ISSUES AND VIEWS INTERNATIONAL INTERNATIONAL Urges international community's intervention to stop carnage in Syria Popular Front of India General Secretary M. Muhammed Ali Jinnah has urged the United Naons and the internaonal community to intervene and stop the harrowing carnage of children and civilians in Syria by the Basharul Assad forces backed by Iran and Russia. What is happening in Syria right now is one of the worst humanitarian tragedies of our me while the world is watching silently. The city of Ghouta, where nearly 4,00,000 residents are trapped, is being pounded with the most sophiscated weapons supplied by Russia. Even hospitals and medical centers were not spared from the bombing. Nearly 700 civilians have been killed ruthlessly so far, of which nearly half are children. Even aid workers are labeled as terrorists and targeted. Amnesty Internaonal has stated that the aack amounted to war crimes. Only people with conscience across the world can stop further escalaon of this crisis and ensure the safety of the people besieged in Ghouta. Every individual who is opposed to the war can play his or her part by creang awareness and being part of the relief campaigns. We request the Indian government to exert its diplomac pressure on Syria to stop the inhuman killings of the civilians. We also urge the United Naons to bring to account Russia, Iran, and Assad for the war crimes and take a lead role for finding a polical soluon to ensure peace, democracy and jusce in the war-torn country. (Issued on 28 February 2018) Condemns ISIS killing of Indian workers in Iraq Popular Front chairman E. Abubacker strongly condemned the heinous killing of 39 Indian workers in ISIS custody and conveyed condolences to the hapless relaves of the vicms. It is tragic that they have to wait nearly four years in uer uncertainty to get a final confirmaon of death once they went missing in June 2014 from Mosul in Iraq. Since then, the External Affairs Ministry has been lying to the naon that they are alive and efforts to rescue them are in progress. E. Abubacker called for a thorough enquiry into the whole episode. He also demanded maximum compensaon to the families of those who met with the tragic mass death. (Issued on 28 February 2018) ISSUES AND VIEWS | Page. No: 04 INTERNATIONAL Condemns Israeli carnage in Gaza Popular Front of India Chairman E Abubacker in a statement has strongly condemned the brutal violence unleashed by Israeli army on unarmed Palesnians in Gaza who assembled near the fence with Israel. “Innocent Palesnians are being massacred and their lands stolen on a daily basis while America connues to support Israel financially and militarily over the past many decades. Around 60 people have died and 2000 wounded including women and children in Israeli firing at Palesnian people who gathered to protest near the fence with Israel in Gaza. As usual, this me too Israel has jusfied carnage by calling it “self-defence” even though there was no casualty on Israeli side from the protesters. In fact, Israel is proving that it does not even tolerate Palesnian people protesng when they are being made to live like in an open prison with Israel controlling and shrinking all their spaces from all sides.” E Abubacker has also condemned American decision to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. “This is yet another shameful betrayal of Palesnians, especially when the country has always presented itself as the mediator of the peace talks between Israel and Palesne. It can only be viewed as an open display of disregard for internaonal law and UN resoluons. It will further deteriorate the already volale situaon in the region.” “We urge UN and internaonal community to come out against Israeli crimes and human rights violaons and call upon world countries to take necessary steps to restore the rights and dignity of Palesnian people. (Issued on 15 May 2018) India must not bow to US pressure A statement issued by the Central Secretariat meeng of Popular Front of India has asked Government of India not to bow to the pressure threats from United States to halt our oil imports from Iran. Such dictates from a third foreign country with regards to our internaonal relaons with another country can only be deemed as interference in our naon's sovereignty. Besides, U. S move against Iran can only be viewed as part of expanding their tyrannical hegemony in the region by destroying countries that refuse to surrender to their threats. This latest U.S dictate to India amounts to undermining the dignity of our 1.35 billion cizens. The meeng reminded the central government that if we fail to overcome these pressures from U. S., we would be opening the doors for more direct U. S. intervenons in future. (Issued on 29 June 2018) ISSUES AND VIEWS | Page. No: 05 HUMAN RIGHTS