India: Anti-Muslim Citizenship Amendment SAYRA RAFIUZZAMAN • POLICY ANALYST • 2 OCTOBRE 2020 Women attending the Shaheen Bagh Protest Summary Prime Minister Modi’s government intends to assemble a National Register of Citizens (NRC) across India. Along with this, the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) or Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) 2019, has created a situation in which the Muslim minorities and document-less minorities of India may be deprived of citizenship and rights (Shankar, 2020). This affects women minorities in particular, risking displacement in mass numbers (BhowmicK, 2020). Currently there are four ways to obtain Indian citizenship: birth, descent, registration and naturalization (Shankar, 2019). However, due to socio-economic restrictions, many women do not have access to birth certificates or paperwork, leaving them at risk of being stripped of their Indian identity (Bhowmick, 2020). Background The Citizenship Amendment Bill which was passed into legislation at the closing of 2019 has left India with widespread protests. The bill fast tracKs citizenship for immigrants of three neighboring countries: Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. This process is open for minorities who may face persecution based on religious beliefs in these countries. The range covers Hindus, SiKhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians. However, it excludes Muslims, even minorities sectarian Muslims who are widely persecuted, such as Shia and Ahmadiyya Muslims (PTI, 2020). While the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) claims this amendment is beneficial in the race to protect minorities, it is important to note that it is unconstitutional as it targets only particular groups, based on religion. It does not provide an equal opportunity for all individuals based on minority status or asylum need (PTI, 2020). It also marginalizes India’s Muslim community which has consistently faced ongoing injustices under reforms of the BJP government. Women, in particular, face an intense threat on their citizenship under CAB-19, potentially stripping Indian citizenship and leaving them and their children displaced (Bhowmick, 2020). INDIAN CONSTITUTION & CITIZENSHIP The Indian Constitution was implemented in 1950, guaranteeing citizenship to the country’s residents. Under the constitution, there were no distinctions on the basis of religion of the residents of the country. When the constitution was promulgated, four categories of persons were identified as eligible for citizenship, noted under Articles 5 and 8 (Jain, 2019): I. Article 5: Citizenship by Domicile II. Article 6: Citizenship of Migrants to India from PaKistan III. Article 7: Citizenship of Migrants of PaKistan IV. Article 8: Citizenship of Indian Origin Residing Outside India Each article outlines particular points by raising figures such as familial relations, number of years in India, or year entered in India. As the term ‘citizen’ had not been properly defined the Citizen Act of 1955 added more detail for those who would be identified as citizens. This act included citizenship by birth, naturalisation, and etc. Furthermore, under India’s constitution, Articles 13, 14, 15, 16 and 21 deal with equality and freedom rights (UPR, 2012). These articles protect Indian citizens with secular protection for all. The articles guarantee the right to equality and non discriminatory treatment by the Indian state. Though it seeKs to grant citizenship to religious minorities, CAB-19 isolates individuals on the basis of religious identity as well (Jain, 2019). 2 WOMEN: IMPACT As women have taken the streets to demonstrate against the bill, they have been met with various abhorrent conditions. Union Minister, Anurag Thakur has campaigned against protestors calling for them to be shot. In addition, a BJP Minister has utilized the protests to incite hate against women protesters, stating the nation should think carefully about voting for a party, as these protesters will enter homes and rape women, though the protesters are largely women (Scroll, 2020). Following this, many chanted violent rhetoric to the protesters (HRW, 2020). The bill systematically disadvantages women, particularly Muslim women in the State (Bhowmick, 2020). It has also translated into police brutality and gender based violence. Additionally, it raised questions about women and their futures within the country. The bill can potentially displace women on the basis of their religion. Additionally, it prevents certain women who face ongoing persecution from the listed neighboring countries from being granted the fast-track citizenship. PROTESTS, POLICE BRUTALITY, AND GBV Peaceful demonstrations were spearheaded by women across the country (The Indian Express, 2020). As they demonstrated opposition to CAB-19, they were met with violent