Medha Patkar anguishes about the horse trading and denigration of democracy we see leading to the vote on the nuclear deal and argues that it is time to truly bring back democracy of representation.

Does India need another biotech regulatory body? If so, how should it be structured? Why can the current body - Genetic Engineering Approval Committee - not set its house in order and address health and environmental concerns? Krishan Bir Chaudhary writes.

Many legal experts in Bangladesh are opposed to the anti-terror ordinance fearing that it will be used vindictively and victimize innocent people. Ashutosh Sarkar writes in the Daily Star.

Central Chronicle reports that steelmakers POSCO and Mittal - having signed MoUs with Govt of Orissa - are having a tough time finding the required land.

People in Chattisgarh continue to bear the brunt of violence by the state

Adivasi communities in Maharashtra on dharna to protest displacement. A note from Pratibha Shinde.

Activists opposed to construction of Posco steel plant in Orissa's Jagatsinghpur district Thursday claimed to have found a cache of arms in a school building, and alleged the weapons were kept by the steel plant supporters to attack them. An IANS report.

Last month the Salwa Judum completed three years in Chhattisgarh. An article by Shubhranshu Choudhary - from rediff.

I received an email from Jayne Bigelsen of the New York City Bar Association announcing that Aitzaz Ahsan, a prominent leader of the Pakistani lawyers who have played a significant role in ensuring the life of democratic institutions in the recent past, was to speak at the NYCBA.

The Indian Government is denying basic human rights to the children of Bhopal, the survivors of the world’s worst industrial disaster and among the worst of corporate crimes.

A major power struggle occurred in the military quarters recently. A silent coup d'état is in progress in Bangladesh. The article first published in countercurrents.

Reporters Without Borders is outraged by the murder of Paranirupasingam Devakumar, a television reporter of Tamil origin, who was hacked to death yesterday evening as he was returning to his home a few kilometres outside the northern city of Jaffna. A friend who was with him was also killed in the attack.

The recent demand of the Gujjars to be classified as SC from OBC raises dynamics of economic opportunities versus caste hierarchies. S. Mohammaed Irshad, a research scholar in economics writes.

The Union government by delaying the announcement of minimum support prices (MSPs) for Kharif (summer) crops has done great injustice to millions of farmers in the country. Monsoon rains have arrived in time and the farmers have begun sowing operations. A note from Bharat Krishak Samaj.

A ten day fast has commenced to protest against draconian laws and demand release of Dr. Binayar Sen, Ajay TG and others. More than 60 organizations from more than 25 states of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, UK, USA, and other nations have endorsed the campaign. Some of these organizations are listed below:

Human Rights Organization Masum under attack for coordinating "People's Tribunal on Torture" - a report from Sanhati

A silent demonstration is planned on Tuesday to express solidarity with Kumar Ketkar and with journalists of Ahmedabad Times.

The popular Indian tourist city Jaipur was hit with a series of bomb blasts on Tuesday resulting in over 80 people dead. Outside of the troubled regions of Jammu and Kashmir and the North-East, this is the tenth terror bombing in India targeting civilians since 2005. A note by Kashif-ul-Huda.

Bangladeshi government considers labor changes to access ADB loans. The government may retrench more than 550 workers at the Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation to get access to the lending by the Asian Development Bank, said sources in the industries ministry.

As Prof. Agrawal takes on his fast-unto-death to protest the destruction of River Ganga by badly thought out projects undertaken by the central and state governments, we present a vignette of the man and his mission.

The recent events of bonded workers in Sindh present the unwillingness of Pakistani administration to recognize the plight of slave labor and provide justice to them.

The Orissa government’s agreement with Vedanta Alumina to allow mining of bauxite deposits in the Niyamgiri hills, the home of the Dongaria Kondha tribe, is an example of how corporate interests backed by state support are trampling on tribal livelihoods and threatening an ecologically rich and important region. A report by Geetanjoy Sahu published by CISED.

Manas Ghosh writes in the Doinik Statesman, revisiting the massacre of 8 in Shuchpur by CPI(M) cadre and the continued intervention by the CPI(M) led government that has continued to subvert and slow down the process of justice, despite orders from the courts.

A book by Sanjay Upadhya provides a perspective of Nepal-India relationship. A review by Umesh Verma.

The politics of votebanks and reservations rears its ugly head in the Gujjar demand for reservations - it will have implications across India. An ACHR report.

Bharatiya Krishak Samaj has concluded that the modified farm loan waiver package does not address the needs of small and marginalized farmers, especially in dry land areas.

Rape and abduction of women in the east go unnoticed. ........Just before Batti MC election over 20 women were raped by STF in Akkaraipattu. Below incident happened on day of the PC election.  Election monitoring bodies have not considered these as election related violence leave alone any other action by the civil society groups.  By JamilaNajimuddin

When I packed my sleeping bag that early morning before sunrise for this long journey, I placed a white (khatak) scarf at the alter of His Holiness and said I have decided, whatever happens, I will make my way through.

