ASYLUM SOUGHT FOR KARMAPA RIMPOCHE : TIBETAN LEADER

ASLYUM SOUGHT FOR TIBETAN LEADER

"ASYLUM TO KARMAPA WILL MAR RELATIONS" With this headline "The New Indian Express" front page-all edition news describes the unhappiness by Chinese government over granting of asylum to 14 year old Tibetan spiritual leader Karmapa Rimpoche. Beneath that news in a box item "Asylum for Karmapa" was the UNI story from Pondicherry. It is given as follows:

The Dravida Peravai, a political party here, today urged the Center to grant asylum to Karmapa. Dravida Peravai General Secretary N.Nandhivarman made this demand in a representation to External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh.[UNI] The full text of the memorandum is given here.

Today's new stories reveal the escape of 14 year old Karmapa and his 24 year old sister with the help of 4 others negotiating 16000 feet snowbound mountain passes and trekking 900 miles from Tibet to India. We demand that Indian government must grant political asylum to the 14 year old Karmapa Lama Ugyen Trinley Dorje and his team.

Chinese staked their claim to Tibet on the marriage of a Tibetan King Sonsten Gampo to a Chinese Princess in the 17 th century. This claim lacked logic because the Tibetan King's senior bride Princess Brikuti Devi of Nepal deserves first preference over Chinese Princess and thus the Chinese claim is unsustainable. Having failed to clinch their claim Chinese retreated to 13 th century evidences basing on the establishment of Mongol influence over Tibet. However Mongols are a different nation and Chinese have always considered them as aliens. In 1911 when the Nationalist Revolution toppled the Chi'ng dynasty, Sun Yatsen said that the " China had been twice occupied by foreign powers, the first by Yuans ( Mongol emperors) and second by Chi'ngs ( Manchu emperors). In any case, the Mongol influence in Tibet came to an end in 1350, eighteen years before China overthrew them. It becomes evident that China is building a castle of lies to invade Tibet.

In 1949 when Nepal applied for U.N. Membership it cited its diplomatic relations with Tibet to prove that it was a sovereign state. The U.N. accepted this argument and thus effectively recognized Tibet's status as a sovereign state. During the UN general assembly debate on Tibet Irish representative Frank Aitken stated " For 1000 years or for a couple of 1000 years , at any rate Tibet was as free and fully in control of its own affairs as ant nation in this assembly and a thousand times more free to look after its own affairs than many of the nations here [ UN General assembly docs A/PV 898/1960;a/PV 1394, 1401, 1965 ].................

The lengthy letter ends with the appeal to Government of India " Let us provide asylum to Karmapa Lama Ugyen Trinley Dorje and Gandhian land must not fail in its historical duty...

.

STATELESS PLANTATION TAMILS

[Samata National Executive at Vijayawada: Union Ministers George Fernandes, Nitish Kumar, Digvijay Singh,  and Nandhivarman ,others ]

STATELESS PLANTATION TAMILS

India should join hands with Norway and participate in peace talks. It is no good to refrain from participation. Between 1871-1881 when coffee, tea plantations came up in large numbers in Ceylon, lots of Tamils from India went there seeking work. They constituted nearly 10 % of the then population of Ceylon. Donoughmore Commission constituted before independence said out of these roughly 50 percent labour were permanently residing in Ceylon. Jackson Report of 1928 said they were around 60 percent. The Soulbury Commission of 1946 stated 80 percent of these labour were permanent residents of Ceylon.

Donoughmore Commission had recommended that for all those who had lived for 5 years and above citizenship rights must be conferred. Ceylonese Government did not accept that recommendation, thus the crisis started. In 1940 both India and Ceylon discussed this issue. Again in 1941 September there was a bi party conference between India and Ceylon. The agreed joint declaration which emanated in this meeting was not implemented. The irony is in 1942 Ceylonese Government itself wrote to Indian Government requesting India to permit labour to come and work in its rubber plantations. In the first General Elections of 1947 plantation labour had voting rights. They backed the Ceylon Indian Congress and elected 7 members to Parliament. They were the deciding factor in another 20 parliamentary constituencies. D.S.Senanayaka, first Prime Minister of Ceylon amended the 8 th article of the Citizenship Act and disenfranchised plantation Tamils called as Malayaga Tamils. He passed in Parliament the amendment by 1949 and removed people of Indian origin from the voters list. That is how the voting rights of plantation Tamils who chose 7 Members to Parliament was deprived from them. Then Indian origin people were asked to apply for citizenship. 8,25,000 people applied for citizenship. Only to 1,00,000 people Ceylonese citizenship was granted. To resolve this deadlock at London both Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Ceylon Prime Minister Dudley Senanaiyaka talked but could not resolve. In 1954 a pact was signed between Jawaharlal Nehru and Sir John Kotewala, Ceylon Premier. It was never implemented. By 1964, Srilankan Prime Minster Srimavo Bandaranaike and Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri signed a pact, wherein Srilanka agreed to give citizenship to 3,00,000 persons. India admitted to take back 5,25,000 persons.

