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Wednesday, July 8, 1998
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Wednesday, July 8, 1998 |
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A Commission & omission The constitution of the Eleventh Finance Commission, formally announced on Monday, marks a sharp departure from tradition in two key respects. One, it is headed by Prof A.M.Khusro, an economist, and not a senior politician as has been the case until now. Of the four members, two are old BJP office-bearers and the other two have developed strong affinity with the party. Considering that the Finance Commission is a statutory body (a creation of Article 280), the changes introduced by the BJP upsets one of the basic features of the Centre-state relations. Further, the selection of the members shows that the BJP leadership is either impatient to reward the old faithfuls or feels uncomfortable with non-party men in the wider, non-political aspects of administration. The appointment of three veteran and practising leaders as Governors was the first instance. Unlike in the case of Governors, the packing of the Finance Commission with senior BJP members and new sympathisers has long-term implications. Take Chairman Khusro. He is a Ph.D. in economics, headed the Aligarh Muslim University, edited a financial newspaper and did a stint as a member of the Planning Commission. All this explains why he is rated as an outstanding economist. But the tasks of the Finance Commission is not purely to distribute the funds collected by the Centre among the states; actually it is to reshape the financial facet of the multi-layered federal structure. The job is political in nature. This is evident from a roll-call of those who headed the Commission on the past five occasions. Starting with the Tenth Commission and going backwards, they are Mr K.C.Pant, Mr N.K.P.Salve, Mr Y.B.Chavan, Mr K.Brahmananda Reddy and Mahavir Tyagi, all political heavyweights. There is sound logic behind making a political leader head this important panel. He can filter the political compulsions behind the financial demands of the states and guide the commission to give greater weight to the former without getting bogged down by the Centre’s pleas of fund crunch. The present commission has been stripped of this role and it is worrisome. Also, of the members, Mr J.C.Jetley and Mr N.C.Jain are BJP men, having held or holding senior positions. Prof Bagchi, a former head of a prestigious research organisation in New Delhi, was associated with a similar study team set up by the BJP with Chief Minister Shekhawat as chairman. It is thus a cosy party arrangement and the record of economic policies of the new government being what it is, it does not inspire much confidence. There is another grey area. The K.C.Pant commission has recommended incorporation in the Constitution of its proposal that the Centre should share 29 per cent of the revenue collection with the states. That provision was to be in force for 15 years. Though the report was given effect to three years ago, the constitutional amendment has not been enacted. It is mandatory and once the statute is amended, the work of the latest panel will become essentially academic in nature. Is the government aware of this? One thing more. The government has asked the Eleventh Commission to suggest ways to improve the financial position of the states to find funds to the local bodies. Not many states will be pleased at this intrusion into their financial preserve.  |
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| Sour vegetables Of course, it happens almost every year . When the rainy season brings relief from the scorching summer sun, it adds to housewives' miseries, as the prices of vegetables go sky-high. There is a large-scale crop damage due to floods and the supply lines get snapped at various places. The result is an acute shortage of the perishable farm produce. This is understandable, though even in such cases also the government can do a lot to prevent the prices from going beyond the reach of the common man. However, the situation at this point of time is quite different. The country has not had so much of rain so far as could be held responsible for the soaring prices of almost all the vegetables. As reports have it, even the prices of potatoes and onions have shot up two to three-fold compared to their rates a month earlier. This is clearly a crisis to which human contribution is greater than that of nature. The situation can be easily described as a policy failure. It is the government which is to blame for its indifference to formulate a strategy to deal with such a crisis. The scenario that has been caused by the suspected hoarding of vegetables like potatoes and onions by rich farmers and wholesalers could have been visualised much in advance by the mandarins sitting in their cosy chairs, and corrective measures taken. This was not as difficult as they may try to explain now. Take the case of onions, used by all, the rich and the poor. As early as January this year, it was showing signs of becoming dearer in the months to come. It was feared