By Javier Delgado Rivera

For over four years now, India has been negotiating a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the European Union (EU) - the largest trade and investment deal the country has ever embarked on. As much as New Delhi expects to lure the European market and investments closer to India, the actual consequences for the country’s economy could be dire: the open up of public procurement, the deregulation of the banking, automobile, retail and mining industries plus the adverse impact the deal will have in small-scale farmers make of this FTA a counter-productive undertaking.

Europe is India’s major trading partner and biggest –real- source of foreign direct investment (FDI), what gives a flavour of the weight that Brussels carries in the Indian economy. In addition, the EU’s gross domestic product is about ten times larger than India’s. In paper, this asymmetry should present equal opportunities as challenges: a remarkable increase in Indian exports to the enormous European market combined with bigger FDI inflows from the continent, whereas European corporations step up or expand their businesses in India. However, a closer look at the course of the India-EU FTA negotiations reveals a different picture.

Recognizing the significance of exports to keep up with the country’s economic growth, the EU grants India with a preferential import rate, bringing down average EU tariffs on Indian imports to a mere two per cent. With India’s average duties on European products at a much higher 17 per cent, the FTA large removal of trade tariffs will have a greater negative impact on the Indian side. “Preference erosion is a key factor in determining the real economic value -and cost- of a deal with the EU,” points out Shefali Sharma, from the American Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy.

The upcoming India-EU FTA will also deal with non-tariff barriers (NTB) to trade - a complex set of regulations on imports and investments that in the case of India, protects the country’s market from the might of global corporations. For instance, this FTA is expected to remove a number of limitations on European investments and liberalise the room for manoeuvre of EU firms if national rules are regarded as unfair or discriminatory. An illustrative case is the capacity that European tobacco companies may acquire to sue Indian states if measures to protect public health, such as overbearing tobacco warnings, are perceived as interfering with the multinationals’ investment.

Another long-held fear is the effect that opening up India’s public procurement to European firms may have. Given the size, bargaining power and expertise of EU business when it comes to working in emerging markets, it is plausible that several national players lose their bids in favour of newly-arrived European contesters. As a result, policies initially designed to boost domestic production and consumption as well as to foster Indian small and medium enterprises may well end up weakened. In developing countries, FTAs are infamous for the repercussions they frequently have in public services. Hence, the access of EU firms into the Indian health sector, energy and water supply industries should be carefully monitored.

Nevertheless, Indian officials should be applauded for having negotiated their way to limit the liberalisation of the country’s public procurement to a state level, leaving federal-planned development and infrastructure schemes out of the scope of European firms.

This FTA is likely to bring out a banking deregulation bound to strike large numbers of Indians that, in the last years, have become increasingly dependent on cheap loans to find their way out of poverty. If the Indian financial system is liberalised so that European financial institutions are removed from current restrictions to operate in the country, they will take a greater portion of the Indian banking pie. This will not make good news for poor Indians, given that “unlike their domestic counterparts, foreign banks are not required to open offices in rural areas, provide agricultural loans or to lend to people below the poverty line.” Certainly, it would add up to the pressures faced by domestic banks in more profitable urban operations, displacing resources to better compete in those threatened areas.



If New Delhi proves unable to keep the automobile sector away from the FTA, it may easily turn out to be the worse damaged industry of the whole agreement. Because of the high duties that fully-assembled cars have to pay if directly imported into the Indian market, today most EU carmakers partially manufacture their cars in India. If this trade deal removes those levies altogether along with other existing NTBs, EU automakers will have no incentive to put together their vehicles in India, and would rather ship them in from somewhere else. The price of these automobiles will then go down, undermining the competitiveness of local carmakers. Most European cars sold in India are luxury vehicles, so in order to prevent a major blow to the Indian automobile industry, it is hoped that “the abolition of tariffs [will presumably only apply] on high-end, luxury cars, while small and medium car makers retain a degree of protection,” said Pallavi Aiyar, Brussels correspondent for the Business Standard.

Along with the car industry, duties for European alcoholic beverages are proving to be one of the FTA’s trickiest items to work out. India’s flourishing, vast middle class makes a very attractive market for European spirits and wine multinationals. With a current tariff of more than 70 per cent, lowering duties for EU alcoholic beverages will considerably toughen competition on the business. In fact, neither the automobile industry nor the spirits and wine markets form part of any of India’s FTAs.

Distressing the Indian countryside

The possible FTA-triggered influx of cheap, heavily subsidised European agricultural products right into the Indian market should worry Indian farmers. Brussels allocates near 40 per cent of its entire budget to endow EU farmers, creating a large surplus of low-priced fruits and vegetables ready to export. It seems inevitable that, if tariffs are reduced or completely lifted, dumping will displace large chunks of Indian agricultural products from the country’s markets, hardening the lives of many small scale and subsistence farmers.

On the top of this, if the India-EU FTA ends up fully protecting the intellectual property rights of European agribusiness, these very farmers may see the price of seeds, the bloodstream of their livelihood, substantially going up. As Shefali Sharm says, “the EU advocates for a system of plant variety protection that favours plant breeder’s over farmers rights to seeds.”

Indian negotiators should prevent this trade pact from distressing the living conditions of millions of rural dwellers in India- just like members of the European Parliament (EP) have been doing to protect EU farmers. In a resolution issued in May, the EP called to shield European farming businesses by taking into account “any negative impact on European agriculture, particularly in opening up of markets, GMOs, milk, beef, intellectual property protection and origin labelling.”

Moreover, the powerful European agricultural lobby is pressing EU negotiators to not include certain products in the liberalisation bill, fearing that Indian exports will distort the EU market of certain commodities. A good example is the claim made by Cope-Cogeca - the main farmer lobby in Europe- that the EU should not incorporate rice in the FTA “due to the extreme market volatility for this product and erratic behaviour of India in imposing export bans.”



