Wednesday, December 30, 2009

War Against Naxals: The War Against Adivasis, Fishermen and Peasants!


Source : Spring Thunder

War Against Naxals: The War Against Adivasis, Fishermen and Peasants!
Resist the Naxal Witch Hunt

Organise Under the Naxal Leadership to Fight Recolonization!


Campaign across Tamilnadu
Public Meeting, Chennai
January 30, 2010

Dear working people

The Indian State has declared a civil war called ‘Operation Green Hunt’ to crush the Maoists and the Naxalbari movement. P.Chidambaram, the Indian home minister, has declared that the primary objective of the offensive is to decimate Maoist Guerillas, who are functioning in Chattisgarh, Jharkand, Orissa and in the vast jungles of Dandakaranya, along the borders of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. Army headquarters and air bases are being constructed inside the dense jungles. Army men are being trained in anti-guerilla warfare. Over 1 lakh army personnel, such as CRPF, Cobra, C-60, Grey Hounds, Indo-Tibet Border Force, Anti-Naxal Striking force, etc., are being stationed in these areas. American satellites and Indian choppers are used to spy these jungles. Indian army officials are guiding the war, and the central government has allocated Rs.7,300 crores to the fund this war against its own people, the real, ancient inhabitants of the country.
Earlier, the Chattisgarh government had formed Salwa Judum, a mercenary force with the same objective. The Salwa Judum torched 700 villages and drove out 3 lakh adivasis from their homes. Almost 50,000 adivasis were driven out of their villages and are still languishing in roadside camps. Now, with the Operation Green Hunt, more adivasis are being driven out of the forests. Viswaranjan, the DGP of Chattisgarh, has openly declared that the bloody war waged by the Sri Lankan army against the Sri Lankan Tamils will be the guiding light of this war.


The secret behind Operation Green Hunt is quite obvious. The dense jungles and hills of Dandakaranya are repositories of rare mineral wealth. It is home to 28 important minerals such as high-quality iron ore, gold, copper, diamonds, bauxite, lime stone, coal, granite, silica, and quartzite. Besides these minerals, the area is rich in forest produce and water resources. Maoist Guerillas pose the biggest hurdle to the greed of the MNCs and Indian compradors, whose sole objective is to plunder resources. This is the reason behind the fury of Chidambaram and the likes of him.

Yes, the state has sold out all the hills, waterways and forests of Dandakaranya without the knowledge of the adivasis, the rightful inhabitants of this area! The Orissa government has handed over the 40-km long Niyamgiri hills to Vedanta (the Holding company of Sterlite), a British Multinational Corporation. The present market value of Bauxite in these hills is 200 Lakh Crores. The government has opted for a mere 7% as royalty. Almost 16% of coal and 20% of iron ore of the entire country is present in the four districts of Chattisgarh, and the state government has already pledged these resources to compradors such as Tata, Essar and Jindal. The present value of iron ore in the world market is 210 dollars (Rs.10,000) per tonne, and these capitalists, in their benevolence, have generously agreed to pay Rs.27 per tonne! Hundreds of such MOUs, which are outrageously anti-adivasis, anti-people and pro-capitalist, have been signed.

Even adivasi villages have not been spared; they have been sold out to the comprador capitalists without the knowledge of the people. In Jharkhand alone, which is actually a small state, 1,10,000 acres of lands have been transferred to the corporate giants. More than 10 lakh adivasis will be evicted from here in the coming days. Comprador capitalists such as Tata, Birla, Essar, Jindal and Mittal and MNCs such as Vedanta, POSCO, Holcim, and Rio tinto are the greedy vultures circling the forests of Dandakaranya for the bloody spoils. The adivasis vehemently fight against displacement and against each corporate giant that tries to swallow their lands and livelihood. Vedanta has completed building its Aluminium factory, but is still unable to touch the Bauxite hills. The Tata iron factory in Gopalpur has come to a grinding halt due to a mass resistance. Jindal is unable step into Jharkand to set up mines and extract the gold and diamonds. This resistance is not because of the offensive of the Maoist armed squads, but because of rising people struggles against aggressive recolonization.

