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dam-l WCD cancels India meeting
The first "public hearing" for the new World Commission on Dams has been
stopped in its tracks by the Gujarat state government in India, where the
infamous Sardar Sarovar Project has been contentious for years.
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Press Release from WCD
For immediate release
Dams Commission postpones Public Hearing
The World Commission on Dams today announced its decision to postpone
the first South Asia Public Hearing on Large Dams scheduled for the 21st
and 22nd of September, 1998 in Bhopal, India. The Commission reaffirmed
its commitment to reschedule the hearing at a later date and at a new
venue in the region.
The postponement of the hearing comes as a result of the Government of
India informing the WCD of a sudden reversal of decision, after
welcoming the visit of the Commission in India. The Planning Commission
of India requested a postponement of the visit due a court case pending
before the Supreme Court of India.
The proposal for conducting the hearing had been made by the Chair of
the Commission, Professor Kader Asmal, Minister for Water Affairs and
Forestry in South Africa. "The Commission wanted to invoke the
democratic traditions of India where public debate has been upheld as a
fundamental principle of a free society." The World Commission on Dams
has planned to conduct a series of public hearings around the world to
receive submissions from all sides of the large dams debate. "The reason
for selecting South Asia for the first hearing", stated Professor Asmal,
"reflects the Commission's collective view that the subcontinent has had
extensive experience with dams and the debates surrounding their
planning and construction. Any Commission that does not make the effort
to understand and learn from this experience would have little
credibility in the eyes of the world."
The Commission has noted that an atmosphere of political controversy was
created in the State of Gujarat, through misinformation, about the
nature and the purpose of the Commission's visit. The Commission regrets
this situation, particularly because of the remarkable number of
responses received for presentations at the proposed hearing from India,
Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Further the Commission
believes that an opportunity has been lost to hear from the people of
South Asia on their vast and valuable experience in the field of large
dams and their alternatives.
The Commission recognises the fact that the Sardar Sarovar Project in
Gujarat is an ongoing case being heard before the Supreme Court of
India. The Commission had informed the Government of India that the
hearing would exclude references to the aforementioned project. All the
presentations selected for the hearing were rigorously selected for
their quality and relevance through a carefully balanced and transparent
process.
The Commission gratefully acknowledges all the responses received. The
Commission is firmly committed to hosting a hearing in South Asia. All
those selected to attend the hearing will be notified.
"We were coming to listen and to learn, with no preconceived
conclusions," said Professor Kader Asmal, adding that the turn of events
in India showed the need for the Commission's work because it
highlighted the highly charged issues associated with dams. He said that
the Commissioners, many of whom were on the point of leaving for India,
would now come to Cape Town for a normal Commission meeting next
weekend.
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For further information contact: Saneeya Hussain, WCD Secretariat, Cape
Town. Phone (office): ++ 27 21 426 4000. Cell phone: (083) 679 4750.Fax:
++ 27 21 426 0036. Email: info@dams.org and shussain@dams.org. Website:
www.dams.org
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Lori Pottinger, Director, Southern Africa Program,
and Editor, World Rivers Review
International Rivers Network
1847 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, California 94703, USA
Tel. (510) 848 1155 Fax (510) 848 1008
http://www.irn.org
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