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DAM-L 150 arrested in Bhopal



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Date: Fri, 19 Jan 2001 17:47:16 -0800
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From: Medha Patkar <medhapatkar@vsnl.com> (by way of Patrick McCully)
Subject: Demo against WB-ADB at Bhopal - 150 arrested
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subject: LS: 150 Arrested in Demonstrations Against WB and ADB

<center>

JAN SANGHARSH MORCHA

(A forum of people_s organisations in Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh)


</center>Press Note, 17.01.2001


<center><bold>150 marchers against World Bank and Asia Development Bank
policies and conference jailed:

others prevented from reaching Bhopal

_Place of international funding organisations is in Development Forum

and that of the people of Madhya Pradesh is in jail!_


</bold></center>Nearly 150 people from people_s organisations in Madhya
Pradesh were jailed while marching on the streets of Bhopal just before
noon today. The representatives of people_s organisations, including
tribals and peasants from the Narmada Bachao Andolan ,Shramik Adivasi
Sangathan , Kisan Adivasi Sangathan,  Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Udyog
Sangathan and Ekta Parishad among others were arrested and picked up
from a march while opposing the anti-people policies of the World Bank
and Asia Development Bank. Many others were detained at several places
outside Bhopal and prevented from reaching the protest site. The
arrested people were detained under Sec.151. They were not released
till evening. The arrested people refused bail.


Those arrested included prominent activists Alok Agarwal of the NBA,
Sunil bhai of Kisan Adivasi Sangathan and Shamim of Shramik Adivasi
Sangathan.


It may be noted that the Madhya Pradesh government had organised a one
day Development Forum in Bhopal where he had invited the World Bank,
Asia Development Bank and various agencies of developed countries. The
British Development Minister Ms. Claire Short is also present in Bhopal
for the meeting..

The people_s organisations were opposing the anti-people policies of
the World Bank and the Asia Development Bank. Sunilbhai of Samajwadi
Jan Parishad and Alok Agarwal of the Narmada Bachao Andolan said at the
time of arrests that it is a matter of deep concern that the place of
international funding organisations should be in the forum to discuss
the development of Madhya Pradesh and that of the people of Madhya
Pradesh should be in jail. They said that this repressive action of the
government reflected the slavery of the Madhya Pradesh government to
the multinational corporations.


They pointed out that the energy sector policies of the ADB promoting
privatisation and corporatisation of the energy sector had led to
prohibitively expensive power production by private corporations. This
can only mean darkness for the people of Madhya Pradesh and loot of
public money. For example, the privatised Maheshwar Project in the
Narmada valley which will receive funds from the Power Finance
Corporation( funded by the World Bank and ADB), will produce power at
the rate of Rs. 7-10 per kWh- several times higher than the MPEB
produced power.


The organisations also opposed the attempt of the multilateral
institutions to seek control over the vast natural resources of Madhya
Pradesh and marginalise and uproot the Adivasis through the
controversial MP Forestry Project. In the last five years that the
Forestry Project has been in operation, 4 tribals have been killed and
8 people have been maimed by Forest and police officials.


The people of Bhopal and Madhya Pradesh have already paid too large a
cost for the criminal negligence and lack of accountability of
multinational corporations such as the genocide caused by Union
Carbide. The people of the Narmada valley have already paid a large
cost when the World Bank continued to be involved in the destructive
Sardar Sarovar Project from 1985 to 1993,despite clear social and
environmental violations, until massive public resistance finally
compelled them to withdraw from the Project.


The organisations stated that the newly passed Special Areas Security
Act was at the instance of the multilateral institutions and global
corporations and aimed to muzzle the voice of the people and popular
opposition against the globalisation policies of the state.


In a separate meeting of the civil society organisations with the
British Development Minister Ms. Claire Short, many participants
expressed their deep apprehensions about the impact of funding from the
multilateral institutions and the repressive regime that the Madhya
Pradesh government will wreak on the people of the state in order to
defend and protect corporate interests. Phagram of Kisan Adivasi
Sangathan and Suddobai of Shramik Adivasi Sangathan vehemently insisted
that "all international agencies have hitherto only pauperised the
common people of Madhya Pradesh .These agencies must now leave Madhya
Pradesh and leave the development of the state and the country to the
people of the state._


Phagram                                   Suddobai                     
           Chittaroopa Palitt

Kisan Adivasi Sangathan              Shramik Adivasi Sangathan      
Narmada Bachao Andolan


----

LETTER GIVEN TO CLAIR SHORT,DEVELOPMENT MINISTER OF BRITAIN


To,

Secretary of State for International Development , Britain.

Mission Head ,India Office ,World Bank,

Resident Representative, Asia Development Bank (India Resident
Mission)


17th January,2001


Dear Madam/Sir,


We are writing to you on behalf of the Jan Sangarsh Morcha (the forum
of mass people_s organizations of Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh) today
,in the event of the organization of the Development Forum in Bhopal.
These organizations work among the tribals in the forests and the
farmers of Madhya Pradesh on survival , ecological and social issues.
We are writing to you to oppose the anti-people policies, Projects and
processes that are sought to be thrust on the people of this state and
indeed this country, at the behest of the multilateral institutions ,
but which most often reflect the interests of global corporations..

The experience of the people of this state with these institutions is
that they have pushed the common people of Madhya Pradesh and indeed of
India - be they tribals or farmers or the urban poor towards
dispossession and pauperization, caused erosion and destruction of
their natural resources, and taken away the self determination of our
communities and indeed the nation state.


