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This Bulletin is being relayed to you as a part of ACHA's South Asian community service program. It is sent out on the first Wednesday of each month. It goes to individuals in Austria, Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Japan, Kenya, Kuwait, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, U.K., and USA, and Zimbabwe. Please let us know (pritamr@open.org), if you want to have your name removed from our email distribution list. Also, please let us know if someone should be added to the list. Comments, letters to editor, and short articles are also welcome and can be sent to the same address. The Bulletin consists primarily of material selected from the printed and the electronic media. It aims to highlight the news of peace and harmony in the world, to shed light on issues of concern to South Asians, and to provide them information of general interest. The Bulletin is edited by Pritam K. Rohila, Ph.D. Its editorials and the selection of its material are his sole responsibility and do not necessarily represent the views of or an endorsement by any other Director, or member of ACHA or Dr. Ingrid H. Shafer, who has graciously donated space for it on her server and is volunteering her time to maintain our Web Page. ACHA is a non-profit, non-political organization. It is dedicated to promote peace and harmony among South Asians regardless of where they live. ACHA Board of Directors appreciates people's goodwill and support for this cause. For more information about ACHA and comments about ACHA Bulletin, please contact us at by telephone at 503.362.4635, or 503.251.0070, or by email at pritamr@open.org, or visit our Web Page at http://ecumene.org/ACHA/ACHA.htm.
CONTENTS
CONTENTS: Section A
CONTENTS: Section B (This section will be sent only to those
who request it with a blank email to <pritamr@open.org> with words "Section
B" as the subject.
GREETINGS: HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY *Harmony blesses and enriches me and all my relationships. From Daily Word 1/22/2000 (<www.unityworldhq.org>) Anger is an emotion that has an immediate, dramatic effect on the one feeling anger and on the one to whom the anger is directed. Feelings of anger can adversely affect the digestive system, raise blood pressure, and interfere with the ability to think clearly. How can I possibly feel good when I am upset or angry? I can't. So I do what blesses me and those who live and work with me: I am peaceful and harmonious within myself and in my relationships. I can pass along my feelings of serenity to others through conversations and interactions. When we are all willing to accept harmony as the way we live and work and communicate with one another, we make peaceful interactions a reality in life. Yes, harmony sustains, enriches, and helps heal my relationships. Improvements in ACHA Bulletin format In our continuing effort to bring information about issues of mutual interest to our readers in a way that is most convenient and least intrusive to them, we will no longer send you ACHA Bulletin with an attachment. Instead we will send the sections of ACHA Bulletin usually included in the attachment, separately, but only to those who request it. Also, to protect the readers's email addresses from misuse by others, we are exploring the possible ways we can send the Bulletin to each individual separately. * January, Mumbai, India: The strained relations between India and Pakistan
notwithstanding, the people of the two countries remain friendly. This
was evident at the inauguration of the four-day international seminar on
humane habitat, organized here by the Rizvi College of Architecture. Twenty-one
architecture students from Lahore arrived here on Friday to take part in
the conference.
*January, Pakistan: "We didn't find the Pakistan we were looking for," said a student from India. He was among the dozen history students from Ramjas College, Delhi, who visited Pakistan for one freezing cold and foggy week this month on their annual college excursion. They left Delhi on January 5 by SAMJHOTA EXPRESS and visited Lahore, Islamabad, Taxila and Peshawar. But Madhuresh Kumar, whose family lives in Patna, Bihar and his fellow travelers weren't disappointed at the Pakistan they did find, even after Kargil and hijacking of an Indian Airlines plane. "One thing was common: people were kindly and the response was amazing when they heard we were from India. The love and affection we received made me feel ashamed of what our brethren think of Pakistan in their mental darkness." Having arrived during Ramzan, they respected the local norms and abstained from eating and drinking all day while sight-seeing, led by someone they had never met, Arif Usmani, a young history teacher from Government College who dedicatedly showed them around when asked for his help by historian Dr Mubarik Ali. There was one tense moment in a "typical rang birangi Pakistani bus" heading for Qissa Khawani bazar when a Ramjas student innocently sat down on an empty seat next to a woman, only to realize that the entire bus was staring at him, horrified. He was roundly scolded by the woman, and the Pathan driver touched his ears in a tauba on learning where the offending passenger was from. (From "Using the boundary as a bridge" by Beena Sarwar, in the News on Sunday, via South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch www.mnet.fr/aiindex>). *January 2, Hyderabad, AP, India: In spite of the growing climate of anger and outrage that was developing regarding the hijacking of Indian Airlines plane from Khatmandu, Nepal, a group of courageous people, under the auspices of Pakistan-India Forum organized CANDLE LIGHT VIGIL at the statue of one of Andhra's revolutionary poets on the Tank Bund, appropriately opposite the towering and benign presence of the Buddha in the middle of the Hussain Sagar Lake. Individuals carried placards and postcards in Telugu, Urdu and English urging people to vote for peace. People sang 'Hum honge Kamayab, Hogi Shanti Charon Aur Aik Din" ("We shall overcome; There will be peace all around one day") (From a personal account by Lalita Ramdas Via South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch: aiindex@mnet.fr). * January 3, Shepherdstown, W.V., USA: ISRAEL and SYRIA returned to the peace table here today for the second time in less than a month. U.S. president Clinton and secretary of state Madeleine Albright met separately with Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak and Syrian foreign minister Farouk al-Sharaa (Statesman Journal (<statesmanjournal.com>). *January 5, Islamabad, Pakistan: Minister of Petroleum and Natural Resources, Usman Aminuddin, announced that Pakistan is likely to allow TRANSIT PIPELINES to its neighbors, particularly India, for natural gas. The project is estimated to bring Pakistan about US$600 million in revenues (From the Friday Times Via South Asia Citizens Web <http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex>). *January 5, Washington, D.C., USA: "Violence begets violence." "Peace fathers peace." "So the civilized world should choose the peace option." Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai, Executive Director of the Kashmiri American Council (KAC), today once again condemned the terrorist HIJACKING of an Indian Airlines jet, the killing of a newly wed, and the use of hostages to obtain the release of prisoners in professed pursuit of a political objective: namely, self-determination for Kashmir. Dr. Fai declared that terrorism is never an acceptable means for any political end, and that Kashmiris themselves universally support peaceful means to obtain self-determination." He also called attention to the sharp condemnation of the hijacking by the All-Parties Hurriyet Conference (APHC), which styled it inhumane and a setback to the cause of self-determination (From Kashmiri American Council via NChang9999@aol.com). * January 5, Jerusalem: An Israeli officer shook hands with Palestinian officials and muttered "Bye, folks," before he led a convoy of jeeps out of an Israeli army base in the West Bank today, as Israel started to implement the latest agreement between both sides. The agreement yesterday ended weeks of deadlock regarding Israeli WITHDRAWAL out of 5 percent of the West Bank. Another withdrawal from 6.1 percent of the area is scheduled on January 20 (Statesman Journal (<statesmanjournal.com>). * January 5, Shepherdstown, W.V., USA: Talks between Syria and Israel today turned to the key and the most difficult issue of a FORMAL BORDER between them. The last internationally recognized border was a 1923 line between then-French-controlled Syria and the British mandate of Palestine. That gave the latter control of a 10-yard-wide strip of beach on the Sea of Galilee. But the chief Syrian demand has been Israel withdrawal from Golan Heights to where their respective forces stood on June 4, 1967, before the start of the Six Day War (Statesman Journal (<statesmanjournal.com>). *January 6, New York, NY, USA: U.S. District Judge Shirley Wohl Kram approved a $40 million settlement today between an estimated 1,000 HOLOCAUST victims or their heirs and two Austrian banks accused of confiscating their assets. The judge described the settlement as fair and adequate (Statesman Journal (<statesmanjournal.com>). *January 6, Washington, Dc, USA: As the holy month of Ramadan came to a close and they celebrated the festival of EID AL-FITR, U.S. President Bill Clinton, in his message to Muslims across the United States and around the worls, said "We hope and pray for a world where all faiths are respected; where people of different beliefs and ethnic backgrounds can live together in harmony, finding strength and joy in our differences and in our common humanity. And we pray that the new moon will bring a new era of peace -- in the Middle East and all across the world -- so people can emerge from the shadows of violence and make better lives for their children"(From the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State, Via Information Times <www. informationtimes.com>). * January 7, Islamabad, Pakistan:"The LAHORE PROCESS must continue," said Dr Mubashir Hasan, former finance minister of Pakistan, here today. He pointed out that there is no other option available to India and Pakistan but to "make up", as confrontation would lead them nowhere."Top leadership, in both the countries, and the proverbial man on the street, want peace. It is only a minority which has a vested interest in hate-mongering and serving interests foreign to the sub-continent," he said. Dr Hasan emphasized that the conflagration at Kargil and the hijack drama make it all the more imperative to resolve the problem between the two countries (From News Network International). * January 8, New Delhi, India: In his Eid-ul Fitr message President K. R. Narayanan hoped the festival would help foster BROTHERHOOD among people and instill a sense of unity and pride in the composite culture of India (PTI, via India West <www.indiawest.com>). * January 16, Chittagong, West Bengal: Stock exchanges of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka have agreed to launch the South Asian Federation of Exchanges to help develop the STOCK MARKETS and form common standards. Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, president of the Chittagong Stock Exchange, and Hiran Mendis, director general of Colombo Stock Exchange were elected chairman and vice chairman, respectively (Reuters, via India West <www. indiawest. com>). * January 19, Algiers, Algeria: About 80 percent of the rebels fighting an insurgency in Algeria surrendered under a PEACE OFFER made by president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, announced the interior minister here today (Oregonian <www.oregonlive.com>). * January 20, Ankara, Turkey: As another evidence of WARMING RELATIONS between rivals, who nearly went to war three times in the last 25 years, Greek foreign minister George Papandreou offered, during his official visit here today to coach Turkey in its bid to join the European Union. Also, he and his Turkish counterpart Ismail Cem signed four agreements promoting cooperation in tourism, the environment, the protection of investments and fighting terrorism and organized crime (Oregonian <www.oregonlive.com>). * January 20, Calcutta, West Bengal, India: Lahore Declaration should be implemented in letter and spirit to bring about a lasting peace between India and Pakistan, General (Retd) Mohammad Nasir Akhtar of the Pakistan army told newsman here today after taking part in a PEACE MARCH in the city. He added "If Lahore declaration fails to serve the desired purpose, the two countries will have to find out a new way to normalize bilateral relations that suffered serious jolt after the Kargil conflict and the hijacking of