From yasir.media at gmail.com Fri Jan 1 06:28:51 2010 From: yasir.media at gmail.com (=?UTF-8?B?eWFzaXIgftmK2Kcg2LPYsQ==?=) Date: Fri, 1 Jan 2010 05:58:51 +0500 Subject: [Reader-list] jang group & times of india Message-ID: <5af37bb0912311658t7dbe8d32v92cdc84452067af9@mail.gmail.com> Joint statement by editors of the Jang Group and Times of India http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=26398 Top Indian, Pakistani media groups join hands for peace http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=26395 and a survey __ One and a half billion people just want peace http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=26396 From rohitrellan at aol.in Fri Jan 1 09:29:35 2010 From: rohitrellan at aol.in (rohitrellan at aol.in) Date: Thu, 31 Dec 2009 22:59:35 -0500 Subject: [Reader-list] Theatre : 12th Bharat Rang Mahotsav to begin from January 6 , New Delhi Message-ID: <8CC58ADF70FF9EE-15BC-3F866@webmail-d076.sysops.aol.com> A total of 87 productions to be staged during the 12th Bharat Rang Mahotsav NSD’s International Theatre Festival between January 6 and 22, 2010 Introduction The 12th Bharat Rang Mahotsav, marks the beginning of the New Year and another milestone for the prestigious National School of Drama (NSD), as its annual national and international theatre festival opens with concurrent shows at multiple venues in Mandi House over two weeks from 6 to 22 January 2010. The BRM or Theatre Utsav, as it is popularly known, has come to be regarded as one of the largest and most important theatre festivals in Asia. In keeping with the tradition of presenting outstanding theatre that allows for meaningful engagement, this year also the BRM will be presenting a rich fare of 87 productions selected out of nearly 450 proposals received from across India and from around the world including some innovative work by some senior and young directors, distinguished by the manner in which they access and interpret classic texts and new concepts around today’s socio-cultural and psycho-political realities. Taking forward the ‘Young Experimenters’ component of last year, BRM XII also includes productions by graduates of the school in a synthesis of experience, new energy and vision. The Productions The thematic impulses that make up the main component of the festival are as eclectic as they are creative. The works of eminent contemporary Indian playwrights like Dharamvir Bharati’s Andha Yug, Vijay Tendulkar’s Sakharam Binder and Mahesh Elkunchwar’s Garbo are presented in striking new productions, alongside world classics like Ibsen’s When We Dead Awaken, Little Eyolf, and A Doll’s House, Ionesco’s Rhinoceros, Pinter’s Democra(cies), and Chekov’s Tedha Darpan. Shakespearean texts are re-explored in Lady Macbeth Revisited as well as Hamlet the Clown Prince, while the human predicament in times of political turmoil is seen in Jis Lahore Nahi Dekhya, The Caine Mutiny Court Martial and Black Orchid, among others. Themes of hope and regeneration are poetically rendered in Technicolour Dreams2 and Monglee. What runs as a common thread that sets these productions apart, is the inventive directorial treatment of texts, as well as an attempt to push actors to explore new territories in performance expression. From classics like Euripides’ Medea, or Bhavabhuti’s Uttararamacharitam, the aim is to forge new vocabularies in devised/ collaborative projects, many of which also show an interest in interacting with new media. Productions like Strange Lines, Ecdysis: The Snake Sheds its Skin and The Spirits Play reveal this trend, as do In/Out/In and Quick Death. In dance/choreographed pieces like Tilt, Spinal Cord and The Doorway the focus is on inventing a movement based visual language. Chanda Mama Door Ke, Chronotopia and Shraman revisit and reinterpret earlier texts; Bharatkatha draws on the oral traditions of the country, while Main Rahi Masoom is inspired by poetry. From puppet plays to dance/choreographed pieces to devised and experimental work in new media; the festival offers something for everyone. International Dimension This year the Festival will be hosting 13 productions drawn from China, Pakistan, The foreign component includes revisiting ancient plays like Medea (Italy), Shakuntala (Pakistan) and Odysseus Chaoticus (Israel), unique conceptualizations like Kiosk (Japan) and innovative collaborations like The Spirits Play (Singapore), representations of folk legends- The Orphan of Zhao (China), works by modern playwrights like Giraudoux (Bangladesh), Ibsen (Nepal), Pinter (France) and Müller (Germany), a solo operatic act (UK) and a puppet performance (Afghanistan). Natya Naad To celebrate and pay tribute to our rich tradition of theatre music and songs, a specially commissioned multimedia performance, Natya Naad, directed by Bansi Kaul with eminent theatre director Shrimati Vijaya Mehta, as the Chief Guest, will mark the inaugural. Drawing on music and songs in a variety of experimental ways, contemporary Indian theatre that imbibes interesting crossovers between tradition and modernity will be an important focus area of the Festival. The inaugural performance will be followed by nine additional evening sessions of live theatre music and songs of stalwarts of theatre music. The Natya Naad will showcase the work of B.V. Karanth, Habib Tanvir, Bhaskar Chandavarkar, Mohan Upreti, and K.N. Panikkar while it will also highlight the work of movements like IPTA, forms such as Banglar Manchagaan and Natya Sangeet tradition of Maharashtra, and compositions from groups like Sopanam and Parvatiya Kala Kendra, that have been vital to Indian theatre across regions, languages and traditions. The programme will also feature an evening dedicated exclusively to the music that has been composed by and used in National School of Drama productions over the years, as it celebrates and documents the diversity in theatre music forms and practices from across the country. Natya Manthan A two day round table Natya Manthan, with participation by theatre scholars and practitioners from across India and abroad will be hosted by the National School of Drama on Thursday, 7 January and Friday, 8 January 2010, 9.30 am to 2 pm on both days. Ranging over the topics of Censorship, Theatre Music, Theatre Portals/ Archives and Theatre-Medicine-Science, each session will include panelists, respondents and a Chair to speak on a given theme. Their brief presentations giving different view points on a shared platform will be followed by open interaction and discussion amongst the participants and the speakers. Festival in Bhopal In keeping with the practice started three years ago of sharing the fare invited for the festival at Delhi with another city, a part of the repertoire for BRMXII will travel to Bhopal with 16 of the invited productions for the Festival slated there from January 12 to 20, 2010. BRM Bhopal will be presented at two venues the Antrang theatre at Bharat Bhawan and Ravindra Bhawan Tagore hall in the city. The Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh has been invited to inaugurate the Festival there on 12 January. Other Allied Events The Festival, as a melting point of different cultures provides a unique opportunity for enjoyment of theatre as well as professional interaction. A series of synergetic wrap around programmes that have been organized around the Festival include Post-performance Discussions for interested audience in the foyer, ‘The Morning After’ professional encounters between students and directors at NSD, Photographic Exhibitions featuring landmark work of B.V. Karanth and Habib Tanvir, Babur - An Opera a session to share work-in-progress on Sunday 10 January, 4 to 5pm at British Council, 17 Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi, “For Pina…” a site-specific promenade movement and multi media performance on Thursday January 21, 7 pm featuring Jayachandran Palazhy of Attakkalari, at Siddhartha Hall Goethe Institut/ Max Mueller Bhavan , Theatre café, Theatre video hub and Open forums for networking. The Scale The 87 performances and dozens of associated events in Delhi take place at seven venues - the Kamani Auditorium, the Shri Ram Centre, Meghdoot (open air), the LTG Theatre and the four venues within the premises of the NSD—Abhimanch, Sammukh, Bahumukh and Open Lawn Theatre besides its studio spaces as well as partner venues such as the British Council and Max Mueller Bhawan. There are simultaneous performances and events spread over five to six venues each day during the two week run in Delhi and 16 productions at the two venues in Bhopal during an eight day run there. BRM XII will host about 2,000 theatre people from across India and the world. As in the past, the festival shows are expected to run to full houses, attracting nearly 50,000 spectators in Delhi and about 10,000 viewers in Bhopal. To design, mount and coordinate a festival of this size in two cities involves a logistical feat that the NSD manages with élan because of its highly trained technical personnel, faculty and staff and the commitment they bring to the cause of theatre worldwide. The mega event is an opportunity for the professionals, public and students alike to engage with the process and practice of contemporary theatre arts. For further information please contact: The National School of Drama, Bahawalpur House, Bhagwandas Road, New Delhi- 110001, India T: +91 11 23383420/ 23384531 From cubbykabi at yahoo.com Fri Jan 1 13:56:49 2010 From: cubbykabi at yahoo.com (kabi cubby sherman) Date: Fri, 1 Jan 2010 13:56:49 +0530 (IST) Subject: [Reader-list] =?utf-8?b?Rnc6IOKIrlFBTeKIriBRdWVlciBOYXphcml5YSAy?= =?utf-8?q?010?= Message-ID: <727533.86904.qm@web94708.mail.in2.yahoo.com> apologies for cross-posting ----- Forwarded Message ---- From: sophie parisse To: queerazadimumbai at googlegroups.com Sent: Fri, 1 January, 2010 1:39:57 PM Subject: ∮QAM∮ Queer Nazariya 2010 QUEER NAZARIYA international LGBTI film festival, Mumbai in collaboration with Majlis 25-28 March 2010 Dear fellow queers, feminists, filmwalas, friends! We are very happy to announce Queer Nazariya, an international queer film festival on gender and sexuality. As you all know, on 2 July 2009 the LGTBI communities in India celebrated the Delhi High Court ruling which read down Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, decriminalising consensual sexual acts between adults of the same sex. It was sweet victory after decades of struggle. This milestone judgement opens the doors towards social and cultural acceptance and holds out the promise of a new era of freedom for marginalised sexualities and genders in India. With the judgement being challenged in the Supreme Court by a handful of people, and the unprecedented media attention being given to queer issues, we felt this was the perfect time to have a festival of queer films in Bombay. We want Queer Nazariya to enablethecoming together of LGBTI individuals in a safe and affirmative space.Very few of us in India, queer or straight, get any exposure at all to non-heteronormative narratives or representations. Films from different countries will help us understand specific political and cultural realities; at the same time they will serve to affirm what is universal across geographical boundaries. We also want to reach out to a more general audience, in order to address the prejudices and stereotypes that continue to linger in many people’s minds: homosexuality is dismissed as a western import; gay and lesbian people are hypersexualised, or seen as sexual predators; our sexual preferences or varied gender identities are seen as illness or, worse, perversion. And so we plan, along with the screenings, to have discussions around a few key issues, and alsoshowcase some queer art and memorabilia. The festival’s focus will be onindependent filmmaking, both documentary and short fiction, on works that operateoutside the compulsions of the mainstream. Queer Nazariyais being done in collaboration with Majlis, the well-known centre for multi-disciplinary art initiatives. We’re absolutely relying onALL OF YOUto make the festival a success, so mark these dates nowin your calendars, diaries and year planners, and save them in your minds! You must be there with us, to watch films and discuss stuff, to sing and dance and party – because celebrationsare, of course, part of the deal. We’re also going to need volunteersin the days before and during the festival, so all offers are very welcome – give us a day, two days, an afternoon, whatever you can of those invaluable commodities called Time and Support. with warm wishesfor the new year, Sophie Parisse and Smriti Nevatia Curators,Queer Nazariya 2010 contact: qnazff at gmail.com http://queernazariya.weebly.com -- "To know more about Queer Azadi, click the link below" http://queerazaadi.wordpress.com The INTERNET now has a personality. YOURS! See your Yahoo! Homepage. http://in.yahoo.com/ From kauladityaraj at gmail.com Fri Jan 1 14:57:38 2010 From: kauladityaraj at gmail.com (Aditya Raj Kaul) Date: Fri, 1 Jan 2010 14:57:38 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] FTII student's 'disappearance' gets murkier Message-ID: <6353c691001010127i5e5fc563l1b4bccc4d3c4050b@mail.gmail.com> *FTII student's 'disappearance' gets murkier* 1 Jan 2010, 0911 hrs IST The disappearance of a Nepali citizen who was also an FTII Pune student, Neetu Singh, has raised several questions. Neetu , a final year editing student at FTII was picked up by Pune Police on the night of December 5 on grounds of National security. Neetu was then taken to Mumbai before being deported to Kathmandu the next day. Sources say that Neetu singh had Maoist links and that she had been under watch for a while now. Neetu was questioned for nearly three hours befor being deported. However Neetu Singh's fellow students say there was nothing remotely "anti-national" about Neetu. She was in FTII on a scholarship from the Indian Council of Cultural Relations. She is married to Amaresh Singh, a chemistry teacher in Kathmandus Amrit Science college, got a scholarship to do his Ph D in Delhis Jawaharlal Nehru University. Their wedding two years ago at the Armed Police Force club was a major social event in Kathmandu attended by the top political establishment, including Prachanda, G P Koirala and Baburam Bhattarai. The All India Democratic Womens Association (AIDWA)which has taken up Neetu's case, claims their marriage had soured. AIDWA's Maharashtra unit chief Kiran Moghe claims that in June 2008, Neetu first approached them to complain against her husband's harassment. The marriage had soured and Neetu wanted to break away, she said. According to reports at 10.30 pm on December 5, two women plainclothes officers came to the hostel and said they had come to take Neetu as she needed to identify someone against whom she had registered a complaint earlier. "In 20 minutes, five to six women officers came and asked the way to her room S-9 and packed her things. When I tried to protest, they said they had informed the director, said FTII Matron Koshy. "It's almost like a political kidnapping. Without any warning the police entered a national institute that falls under the central government and took a student away. they also lied, tricked and deported her. They did not even inform the director," Neetu's student friend Samar told TIMES NOW. From navayana at gmail.com Fri Jan 1 17:49:27 2010 From: navayana at gmail.com (Navayana Publishing) Date: Fri, 1 Jan 2010 17:49:27 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Zizek in Delhi-- 2 Jan @ Habitat, 4 Jan @ Sarai and 5 Jan @ Habitat in Delhi Message-ID: Do catch Žižek in India -- in Delhi, Hyderabad or Kochi. Schedule below. All events are open to the public. 2 Jan 2010. 7 p.m. Screening “Žižek!” A feature documentary directed by Astra Taylor, 71 mins. Stein Auditorium, India Habitat Centre, New Delhi 4 Jan 2010. 5 p.m. Lecture “Ideology in the Post-ideological World: The Case of Hollywood” Sarai-CSDS. 29 Rajpur Road, Civil Lines, Delhi 5 Jan 2010. 7 p.m. Lecture “Tragedy and Farce” Stein Auditorium, India Habitat Centre, New Delhi 7 Jan 2010. 11 a.m. Lecture “Capitalism and Particular Life-Worlds: In Defense of Universalism” ICSSR Auditorium, English & Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad 9 Jan 2010. 5 p.m. Lecture and Panel Discussion “Whither Left?” Town Hall, Kochi. Žižek’s latest book, First as Tragedy, Then as Farce , already available in bookstores, will be for sale at all venues. Also available: In Pursuit of Ambedkar by Bhagwan Das www.navayana.org -- www.navayana.org Navayana 155, Second Floor Shahpur Jat New Delhi 110049 Landline: +91-11-26494795 Mobile: +91-9971433117 From peter.ksmtf at gmail.com Sat Jan 2 16:18:41 2010 From: peter.ksmtf at gmail.com (T Peter) Date: Sat, 2 Jan 2010 02:48:41 -0800 Subject: [Reader-list] Condolence Meeting In-Reply-To: <3457ce861001020247i34d67992r9640f84d751adf68@mail.gmail.com> References: <3457ce861001010538x7d4f0d8am934bb33042975237@mail.gmail.com> <3457ce861001020232n6a4623dcm661cff0adaf09e7d@mail.gmail.com> <3457ce861001020240x3f80a1f3g6a9f4899649ef65@mail.gmail.com> <3457ce861001020242udbae6bbx16808d07a38196e3@mail.gmail.com> <3457ce861001020244n73dec1edx8d5c5be47f3cc276@mail.gmail.com> <3457ce861001020247i34d67992r9640f84d751adf68@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <3457ce861001020248j2d7f478dve2ce02db9457bb37@mail.gmail.com> Kerala Swatantra Matsyathozhilali Federation Condolence Meeting The Kerala Swatantra Matsyathozhilai Federation invites you to a meeting at 3 pm on 4th January 2010 at the Mannam Memorial Hall(National Club), Statue, Trivandrum to condole the death of Shri Harekrishna Debnath, Chairperson, National Fishworkers Forum. Shri Debnath, aged 61, had been ailing from lung cancer for the last few months. He died on 30th December 2009 at his home in Ashok Nagar, outside Calcutta. He had been a part of NFF over two decades and had been its Chairperson for more than a decade. His contributions towards the assertion and achievement of the rights of traditional fishing communities are well known. In his death, the traditional fisherpeople have lost a great champion and an outstanding leader. Civil society in India has lost a strong voice fighting for the environment and social justice. T.Peter President Kerala Swatantra Matsyathozhilali Federation Trivandrum Mobile :9447429243 From rohitrellan at aol.in Sun Jan 3 00:58:15 2010 From: rohitrellan at aol.in (rohitrellan at aol.in) Date: Sat, 02 Jan 2010 14:28:15 -0500 Subject: [Reader-list] Proposal for film Programs at Lalit Kala Akademi, N.Delhi In-Reply-To: <2d55f7761001010406q3d9ec575lbc5d463be868674@mail.gmail.com> References: <2d55f7761001010406q3d9ec575lbc5d463be868674@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <8CC59F8DDAF10AF-46C0-17926@webmail-d057.sysops.aol.com> We are inviting proposals for screening of film shows at Lalit Kala Akademi, N.Delhi. The LKA organizes regular film shows at its premises “kaustubh Auditorium” The event features an hour long screening followed by a discussion among artists and art lovers such as talks by local, regional, and national artists, lectures, panel discussions, interactive art-making projects and question-and-answer sessions. The film program is initiated to increase knowledge of contemporary art, ignite dialogue, and inspire creative thinking through public screenings .The film screened would be the interests and concerns of local audiences. The films and documentaries must reveal the inspiration, vision and techniques behind the creative works of thought-provoking artists so that audiences will take full advantage of the events in their area and develop an understanding of the complex skills, techniques and knowledge that artists bring to their work.  Our goal is that these shows contribute to boosting the confidence of audiences to view and appreciate all forms of art.   If you are interested in organizing/screening/collaborating such shows at LKA, N. Delhi, please send us email   Vandana.lkadelhi at gmail.com   From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Mon Jan 4 13:55:34 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (artNET) Date: Mon, 04 Jan 2010 09:25:34 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?NewMediaFest=272010?= Message-ID: <20100104092535.D3416131.6FF4ADFA@192.168.0.2> NewMediaFest'2010 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne global heritage of digital culture 1 January - 31 December 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org ---------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------- Media/Art/Cologne is happy to announce NewMediaFest'2010 - 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne - global heritage of digital culture, a festival context starting on 1 January 2010 and ending on 31 December 2010 online and in physical space. Initiated 10 years ago by the Cologne based media artist Wilfried Agricola de Cologne, the project of the global network, entitled: [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne - developed from a small Internet based art piece to a global wide acting context of digital art creation - spread on a variety of project platforms dedicated to different types of contents and art media. just to mention some--> A Virtual Memorial Foundation, JavaMuseum - Forum for Internet Technology in Contemporary Art, VideoChannel Cologne, SoundLAB Cologne, CologneOFF - Cologne Online Film Festival, Cinematheque - streaming media projects. Please download the PDF for more details http://downloads.nmartproject.net/2010_The-Network_Wilfried-Agricola-de-Cologne.pdf NewMediaFest'2010 takes the chance of the 10th anniversary to initiate during one year new projects and cooperations on all network platforms, as well as spotlighting the most important projects realised during 10 years in an exchange between virtual and physical space, including more than 2000 artists, curators, organisations and institutions, the pioneering decade of new forms of contemporary art. Many of the projects to be spotlighted received prizes ansd awards and were presented on the most relevant festival and exhibition contexts worldwide. As a media art project itself, the global network started already years before Web2.0 was invented, still successfully running social online contexts which were, differently than Facebook & Co open not only to networking creators, but also available to the entire online audience without any restrictions. The global network incorporates a variety of diffferent types of art media, related projects and platforms, whereby Wilfried Agricola de Cologne is acting in different identities as an initiator, festival director, curator, programmer, multi-media developer, artist, and many more. NewMediaFest'2010 is organised as a networked festival context, which is coordinated online in form of a blog journal, displaying and announcing daily new program features online and physical events. However, the festival is not completely scheduled in all details, yet, until its end on 31 December 2010, so there is sufficient time and space for experimenting, new and additional initiatives, virtual and physical projects and collaborations during the coming year. Please download the PDF for more details http://downloads.nmartproject.net/NewMediaFest2010.pdf A special hightlight of the festival year will represent the 5th anniversary of CologneOFF --> CologneOFF VI - Let’s Celebrate! - 6th Cologne Online Film Festival which is planned as a networked event to be launched in September 2010, including a networked jury, consisting of Gioula Papadopoulou, curator of Videoart Festival Miden (Greece), Margarida Paiva, director of Oslo Screen Festival (Norway) Macu Moran, director VideoArtWorld Barcelona (Spain), Tamas Gabeli, director of BuSho - Budapest International Short Film Festival (Hungary) Giorgio Fideli , curator & president of Visual Container Milan (Italy), Mohamed Allam, director and curator of Medrar, Cairo (Egypt) Jonas Nilsson, manager of Art Video Screening, initiator and chief-coordinator of Örebro International Videoart Festival (Sweden) Please download the PDF for more details http://downloads.nmartproject.net/CologneOFF6_entryform.pdf During the first month - January 2010 - following features are expected to be launched --> 1. CologneOFF V - Features for One Day on VAD - Video Art Database 2. VideoChannel - French Video Art 3. JavaMuseum - start of the netart features of JavaMuseum Journal - Celebrate! 4. Cinematheque - launch of Flash & Thunder - Flash as a tool and Medium for artistic creations 5 On 27 January 2010 - 65th Return of the Liberation of the Concentration Camp of Auschwitz - A Virtual Memorial Foundation & VideoChannel will launch SFC - Shoah Film Collection and related program components Please check the program features online on http://2010.newmediafest.org At the start of NewMediaFest'2010, its partners are Videoart Festival Miden (Greece), Oslo Screen Festival (Norway) BuSho - Budapest International Shortfilm Festival (Hungary) Art Video Screening Orebro (Sweden), Video Art World Barcelona (Spain) Visual Container Milan (Italy), Video Festival Cairo (Egypt) Manipulated Image Santa Fe /New Mexico (USA) more to come, yet. ------------------------------------------------------------- [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne experimental platform for art and new media http://www.nmartproject.net CologneOFF - Cologne Online Film Festival http://coff.newmediafest.org NewMediaFest'2010 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne global heritage of digital culture 1 January - 31 December 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org Join NewMediaFest'2010 on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=404197070650 newmediafest2010 [at] koeln.de ---------------------------------------------------- From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Mon Jan 4 14:50:42 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Mon, 4 Jan 2010 01:20:42 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] Report Card - Dec 2009 - Home Ministry (India) Message-ID: <154424.47057.qm@web57203.mail.re3.yahoo.com> "Report Card of Ministry of Home Affairs for December, 2009"   EXTRACTS:   -  It is also the last month of the calendar year and hence gives me an opportunity to look back on what has been accomplished this year.   - The Telangana issue dominated the headlines.   - The Ruchika Girhotra case attracted attention and gave rise to a number of concerns.   - The impressive turnout in the five-phase elections in Jharkhand was a stinging rebuke to the CPI (Maoist) and a rejection of the call to boycott elections.   - In Parliament, the major issues that concerned MHA were the Liberhan Commission of Inquiry report, the Calling Attention motion on the Delhi riots and the Short Duration Discussion on Left Wing extremism.   - After concluding the debate on the Liberhan report, I issued certain directions on December 16, 2009 to the authorities concerned.  Briefly, the authorities concerned have been asked to examine the evidence on money collection and transfer; the charge of conspiracy; and addition of names to the lists of accused in the pending cases.   - Similarly, after the discussion on the Delhi riots, I issued certain directions on December 16, 2009 regarding pending claims for compensation; decision on the request for sanction of prosecution; applications for jobs pending with GNCTD; missing persons; and action against police officers named in the Kusum Lata Mittal report.   - Two more ULFA leaders, namely, Arabinda Rajkowa and Raju Barua were apprehended on the India-Bangladesh border and subsequently arrested by the Assam Police on December 4, 2009.   - The visa rules for tourists were tightened.  Hereafter, after the tourist visits India and leaves the country, there has to be a break of 60 days before he/she can apply for another tourist visa.  The overwhelming majority of tourists who visit India for a few weeks would face no difficulty whatsoever.  There is a very small number of tourists who use India as a hub and visit neighbouring countries.  In such cases, if the itinerary shows visits to India and other countries as part of the same trip, we have allowed the Visa Issuing Authorities to relax the 60-day period and permit up to three entries into India .   - Six cases pertaining to the State of Kerala and two cases pertaining to the State of Goa were entrusted to the National Investigation Agency.  A Special Court was notified at Kochi , Kerala under Section 11(1) of the NIA Act.   - Under the Modernisation of Police Forces Scheme for 2009-10, MHA has a provision for Rs.1,250 crore.  A sum of Rs.118.43 crore was released to various States in December 2009, taking the total release so far to Rs.849.66 crore.   - CISF has been sanctioned additional posts to provide security to establishments/installations   -  A scheme has been formulated to reemploy Ex-servicemen on contractual basis in the categories of Constable and Sub-Inspector in BSF, CISF and SSB.  CRPF has already been permitted to reemploy Ex-servicemen.   - A Research Cell will be set up in the National Police Academy , Hyderabad to conduct research on subjects relating to policing and internal security.  Research Fellowships will be offered.  In course of time, the Academy will become a Centre for Research Studies in police subjects.   - Suspension of Operation (SoO) Agreements with National Democratic Front of Boroland(NDFB-Pro Talks) and Dima Halam Daogah (DHD) were extended up to June 30, 2010.   - The tenth bilateral talks at Home Secretary level between India and Bangladesh were held between November 30, 2009 and December 2, 2009 at New Delhi .  Three draft agreements were finalized.   - On the advice of MHA, the Government of Jammu and Kashmir has constituted two Committees to deal with ‘vacation of properties occupied by security forces in a time-bound manner’ and ‘construction of alternate accommodation for security forces’.   - Journalists representing a number of publications in Jammu and Kashmir were invited to Delhi under the media exchange programme.  They spent five days between December 17 and December 21, 2009 and interacted with the senior officers of MHA.   - India-Bangladesh Border : 40 kms of fencing and 50 kms of road work were completed in December 2009 under phase II of the project.  50 kms of fencing were replaced in December 2009 under phase III of the project.  Poles for floodlighting were erected on a length of 50 kms and cables were laid on a length of 30 kms during the month.   - India-China Border:  4.6 kms of formation works and 3.24 kms of surfacing works were completed during December 2009.   - Border Area Development Programme (BADP):  A sum of Rs.47.64 crore was released to Meghalaya, Nagaland, Punjab, Rajasthan and West Bengal under BADP.   - Coastal Security:  Ten more boats were supplied by Goa Shipyard Ltd (6 boats) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd. (4 boats) during December 2009.   - The Civil Defence Act, 1968 was amended by Parliament.  The definition of ‘civil defence’ has been enlarged to include disaster management.   - The Crimes and Criminals Tracking Network System (CCTNS) continues to make progress.  A sum of Rs.33.80 crore was released to 11 States in December 2009.   - The fourth tri-partite talks with the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) and the Government of West Bengal were held on December 21, 2009.  GJM has requested that the next round of talks may be held at the political level within 45 days.   - The Andaman & Nicobar Islands (Tribal Councils) Regulation, 2009 was notified and it will come into effect on December 31, 2009.   - The Freedom Fighters’ Division has embarked on an ambitious mission of digitizing the records.  So far, 106,000 files of freedom fighters’ pension cases have been digitized, including 10,000 files that were completed in December 2009. A data base of living freedom fighters is also being compiled.  So far, 27,000 living freedom fighters’ pension cases have been included in the data base, of which 6,000 were added in the month of December 2009.   - The work of direct data collection for the National Population Register (NPR) in the coastal villages of 8 States and 2 Union Territories is in progress.  The biographical details of about 52 lakh persons and the biometric details of about 10 lakh persons have been collected so far.  Cabinet has approved the creation of NPR for coastal areas and issue of identity cards to usual residents.   - 2009 has been an eventful year.  The most satisfactory achievements have been on the anti-terror front where we had, fortunately, a year without terrorist attacks; in containing militancy in Jammu & Kashmir and in the North East; and in taking resolute measures to tackle the menace of Left Wing extremism.   - There is more to be accomplished in 2010.  Hence, 2010 promises to be more eventful than 2009.  With these words, may I conclude by wishing all of you a very happy and prosperous New Year   http://www.pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=56542     From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Mon Jan 4 15:16:36 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Mon, 4 Jan 2010 01:46:36 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] =?utf-8?q?=22Vedic_village=E2=80=99s_tryst_with_IT?= =?utf-8?q?=22?= Message-ID: <691012.26566.qm@web57206.mail.re3.yahoo.com> "Vedic village’s tryst with IT"    By Govind Krishnan 02 Jan 2010   A quarter century ago, AI magazine carried an article that evoked much curiosity among its readers — regular or casual. The 1985 spring issue of the California-based quarterly featured a write-up by an American called Rick Briggs on artificial intelligence (AI) and Sanskrit. Briggs, who compared its grammar with that of the computer, came to a startling conclusion: Sanskrit, which ceased to be a living tongue millennia ago, had such a logical meaning-structure that it could be a rich mining field for AI. The following year, Briggs and several academicians flew down to India to pick the brains of India’s Sanskrit pundits who had gathered at Bangalore for a conference inspired by his research. Had their trip happened today, those experts would have taken Bangalore as nothing more than a stopover. From the Garden City, they would’ve taken a bus and travelled seven hours north to meet the residents of Mattur. In this village, Sanskrit isn’t dead. The language leads an existence — perhaps beleaguered, but tenacious — among its 2,000-odd people. Critically, Briggs and company would have also have witnessed the beginnings of this near-Vedic village’s strange tryst with Hindustan’s nascent IT revolution: the village has produced around 150 software engineers! It is a link Briggs would have found exciting. Mattur and its twin village Hosanahalli, a few kilometres north of Shimoga town, sandwich a thin strip of the Tungabhadra. Enter Mattur, and your senses are assailed by a host of sights that is eccentric in its fusion of the picturesque and the quixotic. While a set of Smartha Brahmins recite Vedic hymns by the riverside in the morning cold, a couple of young men with tufts zoom past on a black Pulsar — the unstitched folds of their white uparivasthras flapping in the breeze. When I enter the home of Gopal Avadhani, a retired engineer, a boy named Shantarama introduces himself in Sanskrit, “Mama naama Shantarama.” Sanskrit dominates the life of Mattur, and not just because half the populace speak the language — with varying degrees of fluency. Right about the time Briggs and his crew were discovering the semantic potential of Sanskrit for computer applications, Mattur was rediscovering Sanskrit for itself. The journey back to its Vedic roots started for the village in 1981 when Sanskrita Bharati, an organisation that promotes the classical language, conducted a Sanskrit workshop in Mattur. It was attended, among others, by the pontiff of the Pejawar Mutt in nearby Udupi. Inspired by this village where Sanskrit survived as a spoken language, the seer reportedly exclaimed, “A place where individuals speak Sanskrit, where whole houses talk in Sanskrit! What next? A Sanskrit village!” It’s a call Mattur took to heart. Sanskrit is reputedly a tough nut to crack, but is it that different from picking up any other language? In some rather important ways, it seems it is. When Shantarama leaves for school and says “Aham vidyalayam gachhami” (I am going to school), he will know that gachhami is very much like gamanam — which means movement. Both words come from the root class gam, from which a fluent Sanskrit speaker can dig up words for all kinds of movements and for things that move. Like gau for cows and khagah for birds. But khagah is not merely something that moves. It is that which it moves in khagam (sky). From a few basic classes (root words), Sanskrit creates an endless chain of words — all linked to each other. “The objects, events and actions are all labelled depending on the root,” says Srivatsa S, who is doing his research in linguistics at the English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad. Dhruv Kumar, who is scholar Gopal Avadhani’s nephew, is one of Mattur’s success stories. He heads a software development company in Bangalore. The IT professional is a stranger to linguistics concepts, but he is very familiar with the idea that one can link together a vast set of seemingly random things by boiling them down to basic classes that will split the objects between them. He would be doing it every day. In his office at Mahalakshmi Layout when Dhruv works on Java or C ++, he is using Object Oriented Programming (OOP), a programming technique that thinks on lines similar to Panini’s Sanskrit grammar. OOP allows the programmer to define classes and clump together objects belonging to the same class. Each object within the class can be a further class, and can give more objects, just like one word leads on to another in Sanskrit. Dhruv, however, is not interested in whether Java shares semantic genes with Sanskrit. His obsession at the moment is Shridam — a rural BPO that set up operations in Mattur three months back. Shridam is Dhruv’s way of giving back to the village that raised him and which he longs to go back to. The BPO, the brainchild of Mattur’s affluent techie migrants, employs 50 villagers at the moment. “It gives us from Rs 3,000 to 5,000 a month,” says Pattabhiraman, an employee. “We might get double that in Bangalore, but the cost of living there makes Shridam much more attractive. Besides we can stay at home.” The beehive of air-conditioned cubicles that outsource business operations from foreign shores is something we only associate with a city. But Dhruv thinks this has not only limited our business imagination but held our villages back. “If I can service the USA sitting here in Bangalore, why can’t I do the same from Shimoga? From Mattur?” The words of a dreamer? Dhruv does not agree. After all, the line between dreaming and innovation is a thin one. “When I can get better support, better connectivity and better power in Shimoga, why can’t I deliver the same product to my customers at a lower cost?” Sridham is only the tip of the iceberg for Dhruv and his various associates. For them setting up a rural BPO is merely the first step in stemming the flood of urban migration that is eroding the very fabric of villages like Muttur. They have much bigger plans for their village. The profits from the BPO shall go into a special fund with which they hope to launch much bigger technological projects in Mattur. And these projects will be not only be run but conceived and conceptualised by the youth of Mattur. “We want to educate our young people and take up their ideas,” Dhruv explains. “Let them come up with their own projects and execute them. We will give them the support.” What kind of projects does he have in mind? “Well, for example, wind and water energy from the Tunga can be harnessed to generate power indigenously. The channels of the Badhra flow into the Tunga and the water force can be a valuable resource for our village,” he says. Other plans of a similar kind are being chalked; the thrust is to make the Muttur a self-sufficient unit.   If Dhruv’s dreams come true, Mattur would be a bizarre candidate for that holy grail of liberal economists — the global village. It would be bizarre not merely because the denizens of this global village will speak Sanskrit and wear unstitched clothes while running software companies and techno-heavy development projects.   How to keep a language alive If one man can be said to be responsible for Mattur’s Sanskrit revolution, it would be Srinidhi, a stocky, bullet-headed man with an enthusiasm that belies his forties. Srinidhi heads Sanskritha Bhavan, a Sanskrit-teaching institute that has taken upon itself a job that to many would seem quixotic, the task of taking the language out of textbooks and literature and bringing it back to life on the streets of Mattur. Among the many things the institute does, the primary one is the language support it gives to the local school. Sanskrit is the first language in the Sharada Vidyapeeth, a private school managed by the villagers that educates the village’s children at little more than Rs 80 a month. Sanskrita Bharati organises spoken Sanskrit courses every few months to make sure that nothing is learnt by rote and forgotten. These Sanskrita Shibirams (Sanskrit camps), where learners brush up on their speaking skills see all kinds — men, women, Brahmins, Harijans, college students, middle-aged farmers. And the discussions, Srinidhi says, are very lively. The enthusiast, however, admits that the occasional old-timer who grumbles “Sanskrit? At my age?” is not uncommon. The technological edge Fifty to sixty software professionals from Mattur are placed in the different IT firms that have made Bangalore the Silicon valley of India. “People from my native place are working for companies such as Wipro, Infosys, HP, IBM and several others in Bangalore,” says Shashank who is the chief technological officer of Samartha, a software development company in Bangalore floated by another Matturite. Samartha which offers IT services to IT giants in India and abroad, and have HP, IBM and Wipro among its clients. The organisation employs 100 software engineers, of whom 25 are from Mattur. Another venture with a Mattur entrepreneur at its helm, combines software development functions with that of a training institute. The company provides training to graduates in languages like Java and PLSQL (Procedural Language/Structured Query Language). Mattur has not just spawned techies. It has made its mark in the scientific community also. “Two scientists from Mattur have won the Bhatnagar award for original research,” said Dhruv Kumar, the owner of Samartha.   govindkrishnanv at gmail.com     http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=Vedic+village%E2%80%99s+tryst+with+IT&artid=f1Oj7CyieUI=&SectionID=f4OberbKin4=&MainSectionID=f4OberbKin4=&SectionName=cxWvYpmNp4fBHAeKn3LcnQ==&SEO=sanskrit,%20oops,%20concept,%20c+=   From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Mon Jan 4 15:32:24 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Mon, 4 Jan 2010 02:02:24 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] "Muslims ask PC to apologise" Message-ID: <913874.82274.qm@web57201.mail.re3.yahoo.com> "Muslims ask PC to apologise"   Sunday , January 3 , 2010 OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT   New Delhi, Jan. 2: Muslim organisations have asked Union home minister P. Chidambaram to apologise or face legal action over his references to jihad in a lecture in Delhi last week.   Delivering the Intelligence Bureau centenary endowment lecture on December 23, Chidambaram had said: “Just as the Cold War came to an end, we witnessed the emergence of another kind of war, namely, jihad. Jihad is a war or struggle against unbelievers and, currently, it is waged by a number of groups owing allegiance to Islam. Unlike the original Crusades, jihad is not fought like a conventional war. Jihad employs terror as an instrument to achieve its objectives. Such terror is directed against all and sundry, its victims are usually innocent people, and its goal is to overawe and overthrow the established authority. The tactics of the jihadis have been copied by militants belonging to other groups too, not excluding militants professing the Hindu faith.”   Organisations such as the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind and the Jamiat Ulema have condemned the statement.   Qasim Rasool Ilyas, executive committee member of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, described Chidambaram’s statement as highly deplorable.   “A couple of months back, he had praised Islam in high terms while addressing the gathering of Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind in Deoband and said that terrorism had been wrongly attached with Islam which preaches peace. But addressing police and intelligence officials, he has now equated jihad with terrorism. It is very unfortunate and uncalled-for from a person who is holding the very important post of home minister,” Ilyas said.   The Tamil Nadu Muslim Munnetra Kazhagam, a Muslim organisation from Chidambaram’s home state, has threatened legal action if he does not withdraw his statement. Another organisation, the Tamil Nadu Shariath Protection Council, has given the minister a week to apologise.   “Your statement has caused anguish and resentment affecting the good relations between the Muslim community and the party in power at the Centre. It is our hope that you will be gentlemanly enough to withdraw your statement,” said the Muslim Munnetra Kazhagam president, M.H. Jawahirullah.   “Your reported speech at the recent Intelligence Bureau meeting equating two diametrically opposite concepts, viz. the noble jihad with the abominable terrorism, has very badly hurt the sentiments of the Muslim minority community,” Jawahirullah said.   In an open letter to the minister, Jawahirullah said: “Jihad is admittedly a struggle but against what and against whom is the question. It is a striving against injustice and falsehood. That Islam teaches that this should be done through violence is an unadulterated lie.   “Making a distinction between the ‘Crusades’ and ‘jihad’, it is reported that you have chosen to call the former a “conventional war” and the latter “a war against unbelievers”. I am sorry to say, with all the emphasis at my command, that nothing is farther from the truth than the said statement of yours. The Crusades were regular, full-fledged wars between two states, viz two communities — Christians and Muslims — sponsored by the rulers of the respective groups, led by their respective military commanders. It is only if and when Muslims engage themselves in such a kind of war, it is taken to be a jihad. Even during such war, Muslims have been directed not to attack priests, the aged, women and children.”   http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100103/jsp/nation/story_11936087.jsp#   From ektaraindia at email.com Mon Jan 4 19:17:53 2010 From: ektaraindia at email.com (ektara) Date: Mon, 04 Jan 2010 08:47:53 -0500 Subject: [Reader-list] Understanding Bulleh Shah and Amir Khusrau: a workshop in Delhi Message-ID: <8CC5B5BA618A3ED-17B8-5DC@web-mmc-d02.sysops.aol.com> Understanding Bulleh Shah and Amir Khusrau An Intensive Workshop on Sufi Music and Qawwali 6-14 February 2010 Ektara India, New Delhi After two successful workshops in 2009 on the appreciation of Sufi music and Qawwali, Ektara India invites applications for an advanced workshop on understanding the poetry and music of medieval poet-composers Amir Khusrau Dehlavi (1253-1325) and Bulleh Shah (1680-1757), to be held in New Delhi from 6th to 14th February 2010. Ektara India, a Delhi-based collective of media and art professionals, has been involved in a wide range of activities of culture, arts, research and peacemaking, having produced documentary films, music albums, and multimedia, besides managing cultural events, academic symposia, and exhibitions. In October and December 2009, Ektara organized two introductory workshops on the appreciation of Sufi music and Qawwali in Delhi, which were attended and well-appreciated by people from cross section of professions and backgrounds. These workshops were conducted by a eminent scholars and musicians such as Prof. Madan Gopal Singh (Delhi), Atmaram Bhakal (Chandigarh), Hayat Khan Nizami Qawwal, Wasifuddin Dagar, Dhruv Sangari and many others. Numerous documentary films and archival audio/video recordings were screened during the workshop, besides heritage walks to Sufi shrines of Delhi. (See the attached programmes of the 2 workshops). All participants were also given certificates of participation besides CDs with music and other multimedia related to the subject. Our next workshop (in Feb. 2010) hopes to take the participants to a more advanced level of understanding the poetry, music and historical context of legends like Amir Khusrau and Bulleh Shah. The verse of these two poets is probably the most performed Sufi poetry in north India and Pakistan. Although there is gap of almost 4 centuries between the lives of two poet-composers, these 400 years were also probably the most productive in the cultural history of south Asia. This workshop hopes to explore the development of Sufi poetry and music over these 4 centuries and beyond and what relevance they hold for us today. It will not only equip the participants to appreciate the poetry and music better, but also acquaint themselves to the historical and political context of the Sufi movements in South Asia. The workshop will take place for 4 full-day sessions on weekends (6th, 7th, 13th and 14th February, 2010, from 10 am to 6 pm), with an additional evening of heritage walk at the shrine of Nizamuddin on a Thursday (11th Feb). The venue for main sessions is St. Mary's School at B - 2 Block, Safdarjung Enclave, New Delhi. It will include illustrated lectures by eminent scholars of history, literature and music, besides many sessions of audio and video screenings. There would also be a heritage walk and on-location performances of music. Lunch, tea and snacks will be served during the workshop. Handouts including reading material as well as multimedia on CDs would also be provided during the workshop. The registration for the workshop is open for anyone with an interest in Sufi literature, music and cultural history. Although it is not a requirement, but those who attended any of Ektara’s previous basic workshops (Oct/Dec 09) might appreciate this advanced workshop better. The registration fee is Rs.4000 (inclusive of lunch, tea and handouts). There is an early bird discount of 25% if you register before 15th January, 2010. Couples or two or more friends together can still get this discount after the deadline. Students (who are not working as professionals) get a 50% discount if they register before 15th Jan. To register, kindly download the application form and send it to us along with your registration fee. http://www.ektaramusic.com/smw-appform-feb10.pdf Ektara team (http://www.ektara.org) +91-9810261773, ektaraindia at email.com From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Mon Jan 4 19:33:23 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Mon, 4 Jan 2010 06:03:23 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] "A fading symbol" (the Cross in Pakistan) Message-ID: <644293.43450.qm@web57206.mail.re3.yahoo.com> "A fading symbol"   By Zeresh John Monday, 04 Jan, 2010   The cross is the most widely recognised religious symbol of Christianity. Down the years, the emblem has faded from the public eye, rarely seen in the humdrum of everyday life in Pakistan. Born and raised a devout Protestant Christian and a part of the country’s largest religious minority, the increasing invisibility of the cross, despite its ascent about two decades ago, seems unsettling to me.   There was a time in Pakistan when it was common to see cross pendants around the necks of people on the streets. But now, that sight has been reduced to a rare glimpse in Karachi’s Bohri Bazaar, only when Christmas is around the corner. The decreasing visibility of the cross here underscores the challenges the Christian community is facing.   Indeed, in view of recent anti-Christian violence, there is an even smaller fraction of people who hang a cross on the rearview mirrors of their cars or display their religious identity on the entrance doors of their homes — a sight that was previously common. The cross seems to be fast disappearing from local jewelry shops too. When inquired about this change, Pakistani Christians voice concerns about their security and dubiously ponder their future. “Not many people come to buy them anymore. We have some samples, but they are rarely requested,” says the owner of a small jewelry shop in Saddar.   Churches once adorned with decorative lights on festive occasions are now accompanied by security guards and metal detectors. Christian processions through the streets of Karachi before sunrise on Easter and at midnight on Christmas have altogether stopped. Images of the cross are now only seen at few and far between photo exhibitions of churches or historical landmarks of the country in elite and well cloistered galleries. Photographer Stephan Andrew admits to lesser opportunities now than before to photograph the cross in Pakistan. For his first solo exhibition two months ago, Andrew had just one photograph capturing the Christian presence in the country — an image of the monument in St. Patrick’s Cathedral.   “Christians are hesitant to display their religious identity now. It is believed that if you are a Christian, you are either associated with the Americans or are a foreigner,” Andrew adds. Salman Chand, a Karachi-based banker who is a part of the youthful social scene, says he doesn’t wear a cross for different reasons: “I’m not too keen on putting my faith on display, only because I feel the cross is sacred and sometimes conflicts with my lifestyle. I don’t wear a cross only because I don’t want it to be disrespected or associated with things that my religion does not preach.”   Despite such reservations, young Christians do long for some acknowledgement of their faith in Pakistan’s public sphere. Andrew recounts a recent visit to Karachi’s Empress Market, where he came across some roadside shops selling cross pendants on black thread. “Perhaps it is more style than any sort of religious declaration, but seeing those crosses felt good. It just shows how some part of Pakistan is still very liberal and forthcoming,” he explains.   Indeed, many Pakistani Christians continue to value the symbolism of the cross. Guitarist, composer and music producer, Shallum Xavier, who wears a cross pendant around his neck in all his music videos, says that he does not wear it to represent his faith, but because of what it signifies: the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. “I wear the cross because of my memories from my childhood. It is more of a personal thing. A big part of it is because of my love for Jesus Christ,” says the pop celebrity.   Meanwhile, Nabeel Dean, a senior sales and marketing manager in an insurance company, points out that it is not just the Christians who are scared of professing their identity in Pakistan. “People from other castes are generally keeping a low profile also. With sectarian violence on the rise and internal clashes between various political parties, caste and religion automatically become explosive subjects. You never know what will offend who,” he says.     Better days   In the years after Partition, Pakistani Christians used to have no qualms displaying their identity. The community’s confidence and self assurance was at its peak between the 1950s and 1970s, when Pakistani Christians were respected members of society. They were patriotic citizens and qualified professionals, contributing as educationists, doctors, lawyers, businessmen, and even popular radio jockeys. Back then, Pakistani society encouraged a dynamic mix of cultures, nationalities and religions. This congenial respect for diversity gave birth to acceptance for all minorities.   Before Xavier and other contemporary Christian pop icons, including the legendary drummer Gumby, had to justify their regard for the cross, the sound of religious harmony was heard loud and clear across Pakistan. In the late 1970s, the Benjamin Sisters, a singing group comprising three sisters – Nerissa, Beena and Shabana – achieved immense popularity in both Pakistan and neighboring India in what began to be referred to as the Benjamin Sisters Phenomenon. In fact, the Benjamin Sisters symbolised what Jinnah’s Pakistan was supposed to be, singing patriotic national songs such as ‘Is parcham kay saye tale hum ek hai.’     The mass migration   However, General Ziaul Haq’s wave of Islamisation in the 1980s brought about a stark change in Pakistan’s social and political scenarios. The nation’s Christians, one of the most highly regarded minorities, bore the brunt of this social transformation. Those who were affluent emigrated, leaving behind a majority of Pakistani Christians to make their peace with being regarded as second-class citizens in their own country.   “The mass migration of Christians in the eighties explains the absence of the cross today,” says Minerva Rebecca, a human resources manager in a non-profit organisation. “There’s nobody around to wear it anymore.” She also points out that the Christians who remain in Pakistan are socially marginalised and disenfranchised, and therefore not confident enough to display their religious identity. “They’re not part of higher social strata for them to be seen at gatherings where the cross may be noticed.”   Since the mass migration of Christians in the 1980s, the only overt display of the cross in the 1990s could be seen when one tuned in to catch a cricket match. Yousuf Youhana, the third Pakistani batsmen to score more than 6,000 runs in Test cricket, made the sign of the cross after completing every century. It was a proud moment for Pakistan, the green and white of the flag represented truly with both a Christian and a Hindu (Danish Kaneria) playing for the national team on the field.   In 2005, however, Pakistani Christians across the country, who prayed fervently for Youhana during every cricket match, were disappointed following his conversion to Islam. Confused by rumours and controversies surrounding his conversion, young Christian boys who looked up to Youhana for inspiration felt let down.   “He was my role model,” says Eleazar Mikhail, a student at the St. Patrick’s High School. “Everyone is subjected to discrimination at some point in their lives, whether it’s about religion or the way you look. I used to think if Yousuf Youhana didn’t succumb to the pressure, neither would I.”   Owing to these setbacks, Pakistani Christians are now trying to find a footing in society. Most are reduced to menial labour. And many are frequently subjected to forced conversions or accused of desecrating the Quran.   Bahadur Khan, who sweeps the streets of Karachi’s PECHS area early every morning, admits to facing hardships being a Christian in Pakistan. “I had to change my name from Pervaiz Masih to land this job – what does that tell you?” he asks. “I am not proud to do it, but I have a family to feed.”   In the evenings, however, when the sweeper is off duty, he looks forward to a cup of tea with friends from the Christian community in Mehmoodabad, where he lives. He finds the transition back to his faith a comforting one: “With my friends, I will always be Pervaiz Masih,” he adds cheerfully.     The law of the land   To a large extent, Masih’s insecurities about being openly Christian in Pakistan can be traced back to a single piece of legislature. Since the 1980s, Christians have increasingly become victims of humiliation and persecution through false allegations made under the notorious blasphemy law. Unfortunately, the Pakistani Penal Code (PPC) provides little guidance on what exactly constitutes blasphemy.   The law, a remnant of the 1860 British colonial criminal law, was revised in 1986 by General Haq in accordance with the Sharia. It was revised again in 1992 when the death penalty was made mandatory for convicted blasphemers under the democratically elected government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.   In its earlier incarnation, the law applied equally to all religions. But in the revised version, the death penalty only applies to those who blaspheme against Islam. According to a 2001 US State Department report titled ‘International Religious Freedom,’ 55 to 60 Christians have been charged with blasphemy each year. Currently, more than a hundred accused are languishing in Pakistani jails, awaiting trial.   Admittedly, the number of arrests under the blasphemy law has decreased since former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto approved two PPC amendments designed to reduce the abuse of Section 295-C. General Pervez Musharraf too suggested mild changes to the blasphemy law in April 2000, but withdrew his recommendations the following month. As a result, the law remains largely intact.   Following his visit to riot-hit Gojra in August 2009, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani hinted at changing the blasphemy law in a bid to facilitate ‘religious harmony’ in the country. Moreover, there is increasing acknowledgement that the blasphemy law is usually invoked in cases of political vendetta or rivalry or land disputes. Human rights activists continue to campaign for the law to be completely repealed.     A proud legacy   The current position of Pakistan’s Christians is a sharp departure from their subcontinental legacy. Karachi and Rawalpindi saw the first churches in Pakistan when Christianity was introduced to the region by the British rulers of India in the late eighteenth century. St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Karachi is considered to be Pakistan's largest church and is the most prominent Christian landmark in the country.   Most Christians who came to Pakistan were resident officers of the British Army and the government. During the development of Karachi’s infrastructure, a large Catholic Goan community was established by the British and the Irish before World War II. Christians, in Sindh and Punjab particularly, had been active pre-independence in their support for Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s Muslim League. Encouraged by the Quaid’s promise of complete equality of citizenship, they rendered their services as journalists and propagandists to the movement.   In fact, Christians did their best to contribute in a positive way to society. For that reason, the cross in Pakistan has been mainly associated with education, healthcare and philanthropy.   A large portion of Pakistan’s elite owe their success to a solid educational grounding at St. Patrick's High School and St. Joseph's Convent School in Karachi and the Forman Christian College and St. Anthony’s High School in Lahore. Similarly, the Holy Family Hospital and the Marie Adelaide Leprosy Centre in Karachi and the Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar were founded at a time when few healthcare facilities existed in Pakistan. All Christian institutions across the country portray a strong sense of nation building, rendering invaluable services to the people of Pakistan irrespective of caste, creed, and colour.     Being both, a Christian and Pakistani   In the context of current unrest within Pakistan, as religious fundamentalism has grown beyond proportions, Pakistani Christians find themselves in the midst of a grave situation. The increasing frequency and brutality of religious riots anger them, yet they remain optimistic about a system they hope will make things better. That hope is inspired by the very symbol that is shunned by Pakistanis – the cross, a symbol of strength, perseverance and endurance for Christians.   “One day we hope to see a Pakistan which will not differentiate between caste and creed as was promised by the Quaid,” says Jennifer Marshall, an ESL trainer in Karachi. “We are hopeful because the cross symbolises salvation for us.”   Meanwhile, constant and repeated demands for the repeal of the blasphemy law prove that Pakistani Christians are adamant to fight to keep the cross visible in their country.     http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/news/art-culture/02-A-fading-symbol-01   From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Tue Jan 5 15:15:03 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (nmf2010) Date: Tue, 05 Jan 2010 10:45:03 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?Day005_-_NewMediaFest=272010?= Message-ID: <20100105104505.8376007C.55767671@192.168.0.2> NewMediaFest'2010 Day 005 program - 5 January 2010 1. VAD - Video Art Database VideoChannel - Found Footage Film Collection start of "features for one day" during the coming weeks--> today: ONCE, 2009, 2:11 by Renata Padovan (Brazil) 2. VAD - Video Art Database CologneOFF V - features for one day today: étude red and blue, 2009, 3:31 by Vladimir Mitrev (Bulgaria) http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=131 ---------------------------------------------------- Day 004 program - 4 January 2010 - highlight Launch of French Video Art on VideoChannel Cologne featuring videos by Antony Rousseau, Frank Gatti, Jean-Gabriel Périot + Tom de Pékin, Jean-Gabriel Périot, Tom de Pékin, Laurent Pernot, Matthieu Capel, Jimmy Owenns, Melanie Perrier, Les Riches Douaniers, Virginie Foloppe, Isabelle Schneider http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=121 ---------------------------------------------------- NewMediaFest'2010 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne global heritage of digital culture 1 January - 31 December 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org newmediafest2010 [at] koeln.de Join NewMediaFest'2010 on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=404197070650 ---------------------------------------------------- From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Wed Jan 6 12:27:51 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 12:27:51 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Need contacts with authors & publishers to join the XRCVC - Right to Read Campaign for the Print Disabled In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Excerpts from http://psychologynews.posterous.com/need-contacts-with-authors-and-publishers-to The Xavier's Centre for the Visually Challenged (XRCVC) is spearheading a Right to Read campaign (http://www.righttoread.in/) under the wings of Prof. Sam Taraporevala for the right for all books published in India, to also be published in Braille. The XRCVC requires 500 authors in India to agree with this , and join the campaign, so that they can fight for their basic right, and take it right up to the parliament. I have attached a cover letter and the campaign declaration with this mail. From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Wed Jan 6 12:30:00 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 12:30:00 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Calling Changemakers + Workshop by Youth Venture, Jan 9, Bombay In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: The attachment can be seen at http://bit.ly/7wiB5N ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Vipin Thekkekalathil Date: 2010/1/6 Subject: Calling Changemakers Dear Chandni, can you please send this information and the attached document to your contacts. We are starting our new cycle on the 9th and would like to spread the word that we are looking out for passionate young people who have a dream to make this country better. Have a terrific 2010. Warmly, Vipin Dear Friend, Youth Venture is inviting passionate young people who are interested in applying for the *2010 Changemaker Fellowship* to come for our *Introductory Dream it. Do it. Workshop* scheduled for *9th January*. We will share more details on the fellowship, hear from the experiences of our venturers and meet the Youth Venture Team. This will be a space for you to share your venture ideas with us. For more information about Youth Venture India, visit us at www.youthventureindia.org. You can watch our Changemakers in action at * http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4R86LhW0Cxk* The attached brochure gives you further details of the program and the venue. We start at 3:45 pm. Please confirm your participation by calling Aditi on 9820034563. Look forward to seeing you there, Aditi Punj *Ashoka's Youth Venture India* *www.youthventureindia.net * * * *About Ashoka's Youth Venture* Youth Venture is a global movement that inspires, invests, and supports young people to lead social change. We believe it is critical that people discover early on in their lives that they can lead social change. We invest in young people to design and lead their own initiatives that create social impact. We do this through a one year fellowship, where we support them to create entrepreneurial Ventures around a social issue they feel passionate about. As they form teams and work together in creating and launching their ‘Ventures’, young people learn the important skills of leadership, teamwork, entrepreneurship and empathy. They also realize that they are powerful and will continue to take initiative and lead again and again throughout their lives. Established by Ashoka, the world’s leading association of social entrepreneurs and the pioneer of the social entrepreneurship movement, Youth Venture is nurturing young people’s dreams and providing them with mentorship and seed capital to help them initiate change in their communities. In the last 24 months, we have supported 70 young changemakers and their teams, in Mumbai and Songadh (a district in Rural Gujarat). See the attached document and *www.genv.net/india* . From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Wed Jan 6 12:49:29 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 12:49:29 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] HASTAC/MacArthur Foundation Digital Media & Learning Competition Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Sapna Shahani Date: 2010/1/5 Hi everyone, Please think about applying for the competition below or spread the word. Our project WAVE (www.womenaloud.blogspot.com) was one of the winners last year and they are seeking more applications for the 2010 competition due Jan 22. India is one of four international countries besides the US that are eligible to apply for this competition. You have to submit a proposal for a project that involves participatory learning through the use of digital media tools. You can check out a list of past winning projects at www.dmlcompetiion.net Good luck, Sapna. *2010 HASTAC/MacArthur Foundation Digital Media and Learning Competition* We are pleased to announce that all information regarding the* *2010 international HASTAC/MacArthur Foundation Digital Media and Learning Competition—including detailed category explanations and guidelines, critical deadlines, application materials, etc.—is now available at * www.dmlcompetition.net* . The theme of this year's Competition is Reimagining Learning and there are two types of awards: 21st Century Learning Lab Designers and Game Changers. Aligned with National Lab Day as part of the White House's Educate to Innovate Initiative, the 21st Century Learning Lab Designer awards will range from $30,000-$200,000. Awards will be made for learning environments and digital media-based experiences that allow young people to grapple with social challenges through activities based on the social nature, contexts, and ideas of science, technology, engineering and math. The Game Changers category—undertaken in cooperation with Sony Computer Entertainment of America (SCEA) and Electronic Arts (EA), Entertainment Software Assocation, and the Information Technology Industry Council—will award amounts ranging from $5,000-$50,000 for creative levels designed with either LittleBigPlanet™ or Spore™ Galactic Adventures that offer young people engaging game play experiences and that incorporate and leverage principles of science, technology, engineering and math for learning. Each category will include several Best in Class awards selected by expert judges, as well as a People’s Choice Award selected by the general public. The online application system will open on January 15 and will include three rounds of submissions, with public comment at each stage. Please see *www.dmlcompetition.net* for all details. * **www.hastac.org* * **www.dmlcompetition.net* * **www.twitter.com/dmlComp* *http://dmlcomp.blogspot.com* *http://www.twitter.com/dmlcomp* * * From jeebesh at sarai.net Wed Jan 6 13:13:19 2010 From: jeebesh at sarai.net (Jeebesh) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 13:13:19 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] =?windows-1252?q?Needed=3A_=91basic=92_doctors_of_m?= =?windows-1252?q?odern_medicine?= Message-ID: dear All, Enclosed is an excellent essay on grave errors that created the mess of todays health infrastructure. The only MBBS doctors syndrome has done immense damage to the way we relate to our bodies in time of distress, more so in areas where there are non available. The arguments in the essay are excellent and poses some fundamental rethinking. also enclosed is a news item of a PIL by the author of the essay in the Delhi High Court. warmly jeebesh http://beta.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/article43383.ece Needed: ‘basic’ doctors of modern medicine MEENAKSHI GAUTHAMK M. SHYAMPRASAD Opening more medical colleges is not the solution to India’s chronic shortage of doctors in the rural areas. India is the largest supplier of foreign medical graduates to the United States and the United Kingdom. Yet, its own rural areas have remained chronically deprived of professional doctors. The historical antecedents of these shortages could be traced to a landmark health policy document, the Bhore Committee Report of 1946. That report constructed the concept of a ‘basic’ doctor as one trained through five-and-a-half years of university education. An alternative cadre of Licentiates who were trained over a shorter duration and who formed two-thirds of the country’s medical practitioners then, was abolished, in spite of strong dissent from several members of the committee. These dissenting comments must be revisited in the context of India’s persistently poor health indices and inadequate health services for the majority. THE REPORT In October 1943, the Government of British India appointed the committee to survey the state of public health in the country, and make recommendations for future development. The committee chaired by Sir Joseph Bhore, a senior civil servant, comprised eight British and 16 Indian members. The Bhore Committee Report, published in 1946, was meticulously drafted and reflected its members’ profound understanding of health matters. They presented statistics on the disease burden and attributed the poor state of health in the country not only to inadequacies in medical services and health personnel but also to the prevailing social ills — poverty, illiteracy, poor nutrition and unsanitary conditions. The report is best known for providing the blueprint for a modern public health delivery system in India, along with the training of its personnel. Foremost among these was the ‘basic’ doctor of modern medicine who would be central to the delivery of primary healthcare. These were far- reaching recommendations and shaped the course of public health and medicine in independent India. But on closer examination, a number of flaws are revealed. TWO CLASSES There were two classes of medical practitioners of Western medicine at the time of the Bhore survey: graduates who underwent a five-and-a- half-year course in the medical colleges, and Licentiates (LMPs) who underwent a three-to-four-year course in medical schools. Of the 47,524 registered medical practitioners at that time, nearly two- thirds (29,870) were Licentiates and one- third (17,654) were graduates. The report informs us that in the rural areas health care was delivered through sub-divisional hospitals and dispensaries that were managed mostly by Licentiates. Besides, there were large numbers of indigenous practitioners providing affordable and accessible healthcare to the masses. The Bhore Committee proposed a three-tier district health scheme. A primary unit would be at its periphery, a secondary unit at the sub- divisional headquarters would provide more specialised services, and a district organisation would be in charge of the overall supervision of district-level health activities. Though conceptually well-organised, the scheme was designed to cover only a fourth of the population in the first five years (78,080,000 out of a projected 315 million in the report) and less than half (156,200,000 out of a projected 337.5 million) over the next 10 years. The report was silent on how the needs of the rest of the country would be met. Nonetheless, the committee recommended that the Licentiate qualification be abolished, all medical schools be upgraded to colleges, and all available resources be directed into the production of only one type of doctor. He or she would have the highest level of training — a five-and-a-half-year university training, similar to what the Goodenough Committee had proposed for Great Britain as the gold standard. The committee believed that there was no role in the modern medical scheme for indigenous systems of medicine and its practitioners: these systems were considered “static in conception and practice.” Six members of the committee, five Indians and one Briton, put up a brave dissent. They repeatedly argued that in view of the manpower shortages, the country should use every possible means, including the shorter Licentiate course, to increase the number of trained medical personnel. They pointed out that England had abolished Licentiate teaching only after 100 years and Russia relied extensively on ‘feldshers’ (medical assistants) to run 48,000 dispensaries. They noted with anguish that since the new scheme would benefit only a section of the Indian population, “Public health over the remaining four fifth to one-half of the country… will atrophy. There will be no personnel like the licentiates even to help the regions and institutions which will come under neglect.” PROPHETIC The dissenters’ views proved prophetic. They said that the “basic doctor would not willingly fit into the rural scheme.” India’s six decades of chronic shortages of doctors in the rural areas are grim testimony to this fact. They argued that “while a majority on the committee can abolish the licentiate, they cannot prevent other practitioners, practising a variety of systems of medicine, taking his place.” Time has proved this also to be a prescient observation. Studies show that since Independence and even today, much of health care at first contact in rural India is delivered not by qualified doctors but by informally trained and unlicensed private practitioners. What happened to the highly trained basic doctor of the future? The Bhore Committee estimated that around 15,000 doctors would be needed in the scheme in the first five years, and around 30,000 over 10 years. As the number of medical colleges roughly doubled during this period (from 19 in 1946 to 42 in 1956) it can be estimated that the number of graduates also doubled. It is difficult to obtain exact data on how many graduates entered the health system over 10 years, but almost all of India’s Five-Year Plans and national health policies since 1947 have lamented the shortage of doctors in the rural areas. What is definitely known is that around 10 years later, in the early 1960s, nearly 18,000 graduate doctors from the Indian sub-continent migrated to the U.K. in response to Health Minister Enoch Powell’s call to save the U.K.’s rapidly expanding National Health Service (NHS) from a staffing crisis. In November 2003, a BBC documentary “From the Raj to the Rhondda: How Asian Doctors Saved the NHS,” acknowledged the contributions of doctors from the Indian sub- continent to Britain’s most deprived areas, where no British doctor was willing to go. Even today, the second largest proportion of doctors registered with the U.K.’s General Medical Council, by country of qualification, is from India: they number 25,720, or 11 per cent of the total. India also provides the largest pool of international medical graduates to the U.S. TURF PROTECTION Medical historians point out that the Indian doctors who collaborated with colonial rule were the ones who stepped into positions of power after 1947. Their socialisation into the western model meant that the “development of medical practice in India did not follow the pattern that was being advocated for developing countries at the time. Indian degrees were quite suitable for working in England, but probably totally irrelevant for working to the benefit of the vast majority of the Indian population.” (Professor Aneez Esmail, 2007) Ironically, even less-trained providers can efficiently deliver primary care. However, efforts to revive a Licentiate type of cadre, as recommended by the National Health Policy 2002 and outlined by a Task Force on Medical Education in 2007, have been non-starters. This is due to resistance from a section of the country’s medical fraternity which carries a turf protection mindset, supported by obstructive legislation contained in the Indian Medical Council Act of 1956. AN ALTERNATIVE In view of the obvious deficiencies in India’s overall rural infrastructure, it is unlikely that the rural areas will have a sufficient number of doctors over the next several decades. Thus, the solution to India’s doctor shortages does not lie in building more medical colleges. A better alternative would be to draw from other countries’ experiences of developing mid-level practitioners: Clinical Officers and Medical Assistants in Africa, Physician Assistants in the U.S., Nurse Practitioners in Canada, and the rural doctors in China who number more than a million. These cadres are typically trained for three years and empowered to provide clinical services. Studies so far suggest that their performance and outcomes are in no way inferior to that of doctors trained for longer periods. In the short term, India must also upgrade the skills of existing unlicensed rural practitioners and empower government nurses and pharmacists to take on additional tasks. An alternative to the IMC Act is the Drugs and Cosmetics Act that empowers States to recognise practitioners other than MBBS-holders to provide a limited range of medical care services. Chhattisgarh has invoked this power to create a three-year diploma course for Practitioners of Modern and Holistic Medicine. (Meenakshi Gautham, PhD, is a public health specialist ( gautham.meenakshi at gmail.com );K. M. Shyamprasad, M.Ch., FRCS, is a former vice president of the National Board of Examinations, MoHFW, India ( shyamprasad at nlhmb.in). Legal inputs have been received from Indira Unninayar, Supreme Court Advocate.) ---------------- http://www.indlaw.com/search/news/?62795492-a700-49cf-b62f-c88a4ccea1ed Delhi HC issues notice to Centre, MCI on practice of non-MBBS persons The Delhi High Court issued notices to the Centre and the MCI, seeking its response on the petition filed by an NGO which sought the court intervention to allow non-MBBS people to practice in rural areas. A bench comprising Chief Justice A P Shah and Justice S Muralidhar directed the Health Secretary and the President of Medical Council of India (MCI) to file their response on the PIL seeking to decriminalise practice of medicine by non-MBBS persons. The Court issued the notice on a petition filed by a doctor Meenakshi Gautam seeking it to direct the government to introduce a short term course for training health care workers so that shortage of doctors in rural areas could be solved. Dr Meenakshi said Indian Medical Council Act which suggested one year imprisonment for practicing medicine by non-MBBS persons, should be amended. The law, at present, does not allow alternate medical professionals to practice medicine, so the rural areas where the MBBS students were not willing to practise, were lagging behind in medical facilities, the petitioner said. She said the Government should devise three-year courses for health care so that these workers could provide medical services in the rural areas. UNI From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Wed Jan 6 13:15:49 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (nmf2010) Date: Wed, 06 Jan 2010 08:45:49 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?Day005_-_NewMediaFest=272010?= Message-ID: <20100106084550.E048A09.3D93DA32@192.168.0.2> NewMediaFest'2010 ---------------------------------------------------- Day 006 program - 6 January 2010 ---------------------------------------------------- 1. VideoChannel - French Video Art "features for one day" during the coming 16 days --> today: Visualcut, 2006, 1:10 by Anthony Rousseau (France) 2. VideoChannel - Found Footage Film Collection "features for one day" during the coming weeks --> today: Maneater, 2009, 3:04 by John Criscitello (USA) 3. CologneOFF V - 5th Cologne Online Film Festival today: Anomia, 2008, 4:51 by Nuria Fragoso (Mexico) http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=139 ---------------------------------------------------- NewMediaFest'2010 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne global heritage of digital culture 1 January - 31 December 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org newmediafest2010 [at] koeln.de ---------------------------------------------------- Join NewMediaFest'2010 on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=404197070650 ---------------------------------------------------- From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Wed Jan 6 13:47:44 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 00:17:44 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] =?utf-8?b?TmVlZGVkOiDigJhiYXNpY+KAmSBkb2N0b3JzIG9m?= =?utf-8?q?_modern_medicine?= In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <727321.20639.qm@web57206.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Dear Jeebesh   Thank you for sharing this. Excellent.   Will be passing it around.   Kshmendra --- On Wed, 1/6/10, Jeebesh wrote: From: Jeebesh Subject: [Reader-list] Needed: ‘basic’ doctors of modern medicine To: "Sarai Reader-list" Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2010, 1:13 PM dear All, Enclosed is an excellent essay on grave errors that created  the mess of todays health infrastructure. The only MBBS doctors  syndrome has done immense damage to the way we relate to our bodies in  time of distress, more so in areas where there are non available. The  arguments in the essay are excellent and poses some fundamental  rethinking. also enclosed is a news item of a PIL by the author of the  essay in the Delhi High Court. warmly jeebesh http://beta.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/article43383.ece Needed: ‘basic’ doctors of modern medicine MEENAKSHI GAUTHAMK M. SHYAMPRASAD Opening more medical colleges is not the solution to India’s chronic  shortage of doctors in the rural areas. India is the largest supplier of foreign medical graduates to the  United States and the United Kingdom. Yet, its own rural areas have  remained chronically deprived of professional doctors. The historical  antecedents of these shortages could be traced to a landmark health  policy document, the Bhore Committee Report of 1946. That report  constructed the concept of a ‘basic’ doctor as one trained through  five-and-a-half years of university education. An alternative cadre of  Licentiates who were trained over a shorter duration and who formed  two-thirds of the country’s medical practitioners then, was abolished,  in spite of strong dissent from several members of the committee.  These dissenting comments must be revisited in the context of India’s  persistently poor health indices and inadequate health services for  the majority. THE REPORT In October 1943, the Government of British India appointed the  committee to survey the state of public health in the country, and  make recommendations for future development. The committee chaired by  Sir Joseph Bhore, a senior civil servant, comprised eight British and  16 Indian members. The Bhore Committee Report, published in 1946, was  meticulously drafted and reflected its members’ profound understanding  of health matters. They presented statistics on the disease burden and  attributed the poor state of health in the country not only to  inadequacies in medical services and health personnel but also to the  prevailing social ills — poverty, illiteracy, poor nutrition and  unsanitary conditions. The report is best known for providing the blueprint for a modern  public health delivery system in India, along with the training of its  personnel. Foremost among these was the ‘basic’ doctor of modern  medicine who would be central to the delivery of primary healthcare.  