“We have broken the backbone of the inhabitants of Nandigram. There will be no further resistance there”: Lakshman Seth, CPI(M) member of parliament, to the Chief Minister of West Bengal  as reported in Doinik Satesman, Kolkata, of 27 April 2008

In the context of current discussions on the rights of Tibetans and the role of the Chinese State, Dipanjan Rai Chaudhuri presents a brief history of Tibet

The lawyers begin their protest movement against emergency laws and the Supreme Court judgment on the issue of bail

Yogi Sikand explores the subtext of the sloganeering in Kashmir.

A coalition of Indian organizations is calling citizens and groups to join in protest against The Land Acquisition (Amendment) Act, 2007 and The Resettlement and Rehabilitation Bill, 2007 which will affect the rights of those displaced by adhoc non-democratic government processes.

Mansi Asher discusses the laws and rights of access to forests that the Government of Orissa ignores and continues to violate in attempting to 'clear the land of people' in setting up POSCO. The article was first published in infochange.

POSCO not driven by philanthropy but shrewd planning to compensate displaced farmers. Authors believe that an economic scam in the making

The government of Bangladesh and Tata have agreed to restart talks over the Indian conglomerate's stalled US$3 billion, power, steel and fertilizer investment proposal. A Daily Star Report

Though much has been written about the POSCO deal with the Government of Orissa (GOO), this article attempts to provide a holistic analysis of the deal. While the GOO ostensibly fights opposition to this project from human rights activists and environmentalists, is there a gargantuan economic scam playing out? Parts of this published in Seoul Times

Recently, the chief adviser, in the light of accusations of poor food distribution, said shortages occur even in countries which have elected governments. Of course they do. That is not the point. The new system of corruption is individualistic, sector-oriented, and technocrat-elitist. It is not tied to constituencies and vote banks which have a nationwide spread, albeit with party lines of exclusion and inclusion. It does not encompass. Its reach is limited. Most are left out, writes Rahnuma Ahmed*.

Civil society groups have stepped forward to end the quagmire in Manipur, wrest the initiative for future policies from armed actors (belonging to the State and other groups) by increase democratic participation as well as creation of awareness of the situation across India. An invitation.

Angered by government support for the POSCO steel plant, hundreds of protestors stormed police barricades in Orissa’s Dhinkia. An eye-witness account by MANSHI ASHER. First published in Tehelka.

The Dstrict Magistrate of Varanasi, Bina Kumari Mina, has initiated an investigation into the role of the Coke Bottling Plant in Mehdiganj on the drop in local water levels and high incidence of toxic chemicals around the plant site.

While the UPA government in India declared an end to the Prevention of Terrorism Act(POTA), it has used draconian amendments of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (ULAPA) to crack down on dissent within civic society, arresting judges, social activitists and political dissenters.

Why did students write on blank answer- scripts "Save BESU from becoming a Nandigram"? Students complain that CPM cadre and goons are targetting students inside the campus to join the student wing of CPM, or else.

Human rights is the last resort of the hopeless. Its liberal advocates don’t see it that way. They find it heroic, the foundation of a new international order that will, when established universally, guarantee secure lives for everyone, everywhere – from Tibet to Timbuktu. But would the subaltern, the oppressed – the target of human rights – necessarily agree?

To understand the efficacy of various social welfare policies, Arundhati Dhuru analyzes how these policies affect the lives of one of the most socially, politically and economically marginalized communities in UP - the musahars.

An editorial in Bangladesh's New Age questions the country's national security plan, the process of formulation, the lack of democracy and accountability and the influence of military institution and foreign agencies.

interview with Radio Gwank Balochistan - Advocate Shaker Bibi Baloch - Chairman of Baloch Women Panel - has demanded to Pakistani Government and the whole world community, that coming election in Balochistanon should be held on the basis of " right of self-determination".... as to enable Balochs to decide their own future destiny.

The proposal for a chemical hub at Nandigram, in West Midnapur district was aborted due to an unprecedented  revolt encompassing  most sectors of Civil Society.  The West Bengal Government has now zeroed in on Nayachar, an island that emerged from the sea in the nineteen thirties in the offshore region of the Bay as an alternative. First Published in The Statesman, Feb 12th, 08

Asian Center for Human Rights analyzes the land acquisition and rehabilitation laws and its impact on communities in India.

Maharashtra Legislative Assemble passes bill on people's participation through formation of Area Sabhas

It was a medieval idea that pain had to be inflicted on the body for truth to pour out. The purpose of modern torture is different. To instil fear. To crush political dissent. To wreak havoc and destroy lives. Often performed out of sheer habit. To assert supremacy. To possess nations. To build empires anew, writes Rahnuma Ahmed, NewAge, February 18, 2008. www.newagebd.com

The human rights situation in the country has degraded to critical levels during the last year. The Asian Legal Resource Center has therefore focussed here on the gravest ongoing problems, which include: the collapse of the rule of law, torture and killings by the police, forced disappearances, the Constitutional crisis and the compromised Attorney General’s position.

The prolonged State of Emergency is resulting in widespread violations of human rights

Though much has been written about the POSCO deal with the Government of Orissa (GOO), this article attempts to provide a holistic analysis of the deal. While the GOO ostensibly fights opposition to this project from human rights activists and environmentalists, is there a gargantuan economic scam playing out? Parts of this published in Seoul Times

Asian Center for Human Rights points to irregularities in the process of arrest and justice for Sheikh Hasina.

