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Flame of discord VIP burden Laloo yatra |
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Editor’s Column
Presidential shrug
Women MPs resent reduced strength ILO report fears
rise in migration
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Flame of discord Running is both our national industry and pastime. Politicians run everything. People are kept running from pillar to post. Film stars run around trees. Sponsors are always running after stars. Last, and certainly the least, are the runners like sprint queen P T Usha. That explains why in the scheme of things prevalent in our country, the Olympic flame, when it came to Delhi, kindled more controversy, bitterness and ill-feeling than the spirit of the Games. The Olympic Torch relay in the national capital was a shameful extravaganza which had everyone, barring sportspersons, hogging the limelight and jostling centre-stage. An occasion sacred to sports, far from being conducted in a solemn and dignified manner befitting the respect owed to the flame, was reduced to trashy kitsch. It was a vulgar display of money power and the glitter it can buy. Since sponsors were paying for the event, the corporate honchos loomed big; and instead of the inspiring presence of sportspersons, who had won laurels for India, to relay the torch, we witnessed politicians and eye-candy from Bollywood demeaning the historic event. While the so-called celebrities and starlets lined up by their corporate and political patrons were invited well in advance, it was on second thoughts, and after much media advocacy, that the Indian Olympic Association woke up to inviting P T Usha and others. It is shame enough that the authorities in India do little to provide the conditions and resources required for producing Olympians. It is an outrage that even the few Olympians — who have braved great odds to accomplish what they have done — in a country of one billion are ignored on the one occasion in many when they should be celebrated as the true torch-bearers of the Olympic spirit and tradition. The Olympic flame's journey is vested with deep symbolism and it signifies the urge to unite the world. Yet, the symbolic value of the landmark journey of the flame, so cherished by sportspersons, excluded them and was bereft of the spirit of sport. It degenerated into a tamasha. |
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VIP burden The "friendly neighbourhood cops" you see everywhere are rarely there for your benefit - unless you happen to be a VIP. Most of their ilk are engaged in the service of the netas or their own superiors. The number of those protecting the politicians keeps on increasing and decreasing depending on the party that happens to be in power. But as far as the number of those at the beck and call of senior police officers is concerned, it only moves upwards. They are a status symbol without which Burra Saheb just cannot survive. It is another matter that many of them may be engaged in doing menial jobs at the boss's household or assisting by carrying shopping bag. This has been going on for so long that it is hard to believe that Punjab is actually cutting down the number of those providing security to the officers. If true, this is a heartening news because there can be several positive spinoffs. One, the burden on public exchequer will be lessened, because providing round-the-clock security costs tonnes of money. Two, policemen will now be able to goad the political class to pare down its security more forcefully and sincerely. Three, the men freed from security duty will be available for maintaining law and order, which is their primary duty. Four, the illegal occupation of parks and public thoroughfares near the houses of the officers will come to an end. The public will benefit in another way. Most police personnel attached to senior police officers tend to be arrogant and take pride in harassing common people. Just look at the way they push you out of the way whenever a siren-blaring vehicle of an IG or DIG passes by. With fewer policemen around, this kind of torture may become less prevalent. Some officers get security on the basis of rank and threat perception. Others wangle it for less genuine reasons, the most common being flaunt status. The Punjab initiative needs to be emulated by other states, particularly Delhi. |
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Laloo yatra Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav's decision to introduce kulhars for serving tea on the vast rail network was just a down-to-earth beginning of a fascinating journey. His media adviser has released figures to show that the decision to use clay cups would provide employment to three lakh potters. If his "Lalooised" projects are not derailed, he may force the international community to follow his desi path to the global village instead of the other way round. The Rail Mantri hates the label of wog. He is out to obliterate the widening chasm between the country in him and the one that was projected as an example of India Shining. It is now the turn of the humble khadi to go places, as items of furnishing for the railways. He insists the measure will resurrect a cottage industry that is being driven out of fashion by sophisticated fabrics. He was also in the news for reasons that never fail to arouse the interest of the media. He arrived ahead of schedule to receive his dear friend "Shabbu" in his plush saloon at Patna station. The votaries of clean politics know the Rail Mantri's friend as Shahabuddin, an underworld don from Bihar, who is elected to the Lok Sabha in spite of political uproar. Mr Laloo Yadav has many abiding qualities, being a confirmed scofflaw is one of them. The real fun will begin when he implements the promise to travel incognito for keeping a slack administration on its toes. His unannounced visit to the New Delhi station did cause a minor flutter. He can take a few tips on disguise from Govinda, who dressed up as a buxom female in Aunty No. 1. Mr Laloo Yadav's detractors, and there are many, would want him to wear the emperor's clothes made of khadi when he decides to play Haroon al Rashid to the Indian Railways. Who would not want to know what makes him what he is in politics? |