The mining industry is another sector prompting European investors to rub their hands. As the FTA liberalises the investment regime, European multinationals will be allowed to ship larger quantities of minerals out of India. A profitable business that will multiply mining concessions and therefore, revenue collecting in mineral-rich but poverty-stricken Indian states. That will augment these Indian states’ coffers, though adivasis and other marginalised communities may not welcome with such enthusiasm those European companies. “Deregulating investments in natural resources could displace people from their habitat and sources of livelihood. Furthermore, the misuse of raw materials would exacerbate ongoing struggles against land grabbing,” told Dharmendra Kumar, director of India FDI Watch, to this author.

Grey clouds over the retail sector

In order to contain foreign corporations from dominating large sections of India’s retail, investments of global multinationals in the country’s multi-brand retail are today partially restrained. If, as it has been discussed, the prospective India-EU FTA eliminates such constraints, European giant retailers such a Carrefour, Tesco or Metro Group will size a rather larger part of the Indian retail market, severely hurting the massive, unorganized sector of the Indian economy.

The unattainable standards -not necessarily in quality, but in appearance- of products sold in those supermarket chains may impede local suppliers to work with European outlets. Even if farmers are able to meet the newly-introduced requirements, it is not unusual that, once small-scale producers rely on big buyers to sell their products, wholesale retailers cut down prices, engulfing farmers in a trap that leads to “massive job and livelihood losses,” as a letter of leftist members of the EP put it recently.

In the cases where large outlets do not engage in such practice, farmers, small shop owners and street vendors are anyways likely to get hit by the increase of more competitive products on offer at the supermarkets’ shelves.

The exposure that this FTA will cause to India’s informal sector and small farmers is even recognised in a study carried out by the European Economic and Social Committee, an EU’s advisory body. The report claims that the current course of negotiations fails to “assess the likely economic and social risks of the FTA on Indian society.” In a country where, according to the United Nations Development Programme, “more than 90 per cent of the working population is in the informal sector,” such type of findings should be taken seriously.

Not all about bad news

One of the main bones of contention to conclude this FTA is the negative of Brussels to relax working and residence permits for skilled Indians. If New Delhi’s negotiators are eventually capable to persuade their European counterparts, the agreement will not only loosen up existing requirements for Indians professionals to work in the EU, but could also ease the EU criteria to recognise qualifications. Coupled with the liberalisation of legal services that this pact will bring about, banking, accounting and IT experts may want to keep an eye on the opportunities that this FTA might deliver.

Even if the EU is under fire for its unrestrained defence of corporative interests, Brussels should be credited for trying to safeguard Indians from the worse effects of the European multinationals expansion in the country. The India-EU FTA should "ensure that investors respect core International Labour Organization standards [with an emphasis on child labour], social and environmental governance, and international agreements so as to ensure a balance between economic growth and higher social and environmental standards," stated the EP in a resolution in 2009.

A tough one to swallow

It is far from certain that the great lost of tariff revenues that this FTA will cause to the Government of India –being the EU India’s larger trade partner- will be compensated by a theoretical surge of FDI from and exports to the European market. “Undoubtedly, this [trade agreement] will have serious implications for government spending in social sectors,” asserted to this author Dharmendra Kumar.

Even though the India-EU FTA is expected to more than double the bilateral trade to EUR 160 bn by 2015, two leading European think tanks estimate that EU exports to India will increase by 56.8 per cent, while India’s to the EU will do a mere 18.7 per cent.

Since the outset of these FTA talks, business interests have been driving the negotiations, while areas like sustainable development and poverty reduction have been neglected. It does not imply though that New Delhi cannot strike vital conquests in some of these social areas, as the data exclusivity exclusion in medicines research proves - allowing generics to be produced when it is in the benefit of the public health.

This FTA runs the risk of hurting millions of Indian families who rely on vulnerable jobs to barely make ends meet. The agreement is widely assumed to be concluded at the end of the year, so there is still some room to better protect these livelihoods. Time is running out to make of the India-EU FTA signing something to celebrate instead of something to bemoan.

Javier Delgado Rivera is a Brussels-based freelance research-journalist with a focus on the European Union (EU) ties with Asia. You can check out his stories at www.euasiaintelligence.com & follow him on twitter at @EUAsiaIntel
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Colourful responses from all over the world are coming in on Anna's campaign against the corruption in the country. As the campaign led by the Gandhian reaches every corner of India peacefully, the world which is used to watching violent protests against government by the civilians in Middle East and North Africa is amused  with the system in India.

No matter how much ever the government is corrupt, the democratic rights of the citizens for protesting against the government were not harmed, though this might not be true as government initially had done many mistakes which raised concerned over the fundamental rights of the citizen of India.

Peaceful Protest at India Gate, New Delhi

Across the border in Pakistan, where people are fed up of their corrupt civilian government for so long feels encouraged with the high profile strong movement going on in India. Human rights activist from Pakistan, Ansar Burney on Sunday announced a massive India-like anti-corruption campaign across Pakistan after Eid.

While Most of the nations in the world including US are amazed with the kind of movement going on in the country. Thailand like Pakistan has also prepared itself to begin a movement like this. Thailand's leading daily, the Bangkok Post has said, "Much of the world is following the story of Anna Hazare and his crusade to fight corruption in India, and it's one that resonates especially well in Thailand."

Not only this, but in Russia, native people came out in gathering and raised slogans like "Bharat Mata ki Jai' (Long Live Mother India) and "Anna Hazare ki jai" (long live Anna hazare). The personality of Anna has grasped attention of a huge population around the world.




It is indeed too early to say if the Anna's bill will really bring out immediate changes in the society of India which will be corruption free, but we know this is not the end but the start. It had to be started with something. And Anna's Jan Lokpal bill is the thing to give a perfect start to the Anti Corruption movement in India. We shouldn't forget that even if Anna's bill is accepted, our peaceful war is not over.

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Anna Hazare whose fast entered sixth day has warned the government to release the LokPal bill as soon as August 30. He said if the government is not serious to curb the corruption fromt he society then an unprecedented revolution will rise in the country by the people of India who would leave only if the bill is passed or the government is down.

Addressing the gathering of thousands of supporters in the capital, he said that the government has been cheating for past 20 years. Calling his struggle as the second struggle for independence, he encouraged the gathering to keep the flame alive even if there is no Anna in this world in the future.

