy wars that is bleeding the treasury dry. And how Obama reasserts the economic and military might of America will decide if he can preserve the unipolar world in the face of the rising economic power of China and Russia. With the exception of Franklin Roosevelt, no American president has stepped into office with such odds to surmount. But the America of Roosevelt’s time was one content to leave the global stage to Britain and other European powers to dominate as she bided her time adopting a wait and watch strategy.
Obama’s first few weeks in office have been anything but spectacular. He began in a rash of policy initiatives, reversing several of predecessor Bush’s unpopular policies. His decision to shut down the Guantanamo Bay prison was welcomed. But his ambiguous stance on Iraq with regards to the pullout of troops while stating in the same breath that Iraq’s fate will be left to its citizens inspired little confidence. His continuance of the US stance of non-criticism of Israel’s attack on Gaza signifies how entrenched America’s foreign policy position vis-à-vis the Middle East continues to remain.
On the domestic front, Obama’s appointments to the top political posts in his administration show his dependence on Washington veterans. Interestingly, he campaigned across the country as the outsider who promised a break from the politics of the past, which he said centred around compromises, deal-making and lobbying. His appointments like Hillary Clinton for Secretary of State, Rahm Emmanuel as Chief of Staff, Tom Dashle as Health Secretary besides his own Vice President, Joe Biden are all long-time survivors of the world of Congressional politics. While this indicates a measure of pragmatism on how Obama intends to survive in the rough and tumble of Washington politics by using these influential centrist democrats to win support for his policies, critics point out that the baggage that these politicians carry will ensure a watering down of several hard measures Obama intends to push forward.
For a president, who has never had any executive experience in governance, unlike several of his predecessors Obama’s actions in the first few weeks seems to be of a man very conscious of the fact that people are trying to gauge his abilities as a leader. The haste with which he made his appointments seems to have backfired as his two top political appointments had to be withdrawn in the face of tax evasion charges. The financial stimulus package that he has rolled out quickly, got mired in the quagmire of Congressional politics despite the bipartisan approach he preferred to take. Influential analysts like Paul Krugman have criticized the President for an act of “political naiveté”; for fantasizing that the Republicans would be gracious to let his $937 billion package be ratified without a fight and without demanding changes to the bill that satisfy them.
Obama seems to have picked the cue after two weeks were lost in accusations and counter-charges and though belated, has come down hard on Republicans for their misplaced actions of the last eight years which caused the present crisis and for the time wasted in the last one year believing that Fed interest rate cuts and tax cuts would o the trick. In his weekly radio address he said, “We can't rely on a losing formula that offers only tax cuts as the answer to all our problems while ignoring our fundamental economic challenges." Obama and his democrat pack having summarily failed in the first weeks to nail the Republicans for the blame they have to cope for the crisis, have turned increasingly aggressive, with Obama even resorting to a campaign-style approach to selling his stimulus package to the American people.
Obama's inaugural address stood out for masterful oratory and a lot of rhetoric; his first weeks in office show a president fumbling but also learning fast.
Obama’s plans also include creation of jobs through increasing spending on public infrastructure works, a move which does not find approval with Republicans who call it “wasteful government spending”. The difficulty with which he got the stimulus package cleared by Congress bodes more trouble for him as he mulls a much bigger $1 trillion bailout package for banks and financial institutions (the Bush Administration’s earlier $350 million loan has been found to be woefully inadequate). The trouble for Obama is that Republicans are unwilling to shed their dogmatic belief on minimal state involvement and regulation of the economy, despite the crisis this approach has caused. Increasingly, the taunts are beginning to appear in the conservative media calling Obama a “socialist”.
Perhaps, what would be the greatest tragedy of the recession would be that Obama will be forced to temporarily defer one of his major election planks that called for a comprehensive reform of the country’s health system. A large population running into millions is unable to access healthcare because of the virtual absence of a public health system, the high cost of private healthcare and the failure of the medical insurance system to encompass poorer sections of the society. Coupled with job losses, wiping out of pension funds and home losses, the lack of health care adds to the worries of families caught in the recession. It would be foolhardy to ignore this constituency as they voted overwhelmingly for Obama to bring about the change he constantly promised. That his next campaign for a second term in office will have to begin in two years will be on the back of Obama’s mind.