the Indian Airlines Airbus to Kandahar'', reports PTI. Brigader (Retd) R A Hamid of Pakistan army and founder-member of the Pakistan-India Forum for Peace, said. said ''there is no alternative to peace efforts which will have to be initiated afresh because the two nations can't live with wars.'' Claiming that the "peace movement" in his country was "small but alive", Pakistani journalist N B Naqvi, a member of the Indo-Pakistan Peoples' Forum, said that despite their fledgling state, Pakistani peace organizations were making efforts along with their Indian counterparts to resolve disputes between the two countries. Trinamool Congress MP Krishna Bose stressed the need for establishing people-to-people contact for normalizing relations between the two neighbors, and said: "Whatever happens, we must continue dialogues with Pakistan." They were all in Calcutta to participate in three-day South Asia Peace Meet and All India Constructive Workers' Conference organized by Akhil Bharat Rachnatmak Samaj and Harijan Sevak Samity. Inaugurating the meet, on January 18, journalist and former diplomat Kuldip Nayar said after India and Pakistan gained freedom, there had been only a change in the leadership and not in attitude. Asserting that "there is no alternative to peace", he regretted that the two neighbors continued to increase their spending on arms." From Indian Express and Asia Pulse Via South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch (www.mnet.fr/aiindex>). *January 25, New Delhi, India: In the traditional speech given on the eve of Republic Day celebrations, Indian president K.R. Narayanan said "We want to live in PEACE WITH PAKISTAN. We want the relations to conform to the best traditions of good neighborliness, eschewing terrorist interventions and propaganda of hatred." In Pakistan, the country's military ruler (Information Times, <www.InformationTimes.com>). *January 25, New Delhi, India, GENERAL PERVEZ MUSHARRAF sent Republic Day messages to India's leaders, saying Islamabad wants "good and tension-free" relations with India (Information Times, <www.InformationTimes.com>). PEACE ORGANIZATIONS (In this section of each issue of ACHA Bulletin we feature one organization that is engaged in promotion of peace and harmony among South Asians. Please send us information at <pritamr@open.or> about any such organizations that you know). Pakistan Peace Coalition (PPC) (<www.mnet.fr/aiindex/PPC>) is a joint Forum of Action Committee Against Arms Race (ACAAR) in Karachi, Joint Action Committee for People's Rights (JAC) in Lahore and the Citizen's Peace Committee (CPC) in Rawalpindi Islamabad. Amidst the religious, sectarian, political, tribal and other forms of violence and intolerance prevalent in the country, the leaders of these groups sensed increased insecurity and threat to life when the threat of a nuclear holocaust in the subcontinent appeared after the May 98 nuclear tests by the two countries. It was this realzation of the impending threat of extinction which impelled some organizations and individuals to unite into a national coalition of peace activists. In August and September 1998, a Working Group consisting of I. A. Rehman, Beena Sarwar, Shahtaj Qizilbash, Karamat Ali, B. M. Kutty, M. B. Naqvi, Omar Asghar Khan, Jennifer Bennet, Zafarullah Khan and Saeed Ahmed met in Islamabad to discuss the future strategies for the peace movement in Pakistan. The responsibility to resist mass violence, conflict and death, and to seek out support of civil society in the renewal of faith in life and peace led to the formation of a national body, Pakistan Peace Coalition (PPC) with the commitment: 1. To oppose nuclear weapons in all forms and in all countries, rejecting weapons of mass destruction and nuclear deterrence as legitimate ways of achieving national security; 2. To seek global nuclear disarmament, and for this purpose cooperate with and seek support from movements, organizations and groups elsewhere in the world that are engaged in this pursuit; 3. To pursue, as an immediate measure, nuclear disarmament and peace
in the region of South Asia, and for this purpose join hands with the regional
movements and organizations working for this goal;
5. To counter the increasing trends of intolerance and violence in Pakistani society. A Co-ordinating Committee of PPC was constituted with B. M. Kutty (ACAAR, Karachi) as the Convener, and Beena Sarwar and Shahtaj Qizilbash (JAC, Lahore), Omar Asghar Khan and Jennifer Bennet (CPC, Rawalpindi - Islamabad), M. B. Naqvi and Karamat Ali (ACAAR, Karachi) and Dr. Sarfraz Khan and Ms. Bushra Gohar (CP, Peshawar) as members. 2 members from Quetta were to be coopted later on when the peace committee there became functional. On December 31, 1999, PPC held a seminar, "Prerequisites for peace in the 21st century and the role of Pakistan," at the Press Club, Karachi, Pakistan. M.B.Naqvi, and Pervez Hoodbhoy, chaired and Dr. Nayer, Hasan Abidi and Mr. Karamat spoke at the seminar. Also they passed the following resolution. "At the millennium's end, it is completely clear that five decades of confrontation between Pakistan and India have led to nothing but misery, deprivation, and war. Apart from draining resources away from the needs of our peoples, the nuclear tests of May 1998 have put the subcontinent under the shadow of nuclear catastrophe. Kargil was a disaster for Pakistan and has worsened our relations with India, as well as further decreasing Pakistan's credibility and support internationally. India has lost much, but Pakistan has lost still more. There is no solution to the Kashmir problem in sight, and economic collapse has been a constant possibility since the nuclear tests. In view of the seriousness of the situation, the Pakistan Peace Coalition calls upon the people and leadership of Pakistan to: "Recognise that Pakistan is now at the mercy of international lending organizations. This is nobody's fault but or own. We have consistently diverted resources away from the real needs of our people towards heavy consumption by the country's elite, and towards military spending. If Pakistan is to prosper, it will have to cut down military expenditure sharply. We welcome the recent reduction by 5% of the defense budget, but this is insufficient. "Recognize that nuclear war is not just an abstract possibility but something very real. Pakistan and India must enter into negotiations on nuclear issues, initially with the aim of creating confidence-building measures to decrease the chances of the accidental use, but with complete denuclearisation as the ultimate goal. Pakistan should sign the CTBT immediately. "Recognize that our position on Kashmir has not brought us any closer to winning the rights of the Kashmiri people. Pakistan and India must be willing to move away from their maximalist positions towards some compromise that respects the wishes of the Kashmiri people as well." On January 31, in cooperation with the Movement in India for Nuclear
