[Reader-list] does Modi's non-entry into US mean anything?

radhikarajen at vsnl.net radhikarajen at vsnl.net
Fri Jul 11 16:50:05 IST 2008


For those with blinkered vision "gujrathis" mean only hindus. They are forgetting that every state has enough of other faiths iiving in  harmony for decades before the fanatic assumption of majority and minority theory came to mark the vote banks in all faiths.!

  Regards.

----- Original Message -----
From: Rashmi Sawhney <rashmi.sawhney at gmail.com>
Date: Wednesday, July 9, 2008 10:37 pm
Subject: Re: [Reader-list] does Modi's non-entry into US mean anything?
To: sadiafwahidi at yahoo.co.in
Cc: reader-list at sarai.net

> Dera Fatima,
> 
> Two brief points:
> 
> 1. There is a measure of desperation in suggesting that the US 
> should take
> responsibility for 'smoking out' Modi as they've been doing with 
> individualsand nations they see as being problematic around the 
> world. Although,
> privately, if they manage to isolate him and do this, I will join 
> in your
> celebrations.
> 2. I have a fundamental issue with your point about whether Modi's 
> non/entryis going to affect the business and trade of the people 
> of Gujarat/ of
> Gujarati origin.
> The view: Gujarati = Hindu = pro-Modi/pro-Hindutva is problematic and
> furthers the very image and idea of Gujarat that the BJP have been
> projecting under Modi's leadership. There are many Gujaratis who are
> Muslims, Jains, Parsis and Christians, so the alignment of a 
> linguisticcommunity with a religious group is problematic.
> 
> I will rest my case here,
> 
> Rashmi
> 
> On Wed, Jul 9, 2008 at 5:40 PM, S.Fatima 
> <sadiafwahidi at yahoo.co.in> wrote:
> 
> > Dear Rashmi
> > I know my analogy was stupid, but I was mostly reacting to the 
> report which
> > I quoted about the US State department revoking his visa earlier 
> under the
> > Immigration and Nationality Act, "which prohibits foreign 
> officials who are
> > responsible for or directly carried out, at any time, 
> particularly severe
> > violations of religious freedom from obtaining U.S. visas". Now, 
> why doesn't
> > such a law apply in India, why can't we punish him under similar 
> accusations> here. I am sure the US govt is acting in this manner 
> only on the basis of
> > the information provided to it by the Indian state.
> >
> > This is what I can't fathom: we in India continue to accept 
> Modi, vote him
> > to power, allow him to do all that business of shining Gujarat, 
> but we have
> > a problem if he goes to the US (as you say even the people 
> outside the US
> > will be agitated if he enters US). So, why aren't we doing 
> something about
> > him while he shines in Gujarat. Why doesn't the US bomb Gujarat 
> to 'smoke
> > him' out, the way it does to the others it doesn't like.
> >
> > I have my doubts if his non-entry is going to affect the 
> business and trade
> > of the Gujaratis. On the other hand, the rallying for his non-
> entry by the
> > so-called peace activists only leads to further divide between 
> the NRI
> > saffronites and the secularists. The saffronites will get 
> further motivated
> > to work against the cause of peace. More hate-dollars will pump 
> into India.
> >
> > SF
> >
> >
> > --- On Wed, 9/7/08, Rashmi Sawhney <rashmi.sawhney at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > > From: Rashmi Sawhney <rashmi.sawhney at gmail.com>
> > > Subject: Re: [Reader-list] does Modi's non-entry into US mean 
> anything?> > To: sadiafwahidi at yahoo.co.in
> > > Cc: reader-list at sarai.net
> > > Date: Wednesday, 9 July, 2008, 8:54 PM
> >  > Dear Fatima,
> > >
> > > Your analogy, I must agree with you, may probably be wrong,
> > > but is certainly
> > > naive and unproductive. A second denial of entry into the
> > > US may be seen
> > > from within Modi camps as being detrimental to his efforts
> > > of furthering the
> > > lie about a vibrant Gujarat. There are enough numbers of
> > > religious
> > > fundamentalists in the Western world who support Modi's
> > > Hindutva ideology,
> > > who may probably not take to the visa refusal kindly. Had
> > > the US granted
> > > Modi entry so many anti Modi individuals and organisations
> > > around the world,
> > > including in India, would be agitaged about this too.
> > >
> > > It is not a question of whether the activists in the US and
> > > NRIs want
> > > to demonstrate that their sympathy for Gujarat's
> > > Muslims is more than
> > > activists in India - I think that is a reductive approach
> > > that defeats the
> > > purpose of a collective anti-Modi struggle. If you want to
> > > campaign against
> > > the USA's discriminatory and hypocritic policies, there
> > > are many other
> > > widely available issues that you could pick on - issues
> > > that affect common
> > > people without any clout or power.
> > >
> > > Most countries have their own 'germ-infested foods'
> > > that are rapidly
> > > destroying any social fabrics composed of difference -
> > > perhaps one could
> > > consider the option of deputing germs-infested foods from
> > > different
> > > societies to other parts of the world to see if they
> > > survive under hostile
> > > and foreign conditions. Or, if your approach to solving the
> > > problem of
> > > Gujarat is to 'export' the germ-infested food,
> > > please consider throwing it
> > > in the sea.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > On Wed, Jul 9, 2008 at 3:30 PM, S.Fatima
> > > <sadiafwahidi at yahoo.co.in> wrote:
> > >
> > > > Please see the report/appeal below, about another
> > > effort to stop the