"They constituted a joint committee after my fast in April. But nothing came out of that meeting despite talking for two months. They betrayed the civil society.... The government's intention to fight corruption is not noble," he said.

"The government says if the Prime Minister is investigated for corruption charges, the government will be shaken. But if the Prime Minister is corrupt and no investigation is done, this will be a great danger to the country's security," he further added.

The innocence and the pure emotions of Anna has won the heart of many Indians. This is one of the biggest post independence protest in India which involves supporter from both Urban and Rural areas of India raising the same voice. The protest till now has been so uniting that Delhi police claims a 35% decline in the crime rate since the day Anna has declared fast.



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As the Arab spring turns into summer and autumn, European and Asian policymakers can share experiences with their Arab counterparts on the democratic transformation of former communist eastern Europe and the transition to democracy in three leading Asian nations: Indonesia, the Philippines and South Korea.

The framework provided by ASEM (the Asia-Europe Meeting) provides a good platform for just such a discussion. The results of such an Asia-Europe brainstorming should then be shared with Arab policymakers, business leaders and scholars.

Such a three-way conversation is especially needed at a time of increasing uncertainties about the future of Tunisia and Egypt, where pro-democracy movements have achieved democratic change.

European and Asian lessons in transition and reform can also be helpful for other countries in the Middle East and North Africa, whether in Libya, which is currently in the midst of a brutal civil war, or in Syria where demands for change have been met with a government crackdown or in Bahrain and Yemen.

As the Arab spring ebbs and flows, an initial period of hope is being replaced by uncertainty over whether the region can produce viable, and economically vibrant, democracies.

Historical parallels are never perfect of course; Arab countries, with their mix of disaffected young people yearning for change, under-developed or non-existent political parties and well-organised Islamist organisations present a complex picture.

However, European, Asian and Arab policymakers can learn from each other’s experiences on what works and what does not when peoples’ demand for freedom and reform can no longer be ignored.

Certainly, the transition from communist, centrally-planned economies to free market democracies – and membership of the 27-nation European Union – as experienced by many ex-communist eastern European nations since the 1989 fall of the Berlin Wall provides an interesting blueprint for the Arab world.

The region’s experience with civil society movements, the formation of electoral and governance systems, economic reforms and the often rocky transition to stability could help reassure Arab public opinion about the direction of their own people-power revolutions.

Asian countries like the Philippines, South Korea and Indonesia also went through long and difficult transition periods following the fall of entrenched, corrupt, dictatorships.

The three countries lived through riots, uncertainty and pain. The economy suffered. The army watched warily as protests spread. Today the three countries are functioning democracies and active participants in Asia’s rise.

In the Philippines in 1986, the “People Power movement” drove President Ferdinand Marcos into exile and installed Corazon Aquino as the new president. The Philippine armed forces unexpectedly deserted Marcos, and the US told him that it was “time to cut, and cut clean” paving the way for a series of weak but essentially democratic governments, with a very free press and a vibrant civil society.

In South Korea, meanwhile, the democratic uprising of June 1987 represented a nation-wide movement which resulted in the authorities giving the green light to democratisation. South Korea today has a robust democracy and has emerged as one of Asia's strongest economic power houses.

Indonesia, the most populous Muslim nation, faced food shortages and massive unemployment triggered by the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis. Anger and riots exploded against President Suharto and his government forces, leading to the unpopular president's resignation on 21 May 1998. Since then, a strengthening of democratic processes has included a regional autonomy program, and the first direct presidential election in 2004.

In the last 13 years Indonesia has emerged as a vibrant and dynamic democracy and a middle income economic power with impressive regional and global outreach. Membership of the Group of 20 gives it additional international clout. Indonesia is also working within the region and outside it to promote democracy, including through the annual Bali Democracy Forum.

Indonesian policymakers say democracy is inherently messy. “Revolutions and their aftermaths, of course, are always fluid and fickle times, and the outcome is often perched on a knife’s edge,” according to comments published recently by Mulyani Indrawati, Managing Director of the World Bank Group and a former finance minister of Indonesia.

Ms. Mulyani underlines the challenge new democracies face in bridging the vast gap between high expectations and the reality of limited budgets and capabilities. “But transitions are also times of great opportunity,” she adds.

Eastern European members of the EU have come out of their turmoil as strong democracies and market economies. Some of the revolutions in the region (1956 in Hungary, 1968 in Prague and 1980 in Gdansk) were initially brutally repressed but the seeds of change stayed alive to flower years later.

Meanwhile, despite their flaws, Indonesia, the Philippines and South Korea are also proof that countries can change direction, peoples’ aspirations for democracy can be met and that chaos can give way to peace and development.

Such a powerful message of hope should become part of ASEM’s political and diplomatic outreach to other parts of the world.

Shada Islam is a journalist in Brussels with a long experience of EU-Asia relations. This is a part of a series of articles being published by Ecorys Research and Consulting, as member of the COWI Consortium which is under contract to the European Commission, to look at different aspects of the multi-faceted Asia-Europe relationship. This article represents the views of the author and does not commit the European Commission in any way. 

ASEM has 48 partners, including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Cambodia, China, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Malta, Mongolia, Myanmar, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Romania, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, United Kingdom, Vietnam, the ASEAN Secretariat and the European Commission.

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As the movement has become the topic of all news discussions, new and new opinions are coming in from both the party over the credibility of the bill. Is the bill really effective?

The India against Corruption movement is now not only appearing in Indian media but has become an international news. Indians staying in HongKong and East Asia are protesting in their style in the respective area. An article in Wall Street Journal suggests that due to the protest in India, the government of India has diverted its attention from its regular work to the protest, causing a decline in economy.

Anna Hazare stands up with an image of corruption free India in his mind, some not hesitating to call him Kalki, who is supposed to come in white clothes/horse. With youth and grace, with truth and honesty and with idea and smile, this man in his 70s could connect to the people of India, but not this government.

The Jan Lokpal Bill is the stronger version of Lokpall bill (See the comparison here: Lokpal vs Janlokpal bill). Anna Hazare's version of the bill gives more power to the public, to the autonomous bodies and less power to the government if the corrupt in the government body has been found. The bill has almost all the points from the government's version but little enhanced and more transparent.