Disarmament (MIND), PPC
*A new beginning in south Asia by Stephen P. Cohen (From Brookings Institution Policy Brief #55, January 2000, Via South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch <www.mnet.fr/aiindex>. Request the full version from <pritamr@open.org> with the word "Beginning.") Stephen P. Cohen is a Senior Fellow in Foreign Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution. He is also the author of many books and articles on India and Pakistan, including the forthcoming India: Emerging Power; The Pakistan Army (second edition, 1998), and Brasstacks and Beyond: Perception and Management of Crisis in South Asia (1995)]. A U.S. policy that responds only to the region's development of nuclear weapons and the risk of nuclear war will fail, and forfeit other important American interests in the process. A heightened engagement with India and Pakistan, dealing with the causes of regional conflict and not only its symptoms, might not only reduce the risk of war but also could promote important American economic, strategic, and humanitarian interests. Such a fresh start in South Asia would accord India a more important place in America's world-view, but would not ignore Pakistan. It could begin with a high profile visit by the U.S. president to the region, an institutionalization of the strategic dialogues between Washington and New Delhi, and the strengthening of economic and strategic ties between the two democracies. As for Pakistan, which faces the prospect of instability to the point of chaos, the United States should take the lead in helping develop its civilian institutions by responding positively to the new Pakistani government's efforts to eradicate corruption, reform its economy, and over time restore democracy. *Battle for the Republic. By Kamal Mitra Chenoy, Associate Professor of Political Science, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. (From the Hindu, 1/30/00 via South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch <www.mnet.fr/aiindex>. Request the full version from <pritamr@open.org> with the word "Republic"). What must also be remembered and lauded is the relative success of the secular experiment, after the horrendous communal conflagration of the Partition and the assassination of the Mahatma by Hindutva zealots. The most multi-lingual country moved both towards linguistic States and linguistic federalism with constant but substantial accretions to the list of official languages in the Eighth Schedule. But this secular, multi- cultural fabric is now under sustained assault. The continuing attacks on the tiny Christian community as well as the Hindu Kabirpanthis in Jammu, coupled with strident Hindutva rhetoric along with the sustained infiltration of Sangh Parivar activists into State institutions, especially in the educational and media sectors, threaten the republic and its future. The NDA regime sponsored attempt to rewrite both Indian history and the Constitution is part of the same communal project to convert the republic into an authoritarian, upper caste neo-Brahminical Hindutva state. *Pakistan in the year 3000 by Pervez Hoodbhoy. (Request the full version from <pritamr@ open.org> with the words"Year 3000"). Dr. Hoodbhoy is Professor of High-energy Physics at Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad. He is also a featured writer at Chowk. Visit him at Particle Politics.) Human intervention is compressing eons into millennia, centuries into months. Comes the year 3000. How then shall the world look? The Smarts will be merrily flying around the solar system, occasionally taking a vacation to Mars, establishing contact with distant civilizations, and perhaps traveling by way of worm-holes and time warps to distant galaxies. The primitive Internet that existed a thousand years ago will have been replaced by a vast system of distributed Quantum computers with protein molecules serving as memory chips. The Smarts will have conquered disease, modified the aging gene, devised beautifully nuanced modes of expression far subtler than exists in the best of today's poetry and music. With minds symbiotically connected to massively parallel systems, they will create ever more beautiful systems of mathematics and resolve problems of physics much too deep for us to even imagine today. And the Dumbos? They will be the neo-Taliban of all faiths, religions, and countries. This bunch of fragmented and fractious groups, consumed by hatred for the Smarts as well as each other, will fight out blood feuds and disputes with origins thousands of years into the past. They shall be helpless in the face of global pollution and drug resistant microbes because their education shall be no more than singing of past glories and safeguarding ideological frontiers, even as the rest of humankind is crossing frontiers of outer space. Like the present ones across our western border, who shoot down supersonic aircraft with American Stingers and run jeeps fueled by Shell gasoline, the Dumbos will continue to live off what the Smarts invent and are willing to part with. Their morality will continue to center on matters related to procreation. As always they will blame fate, believe the cause of their misery is deviation from the True Faith, energetically purge unbelievers from their midst, and revel in the past. *Time to reassess policies, by M.B. Naqvi (From Dawn 1/16/00 Via South Asians Against Nukes <aiindex@mail.mnet.fr>. Request the full version from <pritamr@open.org> with the word "policies"). The fact of the matter is that it is time for Pakistanis to reassess basic policies, including the validity of the assumptions and attitudes underlying them. This has been necessitated by the accumulating evidence that none of Pakistan's basic policies is working with a reasonable expectation of achieving the stated aim....Pakistan has to assert, for once, that it does not need or want a