SOME COMMENDABLE COURT DECISIONS

The front pages of newspapers on May 14^th were all about the conquering ladies, Mamata Banerjee in Bengal and Jayalalithaa in Tamilnadu. Mamata had made history, decimating the Communists in Bengal and laying claim to the chief ministership of the State just 13 years after launching her Trinamul Congress party. Jayalalithaa had engineered a massive defeat  for the ruling DMK alliance, and regained the chief minister’s chair.

In the euphoria of these feats, little attention might have been given to some important news in the inside pages. The Hindustan Times (Delhi Edition) carried four court judgements that showed courage and conscience on the part of the courts - the Supreme Court of India and the Allahabad High Court.

The Allahabad High Court seemed to have made some amends for its highly questionable “safe” judgement it had passed a few months ago on the Babri Masjid title case and which the Supreme Court had rightly thrown out recently.  This time its verdict on the UP Government’s Land Acquisition in Noida showed some teeth. It set aside the acquisition of some 150 hectares in the Chak Shahberi village and 70 hectares of land in Surajpur area of Greater Noida. The land belonging to poor farmers was acquired by the government for industrial purposes but was sold to developers on relaxed conditions. The developers had built houses and sold them – and I guess, made a killing on the back of the poor. More houses were being built. The court has stood by justice for the farmers against the power of government and the might of the developers. The land is to be returned to the farmers.

The Supreme Court came down heavily on police officers involved in fake encounters and recommended them the death penalty, labelling fake encounters “cold blooded brutal murder by persons who are supposed to uphold the law” which should be treated as “rarest of rare” offence. A few days earlier the Supreme Court had recommended death sentence also for those who perpetrate “honour killings.”

In another significant judgment the Supreme Court quashed the Karnataka Assembly Speaker’s decision to disqualify 16 MLAs hours before the October 11, 2010 no-confidence motion against the Yeddyurrppa government.

In still another judgment that gave importance to human life rather than profit, a bench of the Supreme Court, headed by the Chief Justice S. H. Kapadia directed a freeze on the killer pesticide endosulfan. The Court banned the production, sale and use of the pesticide for the next eight weeks all over India. (I wonder why eight weeks?). It also directed authorities to freeze the production licence granted to the manufacturers till its next order.

In these judgments, the Supreme Court of India and the Allahabad High Court have clearly taken a stand on behalf of the powerless against the powerful, besides upholding justice. And this is very commendable, indeed!

Crocodile Tears - Politics of Expediency and Self-interest

An International Gathering of the foreign ministers of the countries supporting military intervention is being held in London, even as I write, on the initiative of the British Prime Minster David Cameroon.

Sounds like the Wild West. Strike first, talk next.  Having intervened militarily in Libya without much conversation, the Western Powers are now trying to bring some consensus about the nature and purpose of the wild adventure.  These leaders, we are told, are trying to find various ways to get Qaddafi to leave Libya. Meanwhile, President Obama has said that to oust Qaddafi by military action would be to invite disaster.  But it is precisely that he is trying to do.

He also spoke the truth that is so self evident. He defended the American-led western military assault in Libya on Monday, saying it was in the national interest of the United States to stop a potential massacre that would have “stained the conscience of the world.” National interest is the motive, not really saving lives, which was the supposedly humanitarian motive.

Intervening in Lebanon and the Gaza strip where the Israelis have  been displacing and even massacring innocent civilians for years would not really be in American national interest.  Neither would it be in Yemen, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. It wouldn’t be in national interest to lose the support of these strategic partner governments! “We will pick and choose which government to oust, and which governments help remain in power.”

I didn’t hear anyone talking about a no fly zone over Israel, while it was bombarding Palestine. Neither was there a western alliance formed to protect the civilians there. So why the haste about Libya? Getting rid of a leader who has been a thorn in the side of western governments for over 40 years? Or, the promise that the rich oil and mineral reserves of Libya hold out for western corporate interests?

Obama vowed that the United States would stand by the democracy protesters across the Middle East, that it would put down violence directed against one’s own citizens; support the freedom of people to express themselves and choose their leaders; support governments that are ultimately responsive to the aspirations of the people. But he also  said that “progress will be uneven, and change will come differently in different countries,” a partial acknowledgment, the New York Times reported,  that complex relations between the United States and different Arab countries may make for different American responses in different countries. Plain acknowledgement, I would say, “it is not your interests that really matter, but ours.”

“The United States will not be able to dictate the pace and scope of this change,” Mr. Obama said. But that is precisely what he along with the western alliance was trying to force through the military intervention.

The truth remains unchanged: Politics is about expediency and self interest, and not really about humanitarian concerns, even though often self-interest is couched in humanitarian concerns!

RUSHING IN WHERE THE ANGELS FEAR TO TREAD!

That’s what the United States and its allies love doing. There was unseemly haste and a hard one unanimity in the UN Resolution to impose a no-fly zone over Libya.

The intervention was swift. The western allies have been pounding Tripoli and destroying not only Qaddafi’s air power but also the capital’s infra-structure. But to what purpose?

It now appears that the allies have no clear idea what they hope to achieve by the intervention, and most tellingly, they have no exit strategy. That’s what the New York Times reported today.