that if no serious measures were taken to improve its supply position, the onion price could become a very hot election issue. The commodity, which is exported by India to different countries —3.7 lakh tonnes annually—was expected to be in short supply owing to the crop damage to the extent of 21 per cent in Maharashtra and Gujarat, according to one estimate. The public was being assured by the government of the day that NAFED would be asked to import onions in sufficient quantity, and there were indications that curbs might be imposed on the export of the agricultural produce of crucial importance. Perhaps the present government has not been able to spare time to act on this front, so preoccupied it has been on ensuring its own survival. The other commonly used vegetable, potato, has a more painful tale to be told. Why should it become unaffordable for the common Indian when there is no shortfall in its production? What is the lesson that must be learnt from the development that farmers have to destroy their produce—as they have done in Ludhaia and Jalandhar— because they do not have the capacity to keep their produce safe in the cold stores? Obviously, they require financial assistance for the purpose at a soft interest rate. The government must not take all this lightly. There is an urgent need to have a farmer-friendly procurement policy. Hoarding beyond a specified limit by anyone should be made a cognizable offence. The common man is not as much interested in the inflation rate—which is 6.5 per cent but threatening to reach the double-digit level soon—as in the availability of the necessities of life at affordable prices. |
| Democracy in Bhutan IF reports from Thimpu are to be believed, the nascent pro-democracy movement is gaining ground in Bhutan. What is surprising is the fact that the initiative for reducing the role of the Palace in governance has come from King Jigme Singye Wangchuk. He is reportedly willing to give the Himalayan Kingdom’s fledgling National Assembly sweeping powers, including the right to force the King to abdicate through a no-confidence vote. The National Assembly is reluctant to accept the royal package of political reforms in its present form because it feels that the country is not yet ready for total democracy. Its view that democracy should be introduced in a phased manner is based on sound logic. As one member put it, “we should not be thrown in the deep end before we become comfortable with swimming in the waters of democracy”. Some reforms proposed by the King have already been accepted. For instance, the National Assembly during a special session last week accepted a proposal that the Cabinet should be elected by the House instead of being nominated by the Palace. The list of the members of the proposed Cabinet was cleared by the King and forwarded to the National Assembly for ratification. The new Foreign Minister secured most of the votes (136 of the total strength of 140) and the nomination of the Home Minister was questioned by at least 20 members. The editor of the kingdom’s only newspaper rightly observed that “for a country like Bhutan 20 members not accepting the King’s nominee, that too in his presence, is a big event”. The pro-democracy initiative has added to the stature of King Wangchuk who already commands the respect of his people because of his benevolent rule. The mood in Thimpu is of quiet elation. A special committee has been set up to frame rules and regulations after studying the cabinet system of governance elsewhere. The King will have to be kept informed only on issues concerning the country’s security and territorial integrity. However, the proposal to vote out the King by a two-thirds majority has rightly been put on hold. Bhutan may ultimately opt for a constitutional monarchy. But as of today the country would be looking towards the King for guidance at every stage of its journey to total democracy. The dissidents, who are living in self-imposed exile, may find the current reforms falling short of their demand for multi-party democracy. It is just as well, because the right to disagree is an important part of the political system sought to be introduced in Bhutan by the King himself. |
| JAILS IN INDIA Self-sustaining units Extravagance in expenditure and indifference to human problems are a national bane. The economy in the cost of governance has not yet been on our government’s agenda. Curtailing liberty is the continuing attempt of the administration. Jails in India are illustrative of this attitude. Is there any remedy? Man has moved on the road of progress in every sphere at a rapid pace. Within a generation, we have seen that medicine has taken a leap from “leeches to laser surgery”. Similar is the position in other fields. However, the prisons have remained “imprisoned”. Why? It is true that a jail is not a “monastery”. A prison is not a “convent”. In the very nature of things, these are not places where one can hope to meet monks and nuns. Jails are really meant to serve as means of incapacitation and retribution of the convicts and criminals who are incarcerated there. The old practice of banishment to penal colonies being no longer in vogue, these are the acceptable alternatives to the painful forms of corporal punishment of whipping, branding and even death. Today there are some who believe that criminals are a pampered lot. In spite of the fact that they are offenders against society, law gives them due protection at every stage. This is so because they are human beings. They belong to a free country. The Constitution guarantees certain fundamental rights to them. These rights do not “part company with the prisoners at the gates”. In fact, laws have been made even to regulate the working of jails. But these laws are “archaic”. The Prisons Act is of 1894 vintage. The Prisoners’ Act was enacted in 1900. The