war - no matter for what reason. War must be avoided. *Hijacking peace by Usmaan Raheem Ahmad (From Council for an Independent Kashmir ~ USA <cikusa@hotmail.com>. Request the full version from <pritamr@open.org> with the word "Hijacking"). Kashmiri society rejects extremism. Kashmir's Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist population share an ancient heritage of pluralism and tolerance unparalleled in the region. Simply put, Kashmiris want to see an end to the Indian, Pakistani, and Chinese occupation of their homeland. They hope that their freedom can finally mean an end to the nuclear-charged Kashmir conflict and the type of crises and violence that incessantly spawn from it. Furthermore, the rising threat of terrorism in the region must be attacked at its roots. *Give peace a chance by Irfan Husain (From Dawn 1/29/00 via South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch <www.mnet.fr/aiindex> Request the full version from <pritamr@open.org> with the word "Chance"). Given the pre-eminence of the army in our dealings with India, it makes eminent sense for New Delhi to agree to negotiations now. The Indian leadership is well aware that ultimately, it is the army high command that will determine the course of any future talks from the Pakistan side, irrespective of who is occupying the Prime minister's House in Islamabad.... *Throw the rascals out by Irfan Husain (Dawn 01/08/00, Via South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch <aiindex@mnet.fr>. Request the full version from <pritamr@open.org> with the word "Rascals"). By keeping the region in a constant state of turmoil, they have diverted attention from the real issues of poverty, and prevented the people from demanding decent governance and a measure of prosperity. If there is indeed a conspiracy, it has been hatched jointly by the politicians and the ruling elites of South Asia in an effort to conceal their incompetence and venality. *Review of the constitution of India Sir, President K.R. Narayanan's views on the review of the constitution, expressed on the 50 anniversary of the republic need to be taken with utmost seriousness (www.rediff.com/news/2000/jan/27pres1.htm). Dr. Narayanan feels the present attempt to 'review' the constitution is totally unwarranted as constitution's basic premises of, responsibility and answerability should not be touched at all. Our present constitution is the product of National struggle for freedom drafted through the constituent assembly, which had the representative character. It is based on the laudable principles of Liberty. Equality and Fraternity. These principles are the core of our democracy. The current instability, which is being projected as the major problem of our country, should be understood as the sign of turmoil in the society rather than as a sign of failure of the constitution. We also have to question as to whether a panel, whatever be its 'level' can have a representative character to review a document which is the product of the representative body-the constituent assembly. The present move of the BJP Govt. to appoint a 'high level' panel to review it is a motivated attempt to work towards its long-term agenda of Hindu Rashtra. Some years ago BJP's affiliate VHP's highest body- Dharma Sansad passed a resolution calling for a change in the constitution. As per them it is an anti-Hindu constitution so it should be changed and a Hindu constitution should be brought in. BJP's parent body RSS has been clamoring for Hindu Rashtra right since its inception. In the light of these facts the BJP's move's dangers are very apparent. We call upon all those valuing the democratic values to come forth and call for the scrapping of this sinister move of the BJP Govt. Dr. Ram Puniyani, Secretary- EKTA (Committee for Communal Amity), B-64, IIT Qtrs, Powai, Mumbai, Phone-5775045, 5783522, <bmrrpia@cc.iitb.ernet.in> *India and Pakistan should abolish nuclear weapons Dear Dr. Rohila: Perhaps you would like to see the full text of the talk (Cited in Peace & Harmony New, ACHA Bulletin 1/5/00) I gave at the India International Centre in Delhi on November 20, calling on the military leaders of India and Pakistan to take the audacious initiative of jointly declaring their intention to completely abolish their genocidal-suicidal-ecocidal nuclear weapons during the year 2000. Suppose they did so! What honor this would bring to Indian and Pakistanis as they traveled around the world over the coming century! Whereas America will always be remembered as the first country to kill with atomic weapons, the people of India and Pakistan and their descendants would be globally esteemed as those who first abolished and refused to kill with them. The Times of India story from which you took the excerpt had four principal errors. First the talk, as you will see, called not for the abolition of all weapons but specifically focused only on nuclear weapons. Second, Syngman Rhee's government was not democratic. It was ousted by a democratic student movement in 1960. The democratic government of Chang Myon was overthrown by a military coup in 1961. Third, most regrettably, the reference to Indonesian Muslims and to Abdurrahman Wahid as being unsympathetic to the idea of Islam and nonviolence is completely in error and misleading. We held an international seminar on "Islam and Nonviolence" in 1986 in Bali. It was co-sponsored by our Center's then planning project at the University of Hawai'i (we have since then become an independent nonprofit organization), the UN University in Tokyo, and the Pesantren organization Nadhatul Ulama headed by Aburrahman Wahid who contributed a paper on "Islam, Nonviolence, and National Development" to the seminar. The seminar was officially opened by the Indonesian Minister for Religious Affairs who came from Jakarta specifically for that purpose. Fourth, 47 countries have accepted conscientious objection to military service while 67 countries have abolished the death penalty. As for immediate audience responses to the talk, most thought that military leaders were professionally incapable of such an initiative, that in India the military was under Civilian Constitutional control and legally could not take such an initiative, and that in any case Pakistan was incorrigible and rejects all good Indian peace initiatives. Others thought that the talk reached into cultural roots to transcend the India-Pakistan dichotomy, and might plant a seed of thought among military thinkers. I still think India and Pakistan, despite all past bloodshed, have the spiritual and civilizational resources to lead the world in abolition of nuclear weapons and to shift the "colossal waste" of associated economic resources to meet the pressing needs of their peoples. Let us hope that some military figures will think about their potential for local and global moral and economic leadership. Congratulations on your effort to communicate good news about Asian Harmony to counteract the self-fulfilling pessimism of the conventional violence-accepting or pro-violent media. Some friends in Colombia have begun to publish a monthly paper called Good News From Colombia for the same purpose. Information can be obtained from Sr. Alvaro Vargas at email globalav@epm.net.co. I am sure he would like to learn of your work. Be well, in peace,
