Palash Speaks - November 2007, 30

"In an unusually large open space, in a poor area of the city of Caracas where ramshackle houses built from breeze blocks and concrete columns occupy every available piece of ground, and where narrow streets wind up the hillside filled perpetually by throngs of people, one of the many thousands of cooperative enterprises created in the last few years has been securely established.

Two large hangars house workshops, and close by is a large well-equipped clinic and a government food store selling cheap food, known as a Mercal. It sells a limited range of basic foodstuffs but would hardly justify the title of supermarket. Today, as everywhere throughout Caracas, powdered milk is in short supply, although no one knows for certain if this is the result of opposition manoeuvre and malice, or of government incompetence.

The clinic is clean and well organised, with modern equipment and a stream of patients throughout the day. Unusually, it is manned by Venezuelan doctors rather than by the Cubans who, in their thousands, have run the medical outposts in the poorest parts of the country over the past three years....

.....Quite apart from the extraordinary mobilisation of the people in the poorest areas, benefiting from new schools and clinics, there has been a huge expansion of public works all over the country, with new railway lines and motorways and well-designed sports facilities in almost every major city. Even the road from the airport has finally acquired a new motorway bridge, and many shacks on the surrounding hillsides have been freshly painted in gaudy colours, blue and orange, yellow and pink. Doubtless these could be denounced as Potemkin villages, yet they demonstrate an organising power on the part of the people that augurs well for the future. The Chávez revolution remains the most original and democratic experiment in Latin America, and is clearly here to stay."

# posted by Tony : 5:48 AM

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Counterattack as Fateful Referendum Looms

COUNTERPUNCH EXCLUSIVE!

CIA Venezuela Destabilization Memo Surfaces
By JAMES PETRAS

"On November 26, 2007 the Venezuelan government broadcast and circulated a confidential memo from the US embassy to the CIA which is devastatingly revealing of US clandestine operations and which will influence the referendum this Sunday, December 2, 2007.

The memo sent by an embassy official, Michael Middleton Steere, was addressed to the Director of Central Intelligence, Michael Hayden. The memo was entitled 'Advancing to the Last Phase of Operation Pincer' and updates the activity by a CIA unit with the acronym 'HUMINT' (Human Intelligence) which is engaged in clandestine action to destabilize the forth-coming referendum and coordinate the civil military overthrow of the elected Chavez government. The Embassy-CIA's polls concede that 57 per cent of the voters approved of the constitutional amendments proposed by Chavez but also predicted a 60 per cent abstention.......

The outcome of the Referendum of December 2 is a major historical event first and foremost for Venezuela but also for the rest of the Americas. A positive vote (Vota 'Sí') will provide the legal framework for the democratization of the political system, the socialization of strategic economic sectors, empower the poor and provide the basis for a self-managed factory system. A negative vote (or a successful US-backed civil-military uprising) would reverse the most promising living experience of popular self-rule, of advanced social welfare and democratically based socialism. A reversal, especially a military dictated outcome, would lead to a blood bath, such as we have not seen since the days of the Indonesian Generals' Coup of 1966, which killed over a million workers and peasants or the Argentine Coup of 1976 in which over 30,000 Argentines were murdered by the US- backed Generals.

A decisive vote for 'Sí' will not end US military and political destabilization campaigns but it will certainly undermine and demoralize their collaborators. On December 2, 2007 the Venezuelans have a rendezvous with history."

Breaking News and Commentary from Citizens For Legitimate Government
30 Nov 2007
http://www.legitgov.org/
All items are here:
http://www.legitgov.org/#breaking_news
Bush seeks to pressure Democrats over war funds --Bush seeks approval of $196 billion for his wars during fiscal year that began Oct. 1 29 Nov 2007 U.S. President [sic] George W. Bush on Thursday stepped up pressure on lawmakers to pass his Iraq war funding request, while a senior Democrat said a deal might be possible.

Bush urges Congress to approve war funding before Christmas $50 billion war spending bill passed the House but stalled last week in the Senate 29 Nov 2007 President [sic] Bush on Thursday called on Congress to approve billions of dollars in additional funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan before lawmakers leave for their Christmas break.

US to control growth of Iraq neighbourhood patrols 29 Nov 2007 The U.S. military will carefully manage the growth of neighbourhood police units credited with helping to curb foment violence in Iraq, aiming ultimately to move many into public work roles, a spokesman said on Thursday. Rear Admiral Gregory Smith said about 50,000 Iraqis had been trained and were manning "concerned local citizens" checkpoints in their own communities and being paid by the U.S. military.

Iraq government wants to pay neighborhood police units: U.S. 26 Nov 2007 Iraq's government wants to start paying the wages of U.S.-backed neighborhood security units, a U.S. general said on Monday. Government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said he was not immediately aware of any Iraqi plan to pay the wages which have so far been paid by U.S. forces.

6,000 Sunnis [Hired to] Join Pact With US in Iraq 29 Nov 2007 Nearly 6,000 Sunni Arab residents joined a security pact with American forces Wednesday... The ceremony to pledge the 6,000 new fighters was presided over by a dozen sheiks, who signed the contract on behalf of tribesmen at a small U.S. outpost in north-central Iraq. For about $275 a month -- nearly the salary for the typical Iraqi policeman -- the tribesmen will man about 200 security checkpoints beginning Dec. 7, supplementing hundreds of Iraqi forces already in the area.

U.S. sponsorship of Sunni groups worries Iraq's government 29 Nov 2007 The American campaign to turn Sunni Muslims 'against' Islamic extremists is growing so quickly that Iraq's Shiite Muslim leaders fear that it's out of control and threatens to create a potent armed force that will turn against the government one day.

Iraq MPs block Maliki nominees for cabinet posts 29 Nov 2007 Iraqi legislators thwarted Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's attempts to get approval for nominees to fill two vacant cabinet posts on Thursday. Legislators from several parties boycotted the session, ensuring parliament did not have a quorum to vote on nominations for the justice and communications portfolios.

US not seeking permanent Iraq bases: White House 29 Nov 2007 The White House denied Thursday that the United States seeks permanent military bases in Iraq, days after the US "war czar" said that would be part of talks next year on long-term security ties.

Insurgents kill U.S. soldier in Baghdad 29 Nov 2007 A U.S. soldier was killed by 'insurgents'' small arms fire in Baghdad, the U.S. military said on Thursday. The soldier, assigned to Multi-National Division - Baghdad, was killed in western Baghdad on Wednesday, a military statement said.

Australia wants Iraq troops home by mid 2008 29 Nov 2007 About 550 Australian combat troops in Iraq should be withdrawn by about the middle of next year, Prime Minister-elect Kevin Rudd said on Friday, setting a broad timetable for the soldiers to return home.

US security firm runs into new trouble - and this time it's closer to home --Rural community opposes expansion by company at centre of Iraq allegations 30 Nov 2007 Now Blackwater is looking to expand domestically. So it has come to the border hamlet of Potrero, population 850. Eight miles from Mexico and 40 miles inland from San Diego, Potrero has found itself at the centre of a controversy.

Blackwater Grand Jury Resumes 29 Nov 2007 A federal grand jury investigating Blackwater Worldwide began its second day of work Thursday as an unidentified witness returned to the stand. The Justice Department is investigating the government contractor for its mercenaries' involvement in the shooting deaths of 17 Iraqi civilians in Baghdad.

Blackwater guards accused of drug use, ignoring orders 28 Nov 2007 At least one in four Blackwater bodyguards in Iraq use steroids and other drugs, according to a lawsuit filed on behalf of several Iraqis killed or wounded in a Baghdad shooting in September. The lawsuit filed Monday in Washington also accuses the Blackwater guards of ignoring orders and abandoning their posts shortly before taking part in the shooting that left 17 Iraqi civilians dead, media reports said Wednesday.

NATO denies killing civilians in E Afghanistan 29 Nov 2007 The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) on Thursday categorically denied killing civilians in Afghanistan's eastern Nuristan province.

NATO air-strike kills 12 Afghan civilians: governor 28 Nov 2007 NATO air strikes killed 12 civilian road workers in eastern Afghanistan, a provincial governor said on Wednesday, an incident bound to fuel Afghan resentment against the presence of international forces.

2 Danish soldiers killed in Afghanistan 30 Nov 2007 Two Danish soldiers were killed in southern Afghanistan, news reaching here Thursday said. The soldiers belong to a Danish reconnaissance unit stationed in the Upper Gereshk Valley of Helmand Province.

Musharraf: Emergency in Pakistan to be lifted on Dec. 16 30 Nov 2007 Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf announced on Thursday that he intended to lift the state of emergency martial law on Dec. 16.

Habib 'told not to talk about torture' 30 Nov 2007 Former Guantanamo Bay prisoner Mamdouh Habib says he did not reveal details of his torture in early interviews with media and others because he was told not to by his doctors and lawyers.

Rabbi: Cleanse country of Arabs --Prominent right-wing rabbis gather for 'emergency meeting' ahead of Annapolis conference, state no peace can be achieved if Arabs stay on Israel's land 27 Nov 2007 "We must cleanse the country of Arabs and resettle them in the countries where they came from," head of the Yesha Rabbis Council, Rabbi Dov Lior, declared Monday, adding that, "If this means we have to pay them, we will. Without doing so, we will never enjoy peace in our land."