Manmohan Singh has openly admitted in the parliament that the growth of left-wing extremism in areas enriched with natural wealth will affect the ‘investment climate’. The subtext is whoever fights against the capitalist plunder will have to face the wrath. This war is not only against the Maoists, but also against people.

The jungles belong to the adivasis by right. However, they are being stripped off this right so that the resource-rich jungles can be opened up for corporate plunder. Similarly, the fishing community has the right to fish in the seas. But, their rights are being limited by borders to ensure huge profits for Multinational Fishing Corporations. If the fishing community resists, the state may come up with a Blue Hunt!

Seeds traditionally belong to the peasants by right. But, today, seeds have become the property of MNCs. When the peasants fight for seed rights, the police file cases against them and may even wage a war against the peasants. It’s not only the rights of the adivasis, the fishing community and peasants that are getting crushed, but also the rights won through various struggles by the vast masses of the country that are being crushed. The adivasis in Orissa are being evicted to ensure the ‘investment climate’ for the South Korean company, POSCO. And, to ensure the same ‘investment climate,’ workers in Chennai are being thrown out of their jobs for the crime of building a union in the South Korean company, Hyundai. All rights, from minimum wage to job security, are being stripped off from the working class to ensure the ‘investment climate’ for the MNCs. Government schools and colleges are left uncared for to facilitate the ‘investment climate’ for private education sharks. Similarly, the oxygen of the government hospitals is plugged off to ensure the ‘investment climate’ for private hospital chains.

This battlefield spreads beyond the jungles of Dandakaranya. The forms of the war may change with respect to the place, but the aim of the war is the same—To Recolonize the Country to serve the interests of MNCs and Imperialists. All ballot box parties are birds of same feather in implementing recolonization policies and fight only when it comes to sharing the plunder.

Some years ago, Manmohan Singh proudly claimed that from the days of signing the GATT agreement in 1994, no government at the centre went against the implementation of liberalization and privatization, irrespective of the party. Yes, the legislators of all parties have become capitalists. They have become agents, contractors and shareholders of MNCs. The parliament has become a club of millionaires. Bureaucrats and judges have become the servants of multinational capitalists.

It’s only the Naxal revolutionaries who stand firm in the political battlefield, genuinely committed to the people’s cause, outside this decaying political scenario. They are the revolutionaries who cannot be bought over by bribes, who are selfless, who are fearless, and not swayed by power or positions. People are coming out of the illusions spread by the ballot box parties with increasing recolonization and are moving towards the Naxal revolutionaries. No wonder Manmohan Singh declares Naxalism to be the single largest ‘internal security threat,’ and everyone, from Advani to Buddhadeb, acknowledges this fact without any hesitation. The ruling classes have clearly identified and declared their real enemy. At the same time, they continue to spread illusions among people through cash for votes and populist schemes. When people defy the vote hunt and organize under Naxalism, Green Hunt starts.

It’s an outright lie that the war is being waged only because Maoists are undertaking an armed struggle. People are seething in anger with the numerous recolonization onslaughts. The state understands this fact and also knows that only Naxalites have the ability and courage to ignite the spark among the masses. Hence, it tries to snuff out this spark. This is the aim of the Naxal hunt; the ‘Operation Green Hunt.’

Resist the Naxal Witch Hunt!
Say No to All Anti-People Agreements
Made with the Comprador Capitalists and MNCs !
In Solidarity with the Struggling Masses!
Rise Against Recolonization!




Peoples Art And Literary Association
Peasants Liberation Front
Revolutionary Students And Youth Front
New Democratic Labour Front
Tamilnadu.

Contact:
Com. Mukundan,
110, Second Floor, Corporation Complex,
63, Arcot Road, Kodambakkam, Chennai – 600 024.
Ph:94448 34519

Courtesy: Pamphlet issued by PALA and its associate organizations, Tamilnadu.

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