*Let us pledge to make the world a better place to live The world has become a lot less desirable to live in. In fact it has become impossible for many to live with peace, respect and freedom. We as American have a special blessing of God and thus have a special responsibility towards humanity. Most of us, unfortunately, have stopped to think and act like normal human beings. We tend to act more like politicians and power players rather than like a father or a mother, brother or sister, husband or a wife. Let us respect all people, their right to live in peace, respect and freedom. Let us work to end intolerance, prejudice against others point of view, against other religions and civilizations and live like all equal members of universal manhoood. We the Americans have made difference in the world. We have done so in the past, and have done so now. We have made impossible to become as possible. In Europe, in Middle East we did it. In Chechnya we are making a difference. In South Asia we trying to do the same. Let us help our president and support him to take American initiative on Kashmir. We want both India and Pakistan as our friends. India is the largest democracy we cant ignore. Pakistan is a long time ally we can't abandon. And both are now nuclear states. We cant afford to let them fight it out over Kashmir. US has to guide both of them to a peaceful resolution of the Kashmir conflict. Let us resolve to help both India and Pakistan in finding a peaceful settlement in accordance with the wishes of the Kashmiri people, and both India and Pakistan should respect these wishes and the decision made by the people of Kashmir. Let us exhort both India and Pakistan to stop all violence in fighting in Kashmir, withdraw the troops, have a UN-US administration in Kashmir to supervise a peaceful referendum in Kashmir under the UN, as we have done in East Timor and then ensure to respect and implement the Kashmiris decision whether they wish to join India or Pakistan. Let us support peace and freedom all over the world. We the Americans have lived on principles and we must continue to do so to maintain our honor in the world. We have the resolve and we have the capability - and the world respects us for this and expects aus to paly the most important role of the peace-maker. Let us live to uphold humanity and uphold the American principles of justice, freedom and equality. Let us write to the President what we want him to do in the world. Steve Rodman, Peace and Freedom Forum, <steverodman@hotmail.com> *Root cause Analysis Pritamsaab: 'Boond-Boond paani se banta hai ek mahasagar' ‘Uniform Instruction' may not be feasible in our homelands but is definitely possible away from it. Under the umbrella of ACHA, we need to bring together Indo-Pak groups with more secular leanings that can research, discuss, and document the various facets of our common history. While the low points of our history such as exploitation under the brahminical order or Aurangzeb's tyrannical attitude towards minorities may be dissected to reflect reality in reference to context, there may be a substantial portion dedicated to the common struggle for our Independence. As an engineer, I have often resorted to Root Cause Analysis as a technique towards solving nagging problems. Can some amongst us organize ourselves as a group of well-informed individuals with limited bias to lay the foundation of this Encyclopedia of Blood & Tears? Sir, despite ACHA being an avowed secular grouping we need to reach the abyss of each heart and soul within our own organization to cleans the misunderstandings arising primarily from misinformation. Can there be a heart-to-heart session beyond the structure of a symbolic event (Memorial proposed by Pakistanis for Peace & Alternative Development) at Wagah for victims of 1947 Partition) to delve into the issue of commonality and differences? I believe that if we did that and came out with unified knowledge of our history, it will go a long way towards mending centuries old mistrust between the two major communities. Only if we are pure in our approach, we will be less gullible into supporting separatist programs of our other affiliations. I have been sympathetic towards the cause of Akhand Bharat propagated by the RSS, not for the sake of communal homogenization, but more for the sake of national unity that was destroyed by the partition in 1947, the wounds of which are still bleeding. I have recently joined VHP to support their local youth awareness programs and camps to instill in them the Hindu values of life in our coming generations. Since both the RSS and VHP have been branded to have extreme right leanings in the Indian political spectra, can ACHA help me become better informed so that I can become one moderate element in the above organizations? Best Regards,