HUMAN RIGHTS Warns against attempts to suppress Dalits Popular Front of India Chairman, E Abubacker in his statement has condemned the aack on Dalits who were celebrang the 200th anniversary of the Bhima Koregaon bale. The situaon shows that the aacks were pre-planned. This is part of the aempt being made by Hidutwa forces in the state to suppress Dalits by turning the Marathas against them. Failure of the state governmentand the police in stopping the hooligans who were preparing to aack the people who gathered for the anniversary celebraon has resulted in the death of an innocentand caused the violence to spread. Now the police, instead of going aer the criminals who aacked unarmed people, are falsely implicang innocents who aended the programme including leaders like Jignesh Mewani MLA and Omar Khalid. This is yet another instance of the casteist violence on Dalits who are struggling to assert their rights and dignity against the Brahminist oppression that has connued for thousands of years. Such violence has intensified ever since Hindutwa came to power in 2014. Dalit laborers were brutally beaten for skinning dead cows in Gujarat; Dalit children were burned alive in Haryana by Upper castes; an elderly Dalit man was burned to death in UP for entering the temple, and the list connues. People who protest against these are charged with draconian laws and locked up. Bhim Army Leader Chandra Shekhar Azad is sll in prison charged with draconian secons of the NSA. We demand that the state government should idenfy and book culprits responsible for this heinous act and to adequately compensate the family of the deceased and all vicms who were injured in this atrocity. We urge fellow cizens of this country to stand with the struggles of the Dalit community for their dignity and human rights. (Issued on 03 January 2018) RSS General Secretary challenges Judiciary The NEC meeng demanded acon against RSS General Secretary Bhaiyaji Joshi's inflammatory remarks that “Ram temple will be constructed at that place (Ayodhya) and nothing else can be built there”. He also reported to have claimed that Mandir will be built there immediately aer Supreme Court verdict. Such remarks, while Supreme Court order on the issue is sll pending are indicave of the disdainful atude of Sangh Parivar towards Judiciary and the democrac system of the country at large. From this threat to build Ram Mandir at any cost, it becomes clear that Sangh Parivar either doesn't care the apex court or they are pressurizing Supreme Court to have a verdict in their favour. The meeng appealed to the Hon'ble Chief Jusce of India to iniate legal acon against RSS general secretary and other RSS-BJP leaders who repeatedly subdues the autonomy of Supreme Court in pending Babri Masjid – Ramjanm Bhoomi tle case. (Issued on 15 March 2018) ISSUES AND VIEWS | Page. No: 07 HUMAN RIGHTS Welcomes life sentence in Jharkhand lynching case Popular Front of India Chairman E. Abubakcer has welcomed the judgment by a fast track court (FTC) in Ramgarh which awarded life imprisonment to 11 of the 12 Sangh Pariwar men convicted in Alimuddin Ansari's lynching that took place in Jharkhand last year. The judgment is a ray of jusce and a relief to poor people who sll live under the threat of criminal gangs formed in the name of cow protecon called Gorakshaks, associated to Sangh Pariwar. Increasing number of mob lynching incidents by these gangs has created an atmosphere tantamount to lawlessness in the country and the state of Jharkhand witnessed several such incidents in recent months. The central government policies like beef ban and restricons on cale trade provided the criminals the moral support and impunity to commit any such act on innocent people. Mostly poor Muslims who find their living from cale trade or dairy farming were the vicms. A situaon was created that anyone can be publicly lynched merely on the accusaon of carrying beef, regardless of whether it is true or false. It is the first me the accused is punished with life imprisonment in a lynching case. The judgment is a warning to the cow vigilantes. It will help restore people's faith in jusce delivery system. We appreciate all those who worked for ensuring jusce to Alimundhin Ansari. (Issued on 22 March 2018) Killers and rapists emboldened by impunity under BJP rule Popular Front of India Chairman E Abubacker in a statement has strongly condemned the brutal gang rape and killing of 8-year-old Asifa from Kathua district in Jammu and rape of a girl in Unnao in Uar Pradesh by BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar along with others. The way some officers in J&K police along with communal polical mafia from the area gang raped and killed Asifa must open our eyes to the crimes being commied jointly by the security agencies and fascist forces.