19-20 November 2011, India Islamic Centre, New Delhi EDITED BY HARSH DOBHAL TEXT EDITORS AvraTI BHATNAGAR MATHEW JACOB ANUPAM KISHORE TraNSCRIPTION NAND KISHOR DESIGN MAHENDra bOra HUMAN RIGHTS LAW NETWORK Concept Note two-day National Consultation on Defending the Human Rights Defenders was organised by the Human Rights Law Network and the World Sikh Organisation (WSO) in col- laboration with ACHR, AISA, ANHAD, APDP, Human Rights Defenders Alert, IRDS, Lawyers for Human Rights International, MASUM, Naga Mothers Association, Parivartan, PEACE, PVCHR and Surajay Sangharsha Samiti on the 19th and 20th of Novem- ber,A 2011, at India Islamic Centre, Lodi Road, New Delhi. Participants in- cluded renowned activists such as Binayak Sen, Kavita Srivastav, Himanshu Kumar, Henri Tiphagne, Iftikhar Gilani, Prashant Bhushan, Teesta Setal- vad, Mallika Sarabai, Sanjiv Bhatt and many other human rights defenders from across the country. Human rights activists have come under repeated attacks recently.R ight to Information activists have been killed and many have had cases filed against them. Journalists have been jailed in criminal defamation cases, have been attacked, some of them killed, and media houses have had their offices ransacked.T ribal activists particularly in conflict areas have been hounded by the police and many of them are in jail today. The situation has never been so dire. The need of the hour is to protect and defend human rights activ- ists in India today. There have been many initiatives in the country on defending the defenders and several organisations have developed expertise in various areas such as documentation, action alerts, approaching the UN system, legal aid, medical aid, counseling and so on. These initiatives have developed as a response to the cry from the grass-root activists who have been hounded by the police in many states. The two-day programme was further sub-divided into various sessions where activists and experts from various parts of India expressed their concerns and challenges and sug- gested ways of strengthening the solidarity and efforts. The various themes discussed were threats to human rights defenders, role of human rights organisations, situation in Punjab/’84 genocide, defenders in Kashmir, defenders in conflict states, assaults on the media, attacks on anti-communal activists, attacks on trade unions, attacks on RTI activists, role of lawyers, situation of defenders in the northeast, attack on environmental activists, politics of hate, assaults on activists and sharing by IPS Sanjeev Bhatt. This consultation gave many of the participants, including the families of the activists who have been killed or victimised, a chance to interact and to develop better strategies to deal with the increasing use of violence by the State against social activists. It also led to the formation of Coalition for Protection of Human Rights Defenders (CPHRD). The PHRC D will work towards strategies of defending the defenders which will include action alerts, legal aid, medical aid, media coverage, documentation, counseling, cam- paigns and sharing resources. 3| P ROGraMME SCHEDULE S aturday, 19th November 2011 Te im Topic Speakers 9.30– 9.45 Key-note address Paramjeet Kaur, widow of advocate Jaswant Singh Khalra 9.45 - 10 Can we ever forget? Balpreet Singh, World Sikh Organisation 10 - 10.30 Threats to human rights Dr. Binayak Sen l Kavita Srivastav (PUCL) defenders 10.30 - 11 Role of human rights Henry Tiphagne (Human Rights organizations Defenders Alert) 11 – 12 Situation in the Adv. Phoolka l Adv R.S. Bains Punjab/’84 genocide l Adv Navkiran Singh 12 -1 Defenders in Kashmir Iftikhar Gilani l Parveena (APDP) l Adv Arshad Andrabi (J&K Bar Association) l Adv G.N. Shaheen (J&K Bar Association) l Sanjay Kak 1 -2 Lunch 2 - 3 Defenders in conflict state Himanshu Kumar (Chhattisgarh) l Kopa Kunjam (Chhattisgarh) l Zulaikha Jabi (Chattisgarh) l Dayamani Barla (Jharkhand) 3 - 5 Assaults on the media Shoma Chaudhary l Manoj Mitta l Ajay T.G l Maqbool Sahil l Kumar Badal l Samiuddin Illiyas Neelu 5 – 6 Attacks on anti-communal Teesta Setalvad l aMukul Sinh activists 6 – 7 Attacks on trade unions Santosh Rai l P.C. Tiwari l Gayatri Singh 8 p.m. Dinner |4 P ROGraMME SCHEDULE S unday, 20th November 2011 Date Topic Speaker 9 – 10.30 Assaults on RTI activists Shailesh Gandhi l Santosh Koli, Parivartan l Vijay Kumbhar, Maharashtra 10.30 – 11.30 Role of lawyers Prashant Bhushan l Maharukh Adenwala l Amarnath Pandey, Chhattisgarh l Shamin Modi (M.P.) 11.30 -1.30 Situation of defenders in the North-East Sharmila’s case: Singhajeet (Justice for Peace Founda- tion) Babloo Loitongbam (Justice for Peace Foundation) Rosemary (Naga Mothers Association) Nava Thakuria (Guwahati Press Club) 1.30 – 2 Lunch 2 - 2.30 Politics of hate Discussion Mallika Sarabai 2.30 - 3.30 Assaults on activists Sandeep Singh (AISA) l