धान को कूटती एक लड़की - जोजोदाग
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
American Indian, Chief Seattle letter
American Indian, Chief Seattle, wrote to President Franklin Pierce in 1854...
How can you buy or sell the sky, the warmth of the land? The idea is strange to us। If we do not own the freshness of the air and the sparkle of the water, how can you buy them?Every part of this earth is sacred to my people। Every shining pine needle, every sandy shore, every mist in the dark woods, every clearing and humming insect is holy in the memory and experience of my people. The sap which courses through the trees carries the memories of the red man. The white man's dead forget the country of their birth when they go to walk among the stars. Our dead never forget this beautiful earth, for it is the mother of the red man. We are part of the earth and it is a part of us. The perfumed flowers are our sisters; the deer, the horse, the great eagle, these are our brothers. The rocky crests, the juices in the meadows, the body heat of the pony, and man--all belong to the same family.So, when the Great Chief in Washington sends word that he wishes to buy our land, he asks much of us. The Great Chief sends word he will reserve us a place so that we can live comfortably to ourselves. He will be our father and we will be his children. So we will consider your offer to buy our land. But it will not be easy. For this land
is sacred to us.This shining water that moves in the streams and rivers is not just water but the blood of our ancestors. If we sell you land, you must remember that it is sacred, and you must teach your children that it is sacred and that each ghastly reflection in the clear water of the lake tells of events and memories in the life of my people. The water's murmur is the voice of my father's father.The rivers are our brothers, they quench our thirst. The rivers carry our canoes, and feed our children. If we sell you our land, you must remember, and teach your children that the rivers are our brothers, and yours, and you must henceforth give the rivers the kindness you would give any brother.We know that the white man does not understand our ways. One portion of land is the same to him as the next, for he is a stranger who comes in the night and takes from the land whatever he needs. The earth is not his brother but his enemy, and when he has conquered it, he moves on. He leaves his fathers' graves and his children's birthright is forgotten. He treats his mother, the earth, and his brother, the sky, as things to be bought, plundered, sold like sheep or bright beads. His appetite will devour the earth and leave behind only a desert. I do not know. Our ways are different from your ways. The sight of your cities pains the eyes of the red man. But perhaps it is because the red man is a savage and does not understand.There is no quiet place in the white man's cities. No place to hear the unfurling of leaves in spring, or the rustle of an insect's wings. But perhaps it is because I am a savage and do not understand. The clatter only seems to insult the ears. And what is there to life if a man cannot hear the lonely cry of the whippoorwill or the arguments of the frogs around a pond at night? I am a red man and do not understand. The Indian prefers the soft sound of the wind darting over the face of a pond, and the smell of the wind itself, cleansed by rain or scented with the pine cone.The air is precious to the red man, for all things share the same breath: the beast, the tree, the man, they all share the same breath. The white men, they all sha
re the same breath. The white man does not seem to notice the air he breathes. Like a man dying for many days, he is numb to the stench. But if we sell you our land, you must remember that the air is precious to us, that the air gave our grandfather his first breath also received his last sigh. And if we sell you our land, you must keep it apart and sacred, as a place where even the white man can go to taste the wind that is sweetened by the meadow's flowers.So we will consider your offer to buy our land. If we decide to accept I will make one condition. The white man must treat the beasts of this land as his brothers.I am savage and I do not understand any other way. I have seen a thousand rotting buffaloes on the prairie, left by the white man who shot them from a passing train. I am a savage and I do not understand how the smoking iron horse can be more important that the buffalo that we kill only to stay alive.What is man without the beasts? If all the beasts were gone, man would die from a great loneliness of spirit. For whatever happens to the beasts, soon happens to man. All things are connected.You must teach your children that the ground beneath their feet is the ashes of our grandfathers. So that they will respect the land, tell your children that the earth is rich with the lives of our kin. Teach your children what we have taught our children, that the earth is our mother. Whatever befalls the earth befalls the sons of the earth. Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself.Even the white man, whose God walks and talks with him as friend to friend, cannot be exempt from the common destiny. We may be brothers after all. We shall see. One thing we know, which the white man may one day discover---our God is the same God. You may think now that you own Him as you wish to own our land; but you cannot. He is the God of man and his compassion is equal for the red man and the white. The earth is precious to him, and to harm the earth is to heap contempt upon its Creator. The Whites, too, shall pass; perhaps sooner than all other tribes. Contaminate your bed and you will one night suffocate in your own waste.But in your perishing, you will shine brightly, fired by the strength of the God who brought you to this land and for some special purpose gave you dominion over this land and over the red man. That destiny is a mystery to us, for we do not understand when the buffalo are all slaughtered, the wild horses are tamed, the secret corners of the forest heavy with the scent of many men, and the view of the ripe hills blotted out by talking wires. Where is the thicket? Gone. Where is the eagle? Gone.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
injuctic with Indiginous in Jharkhand
The social, economics and cultural identity of nature based indigenous society is nourished and developed only amidst trees, bushes, plants, biodiversity, rivers, streams, waterfalls, forests, hills, and fields. Indigenous grow enough grain their fields to last six months. Nature provides food for the rest of the year in the form of edible leaves. Roots, tubers, fruits and flowers. A variety of grasses, roots, tubers, and creepers act as protective armour for the adivasis’ health. While adivasis peasants cannot afford the high prices of anti-malaria tables in these times of economic liberalization. They pluck bhuineem from the forest and treat malaria patients with it.