The start of America’s financial crisis began with Bush’s invasion of Iraq and as the war stretched on, his administration ignored the visible signs of the recession, pumping dollars into the war instead of the flagging economy. The war also catapulted Obama’s meteoric rise with his consistent voting record in the Senate against the Iraq War winning him the Democratic nomination over Hillary Clinton and ultimately the US Presidency. But pulling US troops out of that country seems an impossibility as Iraq continues to witness sectarian clashes between its Shia, Sunni and Kurdish population while the NATO troops act as mediators in one sense and onlookers in another. The only feasible strategy for him is to pull the US out from a winning position somewhere down the line; 16 months he says, but Iraq’s peace that Saddam Hussein once ensured will remain shattered long after the US is gone.
Obama’s intensification of American involvement in Afghanistan holds little merit, as the Taliban will continue to resist the outsiders, with or without Pakistan support. Obama’s denial of the fact that America built the monster of Islamic fundamentalism signifies his inability to set a fresh agenda for US-Arab reconciliation. Its manipulation in some cases and indifference in others, on the pretext of fighting the USSR has thrown several Muslim nations into disarray and destroyed the secular political aspirations that promised to arise in these countries. Probably where Obama has a chance to leave a lasting impact on is Pakistan, by encouraging and actively supporting the nascent democracy that has taken shape once again there. His appointment of Richard Holbrooke, who helped resolve the Northern Ireland conflict, as special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan is hopeful indication of a creative solution arising in the trouble-torn region.
Obama’s foreign policy challenge lies in restoring America as the de-facto leader of the world, by engaging nations on an equal footing while getting them all to acknowledge that the unipolar world continues. For this, he will have to pull his weight in Europe which has successfully come out of America’s shadow. Bush lacked both the credibility and the chutzpah to hold under his wings Europe’s colourful but strong-willed political bosses like Angela Merkel, Nicolas Sarkozhy and Gordon Brown. With Russia’s resurgence and Europe’s new found closeness to Russia on the back of oil ties, Obama has to actively engage the formidable combination of Vladimir Putin and Dmitri Medvedev as equals – something he has managed to signal through Vice-President Biden at a security conference in Munich, and to which the Russians responded positively.
To be fair on Obama, his current term in office and probably his next too will be entirely taken up dousing the fires, fed and then left untended by the previous regime. Obama’s inaugural address probably showed the true face of the man – a pragmatic politician, who was able to address all classes of people in American society - the whites, black, women, aged, the patriots, the capitalist, the labour class, the middle class, soldiers and war veterans. But his speech also had several mentions of ideas that are socialist in nature – ideas that a lot of America equates with communism. The conservative media potshots have already begun, the Republican war cries are out, and every policy, every word of his is getting more scrutiny than any previous president. Clinton tried to please everyone, Bush refused to engage anyone – the tightrope Obama has to walk needs to find that middle path between conciliation and assertion. He can’t afford to fall – if his policies fail, the multi-polar world of yore will return; and with it a host of new problems.
P.S - An early assessment of Obama's tenure written for the magazine format. Still figuring out how to write for a mag!
Obama’s first few weeks in office have been anything but spectacular. He began in a rash of policy initiatives, reversing several of predecessor Bush’s unpopular policies. His decision to shut down the Guantanamo Bay prison was welcomed. But his ambiguous stance on Iraq with regards to the pullout of troops while stating in the same breath that Iraq’s fate will be left to its citizens inspired little confidence. His continuance of the US stance of non-criticism of Israel’s attack on Gaza signifies how entrenched America’s foreign policy position vis-à-vis the Middle East continues to remain.
On the domestic front, Obama’s appointments to the top political posts in his administration show his dependence on Washington veterans. Interestingly, he campaigned across the country as the outsider who promised a break from the politics of the past, which he said centred around compromises, deal-making and lobbying. His appointments like Hillary Clinton for Secretary of State, Rahm Emmanuel as Chief of Staff, Tom Dashle as Health Secretary besides his own Vice President, Joe Biden are all long-time survivors of the world of Congressional politics. While this indicates a measure of pragmatism on how Obama intends to survive in the rough and tumble of Washington politics by using these influential centrist democrats to win support for his policies, critics point out that the baggage that these politicians carry will ensure a watering down of several hard measures Obama intends to push forward.