Jail Manuals prepared by various state governments, by
and large, continue to embody the rules and procedures
laid down by the English. These Acts and Manuals have a
“colonial odour”. These do not meet the
changing needs of a developing society. Thus, there is
the criticism that the jails are “jailed in jail
manuals”.We have more than one thousand jails in the country. There are lakhs of convicts. Each jail is a large structure made of bricks, mortar and steel. It covers a huge area. Yet in view of the ever-increasing number of prisoners, the accommodation is not adequate. The ventilation is generally poor. At some places, even the facilities for normal health care of the prisoners are not available. Still further, every person who enters a jail is depressed and morose. On entry, he faces an “unrelieved idleness”. In this environment of “total inactivity and crowdedness day after day, the inmates most committed to crime, brain-wash the inexperienced to convert initial feelings of guilt and shame into smug rationalisations for crime”. Furthermore, confinement is in itself a very stressful experience. It can be extremely intolerable. Idleness, confinement, over-crowdedness, insanitary conditions, and lack of basic facilities cumulatively cause irritation and anger among the prisoners. Sometimes, one hears of a riot. Understandably, the staff which is neither very sensitive nor adequately trained, is tempted to use the rod. Sometimes, the methods are brutal. The outsider gets an impression that our jails are “institutions which serve to brutalise and embitter men to prevent them from returning to a useful role in society”. These are “hell-holes”, “crucibles of crime” where even drugs are smuggled and facilities are
“provided for a price”. Whatever be the truth,
we cannot forget that every convict is there only to
serve his time. He has to return to his home and resume
his role in society. Thus, it is imperative that the
jails must serve as reformatories. Simultaneously, we
have to keep in view the financial crunch. We have to
remember that our resources are limited.What can be done to improve the jails and to simultaneously reduce the burden on the tax-payer? The first step should be a change in the attitude of the jail staff. The guard must become the guide. He must act as a guardian. The guard should not treat the convict as if he is a “despicable animal”. It must be recognised that the role of the policeman ends at the gate of the jail. The criminal or the convict is now in the custody of the jailer. He has to be rehabilitated and reformed so as to be able to go back to society to play his role. Undeniably, there is some good in the worst of us in the same way as there is some evil in the best of us. There is a bit of God and a bit of a devil in every human being. An effort should be made to bring out the good and to direct the mind and energy of the prisoner towards a constructive and satisfying role. We also need to pay attention to the economy of the jails. India is undoubtedly a vast country. It is even rich in resources. We have a large manpower. Yet the people of India are poor. As a nation, we must recognise that even the economy is a source of revenue. We must avoid all extravagance and waste. No one in this country, much less a criminal and a convict, should have a free holiday at the tax-payer’s expense. An effort should be made to exploit all available sources of income so as to make the jails self-sustaining units. A cursory perusal of the state budgets would show that a substantial amount of money is being spent on jails. The food, clothing, guarding, and the medical facilities provided to the inmates of the jails add up to a sizeable sum in terms of money. In Punjab alone, there are a total of 37 jails, including the judicial lock-ups. There are thousands of convicts and many more undertrials in the jails. During 1997-98, an amount of Rs 31,89,78,000 approximately was spent on the jails. Similarly, in Haryana, there are 19 jails. The expenditure during 1997-98 was in the region of Rs 11,12,21,000. Thus, it is fairly clear that at the national level, a substantial amount of money is being spent on looking after the convicts and the criminals. It is a clear case of mismanagement of manpower and material resources. We cannot afford this luxury. Almost every jail has a certain area of land. It also has various other facilities. To illustrate the point: the jail at Patiala has about 1000 