The government's bill is not only weak but also discourages the common public to raise a voice against the corruption for a rough example. If a person register a complaint against a government employee for corruption, Government will provide the employee a government lawyer, and all important facilities and cover, while the person who complained will have to arrange on his own for a lawyer. If the person's claim comes out to be right then the corrupt will get a sentence of 6 months. If not, then the corrupt gets a chance of complaining against the person for false allegation under which the person might have to spend 2 years in custody.

Though it is true that Anna Hazare's bill is going to bring a lot of changes in our society, it is incapable of removing the corruption from the roots. In other words it is more like cure of the symptoms than prevention. Today politicians' mind has become so corrupt that it is not so easy to contain the corruption through one law. There are lots of issues and problems which need to be discussed and debated to bring change in society.

For a rough example, Anna Hazare's bill gives a greater power to Lokpal committee, which will have every one, from Prime Minister to MP, under them to check corruption. This will make the organization very powerful. The problem will come if by chance one of the member of the committee comes under the grip of corruption.

But we must not forget that it is the beginning of change and not the end. We will protest till the end, till everything is on the correct system. Anna Hazare has shown us the goal and the way. Now it is our duty to do our part, help him achieve his dream. It is just the beginning. We don't have to sit silent even if the bill is accepted. We have to keep an eye and see if the government doesn't cheat us again.

Also Read: Income Tax Department Raids Swiss bank Account Holders (1st Nov, 2011)


Also Read: Why BJP, NDA Government Could Not Pass the Lokpal Bill in 1999-04 Term

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These days, IAC (India Against Corruption movement by Indian People with Anna Hazare, who is considered the leader of this movement) is decided to destroy corruption by passing Jan LokPal Bill. This is needed, as corruption in India is on peak from last few years and it's destroying people by hiking prices of basic needs/ resources like petrol, gas, food etc,  even though people of India are also facing many other problems like: not being provided houses as per scheme, corruption in planning housing schemes, corruption in development of cities and villages. This happens just because of the corrupted people who are still surviving in the Government of India. Whether he/she is clerk or MP or MLA or Corrupt Officer, everywhere and everybody is corrupted just because there is no strict action against corruption by law. So, to destroy this black mark on India, Anna and the People of India are supporting Jan LokPal Bill and they just want the Govt of India to pass it to completely destroy corruption and corrupted People from the system.

Also Read: Income Tax Department Raids Swiss bank Account Holders (1st Nov, 2011)

What is Jan LokPal Bill ?

The Lokpal will be a three-member body with a chairperson who is or was a chief justice or Supreme Court judge, and two members who are or have been high courts judges or chief justices.


Implementation of the Lokpal bill will hopefully reduce corruption in India. The basic idea of the Lokpal is borrowed from the office of the ombudsman in other countries. It provides for filing complaints of corruption against the prime minister, other ministers and members of Parliament with the ombudsman. Anyone, except for a public servant, can file a complaint and the Lokpal has to complete the inquiry within six months.

The Jan Lokpal Bill envisages the following to decrease, and ultimately remove corruption from the country. 

1. An institution called Lokpal at the center and Lokayukta in each state will be set up.


2. Like the Supreme Court and Election Commission, they will be completely independent of governments. No minister or bureaucrat will be able to influence their investigations.

3. Cases against corrupt people will not linger on for years anymore. Investigations, in any case, will have to be completed in one year. Trial should be completed in the next one year so that the corrupt politician, officer or judge is sent to jail within two years.

4. The loss that a corrupt person caused to the government will be recovered at the time of conviction.

5. If any work of any citizen is not done in prescribed time in any government office, Lokpal will impose financial penalty on guilty officers. The penalty will be given as compensation to the complainant.

A citizen can approach Lokpal if his ration card, passport or voter card is not being made or if police is not registering his case or any other work is not being done in prescribed time. Lokpal will have to get it done in a month’s time. You could also report any case of corruption to Lokpal, such as ration being siphoned off, poor quality roads being constructed or panchayat funds being siphoned off. Lokpal will have to complete its investigations in a year, trial will be over in next one year and the guilty will go to jail within two years.

6. There are also safeguards against the government appointing corrupt and weak people as Lokpal members. This won’t be possible because its members will be selected by judges, citizens and constitutional authorities, and not by politicians - through a completely transparent and participatory process.

7. Action will be taken if some officer in Lokpal becomes corrupt. The entire functioning of Lokpal/ Lokayukta will be completely transparent. Any complaint against any officer of Lokpal shall be investigated and the guilty officer dismissed within two months.

8. The Jan Lokpal Bill will appropriate existing anti-corruption agencies. CVC, departmental vigilance and anti-corruption branches of CBI will be merged into Lokpal. Lokpal will have complete powers and machinery to independently investigate and prosecute any officer, judge or politician.

9. It will also be the duty of the Lokpal to provide protection to those who are being victimized for raising their voice against corrupts.

The Jan Lokpal Bill will make costs and penalties of corruption prohibitive for those who are caught in corrupt practices. The Bill provides a methodical, transparent, and fair

Some of the social blogger and facebook People trying to make fake news as this image has shown below:  Click on Image

The Image with wikileaks header bearing the photo of Julian Assange and the Data about the names of individual having black money doesn't belong to The World Reporter. The source of the image is still incognito and the verification is under process. This image has been in circulation on various social networking sites and Emails. The article takes its base from this source. Although yes, it was informed that the complete list of Indian account holders was posted on August 2nd on IP 88.80.16.63 on port 9999 .

It's true that nothing can be said about the authenticity of the names and data in the image above as we are not able to access the IP with the mention port which was supposed to be accessed using an IRC chat client. According to Wikileaks official facebook page the above image is fake and Wikileaks never published such report though they have the real report still with them unpublished.
 

Thanks to IAC and People Of India for doing something Against Corruption .........

The Image with wikileaks header bearing the photo of Julian Assange and the Data about the names of individual having black money doesn't belong to The World Reporter. The source of the image is still incognito and the verification is under process.