For a president, who has never had any executive experience in governance, unlike several of his predecessors Obama’s actions in the first few weeks seems to be of a man very conscious of the fact that people are trying to gauge his abilities as a leader. The haste with which he made his appointments seems to have backfired as his two top political appointments had to be withdrawn in the face of tax evasion charges. The financial stimulus package that he has rolled out quickly, got mired in the quagmire of Congressional politics despite the bipartisan approach he preferred to take. Influential analysts like Paul Krugman have criticized the President for an act of “political naiveté”; for fantasizing that the Republicans would be gracious to let his $937 billion package be ratified without a fight and without demanding changes to the bill that satisfy them.
Obama seems to have picked the cue after two weeks were lost in accusations and counter-charges and though belated, has come down hard on Republicans for their misplaced actions of the last eight years which caused the present crisis and for the time wasted in the last one year believing that Fed interest rate cuts and tax cuts would o the trick. In his weekly radio address he said, “We can't rely on a losing formula that offers only tax cuts as the answer to all our problems while ignoring our fundamental economic challenges." Obama and his democrat pack having summarily failed in the first weeks to nail the Republicans for the blame they have to cope for the crisis, have turned increasingly aggressive, with Obama even resorting to a campaign-style approach to selling his stimulus package to the American people.
Obama’s plans also include creation of jobs through increasing spending on public infrastructure works, a move which does not find approval with Republicans who call it “wasteful government spending”. The difficulty with which he got the stimulus package cleared by Congress bodes more trouble for him as he mulls a much bigger $1 trillion bailout package for banks and financial institutions (the Bush Administration’s earlier $350 million loan has been found to be woefully inadequate). The trouble for Obama is that Republicans are unwilling to shed their dogmatic belief on minimal state involvement and regulation of the economy, despite the crisis this approach has caused. Increasingly, the taunts are beginning to appear in the conservative media calling Obama a “socialist”.
Perhaps, what would be the greatest tragedy of the recession would be that Obama will be forced to temporarily defer one of his major election planks that called for a comprehensive reform of the country’s health system. A large population running into millions is unable to access healthcare because of the virtual absence of a public health system, the high cost of private healthcare and the failure of the medical insurance system to encompass poorer sections of the society. Coupled with job losses, wiping out of pension funds and home losses, the lack of health care adds to the worries of families caught in the recession. It would be foolhardy to ignore this constituency as they voted overwhelmingly for Obama to bring about the change he constantly promised. That his next campaign for a second term in office will have to begin in two years will be on the back of Obama’s mind.
The start of America’s financial crisis began with Bush’s invasion of Iraq and as the war stretched on, his administration ignored the visible signs of the recession, pumping dollars into the war instead of the flagging economy. The war also catapulted Obama’s meteoric rise with his consistent voting record in the Senate against the Iraq War winning him the Democratic nomination over Hillary Clinton and ultimately the US Presidency. But pulling US troops out of that country seems an impossibility as Iraq continues to witness sectarian clashes between its Shia, Sunni and Kurdish population while the NATO troops act as mediators in one sense and onlookers in another. The only feasible strategy for him is to pull the US out from a winning position somewhere down the line; 16 months he says, but Iraq’s peace that Saddam Hussein once ensured will remain shattered long after the US is gone.
Obama’s intensification of American involvement in Afghanistan holds little merit, as the Taliban will continue to resist the outsiders, with or without Pakistan support. Obama’s denial of the fact that America built the monster of Islamic fundamentalism signifies his inability to set a fresh agenda for US-Arab reconciliation. Its manipulation in some cases and indifference in others, on the pretext of fighting the USSR has thrown several Muslim nations into disarray and destroyed the secular political aspirations that promised to arise in these countries. Probably where Obama has a chance to leave a lasting impact on is Pakistan, by encouraging and actively supporting the nascent democracy that has taken shape once again there. His appointment of Richard Holbrooke, who helped resolve the Northern Ireland conflict, as special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan is hopeful indication of a creative solution arising in the trouble-torn region.
Obama’s foreign policy challenge lies in restoring America as the de-facto leader of the world, by engaging nations on an equal footing while getting them all to acknowledge that the unipolar world continues. For this, he will have to pull his weight in Europe which has successfully come out of America’s shadow. Bush lacked both the credibility and the chutzpah to hold under his wings Europe’s colourful but strong-willed political bosses like Angela Merkel, Nicolas Sarkozhy and Gordon Brown. With Russia’s resurgence and Europe’s new found closeness to Russia on the back of oil ties, Obama has to actively engage the formidable combination of Vladimir Putin and Dmitri Medvedev as equals – something he has managed to signal through Vice-President Biden at a security conference in Munich, and to which the Russians responded positively.