"All American people were once migrants from Europe. Yet no European country foolishly signed a pact with America to take back its citizens. Even after signing such a pact India had left more than 2,00.000 people of Indian origin in Srilanka. India considers the whole Srilankan problem as one between its original inhabitant Tamils of Ealam and Sinhalese. Dravidian parties have totally forgotten about our people i.e stateless Tamils of Indian origin. To resolve the hardships caused to these stateless Tamils it is imperative India too to participate in the peace talks. India cannot keep away from any issue of South East Asia. India has left 2,00,000 of its citizens in Srilanka, when such being the case how can it keep away ? Is it not the duty of India to take responsibility for every Indian citizen on alien soil ?" asked N.Nandhivarman General Secretary Dravida Peravai  in a press meet on the eve of his departure to Vijayawada to attend the National executive of Samata Party as a Special invitee. Dravida Peravai had been the associate party of samata party headed by George Fernandes.

Courtesy: Daily Thanthi15.06.2002 & New Times Observer 10.06.2002

Columnist Rajiv Dhavan wrote an article in The Hindu titled 

INDIA's REFUGEE LAW AND POLICY [Extracts]

With its open borders South Asia like Africa is a refugee prone region. India discovered this when absorbing the Tibetan refugees in 1959, the Bangla desh refugees in 1971, the Chakma influx in 1963, the Tamil influx from Srilanka in 1983, 1989 and again in 1995, the Afghan refugees from 1980s, the Myanmarese refugees for a similar period and migration and refugee movements from Bangladesh over the years........ In 1995 India following the Pakistan's example joined the Executive of the UNHCR. Though welcome, this half way house seems odd since India refuses to sign 1951 convention. Meanwhile a series of judgments by The Supreme Court and the Gujarat, Punjab, Gauhati and Tamil Nadu High Courts has reinforced the need for humane due process for the Chakmas, Srilankan  and other refugees. Some of the judgments expressly recognize the value and worth of UNHCR and invite it to involve more in the refugee questions in India.. 

This thought provoking article prompted Dravida Peravai to come out with its views.

DRAVIDA PERAVAI QUESTIONED THE WISDOM OF INDIA NOT SIGNING THE 1951 CONVENTION. DRAVIDA PERAVAI URGED THE 40 MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT FROM TAMIL NADU & PONDICHERRY TO COMPARE HOW TIBETAN REFUGEES AND SRILANKA TAMILS ARE TREATED? 

"While Tibetan refugees live peacefully with properties and are moving freely in Coorg areas of Karnataka, why Tamil refugees alone are handled like cattle confined to camps? Let our M.P's ponder".

[Amnesty International representative speaks , Peoples Watch Henry Tipagne ,DP Gen.Sec Nandhivarman, Professor Lenin Thangappa, Trade Union leader S.Muthu and NCP leader Dheenadayalan are in the Human Rights symposium]

"There are 4 lakh of stateless Tamils in Myanmar, The Malayaga Tamils are still stateless. Those who came from Burma left their savings in the banks there, for the recovery of such property why no parliamentarian speaks ?"the statement published in many dailies raised certain questions.[27.09.2004]

DRAVIDA PERAVAI FOUGHT FOR FIJI INDIANS in 2000

FIJI INDIAN PLIGHT

INDIA SHOULD SEEK UNITED NATIONS INTERVENTION TO SEND PEACE KEEPING FORCE TO FIJI TO PROTECT INDIAN LIVES, PROPERTY AND TO RESTORE DEMOCRACY

Dravida Peravai launched a campaign on 1.6.2000

After launching the campaign in a Memorandum to Union External Affairs Minister and Union Defense Minister , Dravida Peravai said:

Our party yesterday organized state level campaign in the Pondicherry enclave of the Union Territory of Pondicherry to draw the attention on the urgent need to exert diplomatic and other pressure on the current illegal and unconstitutional government by coup and coup within coup to secure the release of the duly elected Prime Minister of Fiji Mr. Mahendra Pal Choudry and fellow Parliamentarians and to ensure proper protection to the properties and lives of the people of Indian origin, whom it seems are fleeing to Australia and New Zealand as they did when the coup of Colonel Rabuka in 1987. our party through these 10 meetings had demanded India to take up this issue to United Nations, an institution created at the collective will of the nations of the democratic era, which cannot remain a silent spectator to the hijacking of the democracy by gun trotting groups.

