South Asia Citizens Web

SANN I am a proud Indian. Not only in the context of the interesting times that we live in, when we seem on the verge of becoming a global superpower, but also for much of what it has stood for down the ages. Though admittedly, I do not share the imbecile pride of the uninformed who believe that we are the font of all civilization & that had it not been for us the rest of the world would still be walking around sans knickers. In the middle of all this heady & contentious pride, (…)

The Nation, February 6, 2009
Letter From Sri Lanka
The port city of Mullaitivu, the last bastion of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), has fallen. The army has captured the rebel chief Prabhakaran’s armored bunker and are looking to rout the LTTE. Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s gamble to end the country’s decades-old civil war through a military show of strength seems to be paying off. On January 2, after a long siege, the Sri Lankan Army captured the rebel capital of (…)

InfoChange News & Features, February 2009
Reporting communal conflict
After 20 years of almost continuous communal violence, the basic principles of reportage—facts are sacred, comment free; get both sides of the story; check your facts before writing them—are not enough in reporting communal riots. The guiding rules for reporters should be: look for the background; don’t perpetuate the stereotype; find residents who deal with both communities; corroborate victims’ accounts as well (…)

Seminar, January 2009
Seize the moment
Good can sometimes emerge from the ugly, evil moments; when all seems lost, a ray of light can emerge from the darkest corners. In her essay in response to the savage assault on Mumbai, ‘The Monster in the Mirror’ published by Outlook and The Guardian, UK, Arundhati Roy quite aptly places the stark options before us today and we all must choose. Only two choices, no third option: Justice or Civil War. Its difficult to disagree with what (…)