inmates. It is spread over a large area of land. Anyone who visits this jail would notice that large areas of land are lying almost totally unused. The available manpower mostly remains idle. Instead of being an asset, it becomes a liability. Why can’t these areas of land be suitably used? Surely, enough can be grown for meeting the needs of the inmates of the jail on a part of the available land. The remaining area can be used for such other activities as may be considered appropriate. Even if only flowers are grown, these can be cut and sold for a substantial amount in the market. The facilities for weaving and making of furniture can be used for meeting the needs of schools, colleges, government offices and hostels. Similar can be the position at various other places, including Chandigarh. No money is needed. Only good management is required. Man on the spot need to work with a missionary zeal. They have to motivate the men under their charge to work hard and produce more. If enforced, the jails can become self-serving and self-sustaining units in the country. This measure, besides yielding money, would also take care of discipline. We need to recognise that idleness is “the bane of body and mind, the nurse of naughtiness, the chief author of all mischief”. It has to be eliminated. An old adage says: “an idle mind is the devil’s workshop.” We can’t afford to have “thousands of workshops” producing devilry and mischief all the time. The time and energy of every prisoner should be gainfully utilised in productive pursuits. Still further, in every jail, there are some who are educated while there are others who are illiterate. Similarly, there are some who are trained in certain vocations. The services of the persons who are educated or are trained in certain vocations can be utilised to remove illiteracy and train the available manpower. The education and training shall be useful to the individuals when they return to their homes. The desirability of selectively allowing the inmates to attend to their jobs or business which they did before their imprisonment should be seriously examined. The selected persons should be permitted to continue with their jobs and allowed to return to the prison after performing their duties. Such persons will undoubtedly enjoy the concession of freedom during working hours. In return, they can be asked to pay for their stay in the jail. A part of their income can also be sent to the family for its maintenance. Equally, provision can also be made for the family of the
victim. This would not only reduce the burden on the
state exchequer but can also ensure the welfare of
others. It can also serve as an incentive for good
behaviour to the other inmates of the jail.Jail administrators should become time-managers. A time-table which ensures that each inmate remains occupied in something or the other, from yoga and meditation to education and industry, for at least 16 hours per day should be drawn up. This should be rigorously enforced. It would not only eliminate avoidable mischief but also result in fruitful gains. Besides the above measures of human management, the laws should be suitably amended to provide alternative modes of punishment. Imprisonment must be used as a last resort against dangerous offenders. Alternative sanctions must be developed for the benefit of society and the offender. Compensation for the family of the victim can be one mode. Furthermore, a system should be developed under which the offenders are released on probation after they have undergone imprisonment for a short duration. They should work during that time and share income with the family of the victim of their crime. At present, there is provision for the grant of parole. However, experience shows that applications for the release of a prisoner on parole sometimes remain pending for long. To avoid this, the power to grant parole should be vested in the judge who awarded the sentence in the first instance. The grant of parole by the court would reduce the jail population and thus lessen the burden on the state’s resources. At the same time, fear of being sent back to jail would continue to act as a deterrent for the convict. We can’t expect a magic change by the adoption of these suggestions. However, every little bit counts. A prison is not yet a part of industry in this country. Slowly, it can be made into a self-sustaining one. |