The Asian Center for Human Rights reports on the impact of governance by the army in Pakistan.

About 20 persons, including 11 schoolchildren, have been reported killed and a similar number wounded by the blast of a claymore mine on Tuesday as they travelled in a school bus on Mannar’s Madhu Road in the LTTE-controlled area on their way to school.

The 39-page report, "The Torture of Tasneem Khalil: How the Bangladesh Military Abuses Its Power Under the State of Emergency," graphically details Khalil's 22-hour ordeal in May 2007 in Bangladesh's clandestine detention and torture system – a setup  well known to the government, ordinary Bangladeshis, Dhaka's donors, and diplomatic community

Irshad Mohammaed writes that perhapsneo-liberalism is a good way to distract from the impact of communal policies - and vice versa.

Sherry Rehman, an official of Benazir Bhutto's PPP reviews Bhutto's book - "Reconciliation: Islam, Democracy and the West"

The people of Pakistan generally perceive the military to be the ruler of Pakistan. The perception is only partially true. Nonetheless, this perception damages the image of the armed forces. An article by Dr. Mubashir Hasan (Dawn, Jan 15).

The increased use of force in suppression of demands by locals in Jagatshighpur, Orissa with respect to concerns about the setting up of POSCO is concerning to many citizens of India.

On 23 January 2008, India's Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh reviewed the implementation of recommendations made by the Roundtable Conference on Jammu and Kashmir. A relief package for Kashmiri Pandits [1] has been proposed and is expected to be implemented. Asian Center for Human Rights on the state of internally displaced people in India.

This is an abridged version of a lecture delivered by Arundhati Roy in Istanbul on January 18, 2008, to commemorate the first anniversary of the assassination of Hrant Dink, editor of the Turkish-Armenian paper, Agos.

The military-controlled interim government's recent move to curb the democratic rights of indigenous communities, as reported in New Age on Saturday, comes as yet another distressing sign of the heavy handed and chauvinistic attitude that this government espouses in relation to rights of ethnic minorities. From the editorial in New Age.

The smile would warm the cockles of your heart. Especially if you were a CIA agent. This was exactly what was wanted. Happy obedient leaders. Democracy simply got in the way. Karzai, Musharraf, Fakhruddin. The new alliance. One new poodle.

The state machinery of Andhra Pradesh is using all avenues to put down opposition of local farming communities and acquire land for the proposed SEZ in Kakinada.

Bhutan conducted its first successful elections after 100 years of democracy. But a sixth of the population - that lives in refugee camps in Nepal - was debarred. To read the Hindi translation, click here.

A year  of military rule in Bangladesh and the hypocrisy of western democracies are part of what Moneeza Hossain discusses. This article from Bangladesh WatchDog.

President Musharraf should step down before the 8 January polls. But since that seems unlikely, Pakistan’s citizens and the international community must force him to make the elections free and fair. Prof. A.H. Nayyar and Prof Zia Mian's article was first published in the Himal Magazine.

First published in The Independent, Tariq Ali - Pakistan born writer and commentator - says "It (Pakistan) deserves better than this grotesque feudal charade".

Pressure has been mounting against the detention of Dr Binayak Sen in Chattisgarh with swelling number of people demanding unconditional and immediate release of Sen.

Shahidul Alam writes about the assasination of Benazir Bhutto and the political trajectory of Pakistan.

The National Rehabilitation and Resettlement Policy of 2007 notified on 31 October 2007 fails to address the key issues relating to the booming of conflicts: forcible acquisition of lands. An Asian Center for Human Rights Report.

Both Congress and the BJP invoked Gandhi during election campaigns in Gujarat. What did it realy mean? Tridip Suhrud writes in the Indian Express

Tasneem Khalil translates a report from Bangladeshi newspaper  Amader Shomoy that is perhaps a mouthpiece of the military, pointing out that Religiously following the blueprint by his Pakistani mentor, the Bangladeshi army chief, General Moeen U Ahmed, also plans to edit the country's constitution in order to establish total military control over the parliament and the government.

As a result of an initiative instituted by women’s groups, women’s organizations and individuals, an eleven member women’s team of concerned citizens from Kolkata comprising teachers, social activists, researchers and students visited Nandigram, on November 24, 2007.

Continued awareness efforts and Right to Information Camps in Kanpur have helped increase citizen awareness of government roles and have helped increase accountability of government officials.

I have been to Gujarat for the third time this year for my studies and work. Every time I have returned with a new experience. New dimensions get added to my database which I have gathered by reading and talking to others. Nasiruddin Haider Khan writes.

Both former Prime Ministers Nawaz Shariff and Benazir Bhutto have been trying to cobble up a pro-democracy alliance and win the ensuing January 2008 elections. But the true voices of democracy – the embattled judges, lawyers, journalists and human rights activists – have been sidelined. On 30 November 2007, Bhutto unveiled the Pakistan Peoples Party’s elections manifesto. She has nothing to offer in terms of governance except replacing the General. An Asian Center for Human Rights note.

An overview of Tibetan Alternative - a newsmagazine launched to discuss various questions of Tibetan Independence. We present some articles

Sandeep Dasverma writes why the current mining deals with POSCO, Tata, Jindal et al do not even make any economic sense and presents an alternative strategy.