This represents the life and culture of tribal communities today also because still after so many centuries or decades we still live with nature in harmony. Some of our communities never extract milk from a cow, because they feel that is for the cafe baby cow. We never take all the fruits as we feel the birds and other animal have there share on it. In paddy field we take only amount of water which is need for crops rest we return to the water system. Adivasi society gives back double what it takes from
nature. That is the reason why forests exist, and the rivers a d streams sings, where adivasi live. Kansi flowers dance in the breeze among fields of paddy the Kunwar-Bhado months. Yellow flowers of Su ai and Arhar can be seen smiling amidst Goda crops.
It is obvious that a tribal village contains fruit bearings trees like Neem, Mango, Imli, Katahal, Jamun, Badhar, Bel, Karanj, Pipal, Pakar, Bans, koynar, Putkal, Kushum, Kendu, Beer, Dumar, Mahua etc. These trees are the cultural-social and economical backbone of the tribal society. Nature is heritage of the Indigenous communities, they don’t feel that they are master or owners of it. Same time they return, they protect, they preserve as they are they part of entire system. The relation between the nature and indigenous is just like the Father-Mother and son. That’s way we have not right to sale it. It is not a commodity. Adivasi communities see it as a communities heritage not as individual properties. In UA when whites come and wanted to buy lands from the Indigenous communities. Our elders laugh and replied –what kind of joke you are doting? Can we buy/ sale sun-rays, can we sale or purchase blowing air, can we sale Sea’s water? These are the few examples of our values.
But this is now become threat to our life as all MNC/ Government for their benefit . they are keep coming back to us as they want more natural recourses. But on the other hand the non-tribal or the outsider’s approach is to just earn wealth in any means. Either distorting the mother earth they can go to any extant. If you look in Jharkhand they constructed mega Dam, mines, mega project all I the name of Development and they literary they had raped the Mother earth. They destroyed all forest, they destroyed the water bodies, we can see the result no vegetation, rivers are dieing, our communities who’s live is depend on them, they resisted against all these injustice, they ere victims. Jharkhand Government has singed MOU’S with 101 big Company to establish the Industries. Out of these Co They were forcefully removed from their ancestral land and dumped in them slum of big companies 98 are Steel Plants. Here I want to say that every project are need Land, Water, Coal Minis, Iron Orr, Road, and other basic needs. If
all these will be establish indigenous Communities will totally uprooted from their ancestral’s heritage in Jharkhand. After Independence of India or in sixty years nearly 80 lakhs of Jharkhandi peoples have been displaced in the name of Development. Out of 80 lakhs 80% displaced are indigenous. Till now they didn’t get any kind of job or they didn’t get ideal rehabilitation or any compensation. Also they tried to omit our culture our values our history and our identities(Australia and Canada- also India-FRA Act 2006-historical injustices) is asking for forgiveness what they have done in past with our indigenous brother and sister) . So now we promised that WE WILL NOT GIVE A SINGLE INCH OF LAND .WE NEED FOOD GRAINS, NOT STEEL. JHARKHAND IS OURS NOT A JAGIR OF ANY COMPANY. WE WANT DEVELOPMENT OF THE LAND, NOT INDUSTRY.
In the age of globalization the MNC are coming for more resources for their more benefit, again tribal are in for front against they activities. For their greed, these powerful people did crime against nature so nature is retaliating in different form of clement change, natural disasters. is the result of it. Indigenous rights of our communities to live with the Earth, forest, water, air and to protect them against mining, dams, forestry, power industry, corporate and the displacement and pollution they cause. Earth, forest, water, air and their living beings have right to be treated according to our sustainable practices and world-views, by which our life is adapted to the local biodiversity, water, soil, climate act. So, we should all have our equal say to discuss our experiences on how environmental justice can be advanced on the earth by indigenous people’s sustainable life, right, world-views and by their fight against mines, dams, oil and gas extraction and pollution.