| Multinationals’ gameplan by Balraj Mehta MNCs are working in accordance with a gameplan for their operations in India. They have made considerable advance after the so-called economic reforms were initiated in 1991. They are now poised for a giant stride forward. The BJP-led government is mindlessly allowing itself to lend them a helping hand. The glib talk of wooing and winning their support to fight the US and Japanese sanctions against India is indeed fantastic. To entertain the notion that MNCs have no loyalty to the countries of their origin and can be cajoled with attractive investment opportunities is to be extraordinarily facile and gullible. The fact is that MNCs unreservedly subserve the economic and politico-strategic interests and objectives of the developed countries. The MNCs are not conventional business entities. They do compete fiercely among themselves. But they act in concert within the broad policy frame of promoting the hegemony of the developed countries in the global economic and political order. They enjoy political support for their growth plans and are keen to play the role assigned to them by their political patrons. This way a vast network of global economic exploitation and political subversion and corruption has been established. The under-developed countries have been their prime target after direct colonial rule had become too costly to maintain.The under-developed countries, after winning political independence, were eager to find novel and diverse paths and forms to clear the economic, social and political debris left behind
by direct colonial rule. The developed countries have
been attempting to thwart this urge in their anxiety to
retain their hegemony in the global order. The MNCs,
assisted by international financial institutions, set up
and run by the developed countries as their public
limited companies, have been the most potent instruments
for this purpose.Independent India opted, together with adult franchise and democratic governance, for an autonomous middle path of socio-economic development. It made some progress in this direction. But precedence given to gradualism over radical reforms of the socio-economic structures soon created novel opportunities for the entrenched interests to exploit the lacuna in development policies, and many lapses in the implementation of development plans. The foreign exchange crisis in 1991 was used by them in the environment of increasing political instability to finally subvert the national consensus developed during the prolonged struggle for political independence on economic policy and development objectives. A facile notion has been sought to be cultivated that economic growth is too arduous a task for domestic effort to accomplish. The governing set-up, it has also been argued, has lost the moral and political authority to mobilise domestic resources, skills and enterprise for self-reliant development. Reliance on foreign capital on the basis of this line of reasoning is the only desirable option left for promoting economic growth at a reasonable rate. The IMF/World Bank in drawing up the so-called structural adjustment programme gleefully endorsed this policy option for India. Successive governments in India have since attempted to implement this policy, albeit without much success. The MNCs, which had been gingerly probing the Indian market for entry on their terms thus found new opportunities for large-scale entry into the Indian market. Restrictions on entry, diversification and expansion of foreign firms have been, step-by-step, lifted in the nineties. The position now is that direct foreign investment up to 100 per cent equity in a business venture is allowed on a wide-ranging basis. In the case of joint ventures, the local partner is reduced to a position, in effect, of a sub-contractor, which provides cheap shop floor operation, R&D personnel and labour for the maximisation of profit for repatriation by the foreign company. There is no provision for the transfer of technology to Indian firms either. The initiative for determining the quantum and quality of investments too rests with foreign business interests.The gameplan of the MNCs to directly take over strategic industries and natural resources of the developing countries came into the open in Mexico four years ago. The foreign exchange crisis was precipitated in that country and under the terms of the bail-out credits of the banks of the developed countries and the IMF. Mexico had to hand over its most valuable oil resources to US-based international oil companies. The depreciation of currencies in Asia was precipitated last year by financial speculators. This was a starting point for a still bigger gameplan of the MNCs for the takeover of industrial conglomerates in the countries of East Asia, which will have disastrous consequences for them. The claim that India was immune to currency depreciation and a stock market crisis never carried conviction. India is indeed facing grave portents after the economic sanctions were imposed for politico-strategic reasons. The gameplan of the MNCs is to establish neo-colonial domination of India by setting up enclaves of modern industries to exploit this country’s cheap labour and natural resources, especially energy resources. |