This article by Dr. Sandeep Pandey was published in two parts in The Statesman, India, on 2 and 3 December 2007.

Chengara speaks to India through the Chengara Pledge (given below), which thousands of people, in struggle for the last 120 days in Chengara Harrison Malayalam Estate, (also called as Laha Estate) seeking ownership of cultivable land to all 5,000 struggling families. Land struggle in Chengara, Pathnamtitta district, Kerala by landless Dalits and Adviasis (as well as scores of families from OBC communities, Muslims etc) from all parts of Kerala, started on 4 August 2007.

Reports coming from Orissa tell us of police and goons of the state government attacking a non-violent demostration against POSCO takeover with bombs and further intimidation of the demosntrators.

With the caretaker government in Bangladesh making new rules for voter registration, there is fear among the paharis in the Chittagong Hill Tracts that they will be left without voting rights. A review from Bangla Word Press.

The government has initiated the process of formulating the second version of the lender-driven poverty reduction strategy paper to be effective from fiscal year 2008-09 on expiry of the current development document at the end of the current fiscal.

As CPI(M) would have liked, a petition (perhaps initiated by Prof Vijay Prashad) has signatories such as Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, Walden Bello and Tariq Ali asking Bengal and India to not make an issue of the atrocities of the CPI(M) government in Bengal so that the left unity is not broken. Prof. Dipanjan Raichaudhuri and Kunal Chattopadhyay respond as also a broad community of other Indians identifying with the left.

When Bangladeshi newspaper New Age was planning on publishing certain photographs, they were gently 'reminded' by the government that they should not be doing that.

Citizen's groups have been apalled by Brinda Karat's call for more violence against political adversaries. Other groups have called for expression of support for people of Nandigram from civic society across India.

Farooq Tariq. general secretary of the Labour Party Pakistan has been in hiding since the emergency began. On the 14th day of his hiding, he attended a meeting when Ms Bhutto met with other leaders of civil society. A report from Farooq Tariq.

In an article that first appeared in counterpunch, B. R. Gowani writes a letter to Bhutto asking questions about her credentials to lead Pakistan to democracy.

The alleged gang rape committed by the Greyhounds personnel on eleven tribal women of Vakapalli village on 20^th August, 2007 has drawn  nationwide attention due to the relentless struggle for justice to the rape victims by various  women’s’, people’s,and rights’ organisations of Vishakhapatnam and Adivasi Aikya Porata Samithi (comprising of political parties and tribal organizations) of Paderu agency area.

"Why I think leasing out any mines at this time without linking it to ad valerom, International Market price is a give away, a loot and a scam rolled into one?" - Sandeep Dasverma, who once worked as an engineer in Orissa, writes on the scam with POSCO.

Indian lawyers, advocates and judges are endorsing support for Pakistani lawyers in their fight against the power grab by General Musharraf.

Non-violence was challenged by violence when CPM supporters unleashed an unprecedented human massacre to repress the voices of people who are asserting their rights over their lands and villages.

The former Pakistani captain and now political leader, Imran Khan, goes on the offensive against General Musharraf's obvious attempt to hang on to power and urging Pakistanis to demand democracy for themselves.

Following imposition of emergency of Pakistan, members of various civic society groups and political opponents have been arrested. In many cases, no charges have been filed. Groups around the world have expressed solidarity with community groups opposing the emergency.

With martial law in Pakistan, there have been widespread arrests and civil society institutions have been either marginalized or suspended - all in the name of strengthening a future democratic Pakistan. Geo News Headlines provide a snapshot.

Sri Lanka has imposed a ban on reporting of troop deployments and proposed military operations and arms procurement as a new chapter in a long running civil war deepens. Reprinted from a Reuters report.

The army chief, General Moeen U Ahmed, has made several important statements while talking to reporters at the Bangladesh High Commission in London on Tuesday. A Bangladeshi democracy watchgroup analyzes the implications.

Gujarat Pogrom of 2002: Five years on The Truth Uncovered by an undercover media investigation. The Tehelka Files - an extensive review.

Haider Nizamani's article on the carnage in Karachi during Bhutto's political carnival, our learnings and its implications, was first published in The Dawn. This site reproduces the text.

Md Habibur Rehman, convener of a Kolkata based organization on minority rights believes that there is enough legal reason for the Supreme Court to prevent Modi from running for elections. (He also thinks that ironically, the Gujarat Congress is unwilling to go down that path.)

Along with local organizations, Asha Ashram co-organized RTI Camps in Kanpur in UP and Tamulpur, Baksa, in Assam.

Despite a plethora of condemnation, adverse criticism and serious concern expressed by international human rights bodies against human rights violations in the military occupied Tamil habitats, the report for the month of September 2007 compared to the month before, presents a very grim picture of the various types of violations all of which have a cumulative impact on a people already affected by two decades of civil war.

Revisiting the protests against Sonia Gandhi outside the UN, Sandip Dasverma writes: A question often bothers my mind: Are we are becoming a shallow and mean people? Or we are just allowing such people to represent us by default?