We should try to make the broader society to understand how the rights of indigenous peoples sustainable life are crucial for saving Earth’s life, forests, water, air and environmental justice for all living beings.
It is never only the hills that break, because with their destruction the social system of the adivasis also gets broken down. When the mountain peaks are dismantled, and the soil and sand tore down, the, economic and cultural backbone of Indigenous society breaks. Their strength of community whittles down along with the loss of their language, and their ecologically conscious way of life takes its last breath. When disembowel, broken down hills are abandoned, after there’s nothing left to abuse, adivasi identity itself goes down the drain. Sustainable subsistence which millions of Adivasis got directly from natural regeneration of land, forest and water, has been displaced and destroyed by minis, dams, plantations, etc, to produce unsustainable commercial products for only those who can buy. So sustainable life of land, forest, water and millions of peoples has been destroyed in the name of Development project, with huge funds co summed recently to publish such projects as’ poverty reduction’, climate change mitigation, nature conservation co-development etc.
World’s biggest global steel corporation Arcelor Mittal plans now to build to Jharkand world’s largest steel plant to produce 12 million tons of steel annually. It requires 12 thousads acres of land and 1500 megawatt new power plant and destroyes thus local jungles, water sources, ecosystems which people use to live and the entire environment with the black smoke and gases belched out of the factories. So Mittal launched in July now 100 million euro carbon fund to promote its business ‘ to strategically engage in the carbon market and promote climate friendly solution that are relevant for the steel I industry ‘. It will be working with leading venture capital firms..to support the commercialization of clean e energy
technologies’ which boost such ‘ reduction of greenhouse gas emissions’ which has ‘ relevance for the steel industry and its customers’(11.7.2008 Carbon Yatra/The Hindu). Mittal cooperates also with oil and Natural Gas Corporation, which also makes climate profits, allied with the UCIL for uranium mining alliance, etc. all of them bringing displacement, pollution, radiation and diverse hazards to our ancestral lands.
By 100 million euros Mittal produces show of calculation how steel industry is clean development of climate change mitigation, legitimizing their higher investment development to build world’s biggest steel plant, and to increase widely its mining activities, displacing and polluting more and more natural environment and sustainable life.
The publicity, measures and calculation of ‘ climate change mitigation’ which are widely funded by businesses like Mittal’s and other biggest global polluters, by World Bank etc. will not reduce pollution or consumption-no matter if also some indigenous representatives will be financed to participate to discuss. Mittal looks ‘at investment opportunities in renewable energy, energy efficiency, methane capture and greenhouse gas reducing technologies-all of which have the potential to generate carbon credits under the kyoto Protocol, Arcelar Mittal intends to use the carbon credits received from these Clean Development Mechanism and Joint Implementation projects for compliance in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme.
This kind of commercializing destruction of land, forest , water, air, and their sustainable indigenous life, shall not be accepted as ‘climate change mitigation’, poverty reduction, corporate accountability,’ etc. This is the message to be brought to the civil society of Europe, European governments and to the world. The public discussion should hear the voice of indigenous people who live in areas where land, forest, water, air and sustainable indigenous life are
destroyed, threatened or displaced by corporate business under global commercial and environmental policies. People need to know, hoe minis and industries which serve their European/global consumption, like Mittal, which are supported to displacement, unsafe work condition s a d deaths in mine accidents. And even the life of the people who dare to publicly say what is happening are getti g threatened, like earlier is South Affrica and now in India. The picture, which the public will however get as result of UN negotiations and ‘ climate change mitigation’ publicity, is however the opposite.
Mittal is a member of the United Nations Global Compact and places priority on achieving high standards of corpaarate responsibility in its operations in more that 60 countries around the world. Through its partnership with UNDP in china, Arcelor Mittal brings its global expertise on ways to increase energy efficiency and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions. It also brings forth best practices on corporate responsibility towards the environment’ MDG Carbon Programme will assist 12 provinces in China to embrace the Clean Development Mechanism and along with the other programmes in the UNDP-Arcelor Mittal co-opration will enhance Chian’s capacity development’ to combat proverty, mitigate climate change and raise environment’ awareness.. as a landmark initiative in showing how corporate responsibility and business partnership can help achieve global and local sustainable development goals.