*February 19-20, Berkeley, CA, USA: TECHNOLOGIES OF REPRESENTATION: Media communities & consumption in South Asia, the 15th annual South Asia conference at University of California's Boalt School of Law will feature discussions on topics such as "Under the eye of the law: Representing Family & community in colonial and post-colonial India," and "Representing women: Gender, violence and history in South Asian literary production" *March 27- June 9, Seattle, WA, USA: The South Asia Center of the Jackson School invite applications (latest by February 15) from faculty in colleges, community colleges, and universities in the Pacific Northwest region for their VISITING SCHOLAR PROGRAM which is funded from the National Resource Center grant for the U.S. Department of Education. The scholars are expected to spend a period of two to four weeks in the Spring quarter using the substantial library and Center resources for research in Seattle, and present a colloquium paper and interact with faculty and students at the Center. More info from Professor Frank Conlon at <sascuw@u. washington.edu> and <http://jsis.artsci.washington.edu programs/ soasia/soasia.html>. *May 31: GROW WITHOUT TOBACCO is the theme World Youth Festival 2000 being organized by Organized by International Non-governmental Coalition Against Tobacco, France and Indian Society Against Smoking (ISAS) to mark World No-Tobacco Day, 2000. There is no need to go any place. Instead participants are invited to send, by May 1, their essays, short stories, poetry, drawings, posters, cartoons, slogan, and plays along with personal information to ISAS, C-2211, C-Block Crossing, Indira Nagar, Lucknow-226016. UP. India., Phone +091-0522-358230 Fax +091- 0522. 380610. More info from convener Bobby Ramakant <ramakant@globalink.org>. *July 28–30, Hoboken, NJ, USA: Papers are invited for presentation at "NEW APPROACHES TO THE STUDY OF SOUTH ASIA, a symposium to be held as part of the International Conference on Contemporary Views on Indian Civilization being sponsored by the World Association for Vedic Studies, Inc. (WAVES), a multidisciplinary academic society. The forum is focused on studying and critically evaluating the research methods of the very field of South Asian Studies per se. Deadline for abstracts is May 15. More info from Frank Morales <fmorale1@students.wisc.edu>. *September 30 - October 15: WORLD PEACE THROUGH REVERENCE FOR LIFE, a symposium to celebrate the anniversaries of Albert Schweitzer and J. S. Bach. Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Jose Ramos-Horta, and Bach scholar Christopher Wolff have agreed to speak. More info Robert Stone <iam@bellsouth.net> or <www. spaceformusic.com/symposium2000> *Every Thursday, Berkeley, CA, USA: LEGENDS OF INDIA, a program of stories from India by Armin Palkhiwala at 3:30 p.m. at Berkeley Public Library, 1125 University Ave. More info from 510.644.6870. *Through March 5, Los Angeles, CA, USA: SAKINA'S RESTAURANT, a play written and perfrormed by Aasif Mandvi and directed and developed by Kim Hughes at Odyssey Theater, 2055 South Sepulveda Bvd. More info from 310.477.2055 & <www.odysseytheatre.com>. *February 3 - April 1, New York, NY, USA: SPIRITUAL PERFECTION: RELIGIOUS SCULPTURE OF SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST ASIA, an exhibition of sculptures from the Asia Society collection, the Newark Museum, and two private collections at Asia Society at Midtown/502 Park Avenue at 59th Street. More info from 212.288.6400. *February 5, Walnut, CA, USA: KATHAK UTSAV by Nrityodaya Kathak Academy at 5:00 p.m. at Sophia B. Clark Theater Performing Art Center, Mt. San Antonio College, 1100 N Grand Ave. Tickets at $ 20 and $10. More info from 909.622.7758 or 626.960.3600.4 *February 5, Mesa, AZ, USA: INDIA NITE 2000 in celebration of the Republic Day of India at 7:00 p.m., at Dobson High School Auditorium, 1501 W. Guadalupe Road. More info from 480.460.2688. * February 12, Palo Alto, CA, USA: DANCE CONCERT by Mythili Kumar and others at 4:00 p.m. at Cubberly Theater, 4000 Middlefield Road. More info from 925.827.0127. *February 13, Seattle, WA, USA: REPUBLIC DAY OF INDIA celebration, 12:00 noon to 4:15 p.m., at Shoreline Conference center, 18560 First Avenue NE. More info from 206.367.7100 or 425.865.0992. *February 13, Fremont, CA, USA: ODISSI DANCE by Jyoti Rout to mark Ganda Devi Bandhan at 5:00 p.m. at Ohlone College, 43600 Mission Bvd. Tickets at $15. More info from 510.233.0786. *February 18, San Diego & February 19, Palo Alto, CA, USA: AFLATOON, a Gujarati comedy drama presented by Sohan Shah on 2/18 at 7:30 p.m., at Challenger Junior High School, 10610 Parkdale Ave, and on 2/19 at 6:30 p.m. at Gunn High School. More info from 619.669.0188 or 858.695.6282 in San Diego and 510.796.6663 in Los Angeles. *February 26, Portland, OR, USA: CLASSICAL HINDUSTANI VOCALIST CONCERT by Sanjeev Abhyankar, accompanied by Ajay Joglekar on Harmonium and Harshad Kanitkar on Tabla, at 7:30 p.m., at Evans Auditorium, Lewis & Clark College, Tickets at $12 ($15 door) from FASTIXX (Fred Meyer & Music Millennium). More info from <www.kalakendra.org>. *February 26, Fremont, CA, USA: SHIVABALA, a music concert with compositions on the Karthikeya by Latha Sriram and her students, a presentation of Sri Lalitha Gana Vidyalaya, at 4:30 p.m., at Gary Goren Center, Jackson Theater, Ohlone College, 43600 Mission Bvd. Tickets at $10 & $8. More info from 510.490.6141. *Satyagraha in America: The Political Culture of South Asian Americans, an issue of UCLA's Amerasia Journal, <www.sscnet.ucla.edu/aasc>. (From a review by By Prof. Vijay Prashad, Trinity College, <vijay.prashad@ mail.cc.trincoll.edu>, via Communalism Watch and Governance Monitor CWGM@amethyst.tc. umn.edu>. Request the full version from <pritamr@open.org> with the word "Satyagraha"). This 250+ page volume of UCLA'S Amerasia Journal entitled " is dedicated to South Asian radicalism and community politics," both in its practice and in its theory. The editors are both scholars and organizers: they jointly founded the Forum of Indian Leftists (FOIL) and the Progressive South Asian Exchange Net (proXsa); they are members of the collective of Youth Solidarity Summer (YSS). Biju Mathew is on the organizing committee of the New York Taxi Workers' Alliance. Vijay Prashad is on the Executive Board of the Center for Third World Organizing. The volume is named Satyagraha to emphasize the struggles of South Asians in the US, but also of our conflicts within what some might assume is a monolithic community. The writers for the volume come from this world of South Asian radicalism. *Harvesting our souls, by Arun Shourie, ASA, Pages 432. (From a review "Harvest hate, irrational, spiritless polemic" by Neera Chandhoke in Outlook, 01/24/00, Via South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch (www.mnet.fr/aiindex>.Request the full version from <pritamr@open.org> with the word "Harvesting"). I accepted the invitation to review the book because I wanted to know
who Shourie actually targets. As my eyes were glazed by the sheer ire that
comes out pouring through the pages, it became clear that Shourieís