Haider K. Nizamani writes about the deal that allows Benazir Bhutto to return to Pakistan. While it is called National Reconciliation Ordinance, it is neither national nor is their any openness that allows for transparent reconciliation - it is another effort by the ruling elite in Pakistan to arrange things for their own benefit.

Various groups in Burma are asking neighbours - especially China, India and Thailand - to stop business as usual with the military regime in Burma.

Reports from Bangladesh tell about Bangladeshi Army and Bangladeshi Telecom employees identifying and searching internet users, setting up ''traffic scanners' to identify broadband users, forcing ISPs to reveal passwords, and misbehaving with users.

About fifteen thousand tribal people have participated in Surat rally demanding for the implementation of ‘Forest Act, 2006’ recently enacted by Indian parliament and simultaneously opposing their eviction by Gujarat government from their land, which is in possession since long.

With the 4th day of the People's Tribunal on World Bank coming to an end, officials of the World Bank decided to stay away saying that they were not accountable to this forum.

This week Buddhist monks and nuns in Burma began marching and chanting prayers to call for democracy. The protests spread and hundreds of thousands of Burmese people joined in -- they've been brutally attacked by the Burmese military regime, but still the protests are spreading.

Civil Liberty groups in Hyderabad have evidence that Hyderabad police has been picking up Muslim youth and torturing them and intimidating them while asking question unrelated to the bomb blasts.

Governments oft-repeated mantra for ensuring food security and well being of the farmers has turned out to be a lip service – only to gain political mileage. It's real intention is clear – to benefit big corporate houses and multinational corporations at the expense of farmers.

Sherry Rehman, Pakistani Member of National Assembly questions the general's strategies and reports increasing chaos in Pakistan.

A young man married a young woman in Kolkata. He happened to be middle class Muslim; she a very rich Hindu. Days later they intimidated by senior officers of the Kolkata police on multiple occasions. And then, days after he wrote to the human rights commission claiming intimidation, he was found dead - the Kolkata police claiming a suicide.

While the Bangladeshi dictatorship has lifted its ban on televised talk shows, it has set up guidelines within which the television media must operate. Bangladeshis oppose these guidelines and demand that the government respect the independence of the media. This article first appeared in the New Age.

Communities in Surat District have reported a new round of organized violence against minorities. A committee that visited the sites of violence ask whether this is connected with upcoming elections.

The Independent Peoples Tribunal on the World Bank Group in India got underway at New Delhi today at a packed auditorium at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

More than 250 forest officials and local police along with talluka magistrate (Mamledar) armed with weapons entered into the cultivated forest land in Ummarpada talluka of district Surat, on 5^th September and destroyed about 200 acres out of three thousand acres of standing crops belonging to Adivasis.

Rights activists across the world today kicked off a five-day demonstration in support of the movement in Manipur for the repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers Act) and hunger striker Irom Sharmila - The Telegraph reported.

On 6 September 2007, Home Minister of Nepal and senior leader of the Nepali Congress, Krishna Prasad Situala publicly confirmed the Nepali Congress' decision to support the Maoists' principle demand to declare Nepal as a Republic. This article by Asian Center for Human Rights

During last one month, hundreds of poor Adivasis in Rayagada,Koraput and Kalahandi districts of Orissa have died due to “consumption of contaminated water and rotten food” and “ hunger and severe food insecurity ”.

Amna Mirza reviews the book Indian Judiciary and Politics - a Changing Landscape. Edited by B. D. Dua, M. P. Singh and Rekha Saxena, the book presents the attempt by the judiciary to address the incompetencies of the legislative and executive and the reaction by the executive and the legislative bracnhes of the Indian state.

26 August 2007 will mark the first anniversary of the memorable mass  resistance waged collectively by all people, - young and old, men and women, Bangalees and aboriginals against the infamous Phulbari Coal Project characterized by fraudulence and rule-bashing designed to plunder natural resources under people's ownership, simultaneously causing devastation of human life and environment.

Amna Mirza, a guest lecturer at the Department of Political Science at Zakir Hussain College in Delhi University writes about the contradictions that beleaguer India's future.

Lok Sangharsh Morcha organized a state convention of tribal communities of Gujarat at Ahmedabad. The convention pledged that the struggle for land and democratic rights in Gujarat will continue

Prof. Dipanjan Rai Chaudhuri writes that nuclear energy is not a long term feasible energy source for India and argues that the Indo-US Nuclear deal is perpetuating this hoax. Prof. Rai Chaudhuri (now retired) is the former head of physics department at Presidency College, Kolkatta and has been active in civil rights movements in West Bengal for over two decades.

A multi-million dollar project to build a huge statue of Buddha and develop Kasya (the site where the Buddha spent his last days) as a tourist site threatens to displace 700 families from 600 acres of cultivable land.

It has been a year of violence in Sri Lanka after the failed peace efforts. Here are some stories of people affected by the violence - not stories of the government or the factions of LTTE.

India continues to support the military junta in Burma with hopes of business contracts and resolution of border issues - none of these have materialized. An ACHR report.

Shahidul Alam writes about the oppression by the dictatorial military government that has taken power in Bangladesh.