Bin Laden urges Europe to quit Afghanistan-TV 29 Nov 2007 Al Qaeda [al-CIAduh] leader Osama bin Laden urged European countries to end their military participation with U.S. forces in the Afghan conflict, Al Jazeera television said on Thursday. Jazeera aired portions of an audio tape in which a speaker who sounded like [?] bin Laden said his Taliban allies had no knowledge of plans for the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, a main reason for the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan.

TSA plan to gather more data protested 29 Nov 2007 A government proposal to start collecting full names, birth dates and genders of people reserving airline flights is drawing protests from major airlines and travel agencies that say it would be invasive, confusing and "useless." The plan centers on transferring the task of checking passenger backgrounds from airlines to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).

'Unfamiliar smell' prompts Southwest flight to return 29 Nov 2007 A Southwest Airlines flight that took off Thursday morning from Sky Harbor International Airport returned to the terminal shortly after flight attendants noticed an "unfamiliar smell" in the cabin.

'Terrorist plot' on Aussie US base 30 Nov 2007 An al-Qaeda [al-CIAduh] leader who visited Australia on a lecture tour in the late 1990s was involved in a plot to attack a US military base on Australian soil, according to secret documents made public for the first time this week. An Algerian terrorist known as Abu Sheema and his associates allegedly revealed their plans to the former Guantanamo Bay prisoner Mamdouh Habib when he was in Afghanistan just weeks before the September 11 attacks.

Judge jailed entire court for phone interruption --Doors locked after ringing mobile enrages magistrate --46 sent to cells in moment of 'inexplicable madness' 29 Nov 2007 Judge Robert Restaino was hearing a session of domestic violence offenders in a court in Niagara Falls City in upstate New York when proceedings were interrupted by 10 or 11 rings of a phone. "Everyone is going to jail, every single person is going to jail in this courtroom unless I get that instrument now," he bellowed at the court... Fourteen of the defendants who could not post bail were shackled in irons and sent to the county jail. The judge cooled off and later that afternoon released all 46. The "two hours of viral lunacy", as one member of the commission described it, has probably cost Restaino his job. The commission ruled that he should be removed from his $114,000 (£55,000) job for "an egregious and unprecedented abuse of judicial power".

CIA Venezuela Destabilization Memo Surfaces --'OPERATION PLIERS' 28 Nov 2007 On November 26, 2007 the Venezuelan government broadcast and circulated a confidential memo from the US embassy to the CIA which is devastatingly revealing of US clandestine operations and which will influence the referendum this Sunday, December 2, 2007. The memo sent by an embassy official, Michael Middleton Steere, was addressed to the Director of Central Intelligence, Michael Hayden. The memo was entitled 'Advancing to the Last Phase of Operation Pincer' and updates the activity by a CIA unit with the acronym 'HUMINT' (Human Intelligence) which is engaged in clandestine action to destabilize the forth-coming referendum and coordinate the civil military overthrow of the elected Chavez government.

Coup 2008 gets an early start: Virginia GOP Demands Loyalty Pledge at Primary --Reichwing Target Crossovers, Independents 29 Nov 2007 The loyalty pledge to the Republican Party that Virginia voters will be required to sign if they vote in the state's GOP presidential primary on Feb. 12 is another attempt by the party to police steal the open primary system. On Feb. 12, a GOP primary voter will have to sign a piece of paper that says, "I, the undersigned, pledge that I intend to support the nominee of the Republican Party for President." The state does not require voters to register by political party, which means a voter can decide on the day of the primary whether to participate in the Republican or Democratic primary. [The Virginia GOP loyalty oaths typify the Reichwing hypocrisy of UNbalancing the scales of fairness and justice. This mentality allowed Bush bin Laden to steal the 2000 and 2004 'elections,' via two GOP coup d'etats. Remember when the GOPedophiles whined that Al Gore was not letting 'our brave men and women in the military' have their ballots counted - and of course, LieberBush couldn't agree fast enough, an early sign of his dementia - even though such ballots were ILLEGALLY postmarked *after* 'Election Day?' See: New York Times documents military role in theft of 2000 election By Barry Grey 19 Jul 2001.]

The plot to rig the 2008 US election By Johann Hari 29 Nov 2007 In the long, hot autumn of 2000, the world was shocked by the contempt for democracy shown by the Republican Party. They knew their man had lost the popular vote to Al Gore by half a million votes. They knew the majority of voters in Florida itself had pulled a lever for Gore. But they fought – amid the confetti of hanging chads – to stop the state's votes being counted, and to ensure that the Supreme Court imposed George W Bush. Today, that contempt for democracy is on display again. In California right now, there is a naked, out-in-the-open ploy to rig the 2008 presidential election – and it may succeed.

Giuliani's Mistress Used N.Y. Police as Taxi Service 29 Nov 2007 Well before it was publicly known he was seeing her, then-married New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani provided a police driver and city car for his mistress Judith Nathan, former senior city officials tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com. "She used the PD as her personal taxi service," said one former city official who worked for Giuliani.

Bird flu spreads to 60 countries, pandemic risk still high: UN 29 Nov 2007 Bird flu in poultry and wild birds spread to 60 countries but is entrenched only in six because of improved and faster responses, experts said. Despite those strides, the risk of a worldwide human-to-human pandemic remains as great today as it was when the hard-to-treat H5N1 flu strain first gained intense attention in mid-2005, said a new report by Dr. David Nabarro, the UN official co-ordinating the global fight against avian influenza, and World Bank officials. "We think it will happen sometime but we don't know when or where," Nabarro said Thursday. [Oh, that's an easy one: The US, just before the 2008 'elections.']

Defra unable to identify bird flu source 30 Nov 2007 An initial report into the recent outbreak of deadly bird flu in Suffolk has been unable to identify the source of the disease, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said today. [Right, check your local US Army lab for the source. See: Killer flu recreated in the lab 07 Oct 2004 A US team added two genes from a sample of the 1918 virus to a modern strain known to have no effect on mice. Animals exposed to this composite were dying within days of symptoms similar to those found in human victims of the 1918 pandemic.]

Michael Moore cut this scene from Sicko because no one would believe it 22 Nov 2007 (Video) In addition to France, Canada, and the UK, Michael Moore also went to Norway. What he found, was unbelievable. [A must see!]

Fire shuts key Canada-U.S. pipeline, oil surges $4 29 Nov 2007 An explosion crippled the main pipeline supplying Canadian crude to U.S. Midwest refineries on Wednesday, forcing operator Enbridge to halt nearly a fifth of U.S. imports and sending crude prices as much as $4 higher. Alberta-based operator Enbridge Inc said in statement Thursday that the cause of the explosion [Blackwater?] had not yet been determined.

Bank of England promises £10bn of extra Christmas liquidity 30 Nov 2007 The Bank of England acted again to soften the worst effects of the credit crunch yesterday, announcing that it would be lending £10bn to the commercial banks at the base rate of 5.75 per cent for a five-week period, rather than for the usual seven days.

Are polar bears endangered? 29 Nov 2007 Scientists studying polar bears say global warming is melting the Arctic Sea ice they depend on to live. Today, conservationists visited the bears at the Toledo Zoo and made a plea to designate wild polar bears as endangered. A member of the Natural Resources Defense Council spoke today about asking the government to add polar bears to the federal endangered species list. A decision on whether to add polar bears to the endangered species list should come by January 9. E-mail the Department of the Interior through the Polar Bear SOS website.

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[Previous lead stories:] Holocaust Denial, American Style By Mark Weisbrot 21 Nov 2007 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's flirtation with those who deny the reality of the Nazi genocide has rightly been met with disgust. But another holocaust denial is taking place with little notice: the holocaust in Iraq. The average American believes that 10,000 Iraqi civilians have been killed since the US invasion in March 2003. The most commonly cited figure in the media is 70,000. But the actual number of people who have been killed is most likely more than one million.

More Iraqi civilians shot dead by U.S. troops 27 Nov 2007 Iraqi officials say American troops in Baghdad have killed as many as seven Iraqi civilians, including a child, in two separate shootings.

Survey Shows Dangers for Iraq Reporters 28 Nov 2007 American journalists covering Iraq say they face unprecedented dangers with many reporting that they've worked closely with Iraqi colleagues who have been killed or kidnapped, according to a survey released Wednesday. The survey by the Washington-based media watchdog Project for Excellence in Journalism offered a grim picture of reporters trying to work under they describe as the constant threat of violence and intimidation in Iraq

A protest by the poets in the language of poetry

by palashbiswas @ 2007-11-30 - 19:16:37

A protest by the poets in the language of poetry
Palash Biswas
Contact: Palash C Biswas, C/O Mrs Arati Roy, Gosto Kanan, Sodepur, Kolkata- 700110, India. Phone: 91-033-25659551
Email: palashbiswaskl@gmail.com
Interview of Palash Biswas (Bengali audio): Riot against Taslima was planned by CPM Inbox

Dr Biplab Pal to me
show details 1:12 pm (6 hours ago)
Images are not displayed.
Display images below - Always display images from biplabpal2000@yahoo.com

Mr Biswas, a distinguished journalist ( He writes in Hindi and well known all over the India) gave me an interview just now from Calcutta--as a journalist he walked through the lanes of violence on that horrible day and came to conclusion there was no riot but a planned violence hatched by CPM to divert attention from Nandigram and Taslima was made a pawn to recapture minority votebank.
www.vinnomot.com

For people in South Asia, listen to this link for better audio experience
http://is.rediff.com/filemusic.php?id=72793

Rediff lifted ban on previous discussion and now available. In India and in Bangladesh please use redifflink:
With Fotemolla explaining Taslima & Islam issue:
http://is.rediff.com/filemusic.php?id=72314

Prof Mohit Roy explaining leftist appeasement of Islamist force
http://is.rediff.com/filemusic.php?id=72313

If Rediff links get vandalized againt, please listen from www.vinnomot.com. Otherwise Rediff will always give better experience.

