http://www.economist.com/opinion/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12701072
My comments on the article below.
"Although there is a general impression that the
two-decade-long insurgency in Indian-administered Kashmir--the
country's only Muslim-majority state--is in remission, it still
festers. Last year the conflict killed more than 800 people. This year
more than 30 unarmed demonstrators were killed in mass protests against
Indian rule. Tension there is again high as a state election, which
separatist leaders want boycotted, is under way."
Note that there is absolutely no mention of the Kashmir Pandits. And info on the Amarnath land transfer. Neutral articles will talk about both sides of a story, and they can tilt towards one opinion based on analysis.
Kashmir's crisis is in remission, at least till PDP & NC played politics with Amarnath. Note how there are no statistics on the killings in previous years. To be neutral, all the way till 1987, when it started.
"Elsewhere in India,
the Muslim minority is economically disadvantaged. A report the
government commissioned in 2006 found Muslims across the country
faring, on average, worse than the Hindu majority in education, jobs
and income."
I can't fault the author here, he is quoting Justice Sachar. However, there are other arguments against Sachar's analysis & methodologies. For instance, lack of comparison with minorities in other countries.
http://www.organiser.org/dynamic/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=163&page=8
For comparison with say, Pakistan, check: http://www.organiser.org/dynamic/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=163&page=11
Check out some details on our budget for 2008, after the report, which goes unmentioned:
http://www.rediff.com/money/2008/feb/29budget38.htm
===Budget===
"SC, ST, OBC and Minorities
42. Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, socially and educationally backward classes, and minorities will continue to receive special attention.
Development and Finance Corporations
43. Development and Finance Corporations have been set up for certain disadvantaged groups. I propose to contribute additional equity to these corporations in the following manner:
Rs. Crore1
National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation 75.00
2
Three National Finance and Development Corporations for Weaker Sections comprising
(i) Safai Karamcharis
(ii) Scheduled Castes
(iii) Backward Classes 106.50
3
National/State Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporations 50.00
4
National Handicapped Development Corporation 9.00
Scholarships
44. In previous Budgets, we had announced a slew of pre- and post-matric scholarship programmes for SC, ST, OBC and minorities. All of them will be continued in 2008-09 with adequate funds as summarised below:
Scheduled Castes Rs.804 crore
Scheduled Tribes Rs.195 crore
Other Backward Classes Rs.164 crore
Minorities (post-matric) Rs.100 crore
45. I propose to allocate a sum of Rs.75 crore in 2008-09 to the Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship Programme. As Honourable Members are aware, this programme supports SC and ST students pursuing M.Phil and PhD courses.
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
46. Following the practice initiated in 2005-06, I have included in the Budget documents a statement on the schemes for the welfare of SCs and STs. I have provided Rs.3,966 crore for schemes benefiting SCs and STs exclusively and Rs.18,983 crore for schemes where at least 20 per cent of the benefits are earmarked for SCs and STs.
Minorities
47. The allocation to the Ministry of Minority Affairs will be increased from Rs.500 crore in 2007-08 to Rs.1,000 crore in 2008-09. Government has taken up the report of the Justice Rajindar Sachar Committee for speedy implementation. Apart from the schemes commenced in 2007-08, it is proposed to implement the following schemes/measures in 2008-09:
� a multi-sectoral development plan for each of the 90 minority concentration districts will be drawn up at a cost of Rs.3,780 crore. The allocation in 2008-09 will be Rs.540 crore;
� a pre-matric scholarship scheme with an allocation of Rs.80 crore next year;
� a scheme for modernising Madrassa education for which a provision of Rs.45.45 crore has been made in 2008-09;
� 256 branches of public sector banks have been opened this year until December 2007 in districts with substantial minority population. 288 more will be opened by March 2008 and many more in
2008-09; and
� continuing the exercise started this year, more candidates belonging to the minority communities will be recruited to the Central Para-Military Forces.
48. I also propose to provide Rs.60 crore to enhance the corpus fund of the Maulana Azad Education Foundation.
=== Budget Ends ===
Some Kerala specific articles here on whether minorities have been oppressed:
http://rajeev2004.blogspot.com/2008/03/anatomy-of-crime-how-they-destroyed_02.html
http://rajeev2004.blogspot.com/2008/05/facts-about-those-oppressed-mohammedans.html
"And Muslims have occasionally been subject to hideous
communal slaughter. More than 2,000 died in a pogrom in the state of
Gujarat in 2002, for which the perpetrators have never been brought to
justice.
That pogrom followed allegations that a Muslim mob had been responsible
for the deaths of Hindu activists. This highlights one of the dangers
facing India now: of a rise in communal tension and tit-for-tat
violence."
The official figures for Gujarat, I believe, are around 800. The rioting consumed approx 30% Hindus & 70% Muslims. By Goebellian speak: "truth by repeated assertion",this figure has increased to 2000, and nowadays, I see 3000. Mostly Muslim has changed to 100% Muslim.This makes the article no longer neutral & truthful. The author used the Sachar report earlier published by the govt, but doesn't use the official figures published by the govt in this case.
"In this it may now be constrained by the
recent arrest of alleged Hindu bombers, seeking to avenge the attacks
by the Indian Mujahideen. But the emergence of that new
phenomenon--Hindu terrorism--is scarcely a comfort."
The state should be neutral. Punish anyone regardless of religion. However,look at the article.When dealing with Islamists, the author, like other currently accused 'pseudo-secular' authors such as Somini Sengupta of NYT, uses the term: militant or extremist instead of terrorist. Check out some reader comments: http://community.nytimes.com/article/comments/2008/11/29/world/asia/29mumbai.html
"Islamist extremists"
"He has annoyed jihadists by
describing Kashmiri militants as "terrorists" (as India has long wanted
them to be known)." Note the total lack of reference to what the 'militants' did to Kashmiri Pandits. http://www.kashmiri-pandit.org/sundry/genocide.html
"where since the Bali bombings
in 2002 the extremists have been in retreat; or in Iraq, where the
Sunni "awakening" illuminated the resentment many Iraqis felt for the
terrorists. Killing fellow Muslims has been the group's biggest
mistake. But countries where Muslims are in a minority may offer
terrorists a better target."
I do agree with the conclusion of the article. Indian muslims follow a mosque called the Barelvi mosque. Some mosques actually have signs (published in India Today) that fundamentalists aren't allowed to pray there. Saudi Arabia has been trying to convert the entire world to a 'purer' form of Islam called Deobandi Wahhabbi, which is fanatical. A lot of muslims also get 'radicalized' during their Haj pilgrimage. I have no idea why India is the only country in the world that actually sponsors this, in spite of being secular.
However, Britain has managed to cultivate an intelligence network among the Muslim moderates, who have provided sufficient intelligence to avoid a repeat of London & Heathrow.Even in India, the recent string of arrests including the Yahoo principal engineer, Peerboy, was acknowledged as good intelligence inputs from moderate Muslims.
I'm not completely sure about Pakistan's long-term & strategic gameplan in the Mumbai attacks though.