Also Read: Income Tax Department Raids Swiss bank Account Holders (1st Nov, 2011)
Also Read: Why BJP, NDA Government Could Not Pass the Lokpal Bill in 1999-04 Term

Supporting Articles and information on web:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/arkitectindia/message/11196
http://www.andhrabuzz.com/viewnews.php?newsid=black_money_-_indian_names_revealed_19907&category=Buzzing%20for%20the%20day
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-01-19/india/28362090_1_rudolf-elmer-swiss-bank-wikileaks-website
http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/wikileaks-will-out-indian-swiss-accounts-assange-101645
http://www.sify.com/news/indian-tv-channel-claims-receipt-of-illegal-swiss-bank-details-news-national-lbttOhfbjei.html

Claims by former Income Tax commissioner.

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We would like to share some pictures and share the feeling of Indian people about this movement from all over India ( Bharat ).

India Gate Delhi 

Delhi : City from where the movement started ( 16 August ).

7:25 Am
Anna, who has already started his fast, has been taken into preventive custody along with Arvind Kejriwal. Meanwhile, Kiran Bedi and Manish Sisodia, other two close aides of Anna also have been detained around 7:25 am on Tuesday.

Detailed : The centre of action has shifted from J.P. Park near ITO in Delhi to the Chhatrasal Stadium in capital's north, where the CRPF was deployed on Tuesday, after anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare's arrest.

 Hazare was arrested in the morning ahead of his fast over a strong Lokpal Bill. The stadium is being used to hold supporters of Hazare. Team Anna members Kiran Bedi and Arvind Kejriwal are also in the stadum. The stadium has a capacity of 16,000 people.

 
Anna himself was being moved from a guest house in Civil Lines for a medical check-up. He was likely to be shifted to Tihar Jail as a duty magistrate has been called in to Tihar.
 
Heeding to his jail bharo call, several supporters have decided to refuse bail and go to jail. In fact, Bedi has already tweeted that she will refuse bail and go to Tihar Jail.

Supporters try to stop the police vehicle carrying Anna Hazare
Mumbai : Over 3,000 people have been picked on the charges of unlawful assembly from across the city today after they held demonstrations protesting against the police action against activist Anna Hazare, hours before he was to launch his fast against corruption, police said.

Punjab And Haryana: Supporters of social activist Anna Hazare sat today on a hunger strike, took out protest marches and held dharnas at various places in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh in protest against the arrest of the anti-corruption crusader and other civil society members. A day long hunger strike was observed in Phagwara town of Punjab by the Parshuram Sena in Guru Hargobind Nagar area near Improvement Trust Office. Lawyers belonging to the Bar Association Phagwara, headed by Advocate Varinder Sharma, observed No-Work Day today to protest against Anna Hazare's arrest.

UP  & Bihar : Students of various educational institutions, including Patna Medical College Hospital, Patna College and other technical institutions took out processions in the state capital in support of Anna. State JD (U) president Vashishtah Narayan Singh, former Bihar minister Ramnath Thakur, Bardi Narayan Lal along with the hundreds of party workers, took out a procession from JD (U) office in support of Anna. Some of the academicians too vented their anger on the most vexed issue of corruption. Some prominent personalities of the Bollywood, including Manoj Tiwari, termed the arrest as an attack on democracy which people will never tolerate. Hundreds of the supporters of Anna were detained from the R-block as they were insisting to meet the Bihar Governor.

Rajasthan : Demonstrators responding to social activist Anna Hazare's call today, courted arrest in Ajmer, even as dharna and demonstration were held at several places in Rajasthan to express solidarity with the Gandhian who was arrested in New Delhi this morning. People from different outfits and walks of life gathered at the Gandhi Bhawan in Ajmer, carried out march to the Collectorate, held demonstration and about 50 people, including some BJP councillors, courted arrest there. A group of students also held demonstration at Bajrang Garh square and held dharna, a report from Ajmer said. In the state capital here, more than 200 people from different organisations, including Samagra Seva Sangh and Arya Samaj, gathered at the Udhyog Maidan near Statue Circle to hold dharna in support of Anna. Arya Samaj activists carried out procession to join in the dharna.

JAGO INDIA JAGO

The arrest of anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare triggered massive protests and demonstrations all over India where people took to the streets, agitating against Anna s arrest during the day. Aggrieved at the arrest of Anna, hundreds of people including academicians, politicians, students and commoners hit the roads to vent their anger against the actions of the Central government. The slogans "Anna tum sangharsh karo hum tumhare saath hain "(Anna we are with your struggle) were heard everywhere in the state capital as his supporters carrying banners depicting Corruption-Quit India , tricolours and posters with the photographs of Anna, shouted slogans.  

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BHOPAL : RTI Activist and Anna's supporter Shehla Masood shot dead by unknown assailants outside her house 16 August morning. Anti corruption crusader Shehla Masood found dead in her car in Bhopal. RTI becoming a death trap? Is it related to what I fear it is?

A city-based woman RTI activist was shot dead today by an unidentified person in front of her residence in the posh Koh-e-Fiza locality, police said.
“Shehla Masood was shot dead around 11 AM when she was sitting in her car,” Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Adarsh Katiyar told.The motive and details of the killing are awaited, he said adding a hunt has been launched to nab the assailant. Shehla, who sat on a fast here recently in support of Anna Hazare’s India Against Corruption campaign had also been working on a number of other things including wildlife conservation. She was actively involved in raising issues related to the deaths of tigers in the various sanctuaries of Madhya Pradesh.

Some of Last Interaction with People Via her Blog :

SUNDAY, AUGUST 14
The heart aches is unimaginable .. No matter how old we are, losing a mother is one of the deepest sorrows a heart can handle.its been 4 years

TUESDAY, AUGUST 9

Jhurjhura Tigress Narco case scheduled for Aug 16 2011 in the court now.

Her last status update on facebook said, "Gandhi: "the purpose of civil resistance is provocation." Anna has succeeded in provoking the government and the opposition. Hope he wins us freedom from corruption. Meet at 2 pm Boat Club Bhopal." 