KOBITAR BHASHAY KOBIDER PROTIBAD
A protest by the poets in the language of poetry

Poets of all over Bengal are requested to participate in the programme on 8th December of 2007 to read poetry and at Nandigram Dharna Manch, Metro Channel, Esplaned, Kolkata. We cordially solicit your august presence on that day.

Time: between 12 noon to 8pm

Please forward

you are also an organiser
for further information pl contact : Shyamol Bhattacharjee,9330862514, Prasun Bhowmik, 9830015598

One State Declaration Vs Annapolis Statement

by palashbiswas @ 2007-11-30 - 19:13:37

One State Declaration Vs Annapolis Statement
Palash Biswas
Contact: Palash C Biswas, C/O Mrs Arati Roy, Gosto Kanan, Sodepur, Kolkata- 700110, India. Phone: 91-033-25659551
Email: palashbiswaskl@gmail.com
One State Declaration Vs Annapolis Statement
The One State Declaration
CounterPunch
"For decades, efforts to bring about a two-state solution in historic Palestine have failed to provide justice and peace for the Palestinian and Israeli Jewish peoples, or to offer a genuine process leading towards them.
The two-state solution ignores the physical and political realities on the ground, and presumes a false parity in power and moral claims between a colonized and occupied people on the one hand and a colonizing state and military occupier on the other. It is predicated on the unjust premise that peace can be achieved by granting limited national rights to Palestinians living in the areas occupied in 1967, while denying the rights of Palestinians inside the 1948 borders and in the Diaspora. Thus, the two-state solution condemns Palestinian citizens of Israel to permanent second-class status within their homeland, in a racist state that denies their rights by enacting laws that privilege Jews constitutionally, legally, politically, socially and culturally. Moreover, the two-state solution denies Palestinian refugees their internationally recognized right of return.
The two-state solution entrenches and formalizes a policy of unequal separation on a land that has become ever more integrated territorially and economically. All the international efforts to implement a two-state solution cannot conceal the fact that a Palestinian state is not viable, and that Palestinian and Israeli Jewish independence in separate states cannot resolve fundamental injustices, the acknowledgment and redress of which are at the core of any just solution.
In light of these stark realities, we affirm our commitment to a democratic solution that will offer a just, and thus enduring, peace in a single state based on the following principles:
....
....
The struggle for justice and liberation must be accompanied by a clear, compelling and moral vision of the destination a solution in which all people who share a belief in equality can see a future for themselves and others. We call for the widest possible discussion, research and action to advance a unitary, democratic solution and bring it to fruition."
Madrid and London, 2007
Signed:
Ali Abunimah
Naseer Aruri
Omar Barghouti
Oren Ben-Dor
George Bisharat
Haim Bresheeth
Jonathan Cook
Ghazi Falah
Leila Farsakh
Islah Jad
Joseph Massad
Ilan Pappe
Carlos Prieto del Campo
Nadim Rouhana
The London One State Group

# posted by Tony : 10:20 AM
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Annapolis Statement: "Palestinian Bantustan"
by Francis A. Boyle
(Professor Francis A. Boyle served as Legal Advisor to the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East Peace Negotiations and its Chair, Dr. Haidar Abdul Shaffi from 1991 to 1993 and is the author of "Palestine, Palestinians and International Law" )
Global Research, November 28, 2007
"The mass mobilization against Annapolis by Palestinian civil society around the world and especially in occupied Palestine prevented the Palestinian Delegation from selling out the rights of the Palestinian People under international law to Israel and the United States as some of these same delegates had previously done during the Oslo, Norway negotiations of 1993.
For once Palestinian People Power triumphed over Israeli/American power politics. But the Palestinians and their supporters must remain ever-vigilant against a permanent sell-out as these so-called "final status" negotiations unfold during the next year.
Based upon the Oslo Agreement, the "final status" contemplated by Israel and the United States is a Palestinian Bantustan. To be sure, the Palestinians must expect no meaningful assistance from those quisling governments and organizations that dignified the Annapolis photo-op with their presence."

# posted by Tony : 4:39 AM
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UN archives reveal plan to arm Jewish militia
An Explosive Story and A Must Read
Contributed by Lucia in Spain
"It was November 29, 1947. The United Nations General Assembly had just passed Resolution 181 - the Partition Plan, according to which the British Mandate was to be divided into a Jewish state and an Arab state. Civil war broke out between the Jewish and the Palestinian residents, particularly in the mixed cities and on the roads. The UN faced a difficult problem: how to implement the partition resolution together with the economic union of the two states, as specified by the resolution. The UN Secretariat created a Special Committee to deal with what was seen as the first major challenge of the young body.
Dr. Elad Ben-Dror, a historian at Bar-Ilan University, has been studying UN diplomacy after the Partition Plan, at the University Institute for Diplomacy and Regional Cooperation of Tel Aviv University. Last year, he sat in the UN archives and read recently-declassified documents relating to the work of the Special Committee. He made an interesting discovery: The UN had planned to implement the Partition Plan by means of a Jewish militia, trained by the UN and armed, also by the UN, with weapons, combat aircraft and tankettes.
"The plan to establish a militia was the most surprising material I found at the UN," Ben-Dror says. "As part of the Partition Plan, both states were to create militias - a military force under government control and charged mainly with domestic policing duties."
But because the Palestinian leadership viewed Resolution 181 as a pro-Zionist plan and did everything possible to foil it, the UN focused only on establishing the Jewish militia.
"From quite an early stage, due to a lack of cooperation, the UN dropped half of the Partition Plan - the idea of establishing an Arab state," Ben-Dror explained.
"The idea was to implement at least part of the plan - that is, the Jews would create the Jewish state, on the assumption that eventually the UN Security Council would implement the creation of the Arab state," Ben-Dror continued. "As soon as the Partition Plan was adopted, UN Secretary General Trygve Lie and senior UN officials became identified with the idea of the Jewish state. The Arab assault was interpreted as an assault on the UN resolutions, and the UN trusted that the Jews would carry out the partition and not do anything beyond that."
According to the plan, the main role of the Jewish militia was to impose the authority of the Jewish state over its Arab residents; under the partition map, the Arab population within the Jewish state was nearly the same as the Jewish population. The militia command was to be supervised by the UN, which would also appoints its commanders. In practice, however, the Special Committee intended to base the Jewish militia on the Haganah [the pre-state underground Jewish militia].
"It was clear to them that there was no need to create an army out of thin air, and that they could rely on the Haganah," Ben-Dror said. "All that was left to do was to give the UN seal of approval to the Haganah and to provide arms. Among others, there was the question of how to control the Negev Bedouin, who would oppose being under Jewish sovereignty. So they planned to supply the militia with combat aircraft, using British military techniques. At that stage, they didn't think the militias would engage each other."
The story of the Special Committee, in particular its failure to implement the plan created by UN diplomats, is similar to that of many other plans in the following decades that remained on paper only. Ben-Dror attributes the failure of the Partition Plan primarily to opposition from the Palestinians and the Arab states as well as lack of cooperation from Britain......."

# posted by Tony : 9:57 AM
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Hamas: Palestine could not be partitioned by resolutions or agreements
Contributed by Lucia in Spain
"GAZA, (PIC)-- The Hamas Movement on Thursday held the UN fully responsible for the tragedies that befell the Palestinian people as a result of the "oppressive" resolution 181 that sanctioned the partitioning of Palestine and allowed the creation of the Hebrew state.
It said in a statement on the 60th anniversary of that resolution that the implementation of that decision had led to the displacement of hundreds of thousand of Palestinians and replaced alien invaders in their place.
"We call on those who sanctioned this historic oppression to amend their mistake," Hamas said.
It also said that all those attending the Annapolis conference will shoulder the historical and national responsibility for their participation in a conference that was held under the condition that Palestine is a Jewish homeland.
The Movement urged the Arab and Islamic countries to be aware of the conspiracy that is being hatched against the Palestinians' presence in their own land and to renew political, material and moral support for the Palestinians to bolster their steadfastness.......
In 1947 the UN passed its ominous 191 resolution that allowed the partitioning of Palestine between its indigenous people and the Zionist invaders and even gave those aliens 56% of historical Palestine and left 46% for the Palestinians and internationalized Jerusalem."