To be fair on Obama, his current term in office and probably his next too will be entirely taken up dousing the fires, fed and then left untended by the previous regime. Obama’s inaugural address probably showed the true face of the man – a pragmatic politician, who was able to address all classes of people in American society - the whites, black, women, aged, the patriots, the capitalist, the labour class, the middle class, soldiers and war veterans. But his speech also had several mentions of ideas that are socialist in nature – ideas that a lot of America equates with communism. The conservative media potshots have already begun, the Republican war cries are out, and every policy, every word of his is getting more scrutiny than any previous president. Clinton tried to please everyone, Bush refused to engage anyone – the tightrope Obama has to walk needs to find that middle path between conciliation and assertion. He can’t afford to fall – if his policies fail, the multi-polar world of yore will return; and with it a host of new problems.
P.S - An early assessment of Obama's tenure written for the magazine format. Still figuring out how to write for a mag!
Monday, 2 February 2009
Dalits fight to reclaim their lands in Pallikonda panchayat
Dalit farmer Venkatesan, 31, recently reclaimed two cents of land his ancestors owned opposite the village temple, only to find the government cancel the patta, succumbing to pressure from upper caste groups in his village. A few kilometres away, Muniyamma, 65, a Dalit widow and a mother of five sons won back two acres and 10 cents of agricultural land that was her father's, after a protracted battle in the courts and a tense standoff outside. These are not isolated incidents but a case of Dalits uniting for their rights and rightful property in the face of a well-entrenched caste system that obstructs their attempts to rise up the social hierarchy.
For Venkatesan, a recent convert to Christianity who owns five acres of agricultural land and has donated 50 cents to build a church funded by Korean missionaries, the two cents of land at the heart of Agaram village for which he is waging an uphill struggle should not be so significant. But having grown up facing discrimination for being born a Dalit, his land opposite the Gangai Amman Kovil symbolises the open challenge he has thrown - both to the Hindu religion and the 300 family strong upper caste Naidus of the village. He has successfully mobilized his community of 45 Dalit families to stand up and protest. Unhappy with his hut coming up opposite the temple, the upper castes petitioned the government to cancel the patta on the grounds that he was unmarried and thus an unwelcome influence near the temple.
Though frail and infirm, the deep, hard lines around the eyes of Muniamma, a resident of Kadalaikulam village, tell us the story of a brave woman who returned from exile to reclaim her ancestral property. The original patta of her land, recovered by Dalit activists from the local village office, had her deceased brother's name on it and the A-Register had her father as the original owner. Muniamma had migrated to Bangalore unaware of the lands she owned until the patta was recovered. After a spirited court case, she took possession of the land from the Vanniyar usurper. But upper caste farmers surrounding her land blocking irrigated water; her lands are dry and yield nothing but a few mangoes. "Once the patta in my brother's name is transferred to me, I will take a loan for a borewell," Muniamma says. "My two acres of land will fetch above Rs.20 lakhs, but I have lived all my life without a land to call my own and I will never let it go."
Muniamma dug in and took her soil - now she needs to dig for water
At the neighbouring Karungali village, landless Dalits belonging to 75 families have united to press for their rights to a huge swathe of agricultural land, classified as Depressed Class land in the pre-Independence era, but now in the illegal possession of the Yadava community. Their demand for one acre of land per Dalit family from the available 150 acres that rightfully belongs to them is pending with the Revenue Department, while a civil case is being fought simultaneously in the courts. Their leaders Ravi and Magendran say that the Dalits' combined efforts will not end with the land reclamation and they plan to start co-operative farming once the land becomes theirs to cultivate.
A poignant example of the alienation of Dalits from their lands is the story of Kandhaneri village. The Dalits petitioned the Vellore district collector for a graveyard in 1995 after the existing 10 cent cemetery that stood on rocky land made the digging of further graves impossible. The government acquired 69 cents of land in 1997 from the village head, Sivalinga Gounder. However he refused to let go of the land, complaining that no compensation was offered to him but in reality he is yet to collect the amount. The Dalits went ahead and buried two of their dead with police protection in 2005. The Vanniyars responded in gruesome fashion by planting crops over the grave. An act the Dalits view as an insult because they treat their dead with the reverence reserved for gods. Ravi, the leader of the Kandhaneri Dalits says, "My father donated the land for the village school and water tank, which are used by all castes in the village.” What hurts Ravi and his people more than the civil authorities' refusal to evict the usurper, is the Vanniyar reluctance to repay an old favour.