We note that the Energy reforms Bill has been passed in Madhya Pradesh
at the instance of the Asia Development Bank. As a result, single point
connections to the poor and concessional electricity to the farmers has
been stopped since 1st of January, 2001.On the other hand, the
privatized Maheshwar Hydro-Electric Project is being promoted by these
institutions, which will produce prohibitively expensive electricity at
Rs.7-10 per kWh and become an economic nightmare for the state as Enron
Project has become for the state of Maharashtra. We note that the Power
Finance Corporation which has received Rs.15 billion in foreign
currency credits from the ADB and the WB is proposing to give a Rs. 11
billion foreign currency loan to the Maheshwar Project.


We note that the program of administrative reforms suggested by the ADB
in Madhya Pradesh has led to the retrenchment of thousands of daily
wage workers in Madhya Pradesh and put them on the streets..

We note that these multilateral institutions seek to take control over
our vast natural resources including our rich forests,and to sieze and
alienate the rights of thousands of tribals and other forest dwellers
living in the forests of Madhya Pradesh . For example ,the World Bank
funded M .P. Forestry Project has even in the last 6 years of its
existence has led to the displacement of hundreds of tribals,
alienation of their traditional rights of use and collection of forest
produce, and the rights over their traditional ,non-titled _newad_
forest lands being used for cultivation. We note also that despite wide
spread opposition by tribals and their organizations , the World Bank
has not cancelled the second trache of the World Bank Forestry Project.
On the contrary, the state has dealt with this opposition with the use
of force and with violence. In the last five years, 4 people have been
killed in firing by Forestry and police officials in the forests of
Madhya Pradesh and 8 people have been injured.


The legacy of the World Bank in the state of Madhya Pradesh and in the
Narmada valley has been bitter indeed, with investment in the Sardar
Sarovar Project - a large dam in the Narmada valley - having brought
only destruction to the valley. The World Bank violated all social and
environmental norms in continuing with the Project from 1985 to 1993
until intense struggle on the ground and international pressure forced
the World Bank to first assess and then withdraw from the Project. Yet,
the World Bank seems not to have learnt from this experience and is
continuing to fund such like Projects in the Forestry sector and
financially supporting institutions like the PFC which is funding yet
another dam in the Narmada valley.


Bitter too for Madhya Pradesh and the city of Bhopal is the criminal
negligence and the lack of accountability of TNCs such as the Union
Carbide that led to the killing of over 10,000 people in one night in
1984. Yet,the Union Carbide never accepted its culpability and
continues to evade it in a manner that cannot be possible in a
civilized society.We understand that for these TNC_s and their
supporting institutions such as the W B and the ADB ,the pursuit of
super profits is more important by far than survival,safety and
ecological concerns, or respect for the common law of the land.


We note that the WTO regime that is being sought to be forced on all
the developing nations of the world , the control of output and input
prices in agriculture ,the removal of import restrictions and all
subsidies in agriculture while the developed countries continue to
protect their own agricultural sector will lead one hand to the
pauperization and collective suicide of the Indian peasantry and
seriously threaten the food security concerns of India on the other. As
a peasantry driven by these contradictions and a shrinking space for
survival rises in non -violent opposition the state responds by
protecting these policies and violent repression on the people as
happened in the infamous Multai firing 3 years ago on this very day,
where tens of farmers were hunted down and killed or maimed .


We note also that the basic programs of education and health that are
basic rights for people in a welfare state are being sought to be
privatized. The hitherto existing public programs are being pruned and
discarded and instead of making them more responsive to the needs of
the community , in the name of decentralization and community control,
certain schemes are being brought in that are a precursor to
privatization and the relinquishing of these basic services to the
market forces .In a country like India and a state like Madhya Pradesh
that is marked by uneven development, leaving the basic services like
health and education to the market or on the ability of the community
to support them is suicidal.


We understand that it is because these anti-people policies are being
brought in , that wide spread and popular opposition is anticipated and
so repressive Acts such as the Special Areas Security Act recently
passed in the Madhya Pradesh Vidhan Sabha are being framed and
legislated that go against the basic grain of the rights enshrined in
our Constitution as well as basic democratic values. To, that extent,
we hold the World Bank and the ADB and their partners responsible for
the present and the future repression to be caused by the misuse of
these legislations.


Finally , we oppose the privatization and the corporatisation of the
essential infrastructure in our country , and the shaping of our
policies and economic destiny by institutions and state departments of
other countries .We call on you not to intervene or seek to control the
decisions and the resources of our country or support or invest in such
destructive Projects. Be aware also , that in the event, this
intervention and interference continues, the common people of this
state will through popular struggle and opposition confront and
challenge these institutions and force out such policies.


Thousands of people of Andhra Pradesh were in the streets of Hyderabad
two months ago opposing the starkly anti-poor energy policies of the
World Bank forced reforms in the energy sector in the state. Five were
killed in a police firing. Yet, the struggle continues there. Please
understand that these policies that are sought to be introduced in this
state in the name of reforms are a matter of life and death for the
common people of this state .


We will fight till death if need be, but not allow our livelihoods,
lands, homes and dignity to be seized and our survival concerns
subordinated by multilateral institutions that seek to serve and
promote the economic and commercial interests of the global
corporations.


Yours sincerely,


Sunil                                         Shamim                   
              Alok Agarwall

Kisan Adivasi Sangathan              Shramik Adivasi Sangathan     
Narmada Bachao Andolann


Abdul Jabbar                                                  Dr.
Sunilam,                           Benipurii

Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Udyog Sangathan       Kisan Sangarsh Samiti   
         Ekta Parishad


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