# posted by Tony : 9:00 AM
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Israeli Arabs: Abbas lacks mandate to make concessions
Poll conducted by Arab Center for Practical Social Research finds that the majority of Israeli Arabs distrust Palestinian negotiators to settle on core issues in peace talks with Israel; 65.6% of respondents state that negotiators lack the authority to recognize Israel as a sovereign state; staggering 81% of Israeli Arabs say negotiators cannot concede the rights to Jerusalem
"A poll conducted among Israeli Arabs finds them unwilling to recognize Mahmoud Abbas' authority to negotiate with Israel on their behalf.
A survey conducted by the Mada-El- Carmel Institute, or the Arab Center for Practical Social Research, found that most Israeli Arabs feel that Palestinian negotiators lack the mandate to make concessions on key issues in peace talks with Israel, including the right of return, the future of Jerusalem, formal recognition of the state of Israel, as well as other territorial concessions.
Professor Nadim Ruchana, who conducted the poll, said: “These results essentially imply that Israeli Arabs are telling Abbas and the PA that they have no right to make decisions that impact upon their future.”....."

# posted by Tony : 8:23 PM
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Lies from Annapolis
Comment by Khalid Amayreh in the West Bank
"The peoples of the world are being subjected to a fresh dose of lies, this time coming from Annapolis, Maryland, in the United States.
George Bush, the Fuehrer of the White House, who has destroyed two nation-states and killed a million human beings, and then had the chutzpa to claim that the Almighty told him to do so, displayed some of his characteristically morbid magic this week.......
After all, the Palestinians, who have almost miraculously survived in spite of history, are the main victim of this sinister lingering outrage which allows Israel to constantly steal more Palestinian land for the purpose of creating more lebensraum for Jewish settlement expansion. But Palestinian national survival can’t really be taken for granted no matter how many “peace” conferences are organized and how many foreign dignitaries are invited and how many nice-sounding speeches are given.......
Let us be frank and honest about this. Israel is not about to make peace with the Palestinians. Israel has not made a strategic decision to make peace with the Palestinians. Israel is not about to give up the spoils of the 1967 war. Israel is not about to give up occupied East Jerusalem......
And above all of this, Israel is insisting that it be recognized as an exclusively Jewish state whereby Israel’s non-Jewish citizens (25% of the population) would be treated not only as lesser citizens with more or less transient and uncertain status, but actually as children of a lesser God.
So, how can we possibly expect peace with attitudes like these, and with the outrageous willingness on the part of the West to entertain Israel’s racist whims?......
Israel wants any prospective settlement with the Palestinians to reflect Israeli military supremacy, political hegemony and Jewish predominance over American politics and policies......
For these reasons, I am certain that this endeavor will meet the same failure that previous endeavors ultimately met. And then, another American administration might invite the “sides,” along with another multitude of false witnesses, to a new peace conference.
But then, it might be too late for a Palestinian state, or even for peace."

Palestinian refugee children die in Iraq
This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson William Spindler – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at the press briefing, on 30 November 2007, at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. Two sick Palestinian refugee children waiting for resettlement from Iraq died in the last two weeks, one of them in Al Waleed refugee camp at the Iraq-Syria border and the other one in Baghdad. Another refugee, a 50-year-old man, also waiting to be resettled, died earlier this month in Al Waleed refugee camp. So far seven people have died there, including three young children, since Palestinian refugees started to arrive at the border in March 2006 fleeing violent attacks against them.
http://www.reliefwe b.int/rw/ RWB.NSF/db900SID /PANA-79FHSD? OpenDocument

Israel high court okays Gaza fuel cuts
Israel's high court on Friday ruled that the state could continue with month-long fuel cuts to the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, but ordered a delay on plans to reduce electricity supplies too, officials said.
http://afp.google. com/article/ ALeqM5jM6VzxBYuC EXcyPfOy2CNL37ut TQ
PCHR Weekly Report: 6 killed, 22 wounded, 51 abducted by Israeli forces
According to the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) Weekly Report, in the week of the 22nd to 28th of November, 11 Palestinians, including 2 brothers, were killed by Israeli forces, 28 were wounded, and 42 were abducted by Israeli forces this week.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 51795
Israeli military invade Nablus and attack two mosques
At least 30 Israeli military vehicles invaded the Balata refugee camp in eastern Nablus in a pre-dawn military operation on Friday.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 51799
Israeli army forcibly evacuate at least 200 Palestinians from Kherbet Qessa
At least 200 Palestinian residents of Kherbet Qessa in the Hebron district were left homeless after being forcibly evacuated by the Israeli army in order to establish the annexation wall in their place.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 51785
Israeli military invades Al Bireh and kidnaps three from Hebron
Israeli military forces kidnapped three Palestinian civilians from the southern West Bank city of Hebron on Friday, transferring them to an undisclosed detention center.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 51801
Palestinian security forces arrest 7 Hamas men in West Bank
Palestinian security services arrested seven members of Islamic Hamas movement in West Bank over the past 24 hours, security sources and Hamas said on Wednesday.
http://news. xinhuanet. com/english/ 2007-11/28/ content_7162183. htm
PA police terrorize Palestinian journalists
Palestinian police answerable to Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas have been terrorizing non-conformist Palestinian journalists throughout the West Bank in a manner unprecedented since the creation of the PA following the Oslo Accords in 1993.
http://www.palestin e-info.co. uk/en/default. aspx?xyz= U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MD I46m9rUxJEpMO% 2bi1s7fMOXK% 2bxWa99RfCnAmldp P6uOVD2j1ICqqxuN yblzSKeMiCfLZ9uA szxjkwved9PB614c %2fkuRsJsonlWD9u rRAQmMn3BEr7ZPL3 zkTwEa5Vk% 3d
Four injured in peaceful Billien protest
On Friday after the weekly prayers, residents of the West Bank village of Bilien, west of the city of Ramallah and a group of International and Israeli peace activists marched in a massive rally.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 51806
IDF catches two Palestinian teens with bombs at West Bank checkpoint
Security forces on Friday found three bombs in a bag belonging to two Palestinian teenagers at the Hawara checkpoint south of Nablus in the West Bank.
http://www.haaretz. com/hasen/ spages/929946. html
PHR-Israel emergency appeal for medical supplies for Gaza
The prolonged siege imposed by the Israeli government on Gaza, the closing of its borders, the tightening of policies regarding permission to exit Gaza for medical purposes, and the severe shortage of medications and other medical supplies all severely damage the Palestinian health system and endanger the lives and health of thousands of Palestinian patients.
http://www.reliefwe b.int/rw/ RWB.NSF/db900SID /KARI-79EQH5? OpenDocument
Israeli High Court orders army to allow passage of four terminally-ill Palestinians
After the deaths of three Palestinian patients awaiting permission from Israel to receive medical treatment, the Israeli High Court ordered on Thursday that the Israeli military must allow four other terminally-ill patients to exit Gaza for treatment.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 51797
Report: Gaza closure threatens education of 3,000 students
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) in Gaza has released a report condemning the Israeli ban on the travel of Gaza Strip students to pursue studies in universities and schools abroad. The Center called upon the international community and international organizations, especially UNESCO and the International Committee of the Red Cross, to pressure Israeli Occupying Forces in the Gaza Strip to allow more than 2,700 students to travel so as to avert the negative consequences for their educational future.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 51792
Report warns against proposal for funding of W. Bank outposts
The author of a highly influential government report on illegal outposts in the West Bank has recently warned the government against approving a new justice ministry proposal that would allow state funding for outposts, Haaretz has learned.
http://www.haaretz. com/hasen/ spages/929745. html
Abbas: Now is the moment of truth for Palestinian statehood
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told his people on Thursday the "moment of truth" on Palestinian statehood has come, following his participation in the Annapolis conference in the United States.
http://www.haaretz. com/hasen/ pages/ShArt. jhtml?itemNo= 929692&contrassID=1&subContrassID= 1
Israeli Prime Minister: Without two-state solution, Israel will not survive
After meeting with the Palestinian President in the US on Tuesday and Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert asserted that a two-state solution between the two peoples is the only possible solution.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 51791
PA official: Olmert lying about Temple Mount
Israeli PM claims holy site not up for talks, but Palestinians say he has already agreed to forfeiture.
http://www.ynetnews .com/articles/ 0,7340,L- 3477322,00. html
Haj pilgrims call for opening of Gaza border
Hundreds of white-robed Muslims staged a protest at the closed border crossing between Hamas-run Gaza and Egypt on Thursday to demand they be allowed to travel to Saudi Arabia for the annual haj pilgrimage.
http://www.reuters. com/article/ worldNews/ idUSL29203440200 71129
Hamas says it has secret, public contacts with Europeans
Islamic Hamas movement revealed on Thursday that the deposed Hamas government, which still rules Gaza, has "secret and disclosed" contacts with European sides.
http://news. xinhuanet. com/english/ 2007-11/29/ content_7169748. htm
Ban Ki-Moon: Palestinians continue to suffer indignities of occupation
Marking the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Thursday that the International Day came at a time when Palestinians continued to suffer the indignities and violence of Israeli occupation.
http://www.kuna. net.kw/NewsAgenc iesPublicSite/ ArticleDetails. aspx?id=1861642&Language=en