As Mittal and other biggest global polluters have put big funds to UN, MDGs, UNDP, UNFCCC, Global Compact etc. and are thus awarded by all these, our friends in the United Nations and UN negotiations are not well-placed to stop this global policy of commercial destruction of the life of la d, forest, water and air.
This represents the life and culture of tribal communities today also because still after so many centuries or decades we still live with nature in harmony. Some of our communities never extract milk from a cow, because they feel that is for the cafe baby cow. We never take all the fruits as we feel the birds and other animal have there share on it. In paddy field we take only amount of water which is need for crops rest we return to the water system. Adivasi society gives back double what it takes from
nature. That is the reason why forests exist, and the rivers a d streams sings, where adivasi live. Kansi flowers dance in the breeze among fields of paddy the Kunwar-Bhado months. Yellow flowers of Su ai and Arhar can be seen smiling amidst Goda crops.
It is obvious that a tribal village contains fruit bearings trees like Neem, Mango, Imli, Katahal, Jamun, Badhar, Bel, Karanj, Pipal, Pakar, Bans, koynar, Putkal, Kushum, Kendu, Beer, Dumar, Mahua etc. These trees are the cultural-social and economical backbone of the tribal society. Nature is heritage of the Indigenous communities, they don’t feel that they are master or owners of it. Same time they return, they protect, they preserve as they are they part of entire system. The relation between the nature and indigenous is just like the Father-Mother and son. That’s way we have not right to sale it. It is not a commodity. Adivasi communities see it as a communities heritage not as individual properties. In UA when whites come and wanted to buy lands from the Indigenous communities. Our elders laugh and replied –what kind of joke you are doting? Can we buy/ sale sun-rays, can we sale or purchase blowing air, can we sale Sea’s water? These are the few examples of our values.
But this is now become threat to our life as all MNC/ Government for their benefit . they are keep coming back to us as they want more natural recourses. But on the other hand the non-tribal or the outsider’s approach is to just earn wealth in any means. Either distorting the mother earth they can go to any extant. If you look in Jharkhand they constructed mega Dam, mines, mega project all I the name of Development and they literary they had raped the Mother earth. They destroyed all forest, they destroyed the water bodies, we can see the result no vegetation, rivers are dieing, our communities who’s live is depend on them, they resisted against all these injustice, they ere victims. Jharkhand Government has singed MOU’S with 101 big Company to establish the Industries. Out of these Co They were forcefully removed from their ancestral land and dumped in them slum of big companies 98 are Steel Plants. Here I want to say that every project are need Land, Water, Coal Minis, Iron Orr, Road, and other basic needs. If
all these will be establish indigenous Communities will totally uprooted from their ancestral’s heritage in Jharkhand. After Independence of India or in sixty years nearly 80 lakhs of Jharkhandi peoples have been displaced in the name of Development. Out of 80 lakhs 80% displaced are indigenous. Till now they didn’t get any kind of job or they didn’t get ideal rehabilitation or any compensation. Also they tried to omit our culture our values our history and our identities(Australia and Canada- also India-FRA Act 2006-historical injustices) is asking for forgiveness what they have done in past with our indigenous brother and sister) . So now we promised that WE WILL NOT GIVE A SINGLE INCH OF LAND .WE NEED FOOD GRAINS, NOT STEEL. JHARKHAND IS OURS NOT A JAGIR OF ANY COMPANY. WE WANT DEVELOPMENT OF THE LAND, NOT INDUSTRY.
In the age of globalization the MNC are coming for more resources for their more benefit, again tribal are in for front against they activities. For their greed, these powerful people did crime against nature so nature is retaliating in different form of clement change, natural disasters. is the result of it. Indigenous rights of our communities to live with the Earth, forest, water, air and to protect them against mining, dams, forestry, power industry, corporate and the displacement and pollution they cause. Earth, forest, water, air and their living beings have right to be treated according to our sustainable practices and world-views, by which our life is adapted to the local biodiversity, water, soil, climate act. So, we should all have our equal say to discuss our experiences on how environmental justice can be advanced on the earth by indigenous people’s sustainable life, right, world-views and by their fight against mines, dams, oil and gas extraction and pollution.
We should try to make the broader society to understand how the rights of indigenous peoples sustainable life are crucial for saving Earth’s life, forests, water, air and environmental justice for all living beings.
