B.RAMAN
The "Hindu" of Chennai has reported on March 15,2011, as follows: "The India Cables have been accessed by "The Hindu" through an arrangement with Wikileaks that involves no financial transaction and no financial obligations on either side." "The Hindu"has started publishing from March 15 an analysis of these cables by its staff. In this connection, I am annexing below what I wrote on November 30,2010. (15-3-11)
(The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and , presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
ANNEXURE
WIKILEAKS: WHAT HAPPENED TO THE CABLES OF US EMBASSY IN NEW DELHI? http://ramanstrategicanalysis.blogspot.com/2010/11/wikileaks-what-happened-to-cables-of-us.html
B.RAMAN
WikiLeaks claims to be having in its possession about 3000 diplomatic cables exchanged between the US State Department and the US Embassy in New Delhi. These have not so far been released by it. Nor does it appear to have given them to the "New York Times", the "Guardian", "Der Spiegel", "Le Monde" and "El Pais" to whom it had given the cables from the US Embassies in other countries, including China and Pakistan. Otherwise, they would have commented on their contents.
2. In the meanwhile, an editorial carried by "The Hindu" of Chennai on November 30,2010, on the WikiLeaks leakage of other cables ends with the following intriguing words:" When the 3000-odd despatches sent by the US Embassy in India are published over the next 48 hours, it is possible that some or many feathers will end up ruffled. Elements of the strategic partnership---especially those pertaining to defence and the wider set of American goals involved---- remain cloaked in secrecy. Stay tuned to this space."
3. What does this mean? Has WikiLeaks given the cables of the US Embassy in New Delhi to "The Hindu" for initial scrutiny and analysis---either directly or through " The Guardian" with which "The Hindu" has a collaboration agreement? The "New York Times" has stated that it received its share of the documents from "The Guardian" and not directly from WikiLeaks. Have the India-related cables been given to "The Hindu" through "The Guardian" for analysis and comments? (30-11-10)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
Monday, March 14, 2011
Saturday, March 12, 2011
LESSONS FROM JAPANESE TRAGEDY
B.RAMAN
Our hearts go out to the people of Japan at this hour of their national tragedy which is a global tragedy.It has deeply affected all of us.The world has seen massive tragedies of a traumatic nature in the past, but what the Japanese have suffered is a series of multiple tragedies---quake, tsunami and dangers of nuclear contamination following an explosion in a building housing a reactor of a nuclear power station at Fukushima.
2 To quote from a BBC report on the subject: "An estimated 170,000 people have been evacuated from the area around a quake-damaged nuclear power station in north-east Japan that was hit by an explosion, the UN atomic watchdog says. A building housing a reactor was destroyed in Saturday's blast at the Fukushima No.1 plant. The authorities said the reactor itself was intact inside its steel container. The Japanese government has sought to play down fears of a meltdown at Fukushima No.1, saying that radiation levels around the stricken plant have now fallen."
3. In a separate commentary, the BBC's Environment correspondent has said: "'The term "meltdown" raises associations with two nuclear accidents in living memory: Three Mile Island in the US in 1979, and Chernobyl in Ukraine in 1986. In both, excess heat in the reactor caused fuel to melt - and in the first, wider melting of the core. The question is whether the same thing has happened in Fukushima. It appears that the reactor was shut down well before any melting occurred, which should reduce considerably the risk of radioactive materials entering the environment. However, the detection of caesium isotopes outside the power station buildings could imply that the core has been exposed to the air. Although Japan has a long and largely successful nuclear power programme, officials have been less than honest about some incidents in the past, meaning that official reassurances are unlikely to convince everyone this time round. "
4. France and Japan have high reliance on nuclear power. The design and construction of nuclear power stations in Japan have always taken into account likely dangers from quakes and tremors. People, who raised questions of safety, had always been assured by the Japanese experts that there would be no dangers of an explosion or radio active leakage in case of natural disasters.
5. Their confidence in the safety of their nuclear power stations is likely to be shaken as a result of this explosion. Public opposition to the reliance on nuclear power stations could increase as a result of the explosion----particularly in Japan itself, China and even India.
6. Our conventional wisdom and assumptions regarding nuclear safety during natural and man-made disasters need to be reviewed urgently in the wake of the Japanese explosion. We can no longer be complacent thinking that everything that needs to be done to assure nuclear safety has been done and that there is nothing to worry about.
7. The Fukushima blast should not be exploited to undermine our confidence in the importance of nuclear power. At the same time, it is important to question our confidence in the adequacy of the safety measures taken till now.
8. Fukushima was the result of a natural disaster. How about the dangers of a man-caused disaster---such as some suicide terrorists forcing their way into a nuclear power station and trying to blow it up. I had in the past raised this issue in many seminars and at meetings of the National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) and the Special Task Force for the Revamping of the Intelligence Apparatus, when I was a member of both in 2000-02. The stock answer I used to get was that our nuclear experts were aware of this danger and had taken necessary precautions. I could understand their reluctance to spell out these precautions, but it is important to revisit them urgently.
9. The Fukushima explosion should be of great concern to the whole world----not just to the Japanese people. Over-confidence in our security measures will be suicidal for the world. (13-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai, and Associate of the Chennai Centre For China Studies. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
Our hearts go out to the people of Japan at this hour of their national tragedy which is a global tragedy.It has deeply affected all of us.The world has seen massive tragedies of a traumatic nature in the past, but what the Japanese have suffered is a series of multiple tragedies---quake, tsunami and dangers of nuclear contamination following an explosion in a building housing a reactor of a nuclear power station at Fukushima.
2 To quote from a BBC report on the subject: "An estimated 170,000 people have been evacuated from the area around a quake-damaged nuclear power station in north-east Japan that was hit by an explosion, the UN atomic watchdog says. A building housing a reactor was destroyed in Saturday's blast at the Fukushima No.1 plant. The authorities said the reactor itself was intact inside its steel container. The Japanese government has sought to play down fears of a meltdown at Fukushima No.1, saying that radiation levels around the stricken plant have now fallen."