Though aided in their legal struggles and democratic forms of protests by Dalit Mannurimai Kootamaippu, an organization active in Vellore and Thiruvannamalai, the success achieved by the Dalits profiled above is a tribute to their unflinching courage. Their fight against the humiliating and dehumanizing practise of the caste system continues while running the grave risk of injury and even loss of life. One step at a time, they are breaking down the barriers that hinder their progress, without losing the belief that their caste rivals will accept them as equals one day. Perhaps, this is why they refuse to take up violence. But one wonders how many more landless Dalits live in Vellore district slaving for others, ignorant of the fact that they once possessed land, while the land records which could prove their ownership catches dust and attracts termites in musty village offices.
P.S: Reporting done during a weeklong stay in Vellore district as part of course work.
For Venkatesan, a recent convert to Christianity who owns five acres of agricultural land and has donated 50 cents to build a church funded by Korean missionaries, the two cents of land at the heart of Agaram village for which he is waging an uphill struggle should not be so significant. But having grown up facing discrimination for being born a Dalit, his land opposite the Gangai Amman Kovil symbolises the open challenge he has thrown - both to the Hindu religion and the 300 family strong upper caste Naidus of the village. He has successfully mobilized his community of 45 Dalit families to stand up and protest. Unhappy with his hut coming up opposite the temple, the upper castes petitioned the government to cancel the patta on the grounds that he was unmarried and thus an unwelcome influence near the temple.
Though frail and infirm, the deep, hard lines around the eyes of Muniamma, a resident of Kadalaikulam village, tell us the story of a brave woman who returned from exile to reclaim her ancestral property. The original patta of her land, recovered by Dalit activists from the local village office, had her deceased brother's name on it and the A-Register had her father as the original owner. Muniamma had migrated to Bangalore unaware of the lands she owned until the patta was recovered. After a spirited court case, she took possession of the land from the Vanniyar usurper. But upper caste farmers surrounding her land blocking irrigated water; her lands are dry and yield nothing but a few mangoes. "Once the patta in my brother's name is transferred to me, I will take a loan for a borewell," Muniamma says. "My two acres of land will fetch above Rs.20 lakhs, but I have lived all my life without a land to call my own and I will never let it go."
At the neighbouring Karungali village, landless Dalits belonging to 75 families have united to press for their rights to a huge swathe of agricultural land, classified as Depressed Class land in the pre-Independence era, but now in the illegal possession of the Yadava community. Their demand for one acre of land per Dalit family from the available 150 acres that rightfully belongs to them is pending with the Revenue Department, while a civil case is being fought simultaneously in the courts. Their leaders Ravi and Magendran say that the Dalits' combined efforts will not end with the land reclamation and they plan to start co-operative farming once the land becomes theirs to cultivate.
A poignant example of the alienation of Dalits from their lands is the story of Kandhaneri village. The Dalits petitioned the Vellore district collector for a graveyard in 1995 after the existing 10 cent cemetery that stood on rocky land made the digging of further graves impossible. The government acquired 69 cents of land in 1997 from the village head, Sivalinga Gounder. However he refused to let go of the land, complaining that no compensation was offered to him but in reality he is yet to collect the amount. The Dalits went ahead and buried two of their dead with police protection in 2005. The Vanniyars responded in gruesome fashion by planting crops over the grave. An act the Dalits view as an insult because they treat their dead with the reverence reserved for gods. Ravi, the leader of the Kandhaneri Dalits says, "My father donated the land for the village school and water tank, which are used by all castes in the village.” What hurts Ravi and his people more than the civil authorities' refusal to evict the usurper, is the Vanniyar reluctance to repay an old favour.
Though aided in their legal struggles and democratic forms of protests by Dalit Mannurimai Kootamaippu, an organization active in Vellore and Thiruvannamalai, the success achieved by the Dalits profiled above is a tribute to their unflinching courage. Their fight against the humiliating and dehumanizing practise of the caste system continues while running the grave risk of injury and even loss of life. One step at a time, they are breaking down the barriers that hinder their progress, without losing the belief that their caste rivals will accept them as equals one day. Perhaps, this is why they refuse to take up violence. But one wonders how many more landless Dalits live in Vellore district slaving for others, ignorant of the fact that they once possessed land, while the land records which could prove their ownership catches dust and attracts termites in musty village offices.
P.S: Reporting done during a weeklong stay in Vellore district as part of course work.
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