Month: July 2010

ANHAD

A Dharna to register protest against killings of Innocent Civilians in Kashmir at Jantar Mantar was organised by ANHAD. The dharna was two hour long where representatives from various civil society groups gathered to demonstrate their solidarity with the people of Kashmir. Following people expressed their views in protest: Shabnam Hashmi (ANHAD), Harsh Kapoor (South Asia Citizens Web), Navaid Hamid (Member,NIC), Prof. Kamal Mitra Chenoy (JNU), Prof. Anuradha Chenoy (JNU), Tanveer Hussain Khan (ANHAD), Indu Prakash (IGSSS), Madhu Chandra (North Eastern Helpline), Divya (YWCA), Sanjay Kumar (AAA), Amitabh Pandey (Free Lancer), Ravi Himadri (The other Media), Prof. Rizwan Kaisar (Jamia Millia Islamia), Swami Agnivesh, Mansi Sharma (ANHAD), Seema Duhan (ANHAD). The following statement was released to the Media.
Continue reading “Kashmir in crisis, civilians hostage to security forces”

by C. M. NAIM

Last Thursday, the first day of July, 2010, which was the 18th day of Rajab, 1431, a few thousand men, women, and children must have come to the shrine all day long and in the evening, as they have for centuries. Many must have come for the fortieth time, joyfully looking forward to having all their needs met by the grace of God, as they believed deep in their hearts. But some, it turned out, were not so fortunate. Three criminally insane men and their untold masters changed everything. Now more than forty devotees of D?t? rest in graves, and close to two hundred lie in hospitals badly injured. And hundreds more will never forget what they themselves felt last Thursday night or what they watched happening around them as an evening of bliss turned into a nightmare. In a few days another Thursday will come. Will the survivors return to the “Court of the Giver” that day? I hope they do. If they don’t, they will miserably disappoint the man they love, the man who could find a tool to perfect himself in chewed up melon skins thrown at him by some ignorant wretches.

Outlook India for more

(Submitted by Robin Khundkar)

THE MILLI GAZETTE

As concerned Indian citizens some of whom played a role in solving the Amarnath-related crisis two years back, we are seriously worried at the fast deteriorating situation in the Valley of Kashmir which has witnessed the senseless killing of over two dozen innocent youth by the security forces in as many days.

The Milli Gazette for more

(Submitted by Omar Hoda with the following comments: “Following up fast-developing crisis in Kashmir, I was appalled to discover reports that Indian security forces are using tactic in Kashmir that are quite akin to Israel’s methods used on Palestinians. I have seen reports of India receiving training, advice and procurement (of suppression and torture) from Israel. I sincerely hope not, but if Indian government has reached a state of desperation where she is now implementing Israel’s tactic of occupation as a means to hold Kashmir, sad days are ahead! Every time I hear Indian right-wing elite’s rhetorical declaration that ‘Kashmir was and will always “belong” to India’ – I hear tones very similar to those we are hearing from Israeli right-wing’s Nazi-like euphoria. But the Indian right-wing should realize that, in their case, God the Realtor (!!) did not grant Kashmir to Indians as its ‘Promise Land’!!

“I appreciate your call to saner Indians to call upon the Indian Congress government not to repeat its past cruelties in Punjab and Gujarat.”)

SHIWANI SHRIVASTAVA and AMY BHATT

Still, with lines like this, you can’t blame angry readers for pegging Stein as racist:

“‘dot heads’ was the best racist insult we could come up with for a group of people whose gods have multiple arms and an elephant nose.”

Not so funny if you know that the Dot Busters were a New Jersey-based hate group responsible for attacks on Indians in the 1980s. And it’s even less funny when you consider that hate crimes against Indians continue to happen in the state today.

Huffington Post for more

by MICHIO KAKU

Now this replicator may sound fantastic and it is science fiction…it least for now. But replicators actually exist in nature. We can see a great example every time a human baby is born: a baby is essentially replicated in a mere 9 months time. So, it is possible molecule for molecule to recreate a baby, and nature does it. We scientists are currently trying to figure out how exactly it is that nature does that. How does nature rearrange the molecules—cut and splice molecule for molecule — to create something as complex as a baby? We know that the body does it with what are called ribosomes which have a blueprint that is provided by DNA.

Big Think for more

by MATTHEW GARRAHAN and ANNIE SAPERSTEIN

Mr Hampton said Disney had licensed its characters to other English-language training schemes for the past 25 years but decided to develop its own programme and run its own schools when it noticed surging demand in China.

“We wouldn’t enter this business just to use it as a marketing tool to get Disney in front of people,” he said. “But there’s no doubt that a side benefit is broader exposure to Chinese consumers and to build familiarity with the rich heritage of Disney storytelling.”

Financial Times for more

(Submitted by reader)

by TALIB QIZILBASH

PHOTO/Aman ki Asha

Three months sounded like enough time. Heck, it’s a whole business quarter. It’s also a trimester: a newly conceived baby will start to develop fingernails and its face will gain a human profile in less than 12 weeks. As such, three months is a lot of time to make a decision. After all, it didn’t seem like a big, forever-type of issue, such as marriage. (Actually, in South Asia, deciding on a life partner can be done in a living room over tea). But to the Indian government, this was a forever-type of issue. A big one, in fact. A wrong decision could have deep ramifications, permanent fallout. Just as, allegedly, granting a visa to US citizen David Coleman Headley did. Headley was charged in December 2009 for scouting locations for the Mumbai attacks.

Under this pressure to not screw up again, Indian officials struggled to come to a quick visa judgement on my father. Three months wasn’t enough to do their due diligence. After all, he, unlike Headley, is automatically suspicious. My dad holds a Pakistani passport.

Aman ki Asha for more

Link

According to an investigation, cat food is being sold as fruit juice in Lahore. Cat food is repackaged as mango juice and is being distributed across the city hence selling Whiskas cat food as Mango juice. The product is said to be very popular among kids who have no idea what harm it could do to them.

Press PK and Arze Pakistan for more

(Submitted by Salim Amersi)

by B. R. GOWANI

PHOTO/AP/D. Dalton Bennett/Tolkun “Ethnic Uzbeks gather near the Kyrgyz-Uzbek border in southern Kyrgyzstan, on Saturday, June 12, 2010, trying to seek refuge in Uzbekistan from mobs of Kyrgyz men attacking the minority Uzbek community. Thousands of terrified ethnic Uzbeks were fleeing toward the nearby border with Uzbekistan.” Boston Globe

Politicians gave him a flag
Clerics gave him scripture
Corporations gave him duties

Waving the flag
He sometimes killed others
While at times he himself lost his life

Quoting scriptures,
Feeling righteous, he preyed on others …
Many a time he ended up being a victim of communalism

Burdened with duty,
He drove others crazy.
Ever so often he, himself, ended up insane.

Consumed by tension, stress, and anxiety
And silent wailings of unfulfilled desires within,
He died with hope of reaching “Paradise”

B. R. Gowani can be reached at brgowani@hotmail.com