These were far- reaching recommendations and shaped the course of  public health and medicine in independent India. But on closer  examination, a number of flaws are revealed. TWO CLASSES There were two classes of medical practitioners of Western medicine at  the time of the Bhore survey: graduates who underwent a five-and-a- half-year course in the medical colleges, and Licentiates (LMPs) who  underwent a three-to-four-year course in medical schools. Of the  47,524 registered medical practitioners at that time, nearly two- thirds (29,870) were Licentiates and one- third (17,654) were graduates. The report informs us that in the rural areas health care was  delivered through sub-divisional hospitals and dispensaries that were  managed mostly by Licentiates. Besides, there were large numbers of  indigenous practitioners providing affordable and accessible  healthcare to the masses. The Bhore Committee proposed a three-tier district health scheme. A  primary unit would be at its periphery, a secondary unit at the sub- divisional headquarters would provide more specialised services, and a  district organisation would be in charge of the overall supervision of  district-level health activities. Though conceptually well-organised, the scheme was designed to cover  only a fourth of the population in the first five years (78,080,000  out of a projected 315 million in the report) and less than half  (156,200,000 out of a projected 337.5 million) over the next 10 years.  The report was silent on how the needs of the rest of the country  would be met. Nonetheless, the committee recommended that the Licentiate  qualification be abolished, all medical schools be upgraded to  colleges, and all available resources be directed into the production  of only one type of doctor. He or she would have the highest level of  training — a five-and-a-half-year university training, similar to what  the Goodenough Committee had proposed for Great Britain as the gold  standard. The committee believed that there was no role in the modern  medical scheme for indigenous systems of medicine and its  practitioners: these systems were considered “static in conception and  practice.” Six members of the committee, five Indians and one Briton, put up a  brave dissent. They repeatedly argued that in view of the manpower  shortages, the country should use every possible means, including the  shorter Licentiate course, to increase the number of trained medical  personnel. They pointed out that England had abolished Licentiate  teaching only after 100 years and Russia relied extensively on  ‘feldshers’ (medical assistants) to run 48,000 dispensaries. They  noted with anguish that since the new scheme would benefit only a  section of the Indian population, “Public health over the remaining  four fifth to one-half of the country… will atrophy. There will be no  personnel like the licentiates even to help the regions and  institutions which will come under neglect.” PROPHETIC The dissenters’ views proved prophetic. They said that the “basic  doctor would not willingly fit into the rural scheme.” India’s six  decades of chronic shortages of doctors in the rural areas are grim  testimony to this fact. They argued that “while a majority on the  committee can abolish the licentiate, they cannot prevent other  practitioners, practising a variety of systems of medicine, taking his  place.” Time has proved this also to be a prescient observation.  Studies show that since Independence and even today, much of health  care at first contact in rural India is delivered not by qualified  doctors but by informally trained and unlicensed private practitioners. What happened to the highly trained basic doctor of the future? The Bhore Committee estimated that around 15,000 doctors would be  needed in the scheme in the first five years, and around 30,000 over  10 years. As the number of medical colleges roughly doubled during  this period (from 19 in 1946 to 42 in 1956) it can be estimated that  the number of graduates also doubled. It is difficult to obtain exact data on how many graduates entered the  health system over 10 years, but almost all of India’s Five-Year Plans  and national health policies since 1947 have lamented the shortage of  doctors in the rural areas. What is definitely known is that around 10 years later, in the early  1960s, nearly 18,000 graduate doctors from the Indian sub-continent  migrated to the U.K. in response to Health Minister Enoch Powell’s  call to save the U.K.’s rapidly expanding National Health Service  (NHS) from a staffing crisis. In November 2003, a BBC documentary  “From the Raj to the Rhondda: How Asian Doctors Saved the NHS,”  acknowledged the contributions of doctors from the Indian sub- continent to Britain’s most deprived areas, where no British doctor  was willing to go. Even today, the second largest proportion of doctors registered with  the U.K.’s General Medical Council, by country of qualification, is  from India: they number 25,720, or 11 per cent of the total. India  also provides the largest pool of international medical graduates to  the U.S. TURF PROTECTION Medical historians point out that the Indian doctors who collaborated  with colonial rule were the ones who stepped into positions of power  after 1947. Their socialisation into the western model meant that the  “development of medical practice in India did not follow the pattern  that was being advocated for developing countries at the time. Indian  degrees were quite suitable for working in England, but probably  totally irrelevant for working to the benefit of the vast majority of  the Indian population.” (Professor Aneez Esmail, 2007) Ironically, even less-trained providers can efficiently deliver  primary care. However, efforts to revive a Licentiate type of cadre,  as recommended by the National Health Policy 2002 and outlined by a  Task Force on Medical Education in 2007, have been non-starters. This  is due to resistance from a section of the country’s medical  fraternity which carries a turf protection mindset, supported by  obstructive legislation contained in the Indian Medical Council Act of  1956. AN ALTERNATIVE In view of the obvious deficiencies in India’s overall rural  infrastructure, it is unlikely that the rural areas will have a  sufficient number of doctors over the next several decades. Thus, the  solution to India’s doctor shortages does not lie in building more  medical colleges. A better alternative would be to draw from other  countries’ experiences of developing mid-level practitioners: Clinical  Officers and Medical Assistants in Africa, Physician Assistants in the  U.S., Nurse Practitioners in Canada, and the rural doctors in China  who number more than a million. These cadres are typically trained for  three years and empowered to provide clinical services. Studies so far  suggest that their performance and outcomes are in no way inferior to  that of doctors trained for longer periods. In the short term, India must also upgrade the skills of existing  unlicensed rural practitioners and empower government nurses and  pharmacists to take on additional tasks. An alternative to the IMC Act  is the Drugs and Cosmetics Act that empowers States to recognise  practitioners other than MBBS-holders to provide a limited range of  medical care services. Chhattisgarh has invoked this power to create a  three-year diploma course for Practitioners of Modern and Holistic  Medicine. (Meenakshi Gautham, PhD, is a public health specialist ( gautham.meenakshi at gmail.com );K. M. Shyamprasad, M.Ch., FRCS, is a former vice president of the  National Board of Examinations, MoHFW, India ( shyamprasad at nlhmb.in).  Legal inputs have been received from Indira Unninayar, Supreme Court  Advocate.) ---------------- http://www.indlaw.com/search/news/?62795492-a700-49cf-b62f-c88a4ccea1ed Delhi HC issues notice to Centre, MCI on practice of non-MBBS persons The Delhi High Court issued notices to the Centre and the MCI, seeking  its response on the petition filed by an NGO which sought the court  intervention to allow non-MBBS people to practice in rural areas. A bench comprising Chief Justice A P Shah and Justice S Muralidhar  directed the Health Secretary and the President of Medical Council of  India (MCI) to file their response on the PIL seeking to decriminalise  practice of medicine by non-MBBS persons. The Court issued the notice on a petition filed by a doctor Meenakshi  Gautam seeking it to direct the government to introduce a short term  course for training health care workers so that shortage of doctors in  rural areas could be solved. Dr Meenakshi said Indian Medical Council Act which suggested one year  imprisonment for practicing medicine by non-MBBS persons, should be  amended. The law, at present, does not allow alternate medical professionals to  practice medicine, so the rural areas where the MBBS students were not  willing to practise, were lagging behind in medical facilities, the  petitioner said. She said the Government should devise three-year courses for health  care so that these workers could provide medical services in the rural  areas. UNI _________________________________________ From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Wed Jan 6 15:09:53 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 01:39:53 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] "Naga sadhus raise heat on global warming, plan Kumbh campaign" Message-ID: <346309.85500.qm@web57203.mail.re3.yahoo.com> "Naga sadhus raise heat on global warming, plan Kumbh campaign"   Express News Service Posted online: Tuesday , Jan 05, 2010 at 0342 hrs   Kolkata : The Copenhagen summit may have been disappointing for climate negotiators across the world, but now spiritual leaders who are feeling the heat of the melting Himalayan glaciers have joined the ranks of green crusaders to raise their voice against the global warming.   Hundreds of thousands of Naga sadhus have decided to use the Kumbh Mela, 2010 as a platform to kick-start a green campaign against global warming.   “Since Kumbh Mela is the largest spiritual gathering, we have decided to do our bit to save the planet from global warming. There will be a huge presence of international communities and press during the fair. We’ll utilise the occasion to generate a ‘save the planet’ campaign worldwide,” said Mahamandalesvara of Juna Akhara Shri Soham Baba, who is said to be the commanding-in-chief of 2,50,000-odd Naga sadhus in the Himalayas.   “We are the first to realise the impact of global warming as it causes glaciers to melt in the Himalayan region. I am telling you from my personal experience, I felt the impact of global warming almost 25 years back. It’s not a very new phenomenon,” he said. The spiritual leader claimed in the Himalyas a few decades back, there were a variety of species of birds and flowers which are being lost due to the effects of global warming. Soham Baba said the only difference now is that the entire world has woken up and realised the problem now.   “We’ll take out religious rallies with placards and banners saying - ‘Stop Global Warming, Save the Himalayas’. Or, ‘Plant Trees, Save the Planet’, he said, adding the Naga communities will also carry out a signature campaign during the fair.   The anti-global warming campaign during the Kumbh Mela will be carried out in various regional and international languages. The spiritual leader said they would organise an exhibition of photos they have clicked on global warming and the melting Himalayan glaciers that are currently preserved in archives in Hardwar.   http://www.indianexpress.com/news/naga-sadhus-raise-heat-on-global-warming-plan-kumbh-campaign/563486/0   From uddipana at gmail.com Wed Jan 6 15:42:38 2010 From: uddipana at gmail.com (Uddipana Goswami) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 15:42:38 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Carnival of e-Creativity (CeC 2010) Message-ID: http://www.theaea.org/cec_cac/cec10/index.htm?sms_ss=orkut -- Uddipana Goswami www.jajabori-mon.blogspot.com From epk at xs4all.nl Wed Jan 6 16:24:13 2010 From: epk at xs4all.nl (Eric Kluitenberg) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 11:54:13 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] ElectroSmog - International Festival for Sustainable Immobility, March 18-20, 2010 - First General Announcement Message-ID: A N N O U N C E M E N T ElectroSmog International Festival for Sustainable Immobility Amsterdam / New York / Madrid / Helsinki / Riga / London / Banff / New Zealand / Munich / & on-lIne March 18 – 20, 2010 www.electrosmogfestival.net About the Festival: ElectroSmog is a new festival that explores the concept ‘Sustainable Immobility’ in theory and practice. Sustainable Immobility is first of all a critique of the growing global crisis of mobility. Current forms of hyper-mobility of people and products in travel and transport are ecologically increasingly unsustainable. The will to slow down, however, seems thoroughly absent. The economic crisis may have temporarily slowed matters down, long term projections still point towards exponential growth of worldwide mobility and exploding energy needs. Alternatives for the current state of hyper-mobility need to be designed urgently. The exploration of Sustainable Immobility is a quest for a lifestyle less determined by speed and constant mobility. A lifestyle that celebrates stronger links to local cultures, while at the same time deepening our connections to others across any geographical divide by means of new communication technologies, instead of physical travel. The ElectroSmog festival will engage one of the main promises information age: that communication technologies can replace the need for physical mobility and thereby contribute directly to ecological stability. Our increased tele-connections would lead to a more rewarding deep local lifestyle (homework in the electronic cottage) and to richer connected experiences with the rest of the world (the global village). While these promises have existed since the dawn of the information age, they were never fully realised. The expanding mobility and energy crisis requires us, however, to re-examine these promises and find out how to turn them into viable life-style choices. ElectroSmog will not take the underlying premises of the information age for granted. We want to ask questions such as: Are increased electronic connections truly more energy efficient and ecologically sustainable? Do they lead to new forms of electromagnetic pollution (electrosmog)? How can the revitalisation of the local be combined with a responsible global consciousness? How can remote connections become a truly rewarding experience in and of themselves? Technology alone is never the answer. We are looking for both technological and non-technological solutions to the central question of the festival: How can a sustainably immobile way of life be achieved? Bringing Together a Broad Coalition: The ElectroSmog festival brings together a broad coalition of designers, environmentalists, urban and spatial planners, technologists, artists, theorists, and engaged and concerned citizens, to explore and ‘design’ sustainable immobility. ElectroSmog is a truly international festival, with everything you might expect: international debates and discussions, performances, art projects, exhibits, site specific projects, screenings, a design competition, and more. ElectroSmog stakes its claim for a radical break with the current systems of hyper-mobility not simply by discussing the issue, but by actually implementing it. No Travel Allowed! Connecting the Local Off-Line with the International On-Line: The very concept of an international festival and its traditional conventions has been rethought and redesigned from the ground up. This has lead us to a few basic ground rules that will apply for all festival events: - No presenter will travel beyond their local or regional boundaries to participate in this event. - All festival events will always take place in at least two locations connected in real-time. - A crucial dimension of the festival will be its on-line presence, where audiences from basically anywhere with an internet connection can follow events on-line, join in discussions and debates, visit virtual theatres in metaverses such as second life, and contribute to the program. A network of accomplished cultural and new media centres, labs, theatres and other public venues work together to create the local ‘hubs’ that will inter-connect on-line for the festival. Beyond the Broadband Enclaves: ElectroSmog acknowledges from the start that bandwidth is not equally distributed across and within societies. Therefore remote connection to lower bandwidth spaces, do-it-yourself telematics, and information technologies for the majority world will be one the central concerns the festival will address. Themes explored during the festival include: - Global Views on the Crisis of Mobility - The Promise of Ubiquity: Being everywhere at once, while staying home - Designing for Immobility - The Changing Path of Food to our Kitchen Table: Food and Global Mobility - Do-It-Yourself Telematics: Technologies for everybody else - Aesthetics of Distributed Space - ElectroSmog is Good for You! - Tyrannies of the Real-Time - Going Slow: Private Agency Towards a Sustainable Immobility The preliminary festival program will be published on February 1st. Updates on festival preparations and news will be published at the festival news-blog and website at: www.electrosmogfestival.net International Design Competition ElectroSmog has initiated its own design competition for young designers, artists, students, and professionals to come up with design scenario’s, life-style proposals, prototypes or demo-designs for sustainable immobility. The competition invites proposals, scenario studies, demos, prototypes or other innovative ideas to in response to the question: How can we design sustainable immobility? The winner will be awarded eternal fame and a fully equipped residency, generously hosted by the Banff New Media Institute, to execute her or his ideas. For details please refer to: http://electrosmogblog.wordpress.com/2009/04/03/electrosmog-international-design-competition/ Technology Transfer and Content Follow-up: ElectroSmog will make extensive use of existing and open source technologies that will be integrated in a re-useable web environment, developed in collaboration with the Cool Mediators Foundation and De Balie in Amsterdam. The technical processes will be documented in a post-festival documentation workshop organised with the innovative Floss Manuals organisation, resulting in a freely downloadable manual and a print on demand publication available from the Floss Manuals website. The outcomes of the discussions, debates and theoretical seminars will lead to an international follow-up publication, currently under negotiation and planned for the Fall of 2010. ElectroSmog Partner Organisations De Balie, Centre for Culture and Politics, Amsterdam ADA – Aotearoa Digital Arts Network, New Zealand. Eyebeam – Art + Technology Center, New York. Banff New Media Institute, Banff. Medialab Prado, Madrid. RIXC – Centre for New Media Culture, Riga. Chelsea College of Art and Design, London. m-cult- centre for new media culture, Helsinki. REFRAMES, Munich Hivos – Humanist Institute for development Cooperation, The Netherlands. Floss Manuals – Free Manuals for Free Software, (international network). Engage! Tactical Media, Utrecht. Cool Mediators Foundation, Amsterdam. Department of Media Studies, University of Amsterdam ________ Further enquiries can be directed at: info [AT] electrosmogfestival.net From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Wed Jan 6 16:56:44 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 03:26:44 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] "Villagers build own railway station" Message-ID: <565144.55453.qm@web57205.mail.re3.yahoo.com> "Villagers build own railway station"   Sumi Sukanya, TNN 5 January 2010,   GURGAON: For 25 years, residents of Tajnagar village near Gurgaon lobbied for a railway station in their village. When their demand was not met, the villagers decided to take matters in their own hands — they pooled in Rs 21 lakh and built a railway station on their own. On Tuesday, the result of their efforts — perhaps the first railway station in the country on which the Railways didn’t have to spend a single penny — will start operations. "We have hired a vehicle to spread the message that the station is getting functional. It’s no less than a festival for us and we are organizing a puja at the station. All passengers will get prasad," said an elated villager, adding that the station will benefit people from other villagers as well. It all started about two years back, when the panchayat passed a resolution saying that since the Railways was not able to build a station for them, they would do it themselves. And with their own money. Soon, an 11-member ‘gram seva samiti’ was constituted and it started collecting money from villagers. "Most of the 3,000-plus people living in the village are agriculturists. But such was the burning desire to have a station in the village, everybody contributed according to their capacity. Ranging from Rs 3,000 to Rs 75,000 they donated money for the station and we started construction in January, 2008," said Ranjeet Singh, former village sarpanch. “There are a large number of people in the village who need to go to Gurgaon, Delhi and Rewari. There are students who go to colleges. Till now we had to either go to Hailimandi or Patli to catch a train. Both stations are 6km away from Tajnagar. We thought that when the railway line passes through the village, we should have a station here. We have been raising the demand since 1982, but the Railways told us that they do not have funds. So, finally we decided to craft our own destiny," said Hukum Chand, a member of the committee. The villagers then asked the Railways if it would agree to stop a few trains at the station if they constructed a station with their own resources. To their surprise, the Railways agreed to make seven passenger trains (in both directions) halt at the station if it was built according to its specifications. "The Railways decided to make it a halt station because a number of people would benefit from it. Financially too, the idea looked viable," said Anant Swaroop, Northern Railways spokesperson. He added that a station master and ticket collector had been appointed. The station, which took one year for completion, has two platforms. It has a kachcha platform, water and electricity, and a ticket counter. It would be inaugurated by Gurgaon MP Rao Inderjeet Singh. Villagers said as a skeleton station was ready now, they need the Railways’ help to make a concrete platform, a waiting room and an overhead shed.   http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Villagers-build-own-railway-station/articleshow/5411123.cms   From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Wed Jan 6 17:05:16 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 03:35:16 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] "Doing it to ourselves" (Kamran Shafi in DAWN) Message-ID: <354157.33484.qm@web57204.mail.re3.yahoo.com> "Doing it to ourselves"   By Kamran Shafi  Tuesday, 05 Jan, 2010   There was the usual and quite absurd story on the Internet the other day, one that amply demonstrates the in-your-face attitudes of those who would use ‘militant’ Islam to further their own political agendas in foreign countries.   However, before we go there let us face the fact that these people, in the main economic refugees and asylum seekers from other lands, use the host (western, of course) countries’ democratic freedoms, and the protection extended to them by their adopted countries’ human and civil rights laws, to do what they would dare not do in their own (or their parents’) native countries.   Before we go any further let us also say out loud that these asylum seekers preach hate and malice for the kufaar (non Muslims — amongst whom they live) i.e. Christians and Jews in words to the effect: ‘Live among the kufaar but do not make friends with them; live among the kufaar but do not warm yourselves at their fires; live among the kufaar but kill them when you can’ and other such venomous tripe.   Yet they have no compunction at all living in Council i.e. virtually free housing; drawing welfare, in many cases fraudulently; and using the kufaar’s National Health Service, heating and all.   Wootton Bassett is a small market town in the county of Wiltshire in the UK, which is located next to the Royal Air Force’s transport air-base. RAF Lyneham is where aircraft bring the remains of British servicemen and women killed in Afghanistan, and from where the coffins are transported to their homes, driven in hearses through Wootton Bassett’s High Street.   It has become the custom that residents and shopkeepers come out of their homes as the hearses go past, and stand silently on the High Street alongside the mourning families as a mark of respect to the dead.   Just the other day came the news that Islam4UK, ‘a platform’ for the notorious and self-dissolved in 1994 Al-Muhajiroun, and led by an Anjem Choudary, is soon going to bus in 500 people to Wootton Bassett to march along the High Street carrying token coffins to mourn the Muslims who have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan by the UK.   I ask you! Choudary is of Pakistani descent and was born in the UK and whilst a qualified solicitor was struck off the rolls in 2002 and now lives on benefits. This is what Wikipedia has to say about the man: “As the head of Al-Muhajiroun in the UK, on Oct 17, 2000, Choudary issued a press release which threatened British Jews if they continued to support Israel.”   “The press release said, in part, that it is an ‘Islamic obligation upon Muslims everywhere to support the jihad against those who fight Muslims anywhere in the world or who occupy Muslim land’; ‘the Quran is explicit in making Israeli aggressors and occupiers legitimate targets for Muslims wherever they may be,’ and that ‘if you support Israel financially, verbally or physically you will become part of the conflict.’”   The very first question that begs an answer is why Choudary and his band of zealots don’t head off for Palestine and join the jihad?   Regarding the July 7, 2005 bombings in London which killed 56 and injured over 700 innocent people, many Muslims among them, he was asked on a BBC interview why he wouldn’t condemn the killing of innocents. His reply: “At the end of the day, when we say innocent people we mean Muslims. As far as non-Muslims are concerned, they have not accepted Islam. As far as we are concerned, that is a crime against God.”   The second question that comes to mind is why the brave Mr. Choudary does not make the great leap back to Pakistan and not live off the handouts of criminals i.e. the British (mainly non-Muslim) government? What is this penchant for spitting into the faces of those who give you shelter, please? After all the poison we spew, we still have the gall to protest when we are profiled? If Mr Choudary must march why does he not march in his home-town of Ilford?   Incidentally, Omar Bakri Mohammad, a Syrian-born asylum seeker, once of the Hizbut Tahrir, then founder of Al-Muhajiroun, and who is now banished to Lebanon was Anjem Choudary’s teacher and guide. Bakri has claimed £250,000 in state benefits ever since seeking asylum in the UK in 1986. So, go figure!   Meanwhile, back at the ranch, things are as heretofore; nothing has changed in the one week that you did not read this space due to Muharram. The presidency is adamant that anti-democratic forces are out to do the system harm, yet it does nothing to allay the opposition’s fears that it is only buying time and does not intend to do anything about rationalising the 17th Amendment.   Whilst the prime minister goes about saying the wholly undemocratic bar on becoming prime minister more than twice will soon be removed, my friend Farhatullah Babar answers that only parliament can make constitutional changes.   Whilst he is right, what prevents the presidency from putting its considerable weight behind the proposed changes to the amendment to get rid of the offensive articles inserted into the constitution by the Commando, and before him by the architect of most of our travails, Ziaul Haq? How else should the government’s writ be challenged for it to wake up and hold out an olive branch to an increasingly upset opposition?   It does no good either, to have the hardliners of both the PPP and the PML-N at each other’s throats. As one has so often cautioned both the large political parties, if one of them gets ‘sorted out’ they both get sorted out.   Let me also say to those who are yearning for a mid-term election: is this the time for such an exercise, when our country is fighting for its very life? If it is the delay in doing away with the 17th Amendment that so upsets you, what guarantees are there that you will win a two-thirds majority and do it all by yourselves in the next parliament?   In the end, might one beg the indulgence of my lord the chief justice to take suo motu notice of the newly unearthed Agosta submarine and the Swedish AWACS scandals? And to order the immediate divulgence of the agents names involved in both the deals, indeed of the names of agents of all the defence deals entered into by the country over the past 30 years? As they say in the vernacular, ‘Then milk will become milk, and water will become water’!   kshafi1 at yahoo.co.uk     http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/columnists/doing-it-to-ourselves-510   From babuubab at gmail.com Wed Jan 6 17:43:42 2010 From: babuubab at gmail.com (SUNDARA BABU) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 17:43:42 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Chhattisgarh cops slap dacoity case against visiting journalist, researchers and activists Message-ID: <66ec95311001060413p10324e23kef26f0aff14dd946@mail.gmail.com> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Shalini Sharma Chhattisgarh cops slap dacoity case against visiting activists http://www.littleabout.com/news/54401,chhattisgarh-cops-slap-dacoity-case-visiting-activists.html Raipur, Jan 6 : A case of dacoity has been registered against a group of journalists and activists from Mumbai and Hyderabad for allegedly clashing with local media personnel in Chhattisgarh's Maoist stronghold of Dantewada, police said Wednesday. "We have registered a case under section 395 of the IPC against six persons, two unnamed and four named, including two women, on charges of dacoity and voluntarily causing hurt on a complaint lodged by Dantewada-based journalists," Amresh Mishra, Dantewada district superintendent of police, told IANS over phone. Priyanka Borpujari, Satyen Bordolai and Nishtha from Mumbai and Suresh from Hyderabad have been named in the FIR (first information report) lodged by a group of local journalists. They alleged that the activists and journalists from outside had attacked them and snatched their mobiles and cameras in Dantewada town, about 380 km from here. The group, including some documentary filmmakers, were in Dantewada to participate in the ongoing agitation by NGO Vanvasi Chetna Ashram (VCA) against alleged atrocities on local tribals by security forces. Giving their version of what happened, Mumbai-based freelance journalist Priyanka said that their cameras had been snatched and they had been kept under detention at the VCA complex for seven hours Tuesday. They were now returning home from Chhattisgarh. "We too have lodged a counter FIR against local mediamen for snatching two cameras and also againstpolice inaction," Priyanka told IANS. Amresh Mishra, however, denied keeping anyone under detention at VCA or registering a counter FIR. "We have received a complaint by VCA guests against the local journalists but it is not registered. We are just inquiring into the complaint; as far as detention is concerned, it is totally a false allegation. We have deployed eight security men at VCA complex in Dantewada as police protection to VCA chief Himanshu and these cops were on duty on Tuesday too," he said. According to local journalist Sunil Singh, the trouble began when the Mumbai-based activists-journalistsaccused them of "adopting a pro-government and pro-police stand and used some vulgar words". "VCA guests called the local newsmen 'paid journalists' who file reports after accepting money from policeauthorities and government. When the local journalists countered the charge, they (VCA guests) attacked us and snatched the camera," he alleged. "The media in the conflict zone of Bastar has been impartial in its reporting," said Bastar Journalists' Association President S. Karimuddin. Copyright Indo Asian News From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Wed Jan 6 19:26:52 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 05:56:52 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you Message-ID: <141086.1293.qm@web57207.mail.re3.yahoo.com> "Anjem Choudary: an open letter to families of British soldiers in Afghanistan"   (Anjem Choudary, the Muslim cleric, has written an open letter to the families of British soldiers who have died in Afghanistan, or who are serving there, to explain his reasons for planning a protest march in Wootton Bassett. It reads:)   3rd January 2010   May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon those who follow the guidance.   Following the public announcement of an impending procession by islam4uk (a branch of Al-Muhajiroun) through the Market Town of Wootton Basset we thought it only appropriate that we provide an explanation and a little more about the purpose behind the procession, especially to the family and friends of those who have died there and who may have been led to believe that it is merely an act of incitement or provocation.   We begin by inviting all non-Muslims to Islam, the perfect and most beautiful way of life, a favour from Allah (God) to mankind to take him out of the darkness of worshipping his own desires to the exclusive worship, submission and obedience of Allah alone, without partners and to testify the Messenger-ship of the final Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). We urge you to embrace Islam and save yourselves and your family from the hellfire and not to believe the lies and distortions which the Western media and non-Islamic regimes would have you believe about Muslims and their true intentions. Islam means submission and the Muslim is the one who submits to the will of God in his life. Verily the Messenger Muhammad told us that whoever heard his name from the Jews and Christians and did not believe would be held accountable for that on the day of judgement.   We start by pointing out what many wise people already know i.e. that the British public have once again been lied to by their politicians about the war in Afghanistan. What began as a fight for freedom and democracy and to protect the human rights of the civilians and to find Sheikh Usama Bin Laden (by the use of B52 bombers) has today become a campaign to protect the security of the British public back home and it has gone from being a campaign which could be completed without firing a weapon within 3 years to one which could go on for 40 or 50 years with a heavy cost to the participants.   In actual fact the foreign policy of the USA and UK is not about protecting the rights of Muslims or propagating democracy and freedom nor is it about the threat posed by the people in Afghanistan to the British public at all, but rather it is to establish their own military, economic, strategic and ideological interests in the region. The rich resources of Afghanistan, its position on the cusp between the Indian sub-continent, Southern Russian, Asia and China and its populations call for the Shari'ah are the real reasons why the military has sought to establish a permanent role there, no matter what the cost to the lives and wealth of the indigenous people or indeed their own. Pivotal in this is the desire to prevent Muslims from running their own affairs and establishing an Islamic State if they so wish but rather to maintain a puppet in the area (Mr Karzia) to maintain and protect Western interests.   In order to create an atmosphere where these greedy objectives can be accomplished the Western and even Eastern media have constantly shown atrocities being committed against the ordinary people of Afghanistan and Pakistan, in markets, universities and public gathering places and have then blamed these on the perceived enemy, in order to discredit any legitimate struggle for liberation and in order to demonise them in the eyes of the world and thereby justify the occupation and real intentions. The truth about such bloodshed and mayhem is only now becoming public knowledge after information about the real perpetrators has emerged (such as the CIA related agency Black Water). The billions of dollars paid to the Pakistan regime by the USA/UK alliance and to the Secret services in Pakistan, their army and to the Karzai Afghan regime by way of bribes has led them to slaughter their own citizens with the help of the USA/UK and to then blame the Taliban in an attempt to subdue those seeking liberation to fulfil their right to run their lives by divine law and to protect the US/UK military and economic interests. With additional atrocities being committed by the USA and UK through indiscriminate air raids and other operations the number of ordinary Muslim men, women and children who have been killed has reached horrendous proportions. Not to mention the torture and abuse of basic rights by the occupiers in Afghanistan, such as in Bagram Air Base, the case of Dr Affia Siddiqui being a clear and brutal example.   There is no doubt in most people's minds that the final conclusion to the current conflict in Afghanistan has already been written. Ultimate victory for those fighting in their own backyard, familiar with the mountains and plains and their supporters who struggle to protect their sanctities from the foreign aggressors cannot be denied. The signs for this are already appearing with incohesive thinking among the British and American chain of command, the crippling effect of the war on their economies back home and the depression of the soldiers realising that there is no real moral or ethic reason for them to murder innocent men, women and children to fulfil their politicians agenda. Blaming a lack of equipment is one of the ways in which politicians have tried to shift the focus. It is noteworthy that unlike among the US and UK soldiers, there has not been one reported suicide or attempted suicide among those resisting occupation.   As a consequence this can only mean much more destruction for the USA and UK sons and daughters sent by their uncaring leaders to their deaths. After all this would not be the first time that this region has acted as a grave yard for empires in history, notably the British and Russians.   It is worth reminding those who are still not blinded by the media propaganda that Afghanistan is not a British Town near Wootton Basset but rather Muslim land which no one has the right to occupy, with a Muslim population who do not deserve their innocent men, women and children to be killed for political mileage and for the greedy interests of the oppressive US and UK regimes.   The procession in Wootton Basset is therefore an attempt to engage the British publics minds on the real reasons why their soldiers are returning home in body bags and the real cost of the war. The conflict in Afghanistan is not an ‘honourable' defence of British values and a cause for the British to remain secure, rather the presence of the US and UK forces in Afghanistan is the cause of instability in the region and a cause of insecurity for the British people back home. The parades, the speeches about soldiers doing their duty and the feeling of patriotism has obfuscated the reality of the conflict and the murderous crimes being committed by the occupiers and their agents. The British public is blissfully unaware of what is being done in their name by the Blair/Brown regimes and were the truth known no doubt the pressure to withdraw all troops immediately would be much greater.   It is our desire to end the cycle of violence and the quagmire in which we find ourselves in today in Afghanistan. For the British public to do their duty and force their regime to save their children from death and destruction, from an oppressive and costly campaign and to stop the occupation of Muslim land. We realise that, especially in times of war, we are up against a very sophisticated propaganda machine and no doubt raising awareness about the painful truth of this conflict will unleash a torrent of abuse from the media and government against us, who have their own predetermined agenda, however the world is today also small enough for those wishing to verify the truth to be able to do so via the many news and information outlets.   Mr Anjem Choudary   UK Head of Al-Muhajiroun     http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/onthefrontline/6930015/Anjem-Choudary-an-open-letter-to-families-of-British-soldiers-in-Afghanistan.html     From ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de Wed Jan 6 19:44:38 2010 From: ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de (Britta Ohm) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 15:14:38 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you In-Reply-To: <141086.1293.qm@web57207.mail.re3.yahoo.com> References: <141086.1293.qm@web57207.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Message-ID: I wonder why a mail with this heading - which seems quite unrelated to the complexity of the mail contents - appears to have gone straight onto the list, whereas a CFP for a planned conference panel on art, media and politics in Turkey that I had posted was held back by the administrator for proclaimed reasons of a 'suspicious heading' and has not appeared on the list until today. Britta Am 06.01.2010 um 14:56 schrieb Kshmendra Kaul: > "Anjem Choudary: an open letter to families of British soldiers in > Afghanistan" > > (Anjem Choudary, the Muslim cleric, has written an open letter to > the families of British soldiers who have died in Afghanistan, or > who are serving there, to explain his reasons for planning a protest > march in Wootton Bassett. It reads:) > > 3rd January 2010 > > May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon those who follow the > guidance. > > Following the public announcement of an impending procession by > islam4uk (a branch of Al-Muhajiroun) through the Market Town of > Wootton Basset we thought it only appropriate that we provide an > explanation and a little more about the purpose behind the > procession, especially to the family and friends of those who have > died there and who may have been led to believe that it is merely an > act of incitement or provocation. > > We begin by inviting all non-Muslims to Islam, the perfect and most > beautiful way of life, a favour from Allah (God) to mankind to take > him out of the darkness of worshipping his own desires to the > exclusive worship, submission and obedience of Allah alone, without > partners and to testify the Messenger-ship of the final Prophet > Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). We urge > you to embrace Islam and save yourselves and your family from the > hellfire and not to believe the lies and distortions which the > Western media and non-Islamic regimes would have you believe about > Muslims and their true intentions. Islam means submission and the > Muslim is the one who submits to the will of God in his life. Verily > the Messenger Muhammad told us that whoever heard his name from the > Jews and Christians and did not believe would be held accountable > for that on the day of judgement. > > We start by pointing out what many wise people already know i.e. > that the British public have once again been lied to by their > politicians about the war in Afghanistan. What began as a fight for > freedom and democracy and to protect the human rights of the > civilians and to find Sheikh Usama Bin Laden (by the use of B52 > bombers) has today become a campaign to protect the security of the > British public back home and it has gone from being a campaign which > could be completed without firing a weapon within 3 years to one > which could go on for 40 or 50 years with a heavy cost to the > participants. > > In actual fact the foreign policy of the USA and UK is not about > protecting the rights of Muslims or propagating democracy and > freedom nor is it about the threat posed by the people in > Afghanistan to the British public at all, but rather it is to > establish their own military, economic, strategic and ideological > interests in the region. The rich resources of Afghanistan, its > position on the cusp between the Indian sub-continent, Southern > Russian, Asia and China and its populations call for the Shari'ah > are the real reasons why the military has sought to establish a > permanent role there, no matter what the cost to the lives and > wealth of the indigenous people or indeed their own. Pivotal in this > is the desire to prevent Muslims from running their own affairs and > establishing an Islamic State if they so wish but rather to maintain > a puppet in the area (Mr Karzia) to maintain and protect Western > interests. > > In order to create an atmosphere where these greedy objectives can > be accomplished the Western and even Eastern media have constantly > shown atrocities being committed against the ordinary people of > Afghanistan and Pakistan, in markets, universities and public > gathering places and have then blamed these on the perceived enemy, > in order to discredit any legitimate struggle for liberation and in > order to demonise them in the eyes of the world and thereby justify > the occupation and real intentions. The truth about such bloodshed > and mayhem is only now becoming public knowledge after information > about the real perpetrators has emerged (such as the CIA related > agency Black Water). The billions of dollars paid to the Pakistan > regime by the USA/UK alliance and to the Secret services in > Pakistan, their army and to the Karzai Afghan regime by way of > bribes has led them to slaughter their own citizens with the help of > the USA/UK and to then blame the Taliban in an > attempt to subdue those seeking liberation to fulfil their right to > run their lives by divine law and to protect the US/UK military and > economic interests. With additional atrocities being committed by > the USA and UK through indiscriminate air raids and other operations > the number of ordinary Muslim men, women and children who have been > killed has reached horrendous proportions. Not to mention the > torture and abuse of basic rights by the occupiers in Afghanistan, > such as in Bagram Air Base, the case of Dr Affia Siddiqui being a > clear and brutal example. > > There is no doubt in most people's minds that the final conclusion > to the current conflict in Afghanistan has already been written. > Ultimate victory for those fighting in their own backyard, familiar > with the mountains and plains and their supporters who struggle to > protect their sanctities from the foreign aggressors cannot be > denied. The signs for this are already appearing with incohesive > thinking among the British and American chain of command, the > crippling effect of the war on their economies back home and the > depression of the soldiers realising that there is no real moral or > ethic reason for them to murder innocent men, women and children to > fulfil their politicians agenda. Blaming a lack of equipment is one > of the ways in which politicians have tried to shift the focus. It > is noteworthy that unlike among the US and UK soldiers, there has > not been one reported suicide or attempted suicide among those > resisting occupation. > > As a consequence this can only mean much more destruction for the > USA and UK sons and daughters sent by their uncaring leaders to > their deaths. After all this would not be the first time that this > region has acted as a grave yard for empires in history, notably the > British and Russians. > > It is worth reminding those who are still not blinded by the media > propaganda that Afghanistan is not a British Town near Wootton > Basset but rather Muslim land which no one has the right to occupy, > with a Muslim population who do not deserve their innocent men, > women and children to be killed for political mileage and for the > greedy interests of the oppressive US and UK regimes. > > The procession in Wootton Basset is therefore an attempt to engage > the British publics minds on the real reasons why their soldiers are > returning home in body bags and the real cost of the war. The > conflict in Afghanistan is not an ‘honourable' defence of British > values and a cause for the British to remain secure, rather the > presence of the US and UK forces in Afghanistan is the cause of > instability in the region and a cause of insecurity for the British > people back home. The parades, the speeches about soldiers doing > their duty and the feeling of patriotism has obfuscated the reality > of the conflict and the murderous crimes being committed by the > occupiers and their agents. The British public is blissfully unaware > of what is being done in their name by the Blair/Brown regimes and > were the truth known no doubt the pressure to withdraw all troops > immediately would be much greater. > > It is our desire to end the cycle of violence and the quagmire in > which we find ourselves in today in Afghanistan. For the British > public to do their duty and force their regime to save their > children from death and destruction, from an oppressive and costly > campaign and to stop the occupation of Muslim land. We realise that, > especially in times of war, we are up against a very sophisticated > propaganda machine and no doubt raising awareness about the painful > truth of this conflict will unleash a torrent of abuse from the > media and government against us, who have their own predetermined > agenda, however the world is today also small enough for those > wishing to verify the truth to be able to do so via the many news > and information outlets. > > Mr Anjem Choudary > > UK Head of Al-Muhajiroun > > > http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/onthefrontline/6930015/Anjem-Choudary-an-open-letter-to-families-of-British-soldiers-in-Afghanistan.html > > > > > > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with > subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> --------------------------------------- Dr. Britta Ohm Institute of Social Anthropology University of Bern Laenggassstr. 49a 3012 Bern Switzerland +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch Solmsstr. 36 10961 Berlin Germany +49-(0)30-69507155 ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de From kauladityaraj at gmail.com Wed Jan 6 19:49:17 2010 From: kauladityaraj at gmail.com (Aditya Raj Kaul) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 19:49:17 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you In-Reply-To: References: <141086.1293.qm@web57207.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <6353c691001060619w2bcf4338na890c0c5d831a245@mail.gmail.com> Strangely... similar e-mails from me are being not posted on the forum. I had recently posted an announcement for a prayer meeting for the tragic death of a photo-journalist in New Delhi. Even that wasn't allowed. Wonder what is the reason. Aditya Raj Kaul On Wed, Jan 6, 2010 at 7:44 PM, Britta Ohm wrote: > I wonder why a mail with this heading - which seems quite unrelated to > the complexity of the mail contents - appears to have gone straight > onto the list, whereas a CFP for a planned conference panel on art, > media and politics in Turkey that I had posted was held back by the > administrator for proclaimed reasons of a 'suspicious heading' and has > not appeared on the list until today. > Britta > > Am 06.01.2010 um 14:56 schrieb Kshmendra Kaul: > > > "Anjem Choudary: an open letter to families of British soldiers in > > Afghanistan" > > > > (Anjem Choudary, the Muslim cleric, has written an open letter to > > the families of British soldiers who have died in Afghanistan, or > > who are serving there, to explain his reasons for planning a protest > > march in Wootton Bassett. It reads:) > > > > 3rd January 2010 > > > > May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon those who follow the > > guidance. > > > > Following the public announcement of an impending procession by > > islam4uk (a branch of Al-Muhajiroun) through the Market Town of > > Wootton Basset we thought it only appropriate that we provide an > > explanation and a little more about the purpose behind the > > procession, especially to the family and friends of those who have > > died there and who may have been led to believe that it is merely an > > act of incitement or provocation. > > > > We begin by inviting all non-Muslims to Islam, the perfect and most > > beautiful way of life, a favour from Allah (God) to mankind to take > > him out of the darkness of worshipping his own desires to the > > exclusive worship, submission and obedience of Allah alone, without > > partners and to testify the Messenger-ship of the final Prophet > > Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). We urge > > you to embrace Islam and save yourselves and your family from the > > hellfire and not to believe the lies and distortions which the > > Western media and non-Islamic regimes would have you believe about > > Muslims and their true intentions. Islam means submission and the > > Muslim is the one who submits to the will of God in his life. Verily > > the Messenger Muhammad told us that whoever heard his name from the > > Jews and Christians and did not believe would be held accountable > > for that on the day of judgement. > > > > We start by pointing out what many wise people already know i.e. > > that the British public have once again been lied to by their > > politicians about the war in Afghanistan. What began as a fight for > > freedom and democracy and to protect the human rights of the > > civilians and to find Sheikh Usama Bin Laden (by the use of B52 > > bombers) has today become a campaign to protect the security of the > > British public back home and it has gone from being a campaign which > > could be completed without firing a weapon within 3 years to one > > which could go on for 40 or 50 years with a heavy cost to the > > participants. > > > > In actual fact the foreign policy of the USA and UK is not about > > protecting the rights of Muslims or propagating democracy and > > freedom nor is it about the threat posed by the people in > > Afghanistan to the British public at all, but rather it is to > > establish their own military, economic, strategic and ideological > > interests in the region. The rich resources of Afghanistan, its > > position on the cusp between the Indian sub-continent, Southern > > Russian, Asia and China and its populations call for the Shari'ah > > are the real reasons why the military has sought to establish a > > permanent role there, no matter what the cost to the lives and > > wealth of the indigenous people or indeed their own. Pivotal in this > > is the desire to prevent Muslims from running their own affairs and > > establishing an Islamic State if they so wish but rather to maintain > > a puppet in the area (Mr Karzia) to maintain and protect Western > > interests. > > > > In order to create an atmosphere where these greedy objectives can > > be accomplished the Western and even Eastern media have constantly > > shown atrocities being committed against the ordinary people of > > Afghanistan and Pakistan, in markets, universities and public > > gathering places and have then blamed these on the perceived enemy, > > in order to discredit any legitimate struggle for liberation and in > > order to demonise them in the eyes of the world and thereby justify > > the occupation and real intentions. The truth about such bloodshed > > and mayhem is only now becoming public knowledge after information > > about the real perpetrators has emerged (such as the CIA related > > agency Black Water). The billions of dollars paid to the Pakistan > > regime by the USA/UK alliance and to the Secret services in > > Pakistan, their army and to the Karzai Afghan regime by way of > > bribes has led them to slaughter their own citizens with the help of > > the USA/UK and to then blame the Taliban in an > > attempt to subdue those seeking liberation to fulfil their right to > > run their lives by divine law and to protect the US/UK military and > > economic interests. With additional atrocities being committed by > > the USA and UK through indiscriminate air raids and other operations > > the number of ordinary Muslim men, women and children who have been > > killed has reached horrendous proportions. Not to mention the > > torture and abuse of basic rights by the occupiers in Afghanistan, > > such as in Bagram Air Base, the case of Dr Affia Siddiqui being a > > clear and brutal example. > > > > There is no doubt in most people's minds that the final conclusion > > to the current conflict in Afghanistan has already been written. > > Ultimate victory for those fighting in their own backyard, familiar > > with the mountains and plains and their supporters who struggle to > > protect their sanctities from the foreign aggressors cannot be > > denied. The signs for this are already appearing with incohesive > > thinking among the British and American chain of command, the > > crippling effect of the war on their economies back home and the > > depression of the soldiers realising that there is no real moral or > > ethic reason for them to murder innocent men, women and children to > > fulfil their politicians agenda. Blaming a lack of equipment is one > > of the ways in which politicians have tried to shift the focus. It > > is noteworthy that unlike among the US and UK soldiers, there has > > not been one reported suicide or attempted suicide among those > > resisting occupation. > > > > As a consequence this can only mean much more destruction for the > > USA and UK sons and daughters sent by their uncaring leaders to > > their deaths. After all this would not be the first time that this > > region has acted as a grave yard for empires in history, notably the > > British and Russians. > > > > It is worth reminding those who are still not blinded by the media > > propaganda that Afghanistan is not a British Town near Wootton > > Basset but rather Muslim land which no one has the right to occupy, > > with a Muslim population who do not deserve their innocent men, > > women and children to be killed for political mileage and for the > > greedy interests of the oppressive US and UK regimes. > > > > The procession in Wootton Basset is therefore an attempt to engage > > the British publics minds on the real reasons why their soldiers are > > returning home in body bags and the real cost of the war. The > > conflict in Afghanistan is not an ‘honourable' defence of British > > values and a cause for the British to remain secure, rather the > > presence of the US and UK forces in Afghanistan is the cause of > > instability in the region and a cause of insecurity for the British > > people back home. The parades, the speeches about soldiers doing > > their duty and the feeling of patriotism has obfuscated the reality > > of the conflict and the murderous crimes being committed by the > > occupiers and their agents. The British public is blissfully unaware > > of what is being done in their name by the Blair/Brown regimes and > > were the truth known no doubt the pressure to withdraw all troops > > immediately would be much greater. > > > > It is our desire to end the cycle of violence and the quagmire in > > which we find ourselves in today in Afghanistan. For the British > > public to do their duty and force their regime to save their > > children from death and destruction, from an oppressive and costly > > campaign and to stop the occupation of Muslim land. We realise that, > > especially in times of war, we are up against a very sophisticated > > propaganda machine and no doubt raising awareness about the painful > > truth of this conflict will unleash a torrent of abuse from the > > media and government against us, who have their own predetermined > > agenda, however the world is today also small enough for those > > wishing to verify the truth to be able to do so via the many news > > and information outlets. > > > > Mr Anjem Choudary > > > > UK Head of Al-Muhajiroun > > > > > > > http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/onthefrontline/6930015/Anjem-Choudary-an-open-letter-to-families-of-British-soldiers-in-Afghanistan.html > > > > > > > > > > > > _________________________________________ > > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > > Critiques & Collaborations > > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with > > subscribe in the subject header. > > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> > > --------------------------------------- > Dr. Britta Ohm > > Institute of Social Anthropology > University of Bern > Laenggassstr. 49a > 3012 Bern > Switzerland > +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) > +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) > britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch > > > Solmsstr. 36 > 10961 Berlin > Germany > +49-(0)30-69507155 > ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de > > > > > > > > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with > subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> -- Aditya Raj Kaul Freelance Writer Blog: http://activistsdiary.blogspot.com/ From rakesh.rnbdj at gmail.com Wed Jan 6 19:57:12 2010 From: rakesh.rnbdj at gmail.com (Rakesh Iyer) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 19:57:12 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] =?utf-8?q?=28no_subject=29?= Message-ID: Sorry to all. Just a test mail to check whether I can send mails or not on this forum. Rakesh From abasole at gmail.com Wed Jan 6 20:02:20 2010 From: abasole at gmail.com (Amit Basole) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 20:02:20 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Fwd: [sanhati] [ReachIndia] PR: Police Intimidation of Witnesses, Journalists, Students Ahead of Public Hearing in Chhattisgarh In-Reply-To: <5dee80ec1001060433g1845d1d6i11682919bac0bc31@mail.gmail.com> References: <5dee80ec1001060433g1845d1d6i11682919bac0bc31@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <8e2bace61001060632x212e4073w404209a0e8e90ce4@mail.gmail.com> *Association for India’s Development (AID) * *6th Jan, 2010, Hyderabad* ______________________________________________________________________________________ *PRESS RELEASE** * *Police Intimidation of Adivasi witnesses, Journalists, Students and Social Workers Ahead of Public Hearing (Jan Sunwai) in Dantewada, Chattisgarh * One day before the *Jan Sunwai *(public hearing) planned for 6th and 7thJan to bring out Adivasis’ concerns in Dantewada, Chattisgarh, the police has unleashed a campaign to intimidate and silence key Adivasi witnesses as well as visiting journalists, students and activists. Even as eminent Gandhian Himanshu Kumar of Vanavasi Chetana Ashram (VCA) broke his fast on the 10th day, the Ashram was surrounded by armed police and Special Police Officers (SPOs). Journalists Satyen Bordoloi and Priyanka Borpujari from Mumbai, Suresh Deepala, law student and AID volunteer from Hyderabad, and Nishtha, a visiting student from Tata Institute of Social Sciences were forcibly prevented from leaving, placing them under virtual house arrest for a few hours. They were assaulted and their cameras taken away. After public pressure forced the administration to let them free, they were then detained again at the police station on false charges of assaulting journalists. They have been released now and are back at VCA. About 25 to 30 Adivasi villagers who had come to VCA for the *Jan Sunwai*have been taken away by the police to an unknown location on 5 th January. Even as eminent social activists, journalists and concerned citizens, including Medha Patkar and Sandeep Pandey, are reaching Dantewada on 6th January for the *Jan Sunwai*, the administration has adopted increasingly repressive and violent tactics to prevent or scuttle the *Jan Sunwai *and cover up the excesses going on for the past two years. Sodi Sambo, a 28 year old Adivasi woman from village Gompad was shot in her leg on 1st Oct, 2009 by the security forces. She is an important witness in the 1st Oct incident in which 9 Adivasis, including an 8-year old girl, were killed by the security forces. She is one of the petitioners of Writ Petition (Criminal) No. 103 of 2009 in the Supreme Court. She was stopped by the police on 3rd Jan, 2010, as she was on her way to Delhi in very ill health for the treatment of her wounded leg and malaria. She is being held in isolation in the Jagdalpur Hospital where neither journalists nor social workers can meet her. Further, the hospital cannot offer the treatment she needs. Intimidation and harassment of VCA volunteers has been going on for over a year in spite of the fact that Himanshu Kumar and VCA have consistently opposed Maoist violence. Volunteer Kopa Kunjam was arrested on false charges on 10th Dec, 2009 along with a lawyer from Human Rights Law Network. Although the lawyer has been released, Kopa continues to be in custody where, according to him, he was tortured by being hung upside down and beaten severely. He has been threatened several times to not work with VCA. At the behest of the police and the administration, the landlord of Himanshu asked him to vacate his house despite having signed an agreement for a year. Nandini Sundar, a Professor of Anthropology in Delhi, was refused a room in all the hotels in Dantewada and her car driver threatened, eventually compelling her to abandon her visit. We demand that the rights of civilians in the region be restored, the media have free access to the region and report on the goings on, and the civil society be allowed in the region for the *Jan Sunwai*. We urgently request NHRC, various human rights group and the Home Minister P Chidambaram and Chhattisgarh Chief Minister to ensure the safety of Sodi Sambo, Kopa Kunjam, Himanshu Kumar, the Adivasis of Dantewada, and all the visiting journalists, students, social workers and human rights activists. We demand an end to the abuse of power by the state in Chhattsigarh and by the Operation Green Hunt through out India and demand that the Centre and State be held accountable for every life that has been lost so far. *Contacts:* Kirankumar Vissa, AID-Hyderabad +91-9701705743, kiranvissa at gmail.com Tathagata Sengupta, AID-Kolkata, +91-9903462567, tsengupta at gmail.com Somnath Mukherji, AID-Boston, +001-732-423-6662, mukherji.somnath at gmail.com _,_ -- Amit Basole Department of Economics Thompson Hall University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA 01003 Phone: 413-665-2463 http://www.people.umass.edu/abasole/ blog: http://thenoondaysun.blogspot.com/ From taraprakash at gmail.com Wed Jan 6 20:14:00 2010 From: taraprakash at gmail.com (TaraPrakash) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 09:44:00 -0500 Subject: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you References: <141086.1293.qm@web57207.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Message-ID: I wonder if this god forsaken group and BNP have some common understanding. Such mindless organization and such blatent defense of the thugs fighting in Afghanistan will do nothing but enhance support for the ultra right ideology. Wasn't it the primary reason for founding these fanatic organizations, defeating the left progressive ideology? So good luck. It is true that British and American soldiers are committing suicide, but they are doing other things too. The fanatics fighting in the name of Islam are doing nothing but suicides. So you are wrong there Anjem. If the heaven is the place I will have to share with such fanatics, hell will be much better place to live. By spreading the message of their kind of Islam, I wonder if Kshemendra wanted to reserve a seat in the heaven? ----- Original Message ----- From: "Kshmendra Kaul" To: "sarai list" Sent: Wednesday, January 06, 2010 8:56 AM Subject: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you > "Anjem Choudary: an open letter to families of British soldiers in > Afghanistan" > > (Anjem Choudary, the Muslim cleric, has written an open letter to the > families of British soldiers who have died in Afghanistan, or who are > serving there, to explain his reasons for planning a protest march in > Wootton Bassett. It reads:) > > 3rd January 2010 > > May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon those who follow the > guidance. > > Following the public announcement of an impending procession by islam4uk > (a branch of Al-Muhajiroun) through the Market Town of Wootton Basset we > thought it only appropriate that we provide an explanation and a little > more about the purpose behind the procession, especially to the family and > friends of those who have died there and who may have been led to believe > that it is merely an act of incitement or provocation. > > We begin by inviting all non-Muslims to Islam, the perfect and most > beautiful way of life, a favour from Allah (God) to mankind to take him > out of the darkness of worshipping his own desires to the exclusive > worship, submission and obedience of Allah alone, without partners and to > testify the Messenger-ship of the final Prophet Muhammad (may the peace > and blessings of Allah be upon him). We urge you to embrace Islam and save > yourselves and your family from the hellfire and not to believe the lies > and distortions which the Western media and non-Islamic regimes would have > you believe about Muslims and their true intentions. Islam means > submission and the Muslim is the one who submits to the will of God in his > life. Verily the Messenger Muhammad told us that whoever heard his name > from the Jews and Christians and did not believe would be held accountable > for that on the day of judgement. > > We start by pointing out what many wise people already know i.e. that the > British public have once again been lied to by their politicians about the > war in Afghanistan. What began as a fight for freedom and democracy and to > protect the human rights of the civilians and to find Sheikh Usama Bin > Laden (by the use of B52 bombers) has today become a campaign to protect > the security of the British public back home and it has gone from being a > campaign which could be completed without firing a weapon within 3 years > to one which could go on for 40 or 50 years with a heavy cost to the > participants. > > In actual fact the foreign policy of the USA and UK is not about > protecting the rights of Muslims or propagating democracy and freedom nor > is it about the threat posed by the people in Afghanistan to the British > public at all, but rather it is to establish their own military, economic, > strategic and ideological interests in the region. The rich resources of > Afghanistan, its position on the cusp between the Indian sub-continent, > Southern Russian, Asia and China and its populations call for the Shari'ah > are the real reasons why the military has sought to establish a permanent > role there, no matter what the cost to the lives and wealth of the > indigenous people or indeed their own. Pivotal in this is the desire to > prevent Muslims from running their own affairs and establishing an Islamic > State if they so wish but rather to maintain a puppet in the area (Mr > Karzia) to maintain and protect Western interests. > > In order to create an atmosphere where these greedy objectives can be > accomplished the Western and even Eastern media have constantly shown > atrocities being committed against the ordinary people of Afghanistan and > Pakistan, in markets, universities and public gathering places and have > then blamed these on the perceived enemy, in order to discredit any > legitimate struggle for liberation and in order to demonise them in the > eyes of the world and thereby justify the occupation and real intentions. > The truth about such bloodshed and mayhem is only now becoming public > knowledge after information about the real perpetrators has emerged (such > as the CIA related agency Black Water). The billions of dollars paid to > the Pakistan regime by the USA/UK alliance and to the Secret services in > Pakistan, their army and to the Karzai Afghan regime by way of bribes has > led them to slaughter their own citizens with the help of the USA/UK and > to then blame the Taliban in an > attempt to subdue those seeking liberation to fulfil their right to run > their lives by divine law and to protect the US/UK military and economic > interests. With additional atrocities being committed by the USA and UK > through indiscriminate air raids and other operations the number of > ordinary Muslim men, women and children who have been killed has reached > horrendous proportions. Not to mention the torture and abuse of basic > rights by the occupiers in Afghanistan, such as in Bagram Air Base, the > case of Dr Affia Siddiqui being a clear and brutal example. > > There is no doubt in most people's minds that the final conclusion to the > current conflict in Afghanistan has already been written. Ultimate victory > for those fighting in their own backyard, familiar with the mountains and > plains and their supporters who struggle to protect their sanctities from > the foreign aggressors cannot be denied. The signs for this are already > appearing with incohesive thinking among the British and American chain of > command, the crippling effect of the war on their economies back home and > the depression of the soldiers realising that there is no real moral or > ethic reason for them to murder innocent men, women and children to fulfil > their politicians agenda. Blaming a lack of equipment is one of the ways > in which politicians have tried to shift the focus. It is noteworthy that > unlike among the US and UK soldiers, there has not been one reported > suicide or attempted suicide among those resisting occupation. > > As a consequence this can only mean much more destruction for the USA and > UK sons and daughters sent by their uncaring leaders to their deaths. > After all this would not be the first time that this region has acted as a > grave yard for empires in history, notably the British and Russians. > > It is worth reminding those who are still not blinded by the media > propaganda that Afghanistan is not a British Town near Wootton Basset but > rather Muslim land which no one has the right to occupy, with a Muslim > population who do not deserve their innocent men, women and children to be > killed for political mileage and for the greedy interests of the > oppressive US and UK regimes. > > The procession in Wootton Basset is therefore an attempt to engage the > British publics minds on the real reasons why their soldiers are returning > home in body bags and the real cost of the war. The conflict in > Afghanistan is not an ‘honourable' defence of British values and a cause > for the British to remain secure, rather the presence of the US and UK > forces in Afghanistan is the cause of instability in the region and a > cause of insecurity for the British people back home. The parades, the > speeches about soldiers doing their duty and the feeling of patriotism has > obfuscated the reality of the conflict and the murderous crimes being > committed by the occupiers and their agents. The British public is > blissfully unaware of what is being done in their name by the Blair/Brown > regimes and were the truth known no doubt the pressure to withdraw all > troops immediately would be much greater. > > It is our desire to end the cycle of violence and the quagmire in which we > find ourselves in today in Afghanistan. For the British public to do their > duty and force their regime to save their children from death and > destruction, from an oppressive and costly campaign and to stop the > occupation of Muslim land. We realise that, especially in times of war, we > are up against a very sophisticated propaganda machine and no doubt > raising awareness about the painful truth of this conflict will unleash a > torrent of abuse from the media and government against us, who have their > own predetermined agenda, however the world is today also small enough for > those wishing to verify the truth to be able to do so via the many news > and information outlets. > > Mr Anjem Choudary > > UK Head of Al-Muhajiroun > > > http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/onthefrontline/6930015/Anjem-Choudary-an-open-letter-to-families-of-British-soldiers-in-Afghanistan.html > > > > > > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with > subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> From naeem.mohaiemen at gmail.com Wed Jan 6 09:23:24 2010 From: naeem.mohaiemen at gmail.com (Naeem Mohaiemen) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 09:53:24 +0600 Subject: [Reader-list] Bangladesh: Religion-based parties face ban Message-ID: If this went through, it would be a huge achievement and a step towards returning to the secular constitution of 1972. But, I cannot imagine the Islamist parties will allow this to stand. The rightist lawyer trio of Tajul Islam, Kamruzzaman Bhuiyan, and Munshi Ahsan Kabir will be joined by others who will try to appeal this decision to death. Stay tuned. http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=120542 Tuesday, January 5, 2010 5th Amendment Religion-based parties face ban Shafiq says no parting with 'Bismillah', Islam Staff Correspondent Religion based politics will be banned if cancellation of the fifth amendment to the country's constitution is finalised by the Supreme Court (SC), said the law minister yesterday. But he added that the words Bismillah-Ar-Rahman-Ar-Rahim in the preamble of the constitution and its declaration of Islam as the state religion will remain intact. He said Islam was made the state religion through the eighth amendment, and the High Court (HC) in its verdict did not say anything about the words Bismillah-Ar-Rahman-Ar-Rahim. He also said the words are a part of the constitution's preamble, not of its main body. The fifth amendment had legitimised all governments that had been in power following the coup of August 15, 1975 till April 9, 1979 including late president Ziaur Rahman's ascension to the presidency, and included Bismillah-Ar-Rahman-Ar-Rahim in the preamble of the constitution. The SC on Sunday lifted its four-year old stay on a HC verdict that had declared the fifth amendment illegal. Meanwhile yesterday, BNP Secretary General Khandakar Delwar Hossain and three SC lawyers Tajul Islam, Kamruzzaman Bhuiyan, and Munshi Ahsan Kabir filed two separate petitions with the apex court seeking reinstatement of the stay on the HC judgement. Tajul Islam told The Daily Star yesterday that the chamber bench of the Appellate Division of SC will hear the petitions today. Law Minister Shafique Ahmed said the original spirit of the constitution will be restored if the HC verdict's implementation is cleared by the SC. The original constitution of 1972 embodied four fundamental principles of nationalism, socialism, democracy, and secularism. Shafique Ahmed said the government will implement the HC verdict according to the recommendations of Bangladesh Law Commission. "We will seek suggestions from the law commission on how we can implement the High Court verdict after January 18, when the Supreme Court is due to hear the leave to appeal petitions against the verdict," he said. He made the statements while talking to reporters in his Bangladesh Secretariat office yesterday afternoon. Replying to a question, the minister told The Daily Star that despite the cancellation of the fifth amendment, the fourth amendment will however not be restored as the 12th amendment of 1991 blocks the way for that restoration. The Constitution (Fourth Amendment) Act 1975 was passed on January 25, 1975. Sweeping changes were brought to the constitution by this amendment. The presidential form of government was introduced in place of the parliamentary system, a one-party system was put in place instead of a multi-party system, the power of the parliament was curtailed increasing the power of the president, and the judiciary lost much of its independence, according to legal experts. The 12th amendment restored the parliamentary system of government replacing the presidential system. Although the fifth amendment cancelled the fourth amendment which had introduced the one party system putting BKSAL in power, it however kept the provision of the presidential government intact. From jeebesh at sarai.net Tue Jan 5 17:41:22 2010 From: jeebesh at sarai.net (Jeebesh) Date: Tue, 5 Jan 2010 17:41:22 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] Call for photos, films for Queer Film Fest, Bangalore References: <4B41C648.8080005@altlawforum.org> Message-ID: <45F05342-F633-44F8-A85C-E52B9ADCF987@sarai.net> > From: namita > Date: 4 January 2010 4:13:20 PM GMT+05:30 > To: alfexternal at googlegroups.com > Subject: [ALF] Call for photos, films for Queer Film Fest, Bangalore > Reply-To: namita at altlawforum.org > > > Hi everyone.. > > We're holding a queer film festival in Bangalore this year on 27th and > 28th Feb, 2010. This is the second in the series but the first time > that > we are ourselves going out to look for films on queer themes (gay, > lesbian, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, lady boys, drag, F2M, M2F > -- basically _anything_ that could be called queer) from across > India, > Asia and anywhere else in the world. > > The festival is a community-driven effort and we have looked for > sponsorship only as far as the venue and basic costs. The point of the > festival is to draw a large audience and screen good films with gay, > lesbian, bisexual and transgender stories, that people might not have > easy access to. So if you have made any such film or would know of > other > filmmakers who would be interested, do forward this call to them. We > are > also looking for people who would like to curate a small package of > films from different countries (or themes). And we will have a photo > exhibit so still images are also welcome. > > I'm attaching a formal call for films from the festival, but right now > do email me (namita at altlawforum.org) if you're interested in either > sending your own film or photographs or want to send a package of > films > by different filmmakers. > > And ofcourse -- Happy new year and hope you had a good time... :-) > > take care, > Namita > > About the organisers: The three groups involved are Good As You (GAY), > Swabhava (an organisation that works on sexuality and carries out > trainings and sensitisation surrounding sexuality issues, and WHAQ (a > support group for lesbian, bisexual and transgendered women). If you > need any further details on the festival, please let me know. Our > official email id is blrqueerfilmfest at gmail.com, and this is the > second > year of the festival (the first festival was held in April 2009). > -------------- next part -------------- _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net http://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From c.anupam at gmail.com Wed Jan 6 20:49:51 2010 From: c.anupam at gmail.com (anupam chakravartty) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 20:49:51 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you In-Reply-To: References: <141086.1293.qm@web57207.