I attended this conference at Kathmandu and presented a paper on Role of Civil Society for democracy, Peace and Justice.
I prepared this paper with our experiences of Sea Plane Struggle at Negombo lagoon and the work related to Platform for Freedom.[PfF]
Herman Kumara
10.07.11
*Kathmandu Declaration*
We, the delegates from all countries of South Asia representing various
political ideologies, mass organizations, trade unions, civil societies,
NGOs, academia, youths and peopleâ?Ts movements representing women, Dalit,
indigenous peoples and other groups of people met together to deliberate on
the challenges and way forward for democracy and peace in South Asia on
01-02 July 2011 in Kathmandu. We affirm that, ****
South Asia, which is very rich in cultural and natural heritages, is
passing through a difficult period. On the one hand, the inter-state
relationships are marred by different levels of mistrusts, hostility and
conflict, on the other hand, the exogenous forces are adding to the crises
by inflicting militarism, debt domination and securitization. These together
have created a situation of despair and vulnerability. The people lack an
enabling environment for fulfilling their aspirations in a manner which
needs to be bottom-up and participatory. The current model of representative
democracy is mostly benefiting a minority affluent class, while the majority
populations are drowned in deep poverty, exclusion, denial of fundamental
human rights and alienation. Political fragmentation of the region by power
brokers has indeed accelerated this process of deprivation and
underdevelopment. The dominant development paradigm in South Asia which is
being promoted by varieties of international aid architect so far has
grossly failed addressing the aspirations and needs of majority people. **
There is a general consensus among the people of the region that peace is
the only way to shared prosperity and meaningful democracy. They reject the
present â?~growth-oriented development modelâ?T based on indiscriminate
exploitation of human labour and plundering of natural resources that
maintains, promotes and perpetuates patriarchy and discrimination. The
challenge of the time is to put the balance in the right perspective to
ensure optimum participation with economic, social, cultural and ecological
justice.****
The way forward is to link grassroots communities for unified and
continuous struggle for the common cause of shared prosperity and pave the
way for lasting peace. This requires radical changes in the mind-set and the
processes of the present systems of governance in the countries of South
Asia, thus relocating priorities and resources to areas that deliver the
most for the majority of the population. ****
It is of utmost importance to rise against divisive forces that propagate
and promote religious and political extremism, arms race, ethnocide and
racism. The hierarchical social and political structures must be demolished
to foster the era of freedom, peace, gender equality, social inclusion and
justice, which are the ultimate guarantees for sustainable democracy.
02 July 2011
Kathmandu, Nepal
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Malaysia: More than 1500 arrested, Brutal Crackdown on Bersih 2.0 Rally Condemned
People's Uprising in every corner being suppressed. We received this alarming message from Malaysia. I would like to add this to my blog as this gives a message of the serious Human Rights violations in Malaysia.
Herman Kumara
The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development strongly condemns the brutal crackdown today on the peaceful rally of Bersih 2.0, a coalition of 62 civil society organizations that is campaigning for electoral reform in Malaysia. More than 1,500 have been arrested, including 16 minors. Among those detained are Maria Chin Abdullah, committee member of Bersih 2.0 and a well-known women’s rights activist and several members of parliament from various opposition parties, namely Tian Chua, Nurul Izzah Anwar and Fuziah Salleh of the People’s Justice Party (PKR), Mohamad Sabu, Mahfuz Omar and Salahuddin Ayub of the Pan Islamic Party (PAS).
Thousands turned up in the rally of Bersih 2.0 in Kuala Lumpur today despite the pre-rally harassment, intimidation and arrest launched by the police in the past two weeks against the leaders and members of Bersih 2.0. Tear gas, baton and water canon laced with chemicals were used widely and indiscriminately against the peaceful protestors.
We are also extremely alarmed that there have been reports that alleged police violent conducts on the protestors. It is reported that tear gas canisters were fired directly into the crowd and injured many. One of the members of parliament, Khalid Samad, was reportedly hit by tear gas canister at the back of his head. Protestors were kicked and manhandled during the arrest process. Among the injured including Anwar Ibrahim, the parliamentary opposition leader, who suffered injury on his head and knees. Such police brutality must not be condoned. We demand the police officers that committed such abuse of powers be investigated and brought to justice.