3. In a separate commentary, the BBC's Environment correspondent has said: "'The term "meltdown" raises associations with two nuclear accidents in living memory: Three Mile Island in the US in 1979, and Chernobyl in Ukraine in 1986. In both, excess heat in the reactor caused fuel to melt - and in the first, wider melting of the core. The question is whether the same thing has happened in Fukushima. It appears that the reactor was shut down well before any melting occurred, which should reduce considerably the risk of radioactive materials entering the environment. However, the detection of caesium isotopes outside the power station buildings could imply that the core has been exposed to the air. Although Japan has a long and largely successful nuclear power programme, officials have been less than honest about some incidents in the past, meaning that official reassurances are unlikely to convince everyone this time round. "
4. France and Japan have high reliance on nuclear power. The design and construction of nuclear power stations in Japan have always taken into account likely dangers from quakes and tremors. People, who raised questions of safety, had always been assured by the Japanese experts that there would be no dangers of an explosion or radio active leakage in case of natural disasters.
5. Their confidence in the safety of their nuclear power stations is likely to be shaken as a result of this explosion. Public opposition to the reliance on nuclear power stations could increase as a result of the explosion----particularly in Japan itself, China and even India.
6. Our conventional wisdom and assumptions regarding nuclear safety during natural and man-made disasters need to be reviewed urgently in the wake of the Japanese explosion. We can no longer be complacent thinking that everything that needs to be done to assure nuclear safety has been done and that there is nothing to worry about.
7. The Fukushima blast should not be exploited to undermine our confidence in the importance of nuclear power. At the same time, it is important to question our confidence in the adequacy of the safety measures taken till now.
8. Fukushima was the result of a natural disaster. How about the dangers of a man-caused disaster---such as some suicide terrorists forcing their way into a nuclear power station and trying to blow it up. I had in the past raised this issue in many seminars and at meetings of the National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) and the Special Task Force for the Revamping of the Intelligence Apparatus, when I was a member of both in 2000-02. The stock answer I used to get was that our nuclear experts were aware of this danger and had taken necessary precautions. I could understand their reluctance to spell out these precautions, but it is important to revisit them urgently.
9. The Fukushima explosion should be of great concern to the whole world----not just to the Japanese people. Over-confidence in our security measures will be suicidal for the world. (13-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai, and Associate of the Chennai Centre For China Studies. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
TIBETAN CAUSE AFTER THE DALAI LAMA
B.RAMAN
While wishing and hoping for a long life for His Holiness the Dalai Lama, one has to mentally prepare onself to the eventuality of his being no more with us one day and think of how to keep the Tibetan cause alive after him. To talk of likely scenarios after he leaves this world should not be misinterpreted as disrespect to him.
2. One thing is certain. After the death of His Holiness, he legitimacy of his spiritual successor is going to be questioned----whether who is his re-incarnation is decided by Tibetan elders respected by their community or by surrogates of the Communist Party of China (CPC). As has happened in the case of the institution of the Panchen Lama---one has to expect a long period of contention between two Dalai Lamas, one chosen by Tibetan elders in accordance with Tibetan traditions and the selection of the other manipulated by the CPC.
3. There is bound to be a long period of vacuum in the exercise of the spiritual authority of His Holiness till the question of the legitimacy of the succession is decided and the person chosen by the Tibetan elders has completed his spiritual education and is in a position to exercise his spiritual authority.
4. During this period, the wise men of the Tibetan-Government-in Exile will have to carefully guide the Tibetan people, maintain and strengthen traditions and ensure that the Tibetan cause is not suffocated to death by the CPC by taking advantage of any confusion caused in the Tibetan community inside China as well as abroad by the death of His Holiness and the subsequent controversy that might be engineered by the CPC on the question of his succession.
5. To be able to guide the Tibetan people on the right lines and to defeat the machinations of the CPC, it is important that a political leader enjoying the confidence of His Holiness when he is still alive and commanding the respect of the people is already in position when His Holiness quits this world. It will be unwise to postpone the selection of such person till after the death of His Holiness.
6. His Holiness wears two hats----as the political and administrative head of the Tibetan people and as their spiritual head. The spiritual authority has to be exercised by His Holiness so long as he is alive. It cannot be delegated by him to anybody else.
7. But, his political and administrative authority can be delegated to someone enjoying the confidence of His Holiness and the Tibetan people even when His Holiness is alive. His Holiness will be in a position to ensure that the selection of his political and administrative successor is done in a smooth manner without causing any differences among his followers in Tibet as well as abroad.
8. This process of selecting a separate political and administrative authority by the appropriate institutions of the Tibetan community has to start now without further delay. In this context, the suggestion made by His Holiness on the 52nd anniversary of the “Tibetan Uprising Day”, which was observed by the Tibetan people all over the world on March 10,2011, that the time has come for him to hand over political authority to a freely elected leader is very wise and needs to be seriously considered by his followers. They should avoid reacting to it emotionally and rejecting it when the suggestion comes up for approval before the Tibetan Parliament-in-exile.
9. They should give it serious consideration and approve it and facilitate the election of a suitable political leader enjoying the blessings of His Holiness. ( 12-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai, and Associate of the Chennai Centre For China Studies. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
While wishing and hoping for a long life for His Holiness the Dalai Lama, one has to mentally prepare onself to the eventuality of his being no more with us one day and think of how to keep the Tibetan cause alive after him. To talk of likely scenarios after he leaves this world should not be misinterpreted as disrespect to him.
2. One thing is certain. After the death of His Holiness, he legitimacy of his spiritual successor is going to be questioned----whether who is his re-incarnation is decided by Tibetan elders respected by their community or by surrogates of the Communist Party of China (CPC). As has happened in the case of the institution of the Panchen Lama---one has to expect a long period of contention between two Dalai Lamas, one chosen by Tibetan elders in accordance with Tibetan traditions and the selection of the other manipulated by the CPC.
3. There is bound to be a long period of vacuum in the exercise of the spiritual authority of His Holiness till the question of the legitimacy of the succession is decided and the person chosen by the Tibetan elders has completed his spiritual education and is in a position to exercise his spiritual authority.
4. During this period, the wise men of the Tibetan-Government-in Exile will have to carefully guide the Tibetan people, maintain and strengthen traditions and ensure that the Tibetan cause is not suffocated to death by the CPC by taking advantage of any confusion caused in the Tibetan community inside China as well as abroad by the death of His Holiness and the subsequent controversy that might be engineered by the CPC on the question of his succession.
5. To be able to guide the Tibetan people on the right lines and to defeat the machinations of the CPC, it is important that a political leader enjoying the confidence of His Holiness when he is still alive and commanding the respect of the people is already in position when His Holiness quits this world. It will be unwise to postpone the selection of such person till after the death of His Holiness.