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In achieving success, backbone is more important than wishbone. — Frank Tyger |
Editor’s Column The Fourteenth Lok Sabha, which was elected with much hope, has done disservice to the country in the first session itself, disappointing the people of India who voted for it. In the nine days the members met, they merely took oath to secure for themselves the right to sit in the august chambers for five years, did a small mercy by listening to the President's Address and adjourned sine die without even discussing a single point or policy he enunciated for the new government. It never occurred to them that the people who elected them with some faith in their ability to lead the nation were watching their conduct on the floor of the House. They were simply being irresponsible even in the first session. The House remained caught in deadlock over the tainted ministers and did not know how to break it. The leaders of different parties and senior members merely watched as the House slipped into a shouting mode, clearly indicating that they were not bothered about transacting business which would have given some insight into what the new government wants to do and should not do. This is the first time Parliament has approved the President's Address by voice vote sparing the House some more agony but leaving an unpleasant memory. The new Lok Sabha is still in crisis over the question whether members with criminal history can occupy ministerial berths. It remains to be seen whether leaders of different political parties - the ruling and those sitting on the opposition benches — will be sensible enough to resolve their difference outside the chamber during the next few weeks before the House reassembles for the Budget session. Their failure to resolve the deadlock during the next few days will amount to compounding the offence. The leaders and members — old and new — ought to know that if they pass the Budget without discussing it and by just voice vote, they would be condemned by the people who have voted for them. The Chairman of the Rajya Sabha expressed the hope that the heat of the summer will be over soon and temperatures will come down in the monsoon session. We as a nation depend too much on weather. The Deputy Chairman and the Speaker, who both enjoy considerable goodwill and prestige, ought to have made more informal efforts to get Parliament going rather than just watch the two Houses slip into chaos. In vibrant democracies, there are bound to be differences in Parliament over vital issues. But these need to be resolved by orderly discussions on the floor or by behind-the-scene efforts and dialogue. The culture of boycotting individuals or parties in Parliament, blocking proceedings and denying an opportunity to others to express themselves has been bequeathed by previous Lok Sabha. The Congress party boycotted Mr George Fernandes during several sessions in the dissolved Lok Sabha. The BJP which held up one whole session of the Lok Sabha over Mr Sukh Ram's corruption cases has now taken up the induction into the new government of ministers who have impressive history of crime to support their curriculum vitae. The country cannot see such people like Taslimuddins and Faatimis occupying ministerial berths. Even Dr Manmohan Singh must be feeling uncomfortable with persons of shady reputations sitting behind him on the treasury benches. The nation will feel relieved if he and the Congress party find ways to part company with them. M/s Taslimuddin and others have come to Parliament and into the Manmohan Singh government in the company of none else than Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav who himself cannot be Chief Minister of Bihar because of pending charges against him. The baggage Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav succeeded in offloading into the Lok Sabha and the Cabinet is going to prove costly for the Congress party. Privately, responsible Congressmen explain that an alliance with Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav was necessary because of political compulsions thrown up by the Lok Sabha elections. Resorting to expediency can always land a political party into difficulties. Whatever the political compulsions, Dr Manmohan Singh and the Congress party should not have agreed to share power with the kind of members who have no business to be in Parliament and least of all in the government. But the BJP's choosing to make Parliament's functioning impossible is not an answer to the situation. Much more, however, needs to be done to tackle the menace. The original sin was to allow some of the persons who ought to be in prison to enter into the sacred precincts of Parliament and State legislatures. Yesterday's law-breakers have today become lawmakers. Even if they do not become ministers, and remain only members of Parliament and State