Mahakavi Bharathiar, the only poet who penned a poem on the plight of Indian women in the year 1916-17 had narrated how on promising jobs Britishers took Indians as contract labour to Fiji and treated them worse than the animals. They were slaves working in sugarcane fields, the poet lamented. As a befitting tribute to this great poet, our campaign to highlight Fiji crisis started from his memorial. We have to note that certain vested interests here are trying to twist this as a fight between indigenous communities and Indian settlers, who have usurped. According to Mr.S.K.Bhutani, a  retired Indian diplomat the "land titles are coming up for review and renewal very soon and the indigenous Fijians who own land want to ensure a better deal for themselves. The lands are owned by the Fijians while those of Indian origin cultivate them. Vast tracts are under sugarcane and with Indian hands" [ The Hindu dated 1.2.2000 page 14]

This makes the position clear. From the time Bharathi penned his poem, people of Indian origin by sheer hard work without ownership yet remaining as tenants of lands belonging to Fiji's indigenous people, have risen in life economically. As per the Constitution of Fiji Article 51:The House of representatives has proportionate electoral representation for Fijians, Indians and Rotumans. English, Fijian and Hindustani have equal status [Art;4(1)] So as per this constitution Mr.Mahendra Pal Choudry was chosen by the people to be the Prime Minister. 

The Indian stand calling for restoration of this duly elected Government is the right step. We should also use diplomatic and other pressure to ensure that the 1997-98 Constitution should not be replaced by another which may disenfranchise people of Indian origin and upset the applecart.

We are not as one or two critics of our party say protecting Indian interests at the cost of indigenous peoples interest. We want Indian origin people to be equal citizens and not made second class citizens in the land of their living.

While Burma refugees came, India helplessly have to bear them. when plantation labour were driven out of Ceylon, our Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri went out of his way to accept them as stateless people by signing a pact with Srimavo Bandaranaike. Both morally and politically India buckled under during  the Kenyan (1968), Ugandan (1972) and other crisis, including human rights violations by Americans, to convey the impression that Indians can be badly treated anywhere by anyone in the world with impunity and without remorse writes political commentator Rajiv  Dhavan [ The Hindu 2.6.2000]. In our campaign yesterday much before we could read Dhavan's article, we took the same stand. We know that when Ugandan Chief Idi Amin wanted to marry a rich Gujarati girl, her family had to abandon all properties and run back to India. In Pondicherry also we have a sugar mill which was shifted from Uganda due to these anti-Indian tirades,

When globe had shrunk into a village, while settlers from Europe and Africa get amalgamated and are rulers of the destiny of America, if people of Indian origin could be made second class citizens and driven back by a tiny island of Fiji, what is the purpose in India claiming to be a nuclear super power, if it cannot verbally threaten Fiji. From May 19 till yesterday, the day when India dispatched an emissary the delayed response and silence of all with the exception of Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala is condemnable. Let Government hereafter be quick to defend people of Indian origin.

5 years after this campaign Dravida Peravai General Secretary N.Nandhivarman, impressed by documentaries taken by Suresh Kumar Pillai of Trikkan Image systems on the travails of migrant labour wrote in 

The New Indian Express-weekend (11.06.2005)

TO CONTINUE OR QUIT POLITICS ?

N.Nandhivarman today has friends and acquaintances among politicians and media across the world and across India including Nepal. This became possible because of the love and affection showered on him by Comrade George Fernandes. Dravida Peravai was registered with Election Commission of India from 25.10.1996.

Comrade George Fernandes admitted Dravida Peravai as Associate Party and N.Nandhivarman as special invitee to the National Executive of Samata Party with effect from 25-26th April 1998. The minutes of the Samata party begins like this :" Party President George Fernandes welcomed new persons attending the National Executive including Dr[Mrs] Beatrix D'Souza of Tamilnadu who joined the Samata Party, Mr.N.Nandhivarman[Dravida Peravai] Pondicherry, Brigadier T.Sailo [People's Conference] Mizoram, Mr.Vamuzo [Nagaland People's Council] , Srimathy Chennaputi Vidya, independent candidate from Vijayawada. The picture below is from the Vijayawada National Executive wherein Union Ministers George Fernandes, Nitish Kumar, Digvijay Singh are in left row, Raghunatha Jha M.P[Bihar] , Gopal Pachariwal[Rajasthan Samata President] Radhakrishna Kesari[Jharkand Minister] and Dravida Peravai N.Nandhivarman are seated in front row.

 In all Executive Meetings from 1998 to 2004 when George Fernandes was unseated as President at Patna , in all meetings hardly few will speak. Comrade George gave opportunity apart from openly praising Nandhivarman as his close friend in all such meetings. This had made Dravida Peravai known to all States and N.Nandhivarman has friends in every state of India and Nepal. Should N.Nandhivarman shut down Dravida Peravai, the one man army that served the nation for 19 years on 25.10.2015. Should Dravida Peravai exist as living example of a clean party upholding morality in personal and public life or go out of political mainstream ? Your views are solicited.