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DAM-L LS: Thousands Confront the World Bank President (fwd)
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Date: Mon, 13 Nov 2000 17:38:18 -0800
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From: Patrick McCully <patrick@irn.org>
Subject: LS: Thousands Confront the World Bank President
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subject: LS: Thousands Confront the World Bank President
<center>
<bigger><bigger>Narmada Bachao Andolan
</bigger></bigger>B 13 Shivam Flats, Ellora Park, Baroda 390 007
Ph. 0265-382232 baroda@narmada.org
</center>
Press Note: 13.11.2000
<center><bold>Thousands Confront the World Bank President in Delhi
Dharna Continues with vigour
</bold></center>Around 2500 representatives of various people_s
movements and individuals from various walks of life from around the
country have taken a massive rally from Rajghat [memorial of Mahatma
Gandhi] to World Bank office in New Delhi, in protest against the anti
people policies, patronized and pushed ahead by the World Bank.
Prominent among them were Adivasi Mukti Sangathan, Ekta Parishad,
Narmada Bachao Andolan, Adivasi Shramik Sangathan, AIPRF, Kisan Adivasi
Sangathan, Jagrut Mahila Sangathan, Samajwadi Jan Parishad, Azadi
Bachao Andolan, National Alliance of People_s Movements, Dalit Mahila
Chalwali, Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan, Aruna Roy, Arundhati Roy,
Medha Patkar and others from West Bengal, Kerala, Karnataka,
Maharashtra, Tamilnadu, Bihar, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh
and others.
<bold>Thousands of people who were stopped by the police from entering
the Bank premises and who are camping at the gates were told by the
Bank officials that the President has agreed to meet a delegation. But
the people refused that and insisted on the President coming before the
people and address their issues. They were determined not to move out
from there till this meeting was held. According to message just
received the President agreed to come before the people in a short
while.
</bold>The recent pronouncements of the Bank President, Mr. James
Wolfensohn, in respect to various projects around the country has once
again made it clear that the Bank has not learned any lessons from past
experience of grave human rights violations, environmental
degradation, dis-empowering people and pushing people to destitution.
In particular, the President has said, in a meeting with the Gujarat
Chief Minister, that the World Bank had made a mistake in withdrawing
from the Sardar Sarovar Project, and indicated that the Bank may be
willing to get involved in the project once again The willingness to
put money again into such disastrous projects like Sardar Sarovar
Project (SSP) after an independent committee (Morse Committee)
constituted by Bank themselves (in 1991-_92) had severely criticized
not only the project and the Bank_s funding of the same but even the
callousness by which the Bank had flouted its own social and
environmental guidelines.
Representatives from Madhya Pradesh Forestry Project have, in their
speeches have made clear that the 800 crore Phase I of the project that
got over in 1999 has devastated the natural resource base of the
adivasis and other communities whose life and livelihood is dependent
on it. Due to the strong opposition of the people, the Phase II was
cancelled. But according to reliable sources the Bank is trying for a
covert back door entry in to this project. In an open letter by various
organisations from Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh to the President,
they have warned that they will not tolerate Bank_s trespassing and
looting of Indian forests. Corporatisation of natural resources land,
river and forest will be the last thing the people will allow to
happen.
Bank_s approval for $450 million for SSP in 1985 was even when the
mandatory clearances were not obtained from the concerned ministries
and authorities. The loan has only encouraged the power-holders to
further violate the existing laws and take the least care for human
right values. Rather it was used to pressurise the Ministries to
provide the required sanctions, in the initial stages. According to
Bank_s own norms, it has a responsibility to monitor the project till
the loan is repaid. In the case of SSP, this is not done. Rather than
trying to correct the past blunders, by honestly monitoring the
Project, the plan to provide more funds is unethical and against all
national and international legal - human conditions. The people will
oppose this with tooth and nail. To save their land and houses they
will go to any non-violent extent.
<bold>Dharna at Rajghat
</bold>The Dharna [sit-in] since 11th with over 2000 people, who
reached Delhi as a culmination of the Long March Call for Action,
begun on the 6th November has entered the 3rd day today. Hundreds of
people are joining from different parts of the country. Numerous
eminent persons, including Admiral Ramdas (Retd. Chief of Navy,
Jst.(Retd) Rajendra Sachchar, Jst.(Retd)Ravi Kumar Jain, Rabi Ray
(former Speaker Lok Sabha), Jst.(Retd) Ram Bhushan Meharotra have
visited the Dharna and extended full support to the protest.
Large number of representatives from Tawa, Man, Veda, Bargi and
Maheshwar dam area (all on Narmada), Ekta Parishad, Adivasi Mukti
Sangathan, Adivasi Shramik Sangathan, Punarvasan Sangharsh Samiti,
Adivasi Kisan Sangathan, Mazdoor Kisan Sakti Sangathan, National
Council of Churches India, Progressive Students Union, Jagruti Mahila
Sangathan, Dehli & Veerchak project affected and others have joined the
Dharna.
The struggle of the people from the Narmada valley has reached a
critical stage today with a shocking verdict of the Supreme Court
wherein its majority (2:1) judgment allows the Sardar Sarovar dam to go
ahead, beyond 88 mts to 90 mts and with approval of the state
authorities alone, to the final height of 139 mts. The govt. also have
failed to protect the land rights, rehabilitating just 25% of the
Project affected in over 20 years, are in a way permitted to go ahead
and flood the houses and fields of not less than 3500 families by the
coming monsoon, and atleast 30,000 more, of recognized families and an
equal number of unrecognized oustee families. The most valuable and
exactly opposite minority judgment of Jst. Bharucha, one can_t forget,
directed immediate stoppage of dam work until a fresh clearance for SSP
based on complete impact-assessment and feasible mitigatory plans.
<bold>Joe Athialy Shripad Dharmadhikari
<center>
</center></bold><center><bigger>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
</bigger><bold><fontfamily><param>Comic_Sans_MS</param>Whatever Your
Law Says......
Narmada Valley is Ours....
</fontfamily></bold>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
</center>
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