“The questions swirling around the operation’s command mirrored the larger strategic divisions over how exactly the coalition will bring it to an end — or even what the end might look like, and whether it might even conceivably include a Libya with Colonel Qaddafi remaining in some capacity.’ Said the Times. 

“‘We should never begin an operation without knowing how we stand down,” said Joseph W. Ralston, a retired general who served as NATO commander and vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “We did a no-fly zone over Iraq for 12 years and it did nothing to get rid of Saddam. So why do we think it will get rid of Qaddafi?’

But they did get rid of Saddam, after a land invasion. And what good did it do -getting rid of Saddam, anyway? Iraq sank into a quagmire of violence and bloodshed.

I guess post-Qaddafi, Libya will also be scarred by civil war and thousands of lives will be lost, not to mention the destruction that will be unleashed.

The ostensible (what do you think is the hidden agenda?) objective of the allied offensive – to save civilians from Quaddafi’s brutality– will have become a mockery.

It is Mai Lai – that is the village in Vietnam that the US destroyed “in order to save it” – being repeated all over. Destroying in order to save!

The futility of war! The lessons are never learnt.

SPRING IS IN THE AIR

Spring is in the air in the Jeolikote hills. We wake up to the music of birds. The cheerful singing of one particular blackbird stands out in the avian symphony.

As the sun rises over the hills, the slight chill of the night disappears and a warm glow envelops me and the gentle breeze welcomes me to the possibilities that another day brings me.

I feel so blessed to be in these hills!

Cathoic Psychologists in Varanasi

The 10^th National Meet of the Conference of Catholic Psychologists of India (CCPI) was held at Nav Sadhana, Varanasi from the 19^th to 21^st of this month.

Catholic Psychologists and Counsellors had been meeting every year for three days since 2000. Two years ago they officially formed a Conference, with Dr. Jose Parappully as its first President.

The theme of this year’s meeting was “Children with Special Needs.” The meeting was commenced with a Eucharist presided over by Fr. Subhash, the General of the Indian Missionary Society (IMS) who have their headquarters and motherhouse at Varanasi. Fr. Subhash reminded the participants that sensitivity and love in dealing with children with special needs can have profoundly transformative impact on them.

The inaugural session was presided over by Most Rev. Patrick D’Souza, Bishop Emeritus of Varanasi. The session began with a beautifully rendered prayer dance and welcome song by the students of Nav Sadhana College of Music and Dance. Fr. Jose Parappully, the CCPI president welcomed the guests and participants.

The Chief Guest, Professor Indramani Lal Singh, Head of the Department of Psychology at Benares Hindu University (BHU) described needs of special children as a “gigantic challenge” for the profession of psychology, a challenge that has to be met with sensitivity and love. He pointed out that the two major “disorders” children suffer from today are the Disorder of Incompetence and the Disorder of the Fear of Failure

The resource person for the first day, Mimansa Popat, a Special Education Consultant and Counsellor from Mumbai, presented an overview of Different Forms of Learning Disability, and some typical academic problems of learning disabled children, and the skills required in working effectively with these children.

On the second day, Suzanne Rodricks, an expert in Special Education and Learning Disabilities and a Member of the Rehabilitation Council of India and former faculty of Centre of Special Education, SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai, helped the participants understand the World of Special Needs Education. She described the different forms of special needs and ways to address them.

On the third day, Dr. Jose Puthenveed, Director of St. Joseph’s Guidance and Counselling Centre, Kollam, presented the psychosocial problems of school children. He highlighted the major problems affecting school children currently, some of their causes and the behavioural approaches and interventions that are helpful in addressing them.

There were also moments of relaxation too. On the first night participants were treated to a cultural programme by the students of Nav Sadhana College of Music and Dance. On the second day participants went on a “Varanasi Darshan,” the highlight of which was participation in the “Maha Arati” on the banks of the river Ganges.

Why is the World Round?

Recently I had a mail from a friend who has just retired form a position at a reputed mental helath facility. Though he has a fairly wide range of options for the future, he is not making any decisons yet, he is letting his future evolve the way it is meant to. He concluded his mail quoting a friend of his who told him, "You know why God made the world round?....So you wouldn't know what was coming over the horizon!"

Not knowing what was coming over the horizon!I think that's a wonderful reason for the world being round! The creator wanted us to have surprises! I vaguely rememeber that the title of a book I read a very long time is "God of Surprises"!

There are people who plan every day, every moment of their life so very carefully. They leave little room for the unexpected. Naturally, they seldom have the joy of being surprised by the serendipitous.

I have had delightful surprises. For example, I think of having something. I don't have any clear idea how I am going to have it. Belive it or not, within a few days, I get it-- without any effort on my part. It just turns up -- in unexpected ways!

That's why my faovurite title for God is "Provident God" - a God who forsees and provides!

Naturally, such surprises makes one grateful. Try being grateful, it will transform your life!!

Beginnings

I have been wanting to start a personal blog for sometime. I think I have ideas that are worth sharing. That's the narcissist in me! My bloated ego!

But seriously, I do think I have worthwhile ideas. Only, I don't know if you guys/gals will find them worthwhile!!!