| FMCT: India ultimate target By Deepak Kumar The proposed fissile material cut-off treaty (FMCT) is targeted more at India than Pakistan or any other threshold nuclear state, according to defence experts. India had expressed its willingness to participate in negotiations on the FMCT at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva. Indian experts, however, feel that the FMCT is discriminatory and would cap the country’s fissile material at a level far lower than that of China. According to a report produced by the Rand Corporation of the United States, “the purpose of the treaty is not to stop production of fissile material but to place sensitive facilities and the material produced from them under the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards. The treaty is aimed particularly at India, Pakistan and Israel, who are resisting the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). The proposed treaty offers a new avenue towards placing their sensitive facilities and material under safeguards.” Ms Savita Pande, a research fellow at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA), points out that Israel and Pakistan have hardly any civilian nuclear programme. “Israel and Pakistan (after its recent nuclear tests) have credible nuclear deterrents and can depend on external nuclear weapon powers to turn to in time of need in terms of both material and other support.” Ms Pande argues: “The target (of the FMCT), therefore, more than any other threshold nuclear state, is India. This is more so because of the elaborate indigenous civilian nuclear infrastructure of the country.” On the United States and Russia, the FMCT will have little impact since they already have a surplus. France and the UK have less “surplus” fissile material than the USA and Russia, but could manage. In any case, all of them have ceased production of fissile material. China may have ceased producing plutonium for weapons. The treaty, therefore, will formalise the commitment of the other nuclear weapon states to permanently stop its unsafeguarded production. Will the treaty place all the production facilities in nuclear weapon states under IAEA safeguards? Things regarding China remain uncertain. Nothing can be said about the modernisation programme just in case it may not have produced all the weapon grade material it needs. The Chinese may not accept any restraint on their capabilities, even if the FMCT restrains, in its own way, Russia and the USA and also India. They are hardly likely to open their production facilities. Much less concerned would they be to fear isolation. Besides, Brazil may continue to produce highly enriched uranium (HEU), claiming it to be for nuclear reactors. North Korea agreed in 1991 to end reprocessing and in 1994, agreed to dismantle the reprocessing facility. The accord, however, allows the facility to remain intact for at least the next five years. Going by North Korea’s past record, it could decide to keep the facility. Pakistan would have to shut down or place under safeguards its unsafeguarded
reprocessing enrichment plant at Kahuta. Pakistan has
officially welcomed the US President, Mr Bill
Clinton’s proposal for a cut-off treaty, arguing
that a universal, non-discriminatory treaty would enhance
the security of all states. However, it has argued that a
cut-off should be accompanied by declarations of fissile
material stockpiles by all states and a schedule for the
transfer of these stocks to safeguards, that is, “a
binding programme for the elimination of asymmetry in the
possession of fissile material stockpiles by various
states.”The principal value of a cut-off for Pakistan, at least at a declared level, would be a freeze on the Indian nuclear stockpile. Pakistan has repeatedly indicated that it would be willing to accept constraints on its own nuclear weapons programme if India submitted to such constraints as well. Pakistan obviously makes such statements knowing India would never accept it, points out Ms Pande in the occasional paper series “Fissile material for nuclear weapons,” published by the Institute for Defence Studies (IDSA). India has been opposing the FMCT along with the NPT and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) on the grounds that these seek to perpetuate the monopoly of the nuclear weapon states, while disallowing others from acquiring the mass destruction weapons. It is this inherently discriminatory nature of the three international treaties that India is opposing. Ms Pande points out that even after the planned elimination of hundreds of tonnes of weapons-grade plutonium and uranium, Russia and the USA will retain enough fissile material to make 10,000 thermonuclear warheads. It is possible that the de facto nuclear weapons states could accept INFCIRC/163-type inspections, if procedures could be worked out to protect sensitive activities not related to production of plutonium and high enriched uranium (HEU). It might be necessary for such activities to be removed from some sites in order to avoid suspicions that fissile material production is being concealed to the extent that a cut-off strengthens the commitment of the international community to demand more stringent verification of the nuclear countries. At least Israel, among the de facto nuclear weapon states, might actually welcome a rigorously verified cut-off treaty. The proposed FMCT will have no effect on the number of nuclear weapons potentially available at short notice. Once plutonium is separated from fuel, it does not take much time to covert it into weapon usable form (metal). The facilities are quite simple. They might even be constructed clandestinely or for “permissible” purposes. The first signs of detection could only be made after the plutonium dioxide is removed, but then the conversion into metal may take very little time. The situation could be worse if a parallel programme of constructing non-nuclear components of a nuclear weapon is undertaken. The treaty nevertheless seeks to prevent assistance to others in the production of material for weapons. This way it is an advancement over the NPT, which under Article II prevents only nuclear weapon states from helping non-nuclear weapon states. Given the complexities of the issues involved, it is difficult to say when exactly the treaty is likely to be concluded. If CTBT negotiations are any indication, it is extremely unlikely that nuclear weapon states would have the last word. According to Steven Fetter and Frank Von Hippel, there are a number of other reasons by negotiations could drag on for years. Britain, France and Russia have made it clear that since the five nuclear weapon states have stopped (or almost stopped) production, they consider verification arrangements more trouble than they are worth unless India and Pakistan participate. Pakistan is not eager to sign an agreement that would lock in its inferiority relative to India. China is reluctant to sign any agreement that would make permanent its quantitative inferiority to the United States and Russia — especially when the USA is moving to loosen the constraints of the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty. Israel is not even interested in discussing the subject and the USA is reluctant to press Israel on the matter, fearing this would divert attention from the peace process. In any case, while the proposed treaty itself may be non-discriminatory, in effect, it locks huge disparities in stockpiles of different countries. But after CTBT negotiations, the public awareness in these countries has grown and the linkage to security is more than obvious. — CNF |
| Row
over “hero’s
burial” for Marcos By Abby Tan in Manila A row over the burial of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos has confirmed middle-class fears about the Philippines’ populist new leader. “Show me any law that prohibits the burial of Marcos in the National Heroes’ Memorial Cemetery”, challenged President-elect Joseph Estrada in a speech made before his swearing-in on June 30. “It is not the burial, stupid. It is the burial place,” retorted a letter in the Today newspaper. Marcos died in exile in Hawaii in 1989, and now lies unburied in a refrigerated crypt in his northern hometown of Batac. Estrada’s decision to bury his former political patron int he heroes’ cemetery has re-opened old wounds. Estrada’s presidential predecessors, Corazon Aquino and Fidel Ramos, refused to allow the dictator to be buried there, and many Filipinos are incensed by the proposal, which they say challenges everything they fought for when they overthrew Marcos in the 1986 “people power” revolution. When the burial plans were announced in June, Aquino, — whose husband Benigno, the former opposition leader, was murdered by security forces during the Marcos reign — led several days of street protests outside the presidential place. “There is an element of falsehood in what you propose to do — burying as a hero one who caused the death, torture, disappearances and imprisonment of thousands of Filipinos and, beyond that, the plunder of the nation’s wealth,” she said in a letter to Estrada. The letter was co-signed by other prominent leaders, including Jaime Carinal Sin, the Archbishop of Manila, who played an important role in overthrowing Marcos. Whenever he tries to rationalise his action, 61-year-old Estrada simply worsens the controversy. First he asked people to “forget the past”, then wondered aloud why Filipinos could forgive the Japanese, the wartime occupiers of the country, but could not forgive Marcos. The former president deserved to be buried in the heroe’s cemetery as an ex-soldier and guerrilla fighter during the Second World War, he argued. “My motivation is simple,” said Estrada. “I hope that by finally laying to rest his mortal remains, the decade-long turmoil over the issue will subside. We can then face our uncertain future as a united nation.” The opposite has happened. Filipinos are not ready to forget Marcos’ 20-year record of looting the treasury, while 10,000 human-rights victim of his regime, who were awarded financial damages by the courts, have yet to receive compensation from his estate. The burial plan has also heightened the fears of Estrada’s opponents, who dismiss him as an unschooled, unpolished college drop-out. Human-rights lawyer Rene Saguisag claims Estrada has “the makings of another dictator”. Respected newspaper columnist Armando Dornila accuses the former film actor of fostering a “hoodlum culture” and trying to act out the role of a street tough guy, the image that won him 40 per cent of the votes in the nine-cornered election race in May. Doronila says the controversy is “throwing the spotlight on the hazards ahead for Philippine democracy under the Estrada administration and warning us of a potential dictatorship with a thuggish mentality”. The Communist guerrilla movement has entered the fray by threatening to kidnap Marcos’ widow Imelda and her children and put them on trial. Manila’s dozen daily newspapers all condemned the burial plan and Estrada’s combative style. Uncowed, he dismissed supporters of Aquino and Ramos as
