CDRO Bulletin
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June, July, August Bi-Monthly 20111555 For private circulation only Bulletin Suggested Contribution Rs. 15 A lawyer, an activist, a CPDR member: all these would be inadequate introductions for Sebastian because he was all these and more, much more. This is not to say that he subsumed the individuals and groups he worked with. Rather he encompassed, embraced and carried within himself all the lives he touched and helped shape. In the activist world, if you did not know him you were sure to know of him. During the mid eighties civil and democratic rights (CL&DR) organizations such as APCLC, PUDR, PUCL, CPDR (Nagpur), CPDR (Bombay), OCDR (TN) and others started realizing the importance of coordination. Slowly but steadily, coordination and understanding grew among these organizations and also among individuals at the forefront of these organizations. This bond resulted in some historical fact findings and reports, such as repression of peasants, farmers, tribals, students and youth in Andhra Pradesh, Maharastra, Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, etc. Continued in page 2 Incident of alleged encounter in Palamou A team of CDRO comprising APDR (W.B), BMC (W.B), CLC (A.P & TELENGANA), JCDR (Jhar Khand), a reporter, two female participants, and few individuals conducted a fact finding into the alleged incident of ‘Encounter’ as claimed by police personal at Vhalwary under the P.S. Satbarwa on the dead night of 8th June 2015 in which 12 Indian citizens, mostly from backward communities including tribals, were killed. The team went on to meet several of the family members and neighbors in far flung places covering a wide area, for two days, i.e. 20th and 21st June 2015. The team also visited the alleged site of 13 years, son of Kameswar Sing Kharbar, village – occurrence / encounter, which was believed to be anything resembling Haratoo, district- Latehar; and Umesh Kharbar) a gun fight between some ‘hard core and ‘well trained’ ‘anti state’ being victims, it is pertinent to ask some disturbing forces as is the custom perfected by our state organized special questions behind their conversant will arms etc., armed forces in their statements for annihilation of such security as their relatives vehemently denied any involvement threats. in any political affiliation. However we shall raise In our opinion the incident appeared to be a one –way operation only one question regarding these minors. The and there were only one kind of recipients to the bullets fired in the district administration apart from the ‘self-defending said fight. police forces allegedly involved in the encounter’, Three minor children (Cherkoo Tirkey, 12 years, son of late Bijay must clarity of their being not negligent about these Tirkey, village - Amuatika, district -Latehar; Mohendra Sing Kharbar, kids who had failed to reach some decent helpful Continued in page 5 CDRO Bulletin A MonthlyJune, July Bulletin, August, of 2015 CDRO 1 Send your reports to ([email protected]) In 1986, after the Arwal massacre, Sebastian invited many JUNE, JULY, AUG. 2015 CONTENTS CL&DR organizations to Nagpur for a serious discussion on the Tribute to PA Sebastian, CDRO and CPDR ........................ 1 future of civil liberties movement Incident of alleged encounter in Palamou, CDRO ............... 1 in India. Among others, this Release Bhagaban Majhi and punish the guilty, GASS ....... 6 Tailor-made lives: accidents and discontent among the meeting was attended by K.G. garment industry workers in Udyog Vihar, Haryana, Kannabiran, K. Balagopal, Nandita PUDR.......................................................................... 7 Haksar and Sujato Bhadra. MASS statements against custorial murder, MASS ........... 8 Sebastian unfolded his ideas of The murderers of Dhananjoy Hazir Ho!, PUDR .................. 9 setting up a people’s tribunal on the Condemn the hounding of Teesta Setalvad and Javed line of the private tribunal set up Anand, CPDR ............................................................... 11 by Russell and Sartre on American Solidarity to the repeal AFSPA demonstration in Kohima, war crimes in Vietnam. It was to MSAD and CPDM .................................................... 12 be a kind of public hearing, to be Memorandum demanding protection of the peoples of headed by ex-judges who would Manipur, MSAD, MYMAD, CPDM, and FYANA ...... 13 listen to testimonies, scrutinize Stop arrests and harassment of activists protesting evidences adduced by the against Kanhar Dam Project, PUDR ......................... 14 secretariat, hear arguments India must not become member in UN Security Council, including government sides, and APDP ......................................................................... 