The call of Bersih 2.0 to reform the electoral system is a legitimate demand. Bersih 2.0 has also sought dialogue with the Election Commission on their recommendations of electoral reform. As the Election Commission refused to improve the electoral system to ensure free and fair election, it is perfectly legitimate for Bersih 2.0 to exercise the right to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly to highlight the flaws in the electoral system and the demands for electoral reform.
The right of the Malaysian citizen to political participation can only be ensured through a free and fair election. A democratic society would also respect and protect the right to participate in any peaceful assembly, such as the one called by Bersih 2.0. The refusal of the Malaysian government to address the issue through dialogue, the reversal of decision of allowing the Bersih 2.0 to hold the rally in a stadium and the crackdown on the rally today only goes to show that the Malaysian government had no intention at all to allow any democratic challenge to its powers. Instead, the police force is abused to maintain its power.
We demand the Malaysian government to respect and protect the right to freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and the right to political participation. We urge the Malaysian government to release all detainees immediately and unconditionally, especially the 16 minors. For those still in detention, we call on the government to ensure the physical and mental integrity of the protestors while in police custody and allow for immediate and unconstraint access to lawyers, family and medical treatment for all detainees.
For inquiry, please contact:
Yap Swee Seng, Executive Director, mobile: +66 81 8689178
Herman Kumara
The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development strongly condemns the brutal crackdown today on the peaceful rally of Bersih 2.0, a coalition of 62 civil society organizations that is campaigning for electoral reform in Malaysia. More than 1,500 have been arrested, including 16 minors. Among those detained are Maria Chin Abdullah, committee member of Bersih 2.0 and a well-known women’s rights activist and several members of parliament from various opposition parties, namely Tian Chua, Nurul Izzah Anwar and Fuziah Salleh of the People’s Justice Party (PKR), Mohamad Sabu, Mahfuz Omar and Salahuddin Ayub of the Pan Islamic Party (PAS).
Thousands turned up in the rally of Bersih 2.0 in Kuala Lumpur today despite the pre-rally harassment, intimidation and arrest launched by the police in the past two weeks against the leaders and members of Bersih 2.0. Tear gas, baton and water canon laced with chemicals were used widely and indiscriminately against the peaceful protestors.
We are also extremely alarmed that there have been reports that alleged police violent conducts on the protestors. It is reported that tear gas canisters were fired directly into the crowd and injured many. One of the members of parliament, Khalid Samad, was reportedly hit by tear gas canister at the back of his head. Protestors were kicked and manhandled during the arrest process. Among the injured including Anwar Ibrahim, the parliamentary opposition leader, who suffered injury on his head and knees. Such police brutality must not be condoned. We demand the police officers that committed such abuse of powers be investigated and brought to justice.
The call of Bersih 2.0 to reform the electoral system is a legitimate demand. Bersih 2.0 has also sought dialogue with the Election Commission on their recommendations of electoral reform. As the Election Commission refused to improve the electoral system to ensure free and fair election, it is perfectly legitimate for Bersih 2.0 to exercise the right to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly to highlight the flaws in the electoral system and the demands for electoral reform.
The right of the Malaysian citizen to political participation can only be ensured through a free and fair election. A democratic society would also respect and protect the right to participate in any peaceful assembly, such as the one called by Bersih 2.0. The refusal of the Malaysian government to address the issue through dialogue, the reversal of decision of allowing the Bersih 2.0 to hold the rally in a stadium and the crackdown on the rally today only goes to show that the Malaysian government had no intention at all to allow any democratic challenge to its powers. Instead, the police force is abused to maintain its power.
We demand the Malaysian government to respect and protect the right to freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and the right to political participation. We urge the Malaysian government to release all detainees immediately and unconditionally, especially the 16 minors. For those still in detention, we call on the government to ensure the physical and mental integrity of the protestors while in police custody and allow for immediate and unconstraint access to lawyers, family and medical treatment for all detainees.
For inquiry, please contact:
Yap Swee Seng, Executive Director, mobile: +66 81 8689178
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