“hypocrites” and mused: “Why waste my time
talking [to them]?”Commenting on the picket of the presidential palace by Aquino and her supporters, he said: “If they like to sleep on the streets, let them sleep there. I’ll just give them mineral water.” Press obsession with the burial issue has diverted attention from the danger of recession. True to his populist mandate, Estrada made “an ardent plea” to a government agency not to raise oil prices, even though a law prescribes the complete deregulation of the oil industry by July. Falling tax receipts from oil companies and other major industries contributed to a $ 380 million budget deficit at the end of May. The Finance Ministry has predicted a 1998 deficit of $ 1 billion. Meanwhile, Estrada has yet to explain how he will pay for his promised “pro-poor” initiatives. — Gemini News |
| "Write" room by Rajnish Wattas I do not have a “dream cottage” somewhere in the hills with a room overlooking a pine knoll, a brook or a valley — a la Ruskin Bond. Neither do I live like V.S. Naipaul in a panoramic English countryside gabled-roof cottage to do my writing. All I have is a humble little room designed basically as the servant’s quarter for the house. It is the only dispensable space in a houseful of two teenagers, their mother and grandparents. In any case, my present “writerly status” and claim to fame of a mere small-time freelancer; publishing an occasional “middle” in a newspaper, perhaps warrants nothing more classy. However, I do dream of an elegant “study” adorned with encyclopaedias and other expensive hard-bound reference books, displayed in Burma teak shelves. To match this interior would be a mahogany writing desk — complete with a Parker pen, sheaves of manuscripts, and a pipe to light up fires of imagination. A half finished cup of coffee would complete the perfect picture of a successful writer.... Compared to the above scenario, the reality is a discarded dining table serving as the writer’s desk, a cheap Chinese fountain pen gifted by a sympathetic friend and a pile of old newspapers littered all over the place. Instead of leather-bound reference books, my writer’s tools consist of an old dog-eared Oxford dictionary, a paperback edition of Roget’s Thesaurus, and a softboard on the wall — whose plaster is always peeling off — to pin up interesting clippings from newspapers and magazines to stimulate inspiration. The only view from the small window in my room is of the neighbour’s clothesline adorned with the day’s laundry. But there is also the partial glimpse of their mango tree, on whose boughs a koel perches up in spring; though it’s usually only crows and house sparrows to provide bird music! Nevertheless, the weekend ritual of retiring to my study with a “do not disturb, writer at work” facade is most rewarding. It saves me all the bother of mundane household tasks. No one calls me to fix a fused tubelight, change the gas cylinder or clean up the lofts. Even leaking taps can await “plumber intervention” — or are fixed by the family itself, which has developed its own emergency “handy man” skills, not dependent on me. Mostly, I am not even writing in the study. It is more of a ploy to lounge comfortably in the old sofa chair to savour all the Sunday newspapers and an assortment of magazines in peace. But I do not get my coffee-break from this arduous “strain” of stirring the creative juices sleeping in my head — courtesy my doting daughter, who has immense faith in my talents. Who knows when the muse may strike? A Booker prize winning work may be in the making... And then my cubby-hole would be magically transformed into the “write room”. |
 75 YEARS AGO Prominent Hindus arrested AMRITSAR: Yesterday at about 2 p.m. warrants of arrests were issued against 26 respectable Hindus and by the evening 16 of them reported themselves at the Lohari Gate Police Post for arrest. The name of the arrested persons are given below. There was a rumour of their arrests some days back but it transpired there was a difference of opinion among the officials regarding the advisability of the action.They have been charged under Sections 395 and 147 IPC. They are alleged to have looted the shop of a Mohammedan confectioner. The case is likely to come up in court today. The remaining 10 accused are not in the city, and they will be coming soon. Out of the accused named, one is a boy of 12 years, and the police has refused to arrest him although the boy offered himself for arrest. The following are the gentlemen arrested: Dr Karam Chand Pandit, MBBS; L. Harnam Dass, Mr Bakhshish Singh Chaudhry, Mr H.R. Khanna, Engineering Supervisor; Mr Dev Raj Khanna, Lala Viru Mall, Lala Devi Dyal, Lala Sidh Nath Dalal, Lala Nikka Mal Dalal, Lala Mansa Ram Saraf, Lala Bishan Das Saraf, Lala Gopi Nath, Lala Karm Chand Bazaz, Lala Lal Chand Bazaz, Lala Munni Lal Gotawalla, Lala Ram Labhaya Dalal and Mr Sain Dass (12-year boy). |
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