legislature, they will prove dangerous for the survival of parliamentary democracy in the country. Whether they are secular or communal, criminals are criminals. They have no ideology, no principles to adhere to, no loyalty and no sense of responsibility to the nation. It is immaterial which side of the fence they sit in Parliament or an Assembly; they pose a danger to the entire nation, to the political system and to political parties who do not mind giving them respectability — often protection from law. Earlier, mafia groups in UP and Bihar and many other States used their clout to favour a particular MP or a member of an Assembly. Now they do not want their proxies to be lawmakers and are keen to find their own niche in the Legislature. All political parties have been accommodative of the local mafia leaders to some degree for no other reason than they cannot win a seat without their help. The two national parties — the Congress and the BJP — and more so regional parties, particularly in UP and Bihar, have been liberally accepting suggestions from their local units to put up criminals as candidates simply because they can win a few seats for them. Not public morality but it is "winnability" — the jargon being amply used by party selection committees these days that determine the choice of candidates. Unfortunately, many of them get elected to the House. So far, no political leader has seriously tried to stop criminals from entering Parliament and the Assemblies. Over the years, Parliament has failed to do so. The courts have decried the phenomenon of criminals getting the tickets and often come out with just catchy obiter dicta. The administrations in many parts of the country have looked the other way and hardly done anything to take on the local mafia. No one seems to have the real cure for the malaise that has been becoming more acute with every election. The problem is not the creation of one party or another. Nor is it a question of "your man" or "my man". It is also not even who has been charge-sheeted and who has not been, or who is in prison or out of it. All parties know who is a mafia leader in a constituency and poses a danger to the system. Such a man ought to be shunned rather than rewarded with a party ticket by any party. The danger posed by mafia groups is collective; it has also to be faced collectively by all parties
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Presidential shrug It was a crisp cold morning on Tuesday, the 20th of October, 1987, a day after what the Press called Black Monday which had seen the worst fall of the stock market in the recent past. Yet, President Ronald Reagan’s attention focused on charming his Indian guest, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, something the latter returned in equal measure. The two world leaders had hit off well, and their chemistry was obvious to all. The setting of the White House was not all that impressive especially for someone who had seen ceremonial occasions at Rashtrapati Bhavan, where the red gravel and the six-foot tall jawans of the President’s Bodyguard (PBG) resplendent in their riding boots, red tunics and seven-foot lances lend a unique colour and dignity to formal functions. By contrast, the setting of the White House, especially the exterior which we journalists were confined to, is austere — the cold white building offset by rolling green lawns. The marines are dressed in traditional uniforms, bearing pennants of various states, but do not quite measure up to the PBG men’s élan. This was my first visit to the White House. It had started off rather well: I was not subjected to a thorough search, unlike senior colleagues from India, since I was considered a part of the American media contingent. I was not “one of us”, but one of them, perhaps the youngest in the lot. An inside account of the interaction between the two delegations is given in K. Natwar Singh’s “Heart to Heart”. The External Affairs Minister, who was a part of the delegation, narrates how Reagan was in his element, joking about Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The mood was not tense at all, though the President had been late for the lunch because of consultations about the crash which had sent a wave of dread through a nation drunk on its own prosperity. It has plunged 508 points and there was collective shock at this debacle. The Indian delegation managed to score brownie points by demonstrating their literary abilities. Three members of the Indian delegation had read the book “Life and Death in Shanghai” by Nien Chang about whom Reagan had talked about during the lunch. They discussed the book and its author. None of the Americans had read it and were thus at sea. The President and the Prime Minister read out a brief joint statement which was of interest only to Indian journalists. Most of the American media was exercised about the Wall Street crash. As the President walked back after the address, a TV reporter asked the President if he would say anything about the crash. In a great show of presidential indifference, President Reagan shrugged off the query and walked on. It was a masterful stroke of a great actor. The Great Communicator had communicated a lot with that shrug. The Wall Street recovered after a while, following the intervention of the US Federal Reserve Bank, and things came back to normal. The President, who was 33 years older than Rajiv, outlived him by 13 years. As Reagan is buried, one is reminded that even the Great Communicator couldn’t shrug off the one thing all mortals have to face some day — the Grim
Reaper.