The findings of a survey conducted in 100 villages of Orissa’s 6 districts have revealed that out of Rs 733 crore spent under NREGA (National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) in Orissa during 2006-7, more than Rs 500 crore has been siphoned and misappropriated by the government officials of implementing agencies.

It is now almost five months since Irom Sharmila returned to Imphal on 5th March 2007, to continue her hunger fast against the draconian Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA). The situation continues to be grim - both for Sharmila as well for all those suffering under the prolonged implication of AFSPA.

Video footage seems to implicate UP police in a fake encounter and extra-judicial killing of a petty criminal. Other similar cases and pleas from these cases suggest that fake encounters by UP police, with involvement of senior officers, may be more prevalent. Article by Shahira Naim from Lucknow.

On the 60th Anniversary of Pakistan's Independence, Prof Zia Mian writes on the aspirations of Pakistan and its future.

A bridge collapses in Minneapolis. A dam collapses in Rajasthan. How two democracies react gives us an insight to these democracies.

The National Alliance of People’s Movements, a network of over two hundred people’s movements in India working for social and economic justice, believes that the India-US nuclear deal has grave consequences for India’s national security and sovereignty, for India’s relations with its neighbours, for India’s economy, for the health of its people and for the state of its environment.

During these recent months, reports suggest that the state and the military in Sri Lanka is actively engineering opinions and demographics through blatant oppression.

Noted Pakistani human rights activist Asma Jahangir Monday urged India and other democracies to support the lawyers' movement for the restoration of democracy in the neighbouring country.

Local communities are opposing a set of hydel projects planned in Sikkim that threatens homes, livelihoods and the local economies. Not surprisingly, though, the government continues without taking into account people's concerns. We are requesting readers to to ask the government to change its re-evaluate its processes.

The CID (Crime) on 17th July filed a chargesheet in the metropolitan court against 13 police officials accused in the fake encounter of Sohrabuddin Shaikh and disappearance of his wife Kausar Bi.

Dipanjan Rai Chaudhuri critiques Prof Sen's interview to The Telegraph arguing that his trickle down theories have been proved unfeasible time and and again and his suggestions that people should leave farming and move to industries (like in the west) by pointing out that there are few jobs in the industrial sector. He finally wonders whether Prof Sen is finding ways to defend the CPI(M) in Bengal!

In the more than one year of its existence, the commission found 96 cases where PIO had illegally denied information. Despite pompous pronouncements of Rs 25,000 penalties against errant PIOs, not one errant PIO has been fined till date. A Hindustan Times article.

Seventeen farmers and activists from twenty four villages in Raigad District of Maharashtra have gone on indefinite fast since 19 July 2007. This is a symbolic non-violent struggle against the unabated land acquisition by the Reliance group for their 10,000-hectare-plus Maha-Mumbai SEZ (special economic zone).

The government of Maharashtra plans to redevelop Dharavi, the so called largest slum of Asia, spread across more than 500 acres of land. Simpreet Singh analyzes the impact of these plans on the local economy worth Rs 4000 crores annually, on the local communities and asks who might gain.

The storming of Islamabad's Lal Masjid mosqueis over. Prof Pervez Hoodbhoy asks why this came to pass and whether the government and the larger society has learnt it lesson or will more such incidences follow.

Dr Anand Kumar writes in the South Asia Analysis Group about the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in Bangladesh and the marginalization of minority groups.

Besides tens of thousands of Army Men working in government-owned airline and other government-owned industries here's list of Army Officers in Civilian Govt. Departments and Government owned industries and civilian institutions of Pakistan including Universities. Pakistan should be called "Army Inc."

One of the basic causes of over-fishing in the fishing grounds of Pakistan is the open access policy with no clear cutting fishing rights to the indeginous fisherfolk communities. As a result millions of non-fisher communities and businessmen have jumped in the sector.

In 2001, Dow Chemical bought Union Carbide for $9.3 billion, despite this, Dow has refused to accept moral responsibility or be held accountable for the Bhopal gas tragedy.

Security forces handed over four bodies to staff at Kanthale Hospital claiming these were LTTE cadre killed in an ambush on June 28^th. However, it seems that the facts were quite different.

Ayesha Siddiqa’s book “Military Incorporated: Inside Pakistan’s Military Economy” is not only a brave work that provides a first in depth look at the monopolization of sectors of Pakistani economy by the military but also presents us with much learning regarding scenarios in South Asia and the impact of eroding civic society participation.

Students of JNU have been involved in protests against the violation of minimum wages of workers on the campus. Some of the leading activists of that movement including three of the JNU Students' Union office bearers are currently facing a crackdown by the JNU Administration.

The National Right to Employment Guarantee Act is close to completing its first year. While numerous government and other policy groups will probably be analyzing the successes and failures of the Act and how it could be rolled out to other states, another discussion is also necessary – what is the role and the impact of such government run programs in empowering citizens in a democracy.

A coalition of Tamils and Muslims in eastern Srilankan district of Ampara is organizing to highlight government policies meant to redefine gerographies and demographics of that region. This would be a dangerous precedence in the Sri Lankan conflict and would impact these minority communities ability to socially and politically organize, even their economic existence.