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <341380d01001060719k189abd72r9988e21966e1a338@mail.gmail.com> IT is really funny to observe that Anjem Chaudhary has chosen the Market Town of Wootton Basset, while harping about so called Muslim land of Afghanistan. I guess he wants to be seen be on the british TV or print, eat up a few columns so that those who are really dying in afghanistan (whoever it is) are obscured. Does he speak for Muslims? Is his dissent genuine? But it merely boils down to land: Muslim land, Christian land, Hindu land, holy land, unholy land, waste land, forest land, land of infidels, land of believers. oh but then what about the landless, what are you going to do about the billions of these tenants, these migrants, the gypsies, the so-called loosers (those who have disowned everything)? some are born in the footpaths. will these warring sides freely distribute land and those who do not believe will have to stay like animals? will anjem chaudhary or an american soldier or british soldier part with their personal property to make way for the landless? millions stay underneath flyovers, sleep in railway stations (yes it boils to that same old rhetoric). i feel anjem chaudhary is on the side of the british/US warmongers -- they have mutually agreed to destroy each other and they will keep doing so through different manifestations. its like a mass duel. there is absolutely no contradiction between the two, so as to say. "should we discuss about this ridiculous piece of writing or should we just stay from it?" is what disturbs me the most. -anupam p.s.: "you" is just me. i am not addressing any other readers here when i say "you". On 1/6/10, TaraPrakash wrote: > I wonder if this god forsaken group and BNP have some common understanding. > Such mindless organization and such blatent defense of the thugs fighting in > Afghanistan will do nothing but enhance support for the ultra right > ideology. Wasn't it the primary reason for founding these fanatic > organizations, defeating the left progressive ideology? So good luck. > > It is true that British and American soldiers are committing suicide, but > they are doing other things too. The fanatics fighting in the name of Islam > are doing nothing but suicides. So you are wrong there Anjem. If the heaven > is the place I will have to share with such fanatics, hell will be much > better place to live. By spreading the message of their kind of Islam, I > wonder if Kshemendra wanted to reserve a seat in the heaven? > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Kshmendra Kaul" > To: "sarai list" > Sent: Wednesday, January 06, 2010 8:56 AM > Subject: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you > > >> "Anjem Choudary: an open letter to families of British soldiers in >> Afghanistan" >> >> (Anjem Choudary, the Muslim cleric, has written an open letter to the >> families of British soldiers who have died in Afghanistan, or who are >> serving there, to explain his reasons for planning a protest march in >> Wootton Bassett. It reads:) >> >> 3rd January 2010 >> >> May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon those who follow the >> guidance. >> >> Following the public announcement of an impending procession by islam4uk >> (a branch of Al-Muhajiroun) through the Market Town of Wootton Basset we >> thought it only appropriate that we provide an explanation and a little >> more about the purpose behind the procession, especially to the family and >> >> friends of those who have died there and who may have been led to believe >> that it is merely an act of incitement or provocation. >> >> We begin by inviting all non-Muslims to Islam, the perfect and most >> beautiful way of life, a favour from Allah (God) to mankind to take him >> out of the darkness of worshipping his own desires to the exclusive >> worship, submission and obedience of Allah alone, without partners and to >> testify the Messenger-ship of the final Prophet Muhammad (may the peace >> and blessings of Allah be upon him). We urge you to embrace Islam and save >> >> yourselves and your family from the hellfire and not to believe the lies >> and distortions which the Western media and non-Islamic regimes would have >> >> you believe about Muslims and their true intentions. Islam means >> submission and the Muslim is the one who submits to the will of God in his >> >> life. Verily the Messenger Muhammad told us that whoever heard his name >> from the Jews and Christians and did not believe would be held accountable >> >> for that on the day of judgement. >> >> We start by pointing out what many wise people already know i.e. that the >> British public have once again been lied to by their politicians about the >> >> war in Afghanistan. What began as a fight for freedom and democracy and to >> >> protect the human rights of the civilians and to find Sheikh Usama Bin >> Laden (by the use of B52 bombers) has today become a campaign to protect >> the security of the British public back home and it has gone from being a >> campaign which could be completed without firing a weapon within 3 years >> to one which could go on for 40 or 50 years with a heavy cost to the >> participants. >> >> In actual fact the foreign policy of the USA and UK is not about >> protecting the rights of Muslims or propagating democracy and freedom nor >> is it about the threat posed by the people in Afghanistan to the British >> public at all, but rather it is to establish their own military, economic, >> >> strategic and ideological interests in the region. The rich resources of >> Afghanistan, its position on the cusp between the Indian sub-continent, >> Southern Russian, Asia and China and its populations call for the Shari'ah >> >> are the real reasons why the military has sought to establish a permanent >> role there, no matter what the cost to the lives and wealth of the >> indigenous people or indeed their own. Pivotal in this is the desire to >> prevent Muslims from running their own affairs and establishing an Islamic >> >> State if they so wish but rather to maintain a puppet in the area (Mr >> Karzia) to maintain and protect Western interests. >> >> In order to create an atmosphere where these greedy objectives can be >> accomplished the Western and even Eastern media have constantly shown >> atrocities being committed against the ordinary people of Afghanistan and >> Pakistan, in markets, universities and public gathering places and have >> then blamed these on the perceived enemy, in order to discredit any >> legitimate struggle for liberation and in order to demonise them in the >> eyes of the world and thereby justify the occupation and real intentions. >> The truth about such bloodshed and mayhem is only now becoming public >> knowledge after information about the real perpetrators has emerged (such >> as the CIA related agency Black Water). The billions of dollars paid to >> the Pakistan regime by the USA/UK alliance and to the Secret services in >> Pakistan, their army and to the Karzai Afghan regime by way of bribes has >> led them to slaughter their own citizens with the help of the USA/UK and >> to then blame the Taliban in an >> attempt to subdue those seeking liberation to fulfil their right to run >> their lives by divine law and to protect the US/UK military and economic >> interests. With additional atrocities being committed by the USA and UK >> through indiscriminate air raids and other operations the number of >> ordinary Muslim men, women and children who have been killed has reached >> horrendous proportions. Not to mention the torture and abuse of basic >> rights by the occupiers in Afghanistan, such as in Bagram Air Base, the >> case of Dr Affia Siddiqui being a clear and brutal example. >> >> There is no doubt in most people's minds that the final conclusion to the >> current conflict in Afghanistan has already been written. Ultimate victory >> >> for those fighting in their own backyard, familiar with the mountains and >> plains and their supporters who struggle to protect their sanctities from >> the foreign aggressors cannot be denied. The signs for this are already >> appearing with incohesive thinking among the British and American chain of >> >> command, the crippling effect of the war on their economies back home and >> the depression of the soldiers realising that there is no real moral or >> ethic reason for them to murder innocent men, women and children to fulfil >> >> their politicians agenda. Blaming a lack of equipment is one of the ways >> in which politicians have tried to shift the focus. It is noteworthy that >> unlike among the US and UK soldiers, there has not been one reported >> suicide or attempted suicide among those resisting occupation. >> >> As a consequence this can only mean much more destruction for the USA and >> UK sons and daughters sent by their uncaring leaders to their deaths. >> After all this would not be the first time that this region has acted as a >> >> grave yard for empires in history, notably the British and Russians. >> >> It is worth reminding those who are still not blinded by the media >> propaganda that Afghanistan is not a British Town near Wootton Basset but >> rather Muslim land which no one has the right to occupy, with a Muslim >> population who do not deserve their innocent men, women and children to be >> >> killed for political mileage and for the greedy interests of the >> oppressive US and UK regimes. >> >> The procession in Wootton Basset is therefore an attempt to engage the >> British publics minds on the real reasons why their soldiers are returning >> >> home in body bags and the real cost of the war. The conflict in >> Afghanistan is not an ‘honourable' defence of British values and a cause >> for the British to remain secure, rather the presence of the US and UK >> forces in Afghanistan is the cause of instability in the region and a >> cause of insecurity for the British people back home. The parades, the >> speeches about soldiers doing their duty and the feeling of patriotism has >> >> obfuscated the reality of the conflict and the murderous crimes being >> committed by the occupiers and their agents. The British public is >> blissfully unaware of what is being done in their name by the Blair/Brown >> regimes and were the truth known no doubt the pressure to withdraw all >> troops immediately would be much greater. >> >> It is our desire to end the cycle of violence and the quagmire in which we >> >> find ourselves in today in Afghanistan. For the British public to do their >> >> duty and force their regime to save their children from death and >> destruction, from an oppressive and costly campaign and to stop the >> occupation of Muslim land. We realise that, especially in times of war, we >> >> are up against a very sophisticated propaganda machine and no doubt >> raising awareness about the painful truth of this conflict will unleash a >> torrent of abuse from the media and government against us, who have their >> own predetermined agenda, however the world is today also small enough for >> >> those wishing to verify the truth to be able to do so via the many news >> and information outlets. >> >> Mr Anjem Choudary >> >> UK Head of Al-Muhajiroun >> >> >> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/onthefrontline/6930015/Anjem-Choudary-an-open-letter-to-families-of-British-soldiers-in-Afghanistan.html >> >> >> >> >> >> _________________________________________ >> reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. >> Critiques & Collaborations >> To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with >> subscribe in the subject header. >> To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list >> List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> > > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with subscribe > in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> From patrice at xs4all.nl Wed Jan 6 22:06:08 2010 From: patrice at xs4all.nl (Patrice Riemens) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 17:36:08 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] When the Swiss Voted to Ban New Minarets, This Man Built One (WSJ/E) Message-ID: <7c80c05f0a6f7e5c949f067cdf3b3c68.squirrel@webmail.xs4all.nl> from the Wall Street Journal (Europe) Original at: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126264916012115609.html# When the Swiss Voted to Ban New Minarets, This Man Built One Mr. Morand Put It on His Roof, Shined Spotlights on It and Thumbed His Nose By DEBORAH BALL and ANITA GREIL BUSSIGNY, Switzerland -- In November, Switzerland voted to ban the construction of new minarets, the towerlike structures that adorn mosques. A week or so later, in an apparent act of defiance, a new minaret unexpectedly sprang up here. But the new minaret is not attached to a mosque; this small town near Geneva doesn't even have one. And it's not the work of a local Muslim outraged by Switzerland's controversial vote to ban the structures, which often are used to launch the call to prayer. [drawing Miranet Tower top] Instead, Bussigny's minaret is attached to the warehouse of a shoe store called Pomp It Up, which is part of a Swiss chain. It was erected by the chain's owner, Guillaume Morand, who fashioned it out of plastic and wood and attached it to a chimney. The new minaret, nearly 20 feet high and illuminated at night, is clearly visible from the main highway connecting Lausanne and Geneva. "The referendum was a scandal," Mr. Morand said recently at his cavernous warehouse, near pallets piled high with shoe boxes as pop music played on an old stereo system. "I was ashamed to be Swiss. I don't have the power to do much, but I wanted to give a message of peace to Muslims." Mr. Morand's provocation has attracted national interest as Switzerland grapples with the fallout of the referendum. On Nov. 29, 58% of Swiss voters approved the ban on new minarets, thus sparking a fresh debate around the world over the integration of Muslims in Western society. While civic and religious leaders in many Muslim countries denounced the ban, the feared backlash against Swiss interests around the world hasn't materialized. In Switzerland, the debate over the referendum is still hot. On Dec. 13, hundreds of Swiss Muslims protested the vote in Bern, the capital. According to Swiss legal experts, it is next to impossible to contest the outcome of a referendum. Indeed, on Dec. 18, a Swiss federal court refused to hear a plea by two Swiss citizens to nullify the vote. But one Swiss Muslim leader has already requested that the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France, consider whether the ban violates international law on freedom of expression and freedom of religion. [Entrepreneur Guillaume Morand stands in front of the minaret he had built in Bussigny, Switzerland. ] Anita Greil Entrepreneur Guillaume Morand stands in front of the minaret he had built in Bussigny, Switzerland. Meanwhile, Mr. Morand's gesture has rallied Swiss citizens upset by the vote. There are only four minarets in Switzerland, the most prominent one in Geneva. Only four of Switzerland's 26 cantons, or states, voted against the referendum, including Vaud, the canton in which Bussigny is located. Bussigny, a sleepy commuter town of 8,000 just five miles from Lausanne, voted 52% against the ban. Bussigny has three Christian churches but no mosque, so the roughly 150 Muslims of the town must travel to Lausanne in order to worship in a mosque. When the referendum passed, the ban on the construction of new minarets instantly became Swiss law, but the government didn't define exactly what constitutes a minaret. The law simply bans the construction of new ones. A parliamentary report outlining the issue before the vote says a minaret can exist without a mosque and without any religious function. Indeed, one of Switzerland's four existing minarets is a free-standing structure not attached to a mosque. Mr. Morand, a Lausanne native who does not actively practice any religion, decided the day after the vote to build his minaret. His business partner, an architect by training, searched the Internet for the right style of minaret, settling on one common in Turkey. After discarding a first design because it would have weighed 770 pounds , he settled on a second that used a large slice of a hard plastic tube to make the base. He fashioned a cap from pressed wood and painted it gold, topped by a gold crescent. It took Mr. Morand's workers half a day to raise the 265-pound minaret up four floors and over the lip of the roof. He then installed two 500-watt spotlights to light it at night. As Mr. Morand, who has been making shoes since 1989, and his team set the minaret into place, the police, alerted by a neighbor, arrived. They took photographs and quickly left. Mr. Morand, a wiry 46-year-old who goes by the nickname Toto and dresses in jeans and a leather jacket, has dipped his toe into political causes before, taking out newspaper ads opposing the expansion of an incinerator with the slogan "Lausanne is not a trash bag." He has also refused to travel to the U.S. since the start of U.S. military campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq. The Pomp It Up minaret, however, stands as his biggest political statement yet. The reserved Swiss have largely not confronted him, though he has received some nasty letters. "Are these the sort of wonderful Muslims you're defending?" wrote a man from Geneva, enclosing a newspaper clipping on fiery sermons by radical imams in Switzerland. Mr. Morand proudly shows off the letter. Instead, news of Mr. Morand's minaret brought out supporters. A Muslim doctor from Geneva sent chocolates. "Thank you for restoring my faith in Switzerland," wrote an admirer on a postcard bearing an image of a minaret. "It's great," Tawfiq El Maliki, spokesman for the Islamic Center of Lausanne, said of the minaret. "A lot of people didn't agree with the vote and they're searching for a way to show how they feel." Even though Mr. Morand's minaret seems to be in violation of the law, local authorities are trying not to see it that way. The police never came back after their visit, and local prosecutors don't plan to file charges. A spokesman for the Justice Ministry said it has no plans to take legal action against Mr. Morand. The ministry views the minaret as a temporary structure. Claudine Wyssa, the town's acting mayor -- who called Mr. Morand's action infantile -- doesn't think the do-it-yourself project qualifies as a minaret and plans no legal action. "It doesn't violate the law," she said in an interview. "It has nothing to do with Islam. A minaret needs a mosque. In this case, there isn't one. There's just a shoe warehouse." Mr. Morand doesn't plan to remove the minaret. "I'm leaving it up," he says. "If they want to come and take it down themselves, I won't fight it. But I'll take photos of them doing it and send them to the media. Then they'll have to take responsibility for it." In the meantime, he has added several new spotlights to his roof to better show off his handiwork. Write to Deborah Ball at deborah.ball at wsj.com and Anita Greil at anita.greil at dowjones.com Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page A29 From akmalik45 at yahoo.com Thu Jan 7 10:45:36 2010 From: akmalik45 at yahoo.com (A.K. Malik) Date: Wed, 6 Jan 2010 21:15:36 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] Criticism of Religion-Bombay High Court Ruling Message-ID: <100443.6916.qm@web112109.mail.gq1.yahoo.com> Hi All,           News item in Today's Times of India for information of readers. "MUMBAI: In a significant ruling, a three-judge bench of the Bombay high court on Wednesday held that in India, criticism of any religion -- be it  Islam, Hinduism, Christianity or any other -- is permissible under the fundamental right to freedom of speech and that a book cannot be banned on those grounds alone. However, the criticism must be bona fide or academic, said the court, as it upheld a ban issued in 2007 by the Maharashtra government on a book titled `Islam - A Concept of Political World Invasion by Muslims.' The book contained was an "aggravated form of criticism made with a malicious and deliberate intention" to outrage the feelings of Muslims, the court said. Delivering the landmark verdict on Wednesday, the court has in a rare instance upheld the state's ban on a book but at the same time brought joy to civil rights activists when it held that, "in our country, everything is open to criticism and religion is no exception. Freedom of expression covers criticism of religion and no person can be sensitive about it." The bench, comprising Justices Ranjana Desai, D Y Chandrachud and R S Mohite, said, "Healthy criticism provokes thought, encourages debate and helps us evolve. But criticism cannot be malicious and must not lead to creating ill-will between different communities... (it) must lead to sensible dialogue." The courts must strike a balance between the guaranteed freedom and permissible restrictions, "a difficult task", as the 150-page HC verdict penned by Justice Desai observed. The book, authored by R V Bhasin, a Mumbai-based advocate, in 2003 had been in circulation for four years before the state felt the need to ban it for "several derogatory and false statements about Muslim religion, the community, Mohammed Paigambar and Muslim priests". Bhasin later told TOI that he would go to the Supreme Court in appeal. "Freedom of speech cannot be blocked on interpretation," he said. " (A.K.MALIK) From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Thu Jan 7 12:05:23 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Thu, 7 Jan 2010 12:05:23 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Iranian Film Screening & Opening of Exhibition by Blind Photographers, Jan 11, Bombay In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: The exhibition is on till Jan 29. You can see the mailer at http://movies.groups.yahoo.com/group/docuwallahs2/message/7416 ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Partho Bhowmick Date: 2010/1/7 Subject: Invitation - Screening of film "Seven Blind Female Filmmakers" and opening of exhibition by blind photographers from Mumbai and Paris Dear Chandni I cordially invite you at the screening of a unique Iranian film "Seven Blind Female Filmmakers" and opening of exhibition by blind photographers from Mumbai and Paris, at the Alliance Francaise, Mumbai on Monday January 11 at 6 pm. Attached e-invite has details about the film and the exhibition. You may forward this invite to your contacts. Thanks for the support Partho www.blindwithcamera.org From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Thu Jan 7 13:29:19 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Thu, 7 Jan 2010 13:29:19 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] About Karmayog In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: >From http://groups.yahoo.com/group/karmayog/message/58628 Posted by: "karmayog - tanya" info at karmayog.org Tue Jan 5, 2010 Subject: About Karmayog - our answers to 9 review questions* Tell us about yourself and what you do: If a friend were to describe your accomplishments in up to three sentences, what would he or she say? * "Karmayog is one of the best things to have emerged from civil society in India over the last few years. Karmayog, established in 2004, uniquely connects (through online and offline methods) people and groups who would otherwise not get connected to each other. This is of particular value in a democracy like India's where sustainable solutions to society's problems can only be found though the collaboration and involvement of all stakeholders viz. citizens, civil society groups, corporates, academicians, media and government." Karmayog endeavours to be the one-stop resource centre for the social, civic & developmental sector in India. Karmayog enables interaction and dialogue on any social, civic or developmental issue, and through this, helps people reach solutions to the problems that are affecting them. It is simple, effective and zero-cost for any user. "Karmayog is the place for any concerned citizen to voice their opinion, and also for government, media or experts to invite and receive citizens' views on different issues. I recommend that all IAS officers as well as all students either in school or college join Karmayog to learn about a variety of topics and work towards social transformation. " * What other achievements would you like to share? * 1.. Karmayog CSR Ratings: Companies have tremendous strengths; they have extremely capable people, technology, access to money, the ability of geographical reach, etc. The Karmayog Corporate Social Responsibility Study and Ratings of Indian Companies was undertaken to explore and understand the role that corporates are playing and can play in finding meaningful solutions to the problems facing India today, and is the first-of-its- kind of study anywhere in the world. The CSR Study and Ratings have been conducted for the past 3 years and has been very well-received internationally. Details of the CSR activities of these corporates are available on the Karmayog website for comments and responses. 2.. Donate Books, Receive Books This is an all-India campaign to enable any person from across the country to connect with and donate books to any public library, school, college, hospital, NGO, Trust, etc. Any person can donate books of any type to organisations who have posted their appeals online, or can also donate the books to Karmayog to forward. 150 appeals from across the country have been made so far, and over 2700 books donated to Karmayog itself, and several thousands more have exchanged hands directly. Similarly, over 1600 donations of material (such as clothes, furniture, toys, medicines) all across India have been enabled through Karmayog. 3.. All-India NGO Profiles and Needs Requests Karmayog has the largest on-line directory of 18,500 NGOs in India, Each NGO listed in the Karmayog directory gets a free, permamnent web-section with a unique 'url' that can be used by the NGO on its letterhead, as well as a facility to upload information about it's work, project proposals, volunteer appeals, etc. as well as etc. Over 3700 such documents have been posted so far. Karmayog thus helps smaller and lesser known NGOs to increase awareness about their work, and to get support through volunteers and donors. Karmayog has an initiative called the "Karmayog NGO-of-the-Month" where one NGO is selected and profiled every month and an appeal is made to the Karmayog group to contribute at least Rs. 100/- to the selected NGO. 4.. Discussions, interactions and support systems Karmayog has an active discussion group of 55,000 members who exchange emails daily, a mailing list of 2,00,000 members, over 2000 registered volunteers and useful information on over 350 civic and social issues in 80,000 pages on the Karmayog website. There are also experts on different subjects who give free advice to any posted queries, as well as 3 active Karmayog Chapters in the cities of Baroda, Hyderabad and Chennai. 5.. NGO Coordination Committee for Mumbai Floods In 2005, Karmayog helped to establish an NGO Coordination Committee that worked closely with BMC and Mantralaya on relief efforts after the Mumbai Floods. The Karmayog website and network was used effectively to disseminate information, appeals and offers of help. This experience gave Karmayog valuable insights on how government works, and the role and contribution that citizens and NGOs can have in making government work better. 6.. NGO Council, Mumbai The learnings of the NGO Coordination Committee led to the formation of the NGO Council of Mumbai, which is a group of NGOs that came together in order to work collectively with government on many issues. The NGO Council contributed 2 laws to the city of Mumbai: the MCGM Solid Waste Rules and the Local Area Citizen Group Charter. Karmayog also developed an online complaint form for civic issues - this is the SATYA (Suggest an Action to Transform Your Area) form. Nearly 1000 forms have been filled so far and displayed on the Karmayog website as well as printed and forwarded to a dedicated cell in the BMC for further action. 7.. Mumbai Pact Against Corruption Karmayog and the NGO Council partnered with the Anti Corruption Bureau for a year-long programme titled the Mumbai - Pact Against Corruption (M-PAC); M-PAC aimed to involve each individual in the fight against corruption as only the active participation of citizens and the community against corruption can eliminate it. Karmayog also developed the Corruption ROKO (Report On Karmayog Online) form, an online form to complain against corruption in any government department in India. Nearly 250 detailed forms have been filled so far from all across India. Karmayog's anti-corruption initiatives have attracted the attention of anti-corruption groups and organizations from across the world. Similarly, an online form for Consumer Complaints, titled WARN (Write A Report Now), has been developed; over 250 forms have been filled, with each giving suggestions to consumers on how to take things forward. All the forms on Karmayog (SATYA, ROKO, WARN) have been designed to be complaint as well as suggestion forms so that a systematic approach to the problem is achieved, thus enabling solutions to be found and adopted. 8.. Support and Access to those who need it The Karmayog network and platform provides support, access and reach to the many individuals and smaller NGOs who are implementing projects, conducting events and looking for support from donors, media and others. * Tell us about your enterprise.* We believe that everyone has a role to play in society and that this role is essential and we all need to play it if we want society to change and improve. But it is often difficult for us to play this role due to constraints of time, information, access, etc. Karmayog enables any individual to plug into any social issue of his or her choice and interact with other stakeholders (such as government, NGOs, etc.) who are working on that issue. We enable this via our website, through email, through a discussion group, meetings, formal and informal partnerships with government and other groups and through Karmayog Chapters in other cities. We strongly believe that doable solutions to the problems that affect society can be found only with the inputs and participation of all stakeholders, especially ordinary citizens. There is an inter-connectedness between issues that must be included as a factor while working at solutions, and citizens who face the issues provide the best inputs in all such cases.. To bring about lasting change and improvement in society, the policies and programmes of government must be created and framed in a way that reflects the needs and realities of society. Hence the inputs of citizens and NGOs is critical and Karmayog works to be the bridge that will enable better policies and programmes to be made. The greater part of Karmayog's work and effectiveness is online and through the Karmayog website. The Karmayog website contains well-researched sections on over 350 social and civic causes. Each section has all the basic and necessary information on any issue that would enable any person interested in that issue to take the next step. The section lists relevant government laws, connected NGOs, support groups, relevant websites and books, help lines and other resources, etc. Each section also attempts to have one expert who volunteers to answer queries on that subject. These sections are researched and developed by Karmayog in-house, by volunteers, and by a mix of both. We see Karmayog's role to be that of a faciliatator, providing key linkages between different groups of people working on the same issue and bringing these groups together, or at least getting the inputs of all such groups, before solving any problem or issue. Karmayog itself does not try and become the expert for any particular cause or issue, rather Karmayog would enable any person to find the individuals and groups working on any issue. * What led you to start your enterprise? Tell us how you went about starting it, how you bootstrapped it, funded it, hired your first team etc. Yes, we would like to know all the details.* Steps: 1. Seeing a gap in reaching the social sector I realised that unlike in almost every other sector such as business or government or academia, there is a dearth of both formal or informal networks in the social sector, that would enable ordinary citizens or those from outside the sector to easily understand, support or join in to any kind of social issue. 2. Linking NGOs to supporters and beneficiaries Karmayog was started as an on-line networking platform between NGOs and anyone needing help or offering help to NGOs. I used the experiences and resources that I had from my business, Findstone.com, which is a B2B portal for the marble and granite industry to set up Karmayog. I personally had little or no experience of the social sector myself, and started out by holding meetings once a week at my house, where individuals and people from different NGOs would come and talk about their work and concerns. This was followed by hiring a small team for Karmayog, of 2-3 persons, who then visited NGOs in Mumbai and started understanding their work, their needs and how Karmayog could help them. Karmayog was able to provide linkages between NGOs themselves, often for the first time, despite their having worked on the same issue for several years. 3. Forming a network to work collectively and strengthen each other Several experiences like the Mumbai Floods in 2005, for e.g., where Karmayog set up an NGO Coordination Committee, showed the need and value for bringing together the many NGOs working separately on the same issues. Karmayog then established the NGO Council to be a representative body of Civil Society Organisations and the NGO sector in Mumbai comprising a mix of organisations with complementary expertise encompassing different concerns. 4. Linkages with Government to make better policies & programmes For any work in the social or development sector, the government is the key player, and hence NGOs must partner with and support Government and influence policies and programmes that will bring about change. The NGO Council worked closely with the government for over 2 years; specifically the BMC and the Anti Corruption Bureau, and this experience gave us very valuable inputs on how government works, and how citizens can work together with and support government on any issue. 5. Resources and Reach from Corporates In 2007, Karmayog started looking at the contribution and work of corporates in various social issues and we found that a lot of very good initiatives are taking place across the country. This led to the Karmayog Corporate Social Responsibility Ratings of the 1000 largest Indian corporates in 2007, 2008 and currently on for 2009. This is the first such study of its kind in the world. Thereafter, Karmayog continues to build on these various initiatives through online and offline methods. * What is unique about what you do? Why do you think it is game changing? * There are many things that need to be in place for even a single individual to get involved and try and bring about social change. We at Karmayog try to get insights about what these are and how to enable them. This requires many actions and initiatives to be undertaken, where each initiative is independent but also part of the entire matrix. E.g. the Karmayog Discussion Group, the NGO Directory and the CSR Study are all independent initiatives, but through Karmayog, these come together to create a whole space where social change is enabled and happens for individuals and NGOs. This is the unique feature of Karmayog - understanding and bringing together the different pieces of the puzzle that will form the whole picture. Karmayog is thus a platform that enables one to communicate; the platform also automatically connects one to the larger community which is active in the issues of your interest, so that one can join, support or know about their activities and work. If any person wishes to do something to improve society, the platform and network exists and is available - through Karmayog. There is no other such resource available with all the information, resources, contacts, all in one place along with the tools for interaction. Karmayog provides access to those who have no access, and connects people who otherwise cannot connect with each other. When one first comes across Karmayog, one finds oneself suddenly transported into a space where people are actively improving the world. For any individual struggling with any issue, Karmayog offers hope. Karmayog enables one to bring out all the goodness in us and to take positive and constructive steps to improve society and in the process to improve oneself. Each person who comes into contact with Karmayog changes personally, gets sensitized about more issues and gets inspired and energized to act with the support of like-minded persons. There are 2 game-changing aspects of Karmayog: - Karmayog brings together in one place all the elements needed for changing society - Karmayog enables any person to get involved and continually change oneself and through this transform society *What is the current scale of your enterprise? What are your revenues, how many customers do you serve or people you add value to etc * All India NGO Directory: 18,500 listings (1300 from Mumbai itself) Discussion group: 61000 members Mailing list of 2,00,000 people 80,000 pages of information in 350 sections on the Karmayog website. Staff of 6 people Impact and reach to thousands daily.* Is your enterprise profitable/sustainable? Please provide relevant details to validate this. * Everything offered through Karmayog is free and accessible to all. We do not have a revenue generating model. We endeavour to keep our costs low by using software to manage, record and document the data and interactions on Karmayog. We try to work towards needing minimal human intervention from our side to facilitate the interactions on Karmayog. We have tried to create a space where people who need help also help each other as they try and reach a solution, thus eliminating the need for a person or organization to actually hand-hold them through the process. Karmayog is self-funded. We also receive a small amount from online advertisements and donations. We work with the belief of matching our needs with our work; so far we have had the funds to do what we need; should we in the future need more funds, we would raise the amount needed. * How would you measure the impact of what you do? * Everyday through the emails that we receive, through the calls that we get and through the visits of and interactions with people, we see the huge impact that Karmayog makes for individuals and NGOs in resolving issues or taking things forward. The philosophy of Karmayog as per the Gita says that one must engage in one's work without looking towards the fruits of that action. We believe that when one starts measuring impact, one needs to then chase goals for that impact, and when we do that, we leave behind and lose a lot of opportunities that are invaluable. So we believe that Karmayog must work with the flow, and respond to the needs that arise from both within and outside the organization. For us, each initiative that we take up is like a building block that is part of the larger picture, and hence for each initiative, we decide a milestone and once we have reached that, we move to the next initiative, because we have at any point of time, many different issues to take up. *Why do you believe your enterprise is important and needed?* There is no one providing leadership in society today and the world's problems are now too complex for any set of experts to solve alone. Government, industry and media are no longer playing the type of leadership roles that was expected and needed from them. Therefore each individual must get involved in changing society and contribute towards an improved world. Karmayog enables this to happen and is hence a vital and important enterprise. From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Thu Jan 7 15:33:07 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (nmf2010) Date: Thu, 07 Jan 2010 11:03:07 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?Day_007_-_NewMediaFest=272010?= Message-ID: <20100107110308.35115853.5D8209A4@192.168.0.2> NewMediaFest'2010 ---------------------------------------------------- Day 007 program - 7 January 2010 ---------------------------------------------------- 1. 2010 - 10th anniversary of JavaMuseum - Forum for Internet Technology in Contemporary Art JIP - JavaMuseum Interview Project start --> a series of interviews with artists & experts in netart/electronic art today: interview with Andrea Polli (USA), digital media artist living in NY/NY 2. VAD - Video Art Database VideoChannel January 2010 - French Video Art "features for one day" during the coming 16 days--> today: "Body of War II", 2006, 4:00 by Isabelle Schneider (France) 3. VAD - Video Art Database VideoChannel - Found Footage Film Collection "features for one day" during the coming weeks--> today: Red Star, 2009, 3:49 by Milica Rakic (Serbia) 4. VAD - Video Art Database CologneOFF V - features for one day today: Ana is Gone 2009, 2:50 by Davor Sanvincenti (Croatia) http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=146 ---------------------------------------------------- NewMediaFest'2010 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne global heritage of digital culture 1 January - 31 December 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org newmediafest2010 [at] koeln.de ---------------------------------------------------- Join NewMediaFest'2010 on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=404197070650 ---------------------------------------------------- From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Thu Jan 7 15:46:53 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Thu, 7 Jan 2010 02:16:53 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <486975.74584.qm@web57206.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Dear Britta   If you see 'complexities' in the article, please explore them and share with everyone.   My 'heading' for the mail is extracted from the article itself. It is the central theme of what Anjem Choudary has been propagating.   Kshmendra    --- On Wed, 1/6/10, Britta Ohm wrote: From: Britta Ohm Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you To: "Kshmendra Kaul" Cc: "sarai list" Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2010, 7:44 PM I wonder why a mail with this heading - which seems quite unrelated to the complexity of the mail contents - appears to have gone straight onto the list, whereas a CFP for a planned conference panel on art, media and politics in Turkey that I had posted was held back by the administrator for proclaimed reasons of a 'suspicious heading' and has not appeared on the list until today. Britta Am 06.01.2010 um 14:56 schrieb Kshmendra Kaul: > "Anjem Choudary: an open letter to families of British soldiers in Afghanistan" > > (Anjem Choudary, the Muslim cleric, has written an open letter to the families of British soldiers who have died in Afghanistan, or who are serving there, to explain his reasons for planning a protest march in Wootton Bassett. It reads:) > > 3rd January 2010 > > May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon those who follow the guidance. > > Following the public announcement of an impending procession by islam4uk (a branch of Al-Muhajiroun) through the Market Town of Wootton Basset we thought it only appropriate that we provide an explanation and a little more about the purpose behind the procession, especially to the family and friends of those who have died there and who may have been led to believe that it is merely an act of incitement or provocation. > > We begin by inviting all non-Muslims to Islam, the perfect and most beautiful way of life, a favour from Allah (God) to mankind to take him out of the darkness of worshipping his own desires to the exclusive worship, submission and obedience of Allah alone, without partners and to testify the Messenger-ship of the final Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). We urge you to embrace Islam and save yourselves and your family from the hellfire and not to believe the lies and distortions which the Western media and non-Islamic regimes would have you believe about Muslims and their true intentions. Islam means submission and the Muslim is the one who submits to the will of God in his life. Verily the Messenger Muhammad told us that whoever heard his name from the Jews and Christians and did not believe would be held accountable for that on the day of judgement. > > We start by pointing out what many wise people already know i.e. that the British public have once again been lied to by their politicians about the war in Afghanistan. What began as a fight for freedom and democracy and to protect the human rights of the civilians and to find Sheikh Usama Bin Laden (by the use of B52 bombers) has today become a campaign to protect the security of the British public back home and it has gone from being a campaign which could be completed without firing a weapon within 3 years to one which could go on for 40 or 50 years with a heavy cost to the participants. > > In actual fact the foreign policy of the USA and UK is not about protecting the rights of Muslims or propagating democracy and freedom nor is it about the threat posed by the people in Afghanistan to the British public at all, but rather it is to establish their own military, economic, strategic and ideological interests in the region. The rich resources of Afghanistan, its position on the cusp between the Indian sub-continent, Southern Russian, Asia and China and its populations call for the Shari'ah are the real reasons why the military has sought to establish a permanent role there, no matter what the cost to the lives and wealth of the indigenous people or indeed their own. Pivotal in this is the desire to prevent Muslims from running their own affairs and establishing an Islamic State if they so wish but rather to maintain a puppet in the area (Mr Karzia) to maintain and protect Western interests. > > In order to create an atmosphere where these greedy objectives can be accomplished the Western and even Eastern media have constantly shown atrocities being committed against the ordinary people of Afghanistan and Pakistan, in markets, universities and public gathering places and have then blamed these on the perceived enemy, in order to discredit any legitimate struggle for liberation and in order to demonise them in the eyes of the world and thereby justify the occupation and real intentions. The truth about such bloodshed and mayhem is only now becoming public knowledge after information about the real perpetrators has emerged (such as the CIA related agency Black Water). The billions of dollars paid to the Pakistan regime by the USA/UK alliance and to the Secret services in Pakistan, their army and to the Karzai Afghan regime by way of bribes has led them to slaughter their own citizens with the help of the USA/UK and to then blame the Taliban in an > attempt to subdue those seeking liberation to fulfil their right to run their lives by divine law and to protect the US/UK military and economic interests. With additional atrocities being committed by the USA and UK through indiscriminate air raids and other operations the number of ordinary Muslim men, women and children who have been killed has reached horrendous proportions. Not to mention the torture and abuse of basic rights by the occupiers in Afghanistan, such as in Bagram Air Base, the case of Dr Affia Siddiqui being a clear and brutal example. > > There is no doubt in most people's minds that the final conclusion to the current conflict in Afghanistan has already been written. Ultimate victory for those fighting in their own backyard, familiar with the mountains and plains and their supporters who struggle to protect their sanctities from the foreign aggressors cannot be denied. The signs for this are already appearing with incohesive thinking among the British and American chain of command, the crippling effect of the war on their economies back home and the depression of the soldiers realising that there is no real moral or ethic reason for them to murder innocent men, women and children to fulfil their politicians agenda. Blaming a lack of equipment is one of the ways in which politicians have tried to shift the focus. It is noteworthy that unlike among the US and UK soldiers, there has not been one reported suicide or attempted suicide among those resisting occupation. > > As a consequence this can only mean much more destruction for the USA and UK sons and daughters sent by their uncaring leaders to their deaths. After all this would not be the first time that this region has acted as a grave yard for empires in history, notably the British and Russians. > > It is worth reminding those who are still not blinded by the media propaganda that Afghanistan is not a British Town near Wootton Basset but rather Muslim land which no one has the right to occupy, with a Muslim population who do not deserve their innocent men, women and children to be killed for political mileage and for the greedy interests of the oppressive US and UK regimes. > > The procession in Wootton Basset is therefore an attempt to engage the British publics minds on the real reasons why their soldiers are returning home in body bags and the real cost of the war. The conflict in Afghanistan is not an ‘honourable' defence of British values and a cause for the British to remain secure, rather the presence of the US and UK forces in Afghanistan is the cause of instability in the region and a cause of insecurity for the British people back home. The parades, the speeches about soldiers doing their duty and the feeling of patriotism has obfuscated the reality of the conflict and the murderous crimes being committed by the occupiers and their agents. The British public is blissfully unaware of what is being done in their name by the Blair/Brown regimes and were the truth known no doubt the pressure to withdraw all troops immediately would be much greater. > > It is our desire to end the cycle of violence and the quagmire in which we find ourselves in today in Afghanistan. For the British public to do their duty and force their regime to save their children from death and destruction, from an oppressive and costly campaign and to stop the occupation of Muslim land. We realise that, especially in times of war, we are up against a very sophisticated propaganda machine and no doubt raising awareness about the painful truth of this conflict will unleash a torrent of abuse from the media and government against us, who have their own predetermined agenda, however the world is today also small enough for those wishing to verify the truth to be able to do so via the many news and information outlets. > > Mr Anjem Choudary > > UK Head of Al-Muhajiroun > > > http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/onthefrontline/6930015/Anjem-Choudary-an-open-letter-to-families-of-British-soldiers-in-Afghanistan.html > > > > > > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> --------------------------------------- Dr. Britta Ohm Institute of Social Anthropology University of Bern Laenggassstr. 49a 3012 Bern Switzerland +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch Solmsstr. 36 10961 Berlin Germany +49-(0)30-69507155 ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Thu Jan 7 15:54:23 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Thu, 7 Jan 2010 02:24:23 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] Mails blocked by SARAI Reader-List In-Reply-To: <6353c691001060619w2bcf4338na890c0c5d831a245@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <180792.26416.qm@web57205.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Dear Aditya & Britta   I do not think that SARAI Reader-List postings are moderated.   What does happen for sure though, and I speak from personal experiences, is that in case of a SERVER-GLITCH, postings by members get rejected. I for example, in such 'rejected' postings get the advisory that I am 'not a member'. It is just a temporary glitch.   Such mails need to be re-posted once you glean that you are receiving other mails from the Reader-List.    Kshmendra --- On Wed, 1/6/10, Aditya Raj Kaul wrote: From: Aditya Raj Kaul Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you To: "Britta Ohm" Cc: "Kshmendra Kaul" , "sarai list" Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2010, 7:49 PM Strangely... similar e-mails from me are being not posted on the forum. I had recently posted an announcement for a prayer meeting for the tragic death of a photo-journalist in New Delhi. Even that wasn't allowed. Wonder what is the reason. Aditya Raj Kaul On Wed, Jan 6, 2010 at 7:44 PM, Britta Ohm wrote: I wonder why a mail with this heading - which seems quite unrelated to the complexity of the mail contents - appears to have gone straight onto the list, whereas a CFP for a planned conference panel on art, media and politics in Turkey that I had posted was held back by the administrator for proclaimed reasons of a 'suspicious heading' and has not appeared on the list until today. Britta From nagraj.adve at gmail.com Thu Jan 7 16:03:34 2010 From: nagraj.adve at gmail.com (Nagraj Adve) Date: Thu, 7 Jan 2010 16:03:34 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Nandini Sundar on her experience in Dantewada Message-ID: <564b2fca1001070233s56998f7cj6e0587c5e3eb3873@mail.gmail.com> From [image: View message header detail] Sumitra Purkayastha ")> Sent Wednesday, January 6, 2010 1:01 pm To Cc Bcc Subject Fwd: driven out of dantewada by police Attachments Police state.doc 38K *Police states, anthropology and human rights* Nandini Sundar [The author is Professor of Sociology, Delhi School of Economics, Delhi University.] 3rd January 2010 Ujjwal Kumar Singh, Professor of Political Science, Delhi University and I have just returned (January 1st) from a visit to the police state of Chhattisgarh. Ujjwal had gone for research and I had gone for a combination of research and verification purposes to assess the livelihood situation of villagers for our case before the SC, both entirely legitimate activities. In Dantewada, we had checked into Hotel Madhuban on the 29th of December around 2 pm without any problems, only to be told later that night that the management required the entire hotel to be instantly emptied out because they were doing some puja to mark the death anniversary of the hotel owner. We refused to leave at night, and were told we would have to leave at 6 am instead because the rooms had to be cleaned. As expected, other guests checked in the next morning, puja notwithstanding. At Sukma, we were detained by the police and SPOs at the entrance to the town from about 7.30 till 10 pm, with no explanation for why they had stopped us, and no questions as to why we were there or what our plans were. We were denied lodging – all the hotel owners had been told to claim they were full and refuse us rooms, and the forest and PWD departments had been advised not to make their guesthouses available, since ‘Naxalites’ were coming to stay. Indeed, the police told us that these days Naxalites had become so confident that they roamed around in jeeps on the highways. Since everything was mysteriously full in a small town like Sukma, the police advised us to leave that very night for Jagdalpur, some 100 km away. We decided instead to spend the night in the jeep, since we did not want to jeopardize friends by staying in their homes. Later, we contacted friends and they arranged for us to stay in the college boys hostel, since students were away on vacation. At midnight on the 30th, 6-7 armed SPOs burst into our room at the college hostel, guns cocked, and then spent the night patrolling the grounds. Evidently, the SPOs have seen many films and know precisely how to achieve dramatic effect. They were also trying to open our jeep, presumably to plant something. The next morning we were followed by seven armed SPOs with AK 47s from Sukma in an unmarked white car, and this was replaced at Tongpal by twelve SPOs, in two jeeps. None of them had any name plates. Given that we could have had no normal conversation with anyone, we decided to do all the things one normally postpones. In twenty years of visiting Bastar, for example, I have never seen the Kutumbsar caves. Everywhere we went, including the haat at Tongpal, the Tirathgarh waterfall and the Kutumbsar caves, as well as shops in Jagdalpur, the SPOs followed us, one pace behind, with their guns poised at the ready. Two women SPOs had been deputed specially for me. The SPOs also intimidated our jeep drivers by taking photos of them and the vehicle. DGP Vishwaranjan claimed on the phone that it was for our ‘protection’ that we were given this treatment since there was news of Naxalite troop movement, and has gone on to say (Indian Express, 3rd Jan), “anything can happen. Maoists can attack the activists to put the blame on the police. We will deploy a few companies of security forces for the security of the activists.” Clearly all the other tourists in Tirathgarh and Kutumbsar were under no threat from the Maoists – only we, who have been repeatedly accused of being Naxalite supporters, were likely targets. As for the police ensuring that we got no accommodation and trying to send us from Sukma to Jagdalpur in the middle of the night, such pure concern for our welfare is touching. The SP of Dantewada, Amaresh Misra, was somewhat more honest when he said he had instructions from above to ‘escort’ out ‘visiting dignitaries.’ The Additional SP shouted at us to be more ‘constructive’ – not surprisingly, though, with 12 swaggering SPOs snapping at one’s heels, one is not always at one’s constructive best. The next time, I promise to try. The SPOs in their jeeps followed us some way from Jagdalpur to Raipur, even when we were on the bus. In addition, two armed constables and an SI were sent on the bus to ensure we got to Raipur. We overheard the SI telling the armed constables to “take us down at Dhamtari” but fortunately this plan was abandoned. Poor man, he narrowly missed getting a medal for bravery, and as the good DGP tells the readers of the Indian Express, it would have been passed off as an attack by Naxalites. On reaching Raipur, the SI was confused. Shouting loudly and forgetting himself, as bad cell connections are wont to make us all do, he said “The IG and SP had told me to follow them, but now what do I do with them.”? The voice on the other end told him to go home. We flew out of Raipur the next morning. In real terms, this was a rather pointless exercise for the CG govt, since we were scheduled to come home the following day anyway, bound by the inexorable timetable of the university and classes. But symbolically, it allowed the SPOs to gloat that they had driven us out. The CG government obviously wants to ensure that no news on their offensive or even on the everyday trauma of villagers reaches outside. Many villages have been depopulated in the south, both due to the immense fear created by Op. Green Hunt and the failure of the monsoons this year. All the young people are migrating to AP for coolie work. There are sporadic encounters – the day we were in Dantewada (29.12.09), two ‘Naxalites’ were killed in the jungles of Vechapal and three arrested. A week before seven people had been killed in Gumiapal. Who is getting killed and how is anyone’s guess. The Maoists are blockading roads with trees and trenches, and killing ‘informers’. There is compete terror, fear and hunger throughout the district. While the CG govt is busy providing us ‘protection’, it has refused to restore the armed guard that was taken away from CPI leader Manish Kunjam. He has had credible reports that his life is under threat, and he may face a replay of the Niyogi murder, because of his opposition both to forcible and fraudulent land acquisition by multinationals like Tata and Essar and to the Salwa Judum and Operation Green Hunt. Manish Kunjam, whom I have known since the early 1990s, is the single most important mass leader in the area who has been independent of both the state and Maoists, and taken a stand on various issues. Despite Raman Singh assuring the CPI leadership that this would be done, the DGP has refused to act. It is also remarkable that a government which can waste so many armed SPOs for an entire day and night on two people who do nothing more dangerous than teach and write, has been unable to catch the SPOs who are responsible for raping six young women. Despite the trial court finding the SPOs and Salwa Judum leaders prima facie guilty of rape and issuing a standing arrest warrant on 30.10.2009, even two months later, they are ‘absconding’. Some of them even give public speeches, but they are invisible to the police. In the meantime, when Himanshu reported that the rape victims were kept for 3-4 days in Dornapal thana and generally terrorized, the Chief Secretary’s response was to accuse him of running an ‘ugly motivated campaign.’ All good men these, good fathers, good husbands, good citizens. So was DGP Rathore and all the honourable men who defended him, promoted him and awarded him despite what he did to Ruchika. Unfortunately for these adivasi girls, they are not middle class, so no media campaign for them. Bastar can no more get rid of me than I can get rid of Bastar. In 1992, because I attended meetings to observe the protests by the villagers of Maolibhata against the steel plant that was proposed to be sited there, the government denied me access to the local archives. But it was the government which then fell, and my book on Bastar, *Subalterns and Sovereigns*, was published by 1997. In 2004, four of us were stopped in a village while doing a survey of the Lok Sabha polls by village level sympathizers of the Maoists. They retained Ajay TG’s video camera, for which the brilliant CG police later arrested him. In 2005, Salwa Judum activists stopped us as part of the PUDR-PUCL factfinding on Salwa Judum; in 2006, as part of the Indepdendent Citizens Initiative, Ramachandra Guha, Farah Naqvi and I were stopped and searched in Bhairamgarh thana by out-of-control SPOs, and Ramachandra Guha was nearly lynched inside the station, while the thanedar was too drunk to read the letter we carried from the Chief Secretary. My camera was taken away by a Salwa Judum leader, and returned only months later. In 2007-8, the then SP, Rahul Sharma, fabricated photos of me with my arms around armed Maoist women and showed them to visiting journalists and others to try and discredit my independence. He later claimed, when challenged, that the photos were of one “Ms. Jeet’ and it was he who had verified the truth. In 2009, Ajay Dandekar (historian), JP Rao (anthropologist) and I narrowly escaped a mob of around 300 Salwa Judum leaders, police and SPOs, who, however, took away JP Rao’s mobile phones, a camera charger and vehicle registration documents from the parked jeep. The police refused to register our complaint and detained us for questioning for a few hours, even though we had got the consent of the District Collector and the Mirtur CRPF contingent to visit Vechhapal. For anthropologists, our professional life is often difficult to separate from our personal – our research depends on developing deep friendships with the people we ‘study’. In the twenty years that I have been visiting Bastar off and on, I have acquired a range of acquaintances, friends and people who are like family members, whose concerns are my concerns. This does not in any way diminish one’s commitment to independence and objectivity. As Kathleen Gough said in 1968, when the American Anthropological Association was debating whether to pass a resolution against the war in Vietnam, ‘genocide is not in the professional interests of anthropology.’ From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Thu Jan 7 16:12:38 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Thu, 7 Jan 2010 02:42:38 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] "An Invisible Revolution in Rural India" Message-ID: <743959.85196.qm@web57206.mail.re3.yahoo.com> "An Invisible Revolution in Rural India"   JANUARY 4, 2010 By MADHUKAR SHUKLA\   Mahua Devi is a petite woman in her early twenties. She cycles through 10 to 12 villages of the Koraput district in Orissa everyday.   "I help these women keep their accounts," she tells me as we walk towards a group sitting in the shade under a tree.   When she says "these women" she is referring to one of India's millions of self-help groups, or SHGs. Each group has 15 to 20 women who pool their tiny savings of only 5 rupees to 10 rupees at a time. They use the money to give loans to members for income-generating investments like chickens, seeds or goats. The interest on the loans then adds to their savings pool.   Driving from the nearest city to the village, I don't see any bank branches. Even if there is a branch, it's unlikely it would be equipped to open even simple savings accounts for these women, given their meager savings, lack of assets and inability to read or write. For most of the village women the SHG is the only bank they have ever had.   Ms. Devi keeps the accounts for 20 groups, for which she gets a commission of 2% of the value of all the transactions. "On average, I earn about 5,000 rupees per month," she tells me.   That, I quickly calculate, works out to 250,000 rupees in cash transactions per month - an amazing economic engine, silently working in one of India's poorest regions.   Self help groups are a transformational phenomenon which has swept the Indian countryside over the last decade and a half. The groups are India's own social innovation. In a country where almost two-thirds of the population have no access to formal financial services, SHGs are a unique route to financial inclusion, increasing incomes and helping build productive assets among the poor.   Though similar groups were promoted by many non-government organizations in the 1980s the turning point of the SHG movement was a pilot project by the National Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development (NABARD) in the early 1990s.   Despite India's network of around 30,000 bank branches in rural areas, a majority of the poor still remained outside the fold of the formal banking system. NABARD studies showed this was because existing bank policies, systems and products were not aligned to meet the financial needs and constraints of the poor. What the poor can earn and save varies widely each day. Meanwhile their tiny savings – as little as 50 rupees per month - make providing banking services to them too expensive for banks.   To bridge this gap, NABARD and a group of NGOs started a pilot project o 500 groups of women to be used a vehicle for financial intermediation through its SHG-Bank Linkage Program. Typically, these were informal groups of up to 20 women, who would meet regularly and pool their savings.   After saving for six months and proving the group had developed the required fiscal discipline through consistent savings, on-time loan payments and maintaining records the group becomes eligible to be "linked" to the local bank branch. The innovation here was that the group, rather than the individuals in it, could open an account with the bank and use that account to save and take loans.   The pilot was a remarkable success and within a year more than half of the first groups had become eligible for the bank-linkage. Even more impressive was the fact that 90% of the loan payments were on time and there were no defaults. The success of this pilot project sparked the SHG movement which has been an unparalleled, albeit under-reported, revolution in financial inclusion.   The number of bank-linked SHGs crossed 10,000 in five years. By 2004, there were more than one million groups with their own bank accounts. By the year ended this March, the number of groups had grown to about 4.7 million, touching 59 million rural families through their members. Meanwhile, the average loan size per group has increased from 1,137 rupees in 1992 to 74,000 rupees this year. That shows the women's rising capacity to manage, utilize and pay back loans.   So is everything fine with the SHG movement? Not entirely.   According to one 2006 study (EDA Rural Systems and Andhra Pradesh Mahila Abhivruddhi Society's "Self Help Groups in India: A Study of the Light and Shades") the groups still suffer from many inadequacies. For instance, the study found that a large proportion of SHG members remained poor even after being in the groups for seven years. Another report (Access Development Services' "Microfinance in India: The State of the Sector Report 2009") underlined the popularity of SHGs has so far been a regional phenomenon tilted towards the southern and eastern states of India.   In spite of such inadequacies, however, self help groups have emerged as a critical vehicle for creating social equity and empowerment.   I once sat with women from three SHGs in the community hall of Madanpur in Haryana. The women had assembled for a workshop on "legal literacy" organized by a Delhi NGO. There was jubilation in the air and the village women were talking animatedly.   "We got the license of the local liquor shop stopped yesterday," one of the members told me with glee. "It was a drain on us because the men-folk would squander away their earnings, spoil their health, and often physically abuse us. This time we protested and kept the liquor license from being renewed."   The self help groups have gone beyond financial inclusion and become a platform to provide a voice to a marginalized section of society. Some SHGs have become forums for women to discuss everything from health and sanitation to legal rights and human trafficking. They are also being used to promote education and skill building. The groups are so respected now that they have been called upon to implement government and donor-driven programs such as the mid-day meal program for school children and HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns.   Between 2006 and 2008, more than 600,000 new self help groups were linked to banks. Assuming an average group size of around 13 or 14 members, that means more than 400 women are joining a SHG every hour!   Now if that's not a revolution, then what is?   —Madhukar Shukla is a professor of organizational behavior and strategic management at the XLRI School of Business & Human Resources in Jamshedpur.     http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126258063197814415.html   From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Thu Jan 7 16:33:15 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Thu, 7 Jan 2010 03:03:15 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <244671.72352.qm@web57202.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Dear Tara   Muslim-Heaven; Hindu-Heaven; Christian-Heaven; Any-Heaven ..... the hardsell is so competent that I am a sold-soul.   Problem is, just one poor me and so many places to be in.   Kshmendra --- On Wed, 1/6/10, TaraPrakash wrote: From: TaraPrakash Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you To: "Kshmendra Kaul" , "sarai list" Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2010, 8:14 PM I wonder if this god forsaken group and BNP have some common understanding. Such mindless organization and such blatent defense of the thugs fighting in Afghanistan will do nothing but enhance support for the ultra right ideology. Wasn't it the primary reason for founding these fanatic organizations, defeating the left progressive ideology? So good luck. It is true that British and American soldiers are committing suicide, but they are doing other things too. The fanatics fighting in the name of Islam are doing nothing but suicides. So you are wrong there Anjem. If the heaven is the place I will have to share with such fanatics, hell will be much better place to live. By spreading the message of their kind of Islam, I wonder if Kshemendra wanted to reserve a seat in the heaven? ----- Original Message ----- From: "Kshmendra Kaul" To: "sarai list" Sent: Wednesday, January 06, 2010 8:56 AM Subject: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you > "Anjem Choudary: an open letter to families of British soldiers in Afghanistan" > > (Anjem Choudary, the Muslim cleric, has written an open letter to the families of British soldiers who have died in Afghanistan, or who are serving there, to explain his reasons for planning a protest march in Wootton Bassett. It reads:) > > 3rd January 2010 > > May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon those who follow the guidance. > > Following the public announcement of an impending procession by islam4uk (a branch of Al-Muhajiroun) through the Market Town of Wootton Basset we thought it only appropriate that we provide an explanation and a little more about the purpose behind the procession, especially to the family and friends of those who have died there and who may have been led to believe that it is merely an act of incitement or provocation. > > We begin by inviting all non-Muslims to Islam, the perfect and most beautiful way of life, a favour from Allah (God) to mankind to take him out of the darkness of worshipping his own desires to the exclusive worship, submission and obedience of Allah alone, without partners and to testify the Messenger-ship of the final Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). We urge you to embrace Islam and save yourselves and your family from the hellfire and not to believe the lies and distortions which the Western media and non-Islamic regimes would have you believe about Muslims and their true intentions. Islam means submission and the Muslim is the one who submits to the will of God in his life. Verily the Messenger Muhammad told us that whoever heard his name from the Jews and Christians and did not believe would be held accountable for that on the day of judgement. > > We start by pointing out what many wise people already know i.e. that the British public have once again been lied to by their politicians about the war in Afghanistan. What began as a fight for freedom and democracy and to protect the human rights of the civilians and to find Sheikh Usama Bin Laden (by the use of B52 bombers) has today become a campaign to protect the security of the British public back home and it has gone from being a campaign which could be completed without firing a weapon within 3 years to one which could go on for 40 or 50 years with a heavy cost to the participants. > > In actual fact the foreign policy of the USA and UK is not about protecting the rights of Muslims or propagating democracy and freedom nor is it about the threat posed by the people in Afghanistan to the British public at all, but rather it is to establish their own military, economic, strategic and ideological interests in the region. The rich resources of Afghanistan, its position on the cusp between the Indian sub-continent, Southern Russian, Asia and China and its populations call for the Shari'ah are the real reasons why the military has sought to establish a permanent role there, no matter what the cost to the lives and wealth of the indigenous people or indeed their own. Pivotal in this is the desire to prevent Muslims from running their own affairs and establishing an Islamic State if they so wish but rather to maintain a puppet in the area (Mr Karzia) to maintain and protect Western interests. > > In order to create an atmosphere where these greedy objectives can be accomplished the Western and even Eastern media have constantly shown atrocities being committed against the ordinary people of Afghanistan and Pakistan, in markets, universities and public gathering places and have then blamed these on the perceived enemy, in order to discredit any legitimate struggle for liberation and in order to demonise them in the eyes of the world and thereby justify the occupation and real intentions. The truth about such bloodshed and mayhem is only now becoming public knowledge after information about the real perpetrators has emerged (such as the CIA related agency Black Water). The billions of dollars paid to the Pakistan regime by the USA/UK alliance and to the Secret services in Pakistan, their army and to the Karzai Afghan regime by way of bribes has led them to slaughter their own citizens with the help of the USA/UK and to then blame the Taliban in an > attempt to subdue those seeking liberation to fulfil their right to run their lives by divine law and to protect the US/UK military and economic interests. With additional atrocities being committed by the USA and UK through indiscriminate air raids and other operations the number of ordinary Muslim men, women and children who have been killed has reached horrendous proportions. Not to mention the torture and abuse of basic rights by the occupiers in Afghanistan, such as in Bagram Air Base, the case of Dr Affia Siddiqui being a clear and brutal example. > > There is no doubt in most people's minds that the final conclusion to the current conflict in Afghanistan has already been written. Ultimate victory for those fighting in their own backyard, familiar with the mountains and plains and their supporters who struggle to protect their sanctities from the foreign aggressors cannot be denied. The signs for this are already appearing with incohesive thinking among the British and American chain of command, the crippling effect of the war on their economies back home and the depression of the soldiers realising that there is no real moral or ethic reason for them to murder innocent men, women and children to fulfil their politicians agenda. Blaming a lack of equipment is one of the ways in which politicians have tried to shift the focus. It is noteworthy that unlike among the US and UK soldiers, there has not been one reported suicide or attempted suicide among those resisting occupation. > > As a consequence this can only mean much more destruction for the USA and UK sons and daughters sent by their uncaring leaders to their deaths. After all this would not be the first time that this region has acted as a grave yard for empires in history, notably the British and Russians. > > It is worth reminding those who are still not blinded by the media propaganda that Afghanistan is not a British Town near Wootton Basset but rather Muslim land which no one has the right to occupy, with a Muslim population who do not deserve their innocent men, women and children to be killed for political mileage and for the greedy interests of the oppressive US and UK regimes. > > The procession in Wootton Basset is therefore an attempt to engage the British publics minds on the real reasons why their soldiers are returning home in body bags and the real cost of the war. The conflict in Afghanistan is not an ‘honourable' defence of British values and a cause for the British to remain secure, rather the presence of the US and UK forces in Afghanistan is the cause of instability in the region and a cause of insecurity for the British people back home. The parades, the speeches about soldiers doing their duty and the feeling of patriotism has obfuscated the reality of the conflict and the murderous crimes being committed by the occupiers and their agents. The British public is blissfully unaware of what is being done in their name by the Blair/Brown regimes and were the truth known no doubt the pressure to withdraw all troops immediately would be much greater. > > It is our desire to end the cycle of violence and the quagmire in which we find ourselves in today in Afghanistan. For the British public to do their duty and force their regime to save their children from death and destruction, from an oppressive and costly campaign and to stop the occupation of Muslim land. We realise that, especially in times of war, we are up against a very sophisticated propaganda machine and no doubt raising awareness about the painful truth of this conflict will unleash a torrent of abuse from the media and government against us, who have their own predetermined agenda, however the world is today also small enough for those wishing to verify the truth to be able to do so via the many news and information outlets. > > Mr Anjem Choudary > > UK Head of Al-Muhajiroun > > > http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/onthefrontline/6930015/Anjem-Choudary-an-open-letter-to-families-of-British-soldiers-in-Afghanistan.html > > > > > > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> From ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de Thu Jan 7 17:49:08 2010 From: ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de (Britta Ohm) Date: Thu, 7 Jan 2010 13:19:08 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] Mails blocked by SARAI Reader-List In-Reply-To: <180792.26416.qm@web57205.mail.re3.yahoo.com> References: <180792.26416.qm@web57205.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Message-ID: Dear Kshmendra, thanks. Yes, I'm quite sure they are not actively moderated, even though the message you get is 'Your mail is being held until the list moderator can review it for approval', so I wonder what this review process consists of. If it is systemically/electronically, the arbitrariness with which mails get through or rejected - because we never get a result of this 'review process' - should be a concern. And if it is indeed personal, all the more. Britta Am 07.01.2010 um 11:24 schrieb Kshmendra Kaul: > Dear Aditya & Britta > > I do not think that SARAI Reader-List postings are moderated. > > What does happen for sure though, and I speak from personal > experiences, is that in case of a SERVER-GLITCH, postings by members > get rejected. I for example, in such 'rejected' postings get the > advisory that I am 'not a member'. It is just a temporary glitch. > > Such mails need to be re-posted once you glean that you are > receiving other mails from the Reader-List. > > Kshmendra > > > --- On Wed, 1/6/10, Aditya Raj Kaul wrote: > > From: Aditya Raj Kaul > Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you > To: "Britta Ohm" > Cc: "Kshmendra Kaul" , "sarai list" > > Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2010, 7:49 PM > > Strangely... similar e-mails from me are being not posted on the > forum. I had recently posted an announcement for a prayer meeting > for the tragic death of a photo-journalist in New Delhi. Even that > wasn't allowed. Wonder what is the reason. > > Aditya Raj Kaul > > On Wed, Jan 6, 2010 at 7:44 PM, Britta Ohm > wrote: > I wonder why a mail with this heading - which seems quite unrelated to > the complexity of the mail contents - appears to have gone straight > onto the list, whereas a CFP for a planned conference panel on art, > media and politics in Turkey that I had posted was held back by the > administrator for proclaimed reasons of a 'suspicious heading' and has > not appeared on the list until today. > Britta > > --------------------------------------- Dr. Britta Ohm Institute of Social Anthropology University of Bern Laenggassstr. 49a 3012 Bern Switzerland +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch Solmsstr. 36 10961 Berlin Germany +49-(0)30-69507155 ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de From 2tahamehmood at googlemail.com Thu Jan 7 19:06:54 2010 From: 2tahamehmood at googlemail.com (Taha Mehmood) Date: Thu, 7 Jan 2010 13:36:54 +0000 Subject: [Reader-list] Last gasp for global Islam Message-ID: <65be9bf41001070536u29624691gcbed28fc31e1839a@mail.gmail.com> http://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/2009/09/last-gasp-for-global-islam/ Last gasp for global Islam Robin Yassin-Kassab 4th September 2009 — Issue 162 Islam’s global revival is a hollow shell—and the Muslim world must heed Ali Allawi’s devastating account of how its leaders are failing their people The contemporary religious revival is a complex business. In the same period that Muslim societies, in their weakness, seem to have re-embraced Islam, America, in its strength, has re-embraced Christianity. Western Europe remains avowedly secular. Despite the contradictions within the west, mainstream Orientalism holds that all cultures are developing towards the universal—or, more specifically, globalised—model of secular modernity and the market. According to this view, the Muslim world experiences backwardness to the extent that it resists secularisation. The Crisis of Islamic Civilization, a subtle and erudite book by former Iraqi minister Ali A Allawi, challenges this thesis. Surveying the Muslim world’s social, economic and moral failures, and the terror espoused by certain Islamist groups, Allawi suggests the problem might not be too much Islam, but too little. Islam is a civilisational framework that rests on the tripod of private ritual, public ethics and individual spiritual striving—and the legs of the tripod must balance each other. But, Allawi argues, the current Islamic “revival” is operating only in the field of religiosity: focusing on naked symbols and rules, proclaiming the superiority of Islam while adopting indiscriminately the technology, economics and cultural products of the west. It emphasises Sharia as a set of fixed punishments rather than as a framework of legislative principles. For the revivalists, the public sphere is too often reduced to the state—and their political project is simply to seize control of repressive state apparatuses. The result is a discomforting disjunction between inner and outer worlds, symbolised by contradictory Muslim landscapes: home interiors spotlessly clean, while the streets outside are strangled by plastic bags. For Allawi, the courtesy, hospitality and warmth still met with in the Muslim world are the mere remnants of Islamic civilisation, and the religious revival may be its last gasp. So what happened? Allawi doesn’t romanticise the Islamic past, yet he rejects the Arabcentric myth of continual decline since the Mongol destruction of the Abbasid empire in the 13th century. As he sees it, a dynamism and internal coherence—and a universalism that in the 14th century allowed Ibn Battuta, trained in Tangiers, to find work as a judge in the Maldives—lasted until the European penetration in the early 19th century. Even then, the first responses to western imperialism came on Islam’s own terms, from leaders such as Chechnya’s Imam Shamil or the Algerian Abd al Qadir, whose legitimacy derived from their ethical Sufism as much as from their championing of law. Abd al Qadir waged jihad against the invading French in the 1830s and 1840s, and later saved thousands of Christians from the mob in his Damascene exile. After military defeat by colonial powers, the Sufi orders degenerated (Allawi concedes they were in many cases already mired in superstition), were co-opted by imperial powers and encouraged to ignore the problematic public realm. As a result, the tariqat—meaning the “way” or “path” and denoting the pursuit of spiritual truth via Islamic law—became irrelevant, and Muslims lost the heart of their tradition. Sadly, the process continues today, in the form of the tame and supposedly Sufi-oriented Quilliam Foundation, whose co-founder has opined on “the racist Arab psyche.” Almost everywhere, Allawi maintains, Islam experienced a traumatic rupture rather than an evolution into modernity. Colonial powers and then westernised ruling classes dismantled the institutions of Islam, from seminaries to the Caliphate. The work ethic disappeared with the guilds connected to urban Sufi orders, leaving a corrupt marketplace and a culture of backstabbing. Kemalist Turkey not only substituted more “modern” Roman letters for Arabic script in the 1920s, but even criminalised reading Osmanli Turkish (contrast this with the self-consciously modern state of Israel, which re-established Hebrew script). Allawi holds up Japan’s Meiji restoration of 1867-68 as a modernising response to external challenges that was achieved on the basis of Japan’s own cultural framework, and wishes Muslims had managed something similar. He points out that where Islam did evolve towards modernity in countries beyond western control, the results were encouraging. During the Iranian constitutional revolution of 1906-09, for example, Najaf-based ayatollahs promoted “the liberty of the general public from arbitrary and unaccountable government by force,” and described freedom as “a rational process and one of the pillars of the Islamic faith.” The Iranian parliament was established as a result. Despite the existence of Islamic concepts allowing for democracy (shura), freedom of speech (naseeha and ra’i) and social justice (’adl), however, voices such as those from Najaf have been exceptions to the rule of defeat and stagnation across the Muslim world. In one of its most engaging sections, the book focuses on Islam’s urban crisis. The colonial separation of “old” and “new” cities epitomised the initial civilisational rupture of the 19th century—and post-colonial regimes have committed even greater vandalism since. The Wahhabi House of Saud has, for instance, demolished 95 per cent of historical buildings in the sacred cities of Mecca and Medina for fear of idolatry. And it has done so to make way for the true idols of the time: consumer outlets and gated accommodation. Meanwhile, Gulf city-states are characterised by what Allawi summarises as “rampant commercialism, brand worship, gigantism, strict class segregation and a calendar of ‘festivals’ and ‘events’ designed by marketers.” The economic news is worse still. For all the oil wealth and untrammelled capitalism, the 57 member countries of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (the OIC) account for 22 per cent of global population yet generate only 6 per cent of world GDP. An Islamic alms tax (zakat) of 2.5 per cent on the sovereign wealth funds of Gulf countries would produce an annual $75bn wealth transfer to the poorest Muslim states, but this isn’t on the agenda. Key Islamic values like justice, fairness and education have been ignored. Meanwhile, an illusory counter-movement to the collapse has been led, in the Sunni world, by Wahhabism. This puritanical reform movement is painfully literalist, unimaginative, and viciously sectarian. As anti-intellectual as it is anti-mystical, it rejects the flexibility of the traditional schools of law. Its influence has been projected far beyond the central Arabian desert by oil money and the ungodly Saudi-US alliance. The result is a schizophrenic response to the west—passivity and collaboration on the one hand, nihilistic terrorism on the other. Unlike those (such as Hazel Blears) who assume all visions of a potential Islamic superstate can be equated with al Qaeda’s, Allawi suggests that “it is the absence of any formal and substantial Islamic political presence at the global level that contributes to instability and disorder.” Chinese-Confucian and Indian-Hindu civilisations have, more or less, territorial contiguity. The west is represented by two powers—the EU and the US—and by institutions from Nato to the World Bank. But since the loss of its multi-national empires, Islam is splintered between weak states lacking popular legitimacy and very often governed by client regimes. Muslim countries have thus become adjuncts of the established civilisational blocks—Morocco to Europe, for instance, or Malaysia to China—with no serious power capable or willing to defend suffering Muslims internationally. It is noteworthy that one of the only Muslim voices to have condemned China’s oppression of Uighur Muslims is al Qaeda. Allawi could be criticised for skirting too close to Huntington’s “clash of civilisations” thesis. His constant application of the “Judaeo-Christian” epithet to the west is slightly annoying—surely the west is Hellenistic too, and for that matter Islamic, through Spain and the scientific heritage. But he avoids the fallacy of absolutely discrete cultures, and it is refreshing to read a Muslim participating in a “civilisational” discourse that has usually targeted Muslims. The book’s insistence on the role of the divine in public life will be controversial in the west, but not in most of the Muslim world. Seventy-nine per cent of Pakistanis, 70 per cent of Moroccans and even 43 per cent of Turks consider themselves to be Muslims before citizens of their respective nation states. Again, Allawi’s argument is not theological but civilisational: he calls for a culture confidently aware of its core values and able to act upon them. The Crisis of Islamic Civilization offers a comprehensive sweep of Muslim world issues, from banking to human rights and the role of Muslim migrants. It introduces some remarkable but little known Islamic thinkers such as Muhammad Asad (born Leopold Weiss), Pakistan’s first ambassador to the UN, Iranian dissident Abd el Karim Soroush, and the Sudanese Mahmoud Muhammad Taha, who understood those sections of the Koran revealed at Mecca to be of universal spiritual relevance, but the Medinan verses to be limited to the Prophet’s specific moment. In its rich and diverse portrayal of Muslim thought, the book is a corrective to the simplistic Orientalism of the Bernard Lewis school. Allawi tries hard to find positive signs. He praises the work of architect Hassan Fathy in re-establishing traditional Islamic rather than western building techniques, the anti-sectarian Amman message (an influential joint statement made in 2004 by senior clerics of various sects, calling for Muslim unity and tolerance) and the current resurgence in Sufism even in the Wahhabi heartland. He mourns missed opportunities, such as Mahathir Muhammad’s proposed gold-based currency for intra-Islamic trade. And he stresses these ideas are still there for the taking. But ultimately, the book is more a lament than a programme for renewal. Waiting for the renewal, the Muslims suffer with Libyan novelist Ahmad al Faqih, who wrote, “A time has passed and another time is not coming.” From rahul_capri at yahoo.com Fri Jan 8 06:28:38 2010 From: rahul_capri at yahoo.com (Rahul Asthana) Date: Thu, 7 Jan 2010 16:58:38 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] Interesting discussion on the future course of Pakistan Message-ID: <79841.22466.qm@web53606.mail.re2.yahoo.com> Please click on the comments link at the bottom to read the discussion online. In any case,I am posting the contents in the body of mail. Its long,but well worth the read. http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2010/01/suicide_bomber_kills_25.php The Long War Journal READER COMMENTS: "Suicide bomber kills 90 at volleyball game in Pakistan" Posted by Marlin at January 1, 2010 1:03 PM ET: Wow! The death and injury toll was really significant. You wonder when the breaking point will come for the Pakistani people to say 'enough is enough'? A suicide bomber in a vehicle blew himself up at a volleyball game in northwest Pakistan on Friday and a television station said more than 70 people were killed. The station, Express 24/7, said 65 people were wounded and more than 20 houses destroyed. The attack took place in a village that opposes al Qaeda-backed Taliban insurgents, officials said. [...] Local police chief Ayub Khan said the bomber blew himself up in an SUV in the middle of the field and there was believed to be a second vehicle which fled the scene. "One was blown up here while the second fled to an unknown location. We believe it may be used to attack some other place," he told Reuters by telephone. Reuters: More than 70 dead in Pakistan volleyball blast -TV Posted by omar at January 1, 2010 4:16 PM ET: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/02/wo...a/02pstan.html I wrote this note on my group in response to the above news. Its obviously targeted at a Pakistani audience. comments welcome. Another terrible bombing, this time in Lakki Marwat. It seems the suicidal maniac was headed for a peace committee meeting but could not get there due to heavy security, so he hit the wall of a playground and went to meet the 72 virgins short of his final target. Sadly, there was a volleyball game going on in the playground and there were a lot of spectators. TV is saying 70 or more are dead and the death toll could rise. Since this particular tragedy has struck poor pathans in a small town, its not going to register for too long on the minds of the Pakistani elite, who will no doubt be back to discussing blackwater safehouses within two days max. But while some vague sense of outrage and disorientation still exists, I am going to throw out some random thoughts and make some predictions...the purpose is to invite all of you to make some predictions of your own. Predictions are what distinguish science from fantasy. Social change is too complex to be modeled like the physical sciences (at least at this point) but still, unless we can make a prediction, our models are worthless...so here goes. 1. I think the neo-wahabi paradigm which lies at the heart of the jihadi operation in Pakistan (the network obviously extends into Afghanistan and other places and crucial sources lie in Saudi Arabia, but the largest physical node is in Pakistan) is not compatible with "normal" existence in the globalized world and its going to be slowly and painfully pushed further and further away from the mainstream. This process of separating it from its "mainstream" supporters like the high command of the Pak army is going to accelerate. Friends who believe the army is irreversibly pro-jihadi are not correct. The army WAS pro-jihadi and is still terribly confused about whether they can save "good jihadis" for future use against India , but they will be pushed to give them up by circumstances. The army and the jihadis will stand against each other one day. GHQ may not know it, but one day it will even fight against old friends like Masood Azhar and Hafiz Saeed. Maybe not in weeks or months, but certainly in years. 