It is never only the hills that break, because with their destruction the social system of the adivasis also gets broken down. When the mountain peaks are dismantled, and the soil and sand tore down, the, economic and cultural backbone of Indigenous society breaks. Their strength of community whittles down along with the loss of their language, and their ecologically conscious way of life takes its last breath. When disembowel, broken down hills are abandoned, after there’s nothing left to abuse, adivasi identity itself goes down the drain. Sustainable subsistence which millions of Adivasis got directly from natural regeneration of land, forest and water, has been displaced and destroyed by minis, dams, plantations, etc, to produce unsustainable commercial products for only those who can buy. So sustainable life of land, forest, water and millions of peoples has been destroyed in the name of Development project, with huge funds co summed recently to publish such projects as’ poverty reduction’, climate change mitigation, nature conservation co-development etc.
World’s biggest global steel corporation Arcelor Mittal plans now to build to Jharkand world’s largest steel plant to produce 12 million tons of steel annually. It requires 12 thousads acres of land and 1500 megawatt new power plant and destroyes thus local jungles, water sources, ecosystems which people use to live and the entire environment with the black smoke and gases belched out of the factories. So Mittal launched in July now 100 million euro carbon fund to promote its business ‘ to strategically engage in the carbon market and promote climate friendly solution that are relevant for the steel I industry ‘. It will be working with leading venture capital firms..to support the commercialization of clean e energy
technologies’ which boost such ‘ reduction of greenhouse gas emissions’ which has ‘ relevance for the steel industry and its customers’(11.7.2008 Carbon Yatra/The Hindu). Mittal cooperates also with oil and Natural Gas Corporation, which also makes climate profits, allied with the UCIL for uranium mining alliance, etc. all of them bringing displacement, pollution, radiation and diverse hazards to our ancestral lands.
By 100 million euros Mittal produces show of calculation how steel industry is clean development of climate change mitigation, legitimizing their higher investment development to build world’s biggest steel plant, and to increase widely its mining activities, displacing and polluting more and more natural environment and sustainable life.
The publicity, measures and calculation of ‘ climate change mitigation’ which are widely funded by businesses like Mittal’s and other biggest global polluters, by World Bank etc. will not reduce pollution or consumption-no matter if also some indigenous representatives will be financed to participate to discuss. Mittal looks ‘at investment opportunities in renewable energy, energy efficiency, methane capture and greenhouse gas reducing technologies-all of which have the potential to generate carbon credits under the kyoto Protocol, Arcelar Mittal intends to use the carbon credits received from these Clean Development Mechanism and Joint Implementation projects for compliance in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme.
This kind of commercializing destruction of land, forest , water, air, and their sustainable indigenous life, shall not be accepted as ‘climate change mitigation’, poverty reduction, corporate accountability,’ etc. This is the message to be brought to the civil society of Europe, European governments and to the world. The public discussion should hear the voice of indigenous people who live in areas where land, forest, water, air and sustainable indigenous life are
destroyed, threatened or displaced by corporate business under global commercial and environmental policies. People need to know, hoe minis and industries which serve their European/global consumption, like Mittal, which are supported to displacement, unsafe work condition s a d deaths in mine accidents. And even the life of the people who dare to publicly say what is happening are getti g threatened, like earlier is South Affrica and now in India. The picture, which the public will however get as result of UN negotiations and ‘ climate change mitigation’ publicity, is however the opposite.
Mittal is a member of the United Nations Global Compact and places priority on achieving high standards of corpaarate responsibility in its operations in more that 60 countries around the world. Through its partnership with UNDP in china, Arcelor Mittal brings its global expertise on ways to increase energy efficiency and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions. It also brings forth best practices on corporate responsibility towards the environment’ MDG Carbon Programme will assist 12 provinces in China to embrace the Clean Development Mechanism and along with the other programmes in the UNDP-Arcelor Mittal co-opration will enhance Chian’s capacity development’ to combat proverty, mitigate climate change and raise environment’ awareness.. as a landmark initiative in showing how corporate responsibility and business partnership can help achieve global and local sustainable development goals.
As Mittal and other biggest global polluters have put big funds to UN, MDGs, UNDP, UNFCCC, Global Compact etc. and are thus awarded by all these, our friends in the United Nations and UN negotiations are not well-placed to stop this global policy of commercial destruction of the life of la d, forest, water and air.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Welcome To Dayamani Barla's Blog with love from Jharkhand
I am just now starting my own blog. So far I have been mostly writing in Hindi in local newspapers in Jharkhand. Now I should be able to write on my own blog and keep you updated about various activities related to tribal issues, women's empowerment, exploitation of natural resources by various multinational companies etc.
Thanks for your support and solidarity with some of the most exploited tribal communities.
-Dayamani Barla
Ranchi, Jharkhand, India
Phone: 9431104386
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)