A vast amount of literature has been generated on the Chernobyl accident in April 1986. What lessons can we draw from the causes and sequences of the accident, the health and environmental consequences and what implications does the accident have for nuclear reactor safety and the future of atomic energy? This article by Dr. M. V. Ramana was first published in the EPW.

With the ongoing chaos in Pakistan, another dimension has been the role of the MQM. In his blog, iFaqeer presents some perspectives of this role and its context within Pakistan and specifically, Karachi.

S Mohammed Irshad writes from Kerala describing the erosion of credibility of the state judiciary owing to a series of questionable and what seem like unjust verdicts.

Three citizens of New Delhi plan to present a Public Interest Litigation demanding that the government act to proactively increase transparency and engender a greater environment of participative democracy by changing nomenclature of public functioning.

A Hindustan Times report suggests that the Sri Lankan government is trying to set up SEZs in certain areas where civil war has thrown out thousands of Tamils. Opportunistic efficiency at its best?

Ayesha Siddiqa's new book on the Military Inc in Pakistan presents details of how Pakistan's military has built up a huge commercial empire. The Hindu editorializes why this will only make it more difficult to dislodge the military from power.

A passport held by former Tibetan minister marked by the government of Tibet and recognized by 7 countries is proof of Tibet's nationhood. It is on display at the ongoing conference on Free Tibet.

240 projects were undertaken under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, in Simdega District, Bano Block in Jharkhand. An indication of the progress under this scheme: 205 projects are on hold. An AID India Report.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan is being tested again as it reviews the legality of a fresh round of measures by the Pakistani General/President aimed at restricting the media, and limiting criticism of the dictatorship that is facing immense opposition following the suspension of the Chief Justice. A report by the Asian Center for Human Rights.

Rohtas Singh from Haryana dared to question the high-handedness of police officials. He was later arrested, beaten up and jailed. He was found dead in the lock up. Asian Center for Human Rights presents evidence of torture. Police claims suicide. The complete report can be read at the ACHR Website

Are these desperate times for Musharraf? What is behind the promulgation of the draconian new PEMRA ordinance attempting to gag the media? Will the crisis that began in Islamabad on March 9, and that reached a tragic crescendo in Karachi on May 12, find a resolution in London, where Imran Khan is bringing charges of terrorism against MQM chief Altaf Hussain? How do expat Pakistanis in the US respond to these events? The Pak|Cast team brings the passion of the Pakistani diaspora and the diversity of its views to the table, carrying forward a conversation begun in email by Beena Sarwar, Nasir Aziz, Danial Noorani and others.
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Various civic society and human rights groups write to Sri Lankan President Rajapakse to stop government orders forcing all Tamils in Colombo lodges to leave Colombo, on the pretext that they had 'no valid reason' to stay.

On Sunday June 3rd, 2007, Pakistani Americans and their friends will hold a rally for the democracy and justice in Pakistan. The rally is planned outside the White House.

The US-India Agricultural Knowledge Initiative agreement on agriculture will cast a demonising spell over the country and is bound to cause large scale plunder of the agro-rural society and definitely tend to capitalize on our living, life pattern, culture and social norms.

Shahidul Alam presents the poets call for freedom in his blog - and the caricature of that poetry by the current Bangladeshi administration.

Dr. Binayak Sen was produced today in the court of the Additional CJM at Raipur along with the co-accused, Mr. Pyush Guha. Dr. Sen was sent on judicial remand to Raipur Central Jail until 5^th June, 2007.

The human rights situation in Sri Lanka deteriorated dramatically. Unlawful killings, recruitment of child soldiers, abductions, enforced disappearances and other human rights violations and war crimes increased.

LTTE is making preparations for a large-scale attack on Sri Lankan military detachments, according to several informed sources in the Vanni.

Even twenty years after the sordid Hashimpura massacre in Uttar Pradesh, in which Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) personnel allegedly gunned down over 40 people on 22 May 1987 (all muslim), justice remains still out of sight.

Two key organizations representing the fishermen community have condemned the appointment of a retired army officer as general manager of Fishermen Cooperative Society (FCS) and termed it illegal and in violation of bylaws of the society.

Peace Mumbai - a peace initiative from India sent representatives to Sri Lanka in October 2006. This report presents their findings.

Prof Hoodbhoy hold Musharraf responsible for the carnage in Karachi - and while protestors were being killed, the General was presenting a show of strength. Is he a President of the people of Pakistan?

Asad Faizi updates the judicial crisis; Nasir Aziz, Ethan Casey and Asad Faizi respond to questions from master's candidate Naveed Malik at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, on the role of the media in Pakistan and particularly the "what-if" of how the current situation might have played out differently; Professor Saadia Toor of the City University of New York raises questions about NGOs and the World Bank that are pertinent in Pakistan and worldwide.
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On the eve on the election results in UP, Indian Express journalist Tarannum Manjul spoke with Arundhati Dhuru (Supreme Court Appointed Adviser on Right to Food) on hunger in the state.

The Rural Development Department of the Andhra Pradesh Government is conducting Social Audit of the Andhra Pradesh Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme being implemented under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act which came into force from February 2, 2006.

"India has developed an installed capacity of 5,340 MW from wind power just over the last decade compared to 3580 MW from nuclear power developed over the last five decades." Dr Sandeep Pandey writes about the ironies of nuclear power after a visit to Koodankulam.