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Arresting the Gandhian, Anna Hazare who is determined to discourage corruption in the country much before he could go for a hunger strike shows the fear in Government of loosing control. Arresting him at 7:30 in the morning from his Mayur Vihar, Delhi residence and then deciding to release him taking a U-turn shows the nervousness in the Indian Government.

As Anna refuses to come out of jail even though the Police has dispatched the release, the public and the media awaits the Government's justification on Anna's detention which has created the doubt on the democracy. With the release, government has given two options to Anna: either finish the fast in 3 days or go back to his village. Anna is demanding unconditional release for fasting at JP Park in Delhi.

Government's pendulum action has created much more trouble for themselves as the protest has spread all over the nation. People holding India's flag came out on the street to show their support for Anna proving that the movement is not backed by political elements.

Holding the flag of India the protesters showed that they are with India, but the government is not.

On this whole incident more and more comments are pouring in from the ministers, though none from the Prime Minister. For example Kapil Sibal saying "Respect the rights of the citizens who are not inolved in the movement."

P. Chidambram says, "Right to Protest has some conditions"

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In an attempt to create disturbance in Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic of India on its Independence Day, Pakistani hackers hacked and defaced the website www.indiapolice.in with a message to the people of India. “We Observes Black Day with the people of Indian occupied Kashmir on 15th August. Free Kashmir, Freedom is our goal”

The message was structured as to make the people of India loose their faith in the government. India, the so called IT superpower has been a target of many hackers from China and Pakistan in recent days.

The message asked India to free Kashmir and stop their control as soon as possible. While the hackers were quick in notifying Indian Penal Code(Act No. 45 of 1860) CHAPTER-II SEC 18, which says India is Indian territory excluding Jammu and Kashmir, they forgot that Jammu and Kashmir is given special status in India.

This message is not for Indian government but common Indian people who dont know what their government hides. For those of your politicians who boast of Kashmir being an integral part of India read your own law books.

” Indian Penal Code(Act No. 45 of 1860) CHAPTER-II SEC 18: India .India means the territory of India excluding the State of Jammu and Kashmir.”

The 15th of August is special for you because you got freedom on this day yet you should think that do you really deserve to celebrate this freedom if you do not stop the wrong doings in Kashmir. Everyday people are not only being humiliated but killed as well. Fake encounters and rape is the order of the day in Kashmir. Kashmiris have protested time and again against Indian occupation and many people were killed mostly teenagers. When media tried to show it they were banned ( eg PRESS TV ), people were arrested for even protesting on Facebook and still India claims to be the largest democracy in the world. We ZHC will reveal what Your Govt try to conceal, if you really want to be proud of your nation rise for what is right. Support Kashmiris in their dream to achieve Freedom which is everyone’s basic human right.-.- UNITED WE STAND DIVIDED WE FALL -.-

When TWR asked few Kashmiris to comment on the incidence most of them agreed that Pakistan feels anger among Kashmiris for Indian government is the result of their love for Pakistan. Pakistan often mistakes that Indians are allowed to protest against the government. If whole of the India is protesting against the corruption in the government, it doesn't mean they want Pakistan to intervene. Similarly, Pakistan should understand if Kashmiris are protesting for something it doesn't mean they want Pakistan.

According to Article 370 of the India constitution, India grants special autonomous status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The power of Indian Parliament to make laws for the said State shall be limited to;

i. those matters in the Union List and the Concurrent List which, in consultation with the Government of the State, are declared by the President to correspond to matters specified in the Instrument of Accession governing the accession of the State to the Dominion of India as the matters with respect to which the Dominion Legislature may make laws for that State; and

ii. such other matters in the said Lists, as, with the concurrence of the Government of the State, the President may by order specify.

This article specifies that except for Defence, Foreign Affairs, Finance and Communications,(matters specified in the instrument of accession) the Indian Parliament needs the State Government's concurrence for applying all other laws. Thus the state's residents lived under somewhat a separate set of laws.

On 13th November, 1974 a historical accord between Sheikh Abdullah, then Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir and Indira Gandhi was signed whose conclusion was as below.

Agreed Conclusions

1. The State of Jammu and Kashmir which is a constituent unit of the Union of India, shall, in its relation with the Union, continue to be governed by Article 370 of the Constitution of India.

2. The residuary powers of legislation shall remain with the State; however, Parliament will continue to have power to make laws relating to the prevention of activities directed towards disclaiming, questioning or disrupting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India or bringing about cession of a part of the territory of India or secession of a part of the territory of India from the Union or causing insult to the Indian National Flag, the Indian National Anthem and the Constitution.

3. Where any provision of the Constitution of India had been applied to the State of Jammu and Kashmir with adaptation and modification, such adaptations and modifications can be altered or repealed by an order of the President under Article 370, each individual proposal in this behalf being considered on its merits ; but provisions of the Constitution of India already applied to the State of Jammu and Kashmir without adaptation or modification are unalterable.

4. With a view to assuring freedom to the State of Jammu and Kashmir to have its own legislation on matters like welfare measures, cultural matters, social security, personal law and procedural laws, in a manner suited to the special conditions in the State, it is agreed that the State Government can review the laws made by Parliament or extended to the State after 1953 on any matter relatable to the Concurrent List and may decide which of them, in its opinion, needs amendment or repeal. Thereafter, appropriate steps may be taken under Article 254 of the Constitution of India. The grant of President’s assent to such legislation would be sympathetically considered. The same approach would be adopted in regard to laws to be made by Parliament in future under the Proviso to clause 2 of the Article. The State Government shall be consulted regarding the application of any such law to the State and the views of the State Government shall receive the fullest consideration.

5. As an arrangement reciprocal to what has been provided under Article 368, a suitable modification of that Article as applied to State should be made by Presidential order to the effect that no law made by the Legislature of the State of Jammu and Kashmir, seeking to make any change in or in the effect of any provision of Constitution of the State of Jammu and Kashmir relating to any of the under mentioned matters, shall take effect unless the Bill, having been reserved for the consideration of the President, receives his assent ; the matters are:

a.the appointment, powers, functions, duties, privileges and immunities of the Governor, and

b.the following matters relating to Elections namely, the superintendence, direction and control of Elections by the Election Commission of India, eligibility for inclusion in the electoral rolls without discrimination, adult suffrage and composition of the Legislative Council, being matters specified in sections 138,139, 140 and 50 of the Constitution of the State of Jammu and Kashmir.