> > > > Gujarat CM Narendra Modi from entering the US. While
> > > withholding all my
> > > > angst against what he allowed to happen in Gujarat in
> > > 2002 and the fact that
> > > > he shamelessly continues to be blind to the growing
> > > hatred against Muslims,
> > > > I wonder if the efforts by our activist friends in the
> > > US to stop him from
> > > > entering that soil mean anything other than a
> > > hypocracy. After all, he
> > > > continues to live and do what he pleases in
> > > India/Gujarat, but we won't
> > > > allow him in the US... Isn't that ridiculous?
> > > >
> > > > Are they trying to teach him a lesson, or punish him
> > > through this gesture?
> > > > Is his non-entry into the US going to badly affect the
> > > Gujaratis' business
> > > > and trade (which he is supposed to solemnize in New
> > > Jersey)? Not the least,
> > > > I think. So what is it then? Is it a symbolic
> > > rejection of his leadership?
> > > > Or do the NRI and American activist want to show that
> > > they care about
> > > > Gujarat's Muslims more than the activists in
> > > India?
> > > >
> > > > Although this analogy maybe completely wrong, but I
> > > can't help think this:
> > > > "We won't allow a germ-infested food that is
> > > killing thousands in India to
> > > > enter the US"....
> > > > Other thoughts are welcome.
> > > >
> > > > ==========
> > > >
> > > > USCIRF Urges Denial of U.S. Visa to Gujarat Chief
> > > Minister Narendra Modi
> > > > FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
> > > > July 8, 2008
> > > >
> > > > Contact:  Judith Ingram
> > > > Communications Director
> > > > (202) 523-3240, ext. 127
> > > >
> > > > WASHINGTON - The United States Commission on
> > > International Religious
> > > > Freedom urges the U.S. State Department to reaffirm
> > > its past decision to
> > > > deny a tourist visa to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra
> > > Modi, who has been
> > > > invited to attend a conference in New Jersey this
> > > August celebrating
> > > > Gujarati culture.  Modi was previously denied entrance
> > > to the United States
> > > > due to his role in riots that overtook the Indian
> > > state of Gujarat from
> > > > February to May 2002 in which reportedly as many as
> > > 2,000 Muslims were
> > > > killed, thousands raped, and over 200,000 displaced.
> > > Numerous reports,
> > > > including reports of official bodies of the Government
> > > of India, have
> > > > documented the role of Modi's state government in
> > > the planning and execution
> > > > of the violence, and the failure to hold perpetrators
> > > accountable.
> > > >
> > > > Following Modi's invitation to attend conferences
> > > in the U.S. in 2005, the
> > > > Commission successfully urged the State Department to
> > > revoke Modi's U.S.
> > > > tourist visa.  Despite pressure from the Indian
> > > government, the State
> > > > Department revoked his visa under the Immigration and
> > > Nationality Act (INA),
> > > > which prohibits foreign government officials who are
> > > "responsible for or
> > > > directly carried out, at any time, particularly severe
> > > violations of
> > > > religious freedom" from obtaining U.S. visas.
> > > This section was added to the
> > > > INA by the International Religious Freedom Act of
> > > 1998. The Commission once
> > > > again urges the State Department to announce
> > > Modi's ineligibility for a visa
> > > > under the terms of the INA.
> > > >
> > > > "We have not seen changes that would warrant a
> > > policy reversal," said
> > > > Commission Chair Felice D. Gaer. "As official
> > > bodies of the government of
> > > > India have found, Narendra Modi is culpable for the
> > > egregious and systematic
> > > > human rights abuses wrought against thousands of
> > > India's Muslims. Mr. Modi
> > > > must demonstrate to the State Department and to the
> > > American people why
> > > > he-as a person found to have aided and abetted gross
> > > violations of human
> > > > rights, including religious freedom-should now be
> > > eligible for a tourist
> > > > visa.
> > > >
> > > > Following the riots in 2002, India's National
> > > Human Rights Commission
> > > > issued a report that pointed to the role of Modi's
> > > government in the
> > > > systematic murder of Muslims and the calculated
> > > destruction of Muslim homes
> > > > and businesses. In 2003, the Indian central government
> > > found corruption and
> > > > anti-Muslim bias to be so pervasive in the Gujarat
> > > judiciary that riot cases
> > > > were shifted for trial to the neighboring state of
> > > Maharashtra.  Despite
> > > > this action, the lack of justice for victims remains a
> > > serious concern, as
> > > > there have been very few court convictions in the six
> > > years since the
> > > > religion-based riots. In 2007, a series of articles in
> > > the Indian
> > > > publication Tehelka documented police officers and
> > > government officials on
> > > > audio and videotape confessing that they facilitated
> > > the violence, at times
> > > > at the direct behest of Modi.
> > > >
> > > > "The inaction of Gujarat's government and
> > > police force in the face of
> > > > severe violence against religious minorities is an
> > > inexcusable abuse of
> > > > international human rights obligations," Gaer
> > > said.
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >      Unlimited freedom, unlimited storage. Get it now,
> > > on
> > > >
> > > http://help.yahoo.com/l/in/yahoo/mail/yahoomail/tools/tools-
> 08.html/> > >
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