A team from the Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) and the International Movement Against Racism and Discrimination visited the Trincomalee District from April 23 to 27 2007 to assess the humanitarian and human rights situation. Their report is attached.

All of us, who are concerned about the poor, need to analyse why more than a year after the beginning of the NREGA, people have not received more than 15 days wages on an average. Vidhya Das - Advisor, Supreme Court Commission on Right to Food - further adds: we need to collectively question the government which brings out reports of utilisation of more than Rs.7.3crores, and prides itself on being the  first state in NREGA implementation.

The shining image of the Tatas is being increasingly questioned. The latest report of the International Campaign for Justice for Bhopal provides frightening details of the corporate crimes committed by one of India’s biggest business houses.

In the last week, three senior police officers in Gujarat have been arrested for the death of one man in a fake encounter. Media analysts suspect that officials higher up were probably also involved.

Following a blueprint of their Pakistani counterparts, the Bangladeshi military is forcing political leaders into exile. On the other hand, the US government, while claiming goals of democracy in Iran, Iraq, etc, stays quite vis-a-vis Bangladesh.

National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights argue that inspite of decades of planning and sizeable financial allocation since independence, very little of these programs reach Dalit communities.

Six civilians died and 33 got injured on the 23^rd April 2007 attack on a public bus going from Mannar to Colombo. Eight injured persons are in critical condition. This is the third such attack on a passenger bus within this month and the second attack that targeted Mannar public transport service.

In Orissa and in Madhya Pradesh, state forces are being used to perpetrate violence against communities opposing government policies. Is this becoming a norm? Its time to call and ask the governments what they are thinking!

The Bangladeshi military (Interim) Government seems to be following Musharraf's path - sending the leaders of political parties into exile.

The West needs to engage with the growth of Indian Muslims, says Tufail Ahmed, a British journalist of Indian origin and an Associate of the American Enterprise Institute, Washington DC.

Former Canadian Secretary of State and MP Hon David Kilgour in Mumbai to present an investiagtive report on China's seamy side on human rights.

Disappearances and extra judicial killings have become routine in Sri Lanka. Over the last twelve months more than 1000 civilians, mostly Tamils, have disappeared. Most of these enforced disappearances are extortion related abductions and now it has become a part of Sri Lanka’s war industry. Activists fear that the actual numbers of abductions are higher than reported since many have negotiated on their own and got themselves released after paying handsome ransoms.

As a blogger, you don't often to write to a specific audience and to the tight requirements of an editor. But when the current crisis (or are there now two, no, three of them?) in Pakistan started about the Chief Justice being dismissed, I had done a post about the situation. Here is a blog from iFaqeer.

Numerous human rights organizations have expressed concern at the deployment of force against farmers and tribal communities facing displacement in Orissa. A report by Amnesty International follows. Please petition the Orissa Chief Minister to respect human rights.

Some Bangladeshi observers are drawing similarity between Pakistan politics and Bangladeshi affairs where Pakistan's two mainstream leaders, Bhutto and Sharif, were forced to stay overseas  - to enable the military government make a "new beginning" in the country's bodypolitik post 9/11.

Following the judicial crisin in Pakistan, Pak|Cast convened a roundtable of Seattle-based Pakistanis, representing a range of views as diverse as Pakistani society itself. The roundtable participants were Terry Minhas, Sam Chughtai, and Shahab Ahmed. Terry Minhas called the current crisis a turning point in Pakistani history and the beginning of the end of President Musharraf's rule; Sam Chughtai asserted his hope that Musharraf will remain in power another 10 years.
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Madhulika writes about a protest in rural Rajasthan against corruption by government agencies and contractors implementing the Prime Ministers Village Road Program and the National Right to Employment Guarantee Act where rural workers are not being paid minimum wages and numerous clauses are being flouted. A follow up to earlier events.

Amnesty has launched a campaign to address the human rights abuses related to the conflict in Sri Lanka in order to get international human rights monitors on the ground. The campaign will focus the Cricket World Cup in the West India which ends on April

Workers, farmers, fisherfolk, women, representatives of tribal and dalit communities and displaced people came to Delhi in mid March to hold the "People's Parliament" and to present to the members of the Indian Parliament their concerns and grievances. They were beaten up by police while policy makers ignored them. Now they present their note vis-a-vis the direction that India should take.

Asian Center for Human Rights wonders why the suspension of the right to habeas corpus, the arrest of about 100,000 persons and killing of dozens of innocent persons and suspects in Bangladesh has not received wider international focus and condemnation. <

Narmada water project leaves drought-prone areas thirsty while water is diverted to industries in Kutch. Ironically, the express purpose of the Sardar Sarover Project was to get water to people in Kutch. This is an Indian Express article.

Peasant and Workers gathered in Hyderabad to demand pro-people policies from their government

Mumbai’s Urdu Times Daily report alleges police conspiracy to trap Muslims through planting weapons

The folks who are cheering over the Indo-U.S. accord on civil nuclear cooperation live a world away from Jadugoda, the Jharkhand village where India’s uranium mine is situated,writes Sunita Dubey. This article was published in Siliconeer Magazine

Democracy is about the ability to expr