COMMUNAL VIOLENCE IN GUJARAT: RETHINKING THE ROLE OF COMMUNALISM AND INSTITUTIONALIZED INJUSTICES IN INDIA By Yasmeen Peer Submitted to the Faculty of the School of International Service of American University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts In International Peace and Conflict Resolution Chair: jOeY^J. (k u r ^ v ^ Julie Mertus m s ' Mohammed Abu-Nim€jr Irw* (1-rv L—, Dean Louis Goodman / / D ^ O Q jXQ& Date 2006 American University Washington, D.C. 20016 AMERICAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY cf^% Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: 1452645 Copyright 2007 by Peer, Yasmeen All rights reserved. INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. 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To all the people around the world who suffer injustices, you are not forgotten, I am dedicating my life to bringing more light and justice into this world, and to working with other like-minded souls, to liberate the truth from the darkness and depths of despair to a place, where we can all live together in equality, while treading lightly on the earth, and where profiting from another person’s misery will no longer be profitable. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. COMMUNAL VIOLENCE IN GUJARAT: RETHINKING THE ROLE OF COMMUNALISM AND INSTITUTIONALIZED INJUSTICES IN INDIA BY Yasmeen Peer ABSTRACT Five years have passed since Narendra Modi’s, Bharatiya Janata Party state government unleashed an ethnic genocide/pogrom against the Muslims in Gujarat. This thesis explores communal violence between Hindus and Muslims in Gujarat, uncovering its history and impact on inter-communal relations, as well as approaches to prevention. The causes of communal violence are assessed by examining conflict theory, communalism, and communal violence in India through testimonies and interviews of victims/survivors of communal violence. The state government’s institutionalization of communalism and communalization as a process, as well as their impact on society are analyzed exposing and outlining communalist tactics in an effort to understand its advocates’ strategic successes. Resistance to the communalization process is also examined through interviews with members of the anti-communalization movement and a discussion of their respective programs and activities in order to determine the latter’s type and level of impact on the occurrence of communal violence. Recommendations on approaches to preventing communal violence include: (1) initiating a process through ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. which justice and reconciliation can be sought by and for victims/ survivors and perpetrators, (2) resisting further communalization and polarization of society, (3) implementing mechanisms of early warning and detection of genocide,1 and (4) promoting a culture of social justice, human rights, and equality of all citizens. The lessons learned through the case of Gujarat are important for assessing other conflicts of deeply divided societies by highlighting the integral role of the state, as well as individuals or movements who have vested interests or benefit directly from conflict as units of analysis. Thus, this study calls on scholars of peace and conflict resolution to incorporate a particular lens or paradigm into their methodology by asking: Who is benefiting from this conflict? How can conflicts become less profitable? 1 For the purposes of this paper the terms genocide, massacre, pogrom, and carnage will be used interchangeably to refer to the genocide that took place in Gujarat in 2002. In Chapter 3Theoretical Approaches to Inter-Communal Conflict, the case for how the violence that took place in Gujarat, in 2002, was genocide according to international legal definitions of genocide. iii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. PREFACE In 2006, the Indian government released a report assessing the conditions of Muslims in the country exposing their insecurities and the precarious socio-economic position they have been pushed into since independence over six decades ago.2 While this report was not surprising, it made me worry about the future of Muslims in India and of inter-communal relations. The declared predicament reaffirms many of the sad observations I made as well as the realities that were conveyed to me while living and researching in Gujarat. Most families who suffered in the 2002 genocide were not given any support from the state government. According to the Sachar report, throughout Gujarat, “there are 47 rehabilitation sites where around 5,000 families have sought refuge.” Presently, most of these Muslim families are barely surviving, on the brink of starvation and are enduring a severe economic boycott. The report reveals the unbelievable amounts of suffering and injustice being endured and confirms one of the primary assertions of this paper that while there was systematic physical violence, there was also structural violence: economic, psychological, and social discrimination and abuse, unleashed against Muslims, on daily basis in Gujarat, which continues unabated today. In fact, until this report was published all of these tragedies and injustices had been completely ignored and overlooked by any representative power in India. 2Report of the Rajinder Sachar Committee. Rajinder Sachar Report. (Delhi, 2006). 3Dionne Bunsha, “Gujarat Ghettoes” Frontline. 27. December 15, 2006. iv Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. While many victims/survivors filed court cases in the hopes of establishing some kind of justice and making their perpetrator(s) accountable for the heinous crimes they committed - their attempts have been largely unsuccessful, leaving things unsettled and reconstituting the despair that continues to plague them day after day. Scores of cases were unlawfully dismissed and high profile cases are without witness protection, encouraging intimidation and the bribing of star witnesses -some of whom are the only remaining member of a Muslim family. This predicament hails bleak prospects for justice or reconciliation.4 Recently, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced the allotment of 7 lakhs5 Rupees (Rs.) for each of the approximately 5,000 families affected by the 2002 Gujarat genocide. While this is a positive step, it is problematic for several reasons. First, it is “too little, too late,” in the sense that the amount does not satisfactorily compensate the victims/survivors—how can the money allocated for victims of the 2002 Gujarat genocide be the same amount that the central government allotted to the Sikh victim/survivors in 1984? Second, who would be in charge of these reparations and how would they ensure that it is efficiently disbursed to victim/survivors? Third, how much of the total amount would be allocated for bringing perpetrators to justice and would the 4 The reasons for dismissal of cases were not acceptable to the Mumbai High Court when an appeal was brought before requesting the cases to be reopened. Thus, some high profile cases including the Best Bakery case with the infamous witness turned hostile Zahira Sheikh, were moved to the Mumbai High Court and reopened. 5 A lakh is a Hindi word expressing one hundred thousand, thus in the above mentioned case 7 lakhs Rs. would be the equivalent o f 700,000 Indian Rupees. The Rupee is the Indian currency. V Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. expenditures, comply with the Basic guidelines on reparation?6 All of these questions challenge the legitimacy of the Modi government and highlight the fundamental reasons why this government should no longer be in power. As long as the Modi remains in power there is much skepticism that the money would be allocated properly. In fact, when in 2002 the Central government allotted funds for the rehabilitation of the victims/survivors of the Gujarat genocide the Modi regime gave it back to the Central government. While Modi and his criminal political cronies should be on trial for crimes against humanity, instead they are preparing for the upcoming political campaign. It is important to note that this period leading up to the 2007 state elections must be recognized and treated as a ‘high risk period,’ which is undoubtedly encompassed within in the realm of early warning systems, where the