6. His Holiness wears two hats----as the political and administrative head of the Tibetan people and as their spiritual head. The spiritual authority has to be exercised by His Holiness so long as he is alive. It cannot be delegated by him to anybody else.
7. But, his political and administrative authority can be delegated to someone enjoying the confidence of His Holiness and the Tibetan people even when His Holiness is alive. His Holiness will be in a position to ensure that the selection of his political and administrative successor is done in a smooth manner without causing any differences among his followers in Tibet as well as abroad.
8. This process of selecting a separate political and administrative authority by the appropriate institutions of the Tibetan community has to start now without further delay. In this context, the suggestion made by His Holiness on the 52nd anniversary of the “Tibetan Uprising Day”, which was observed by the Tibetan people all over the world on March 10,2011, that the time has come for him to hand over political authority to a freely elected leader is very wise and needs to be seriously considered by his followers. They should avoid reacting to it emotionally and rejecting it when the suggestion comes up for approval before the Tibetan Parliament-in-exile.
9. They should give it serious consideration and approve it and facilitate the election of a suitable political leader enjoying the blessings of His Holiness. ( 12-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai, and Associate of the Chennai Centre For China Studies. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
Friday, March 11, 2011
MY TANJORE DIARY
B.RAMAN
March 11,2011
8-45 AM: Leave for Tanjore (53 KM) from Trichy in a taxi driven by a young commerce graduate from Mailaduthurai. He has not been able to get a job since graduating some years ago. Earning his livelihood as a taxi driver.
Drive uninteresting despite excellent four-lane road. Hardly any greenery on both sides.
9-45 AM: Arrive in Brahadeeswarar temple in Tanjore built 1000 years ago. Unimpressive from outside, but fabulous once inside. Overwhelmed by the sheer brilliance of its conception and execution. Just as I was overwhelmed when I first visited the Angkor Vat temple in Cambodia in November 2001. Unless you stand before it and see it for yourself, you can't imagine how huge it is ---its central gopuram over the sanctum sanctorum and the court-yard where 1000 Bharata Natyam dancers of India danced last year in celebration of its 1000th anniversary.
10 AM: As I stood before it and admiring it, a friendly looking man, who appeared to be in his 40s, approached me and asked:
"Want a guide, Sir?"
"Yes, why not ?"
" But I charge Rs.250, Sir. I don't want any misunderstanding over payment later."
" That is OK with me."
" You want me to explain in English, Tamil, French, German or Spanish, Sir"
" I would prefer English or Tamil.You know other languages too?"
"Yes, Sir"
An attractive-looking woman crossed us.
"Bonjour,Madame."
"Bonjour, Monsieur."
"You speak good French."
"Yes, sir, I do"
"Guten Tag". This was to another attractive-looking woman.
"Guten Tag," she replied.
"You speak good German too."
" Yes, Sir. I do."
Then he said something incomprehensible to me to another attractive-looking woman.
"What was that?"
"She is Spanish. I was greeting her in Spanish."
"What is your name? Where are you from?"
"Raman. From Chennai."
" My name is K.T.Raja. From Tanjore. Have a look at this."
He showed me four or five torn and crumpled pieces of paper.
"What is that?"
" A Xerox copy of an article published by "The Indian Express" last year describing me as the best guide in the Tanjore temple."
"But you must keep it properly. It is already totally torn."
" I know, Sir. The original is in the house. This is for showing to the visitors"
" But you can at least keep a good copy for showing to the visitors. This one is so torn, crumpled and brown that one can't read anything except the title and your name."
Then he started flooding me with statistics.
1008 nandis.
108--shivlingams
252 feet high
216 feet wide
801 feet long
405 nandis around the perimeter
"Do you notice anything interesting about the numbers?"
"What?"
" You total each of them. It comes to 9."
"So?"
" How many holes you have in your body, Sir?"
" I don't know. I have never counted."
" Nine, Sir."
" How did you come to that figure?"
"Two ears, two eyes, two in the nose, one in the mouth, one in the penis and one in the arse."
'Oh, I never thought of that."
" Sir, you know why 9 all the time?"
"No."
" Because 9 is a lucky number for the Hindus. It is also a holy number. When a Hindu offers coconuts or bananas to the God, it is always either 9 or in multiples of 9."
"That must have been before the inflation. Now, nobody can afford it. God has to be content with only one coconut or one banana," I whispered to him making sure God won't be able to overhear me.
He took me to the sanctum sanctorum of the sacred lingum. He asked me whether I wanted to do an archana.
"Yes." I gave Rs.100 to the pujari.
"What is your name?" the pujari asked.
"Raman."
"What is your star?"
"Poonarpoosam."
" Do you want me to do the archana in somebody else's name also?"
" No. My name will do. I don't want to confuse God with too many names. "
The archana started. I hope it was the archana. It didn't appear to be either in Sanskrit or in Tamil.
As the archana was going on, I closed my eyes and prayed: " Oh God, cure me of this cancer. Give me back my energy."
As I opened my eyes, my guide asked: " What did you pray for?".
" I am a cancer patient. I was praying to God to cure me of it."
" He will. Brahadeeswara is known for His cosmic power. It will cure you of your cancer."
"How soon"
" It depends on your luck and God's grace. If you are lucky, you may be cured even before you return to the hotel."
" If not?"
" Come back and pray again."
As the pujari was doing archana for me, a big group of Western tourists entered the sanctum sanctorum and watched the archana. The group included three Spanish nuns.
I asked the guide: " Are non-Hindus allowed into the sanctum sanctorum?"
"Of course. This is the only Hindu temple in India where any human being can enter the sanctum sanctorum---whether a man or a woman, whether a Hindu or a non-Hindu."
" Can Muslims also enter?"
"Of course. Many Muslims come here and pray. I know a Muslim shop-keeper, who comes here in the mornings and prays to the lingam before going to his mosque to do the namaz."
" Do you think, it is right for non-Hindus to be allowed?"
" Why not? Only animals should not be allowed. Otherwise, every human being should be allowed to enter this temple and pray. That has been the tradition of this temple for 1000 years. It should continue."
He asked me where I was going next.
Kumbakonam, I said.
" Do you know why it is called Kumbakonam?"
" No."
" Do you know what is Kumba?"
"No."