Tenzin Tsundue (Tibetan activist) l R ajat Kalsan (Mirchpur case) 3.30 – 4 Open session with Sanjiv Bhatt Shabnam Hashmi (Chair) 4.30 – 6 Defending the defenders: Strategies: Suhas Chakma, ACHR l Henry Action alerts l Legal aid l Medical l Tiphagne (Human Rights Defend- aid l Media coverage l Documenta- ers Alert) l Satnam Singh Bains tion l Counseling l Campaigns l l Paramjeet Kaur l Balpreet Singh Sharing resources (WSO) Lenin, PVCHR l Anil Choudhary, PEACE 5| content DAY 1 Dayamani Barla 95 INTRODUCTION Kailash Meena 98 Harsh Dobhal 07 Himanshu Kumar 100 Colin Gonsalves 09 Zulaikha Jabi 102 SESSION 1 SESSION 10 KEY-NOTE ADDRESS AttACKS On traDE UNIONS Paramjeet Kaur 15 Gayatri Singh 107 SESSION 2 Santosh Rai 110 CAN WE EVER FORGET? P C Tewari 112 Balpreet Singh 19 Amarendra Sharma 114 SESSION 3 & 4 DAY 2 THREATS TO HUMAN RIGHTS SESSION 1 DEFENDERS & ROLE OF HUMAN ASSAULTS ON RTI ACTIVISTS RIGHTS ORGANISATIONS Shailesh Gandhi 121 Kavita Srivastav 25 Vijay Kumbhar 123 Binayak Sen 27 Santosh Koli 125 Henri Tiphagne 29 SESSION 2 SESSION 5 SITUATION OF DEFENDERS SITUATION IN PUNJAB/’84 gENOCIDE IN THE NORTH-EAST H S Phoolka 33 Babloo Loitongbam 129 R S Bains 35 Nava Thakuria 131 Satnam Singh 37 Rosemary Dzuvichu 134 Navkiran Singh 40 Irom Singhajit 137 SESSION 6 SESSION 3 DEFENDERS In KaSHMIR ROLE OF LAWYERS Iftikhar Gilani 45 Maharukh Adenwalla 141 Sanjay Kak 48 Amarnath Pa ndey 143 Parveena Ahangar 50 Prashant Bhushan 145 G N Shaheen 52 Shamim Modi 148 SESSION 7 SESSION 4 AttACKS ON ANTI-COMMUNAL ACTIVISTS POLITICS OF HATE AND Mukul Sinha 59 DISCUSSION ON COMMUNALISM Manisha Sethi 62 AND SITUATION IN GUJaraT Teesta Setalvad 65 Mallika Sarabhai 153 Sanjeev Bhatt 156 SESSION 8 ASSAULTS ON THE MEDIA SESSION 5 Manoj Mitta 71 ASSAULTS ON ACTIVISTS Kumar Badal 74 Tenzin Tsundue 165 Shoma Chaudhary 76 Rajat Kalsan 167 Samiuddin Illiyas Neelu 81 Sandeep Singh 169 Maqbool Sahil 85 Ajay T G 88 DISCUSSION ON DEFENDING 173 THE DEFENDERS STraTEGIES SESSION 9 DEFENDERS IN CONFLICT STATE Kopa Kunjam 93 |6 Introduction y name is Harsh Dobhal and I work with HARSH DOBHAL Human Rights Law Network. I welcome all of you here today on behalf of HRLN, Director, HRLN ACHR, AISA, ANHAD, APDP, Hu- man Rights Defender Alert, RDS, Jamia Teachers’ Solidarity Association, Jan Sangharsh Manch, Jus- tice for Peace Foundation, Kashmir High Court Bar Associa- Mtion, Lawyers for Human Rights International, MASOOM, Naga Mothers’ Association, Parivartan, Peace, PUCL Rajas- than, PVCHR, Surajay Sangharsh Samiti and World Sikh Or- ganisation. Friends, we have gathered here today, at a juncture, at a time in history when we know that the people, the social activists, social leaders who have always been talking about peoples’ rights, talking about exploitation of the marginalized, of Dalits and Tribla, and many other disadvantaged In this context, I think, sections of society are coming under increasing threat by the agencies of the time has come to the State and even by non-state actors. The RTI activists, people working think and sit together to in the north-east, conflict zones of Kashmir, Chhattisgarh, journalists, talk about rights defend- lawyers, individuals, organizations, anybody disagreeing with the State, ers, about all of us who anybody trying to be critical, trying to question or interrogate the State have gathered here. We is immediately subjected to suspicion, intimidation, harassment, arrest, always have been talking and torture. Sometimes even people are even being killed! Well, much is made out of the largest, vibrant democracy that we are. The Indian about others, as one of State, often, instead of treating such leaders and people as partners in a my friends who will be very vibrant democratic process, actually perceives such leaders as threat speaking later, was tell- to national security, threat to national interest and is more interested in ing me yesterday. Many targeting them, profiling them. of us today, not in Delhi so much, but outside In this context, I think, the time has come to think and sit together to talk about rights defenders, about all of us who have gathered here. We Delhi, find ourselves at always have been talking about others, as one of my friends who will be considerable risk while speaking later, was telling me yesterday. Many of us today, not in Delhi so working on human much, but outside Delhi, find ourselves at considerable risk while work- rights issues. ing on human rights issues. That is why it is important today and tomorrow to talk about ourselves, the kind of threat we face, the kind of intimidation that our works, our 7| people, our activists face and may be try to work towards developing a re- sponse to the situation. I would now like to invite Mr. Colin Gonsalves, our senior colleague, senior Supreme Court advocate to come forward and set the tone for the proceedings to today and tomorrow.