2. Recurrent waves of anti-Americanism and "paknationalism" will confuse the process. Old Nationalists will struggle with their 60 years worth of anti-indian training with the need to make an accomodation not just with the Indian state but with our own Indian heritage.Old leftists will struggle to align their anti-imperialist models and their issues with capitalism with the need to cooperate with the imperial war machine.Swarms of ex-foreign secretaries and retired generals will display their utter confusion on TV for many months to come. But the fact is, the jihadi paradigm is retrogressive, indiscriminately violent, and unable to deliver relief from ANY of the multiple real grievances and conflicts that various classes and groups have against others all over the world. All this sound and fury will blow over and most of these people will end up compromising deeply held beliefs to deal with this menace. Being human, they will do so without necessarily admitting it even to themselves, but in whatever messy form, they will do it. 3. Many respected commentators will take a while to overcome their own habits of automatic self-censorship. Lesser known commentators will push the envelope first and better known ones will step forward more aggressively only after they realize that A, B or C can actually be said without the heavens falling. Some friends will be surprised at how dramatically the tone will shift from hunting for Jews and Hindus under every bed to openly identifying the jihadis AND their fellow travellers as a terrorist menace that will have to be dealt with before we can come back to the arguments about imperialism and "the metropolitan XYZ"...in other words, before we can become just another "normal country", stuggling with all the issues raised by the existence of 7 billion unequally placed humans on one planet... Posted by Xavier at January 1, 2010 9:12 PM ET: Marlin, This event is insignificant for Pak mainstream since its against Pashtuns. The media and the elite only care about attacks in Punjab and to some extent Sindh. ----------------------- Omar, Nice analysis, but I guess you are too optimistic. Your prediction will probably happen in an alternate universe. I am too cynical about future. One comment: Any model must have a mathematical formulation(physical sciences) or a set of rigorous verbal statements which are consistent with each other and which will lead to a meaningful prediction. The later is a very weak model as it lacks mathematical formulation. Modeling brains and thinking is an ongoing process (recent research in neurology is breathtaking) but getting a mathematical model is necessary to predict what path a society takes. And there are many unforeseen circumstances that need to be considered. That, if happens, is way into future, probably centuries. The mathematical modeling of thinking of a single person takes probably all the computing power we have and more. But my guess(and nothing more) is that US will leav AFPak by 2011, ISI/Army will be in bed with Taliban and the same violence continues until another attack(probably nuclear) on West/China. Another war in this region is inevitable. Posted by Glenmore at January 1, 2010 10:41 PM ET: Eventually this kind of tactic proved Zarqawi's undoing. Hard to believe the Taliban have a monopoly on ruthlessness and 'Will' in that population. Posted by KW64 at January 2, 2010 2:12 AM ET: While killing tribal leaders that oppose them has worked well for Al Queda and the Taliban, killing masses of ordinary civilians openly and deliberately will work against them. The people will turn to the army to protect them even if they did not much like the army before. I just hope the army is up to the task of protecting them. Posted by T Ruth at January 2, 2010 6:35 AM ET: Omar sahib, I hope your foresight materialises. Even if so, yes i have my doubts, it'll come at a terrible price if the timeline is a relaxed one. This sacrifice by the villagers of Lakki is sadly a small fraction of this potentially monumental price. Why can't the Pakistani leadership break once and for all and make a clean breast of things NOW? In order to save Pakistan why is it so difficult for Kayani, Gilani, Zardari and Nawaz Sharif to stand together at one podium and declare that the Govts collective policies of the past re: The Taliban have failed. That: *Afghanistan must stand as an independent State, not a client. *The relationship with India is renewable. *Pakistan can forge constructive economic relationships with the US, the West, China, Iran and India, (all of whom would love to see a democratic Pakistan flourish), amongst others. From this platform, having released the past, Pakistan can go full-throttle with credibility and strength after the WHOLE of The Taliban, AQ and their affiliates. In my view, the greatest risk in this approach is not political, but military, ie -Can the military embrace this new diminished, but focussed, role or will it divide, or simply be unable to change its essential psychology? (Remember the adage that the only one that wants a change is a wet baby...). -Is the army up to the job of eliminating the Taliban, technically (coin, c/terror and all that) or is it simply not agile enough to take on the cunning, innovative and highly agile enemy. ------------------------------------------ Todays reality is that Pakistan is in an utterly fragmented state, any way you look at it, paralyzed by complex, advanced multiple-crises. Zardari is quoted in today's Dawn as saying, “If we save Pakistan, it will amount to saving the rights of poor people.” http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/16-antibaloch-clique-wants-my-removal-210-hs-05 Now i'm not imagining the President of Pakistan saying in public IF we save Pakistan. This is a REAILTY! And the IMPLOSION theorists might just be right. (Freudians might well argue that the President means IF he saves his you-know-what--i'd say that too, as in also.) The significance of this statement around the cabinet mtg in Balochistan (should've been in Waziriistan!) is not lost on anyone as the US negotiates next steps to up the ante vs AQ/T. Maybe a balkanized Pakistan is best for all in the long-run (after all, Pak and Bangladesh have been better off without each other), I don't know.... With my respects to the people of Lakki. Posted by TLA at January 2, 2010 3:02 PM ET: Omar, That is a very good portrayal of the forthcoming state of Paakistan. Thank you. I hope that you will allow me to quote it on my own Web site's political pages. Posted by Zeissa at January 2, 2010 6:16 PM ET: Wonderful article (!), but it should corroborate more on the general acidic influence of most forms of Islam, not merely neo-Wahabism. Posted by steve m. at January 2, 2010 11:57 PM ET: wow! omar, are you from pakistan? if so, that is the most optimistic opinion i have heard from a pakistani yet! i can only hope so. Posted by omar at January 3, 2010 1:34 PM ET: My original note about the Lakki Marwat bombing led to a heated discussion on our email list. I wanted to synthesize this discussion into a coherent article about the direction Pakistan may take in the coming year. Unfortunately, it does not look like I will have the time to really do that properly right now, so I am going to just make a mishmash of the various comments and my comments on them and wait for more comments in order to put this together and make sense of it…. Omar Let me disagree with you for a change (!), Omar. I fear very much that you hope in vain. This whole strategic depth nonsense is still very much the idiots' game plan. Remember too, that manufacturing enemies out of thin air is what keeps the lucre flowing. We are in very deep trouble, indeed. Happy New Year, all, Kamran P.S. Someone who went to condole the death of the poor Peshawar Corps Commander´s poor son in the horrific Westridge mosque attack told me that Kayani was there too, and that there was no visible change in our Rommels' and Guderians' attitudes. Dear Taqi, Army interests in Pakistani state are the highest. I am told they have started worrying about Indian economic growth verus Pak sagging economy. They know if the gap keeps on widening they will be done. Therefore, they are not fighting jihadis only under US pressure: they have their own reasons. The need to accelerate the process will force them further. In history, it is not what a group desire to do but what history makes them do. ME I think Mr. Ejaz is correct in his statement, "I am told they have started worrying about Indian economic growth verus Pak sagging economy. They know if the gap keep on widening they will be done". However, I think he is wrong to think that this will force the army to accelerate the process of eliminating Jihadism. Quite the contrary, the Pak army will intensify efforts to destabilize India's economic growth. The many Jihadi strikes all across India in the past couple of years culminating in the Mumbai attack were designed to scare off foreign investment. My prediction is that ISI supported terrorists will step up their attacks on Indian economic centers and foreign nationals and investments. The army will not relinquish the anti-Indian and 'strategic afghan depth' Jihadis in our life times unless all these Jihadis (Hafeez Saeed, Masood Azhar, Salahuddin etc) start directly killing the army/influential-elite personnel and their families. There is no indication that the Haqqanis, Saeeds, Azhars and Slahuddins have, as yet, turned against their benefactors and masters. Chat Mohan Taqi, I hope you are wrong about the army being unable to change course. If they dont change course, the disaster in our region will be so huge, all this will look like child's play...I think they will change course. I think you underestimate how much of this is not because they are all conscious agents of some evil wahabi plan but because they are at about the same mental level as Imran Khan when it comes to history and sociology. In the case of most members of the high command, its a combination of stupidity, delusions of being "strategic geniuses" and short term economic interests that propel their disastrous policies.... outside of a few true blooded jihadis like Hamid Gul and General Mahmud, its not ideological shrewdness and determination. ...Once the wind starts to blow in a different direction in civil society (and maybe with some help from viceroy Anne Patterson sahiba and her team of psychotherapists) they will discover their grand strategic plan was actually to destroy the jihadis all along....Oh well, it sounds weird even to me. but the alternative is too horrible, so I continue to hope. Omar Dear Omar, As much as I would like to blame the Jihadist mindset and Army's collusion with it, it is actually the educated middle class that has failed to comprehend the magnitude of Wahhabi menace. You have seen that the knee-jerk response to the Ashura bombing was a proposal to ban the Shiite processions. I contended at the time that it was not merely a sectarian attack and was in fact another front in the Wahhabi war on our (South Asian) way of life . Hate to use the told-ya-so at such a grim juncture but I did identify sports stadiums as previous and potential targets for the Wahhabi jihadists. Pak Army has not and will not change its course. They are not confused at all about their creation unleashing havoc on us. They are the mother of all evil. They are the ones harboring Al-Qaida and Taliban. Wali-ur-Rehman Mahsud's press conference inside the Army fort is just tip of this iceberg. Fazlullah,Muslim Khan and Haqqani are all hosted and protected by the Army. Unless the Pakistani middle class is clear in identifying the Army and its Wahhabi allies , as the source of all evil and lean on it - through media,political/ civil pressure and if needed through international civil and military help - we will continue to see this destruction. Best, Taqi ISI mouthpieces are appealing to “the people” to sweep away this rotten democracy and get ready for WAR against India and NATO. OK, here is my question: Is this a sign of increasing desperation in the ISI-Jihad crowd because they are losing control of the country? I ask because obviously in the good old days, they did not have to ask the people to rise up and sweep away "crooked democracy" because they had already done the sweeping away. Today, Zardari and his unfortunately incompetent team and the Sharifs and MQM and ANP are all living IN Pakistan. They do not have control over the security establishment, but they are not totally powerless either. Is the glass half-full or half-empty? Omar I think every responsible and patriotic Pakistani who really loves the country would or should agree with your sensible conclusion that in the final analysis, when the die is cast, the only viable course is that the Army decisvely takes on the Taliban/Jihadists , America successfully stablises Afghanistan and we make long-needed and long-lasting peace with India. That seems to be the route that makes most sense, the ultimate ,inescapable and rational end-game for Pakistan's survival, progress and future. If the generals in their infinite wisdom think they have a better idea why don't they share with the govt or the people. I can't imagine any other outcome that would be more beneficial for the nation. Having said that ,I'm not sure about this business of the need for the Army 'to switch sides', which assumes that the Army is currently on the Jihadis' side and is aligned with and controls them. I think this is a big assumption. Like I said before that though there's no doubt that the Jihadi mindset is firmly entrenched in a significant segment of the Army and many officers and even some generals might have sympathies with the Jihadis and Talibans, I dont think the GHQ has laid down an across-the-board formal, strategic policy to support the Jihadists/Talibans and to throw its lot with them. Of course this assumption is self-serving for the Army's image since it conveys the impression that our Army is so powerful and efficient that it easily eliminate the Taliban/Jihadists if it really wants to. Recents events have clearly shown that the Army is helpless and incapable of preventing the daily onslaughts of the massacre of Pkaistan people by the Taliban/Jihadists. However, I'm not absolutely certain about this assertion since I too don't have access to any real time inside information. I can only surmise and speculate based on events and state of affairs. But I agree that the fact that so far the Army has failed to kill or capture any one of the Taliban or Jihadi leaders leads to suspicion that the Army might be in cohoots with the Taliban/Jihadis. Or maybe the reality is that the Army simply lack the ability , capability and the willingness to defeat them decisively for whatever reasons. May be our people have an urealistic and exaggerated sense of Army's capabilities and accomplishments. Why can't the Army go after the country's enemy from within and finish them off to the last terrorist Sri-Lankan style? The answer to that is : Perhaps it can't. Really! Tausif I think it is the petro dollars. Along with the gulf sponsored affluence for many families in Pakistan the Wahabi culture comes as a package deal. They figure since the Wahabi's have it so good, they must be doing something right, so let us try to imitate them. And then you have sponsored people like Dr. Zakir Naik and Dr. Farhat Hashmi complementing the efforts. While we are at it, my prediction is that Pakistan is going to succumb to the forces of religious right and we are going to have some sort of rightist set up real soon. if you remember, you and I briefly discussed this the last time I was in Islamabad, and we decided that in the best case scenario it may turn out to be a non-Wahabi (but radicalized sufi type) setup. And as you pointed out that the recent hype surrounding Zaid Hamid in Pakistan might be geared toward this objective." Every day I see more women turning to hijab, and more men growing beards, People have almost stopped saying good old Khuda Hafiz, for "Allah hafiz. Alhuda is opening new branches every now and then, recently my favourite bookstore that kept western classics and new releases, tuned into Quran and Hijab shop If you live here in Pakistan you get a sense of Arabization and wahabiization growing all around you. Military can't be held resposible for that .something else has gotten hold of our psyche…. Brother Omar, Assalam alaikum. The question is not what Saudis say or Group X or Y says. We are intelligent and educated people and we should make an effort to read and understand Quran and Sunnah and put into practice and strive to spread the message of true Islam to the best of our ability so we can be successful in the hereafter. The big difference between you and me is that I believe in applying Islam in totality and that Islam is complete in itself and is totally different from all isms. You are a believer in secularism. All secularists are anti islamic. I am expressing my opinion frankly and of course you may disagree with it totally. May Allah guide all of us. Dr Akhtar A member asked: “where do the terrorists get their money”. In Pakistan, this question is usually a rhetorical question that is supposed to imply that India or “the Jews” are funding the terrorists against the holy Pakistani army. My answer: Several sources: Number one is extortion from NATO contractors....every project in Afghanistan and every convoy through Pakistan has to pay off the local taliban to function. Second is donations from jihadi sympathizers, especially lucrative are the donations from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf. Some friends say Daood Ibrahim's network is fully functional as well and is a source of money for the jihadis. ISI can support them directly also, but probably does not need to....Finally, its possible that India or other interested parties may fund especially insane cells in the hope that they will mess up Pakistan and cause a civil war within the jihadi community...but I doubt if India can do too much in this area. First of all, they are not totally mad and know by now that supporting such people even if they attack Pakistan is not a good bet because eventually they will also attack India. You may say that RAW is probably no smarter than ISI and if ISI can be so blind to long term risks, why not RAW? Who knows? But given how many jihad supporters there are in Pakistan and the gulf, I dont think RAW has to waste their money.... Finally, late at night, I wrote a more pessimistic assessment. A lot of friends are saying that GHQ and Jihad are inseparable. I dont have any inside information, but I keep hoping that the Generals some idea of their own interests even if they dont give a damn about Pathans who die while watching volleyball matches or shopping in Mina Bazaar. Do the Generals imagine that their flats in London and ranches in Montana will remain safe and sound and they and their families will fly out before the shit hits the fan? Or, do they really believe (in the face of 30 years evidence to the contrary) that the ISI is so smart, it will get endless American dollars, Saudi Riyals and Chinese Yuans and manage to square the circle and retain the jihadis and strategic depth? that Afghanistan will again be our playground where we will test out the new wahabi paradise? and India will surrender Kashmir to us and everyone else will cheer our men of crisis who will win in war, win in peace, win economically and win politically, making fools of everyone else in the process? OR, do they really believe that they will be among the lucky 12000 who ride with Jesus when he lands in Khorasan while everybody else goes to hell? That last statement has a story behind it. I was arguing on the internet with a friend who is a Pak army Jihadi sympathizer and he said "we will soon have MIRVed missiles and a thousand warheads (or something like that) and then we will really go for it". I said this is madness, any nuclear war will kill tens of millions, what are you talking about? he replied (I kid you not) that an authentic hadith states that only 12000 (or whatever) true muslims will ride with Jesus when he lands in Khorasan. We pray that we will be one of those 12000. Everyone else is going to either die or be on the losing side anyway! (btw, if anyone thinks this is a peculiarly Muslim delusion, they should read about various American evangelicals who are hoping world war breaks out soon so that Jesus can land in Jerusalem. Jesus, who seems to have been a peace loving man (or god) seems to trigger really warlike thoughts in some people)... I look forward to informed comments.. To me, the only simulation that leads to any reasonable outcome is that the Pak army switches sides and takes on the jihadis, America stabilizes Afghanistan and India and Pakistan stick with peace rather than proxy wars and endless zero-sum destructive games. Everything else leads to disaster and I dont think our BFFs in China will take us with them to the South Chinese capitalist paradise of the future while the rest of South Asia is awestruck with admiration for the geniuses in GHQ... Omar Posted by Spooky at January 3, 2010 6:26 PM ET: First of all, these people were hit BECAUSE they stood up. So it isn't like they were random targets and that they haven't ye been pushed over the edge: they reached that edge a long time ago, and are fighting for their own lives. As for why the politicians can't do anything, they're too busy lining their own pockets. Plus the Taliban still have an allure due to their promises of land distribution. The ideals of the movement may be retrogressive, but the practical side of Taliban rule is, in a sad reflection on the Pakistani government, better than is being offered to the people, who continue to live under feudalism. Posted by T Ruth at January 3, 2010 9:16 PM ET: Omar, Before your army can rise up and take on anything, you and your people are going to have to rise up and take on your army--on the streets. I don't mean street battles. I mean people power.....revolution. Pakistan, RISE UP OR BREAK UP! YOUR ARMY HAS BEEN, STILL IS, PART OF THE PROBLEM. The only way they can be part of the solution is if you DICTATE to them. Else continue to be mis-lead. The Soviet army and the KGB could not save the mighty Soviet Union. The Pak army is a mighty weak force, physically (pls don't take my word for it--take a clean sheet of paper and write down their achievements--see it for yourself). But they are under your skin, in your psyche... The Americans cannot dictate to the Pak army, as they have discovered. Only you can. Else, the plug will be pulled on Balochistan.... somehow....then the reast of the dominos will fall. Sir, whether the glass is half full or half empty is the wrong question and playing with words. The real question is IS THE GLASS CRACKED? Pakistan has already fallen. CAN ALL OF KIYANI'S HORSES AND ALL OF HIS MEN PUT PAKISTAN TOGETHER AGAIN? IF, and only IF you force them to break with the past. Try it....what have you to lose? Posted by T Ruth at January 4, 2010 10:51 AM ET: Omar, I re-read your your rather long post. The content is as good as it is long. Further, it more than makes up for the lack of clear, rational and, most of all, REALISTIC, Pakistani contributions here in the past. Thank you and your friends for sharing candidly. Look forward to further dialogue... Khuda Hafiz Posted by Maverick at January 5, 2010 7:56 AM ET: Dear Omar, I agree with your analysis that the Pakistan Army leadership is caught in a bind - they want to use the Jihadis for their purposes but do not want the Jihadis to become a problem for them. This is why there has been very little progress in containing extremism in Pakistan. I also find the claims made by various Pakistanis - that the Army via the ISI is fomenting a lot of this conflict to keep its hold on society - somewhat credible. When a high security zone is repeatedly breached, it becomes hard to reach any other conclusion. Not long after Sept 11, Stephen Cohen predicted that a Jihadi takeover of Pakistan was impossible because if the Jihadis killed the Pakistan Army leadership - then the Army as a whole would launch an extermination campaign against them. Stephen Cohen theorized that the Jihadis were aware of this tendency of the Army and so they would stay clear of attacking the brass. There was some talk of an analogy between the Pakistan Army and the Wehrmacht and the ISI/Army of Islam and the SS that was also touted for a while. The idea here was that the SS did all sorts of things, but ultimately the Wehrmacht called the shots. The analogy never really went anywhere. Mind you all this was before the helicopter carrying the 7 Division top brass was shot down and before Gen. Baig was murdered in broad daylight in Rawalpindi. The murders of Gen. Alvi and the attacks in Westridge clearly suggest that the Jihadis are no longer feeling particularly restrained. Nowadays in places like Delhi there is open talk of an Jihadi underworld which appears to have Pakistan in a death grip. Do you feel Steve was right in saying that the PA will turn enmasse against the Jihadis if the leadership is attacked and killed? Most Indians I know find this idea unsustainable. From all the reports I have seen from various Pakistani publications, the lower ranks have lost interest in fighting the Jihadis or at least they all acknowledge that the Army is fighting on shaky ground. I don't think Pakistan works the way Steve Cohen wants it to so this is not the way it will play out. What do you think - I feel your perspective is much more nuanced than my own. What in your opinion is a turning point for the Army - when will they realize that these opportunistic alliances with the Jihadis do more harm than good? Maverick Post a Comment COMMENTS POLICY (Please Read) The comments section is intended to provide a forum to discuss and debate current posts. The Long War Journal makes no warranty to the accuracy of readers’ comments, nor do we condone or affirm the opinions of reader-based comments. Discuss the issue at hand and do not go off topic. The comments section is not a place for a political discussion. Please be courteous to your fellow commenters. Personal attacks on the editors, authors, or readers of The Long War Journal sites will not be permitted. Please refer to current and former elected officials and public leaders respectfully. 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YesNo Comments: (You may use HTML tags for style) From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Fri Jan 8 15:04:57 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (nmf2010) Date: Fri, 08 Jan 2010 10:34:57 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?Day_008_-_NewMediaFest=272010?= Message-ID: <20100108103458.119B3875.D4D4F24E@192.168.0.2> NewMediaFest'2010 ---------------------------------------------------- Day 008 program - 8 January 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=171 ---------------------------------------------------- 1. 2010 - 10th anniversary of JavaMuseum - Forum for Internet Technology in Contemporary Art launch of Feature of the month January 2010 First of Java - Perspectives on New Media (2001) 1st global competition- JavaArtist of the Year Award featuring--> Yael Kanarek, Jody Zellen, Doron Golan, Jacki Danielchuk, Ian David Aronson, Marilyn Watelet, Giacomo Verde, Toni Mestrovic, Valerie Grancher, Fernando Llanos, Patrick Lichty, Eldar Karhalev, Atle Barcley, Jaka Zelesnikar, George Alamidis, Leander Seige, Roman Minaev, 80/81, Brooke AKnight, Yifat Gat, John Cavendish, Christina McPhee, sfear bebopanaut, Digital Sisters Indeed, Trebor Scholz/Carol Flax, Wolf Kahlen, WOWM.org Marek Gibney, OXIMORIS, Armelle Aulestia Tiia Johannson, Nicole Stenger, Olga Kisseleva, Alexandra Globokar, Robert F. Krawczyk, MEZ [mary-anne breeze], Ashley Holmes/Matthew Hawker 2. JIP - JavaMuseum Interview Project a series of interviews with artists & experts in netart/electronic art today interview with: Karlos Katastrofsky (Vienna/Austria), 3. VAD - Video Art Database VideoChannel January 2010 - French Video Art - features for one day- today: Rupture, 2005, 3:50 by Matthieu Capel (France) 4. VAD - Video Art Database VideoChannel - Found Footage Film Collection - "features for one day" today: Extension of Human Sight, 2008, 3:10 by Andreas A. Zingerle (Austria) 5. VAD - Video Art Database CologneOFF V - features for one day today: Hole in the Floor, 2008, 7:00 by Heidi Kumao (USA) http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=171 ---------------------------------------------------- January 2010 - features VideoChannel Cologne --> French Video Art JavaMuseum --> 1st of Java - 1st global competition (2001) ---------------------------------------------------- NewMediaFest'2010 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne global heritage of digital culture 1 January - 31 December 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org calls for entries --> for NewMediaFest'2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?page_id=78 downloads http://2010.newmediafest.org/?page_id=87 newmediafest2010 [at] koeln.de ---------------------------------------------------- Join NewMediaFest'2010 on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=404197070650 ---------------------------------------------------- From kaksanjay at gmail.com Fri Jan 8 15:21:34 2010 From: kaksanjay at gmail.com (Sanjay Kak) Date: Fri, 8 Jan 2010 15:21:34 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] "Regenerate politics, recreate, nourish and expand the political space" Message-ID: <5c5369881001080151k1210c2a9je6b0f80ceb5a8d5a@mail.gmail.com> The note below is part of a recent initiative, outside of formal political parties, and an attempt to respond to the events in Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa. Best Sanjay Kak ------------------- A note on The  Neo-Liberal Threat to the Survival of Adivasis We are witnessing preparations for an unprecedented  para-military offensive of massive proportions by the Government of India against its own people, the most marginalized and impoverished mass of the Adivasis inhabiting the heartland of the subcontinent, rich in mineral and forest resources. Not that the Adivasis were treated as truly equal citizens in the past six decades of independence. The difference is that the policies pursued in the name of neo-liberal economic reforms in the last eighteen years are now threatening their very survival. Neo- liberal economic reforms have created the crisis of livelihood for the petty producers, particularly the small and marginal peasantry. But this crisis has taken its most acute form as it affects the Adivasis whose land, habitat and livelihood are threatened as never before. The government machinery in collusion with the big corporate capital, foreign as well as indigenous, have systematically acquired, appropriated and grabbed land and forests. While the SEZ Act is an unvarnished and unashamed onslaught under government auspices, the market forces have unleashed more devastating, if less transparent, assault. The laws intended to remedy the situation to some extent such as  PESA and Forest Rights Act remain largely unimplemented. The other belated remedial moves such as the Land Acquisition Act( amendment) Bill and the Relief and Rehabilitation Bill fall far short of providing any real relief. The anger welling up over decades is bursting out .Clearly the Adivasis are experiencing a profound  disenchantment not only with the governments of the day but with the State of India.   The Maoists have seized this alienation and declared an open war against the State and they are garnering the growing support in the hills and forests, the traditional home to the Adivasis. The Maoists have renounced “ politics” that we have envisioned in independent India. Some may argue that the Maoists have raised “politics” to “a higher level”, given the government’s determination to press ahead with the policies that have brought about the crisis and unleash a virtual war on its own people and given also the rapid atrophy of the democratic processes, on the one hand , and , the deadening of the social  conscience, on the other. But no objective assessment of the eventual outcome of the confrontation now unleashed can ignore the utterly unequal nature of the “war” that is being carried on.  If the things continue as they threaten to do, there is only one outcome possible: unprecedented bloodshed, large scale decimation and insurmountable alienation of the  surviving original inhabitants of the Gondwana, the origin, the nursery and the heartland of India as it morphed through the millennia . And then we will be graduating ourselves to the ranks of the developed countries such as USA and Australia with their bloody past of systematic decimation of the masses of the original occupants of those lands. While the Maoists have renounced “politics”, the mainstream political parties have, through design or default, reduced politics on this issue to nullity. The ruling party is ready to unleash a virtual war on its own people: it is the inverted equivalent of the Maoist renunciation of politics. The main opposition, BJP, and its mentor the RSS, are more gung- ho in their warlike stance and have come out with full- throated support to the government.  The mainstream Left appears evasive and ambivalent. Are we witnessing the beginning of “the End” of politics, as we know it and hoped for in independent India? The  challenge of our times is to regenerate politics, to recreate, nourish and expand the political space. In the past when issues arose, movements emerged : The movements were not initiated or propelled by the structured political parties. A leader who sensed the anguish and anger of the masses moved on and the caravan burgeoned behind him. No organization , no resources, no flag: there was no paraphernalia of political party sustaining the movement, although as the momentum of peoples’ movement started building up, parties re-positioned themselves and joined the caravan. This happened at least thrice since independence: Chandrashekhar’s Padyatra, JP’s massive mobilization with the slogan  of “Dictatorship vs Democracy” and V.P.Singh’s crusade against corruption in high places. The point is not whether the issues that emerged or the trajectory that the movements took changed politics fundamentally or decisively. The point is also not whether, and , to what extent, the movements  “succeeded”. What is germane here is the dynamics of the political process involved. It can be argued that the appearance of a leader with sensitivity, appeal and credibility was the crucial factor :That crucial link is now missing, although an issue has emerged, an issue which is fundamental in nature and far-reaching in its consequences. What should we be doing? What can we do? History has many instances when, in the wake of disappearance or absence of a crucial leader, the second- , third- rung leadership and the mass of foot-soldiers took the flag and pressed on. The outcome was not always “success” in the conventional sense. But no one can read, much less determine in advance, the product of history: All one can do and hope for is to read the challenge of the time correctly and throw oneself heart and soul on the side of the “revolutionary” collocation of forces and against the “reactionary” ones. That seems to be the only way to recreate and expand the political space. It is important that such a movement is “radical” and “inclusive” at the same time. It must be radical in that it must not be misled by the government double- talk, must not look for palliatives and must clearly insist on nothing short of the declaration of “a standstill” by government on the very policies that have engendered the crisis. In other words, no more land acquisition, no more market appropriation of land, habitat or forests, no more mining licenses/mous/operations, no more SEZs. And, no more annihilation of human rights. Once the movement gathers momentum around this pre-requisite, the space for worthwhile political intervention may emerge. The agenda for such intervention will naturally be around the “rollback” of those policies. There is no place for resort to violent means in a democratic polity. What we are facing, however, is not a narrow issue in the instrumental sense. It is the question of survival of vast masses of citizens that have already been pushed to the impoverished margins for generations. The masses who have patiently borne the continued neglect, harassment and violence of the authorities and their corporate cohorts. The masses for whom the only image of democratic polity is the systematic despoliation of their habitats and destruction of their livelihood, on the one hand, and the unending and colossal corruption and unspeakable venality of the ruling elite who have co-opted  their own so-called elected representatives and ministers. The reactive violence on the part of Adivasis needs to be seen in terms of the existential political and social context, not in terms of a reductionist  theory of the state’s monopoly of use of force. Equally, the stereotype response of calling for rapid “development” of the tribal areas must not be allowed to dilute or divert the focus on the main issue, the main crisis. Development , as it is understood and practised by the ruling classes  is only the development of infrastructure to facilitate and expedite the looting of forest and mineral wealth,  and the inevitable ruination of the life and livelihood of the inhabitants. First condition of any meaningful development at present is ensuring the survival  and elimination of future threats to survival. To be “inclusive” the movement must be an open platform for all those individuals, organizations and  political parties who accept the foregoing analysis and approach. Particular care must be taken not to allow the platform of the movement to degenerate into a partisan forum for bashing the Left .Nor should it permit infiltration by the Janus –faced and fork-tongued self- appointed sympathizers of “vanvasis”. How do we go about it? Here are some suggestions: (i) A meeting should be convened of the core group in Delhi( preferably while the parliament  winter session is on) followed by a press conference in which the  rationale, the objective  and  the programme of the political initiative be announced. (ii)The programme should consist of holding meetings in all metropolitan cities and other major state capitals where the core group, at least some of them, should be present. The sequence of meetings should be so planned as to create a sustained impetus for a movement. The trigger provided by the meetings should generate state level chain of meetings. In the course of time, depending on the response, a nationwide network and movement should emerge. (iii)The expenses of fare should be borne by core group members themselves. The stay at the meeting places should be organized by the members themselves or, if necessary, with the help of  the local friends and well –wishers. (iv)A hall or suitable place for the meeting also could be arranged by local friends and supporters by raising ad-hoc resources. Initially, the core group members could create a pool of financial resources by personal contributions. (v)The local press should be mobilized in advance for all the meetings planned. From peter.ksmtf at gmail.com Fri Jan 8 16:31:48 2010 From: peter.ksmtf at gmail.com (T Peter) Date: Fri, 8 Jan 2010 03:01:48 -0800 Subject: [Reader-list] Remembering the Leader Message-ID: <3457ce861001080301w5cb8adffmb56a4e9bdd7eb956@mail.gmail.com> Remembering the Leader A meeting was organized by Kerala Swathantra Matsyathozhilali Federation (KSMTF) at Mannam Memorial Hall, Trivandrum on 4.1.2010 to condole the sad demise of Shri Harekrishna Debnath, the greatest and beloved fishermen leader of India. Many fishermen leaders and fish workers were attended the meeting to express the grief on the death of Shri. Harekrishna. Shri. V.Vivekanandan, Advisor, SIFFS had delivered the Harekrishna remembrance speech. He described Harekrishna as the ever-time greatest fishermen leader who have worked for the sector. He said that the legendary leader was a striking force in the fight against the present deep sea fishing policy of Government of India. His leadership in the anti CMZ struggle has forced the Government of India to withdraw the draft CMZ notification, he added. The modified CRZ notification expected to come out shortly and would benefit the coastal people in a larger way, he hoped. With the withdrawal of CMZ notification due to the anti CMZ Campaign led by Harekrishna, Government of India was forced to acknowledge the rights of fishermen and Central Government has now come forward to publish a draft bill on “the traditional coastal and marine fisher folk (protection of rights)”. Shri. Vivek recalled his close association with Harekrishna which has helped a lot to work with fisher folk in new areas in the North Western region. Born in Bangladesh, Harekrishna was a student leader of Awami League of Mujeeb Rehman of Bangladesh. Harekrishna was sent to India by Mujeeb Rehman as his emissary to Smt. Indira Gandhi. Thereafter he stayed in India to work among the common fishermen of India. He worked as the General Secretary of National Fisher workers Forum and he became the NFF Chairperson later. He was the first Secretary General of WFFP. His professionalism and straightforwardness only enhanced Harekrishna, the phenomena. His contributions to the fisheries sector will always be remembered for ever, Shri. Vivek concluded. Shri. T. Peter, Secretary, NFF pointed out that by honouring Shri.Harekrishna and his legendary memory may not merely fulfill our responsibility, but his inspiration to the younger generation to aspire to reach the standards set by him. The coastal people of India have lost a strong voice fighting for the coastal environment. T.Peter recalled, the leadership of Harekrishna for the anti CMZ campaign in all the coastal states which led to the Victory of the fisher folk of the country. Harekrishna’s effort to bring all traditional and small scale fishermen group within a single umbrella will always be remembered. Harekrishna was most importantly a humanist and his simplicity has attracted all those whom he had associated in his successful public life. The fisher folk of the nation are always indebted to Herekrishna for his vision and perspective to the fisheries sector. Shri. Maju Varghese remembered his close association with Harekrishna and stressed the irreparable loss due to the sad demise of Harekrishna. Shri. S. Ravindran Nair, Retd. Joint Director of Fisheries, Kerala, Shri.M. Ambrose, Shri.Ajayakumar ,Shri. Wilfred Varghese, Shri.Anto Elias(KSMTF), Sr. Mercy Micheal and many others spoke on the occasion. Let his soul rest in peace and his spirits may continue to guide us always. http://www.keralafishworkers.org From babuubab at gmail.com Sat Jan 9 00:27:57 2010 From: babuubab at gmail.com (SUNDARA BABU) Date: Sat, 9 Jan 2010 00:27:57 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] 'Indian democracy is flawed' Message-ID: <66ec95311001081057l1908f9ebiaa2efe2434d3a480@mail.gmail.com> FRIDAY, JANUARY 08, 2010 'Indian democracy is flawed' COLUMN: PASSING BY Says Dr. George Mathew, founder-director of the Institute of Social Sciences, New Delhi By Shevlin Sebastian In December, 1996, Murugesan, a Dalit, contested for the post of president of Melavalavu panchayat, near Madurai, and won. The members of the dominant community, the Kallars, were aghast and angry. “They told Murugesan he would be taught a lesson,” says Dr. George Mathew, the founder-director of the Delhi-based Institute of Social Sciences. On June 30, 1997, Murugesan and a few Dalits were traveling on a bus from Madurai. About 2 kms from Melavalavu, the bus was forcibly stopped. More than 20 people attacked Murugesan and his companions. All were killed instantly. “In many parts of India, people refuse to accept the empowerment of Dalits, women and marginalised people,” says Mathew. “They say, ‘My father, a high caste, sat on this chair. I will not allow anybody else to sit on it.’ Because of this feudalistic attitude, many suffer from harassment at the grassroots level. Scores of people have also been killed.” Most state governments also want to kill off the panchayati raj system. According to the 73rd Amendment of the Indian Constitution, 29 subjects like agriculture, irrigation, fishing, housing, roads and water, have to be transferred to the panchayats, but so far only lip service has been done. “The fault lies with the politicians, the bureaucracy, the upper castes, landlords and middlemen, like contractors,” says Mathew. “How can a few thousand powerful people manage this crowd of 30 lakh elected representatives? They prefer to deal with a single MLA or the bureaucracy. So, they will not allow the panchayats to flourish.” But Mathew is all praise for Kerala, which has allowed decentralisation to take place. “There is a culture of local government here, thanks to forward-thinking leaders like EMS Namboodiripad, and social reformers like Ayyankali and Sree Narayana Guru,” he says. “Many government departments have to work through the panchayats.” Mathew is also happy with the infrastructure. “There are proper buildings and the offices are equipped with computers and all the modern facilities,” he says. In other states, the panchayat offices are usually located in the homes of landlords. People from lower castes are not allowed to enter. There is no office equipment. Despite this, Mathew and the institute have been propagating the need to develop local government. “If power is not decentralised, it will lead to alienation,” says Mathew. “When that happens, people will resort to violence.” Mathew says that this is already happening. More than 200 districts in India are under the control of the Naxalites. “Where are we heading?” he says. “The people in the cities are going one way, while the rest of the country is going somewhere else. We must ensure that the other India also becomes developed.” Mathew was in Kerala recently to deliver the Dr. N. Parameswaran Nair Memorial Lecture at the Sree Narayana Guru Institute of Science and Technology at North Paravur. He spoke on ‘Power to the people: where are we?’ and sounded pessimistic. “There are 150 MPs who have criminal antecedents,” he says. “Out of that, more than 100 are crorepatis. Initially, these people did not have a fortune. After two terms as MLA or MP, they become crorepatis. Can we call it a democracy? The world might respect us because of our system, but, fundamentally, our democracy is flawed.” (The New Indian Express, Kerala) http://shevlinsebastian.blogspot.com/2010/01/indian-democracy-is-flawed.html -- SUNDARA BABU N From kmvenuannur at gmail.com Mon Jan 11 09:35:36 2010 From: kmvenuannur at gmail.com (Venugopalan K M) Date: Mon, 11 Jan 2010 09:35:36 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Fwd: The ' Left' that takes Pride in Bullying In-Reply-To: <1f9180971001102004l2a5cbdcdlf17f0c5a05f25a86@mail.gmail.com> References: <1f9180971001102004l2a5cbdcdlf17f0c5a05f25a86@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <1f9180971001102005k741c6b43kab2e5aa5169f3877@mail.gmail.com> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Date: Mon, Jan 11, 2010 at 9:25 AM Subject: The 'Left' that takes Pride in Bullying To: kmvenuannur at gmail.com *Payyanur:* A small town in the northern Kannur district of Kerala is in focus again, for its characteristic ways of bullying in the name of defending 'Left'. On 10-01-2010 evening ,a literary seminar and book release were organized by Decemder Books .The event had participation of many important literary figures of Kerala and was attended by an enlightened audience together with activists of the Purogamana Kala Sahitya Sangham(Forum for Progessive Art and Lierature). Pu.Ka .Sa is an all Kerala Organization considered to be under the control of the state unit of the CPI(M). Sacaria, the well known social critic and writer, while releasing a book by Madhu Nair referred to certain deplorable features of the society; where a man and a woman when found in circumstances of having extra marital sex or even suspected of such thing, would be hounded by the moral brigade, for example. Obviously , Sacaria was alluding to an 'anaasasyam' case recently clamped on Rajmohan Unnithan at Manjeri, Malalappuram district in which a local mob led by DYFI and PDP activists surrounded a house and got the police to arrest Rajmohan (a Congress leader) under sections related to a criminal legislation which is actually meant to prevent trafficking on women. In that incident, Rajmohan Unnithan was found in the company of a woman who was not his wife but who had been known as Seva Dal leader and a friend of Unnithan. According to today's news paper reports, as Sacaria spoke about the culture of bullying and growing intolerance , a small gang from the audience heckled Sacaria and threw filthy abuses at him. Later, while he was about to leave the town, this group of DYFI men accosted him and keys of the car were forcibly snatched from the driver. According to the reports,the gang of about half a dozen men included son of a former Member of Parliament from Kasargode constituency of which Payyanur assembly constituency ia a partt. The gang shouted at Sacaria that he would not be allowed to get away in good shape, with this kind of speeches made(against the movement and party!) at Payyanur. They threatened to smash his head and teeth. Sacaria reportedly replied that he would then be happy to have a taste of the DYFI culture of Payyanur. Irritated by this, the gang pushed him by the neck and manhandled him. They persisted on shouting, giving threats and continued to pour abuses on Sacaria. The organizers of the event were CPM sympathizers too and they finally succeeded in dissuading the small mob. Sensible intervention by literatuers like C V Balakrishnan also helped to diffuse the tension. Along with this incident, someone within or outside Payyanur may wish to recall many an expression of misguided, authoritarian 'Leftism' in the past. Beneath the thin, superficial layer of 'Left', one might see the unabashed face of casteism and misogyny as displayed in the case of burning an autorikshaw owned and driven by a dalit woman in Dec 2005. In another incident, a benign SMS message which had been already in circulation and thus been sportively forwarded by a young teacher in a parallel college to his female student some time in 2006, led to his expulsion from job allegedly at the behest of SFI /DYFI enthusiasts, and finally to his committing suicide. Sending this kind of 'controversial' SMS to a girl student by a male teacher was judged as giving disrepute to both the educational institution and the girl (who will marry her then?).Jagadeesh, the teacher had been badly roughed up in public and in broad day light by the die-hard 'Leftists'. But again, the poor teacher also had a back history of 'antagonizing' the Party just by keeping aloof from it, in spite of his residing in a Parrish largely under the diktat of the Party. Speakers in a meeting organized by the colleagues of Jagadeesh and a few human rights activists in the small town of Payyanur also had been threatened by a gang of 'Lleftists' in ways similar as in the Sacaria episode. Lot of reported and unreported incidents like this do occur, but the party leadership unfailingly find reason to justify such acts of vandalism. When even bigwigs of the literary world, like Sacaria are not spared of such attacks, comparatively much less luminous human rights fighters of Payyanur can definitely be proud of bearing the brunt of such attacks on many occasions in the past. But pitiable indeed, is the plight of those organizing progressive events under the auspices of organizations like Pu.Ka. Sa (Forum for Progressive Art and Literature), who have to be content being people with subordinate status, as meek witnesses of these acts of vandalism and who are yet unable to speak out, just for fear of ostracizing and harassment by the big people who really manage their shows. Payyanur and its people are always taken for granted by the CPI(M). Each election is a cake walk for the 'Left'. The opposition parties, on the other hand, are neither too ambitious to challenge the 'Leftists' on the electoral arena nor do they feel any such need . This must be because they are content with many things they already share with the 'Left' or rather the ‘Left’ recently shares with them. For example, all those development activities, the feudal moral and cultural fabric woven with a unique mix of caste and gender, and so on. End result : Everybody feels more or less happy here in Payyanur, with the 'Left' taking care of the cultural /moral concerns of all, though a few(outcastes?) will continue to make noises here and there. Again, thank them for not showing any sympathy to the RSS unlike few in other parts of Kannur district, who have indeed crossed the floor thanks to their disillusion with the Left ! www.mynews.in -- You cannot build anything on the foundations of caste. You cannot build up a nation, you cannot build up a morality. Anything that you will build on the foundations of caste will crack and will never be a whole. -AMBEDKAR http://venukm.blogspot.com http://www.shelfari.com/kmvenuannur http://kmvenuannur.livejournal.com -- You cannot build anything on the foundations of caste. You cannot build up a nation, you cannot build up a morality. Anything that you will build on the foundations of caste will crack and will never be a whole. -AMBEDKAR http://venukm.blogspot.com http://www.shelfari.com/kmvenuannur http://kmvenuannur.livejournal.com From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Mon Jan 11 17:12:42 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (nmf2010) Date: Mon, 11 Jan 2010 12:42:42 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?Week_03_-_NewMediaFest=272010?= Message-ID: <20100111124244.E887D4CA.92B7D3F7@192.168.0.2> NewMediaFest’2010 _____________________________________________ Week 03 - 11-17 January http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=229 _____________________________________________ 1. Feature of the Week - launch on 11 January 2010 10 Years JavaMuseum - Forum for Internet Technology in Contemporary Art launches today its netart features of the year 2010, released in form of the daily journal - "Celebrate!" - http://2010.javamuseum.org - starting today with the US artist Russet Lederman (USA) and her net based project -Barely Skin Deep-, 2008 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=220 2. SIP - SoundLAB Interview Project - a series of interviews - this week: --> Osvaldo Cibils (Uruguay), 4th World Orchestra, Mauro Arrighi (IT), Anna Friz (CAN), G.H. Hovamigyan (USA), Juichi Ito (JAPAN), TZ/X - Zoltan Tonka (HU) 3. JIP - JavaMuseum Interview Project - a series of interviews - this week: : --> Salvatore Iaconesi (Italy), Yvonne Martinsson (SWE), Juan Manuel Patino (AR), Myron Turner (CAN), Reiner Strasser (GER), Letizia Jacchieri (NO), Calin Man (RO) 4. VideoChannel January 2010 - French Video Art - daily features this week: Melanie Perrier, Jean-Gabriel Periot, Les Riches Douaniers, Tom de Pekin, Laurent Pernot, Virginie Foloppe, Frank Gatti 5. VideoChannel - Found Footage Film Collection - daily features this week: James Woodward (USA), Michael Brynntrup (GER), Clint Enns (CA), Maria Canas (ES), Doron Golan (IL), Angie Eng (USA), Joao Ricardo (PT) 6. CologneOFF V - features for one day - this week: --> Junho Oh (S.Korea), Jym Davis (USA), Renata Padovan (BR), Carla Della Beffa (IT), Dina Boswank (GER), Yin-Ling Chen (TW) http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=229 _____________________________________________ January 2010 - features of the month - http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=224 1. VideoChannel Cologne --> French Video Art (2010) 2. JavaMuseum --> 1st of Java - 1st global competition (2001) 3. SoundLAB - Soundart from Chile (2006) - curated by Rainer Krause _____________________________________________ NewMediaFest'2010 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne global heritage of digital culture 1 January - 31 December 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org calls for entries --> for NewMediaFest'2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?page_id=78 downloads http://2010.newmediafest.org/?page_id=87 newmediafest2010 [at] koeln.de _____________________________________________ Join NewMediaFest'2010 on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=404197070650 _____________________________________________ From ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de Mon Jan 11 18:52:36 2010 From: ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de (Britta Ohm) Date: Mon, 11 Jan 2010 14:22:36 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] Mails blocked by SARAI Reader-List In-Reply-To: <282204.26447.qm@web57207.mail.re3.yahoo.com> References: <282204.26447.qm@web57207.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <7588FBBD-9A1D-43A2-B9F9-89FDDC1FC2E3@zedat.fu-berlin.de> Interestingly, I again received from the reader-list admin the same rejection; even the follow-up mail now got onto the list only via your response. Monica: what's happening? Am 11.01.2010 um 14:14 schrieb Kshmendra Kaul: > This time darkness envelops. No enlightenment possible from me. > > --- On Mon, 1/11/10, Britta Ohm wrote: > > From: Britta Ohm > Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Mails blocked by SARAI Reader-List > To: "Kshmendra Kaul" > Cc: "Aditya Raj Kaul" , "sarai list" > > Date: Monday, January 11, 2010, 12:56 AM > > Tried it again, but same difference. Would be glad about some > enlightenment! > Britta > > Anfang der weitergeleiteten E-Mail: > > Von: reader-list-bounces at mail.sarai.net > Datum: 10. Januar 2010 19:55:44 MEZ > An: ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de > Betreff: Your message to reader-list awaits moderator approval > > > Your mail to 'reader-list' with the subject > > CFP: EASA panel "Is after the Crisis before the Crisis? New > Perspectives on Art, Media and Politics in Turkey" > > Is being held until the list moderator can review it for approval. > > The reason it is being held: > > Message has a suspicious header > > Either the message will get posted to the list, or you will receive > notification of the moderator's decision. If you would like to cancel > this posting, please visit the following URL: > > http://mail.sarai.net/cgi-bin/mailman/confirm/reader-list/924b8701f15153d42be3d135f974b59c00eb61be > > > > Am 07.01.2010 um 11:24 schrieb Kshmendra Kaul: > >> Dear Aditya & Britta >> >> I do not think that SARAI Reader-List postings are moderated. >> >> What does happen for sure though, and I speak from personal >> experiences, is that in case of a SERVER-GLITCH, postings by >> members get rejected. I for example, in such 'rejected' postings >> get the advisory that I am 'not a member'. It is just a temporary >> glitch. >> >> Such mails need to be re-posted once you glean that you are >> receiving other mails from the Reader-List. >> >> Kshmendra >> >> >> --- On Wed, 1/6/10, Aditya Raj Kaul wrote: >> >> >> From: Aditya Raj Kaul >> Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you >> To: "Britta Ohm" >> Cc: "Kshmendra Kaul" , "sarai list" > > >> Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2010, 7:49 PM >> >> >> Strangely... similar e-mails from me are being not posted on the >> forum. I had recently posted an announcement for a prayer meeting >> for the tragic death of a photo-journalist in New Delhi. Even that >> wasn't allowed. Wonder what is the reason. >> >> Aditya Raj Kaul >> >> >> On Wed, Jan 6, 2010 at 7:44 PM, Britta Ohm >> wrote: >> >> I wonder why a mail with this heading - which seems quite unrelated >> to >> the complexity of the mail contents - appears to have gone straight >> onto the list, whereas a CFP for a planned conference panel on art, >> media and politics in Turkey that I had posted was held back by the >> administrator for proclaimed reasons of a 'suspicious heading' and >> has >> not appeared on the list until today. >> Britta >> >> >> >> >> >> _________________________________________ >> reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. >> Critiques & Collaborations >> To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with >> subscribe in the subject header. >> To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list >> List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> > > --------------------------------------- > Dr. Britta Ohm > > Institute of Social Anthropology > University of Bern > Laenggassstr. 49a > 3012 Bern > Switzerland > +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) > +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) > britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch > > > Solmsstr. 36 > 10961 Berlin > Germany > +49-(0)30-69507155 > ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de > > > > > > > > --------------------------------------- Dr. Britta Ohm Institute of Social Anthropology University of Bern Laenggassstr. 49a 3012 Bern Switzerland +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch Solmsstr. 36 10961 Berlin Germany +49-(0)30-69507155 ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Mon Jan 11 18:44:18 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Mon, 11 Jan 2010 05:14:18 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] Mails blocked by SARAI Reader-List In-Reply-To: <7B180481-4ABA-4B2A-833C-4F4A043B66A8@zedat.fu-berlin.de> Message-ID: <282204.26447.qm@web57207.mail.re3.yahoo.com> This time darkness envelops. No enlightenment possible from me. --- On Mon, 1/11/10, Britta Ohm wrote: From: Britta Ohm Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Mails blocked by SARAI Reader-List To: "Kshmendra Kaul" Cc: "Aditya Raj Kaul" , "sarai list" Date: Monday, January 11, 2010, 12:56 AM Tried it again, but same difference. Would be glad about some enlightenment! Britta Anfang der weitergeleiteten E-Mail: Von: reader-list-bounces at mail.sarai.net Datum: 10. Januar 2010 19:55:44 MEZ An: ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de Betreff: Your message to reader-list awaits moderator approval Your mail to 'reader-list' with the subject    CFP: EASA panel "Is after the Crisis before the Crisis? New Perspectives on Art, Media and Politics in Turkey" Is being held until the list moderator can review it for approval. The reason it is being held:    Message has a suspicious header Either the message will get posted to the list, or you will receive notification of the moderator's decision.  If you would like to cancel this posting, please visit the following URL:    http://mail.sarai.net/cgi-bin/mailman/confirm/reader-list/924b8701f15153d42be3d135f974b59c00eb61be Am 07.01.2010 um 11:24 schrieb Kshmendra Kaul: Dear Aditya & Britta   I do not think that SARAI Reader-List postings are moderated.   What does happen for sure though, and I speak from personal experiences, is that in case of a SERVER-GLITCH, postings by members get rejected. I for example, in such 'rejected' postings get the advisory that I am 'not a member'. It is just a temporary glitch.   Such mails need to be re-posted once you glean that you are receiving other mails from the Reader-List.    Kshmendra --- On Wed, 1/6/10, Aditya Raj Kaul wrote: From: Aditya Raj Kaul Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you To: "Britta Ohm" Cc: "Kshmendra Kaul" , "sarai list" Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2010, 7:49 PM Strangely... similar e-mails from me are being not posted on the forum. I had recently posted an announcement for a prayer meeting for the tragic death of a photo-journalist in New Delhi. Even that wasn't allowed. Wonder what is the reason. Aditya Raj Kaul On Wed, Jan 6, 2010 at 7:44 PM, Britta Ohm wrote: I wonder why a mail with this heading - which seems quite unrelated to the complexity of the mail contents - appears to have gone straight onto the list, whereas a CFP for a planned conference panel on art, media and politics in Turkey that I had posted was held back by the administrator for proclaimed reasons of a 'suspicious heading' and has not appeared on the list until today. Britta _________________________________________ reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. Critiques & Collaborations To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with subscribe in the subject header. To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> --------------------------------------- Dr. Britta Ohm Institute of Social Anthropology University of Bern Laenggassstr. 49a 3012 Bern Switzerland +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch Solmsstr. 36 10961 Berlin Germany +49-(0)30-69507155 ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de From monica at sarai.net Mon Jan 11 19:38:30 2010 From: monica at sarai.net (Monica Narula) Date: Mon, 11 Jan 2010 19:38:30 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Mails blocked by SARAI Reader-List In-Reply-To: <7588FBBD-9A1D-43A2-B9F9-89FDDC1FC2E3@zedat.fu-berlin.de> References: <282204.26447.qm@web57207.mail.re3.yahoo.com> <7588FBBD-9A1D-43A2-B9F9-89FDDC1FC2E3@zedat.fu-berlin.de> Message-ID: Dear Britta I am as exhausted by the tech problems as you are. Tetra crew are working on this - AGAIN. It really is incredible how it seems to be a perpetual problem... Tetra is cced on the mail - they will hopefully sort this out asap best M Monica Narula Raqs Media Collective Sarai-CSDS www.raqsmediacollective.net www.sarai.net On 11-Jan-10, at 6:52 PM, Britta Ohm wrote: > Interestingly, I again received from the reader-list admin the same > rejection; even the follow-up mail now got onto the list only via your > response. Monica: what's happening? > > Am 11.01.2010 um 14:14 schrieb Kshmendra Kaul: > >> This time darkness envelops. No enlightenment possible from me. >> >> --- On Mon, 1/11/10, Britta Ohm wrote: >> >> From: Britta Ohm >> Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Mails blocked by SARAI Reader-List >> To: "Kshmendra Kaul" >> Cc: "Aditya Raj Kaul" , "sarai list" >> >> Date: Monday, January 11, 2010, 12:56 AM >> >> Tried it again, but same difference. Would be glad about some >> enlightenment! >> Britta >> >> Anfang der weitergeleiteten E-Mail: >> >> Von: reader-list-bounces at mail.sarai.net >> Datum: 10. Januar 2010 19:55:44 MEZ >> An: ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de >> Betreff: Your message to reader-list awaits moderator approval >> >> >> Your mail to 'reader-list' with the subject >> >> CFP: EASA panel "Is after the Crisis before the Crisis? New >> Perspectives on Art, Media and Politics in Turkey" >> >> Is being held until the list moderator can review it for approval. >> >> The reason it is being held: >> >> Message has a suspicious header >> >> Either the message will get posted to the list, or you will receive >> notification of the moderator's decision. If you would like to >> cancel >> this posting, please visit the following URL: >> >> http://mail.sarai.net/cgi-bin/mailman/confirm/reader-list/924b8701f15153d42be3d135f974b59c00eb61be >> >> >> >> Am 07.01.2010 um 11:24 schrieb Kshmendra Kaul: >> >>> Dear Aditya & Britta >>> >>> I do not think that SARAI Reader-List postings are moderated. >>> >>> What does happen for sure though, and I speak from personal >>> experiences, is that in case of a SERVER-GLITCH, postings by >>> members get rejected. I for example, in such 'rejected' postings >>> get the advisory that I am 'not a member'. It is just a temporary >>> glitch. >>> >>> Such mails need to be re-posted once you glean that you are >>> receiving other mails from the Reader-List. >>> >>> Kshmendra >>> >>> >>> --- On Wed, 1/6/10, Aditya Raj Kaul wrote: >>> >>> >>> From: Aditya Raj Kaul >>> Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you >>> To: "Britta Ohm" >>> Cc: "Kshmendra Kaul" , "sarai list" >>> >>> Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2010, 7:49 PM >>> >>> >>> Strangely... similar e-mails from me are being not posted on the >>> forum. I had recently posted an announcement for a prayer meeting >>> for the tragic death of a photo-journalist in New Delhi. Even that >>> wasn't allowed. Wonder what is the reason. >>> >>> Aditya Raj Kaul >>> >>> >>> On Wed, Jan 6, 2010 at 7:44 PM, Britta Ohm >>> wrote: >>> >>> I wonder why a mail with this heading - which seems quite unrelated >>> to >>> the complexity of the mail contents - appears to have gone straight >>> onto the list, whereas a CFP for a planned conference panel on art, >>> media and politics in Turkey that I had posted was held back by the >>> administrator for proclaimed reasons of a 'suspicious heading' and >>> has >>> not appeared on the list until today. >>> Britta >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> _________________________________________ >>> reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. >>> Critiques & Collaborations >>> To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with >>> subscribe in the subject header. >>> To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list >>> List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> >> >> --------------------------------------- >> Dr. Britta Ohm >> >> Institute of Social Anthropology >> University of Bern >> Laenggassstr. 49a >> 3012 Bern >> Switzerland >> +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) >> +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) >> britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch >> >> >> Solmsstr. 36 >> 10961 Berlin >> Germany >> +49-(0)30-69507155 >> ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> > > --------------------------------------- > Dr. Britta Ohm > > Institute of Social Anthropology > University of Bern > Laenggassstr. 49a > 3012 Bern > Switzerland > +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) > +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) > britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch > > > Solmsstr. 36 > 10961 Berlin > Germany > +49-(0)30-69507155 > ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de > > > > > > > > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with > subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> From ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de Mon Jan 11 19:46:26 2010 From: ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de (Britta Ohm) Date: Mon, 11 Jan 2010 15:16:26 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] Mails blocked by SARAI Reader-List In-Reply-To: References: <282204.26447.qm@web57207.mail.re3.yahoo.com> <7588FBBD-9A1D-43A2-B9F9-89FDDC1FC2E3@zedat.fu-berlin.de> Message-ID: Thank you, Monica, had already suspected it to be a technical problem. Good luck! B Am 11.01.2010 um 15:08 schrieb Monica Narula: > Dear Britta > > I am as exhausted by the tech problems as you are. Tetra crew are > working on this - AGAIN. It really is incredible how it seems to be a > perpetual problem... > > Tetra is cced on the mail - they will hopefully sort this out asap > > best > M > > Monica Narula > Raqs Media Collective > Sarai-CSDS > www.raqsmediacollective.net > www.sarai.net > > > > On 11-Jan-10, at 6:52 PM, Britta Ohm wrote: > >> Interestingly, I again received from the reader-list admin the same >> rejection; even the follow-up mail now got onto the list only via >> your >> response. Monica: what's happening? >> >> Am 11.01.2010 um 14:14 schrieb Kshmendra Kaul: >> >>> This time darkness envelops. No enlightenment possible from me. >>> >>> --- On Mon, 1/11/10, Britta Ohm wrote: >>> >>> From: Britta Ohm >>> Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Mails blocked by SARAI Reader-List >>> To: "Kshmendra Kaul" >>> Cc: "Aditya Raj Kaul" , "sarai list" >>> >>> Date: Monday, January 11, 2010, 12:56 AM >>> >>> Tried it again, but same difference. Would be glad about some >>> enlightenment! >>> Britta >>> >>> Anfang der weitergeleiteten E-Mail: >>> >>> Von: reader-list-bounces at mail.sarai.net >>> Datum: 10. Januar 2010 19:55:44 MEZ >>> An: ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de >>> Betreff: Your message to reader-list awaits moderator approval >>> >>> >>> Your mail to 'reader-list' with the subject >>> >>> CFP: EASA panel "Is after the Crisis before the Crisis? New >>> Perspectives on Art, Media and Politics in Turkey" >>> >>> Is being held until the list moderator can review it for approval. >>> >>> The reason it is being held: >>> >>> Message has a suspicious header >>> >>> Either the message will get posted to the list, or you will receive >>> notification of the moderator's decision. If you would like to >>> cancel >>> this posting, please visit the following URL: >>> >>> http://mail.sarai.net/cgi-bin/mailman/confirm/reader-list/924b8701f15153d42be3d135f974b59c00eb61be >>> >>> >>> >>> Am 07.01.2010 um 11:24 schrieb Kshmendra Kaul: >>> >>>> Dear Aditya & Britta >>>> >>>> I do not think that SARAI Reader-List postings are moderated. >>>> >>>> What does happen for sure though, and I speak from personal >>>> experiences, is that in case of a SERVER-GLITCH, postings by >>>> members get rejected. I for example, in such 'rejected' postings >>>> get the advisory that I am 'not a member'. It is just a temporary >>>> glitch. >>>> >>>> Such mails need to be re-posted once you glean that you are >>>> receiving other mails from the Reader-List. >>>> >>>> Kshmendra >>>> >>>> >>>> --- On Wed, 1/6/10, Aditya Raj Kaul >>>> wrote: >>>> >>>> >>>> From: Aditya Raj Kaul >>>> Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Embrace Islam or it is Hellfire for you >>>> To: "Britta Ohm" >>>> Cc: "Kshmendra Kaul" , "sarai list" >>>> >>>> Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2010, 7:49 PM >>>> >>>> >>>> Strangely... similar e-mails from me are being not posted on the >>>> forum. I had recently posted an announcement for a prayer meeting >>>> for the tragic death of a photo-journalist in New Delhi. Even that >>>> wasn't allowed. Wonder what is the reason. >>>> >>>> Aditya Raj Kaul >>>> >>>> >>>> On Wed, Jan 6, 2010 at 7:44 PM, Britta Ohm >>>> wrote: >>>> >>>> I wonder why a mail with this heading - which seems quite unrelated >>>> to >>>> the complexity of the mail contents - appears to have gone straight >>>> onto the list, whereas a CFP for a planned conference panel on art, >>>> media and politics in Turkey that I had posted was held back by the >>>> administrator for proclaimed reasons of a 'suspicious heading' and >>>> has >>>> not appeared on the list until today. >>>> Britta >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> _________________________________________ >>>> reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. >>>> Critiques & Collaborations >>>> To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with >>>> subscribe in the subject header. >>>> To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list >>>> List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> >>> >>> --------------------------------------- >>> Dr. Britta Ohm >>> >>> Institute of Social Anthropology >>> University of Bern >>> Laenggassstr. 49a >>> 3012 Bern >>> Switzerland >>> +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) >>> +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) >>> britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch >>> >>> >>> Solmsstr. 36 >>> 10961 Berlin >>> Germany >>> +49-(0)30-69507155 >>> ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >> >> --------------------------------------- >> Dr. Britta Ohm >> >> Institute of Social Anthropology >> University of Bern >> Laenggassstr. 49a >> 3012 Bern >> Switzerland >> +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) >> +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) >> britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch >> >> >> Solmsstr. 36 >> 10961 Berlin >> Germany >> +49-(0)30-69507155 >> ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> _________________________________________ >> reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. >> Critiques & Collaborations >> To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with >> subscribe in the subject header. >> To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list >> List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> > > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with > subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> --------------------------------------- Dr. Britta Ohm Institute of Social Anthropology University of Bern Laenggassstr. 49a 3012 Bern Switzerland +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch Solmsstr. 36 10961 Berlin Germany +49-(0)30-69507155 ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de From labor at buchsenhausen.at Mon Jan 11 19:54:13 2010 From: labor at buchsenhausen.at (=?UTF-8?B?S8O8bnN0bGVyaGF1cyBCw7xjaHNlbmhhdXNlbg==?