6. No agreement was possible on the question of nomenclature of the Governor and the Chief Minister and the matter is therefore remitted to the Principals.

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Simple economic, age, gender and professional dimensions that define alcohol consumption patterns in small homogenous western nations are insufficient in a multilayered society like India. Despite adoption of western lifestyles, middle class in urban India has yet to entirely do away with the old mores and values. For few in the big city, the old values are still the core of their identity, while for others they are suitable pretences, resulting in schizophrenic environment where youngsters grow up absorbing the worst of both the eastern and the western influences.

Rural India is witnessing a different yet equally seismic shift, where the old joint-family value system and associated economic enterprises are collapsing and people are moving away from traditional professions. There is significant migration in search of livelihood due to ever shrinking size of the agricultural land holdings. Apart from the stress of displacement, a break from ones communities also removes the social safety net that keeps check on alcohol abuse. In some previously semi-arid and moderately populated regions, improvements in irrigation and industrialization of agriculture has created excess wealth and removed the need for few previously agricultural people to work with their own hands. Instant money for these people and also for the land holders in areas near big cities where prices of real estate have sky rocketed has resulted in youngsters who do not know how to handle their newfound wealth and are prone to addiction. 

Image by roberthuffstutter

Alcohol abuse combined with ready availability of opium derived drugs seeping in from our western borders has resulted in a whole generation of addicts in Punjab, Jammu, Haryana and parts of Rajasthan. In the flux of values and economic relations of our multilayered society four denominators are can still describe the major pillars of alcohol related problems in India: 1) lack of information 2) adulteration of alcohol 3) inefficient alcohol regulation policies and 4) the paucity of appropriate medical intervention.

While the debate over the merits of alcohol consumption is hotly contested worldwide, the views about alcohol consumption in India usually do not come in shades of gray but often in black and white. There is a taboo concerning alcohol consumption in any amount, especially by women and conservative sections of society, but also in general due to religious teachings of the Vaishnav sect of Sanatan Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Sikhism, and Arya Samaj and the remnants of anti-alcohol Gandhian drive. Actual practice of alcohol consumption is altogether a different matter, which covers the whole gamut from healthy consumption to fatal abuse. History has taught us that making something a taboo does not solve the problem; it only makes the forbidden fruit more tempting. Taboos encourage closeted and unsafe behavior like binge drinking in the case of alcohol or unsafe sex in the case of premarital relationships. Humans have been enjoying alcoholic beverages since prehistoric times. Alcohol has been celebrated in the Vedic hymns, Shaivism, Buddhism, Tantra, streams of Catholicism, and many indigenous animist and tribal traditions that celebrate alcohol in moderation. In fact many anthropologists and biologists claim that it is likely that alcohol from fermented grains was used as food source much before the bread was invented. In fact, if consumed in moderate amounts over many years, alcohol can have numerous positive health consequences. Moderate amounts of alcohol have been correlated with reducing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, improving cardiac functioning, and reducing stroke incidences, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, gallbladder diseases, arthritis, renal cell carcinoma, thyroid cancer, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma among many other diseases. 

When alcohol is consumed in an uncontrolled and excessive manner however, the story is much different. Binge drinking, especially as a repeat pattern, is associated with many health problems including alcohol poisoning, liver sclerosis, cardiovascular diseases, sexual dysfunction, and fetal alcohol syndrome in unborn children of pregnant women. The World Health Organization estimates that 2.5 million deaths per year worldwide are caused by alcohol related incidents, mostly due to heavy inebriation. A strong correlation exists between heavy alcohol consumption and crime. Also, heavy drinking can result in blackouts that leave people vulnerable to crimes such as rape. Apart from health issues, the economic drain and the disruption of societal peace due to increased crime can be quite a big strain on society. Heavy alcoholics (not mild healthy drinkers) are more often involved in domestic abuse than rest of the population. So instead of making something taboo we need to understand a drink or two a day is good for health, unless the woman consuming is pregnant or if someone is patient of a kidney or a liver disease. On the other hand heavy amounts, i.e. more than three to five drinks a day, depending on the size of person, not just causes health issues but it wrecks families. The solution is in moderation for those who like to drink and not in professing abstinence.

Apart from lack of information on alcohol for people to make their own informed choice, adulteration of alcohol and lack evidence based regulation policy are reason for grave alcohol related health problems. Alcohol poisoning is due to non-ethanol alcohols: frequently methanol, also known as wood alcohol, which is highly toxic. Methanol can cause blindness and even death in sufficient quantity. It is sometimes added into illicit alcoholic beverages to increase their potency. In fact, most hooch related tragedies, like the recent one in Gujrat, have happened in dry states or on dry days in wet states. This is not surprising. When one cannot get regulated good quality alcohol and it is taboo to consume alcohol, people resort to shoddy alcohol consumption in hiding. Such prohibition on alcohol also results in binging due to fear of being caught. Failure of prohibition in Gujrat and Mizoram and earlier in Andhra should be an eye opener. This counterproductive nature of prohibition is a global trend and the disasters from the American prohibition era and Pakistani prohibition from the Zia time onwards should act as stern reminder for anyone professing prohibition. One of the most laughable and pretentious acts of alcohol regulation in India is the current ban on alcohol advertisements while allowing alcohol manufacturers to advertize low-selling, almost hypothetical products like music CDs and bottled water that have the same name as their alcoholic beverage. Well-intentioned grass roots movements due to lack of information frequently push for prohibition and so do the self-benefiting NGOs that are merely acting as fronts for converting black money to white through Hawala schemes. One needs a non-prohibitionist, informed grass root movement to set the minds of ruling political elite to focus on the problem of addiction and alcohol abuse in India.

We are also missing well-trained physicians with information on efficacy and availability of de-addiction drugs and an awareness of benefits of psychological, exercise and vocational therapies. Appropriate information to both the health professionals and the family of addicts can result in much needed counseling and support required for anyone wanting to quit alcohol addiction.

