| January 16, 2003 | Thursday | Ziqa'ad 12, 1423 |
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Progress of sorts
Drought in Thar
HUMAN Rights Watch, the US-based rights organization, has come out with its world report for the year 2002. It is concerned with the erosion of civil and human rights following the 9/11 incidents and the consequent anti-terrorism drive. The report surveys the international scene, but is also unsparing in its criticism of the Bush administration’s arbitrary policy of detentions, investigations and deportations of non-citizens in the charged atmosphere resulting from the attacks on New York and Washington. That policy has since been extended to include registration and fingerprinting even of US citizens or green-card applicants from several, mostly Muslim, countries. The report takes note of the prisoners from Afghanistan kept in cages at the Guantanamo camp without charge or access to legal aid and classified as “enemy combatants” to circumvent the Geneva conventions on the treatment of prisoners of war.
The survey refers to developments in various countries, such as the Indian government-sponsored communal riots in Gujarat and the attacks on foreigners and minorities in Pakistan. But the burden of the report is its conclusion that the US government’s commitment to human rights has been compromised by its unwillingness to confront a number of crucial partners on this score and its refusal to be bound by standards it preaches to others. “Terrorists,” the report says, “violate basic human rights because they target civilians. But the United States undermines these principles when it overlooks human rights abuses by anti-terror allies such as Pakistan, China, Saudi Arabia and Afghan warlords.”
There is little in the report with which people worried about the state of human rights will disagree. But beyond specific instances, it is also important to underline the general atmosphere of intimidation, fear and hate created throughout the world by the US-led “war on terror” or at least the manner in which it is being prosecuted. It has led to a marked increase in political polarization and prejudice, bigotry and intolerance. It has isolated and alienated liberals with a life-long commitment to standing up to religious fanaticism. It has provided countries like Israel and India with an opening to intensify oppression of those fighting for freedom and self-rule. It has encouraged many states to adopt, in the name of terrorism, laws that can be used to stifle dissent and harass opposition elements.
The anti-war campaign has spread in insidious ways, and its objectives are being altered to suit imperial conveniences. It is not clear whether Iraq is being targeted because it has weapons of mass destruction or because it has a poor human rights record or because it poses a direct security threat to the US or because it is aiding terrorists. President Bush has cited all these reasons from time to time to justify his Iraq policy. There is talk also of new arrangements reminiscent of colonial times, with proposals for an interim American administration to govern Iraq once Saddam Hussein has been toppled or killed. Human Rights Watch has expressed its anxiety about the fate of Iraqi civilians in case the US finally decides to attack Iraq. What a conflict of this kind will do to the entire international order in terms of stability should be the overriding consideration of all those who wish to see a more peaceful world. A war against Iraq will extract a terrible toll of the values that hold civilization together and will have catastrophic repercussions in the Middle East and in countries close to the region.
EVEN though the London conference was extremely focused — reforming the Palestinian Authority — the mere holding of the talks seems progress of sorts on the stalled peace process. Called by the British government, the conference served to highlight Israeli hubris. Opposed in principle to the idea of talks, the Sharon government decided not to let the Palestinian delegation attend the London meeting. Not only that, it accused Britain of “rewarding terror.” Clare Short, the outspoken secretary for international development, correctly blamed Ariel Sharon by name and said he had subverted the conference to prevent the Palestinians from building institutions for their future state. Nevertheless, modern technology served to nullify Israeli tactics; representatives of the Palestinian Authority participated in the meeting through a video hookup from Ramallah.
The one-day conference did not achieve much, except agreement on a meeting of the “Quartet’s” task force next month, besides a Palestinian promise to prepare a draft constitution. As Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said, the travel ban on the Palestinians by Israel should not be allowed to “stop the reform process in its tracks”. But more important seemed to be Britain’s concern that without serious attention being paid to the Palestine question, opinion in the Arab-Islamic world would become even more anti-West in the event of an attack on Iraq. Britain seemed keen to show that the Palestinian issue had not been forgotten in the current war hysteria. Of late, the Labour government has been making attempts to somewhat distance itself from Washington’s jingoism over Iraq. Mr Tony Blair’s suggestion about giving the arms inspectors “time and space” for doing their job shows his government’s awareness of the gathering momentum of a world-wide opposition to military action against Iraq. One hopes Britain as a leading member of the European Community will continue to remain engaged with the Palestinian issue.
THE people of Thar continue to endure great hardships as a result of the prolonged drought in the region. NGOs working in the area have made a plea to the government and relief agencies to come to the aid of the hapless population of this backward desert area. As a result of the drought, a large section of the population has been forced to migrate to neighbouring irrigated areas in search of employment and pastures for their animals. While the people of the area have been used for centuries to coping with the effect of droughts, radical changes on the ground have made their sufferings more acute. The shortage of irrigation water has badly affected agriculture even in the more fertile irrigated areas and reduced the demand for seasonal farm labour. Despite this, the water-starved Tharis continue to head for the barrage areas in desperation, only to find their hopes of finding jobs and fodder dashed. The scale of migration can be gauged from reports that in some areas there has been a decline of 20 per cent in school attendance, as entire families have abandoned their villages.
Over the years, the decline in subsistence agriculture, the creation of markets and the penetration of a cash economy have led to widespread indebtedness, further increasing the people’s miseries. It is not just human beings who are feeling the effects of the drought. With wells and other sources of water drying up, the area’s livestock and wildlife, including peacocks and antelopes, have also depleted. Much of the livestock, on which Tharis depend so heavily, has been sold off at throwaway prices or has simply perished. While the government has rushed emergency supplies to the stricken area, there are widespread reports of misappropriation of relief items on the part of transporters, influential people and government functionaries. The government and humanitarian agencies must act swiftly to dispatch more relief to the area to avert a humanitarian disaster and to ensure against pilferage.