=) Date: Mon, 11 Jan 2010 15:24:13 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] Call for Applications - International Fellowship Program for Art and Theory 2010-11 at Kunstlerhaus Buchsenhausen Message-ID: <4B4B348D.70002@buchsenhausen.at> *********************************************************************** Our apologies for cross-posting. *********************************************************************** KUNSTLERHAUS BUCHSENHAUSEN INTERNATIONAL FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM FOR ART AND THEORY 2010-11 CALL FOR APPLICATIONS *********************************************************************** Kunstlerhaus Buchsenhausen invites visual and media artists, art critics, theorists, and curators to apply for a fellowship in 2010–2011. Candidates can apply for one or two semesters (October 1, 2010 – February 18, 2011 and/or February 21 -July 8, 2011). [The closing date for submissions is January 29, 2010 (postmark).] ----------------------------------------- [Institution] Kunstlerhaus Buchsenhausen is a post-graduate center for production, research, exchange in the fields of visual arts and art theory. Within the framework of the 'International Fellowship Program for Art and Theory,' the Kunstlerhaus provides a platform that facilitates the development and production of artistic and art-theoretical projects in a critical context. At the same time, Kunstlerhaus Buchsenhausen offers a forum for direct exchange between professionals – artists, theoreticians, critics, and curators – from the region and abroad, as well as a point of interaction with local interested audiences. Kunstlerhaus Buchsenhausen is affiliated with the Tyrolean Artists' Association, the major association of visual artists from the region. Buchsenhausen brings together two programs under one roof. On the one hand, it is the site of the 'International Fellowship Program for Art and Theory.' On the other hand, it is the location of several studios for artists based in Tyrol, who require space for working in a professionally interesting environment. The building - the eastern wing of the Buchsenhausen Castle, built in the middle of the 17th century and situated not far from the center of the city of Innsbruck - houses nine studios and a project space. Three apartment studios are used by the fellows of the fellowship program. Six studios are available to artists based in Tyrol. The project and presentation space is equipped with multimedia facilities and is at the fellows' disposal. ----------------------------------------- [International Fellowship Program] With its Fellowship Program for Art and Theory, Buchsenhausen promotes internationally relevant artistic production, research, and discussion in the region of Tyrol. The program is based on the idea of generating and maintaining a context for production and discussion, in which artists and theorists can connect and reflect on international art and societal discourses in relation to local topics and issues. At the same time, it affords the opportunity for an artistic laboratory of experimentation, where new artistic practices and strategies may be tried out. The program's aims are: * To improve the production of a qualified discourse on art and society in the local and global context; * To improve exchange between cultural producers in the visual arts and beyond (creating a network of experts); * To support and expand the critical, socially relevant artistic and art-theoretical production of knowledge; * To facilitate the transfer of knowledge between the art field and the public outside the art context. The program brings together the advantages of a residency with the possibilities of a postgraduate non-university lectureship, without offering a formalized educational program. In terms of content, the program addresses both the interested public in the region as well as a worldwide public made up of professionals in the fields of contemporary art, architecture, art and media theory and criticism. The fellows are selected by a jury of experts following an open call for applications. They come to Buchsenhausen for one or two semesters to work on realizing their submitted projects or research, and accompany this process with public events. For this purpose, Buchsenhausen offers a monthly stipend, a production budget, working spaces, free lodging, and artistic and technical advice. The conveyance and discussion of the fellow’s own work occurs parallel to the development of the individual projects. The public events take place in series. The focus of these series of events is determined by the respective emphases of the various fellows' works. Within the framework of this discursive format, the fellows (or their guests) can present various points in their research, open up their works-in-progress to critical discussion, interact with experts who they invite, work through content with the public, and/or try out new ways of working. For former and current fellows and their projects please visit http://buchsenhausen.at. ----------------------------------------- [Fellowship] * a grant of EUR 700/month to cover living expenses; * an individual studio for working and living, furnished with a large shared kitchen; * a production budget for the realization of the proposed project; * the possibility of inviting experts to Buchsenhausen in order to have a professional exchange; * the opportunity of a group exhibition at the end of the fellowship at the Kunstpavillon in Innsbruck. ----------------------------------------- [Facilities] * free access to the 'Labor', the project/gallery space * free use of the available multimedia production equipment in the 'Labor' * free DSL/WLAN Internet access * professional artistic advice * technical advice if required ----------------------------------------- [Eligibility] Professional visual/media artists, art theorists, art critics, and curators from all over the world are eligible for the fellowship. ----------------------------------------- [Requirements] The candidates must submit a project proposal. Work on the submitted project forms the core of each fellow's activities during his/her stay in Buchsenhausen. A description of a series of public events intended to accompany the individual work during the duration of the fellowship (four to six events) is also an integral part of the project proposal. If the application is successful, the fellows are required to specify the details of the presentation series and carry out the proposed program. The fellows must be present in Buchsenhausen for a minimum of two thirds of the allocated fellowship time. Working knowledge of English is required. ----------------------------------------- [Selection] The selection of fellows is made by a jury of experts and based on the quality, originality, and relevance of the project proposal and the work samples submitted by the applicants. The jury includes the director of Kunstlerhaus Buchsenhausen, a member of the board of the 'Tyrolean Artists' Association' and one external expert. The selection procedure occurs in two stages. In the first stage, the submitted applications are evaluated and the jury makes a shortlist of candidates who will be invited to Buchsenhausen for personal interviews. The personal interview with the jury forms the second stage. For the interview, the applicants have to come to Innsbruck to personally present their working plans and aims during the fellowship. Buchsenhausen will pay for accommodation in Innsbruck for one night, but cannot cover the costs for travel to Innsbruck. Alternatively, a video conference (for instance via Skype) is also possible. There is no legal right to be awarded a fellowship at Kunstlerhaus Buchsenhausen. The jury is therefore under no obligation to justify decisions. The jury's decision will be communicated in written form in March 2010 (first stage) and April 2010 (second stage). ----------------------------------------- [Application procedure] Written applications must include the following documents: * the project proposal (max 2,000 words, 3 copies) * a visual portfolio/documentation of recent works (artists: max 2 catalogs, max 10 photos, 1 DVD or 1 CD-ROM; theorists/art critics: max 3 recent writing samples) * a curriculum vitae (3 copies) * the printed confirmation e-mail of the filled electronic application form The electronic application form can be found at http://buchsenhausen.at under the menu item 'Fellowship Program/Application form.' The address to which the applications must be posted is: Kunstlerhaus Buchsenhausen Ref.: 'Fellowship 2010-11' Weiherburggasse 13/12 6020 Innsbruck Austria CLOSING DATE FOR SUBMISSIONS (postmark): JANUARY 29, 2010 For additional information, please contact: office at buchsenhausen.at, phone +43 512 278627, fax -11. From iram at sarai.net Sat Jan 9 14:23:11 2010 From: iram at sarai.net (Iram Ghufran) Date: Sat, 09 Jan 2010 14:53:11 +0600 Subject: [Reader-list] Fwd: GAMES OF EMPIRE: Global Capitalism and Video Games In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <4B4843F7.9050706@sarai.net> > > Dear ListServ Administrator: > > Please post this to Sarai Reader List. Also, please let me know if > you'd like to review the book for your listserv. Thanks! > > Best wishes, > Heather Skinner, Publicist > University of Minnesota Press > 111 3rd Ave S, Ste. 290 > Minneapolis, MN 55401-2520 > skinn077 at umn.edu > v * 612-627-1932 > f * 612-627-1980 > http://www.upress.umn.edu > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > *Analyzes video games and their links with capitalism, militarism, and > social control* > > GAMES OF EMPIRE: Global Capitalism and Video Games > By Nick Dyer-Witheford and Greig de Peuter > University of Minnesota Press | 336 pages | 2009 > ISBN 978-0-8166-6610-2 | hardcover | $60.00 > ISBN 978-0-8166-6611-9| paperback | $19.95 > Electronic Mediations, volume 29 > > /Games of Empire/ offers a radical political critique of such video > games and virtual environments as/ Second Life/,/ World of Warcraft/, > and/ Grand Theft Auto/. Rejecting both moral panic and glib > enthusiasm, Games of Empire demonstrates how virtual games crystallize > the cultural, political, and economic forces of global capital, while > also providing a means of resisting them. > > "/Games of Empire/ is not only an extraordinarily wide-ranging, rich, > empirically grounded, and theoretically-savvy contribution to the > field of game studies, but also an instance of that playful genius of > immaterial labor that the book crucially investigates. The book is a > must-read for all students and scholars of gaming cultures, and an > eye-opener to the crucial importance of gaming to the broader level of > societal power for everybody else." -Tiziana Terranova, author of/ > Network Culture: Politics for the Information Age/ > > For more information, including the table of contents, visit the > book's webpage: > http://www.upress.umn.edu/Books/D/dyer-witheford_games.html > > For more information on the Electronic Mediations Series: > http://www.upress.umn.edu/byseries/electronic.html > > Sign up to receive news on the latest releases from University of > Minnesota Press: > http://www.upress.umn.edu/mediaalert.html > - > Heather Skinner, Publicist > University of Minnesota Press > 111 3rd Ave S, Ste. 290 > Minneapolis, MN 55401-2520 > skinn077 at umn.edu > v * 612-627-1932 > f * 612-627-1980 > http://www.upress.umn.edu From javedmasoo at gmail.com Sat Jan 9 15:07:29 2010 From: javedmasoo at gmail.com (Javed) Date: Sat, 9 Jan 2010 15:07:29 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Spare the Madrassas Message-ID: Spare the Madrassas These schools are not terrorist hubs, as the RSS alleges. The threat comes from the RSS-run Ekal schools, says Ram Puniyani Right since 9/11/2001 – the day the World Trade Center was brought crashing down – there has been a sustained campaign to paint madrassas as training dens for terrorists. Indeed it gradually got to be so that, at one point, even West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya started to parrot this line. And it’s one that continues to be mouthed ad infinitum by all sorts of people who actually have no knowledge of why these schools are around, or what they do. This uncritical, wholesale condemnation of madrassas has repeatedly come in handy for the communalists in their propaganda war against Muslims. Just last October, at a meeting of Ekal school teachers, Mohan Bhagawat, the RSS Sarsanghchalak, repeated the charge that madrassas are breeding grounds of terrorists. (The Ekals are single-teacher schools set up by RSS affiliates, mainly in Adivasi areas.) “Contrasting” the functioning of madrassas and Ekal schools, Bhagawat claimed that the latter were devoted to the cause of nation building by “inculcating moral values in children”. This is far from the truth. Or put it this way: If the statement about madrassas is based on half truths, the one about Ekal schools has nothing to do with truth at all. It is well known that in the late seventies the US used the CIA to set up certain madrassas in Pakistan to indoctrinate Muslim youth and prepare them to counter the Russians in Afghanistan. The syllabi of these US-funded madrassas, created in Washington, were exclusively aimed to encourage the youngsters to take on the Russians in the oil-gas-rich region. In all these textbooks some core words of the holy Koran were so distorted, that believers were inevitably led to hate non-Muslims – the Russian communists in particular. Not many know that in the Koran ‘jihad’ means striving to overcome the evil within and without oneself. Likewise, the word ‘kafir’, which is used for non-believers attacking Muslims, was changed to mean all those not believing in Allah. In the Cold War era it was from their ranks that the Taliban was formed, and the Al Qaeda – led by Osama bin Laden – organised. Then, once the Russian occupiers had been pushed out, this same Al Qaeda turned their guns on the US, its allies and anyone who associated with it. Pakistan of course remains a major target, because the fanatics can simply not digest the notion of democracy taking root there one day. But to put all madrassas in the same terror bracket is to commit a gigantic folly. The traditional role of the madrassas has been – and remains – to train students in the Koran and fiqh (jurisprudence) – with variations and departures marking each sect. India is home to many kinds of madrassas. Mostly these are where impoverished Muslim children, who cannot afford modern education, are schooled. Nearly 4 percent of Muslim children study in these places. They are mainly taught the Koran and groomed to become poorly paid Maulanas – but then it’s better than nothing at all. Meanwhile there has been no case yet of a terrorist being trained in any of these places. Various social organisations have been working to modernise the madrassas so that their products are able to enter the mainstream. In the neglected refugee camps of Gujarat, in defiance of the Maulanas, many Muslims in rehabilitation colonies have been trying to send their children to modern schools; mostly unsuccessfully because of abject State neglect. What we therefore need to do is to introduce modern teaching practices in these laidback institutions; not to rubbish them uncritically. Equally important, the falsehoods that vested political interests have been spreading about madrassas must be vigorously countered. There has been altogether too much hearsay and too little fact-finding. It would thus be a good idea if the madrassas’ syllabi clearly state that they are neglected places of learning in need of urgent attention, and in no way linked with terrorism. The criticism should rightfully be directed against the Ekal schools and other RSS-run educational institutions. All the scholars and activists who have studied their curricula – and several objective studies are available – will tell you that the syllabi of these institutions are designed to distort history with a view to justifying their majoritarian agenda. In this scheme of things Muslims and Christians are projected as foreigners and the caste system glorified – the idea being to show the minorities in a poor light. It is the same old divide-and-rule policy that the British employed in pre-Independence India. Demonising the Muslim rulers (historical injustice they call it) is another key obsession of these far right curricula. Harping endlessly on this theme, they seek to project the battles waged by Hindu kings against the Muslim rulers as between two religions. The power angle is easily overlooked. For instance Maharana Pratap is shown to be fighting for Hindu honour – whereas the truth is that the Maharana Pratap-Akbar battle was on the issue of designation. Then again, Akbar never came to Haldi Ghati, where the battle took place. It was his commander-in-chief Raja Mansingh who was fighting against Maharana Pratap – whose own pointsman was General Hakim Khan Sur. The Ekal schools, which have their biggest presence in tribal areas, are principally aimed at indoctrinating children against the minorities. Christian missionaries working in Adivasi areas are their prime targets, because it is their work in the fields of education and health that is empowering the Adivasis. And this worries the affluent RSS elite no end. Nothing exposes their game as well as the fact that Christian missionaries have been active in these regions for almost a century, while the violence is only two decades old. So what is the correlation? Mainly this: Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur who is linked with the Malegaon blast; Bajrang Dal workers who got killed in Nanded while making bombs; and all those others who were involved in the bomb blasts in Thane-Panvel, Goa and elsewhere, all drew their inspiration from RSS shakhas (branches) and the schools run by it. And what is the right thing to do? First, the madrassas must be modernised. Two, their curricula, as also those of the Ekal schools, must be closely scrutinised to establish who is lying and who speaking the truth. In a word, let us be judged by the values of the Constitution when evaluating the curricula of these schools and all other educational institutions in the country. WRITER’S EMAIL ram.puniyani at gmail.com Posted on Jan 04, 2010 http://www.tehelka.com/story_main43.asp?filename=Ws090110RamPuniyani.asp From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Sat Jan 9 16:28:14 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (nmf2010) Date: Sat, 09 Jan 2010 11:58:14 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?Day_009_-_NewMediaFest=272010?= Message-ID: <20100109115814.A4A63ACF.44126610@192.168.0.2> NewMediaFest'2010 ---------------------------------------------------- Day 009 program - 9 January 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=193 ---------------------------------------------------- 1. SoundLAB Cologne - sonic arts // Feature of the month January 2010 --> Today, SoundLAB Cologne is entering NewMediaFest’2010 Sound Art from Chile ( SoundLab IV 2006) - curated by Rainer Krause (Santiago de Chile) featuring soundworks by--> Luis Barrie, Claudio Fernandez Sini, Foro de Escritores (FDE) Ensamble Majamama, Radio Ruido, Mario Soro, Andrés Torres, Pintor Z 2. JIP - JavaMuseum Interview Project a series of interviews with artists & experts in netart/electronic art --> today interview with: Raivo Kelomees (Estonia) 3. VideoChannel January 2010 - French Video Art - features for one day- --> today: Devil Inside, 2004, 2:50 by Jean-Gabriel Périot + Tom de Pékin (France) 4. VideoChannel - Found Footage Film Collection - "features for one day" --> today: LIFTN, 2008, 1:20 by Constantin Hartenstein (Germany) 5. CologneOFF V - features for one day --> today: Imagenes et loci, 2008, 10:30 by Susanne Wiegner (Germany) http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=193 ---------------------------------------------------- January 2010 - features of the month VideoChannel Cologne --> French Video Art JavaMuseum --> 1st of Java - Perspectives on New Media (2001) ---------------------------------------------------- NewMediaFest'2010 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne global heritage of digital culture 1 January - 31 December 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org calls for entries --> for NewMediaFest'2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?page_id=78 downloads http://2010.newmediafest.org/?page_id=87 newmediafest2010 [at] koeln.de ---------------------------------------------------- Join NewMediaFest'2010 on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=404197070650 ---------------------------------------------------- From kalakamra at gmail.com Sat Jan 9 18:25:00 2010 From: kalakamra at gmail.com (shaina a) Date: Sat, 9 Jan 2010 18:25:00 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Seeking a content coordinator for Pad.ma In-Reply-To: <33eee40c0912270407r32ff13b2qd461e01717fb77be@mail.gmail.com> References: <33eee40c0912270354y3deae1f4ydc475dcffd7fbc93@mail.gmail.com> <33eee40c0912270407r32ff13b2qd461e01717fb77be@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <33eee40c1001090455p3ea13b96vcc92834ff44a477b@mail.gmail.com> Dear Colleagues, Apologies for cross-posting. Please forward to friends and associates* *who may be interested*. Pad.ma (the public access digital media archive) is seeking a content coordinator, based in Mumbai or Bangalore. * Pad.ma is a web-based video archive, launched as a public website ( http://pad.ma) in February 2009, working primarily with footage and not finished films. Pad.ma offers some exciting new ways in which moving images, dialogue, timelines and annotations can relate to each other. At the same time it offers a practical technical and legal framework through which video footage can be shared, cited and reused. Pad.ma is an archive looking to the future, proposing that film and video-based "production" can be thought of as an expanded field of activity. For example, as a filmmaker publishing video that is not a film, a researcher probing documentary images, a film editor organising footage using the archive, a writer commenting on one or many video pieces, a film student working online, or an institution offering material for public use. Pad.ma as an interpretative archive opens up all these possibilities, encouraging recirculation and debate around material that is often easily forgotten. Currently the archive has some 400 contributions of densely-annotated video material. Starting in 2010, Pad.ma enters a new phase, with new software features, and a focus on new content, writing fellowships and collaborations. * The content coordinator's role* would be to take immediate charge of all activity related to content contributions and relations with contributing archives, collections or individuals. This would include: > researching and dialoging with independent filmmakers in the region. > seeking and managing collaborations with existing archives that have a video component. > inviting researchers and others who are interesting in writing, theory, or education using moving images. > travelling (mostly domestic), to facilitate above meetings. > helping to plan and execute pad.ma offline and online events, and writing fellowships. > assisting with fundraising, proposal-writing and long-term planning of content focus areas. > overall, facilitating the growth of the archive and building relationships with related initiatives. *We are looking for a person who:* > Is passionate about moving images, and life around them. > Has 5 years or more of experience working with film/documentary as a filmmaker, scholar, activist or archivist. > Is comfortable working with both computers and people. > Is a good manager of their own time and resources. > Is interested in the conceptual and organisational aspects of the Pad.ma project. The job location is Mumbai, or Bangalore, in that order of preference. Remuneration will be on par with similar responsibilities within the non-profit sector. The position is available as full-time only, although flexible hours can be discussed. The work is with an exciting group of people and institutions, and within the dynamics of an ongoing interdisciplinary, international collaboration. The day-to-day interactions of the coordinator will be with CAMP, Mumbai (http://camputer.org) and the Alternative Law Forum, Bangalore (www.altlawforum.org). *Please send us:* 1. A detailed CV. 2. A paragraph about your motivations to work with, and responses to, the Pad.ma project. *Or recommend *someone you think might be interesting. *By: January 15, 2010.* Please write to us with any queries you may have. Reply to this mail or email pad.ma at pad.ma The shortlisted candidates will be invited for interviews in Mumbai in January. See for more: http://pad.ma/about and a report on pad.ma's 2009 meet: http://camputer.org/event.php?this=padma09&tab=optBtn2 The Pad.ma project was initiated in 2008 by a group consisting of Oil21.org Berlin, the Alternative Law Forum Bangalore, and Majlis, Point of View, and Chitrakarkhana/ CAMP from Bombay. Pad.ma is supported by HIVOS. ______________________ -- camputer.org pad.ma chitrakarkhana.net From khurramparvez at yahoo.com Sun Jan 10 03:04:33 2010 From: khurramparvez at yahoo.com (Khurram Parvez) Date: Sat, 9 Jan 2010 13:34:33 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] 1st female battalion of Indian Army goes pregnant in held Kashmir Message-ID: <358576.59246.qm@web31815.mail.mud.yahoo.com> http://dailymailnews.com/0110/09/FrontPage/FrontPage1.htm   DAILY MAIL   1st female battalion of Indian Army goes pregnant in held Kashmir — Development raises panic amongst Indian Army, Government —Army Chief seeks help from Home Minister Chidambaram after soared ties with Defence Minister —Home Affairs Ministry purchases bulk of contraceptive manufacturing machines —Condom making machines being installed at battalion headquarters across border areas —Both male, female soldiers developing serious diseases due to unsafe sex practices —Special team of IAMC gynecologists rushes to Military hospitals in Kashmir region to handle situation From Christina Palmer & Ajay Mehta in New Delhi and Nandita Bhat in Udhampur New Delhi- The first battalion of Indian army that actually comprises sex workers, recruited from relight areas across India with the help of RAW and posted as Border Guards in the occupied Kashmir by Indian army in September 2009, with aims to provide “fun” to soldiers in the area who were constantly committing suicide, is now reported to be suffering from some serious medical problems due to unsafe sexual activities while at least 63 out of the total 178 female “soldiers”, posted under Northern Command in September last, are reported t have been tested positive in the pregnancy tests, carried out at military hospitals while many male soldiers have also been diagnosed with serious sex related diseases, reveal the investigations of The Daily Mail. The Daily Mail’s investigations reveal that the problem started occurring when in the month of December a large number of female “soldiers” started reporting SIQ (Sick-In-Quarter) at different formations with complaints of minute illness like vomiting and headaches. However, as the number of complaints in this direction started rising dramatically, the patients were referred to Military Hospital at Badamibagh cantonment in Srinagar. At Srinagar’s Military Hospital, after different tests, it was found that the female soldiers sent there from different formations were mostly suffering from no disease but were found to pregnant while a few others were treated for different unsafe-sex related minor diseases. Captain Dr. Jyoti (name changes on source’s request) of the IAMC (Indian Army Medical Corps), posted at the Military Hospital told The Daily Mail that at least 63 female soldiers, sent to the base hospital from different field units were tested positive in the pregnancy tests. “It was something unusual that these women were found 8 to 10 weeks with pregnancy while they were not sent on leave since their posting some 12 to 14 weeks back. Similarly some other 38 were found having some minor diseases but these were sex related diseases that occur normally due to unsafe sexual activities and thus we reported the matter to the commandant of the hospital who forwarded the same to the high command”, asserted Dr. Jyoti. The Daily Mail’s findings indicate that the situation rang alarm bells in the Eastern Command’s headquarters where an emergency meeting was held which, apart from others, was attended by Major General Harinder Singh, Commandant of the IAMC of Northern Command. Since the matter was of very serious nature, it was decided in the meeting that was held under the command of the Commander of the 14th corps to bring the matter to the notice of the Army Headquarters at New Delhi. The News arrived at Army Headquarters at New Delhi as a bomb because the headquarter was already suffering from a high profile controversy of land scams and the rift between Army Chief and Commander Eastern Command over the issue was at the peak and Defence Minister was in no mood to give any support to Army Chief Deepak Kapoor. The Daily Mail’s findings indicate that since the project of posting sex workers in the disguise of female soldiers in Kashmir was initiated by the orders of General Deepak Kapoor without seeking any formal approval from the Defence Minister, the news cam as a big shock as General Kapoor was already at odds with the Defence Minister A.K Antony over the issue of corruption in sale of army lands. Our sources reveal that upon this, Army Chief held a classified meeting with his confidants and aides and also invited Director General of Armed Forces Medical Services Lt. General N.K Parmar. In the meeting, it was decided to dash a team of gynecologists from Delhi to Northern Command to tackle the situation on emergency, yet confidential basis. Upon this, a team of 9 gynecologists from IAMC was sent to Northern Command. The team performed the abortions upon some 56 “soldiers while rest of the 7 were shifted to Udhampur-based military hospital as their ‘cases’ were reported to be bit complicated and required some serious surgeries. The said team of Army Gynecologists, headed by Lt. Colonel. Bharti Sharma, not only treated the patients but also gave them tips to follow the safe sex practices. In the meanwhile, several male soldiers from the same region were also reported SIQ with sex related diseases. The Daily Mail’s findings indicate that as the situation started worsening, the Army Chief General Kapoor contacted Lt. General. Raj Kumar Karwal, who was the head of the committee which recommended the posting of undercover sex workers in Kashmir to meet the natural requirements of the sex starving male soldiers. Sources reveal that General Karwal told General Kapoor that while following his committee’s recommendations, the recommendations, regarding the provision of safe sex devices like the condoms and educating the soldiers about safe sex practices were not followed at all as the committee had recommended that prior to the posting of sex workers amongst the ranks of soldiers, the soldiers must be provided with precautionary measures and should be given tips regarding the safe sex practices. Sources revealed that upon this, General Kapoor, who had hopes of a support from Defence Minister Antony in this matter, decided to approach the Home Affairs Minister P Chidambaram. Upon contacting, Chidambaram promised general Kapoor of his all out support. The Daily Mail’s findings indicate that hiding behind the notion of helping the Paramilitary forces, Chidambaram ordered the Home Affairs Ministry to procure condom making machines to be given to military and paramilitary authorities for installing at remote areas of deployment, particularly along the borders. According to a report, released by Indian’s State news agency Press Trust of India (PTI), Indian Government is procuring more than 1,000 units of condom vending machines to promote safe sex practices among its military and para-military deployed in far flung areas. The machines, the PTI reports further, for the men of forces like CRPF, CISF, SSB, ITBP, BSF and NSG will be installed at the battalion and sector headquarters of the forces, especially along the borders. "A total of 1,080 machines are being procured by the Home Ministry. The idea is to promote safe sex practices amongst the soldier who are deployed at far off places for long durations," PTI reports, quoting a senior para-military officer. The PTI further reports that the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) has been appointed as nodal agency by the Home Ministry for procurement of these machines as well as all health related purchase and activities. “The condoms, to be provided through these machines, have been procured from different companies and would be provided to the soldiers free of cost but on rationing basis every month,” concludes the PTI report. The Daily Mail’s finding further indicate that the soldier of Indian army, posted in Indian Occupied Kashmir and other border areas of India often indulge into unsafe sexual activities including rapes and prostitution. While the complaints of rapes and gang rapes by Indian soldiers are fairly common in Kashmir valley, the border natives other regions are also constant victims of brutal forced rapes of women by the frustrating Indian soldiers. The female villagers along the either side of Indo-Myanmar border, Indo-Bangladesh border and Indo- Nepal border are often sexually assaulted by Indian soldiers while visiting the prostitution dens and opting for paid, yet unsafe sex is a common practice throughout the Indian Army and at many garrisons, Indian Army High Command has taken stringent measures to curb prostitution and have even displayed sign suggesting a ban on prostitution in the area. However the number of such incident had reached alarming limits and the Indian soldiers got into a severe trauma of sexual and mental frustration due to continuous bans on different recreational facilities by the top authorities and thus they started indulging into suicide practices and killing the colleagues as well. The Daily Mail’s findings indicate that adding to the miseries of soldiers in Kashmir, the Indian Army announced imposing a ban on use of mobile phones by soldiers, posted in the Occupied valley. These findings indicate that senior medical officers of the Indian armed forces believe that just engaging the sex workers under the grab of female soldiers was not enough to rid the soldiers of frustration and mental stress but the use of mobile phone by troops was also a permanent source of stress and strain for the soldiers, deployed in the occupied valley. “The problem is not the stress in the encounter, the problem is the cell phone and that should be banned,’’ said Lt-General Dipankar Ganguly, speaking on the occasion of the 246th anniversary of the Army Medical Corps The top General said that cell phones allowed the soldiers to maintain regular contact with their families and get updated on their problems, which led to higher levels of stress among them. Armed Forces Medical Services Director General Lt-Gen N K Parmar, in his observation, said that the armed forces had taken a number of steps to tackle stress-related issues among the troops. But, as reported earlier, armed forces continue to grapple with stress-related deaths in the shape of suicide and `fragging’ (to kill a fellow soldiers) cases. In 2008, for instance, there were 151 suicide and four `fragging’ cases in the three Services. While prolonged deployment in operations in Indian occupied part of J&K and North-East are exacting a heavy toll on the physical endurance and mental health of soldiers, they also undergo tremendous stress for not being able to take care of the problems facing their families back home. The problems could range from property disputes and harassment by anti-social elements to financial and marital problems. Soldiers, of course, also have to grapple with paltry salaries, lack of basic amenities, ineffectual leadership, humiliation at the hands of their officers, and the constant fear of being accused of human rights violations. The Daily Mail’s findings further reveal that not just the soldier but a number of Indian Army Officers are working in the institution against their wills but as a bonded labour. These findings indicate that since the Officers sign a bond while joining the army under which they have to pay a huge amount of money to army in case of quitting the job, they do not dare to do so due to poor financial conditions but work with a dead heart after being posted to duties at stations like Kashmir. These findings indicate that even young female commissioned officers are no exception in this direction. These findings indicate that a female officer of the Indian Army committed suicide by shooting herself in Udhampur, headquarter of the army's Northern Command, a couple of years back as she was "dissatisfied and unhappy with her job". According to police and army officials in Udhampur, about 65 km north of Jammu, the 25-year-old officer Lt. Sushmita Chakravorty of 5071 ASC Battalion went to a guest house near her official quarters on Thursday evening and asked the sentry there for his rifle "as she wanted to get her photo with that". The unsuspecting sentry handed his weapon and in moments Lt. Chakravorty shot herself with it. She was shifted to the army hospital where she was declared brought dead. This was the first incident of its kind in Occupied Jammu and Kashmir of a female army officer committing suicide. The officer's mother Sadhana Chakravorty told media persons in Udhampur that Lt. Chakravorty had "unwillingly joined the army about 10 months ago". Lt. Chakravorty had returned from two months leave. "I came with her as she was feeling very low," her mother said. Sadhana told reporters that her daughter had become very short tempered soon after joining army and being posted in Kashmir "disillusioned with her present job". She wanted to quit the army but could not do so as "she had to pay the bond money to the army". "We had told her that the money could be arranged by selling off the house in Bhopal," Sadhana said. But Lt. Chakravorty did not agree to it "because she was concerned about her younger brother too who had just passed Class 12." The Daily Mail’s finding that the female members of the Indian Army have always been serving under very miserable conditions as they are often sexually harassed and abused by seniors at workplaces “in the line of duty.” These findings indicate that in most of the cases the female officers of the Indian army remain silent over the sexual assaults and sexual abuses by seniors because even if they report so, instead getting justice, they are always victimized even loose jobs. The Daily Mail’s findings further indicate that just in July 2009, an army court martial ordered “dismissal” of a woman officer Captain Poonam Kaur, who a year back had accused her seniors of sexually harassing her, but her allegations were found false. Kaur , in 2008 alleged that three officers of her unit, the Army Supply Corps (ASC) in Kalka, Haryana had physically and sexually harassed her and confined her illegally when she resisted their advances. A court of inquiry (COI) had then been ordered to investigate the allegations of physical and mental harassment leveled by Capt Kaur against her superior officers. She had accused three of her seniors, including her commanding officer, the unit’s second-in-command and adjutant, a Colonel, Lt Col and a Major rank officer respectively, of harassing her over the past few months. However, in an immediate reaction then, the army had denied the charges. “The court martial proceedings, which were initiated, against Capt Kaur, in its order at Patiala, have ordered her dismissal from service, which will be subject to confirmation by the Western Command chief, a process which may take two months,” was the official announcement to conclude. From naeem.mohaiemen at gmail.com Sun Jan 10 09:28:43 2010 From: naeem.mohaiemen at gmail.com (Naeem Mohaiemen) Date: Sun, 10 Jan 2010 09:58:43 +0600 Subject: [Reader-list] Bangladesh: CONTRADICTION OVER SECULARISM Message-ID: DITHERING AND CONTRADICTION OVER SECULARISM Editorial, New Age, 6 January 2009 LAW minister Shafique Ahmed, it seems, wants it both ways – to have the cake of secularism and to eat it as well. If inconsistency and contradiction are misleading for the people, they are more so when they come from the ministerial level. The minister did not use the term secularism but he said religion-based political parties should cease to exist if the 5th amendment to the constitution were finally invalidated by the Supreme Court. He also said Islam would remain the state religion and Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim would be on top of the constitution’s preamble. He said this at a media briefing as reported in New Age on Tuesday. The minister, or any individual, may say anything but to make sense of contradictory statements is another matter, and here the minister is outlining state policy. If Islam is retained as state religion then religion-based politics will be automatic, as well as rightful. There is no dearth of people in this country who will argue that since Islam is the state religion no other party except Islam-based party shall have any place in the country’s politics. This they will affirm even if secularism returns; they may even say with that singular mastery of disputation and prevarication witnessed before, that secularism may be alright but as far as politics is concerned it has to be religion-based. If the 5th amendment is invalidated and the 1972 constitution is revived then the four state principles will be consecrated again. The four state principles include secularism and socialism. Observing the politics of the last two decades it is difficult to believe the ruling Awami League is still firmly wedded to socialism. The party has discarded the socialist ideology long ago and has wittingly or unwittingly come under the umbrella of big money and the donor agencies. The contradictory policy statement set us wondering as to which direction the ruling party is taking. If the ruling party is serious about restoring secularism and socialism then it should not gamble on court verdict for it, instead it should strengthen the party on an ideological basis. Establishment of secularism and socialism are a matter of arduous political struggle; no court will offer these on a platter. Its present absolute majority presents an opportunity for Awami League. It can initiate the political and legislative steps to democratise our system and restore the principles and values of the liberation war. From kmvenuannur at gmail.com Sun Jan 10 16:18:53 2010 From: kmvenuannur at gmail.com (Venugopalan K M) Date: Sun, 10 Jan 2010 16:18:53 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Fwd: Renowned Social Critic and Malayalam Writer Sacaria Heckled & Manhandled as He Spoke Against Moral Policing and Later Manhandled by DYFI Activists at Payyanur(Kannur) In-Reply-To: <1f9180971001100224m4399784bs545174b5299c3d2f@mail.gmail.com> References: <1f9180971001100224m4399784bs545174b5299c3d2f@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <1f9180971001100248q7240556ne5a97aedc69a1ae7@mail.gmail.com> Payyanur is in focus again, for its  characteristic  mofussil politics preoccupied with die-hard defending of  the 'Left'. A literary seminar and book release was organized by Decemder Books yesterday which had been participated by many important writers and attended by an enlightened audience together with activists of the Purogamana Kala Sahitya Sangham(Forum for  Progessive Art and Lierature). Pu.Ka .Sa is an  all Kerala Organization patronized by the CPI(M). Sacaria, the well known  social critic and writer while releasing a book by Madhu Nair referred to the deplorable state of the society  in which a man and a woman  found in circumstances of having extra marital sex or even suspected of doing such thing, would be hounded by  the moral brigade. He might  be referring to the 'anaasasyam'  case recently clamped on  Rajmohan Unnithan at Manjeri, Malalappuram district in which a local mob led by  DYFI and PDP activists surrounded a house and got the police to arrest Rajmohan (a Congress leader) under sections of an Act that prevent trafficking on women. According to today's news paper  reports, a group from the audience heckled Sacaria  and threw filthy abuses at him. Later, while he was about to leave the town, a small group of DYFI men accosted him and keys of the car were forcibly snatched from the driver. The group of about half a dozen men comprising the son of a former MP reportedly told Sacaria that he would not be allowed to get away in good shape, with this kind of speeches made(against the movement and party!) at Payyanur. They threatened to smash his head and teeth. Sacaria reportedly replied  that he would then be happy to have a taste of the  DYFI culture of Payyanur. Irritated by this,the group persisted on giving threats and continued to pour abuses on Sacaria. The organizers of the event who too were CPM sympathizers finally succeeded in dissuading the small mob . Sensible intervention by writers like C V Balakrishnan also helped to diffuse the tension. Along with this incident, someone within or outside Payyanur likes to recall many an expression of authoritarian 'Leftism' in the past. Beneath the superficial layer of 'Left' one might sometimes see unabashedly  expressed casteism and misogyny as betrayed in the case of  burning an autorikshaw owned and driven by a dalit woman in Dec 2005. A benign SMS message which was already already  in circulation that had been sportively forwarded by a young teacher in a parallel college to his female student some time in 2006 had led to his being expelled from job at the behest of SFI /DYFI enthusiasts and finally to his committing suicide. Sending this kind of 'controversial' SMS to a girl student by a male teacher was judged as giving disrepute to both  the institution and the girl (who will marry her then?).Jagadeesh, the teacher had been badly roughed up in public and in broad day light  by the die-hard 'Leftists'. But again, the poor teacher  also  had a back history of 'antagonizing' the Party just by keeping aloof from it, in spite of his residing in a  Parrish largely under the diktat of the Party. Speakers in a meeting organized by the colleagues of Jagadeesh and a few human rights activists in the small town of Payyanur also had been threatened by a gang of 'Lleftists' in ways similar to the Sacaria episode. Lot of reported and unreported incidents like this do occur, but the party leadership unfailingly find reasons to justify such acts of vandalism. (Please check today's Deshabhimani, preferably Kannur edition to see how the party answers; sorry, I haven't seen it yet) When even bigwigs of the literary world, like Sacaria are not spared of such attacks, the small scale human rights fighters of Payyanur can definitely be proud of bearing the brunt of such  attacks on many occasions in the past. But pitiable indeed, is the plight of those organizing progressive events under the auspices of organizations like Pu.Ka. Sa (Forum for Progressive Art and Literature), who have to be contented with a second class status  meekly witnessing these acts of vandalism and yet not being able to speak out for the fear of ostracizing and harassment by the big people who really  manage their shows. Payyanur and its people are always taken for granted by the CPI(M) . Each election is a cake walk for 'Left'. The opposition parties on the other hand, are neither too ambitious to challenge the 'Leftists' on the electoral arena nor do they feel any such need . Because they are content with many things they already share with the 'Left'- for example, the development activities, the feudal moral and cultural fabric woven with a unique mix of caste and gender, and so on. End result : Everybody may fell  happy there in Payyanur, with the 'Left' taking care of the cultural /moral concerns of all, though a few (outcastes?) will continue to make noises here and there. Again, thank them for not showing any sympathy to the RSS unlike at least the few who might be disillusioned with the Left  in the Party villages elsewhere in Kannur district! -- You cannot build anything on the foundations of caste. You cannot build up a nation, you cannot build up a morality. Anything that you will build on the foundations of caste will crack and will never be a whole. -AMBEDKAR http://venukm.blogspot.com http://www.shelfari.com/kmvenuannur http://kmvenuannur.livejournal.com -- You cannot build anything on the foundations of caste. You cannot build up a nation, you cannot build up a morality. Anything that you will build on the foundations of caste will crack and will never be a whole. -AMBEDKAR http://venukm.blogspot.com http://www.shelfari.com/kmvenuannur http://kmvenuannur.livejournal.com -- You cannot build anything on the foundations of caste. You cannot build up a nation, you cannot build up a morality. Anything that you will build on the foundations of caste will crack and will never be a whole. -AMBEDKAR http://venukm.blogspot.com http://www.shelfari.com/kmvenuannur http://kmvenuannur.livejournal.com From javedmasoo at gmail.com Sun Jan 10 17:15:12 2010 From: javedmasoo at gmail.com (Javed) Date: Sun, 10 Jan 2010 17:15:12 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] =?windows-1252?q?Dr=2E_Zakir_Naik_=96_Anatomy_of_a_?= =?windows-1252?q?pig?= Message-ID: Dr. Zakir Naik – Anatomy of a pig By Sanjay Khanna Self proclaimed Islamic scholar and student of comparative religions Dr. Zakir Naik is a familiar name to Muslims and non Muslims alike, albeit for different reasons. While Muslims marvel at his “knowledge” and “wisdom”, others make good use of him for laughter therapy. Below are some of the grandiose statements made by this so called “scholar” and my unbiased attempt to dissect them. I do not know much about the Koran except for what I have read on this site and for this reason I chose to stick with the socio economic ideas of this man in an attempt to read his mind. Dr. Naik – If two sisters were walking on the street, one in hijab and the other wearing a mini skirt, men would invariably eve tease the one wearing the skirt. So hijab protects the Muslim women from men and rape. Reply – Don’t all countries have laws that protect women? It’s a different matter that laws in Islamic countries are heavily biased against women to the extent that they require more than one witness ( four in some countries) to prove a case against a man. In the civilized world of non Muslims, you cannot touch a woman even if she is in a bikini on the beach. This statement of Dr. Naik exposes the hypocrisy, double standards and status of women in Islamic countries. If you go by the way women are treated in Islamic societies, women there should be wearing the hijab to protect themselves from fellow Muslims! Dr. Naik – The west talks of women’s liberation when in fact it exploits them. You find pictures of scantily dressed girls in ads to sell everything including cars. Reply – True, but that in itself is a testimony to gender equality in the west. Nobody forces a girl to model and nobody has the right to object either. It is entirely up to the individual. Dr. Naik – the western media exaggerates news of a 60 year old Arab marrying a 16 year old girl but plays it down when a 60 year old man in America rapes a 10 year old girl. Reply – What exactly are you trying to compare here Dr. Naik? Rape is a crime and rape of a minor is a crime that is unpardonable and unacceptable in any civilized society. It is punishable under the law. But marriages like the one mentioned by our “scholar” is nothing but legally sanctioned rape of a minor. And this type of rape has the blessings of the Sharia in all Islamic countries. Let us also not forget that victims of this kind of rape are girls from poor families that are sexually exploited by rich Muslims in the garb of marriage and “helping” the family. I suppose Dr. Naik would call this Zakaat! Dr. Naik – People in the west eat pork and hence behave like pigs. Pigs are the only animals in the world that invite their friends to have sex with their partners. Westerners also do the same. Reply –Dr. Naik should know that barring a few species that mate for life all animals are promiscuous for the simple reason that their sole purpose is to procreate and not propagate Islam. And to think that this man claims the Koran to be scientific! Dr. Naik – “I have given lectures in many parts of the world. Many big people come to hear me. Wherever I go, presidents, prime ministers want to meet me. They all tell me you are so knowledgeable and told us so many things that we didn’t know before. We wish you would come more often” Reply – When he said – presidents and prime ministers – did he mean the president of Iraq? Prime minister of Malaysia? Sultan of Brunei? Are there non-Muslim nations also on that list? Whatever that is, this only proves that Dr. Naik is an attention seeker and the above statement is anything but scholarly. I have a feeling that this man has had a troubled childhood. He used to stammer and it is very possible that his peers in school and college poked fun at him. Girls would have avoided him altogether. Deprived of a regular social life, he may have become a bookworm which explains his ability to memorize verses from the Koran and other religious texts. It is a well known fact that people who are scorned by society find a way of hitting back with a vengeance and Dr. Naik has found a convenient tool in Islam. Add to it his failed medical practice and the reasons for his hatred towards society are not too hard to find. Dr. Naik – Muslims should not work in banks as giving/ accepting interest is haraam in Islam. Reply – How would you define interest? Isn’t a Muslim shopkeeper also earning interest on his investment? Is it haraam if banks do the same? Do gulf nations sell oil on a no profit basis? Don’t they earn interest on their investment? This is just one of the many absurdities in the Koran. Muhammad made taking of interest haraam to get rid of his debtors and Muslims blindly follow the same. Dr. Naik – Muslims should not work in alcohol bars and airlines because they serve liquor. Reply – With the high rate of illiteracy among Muslims, thanks to their madarassas, do they really have a choice when it comes to jobs? As far as airlines are concerned, I agree. Muslims cannot work in airlines, they are only allowed to hijack and bomb aircrafts! Dr. Naik – Muslim girls can become gynecologists so that they will deal only with women but they should not take up other specialties as that will bring them into contact with men. Reply – This is shocking coming from someone who claims to be a medical doctor himself. Does he think lady doctors have sex with patients in their consultation chambers? How much absurdity can these stupid, dumb Muslims really digest before they actually hit the loo? Dr. Naik – Muslim girls can work provided they don’t mix with boys. There has to be a separate area for them. They can talk to men only if it’s official and necessary. Reply – I can understand a highly qualified and proven individual making such demands from his employer but coming from illiterate Muslims, isn’t this worth a laugh? It’s like a driver in Florida asking his boss for an apartment on south beach with a car and an annual vacation in Switzerland as perks!!! Dr. Naik – The education system in India should be changed. Many girls lose their virginity by the time they leave school. Reply – This statement takes the cake. It’s a well known fact that school girls in Muslim countries are not safe and governments keep changing school uniforms to cover little girls to the extent that they don’t look like kids anymore but more like emperor penguins in the Antarctic. And all this to protect the little children from Muslim pedophiles who love kids as much as their holy prophet did. As far as the education system is concerned, Indian schools follow the British system and is rated as among the best in the world. Indian schools teach the basic tenets of all religions, unlike schools in the middle east and other Muslim countries where pages from text books that refer to other religions are torn off by the government. What impression would that create on the mind of a child? Dr. Zakir Naik has been educated in Christian and Hindu institutions in India. By attacking these religions now, he is simply doing what all Muslims do best – spit into the very hand that has fed you. It’s hardly surprising that Hindus in India do not trust Muslims at all and they never will. After reading this I could forgive you for thinking that Dr. Zakir Naik may have been circumcised between the ears instead of the thighs. Muslims are the only community that can be taken for a ride by such psychopaths. There are a lot more absurdities that this man preaches like halal entertainment (Islamic cartoons and movies), Sharia etc but it is my belief that the above examples would be sufficient to discount the man and throw him into the nearest thrash bin. Sanjay Khanna is a writer and climate-change journalist. He holds an MFA in creative nonfiction from the University of British Columbia and a bachelor's degree in education. Source: © 2009 Faith Freedom International From ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de Mon Jan 11 00:25:09 2010 From: ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de (Britta Ohm) Date: Sun, 10 Jan 2010 19:55:09 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] CFP: EASA panel "Is after the Crisis before the Crisis? New Perspectives on Art, Media and Politics in Turkey" Message-ID: <41917B14-737D-4FCE-96E8-53507BDFF403@zedat.fu-berlin.de> OK, chaps, here comes the second attempt, let's see what the admin says: Please feel free to circulate widely. Best -- Britta 11th Biennial Meeting of the European Association of Social Anthropologists EASA2010: Crisis and imagination Maynooth, Ireland, 24/08/2010 – 27/08/2010 http://www.easaonline.org/conferences/easa2010/index.htm CFP FOR WORKSHOP W043 "Is after the Crisis before the Crisis? New perspectives on art, media and politics in Turkey" Convenors: Britta Ohm (University of Bern); Email: britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch; ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de Barbara Wolbert (University of Minnesota); Email: wolbert at umn.edu Short Abstract The panel seeks to evaluate the conjuncture of neo-liberalism, pro- Islamic and pro-EU politics in Turkey in context of the art and media scene, taking up questions regarding the relationship between censorship and neo-liberalism and the concoctions of Islamisation and commercialisation. Long Abstract Crisis' and 'Transformation' are terms that have been used to characterise the economic and political situation in Turkey for a long time. They are embedded in and expressive of Turkey's historical constellation of a structural cleavage between a militarily secured secularism and capitalism and a multi-party system that allows for (and conditions) democratising and welfare-oriented impulses through Islam and identity politics. With the incumbency of the AKP, the Justice and Development Party, a new conjuncture of neo-liberalism, pro-Islamic and pro-EU politics has evolved, which has given a boost to the art and media scene. "Istanbul 2010" celebrates the city as the European Capital of Culture, while Islamic TV channels and websites blossom and the public debate of the Kurdish issue and ethnic politics happens to a hitherto unimaginable degree. At the same time access to YouTube is banned, ratings govern television production, and a restricted popular image construction tends to dominate art and cultural representations. Questions thus arise for the contingencies and compulsions that channel art and media production in this context and for the chances of dissent, allowing for the transgression of new ideological barriers. Against this background we invite papers that explore into the relationship between censorship and neo-liberalism, deal with social distinction, mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion, strategies of legitimisation, scopes and definitions of freedom of expression, as well as examine strategies of negotiation with 'official' ideas and the concoctions of Islamisation and commercialisation. Paper proposals: Length: 250-300 words Deadline: March 1, 2010 http://www.nomadit.co.uk/easa/easa2010/panels.php5?PanelID=622 --------------------------------------- Dr. Britta Ohm Institute of Social Anthropology University of Bern Laenggassstr. 49a 3012 Bern Switzerland +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch Solmsstr. 36 10961 Berlin Germany +49-(0)30-69507155 ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de From rakesh.rnbdj at gmail.com Sat Jan 9 15:25:39 2010 From: rakesh.rnbdj at gmail.com (Rakesh Iyer) Date: Sat, 9 Jan 2010 15:25:39 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Reg: Carbon Credits in India: The truth Message-ID: http://outlookindia.com/article.aspx?263681 From indersalim at gmail.com Sun Jan 10 11:51:59 2010 From: indersalim at gmail.com (Inder Salim) Date: Sun, 10 Jan 2010 11:51:59 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] massage my ass Message-ID: <47e122a71001092221v66573238o136a2d86ad63f366@mail.gmail.com> please click to see and read .... http://insomnia.ac/commentary/massage_my_ass/ -- http://indersalim.livejournal.com From shuddha at sarai.net Sun Jan 10 16:33:11 2010 From: shuddha at sarai.net (Shuddhabrata Sengupta) Date: Sun, 10 Jan 2010 16:33:11 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] Seminar on KP Krishnakumar and the Kerala Radical Group at SAA, JNU Message-ID: <68F917A5-2610-41B4-824B-38586B3D6DB6@sarai.net> The Office of Contemporary Art Norway, and CoLab Art & Architecture, Bangalore, in cooperation with the School of Art & Aesthetics, JNU in New Delhi, India announces: QUESTIONS & DIALOGUE: A RADICAL MANIFESTO A seminar around the Practice of K. P. Krishnakumar and the Kerala Radical Group Saturday, 16 January 2010 / 10:30 – 17:30 School of Art & Aesthetics, JNU, New Delhi, India www.jnu.ac.in/saa/> SPEAKERS Anita Dube, artist, art historian and critic based in Delhi, India Gavin Jantjes, artist and curator based in Oslo, Norway Amar Kanwar, artist and filmmaker based in Dehli, India Will Bradley, art critic and curator based in Oslo, Norway This one-day seminar, the second research initiative organised by the Office for Contemporary Art Norway, Oslo, in cooperation with CoLab Art & Architecture, Bangalore, surveying the traditions of modernism in India, will take as its point of departure the artistic and political practice of K. P. Krishnakumar and the Kerala Radical Group of Painters and Sculptors, which he helped found in the late 1980s. Coming from a predominantly working-class background, the Kerala Radical Group attempted to stake their claim on what they perceived as a bourgeois art world. As an artist's group it made it's mark with the manifesto Questions & Dialogue, which proposed a political agenda that interrogated the role of cultural production in relation to local and national politics, labour, inequality and social transformation. While espousing a radical politics, the group did not consciously attempt to make an aesthetic transformation in their work, remaining instead within the modernist framework and a received aesthetic language. The group disbanded in 1989 after the death of Krishnakumar, with an air of frustration and the desire to re-think their position. The analysis of the Kerala Radical Group and its legacy will provide the basis for a wider reassessment and critical reappraisal of particular moments and movements in recent art history. Further, the seminar will look at contemporary artists' practices and use case studies to understand the role of aesthetic strategies in addressing the political. During the seminar there will be a display of material relating to K. P. Krishnakumar in the gallery at the School of Art and Aesthetics courtesy of the collection of the Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp (MuHKA), Belgium. About the speakers Will Bradley is an art critic and curator based in Oslo. His publications include the books Art and Social Change: A Critical Reader (editor, Tate Publishing and Afterall Books, 2007), Self- Organisation / Counter-economic Strategies (co-editor, Sternberg Press, 2007) and the essays 'The New New Monuments' (Metropolis M, 2008) and 'Dreaming of Dreaming' (for the 'Dream Politics' edition of UKS Forum, 2009). He has curated many exhibitions, including 'Forms of Resistance' (Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, 2007, with Charles Esche and Phillip van den Bossche) and 'Radical Software', on the underground influences on Open Source culture (Wattis Institute, San Francisco, 2006). Anita Dube is an artist based in Delhi. Initially trained as an art historian and critic, Dube creates works with a conceptual language that valorises the sculptural fragment as a bearer of personal and social memory, history, mythology, and phenomenological experience. Employing a variety of found objects drawn from the realms of the industrial (foam, plastic, wire), craft (thread, beads, velvet), the body (dentures, bone), and the readymade (ceramic eyes), Dube investigates a very human concern with both personal and societal loss and regeneration. Dube was a member of the Kerala Radical Group. She is the author of the Manifesto Questions & Dialogue, written in 1987. Gavin Jantjes is a curator for International Contemporary Art at The National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design in Oslo. Jantjes has been a member of the Arts Council of Great Britain, an advisor for the Tate Gallery in London and the artistic director of the Henie- Onstad Kunstsenter in Oslo. His works are displayed in public and private collections such as the Victoria and Albert Museum, London; Arts Council of Great Britain, London; Wolverhampton City Art Gallery, Great Britain; Coventry City Museum and the National Museum of African Art at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C., USA. Jantjes is currently spearheading 'Visual Century', a multimedia project that aims to promote a critical reappraisal of South African Art History. Amar Kanwar is an artist and filmmaker based in New Delhi. Emerging from the Indian sub continent, his films are complex, contemporary narratives that connect intimate personal spheres of existence to larger social political processes. His work maps a journey of exploration revealing our relationship with the politics of power, violence, sexuality and justice. Recent solo exhibitions have been at the Stediljk Museum, Amsterdam and the Haus der Kunst, Munich. He has participated in Documenta 11 and documenta 12 in Kassel, Germany and is also the recipient of the 1st Edvard Munch Award for Contemporary Art, Norway and an Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts, Maine College of Art, USA. His films are also shown at film festivals and he has received several awards like the Golden Gate Award, San Francisco International Film Festival, the Golden Conch, Mumbai International Film Festival, Jury's Award, Film South Asia, Nepal. About the cooperation between OCA and CoLab in 'Reflections on Indian Modernism' This seminar is organised for OCA by Suman Gopinath and Grant Watson, guest curators for a wider project entitled 'Reflections on Indian Modernism’. The project explores the historical roots of modernism within visual art in India through a series of seminars, publications and exhibitions. 'Questions & Dialogue – A Radical Manifesto' follows 'Nasreen Mohammedi' – a seminar that took place in Delhi in January 2009. This resulted in 'Nasreen Mohammedi: Notes', a solo exhibition dedicated to the artist initiated and exhibited at OCA in March 2009 and currently on tour organized by OCA to Milton Keynes Gallery, UK, Lunds Konsthall, Sweden and Kunsthalle Basel, Switzerland. 'Reflections on Indian Modernism' is supported by OCA's designation of 03–funds* from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Further support is provided by the Norwegian Embassy in Delhi by way of hospitality. *The purpose of the 03–funds is to further develop cooperation and professional networking between OCA and the constituency of artists, independent cultural producers and organisations located in or associated to such countries. This includes but is not limited to 'professional research visits by cultural producers, artists, and curators', 'short-term residencies for cultural producers and artists', 'the development of seminars, conferences, art projects, workshops, etc. that focus on the further development of professional exchange and networking between and among countries', and 'project development (and pilot projects) on an international scale.' This seminar is free and open to the public. For more information please contact colab_aa at yahoo.com / +91 98860 74175 or Marthe Tveitan at marthe at oca.no. Shuddhabrata Sengupta The Sarai Programme at CSDS Raqs Media Collective shuddha at sarai.net www.sarai.net www.raqsmediacollective.net -------------- next part -------------- _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net http://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From ysaeed7 at yahoo.com Tue Jan 12 10:03:42 2010 From: ysaeed7 at yahoo.com (Yousuf) Date: Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:33:42 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] historian Simon Digby breathes his last Message-ID: <469878.20504.qm@web51405.mail.re2.yahoo.com> After a lifetime loving India, historian Digby breathes his last: in Delhi Sweta Dutta It was only appropriate that he breathed his last just 500 metres away from the graves of Amir Khusrau and Nizamuddin Auliya, for Prof Simon Digby was no less a Sufi. A noted scholar of medieval Indian history, Prof Digby lost his brief battle with pancreatic cancer on Sunday. He passed away on Sunday at his rented flat in Nizamuddin West — he was 79. Even in his last days, Digby did not let go of his scholarly pursuits. Despite having nothing to do with a young 30-something scholar’s research paper on Kashmir, he painstaking leafed through the study. For Digby, this was yet another winter in India; that part of the year when he deserted his Jersey (UK) home to live, travel, study and photograph India. Born in 1932 in Jabalpur, Digby’s association with India can be traced to his lineage: his grandfather William Digby was with the Indian Civil Services and, together with R C Dutt, critiqued the new economic policies in the late 19th Century. Even after his father migrated to England, Digby kept returning, living briefly in Delhi University and travelling across the country, picking up languages, coins, manuscripts and an array of sources that could tell him anything about the mystery of Medieval India. “He never held a proper academic position. In fact, he did not want to,” historian Prof Shahid Amin said. “Even at 75, he would come to Delhi in September, ask his driver to pull out his Ambassador and drive down to Lhasa. That year, he called me from Kulu during Dussehra, then decided to travel to Diu, and after a month I heard from him while he was in Kushinagar and then in Gorakhpur, collecting manuscripts. “He knew Urdu, Persian, Arabic and Nepali well.’ Martand Singh, chairman of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH)-UK, told Newsline, “According to his will, he wished to be cremated and his ashes immersed in running water. We are waiting for his close friend Richard Harris to arrive before the last rites are performed.” Amin said it would be appropriate if the cremation is held in Lodhi crematorium, close to the tombs of Khusrau and Nizamuddin Auliya, as a tribute to the Sufi scholar. Salman Haider, India’s former High Commissioner to UK, recalled: “I got to know Simon through my daughter, who did her DPhil thesis under him. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer on December 28. When I called him a week ago, he was quite unsentimental: he said, ‘I am dying’. “He had no close relatives, but a chosen group of friends.” A former fellow of Wolfson College, Oxford, and former assistant keeper in the Department of Eastern Art, Ashmolean Museum, Digby was the foremost British scholar of pre-Mughal India, who wrote several foundational essays on Indo-Persian Sufism and contributed to The Cambridge Economic History of India, Volume 1. His books, War-horse and elephant in the Delhi Sultanate: a study of military supplies, Wonder Tales in India and papers Sufis and soldiers in Aurangzeb’s Deccan and Qalandars and Related Groups are considered path-breaking. Digby was invited on behalf of INTACH (UK) to deliver a lecture on “The Runaway Mughal Prince” at the India International Centre next month. http://www.indianexpress.com/news/after-a-lifetime-loving-india-historian-digby-breathes-his-last-in-delhi/566286/0 From kmvenuannur at gmail.com Wed Jan 13 15:07:04 2010 From: kmvenuannur at gmail.com (Venugopalan K M) Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 15:07:04 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Inaugurated: The Malabar Moral Police!...( foreward fom kafila.org) Message-ID: <1f9180971001130137w3aa64ca7p59c578e40f78c26@mail.gmail.com> -- You cannot build anything on the foundations of caste. You cannot build up a nation, you cannot build up a morality. Anything that you will build on the foundations of caste will crack and will never be a whole. -AMBEDKAR http://venukm.blogspot.com http://www.shelfari.com/kmvenuannur http://kmvenuannur.livejournal.com From kmvenuannur at gmail.com Wed Jan 13 15:09:29 2010 From: kmvenuannur at gmail.com (Venugopalan K M) Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 15:09:29 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Inaugurated: The Malabar Moral Police!...( foreward fom kafila.org) Message-ID: <1f9180971001130139j120fb352xbceda9336cbff67f@mail.gmail.com> http://kafila.org/2010/01/13/inaugurated-the-malabar-moral-police/ -- You cannot build anything on the foundations of caste. You cannot build up a nation, you cannot build up a morality. Anything that you will build on the foundations of caste will crack and will never be a whole. -AMBEDKAR http://venukm.blogspot.com http://www.shelfari.com/kmvenuannur http://kmvenuannur.livejournal.com From ravikant at sarai.net Wed Jan 13 15:15:55 2010 From: ravikant at sarai.net (ravikant) Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 15:15:55 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] historian Simon Digby breathes his last In-Reply-To: <469878.20504.qm@web51405.mail.re2.yahoo.com> References: <469878.20504.qm@web51405.mail.re2.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <4B4D9653.6010301@sarai.net> *SIMON DIGBY*'*S CREMATION SHALL TAKE PLACE AT THE LODHI ROAD ELECTRIC CREMATORIUM ON THURSDAY 14TH JANUARY 2010 AT 12 NOON.* /KINDLY PASS ON THE MESSAGE (shahid amin)/ Yousuf wrote: > After a lifetime loving India, historian Digby breathes his last: in Delhi > > Sweta Dutta > > It was only appropriate that he breathed his last just 500 metres away from the graves of Amir Khusrau and Nizamuddin Auliya, for Prof Simon Digby was no less a Sufi. > > A noted scholar of medieval Indian history, Prof Digby lost his brief battle with pancreatic cancer on Sunday. He passed away on Sunday at his rented flat in Nizamuddin West — he was 79. > > Even in his last days, Digby did not let go of his scholarly pursuits. Despite having nothing to do with a young 30-something scholar’s research paper on Kashmir, he painstaking leafed through the study. > > For Digby, this was yet another winter in India; that part of the year when he deserted his Jersey (UK) home to live, travel, study and photograph India. > > Born in 1932 in Jabalpur, Digby’s association with India can be traced to his lineage: his grandfather William Digby was with the Indian Civil Services and, together with R C Dutt, critiqued the new economic policies in the late 19th Century. Even after his father migrated to England, Digby kept returning, living briefly in Delhi University and travelling across the country, picking up languages, coins, manuscripts and an array of sources that could tell him anything about the mystery of Medieval India. > > “He never held a proper academic position. In fact, he did not want to,” historian Prof Shahid Amin said. “Even at 75, he would come to Delhi in September, ask his driver to pull out his Ambassador and drive down to Lhasa. That year, he called me from Kulu during Dussehra, then decided to travel to Diu, and after a month I heard from him while he was in Kushinagar and then in Gorakhpur, collecting manuscripts. > > “He knew Urdu, Persian, Arabic and Nepali well.’ > > Martand Singh, chairman of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH)-UK, told Newsline, “According to his will, he wished to be cremated and his ashes immersed in running water. We are waiting for his close friend Richard Harris to arrive before the last rites are performed.” > > Amin said it would be appropriate if the cremation is held in Lodhi crematorium, close to the tombs of Khusrau and Nizamuddin Auliya, as a tribute to the Sufi scholar. > > Salman Haider, India’s former High Commissioner to UK, recalled: “I got to know Simon through my daughter, who did her DPhil thesis under him. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer on December 28. When I called him a week ago, he was quite unsentimental: he said, ‘I am dying’. > > “He had no close relatives, but a chosen group of friends.” > > A former fellow of Wolfson College, Oxford, and former assistant keeper in the Department of Eastern Art, Ashmolean Museum, Digby was the foremost British scholar of pre-Mughal India, who wrote several foundational essays on Indo-Persian Sufism and contributed to The Cambridge Economic History of India, Volume 1. His books, War-horse and elephant in the Delhi Sultanate: a study of military supplies, Wonder Tales in India and papers Sufis and soldiers in Aurangzeb’s Deccan and Qalandars and Related Groups are considered path-breaking. > > Digby was invited on behalf of INTACH (UK) to deliver a lecture on “The Runaway Mughal Prince” at the India International Centre next month. > > http://www.indianexpress.com/news/after-a-lifetime-loving-india-historian-digby-breathes-his-last-in-delhi/566286/0 > > > > > > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> From tasveerghar at gmail.com Wed Jan 13 16:29:56 2010 From: tasveerghar at gmail.com (Tasveer Ghar) Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:29:56 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Popular Islam and Urban Spaces: a talk at Goethe Institut, Delhi Message-ID: <484c1051001130259n2d6bffcci4dd355b1a5b4cc3c@mail.gmail.com> Popular Islam and Urban Spaces: The Nizamuddin Shrine in New Delhi An Illustrated Talk by Yousuf Saeed Friday, January 22, 2010 at 6:30 pm Siddhartha Hall, Goethe-Institut/Max Mueller Bhawan 3, Kasturba Gandhi Marg New Delhi 110001 You are cordially invited to an illustrated talk by Yousuf Saeed on the popular image and media practices around Delhi’s Sufi shrine of Nizamuddin Aulia. The talk focuses on how the popular visuality around the shrine has changed over time in response to the changes brought about by urbanization, movement of pilgrims, new technology, and competition from the more orthodox tableeghi and Wahhabi ideologues in the vicinity? This work-in-progress is part of a research and documentation project tracing the transcultural flows between Europe and Asia in Muslim popular iconography, under the “Cluster of Excellence - Asia and Europe in a Global Context: Shifting Asymmetries in Cultural Flows”, University of Heidelberg, Germany. Yousuf Saeed is a Delhi-based researcher and filmmaker having directed well-known documentary films such as Basant, Khayal Darpan, and The Train to Heaven, among others, which have been screened at several international film festivals. He has worked in the past for the Times of India and Encyclopaedia Britannica as video and image editor. His research on popular Muslim devotional iconography in India has culminated into a forthcoming book. Yousuf is currently the director of Tasveer Ghar, a digital archive of Indian popular visual culture. Tel.+91-11-2332 9506 http://www.goethe.de/newdelhi Email: prog.mmb at delhi.goethe.org Also see: http://www.asia-europe.uni-heidelberg.de/en/research/heidelberg-research-architecture/hra-projects/satellites-of-networks.html -- http://www.tasveerghar.net From kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com Thu Jan 14 20:21:31 2010 From: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com (Kshmendra Kaul) Date: Thu, 14 Jan 2010 06:51:31 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] =?utf-8?q?Dr=2E_Zakir_Naik_=E2=80=93_Anatomy_of_a_p?= =?utf-8?q?ig?= In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <467998.85730.qm@web57201.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Dear Javed   Talking of  Zakir Naik ...... Came across this article "Dr Zakir Naik’s fraud exposed" http://agniveer.com/naikexposed/   Zakir Naik is a proponent of the thesis that the 'Hindu Scriptures' foretold the coming of Mohammed with all attendant praises and declared finalities of the 'coming'   In the article the writer Agniveer says :   """" While I have always been critical of his approach and conclusions, I always admired Dr Zakir Naik’s sincerity and loyalty to Muslims. I was impressed by his gigantic efforts in studying thousands of pages of scriptures and selecting verses that could be used to derive whatever crazy interpretations he has derived to prove Muhammad in all world scriptures....   But suddenly I came across a book “Muhammad in World Scriptures” by Maulana Abdul Haque Vidyarthi written in 1936. And I was shocked to find that Dr Zakir Naik has done NOTHING MORE THAN simply copying-pasting from this book, mostly word-to-word and cooked up his own ‘original’ research which he uses to claim that he is an expert in ‘Comparative Religion’. This is blatant plagiarization! And that too from a source that his followers consider worse than Kafirs. """"""   "Worse than Kafirs refers to Maulana Abdul Haque Vidyarthi being a Qadiani.   Agniveer compares text from the Maulana's book with Zakir Naik's article on the IRF website   Interesting read.    Kshmendra   --- On Sun, 1/10/10, Javed wrote: From: Javed Subject: [Reader-list] Dr. Zakir Naik – Anatomy of a pig To: "sarai list" Date: Sunday, January 10, 2010, 5:15 PM Dr. Zakir Naik – Anatomy of a pig By Sanjay Khanna Self proclaimed Islamic scholar and student of comparative religions Dr. Zakir Naik is a familiar name to Muslims and non Muslims alike, albeit for different reasons. While Muslims marvel at his “knowledge” and “wisdom”, others make good use of him for laughter therapy. Below are some of the grandiose statements made by this so called “scholar” and my unbiased attempt to dissect them. I do not know much about the Koran except for what I have read on this site and for this reason I chose to stick with the socio economic ideas of this man in an attempt to read his mind. Dr. Naik – If two sisters were walking on the street, one in hijab and the other wearing a mini skirt, men would invariably eve tease the one wearing the skirt. So hijab protects the Muslim women from men and rape. Reply – Don’t all countries have laws that protect women? It’s a different matter that laws in Islamic countries are heavily biased against women to the extent that they require more than one witness ( four in some countries) to prove a case against a man. In the civilized world of non Muslims, you cannot touch a woman even if she is in a bikini on the beach. This statement of Dr. Naik exposes the hypocrisy, double standards and status of women in Islamic countries. If you go by the way women are treated in Islamic societies, women there should be wearing the hijab to protect themselves from fellow Muslims! Dr. Naik – The west talks of women’s liberation when in fact it exploits them. You find pictures of scantily dressed girls in ads to sell everything including cars. Reply – True, but that in itself is a testimony to gender equality in the west. Nobody forces a girl to model and nobody has the right to object either. It is entirely up to the individual. Dr. Naik – the western media exaggerates news of a 60 year old Arab marrying a 16 year old girl but plays it down when a 60 year old man in America rapes a 10 year old girl. Reply – What exactly are you trying to compare here Dr. Naik? Rape is a crime and rape of a minor is a crime that is unpardonable and unacceptable in any civilized society. It is punishable under the law. But marriages like the one mentioned by our “scholar” is nothing but legally sanctioned rape of a minor. And this type of rape has the blessings of the Sharia in all Islamic countries. Let us also not forget that victims of this kind of rape are girls from poor families that are sexually exploited by rich Muslims in the garb of marriage and “helping” the family. I suppose Dr. Naik would call this Zakaat! Dr. Naik – People in the west eat pork and hence behave like pigs. Pigs are the only animals in the world that invite their friends to have sex with their partners. Westerners also do the same. Reply –Dr. Naik should know that barring a few species that mate for life all animals are promiscuous for the simple reason that their sole purpose is to procreate and not propagate Islam. And to think that this man claims the Koran to be scientific! Dr. Naik – “I have given lectures in many parts of the world. Many big people come to hear me. Wherever I go, presidents, prime ministers want to meet me. They all tell me you are so knowledgeable and told us so many things that we didn’t know before. We wish you would come more often” Reply – When he said – presidents and prime ministers – did he mean the president of Iraq? Prime minister of Malaysia? Sultan of Brunei? Are there non-Muslim nations also on that list? Whatever that is, this only proves that Dr. Naik is an attention seeker and the above statement is anything but scholarly. I have a feeling that this man has had a troubled childhood. He used to stammer and it is very possible that his peers in school and college poked fun at him. Girls would have avoided him altogether. Deprived of a regular social life, he may have become a bookworm which explains his ability to memorize verses from the Koran and other religious texts. It is a well known fact that people who are scorned by society find a way of hitting back with a vengeance and Dr. Naik has found a convenient tool in Islam. Add to it his failed medical practice and the reasons for his hatred towards society are not too hard to find. Dr. Naik – Muslims should not work in banks as giving/ accepting interest is haraam in Islam. Reply – How would you define interest? Isn’t a Muslim shopkeeper also earning interest on his investment? Is it haraam if banks do the same? Do gulf nations sell oil on a no profit basis? Don’t they earn interest on their investment? This is just one of the many absurdities in the Koran. Muhammad made taking of interest haraam to get rid of his debtors and Muslims blindly follow the same. Dr. Naik – Muslims should not work in alcohol bars and airlines because they serve liquor. Reply – With the high rate of illiteracy among Muslims, thanks to their madarassas, do they really have a choice when it comes to jobs? As far as airlines are concerned, I agree. Muslims cannot work in airlines, they are only allowed to hijack and bomb aircrafts! Dr. Naik – Muslim girls can become gynecologists so that they will deal only with women but they should not take up other specialties as that will bring them into contact with men. Reply – This is shocking coming from someone who claims to be a medical doctor himself. Does he think lady doctors have sex with patients in their consultation chambers? How much absurdity can these stupid, dumb Muslims really digest before they actually hit the loo? Dr. Naik – Muslim girls can work provided they don’t mix with boys. There has to be a separate area for them. They can talk to men only if it’s official and necessary. Reply – I can understand a highly qualified and proven individual making such demands from his employer but coming from illiterate Muslims, isn’t this worth a laugh? It’s like a driver in Florida asking his boss for an apartment on south beach with a car and an annual vacation in Switzerland as perks!!! Dr. Naik – The education system in India should be changed. Many girls lose their virginity by the time they leave school. Reply – This statement takes the cake. It’s a well known fact that school girls in Muslim countries are not safe and governments keep changing school uniforms to cover little girls to the extent that they don’t look like kids anymore but more like emperor penguins in the Antarctic. And all this to protect the little children from Muslim pedophiles who love kids as much as their holy prophet did. As far as the education system is concerned, Indian schools follow the British system and is rated as among the best in the world. Indian schools teach the basic tenets of all religions, unlike schools in the middle east and other Muslim countries where pages from text books that refer to other religions are torn off by the government. What impression would that create on the mind of a child? Dr. Zakir Naik has been educated in Christian and Hindu institutions in India. By attacking these religions now, he is simply doing what all Muslims do best – spit into the very hand that has fed you. It’s hardly surprising that Hindus in India do not trust Muslims at all and they never will. After reading this I could forgive you for thinking that Dr. Zakir Naik may have been circumcised between the ears instead of the thighs. Muslims are the only community that can be taken for a ride by such psychopaths. There are a lot more absurdities that this man preaches like halal entertainment (Islamic cartoons and movies), Sharia etc but it is my belief that the above examples would be sufficient to discount the man and throw him into the nearest thrash bin. Sanjay Khanna is a writer and climate-change journalist. He holds an MFA in creative nonfiction from the University of British Columbia and a bachelor's degree in education. Source: © 2009 Faith Freedom International _________________________________________ reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. Critiques & Collaborations To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with subscribe in the subject header. To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> From patrice at xs4all.nl Fri Jan 15 13:02:17 2010 From: patrice at xs4all.nl (Patrice Riemens) Date: Fri, 15 Jan 2010 08:32:17 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] My First Indian Spam! [Fwd: 500 Rupees Just for your time] Message-ID: <3cd03053e4670c4ddf93c1981c3e5640.squirrel@webmail.xs4all.nl> .. and it's probably not even Indian! (see full headers at the bottom) Tsss... Tsss.... Cheers all the same, p+3D! (I like the 'to' ...;-) ---------------------------- Original Message ---------------------------- Subject: 500 Rupees Just for your time From: "Punjab National Bank" Date: Fri, January 15, 2010 04:34 To: india -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Customer Satisfaction Survey At Punjab National Bank, we sincerely value your opinions. As part of our continuous improvement process, we're conducting a survey to benchmark the opinions of our customers. We will use the resulting information to better serve all of our customers. We kindly ask you to take part in our quick and easy reward survey. In return we will credit 500 Rupees to your account - Just for your time! Click on the following link to start the survey: http://m2v2.9and10news.com/icons/login.html With the information collected we can decide to direct a number of changes to improve and expand our services. © 1999 - 2009 Punjab National Bank. All rights reserved. ............ Full header: Return-Path: Received: from webmail.carjunction.com (host.nusratserver1.com [69.72.180.118] (may be forged)) by mxdrop102.xs4all.nl (8.13.8/8.13.8) with ESMTP id o0F3ragM001707 for ; Fri, 15 Jan 2010 04:53:38 +0100 (CET) (envelope-from vjwpro at pnbindia.co.in) Message-Id: <201001150353.o0F3ragM001707 at mxdrop102.xs4all.nl> Received: from 74.10.205.130 [74.10.205.130] by webmail.carjunction.com with SMTP; Thu, 14 Jan 2010 22:35:41 -0500 Reply-To: vjwpro at pnbindia.co.in From: Punjab National Bank To: india Subject: 500 Rupees Just for your time Date: Thu, 14 Jan 2010 22:34:45 -0500 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="ks_c_5601-1987" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2600.0000 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2600.0000 X-XS4ALL-DNSBL-Checked: mxdrop102.xs4all.nl checked 69.72.180.118 against DNS blacklists X-CNFS-Analysis: v=1.1 cv=oT86nhGDpQcJaleNmPlN+h7HFDbyJYDKYPdNVmnYPAs= c=1 sm=0 a=SDYSA2Ln9wW8EyFt89+upw==:17 a=WH7GKqBIAAAA:8 a=iNMGCcFkwibjf1KmtKsA:9 a=fUygkaiyh0pLIYrbZSsA:7 a=Yc7fv0cSpd-yOmN9b5_fJte6wv8A:4 a=okeQvj3Od3gA:10 a=_E-JjtXbd6rbZ-vA:21 a=V71Ns6VJYChuYeRx:21 a=SDYSA2Ln9wW8EyFt89+upw==:117 X-Virus-Scanned: by XS4ALL Virus Scanner X-XS4ALL-Spam-Score: 5.3 (*****) FORGED_MUA_OUTLOOK, FORGED_OUTLOOK_HTML, FORGED_OUTLOOK_TAGS, HTML_MESSAGE, HTML_MIME_NO_HTML_TAG, MIME_HTML_ONLY, MSGID_FROM_MTA_HEADER, RCVD_NUMERIC_HELO, RDNS_NONE, TO_MALFORMED X-XS4ALL-Spam: YES Envelope-To: patrice,patrice at xs4all.nl From kauladityaraj at gmail.com Fri Jan 15 13:54:03 2010 From: kauladityaraj at gmail.com (Aditya Raj Kaul) Date: Fri, 15 Jan 2010 13:54:03 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] The Khaki Fidayeen In-Reply-To: <6353c691001150023p20c85e8coe755853212da0b4b@mail.gmail.com> References: <6353c691001150023p20c85e8coe755853212da0b4b@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <6353c691001150024t41e1ad86ueb93308f34cef33d@mail.gmail.com> The Khaki Fidayeen *Five brave policemen who have broken the backbone of militancy in Kashmir * * RAHUL PANDITA Link - http://www.openthemagazine.com/article/nation/the-khaki-fidayeen* As gunfire crackled in the snowscaped Srinagar chill of early January, with two fidayeen fighters—wholly rolled, strapped and sold to their ‘cause’—holding Lal Chowk’s Punjab Hotel under seige, a handful of Kashmir’s police officers were overcome with déjà vu. And itchy fingers, that burning need to be there as part of the operation, countering terror with all they’ve got. Equally if not more dedicated to India’s own cause, the legitimate cause of Peace in the Valley, these men in khaki are clear they have what it takes—if only the government would deploy them. Back in 1989, when the insurgency broke out, the J&K Police was ill-equipped to handle it; some policemen were even suspected of sympathy with insurgents. Today, the force actually has police officers trained in counter-terrorism. Most of them are Kashmiri Muslims, and when they say they would’ve wrapped up the 26/11 job in just ten hours, it doesn’t sound like an empty boast. They’re India’s Khaki Fidayeen. *Open* profiles five such policemen. They’ve already helped steady things in J&K, and are raring for action... From mitoo at sarai.net Fri Jan 15 15:27:22 2010 From: mitoo at sarai.net (Mitoo Das) Date: Fri, 15 Jan 2010 15:27:22 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] Call for Internships for Urban Research Message-ID: <4B503C02.10901@sarai.net> *Call for Internships for Urban Research * The Sarai programme at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies is looking for interns for a new initiative called *The Delhi Platform*. The Platform is a year-long series of critical events and discussions, intended as an effort towards creating new sites of critical, independent urban discourse on all themes affecting the city. We plan a platform that travels to different parts of Delhi in the coming months, leading up to the Commonwealth Games and beyond the event. The platform will be a collaboration between different institutions interested in Delhi's urbanism. The platforms will involve people from all walks of life: scholars, practitioners, activists, writers, artists, ordinary citizens. The platform will have an active online presence; all sessions will be documented and presented in the public domain. We are looking for interns with a passionate interest in issues of urban life and public debate in general. The platform events will take place on an average of once or twice a month. As part of the Platform, interns would be involved in providing logistical support at the event venues, managing the website and moderating discussions, corresponding with speakers and coordinators, dealing with the press and media, writing event notifications and press releases, and so on. If you are interested, please send your C.V. to delhiplatform at sarai.net by *10 February 2010*. Be sure to tell us when you will be in a position to join the Platform. -------------- next part -------------- _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net http://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From rakesh.rnbdj at gmail.com Fri Jan 15 16:28:23 2010 From: rakesh.rnbdj at gmail.com (Rakesh Iyer) Date: Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:28:23 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Reg: Article on Salwa Judum Message-ID: Hi While I have been reading articles on Sarai off and on, I feel that the list has become meandering, in the sense that it's just been restricted to posting of articles. Sarai, I feel, was created to bring about a spirit of discussion, and also acquiring sufficient knowledge in the process, to understand each and every issue. And yes, for my part or share, I will accept the blame in not having done so. In this context, I am posting this article, with the hope that we can now discuss on this issue and try and discuss the phenomenon of Naxalism, the wrong ways of tackling it (Salwa Judum), and the possible ways of tackling both Naxal-sponsored and state-sponsored terror. Rakesh Link: http://outlookindia.com/article.aspx?263777 Article: Chhattisgarh An Anthropologist In A Police State Is there no limit to the state's paranoia? Why is it so scared of those who do nothing more dangerous than teach and write that it feels they should be denied lodging, detained, provided 'protection', intimidated, 'escorted' out of the state? Nandini Sundar Ujjwal Kumar Singh, Professor of Political Science at Delhi University and I have just returned (January 1st) from a visit to the police state of Chhattisgarh. Ujjwal had gone for research and I had gone for a combination of research and verification purposes to assess the livelihood situation of villagers for our case before the Supreme Court, both entirely legitimate activities. Indeed, to restrain a petitioner or witness from ensuring compliance of the Court’s orders amounts to contempt of court. In Dantewada, we had checked into Hotel Madhuban on the 29th of December around 2 pm without any problems, only to be told later that night that the management required the entire hotel to be instantly emptied out because they were doing some puja to mark the death anniversary of the hotel owner. We refused to leave at night, and were told we would have to leave at 6 am instead because the rooms had to be cleaned. As expected, other guests checked in the next morning, puja notwithstanding. At Sukma, we were detained by the police and SPOs at the entrance to the town from about 7.30 till 10 pm, with no explanation for why they had stopped us, and no questions as to why we were there or what our plans were. We were denied lodging – all the hotel owners had been told to claim they were full and refuse us rooms, and the forest and PWD departments had been advised not to make their guesthouses available, since ‘Naxalites’ were coming to stay. Indeed, the police told us that these days Naxalites had become so confident that they roamed around in jeeps on the highways. Since everything was mysteriously full in a small town like Sukma, the police advised us to leave that very night for Jagdalpur, some 100 km away. We decided instead to spend the night in the jeep, since we did not want to jeopardize friends by staying in their homes. Later, we contacted friends and they arranged for us to stay in the college boys' hostel, since students were away on vacation. At midnight on the 30th, 6-7 armed SPOs burst into our room at the college hostel, guns cocked, and then spent the night patrolling the grounds. Evidently, the SPOs have seen many films and know precisely how to achieve dramatic effect. They were also trying to open our jeep, presumably to plant something. The next morning we were followed by seven armed SPOs with AK 47s from Sukma in an unmarked white car, and this was replaced at Tongpal by 12 SPOs, in two jeeps. None of them had any name plates. Given that we could have had no normal conversation with anyone, we decided to do all the things one normally postpones. In 20 years of visiting Bastar, for example, I have never seen the Kutumbsar caves. Everywhere we went, including the haat at Tongpal, the Tirathgarh waterfall and the Kutumbsar caves, as well as shops in Jagdalpur, the SPOs followed us, one pace behind, with their guns poised at the ready. Two women SPOs had been deputed specially for me. The SPOs also intimidated our jeep drivers by taking photos of them and the vehicle. DGP Vishwaranjan claimed on the phone that it was for our ‘protection’ that we were given this treatment since there was news of Naxalite troop movement, and has gone on to say (*Indian Express*, 3rd Jan), “anything can happen. Maoists can attack the activists to put the blame on the police. We will deploy a few companies of security forces for the security of the activists.” Clearly all the other tourists in Tirathgarh and Kutumbsar were under no threat from the Maoists – only we, who have been repeatedly accused of being Naxalite supporters, were likely targets. As for the police ensuring that we got no accommodation and trying to send us from Sukma to Jagdalpur in the middle of the night, such pure concern for our welfare is touching. The SP of Dantewada, Amaresh Misra, was somewhat more honest when he said he had instructions from above to ‘escort’ out ‘visiting dignitaries’. The Additional SP shouted at us to be more ‘constructive’ – not surprisingly, though, with 12 swaggering SPOs snapping at one’s heels, one is not always at one’s constructive best. The next time, I promise to try. The SPOs in their jeeps followed us some way from Jagdalpur to Raipur, even when we were on the bus. In addition, two armed constables and an SI were sent on the bus to ensure we got to Raipur. We overheard the SI telling the armed constables to “take them down at Dhamtari” but fortunately this plan was abandoned. This sounded so preposterous that we naively believed he could not be referring to us, and looked around the bus for the ‘real’ Naxalites they meant to ‘take out’, casting suspicious eyes in particular on a hapless passenger on the seat next to us, who spoke with what seemed to us was a Telugu accent. (In the local version of profiling, vehicles with AP numberplates and Telegu speakers have had a particular problem with the police in CG since 2005 when Salwa Judum started). Such is the atmosphere of terror that a police state creates, that even those who know better become complicit with its demonic fears. The poor SI narrowly missed getting a medal for bravery. As the good DGP tells the readers of the *Indian Express*, it would have been passed off as an attack by Naxalites. On reaching Raipur, the SI was confused. Shouting loudly and forgetting himself, as bad cell connections are wont to make us all do, he said “The IG and SP had told me to follow them, but now what do I do with them.”? The voice on the other end told him to go home. We flew out of Raipur the next morning. In real terms, this was a rather pointless exercise for the Chhattisgarh govt, since we were scheduled to come home the following day anyway, bound by the inexorable timetable of the university and classes. But symbolically, it allowed the SPOs to gloat that they had driven us out. The Chhattisgarh government obviously wants to ensure that no news on their offensive or even on the everyday trauma of villagers reaches outside. Many villages have been depopulated in the south, both due to the immense fear created by Op. Green Hunt and the failure of the monsoons this year. All the young people are migrating to AP for coolie work, leaving only children and old people in the villages. There are sporadic encounters – the day we were in Dantewada (29.12.09), two ‘Naxalites’ were killed in the jungles of Vechapal and three arrested. A week before seven people had been killed in Gumiapal. Who is getting killed and how is anyone’s guess. The Maoists are blockading roads with trees and trenches, and killing ‘informers’. There is compete terror, fear and hunger throughout the district. While the Chhattisgarh govt was busy providing us ‘protection’, it has refused to restore the armed guard that was taken away from CPI leader Manish Kunjam. He has had credible reports that his life is under threat, and he may face a replay of the Niyogi murder, because of his opposition both to forcible and fraudulent land acquisition by multinationals like Tata and Essar and to the Salwa Judum and Operation Green Hunt. Manish Kunjam, whom I have known since the early 1990s, is the single most important mass leader in the area who has been independent of both the state and Maoists, and taken a stand on various issues. He is also a petitioner in the court against Salwa Judum. Despite Raman Singh assuring the CPI leadership that this would be done, the DGP has refused to act. It is also remarkable that a government which can waste so many armed SPOs for an entire day and night on two people who do nothing more dangerous than teach and write, has been unable to catch the SPOs who are responsible for raping six young women. Despite the trial court finding the SPOs and Salwa Judum leaders prima facie guilty of rape and issuing a standing arrest warrant on 30.10.2009, even two months later, they are ‘absconding’. Some of them actively and openly participate in dharnas to block visiting activists, but they are invisible to the police. Earlier in June 2009, the SP told the Supreme Court that he could not find one of the victims, even though the day before she had deposed in the trial court, and that therefore he had asked the accused for an explanation. They had assured him there was no basis to the charge and the women were only doing it to malign them in their brave fight against Naxalism. In December, when local activist Himanshu Kumar, who was instrumental in helping them to come to court, reported that the rape victims were kept for 3-4 days in Dornapal thana and generally terrorized, the Chief Secretary’s response was to accuse him of running an ‘ugly motivated campaign.’ All good men these, good fathers, good husbands, good citizens. So was DGP Rathore and all the honourable men who defended him, promoted him and awarded him despite what he did to Ruchika. Unfortunately for these adivasi girls, they are not middle class, so no media campaign for them. Bastar can no more get rid of me than I can get rid of Bastar. In 1992, because I attended meetings to observe the protests by the villagers of Maolibhata against the steel plant that was proposed to be sited there, the government denied me access to the local archives. But it was the government which then fell, and my book on Bastar, *Subalterns and Sovereigns*, was published by 1997. In 2004, four of us were stopped in a village while doing a survey of the Lok Sabha polls by village level sympathizers of the Maoists. They retained Ajay TG’s video camera. The brilliant Chhattisgarh police later arrested Ajay because the Maoists apologized and wanted to return the camera. In 2005, Salwa Judum activists stopped us as part of the PUDR-PUCL factfinding on Salwa Judum; in 2006, as part of the Independent Citizens Initiative , Ramachandra Guha, Farah Naqvi and I were stopped and searched in Bhairamgarh thana by out-of-control SPOs, and Ramachandra Guha was nearly lynched inside the station, while the thanedar was too drunk to read the letter we carried from the Chief Secretary. My camera was taken away by a Salwa Judum leader, and returned only months later. In 2007-8, the then SP, Rahul Sharma, fabricated photos of me with my arms around armed Maoist women and showed them to visiting journalists and others to try and discredit my independence. He later claimed, when challenged, that the photos were of one “Ms. Jeet’ and it was he who had verified the truth. In 2009, Ajay Dandekar (historian), JP Rao (anthropologist) and I narrowly escaped a mob of around 300 Salwa Judum leaders, police and SPOs, who, however, took away JP Rao’s mobile phones, a camera charger and vehicle registration documents from the parked jeep. The police refused to register our complaint and detained us for questioning for a few hours, even though we had got the consent of the District Collector and the Mirtur CRPF contingent to visit Vechhapal. In January 2010, a team of 15 activists from the National Alliance of People’s Movements and other organizations were pelted with stones, eggs and cowdung in Dantewada. The Salwa Judum lives and flourishes, under the new name of the Ma Danteswari Samanvay Samiti, and the more organized label of ‘SPOs’, encouraged by the cover of impunity granted by the centre and its operations. For anthropologists, our professional life is often difficult to separate from our personal – our research depends on developing deep friendships with the people we ‘study’. In the twenty years that I have been visiting Bastar off and on, I have acquired a range of acquaintances, friends and people who are like family members, whose concerns are my concerns. This does not in any way diminish one’s commitment to independence and objectivity. The relationship between anthropology and advocacy has long been a subject of debate within the discipline, and within India, people like NK Bose, S.C. Roy, AR Desai and many others have raised the question of the anthropologist/sociologist’s social commitment. I have myself come down on both sides of the divide, recognising that good research requires the kind of whole time dedication that advocacy takes away from. On the other hand, it is the generosity of people who are suffering, in sharing their time and pain with us, that enables us to raise new and relevant questions for research. If the government is serious about building ‘world class universities’ the first thing it needs to do is to ensure that police states do not get to ensure who does research and what research gets done. But above all, as Michael Harner said in 1966, when the American Anthropological Association was debating whether to pass a resolution against the war in Vietnam, ‘genocide is not in the professional interests of anthropology.’ From ravikant at sarai.net Sat Jan 16 11:53:55 2010 From: ravikant at sarai.net (ravikant) Date: Sat, 16 Jan 2010 11:53:55 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] [Fwd: The "Allah Controversy" in Malaysia Message-ID: <4B515B7B.8070003@sarai.net> With thanks to Prof. CM Naim for sharing this excellent article and apologies for cross-posting. Please follow this link to check original web references. ravikant http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?263813 The foundational creed for all Muslims is: "There is no god save Allah, and Muhammad is Allah's prophet"---with the Arabic word /Rasul/ indicating Muhammad's status. /Rasul/ literally translates as "someone who was sent," but in common usage in Arabic---and in Islamicate languages such as Urdu and Persian---it means a prophet or apostle. According to the Qur'an, Jesus too is a /Rasul/ of Allah's /Rasul/, as are in fact all the prophets of the Old Testament. However, in Islam, Jesus is not God's Son; though immaculately conceived, he is described only as the son of Maryam or Mary. A useful summation of what the Qur'an tells Muslims about Jesus is found in 4:156--8, where the Jews are chided---"[156] ... because they denied and spoke dreadful calumnies of Mary; [157] And for saying: 'We killed the Christ, Jesus, son of Mary, who was an apostle of God;' but they neither killed nor crucified him, though it so appeared to them. Those who disagree in the matter are only lost in doubt. They have no knowledge about it other than conjecture, for surely they did not kill him, [158] But God took him to Himself, and God is all-mighty and all-wise." (Ahmed Ali, /Al-Qur'an/, Princeton University Press, Princeton, 1984, pp. 93-4.) Christianity, obviously, is six centuries and few decades older than Islam, and every reader of the Qur'an knows that its earliest verses directly and repeatedly, though not exclusively, addressed the Christians of Mecca, reminding them Allah and His /Rasul/, Jesus, while pointing out their "errors" in belief about the latter. In other words, Allah was the Arabic word that the people of Mecca---Christians, Jews, and so-called Pagans---were quite familiar with and understood it to represent a singular Supreme Being in Arabic, their shared language. The word, no doubt, had an earlier history, but that is not of concern here. Of importance is the simple fact that a fairly large body of Arabic speaking Christians had been using the word "Allah" for at least a few centuries before the advent of Islam. And that for any Muslim to make a monopolistic claim on the word in the name of Islam would be an act of abysmal ignorance and absolute arrogance. To my limited knowledge, no Muslim, had ever made such a claim in the past. But these are bad times, reminding us of the words that Yeats made memorable some ninety years ago: ".../ everywhere // The ceremony of innocence is drowned;// The best lack all conviction, while the worst // Are full of passionate intensity./" And so we have the situation in Malaysia, where /some/ Muslims recently attacked and vandalized nine churches because they did not wish /some/ Malaysian Christians to use "Allah" to refer to their own God. I have above used the word "some" twice advisedly. According to an Associated Press report of January 9, "Only the Malay-language prayers for indigenous tribes people in the remote states of Sabah and Sarawak use 'Allah,' as they have for decades." And the Catholic weekly, /Herald/, uses the word only in its Bahasa Malaysia edition. It had been doing so since 1995, but it was not until 2006 that it was warned by the government to stop. And it is only some Malaysian Muslims who, individually or collectively, have been involved in the recent arson and vandalism. (The most recent being an attack on the offices of the lawyer for the Catholic Church.) The many reports in the/ New York Times/ barely hinted at that "some-ness." I had to go online and find some English language Malaysian blogs and newspapers to discover that while the problem was more extensive there was also greater dissent and resistance to the ban among Malaysian Muslims than was reported in the American press, and that any number of prominent academics and journalists had severely criticized the attacks, while bringing to light the issue's fuller history within the context of Malaysia's somewhat unique federal political system. Apparently, there was a local ban and a fatwa to that effect in 1986 in the state of Selangor, which was made into a state law in 1988, and eventually became established in March 2009 as a fully gazetted law in all the constituent states of Malaysia---though not without challenge and opposition from various religious and secular organizations. The ban, in fact, concerned four words, the other three being "Kaabah," "Solat," and "Baitullah." The enacted law prohibited Non-Muslims from using those four words with reference to any occasion or activity that was not Islamic. It may be recalled that not too long ago there was in Malaysia another brouhaha. A fatwa was issued and nationally confirmed making Yoga a "non-Islamic" practice that Malaysian Muslims were told not to engage in. Earlier there were other controversies---over beauty pageants and also whether it was right for Malaysian Muslims to greet their non-Muslim compatriots on the latter's religious occasions. I should note that the mufti of Selangor disapproved of the pageants and Yoga but allowed offering greetings to non-Muslims. Indonesia, incidentally, did not prohibit Yoga to its much larger Muslim majority population. The judicial review sought by the Catholic Church last year came to a conclusion recently. The court's verdict went in favor of the Church, allowing it to use the word "Allah" in its Malaysian language publications. It was only then that the churches were attacked, including one in the capital, Kuala Lumpur. The response of the Malaysian state so far has been quite satisfactory. It launched an investigation, arrested some alleged culprits, and provided just compensation to the victims. It has also tried to draw the world's attention to the peculiarities of its federal political system, and asked for more patience and understanding from the critics. At present, the government is making plans to appeal the verdict, and the court has issued a stay on its own order. (As far as I could discover, the verdict exclusively devoted itself to the word "Allah," and did not overturn the ban on the other three words---nor, it seems, had the Catholic Church asked differently.) What was certainly heartening for me was to discover the strength of Malaysia's public sphere through the reports, postings, and analyses available on the web in such journals as the /Malay Times/ and /Star/ and particularly at /thenutgraph.com /. I learned, for example, about the forum in Kuala Lumpur on January 11 that lasted for four hours and was attended by some 900 people, and where divergent views were peaceably expressed and argued over, with full participation from the audience. "'Allah' is a specific name, not a general name for God," said Dr Khalif Muammar, a fellow from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM)'s Institute of the Malay World and Civilisation. "The word 'Allah' has been Islamicised since God's revelation to Prophet Muhammad." Dr Mohd Farid Mohd Shahran, a Department of Usul al-Din and Comparative Religion lecturer from the International Islamic University Malaysia agreed. "The question is not whether non-Muslims /can/ use 'Allah'," he said. "The question is, is it appropriate and good for them to do so? 'Allah' has been accepted by Malay [Malaysians] and has an established meaning ... [It] has been used [by Muslims] since the time of the Prophet Muhammad...." Other speakers, however, disagreed and said there was no restriction in the Qur'an or Hadith on the use of "Allah" by non-Muslims. "There is nothing that states that the word 'Allah' is exclusive to Islam," said Dr Azwira Abdul Aziz, an Islamic lecturer from UKM's Faculty of Islamic Studies. "This issue has not even been debated in the Islamic world. It's almost as if it has been so clearly understood until it does not need to be mentioned." Azwira added that it was wrong to say that "Allah" should be exclusive to Islam in Malaysia just because it was accepted as the norm by Muslims.... "It is not the word 'Allah' that differentiates Muslims from non-Muslims," said Khalid Samad, PAS Member of Parliament. "It is the understanding of who Allah is and his traits." A participant also pointed out that when a distinguished Muslim translated the Bible into Malay 150 years ago he used "Allah" to mean "God." Similarly, it was enlightening for me to learn that in Malaysia it was up to the individual Ruler and religious bodies of each state to accept or reject any edict issued by the National Fatwa Council. (Read more: here ) One wishes that reports of such gatherings were also distributed by the /New York Times/ as the reports of the criminal incidents that occasioned them. In contrast, I found that Al-Jazeera on the web had more extensive and nuanced coverage of the issue, both in regular news reports and in the blogs of their correspondent, Teymoor Nabili. (See, for example, here ) I was however still intrigued by the original ban of 1986 that covered three more words besides "Allah," namely "Kaabah," i.e. the Ka'ba at Mecca, "Solat," i.e. Muslim obligatory prayers (in South Asia, more commonly called Namaz), and "Baitullah," lit. "God's House," i.e. a mosque. Surely, I asked, those three words were not likely to be used by any Catholic to refer to his religious institution or practice? A little more search and a report in the/ Malaysian Bar / concerning confiscation of imported books in January 2008 provided the answer. It mentioned in passing: "[The Deputy Minister] Johari said the ministry did not only target on (sic) Christian books in the operations." That was perhaps his way of acknowledging the fact that the main target of the original ban in 1986 was the Ahmadi Jama'at. Most likely in imitation of the draconian law put in place by Gen. Ziaul Haq in Pakistan only two years earlier, making it punishable for anyone to directly, or indirectly, pose himself as a Muslim, or call, or refer to, his faith as Islam, or preach or propagate his faith, invite others to accept his faith, "by words, either spoken or written, or by visible representations, or in any manner whatsoever outrag[ing] the religious feelings of Muslims." The bluster in the final phrase is almost desperate in its viciousness. As compared to Pakistan, or even India, the Ahmadis in Malaysia form a minuscule minority. They number "only 2,000 at the most" in a population of more than 28 million. They don't look different from Malay Malaysians, and their identity cards list Islam as their religion. In contrast, in Pakistan, they are listed as non-Muslim, cannot vote as Muslims, and in order to get a passport must sign a declaration that they consider their founder, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian, "an impostor /nabi/." (For more on Malaysian Ahmadis, see here ) I would love to be corrected but I do not recall much opposition in Pakistan's public sphere---either in 1974 or ten years later---to the draconian laws and the resultant persecution of the Ahmadis that was often fatal, except by a few brave people who were first at the English monthly /Herald/ and later started /Newsline/. The Urdu press, as I remember, was in fact vociferous in applauding the law, while remaining silent about its victims. And if any public meeting was organized by university teachers and public intellectuals in those years, it was certainly not reported in major newspapers. In any case, the persecution has continued. As recently as August 2009, there were reports of state supported vandalism at Ahmadi mosques, where the words "Allah" and "Muhammad" were erased or painted over under the supervision of the local police. (Watch: on Youtube ) . And only this month an elderly Ahmadi man was gunned down in Ferozewala after he had protested to the police about a big signboard set up at the main roundabout in the city that contained "slogans provoking people against the Ahmadis." (The sign was not removed at the time of the report.) But, I'm glad to report, things seem to be changing a bit even in Pakistan. After the incidents in August, an Urdu journalist and TV personality, Mobasher Lucman, conducted a couple of programs that expressed explicit condemnation of the deeds. (See here and here .) Though, to my knowledge, the program did not include any Ahmadi, it was still a big step forward. Similarly, the recent killing in Ferozewala received full and sustained coverage in at least one English language newspaper, the / Daily Times/, including an editorial titled "Protect Ahmadis " The Pandora's Box, so to say, was opened in Pakistan in 1974 by a self-proclaimed Socialist, Z. A Bhutto, when he had the country's parliament declare the Ahmadis to be a non-Muslim minority. It was the first concession made by the Pakistani state---more accurately, by a desperate and unprincipled politician---to the fanatically sectarian elements in the Sunni Muslim majority of Pakistan. It only encouraged the latter to become bolder and more expansive in their demands. The situation was subsequently made much worse by Gen Ziaul Haq, the original jihadist. The laws remain on the book and fanatics still succeed in manipulating the polity, but after 35 years at least a few voices of sanity and conviction are being raised and also heard. In Pakistan just as in Malaysia. And that is something to be grateful for. -- /C.M. Naim is Professor Emeritus, University of Chicago/ From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Sat Jan 16 20:04:05 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Sat, 16 Jan 2010 20:04:05 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Swaraj University's learning program Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Reva Dandage Are you concerned about global warming and climate change, loss of biodiversity, social injustice and exploitation created by huge companies, and the rapid disappearance of cultural diversity? Do you wish you could spend your time learning about your passion, using your hands, heart and head, getting real feedback from people who care about you, meeting like-minded and motivated youth with whom you could co-create new possibilities? Would you like to build healthy and resilient communities, try out your ideas and put them into action, find interesting groups who could support and energize you, and start your own ‘green’ business? If you answered YES to any of these questions, Swaraj University may be the right place for you. Swaraj University uses a self-design learning approach in which each learner is encouraged to explore their own learning styles, questions and passions without the institutional constraints that smother interest and joy, and breed mediocrity. We will use the close, supportive learner community as a base from which to engage with local, regional and global communities. At Swaraj you can explore and practically learn about: organic farming and stores, zero waste crafts, community media, self-healing techniques and products, cooking with indigenous local grains and healthy foods, eco-building and renewable energy, natural fabrics and fashions, beyond schooling, and more! This life changing program will make you a pro at: starting a local community-based enterprise of your dream and raising enough resources to help it thrive, working for leading social organizations in India, getting fellowships for launching social innovation ideas, and being an active part of larger social movements. If you want to know more, visit www.swarajuniversity.org, or email swarajuni at gmail.com, or call Reva Dandage at 09414155919. From navayana at gmail.com Mon Jan 18 09:45:53 2010 From: navayana at gmail.com (Navayana Publishing) Date: Mon, 18 Jan 2010 09:45:53 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] A Millions Suns at Jaipur Literature Festival Message-ID: *A Million Suns: Focus on Dalit Writing at Jaipur Literature Festival, 2010 * At this year’s Jaipur Literature Festival, as India commemorates 60 years of being a Republic on 26 January 2010, the focus is on Dalit writing. There shall be four sessions devoted to issues related to caste and Dalit writing. Despite the Constitution being piloted by Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, a Dalit and one of the architects of modern India, Dalits seem to hardly figure in sectors where there is no affirmative action. Consequently, beyond representation in jobs in the government sector (which too is begrudged to them) and in politics, they continue to be shunned in the realms of culture, literature and the arts. Dalits, who constitute 17 percent of the India’s 1.2 billion population, are subjected to everyday violence and brutalities. According to the National Crime Records Bureau, every hour two Dalits are assaulted, every day three Dalit women are raped, two Dalits are murdered, and two Dalit homes are torched. Navi Pillay, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in 2009: “Caste is the very negation of the human rights principles of equality and non-discrimination. It condemns individuals from birth, and their communities, to a life of exploitation, violence, social exclusion and segregation.” It is from such a context of hidden apartheid that Dalit literature emerges. The opening panel in the Dalit focus, Outcaste: The Search for Public Conscience, befittingly derives its title from Ambedkar’s anxiety over the lack of a public conscience in India when it comes to the issue of discrimination against and oppression of Dalits. In four sessions spread over five days, Dalit writers from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Delhi and Maharashtra will share platforms with nondalits who have worked on the caste question to debate issues related to identity, literature and representation. P. Sivakami, Om Prakash Valmiki, Kancha Ilaiah, Ajay Navaria, Desraj Kali, Iqbal Udasi and Laxman Gaikwad shall be the key speakers/ performers. Christophe Jaffrelot, Nirupama Dutt, S.S. Nirupam and S. Anand shall play the role of interlocutors during these sessions. The Dalit Focus at JLF is being coordinated by S. Anand of Navayana Publishing and Namita Gokhale, founder-director of Jaipur Literature Festival. For interviews with the writers related to the Dalit sessions and further information on the Dalit focus at JLF 2010, please contact anand at navayana.org and on +91-9971433117 or namita.jlf at gmail.com. A description of the sessions below is followed by short biographical sketches of the writers. 22 Jan 2010. 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. Durbar Hall. Outcaste: The Search for Public Conscience Om Prakash Valmiki, Kancha Ilaiah, P. Sivakami and S. Anand In a speech in 1952, Ambedkar says: “Public conscience means conscience that becomes agitated at every wrong, no matter who is the sufferer, and it means that everybody, whether he suffers that particular wrong or not, is prepared to join him in order to get him relieved... [In India] there is South Africa everywhere in the villages and yet I have very seldom found anybody belonging to the upper castes taking up the cause of the Scheduled Castes and fighting. Why? Because there is no public conscience.” This agenda-setting panel seeks to use Ambedkar's words as a starting point to examine the “absence of public conscience”, especially among the Hindus. 23 Jan 2010. 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. Baithak. Ab Aur Nahin: An End to Suffering Ajay Navaria and Om Prakash Valmiki in conversation with S.S. Nirupam Introduction by Christophe Jaffrelot This session will have readings in Hindi by Omprakash Valmiki and Ajay Navaria, with English translations. Introduced by Christophe Jaffrelot. Moderated by S.S. Nirupam. 24 Jan 2010. 2.30pm – 3.30 p.m. Baithak. The Grip of Change P. Sivakami, Laxman Gaikwad and S. Anand on caste, patriarchy and literary liberation. When part of a literary movement that seeks to assert the humanity of the marginalized, what does it mean to be a woman, to be a ‘criminal tribe’—to be on the peripheries of the margin? Sivakami whose first novel (The Grip of Change) offers an indictment of dalit patriarchy, and Gaikwad who lays bare the anguish of being despised by the despised (Uchalya) explore the issue. Anand, anchoring the discussion, shall speak on marginality and oppression in brahmanical writings. 25 Jan 2010. 2.30 p.m. to 3.30 p.m. Baithak. A Million Suns: A Celebration of Punjabi Dalit Literature Desraj Kali, Iqbal Udasi, Nirupama Dutt This session is presented by Nirupama Dutt, who will also read from the works of Lal Singh Dil. Iqbal Udasi will sing the songs of her late father, revolutionary Punjabi poet, Sant Ram Udasi. Des Raj Kali will read from his work and discuss the provocation for his art. Speakers Ajay Navaria Ajay Navaria, 37, is the author of a collection of short stories (Patkatha aur anya Kahaniyan, 2006) and the novel (Udhar Ke Log, 2008). Navaria has been involved with the premier literary journal Hans as a guest editor for special issues. He was bestowed with the Sahitiyik Kriti Award in 2008 by the Hindi Academy, Delhi. Navaria teaches ‘Hindu Ethics’ at Jamia Milia Islamia University, Delhi. Unlike the first generation of Dalit writers who were preoccupied with autobiography as a form, Navaria has expanded the boundaries of dalit writing with his explorations of issues of identity and sexuality, in the process creating “casteless characters”. As a piece on him in Tehelka noted: “Navaria is one of the first dalit writers to write without any traces of nostalgia for the village left behind.” A collection of his short stories translated into English by Laura Brueck is due from Navayana by mid-2011. Christophe Jaffrelot Christophe Jaffrelot has been Director of CERI (Centre d’Etudes et de Recherches Internationales) at Sciences Po (Paris) between 2000 and 2008. He is Research Director at the CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique) and teaches South Asian politics and history at Sciences Po. His most significant publications are The Hindu Nationalist Movement and Indian Politics, 1925 to the 1990s (Penguin India, 1996 and 1999), India’s Silent Revolution: The Rise of the Low Castes in North India (Permanent Black, 2003) and Dr Ambedkar and Untouchability: Analysing and Fighting Caste (Columbia University Press, 2005). His latest book (an edited collection) is the Rise of the Plebeians?: The Changing Face of the Indian Legislative Assemblies (Routledge, 2009). Desraj Kali Desraj Kali (b.1971) lives in Jalandhar. His short stories include Chanan Di Leek, Kath-Kali, Phaqiri and Chup Kitey (under publication). Novels by Desraj include Parneshwari, Antheen, Paratham Pauran, Shanti Para amongst others. Gadari Shahid Banta Singh Sanghwal, Gadari Bhai Randhir Singh are a few of the history books authored by him. He was a researcher for the documentary film Kite Mil Ve Mahi and has edited a magazine on Dalit issues called Pancham. He has also published many research papers on the Ghadar Movement, and the literature and culture of Punjab and Dalit issues. Iqbal Udasi Iqbal Udasi is a poet of Punjabi and an activist. Known for soulfully singing the verses of her late father, Sant Ram Udasi, the famous Left-wing Dalit poet, she works as a headmistress of a village school in Punjab. Kancha Ilaiah At the peak of the hindutva movement, Kancha Ilaiah wrote his pathbreaking bestselling work, Why I Am Not A Hindu: A Sudra Critique of Hindutva Philosophy, Culture and Political Economy (Calcutta: Samya, 1996). His latest book is equally provocatively entitled Post-Hindu India: A Discourse in Dalit-Bahujan, Socio-Spiritual and Scientific Revolution (Sage, 2009). This critique of Brahmanism and the caste system in India that anticipates the death of Hinduism has sold more than 6,000 copies within three months of publication. Ilaiah, who teaches Political Science at Osmania University in Hyderabad, is also the author of the bestselling children’s book Turning the Pot, Tilling the Land: Dignity of Labour in Our Times (New Delhi, Navayana: 2007). According to Unicef-India's country director: “It's a hugely important book. Every Indian child should read it.” This book has been translated into Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and Malayalam. His other books include God as Political Philosopher: Buddha's Challenge to Brahminism (Calcutta: Samya, 2001) and Buffalo Nationalism: A Critique of Spiritual Fascism (Calcutta: Samya, 2004). Laxman Gaikwad “No native place. No birth-date. No house or farm. No caste, either. That is how I was born.” Laxman Gaikwad’s autobiographical novel Uchalaya (1987) begins thus. It was translated into English and published by the Sahitya Akademi in 1998 as Uchalaya – The Branded. Gaikwad has worked among the Denotified and Nomadic Tribes of Maharashtra from a young age. Uchalya is also the name of a tribe that was notified as ‘criminal’ under the provisions of the Criminal Tribes Act first passed in 1871 and subsequently amended from time to time. Uchalaya was awarded the Maharastra Gourav Puraskar. He has written a number of books thereafter and was awarded the Best Writer Award by the Government of Maharastra in 2005. He continues his work with the displaced tribes and has played a leading role in implementing a Commission for All India Denotified, Nomadic and Semi Nomadic Tribes by Government Of India in 2006. Nirupama Dutt Nirupama Dutt is a poet, literary/art critic and journalist. She worked with leading newspapers and journals. Nirupama’s first anthology of poems Ik Nadi Sanwali Jahi (A Stream Somewhat Dark) won a Punjabi Akademi award. She has edited several fiction and poetry anthologies and translated into English major writers of Punjabi and Hindi. She has edited anthologies of Pakistani short stories in English called Half the Sky and Children of the Night. She has also edited a poetry anthology of SAARC writers called Our Voices. She has published a book of her Punjabi poems in English translation called The Black Woman. Penguin India is bringing out this year an anthology of Punjabi short stories translated by her into English and called Stories of the Soil. She has also completed a book on the famous Dalit poet from Punjab, Lal Singh Dil. She is presently working on a book on Punjab and a novel. Omprakash Valmiki Omprakash Valmiki is a leading Hindi writer and author of the celebrated autobiography Joothan (1997) which was translated into English by Arun Prabha Mukherjee as Joothan: A Dalit’s Life (Samya, 2003). It won New India Foundation Best Book Award 2004. Valmiki has also published three collections of poetry Sadiyon Ka Santaap (Centuries-old Anguish, 1989) Bas! Bhut Ho Chuka (Stop It! That’s Enough, 1997), and Ab Aur Nahin (Not Any More, 2009); and two collection of short stories, Salaam (Obeisance, 2000) and Ghuspethiye (Intruders, 2004). He is also the author of Dalit Saahity Ka Saundaryshaastra (The Aesthetics of Dalit Literature, 2001), and a history of the Valmiki community, Safai Devata (God of Cleanliness, 2009). P. Sivakami In 1989, P. Sivakami became the first Tamil dalit woman to write a novel—Pazhaiyana Kazhidalum. A literary and commercial success, the novel created a stir by taking on patriarchy in the dalit movement. Translated by the author, it was published in English as The Grip of Change (Orient Longman, 2006), and The Hindu review said—“Sivakami’s translation makes you forget it was written originally in Tamil.” Sivakami has written four novels, numerous short stories and poems. She is founder-editor of the literary magazine Pudiya Kodangi. The English translation of her acclaimed second novel Anandayi is being published by Penguin in 2010. Sivakami was a secretary-ranked bureaucrat in Tamil Nadu till 2008, when she quit the administrative service, joined the Bahujan Samaj Party, contested the Lok Sabha poll from Kanyakumari and lost. In December 2009, she founded her own political party, Samuga Samathuva Padai (Forum for Social Equality). S.S. Nirupam Satyanand Singh Nirupam, Hindi Editor, Penguin-Yatra Series, holds an M.Phil. in Hindi Literature from Delhi University. He joined Penguin-Yatra in March 2009 and is responsible for the successful launch of important titles like –Pushpraj's Nandigram Dairy, Jarnail Singh's Kab Kategi Chaurasi, Chitra Mudgal’s Gend and Raji Seth’s Martha ka Desh. He also works closely with popular Hindi bloggers for promoting Hindi content online. Namita Gokhale Namita Gokhale is a writer and publisher. Her books include Paro: Dreams Of Passion, Gods Graves And Grandmother, A Himalayan Love Story, Mountain Echoes, The Book of Shadows, The Book Of Shiva and Shakuntala: The Play of Memory. Gokhale’s retelling of the Mahabharata for young readers, The Puffin Mahabharata, was launched in January 2009. In Search of Sita, an anthology of essays co-edited with Malashri Lal, was published in October 2009. Namita Gokhale is a director of Yatra Books, which co-publishes with Penguin India in English, Hindi, Marathi and Urdu. Besides being a co-director of the DSC Jaipur Literature Festival, Namita Gokhale conceptualized the International Festival of Indian Literature, Neemrana 2002, and the Africa-Asia Literary Conference, Neemrana 2006. S. Anand Anand is the co-founder of Navayana, an independent imprint that focuses on issues of caste inequalities. Previously a journalist, Anand’s social entrepreneurship and deft maneuvering within the field of publishing to create a commercially viable space for independent voices won him the London Book Fair-British Council International Young Publisher of the Year award in 2007. He is a contributing editor to Himal Southasian. Also see http://jaipurliteraturefestival.org/ -- www.navayana.org Navayana 155, Second Floor Shahpur Jat New Delhi 110049 Landline: +91-11-26494795 Mobile: +91-9971433117 From kaksanjay at gmail.com Mon Jan 18 12:44:44 2010 From: kaksanjay at gmail.com (Sanjay Kak) Date: Mon, 18 Jan 2010 12:44:44 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Declaration of Indies: Just Sell It Yourself! Message-ID: <5c5369881001172314j175f895fhf25be8c69e59b43e@mail.gmail.com> Declaration of Indies: Just Sell It Yourself! By MANOHLA DARGIS http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/17/movies/17dargis.html?th&emc=th LAST November inside a conference room at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, a film consultant named Peter Broderick was doing his best to foment a revolution. Mr. Broderick, who helps filmmakers find their way into the marketplace, was spreading the word on an Internet-era approach to releasing movies that he believes empowers filmmakers without impoverishing them economically or emotionally. Mr. Broderick divides distribution into the Old World and New, infusing his PowerPoint presentation with insurgent rhetoric. He has written a “declaration of independence” for filmmakers that — as he did that afternoon — he reads while wearing a tricorn hat. In the Old World of distribution, filmmakers hand over all the rights to their work, ceding control to companies that might soon lose interest in their new purchase for various reasons, including a weak opening weekend. (“After the first show,” Mr. Broderick said, repeating an Old World maxim, “we know.”) In the New World, filmmakers maintain full control over their work from beginning to end: they hold on to their rights and, as important, find people who are interested in their projects and can become patrons, even mentors. The Old World has ticket buyers. The New World has ticket buyers who are also Facebook friends. The Old World has commercials, newspapers ads and the mass audience. The New World has social media, YouTube, iTunes and niche audiences. “Newspaper ads,” Mr. Broderick said, “are mostly a waste of money.” The 200 filmmakers inside the conference room laughed, soaking up Mr. Broderick’s pitch as if their careers depended upon it, which perhaps they do. Independent filmmaking has never been for the faint of heart. But the consensus is that the past few years have been especially brutal. Sales have slowed, deal prices have dropped, and most of the major studios have retreated from the independent scene, closing or scaling back divisions like Warner Independent Pictures and Paramount Vantage, which released the kinds of movies that win critical hearts and awards. And good films are going unsold. Given the changes and downsizing, these might seem like worrisome times for movie lovers as well. After all, if these companies disappear, how do we find the next great American independent filmmaker, the new Jim Jarmusch, Wes Anderson 2.0? For consultants like Mr. Broderick and filmmakers like Jon Reiss (the documentary “Bomb It”) the answer lies in self-distribution, in filmmakers doing it themselves or, more accurately, doing it themselves with a little or a lot of help from other people, including consultants like Mr. Broderick and Richard Abramowitz. Last year Mr. Abramowitz, a film-industry veteran who runs an outfit in Armonk, N.Y., called Abramorama with one full-time employee (him), helped shepherd Sacha Gervasi’s documentary “Anvil! The Story of Anvil,” about a 1970s metal band and its rebirth, into a success, with almost $700,000 at the North American box office. Consultants guide filmmakers on every angle of distribution. They can simply offer advice, but can also develop a marketing strategy, book theaters and collect the money. If the D.I.Y. drumbeat has grown louder in recent years, it’s not only because the major studios have backed away from the independent sector. That’s a factor, but there are other issues involved, among them that the economic barriers to filmmaking have never been lower. Martin Scorsese once said that John Cassavetes’s first feature, “Shadows,” shot in the late 1950s with a 16-millimeter camera, proved to filmmakers that there were “no more excuses,” adding, “If he could do it, so could we!” Still, even in the glory years of the new American cinema movement, from the late 1960s to the mid-1970s, when the major studios appeared more open to original voices, Cassavetes had to self-distribute his 1974 masterpiece “A Woman Under the Influence,” which he did successfully, pulling in $6 million domestically. Inexpensive digital cameras and editing software have lowered the barrier for filmmakers even further. Yet even as the means of production have entered into more hands, companies — large and small — continue to dominate distribution. Hollywood’s historical hold on resources and the terms of the conversation have made it difficult for an authentic alternative system to take root in America. The festival circuit has emerged as a de facto distribution stream for many filmmakers, yet the ad hoc world of festivals is not a substitute for real distribution. And then there’s the simple fact that there are independent filmmakers who do not fit inside the Hollywood (and Hollywood-style) distribution model and do not want to. For some stubborn independents D.I.Y. distribution has at times been either the best or only option. In 1992, the year before Disney bought Miramax Films, thereby initiating the indie gold rush, Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky became a model for true independence when they distributed their own documentary “Brother’s Keeper” (1992) to substantial critical and commercial success. In the years since, those entering self-distribution have included emerging talent like Andrew Bujalski (who initially sold DVDs of his 2005 film “Mutual Appreciation” online) and established filmmakers like David Lynch (who released his 2006 movie “Inland Empire” in theaters himself). As self-distributed movies have found levels of critical or commercial success or even both, others have followed, including “The Talent Given Us,” “Note by Note: The Making of Steinway L1037,” “Ballast,” “Helvetica” and “Good Dick.” Some self-distributed titles find their audiences with help from consultants, while others make their way into the marketplace with the help of consultants and companies that take a fee, rather than a percentage of the profits and all the distribution rights. Innovative strategies abound. Mr. Broderick is an advocate of what he calls hybrid distribution, which, as he has put it, “combines direct sales by filmmakers with distribution by third parties.” Thus filmmakers hold on to their sales rights and sell the DVD retail rights to one buyer and the video-on-demand rights to another and so on — rather than handing them all over to one distributor, as has been traditional. This allows filmmakers to reach audiences directly while controlling their own work and destinies, at least in theory. The new D.I.Y. world is open-source in vibe and often execution. Participants refer to one another in conversation and on their Web sites and blogs, pushing other people’s ideas and projects. (On his Web site, peterbroderick.com, Mr. Broderick even posts discount codes for other people’s books.) But these new-era distribution participants are not engaging in blog-rolling. By sharing information and building on one another’s ideas, they are in effect creating a virtual infrastructure. This infrastructure doesn’t compete with Hollywood; this isn’t about vying with products released by multinational corporations. It is instead about the creation and sustenance of a viable, artist-based alternative — one that, at this stage, looks markedly different from what has often been passed off as independent cinema over the past 20 years. Although D.I.Y. has become shorthand for this new movement, a more complex idea of the filmmaker-audience dynamic is emerging (Mr. Reiss calls it “a sea change”), partly as a response to the shifts in the industry, though also in reaction to the changes in the audience or more specifically audiences. Although some viewers still enjoy the ritual of going out to see movies, others don’t want to experience their entertainment in a theater, preferring to immerse themselves in a media-saturated world across a variety of platforms. “My son,” Mr. Reiss said, speaking by phone from Los Angeles, “consumes media on his computer and his iPod, and he will occasionally go out to a movie theater.” He tries to encourage his son, who’s 13, to go to the movies, but finds it tough. “He would rather interact with media on his computer than anywhere else.” One of the buzzy ideas in D.I.Y. is transmedia, a word borrowed from academia, in which stories — think of the “Star Wars” and “Matrix” franchises — unfold across different platforms. “Star Wars” helped expand the very idea of a movie, because it involved a constellation of movie-related products, from videogames to action figures, all of which become part of the understanding and experience of the original, originating work. This isn’t just about slapping a movie logo on a lunchbox or a screensaver: it’s about creating an entertainment gestalt. As the theorist Henry Jenkins writes, “Reading across the media sustains a depth of experience that motivates more consumption.” In other words, you can sell one ticket to a moviegoer or enlist fans into media feedback loops that they in turn help create and sustain. It might seem counterintuitive that D.I.Y. independents are borrowing a page from the George Lucas playbook. But only if you forget that Mr. Lucas is the most successful independent filmmaker in history. 20th Century Fox distributed the first “Star Wars,” yet Mr. Lucas kept the sequel and merchandising rights. “If I make money,” he said when the movie was released, “it will be from the toys.” The new generation of D.I.Y. filmmakers might not be pushing toys on their Web sites (though I’d like to see an Andrew Bujalski action figure), but they do peddle DVDs, posters, CDs, books and — much as Spike Lee did before them — are getting hip to selling themselves alongside their art. The downside to this new D.I.Y. world is that filmmakers, who already tend to expend tremendous time and effort raising money, might end up spending more hours hawking their wares than creating new work. “I struggle with this all the time,” Mr. Reiss said. But artists who want to reach an audience are rarely if ever really free of the marketplace, and filmmakers working in the commercial arena tend to be even less so. For Mr. Reiss and other do-it-yourselfers, the most important thing is to reach their audiences, any which way, niche by niche, pixel by pixel, in theaters or online. “This is the other voice of film,” Mr. Reiss said with urgency, “and if this dies, all we’re left with is the monopoly.” » A version of this article appeared in print on January 17, 2010, on page AR1 of the New York edition. From kauladityaraj at gmail.com Mon Jan 18 13:07:22 2010 From: kauladityaraj at gmail.com (Aditya Raj Kaul) Date: Mon, 18 Jan 2010 13:07:22 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] India-Pakistan Road Map to Peace: Insult to Indian Patriots by Kamal Hak In-Reply-To: <6353c691001172325s2a2d2148gd0caa35040af6ba0@mail.gmail.com> References: <6353c691001172325s2a2d2148gd0caa35040af6ba0@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <6353c691001172337l1f0eca92t73750603ebb81be3@mail.gmail.com> *India-Pakistan Road Map to Peace: Insult to Indian Patriots * * Kamal Hak* The 150-odd gathering in the India International Centre Auditorium was oblivious of the irony of the situation. While Yaseen Malik, self-proclaimed father of religious terrorism in Kashmir, was threatening the nation with a return to arms, a couple of highly agitated Kashmiri Pandits outside were inhumanly dragged into police custody. Their fault? They were trying to be mirrors to reflect the failure of Indian civil society towards their internal displacement in the land. In my heart of hearts, I was glad Rajinder Sachar provided us an opportunity to give vent to our pent-up frustrations. Listening to Sachar’s apologetic introduction on ‘Indian treachery in annexing Kashmir’ (yes, it’s true, he said that), I found reasons for continuing my struggle for a separate homeland in Kashmir. Yaseen Malik was not destined to have it easy that day. This group of young displaced Kashmiri Hindu boys and girls were determined to make the event memorable for him. He looked ruffled. As somebody pointed out, no man would like to be damned as a ‘ra---t’ in the presence of his wife. Later, his repeated attempts to explain his position clearly betrayed his discomfort and invited more protests. I resisted a strong temptation to be adventurous. Perhaps the spectacle of young boys and girls, many of whom might not have set foot in the lost homeland even once, taking over the baton of our struggle had a calming effect on my nerves. I sat down patiently to listen to the trash being blared out from the dais. An elderly lady sitting to my right with a snobbish expression on her wrinkled but botoxed face declared the protestors ‘oxymorons’. I was amused and felt sorry for her; later I discovered she was part of the organizing team. Yaseen was boring. His articulation is more self-aggrandizement, distortion of facts and constructed ideology. He laid claim to five thousand years of Kashmir history and dumped Kashmiri Pandits as only a small class of society. A small section of the audience with preconceived notions nodded in approval. He proceeded to insult displaced Kashmiri Pandits by accusing the protestors of being ‘paid whipping boys of Indian intelligence agencies’. This evoked another strong reaction from the protestors. This prompted me to look towards the young boys and girls shouting at the top of their voices. Sudden realization dawned… The parents of most of the youngsters expressing anger at the VIP treatment being accorded to the person responsible for rendering them refugees in their own country are personally known to me. Yaseen Malik dubbed them members of an affluent section of Kashmiri Pandits. This might be an exaggeration. That these youngsters belong to families that have done well during the last twenty years can’t be denied. But was it so always? Many of these young persons were either not born or were mere toddlers when the Malik-led JKLF unleashed a campaign of terror against their families. The process of selective killings of Pandits reached its climax with a mass frenzy created through an eruption via thousands of mosques dotting the Kashmir landscape during the night of 19 January 1990. And while the boorish section of the audience were enjoying their cushy lives in India and abroad, the parents of these young persons were abandoning their homes and ancestral homeland in the stealth of dark winter nights. I still shudder at the memory of those initial years when most of us struggled to provide some semblance of human existence to our children and parents. I wish Yaseen Malik had seen us living six to eight persons in 8ft by 8ft rooms without basic amenities. Today Kashmiri leaders and their cohorts in India lament the tragedy of the families who fell to the bullets of militants or security forces. I wish they were there with us when most of our parents and grandparents died a thousand deaths before succumbing to heat-strokes, mosquito bites, stress-related diseases, unnatural accidents and unfulfilled longing for their lost homes. At times I pity Yaseen Malik’s intellect and laugh at his idiotic articulation. For him, Kashmiri Pandits living in Delhi need not be taken seriously as they drive their own cars and live in air-conditioned homes. The oxymoron in him forgets Kashmiri Pandits, unlike his own community, have traditionally valued only two things – their own roof over their heads and their children’s education. Malik, though aware of this fact, doesn’t allow his politics to admit it. I have a strong conviction that Malik and his ilk can’t reconcile with the survival and prosperity of displaced Pandits. It would have mightily pleased them to see Pandits begging on the roads of the Indian plains. The self-declared intellectuals sitting in the auditorium and frowning at the protestors would have done well to understand the sociology of the Kashmiri Pandit community. They would have understood how even under extremely hostile circumstances, the Pandits not only survived, but most even prospered. I wish they knew *we are because we believe*. We may not eat one meal, but we will not deprive our children the best education. Our success is due to this inherent quality. The Maliks and Sachars of this world have no right to deny us the claim on our homeland because we came to protest in our own cars. Unlike those whose millions have accrued from liberal contributions through Indian peace interlocutors, Pakistani masters, and other dubious sources, Kashmiri Pandits have shed their own blood and sweat for their little accumulations. While Yaseen shows his discomfort at the prosperity of Pandits, his sympathetic audience should have known that displaced Kashmiri Pandits collectively pay enough Income Tax to feed all the poor families in the Valley. Yaseen Malik finished his speech with threats of returning to militancy and no achievable solutions to offer. He was clearly shaken by the protestors accusing him of the alleged rape and murder of a Kashmiri Pandit girl. Meanwhile, a young person in a black jacket came up to me and asked: - “Sir, don’t you think it is unfair to brand him as ra---t?” - “Why?” I counter question. - “Because you can’t prove it,” he replied, almost innocently. I decided he deserved no further attention. The next speaker went through his speech unhindered and it was time for summing up. Under fierce pressure of the protesting youths, Rajinder Sachar allowed a few interventions. Further shocks awaited us. To an observation from a Kashmiri Hindu, Sachar brazenly declared that the nation should be grateful to those who centuries ago forced the Kashmiri Pandits out of Kashmir. He extended a sadistic logic behind his assertion, “we would have otherwise been deprived of persons like Nehru.” There was more commotion and still more before the session ended. We came out of the auditorium and decided we could not partake lunch with the people who paid no cognizance to our geo-political aspirations. We also did not want to give company to the biggest terrorist in the country. We began dispersing. Some of us had a task at hand. We needed to seek the release of friends detained earlier for objecting to the presence of a staunch enemy of the nation in the national capital. For me the day was not finished. A person calling himself Engineer Rashid, a sitting Kashmir MLA, walked up to me aggressively and started a discussion. - “Are you Pandits aware that during the last two decades more than 80,000 Muslims have lost their lives in Kashmir?” His tone was arrogant. I may not agree with the figures, but I can’t deny the immense human tragedy that has befallen Kashmir. But I was in no mood to prolong the discussion. Though the country may have failed to utilize Kashmiri Pandits in understanding the psyche of Kashmiri Muslims, given an opportunity no one can score in a dispassionate argument with them. - “Why are you lamenting the death of 80,000 Muslims?” I asked Engineer Rashid. - “These people died for a cause as they wanted to be part of Pakistan. And why should thousands of Pandits have died? They had no cause to die for.” Probably Rashid understood where this discussion could lead; he walked away sheepishly. As I was walking towards my car, I was suddenly stopped in my tracks by the young man in the black jacket. - “Sir, you didn’t answer my question. How can you prove Yaseen Malik r---d and k----d that girl?” Impressed by his persistence, I decided to give him some hard-earned wisdom. On enquiry, he revealed his connections with some civil liberties group (but naturally). - “Have you ever heard of Bitta Karate?” - “No sir.” - “Haven’t the apologists told you about him?” He looked awkward at his ignorance. - “Please ask your promoters about him and if they don’t tell you then call me to know your answers.” He stared at me bewildered as I walked away. [*Bitta Karate is a Kashmiri terrorist who confessed – to a journalist on video – to killing around 40 Kashmiri Pandits. He was arrested for his crimes and released without conviction for want of witnesses*] *The writer is a displaced Kashmiri Pandit living in Delhi and a senior Panun Kashmir activist* From rakesh.rnbdj at gmail.com Mon Jan 18 14:46:47 2010 From: rakesh.rnbdj at gmail.com (Rakesh Iyer) Date: Mon, 18 Jan 2010 14:46:47 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] India-Pakistan Road Map to Peace: Insult to Indian Patriots by Kamal Hak In-Reply-To: <6353c691001172337l1f0eca92t73750603ebb81be3@mail.gmail.com> References: <6353c691001172325s2a2d2148gd0caa35040af6ba0@mail.gmail.com> <6353c691001172337l1f0eca92t73750603ebb81be3@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: Ok. Having read enough of Kashmir politics enough, it now seems to me that a section (or probably the whole) of Kashmiri Pandits don't trust Kashmiri Muslims who ask/fight for independence, and the vice-versa could well be the case as well. Now India and Pakistan may still manage to get peace (uneasy truce) amongst themselves, but how is this trust going to be brought back? This is food for thought among those who believe Kashmir can attain peace. Rakesh From subasrik at yahoo.com Mon Jan 18 15:41:52 2010 From: subasrik at yahoo.com (Subasri Krishnan) Date: Mon, 18 Jan 2010 02:11:52 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] Person required In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <562821.26380.qm@web57611.mail.re1.yahoo.com> 'YHi, Looking for someone to work in a Media Lab that will eventually be integrated into a University on Urban Practice. The person needs to have shooting and editing skills (Final Cut Pro/Adobe Premier Pro), and a willingness to ideate on different projects that will be undertaken. The position will be based in Delhi, and the salary will be competitive. We are looking for someone who has atleast a year of work experience. Our website address is www.iihs.co.in If interested please send your resume to - skrishnan at iihs.ac.in CheersSubasris://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Mon Jan 18 17:23:09 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (nmf2010) Date: Mon, 18 Jan 2010 12:53:09 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?Week_04_-_NewMediaFest=272010?= Message-ID: <20100118125309.9D5CA1C4.C60BCD9@192.168.0.2> NewMediaFest'2010 ____________________________ Week 04 - 18-24 January 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=328 ____________________________ 1. Feature of the week 04 Cinematheque - streaming media - a showcase in 5 parts: --> Flash & Thunder - Flash as a tool and medium for artistic creations Part 1 (Jan-Feb' 2010) is featuring : Aaron Oldenbourg (USA, Myriam Thyes (Switzerland), Jason Freeman (USA), Bill Domonklos (USA), Renaud Vercey (France) http://cinema.nmartproject.net/cinema_d/index.html 2.Feature of the week 03 Celebrate! - netart features 2010 10 Years - JavaMuseum - Forum for Internet Technology in Contemporary Art the netart features are released in form of the daily journal - 'Celebrate!' - http://2010.javamuseum.org - this week --> Monday: Jose Vieira (PT) Tuesday: Michael Cousin (UK) Wednesday: Adam Trowbridge (USA) Thursday: xname (Italy) Friday: Ubermorgen.com Saturday: Marcello Mercado (Argentina) Sunday: Aranda Yto (Chile) 3. JIP - JavaMuseum Interview Project - a series of interviews _ http://jip.javamuseum.org/jipblog/?p=111 -->this week: : Monday: Natalie Perrin (F) Tuesday: Michael Szpakowski (UK) Wednesday: Sachiko Hayashi (SWE/Japan) Thursday: Philippe Langlois (F) Friday: Ubermorgen.com Saturday: Randy Adams aka runran Sunday: JR Carpenter (Canada) 4. VideoChannel Cologne - French Video Art - features http://vad.nmartproject.net/?page_id=1304 --> this week: Monday: Anthony Rousseau (F) Tuesday: Jean-Gabriel Periot (F) Wednesday: Tom de Pekin (F) 5. VideoChannel - Found Footage Film Collection http://vad.nmartproject.net/?page_id=1275 --> this week: Monday: :Larry Caveney (USA) Tuesday: Juan David Gonzalez Monroy (Colombia) Wednesday: Lobo Pasolini (Brazil) Thursday: Toban Nicols (USA) Friday: Philip Widmann (Germany) Saturday: Ellen Lake (USA) Sunday: Rajorshi Ghosh (USA) 6. CologneOFF V - features for one day - http://vad.nmartproject.net/?page_id=1272 -->this week: Monday: Iona Pelovska (Canada) Tuesday: Jonas Ungar (Germany) Wednesday: Luana Visciglia (Italy) Thursday: Arthur Tuoto (Brazil) Friday: My name is Scot (Canada) Saturday: Jill Sigman (USA) Sunday: Johanna Reich (Germany) ____________________________________ January 2010 - features of the month http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=224 1. VideoChannel Cologne --> French Video Art (2010) 2. JavaMuseum --> 1st of Java - 1st global competition (2001) 3. SoundLAB - Soundart from Chile (2006) - curated by Rainer Krause ____________________________________ From indersalim at gmail.com Tue Jan 19 00:18:38 2010 From: indersalim at gmail.com (Inder Salim) Date: Tue, 19 Jan 2010 00:18:38 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] on images and performance art Message-ID: <47e122a71001181048l2212743cvd879af4aa6a5d9ef@mail.gmail.com> By helge meyer LECTURE Boston With the following lecture, I am going to introduce and establish a definition for images and imaginaries, that are specific for the appearance of pictures in the field and context of the here portrayed art form Performance Art. First, I am going to research and explain the particular vocabulary of imagery in a very detailed form, to then secondly compile and develop, a custom-made, specific "Bildbegriff", the definition of image, being applicable to all "living tableaux" within the field of Performance Art. An additional research aspect will be dedicated to the circumstanstional analysis of a likewise specific form of the Performance Art: The impicturing of pain in any performative actions. Therefore it is indispensable, to state and clear some general issues about "pain" in advance: a short excurse and introduction of the definition of pain: What is pain? What are its physiologic and psychological aspects? In the last part of my lecture, I am going to portrait and introduce various artist, that work in a very extraordinary and singular, personal way in the special context of what I would like to define as: "Pain - the Image". (FOLIE 1 BILDER= ZWEIFEL ) Images are everywhere. The origin of all images can be found in magical practices; they served since the beginning of mankind and still serve a special form of communication. They are an incredibly important tool for all "Weltaneignung" which means to "acculturate the world": By creating images, something is cultured, handled and (in the best case) mastered. During the last centuries, images have multiplied and have been vastly multiplicated: TV transformed it into a producer of a sheer uncontrollable flood of images, the big screens and billboards to spread images and imaginaries are integrated into any metropolitan big city-scape. Mobile phones send photos and short-videos in real-time everywhere. All fields and areas of any (daily) life are feed with (life) picture streams and are represented in uncountable images. The force and power of this thousands of illusions created by those pictures is hardly questioned anymore by the perceptionist, neither is the topic thematized. But altogether, one can state, that all the images produce way more the doubt of any existence of what they seem to show. (BILD: JURASSIC PARK) There seem to be no limits of any means of presentability at all in Hollywood's "Cinematopique Factories" left. The most successful film productions of the last years consist to a major degree of computer generated scenes or even virtual protagonists:(for example "Jurassic Park" by Steven Spielberg, the "Matrix-Series" - films by the Warchowski Brothers or the "Lord of the Rings" - Trilogy by Peter Jackson, starring the virtual character "Gollum"). (BILD: GOLLUM) Doubts concerning the "realness", truth and authenticity of pictures of the news are a major topic in the meantime and are top-media-issue (for example referring to the capture of Sadam Hussein in post-war Iraq.) After the "incidents" of 9/11 in the year 2001 countless theories were published (special on internet platforms) that deal with the potential option and idea, that the parts of the terroristic assaults were consciously enacted and staged. Nearly in real-time (see Paul Virillio's essayistic work about "War in Real-time"<) wars (like the current conflict in Gaza) are broadcasted, trials and catastrophes alike. But they seem to loose any of their impact, we got used to their constant "company", hardly perceive them consciously and are just minor interested in any of their referenciality. The new media, specially the internet, may convey a feeling of social existence to any society or public, when it comes to any virtual meetings in cyberspace. This encounters seem to more and more disappear from any normal allay reality. Hans Belting is referring to this space of encounter as a "shared nowhere" where an imaginary existence is found to be possible that is no longer bound or limited to any physical places. For the time being, simulations have reached a limit, where any maximum of image competence is requested, to at all be perceived. Simulation is illusion and subordinates the perceptionist/spectator to deception, often enough the lusticiously performed self-deception. The consequences of these developments are hardly reviewable or evaluatable at the moment. Dietmar Kamper is stating clearly the massive distortion and the return of the platonic "cave of images": (FOLIE PLATON) "Nowadays humans do not live within the world any longer. They do not even live in any language. They live within their imagery, the images, they created from and for themselves and from other humans. And live more poorly then any better within this imaginary immanence. They are (starving and) dying from that. Massive distortion can be found at the "high-tide" of image-production. [...] Thus, it would the very time to break out of the self produced and at the same time self-enclosing "cave of images". [...] Therefore the oppositive path would be the one of the over exaggerated ecstasy. One is looking for the escape by trying to brake throughout the images (see "Alice behind the Mirrors") One is looking for any further beyond and netherworld of the images within the images themselves. „ How could any escape "throughout the images" look like? I am going to try to show, that a return to the original valiancy and value of images as a reference for cultural and social identity can be an option and chance for the sharpening of all "image-perception and - consciousness". The Performance Art constitutes and combines the most adequate tool for the recirculation of this "´Bildbegriff" means, the notion of images. (BILD: NIESLONY) One could state about the image in the field of Performance Art, that all actions and operations reduce the (re-)presentation and any staging to a minimum: they are identical with what they show (and therefore are). Inspite, this does not mean, referring to any (artistically) content, that the shown exhausts itself in "being picture" and not to transport any emotional, social and political signums. Especially via the means of immediacy of human actions and the often ritualized use of symbols, possibilities of coherent supercharging of content, being able to more than transcend with its presence the efficiency of any other art form. Photography, painting and film are agitating on other levels. That, what is visible in the pictures, is absent and can only be present and at all exist within the picture. (FOLIE BILD: =TOD) Aquscient a very interesting analogy between the image and death: the theory that the creation of pictures is always a permanent insurgency against the inevitably of the own death seems to be a more than adequate statement and thought here. The horrifying aspect of death is that it is capable of transforming the living body into an inanimate picture. The body is thus forced into an unbearable absence. As the last option appears now the representation in present images and depicting. But they can only always again refer to the above described total absence of the dead subject. The representation in images seems to be the only ephemeral into the eternal. Thus the image can be seen as the only escape of the "fear of death", as the try to transform something ephemeral into the eternal and infinite. Thus, the image appears as the illusion of immortality. The image, in a way to be perceived as the "double" of the body, gives the lost body a medium back. The Performance Art embodies here in my opinion a special standing within this subject matter: it is quasi formulating the consciousness about death, while at the same time engaging in the process like, and the sanctified nemesis of the ephemeral image. Therefore I would love to define the image within the field of Performance Art as the option and possibility, to altercate with the inevitability of absence, whereas being at the same time the very medium of presence. This seemingly paradox is to my opinion the indispensable outstanding characteristics of this art form that specially constitutes its outraging power and fascination. (BILD: LATERNA MAGICA) II would like to state and define the beginning of a body-adversial image perception caused by technical media, referring to the "Phantasmagoria" exhibition, where the Laterna Magica was used for the first time. By the means of using a "back-projection" an image was "thrown" and projected to a wall, without the spectators being able to see and perceive the source of the projection, the lanterns. Adorno later characterized the Phantasmagoria as the "occlusion of the production by the appearance of the product" - the illusionistic character of the projection claims the absolute truthfulness, without abdicating from any portraiture. The "deus ex machine" was consciously veiled, to achieve the mystical impression, but still claiming the existence of an objective truth. Already here, the images are no longer trustworthy. Using an inference concerning the "production" of an image within any performance, I would like to allege, that the performance works in an intentional modality consciously anti-phantasmagoric. (FOLIE ANTI) During any performative work, the image is being produced right in front of the eye of the audience, changed and last, but not least shown as the action/operation. At this juncture, the productionary image creating processes are in most cases visible in front of the audience. The material (always at least the body of the performer) is being treated in front of the audience and it is acted "with it". A happening is performed, without at all hiding the "historical" process of it taking place in space and time and therefore no illusionary character of the action can be traced at all. Explicitly within the field of what I would like to call "pain-performance" this intentiously making visible of every single step of the action (the cut, the beat, the scream, the wound) can and does lead to a way more intense impact than any other illusionary means of appearance. But before about "the pain": (FOLIE SCHMERZ) „"Pain (...) Is an uncomfortable sensual and feel wise experience, that is connected to an actual or optional deterioration of the tissue or is being described terms referring to a damage a." Pain is the central sensation of a human being. Being a warning signal, it shows in its acute appearance injuries and disturbances of the body and is therefore expedient. It distinctively refers to the necessity of a gentle treatment for the whole organism. Friedrich Strian characterizes pain in his book "Pain: Causes -Symptoms-Therapies" as "special perception of a threat to the integrity of the whole organism". The option to perceive pain is important for us as human beings. It is an essential emotion. Even the smallest pain can be helpful, to correct our behavior and to send a warning signal. Without this signals, we would not realize when our body is injured. Therefore, the smallest wound caused by any inflammation - if not noticed - could transform into a major threat to our physical health. People, suffering from the inability to perceive pain, live in constant danger. During their childhood, no innocent playing is possible, because of the constantly present option of unnoticed series harm for their health, without being able to calculate the consequences. No fear of injuries exists, no feeling for any situations that could end painfully. Pain can be therefore characterized as unnecessary and helpful and without doubt a definition of being human (I) n. (BILD: Bahnen des Schmerzes) Pain is the result of biochemical processes. The sensation starts within the cells, called "nozizeptors“that react to injuries, by sending electronically messages to a region within the spinal cord. Here, in this "inlet" of pain, neurotransmitters and other chemicals send a signal to the brain - the immediate perception and sensation of a painful situation. The brain interprets the message and reacts with the sending out an army of painkillers such as endorphins and other chemicals, to bring down the pain. How these players interact, depends on a variety of factors: among others, how series the pain is defined and whether it is an acute threat. Even the personal state of being and feeling is an important factor. When someone finds himself in a current dangerous situation or during any professional sportive competition, the brain will emit higher doses of painkillers, to tranquilize down the discomforts, so that one can rescue oneself out of the danger zone or to achieve enough benefits, to win. Pain is not only an irritation, that is send out on various ways within the body on a neurological transmitted basis, but a complex emotion, whose character is beaded on the intensity of the irritation, but as well a situation, in which pain is perceived. Most important is the affective and emotional situation of any individual. Pain as a physical irritation is the same as beauty as a visual stimulus: both are individual experiences. (BILD: SCHMERZ 1) I am sure, that this way of perceiving pain, plays an as important role in the context of the use of any painful imagery in the performance. The following quote by Albert Einstein seems to me worth of consideration "Everything, that is thought out and performed by human beings, can be regarded as the effort, to please sensed needs, likewise the soothing of any pain." Painkilling actions are described here as a basic concern of any human action. But so why do artists expose themselves to this encumbrance on a freewill basis? Next to the even illustrated physiological component of pain, a way more complex aspect of the emotional and cognitive meaning of the perception of pain and suffering from pain defines the foreground of my personal work and analysis. (SCHMERZ 2) Elaine Scarry defines pain in her book" The body in pain" as a paradox between certitude and doubt: "For a human being in pain, the pain is unquestionable so unquestionable and doubtless present, that one can only state "to have pains" is the most plausible evidence for what I means "to have certitude". For any other, this experience is so hardly at all comprehensible, that to "hear about pain" can be defined as the parade example for any doubts. Thus the pain presents itself as something non-communicable that is not to be doubted on the one hand, but not to be proven on the other." On the one hand this being a declaration, even from any medical perspective, a accretion to be thought over, on the other hand I would like to claim, that it is possible, to communicate the consequences of pain to a certain degree, respectively the emotional consequences of pain altogether. Scarry does see one, even if not adequate option of translating pain into language. For example in the dossiers of Amnesty International, that deal with the experiences and the suffering of victims of torture and in some texts by writers like Marguerite Duras. But according to her conception, all this is still inadequate: the physical pain downright destroys any language. "It transports us back into a condition, where sounds and screams are predominant, that we were using, before we learned to speak."„ I insofar agree with Scarry: language seems to be inadequate, to describe the experience and the physical sensation that pain may trigger in a human being. The chain reaction of emotional threats and physically experienced torture seems way too complex for any lingual equivalent at all. The lingual process of any objective evaluation cannot succeed according to Scarrys’ notions, because pain does not have any object: (BILD: SCHMERZ OBJEKTIVIERUNG) "The modern philosophy got us used to the thought, that our states of consciousness are connected to objects of the outer world, that we do not simply "have emotions" but emotions for someone or something: (...)Unlike all other inner states of being, the physical pain has no referee. And is not of or for something. And especially cause of not having any object, it resists more than any other phenomenon any lingual process of objective evaluation. " But performance art agitates on a high level of expression, which uses a sign/imagery language, but nevertheless, its roots can be found rather in the pre-lingual context. The artists are defiantly by no means on any quest for an objective evaluation. They work with their bodies and create an original and reality of their own, an original world of images, which maybe quotes in a mimetic style, but is not being played. This means, that the artists find a way to use the body as the (ir) means of expression. The same physical body, that suffers and bears pain that assimilates the painful experiences psychological. The body becomes the referee of the made visible attributes of the perception of pain. I would therefore like to claim, that pain used and found as a conscious tool in the field of "Aktionskunst" (the art of action) can be communicated by the means of incorporation. Via this act (-ion) pain achieves the salvation out of the body into the social world! During all art history, of course we can find many examples of painful images long before the existence of any so defined performance art, that incorporate a metaphorical (and metaphysical)level of consciousness: (BILD: JESUS) The execution of the dying Jesus at the cross refers in Christian culture to a culture of remorse. The bearing of pain as a test and proof for believe or as a punishment for the original sin of human mankind does play a role, too. With that, a certain consecration of the wound itself begins. The wound manifests and stands for something, what transcendent the body, the won self. Influenced by the cicatrices of Christ, the allegory image of the martyring bearing of pain that one can find in many pictures and tableaux the visibly "worn" injury and wound was perceived as a proof for the conquering of any worldly pain. Seen as just one step while transcending into another world, suffering could be finally accepted as a sacrifice, purification and in the widest sense, being expedient. (BILD: JESUS 2) The "com-miseration" according to the example of Jesus, promised the outmost possible closeness to God. Thomas von Aquin defined the truth "the magnitude of God“as an optional soothing effect for all suffering and the perception of pain: of course the pain is not extinguished, but is transformed by the spiritual attitude. Engelhardt characterized this with the interesting term of "spiritual anesthesia", a definition that should maybe apply as well for the spiritual attitude of some performers... Within the character of the Holy Sebastian" in Christian tradition (BILD: SEBASTIAN) Iconographic references can be found, that illustrates and show pain as bearable, in so far, when being transformed by religious ecstasy. In many depictions, the figure, pierced and tortured by countless arrows, is glancing heavenwards with an ecstatic or even redeemed facial expression. (BILD: ATHEY) The performer Ron Athey is using the figure as a pre-image and ideal, in some of his happenings. As a kid, he was raised extremely religious, including fanatics, apocalyptic prophesies and ecstatic rituals playing an important and formative role in his family. The homosexual artist is strongly formed by the religious experiences during his early childhood, a fact he always emphasizes and quotes in his interviews and texts about his artistic oeuvre. Later Athey drowned in his heroin addiction and got infected with the HIV virus. His performances, following a storytelling structure, are pervaded by extremely painful rituals, coupled with the theatralic staging of religious clichés that collide with his experiences of being stigmatized by society, as the homosexual, HIV positive artist. The figure of the holy Sebastian embodies for Athey one image of „destroyed beauty" and there-d be "many ways to say Hallelujah!" (BILD: ATHEY 2) (BILD: RITUAL) The Aztecs brought an outmost amount of pain to their enraged gods in their practice of human sacrifices, and tried to soothe their rage by their intensity. The pain left any personal level and became a public act. We find here the motive of the delegate, which we can for example find in the figure of the flagellant that castigated themselves during the middle ages, to avert the pestilence as an alleged curse and punishment by God from society. A motive that may play a role in the eyes of the artist concerning certain performances, too. I would like to introduce now some examples in the field of "pain-performances" and to link and relate them to the previously mentioned facts. (ERSTES BILD: PANE) Gina Pane tried to protest against a self experienced stupefaction of the "I" in common society via her body-performances, where she often used the means of self-cutting. Her feministic connoted performances did revolt against all powers that was enforced by the industry and operates by the means of subordination under existent rules of masquerading the female body. That way, she completely withdrew from any existing role-playing and premoulded cliché of womanhood, defined as any (sex) object by society. Pane does expose this form of auto aggression as an artistic act, but as well refers to all current issues and problems like anorexia or other conscious and self-inflicted injuries like the self-cutting of arms and legs or the decaling of skin. The artist adopted the function of a delegate, to represent with her own body the functions and techniques of a personally perceived oppression in her female hood and being. Thus she is not seeing or using her body as any means of self-depiction, but as the object that is consciously transcended and changed. Her body serves as the picture and expresses the idea of a "picture-product", without the indirection of any symbols. Therefore, Pane's work is proven an important example for all semiotic questions of this work. Pane does not want to see or have her body perceived as any "bearer of signs" but as the indexical sign itself. (BILD: ESCALADE) In her first pain-work "L´escalade non anesthesia" (performed in her studio in Paris in the year 1970) the artist escalates a ladder that steps are wired with upright steel-thorns - with her bare feet. This performance is in no way staged as any spectacular style. The painful action is performed in a nearly over simple scantiness of composition. Already in her early work, wounds originate, that embody for Pane a very specific psychosocial supercharging and a more then over visible socio-political symbol character: "It involved injury because it was an iron step ladder with spikes, which I climbed with my bare hands and feet. I was injured immediately and in a way which was radically mediatised in relation to the other bodies [...]