crackdowns. Police officers entered university campuses and injured hundreds of protesters. Students were beat with batons, fired on with tear gas, and even shot by officers. Jamia Millia Islamia University’s majority-Muslim student body is one such campus which was met with violence. Police officers stormed into girl’s hostels in a forceful attempt to end protests. They had yelled degrading slurs, a form of gender based violence, to the female students as they chased them into a library in which the young women took refuge from police brutality. Reports of sexual abuse have been mentioned againt female protestors by officers on campus (Samuel, 2019). Most notoriously, the Shaheen Bagh protests were carried out by women. The women activists ranged from elderly to young girls who continued peaceful demonstrations and sit-ins. This lasted for 101 days until removal due to the Coronavirus pandemic (The Indian Express, 2020). Mainly consisting of Muslim women, the protestors had increased in numbers and blocked roads in New Delhi (Bhowmick, 2020). Petitions had been filed to remove the women from the protests. Additionally, the Supreme Court had hired two senior advocates to persuade the women to end their protesting (The Indian Express, 2020). WOMEN FACING PERSECUTION So far the government has responded to women protesters with police brutality and various forms of gender based violence, such as verbal abuse. Additionally, the government had repeatedly tried to remove the women from exercising their right to protest (The Indian Express, 2020). While this bill’s focus is on minorities who are entering or require refuge in India, it impacts women, namely Muslim women in two different ways. Both forms are both forward as an impact from the discriminatory rhetoric of both the bill and the government which promotes it. 3 The limits its coverage to non-Muslim refugees from Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and PaKistan who moved to India before 2015. However, various Muslim women in these countries face persecution and GBV. For example, Hazara Shia Muslims of Afghanistan. The Taliban has consistently targeted this group of Muslims, and genocide of this community is widespread. Many women have been under attack. They have also been widowed and left resourceless to raise their children alone (Kapila, 2019). Additionally, large refugee populations, such as Rohingya Muslims are not covered under this bill (PTI, 2020). While the Rohingya women have high records of GBV and live in dire conditions, even in host countries, they are now further disadvantaged as this process discluded them entirely. NPR & NRC The government had propelled a nationwide citizenship verification process through a National Population Register (NPR) and a proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC). The citizenship amendment, coupled with the NPR and NRC, threatens displacement for Muslim women in India . The aim is to identify “illegal migrants” within the country. While many families have lived within the country for generations, they may potentially be stripped of their citizenship rights (HRW, 2020). The NRC had been implemented in Assam, a northeastern state of India. The authorities in charge had accused residents of having entered illegally from the neighboring country, Bangladesh. However, the surge of migration to Assam happened during the British colonial rule. The target of the process was Bengali Muslims, which led to abuse and bias on the community. It striped, and may potentially again strip children and women of their homes in India (Shankar, 2020). This raised concerns for the Muslim women in the nation as it may lead to a similar process for them nationwide, with the new bill. Additionally, it affects women who are of a lower socio-economic bracket. Most Muslim women do not have access to their birth certificate or paperwork due to their socio-economic conditions. Due to this, they are unable to prove their citizenships. This places Muslim women in the staKes of being displaced (BhowmicK, 2020). Policy Recommendations • Removal of the citizenship bill to align with the constitution’s secular principles. • Define the term ‘citizen’ as part of a constitutional amendment. 3. Create collective measures to ensure equality before the law to protect all in an equitable manner within the nation along with protection from displacement due to socio-economic conditions. • Develop laws and accountability methods for police brutality and discriminatory campaigns by ministers. • Construct pathways for persecuted minorities of all faiths from neighboring countries to gain citizenship as part of the citizenship bill. 4 References Bhowmick, Nilanjana. “India's New Laws Hurt Women Most of All.” Foreign Policy. Foreign Policy, February 4, 2020. https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/02/04/india-citizenship-law-women/.