OVERVIEW
More than 40 civil and human rights lawyers of South-Asian descent have written an open letter addressing US President Joseph Biden, regarding the ongoing farmers' protests in India and methods of repressing it undertaken by the Centre.
The letter was also addressed to US secretary of State Antony Blinken, House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Gregory Weldon Meeks, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee jim Risch, Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission chairmen James P. McGovern and Christopher H. Smith, and Chair of US Commission on International Religious Freedom Gayle Manchin.
FURTHER DETAILS
The letter was sought to call US intervention condemning the Centre's actions and asking India to ‘respect the constitutional rights of protesters' and provide ‘messages and actions of solidarity aligned with the demands of the farmers.'
The statement highlights instances of human rights infringement such as internet shutdowns, repression of peaceful protests, suspension of Twitter accounts of those who speak against the farm laws, arrests of journalists who documented police violence, arrests of activists and protestors and censorship.
It was primarily triggered by infringement of human rights in the case of arrest of labour activist Nodeep Kaur, who was tortured in jail, farmer Navreet Singh who was killed during the Republic Day protests, and doctor Swaiman Singh, who was allegedly beaten while treating protesters in New Delhi.
The statement also expressed the pattern of the current government and highlighted the treatment by Centre against CAA-NRC protesters. Further, it said that ‘the minority communities across India are in peril.'
"The Indian government has pursued a policy of mass deprivation in Jammu and Kashmir, stripping the people of their right to autonomy under the Indian constitution.”
The letter also states how the policies and practices formed by the government have failed democratic institutions and has been known to uphold a ‘supremacist ideology – Hindutva nationalism.'
The BJP and Prime Minister Modi want to create a Hindu state, where Hindus enjoy a privileged status, and minorities, especially Muslims and Dalits, are second-class citizens.”
CONCLUSION
The letter sought for Biden's intervention to denounce the Centre's action, and urged to establish an international body to heed to the protests and bring up the issue at the United Nations, stating that India's actions not only violate the rights given by the Constitution, but also the fundamental international human rights norms such as freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention, peaceful assembly and association, and expression and opinion.
WHAT ARE YOUR VIEWS REGARDING THE LETTER ADDRESSED TO BIDEN WITH RESPECT TO THE FARMERS' PROTESTS IN INDIA? COMMENT BELOW!
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