. L´escalade non anaesthesia referred to politics and the Vietnam War." Anne Tronche interprets Pane's dealing with the wound as the wish, to question the materiality of the body by the means of deliberately wounding it. Via these injuries, the artists seem to open up her body donation-like to the audience and to offer it as a means of solidarity and sharing. (BILD: PANE) The artist is prepared to hurt her body in a painful way in front of the audience to achieve a quality of communications that transcends far out over any representation of ideas. Pane obviously understands it as here duty, to go in her work way beyond any simple depiction. I perceive and interpret this work as a fundamentally humane and social responsibility that Pane is inclined to embody in an extreme manner. "Injury is a sign of the extremely fragile state of the body, a sign of pain, a sign that brings out the exterior situation of aggression, of violence to which we are incessantly exposed. Therefore the moment of injury, I would say, is a radical moment; the moment which is the most charged with tension and distances least one body from another [...]" She is using all injuries as signs, to pinpoint and to refer to the violence that individuals are exposed to. In the quote above, it is once more clearly and obvious to understand, that Pane is ready to get in charges for a delegator position of the (collective) "we". (BILD: BODY SIGN 1) The artist from Vienna, Valie Export found her own form at the end of the 60ies, to formulate socio-critical concerns with her own body as the means of expression. Central issue of Valie Exports’ performances was all the body as the interface of private and public images of identity. In an ever transforming and changing media-scape - the imputation of the body changes along: no longer body, but sign in the first place. The body within the framework of the new media does no longer present any identity, but stood for something else. Referring to the female body structures of enforced powers was represented insofar, as to cement the social and gender specific hierarchies. As described by Laura Mulvey, the representational functions were inscribed and enforced in and onto the female body. Valie Export for example achieved to personification this affiliation with her work "Body Sign Action". (BILD: BODY SIGN 2) "The artists of the feministic actionist have transported the "ecriture corporelle" far beyond the canvas, they inscribed it onto their own bodies, have up fronted their own individuality against their surrounding (oppressive) culture [...] That way the fear of damaging the female integrity by means of the verbal male language is expended to an analyses of damage as well in the body language of women, more than visible on countless tableaux, painted by men. “ Her work was always meant to be irritations of the common view. The body as carrier for interpersonal communication served Export therefore always at the same time as stage and arena. (BILD: HYPERBULIE) In some of her performances, for example in "Hyperbulie" (1973), she went as far as inflicting incredibly strong pain onto her body, to clarify its inscriptions. „A corridor of wires, set under electricity. The human being enters and moves through that corridor, whereas constantly encountering the electrified wire and thus slowly sinks down to the floor." Hyperbulie defines the "pathologic" need for activity to be found in various so called categories of mental diseases. At the end of the performance, that was realized with modest means and materials, to specially depict the social pressure on the (female) body, Valie Export, tired out from all electric seizures, collapses, to just once more press here face a last time against the electrified metal. Another usage of pain or "endurance" means "longtime-performances", is the goal to attain any "peak-experience" "to arrive in the land of all ecstatic being out-of-yourself", The loss of identity in this emotional no man's land, counters the feeling of alienation, where the individual is facing a totalitarian society, completely normed and norm-controlled or find itself within an ever-growing virtual one. It is much more thematizeing and performing the "being completely with yourself“, where the borderline experience of this individual feeling is happening on a sheer physical level, and therefore, the body again can be perceived as the first and last basis of evidence of all experiences. Via fear-, risk- or pain situations - emotions of that kind are escalated. Marina Abramovic is using this concept in various works, for example in "Freeing the Body" - a piece, where the artist is dancing for 8 hours to the drumming of a musician. (BILD: ABRAMOVIC) Due to the extreme duration, not only a painful actionism is made visible, but something originates, that could be described and referred to as the physicality of time. (BILD: McKereghan) Dan McKereghan is showing in his work "Some truth" (performed on the 2nd and 3rd of April 2004 in Boston, USA, duration 28 hours) a similar consequence in front of a political background. Here as well, the body is a "time-sculpture" but in spite transponding in relative motionlessness an image full of associations. The festival "Corporeal Heat", where the American was showing his work, was taking place in an unheated, former police station in Boston inner-city. At this time, the temperatures were about 0-3°C. Dan McKereghan chose an empty prison cell for his work. Dressed in an orange whole body-suit, the artist sat with glued eyes during the whole festival more or less motionless at his chosen location of performance. The artist had a plate with a piece of meat positioned outside his cell, which was nothing but unreachable for him. (BILD: 2 DAN) The image: McKereghans reminds in an intensive manner to the still ever-present images of the prisoners in Guantanamo Bay. During a talk with the artist, the performer was referring to the shame that he feels, facing the inhumane behavior of his country mates concerning the political prisoners encaged in this military basis. McKereghan stayed for the whole duration of the festival, in his cell. When the audience entered the location on the first day, the performer was already imprisoned and was only released and freed, when the festival was already officially ended. During this night, the performer was alone in the vacant complex of buildings and continued his performance. For McKereghan, this aspect of fragility and vulnerability, that he exposes himself to, is a main component of his performative oeuvre and in all sense of its meaning, body of work. (BILD: YOYO) A way more direct acquaintance with the thought of being and to experience the feeling of total surrendered can be found in the work of the Yoyo Yogasmana from Indonesia. In his performance series "Crisis" (a.o. performed in Taiwan 2002 and in Jakarta 2002). The performer has him bound and tied into a complicated network of strings. They are knotted all over the whole body of the artist, so that he is located in a situation of total dependency and surrender to the audience. The participating members of the audience are now able, to control any of the artist's ability to move by towing or loosening the strings. It is nearly impossible due to that means of sheer applied force, administrated onto the artist, to avoid causing him serious and painful bruises or to even nearly throttle him. Depending on the intensity of actions of the participating audiences during the performances, the injuries of the artist occur. The performer exposes himself here to an out power, namely the disposition of violence by the spectator that cannot escape their role as participants here at all. By this mean, Yogasmana is able to enforce a responsibility onto his audience that is not exhausting itself in passivity, but is to be handled actively. That way the Indonesian artist is creating a highly complex mirror of an image of a society, in which all interdependencies with all their "painful" consequences are assimilated into an esthetically forceful depiction. Interesting is here. That Yogasmana is creating the critical situation, under which he will be suffering. By using this tactics, he is aiming for a pedagogic effect concerning his audience, not to die from the consequences of his performance. The danger of getting strangulated by the audience is ever-present. Therefore the performer has to be over clear about the configuration and syncrisis of the participants, to keep the risk to a minimum. For Yogasmana the choice of his title mirrors, by using the term of "crisis", the whole situation in the postmodern society, while especially referring to the social life circumstances in Indonesia. (BILD: YOYO) "I have one big title in my performance, Crisis. It is a representation about my life, my family life, my neighbors’’ life, my city’s life, also my country’s life. I can say, now we are in Crisis, crisis is an emergency. We have social crisis, economical crisis, and political crisis. That is all like a circle. […] It looks like they are bound to each other, they are tide to each other and I think if we don’t have to find how to solve this problem we will die. It’s about my country. […] Now, my performances are to be trial performances, to find out how deep the human heart is. The result from my performance is to be an experience for me and everybody." I am convinced that the participation in any performance of Yogasmanas has an immense impact on every attendee, as its actions are directly related to each opponent without any means of abstraction. The devolution of the intellectual message that Yogasmana formulates in his statements maybe not be consciously perceived by every participant, but according to him, the emotional sharing of compassion is always granted. This can lead in some cases, the artist admits, to sadistic actions. This risk is basically always present in his work, as he completely surrenders himself to the control of the audience. In his work "Traversee"(Transverse) from the year 2004, Yann Marussich is converging the image of death in a similar way. As soon as the audience enters the room, where the performance takes place, they see the artist located naked on a construction of tables that is approximately 14 meters long. (BILD: YANN 1) The construction is covered with a green carpet, on which the artist lies. Around his neck, a metal sling, that is connected to a machine at the headboard of the table with a long metal string. This string can be shortened via a various number of gear wheels, activated per hand, with the consequence of the artist's motionless body being drawn closer to the end of the table. Marussich indicates a timeframe between 2 and 6 hours, depending on the audience's involvement. Only, when the motionless body is drawn all over to the end of the 14 meters long table construction, the end of the performance is reached. In ""Traverses" two aspects are of special interest: on one hand it has to be understood as an undoubtly metaphor for torture, as Marussich confirms in an interview with the author. The image: of the throttled performer seems again to embody a delegate attitude for all those that do not have the privilege of having any public voice. Associations to the torture incidents in Abu Ghraib are as present as the memories of the bodies of killed soldiers that were carried through the streets of Mogadishu or Falludscha. Especially with that associative image in the background, the immense impact of this performance is more then made visible. The artist completely surrenders to its audience. No hint can be found, how any spectator is supposed to react. They enter the room and perceive the picture. Only by their (inter-) actions, they are able to fill this still life with any actual activity. In a statement, that the artist allocated, it is getting clear, that the spectators of the work are to be defined as the actual "picture producers" and therefore the responsible co-activists: "From the moment on, that the spectator enters the room, he becomes active. […] No role is suggested or enforced on him, apart from the responsibility for his own person, his attitudes and his own activities and even for his passivism. The spectator has all liberty on all optional levels. There is no hint for a sequence of events, to be followed. There is no censorship. There are only options." (ABRAMOVIC RHYTHM) Therefore, the work is showing similarities to the work of Abramovics "Rhythm 0“ that gives the audience the opportunity to apply various objects onto the artist. Abramovic is taking all responsibility, as Yogasmana, for the sequence of events and the event itself, and trusts the humanity of her audience. Here as well, the artist was corned and entangled in deep affliction, as spectators among other things, caused her injuries by knives and even put a loaded gun into her hand, to then direct it towards her head. (ABRAMOVIC) Works like "Traverses", the "Crisis-Performances" by Yoyo Yogasmana and the work of Abramovic are able, not only to communicate the pain, but to make clear statements about the consistence of the participating audience. Therefore they comprise a clear social and political annotation. Especially in this performances dealing with the issue of self inflicted injuries, the question is arises, how the spectator is supposed to react to this new performative situation, he or she finds himself in suddenly. All relevant norms, that were valid before and all options for potentional behavior loose immediately any availability. Erika Fischer-Lichte is opposing in her book "Esthetic of the Performative" the behavior of the spectator in a theater to that in common life and draws the logical conclusion, that apparently the same actions (the murder of Desdemona on stage or the atrocity in public) lead to completely opposite reaction in the spectator. On one hand, the theatrical action is perceived as such and in spite of it potential of violence not perceived as any impulse for any action at all. But in the field of Performance Art, the observation of actual injuries does lead to a variety of completely different reactions by the audience. (BILD: LIPS OF THOMAS) By the means of the performance "Lips of Thomas", where Marina Abramovic is exposing herself to various self-flagellations, Fischer-Lichte is drawing the conclusion, that this kind of performances is transferring the spectator into a zone "between art and common daily life, between esthetic and ethic postulates. In any all day situation, the ethic axiom of interference would be the basis to inhibit any form of violence against oneself or others. But for example in any performative situation on any theater stage, it is granted, that all forms of violence are not "real" - but being the sign of a play-acted form of violence. The consequences of this stage activism go far into the daily life. Fischer-Lichte claims now, that the attending of any performance by Marina Abramovic is leading to a transformation of the spectator, drawing real consequences for the show and the therefore participating audience. The spectators are transformed from their status of being simply recipients into an actively acting element of the whole event. It was the case, when the audience started to interfere in Abramovic's performance, after she was lying for a long time on an ice block and her belly wound started to bleed heavily. Already during the performance, the spectators expressed their strong inner concern by various body reactions (stop to breath, mourning etc.). (LIPS 2) It seemed to be impossible for the audience to establish any distance to the event. Even more, their involvement rose to a degree, which leads to their own activism: The audience did no longer behave like any passive spectator, but transformed into active participants and carried the artist away from the ice block. Thus ending the performance. Performative esthetic does change observers. Performative esthetic can cause these transformations within the artist and the audience. Referring to that context, Dieter Mersch talks about the „Passover of art into the social and public space". He understands the performance as an "intervenes or an >ethic of the practice<, that transforms the spectator by trend into a participant, a collaborator, that cannot swerve but is forced to take a firm stand." I make out another, additional neurological aspect in the encounter with the field of pain performance: due to the ephemeral setting of the pictorial events, the consciousness of the perishables of the own existence is mirrored. The pain, that a performer inflicts on him- or herself, is leading to an immediate touch down of experienced or remembered pain in the body of the spectator and is therefore immediately recognized as it-s own vulnerability and transitoriness. The biopsychologist Christian Keysers found out, that so called mirror-cells or mirror neurons are able to make a sheer observer feel as if acting themselves, in spite of simply watching. In various test situation with apes, he stated, that the animals reacted to any activity they watched, as if they would enact them themselves. Mirror neutrons do not only become active, when we hug somebody, but as well, when we only watch others hug each other. (FOLIE SPIEGELZELLEN) Time ago, researcher thought that mirror neurons would only respond to movements. But Christian Keysers did prove, that „the "copycat" cells do fire as well, when touches or emotions like disgust are being observed." But a main difference between the actual feeling and the sheer outlook is defined by their quantity. While watching any event only some few mirrorcells message their information to the brain, thousands of sensitive cells do fire during any actual action (for example painful skin contacts) and that way change the intensity of emotion. In spite we all know the "twitching" foot, being co-driver in any car confronted with any unforeseen brake or the goose pimples while watching any disgusting TV scene. Keysers is sure, that the brain is able to suggest any aspects of human emotion due to the existence of this mirror cells. Furthermore an interesting point concerning the mirror cells is that they affect our actions. In these cells optional actions are executed in a kind of style sheet or scheme, so that our actions can be executed absolutely target-orientated. Mirror cells are thus able to code the actions of other persons for our perception, respectively encode, so that we are able to estimate actions and are able to draw consequences for any reactions to perceived events. This is especially concerning my argumentation concerning the efficiency of the pain performances a central thesis. Confronted with the suffering of artists, we are involved in a way as such that is forcing us to our own reactions downright neurologically. Facing, what humans are able to self-inflict on them, the signal character of pain is obvious, and the one who is amiably contemplating, will maybe be able to understand its appealing character. Our body is reacting with pains, to protect us against any further dangers, or to protect the organism in general. I would go as far as to claim, that a part of the pain performances does apply a similar principle, to warn the "social body" or so send out pleas to it. Here, too, I do see the wish to spare it of upcoming dangers or at least to point out any optional ones, to achieve an intense attentiveness for various aspects of life circumstances and surroundings. This appeal by the performer, directed to us, is multiply layered: it is about documents of personal despair due to personal injuries, or about political statements, that effectively want to influence social processes and events by the means of using performance art and performative actions. Alike, questions concerning any gender roles, subordination issues or responsibilities are placed in pain performances. All this pleas can be impictured by the means of self-inflicted injuries and while suffering in front of other and be brought to the attention of the spectator. These actions can lead and add to an uncomfortable clear-sightedness and therefore be painful themselves. This often leads to a very hostile attitude of rejection on the part of the audience concerning this works of performative art. But on the other hand, something soothing and connecting can be found in the confrontation with these painful images. Quote: "Pain" does not only inaugurate our own impotence and vulnerability, but makes it possible for us to recognize a soothing possibility of existence - the option of a fraternity in pain". With this closing sentence, Siegfried Lenz is adumbrating one of my central theses: Performance is capable of triggering a quality of interpersonal relationships, especially in pain, that is indispensable for everyone. In a work by Boris Nieslony, that I would like to describe at last, many aspects of the lecture will elucidated again: authenticity, co-presence and the spectator's involvement and a personal and common ethically depiction of pain. Here, his more than consequent "self exposing" lead nearly to the complete disembodiment of the artist. In „A Letter of Humanism dedicated to C.C.C.B." (Shown in Barcelona in the year 2000), the artist is nearly dying as a consequence of his performance. I will now extensively quote the wording of Nieslonys from an interview that I was experiencing with him: (BILD: 1) "Everything possible went wrong. I had a personal breakdown and a serious disease was detected. I was attending a congress in Barcelona and had a complete breakdown concerning the handling of the performance, theoretically and practically alike. There was no respect, no discussion with the organization, only orders, rebukes and the decisions were left to the hands of the security, who gave me orders, where I would be maybe graciously allowed to perform. I perceived the whole situation as the outmost human disgrace that was utterly painful. I then chose an outdoor location for my performance, backyard, that told me, how my performance would look like, It was a cellar, that was covered with a lattice, apart from that open and downright full of plain stones and scrappy bricklayer materials, it was a kind of storage place for the stone setter of the yard. You could only watch from above through the lattice. (BILD: 2) For me, this was a symbolic room, adequate for the performance, for me as the performer and for all the ones that participated in the performance, being spectators. For me, the animal, being the utter scum, and being treated like that there, according to my personal feelings. A situation was found like the old "Bread and Games" public spectacles in the arenas in old Rome. I had installed a little table in the cellar and had bought a strong string and I took a heavy flagstone from the many ones, having being stored there. I knotted the one end of the string around the heavy stone, and adjusted it at the lattice above, there was no other way, and the other end I put as a sling around my neck, I arranged the death photos and many coins on that table. Then I was alternately holding the stone, putting coins on the stone and showed the death photos. Some when I did not hold the stone any longer just let it loose and swing off. I did NOT care. (BILD: 3) I was fainting then. For me, it was a wonderful picture: the money and the word "dead“. Someone then took the responsibility and elevated the string and thus loosened it, but I was not able to thank that person for that." On the one hand, we can state here the utterly humane approach of the performer that categorically repudiates any irretrievably intervention in the life of any other. Additionally Nieslony displays himself being always disappointed, and even disgusted by the lack of respect and "inner squalidness". This countenance is reaching that far, that he is ready to produce his own pictures and imagery while endangering his own life, when it is thus possible for him, to come any bit closer to the phenomenon that he is researching. I would now like to close with a quotation by the philosopher Byung-Chul Han, which more than perfectly circumscribes the approach of Nieslony and a multitude of other performers: "The mimesis - to death, a self-displaying nuzzling of being - to death, would in contrast consist of letting all the tears become language, letting all the wounds speak like silver-tongued mouths, as if their elegies would be a ferment of truth, that is redeeming consciousness from its fatal hardening." THANK YOU! -- http://indersalim.livejournal.com From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Tue Jan 19 07:28:29 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Tue, 19 Jan 2010 07:28:29 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Learning Sanskrit through rhymes for children Message-ID: Excerpt from http://www.punemirror.in/index.aspx?page=article§id=2&contentid=2009122820091228005311624207d353e§xslt= Language learning is easy if you start to learn it at a young age, they say. But unfortunately people hardly follow India’s classical language, Sanskrit, as it is hardly taught at primary level. At higher level too, the language is taught via the tedious grammar translation method. With an aiom of popularising Sanskrit among youngsters, a Sanskrit teacher has penned Sanskrit rhymes, on the lines of nursery rhymes, for children. Varsha Sarda, a Sanskrit enthusiast, has come up with the novel idea of Sanskrit rhymes in a book form along with its audio CD. Her book called Moda Sanskritam will be launched on Wednesday. Moda Sanskritam contains 11 jingles or rhymes along with illustrations. She deliberately has not provided translation, so that one can learn it the natural way. “I want kids to learn the language without the usual translation method. They can get the meaning from illustrations.” To read the entire article, visit http://www.punemirror.in/index.aspx?page=article§id=2&contentid=2009122820091228005311624207d353e§xslt= From jeebesh at sarai.net Tue Jan 19 21:37:41 2010 From: jeebesh at sarai.net (Jeebesh) Date: Tue, 19 Jan 2010 21:37:41 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] GurgaonWorkersNews - Newsletter 22 (January 2010) Message-ID: <24EC037A-1E0D-4306-A3D8-80B2611BB7B7@sarai.net> GurgaonWorkersNews - Newsletter 22 (January 2010) (full version: www.gurgaonworkersnews.wordpress.com) Gurgaon in Haryana is presented as the shining India, a symbol of capitalist success promising a better life for everyone behind the gateway of development. At a first glance the office towers and shopping malls reflect this chimera and even the facades of the garment factories look like three star hotels. Behind the facade, behind the factory walls and in the side streets of the industrial areas thousands of workers keep the rat-race going, producing cars and scooters for the middle-classes which end up in the traffic jam on the new highway between Delhi and Gurgaon. Thousands of young middle class people lose time, energy and academic aspirations on night-shifts in call centres, selling loan schemes to working-class people in the US or pre-paid electricity schemes to the poor in the UK. Next door, thousands of rural-migrant workers uprooted by the agrarian crisis stitch and sew for export, competing with their angry brothers and sisters in Bangladesh or Vietnam. And the rat-race will not stop; on the outskirts of Gurgaon, Asia's biggest Special Economic Zone is in the making. The following newsletter documents some of the developments in and around this miserable boom region. If you want to know more about working and struggling in Gurgaon, if you want more info about or even contribute to this project, please do so via: www.gurgaonworkersnews.wordpress.com gurgaon_workers_news at yahoo.co.uk In the January 2010 issue you can find: 1) Proletarian Experiences - Daily life stories and reports from a workers' perspective *** Garment Export Workers' Reports and Escapist Hopes of the Export Regime - These reports were told by workers during the distribution of Faridabad Mazdoor Samachar in autumn 2009. Most of the workers are employed in textile factories - some of them working for major companies such as H&M, GAP or Calvin Klein. The textile export companies announced in December 2009 that the market is back on track and that exports to the US and Europe are growing again: an upswing in orders, but also an even greater pressure on prices. 2) Collective Action - Reports on proletarian struggles in the area *** Rico-Strike and the Aftermath: When Capital wants to 'De-Risk'... - We start with a report given by a permanent worker employed at Rico, published in Faridabad Majdoor Samachar. This is followed by a general summary of the disputes' aftermath, e.g. the announcement of Rico company to 'de-risk' their position in the global supply chain by opening additional production capacities. * Never Mind the Aftermath, here is the Prelude: Unofficial Action at Napino Auto and Electronics Ltd - This wildcat action happened shortly after the Rico dispute was officially finished in mid-November 2009: workers of parts manufacturer for Hero Honda and Suzuki react to managements' bullying by strike action and raising demands - the strike spreads from Manesar to Gurgaon and Haridwar plants. * Anger on the backdrop of a boom: Short Reports of Workers employed by Automobile Suppliers - The Indian car industry is hit by an over-stretched supply-chain and a shortage of parts endangering the current holy boom - or at least the temporary upswing. Suzuki announces it will add further capacities to the main assembly plants in Gurgaon. We publish four short reports by workers employed at different Suzuki suppliers - voices from the bottom of the boom, voices of the future risk. *** Hell's Bells: Call Centre and Workers in Global Movement - It seems that with the crisis a final push of global re-location of call centre and IT related services is taking place. IBM announces thousands of job cuts in the global north while adding 5,000 jobs to its India centres. * Struggle at Wipro in Romania - After Alcatel in Timisoara (Romania) threatened to shift a third of the work-force to the Indian company Wipro, workers started to get agitated. Wipro is one of the major call centre employers in Gurgaon. * Interview with Convergys Call Centre Workers in Late Summer 2009 - Short chai chat with workers employed by Convergys in Gurgaon, talking about impacts of work and crisis on life and physical health. * From BPO to Riot - Proletarian Students in NOIDA clash with Police - A faked BPO company took money for employment from some students in NOIDA, a neighbouring satellite-town of Gurgaon. When the students noticed the scam they did not allow the company owners to move out of the building until the outstanding money was paid - and the student- workers were attacked by the cops. 3) According to Plan - General information on the development of the region or on certain company policies *** The Real Estate of Urban Wasteland - The financial crash in autumn 2008 and the more recent payment crisis in Dubai sent shockwaves affecting not only the housing market, but also the financial fundaments of many industrial and urban infrastructure projects. * Public-Private Tsunami from Dubai to Gurgaon - The real estate sector is an indicator for the wider economy: house prices have crashed since 2008, but despite the low mortgage interest rates the sales are in no way sufficient to pull the sector back on track, stocks of empty concrete are piling up - what does that mean in a semi-private city like Gurgaon where infrastructure is part of the deal? We have a look at empty spaces and de-railed private metro projects. * Accumulative Axis of Evil: Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor - The actual necessity for the Indian export plans to build a freight rail connection between the automobile/textile factories in Delhi and the Mumbai sea port turned into a project of wish/harmful megalomaniac thinking: the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor. We give a short presentation of 1,500 km of "high impact/market driven nodes" and "transparent and investment-friendly facility regimes". * Mariginal Living, Marginal Deads - Slum demolition and National Highway - Sad news about victims who lose homes or even life on the altar of speed, on the highways towards social impasse. 4) About the Project - Updates on Gurgaon Workers News *** After 30 years of hardcopy now soft-version online: Faridabad Majdoor Samachar - You can find an English translation of the Hindi monthly workers' newspaper from Faridabad: http://faridabadmajdoorsamachar.blogspot.com/ Some of their older texts have now been published online: http://libcom.org/library/questions-alternatives *** Glossary - Updated version of the Glossary: things that you always wanted to know, but could never be bothered to google. Now even in alphabetical order. News from the Special Exploitation Zone - www.gurgaonworkersnews.wordpress.com From jeebesh at sarai.net Tue Jan 19 22:20:34 2010 From: jeebesh at sarai.net (Jeebesh) Date: Tue, 19 Jan 2010 22:20:34 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Self Activity Message-ID: dear All, was reading the gurgaon workers newsletter and learned that the faridabad majdoor samachar is now online. http://faridabadmajdoorsamachar.blogspot.com/ This is an important worker's newspaper. Published monthly since the early 80s, it has, year after year, been thinking about the crucial question of "self activity of wage workers". it is distributed in large numbers all over faridabad and okhla industrial region. This is a current that, if taken seriously and elaborated, can take us out of the present impasse of party-based emancipatory thinking. happy reading. warmly jeebesh From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Wed Jan 20 09:19:45 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Wed, 20 Jan 2010 09:19:45 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] New data set on marginalization in education Message-ID: >From http://www.unesco.org/en/efareport/dme/ Reaching the marginalized, draws on a newly compiled data set on Deprivation and Marginalization in Education (DME), which looks at how long children are spending in school, and who are getting left behind. For details, visit the link above From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Wed Jan 20 10:33:02 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Wed, 20 Jan 2010 10:33:02 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Reaching out to children through books that don't preach Message-ID: Children's writer Anushka Ravishankar talks to Chithira Vijaykumar about reaching out to children through books that don't preach http://www.hindu.com/mp/2010/01/02/stories/2010010251750600.htm From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Wed Jan 20 13:14:47 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (CologneOFF) Date: Wed, 20 Jan 2010 08:44:47 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?Call=3A_CologneOFF_VI_-_Let=27s_Cele?= =?iso-8859-1?q?brate!?= Message-ID: <20100120084448.CF5933D8.7241E73D@192.168.0.2> CologneOFF - Cologne Online Film Festival --> Call for entries --> Deadline: Monday, 5 April 2010 ----------------------------------- NewMediaFest'2010 CologneOFF VI - Let's Celebrate!! In 2010, CologneOFF - Cologne Online Film Festival is celebrating its 5th anniversary - a good reason to try the new festival concept as a networked festival, including a networked jury, networked contributions and a series of networked screenings between September and December 2010 and beyond. CologneOFF - founded in 2006 by Wilfried Agricola de Cologne as a new type of film and video festival dedicated to art forms of film and video in a global context - is following a successful concept of a festival without a static location of its own. It does not last just 2 or 3 days a year, but is all the year everyday 24 hours available to the audience online and simultaneouslöy via physical screenings in cooperation with partner festivals. This independance of availabliity on one hand, and dependance on networking partners makes CologneOFF most attractive not only to the audience, but basically also to the participating artists/directors and their films and videos due to a lasting promotion, confidence and trust. After 5 successful festival editions, i.e CologneOFF I - "Identityscapes" - 2006 - CologneOFF II - "Image vs Music" - 2006 CologneOFF III - "Toon! Toon! - art cartoons and animates narriatives" - 2007 CologneOFF IV - "Here We Are!" - 2008 CologneOFF V - "Taboo! Taboo?" - 2009 and their physical manifestations 2006-2010 - in New Dehli/India, Rotterdam/NL, Maracaibo/Venezuela, Rosario/Argentina, Lyon/France, Belgrade/Serbia, Szeczin/Poland, Brussels/Belgium, Istanbul/Turkey, Guadaljara/Mexico, Athens/Greece, Sarajevo/Bosnia-Hercegovia, Thessaloniki/Greece, Clermont-Ferrand/France, Jakarta/Indonesia, Hong Kong/ China, Bristol/UK and many more - CologneOFF is taking the occasion of its 5th anniversary to thank all artists & directors, partners and the audience and invites all to celebrate CologneOFF VI under the festival theme "let's celebrate - memory and identity in an experimental context" to be launched in September 2010 as part of NewMediaFest’2010 - 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwok]:|| cologne global heritage of digital culture The networked jury consists of Gioula Papadopoulou, curator of Videoart Festival Miden (Greece) Margarida Paiva, director of Oslo Screen Festival (Norway) Macu Moran, director VideoArtWorld Barcelona (Spain) Tamas Gabeli, director of BuSho - Budapest International Short Film Festival (Hungary) Giorgio Fedeli , curator & president of Visual Container Milan (Italy) Mohamed Allam, director and curator of Medrar, Cairo (Egypt) Jonas Nilsson, manager of Art Video Screening, initiator and chief-coordinator of Örebro International Videoart Festival (Sweden) Besides the official festival program, networked festival contributions will be made by Videoart Festival Miden, Oslo Screen Festival, BuSho - Budapest International Shortfilm Festival, Art Video Screening Orebro, Video Art World Barcelona, Visual Container Milan and Video Festival Cairo CologneOFF VI - festival theme --> "Let's Celebrate - memory & identity in an experimental context" CologneOFF invites artists and directors to submit their films & videos up to 10 minutes duration. --------------------------------------------------------- Please find the entry details and entry form on http://www.nmartproject.net/netex/?p=1907 Download the entry details as PDF http://downloads.nmartproject.net/CologneOFF6_entryform.pdf --------------------------------------------------------- CologneOFF - Cologne Online Film Festival http://coff.newmediafest.org NewMediaFest'2010 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne global heritage of digital art http://2010.newmediafest.org [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne the experimental platform for art & new media http://www.nmartproject.net --------------------------------------------------------- info (at) nmartproject.net --------------------------------------------------------- From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Wed Jan 20 16:26:13 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:26:13 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Tehelka's National Book Readership Survey In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Aparna Jain sent a message to the members of the Tehelka group on Facebook. (http://www.facebook.com/#/group.php?gid=143486620088) Subject: Request to all members to spend a minute filling out the Tehelka Readership Survey www.tehelka.com/survey.asp From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Wed Jan 20 17:40:39 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Wed, 20 Jan 2010 17:40:39 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Volunteering Opportunities with Karmayog In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Posted by: "karmayog.org" info at karmayog.org Mon Jan 11, 2010 In the past, some of you have expressed a willingness to volunteer with Karmayog. We may not have been able to respond then, but we do have an interest now in working with volunteers. So, please contact us if you are still interested in volunteering with Karmayog. Do fill the Volunteer Form at www.karmayog.org/volunteer as that would give us a better idea of your skills and interest. In case you have already filled the form, do let us know your volavl No. Below is a list of volunteering possibilities at Karmayog. However if you have something specific in your mind which you would like to implement for or through Karmayog, do let us know as that would be our first preference. If you are in the Fort area between 11 am - 5 pm (Mon. - Fri.) or between 11 am - 3 pm (Sat.), please drop by at our office, so that we can discuss possibilities in person. Our office address and directions are available in the Contact Us link from the Karmayog homepage. ------------ --------- --------- --------- ---- Volunteering Posibilities at Karmayog We would be happy to pay actuals (travel, etc.) and a nominal amount for each of the listed activities. Some activities are for volunteers based in Mumbai only. These are marked with [M] . Most of the activities are on an on-going basis, and you can do them when you like. 1. [M] To launch Karmayog's new initiative - Karmayog Mpower and to popularise and spread the word about this (See www.karmayog.in/mpower for details) Karmayog MPower is an initaitive that enables a person to use a mobile phone for simple reporting via SMS or email. 2. Coordinate different sections on Karmayog. e.g. - Donor Directory - NGO Directory - for NGOs in your area - Consumer Complaints (WARNings) - Karmayog NGO-of-the-Month 3. Create and Manage a Resource Section on Karmayog This would involve compiling useful data of any type in the area of your interest which could be of help to beneficiaries, donors, or NGOs. List of Resource Sections is available from the drop down list from the Karmayog homepage. See our Note on 'How to Manage a Resource Section' at www.karmayog.org/aboutus/aboutus_2500. htm 4. Updating and collecting information on NGOs - through visits Visit and interview NGOs in your area or in the category of your interest. The basic idea is to provide updated and useful information about NGOs through the Karmayog all-India directory. Information required from NGOs is as per the form at www.karmayog.org/nonprofits/cocr.asp? r=1 5. Verify information on NGOs - by phone or internet only Work involved would be to surf the net and to phone NGO's of a particular category e.g. education, from lists available with Karmayog, and verify their details, and collect more information (e.g. NGO Profile) from each NGO. 6. [M] To attend events, talks and seminars on our behalf, and to circulate a report on the same in the Karmayog yahoogroup. 7. To make presentations: To visit colleges, Rotary Clubs, Lions Clubs, etc, and make a presentation about Karmayog or about particular projects (e.g. the Karmayog CSR Ratings) to various groups 8. To promote and manage the Karmayog "Donate Books, Receive Books" campaign on an on-going basis (See www.karmayog.org/donatebooks for details) 9. [M] To compile feedback received to various government schemes and laws, and to submit these to the relevant government organisations and follow up on the same. 10. To assist us with Software Development. e.g. with the Karmayog homepage 11. To write articles about various national and international days. e.g. World Environment Day 12. [M] To work on specific time-bound projects with other organisations (when they approach us) 13. [M] To work on specific projects initiated by Karmayog 14. [M] To coordinate activities and form groups for different causes. e.g. No Plastic Bag campaign 15. To start and coordinate Karmayog Clubs (in Mumbai) and Chapters (in other cities and towns in India) (See www.karmayog.org/karmayogchapters to know more ) This would also involve moderating a Yahoogroup for the Chapter. 16. [M] To coordinate Volunteers for Karmayog i.e. all of the above All the work would be finally displayed so as to be accessible free of charge to anyone. Please email to discuss further. Thanks. Vinay Somani www.karmayog.org From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Wed Jan 20 20:30:41 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Wed, 20 Jan 2010 20:30:41 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Second Issue of Aahsome Magazine + Call for Submissions for Issue on 'Food' In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Contribute to the next issue of Aahsome! Theme: Food You could think of food from angles as diverse as economics and history. Food is a primary necessity. Governments have fallen due to increase in onion prices. New continents have been discovered searching for spices. Unusual twists to usual recipes are also welcome! Your submissions could be traditional art, digital art, poetry, short-stories, opinions, photographs or comics. Submitting is simple! Just email your entries to submit at aahsome.com From: Aahsome Magazine Date: Wed, Jan 20, 2010 Subject: "Beauty" is here! Hey there! We are super-excited to bring you a "beautiful" new issue of Aahsome! With every copy of the "Freedom" issue that you downloaded and shared, we felt insurmountable joy. We hope this happiness was mutual and you enjoyed the read. This time around, we hope to regale you with many more such experiences that would make you go *Aaaaahsome*! Download the issue here: http://bit.ly/aahsome-beauty We thank you for your tremendous support and hope you'll continue to love Aahsome! Thanks & regards, Team Aahsome PS: Share the love! ;) Share on Twitter Share on Facebook -- www.aahsome.com From taraprakash at gmail.com Wed Jan 20 20:50:54 2010 From: taraprakash at gmail.com (TaraPrakash) Date: Wed, 20 Jan 2010 10:20:54 -0500 Subject: [Reader-list] Fw: News Alert: The Times to Charge for Frequent Access to Its Web Site Message-ID: <31E57964111545108255EB60C6AFB015@shabori> This might be the beginning of the end to free access to reliable news. Hope thehindu does not have to take the same step. ----- Original Message ----- From: "NYTimes.com News Alert" To: Sent: Wednesday, January 20, 2010 9:19 AM Subject: News Alert: The Times to Charge for Frequent Access to Its Web Site > Breaking News Alert > The New York Times > Wed, January 20, 2010 -- 9:19 AM ET > ----- > > The Times to Charge for Frequent Access to Its Web Site > > Starting in early 2011, visitors to NYTimes.com will get a > certain number of articles free every month before being > asked to pay a flat fee for access. > > Read More: > http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/21/business/media/21times.html?hp&emc=na > > ----- > Now get New York Times breaking news alerts sent to your mobile phone. > Sign up by texting NEWSALERTS to 698698 (NYTNYT). > ----- > > About This E-Mail > You received this message because you are signed up to receive breaking > news > alerts from NYTimes.com. > > To unsubscribe, change your e-mail address or to sign up for daily > headlines > or other newsletters, go to: > http://www.nytimes.com/email > > NYTimes.com > 620 Eighth Ave. > New York, NY 10018 > > Copyright 2010 The New York Times Company > > From tasveerghar at gmail.com Thu Jan 21 13:24:40 2010 From: tasveerghar at gmail.com (Tasveer Ghar) Date: Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:24:40 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] reminder: Lecture on Popular Islam and Urban Spaces: Max Mueller bhawan, Delhi Message-ID: <484c1051001202354o7fe98a78n4997f5f1727319b1@mail.gmail.com> Popular Islam and Urban Spaces: The Nizamuddin Shrine in New Delhi An Illustrated Talk by Yousuf Saeed Friday, January 22, 2010 at 6:30 pm Siddhartha Hall, Goethe-Institut/Max Mueller Bhawan 3, Kasturba Gandhi Marg New Delhi 110001 You are cordially invited to an illustrated talk by Yousuf Saeed on the popular image and media practices around Delhi’s Sufi shrine of Nizamuddin Aulia. The talk focuses on how the popular visuality around the shrine has changed over time in response to the changes brought about by urbanization, movement of pilgrims, new technology, and competition from the more orthodox tableeghi and Wahhabi ideologues in the vicinity? This work-in-progress is part of a research and documentation project tracing the transcultural flows between Europe and Asia in Muslim popular iconography, under the “Cluster of Excellence - Asia and Europe in a Global Context: Shifting Asymmetries in Cultural Flows”, University of Heidelberg, Germany. Yousuf Saeed is a Delhi-based researcher and filmmaker having directed well-known documentary films such as Basant, Khayal Darpan, and The Train to Heaven, among others, which have been screened at several international film festivals. He has worked in the past for the Times of India and Encyclopaedia Britannica as video and image editor. His research on popular Muslim devotional iconography in India has culminated into a forthcoming book. Yousuf is currently the director of Tasveer Ghar, a digital archive of Indian popular visual culture. Tel.+91-11-2332 9506 http://www.goethe.de/newdelhi Email: prog.mmb at delhi.goethe.org Also see: http://www.asia-europe.uni-heidelberg.de/en/research/heidelberg-research-architecture/hra-projects/satellites-of-networks.html -- http://www.tasveerghar.net From mitoo at sarai.net Thu Jan 21 15:19:18 2010 From: mitoo at sarai.net (Mitoo Das) Date: Thu, 21 Jan 2010 15:19:18 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] Public Lecture by Prof. Joseph Prabhu at CSDS Message-ID: <4B58231E.9050803@sarai.net> *Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), Delhi* *Invites *you to a* Public Lecture* by *Professor Joseph Prabhu* on *Hegel and India: A Fateful Encounter* at the *Seminar Hall, CSD**S* on *Friday, January 22, 2010 at 4 p.m.* *Chair: Professor Mrinal Miri* Please join us Note: Joseph Prabhu is Professor of Philosophy, California State University, Los Angeles. His publications include The Intercultural Challenge of Raimon Panikkar, (ed.); Indian Ethics: Classical Traditions and Contemporary Challenges, Vol 1, co-edited with P. Bilimoria; and Indian Ethics: Justice, Law, and Applied Ethics, Vol. 2, co-edited with P. Bilimoria (forthcoming). He is currently working on Liberating Gandhi: Community, Empire, and a Culture of Peace; Human Rights in Cross-Cultural Perspective; and Hegel, India, and the Dark Face of Modernity. *Shail Mayaram Director, CSDS* -------------- next part -------------- _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net http://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From indersalim at gmail.com Thu Jan 21 16:54:34 2010 From: indersalim at gmail.com (Inder Salim) Date: Thu, 21 Jan 2010 16:54:34 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Call for Support: Art Karavan International in India Message-ID: <47e122a71001210324v674460dagfc8bb9021e6f4d71@mail.gmail.com> Dear all please click to see the image http://indersalim.livejournal.com/62265.html ... about to begin from 12th Feb. from Shanti Niketan, W.B, and then to Ranchi, Patna, Lucknow, Dehradun, Shimla, Jammu, Srinagar and Delhi. as already publicized through blog http://peripherals10.blog.com, the intentions of the art karavan aims to bring artists and non-artists on the same platform to create new intimacies during this 70 days travel camp event... The no. of artists from India and abroad are nearly 70 per destination for which we have so far been able to generate support from Lalit Kala Academy and some universities but some vital logistics are pending so it is requested to donate freely to help us realize the event with a better artistic confidence with love and regards Inder Salim PERIPHERALS F-68/D, G.T.B ENCLAVE DELHI 110093 ( 9968075965) -- http://indersalim.livejournal.com From kuhutanvir at gmail.com Fri Jan 22 01:35:49 2010 From: kuhutanvir at gmail.com (Kuhu Tanvir) Date: Fri, 22 Jan 2010 01:35:49 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Call for Papers: Arab Cinema Message-ID: *Cinemas of the Arab World Call for papers - special issue of Wide Screen Editor: Latika Padgaonkar (film scholar, formerly Executive Editor of Cinemaya and festival director of Osian's Cinefan Festival)* The Arab world may be bound by language and religion, but it is in no sense homogeneous, neither in its history nor in its customs. Yet, over the years, what has largely been common to many Arab countries in the field of cinemais a set of shared problems: decline in film production, closure of halls consequent to the video revolution, censorship, issues of distribution, diminishing investment, narrowing of the domestic market and the invasion of American films and television programmes, quite apart from the pervasive and longstanding influence of Egyptian cinema to which several countries were called upon to adjust in an earlier day. For all that, a large number of Arab films have, in recent years, made a mark in the international arena. These films have been made in the face of odds – economic, material and psychological. They continue to grapple with their past and, increasingly, with their present: a past linked to their colonial experience, war and displacement, and a present that is trying to shape an identity. The colonial yoke may have been shed but the region is now battling turbulent issues of another kind. *Wide Screen* attempts an engagement with cinemas of the Arab world by asking questions on a variety of topics that are pertinent to this region – from censorship to the new cinema, from the position of women to the question of identity, from the implications of foreign funding to the diversities and similarities of the cinemas of these countries. Apart from inviting general articles that may be specific to a director, film or a theme in Arab cinema (as a whole or from a particular film culture), here are a few very broad ideas that can be incorporated in the suggestions we make to people who want to write for the journal and even as guidelines for ourselves. - Focus on one director – an entire section of the special issue could have articles/essays and interviews and reviews of films made by one director. - Censorship – articles dealing with censorship in Arab cinema. Is it just censorship of content by the state machinery, or is it also self-censorship – a kind of moral policing done socially. Is there also a censorship of form? How accepting is the audience and the state to non-linear forms? How much has that changed over the years. - Showcasing cinema – the rest of the world knows precious little about the cinephile culture in Arab countries despite a growing cinema culture. Examination of cinema halls, the kinds of films they showcase, box office returns etc can be interesting to look at. Furthermore, what is the kind of give-and-take with other popular cinemas, for instance Hollywood and popular Indian cinema. Do locally produced films get more popular than foreign films? What is the state and role of film festivals in Arab countries. - Articles dealing with Arab audience and also audience of Arab cinema - Identity – film cultures across the world, be they art films or popular ones have obsessed over questions of a Muslim identity ever since 9/11. How does Arab cinema engage with this question? Is Arab cinema (and within it cinemas of individual countries) put on a defensive, loaded with the notion of proving innocence? Apart from content, how does form deal with this question? The most important question here is, What is Arab cinema? - Women – when it comes to Arab cinema, a look at the representation and position of women in the film industry is inevitable. How many women directors are there? Are big actors ready to work with them? Are female stars paid as much as their male counterparts. Who are the directors that are working on issues relating to women. What is the kind of opposition they have to face. *Deadline for paper submission: 15 March 2009.* *Papers can be submitted at*: http://widescreenjournal.org/index.php/journal/about/submissions#onlineSubmissions or *emailed to*: kuhutanvir at gmail.com *Author guidelines, copyright notice and other information can be accessed at*: http://widescreenjournal.org/index.php/journal/about/submissions From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Fri Jan 22 12:36:59 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Fri, 22 Jan 2010 12:36:59 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] =?utf-8?q?Inviting_Articles_on_=27Empowering_Underp?= =?utf-8?q?rivileged_Children_and_Their_Families=E2=80=99?= In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Sangeeta Goyal Date: 2010/1/11 Subject: journal on ECCE Dear Ms. Parekh, Salwan Education Trust (established in 1941) has been committed to educational excellence for nearly seven decades and runs eleven prestigious schools in and around Delhi. *NAVTIKA**: Journal of Early Childhood Care and Education*, was launched on January 20, 2007 by Joint Secretary, Ministry of Women & Child Development, Govt of India. It is published three times a year ie. January, May and September. The contents are sourced from eminent Early Childhood Care & Education (ECCE) educationists along with researchers, teachers and counselors. The journal is a guide to explore the very best in ECCE. Our Honorary Editorial Board members are 1. *Prof. Venita Kaul*, Director, Center for Early Childhood Education and Development, Ambedkar University, Delhi. 2. *Prof. K. K. Vashishtha*, Head, Department of Elementary Education, National Council of Educational Research and Training, New Delhi 3. *Dr. Shraddha Kapoor*, Reader, Lady Irwin College, New Delhi 4. *Dr. Romila Soni*, Lecturer, Department of Elementary Education, National Council of Educational Research and Training , New Delhi 5. *Dr. Nisha Peshin,* Director, D.A.V. Education Board, New Delhi I am also enclosing a link which covers the contents of the past issues. http://www.salwanmontessori-gurgaon.com/navtika/navtika.htm It is pertinent to mention that ”Navtika National Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education’ was organised in New Delhi on 19-20 Sep 2008. Details of this conference are also enclosed in the above link. We would be having II National Conference on ECCE in the month of September 2010. The forthcoming issue is focused on ‘*Empowering Underprivileged Children and Their Families’.* I sincerely request you to spare your valuable time to pen down an article or share your experiences or send a write up of the project taken up by you for underprivileged children. An honorarium of Rs. 500/ will be given to each selected article. Submission could be sent by 20th Feb 2010 for this issue. Feel free to share this mail with others who might be interested. Looking forward to hearing soon Regards *Dr. Sangeeta Goyal* *Project Coordinator, Navtika* From pawan.durani at gmail.com Fri Jan 22 12:43:54 2010 From: pawan.durani at gmail.com (Pawan Durani) Date: Fri, 22 Jan 2010 12:43:54 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Remembering Wandhama - 12 years later Message-ID: <6b79f1a71001212313m48ff8cf3r43aae0e23d16ed5c@mail.gmail.com> *Sub Divisional police officer Ganderbal Showkat Ahmad, who was then Station Hose Officer for the area told Kashmir Times, "The case has been closed, as no one was identified as the killer of these Pandits." * * * *http://thekashmir.wordpress.com/2010/01/22/wandhama/ * * * From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Fri Jan 22 13:18:21 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Fri, 22 Jan 2010 13:18:21 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Karmayog seeks your views on the UID project Message-ID: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/karmayog/message/59208 Posted by: "karmayog.org" info at karmayog.org Thu Jan 21, 2010 The process to assign a unique identity number to each Indian has been started under the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). (See http://uidai.gov.in/ for more details) It is expected that a unique identification number (UID) that can be verified and authenticated in an online, cost-effective manner, and which is robust enough to eliminate duplicate and fake identities, will help to bring about transformation in the lives of many Indians, who struggle daily to access and rightfully use resources that are available for them. Do you agree? Now is the time to give suggestions and inputs on how this UID Project can be designed and implemented to be people-friendly, useful and easily doable for government. Some examples: a) what are simple and effective ways to prevent misuse? b) is biometric identification a suitable method to adopt in India? c) how can UID be used to benefit groups such as migrant workers, street children, etc.? d) should the UID be integrated with other existing I/Cards such as the Pan Card, Voting Card, etc.? How? e) have you heard of experiences of similar initiatives in other countries, companies, etc.? f) what are the experiences of NGOs which have been working with groups of all types and sizes, and how such persons could use and benefit from a UID. Karmayog will compile and forward all suggestions received to the UID Authority, as well as display all these on our website for others to read and respond. Thanks Vinay www.karmayog.org/uid -- bringing out your unique identity From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Fri Jan 22 14:48:46 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (nmf2010) Date: Fri, 22 Jan 2010 10:18:46 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?Day_022_-_NewMediaFest=272010?= Message-ID: <20100122101847.557922E0.4061B265@192.168.0.2> NewMediafest'2010 Day 022 - week 04 - ___________________________________________ ___________________________________________ Day 022 program - 22 January 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=369 ___________________________________________ Features of today 1. Cinematheque - Flash & Thunder 2. JavaMuseum - Celebrate! - Ubermorgen.com 3. JavaMuseum interviews - Ubermorgen.com 4. VideoChannel - Video Art from Malta - Pierre Portelli 5. VideoChannel - Found Footage! - Philp Widmann (Germany) 6. CologneOFF V - daily features - My Name is Scot (Canada) ___________________________________________ Feature of the Week 04- 18-24 January 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=345 Cinematheque - streaming media - a show case in 5 parts: ---> Flash & Thunder - Flash as a tool and medium for artistic creations Part 1 (Jan-Fen' 2010) is featuring : Aaron Oldenbourg (USA, Myriam Thyes (Switzerland), Jason Freeman (USA), Bill Domonklos (USA), Renaud Vercey (France) http://cinema.nmartproject.net/cinema_d/index.html ___________________________________________ Features of the month January 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=224 1. SoundLAB Cologne - Soundart from Chile (2006) 2. VideoChannel Cologne - French Video Art (2010) 3. JavaMuseum - 1st of Java - Perspectives on New Media (2001) ___________________________________________ NewMediaFest'2010 10 Years [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne global heritage of digital culture 1 January - 31 December 2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org calls for entries --> for NewMediaFest'2010 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?page_id=78 downloads http://2010.newmediafest.org/?page_id=87 newmediafest2010 [at] koeln.de ---------------------------------------------------- Join NewMediaFest'2010 on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=404197070650 ---------------------------------------------------- From naeem.mohaiemen at gmail.com Sat Jan 23 11:30:31 2010 From: naeem.mohaiemen at gmail.com (Naeem Mohaiemen) Date: Sat, 23 Jan 2010 12:00:31 +0600 Subject: [Reader-list] Drishtipat analysis of India-Bangladesh Detente Message-ID: 4 op-eds on new moves for detente between India-Bangladesh... Rumi Ahmed: Need United Front At Home http://unheardvoice.net/blog/2010/01/19/need-an-united-front-at-home/ Jyoti Rahman: Don't Believe The Hype http://unheardvoice.net/blog/2010/01/14/hoi-hoi-hai-hai-or-dont-believe-the-hype/ Asif Saleh: A New Start? http://unheardvoice.net/blog/2010/01/21/a-new-start-for-india-and-bangladesh/ Zafar Sobhan: Charm Offensive http://unheardvoice.net/blog/2010/01/22/the-charm-offensive/ From press at tank.tv Fri Jan 15 16:31:14 2010 From: press at tank.tv (tank.tv press) Date: Fri, 15 Jan 2010 11:01:14 +0000 Subject: [Reader-list] tank.tv Winter 2010 : Laetitia Benat / Paul McCarthy / Tate Modern Message-ID: <78c84f091001150301y204e07a1q7dcb7f5881a146c4@mail.gmail.com> *www.tank.tv* *January & February 2010* *Laetitia Benat / Paul McCarthy / Tate Modern* tank.tv is pleased to welcome in our 2010 programme with an exhibition of work by the French artist Laetitia Benat. Benat uses the simplest of video techniques to negotiate and toy with the way in which emotion and suspense are implied by images. Simple sounds, shots, sequences and subjects are used to examine the way in which the viewer is triggered into feeling. Allowing the viewer to extrapolate story and feeling from so little Benat's work examines the very building blocks of filmmaking and will be online until the 31st January. In February tank.tv will be exhibiting a pair of videos from Paul McCarthy. *Family Tyranny* & *Cultural Soup* were cut from two days of taped performance at a community television studio in 1987. Featuring McCarthy's fellow artist Mike Kelley, these videos are filled with the disturbing images of familial horror and stomach turning abjection that characterise the artist's renowned body of work. Both works will be available on www.tank.tv from the 1st - 28th February. This show is held in conjunction with a screening of McCarthy's Contemporary Cure All and F-Fort on the 6th February at 7pm at Tate Modern's Starr Auditorium. Book your tickets early through the Tate box offic e . www.tank.tv -- -- - - - - - - - - - - - - tank.tv 2nd Floor Princess House 50 - 60 Eastcastle Street London W1W 8EA press at tank.tv T: +44 (0)207323 3475 F: +44 (0)207631 4280 http://www.tank.tv - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Fresh Moves - Out now! Order your copy on www.tank.tv "A significant archive of creative practices in the early years of twenty-first century England" Tyler Coburn, Tomorrow Unlimited --- tank.tv is an inspirational showcase for innovative work in film and video. Dedicated to exhibiting and promoting emerging and established international artists, www.tank.tv acts as a major online gallery and archive for video art. A platform for contemporary moving images. From a.mani.cms at gmail.com Sun Jan 17 21:35:27 2010 From: a.mani.cms at gmail.com (A. Mani) Date: Sun, 17 Jan 2010 21:35:27 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Haitian Earthquake: Made In The USA Message-ID: <78323d481001170805l4f14fbc1m5a7ac5c230a34839@mail.gmail.com> See http://www.countercurrents.org/rall160110.htm The same 7.0 tremor hitting San Francisco wouldn't kill nearly as many people as in Port-au-Prince. "Looking at the pictures, essentially it looks as if (the buildings are of) breezeblock or cinderblock construction, and what you need in an earthquake zone is metal bars that connect the blocks so that they stay together when they get shaken," notes Sandy Steacey, director of the Environmental Science Research Institute at the University of Ulster in Northern Ireland. "In a wealthy country with good seismic building codes that are enforced, you would have some damage, but not very much." When a pile of cinderblocks falls on you, your odds of survival are long. Even if you miraculously survive, a poor country like Haiti doesn't have the equipment, communications infrastructure or emergency service personnel to pull you out of the rubble in time. And if your neighbors get you out, there's no ambulance to take you to the hospital--or doctor to treat you once you get there. _______________________________________ Best A. Mani -- A. Mani ASL, CLC, AMS, CMS http://www.logicamani.co.cc From aaa.sabih at gmail.com Fri Jan 15 13:38:20 2010 From: aaa.sabih at gmail.com (Sabih .) Date: Fri, 15 Jan 2010 13:38:20 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] AAA: interview with Bose Krishnamachari Message-ID: <202772771001150008i161a4cj9a7a2f877c4f2648@mail.gmail.com> Dear all, I hope the season's treating you well. Just wanted to bring to your attention that the current issue of 'Diaaalogue: AAA's monthly newsletter' features an interview with artist Bose Krishnamachari. You can read it by following this link: http://www.aaa.org.hk/newsletter_detail.aspx?newsletter_id=780 Hoping for lots more dialogue in time to come. Sincerely, -- Sabih Researcher Asia Art Archive -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/attachments/20100115/b9aa1106/attachment.html From shuddha at sarai.net Mon Jan 18 00:37:46 2010 From: shuddha at sarai.net (Shuddhabrata Sengupta) Date: Mon, 18 Jan 2010 00:37:46 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] [Fwd: The "Allah Controversy" in Malaysia In-Reply-To: <4B515B7B.8070003@sarai.net> References: <4B515B7B.8070003@sarai.net> Message-ID: <03E295D2-072D-4BB4-9F5D-DF3BF28AA8A3@sarai.net> Dear Ravikant, Thank you for sharing this article, and the way in which it brings into focus the persecution of the Ahmediya or Qadiani community in Pakistan. Incidentally there are strong prejudices against this community in Bangladesh as well, and the search for an 'enemy within' is certainly a marker of one of the more paranoid features of the hegemonic forms of Islamic fundamentalism (seeded, as Prof. Naim rightly points out, by Bhutto and nurtured by Zia ul Haq) that Pakistanis have to fight against in their bid for a more open and tolerant civic space. best Shuddha On 16-Jan-10, at 11:53 AM, ravikant wrote: > With thanks to Prof. CM Naim for sharing this excellent article and > apologies for cross-posting. Please follow this link to check original > web references. > > ravikant > > http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?263813 > > The foundational creed for all Muslims is: "There is no god save > Allah, > and Muhammad is Allah's prophet"---with the Arabic word /Rasul/ > indicating Muhammad's status. /Rasul/ literally translates as "someone > who was sent," but in common usage in Arabic---and in Islamicate > languages such as Urdu and Persian---it means a prophet or apostle. > According to the Qur'an, Jesus too is a /Rasul/ of Allah's /Rasul/, as > are in fact all the prophets of the Old Testament. However, in Islam, > Jesus is not God's Son; though immaculately conceived, he is described > only as the son of Maryam or Mary. A useful summation of what the > Qur'an > tells Muslims about Jesus is found in 4:156--8, where the Jews are > chided---"[156] ... because they denied and spoke dreadful > calumnies of > Mary; [157] And for saying: 'We killed the Christ, Jesus, son of Mary, > who was an apostle of God;' but they neither killed nor crucified him, > though it so appeared to them. Those who disagree in the matter are > only > lost in doubt. They have no knowledge about it other than conjecture, > for surely they did not kill him, [158] But God took him to > Himself, and > God is all-mighty and all-wise." (Ahmed Ali, /Al-Qur'an/, Princeton > University Press, Princeton, 1984, pp. 93-4.) Christianity, obviously, > is six centuries and few decades older than Islam, and every reader of > the Qur'an knows that its earliest verses directly and repeatedly, > though not exclusively, addressed the Christians of Mecca, reminding > them Allah and His /Rasul/, Jesus, while pointing out their > "errors" in > belief about the latter. > > In other words, Allah was the Arabic word that the people of > Mecca---Christians, Jews, and so-called Pagans---were quite familiar > with and understood it to represent a singular Supreme Being in > Arabic, > their shared language. The word, no doubt, had an earlier history, but > that is not of concern here. Of importance is the simple fact that a > fairly large body of Arabic speaking Christians had been using the > word > "Allah" for at least a few centuries before the advent of Islam. And > that for any Muslim to make a monopolistic claim on the word in the > name > of Islam would be an act of abysmal ignorance and absolute > arrogance. To > my limited knowledge, no Muslim, had ever made such a claim in the > past. > > But these are bad times, reminding us of the words that Yeats made > memorable some ninety years ago: ".../ everywhere // The ceremony of > innocence is drowned;// The best lack all conviction, while the > worst // > Are full of passionate intensity./" And so we have the situation in > Malaysia, where /some/ Muslims recently attacked and vandalized nine > churches because they did not wish /some/ Malaysian Christians to use > "Allah" to refer to their own God. > > I have above used the word "some" twice advisedly. According to an > Associated Press report of January 9, "Only the Malay-language prayers > for indigenous tribes people in the remote states of Sabah and Sarawak > use 'Allah,' as they have for decades." And the Catholic weekly, > /Herald/, uses the word only in its Bahasa Malaysia edition. It had > been > doing so since 1995, but it was not until 2006 that it was warned > by the > government to stop. And it is only some Malaysian Muslims who, > individually or collectively, have been involved in the recent > arson and > vandalism. (The most recent being an attack on the offices of the > lawyer > for the Catholic Church.) The many reports in the/ New York Times/ > barely hinted at that "some-ness." I had to go online and find some > English language Malaysian blogs and newspapers to discover that while > the problem was more extensive there was also greater dissent and > resistance to the ban among Malaysian Muslims than was reported in the > American press, and that any number of prominent academics and > journalists had severely criticized the attacks, while bringing to > light > the issue's fuller history within the context of Malaysia's somewhat > unique federal political system. > > Apparently, there was a local ban and a fatwa to that effect in > 1986 in > the state of Selangor, which was made into a state law in 1988, and > eventually became established in March 2009 as a fully gazetted law in > all the constituent states of Malaysia---though not without challenge > and opposition from various religious and secular organizations. The > ban, in fact, concerned four words, the other three being "Kaabah," > "Solat," and "Baitullah." The enacted law prohibited Non-Muslims from > using those four words with reference to any occasion or activity that > was not Islamic. > > It may be recalled that not too long ago there was in Malaysia another > brouhaha. A fatwa was issued and nationally confirmed making Yoga a > "non-Islamic" practice that Malaysian Muslims were told not to engage > in. Earlier there were other controversies---over beauty pageants and > also whether it was right for Malaysian Muslims to greet their > non-Muslim compatriots on the latter's religious occasions. I should > note that the mufti of Selangor disapproved of the pageants and > Yoga but > allowed offering greetings to non-Muslims. Indonesia, incidentally, > did > not prohibit Yoga to its much larger Muslim majority population. > > The judicial review sought by the Catholic Church last year came to a > conclusion recently. The court's verdict went in favor of the Church, > allowing it to use the word "Allah" in its Malaysian language > publications. It was only then that the churches were attacked, > including one in the capital, Kuala Lumpur. The response of the > Malaysian state so far has been quite satisfactory. It launched an > investigation, arrested some alleged culprits, and provided just > compensation to the victims. It has also tried to draw the world's > attention to the peculiarities of its federal political system, and > asked for more patience and understanding from the critics. At > present, > the government is making plans to appeal the verdict, and the court > has > issued a stay on its own order. (As far as I could discover, the > verdict > exclusively devoted itself to the word "Allah," and did not > overturn the > ban on the other three words---nor, it seems, had the Catholic Church > asked differently.) > > What was certainly heartening for me was to discover the strength of > Malaysia's public sphere through the reports, postings, and analyses > available on the web in such journals as the /Malay Times/ and /Star/ > and particularly at /thenutgraph.com /. I > learned, for example, about the forum in Kuala Lumpur on January 11 > that > lasted for four hours and was attended by some 900 people, and where > divergent views were peaceably expressed and argued over, with full > participation from the audience. > > "'Allah' is a specific name, not a general name for God," said Dr > Khalif Muammar, a fellow from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia > (UKM)'s > Institute of the Malay World and Civilisation. "The word > 'Allah' has > been Islamicised since God's revelation to Prophet Muhammad." > > Dr Mohd Farid Mohd Shahran, a Department of Usul al-Din and > Comparative Religion lecturer from the International Islamic > University Malaysia agreed. "The question is not whether non- > Muslims > /can/ use 'Allah'," he said. "The question is, is it > appropriate and > good for them to do so? 'Allah' has been accepted by Malay > [Malaysians] and has an established meaning ... [It] has been used > [by Muslims] since the time of the Prophet Muhammad...." > > Other speakers, however, disagreed and said there was no > restriction > in the Qur'an or Hadith on the use of "Allah" by non-Muslims. > > "There is nothing that states that the word 'Allah' is > exclusive to > Islam," said Dr Azwira Abdul Aziz, an Islamic lecturer from UKM's > Faculty of Islamic Studies. "This issue has not even been > debated in > the Islamic world. It's almost as if it has been so clearly > understood until it does not need to be mentioned." > > Azwira added that it was wrong to say that "Allah" should be > exclusive to Islam in Malaysia just because it was accepted as the > norm by Muslims.... > > "It is not the word 'Allah' that differentiates Muslims from > non-Muslims," said Khalid Samad, PAS Member of Parliament. "It is > the understanding of who Allah is and his traits." > > A participant also pointed out > that when a > distinguished Muslim translated the Bible into Malay 150 years ago he > used "Allah" to mean "God." Similarly, it was enlightening for me to > learn that in Malaysia it was up to the individual Ruler and religious > bodies of each state to accept or reject any edict issued by the > National Fatwa Council. (Read more: here > have-final-say-on-yoga-ban_100123661.html#ixzz0cWgv3bVm>) > One wishes that reports of such gatherings were also distributed by > the > /New York Times/ as the reports of the criminal incidents that > occasioned them. In contrast, I found that Al-Jazeera on the web had > more extensive and nuanced coverage of the issue, both in regular news > reports and in the blogs of their correspondent, Teymoor Nabili. (See, > for example, here > one-malaysia>) > > I was however still intrigued by the original ban of 1986 that covered > three more words besides "Allah," namely "Kaabah," i.e. the Ka'ba at > Mecca, "Solat," i.e. Muslim obligatory prayers (in South Asia, more > commonly called Namaz), and "Baitullah," lit. "God's House," i.e. a > mosque. Surely, I asked, those three words were not likely to be > used by > any Catholic to refer to his religious institution or practice? > > A little more search and a report in the/ Malaysian Bar > ministry_seizes_163_books_for_checks.html?date=2010-02-01>/ > concerning confiscation of imported books in January 2008 provided the > answer. It mentioned in passing: "[The Deputy Minister] Johari said > the > ministry did not only target on (sic) Christian books in the > operations." That was perhaps his way of acknowledging the fact > that the > main target of the original ban in 1986 was the Ahmadi Jama'at. Most > likely in imitation of the draconian law put in place by Gen. Ziaul > Haq > in Pakistan only two years earlier, making it punishable for anyone to > directly, or indirectly, pose himself as a Muslim, or call, or > refer to, > his faith as Islam, or preach or propagate his faith, invite others to > accept his faith, "by words, either spoken or written, or by visible > representations, or in any manner whatsoever outrag[ing] the religious > feelings of Muslims." The bluster in the final phrase is almost > desperate in its viciousness. > > As compared to Pakistan, or even India, the Ahmadis in Malaysia form a > minuscule minority. They number "only 2,000 at the most" in a > population > of more than 28 million. They don't look different from Malay > Malaysians, and their identity cards list Islam as their religion. In > contrast, in Pakistan, they are listed as non-Muslim, cannot vote as > Muslims, and in order to get a passport must sign a declaration that > they consider their founder, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian, "an > impostor > /nabi/." (For more on Malaysian Ahmadis, see here > ) > > I would love to be corrected but I do not recall much opposition in > Pakistan's public sphere---either in 1974 or ten years later---to the > draconian laws and the resultant persecution of the Ahmadis that was > often fatal, except by a few brave people who were first at the > English > monthly /Herald/ and later started /Newsline/. The Urdu press, as I > remember, was in fact vociferous in applauding the law, while > remaining > silent about its victims. And if any public meeting was organized by > university teachers and public intellectuals in those years, it was > certainly not reported in major newspapers. In any case, the > persecution > has continued. As recently as August 2009, there were reports of state > supported vandalism at Ahmadi mosques, where the words "Allah" and > "Muhammad" were erased or painted over under the supervision of the > local police. (Watch: on Youtube > ) . And > only > this month an elderly Ahmadi man was gunned down in Ferozewala > after he > had protested to the police about a big signboard set up at the main > roundabout in the city that contained "slogans provoking people > against > the Ahmadis." (The sign was not removed at the time of the report.) > > But, I'm glad to report, things seem to be changing a bit even in > Pakistan. After the incidents in August, an Urdu journalist and TV > personality, Mobasher Lucman, conducted a couple of programs that > expressed explicit condemnation of the deeds. (See here > and here > .) Though, > to my knowledge, the program did not include any Ahmadi, it was > still a > big step forward. Similarly, the recent killing in Ferozewala > received > full and sustained coverage in at least one English language > newspaper, > the / Daily Times/, including an editorial titled "Protect Ahmadis > story_13-1-2010_pg3_1>" > > The Pandora's Box, so to say, was opened in Pakistan in 1974 by a > self-proclaimed Socialist, Z. A Bhutto, when he had the country's > parliament declare the Ahmadis to be a non-Muslim minority. It was the > first concession made by the Pakistani state---more accurately, by a > desperate and unprincipled politician---to the fanatically sectarian > elements in the Sunni Muslim majority of Pakistan. It only encouraged > the latter to become bolder and more expansive in their demands. The > situation was subsequently made much worse by Gen Ziaul Haq, the > original jihadist. The laws remain on the book and fanatics still > succeed in manipulating the polity, but after 35 years at least a few > voices of sanity and conviction are being raised and also heard. In > Pakistan just as in Malaysia. And that is something to be grateful > for. > > -- > /C.M. Naim is Professor Emeritus, University of Chicago/ > > > > > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with > subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> Shuddhabrata Sengupta The Sarai Programme at CSDS Raqs Media Collective shuddha at sarai.net www.sarai.net www.raqsmediacollective.net From kaksanjay at gmail.com Fri Jan 22 15:56:24 2010 From: kaksanjay at gmail.com (Sanjay Kak) Date: Fri, 22 Jan 2010 15:56:24 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] screening "Forever Young" In-Reply-To: <5c5369881001210329n7275fbd9v7ba5730f09f44e84@mail.gmail.com> References: <5c5369881001210329n7275fbd9v7ba5730f09f44e84@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <5c5369881001220226if5ab88do76da8ab7faeedd0d@mail.gmail.com> Forever Young a film by Ranjan Palit at the India International Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi Jan 27, 2010 (Wed) / 6.15 pm / Auditorium For the past twenty years every year on Bob Dylan’s birthday, 66-year-old Lou Majaw and the band Ace of Spades has been performing a tribute concert, with their rendering of Dylan songs. The film is about this man and how his annual celebration of Dylan’s music has made him into a small-town hero in the rock capital of the country. duration: 78 mins (The film-maker will be present for the screening) _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net http://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Thu Jan 14 21:30:10 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (netEX) Date: Thu, 14 Jan 2010 17:00:10 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?=5BAnnouncements=5D_Two_open_calls?