"Kumba is a huge pot. Once pralayam ( a deluge) swept across the world killing all living beings. God Brahma took out their genes, put them into a huge pot, closed it tightly and let it float on the water. As the pot reached Kumbakonam, the floods subsided. The pot came to rest on the ground. Lord Siva broke open the pot with an arrow. All the preserved genes came out and living beings came into existence once again."
"Fantastic. I didn't know that."
We came to the end of the visit. I took out a 500-rupee note and gave it to him.
"But, Sir, I don't have change."
" Doesn't matter. You keep the change."
" Were you happy with me, Sir?"
" Of course, I was."
" Your happiness is more important to me, Sir, than this money." (11-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
March 11,2011
8-45 AM: Leave for Tanjore (53 KM) from Trichy in a taxi driven by a young commerce graduate from Mailaduthurai. He has not been able to get a job since graduating some years ago. Earning his livelihood as a taxi driver.
Drive uninteresting despite excellent four-lane road. Hardly any greenery on both sides.
9-45 AM: Arrive in Brahadeeswarar temple in Tanjore built 1000 years ago. Unimpressive from outside, but fabulous once inside. Overwhelmed by the sheer brilliance of its conception and execution. Just as I was overwhelmed when I first visited the Angkor Vat temple in Cambodia in November 2001. Unless you stand before it and see it for yourself, you can't imagine how huge it is ---its central gopuram over the sanctum sanctorum and the court-yard where 1000 Bharata Natyam dancers of India danced last year in celebration of its 1000th anniversary.
10 AM: As I stood before it and admiring it, a friendly looking man, who appeared to be in his 40s, approached me and asked:
"Want a guide, Sir?"
"Yes, why not ?"
" But I charge Rs.250, Sir. I don't want any misunderstanding over payment later."
" That is OK with me."
" You want me to explain in English, Tamil, French, German or Spanish, Sir"
" I would prefer English or Tamil.You know other languages too?"
"Yes, Sir"
An attractive-looking woman crossed us.
"Bonjour,Madame."
"Bonjour, Monsieur."
"You speak good French."
"Yes, sir, I do"
"Guten Tag". This was to another attractive-looking woman.
"Guten Tag," she replied.
"You speak good German too."
" Yes, Sir. I do."
Then he said something incomprehensible to me to another attractive-looking woman.
"What was that?"
"She is Spanish. I was greeting her in Spanish."
"What is your name? Where are you from?"
"Raman. From Chennai."
" My name is K.T.Raja. From Tanjore. Have a look at this."
He showed me four or five torn and crumpled pieces of paper.
"What is that?"
" A Xerox copy of an article published by "The Indian Express" last year describing me as the best guide in the Tanjore temple."
"But you must keep it properly. It is already totally torn."
" I know, Sir. The original is in the house. This is for showing to the visitors"
" But you can at least keep a good copy for showing to the visitors. This one is so torn, crumpled and brown that one can't read anything except the title and your name."
Then he started flooding me with statistics.
1008 nandis.
108--shivlingams
252 feet high
216 feet wide
801 feet long
405 nandis around the perimeter
"Do you notice anything interesting about the numbers?"
"What?"
" You total each of them. It comes to 9."
"So?"
" How many holes you have in your body, Sir?"
" I don't know. I have never counted."
" Nine, Sir."
" How did you come to that figure?"
"Two ears, two eyes, two in the nose, one in the mouth, one in the penis and one in the arse."
'Oh, I never thought of that."
" Sir, you know why 9 all the time?"
"No."
" Because 9 is a lucky number for the Hindus. It is also a holy number. When a Hindu offers coconuts or bananas to the God, it is always either 9 or in multiples of 9."
"That must have been before the inflation. Now, nobody can afford it. God has to be content with only one coconut or one banana," I whispered to him making sure God won't be able to overhear me.
He took me to the sanctum sanctorum of the sacred lingum. He asked me whether I wanted to do an archana.
"Yes." I gave Rs.100 to the pujari.
"What is your name?" the pujari asked.
"Raman."
"What is your star?"
"Poonarpoosam."
" Do you want me to do the archana in somebody else's name also?"
" No. My name will do. I don't want to confuse God with too many names. "
The archana started. I hope it was the archana. It didn't appear to be either in Sanskrit or in Tamil.
As the archana was going on, I closed my eyes and prayed: " Oh God, cure me of this cancer. Give me back my energy."
As I opened my eyes, my guide asked: " What did you pray for?".
" I am a cancer patient. I was praying to God to cure me of it."
" He will. Brahadeeswara is known for His cosmic power. It will cure you of your cancer."
"How soon"
" It depends on your luck and God's grace. If you are lucky, you may be cured even before you return to the hotel."
" If not?"
" Come back and pray again."
As the pujari was doing archana for me, a big group of Western tourists entered the sanctum sanctorum and watched the archana. The group included three Spanish nuns.
I asked the guide: " Are non-Hindus allowed into the sanctum sanctorum?"
"Of course. This is the only Hindu temple in India where any human being can enter the sanctum sanctorum---whether a man or a woman, whether a Hindu or a non-Hindu."
" Can Muslims also enter?"
"Of course. Many Muslims come here and pray. I know a Muslim shop-keeper, who comes here in the mornings and prays to the lingam before going to his mosque to do the namaz."
" Do you think, it is right for non-Hindus to be allowed?"
" Why not? Only animals should not be allowed. Otherwise, every human being should be allowed to enter this temple and pray. That has been the tradition of this temple for 1000 years. It should continue."
He asked me where I was going next.
Kumbakonam, I said.
" Do you know why it is called Kumbakonam?"
" No."
" Do you know what is Kumba?"
"No."
"Kumba is a huge pot. Once pralayam ( a deluge) swept across the world killing all living beings. God Brahma took out their genes, put them into a huge pot, closed it tightly and let it float on the water. As the pot reached Kumbakonam, the floods subsided. The pot came to rest on the ground. Lord Siva broke open the pot with an arrow. All the preserved genes came out and living beings came into existence once again."
"Fantastic. I didn't know that."
We came to the end of the visit. I took out a 500-rupee note and gave it to him.
"But, Sir, I don't have change."
" Doesn't matter. You keep the change."
" Were you happy with me, Sir?"
" Of course, I was."