Olmert: Israel 'finished' without Palestinian state
In unusually frank comments, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert warned in an interview published today that "the state of Israel is finished" if a Palestinian state is not created, saying the alternative was a South African-style apartheid struggle.
http://www.chron. com/disp/ story.mpl/ front/5339295. html
Blair: There won't be Palestinian state unless it is coherently run coherently
On Wednesday morning, the day after dozens of leaders from around the world came to Annapolis to express support for a renewed dialogue between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA), Quartet envoy Tony Blair was preparing to go to the White House for the ceremony marking the launching of actual negotiations, which was being hosted by President George Bush. We met him at the residence of the British ambassador to Washington, where he lodged during his stay in the U.S. capital.
http://www.haaretz. com/hasen/ pages/ShArt. jhtml?itemNo= 929898&contrassID=1&subContrassID= 1
The One State Declaration
For decades, efforts to bring about a two-state solution in historic Palestine have failed to provide justice and peace for the Palestinian and Israeli Jewish peoples, or to offer a genuine process leading towards them. The two-state solution ignores the physical and political realities on the ground, and presumes a false parity in power and moral claims between a colonized and occupied people on the one hand and a colonizing state and military occupier on the other. It is predicated on the unjust premise that peace can be achieved by granting limited national rights to Palestinians living in the areas occupied in 1967, while denying the rights of Palestinians inside the 1948 borders and in the Diaspora. Thus, the two-state solution condemns Palestinian citizens of Israel to permanent second-class status within their homeland, in a racist state that denies their rights by enacting laws that privilege Jews constitutionally, legally, politically, socially and culturally. Moreover, the two-state solution denies Palestinian refugees their internationally recognized right of return.
http://www.counterp unch.org/ onestate. html
James Petras: US Military versus Israel Firsters
The underlying deep and widespread hostility of the high-ranking military officials has nothing to do with Zion-Con charges of 'anti-Semitism' and everything to do with the destruction, demoralization and discredit of the US military.
http://palestinechr onicle.com/ story-1129071719 02.htm
After 40 years of occupation "solidarity" is not enough
On this, the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the international community must not only clearly renounce its tacit acquiescence to Israel's violations of international law, but also commit to concrete action to end these violations, and in doing so, end the occupation itself.
http://electronicin tifada.net/ v2/article9133. shtml

PSL: On the International Day of Solidarity with Palestine, we remember the Nakba
Like all great struggles, it has had many twists and turns, and will have many more. But the root cause of the conflict— the forcible expulsion of a people from their homeland—is neither ambiguous nor confusing. Sixty years ago, this is precisely what happened to the Palestinians in "The Catastrophe," known as "Al-Nakba" in Arabic.
http://www.palsolid arity.org/ main/2007/ 11/28/psl- on-the-internati onal-day- of-solidarity- with-palestine- we-remember- the-nakba/
Palestinians commemorate 1947 UN resolution creating state of Israel on their land
On Thursday, November 29th, the Palestinian people commemorated the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian people. November 29th marks the day on which the United Nations signed a resolution in 1947 recommending the partition of Palestine to create a Jewish homeland, called Israel.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 51794

Stuart Littlewood: See Gaza and Weep
(In the run-up to "Annapolis", Stuart Littlewood went to Gaza on an unusual mission. He joined a party of priests bringing moral support to the Christian community and to its Muslim neighbours, all suffering horribly under Israel's collective punishment and cruel siege.) Traffic into Gaza through the elaborate new border "facility" at Erez is down to a tiny trickle these days since Israel branded the Palestinian seaside enclave a "hostile entity". The purpose of our visit was to bring moral support to elderly Fr. Manuel, who ministers to his flock, runs an excellent school (for Christians and Muslims) and is revered as a local hero. Should he ever leave Gaza, the Israeli authorities will not allow his return, so he has allowed himself to be incarcerated there for 9 years. He'd had no visitors since February and when he heard we were coming, said a colleague, he burst into tears.
http://www.unobserv er.com/layout5. php?id=4123&blz=1
Shades of grey: Nusseibeh's "Once Upon A Country"
In his new historical autobiography Once Upon A Country, Dr. Sari Nusseibeh, who many accuse of selling out due to his comments regarding the right of return, highlights the shades of grey in a conflict that most people prefer to see in black and white. Miko Peled reviews Nusseibeh's new book and finds that it shows that neither Rabin, or Barak or any other Israeli prime minister had ever intended to make peace with the Palestinians. Their intention was, and still is, to turn the Palestinian people into "hewers of wood and drawers of water" for the Jewish state that was established on the ashes of a country that, as the book title suggests, once upon a time existed.
http://electronicin tifada.net/ v2/article9132. shtml
Photo Flash: West Bank, UK - The Musical
Oren Safdie (Private Jokes, Public Places) and Ronnie Cohen (Jews & Jesus) return to the New York stage with the world-premiere musical West Bank, UK – about an Israeli and Palestinian living under the same roof.
http://broadwayworl d.com/viewcolumn .cfm?colid= 23355
CHECKPOINT JERUSALEM BLOG
Going to the movies - in Ramallah: OK, I have a small confession to make: While Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, President Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert were delivering their historic speeches in Annapolis, I was watching a movie. Yes, I missed live coverage of the events, which coincided with the Ramallah debut of "Driving to Zigzigland."
http://www.kansasci ty.com/451/ story/382074. html
Earthquake rumour panics West Bank Palestinians
Ramallah - Schools, high building and even some government offices were evacuated Thursday in the West Bank and East Jerusalem after a rumour said an earthquake was about to hit the territory.
http://news. monstersandcriti cs.com/middleeas t/news/article_ 1377495.php/ Earthquake_ rumour_panics_ West_Bank_ Palestinians
NPR Watch: Did All Things Considered Self-Censor on Annapolis?
All Things Considered coverage of the Annapolis meeting reinitiating Israeli-Palestinian Peace Talks was a big disappointment. Ordinarily, such an event would prompt ATC to present a solid half hour of coverage, including providing listeners with the historical and factual background needed to understand and interpret the event.
http://www.counterp unch.com/ pace11292007. html
Robert Fisk: A different venue, but the pious claims and promises are the same
Haven't we been here before? Isn't Annapolis just a repeat of the White House lawn and the Oslo agreement, a series of pious claims and promises in which two weak men, Messrs Abbas and Olmert, even use the same words of Oslo. "It is time for the cycle of blood, violence and occupation to end," the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Tuesday. But don't I remember Yitzhak Rabin saying on the White House lawn that, "it is time for the cycle of blood... to end"?
http://news. independent. co.uk/fisk/ article3204054. ece
Op/Ed: Bush isn't the only 'decider'
Despite the show at Annapolis, this week's main diplomatic initiative has concerned Iraq, not Israel. Without any fanfare, the Bush administration and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki announced that the United States and Iraq will begin negotiating a long-term agreement that will set the terms of Washington's Iraq policy for "coming generations." President Bush is again in legacy mode. His White House "czar" on Iraq, Army Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute, explained that the administration intends to reach a final agreement between the two countries by July 31, 2008. In describing the negotiations, he made a remarkable suggestion: Only the Iraqi parliament, not the U.S. Congress, needs to formally approve the agreement.
http://www.latimes. com/news/ opinion/la- oe-ackerman29nov 29,0,3241305. story
Not Through Annapolis
As the U.S. convenes a Mideast summit in Annapolis, Maryland today, we spend the hour on the Israeli-Palestine conflict with two of the world's leading thinkers: former South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu and world-renowned linguist Noam Chomsky. Chomsky says U.S. backing of continued Israeli occupation and annexation of Palestinian land is the biggest obstacle to peace. He says: "The crimes against Palestinians. .. are so shocking that the only emotionally valid reaction is rage and a call for extreme actions. But that does not help the victims. And, in fact, it's likely to harm them. We have to face the reality that our actions have consequences, and they have to be adapted to real-world circumstances, difficult as it may be to stay calm in the face of shameful crimes in which we are directly and crucially implicated.
http://www.informat ionclearinghouse .info/article187 95.htm
Two Ships Passing in the Dark?: The Meaning of Annapolis
Last week, as participants in the latest international peace conference on Israel- Palestine prepared to wend their way to Maryland's Chesapeake Bay, in Tel Aviv senior Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) officials were wrapping up a three-day headquarters exercise focusing on urban terror. Media reports said the drill was the largest in eight years to test reactions to and prevention of terror incidents.
http://www.counterp unch.com/ smith11292007. html
Annapolis: US prepares Palestinian civil war
Rallies Arab support against Iran.
http://www.wsws. org/articles/ 2007/nov2007/ anna-n29. shtml
Paint by numbers
The Israeli vice premier and minister of strategic threats (officially strategic affairs) Avigdor Lieberman doesn't let any opportunity pass without mentioning that the positions of the extreme right Israel Beituna Party that he heads have come to form a central "national" consensus in Israel. Lieberman does not conceal his relief that more parties and political movements in Israel have begun to adopt his party's position calling for the implementation of a land swap between Israel and a Palestinian state. In such a swap, the Palestinian leadership is supposed to agree to Israel annexing the major settlement conglomerations in the West Bank in return for annexing to a Palestinian state some of the residential areas in Israel in which the Palestinians live.
http://weekly. ahram.org. eg/2007/873/ re71.htm
Annapolis is About War, Not Peace
"Those claiming to see signs of a plausible peace process in the events that began at Annpolis on Tuesday are clutching at straws. You only have to look at the joint declaration adopted by the Israeli and Palestinian sides under U.S. prodding to see why....The key statement in the declaration adopted at Annapolis, however, is in its concluding paragraph: "Implementation of the future peace treaty will be subject to the implementation of the road map, as judged by the United States."
http://tonykaron. com/2007/ 11/29/annapolis- is-about- war-not-peace/
Flexibility versus escalation
Israel doesn't need bombs to abort the Annapolis meeting. The incendiary rhetoric with which Israeli officials and media are arming Arab and Palestinian opponents to Annapolis should do the trick.
http://weekly. ahram.org. eg/2007/873/ op11.htm
Demoralisation and absence
A once profound and widely read commentator recently c