16 finally find out the truth and On the death penalty of Yakub Memon, pronounce recommendations. CPDR, PUDR, CLC, Angela Sontakey .................. 17 All participants were excited Public meeting against death penalty in Kolkata, APDR.. 22 about his idea. Sebastian was made State agency and communal politics, BMC .................... 23 principal secretary and Balagopal, A report on land grab and farmers displacement in District Nandita, Kannabiran, Sujato Patiala, AFDR............................................................. 26 Bhadra and others became part of The death of Bannappa is nothing but a custodial death, secretariat. Sebastian and Nandita CLC ........................................................................... 27 persuaded Justice Krishna Iyer to On the arrest of Debaranjan Sarangi, HRF & PUDR...... 29 be the chairman of judges and film personality Mrinal Sen became spare no effort to travel distances if he felt a cause needed his support, president of the commission. of which there were many. And he topped it all with a hearty sense of It was the untiring effort of humour and warmth, and amicability towards an ever expanding fleet Sebastian which led to a great of friends. beginning. The Arwal massacre It was his experience of organizing the joint events and his June,was the July tribunal’, August,s first 2015 issue. This masterstroke coordinating with the other CL&DR organizations which was followed by Meerut riots of helped in the formation of the Coordiantion of Democratic Rights 1987 and then the Vizjag arson Organisation (CDRO) in 2007. We fondly recall our last two meetingsin case, the Kaveri water dispute, and which Sebastian was present – one in Bombay on UAPA, and another so on. Undoubtedly, Sebastian was one in Hyderabad on black laws and political prisoners. After the public the inspiration behind this meeting in Hyderabad, we hared many moments of eventful days of pathbreaking work. yesteryears. His position against private Sebastian was a man with dedication, devotion and commitment to property in his personal life was the cause of human rights and the creation of a justice and equality singular and he strongly opposed based social system. communalism. His articulate In present times that carry the shadow of a draconian regime and writings apart, he was very much dwindling faith in the judiciary, we would gain much from Sebastian’s active on the ‘field’ and would determined stand against the Emergency and his assertion of the 2 June, July, August, 2015 CDRO Bulletin importance of people’s tribunals and commissions. Chairperson of the International CDRO salutes his indomitable spirit, hoping that we would carry it Association of People’s Lawyers in all our work, just as he carried all of us with him. We feel terribly and Vice President of the sorry for losing him and his hysterical laughter. Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners. Despite his Coordination of Democratic Rights Organizations: disability he travelled all over the country and abroad. Association for Democratic Rights (AFDR), Punjab Sebastian was one of the Association for Protection of Democratic Rights (APDR), West Bengal pioneers of the idea of people’s Bandi Mukti Morcha (BMC), West Bengal tribunals. He had contributed Campaign for Peace & Democracy in Manipur (CPDM), Delhi immensely taking cudgel for the Civil Liberties Committee (CLC), Andhra Pradesh helpless victims of Bombay riots Committee for Protection of Democratic Rights (CPDR), Mumbai in December 1992 and January Coordination for Human Rights (COHR), Manipur 1993, in which around 900 people Human Rights Forum (HRF), Andhra Pradesh (275 Hindus and 575 Muslims) lost Jharkhand Council for Democratic Rights (JCDR), Jharkhand their lives. Sebastian worked Manab Adhikar Sangram Samiti (MASS), Assam tirelessly in presenting their cases Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights (NPMHR) before Shrikrishna Commission. Organisation for Protection of Democratic Rights (OPDR), Andhra His indomitable spirit came Pradesh alive in protest against the Peoples’ Committee for Human Rights (PCHR), Jammu and Kashmir draconian laws and anti-people Peoples Democratic Forum (PDF), Karnataka legislation. Two years back, in one Peoples Union For Democratic Rights (PUDR), Delhi of the public meeting, he dared the Peoples Union for Civil Rights (PUCR), Haryana government to arrest him on the charges of sedition. He thundered ADVOCATE P.A. SEBASTIAN, THE DOYEN that criticizing the government was actually a democratic duty of a OF CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT PASSES AWAY citizen and hence to charge people for sedition for doing that is the Our friend and comrade P. A. Sebastian, who was the face of Committee most unlawful act one could for Protection of Democratic Rights (CPDR) for decades, has passed imagine. away this morning