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Women MPs resent reduced strength
The demand for 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament seems to be a pipe dream in an environment that stunts the growth and advancement of women. Man-made obstructions have prevented the passage of the Women’s Reservation Bill. The verdict of the people in the recent Lok Sabha elections is cause for concern for women activists. The number of women members in the new Lok Sabha has come down from 48 to 44. National Commission for Women (NCW) Chairperson Poornima Advani says that the fall in numbers is very striking. She says, “women constitute a little less than half of the total population of India but they have not been adequately represented in Parliament. Our stand was that the government should not wait for consensus. It should go by voting. In August last year, we had a meeting with 17 of the 21 State Women Commissions and women MPs from various parties. The participants favoured passage of the Bill in its original form.” The number of women contestants in the Lok Sabha elections proves Dr Advani's point. Their number came down from 247 in the last elections to 147 this time. All-India Democratic Women’s Association General Secretary Brinda Karat says that she is not surprised by the figures. She says, “It was as expected. With the increase in corporate money in politics, the issue of affirmative action and women getting their due is impossible.” Some women parliamentarians and activists argue that although they are in a minority in the Lok Sabha, they are no less competent than men. “Women are no less competent. They are quite capable. Why then should they be discriminated against?” Kumari Selja, the promising, young Congress MP from Ambala in Haryana, who is the Union Minister of State for Urban Employment and Poverty Alleviation (Independent charge) is not surprised. “Our society is like that,” she sighed with profound resignation, adding that men ought to be sensitised to the need for equal participation of women. Selja, who belongs to a political family, says: “Women must play a participatory role in policy-making and the development process”. Selja, who has been Lok Sabha MP twice earlier, made news as the youngest Union Deputy Minister of Human Resource Development (Education and Culture) in Mr P.V. Narasimha Rao’s government. A postgraduate and M Phil in English literature from Panjab University, Chandigarh, 41-year-old Selja has got the highest victory margin in Haryana. She defeated her rival by a margin of 2,35,000 votes. P. Sati Devi of the CPI(M) who has been elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time from Vadakara in Kerala wants to bring about an amendment in some laws. Having practised law for 20 years in Tellicherry district courts, 47-year-old Sati Devi wants to bring about amendments in the Dowry Prohibition Act. Sati Devi defeated former Fisheries Minister and Congress candidate M.P. Padma by a margin of 1,30,000 votes. Union Minister of State for Tourism (Independent charge) Renuka Choudhary, who has been Rajya Sabha MP twice, points a finger at male chauvinists of the BJP for non-passage of the Bill. Ms Choudhary (Congress), who was re-elected from Khammam in Andhra Pradesh with a margin of 1,10,981 votes says that the BJP lacked the political will to pass the Bill. “They are a very chauvinistic party. This time, we are going to push for it. We will do our best to convince our allies. People are resistant to change. And there is amazing male bonding cutting across party lines to stop women from being in Parliament. One of them even asked me that if so many women are elected as members of Parliament, who would bake “rotis as if we are the friendly neighbourhood rotiwala.” She says that she does not want women alone to fight for the Women’s Reservation Bill. Such Bills should be proposed and seconded by men. She views the decline in the number of women parliamentarians as a discouraging sign and says “we need to be going up, not coming down. We need a lot of women MPs. Women make better leaders. They are preconditioned to stereotyped role playing. Because of the neglect, they do better.” She says that the health of women remains a big national problem. She is the anchor of the house and yet there is no home budget for a woman. “A man will spend money on his liquor than buy glasses for her eyesight.” Ms Choudhary insists that work places should learn to embrace the needs of women. Citing an instance, she says that Parliament does not have a creche though it has a large number of women employees. Women have a dual role to play. We talk of bringing in young MPs without realising that there are young would-be mothers. In 1987, “when I had to go and attend to my three-month-old baby from Parliament to Andhra Pradesh Bhawan, I felt the strain.” She is firm that India, which follows the Westminster model of democracy, would do well by following the precedent set recently by the British House of Commons. The British Parliament has altered its time to ensure that women MPs don't have to stay longer. “It does help a woman to consolidate her home life which weighs very heavily on our minds.” Ms Choudhary says that she would like to see incredible India as the destination of the world. She proposes running a nationwide campaign to build the confidence of foreign women. She says that incidents of assault on foreign tourists have to be viewed seriously. “As a citizen, it is a matter of national shame that we are viewed in negative light. It is inherent in our culture to respect our visitor as God.” |