" Your happiness is more important to me, Sir, than this money." (11-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
PAK TALIBAN’S FRESH REPRISAL SPREE COULD MAKE DAVIS’ CASE MORE DIFFICULT
B.RAMAN
INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM MONITOR: PAPER NO: 707
The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is on a fresh reprisal spree against the Pakistani security agencies and elements in the Pashtun population, which have been co-operating with the Government.
2.It has claimed responsibility for two spectacular terrorist strikes carried out as reprisals. The first attack ---a remotely-controlled car bomb explosion---killed 25 persons on March 8,2011, near a gas filling station in Faislabad , Pakistan’s third largest industrial town located in Punjab.
3.Faislabad has been a stronghold of the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LET). Abu Zubaidah, then projected as the No.3 of Al Qaeda, was arrested by the Pakistani security agencies from the house of an LET personality in this town in 2002 on information reportedly furnished by the US intelligence. He is now believed to be in the Guantanamo Bay detention centre in Cuba. It was Abu Zubaidah’s arrest in Faislabad which gave the first indicator of the emerging links between the LET and Al Qaeda. Since then, the LET has continued to be active in Faislabad, but there were no fresh reports of Al Qaeda activities in the town.
4.After the TTP came into existence in the wake of the Pakistani military commando raid into the Lal Masjid of Islamabad in July 2007, Faislabad was one of the places where it set up a presence with the help of the LET. According to the Pakistani media, the police suspect that the Fasislabad explosion could be in reprisal for the death of Umer Kundi , a local Taliban leader, in a shoot-out on February 19 last year. The Faislabad office of the ISI, which is located near the gas-filling station, does not appear to have suffered any serious damage. A spokesmsan of the TTP has been quoted by the media as claiming that the ISI office was the target in reprisal for last year’s incident.
5. The Faislabad explosion was followed by a suicide attack on March 9 on a funeral procession for the wife of a pro-Government Pashtun leader in the village of Adezai, 15 KMs from Peshawar in the Khyber Pakhtoonkwa (KP) province. Thirty-six persons were reportedly killed. Hakim Khan, the pro-Government Pashtun leader, had helped the Government in raising a village militia to counter the TTP.
6. The two reprisal attacks in quick succession show that the TTP’s capability for suicidal and non-suicidal strikes at targets of its choosing in the KP and Punjab provinces has not been dented by the counter-terrorism operations of the Pakistan Army. The fear of further reprisal attacks by the TTP would be an important factor influencing any final decision of the Pakistan Government on the request of the US Government to hand over for trial in the US Raymond Davis, a member of the staff of the US Consulate-General in Lahore, who is facing trial before a Lahore court on a charge of killing two Pakistanis on January 27. (10-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM MONITOR: PAPER NO: 707
The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is on a fresh reprisal spree against the Pakistani security agencies and elements in the Pashtun population, which have been co-operating with the Government.
2.It has claimed responsibility for two spectacular terrorist strikes carried out as reprisals. The first attack ---a remotely-controlled car bomb explosion---killed 25 persons on March 8,2011, near a gas filling station in Faislabad , Pakistan’s third largest industrial town located in Punjab.
3.Faislabad has been a stronghold of the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LET). Abu Zubaidah, then projected as the No.3 of Al Qaeda, was arrested by the Pakistani security agencies from the house of an LET personality in this town in 2002 on information reportedly furnished by the US intelligence. He is now believed to be in the Guantanamo Bay detention centre in Cuba. It was Abu Zubaidah’s arrest in Faislabad which gave the first indicator of the emerging links between the LET and Al Qaeda. Since then, the LET has continued to be active in Faislabad, but there were no fresh reports of Al Qaeda activities in the town.
4.After the TTP came into existence in the wake of the Pakistani military commando raid into the Lal Masjid of Islamabad in July 2007, Faislabad was one of the places where it set up a presence with the help of the LET. According to the Pakistani media, the police suspect that the Fasislabad explosion could be in reprisal for the death of Umer Kundi , a local Taliban leader, in a shoot-out on February 19 last year. The Faislabad office of the ISI, which is located near the gas-filling station, does not appear to have suffered any serious damage. A spokesmsan of the TTP has been quoted by the media as claiming that the ISI office was the target in reprisal for last year’s incident.
5. The Faislabad explosion was followed by a suicide attack on March 9 on a funeral procession for the wife of a pro-Government Pashtun leader in the village of Adezai, 15 KMs from Peshawar in the Khyber Pakhtoonkwa (KP) province. Thirty-six persons were reportedly killed. Hakim Khan, the pro-Government Pashtun leader, had helped the Government in raising a village militia to counter the TTP.
6. The two reprisal attacks in quick succession show that the TTP’s capability for suicidal and non-suicidal strikes at targets of its choosing in the KP and Punjab provinces has not been dented by the counter-terrorism operations of the Pakistan Army. The fear of further reprisal attacks by the TTP would be an important factor influencing any final decision of the Pakistan Government on the request of the US Government to hand over for trial in the US Raymond Davis, a member of the staff of the US Consulate-General in Lahore, who is facing trial before a Lahore court on a charge of killing two Pakistanis on January 27. (10-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
RAYMOND DAVIS: TIME FOR US TO TALK TOUGH TO PAKISTAN
B.RAMAN
There is no solution yet in sight to the Raymond Davis tug of war between the US and Pakistan. Davis, as one would recall, is the US citizen posted in the US Consulate-General in Lahore as a member of the administrative and technical staff, who shot dead on January 27,2011, two Pakistanis following him on a motor-bike. According to him, he killed them while exercising his right of self-defence since he suspected them to be armed robbers. Another Pakistani was run over and killed by a US consulate car which rushed to the scene of the incident on receiving an urgent call for help from Davis. The local police arrested him and he has been detained in the Kot Lakpat jail in Lahore while awaiting trial on a charge of murder.
2. The US has been claiming that he was a diplomatic member of the staff entitled to diplomatic immunity and hence not liable to be arrested and tried in Pakistan. It has been demanding that he should be handed over to the US authorities for being tried in the US. He has been projected by sections of the media as a former commando of the US special forces who was working for a US-based private physical security company performing physical security tasks for the US diplomatic and consular missions in Pakistan.
3. The US claim of diplomatic immunity has not been accepted by the Lahore Court before which he is being tried. It has become a sensitive political as well as public issue with opposition building up to his being handed over to the US from the political parties in Punjab as well as from the religious parties and the general public. Now that a criminal case has been registered against him and the Lahore High Court has taken cognizance of the case, he cannot be released and handed over to the US without the clearance of the court. As of now, it appears doubtful whether the court will agree to it.
