Did Some Indian "Intellectuals" Miss the Point? Yes some did did. Some signed on to oppose the India's govt's decision to deny a visa to a Denver radio journalist, barring him from entering JKL -- Jammu Kashmir Ladakh.
This guy Barsamian, no disrespect intended(a US-born citizen, no less than Awlaki) was, from my perspective, correctly denied a visa to from enter JKL -- Jammu Kashmir Ladakh. The broadcaster was denied access to a part of India which reportedly experiences daily attempts at cross-border infiltration sponsored by Pak's ISI, which in turn is allied with the Haqqani network, both of which are supported by US taxpayer $$, via the CIA and the Pentagon.
Given these proven realities:
Instead of reporting 4m JKL, Barsamian needs to focus on the disastrous military adventurism of his own US govt (and mine) in the South Asia region.
Glad you were refused entry bro, you got plenty of work to do right here, stateside.
I strongly suggest you stay home for a while, spend some time researching your US govt (and mine) particularly its treacherous alliances paying and training Pak's ISI, OBL and the so-called Haqqani network. Your govt and mine paid and trained them ALL.
Be ethical. I'm trying, as well. Don't become an unwitting or (worse) intentional arm of your neo-imperial govt and mine -- the USA.
Lastly, the centenary observance of the Armenian Genocide of 1915-23 shd be of some interest to you. Hope you get all your visas in Ankara, good luck with that. I am planning to join others to mark the centenary observance of the Armenian Genocide right here at the UN in April 2015, if they'll let us of course. Gotta try. Join us. Turkey is in denial, gotta persuade them to give up denial and offer a profound apology and at least some symbolic compensation (reparation is unlikely) to the descendants of the survivors of that horrific event.
Dr. Chithra KarunaKaran
City University of New York
Ethical Democracy As Lived Practice
http://EthicalDemocracy.blogspot.com
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My comment on the Armenian Genocide 1915-1923, FYI Barsamian:
Dear David Barsamian,instead of complaining abt not getting a visa to JKL, India,
Please be sure to visit Turkey and protest Turkey's denial of the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923.You are Armenian, hope you get all your visas in Ankara!
The centenary observance of the Armenian Genocide (I plan to organize this at the UN) by the Govt of Turkey is less than 3 years away.
Please raise your voice NOW against Turkey's failure to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide.
Thanks.
see article below
http://www.hardnewsmedia.com/comment/reply/
Intellectuals protest the deportation of legendary broadcaster David Barsamian
We write to protest the denial of entry to David Barsamian by Immigration Authorities at the New Delhi airport in the early hours of September 23, 2011, and we write to draw attention to the growing arbitrariness of the Indian Government in dealing with dissent of any kind.
David Barsamian is a veteran broadcaster, and founder and director of Alternative Radio, a weekly one-hour public affairs programme offered free to all public radio stations in the US, Canada, Europe and beyond. For more than 25 years Alternative Radio has provided information, analyses and views that are frequently ignored in other media. Structured around intensive interviews conducted by David Barsamian, these programs are carried by over 125 radio stations and heard by millions of listeners. He is the author of numerous books with Edward Said, Eqbal Ahmad, Howard Zinn, Noam Chomsky, Arundhati Roy and Tariq Ali.
David is a friend for many of us, but he is an older friend of India. He first came as a young man in 1966, and has since returned innumerable times, immersing himself in its music, languages and poetry. He has taught himself Urdu and Hindi, learned to play the Sitar, and closely follows events in the sub-continent.
When he was deported on September 23 he had a visa which was valid for another 5 years, and although he last visited in February 2011, he had no intimation or warning that he was in violation of any of the conditions under which his visa was issued. The only thing that the Immigration Officers were able to tell him was that he was “banned” from entering the country, and that the reasons were a “secret”.
The deportation of David Barsamian unfortunately mirrors the manner in which Prof Richard Shapiro was arbitrarily stopped from entering India in November 2010. We are dismayed that this power to send people back from the airport is slowly becoming a weapon, used to discipline and silence people who draw any kind of attention to uncomfortable truths about India. A year later Prof Shapiro still has no formal response on why he was stopped, and when he can regain his right to travel to India, where he has family.
We therefore ask that the ban on David Barsamian and others like Richard Shapiro be revoked, and the Government of India not impede their return to India.
We demand that the right to travel and the right to free exchange of ideas between scholars, journalists, artists, and human rights defenders be respected and protected, and that government agents not authorize the denial of entry and eviction of visitors to India, or monitor their movement. Free exchange of ideas is one of the most basic human rights and values in free democratic societies. Freedom of travel is one of the most important avenues for furthering such exchange among peoples. Recognizing this, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which India has ratified, protects freedom of expression, right to travel and scientific exchange.
Signed:
Amar Kanwar, Film-maker
Amit Bhaduri, Academic
Amit Sengupta, Journalist
Anuradha Chenoy, Academic
Ania Loomba, Academic
Angana Chatterji, Academic
Aunohita Majumdar, Journalist
Aruna Roy, MKSS, Activist
Arundhati Roy, Writer
Ashok Prasad, Academic
Ajay Skaria, Academic
Basharat Peer, Writer
Dibyesh Anand, Academic
Harsh Dobhal, Journalist
Jean Dreze, Scholar
Joel Geier, International Socialist Review
Kamal Mitra Chenoy, Academic
Kamala Visveswaran, Academic
Lalitha Gopalan, Academic
Manisha Sethi, Academic
Mirza Waheed, Writer
Najeeb Mubarki, Journalist
N Raghuram, Academic
Mridu Rai, Academic
Nagesh Rao, Academic
Pankaj Mishra, Writer
Parvaiz Bukhari, Journalist
Philip Gasper, Academic
Prashant Bhushan, Lawyer
Rahul Roy, Film-maker
Sanjay Kak, Film-maker
Satya Sivaraman, Journalist
Suresh Nautiyal, Journalist
Simona Sawhney, Academic
Shripad Dharmadhikary, Researcher
Shohini Ghosh, Academic
Shuddhabrata Sengupta, Artist
Sukumar Muralidharan, Journalist
Suvir Kaul, Academic
Saba Dewan, Film-maker
Snehal Shingavi, Academic
Sherry Wolf, International Socialist Review
Vandana Shiva, Academic
Vrinda Grover, Lawyer
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