[Reader-list] Invitation:Release of Final Report--International Initiative for Justice in Gujarat (IIJG)

[Laxmi Murthy]

Invitation to the Release of the Final Report of the International Initiative for Justice in Gujarat (IIJG)

THREATENED EXISTENCE: A Feminist Analysis of the Genocide In Gujarat

Wednesday, 24 December, 2003. 3.30 pm. Indian Women�s Press Corps, 5 Windsor Place, Near Hotel Meridien, New Delhi.

The IIJG came into being to develop a feminist critique of justice and democratic governance in the context of the genocide of Muslims in Gujarat last year. The final report of the Initiative, Threatened Existence will be released in New Delhi by an eminent panel comprising :

   Leila Seth, first woman judge of the Delhi High Court, and the first woman Chief Justice of a state High Court (Himachal Pradesh) � who will speak on the urgent need for the equal and just application of the rule of law on all citizens of the country. 
   Shabana Azmi, well known actor and former MP, who will speak on increased communalism in our times. 
   Urvashi Butalia, feminist activist and publisher, who will focus on the specific impact of increased communalism on women.

The gathering will also be addressed by two panellists of the IIJG, Farah Naqvi and Uma Chakravarti. 

�       Threatened Existence is a comprehensive document based on hundreds of testimonies, eyewitness accounts and other relevant information. It makes the following major points:

�       Twenty two months after the massacres of February/March 2002, the violence continues �in different and frightening forms with long-term consequences on the lives of all members of the Muslim community particularly women��

�       Sexual violence is central to the Hindutva project in Gujarat, and the use of rape and sexual assault, occurred with the knowledge of highly placed State actors.

�       The ongoing persecution of the Muslim community constitutes Crimes against Humanity under International Law. 

PLEASE DO JOIN US FOR THE RELEASE EVENT.

For as the report states in the conclusion, "This report can operate as a reflection on the inadequacy of existing processes - both legal and otherwise - to provide justice and redress to victims� we need to understand the genocidal nature of the Hindutva project so as to emphasize the critical responsibility of intervention that lies with both, civil society and the State."

The panelists of the IIJG were feminist jurists, activists, lawyers, writers and academics from all over the world: Anissa Helie (Algeria/France), Gabriela Mischkowski (Germany), Nira Yuval-Davis (UK), Rhonda Copelon (USA), Sunila Abeysekara (Sri Lanka), Farah Naqvi (India), Meera Velayudan (India), Uma Chakravarti (India) and Vahida Nainar (India).

The International Initiative for Justice in Gujarat and was set up by: Citizen�s Initiative (Ahmedabad), People�s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL)-Shanti Abhiyan (Baroda), Communalism Combat, Aawaaz-e-Niswaan, Forum Against Oppression of Women (FAOW) and Stree Sangam (Bombay), Saheli, Jagori, Sama, and Nirantar (Delhi), and Organised Lesbian Alliance for Visibility and Action (OLAVA, Pune).



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