4. The US Government, which has made this a prestige issue, has kept up pressure on the Pakistani leaders as well as the Army and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to let him be tried in the US. Even if they want to oblige the US, the present public mood is against any accommodation with the US on this issue. They would find it difficult to override the public opposition to his being handed over. Despite this, it should be possible for the Pakistani political and military leadership to find a way of removing the case from the jurisdiction of the court and handing him over---provided it wants to help out the US. For reasons not yet clear, the Islamabad Government has been prolonging the tug of war.
5. It has been reported that the matter was raised with the Pakistani leaders by the US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Ambassador Marc Grossman, who visited Islamabad earlier this week. During an interaction with the local media on March 7, he described the immediate release of Raymond Davis as the numero uno priority of the US Government. He was reportedly not successful in persuading the Pakistani leaders to hand him over by accepting his claim of diplomatic immunity.
6.In the meanwhile, during the trial, Davis has been kept in judicial custody in a jail, where there could be a serious threat to his life from the other under-trials or from the staff of the jail. .According to media reports, the US has stressed upon the Pakistani authorities the importance of strengthening physical security for Davis. Assurances in this regard from the Pakistani authorities should not be taken seriously. One had seen how extremists were able to kill Salman Taseer, the Governor of Punjab, and Shabaz Bhatti, a Christian, who was Federal Minister for Minority Affairs, despite the high security supposedly enjoyed by them. Both of them were killed because of their opposition to the blasphemy law. Taseer was killed by one of his security guards while Bhatti was killed by unidentified persons. It has been alleged that at the time of his assassination Bhatti’s security escort party was not with him.
7. In the present anti-US atmosphere in Pakistan, anyone who kills Davis will be hailed as a saviour of Islam just as Taseer's killer was hailed. Even if Pakistan does not agree to hand over Davis to the US for trial in the US, he should not be allowed to be kept in any jail in Pakistan along with other under-trials.
8. Under Indian laws, where there could be a threat to a very important person under trial from other under-trials, there is a provision for declaring a private residence as a public jail and for detaining that person there till the trial is over. Pakistani criminal procedure laws are similar to Indian laws. It is, therefore, likely that there is a provision in Pakistani laws also under which Davis could be detained in a private residence declared as a public jail in order to prevent any threats to his security from other under-trials. He must be kept under a mixed Pakistani-US guard to prevent any threat from the prison guards too.
9. The time has come for the US to talk tough to Pakistan on the question of Raymond Davis. After 9/11, Mr.Richard Armitage, the then US Deputy Secretary of State, had issued a "you are either with us or against us" warning to Pakistan to make it co-operate with the US in its military operations in Afghanistan. The US must issue a similar warning to Pakistan in the Davis case. ( 9-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
There is no solution yet in sight to the Raymond Davis tug of war between the US and Pakistan. Davis, as one would recall, is the US citizen posted in the US Consulate-General in Lahore as a member of the administrative and technical staff, who shot dead on January 27,2011, two Pakistanis following him on a motor-bike. According to him, he killed them while exercising his right of self-defence since he suspected them to be armed robbers. Another Pakistani was run over and killed by a US consulate car which rushed to the scene of the incident on receiving an urgent call for help from Davis. The local police arrested him and he has been detained in the Kot Lakpat jail in Lahore while awaiting trial on a charge of murder.
2. The US has been claiming that he was a diplomatic member of the staff entitled to diplomatic immunity and hence not liable to be arrested and tried in Pakistan. It has been demanding that he should be handed over to the US authorities for being tried in the US. He has been projected by sections of the media as a former commando of the US special forces who was working for a US-based private physical security company performing physical security tasks for the US diplomatic and consular missions in Pakistan.
3. The US claim of diplomatic immunity has not been accepted by the Lahore Court before which he is being tried. It has become a sensitive political as well as public issue with opposition building up to his being handed over to the US from the political parties in Punjab as well as from the religious parties and the general public. Now that a criminal case has been registered against him and the Lahore High Court has taken cognizance of the case, he cannot be released and handed over to the US without the clearance of the court. As of now, it appears doubtful whether the court will agree to it.
4. The US Government, which has made this a prestige issue, has kept up pressure on the Pakistani leaders as well as the Army and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to let him be tried in the US. Even if they want to oblige the US, the present public mood is against any accommodation with the US on this issue. They would find it difficult to override the public opposition to his being handed over. Despite this, it should be possible for the Pakistani political and military leadership to find a way of removing the case from the jurisdiction of the court and handing him over---provided it wants to help out the US. For reasons not yet clear, the Islamabad Government has been prolonging the tug of war.
5. It has been reported that the matter was raised with the Pakistani leaders by the US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Ambassador Marc Grossman, who visited Islamabad earlier this week. During an interaction with the local media on March 7, he described the immediate release of Raymond Davis as the numero uno priority of the US Government. He was reportedly not successful in persuading the Pakistani leaders to hand him over by accepting his claim of diplomatic immunity.
6.In the meanwhile, during the trial, Davis has been kept in judicial custody in a jail, where there could be a serious threat to his life from the other under-trials or from the staff of the jail. .According to media reports, the US has stressed upon the Pakistani authorities the importance of strengthening physical security for Davis. Assurances in this regard from the Pakistani authorities should not be taken seriously. One had seen how extremists were able to kill Salman Taseer, the Governor of Punjab, and Shabaz Bhatti, a Christian, who was Federal Minister for Minority Affairs, despite the high security supposedly enjoyed by them. Both of them were killed because of their opposition to the blasphemy law. Taseer was killed by one of his security guards while Bhatti was killed by unidentified persons. It has been alleged that at the time of his assassination Bhatti’s security escort party was not with him.
7. In the present anti-US atmosphere in Pakistan, anyone who kills Davis will be hailed as a saviour of Islam just as Taseer's killer was hailed. Even if Pakistan does not agree to hand over Davis to the US for trial in the US, he should not be allowed to be kept in any jail in Pakistan along with other under-trials.
8. Under Indian laws, where there could be a threat to a very important person under trial from other under-trials, there is a provision for declaring a private residence as a public jail and for detaining that person there till the trial is over. Pakistani criminal procedure laws are similar to Indian laws. It is, therefore, likely that there is a provision in Pakistani laws also under which Davis could be detained in a private residence declared as a public jail in order to prevent any threats to his security from other under-trials. He must be kept under a mixed Pakistani-US guard to prevent any threat from the prison guards too.