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ILO report fears rise in migration New Delhi: Failure of globalisation to provide jobs and economic opportunities is expected to see a further rise in migration trends, according to a new International Labour Organisation (ILO) report. Close to 86 million adults, or half of all migrants and refugees worldwide, are economically active, employed or otherwise engaged in remunerative activity, according to the report presented at the ongoing 92nd International Labour Conference in Geneva. “What's more, the number of migrants crossing borders in search of employment and human security is expected to increase rapidly in the coming decades due to the failure of globalisation to provide jobs and economic opportunities,” says the report. Based on responses from 93 member countries including India and China, ILO has published a new survey on labour migration that provides, for the first time, detailed information on migration laws, policies and practices. Describing migration as “one of the most complex policy challenges for governments”, the report calls on tripartite delegates from member states to consider the adoption of a comprehensive action programme designed “to improve the conditions of migrant workers and promote more orderly forms of migration”. Aimed to help countries to develop new programme of action on global migration, the report notes, “If all the 175 million international migrants recorded by year 2000 were to form a single political entity, they would represent the world’s fifth most populous country.” “In practically every region the rising mobility of people in search of decent work and human security has been commanding the attention of policy makers,” said Manolo Abella, Chief of the ILO's International Migration Programme, in a statement. “Migration is driven by differences and imbalances among countries, and these differences have grown and not shrunk with globalisation,” said Abella. “If you look at the global economy from the perspective of people, its biggest structural failure is the inability to create enough jobs where people live, said ILO Director-General, Juan Somavia. The report points to the fact that despite the progress made by more populous developing countries like India and China, the gap in per capita incomes is widening. It highlights that the economic effects of immigration on receiving countries are mainly beneficial, with the newcomers rejuvenating populations and stimulating growth without inflation. While the receiving countries benefit, the countries of origin may experience a “brain drain” when they face the immigration of skilled people. Nearly 400,000 scientists and engineers from developing countries are working on research and development in industrial countries, as against 1.4 million back home. “Jamaica and Ghana have more of their locally trained doctors outside the countries than inside them,” the report points out. Migrants provide huge flows of remittances to their countries, amounting to an estimated $80 billion annually (in 2002), or the second largest source of external funding for developing countries, according to a World Bank data. In recent years, more women have migrated on their own as their family’s primary income earner. In fact, women account for 49 percent of the world’s migrants. A matter of concern for ILO is that around 15 per cent of migrants are in irregular status, a phenomenon that is not confined to developed countries. “The extent of the flows of irregular workers is a strong indication that the demand for regular migrant workers is not being matched by the supply”. Mainly due to lack of political will, the report notes, that working conditions for a large portion of migrants are abusive and exploitative, sometimes constituting forced labour and all too often denial of union rights, discrimination and xenophobia. Migrant workers in irregular situations “face the gravest risks to their human rights and fundamental freedoms when they are recruited, transported and employed in defiance of the law”, states the report.
— IANS |
To satisfy the necessities of life is not evil. To keep the body in good health is a duty, for otherwise we shall not be able to trim the lamp of wisdom, and keep our mind strong and clear. — The Buddha Truthfulness is the abode of austerity, self-restraint and all other virtues. Indeed, truthfulness is the source of all noble qualities as the ocean is that of fish. — Lord Mahavira ...Seated within the universe, God watches His creation with delight. — Guru Nanak The spiritually-minded belong to a class of their own, beyond all social conventions. — Sri Ramakrishna Know how to listen, and you will profit even from those who talk badly. — Plutarch |
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