Taslima withdraws controversial lines from Dwikhandita, Why?

by palashbiswas @ 2007-11-30 - 19:11:01

Taslima withdraws controversial lines from Dwikhandita, Why?
Palash Biswas
Contact: Palash C Biswas, C/O Mrs Arati Roy, Gosto Kanan, Sodepur, Kolkata- 700110, India. Phone: 91-033-25659551
Email: palashchandrabiswas@gmail.com
Left defensive over Taslima issue
11/30/2007 10:17:06 AM

WB Governor upset with state government
In West Bengal, the Governor has once again expressed his displeasure over the manner in which the state government has handled the Nandigram violence and the Taslima issue and understandably, going ahead this is expected to put more pressure on the Buddhadeb government.
Taslima Nasreen, Bangladeshi Author said, "I want to go back to Kolkata. When will I ever be able to return” But Kolkata might not be a very welcoming place for Taslima after the protest.
After all she was forced to leave Kolkata and saw the army out on the streets, with curfew imposed in many areas for a night when angry mobs came out to protest not only against Taslima, but also against the West Bengal government's inaction in Nandigram. Both the issues have now put the left front on the defensive and even West Bengal Governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi has found it hard to ignore.
The governor's meeting with both Shivraj Patil and President Pratibha Patil was dominated by two issues, Nandigram, and Taslima Nasreen, coming from a governor who made his strong views on the West Bengal government's attitude on Nandigram public, this just puts more pressure on the left front.
http://www.timesnow.tv/NewsDtls.aspx?NewsID=4605

Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen on Friday said she was withdrawing some controversial lines from her autobiographical novel Dwikhandita as those evoked strong protests from "a section of people in India."
"I am withdrawing controversial lines in Dwikhandita, written in 2002 with the memory of Bangladesh in the 1980s when the military threw out secularism in the country. I wrote the book in support of the people who defended secular values. I had no intention to hurt anybody's sentiment," she told PTI in Kolkata over phone from an undisclosed location.
"Now since some people in India claim that it hurt their sentiments, I am withdrawing some lines in the book," Taslima said.
The Bangladeshi writer hoped that from now on, there would be no controversy and "I'll be able to live peacefully in this country."
Taslima said she had already asked the publisher of the book People's Book Society not not to circulate copies of the book, which were in their possession.
"I asked my publisher to bring out the next edition of the book deleting those controversial lines," she said.
A spokesman of the publisher said that Taslima had requested them not to circulate copies of the book.
"We will withdraw 30 to 40 copies, already in circulation, from the market and in the next edition we will delete three controversial pages of the book," she said.
In Delhi, Communist Party of India leader Gurudas Dasgupta, who has been in touch with Nasreen, said the author informed him about the decision to withdraw the controversial lines on Prophet Mohammed in her book.
"This is a very correct step she has taken. She believes this step will help bring in normalcy. I also think this would assuage the feelings of those who have been hurt," Dasgupta said.
He expressed hope that the move would also "facilitate her return to West Bengal."
The novel Dwikhandita was banned in India earlier, but the ban was later stayed by the Calcutta high court.
Dear Friends,
I have just read and signed the online petition:
"Granting of Citizenship to Ms Taslima Nasreen"
hosted on the web by PetitionOnline. com, the free
online petition
service, at:
http://www.Petition Online.com/ eiw2007/
I personally agree with what this petition says, and I
think you might
agree, too. If you can spare a moment, please take a
look, and
consider
signing yourself.
Best wishes,
Satbir Singh Bedi
Granting of Citizenship to Ms Taslima Nasreen
View Current Signatures - Sign the Petition

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To: Indian Government
Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil
President of India
presidentofindia@rb.nic.in
Dr. Manmohan Singh
Prime Minister of India
manmohan@sansad.nic.in

Granting of Citizenship to Ms Taslima Nasreen
Honourable President, Honourable Prime Minister:
We are writing this petition to you for granting citizenship to Ms Taslima Nasreen, the exiled Bangladeshi writer & a human rights defender, who currently lives in Kolkata.
Nasreen has been terrorised in Kolkata during the week beginning 17 November 2007 by certain groups of Islamic fanatics. The latter’s methods of terrorising included assaulting police, burning cars, and holding school children hostage.
In August 2007, a group of Muslim fundamentalist MLAs & their party political cadres committed criminal acts with impunity by targeting Nasreen in Hyderabad where she was invited to speak.
Hate crimes come naturally to these violent & criminally inclined people and, they pose a great danger to & bring instability in a civilized democratic country that value pluralism, human rights, freedom of expression & peaceful assembly. Such people should be regarded as unfit for public office & continual citizenship in any democracy because of deliberately violating the constitution or charter of rights. Further, they should be charged with criminal activities committed against a lawful resident.
Nasreen, a writer & a human rights defender, has a right to live in an Indian city of her choice, doesn’t have to go into hiding in a free country & should be protected from terrorism. (Terrorism needn't always be committed through use of firearms & bombing of civilian targets but can also be perpetrated by violent bigots threatening civilians through assaults, death threats, eviction threats, inciting hate, & spreading
fear.).
(Dr.) Talisman Nasreen (a child specialist turned writer & human rights defender) should be given favourable consideration for Indian citizenship, as well as honoured for her exemplary courage with which she expresses her thoughts on abuse of human rights
Indians of all faith should admire her unique work "Lajja” (“Shame”.) It's not just a novel (as some Bengali writers & readers tend to make out), Lajja reveals more including a vivid account of the atrocities at the time that led to 2,500+ Hindu women being attacked & brutally raped in one single week of December 1992. (Indians of all faith groups and, the world media/ politicians/ governments should be ashamed of themselves for not condemning such heinous crimes.) There is more. 3000+ Hindu temples were razed/ desecrated in that same week, and, there were murders and burning down of Hindu owned shops & businesses located a short distance away from the seat of the then Government & Dhaka Police head quarters.
Taslima received fatwa not for insulting Islam (although it’s never difficult to whip up one) but for telling the truth for which Bangladeshi Islamic cadres, mullahs & politicians should be held to account. One can charge the Pakistani Sunni army for raping 200,000 Hindu girls & women as their ‘comfort women” and for slaughtering 2 million Hindu civilians between March & Dec 1971: but in December 1992, thousands of Bangladeshi Muslims, who could have been annihilated by the West Pakistani army without India’s help & intervention, committed crimes against humanity.
Nasreen has been facing death threats & fatwas in Bangladesh, her country of birth, for last 15 years. So we understand why she is restrained in expressing her outrage on the unprecedented level of minority cleansing & the thousands of gang rapes of minority women in Bangladesh that have been ongoing since October 2001.
It is unacceptable the way Nasreen is being moved around at this time. The Government of the Indian state of West Bengal is wrong on not safeguarding her as a human being & for sending her to Rajasthan. India should not cowed by any home grown &/or imported religious extremists.
India has accommodated millions of persecuted people (Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, and Sufi Muslims) over many centuries and, during last 50 years, India has incurred the wrath & enmity of China for welcoming Dalai Lama, given shelter to Burmese dissidents & refugees, housed 10 million displaced East Pakistanis during 1971, and, taken Tamils fleeing earlier atrocities in Sri Lanka.
Nasreen is a naturalised Indian and should be favourably considered for citizenship. She should be allowed to live and write without fear of persecution and any kind of threats from religious fanatics. A freethinking citizen from any faith or a human being who seeks justice & freedom would strongly support the cause of granting Indian citizenship to her. It’s only to save her from the bigots and religious zealots, Taslima, the writer & the human rights defender, is now a "saranagata" in India.
Ultimately, the Indian Government should protect Nasreen adequately through all available means. In Indian citizenship law there simply is no place of taking the side of one faith that discriminates or terrorises.
We urge you to grant Taslima Nasren citizenship rights, and, protect India’s core values of pluralism, individual human rights, and freedom of expression.
Yours truly:
Mouli Ghosh
on behalf of East India Watch
http://eastindiawatch.blogspot.com/
Copy to:
• Shri Pranab Mukherjee, Leader of the House
psm@sansad.nic.in
• Shri Lal Krishna Advani, Leader of Opposition
advanik@sansad.nic.in
• H.E. Dr. Louise Arbour
larbour@ohchr.org
• Ms Irene Khan
ikhan@amnesty.org
• Ms Catherine Baber
cbaber@amnesty.org
• KennethRoth
• HRWLondon
• HRWToronto
• CarolineMcCormick
• WritersInExileNetwork