I hope as India strives to maintain its much hyped growth rate it also stops its infantile approach in dealing with alcoholism and many other health issues that are part of reason why people’s quality of life is not going up at the same rate as economy. What is needed of people is to be informed of the beneficial and harmful effects of alcohol, shed away taboos that do not serve any good and understand that addiction is a disease that can be cured in most instances and the sooner one intervenes the better one can expect the outcomes to be. What is needed of the government is to have a smart regulation of alcohol that will add to revenue, ensure quality of alcohol, and spread information on the ills of alcoholism without making it the forbidden fruit.

Dr. Sukant Khurana is a nueroscientist at Section of Neurobiology, University of Texas at Austin 

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The recent massacres in Norway highlight the urgent need for an intelligent, well-informed international debate on the shared challenge of countering violent extremism.

European and Asian governments grappling with different forms of extremist ideologies, including the rising popularity of far-right parties and groups propagating hate and intolerance, can set the ball rolling by using their regular Asia-Europe Meetings (ASEM) to discuss the challenge.

Events in Norway are a powerful reminder that no country is immune from the evil acts of extremists, whether perpetrated by “lone”, unhinged, gunmen such as Anders Behring Breivik or members of Al Qaeda, its affiliates and other terrorist organisations.

The killings in Oslo and Utoya are also a powerful illustration that in an inter-connected and globalised world, where people and ideas move rapidly across borders, no country can tackle extremism on its own. “Almost no week goes by without an act of terrorism taking place somewhere in the world,” says the United Nations.

Equally importantly, Norway’s tragedy should spark a strong global debate on combating rising intolerance and the challenge all countries face in establishing – and maintaining – societies which embrace and encourage diversity and give full freedoms and fundamental rights to minorities.

So far, the focus is on combating cross-border terrorism, with governments working together within the United Nations and on a bilateral level on developing strategies against Al Qaeda and its affiliates.

The United Nations oversees the implementation of the assets freeze, travel ban and arms embargo imposed by the Security Council on individuals and entities associated with Al-Qaeda. The International Civil Aviation Organization has set international standards to protect airports and aircraft while the European Union, the World Bank and other organizations have rules to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

And last but not least, NATO forces in Afghanistan are fighting Al Qaeda and Taliban operatives while the Alliance’s ships undertake regular anti-terrorist patrols in the Mediterranean.

The EU and the US, among others, are engaged in active discussions on countering radicalization – but the focus inevitably is on “Islamist” groups, especially so-called “home-grown” American and European radicals of Muslim descent (or Muslim converts) who run the risk of being recruited by Al Qaeda.

Such initiatives as well as many similar bilateral actions helped the exchange of counter-terrorism data, intelligence and information. Increasing cooperation among police forces, security services and legal organizations has led to the foiling of many terrorist plots.

International discussions, however, now require a stronger focus on inconvenient truths which are much too often swept under the carpet: the rise in many parts of the world of groups and organizations which fuel hatred and violence on religious, ethnic and cultural grounds.

As Cecilia Malmstrom, European Commissioner for Home Affairs, has said, Breivik's manifesto “is a product of a very disturbed man, but unfortunately we recognise some of these sentiments in Europe today”.

“I have many times expressed my concern over xenophobic parties who build their unfortunately quite successful rhetoric on negative opinions on Islam and other so called threats against society. This creates a very negative environment, and sadly there are too few leaders today who stand up for diversity and for the importance of having open, democratic, and tolerant societies where everybody is welcome," she said in a post on her personal blog.

In Europe, Breivik’s actions should be a wake-up call for police forces as regards the growing power of neo-Nazi groups and other far-right, often anti-Muslim and xenophobic organizations which fan the fires of hate and often encourage violent action. Breivik said in his rambling blog that he drew inspiration from Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders who has compared the Koran to “Mein Kampf” and from US extremists.

Asian governments must take stronger action to combat rising ethnic, religious and sectarian violence, discrimination against religious minorities and other vulnerable groups. Groups such as Laskar-e Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad and Harakat ul Mujahedeen, with links to Al Qaeda and the Taliban, continue to wreak havoc in Pakistan and India. In South-East Asia meanwhile, governments are grappling with organizations such as Jemaah Islamiah, Abu Sayyaf and Kumpulan Mujahideen Malaysia.

Asian and European leaders meeting in Beijing in 2008 agreed to “take concerted action to further promote inter-faith understanding and exchanges” – and the 7th ASEM Interfaith Dialogue will be taking place in Manila in October.

The ASEM summit also promised “leadership in working towards building a world where different cultures and civilizations co-exist in harmony, equality and mutual respect”.

Policymakers, religious leaders and scholars from both Asia and Europe hold regular inter-faith discussions in which they underline respect for “values universal to all civilizations such as solidarity, tolerance, recognition of human rights and fundamental freedoms”.

The discussion should now move beyond relations between cultures and civilizations to cover what happens within societies and what governments can do at home to promote tolerance of diversity and to counter extremist views, whatever their origin.

ASEM can become a forum for not just an exchange of views but also sharing of best practice information – the strategies that work and those that do not – in building more tolerant societies.

In addition to religious leaders, the debate should be extended to include representatives of media, teachers, minorities, human rights groups and other non-state actors which have a broad societal outreach.

Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg has said his country’s response to the deadly attacks will be to become more democratic and open. Already the inter-faith services held across Norway in response to Breveik’s murderous acts have been an example of how an open society should respond to such issues.

Norway has applied to join ASEM. Even before it does so, ASEM partners can help turn Mr Stoltenberg’s pledge into reality.

Shada Islam is a journalist in Brussels with a long experience of EU-Asia relations. This is a part of a series of articles being published by Ecorys Research and Consulting, as member of the COWI Consortium which is under contract to the European Commission, to look at different aspects of the multi-faceted Asia-Europe relationship. This article represents the views of the author and does not commit the European Commission in any way.

ASEM has 48 partners, including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Cambodia, China, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Malta, Mongolia, Myanmar, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Romania, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, United Kingdom, Vietnam, the ASEAN Secretariat and the European Commission.

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