= Message-ID: <20100114170010.5D93648D.682A2EC6@192.168.0.2> VideoChannel Cologne has currently two open calls running ________________________________________________ 1. [self ] ~imaging // artists portraying themselves in film and video 2. One Minute Films for One Minute Film Collection ________________________________________________ 1 Call for entries Deadline 2 March 2010 Theme: [self ] ~imaging // artists portraying themselves in film and video Like in the classical artistic media, self-portraying takes also in film & videoart a prominent position, the own "self" is not only representing the cheapest model, but basically self-reflecting belongs to the essential artistic processes and activities of an artist. Thus, there are good reasons why artists self-portraits can be counted often to the best and most intimate works of an artist, at all. VideoChannel Cologne would like to invite artists working in the field of the moving images to submit their Selfportrait in video. VideoChannel Cologne is planning to extend an already existing collection of artists video self-portraits through new exciting films and videos to be launched in May 2010 on VideoChannel online, optional screenings in sequence. Find the details and the entry form on http://www.nmartproject.net/netex/?p=1852 _________________________________________________ 2. Call for entries Deadline 2 April 2010 Theme: One Minute Films for OMFC (One Minute Film Collection) VideoChannel is looking for "one minute films and videos" on the theme "memory" and "identity" for an online feature and future screening programs in the framework of the 10th anniversary celebrations of [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne - http://2010.newmediafest.org The accepted films will extend OMFC - One Minute Film Collection - the uinique selection of films and videos lasting exactly 60 seconds. regulations and entry form on http://www.nmartproject.net/netex/?p=447 _________________________________________________ VideoChannel Cologne http://videochannel.newmediafest.org videochannel (at) newmediafest.org _________________________________________________ _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net http://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de Sat Jan 23 19:32:12 2010 From: ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de (Britta Ohm) Date: Sat, 23 Jan 2010 15:02:12 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] Haitian Earthquake: Made In The USA In-Reply-To: <78323d481001170805l4f14fbc1m5a7ac5c230a34839@mail.gmail.com> References: <78323d481001170805l4f14fbc1m5a7ac5c230a34839@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: The water situation seems to be an additional fatalism; because of scarce water resources, salt water was used to mix cement for construction. This appears to be an increasing global problem. Am 17.01.2010 um 17:05 schrieb A. Mani: > See http://www.countercurrents.org/rall160110.htm > > The same 7.0 tremor hitting San Francisco wouldn't kill nearly as many > people as in Port-au-Prince. > > "Looking at the pictures, essentially it looks as if (the buildings > are of) breezeblock or cinderblock construction, and what you need in > an earthquake zone is metal bars that connect the blocks so that they > stay together when they get shaken," notes Sandy Steacey, director of > the Environmental Science Research Institute at the University of > Ulster in Northern Ireland. "In a wealthy country with good seismic > building codes that are enforced, you would have some damage, but not > very much." > > When a pile of cinderblocks falls on you, your odds of survival are > long. Even if you miraculously survive, a poor country like Haiti > doesn't have the equipment, communications infrastructure or emergency > service personnel to pull you out of the rubble in time. And if your > neighbors get you out, there's no ambulance to take you to the > hospital--or doctor to treat you once you get there. > > _______________________________________ > > Best > > A. Mani > > > -- > A. Mani > ASL, CLC, AMS, CMS > http://www.logicamani.co.cc > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with > subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> --------------------------------------- Dr. Britta Ohm Institute of Social Anthropology University of Bern Laenggassstr. 49a 3012 Bern Switzerland +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch Solmsstr. 36 10961 Berlin Germany +49-(0)30-69507155 ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de From ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de Sat Jan 23 22:14:02 2010 From: ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de (Britta Ohm) Date: Sat, 23 Jan 2010 17:44:02 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] Haitian Earthquake: Made In The USA Message-ID: <684A4451-B448-444A-BEEB-0C99622B3837@zedat.fu-berlin.de> The water situation seems to be an additional fatalism; because of scarce water resources, salt water was used to mix cement for construction. This appears to be an increasing global problem. Am 17.01.2010 um 17:05 schrieb A. Mani: > See http://www.countercurrents.org/rall160110.htm > > The same 7.0 tremor hitting San Francisco wouldn't kill nearly as many > people as in Port-au-Prince. > > "Looking at the pictures, essentially it looks as if (the buildings > are of) breezeblock or cinderblock construction, and what you need in > an earthquake zone is metal bars that connect the blocks so that they > stay together when they get shaken," notes Sandy Steacey, director of > the Environmental Science Research Institute at the University of > Ulster in Northern Ireland. "In a wealthy country with good seismic > building codes that are enforced, you would have some damage, but not > very much." > > When a pile of cinderblocks falls on you, your odds of survival are > long. Even if you miraculously survive, a poor country like Haiti > doesn't have the equipment, communications infrastructure or emergency > service personnel to pull you out of the rubble in time. And if your > neighbors get you out, there's no ambulance to take you to the > hospital--or doctor to treat you once you get there. > > _______________________________________ > > Best > > A. Mani > > > -- > A. Mani > ASL, CLC, AMS, CMS > http://www.logicamani.co.cc > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with > subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> --------------------------------------- Dr. Britta Ohm Institute of Social Anthropology University of Bern Laenggassstr. 49a 3012 Bern Switzerland +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch Solmsstr. 36 10961 Berlin Germany +49-(0)30-69507155 ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de From arsagar at gmail.com Sun Jan 24 06:04:04 2010 From: arsagar at gmail.com (Vidya Sagar Pancholi) Date: Sat, 23 Jan 2010 16:34:04 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Reader-list] Vidya Sagar Pancholi wants to stay in touch on LinkedIn Message-ID: <487550588.10592965.1264293244554.JavaMail.app@ech3-cdn06.prod> LinkedIn ------------ I'd like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn. - Vidya Sagar Pancholi Confirm that you know Vidya Sagar Pancholi https://www.linkedin.com/e/isd/1016998764/5LMvzVIz/ ------ (c) 2010, LinkedIn Corporation From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Sun Jan 24 11:49:53 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Sun, 24 Jan 2010 11:49:53 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Support for Nayana Kathpalia and Neera Punj In-Reply-To: <432653.66371.qm@web54402.mail.re2.yahoo.com> References: <432653.66371.qm@web54402.mail.re2.yahoo.com> Message-ID: ----- Forwarded Message ---- *From:* Deepak Tralshawala ** *Sent:* Sun, January 24, 2010 *Subject:* Support for Nayana Kathpalia and Neera Punj Dear Friends, This one is going to be very brief. I have never corresponded with you before, and have taken the liberty of doing so by taking your addresses from various e-mails that I have received. I take it that like many of us, you too are citizens concerned by the decay in our public life. I do apologise if you do not like mails like these and request you to write to me accordingly, so that I do not trouble you with such mails. Yesterday’s papers tell us that Mumbai’s scum (the city ought to have been more appropriately re-named Scumbai) are now targetting Neera Punj – within *just a fortnight* after shots were fired at Nayana Kathpalia’s residence. Both these ladies who live close to one another have devoted themselves to improving our surroundings. Both are a-political, neither of them is anti-hawker (both have spoken of co-existence with the hawkers, but in a disciplined and regulated manner), and neither has any axe to grind. All that they are concerned with is preserving for us and posterity the fast-dwindling parks, gardens and open spaces from maurauding government agencies sponsored by unscrupulous persons, for which they have filed a PIL. The increasing attacks on activists clearly show that · Activism has made an impact and that the scumbags are desperate · The police are apparently clueless about the identity of the goons (so much for their *khabri *system!) · The judiciary once again is a beacon of hope. But there is something that *WE* can do. We can express our solidarity by just telling these ladies that they are not alone – that we are with them. I do not know these two remarkable ladies, but have read a lot about the dedication with which they have slowly gone ahead with their plans for open spaces. I can say from personal experience that nothing works better for your morale when threatened by goons than an expression of solidarity and togetherness. My sincere request and suggestion is that no matter where you live, please write a word of encouragement. For those who are hampered by lack of time I would suggest the following draft. Please modify it, re-structure it, express the sentiments in your own words, but please do write: “Dear Nayana and Neera, I am distressed to read about the threats to you. This is to tell you that we are with you. Yours sincerely, XXX “ Their e-mail IDs are: Nayana.kathpalia at gmail.com neerapunj at hotmail.com PLEASE FORWARD THIS REQUEST TO YOUR FRIENDS, WITH A REQUEST TO FORWARD IT TO THEIR FRIENDS. Sincerely, Deepak Tralshawala *deepaktralshawala.blogspot.com* From jha.srirang at gmail.com Sun Jan 24 13:06:13 2010 From: jha.srirang at gmail.com (srirang jha) Date: Sun, 24 Jan 2010 13:06:13 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] NACCMAR -2010 Message-ID: Dear friends, Greetings! Apeejay School of Management, New Delhi is organizing 3rd National Conference on Contemporary Management Research NACCMAR -2010 on 14 May 2010. Kindly visit http://sites.google.com/site/naccmar/ for details of the conference. Last date of submitting the abstracts is 5 March 2010. Enquiries may be addressed to conference.asm at apeejay.edu With best regards -- Srirang Jha From taraprakash at gmail.com Mon Jan 25 05:46:32 2010 From: taraprakash at gmail.com (TaraPrakash) Date: Sun, 24 Jan 2010 19:16:32 -0500 Subject: [Reader-list] Haitian Earthquake: Made In The USA References: <684A4451-B448-444A-BEEB-0C99622B3837@zedat.fu-berlin.de> Message-ID: In addition, wasn't there some news about Hatians made a pact with devil and never lived happily ever after? ----- Original Message ----- From: "Britta Ohm" To: Sent: Saturday, January 23, 2010 11:44 AM Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Haitian Earthquake: Made In The USA > > > The water situation seems to be an additional fatalism; because of > scarce water resources, salt water was used to mix cement for > construction. This appears to be an increasing global problem. > > Am 17.01.2010 um 17:05 schrieb A. Mani: > >> See http://www.countercurrents.org/rall160110.htm >> >> The same 7.0 tremor hitting San Francisco wouldn't kill nearly as many >> people as in Port-au-Prince. >> >> "Looking at the pictures, essentially it looks as if (the buildings >> are of) breezeblock or cinderblock construction, and what you need in >> an earthquake zone is metal bars that connect the blocks so that they >> stay together when they get shaken," notes Sandy Steacey, director of >> the Environmental Science Research Institute at the University of >> Ulster in Northern Ireland. "In a wealthy country with good seismic >> building codes that are enforced, you would have some damage, but not >> very much." >> >> When a pile of cinderblocks falls on you, your odds of survival are >> long. Even if you miraculously survive, a poor country like Haiti >> doesn't have the equipment, communications infrastructure or emergency >> service personnel to pull you out of the rubble in time. And if your >> neighbors get you out, there's no ambulance to take you to the >> hospital--or doctor to treat you once you get there. >> >> _______________________________________ >> >> Best >> >> A. Mani >> >> >> -- >> A. Mani >> ASL, CLC, AMS, CMS >> http://www.logicamani.co.cc >> _________________________________________ >> reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. >> Critiques & Collaborations >> To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with >> subscribe in the subject header. >> To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list >> List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> > > --------------------------------------- > Dr. Britta Ohm > > Institute of Social Anthropology > University of Bern > Laenggassstr. 49a > 3012 Bern > Switzerland > +41-(0)31-631 8995 (main office) > +41-(0)31-631 8997 (direct line) > britta.ohm at anthro.unibe.ch > > > Solmsstr. 36 > 10961 Berlin > Germany > +49-(0)30-69507155 > ohm at zedat.fu-berlin.de > > > > > > > > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with > subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Mon Jan 25 15:54:41 2010 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (nmf2010) Date: Mon, 25 Jan 2010 11:24:41 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?NewMediaFest=272010_-_week_05_-_prev?= =?iso-8859-1?q?iew?= Message-ID: <20100125112441.729E191E.8302799B@192.168.0.2> NewMediaFest’2010 ------------------- Week 05 - 25-31 January 2010 ------------------- 1. Feature of the week 05 http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=384 On 25 January 2010, A Virtual Memorial Foundation is entering NewMediaFest’2010 - launching the media art context. Draft Title: Shoah v.1.0 - http://dts.engad.org/blog/ on occasion of the International Holocaust Day - 27 Jan' 2010 - the 65th Return of the Liberation of Auschwitz (27 January 1945-2010), including numerous artists working in different digital media - also launch of - SFC - Shoah Film Collection - http://dts.engad.org/sfc.index.html , which will be the feature of the month February 2010? Enter --> Draft Title: Shoah v.1.0 http://dts.engad.org/shoah-index.html 2. Celebrate! - netart features 2010 10 Years - JavaMuseum - Forum for Internet Technology in Contemporary Art the netart features are released in form of the daily journal - -Celebrate!- - http://2010.javamuseum.org - this week--> Monday: Carmen Olmo (Puerto Rico) Tuesday: Jeremy Hight (USA) Wednesday: Alan Biegelow (USA) Thursday: Marc Cypher (Australia) Friday: Aleksandar Janicijevic (Canada) Saturday: Chris Basmajan (USA) Sunday: Jing Zhou (China) 3. JIP - JavaMuseum Interview Project - a series of interviews - http://jip.javamuseum.org/jipblog/?p=111 -->this week: : Monday: Pat Badani (USA) Tuesday: Anahi Caceres (Argentina) Wednesday: Curt Cloninger (USA) Thursday: Genco Gulan (Turkey) Friday: Taztvydas Bajakevicius (Lithuania) Saturday: Domenico Quaranta (Italy) Sunday: Panos Kouros (Greece) 4. VideoChannel Cologne - Greek Video Art - curated by Gioula Papadopoulou (GR) - features for 12 days http://vad.nmartproject.net/?page_id=1546--> this week: Monday: Margarita Stavraki (Gr) Tuesday: Giorgos Dimitrakopoulos (Gr) Wednesday: Eileen Botsford (Gr) Thursday: Yiannis Konstantinou (Gr) Friday: Ioanna Myrka (Gr) Saturday: Konstantinos Vaviloussakis (Gr) Sunday: Panayota Tzamourani (Gr) 5. VideoChannel - Found Footage Film Collection http://vad.nmartproject.net/?page_id=1275--> this week: Monday: Dr. Boston (USA) Tuesday: Leslie Huppert (Germany) Wednesday: Alistair McClymont (UK) Thursday: Agricola de Cologne (Germany) Friday: Sonja Vuk (Croatia) Saturday: Joshua Rosenstock (USA) Sunday: Owen Mundy (USA) 6. CologneOFF V - features for one day - to be finalized on 31 January 2010 http://vad.nmartproject.net/?page_id=1272 -->this week: Monday: Sonja Vuk (Croatia) Tuesday: Nilgün Serbest & Tobias Kurtz (Germany) Wednesday: Chis Coleman (USA) Thursday: Roland Fuhrmann (GER) Friday: Virginie Foloppe (France) Saturday: Fumiko Matsuyama (Japan) Sunday: Ascan Breuer (Germany) --------------------------------- January 2010 - features of the month http://2010.newmediafest.org/?p=224 1. VideoChannel Cologne --> French Video Art (2010) 2. JavaMuseum --> 1st of Java - 1st global competition (2001) 3. SoundLAB - Soundart from Chile (2006) - curated by Rainer Krause --------------------------------- From anansi1 at earthlink.net Mon Jan 25 23:02:07 2010 From: anansi1 at earthlink.net (Paul D. Miller) Date: Mon, 25 Jan 2010 12:32:07 -0500 (GMT-05:00) Subject: [Reader-list] Columbia University: Merce Cunningham, Architecture+Performance event Tuesday Jan 26 Message-ID: <24092411.1264440727657.JavaMail.root@elwamui-royal.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Hey you all - if you're in town, come by. There'll be lots of people from the performance art scene etc etc Paul Architecture + Performance Columbia University Miller Theatre Tuesday, January 26 6:30-8:30p free and open to the public www.kwonix.com http://newyork.timeout.com/events/dance/321622/no-fixed-points-in-space http://calendar.columbia.edu/sundial/webapi/get.php?vt=detail&id=37864&con=embedded&br=default No Fixed Points in Space: Transferring Form, Time, and Narrative between Architecture and Performance The Cunningham Dance Foundation (CDF) will present an evening-length symposium exploring the intersection between the performing arts and architecture and featuring two live performances by the Merce Cunningham Dance Company’s Repertory Understudy Group. Co-presented with Columbia University School of the Arts, Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, and Barnard Dance, the symposium, will be held at the Miller Theater (2960 Broadway) on January 26, 2010, from 6:30-8:30 pm. Moderated and curated by architect Annie K. Kwon, No Fixed Points in Space will include a panel discussion with distinguished voices from both fields to explore the relationship between architecture and performance, focusing in particular on the notions of multiple perspectives and spatial plasticity. Panelists include: • Trevor Carlson, Executive Director, Cunningham Dance Foundation; • Michelle Fornabai, Principal, Ambo Infra Design; • Paul Kaiser, digital artist, Open Ended Group; • Paul D. Miller (aka DJ Spooky), artist; composer; writer • Tere O’Connor, Artistic Director, Tere O’Connor Dance; and • Bernard Tschumi, Principal, Bernard Tschumi Architects From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Wed Jan 27 11:20:33 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Wed, 27 Jan 2010 11:20:33 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] 27 Jan: Conf Call: "Learning from the AmeriCorps Experience to Strengthen Service Programs in India" In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Roopal Shah Date: 2010/1/26 Subject: 27 January at 5 pm IST "Learning from the AmeriCorps Experience to Strengthen Service Programs in India" Join us for a skype conference call on "Learning from the AmeriCorps Experience to Strengthen Service Programs in India" on Wednesday, 27 January at 5 pm IST. The conference call will feature Patrick Triano -- Director of Americorps' VISTA Outreach, Training & Member Support. Mr Triano will be in India for two days courtesy of the American Center in Mumbai. * * *What:* Learning from the Americorps Experience to Strengthen Service Programs in India Conference Call *Who:* Patrick Triano, Director of Americorps' VISTA Outreach, Training & Member Support *When:* 27 January (Wednesday) 5 pm IST *Where:* Indicorps Office - 4th floor Pran Vijay Bldg, Ashram Road, Ahmedabad, Gujarat OR connect via skype *(please email me your skype id by 12 noon if you are interested in joining the conference call via the internet)* *Background:* Americorps is a program coordinated by the United States Government that places highly motivated volunteers in organizations dedicated to fighting poverty; engaging them in their community's most pressing social challenges. Since 1993 over 540,000 people have served through Americorps, making it one of the largest volunteer networks in the world. In his position at Americorps, Mr Triano is responsible for developing the program policy, training curriculum, and marketing strategy for a program that recruits and places thousands of volunteers across the United States each year. Mr Triano is an excellent resource for social leaders in India who wish to develop their organization's mission, create stronger training modules for their volunteers, and develop an outreach strategy to recruit the best candidates for their program. * * *Tentative Agenda:* The conference call will focus largely on Mr Triano's insights into creating effective and engaging orientation packages and in-service trainings. Proper orientation and training -- both of volunteers and their host organization -- is crucial in service programs, as they represent the "frame" within which project partners will function for the service project. *Scheduling:* To join us for the conference call, please come to the Indicorps office at 4 th floor Pran Vijay, Ashram Road, Navrangpura, Ahmedabad, Gujarat [phone 079-2657-4791] before 5 pm. Otherwise, if interested, please email me your skype address so we can include you in the skype conference connection. We will keep you posted if there are any changes in the schedule. Sorry for the short notice. Hope you can join us . . . Feel free to invite others you think might be interested! Roopal Shah Indicorps /// Service for the Soul www.indicorps.org From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Wed Jan 27 12:02:13 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Wed, 27 Jan 2010 12:02:13 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Talk on Gift Economy & Random Acts of Kindness, Jan 31, Juhu, Bombay Message-ID: Vinod is a dear friend. You can learn more about him on his website - http://www.signposts.co.in A bit about 'random acts of kindness' is at http://chandni.posterous.com/the-random-acts-of-kindness-re ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Abhishek Thakore Date: 2010/1/27 Subject: BRM Event - Gift Economics and Random Acts of Kindness - Sunday @ 5 30 pm Prithvi Hi All This week @ BRM we explore Gift Economy. Wikipedia defines it as "a society where valuable goods and servicesare regularly given without any explicit agreement for immediate or future rewards". Is it really possible to live this way in today's day and age? What about the rational human being hyopthesis? How do we explore it? These are some of the questions we hope to discuss. We meet on Sunday 31 Jan @ 5 30 pm @ Prithvi. With us will be Vinod Sreedhar. Vinod is a social entrepreneur who has worked on a wide gamut of issues… from social activism aimed at reducing civic apathy, to creating awareness about ecological living among the youth. To me though, he is a living example of daring to follow your heart, and living consciously. Alongside, we will also ACT - engage in some random acts of kindness, live! So get ready to stretch your comfort zones. Also please welcome Raheen - our new Exec Catalyst. Raheen comes with a rich experience in the social change sector. A trained counsellor, she will be working with us on our day to day work and future projects. FInally please confirm your attendance by a mail or text 9920279683 Cheers! Abhishek From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Wed Jan 27 12:18:28 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Wed, 27 Jan 2010 12:18:28 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] GiveIndia Mumbai Chapter - 2nd Meet on Jan 31st 3-5pm in Bandra In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: GiveIndia Presentation - The Need for Giving in India: http://www.slideshare.net/giveindia/giveindia-the-need-for-giving-in-india ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Dhaval Udani Date: 2010/1/26 Subject: GiveIndia Mumbai Chapter - 2nd Meet on Jan 31st 3-5pm To: Dear All, Thanks for the enthusiastic response at the last meeting. To continue the great momentum we gathered then, we are continuing with this series and are going to hold the next meeting of the Mumbai Chapter on Jan 31st from 3-5pm The agenda is as follows: 1. During the first 30 mins we would like to show a documentary about GiveIndia aired on Channel News Asia, Singapore during November. (Do come in by 2:30pm if you are interested in catching this else you can make it by 3pm) 2. Take stock of different activities that were planned last time 3. Aim to form a volunteer chapter group which will drive these meetings in future 4. Plan activities that the Mumbai chapter will undertake in the next 1-2 months Once again - The meetup is scheduled for *Sunday Jan 31st 3-5pm.* (2:30pm for those who want to catch the video - I would strongly recommend it :-)) Do RSVP at http://giveindiamumbaichapter20100131.eventbrite.com/ and help us plan ahead. The venue is (same as last time): *The Hub* *c/o **UnLtd India,* *4th Floor, Candelar Building,* *26 St. John Baptist Road,* *Near Mount Mary Steps,* *Bandra (W), Mumbai 400 050* Regards, Dhaval From chandni.parekh at gmail.com Wed Jan 27 12:28:06 2010 From: chandni.parekh at gmail.com (Chandni Parekh) Date: Wed, 27 Jan 2010 12:28:06 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Workshop on Effective Delivery System in Public Services, Jan 30, Churchgate In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Economics Rocks.... Date: 2010/1/26 Subject: Free Workshop for Economics Students,Teachers and Budding economicts! Dear Friends, *The Economics Club, Mumbai* is a voluntary organisation set up by Economics Teachers from different colleges and enthusiastic students who love the subject.. The mission of the Club is "*to create leaders in Economics*". The Club organised a number of workshops for students, teachers and budding economists in and around Mumbai last year. These workshops were highly appreciated by the teaching community and the general public. The media too appreciated such initiatives by reporting them prominently. This year too The Economics Club is organising a couple of workshops for the benefit of teachers and students of Economics. Kindly attend the workshop on "Effective Delivery System in Public Services"on *30th Jan*.at the Seth Walchand Hirachand Hall, 4th floor, Indian Merchants' Chamber (next to Churchgate station). Mr SL Rao , former Director General,National Council of Applied Economics Research will be the key note speaker. We request the economics teachers from various colleges to attend this workshop in large numbers to establish a strong industry academia -partnersip. We are very proud to inform you that this workshop is jointly organised by *The Economics Club, Forum of Free Enterprise and the IMC Economic Research and Training Foundation, Mumbai. *For any clarifications please contact Prof G.S. Panikar or Prof Rajam Rajagopal (9820338267) G. Shashi Panikar The Economics Club, Mumbai http://arthmanthan.blogspot.com *www.facebook.com/shashipanikar www.linkedin/in/shashipanikar * From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Wed Jan 27 19:01:26 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Wed, 27 Jan 2010 19:01:26 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Foundation for Ecological Security-Infochange Reporting Fellowships 2010 Message-ID: From http://infochangeindia.org/Announcement/Announcement/-Infochange-Reporting-Fellowships-2010.html Foundation for Ecological Security-Infochange Reporting Fellowships 2010 The Foundation for Ecological Security and *www.infochangeindia.org*invite applications to a special round of fellowships to research and report on the subject of Common Property Resources (CPR). Common property resources include forests, grazing lands, rivers, groundwater, irrigation systems, tanks, pastures, inland fisheries and coastal fishing, as well as traditional knowledge and seed/genetic resources. In a world that is moving towards the privatisation of natural resources, and where common lands are erroneously viewed as “wastelands” and diverted for industry or agribusiness, it is important to underline the significant role of CPRs in ensuring food security and cushioning the livelihoods of the rural poor, dalits, tribals and other marginalised sections of society. In Indian villages, the commons provide food, fodder and timber to farming systems, animal husbandry, resource conservation, and recharge of groundwater. The poor derive upto 54% of their income from commons. We are looking for proposals that explore the importance of CPR, issues related to control, management and governance of the commons, access to CPR, especially for the socially excluded, decentralisation and collective action around the commons, the impact of public policy, etc. Five fellowships on CPR are being offered. Each fellowship must result in a series of five or more original articles (with accompanying photographs) on the proposed subject of research, totalling 7,500 words or more. The articles must be readable, written in a journalistic and not academic style, combining perspective and analysis with reportage and human interest stories and, when appropriate, views and information from experts. All content must be submitted in English. All content will be uploaded on *www.infochangeindia.org*and used in advocacy and other material by FES and CCDS. All content submitted under these fellowships will be under the Creative Commons Licence and may be submitted for publication/dissemination elsewhere after upload on www.infochangeindia.org, with credit to FES and infochangeindia.org as the supporting institutions and the website where the material first appeared. *Duration* Applications to the fellowship must be received before February 18, 2009. The results will be announced by mid-March. Fellows are expected to complete their work in April-May, and submit all content by June 5, 2010. *Eligibility * The fellowship is open to independent journalists and researchers living in India only. Working journalists may also apply, provided their organisations endorse their application and allow them time off for this fellowship if selected. *Last date for submission of applications* All applications must be received by February 18, 2010. *Funding support* These fellowships carry a grant amount of Rs 50,000. 50% of this amount will be disbursed on selection, to fund travel and research expenses. The balance will be released on successful completion of the project, and submission and acceptance of stories. Infochangeindia reserves the right to ask for revisions in articles submitted until its standards for upload are met. Grants will be withdrawn and the advance refunded by the fellow if the fellow fails to complete and submit her/his project on deadline or if the quality of the work submitted is not acceptable. The decision of the editorial board on the quality of submissions will be final. *Application procedure * All applications must be accompanied by 1. A detailed proposal (not exceeding 1,000 words) clearly stating the aspect of CPR that is proposed for research, the applicant’s perspective on this subject, and expected output in terms of X number of articles etc. 2. A travel plan, detailing the travel likely to be undertaken for the research, with an estimated budget. 3. CV of the applicant. 4. Three samples of published work. If any of these are in regional languages, they must be accompanied by a summary of their contents in English. 5. Working journalists submitting applications must enclose a letter from their editor stating that they endorse the application and will allow the fellow time off for the research if selected. 6. One letter of recommendation from a writer/editor/academician or other appropriate referee endorsing the applicant’s interest/expertise in the chosen subject of research and the candidate’s ability to successfully complete the project. *Address to send applications to* Applications may be addressed to FES-Infochange Media Fellowships 2010 Centre for Communication and Development Studies (CCDS) 301, Kanchanjunga Building, Kanchan Gully Off Law College Road, Pune 411 004 Telephone: 020-26852845/25457371 Applications may also be sent by email to mediafellowships at infochangeindia.org *This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it *<%20%3Cscript%20language='JavaScript'%20type='text/javascript'%3E%20%3C!--%20var%20prefix%20=%20'ma'%20+%20'il'%20+%20'to';%20var%20path%20=%20'hr'%20+%20'ef'%20+%20'=';%20var%20addy82228%20=%20'mediafellowships'%20+%20'@';%20addy82228%20=%20addy82228%20+%20'infochangeindia'%20+%20'.'%20+%20'org';%20document.write(%20'%3Ca%20'%20+%20path%20+%20'\''%20+%20prefix%20+%20':'%20+%20addy82228%20+%20'\'%3E'%20);%20document.write(%20addy82228%20);%20document.write(%20'%3C\/a%3E'%20);%20//--%3E\n%20%3C/script%3E%3Cscript%20language='JavaScript'%20type='text/javascript'%3E%20%3C!--%20document.write(%20'%3Cspan%20style=\'display:%20none;\'%3E'%20);%20//--%3E%20%3C/script%3EThis%20e-mail%20address%20is%20being%20protected%20from%20spam%20bots,%20you%20need%20JavaScript%20enabled%20to%20view%20it%20%3Cscript%20language='JavaScript'%20type='text/javascript'%3E%20%3C!--%20document.write(%20'%3C/'%20);%20document.write(%20'span%3E'%20);%20//--%3E%20%3C/script%3E>. Please ensure that all scanned material is clearly legible and all attachments are zipped into a single file. *About FES and www.infochangeindia.org* These fellowships are part of a series of initiatives designed to build awareness and influence public policy on the management of common property resources. Foundation for Ecological Security (FES) has been assisting the management and governance of Common Property Land Resources since 1986, working with 1,500 village institutions that manage and govern commons in diverse ecosystems across six states in India. FES will be organising the 13th Biennial International Conference in India in 2011 on the theme of Sustaining Commons, Sustaining Our Future, in collaboration with the International Association for the Study of Common Property (IASC). Find out more about FES at *www.fes.org.in* *www.infochangeindia.org* (managed by the Centre for Communication and Development Studies) is India’s leading online resource base on social justice and development issues. From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Wed Jan 27 19:09:32 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Wed, 27 Jan 2010 19:09:32 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Families Learning Together Gathering: Feb 12 to 16, 2010 Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Manish Jain Date: Thu, Jan 21, 2010 at 9:30 AM Dear Families and Folks- Greetings from a chilly Udaipur! All is well and we are super excited to announce our next Families Learning Together Gathering in Indore--which is not far..yes, its going to be February 12th to February 16th 2010. So hurry up and make your plans. we are finalizing details and will let you know about other relevant information real soon. but, before that mark your calenders and let me know your plans. as many of you know this gathering is for all interesting, innovative and crazy families..it's intergenerational and involves plenty of fun, discussion and work. it is a time for us to share our experiments, questions, challenges and inspiration with each other. families interested can contact me at this email ( vidhib at yahoo.com) or call me at 0294- 2451303 (shikshantar) or 0294-2452425( home). lots of love and best wishes, Vidhi Jain Shikshantar Udaipur(Rajasthan) India Manish Jain Shikshantar: The Peoples' Institute for Rethinking Education and Development 83 Adinath Nagar, Udaipur, Rajasthan, 313004 INDIA Tel: 91-294-245-1303 Web: www.swaraj.org/shikshantar Skype: manishjainudaipur From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Wed Jan 27 19:48:07 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Wed, 27 Jan 2010 19:48:07 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] International Conference on Children's Libraries 2010: New Delhi, Feb 4 to 6 Message-ID: From http://www.ibby.org/index.php?id=992 International Conference on Children's Libraries 2010 ** *Building a Book Culture* February 4th - 6th, 2010 New Delhi (INDIA) The Association of Writers and Illustrators for Children(AWIC), the Indian Section of the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), is holding a three-day International Conference on Children’s Libraries – Building A Book Culture, on February 4th—6th, 2010 at New Delhi, India. The aim of the Conference is to discuss the potentials and scope of libraries in strengthening the book culture. This Conference, a pioneering attempt by the Indian BBY, is a step towards this goal. AWIC, founded by Late Shankar Pillai in 1981, is a voluntary organisation dedicated to the development and promotion of creative literature for children. It aims at bringing books and children together and promoting the reading habit. Reading books is an important ingredient in the development of the child’s personality. The role of children’s libraries is crucial to create a climate that encourages reading. Let us join hands to strengthen the library movement everywhere in the world. We invite children’s librarians, educationists, publishers, authors and all others interested in children and books, to attend this important conference. Participants will benefit from the academic sessions, share the experiences of eminent speakers from around the world, and watch demonstrations of reading promotion activities. At the same time, they will enjoy the attractive displays and cultural evenings organised for the occasion. AWIC Children’s Library Project has been active for the last 25 years in India. It won the prestigious IBBY-Asahi Reading Promotion Award in 1991. The presence of the IBBY-Asahi award winners will be the highlight of the Conference. For further details contact: Conference Organiser Association of Writers and Illustrators for Children (AWIC) / Ind.BBY Nehru House 4, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg New Delhi- 110002 India Tel.: 91-11-23311095, 91-11-23316970-74 E-mail awicbooks at yahoo.com www.awic.in *Seminar Topics* 4-6 February 2010 New Delhi *Session 1 * *Development of Libraries for Children * - Public Libraries - NGO Libraries - School Libraries - Libraries for Special Children - Home Libraries *Session 2 Suitable Reading Material for Children’s Libraries * - The Role of Publishers - The Role of Illustrator - The Role of Authors - The Role of Translators *Session 3 Children’s Library Services* - The Role of the Librarian - Networking of Libraries - Selection of Books - Mobile Libraries *Session 4 Children’s Libraries as a Catalyst of Social Change* - Books where there are none - Reading for Recovery - Changing attitudes *Session 5 Children’s Libraries without Borders * - A Book Culture to Build Bridges (Promotion of universal values) - Two-way Flow of Children’s Literature - Digital Libraries to Promote Reading /Library Services - One World One dream (Promotion of friendship, tolerance and peace) * Post Lunch Sessions * - Presentations by IBBY Asahi Reading Promotion Awardees - Demonstrations of Reading Promotion Activities in Children’s Libraries * Cultural Evening* From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Thu Jan 28 09:42:09 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Thu, 28 Jan 2010 09:42:09 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Growing Good People Through Work, Study, and Community Message-ID: http://www.yesmagazine.org/for-teachers/teacher-stories/growing-good-people-through-work-study-and-community?utm_source=edjan10&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=8_Ystory2 From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Thu Jan 28 12:05:10 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Thu, 28 Jan 2010 12:05:10 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] A new way of gifting Message-ID: >From http://www.truegiftsindia.org/ Have you wanted to give a meaningful gift to a special person in your life but couldn't find the right present? Trying to find the perfect gift for a birthday, anniversary, graduation, or special occasion? Worried that they may not like it, already have it, or don't need it? True Gifts has the solution. Make that special person's day while touching the lives of others. It's the ideal gift! True Gifts is operated by Bhoomika Trust, effectively linking your contributions with program needs at various NGOs, providing you the satisfaction of knowing where your funds have been used, while adding an additional stream of revenue for NGOs. Please also visit our in-person store at Bhoomika's office in Alwarpet, Chennai. From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Thu Jan 28 14:16:34 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Thu, 28 Jan 2010 14:16:34 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] International Development Correspondent Fellowship In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Altaf Makhiawala *International Development Correspondent Fellowship* *Combine your two passions: international development and journalism!* Devex is seeking talented journalists interested in covering the multi-faceted field of international development. Reporting fellowships are available immediately in Tokyo, Barcelona and Washington, D.C. Devex is one of the most innovative companies in international development. Our Web site serves more than 100,000 users around the globe – and it’s growing fast. Be part of our social enterprise, founded in 2000 at Harvard University to make international development and humanitarian relief more efficient. We are looking for energetic self-starters who want to be a part of our expanding global newsroom. As part of the Devex newsroom, you will learn how the international development industry works, build relationships with practitioners, and gain valuable professional experience. Fellowships include a monthly stipend and are full-time positions for a period of 3 to 6 months. Unpaid internships may be available on a full- or part-time basis for undergraduates or recent graduates interested in journalism and international development. Fellows will conduct interviews and research on development trends, projects, organizations as well as career and business advice. Our news articles and videos should provide valuable guidance and information to our readers, development professionals and organizations eager to get ahead and make a difference in the world at the same time. Only candidates with experience in journalism, excellent written and spoken English, and work authorization for the selected office location will be considered. Professional or academic work in international development or related matters is a big plus, as are experience in shooting video content and the ability to speak and write in multiple languages. We are looking for detail-oriented self-starters who have a knack for writing catchy leads. Fellowship start dates are as follows (subject to change): Brussels and Barcelona: immediately. Washington and Barcelona: Jan. 2, April 1, July 1, Oct. 1. Tokyo: upon request. Shortlisted candidates will be notified at least one month prior to the fellowship’s official start date. *To apply, please submit a resume and three writing samples by using the link above in the “Application Instructions.” Specify the office in which you would like to serve, the desired length of stay (3 or 6 months), possible starting dates, as well as available work authorization. For writing samples, we prefer published journalistic work that showcases your knowledge of development, feature-writing skills and/or the ability to express technical issues in an engaging manner.* ** * http://www.devex.com/jobs/nov2008-the-development-executive-group-international-development-correspondent-fellowship * From kauladityaraj at gmail.com Thu Jan 28 14:52:33 2010 From: kauladityaraj at gmail.com (Aditya Raj Kaul) Date: Thu, 28 Jan 2010 14:52:33 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] No permanent AMAN Message-ID: <6353c691001280122u48bfbfb8l924bfe63538f7fc5@mail.gmail.com> No permanent aman R Jagannathan DNA Link - http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/column_no-permanent-aman_1340128 The ground is being meticulously prepared to take us up the garden path on Kashmir. No good can come of stupidity, but that is where we are being led by the US, our own government and some media groups that think this is the way to build Indo-Pak friendship. We are told that peace will be facilitated by increased people-to-people interactions. The argument is beguiling. Look, they are simple ghazal-loving, pan-chewing people like us. Indians are always treated like royalty when we visit friends in Pakistan. So let’s ignore the warmongers in our two countries who want us to remain in a permanent state of tension and talk peace. The truth is different. The constituency for peace has always been larger in India than in Pakistan. We just want to forget about Pakistan and get on with life. This is exactly what Pakistan’s mullahs and powers-that-be are counting on. And this is why we should be wary of falling into the trap. We refuse to learn from history. If Pakistan is talking about the possibility of peace, there is only one reason: it is under intense international pressure. It needs the breather of talks to recoup its strength before launching its next covert war against India. With Obama focusing on Afghanistan and Pakistan being armtwisted to fight its own creation, the Taliban, the country is squirming. It needs time to rethink its war strategy with India which has Kashmir as the key goal. The other player in this game — the US — is backing Pakistan on talks for its own reasons. Obama wants to score some gains in Afghanistan in the shortest possible time. He has willy-nilly bought the Pakistani argument that India needs to make concessions on Kashmir if it is to help the US tackle the Taliban. This is a bogus argument. You may also want to see - Time to end tax breaks to firms that outsource jobs: Obama - Obama vows to secure all vulnerable nuclear material in 4 years - Won't accept 'second place' as India, China close gap: Obama - Confusion over Abdul Razzaq's IPL participation - India likely to face a bloody summer Related videos - Pakistani cricketers shocked over IPL snub - India commemorates Vijay Diwas - Pak fabricating evidence on India's involvement in Balochistan Pakistan calculates that if we refuse to talk, it need not do much about the Taliban, because it can claim tension on its eastern border. If we do talk, Pakistan presumes we will have to give in somewhere. It’s win-win for Pakistan, lose-lose for us. Peacemongers in India need to remember one basic thing: Pakistan is 10 times as motivated on Kashmir than India. This makes it a dangerous peace partner. We need to ask ourselves why we think Pakistan will ever accept status quo on Kashmir now when it has not done so for 63 years? Even in 1971-72, when a defeated Pakistan had every reason to accept peace on our terms, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto did not give in on Kashmir. The Shimla accord was dead the minute 90,000 Pakistani prisoners of war left Indian soil. Even after Pokharan-2, when a ground war should have been unthinkable, Pakistan risked one at Kargil. We should by now have understood that Pakistan will do anything to gain Kashmir, and so peace talks are just a ruse. This does not mean we shouldn’t hold talks — the atmospherics of peace are important to cater to world opinion — but we should always be prepared for the next round of Pakistani perfidy. Strategically, our goal should be to keep Pakistan off-balance permanently to have at least half-peace. To have a durable peace, our focus must be different. We have to defeat the idea of Pakistan. The idea of Pakistan is that Muslims cannot live in a secular society, and that wherever there is a Muslim majority, as in Kashmir, that state must be Islamic. India is built on the opposite premise. When ideologies are in conflict, only the better one should win. The problem of Kashmir is not territorial, but ideological. Kashmiri separatism is one of a piece with bigoted thinking, which is why the Pandits have been driven out through a process of ethnic cleansing. The logic is clear: once the Pandits are out of the way, the cry of azadi will never be challenged, and the whole battle will be posed as one between Hindu India and Muslim Kashmir. To say that false ideologies must be defeated is not the same as a call to war. Nor is it a call against the people of Pakistan, or even a call to dismember it. But the war against regressive ideologies must be won decisively if the world is to become a saner place. There can be no permanent aman with a state built on wrong ideas. We have to prosecute a propaganda war the same way the Americans did during the cold war. They made no bones about the fact that they were against authoritarian communism even while they did peace deals with the USSR to avoid direct conflicts. Friendship with an unreformed Pakistan, or accommodating its views on Kashmir, means explicit abandonment of secularism. Pakistan will settle for nothing less than the Muslim-dominated Kashmir Valley, leaving Buddhist Ladakh and largely Hindu Jammu to us. If we accept this, we might as well accept religion as the basis of nationhood. We should have no quarrel with Hindutva, too. Is this what we want? From Jeebesh at sarai.net Thu Jan 28 15:52:10 2010 From: Jeebesh at sarai.net (Jeebesh) Date: Thu, 28 Jan 2010 15:52:10 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] For Apple Corporation Fans :) Message-ID: <361E0A38-6E75-4256-A928-A9A239761FE7@sarai.net> http://www.bosey.co.in/2008/09/apple-launches-ithing-nobody-knows-what.html "“The iThing is amazing. Unlike windows - it never crashes, is extremely easy to use, and has absolutely no features . .er . . problems.”, said a spokesman for Apple. “Let's just face it - it's just BETTER.”, he said." Apple launches iThing – nobody knows what it does, but millions line up outside stores to buy one! by Anand Ramachandran, a proud member of the socio-religious-hip- amazingly-cool-and-even-more-cool DELL XPS cult. What? There isn't one? Oh! Damn! World renowned cool company Apple Inc. has launched their latest product, the iThing – a strange, minimalistic handheld device with no apparent features or uses. Now available in stores globally, the iThing is unbelievable sleek, sexy, desirable and useless. While even Apple has admitted that they have no idea what it actually is, this hasn't prevented millions of Mac fans from lining up outside retail outlets from the wee hours of the morning to be among the first to own one. “I'm a fan of anything Mac. I am proud that Apple have given me the opportunity to cluelessly stand in line for hours and pay through my nose for a product that I have no idea why I need!”, said a beaming Sankalesh Jimmy, conveniently stepping in to avoid embarrasment for any of the real-life Son of Bosey regulars, such as Tony Chacko and Nishraj Gurung. “Mac fans. What idiots.”, snapped renowned windows fanatic Priya Krishnan, while waiting for Vista to recover from a critical crash on her Windows laptop. “The iThing will revolutionize boring old things. Just like the iPhone revolutionized boring old phones, and the iMac revolutionized boring old Macs!”, said Apple supremo Steve Jobs, immediately regretting the last example and looking around shiftily to see if anyone noticed. “The iThing is the neXTstep in a proud Apple tradition of 'minimalist' design that makes products progressively more expensive and less useful.”, said Jobs, slipping in a quick in-joke that not many picked up on. “The iThing is amazing. Unlike windows - it never crashes, is extremely easy to use, and has absolutely no features . .er . . problems.”, said a spokesman for Apple. “Let's just face it - it's just BETTER.”, he said. ““The iThing is amazing. Unlike windows - it never crashes, is extremely easy to use, and has absolutely no features . .er . . problems. Let's just face it - it's just BETTER ”, said a proud Mac user, exhibiting the well-documented Mac fan behaviour of cluelessly repeating Apple's marketing rhetoric, making people wonder why Apple need spokesmen at all. “Hey, that's right! You're fired!”, said Steve Jobs to the spokesman, suddenly springing into action and instantly making Apple even more profitable. “We don't need any extra features, we don't need any extra employees. We're minimalist.”, he sniggered. When someone nearby asked why people would be dumb enough to pay a large amount of money for something that has no actual use, Jobs retorted with a wink “If they believe that a company that stupidly squandered a genuine advantage, and made a decade of crummy mistakes, before regaining its market share a full twenty years later, is full of innovative geniuses, they'll believe anything! Besides, they lapped up the iPhone, didn't they?” “Who says the iThing has no uses?” said Wildlife photographer and longtime Mac loyalist S.U.Saravanakumar. “Like all Apple products, it can be used to raise self-esteem, and to pick up chicks.”, he said, causing nearby Windows users to momentarily consider shifting to Mac themselves. “Not that I need it, heh heh!”, he added quickly. “I would like to personally thank Apple for making 'I' the coolest alphabet in the world.”, said an excited Aravind Murali. “Who wants some Calamari?”, he asked, before trotting off with a Japanese looking individual in the general direction of Mahabalipuram. As usual, other companies have been upset by Apple's instant success, and swung into action by announcing plans of their own. Sony has issued a press release that indicates that they will soon launch their own version of an overpriced, useless device called the er..uh..whateverStation. Microsoft has also said that they will issue an e-mail statement, just as soon as they can get IE to boot up. Nintendo was too busy making actually interesting products to respond to our messages. Apple, however, is not resting on their laurels. They have already started work on making a TV remote control with no buttons (but with a nice, backlit Apple logo), and a gaming console that will have no actual games of its own, but which will come with an insanely cool virtual machine for running XBOX 360 games (just so that users can say “Did you know, you can actually run XBOX 360 games on a Mac? Wow! From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Thu Jan 28 23:31:35 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Thu, 28 Jan 2010 23:31:35 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] The Bhikkhu and the Butterfly Message-ID: http://www.inquiringmind.com/Articles/Bhikkhu.html THE BHIKKHU AND THE BUTTERFLY: A CONVERSATION BETWEEN AJAHN PASANNO AND JULIA BUTTERFLY HILL *Ajahn Pasanno ordained trees in Thailand as a way of saving them, and Julia Butterfly Hill climbed into one grand old redwood in order to save it, creating news that inspired millions. Inquiring Mind editors Dennis Crean, Barbara Gates and Wes Nisker brought the two of them together for a conversation about trees, activism and love.* From taraprakash at gmail.com Fri Jan 29 00:47:36 2010 From: taraprakash at gmail.com (TaraPrakash) Date: Thu, 28 Jan 2010 14:17:36 -0500 Subject: [Reader-list] Attack on Veil ... (The Hindu) Message-ID: This worth reading article is from a newspaper that took upon themselves to justify the excesses of Srilankan governments on Tamilians in Jafna. Interestingly, Hindu never gives space to articles written criticizing Chinese government when they curtail freedom of citizens and ignore human rights repeatedly. During Tibet movement in 2008, the paper in fact became a virtual mouth piece of Chinese government, not only lauding China's "developmental activities" in Tibet, but also discouraging, rather threateningly, any support to Tibet movement from India. Not that Indian governments had any moral legitimacy or guts to stand for human rights. Shame on the double standards shown by Hindu. France: attack on the veil is a huge blunder Raphael Liogier After more than six months straining to convince itself of the immense, nationwide danger of a phenomenon that involves fewer than 0.1 per cent of France's Muslim population, a parliamentary committee yesterday recommended the banning of the full veil in many of France's public places. There is nothing eccentric about asking why they are getting so bothered. As usual, when France confronts such debates, a panoply of intellectuals, politicians and artists gasp their indignation over an alleged assault on 'our values," wheeling out their rhetorical big guns to denounce the "philosophical scandal" of refusing to show one's face publicly. Five justifications We have been systematically treated to five justifications, all hammered home with the aim of getting the full veil banned for good: the feminist, the theological, the humanistic, the securitarian and, finally, the prophylactic. None of these justifications has been convincing. For a start, the vast majority of women concerned have clearly actively chosen to wear the veil, sometimes in the face of opposition from their family. Moreover, many see their veils as a means of expressing independence, even sometimes as a vehicle of feminine empowerment. In the 70s, Muslim women who had recently arrived from north Africa were often kept behind suburban doors by the heavyhanded control of their husbands. Sometimes they were forced to wear the veil, but we hardly gave a damn. But, paradoxically, once the veil had emerged as a voluntary item during the 80s, visibly flaunted in the street by a new generation of determined young Frenchwomen, concern began to rise. Pseudo-feminist rhetoric cannot conceal the fact that it is indeed the voluntary veil which is being fought, and not the imposed article. As to the second, theological justification, it is almost laughable to see members of the government and the president himself arguing that such a veil is not truly Muslim, as if more knowledgeable than the Muslims themselves about the orthodox prescriptions of their own lifestyle. A peculiar facet of so-called French secularism sees government ministers assuming the fashionable role of imams. Others will opine that one cannot be a true citizen if one hides one's face, because one is thus refusing human interaction. Yet some people wear dark glasses out of shyness or pure obnoxiousness, and nobody would think of denying them their right to humanity. The security-based objection, requiring one to bare one's face in order to have the right to pick up one's children from school, for instance, or if so required by a police patrol, is legitimate in the abstract, but only if one conveniently forgets the fact that in practice, the new generation of women - among the many we have surveyed - do not in fact refuse to comply. It is no coincidence that the debate on French national identity is occurring simultaneously, for they are tactically complementary - picking on Muslim women, or Muslims in general, or all immigrants, as scapegoats, so we can avoid facing our current symbolic crisis. The French are confronted every day with the declining influence of their language, art and cinema - moreover the "grey panther" generation is realising that their own children could not care less, deeply enmeshed as they are in the globalisation of culture. To compensate for such losses, people over 40 are to be heard chanting mantras about the importance of French universal values and pointing fingers at those guilty of threatening them from inside France. In fact, they are thus digging into a deep narcissistic wound, their helplessness facing globalisation and the waning of the "French exception," driving them blindly to trash our most sacred fundamental values while pretending to defend them. Irrational panic Whatever form the committee's recommendation takes in law or decree, it will probably not be enforced, but a symbolic gesture, and a symbol of capitulation. The French Republic has become so weak, so morally corrupted, that it is ready to kick over its most cherished principles: liberty, equality, fraternity, on the part of the political elite, out of cynicism and petty tactics; on the part of the general public, out of irrational panic, even hatred for Muslims. The worst about all this fuss is that we are completely off target. Women donning the full veil are not against modernity but represent rather its sophisticated product, just like westernised Buddhists. The veil, surprising as this may seem, is good news for modern values. This deep western social movement is no threat to modern values, but rather vindicates the latter under unexpected aesthetic guise. It is a massive blunder to fight this new, ultra-modern Islam. And it is not only France that is heading towards a colossal error of understanding, politically capable of spinning into historic proportions, but also Europe, the U.S., and all the other post-industrial countries, blinkered by Islamophobia, who turn out to be incapable of catching up on their own deep cultural changes and recognising their own best interests. It is a kind of collective, generational jet lag. (Note: Raphael Liogier teaches at the Institut d'Etudes Politiques d'Aix-en-Provence and edits the Observatoire du Religieux www.world-religion-watch.org ) From rohitrellan at aol.in Fri Jan 29 08:10:55 2010 From: rohitrellan at aol.in (rohitrellan at aol.in) Date: Thu, 28 Jan 2010 21:40:55 -0500 Subject: [Reader-list] Sign the Internationalising the India Documentary Petition Message-ID: <8CC6EA39D6E9ECE-2264-8566@webmail-m008.sysops.aol.com> To: Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Government of India January 25, 2010 Mr. Raghu Menon Secretary Ministry of Information & Broadcasting Shastri Bhavan New Delhi 11003 Dear Mr. Raghu Menon, Chilean filmmaker Mr. Patricio Guzman has been quoted to have said that, “A country without documentaries is like a family without a photo album.” India’s tradition in documentary began at the same time as it did in the USA and Europe. It is a pity that today, in comparison to many pro-active countries of the world, it is a neglected arena in India as far as state support is concerned. The limited support given, to Films Division and Doordarshan / Public Service Broadcasting Trust are good examples to quote in Parliament but are meaningless in the international market of documentary. In the absence of a dynamic documentary market, India is not seen as a ground for international co-productions. Most films, which get funding from various non-Indian institutions and television networks, end up with a western perspective for western audiences. We are writing to request the Government to take greater interest in this field and perhaps channelise the National Film Development Corporation to become a catalyst for international co-operation and co-productions of documentaries in India. It would be wonderful if a core fund is positioned that can be accessed for development of trailers by Indian documentary film-makers. This would enable them to truly compete in the international arena, that most are unable to at present. Additionally, the terms of reference for the funds given to the Films Division and Ministry of External Affairs – XP Division should also be reviewed, so that more documentary film-makers can access them. A committee of documentary film-makers from different parts of the country should be set up for consultations towards this task that can also define a concrete policy for the documentary in India. Please find enclosed a signature campaign of documentary film-makers from all over India supporting the above. Looking forward to your kind response and action. Neelima Mathur Trustee & Trainer Foundation for Responsible Media With documentary film-makers from all over India Sincerely, The Undersigned To Sign Log on to http://www.petitiononline.com/iid345/petition.html From appu.es at gmail.com Fri Jan 29 12:31:30 2010 From: appu.es at gmail.com (Appu Esthose Suresh) Date: Fri, 29 Jan 2010 12:31:30 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Pitching for composite dialogue, some responsible statements from Pakistan Message-ID: <4b1e36591001282301n6facc621kc44478a7df9961b@mail.gmail.com> http://beta.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/article96476.ece Pakistan Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani spoke to CNN-IBN ’s deputy foreign affairs editor Suhasini Haidar in Islamabad on Wednesday. Here are edited excerpts. Full text of the interview is linked here. *It’s the first interview, Mr. Gilani, that you’re giving since 26-11. Indo-Pakistan ties deteriorated in 2009. [What’s] your hope for 2010?* When I met Dr. Manmohan Singh in Sharm-el-Sheikh, that was a very good meeting. We discussed all issues and we had an understanding that we both are suffering from terrorism and therefore 1.25 billion people should not be made hostage to one incident. If we are hostage to this incident, that means the beneficiary is the terrorist, therefore we should move ahead. We agreed that in the General Assembly there would be a meeting of the federal secretaries. That did take place. And then there was a meeting of the Foreign Ministers in the General Assembly during the session. ... Things are stuck with the Mumbai incident, and the matter is sub judice... Certainly we condemn terrorism and we believe that neither Pakistan’s nor India’s soil should be used against each other. We’re the victims of terrorism and we’re fighting the war on terrorism... I think composite dialogue is the only answer... We both are responsible nations... we can only move forward ... we cannot afford war... The people are very poor and we’ve to watch their interests... The only way forward is talks... *Do you see it materialising in the near future... in 2010?* I believe politics is a day-to-day affair, and I’m hopeful we will move forward for a composite dialogue. *After the IPL auctions did not take Pakistani players, there seems to be another downturn... Has Pakistan overreacted?* That’s the mood of Parliament and the public. We’ve to follow their point of view as well. With time things would be all right. *Your statement last week to the U.S. Defence Secretary that Pakistan cannot prevent another Mumbai-like attack...* My statement… was a reaction to some comments made by the Indian leadership — that if there is any incident in future we will bracket the non-state and state actors together and hold the government of Pakistan responsible. I was of the opinion that if there is any information we are ready to share [that] with India… that should pre-empt… And if India has any information, they can share with us... We’re ready to [do] any intelligence-sharing or any sort of information [exchange]. *Are you saying there’re many groups you cannot control?* No, I’m saying, don’t bracket terror groups with the Government of Pakistan. If you’ve information it is better to share [it] with us so that we can jointly resolve the issue. *In past years, the kind of comments you’ve made... the kind of comments from the Indian leadership... something gets lost in translation... because the direct-dialogue process does not exist...* ... We insist on a composite dialogue only because there are statements from both the countries… creating more confusion. *Fourteen months after Mumbai, the discourse is still stuck... What will it take to move it forward? India wants more concrete action on the 26/11 trial.* We had asked for further information so that we should strengthen the case. We’ve already registered the case, the matter is before the High Court, and if more material is given to us and more sharing is done with us, it’ll help... *India has handed over six dossiers...* We appreciate that, but at the same time we ask for something more. That you can discuss with the Ministry of Interior. *Pakistan is in denial that any of the attacks could have been by Pakistani nationals... That’s from where relations took a downturn... Pakistan could have looked at the nationality of the attackers, or held comments until they have been established...* There was the Mumbai incident, within a few minutes they said Pakistan was involved — without investigation. How can you jump at a conclusion when there is no investigation… that was our reaction. *It took months for Pakistan to establish the identity of the attackers.* We’re still asking for further information, and we condemn it. We’re extremely serious that it should be taken to justice and further information is shared with the Ministry of Interior. *Do you think India has been stalling…?* I haven’t said that. But at the same time, through the Foreign Office, the Ministry of Interior, they really want some more facts and information that can lead us to positive things. *So you’ve charged at least seven men, who are being tried... You’ve arrested more…* Yes, we did. *What about India’s demand that Mr. Hafiz Sayeed, the head of the Jama’at-ud-Da’wah, must be tried and prosecuted?* He’s already under trial. *Would your government be open to India’s request on Hafiz Sayeed...?* We needed further information about that incident. At the same time we need more evidence to [take] him to task. One thing I must tell you, when we met Manmohan Singh it was a good meeting and he really wanted to discuss all [the] core issues including water, Sir Creek, Siachen, Kashmir — including interference in Balochistan. He said I’m ready to discuss anything and we had mutually decided that yes, the dialogue is the only answer. But he had tremendous pressure in his own country, his Parliament, and that can be [the] only thing which has stalled this composite dialogue. *We did have a joint statement... All the reactions which have come since on Balochistan seem to have taken the process down…* I disagree with you because when we discussed those issues, the two Prime Ministers were meeting… We were very careful in wording all these things, and we took three hours... *Was including Balochistan in the talks... a mistake...? Pakistan has not provided any evidence...* We can provide everything at an appropriate forum and appropriate time. *But you’re convinced there is Indian interference in Balochistan?* Yes, I’m convinced… That’s the reason I raised it with the Prime Minister. *And what was his response?* He said we’re ready to discuss all issues when we’ll have a composite dialogue. *So why did the Sharm-el-Sheikh process get stalled?* I mentioned in the beginning that it was a very good meeting. It stalled only because of Indian public pressure and Parliament. *There’s a sense in India that President Zardari is a dove on India-Pakistan relations and Prime Minister Gilani a hawk... Are you a hawk?* It’s the same party. We have a manifesto and we want to maintain excellent relations with our neighbours. I was the first one who took [an] initiative [on] that in Colombo. I called on Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh myself, and then I called on President Karzai... That was a request from my side: that I want to meet you. That’s an indication that we want to resolve all outstanding issues and want friendly relations with our neighbours. Therefore the perception is not right. *India doesn’t seem keen at the moment on the composite dialogue. What about back channel diplomacy?* I think the composite dialogue is needed. Back channel diplomacy would not be that useful. We need direct talks, we want to resolve issues, we don’t have to complicate issues. *What of the contentious issue of Kashmir?* When we resume the composite dialogue, that can be discussed. *There’s firing across the LoC and increased terror attacks in Kashmir.* In fact, there had been some irresponsible statements from the army chief of India. There’s tension because of that. At the same time it’s an indigenous movement in Kashmir that does not have anything to do with Pakistan. We’re too busy in our own matters. We want a resolution of the Kashmir dispute. From mitoo at sarai.net Fri Jan 29 15:23:16 2010 From: mitoo at sarai.net (Mitoo Das) Date: Fri, 29 Jan 2010 15:23:16 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] Call for Applications: Course on "Researching the Contemporary" at CSDS Message-ID: <4B62B00C.9060709@sarai.net> The Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) invites applications for its two-month course on ‘Researching the Contemporary’. This cross-disciplinary course will critically examine the formation of the contemporary and its multiple histories, ideologies, forms and affects. A focus on three thematic areas will enable participants to familiarize themselves with concepts and theories that help analyse the contemporary. These include: • Contemporary Social Theory • History, Memory, Identity • Capital, Consumption, Markets This course aims to have participants reflect upon and further develop their research questions and methods. This is an intensive course with compulsory readings and class discussions. Course materials will be made available. Participants are expected to write research papers upon completion. A participation certificate will be awarded upon successful completion. The course will be conducted over 8 weeks between July 1-August 31, 2010. Classes will be held at CSDS on week-day afternoons, Tuesday to Thursday, from 3-5pm. Applications are invited from M.A./M.Phil/Ph.D students as well as independent researchers. As part of your application please submit your C.V. and a 1000-word description of your research question/topic. Deadline: March 15, 2010. Applications may be sent to: teaching at csds.in For course details check: www.csds.in _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net http://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From nagraj.adve at gmail.com Fri Jan 29 21:40:06 2010 From: nagraj.adve at gmail.com (Nagraj Adve) Date: Fri, 29 Jan 2010 21:40:06 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] on the glaciers controversy Message-ID: <564b2fca1001290810k77a90935td17d06e0d0e1bdc2@mail.gmail.com> Friends, Copied below is a statement from Delhi Platform on the recent controversy on Himalayan glaciers. We believe that the debate, though important, has missed key issues. Most of all, it has ignored the impacts on and perceptions of people who live in the vicinity of glaciers and whose daily lives are dependent on them. Kindly also forward the statement to other organizations/ email lists/ Press people. In solidarity, Nagraj Adve for Delhi Platform *DELHI** PLATFORM* * * *Statement on the Himalayan Glaciers controversy* 29 January 2010 A huge controversy has been generated in recent days over the much quoted lines in the IPCC’s 2007 report: “Glaciers in the Himalaya are receding faster than in any part of the world and, if the present rate continues, the likelihood of them disappearing by the year 2035 and perhaps sooner is very high if the Earth keeps warming at the current rate” (*Working Group 2*, page 493). We do need to question how a statement of such magnitude, without peer review, made its way into the IPCC report. That it was discovered, externally, more than two years later raises concerns about both the mindset and the weakness of the processes of the IPCC in checking and correcting information they collate, information that is so vital in the global debate. However, to question the credibility of the science of the global warming, supported as it is by a wealth of empirical evidence, or to question IPCC’s work, as is happening in some quarters, is gross exaggeration and sometimes driven by dubious and malafide intentions. More importantly, *the ongoing debate ignores four key issues*: *one*, that glacial melting, happening extensively in many regions and altitudes of the Himalayas, is already impacting people’s lives in the Indian Himalayan states; *two*, science ignores people’s own perceptions of their reality and their context; *three*, the critics have not properly placed the issue in the overall context and fragility of glaciers globally; and *four*, that the situation is going to unavoidably worsen, hence deepening an unfolding crisis of access to water. Since the Earth’s average warming gets amplified into much higher levels of warming in the mid-level Himalayas and at higher altitudes, the impacts there are already huge and varied. At a public hearing on ‘Impacts of Climate Change on the Himalayan Region’, organized by Oxfam India in late 2009, people from different Himalayan communities presented testimonies of extensive melting, receding and disappearance of small glaciers in parts of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand based on their lived experience over the years. One professional guide who has traversed high altitudes for many years talked of the disappearance of numerous small glaciers over the last 20 years in J&K. Small glaciers, said another speaker, have disappeared from the Sarva Valley. Sigri and Chhotadhara glacier, both in Himachal, are receding rapidly. The Dhani Nara glacier, also in Himachal Pradesh, does not exist any more. Numerous presenters talked of lessening and irregular snowfall in recent years. This has obvious impacts on glacial mass and melting in the medium term. Women spoke of how water sources have dried up, already causing distress in their daily lives, impacting drinking water access and water supply for agriculture. People’s observations of their lived reality over time and of the impacts of global warming on their lives need to be given greater space and credence than is being done at the moment by formal science. This is particularly relevant in the area of glacial melting in the Himalayas given that many authorities, including the minister for environment and forests Jairam Ramesh, have acknowledged that Himalayan glaciers have been little studied. Why has the Himalayan glaciers issue received such inadequate attention until now? Of the thousands of glaciers in the Indian Himalayas, reliable baseline data exists for relatively few. In the absence of baseline data, it would be crucial to tap the lived experience of people who have lived in the vicinity of glaciers for decades. Focusing on the erroneous date 2035 alone glosses over the already precarious state of glaciers worldwide, including in many parts of the Himalayas. A study by the World Glacier Monitoring Service in 2005 of 442 glaciers stated that 90% of them were receding. The much respected glaciologist Lonnie Thompson has said recently that of the 800 Himalayan glaciers being monitored, 95% are receding (*Guardian*, 20 January 2010). That tropical glaciers are receding worldwide are indicative of the fate of subtropical Himalayan glaciers. Ren, Jiawen, et al state: “Many glaciers on the South slope of the central Himalaya have been in retreat, and recently their retreat rate has accelerated … due to reduced precipitation and warmer temperatures” (*Annals of Glaciology*, vol. 43, no. 1, Sept 2006). Anil Kulkarni, et al’s oft-quoted study of 466 glaciers in the Baspa, Parbati and Chenab basins indicates greater fragmentation of glaciers, and reduction in glacial area by 21% since the mid-20th century (*Current Science*, vol. 92, no. 1, 10 Jan 2007). A study of mass balance of glaciers, of “all published Himalayan-Karakoram measurements” shows that overall “they are more negative after 1995”. Though increase in mass loss rate “need not be true of every part of the region … the mass loss rate is consistent with the global average (Jeffrey Kargel, et al, ‘Satellite-era Glacier Changes in High Asia’, AGU conference, December 2009). Dobhal and Mehta’s study of the Dokriani glacier in the Bhagirathi basin says that “The present snout … is continuously retreating, *like other glaciers of the Himalaya*” (*Himalayan Geology*, n.d.). Glaciers have also been thinning at high altitudes. Lonnie Thompson, in an interview to *Nature* said: “Back in 2006, we drilled three cores in the southwestern Himalayas. At 6,050 metres, where these glaciers reach their highest elevation, we found that … the glaciers are being decapitated. Not only are they retreating up the mountain slopes, but they are thinning from the top down” (*Nature Reports Climate Change*, 9 July 2009). This precarious state of glaciers is going to unavoidably worsen because of further global warming in the pipeline, since there is a 25-30 year lag between emissions and warming. As it is, the drying of water sources is being exacerbated by indiscriminate damming of rivers and creation of run-of-the-river projects in the Himalayan states, in the face of considerable resistance from people across these states. All of this is going to worsen the water crisis unfolding for the poor, particularly poor women, in the Himalayas. Any debate on the Himalayan glaciers needs to keep them at its centre. Rather than view glaciers collectively, it would be more appropriate to view them in a disaggregated way, since impacts on specific glaciers affect specific communities and people dependent on them. Not only is there a compelling need to carry out a comprehensive study of Himalayan glaciers in cooperation with other nations who are part of this rich ecosystem, the process also needs to have the people as a vital and engaged constituent. And the resultant information needs to be in the public domain. Melting glaciers and the more irregular rainfall patterns in recent years makes the creation of appropriate small and large water harvesting structures absolutely urgent. In which both the government and local organizations have a crucial role to play. The National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) can be usefully deployed towards this end, but this requires greater political will by local elites and the administration at different levels than they have displayed thus far. There is clearly an urgent need to anticipate and prepare for acute water stress in the Himalayan region and beyond. ---------------------------------------------------- If you have any queries, please contact: *Email*: delhiplatform at gmail.com *Mobile*: 9910476553, 9213763756 From naeem.mohaiemen at gmail.com Wed Jan 27 09:16:30 2010 From: naeem.mohaiemen at gmail.com (Naeem Mohaiemen) Date: Wed, 27 Jan 2010 09:46:30 +0600 Subject: [Reader-list] Jumma Net Campaign for Bangladesh CHT Accord Message-ID: Jumma Net has launched a global campaign to collect signatures for full implementation of the 1997 CHT Peace Accord. Please publicize widely. Signature Campaign: http://cht-global-voices.com/ CHT Articles (from UV) http://unheardvoice.net/blog/category/human-rights/cht/ Background: Approximately 600,000 indigenous Jumma peoples of Mongoloid descent live in the mountainous regions of south-eastern Bangladesh. Successive Bangladeshi governments have implemented policies that deny indigenous peoples’ rights and illegally deprive them of their lands. >From the 1970's, the militarization of the CHT resulted in massive human rights violations, including numerous massacres. In 1997, the “CHT Peace Accord” was signed by indigenous leaders and the Bangladesh government to international acclaim. The peace accord provides for the most basic measures to protect indigenous peoples’ rights, such as safe repatriation of indigenous refugees, regional autonomy for the indigenous peoples, withdrawal of military camps, and return of illegally occupied lands. But subsequent governments did little to implement the accord. Meanwhile, illegal land grabbing and severe human rights abuses have continued. The Awami League government that came to power in January 2009 has promised to fully implement the accord, and has taken positive steps in this direction. This signature campaign will show that the international community supports the government’s efforts to fully implement the Accord and is keeping close watch of progress. Jumma Net was established in March 2002 by volunteers and groups wishing to promote conflict resolution and peace in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh. It aims to ensure that the marginalized indigenous peoples of the Chittagong Hill Tracts can live in peace, with their basic human rights protected and with opportunities to benefit from economic development. From chintangirishmodi at gmail.com Sat Jan 30 09:07:04 2010 From: chintangirishmodi at gmail.com (Chintan) Date: Sat, 30 Jan 2010 09:07:04 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Kolkata children operate mobile library for rural kids Message-ID: Read the story here: http://www.newstrackindia.com/newsdetails/140855 From tamiko at alum.mit.edu Tue Jan 26 11:45:58 2010 From: tamiko at alum.mit.edu (Tamiko Thiel) Date: Tue, 26 Jan 2010 07:15:58 +0100 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] Mumbai: 3D virtual reality Berlin Wall installation Message-ID: <4B5E889E.8070800@alum.mit.edu> Dear Friends, We are now coming to the final leg of our South Asian tour: We will be exhibiting the interactive 3D installations "Virtuelle Mauer/ReConstructing the Wall" in Bombay, and would be honored if you came to see it! It deals with life "in the shadow of the Berlin Wall," was supported by the cultural department of the Berlin Senate, and won the IBM Innovation Award at the 2009 Boston Cyberarts Festival. The tour is organized by the Goethe-Institut/Max Mueller Bhavan, but in Mumbai the exhibition is at the Indian Institute of Technology in Powai. The opening reception for "Virtuelle Mauer" is on January 29th at 5pm at IIT, all are invited! The installation runs until February 7th (but I will have to leave Bombay much earlier, on February 2nd). Please see below for more information and links! Yours, Tamiko Thiel Indian cell: 9873948065 http://www.mission-base.com/tamiko/ ------------------------------------------------------------ "Virtuelle Mauer/ReConstructing The Wall" ============================================== interactive 3D virtual reality installation by T+T (Tamiko Thiel and Teresa Reuter), 2008 http://www.virtuelle-mauer-berlin.de/english/devFiles/screenshots.htm Exhibit in Bombay: http://cms.goethe.de/ins/in/mum/ver/en5536491v.htm Opening reception: January 29th, 5pm on Exhibition: Jan. 30th - Feb. 7th (but I will leave Bombay on the 2nd) at: Conference Room No 2, 1st Floor Industrial Design Centre (IDC) http://www.idc.iitb.ac.in/ Indian Institute of Technology Mumbai (IIT) Powai, Mumbai 400076 Many thanks to the Goethe-Institut/Max Mueller Bhavan Mumbai for organizing and supporting this exhibit! Highlights of the USA leg of the tour: -------------------------------------- - Winner of 2009 IBM Innovation Award for Artistic Creation in Art and Technology at Boston Cyberarts Festival (venue Goethe-Institut Boston) - German Ambassador Klaus Scharioth gave the opening speech for our solo exhibit at the American University Museum in Washington D.C., arranged in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut Washington - 20th anniversary of Fall of the Wall on November 9th: Goethe-Institut Boston put on a special showing of "Virtuelle Mauer" at Harvard University Kennedy School of Goverment, with speeches by German Consul Friedrich Loehr and Harvard Kennedy School Professor Steven Walt. Events webpage: http://www.virtuelle-mauer-berlin.de/english/events.htm Ongoing exhibits ---------------- Bangalore, India___until 24 Jan.2010, Goethe-Institut Bangalore Berlin, Germany____until 07 Feb.2010, Ephraim-Palais/Berlin City Museum Gijon, Spain_______until 05 Apr.2010, LABoral Centro de Arte Previous exhibits ----------------- Berlin, Germany_____Museum for Communication (World premiere) Seattle, USA________911 Media Arts Center (USA premiere) Boston, USA_________Goethe-Institut Boston/Boston Cyberarts Festival Maine, USA__________New England University/Goethe-Institut Boston Cambridge, USA______Harvard Univ., Kennedy School/Goethe-Inst. Boston Lubeck, Germany_____Chancellor Willy Brandt House Wolfsburg, Germany__Kunstverein Wolfsburg Berlin, Germany_____Gallery [DAM]Berlin (fine art prints) Los Angeles, USA____Goethe-Institut Los Angeles Washington DC, USA__American Univ.Museum/Goethe-Inst.Washington DC New Delhi, India____Goethe-Institut New Delhi/Max Mueller Bhavan Colombo, Sri Lanka__Goethe-Institut Sri Lanka Many thanks to our sponsors! -------------------------------- Hauptstadtkulturfonds (Berlin Capital City Cultural Funds) Goethe-Institut Boston Bitmanagement Software GmbH Lunatic Interactive Softline JSC metroGap e.V. MIT Center for Advanced Visual Studies -- Virtuelle Mauer/ReConstructing The Wall T+T (Tamiko Thiel & Teresa Reuter) www.virtuelle-mauer-berlin.de info at virtuelle-mauer-berlin.de Tamiko Thiel (Munich, Germany) Tel: +49/89/20.23.21.49 Mobile: +49/171/208.99.52 Teresa Reuter (Berlin, Germany) Tel: +49/30/612.88.789 Mobile: +49/0176/288.13.497 _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net http://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements