Whenever domestic policies are discussed in India, the discussions are shamefully complacent and a recent parliamentary debate on Human rights in the Indian-subcontinent serves as one example. In the debate Barry Gardiner, the chair of The Labour Friends of India, set out to explain that India is a beacon of tolerance, peace and democracy in the face of some of the most serious security threats faced by any country in the world. It is true that India suffers regular and devastating attacks from terrorist groups but it is laughable to describe the country as tolerant. How could Parliament not know about the allegations of torture, arbitrary arrest and extra-judicial imprisonment leveled against Indias government?
The debate was a waste of parliamentary time for another reason. It set out to celebrate Indias commitment to human rights whilst condemning Indias unstable and dangerous neighbours. To praise India whilst criticizing Burma and Pakistan, among others, both defies the facts and betrays a prejudiced view. The UK and India share a great trade and defence relationship, one highlighted by the very successful corporate delegation Cameron led to India last year. Who are The Labour Friends of India to complicate this lucrative dialogue by mentioning Indias rights violations?
The complacency of the West is matched by the apathy of Indias own politicians. Sonia Gandhi, a pariah among Indias political classes, has defied the nations political and corporate mood by warning that Indias ruthless economic drive comes at the cost of shrinking the countrys moral universe. Sonia Gandhis words will likely be met with a cynical reception and it is a shame that there is not a more popular or respected voice speaking out about the harm caused by Indias economic pursuits.
Internal security, poverty and health and human rights are all areas in which Indias democracy has proved to be the greater Achilles heel than with the economy itself.
Security
India is a nation fighting a war on two fronts. She is subject to regular attacks by foreign terrorists and home-grown militants; a combined threat posed by Islamist extremists, Maoist insurgents and Kashmiri separatists. Manmohan Singh described the Maoist insurgency as the greatest internal security threat to face India since the country gained independence.
The Maoists have a single aim: the overthrow of the Indian government by 2025. Arundhati Roy, the novelist turned polemicist, concedes that no government can negotiate effectively with a group intent on their destruction. But she argues better governance would extinguish many of the flames around which the Maoists rally. Instead, the government has chosen to fight fire with fire. In Chhattisgarh, the state most affected by the Maoist insurgency, the local government has formed a vigilante army of teenagers to fight the Maoists child soldiers.
The silent but persistent threat of guerrilla war is contrasted with inconsistent yet tragic acts of terrorism by religious fundamentalists. Mumbai suffered yet another terrorist attack in July but the emotion that characterised Mumbais response was anger. This anger was directed equally against the fanatical murderers and the citys administration, who many felt had failed to secure the city since the 2008 Taj attacks. A day after this years attacks Rahul Gandhi, the scion of the Gandhi political dynasty, remarked it is difficult to stop every attack and one or two will get through. Such political misjudgement has reinforced public perceptions of the ineptness and apathy of Indias government. Many felt that political corruption and lack of concern were to blame for the lack of intelligence and for the failure to mount an effective security response.
Health and Poverty
The plight of most Indians is ignored by discussions of Indias unrealised economic potential. Manmohan Singh described malnutrition in India as the countrys blackest mark whilst Syeda Hameed, a member of Indias Planning Commission, conceded that India is worse than Bangladesh and Pakistan in terms of a failure to provide basic nourishment. Indias Family Health Survey reported that just under 46% of children under three, roughly 80 million, are undernourished. The current percentage represents a mere 1% improvement after seven years. Unicef reports that 2.1 million children die annually in India before the age of 5 as a result of malnutrition, a lack of health facilities and poor hygiene.
The stark failure of the government to act effectively is highlighted by the countrys poverty figures. In times when Indias economy is growing by around 8%, more than 800 million Indians continue live on under $2 a day.
Human rights violations
The international community seems both blind and deaf to allegations of torture and land theft perpetrated by the Indian government. WikiLeaks revealed that in 2005 the Red Cross briefed US diplomats about the use of electrocution, beatings and sexual humiliation against military detainees. One cable reports that the US embassy in Dehli heard from the Red Cross that the Indian government had not acted to halt the continued ill-treatment of detainees. The Red Cross are said to have concluded that the Indian government condones torture and that torture victims often died.
The reclamation of land is a programme of rights infringement the government dont seem to want to hide. As demands for iron ore and coal increase, so has the rate of displacement. Ramachandra Guha has compared the treatment by India of its tribal groups to the persecution of Australias aboriginal population. The sole distinction he draws is that in India, things appear to be getting worse.
The sentiment that Indias ruthless economic progress victimizes the poor was expressed by Indias Supreme Court, which remarked that every step [taken] seems to give rise to insurgency and political extremism. The Supreme Court went further to observe that development has become a dreadful and hated word. The Court made these remarks in a case concerning the acquisition of land by a company that had failed to compensate its tribal owner for 23 years.
Conclusion
A recent article in the FT described India as a land of paradox. It compared an 8% growth rate and a growing, consumerist middle class with figures that in some Indian states, the number of those living in poverty or suffering from malnutrition exceed the numbers in sub-Saharan Africa. This central contradiction seems to reflect John Galbraiths economic model which explains that "if you feed the horse enough oats, some will pass through to the sparrows." This is a political and policy strategy that is, evidently, failing.
The inadvertent success of the resurgence in the anti-graft campaign was the exposure of the extent of corruption in Indias political system. A necessary outcome of this exposure must be that the international community take a more critical stance towards Indias domestic failings.