9. The time has come for the US to talk tough to Pakistan on the question of Raymond Davis. After 9/11, Mr.Richard Armitage, the then US Deputy Secretary of State, had issued a "you are either with us or against us" warning to Pakistan to make it co-operate with the US in its military operations in Afghanistan. The US must issue a similar warning to Pakistan in the Davis case. ( 9-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
FOREIGN CONFLICT COVERAGE
B.RAMAN
Four Indian women journalists ---Barkha Dutt and Maya Mirchandani of the well-known NDTV,Suhasini Haider of the equally well-known CNN-IBN and Anjali Kamat of the US-based "Democracy Now"---- have distinguished themselves in covering the current on-going conflict situations in Egypt and Libya.
2. The NDTV and the CNN-IBN are well known in India. It is, therefore, not necessary for me to give their background. "Democracy Now", while well known in the US, is not that well known in India. Its web site says as follows : "Amy Goodman is the host and executive producer of Democracy Now!, a national, daily, independent, award-winning news program airing on over 900 television and radio stations in North America. Time Magazine named Democracy Now! its “Pick of the Podcasts,” along with NBC’s Meet the Press. "
3.Barkha, Maya and Suhasini are well-known to audiences in the sub-continent and hence need no introduction. While Anjali is becoming well-known, there may still be people in India who are not yet acquainted with her background. For their benefit, I am giving herewith her bio as taken from the web site of "Democracy Now" : "Anjali is an independent radio and print journalist from south India. She has lived in Egypt and Jordan and reported on movements for justice across the Middle East and South Asia. Her work has appeared in Corpwatch, Left Turn, and Samar magazine, and national newspapers in India and Egypt (The Hindu, Frontline, Outlook, and Al-Ahram Weekly). In addition to producing Democracy Now!, she co-hosts and co-produces a weekly radio show on WBAI called Global Movements Urban Struggles. Anjali is also the managing editor of the book review section of Arab Studies Journal, a peer-reviewed independent publication. She has an MA in Near Eastern Studies from NYU and a post-graduate diploma from the Asian College of Journalism in Chennai."
4. Many men journalists from the Indian print and TV media---'The Hindu", "Headlines Today", "News x" and "Times Now"--- had also covered the massive protest movement in Egypt and some are now covering the civil war in Libya. I am focusing on the coverage of the four women journalists from India not because it was International Women's Day on March 8, but because in my view the coverage by the four women journalists stood apart from the coverage of their male counterparts----barring Atul Aneja of "The Hindu", who covered Egypt on the spot, but has been covering Libya from his field headquarters in Dubai. The coverage by the four women journalists was professional and substantial and of high quality. I had a feeling---I may be subjective---that the coverage by their male colleagues has tended to be more drama than substance barring the exception of Atul.
5. It would be unfair to compare the performance of our journalists in conflict situations in foreign territory with that of their counterparts from foreign media outlets such as the "Guardian" of the UK, the "New York Times" and the "Washington Post" of the US, the CNN, the BBC, Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya. The kind of material and human resources which journalists of such foreign media outlets can mobilise are not within reach of Indian journalists -- men or women.Foreign media outlets have a long tradition of foreign news coverage and have a permanent presence in many countries of the world. This is of great advantage to their journalists from headquarters venturing out into foreign territory to cover conflicts. The local staff do the spade work and then the journalists from headquarters follow. We saw that even in East Libya. Some of the Western journalists to reach the conflict area first were from their Cairo offices or from their offices located in the Middle East. Others based in the headquarters followed them later.
6. Journalists of Indian media outlets---excepting possibly "The Hindu" and the "Times of India" --- do not have this advantage. This is particularly so in the case of the TV media. None of them, to my knowledge, has any permanent presence abroad staffed by people from their homeland. They just can't afford them. So, when a conflict as in Egypt and Libya suddenly breaks out journalists such as Barkha, Maya and Suhasini have to literally grope their way in from New Delhi without the advantage of any spadework having been done by others based in the field. This requires tremendous courage and initiative for which we must salute them instead of indulging in petty-minded snide remarks.
7. Some of my readers have asked me: Your focus is mostly on the coverage of Barkha and Maya from the NDTV. You have never referred to the coverage of Suhasini and Anjali. Let me answer in the case of Anjali first. It is true that I do not pay the same attention to her coverage as I do to the coverage of women journalists who go out into conflict situations from India. There are two reasons. Firstly, Anjali covers from the US perspective. I am more interested in the coverage from the Indian perspective. I want to look at what has been happening in Egypt and Libya through Indian eyes keeping in view the Indian interests. Barkha, Maya and Suhasini provide those Indian eyes. Secondly, Anjali, I notice, has been living in Egypt and Jordan off and on. I also notice ---I will be happy to stand corrected if I am wrong--- that during her first foray into East Libya she was accompanied by two Egyptians. Her local knowledge and local assistance give her an advantage which none of the Indian journalists going out from India has.
8.Even at the risk of being considered unfair, I would like to make a distinction between the coverage of rebel-controlled East Libya by Barkha and her NDTV team consisting of Ruby Dinghra and Manoj Thakur, and the coverage of Government-controlled areas from Tripoli, the capital, by Suhasini Haider. Travel to rebel-controlled areas and reporting from there without any back-up support, when needed, by Indian diplomatic missions requires greater courage and initiative.
9.Indian journalists are not strangers to conflict situations. Barkha made her name with her brilliant coverage of the Kargil conflict. Many Indian journalists did equally brilliantly in covering conflict situations in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. However, not many have ventured into the Taliban-controlled territory in Afghanistan where even not many Western journalists go because of the unacceptable risks involved. To my knowledge, this is the first time that Indian journalists have ventured into conflict areas in foreign territory far away from India without the advantage of any local assistance.
10. The rape of an American woman journalist in Egypt highlighted the extra dangers faced by women journalists volunteering to cover conflict situations. In this context, the action of Barkha and her team in volunteering to to go into the epi-centre of the Libyan civil war showed remarkable courage and needs to be applauded. There is a need for journalism institutions in India to make case studies of the coverage of conflict situations by our journalists---particularly women--- in order to see what lessons could be drawn.