Sincerely,
The Undersigned

View Current Signatures
"LET US HAVE OUR SAY"
Dear Friend,
As you know 10th December is International Human Rights Day. Incidents like Singur, Nandigram, Rizwanur made ancient legacy of our state bloodshed. We are getting afraid… Is this our State….West Bengal? Bloodshed at Nandigram, unnatural death of Rizwanur – are not isolated cases, everyday, every hour, people of West Bengal are facing the inhuman attitude and heinous crime against humanity by the people in uniform, in our state.
So the International Human Rights Day observation in this year has another dimension. In this regard we are going to organize one program on 9th December, Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. in between the area of Rabindra Sadan ticket counter and entrance of Academy of Fine Arts Hall. Different celebrities like literary and cultural artists and others intelligentsia of different fields will make the program colorful. Several victims (around 100), tortured by police and state agencies of our state of West Bengal will share their painful experience with us. The dais will be meant for Unheard Voices of the victims of state-repression .
Your active presence on that program will make us enrich and will make stronger in our walk for human rights. We cordially believe that we will be united and will take a greater role in this campaign.
Thanking you,
With regards,

--
Kirity Roy
President
Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha
(MASUM)
26 Guitendal Lane
Howrah 711101
West Bengal INDIA
Mobile: 9903099699
Fax : +91-33-2640 4118
Phone: +91-33-2640 4520
e. mail : kirityroy@gmail. com
Web: www.masum.org. in
Authoring a bungle
By Kuldip Nayar
IT was a case of political asylum. The government of India bungled it
because of the fear of fundamentalists. It could not take the stand that
a democratic, secular country would, not bow before their demand to
oust Taslima Nasreen, an intrepid author of Bangladesh.
She was living in Kolkata with a visa till Feb 17, 2008. She wanted a
permanent residence or citizenship. (The government has moved her to
some place beyond the public gaze.)
In fact, all political parties, except the BJP, have more or less
rejected an asylum for her. Even the Left has not supported her case. The
BJP has done it to exploit the situation. Put M.F. Hussain, the world
famous painter, in place of Taslima, the party’s stand stays exposed. Its
foot soldiers have threatened to kill him if he returns to India. His
paintings of Hindu goddesses irritate the fanatics who have filed dozens
of cases against him.
Both instances when boiled down relate to freedom of expression which
has been threatened. That it should happen in India which is proud of
its ethos of pluralism is a point of concern. Fundamentalists in every
religion want to open the door for communalism.
Yet, once they find it ajar, they would even beak it. India faces the
same dilemma. It should not compromise on principles. But the erosion is
already visible.
Great Britain, with all its racial prejudice, has proved to be far more
liberal than India. Hussain is living in London which has become a
Mecca for dissenters and conscientious objectors. I had imagined that
India would one day be a rendezvous of revolutionaries and others who
raised the standard of revolt against their autocratic regimes.
I even thought that leaders from Pakistan and Bangladesh would come to
Delhi instead of going to London, Dubai or New York.
One other instance which has dismayed me is the centre’s attitude
towards a leading editor who was harassed by Bangladesh. I tried my best to
fix his interview with officials in key positions in the government. He
wanted to stay in Delhi. But none met him.
The government was afraid of Dhaka’s reaction. India, under Jawaharlal
Nehru, was a different country. He had a vision and could see the
country becoming a meeting point of different ideologies and people from
different climes. He welcomed the Dalai Lama at a time when he required
the best of relations with China.
Yet he preferred Indian values to Beijing’s threats. In contrast, the
Manmohan Singh government led by the same party, the Congress, issued
instructions to its ministers not to attend the felicitation ceremony of
the Dalai Lama.
Therefore, it was not surprising to see the centre quibbling over the
status of Taslima. It was just scared lest the asylum should annoy
Indian Muslims.
This is unfair to them because they are not a community of
obscurantists. Nor is Islam against a liberal approach. But my great disappointment
is over the reaction of leading Muslim organisations in the country.
The All India Milli Council which often holds seminars on pluralism
says that she had “not behaved as a gentle lady of an international
dimension”.
The Jamiat-i-Islami which supports a secular front expressed its regret
that the violence in Kolkata was not a sudden outpouring of anger but
the demand by several Muslim organisations for revocation of Taslima’s
visa for many months. Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind, very close to the Congress,
says: “Let her not stay in any part of the country. Send her back. You
cannot put the entire country at stake for her sake.”
I wish these organisations, honourable as they are, would tell me what
she said against Islam. Her first book, Lajja (shame) was no piece of
literature but described vividly the anti-Hindu riots in Bangladesh
after the demolition of the Babri masjid.
The 1993 writing is still haunting her. The protesters against Taslima
in Kolkata do not realise that they have communalised the whole issue
of Nandigram.
Already, the BJP is pointing out at its poll meetings in Gujarat how
“intolerant and fanatic” Muslims have turned out to be in their reaction
to Taslima.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) has been most disappointing. It
has taken an anti-Taslima stand. I have always heard Brinda Karat, the
politburo member, taking up the cause of women. But when it came to
Taslima she was just silent, not even seen anywhere.
Her party’s key functionary, Sitaram Yechuri, said that the West Bengal
government did not force Taslima to go from Kolkata while the fact was
that two officials of the state government put her in a flight to
Jaipur despite per protests.
It has come to light that the administration was badgering her for a
long time to leave Kolkata. The CPM which claims to protect democratic
and secular forces has surrendered before fundamentalists for the sake of
votes.
The emerging third alternative, swearing by secularism, has said that
Taslima must apologise. What is her fault? Is it because she has written
in favour of the afflicted women in Bangladesh?
In fact, what is visible is minority communalism. The recent blasts at
Varanasi, Azamgarh and Lucknow have pointed a finger at it.
Two years ago, I would say that Muslims in India did not go to
Afghanistan when there was a call for jihad. They did not go to Kashmir to
fight because they were aware of the country’s sensitivities.
I cannot say that now because it is clear to me that a soft kind of
parochialism has infected Indian Muslims.
Whether the Al Qaeda or the Taliban have infiltrated the country is not
as relevant as the fact that terrorists get logistic support from
within India and are given shelter here.
The justification given for this are the riots in Gujarat and the
destruction of the Babri masjid in Ayodhya which are like a millstone of
guilt around the nation’s neck.
Yet, there have been vehement criticism of the happenings and till
today there is no slac kening of the anger in the media.
Responsible for the two tragedies, BJP lost the government at the
centre because of them. The common man is tolerant and believes in the
tradition which is secular in content. But what should he do? His life
revolves around daily living and he mixes with different communities in the
process.
He has been conscious of Hindu fundamentalism for some time because of
the BJP, the Shiv Sena and the Bajrang Dal. Now he also has to reckon
with Muslim fundamentalism which he suspected to be there but has not
seen it in concrete form. He is insecure. Yet his antenna tells him that
the country’s soul is intact, although many Hindus and many Muslims
have got contaminated.
The writer is a leading journalist based in New Delhi.
Withdraw Taslima's books with objectionable comments: AIMPLB
New Delhi : A prominent Muslim body on Friday welcomed Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen's decision to delete objectionable portions from one of her controversial books, while another asked the government to ensure withdrawal of previous editions of the book.
In a cautious response, the All India Muslim Personnel Law Board wondered what will be done with the books already in circulation and asked the government to ensure that they are withdrawn from the market.
"The first question is that of those books which are already available in the market. Those should be withdrawn. She has only said that the coming editions will not contain those controversial lines," AIMPLB spokesman S Q R Ilyas said.
"What about the previous editions?" he asked.
Welcoming the Bangladeshi author's decision, Jamait-e- Hind said that as Nasreen had withdrawn the objectionable lines, the issue had ended.
"If she (Nasreen) has expressed sorry for those lines in her book, then keeping in view the Islamic rules and practices, I feel that all believers will end the issue related to it," Mehmood Madhani, an MP and chief of Jamiat-e- Hind, said.
Nasreen has told PTI that she was withdrawing some controversial portions from 'Dwikhandita' (Split into Two), written in 2002 about Bangladesh of the 1980s.

India tightens security after POSCO project clash

by palashbiswas @ 2007-11-30 - 19:09:27

India tightens security after POSCO project clash

Palash Biswas
Contact: Palash C Biswas, C/O Mrs Arati Roy, Gosto Kanan, Sodepur, Kolkata- 700110, India. Phone: 91-033-25659551
Email: palashchandrabiswas@gmail.com
EU-India summit: economic development through mass displacement violates human rights
(Brussels, 30 November 2007) - On the eve of the EU-India Summit in New Delhi, Amnesty International urges EU leaders to raise concerns with the Indian government that serious human rights violations are occurring in the country in relation to economic development projects imposed on local communities.
Marginalized groups face fear of being displaced from their lands as a result of industrialisation projects in the context of the government-managed Special Economic Zones (SEZ). As an example, at least 4000 hectares of land have been used for the SEZ in West Bengal, raising fears that the fundamental rights of the people living in those areas have not been fully respected.
In light of this, the EU should urge the Indian government to implement its economic strategy in such a manner that it respects the communities’ basic rights and its obligations under international law, which requires that evictions are carried out only as a last resort, and only following adequate notice and consultation with those affected.
The land dispute has also recently given rise to violence. At least 40 people died over the past year as a result of violent incidents in West Bengal. "The EU should ask the Indian government to ensure full investigation and prosecution of those responsible", said Dick Oosting, Director of Amnesty International’s EU Office.
Amnesty International also recalls that the effects of the 1984 Bhopal disaster are still to be fully addressed. Up to now, no one has been held responsible for the toxic leak. Over 20,000 people died and more than a 100,000 continue to suffer from chronic and debilitating diseases.
"After more than 20 years it is high time for the Indian Government, in conjunction with the companies involved, to ensure effective decontamination and clean-up of the Bhopal disaster site, and the EU is well placed to make that call at this summit", said Dick Oosting.
Considering that a parallel business summit will take place in New Delhi, Amnesty International also stressed the crucial link between business and human rights and highlighted the role of the state and of companies in their respective human rights duties in both the EU and India.