So a discussion on Indias democracy without any consideration of Indias domestic policy failings is frankly a debate not worth having.
When Indian global warriors come on here and start advising us on the issues in Balochistan i suggest they look at home and resolve their own issues first.
Both nations have issues. By having cheap shots at Pakistan doesn't mean your own problems are diminished.
India
The debate was a waste of parliamentary time for another reason. It set out to celebrate Indias commitment to human rights whilst condemning Indias unstable and dangerous neighbours. To praise India whilst criticizing Burma and Pakistan, among others, both defies the facts and betrays a prejudiced view. The UK and India share a great trade and defence relationship, one highlighted by the very successful corporate delegation Cameron led to India last year. Who are The Labour Friends of India to complicate this lucrative dialogue by mentioning Indias rights violations?
The complacency of the West is matched by the apathy of Indias own politicians. Sonia Gandhi, a pariah among Indias political classes, has defied the nations political and corporate mood by warning that Indias ruthless economic drive comes at the cost of shrinking the countrys moral universe. Sonia Gandhis words will likely be met with a cynical reception and it is a shame that there is not a more popular or respected voice speaking out about the harm caused by Indias economic pursuits.
Internal security, poverty and health and human rights are all areas in which Indias democracy has proved to be the greater Achilles heel than with the economy itself.
Security
India is a nation fighting a war on two fronts. She is subject to regular attacks by foreign terrorists and home-grown militants; a combined threat posed by Islamist extremists, Maoist insurgents and Kashmiri separatists. Manmohan Singh described the Maoist insurgency as the greatest internal security threat to face India since the country gained independence.
The Maoists have a single aim: the overthrow of the Indian government by 2025. Arundhati Roy, the novelist turned polemicist, concedes that no government can negotiate effectively with a group intent on their destruction. But she argues better governance would extinguish many of the flames around which the Maoists rally. Instead, the government has chosen to fight fire with fire. In Chhattisgarh, the state most affected by the Maoist insurgency, the local government has formed a vigilante army of teenagers to fight the Maoists child soldiers.
The silent but persistent threat of guerrilla war is contrasted with inconsistent yet tragic acts of terrorism by religious fundamentalists. Mumbai suffered yet another terrorist attack in July but the emotion that characterised Mumbais response was anger. This anger was directed equally against the fanatical murderers and the citys administration, who many felt had failed to secure the city since the 2008 Taj attacks. A day after this years attacks Rahul Gandhi, the scion of the Gandhi political dynasty, remarked it is difficult to stop every attack and one or two will get through. Such political misjudgement has reinforced public perceptions of the ineptness and apathy of Indias government. Many felt that political corruption and lack of concern were to blame for the lack of intelligence and for the failure to mount an effective security response.
Health and Poverty
The plight of most Indians is ignored by discussions of Indias unrealised economic potential. Manmohan Singh described malnutrition in India as the countrys blackest mark whilst Syeda Hameed, a member of Indias Planning Commission, conceded that India is worse than Bangladesh and Pakistan in terms of a failure to provide basic nourishment. Indias Family Health Survey reported that just under 46% of children under three, roughly 80 million, are undernourished. The current percentage represents a mere 1% improvement after seven years. Unicef reports that 2.1 million children die annually in India before the age of 5 as a result of malnutrition, a lack of health facilities and poor hygiene.
The stark failure of the government to act effectively is highlighted by the countrys poverty figures. In times when Indias economy is growing by around 8%, more than 800 million Indians continue live on under $2 a day.
Human rights violations
The international community seems both blind and deaf to allegations of torture and land theft perpetrated by the Indian government. WikiLeaks revealed that in 2005 the Red Cross briefed US diplomats about the use of electrocution, beatings and sexual humiliation against military detainees. One cable reports that the US embassy in Dehli heard from the Red Cross that the Indian government had not acted to halt the continued ill-treatment of detainees. The Red Cross are said to have concluded that the Indian government condones torture and that torture victims often died.
The reclamation of land is a programme of rights infringement the government dont seem to want to hide. As demands for iron ore and coal increase, so has the rate of displacement. Ramachandra Guha has compared the treatment by India of its tribal groups to the persecution of Australias aboriginal population. The sole distinction he draws is that in India, things appear to be getting worse.
The sentiment that Indias ruthless economic progress victimizes the poor was expressed by Indias Supreme Court, which remarked that every step [taken] seems to give rise to insurgency and political extremism. The Supreme Court went further to observe that development has become a dreadful and hated word. The Court made these remarks in a case concerning the acquisition of land by a company that had failed to compensate its tribal owner for 23 years.
Conclusion
A recent article in the FT described India as a land of paradox. It compared an 8% growth rate and a growing, consumerist middle class with figures that in some Indian states, the number of those living in poverty or suffering from malnutrition exceed the numbers in sub-Saharan Africa. This central contradiction seems to reflect John Galbraiths economic model which explains that "if you feed the horse enough oats, some will pass through to the sparrows." This is a political and policy strategy that is, evidently, failing.
The inadvertent success of the resurgence in the anti-graft campaign was the exposure of the extent of corruption in Indias political system. A necessary outcome of this exposure must be that the international community take a more critical stance towards Indias domestic failings.
So a discussion on Indias democracy without any consideration of Indias domestic policy failings is frankly a debate not worth having.
When Indian global warriors come on here and start advising us on the issues in Balochistan i suggest they look at home and resolve their own issues first.
Both nations have issues. By having cheap shots at Pakistan doesn't mean your own problems are diminished.
India