11.The coverage by these women journalists and the remarkable feed-back to their coverage from viewers in India clearly show a growing interest in foreign news coverage---particularly in conflict areas--- from the Indian perspective. How to encourage this interest and cater to it on a permanent basis and not in an ad hoc manner is a question that needs attention from our news channels. (9-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
Four Indian women journalists ---Barkha Dutt and Maya Mirchandani of the well-known NDTV,Suhasini Haider of the equally well-known CNN-IBN and Anjali Kamat of the US-based "Democracy Now"---- have distinguished themselves in covering the current on-going conflict situations in Egypt and Libya.
2. The NDTV and the CNN-IBN are well known in India. It is, therefore, not necessary for me to give their background. "Democracy Now", while well known in the US, is not that well known in India. Its web site says as follows : "Amy Goodman is the host and executive producer of Democracy Now!, a national, daily, independent, award-winning news program airing on over 900 television and radio stations in North America. Time Magazine named Democracy Now! its “Pick of the Podcasts,” along with NBC’s Meet the Press. "
3.Barkha, Maya and Suhasini are well-known to audiences in the sub-continent and hence need no introduction. While Anjali is becoming well-known, there may still be people in India who are not yet acquainted with her background. For their benefit, I am giving herewith her bio as taken from the web site of "Democracy Now" : "Anjali is an independent radio and print journalist from south India. She has lived in Egypt and Jordan and reported on movements for justice across the Middle East and South Asia. Her work has appeared in Corpwatch, Left Turn, and Samar magazine, and national newspapers in India and Egypt (The Hindu, Frontline, Outlook, and Al-Ahram Weekly). In addition to producing Democracy Now!, she co-hosts and co-produces a weekly radio show on WBAI called Global Movements Urban Struggles. Anjali is also the managing editor of the book review section of Arab Studies Journal, a peer-reviewed independent publication. She has an MA in Near Eastern Studies from NYU and a post-graduate diploma from the Asian College of Journalism in Chennai."
4. Many men journalists from the Indian print and TV media---'The Hindu", "Headlines Today", "News x" and "Times Now"--- had also covered the massive protest movement in Egypt and some are now covering the civil war in Libya. I am focusing on the coverage of the four women journalists from India not because it was International Women's Day on March 8, but because in my view the coverage by the four women journalists stood apart from the coverage of their male counterparts----barring Atul Aneja of "The Hindu", who covered Egypt on the spot, but has been covering Libya from his field headquarters in Dubai. The coverage by the four women journalists was professional and substantial and of high quality. I had a feeling---I may be subjective---that the coverage by their male colleagues has tended to be more drama than substance barring the exception of Atul.
5. It would be unfair to compare the performance of our journalists in conflict situations in foreign territory with that of their counterparts from foreign media outlets such as the "Guardian" of the UK, the "New York Times" and the "Washington Post" of the US, the CNN, the BBC, Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya. The kind of material and human resources which journalists of such foreign media outlets can mobilise are not within reach of Indian journalists -- men or women.Foreign media outlets have a long tradition of foreign news coverage and have a permanent presence in many countries of the world. This is of great advantage to their journalists from headquarters venturing out into foreign territory to cover conflicts. The local staff do the spade work and then the journalists from headquarters follow. We saw that even in East Libya. Some of the Western journalists to reach the conflict area first were from their Cairo offices or from their offices located in the Middle East. Others based in the headquarters followed them later.
6. Journalists of Indian media outlets---excepting possibly "The Hindu" and the "Times of India" --- do not have this advantage. This is particularly so in the case of the TV media. None of them, to my knowledge, has any permanent presence abroad staffed by people from their homeland. They just can't afford them. So, when a conflict as in Egypt and Libya suddenly breaks out journalists such as Barkha, Maya and Suhasini have to literally grope their way in from New Delhi without the advantage of any spadework having been done by others based in the field. This requires tremendous courage and initiative for which we must salute them instead of indulging in petty-minded snide remarks.
7. Some of my readers have asked me: Your focus is mostly on the coverage of Barkha and Maya from the NDTV. You have never referred to the coverage of Suhasini and Anjali. Let me answer in the case of Anjali first. It is true that I do not pay the same attention to her coverage as I do to the coverage of women journalists who go out into conflict situations from India. There are two reasons. Firstly, Anjali covers from the US perspective. I am more interested in the coverage from the Indian perspective. I want to look at what has been happening in Egypt and Libya through Indian eyes keeping in view the Indian interests. Barkha, Maya and Suhasini provide those Indian eyes. Secondly, Anjali, I notice, has been living in Egypt and Jordan off and on. I also notice ---I will be happy to stand corrected if I am wrong--- that during her first foray into East Libya she was accompanied by two Egyptians. Her local knowledge and local assistance give her an advantage which none of the Indian journalists going out from India has.
8.Even at the risk of being considered unfair, I would like to make a distinction between the coverage of rebel-controlled East Libya by Barkha and her NDTV team consisting of Ruby Dinghra and Manoj Thakur, and the coverage of Government-controlled areas from Tripoli, the capital, by Suhasini Haider. Travel to rebel-controlled areas and reporting from there without any back-up support, when needed, by Indian diplomatic missions requires greater courage and initiative.
9.Indian journalists are not strangers to conflict situations. Barkha made her name with her brilliant coverage of the Kargil conflict. Many Indian journalists did equally brilliantly in covering conflict situations in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. However, not many have ventured into the Taliban-controlled territory in Afghanistan where even not many Western journalists go because of the unacceptable risks involved. To my knowledge, this is the first time that Indian journalists have ventured into conflict areas in foreign territory far away from India without the advantage of any local assistance.
10. The rape of an American woman journalist in Egypt highlighted the extra dangers faced by women journalists volunteering to cover conflict situations. In this context, the action of Barkha and her team in volunteering to to go into the epi-centre of the Libyan civil war showed remarkable courage and needs to be applauded. There is a need for journalism institutions in India to make case studies of the coverage of conflict situations by our journalists---particularly women--- in order to see what lessons could be drawn.
11.The coverage by these women journalists and the remarkable feed-back to their coverage from viewers in India clearly show a growing interest in foreign news coverage---particularly in conflict areas--- from the Indian perspective. How to encourage this interest and cater to it on a permanent basis and not in an ad hoc manner is a question that needs attention from our news channels. (9-3-11)
( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )
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