For further comment/background and interviews:
Amnesty International EU Office (Brussels):
Tel: 32-2-5021499
Fax: 32-2-5025686
Email: amnesty-eu@aieu.be

India tightens security after POSCO project clash
Reuters Friday November 30 2007
BHUBANESWAR, India, Nov 30 (Reuters Life!) - Authorities in eastern India deployed extra police at the site of a proposed $12 billion steel plant by South Korean steelmaker POSCO after villagers clashed with each other over the plan, police said on Friday.
The plant in Orissa state would be India's single largest foreign investment project, but has been delayed by months of protests by villagers opposed to the plant.
Late on Thursday, small clashes broke out between villagers in favour of the plant and those protesting in Jagatsinghpur district of the state, where authorities are planning to acquire land for the project.
At least a dozen villagers were injured in the clash, forcing the government to deploy a large police force and intensify patrols, a top police officer said.
"We are keeping a close watch on the situation and have deployed adequate police force," Gopal Chandra Nanda, the state's police chief, said on Friday.
The state government and POSCO have said they are serious about pushing ahead with the project.
But villagers have erected barricades in the form of huge gates at several entry points to stop government and company officials from visiting the site.
Last month, armed protesters abducted four senior POSCO officials, including three South Koreans, when they were inspecting the plant site.
They were later released following an assurance by the police that executives from the firm would not visit the area until the dispute was resolved. (Writing by Bappa Majumdar; Editing by Alistair Scrutton and Jerry Norton)
Clashes persist over POSCO project in Orissa
By NI Wire Views:49
Bhubaneswar Comments:0

Nov 30: Turning into yet another Nandigram and Kalinga Nagar like situation two groups of villagers in the Erasama Block of Jagatsinghpur, Orissa turn violent over the proposed POSCO steel plant; taking shape of a serious clash between supporters and opponents that left many injured.
The incident occurred at around 5 pm on Thursday when activists of anti-POSCO project led by the NGO - POSCO Pratirodh Sangram Samiti were sitting on a “dharna” presenting their opposition at Balitutha. This is the place where the NGOs have been continuously demonstrating by blocking roads.
With opposition from locals of Balitutha the activist had later removed the road blockade but the villagers from the nearby region wanted the activists to lift their camp, which didn’t please the anti-POSCO campaigner and this turned into a clash between the two groups.
As per the local reports the supporters of the project pelted stones and even threw bombs towards the anti-POSCO protestors that left more than 15 persons critically injured. The supporters of the project also burnt the tents at the campsite. However, police later took the clash under control though no such cases have been registered so far as the administration has been advocating in favour of the project since long.
The proposed Rs 52000 crore POSCO steel plant has been cause of major unrest in Orissa as farmers of the project site doesn’t want to give up their land citing the land in place are fertile and ever since demanding the plant should be shifted to some infertile land.
The Korean steel company needs a total of 4,000 acres land the sate government has not able to provide half of it that is the major cause of delay though the POSCO deal was signed in June 2005.
The latest hostage issue and repeated conflict is not only worsening the situation but also a clear indication that the administration has not done anything concrete for a proper dialogue with the agitators.
With the implementation of new ‘Rehabilitation and Resettlement’ policy by the central government the people of the Jagatsinghpur district can hope for something better on their way. But first of all, the administration must learn how to take locals into confidence for the success of project like this as any resettlement policy only goes in vague creating most shocking situation like the incident in Kalinga Nagar of Jajpur district where 12 villagers had been killed by police firing while demonstrating against the TATA steel plant.

Opposition creating unrest: Buddhadeb
http://www.hindu.com/2007/11/30/stories/2007113055691600.htm

Special Correspondent
KOLKATA: The Opposition was desperate to stall development projects of the State government and was finding “delight in creating an atmosphere of unrest” across the State, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said here on Thursday.
He said:
“It appears that the Opposition has little else to do than stirring up trouble. But we will not be cowed down. “In no other State have I seen the Opposition parties doing what they are doing here. When it comes to promoting the overall interests of a State, all parties elsewhere, even in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, come together. Here, it is not the case.
“But the Opposition cannot prevent us from keeping our commitments to people, who have voted us to power. We have not come to government to sleep away our term.” Mr. Bhattacharjee, who was addressing an open session of the South 24 Parganas district conference of the CPI(M), said: “I have been telling them [the Opposition] that development is not a question of the Trinamool Congress and the CPI(M). It involves the future of people. But they refuse to understand.”
On the central political situation, he said: “Our support to the Congress is not unconditional. If it does not implement policies for the betterment of the common man, we will not support it. We have been telling the Congress not to be under the delusion that because we are supporting you [at the Centre] we will not oppose those policies and legislation detrimental to the interests of people.
SEZs in India: The record so far

C. P. Chandrasekhar
Jayati Ghosh
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/11/27/stories/2007112750070900.htm

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Special Economic Zones were launched with much fanfare in India but have become a source of intense controversy. In this edition of Macroscan, C. P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh consider the costs and benefits of SEZs and examine how the different States have implemented the SEZ Act so far.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SEZs differ from the older and more acceptable concept of industrial clusters. This is because they go beyond basic infrastructure provision to what are called “enabling conditions”.
For some time now, Special Economic Zones (SEZs) have been touted across the developing world as one of the chief instruments through which a country can achieve rapid industrialisation through exports. SEZs differ from the older and more acceptable concept of industrial clusters, that is industrial zones that bring together different productive units, with good infrastructure facilities and simplified procedures.
This is because they go beyond basic infrastructure provision to what are called “enabling conditions”, such as tax and duty holidays and/or rebates, highly subsidised or even free land, little or no compulsory worker protection, and the like.
It is really these provisions, which exist to greater or lesser degree in the regimes governing SEZs in different countries, which are so potentially problematic and have become so controversial.
Indeed, it is not clear how much such concessions actually matter in attracting investment.
There is very little conclusive evidence in support of the idea that fiscal concessions are particularly helpful in ensuring more investment, despite the threats routinely issued by corporates in this regard.
Major areas of concern

While the gross benefits of SEZs are still open to debate, there is already much concern about the aggregate social and economic costs of this strategy, making the net benefits even more uncertain. There are three major areas of concern: the fiscal costs; the issue of workers rights and net employment generation; and land transfer, dispossession and displacement.
SEZs in India functioned under the provisions of the Foreign Trade Policy from November 2000 to February 2006. But since February 2006, they have come under the Special Economic Zones Act 2005.
Since then, it is the issue of land acquisition that has become the most controversial and raised the greatest political response in India. Of course this is an important issue, but it can be argued that the areas of policy concern relate more to the process of land transfer and the nature of compensation and rehabilitation of displaced persons, rather than to whether there should be a change in land use per se.
Some opponents of SEZs have argued that any transfer of agricultural land to non-agricultural purposes (whether it be for industry, real estate development or other activities) is invalid and should not occur. However, this is clearly an extreme and unjustifiable position.
Shift in land use

The process of development — even the most equitable, broad-based and democratic sort of development — will necessarily require that land use be shifted from agricultural to non-agricultural purposes as economies and societies become more diversified.
This is not only inevitable but even desirable in the long run, as long as food security issues are adequately taken into account.
However, it is absolutely necessary to ensure that those who are affected by changing land use — which includes not just those with land property titles but all those who had a source of livelihood from that land — are adequately compensated and rehabilitated. Since land use is certainly going to keep changing rapidly, and not necessarily only for SEZ development, this is one of the central policy questions of our times.
In the specific case of land appropriation for SEZs, the question of ownership and control is also critical. In India, the current rules require only 25 per cent of the land to be used for industrial processing purposes, allowing the remaining land to be used for any other purpose. This means that real-estate developers can engage in major land grab in the guise of SEZs. Clearly, the rules must be changed to prevent or at least reduce this possibility.
One response to the issue of land grab has been to argue that the state should actually stay out of this altogether. After all, it is the power of eminent domain of the state that allows land to be taken over for national development purposes. However, leaving land use to market forces — or to private developers to engage in transactions with individual landholders — may be even worse. Firstly, it means that there is no chance of compensation of all the other stakeholders who have been adversely affected, such as tenants and agricultural lab

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Archives for: November 2007, 30

Bolivar reborn

A protest by the poets in the language of poetry

One State Declaration Vs Annapolis Statement

Taslima withdraws controversial lines from Dwikhandita, Why?

India tightens security after POSCO project clash