prime enemy is not the Christian missionary, though that may well be the
(un)intended consequence of his tirade. His enemies are the secularists
who battle communalism. His enemy is the tradition of religious tolerance
that lets people be with their beliefs. His enemy is ultimately, democracy,
for in the last pages of this book he invites us to follow the example
of China, which has taken a strict line against missionaries. The result
is utter insensitivity and even lack of humanity. Shourieís so busy
trying to show that the burning alive of Staines and his sons was not a
conspiracy
*Human rights of Dalits: Societal violation, edited by R. M. Pal & G. S. Bhargava, published by Gyan Publishing House, New Delhi-110002, Pp 327, Price Rs 475. From a review by V.B.Rawat <vbrawat @vsnl.com> Via Communalism Watch and Governance Monitor <http://www.saccer.org>). This book has two parts. The first one is a compilation of papers presented in seminar jointly organised by Dalit Liberation Trust, Madras and National Human Right Commission( NHRC) on 3rd and 4th August, 1996 and the second part consist of wide range of writings of Dr Pal and Mr G.S.Bhargava, published in various news-papers and journals. *Behind Mud Walls: The Village of Karimpur, 1925-1998, The Asian Studies WWW Monitor (Syracuse University, USA), Jan 2000, Vol. 7, No. 104 (Contents: The Wisers' Experience in Karimpur; Courtyard Life; Castes; Village Activities; Karimpur in the 1990s; Bibliography of Writings on Karimpur) www.maxwell.syr.edu/southasiacenter/karimpur/ *Her own medicine: A woman's journey from student to doctor, by Sayantani DasGupta, MD MPH <sayantanidasgupta@hotmail.com> published by Ballantine/Random House (Via Communalism Watch and Governance Monitor <www. saccer.org>). Drawing from her own experiences as a medical student, in this collection of essays and stories the author attempts to document the joys, sorrows and absurdities of medical education as well as analyze gender, race, and other issues of power in medical culture. *HINDI certificate course will be offered by Duke University's Trinity College as a part of the undergraduate major in Asian and African Languages and Literature. *March 10 is the deadline for entering the Sixth Annual all USA "Young Writers and Illustrators Contest" being organized for kindergarten to third-grade youngsters by Reading Rainbow TV program and sponsored by Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB). More info from <www.opb.org/ learning/rainbow or from 503.293.4010. *MAHABHARATA town Kampil was inhabited in 1000 BC, according to evidence gathered by Prof. G. S. Philipi and Dr. Grono Marcolongo, as a part of their study on ancient Indian sites of the Mahabharata period, including other places like Hastinapur and Kaushambi (<www.rediff.com/news/2000/ jan/28maha.htm>. *GOA will be the first state in India to use electronic voting machines will in district council polls to be held on February 6 (<www.rediff.com/news/2000/jan/07goa.htm>). *PAKISTAN has one of the most extensive natural gas grids of any developing country and has proven reserves of natural gas at 32 trillion cubic feet (TCF) with estimates of unexplored gas resources running into another 200 TCF. Currently, all gas is produced on shore from 36 active fields. Major producers include Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL), which accounts for 47%of annual gas production, Oil and Gas Development Co (OGDC) 21%, Marri Gas Co Ltd 19% and Union Texas Pakistan 7.8% (From the Friday Times Via South Asia Citizens Web <http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex>). *IMMIGRANTS IN USA add $10 billion a year to the country's economy, not counting the highly skilled or immigrant-owned businesses, according to data from the National Immigration Forum. Ten high-tech firms started by immigrants employed 67,000 Americans and generated $28 billion in revenues in 1996. Also, individual immigrants are reported to pay $80,000 more in taxes than they get in benefits over a lifetime (From a recent column by Rekha Basu published in The Des Moines Register). *Altogether 52 WOMEN have conquered Mt. Everest, three of them twice, while 822 men, including 165 Nepalese Sherpas have been to the top. The first woman to reach the summit was Junko Taebi, who conquered the mountain on May 6, 1975, as a part of an all-women Japanese expedition. Pasang Lhama Sherpa, the lone Nepalese woman to reach the summit, died during her descent. The first all women sherpa expedition to Mt. Everest was formed January 15, as part of the Nepalese Women Millennium Everest Expedition 2000, according to a Reuters report from Kathmandu. *The London-based World Society for the Protection of Animals announced on January 5, in Islamabad, Pakistan, a plan to set up in India and Pakistan small sanctuaries for BEARS forced to dance for money by their keepers or to take part in bear-baiting events (Reuters). Bear baiting event, popular in some parts of Pakistan, involve unleashing of pairs of vicious dogs against a tethered and toothless bear in a series of three-minute bouts. *GUINEA WORM DISEASE, transmitted through unsafe drinking water, which had affected as many as 40,000 people annually in early 1980's has been eradicated from India, according to an announcement by the country's health minister N.T. Shanmugam. India had eradicated small pox in 1979. *Supreme Court of India has banned thousands of factories in New Delhi and the neighboring state of Haryana from discharging untreated INDUSTRIAL EFFLUENTS into the river Yamuna (<www.rediff.com/ news/2000/jan/24yam.htm>). *Through February 09, Washington, DC, USA: THE INFORMATION AGE IN ASIA: Impact on Governments, Economies, and Society, a series of three related presentations, 8:30 a.m. to 9:45 a.m., at Bank of America, 730 15th Street, NW, moderated by David Gries, President, Asian Strategies Group. The series explores how the Information Age is transforming Asia. More info from 202.833.2742. *Through February 18, Pakistan: Electronic conference on WATER POLICY FOR PAKISTAN, a three-week Electronic Conference (Econ) launched by Development VISIONS, and undertaken in consultation with the Pakistan Network of Rivers, Dams and People (PNRDP) housed at SUNGI Development Foundation, Islamabad. To subscribe send an email to <water-policy-subscribe @egroups.com> saying "subscribe" in the subject column. More info from Development VISIONS, 37-A, Judicial Colony, Thokar Niaz Beg, Lahore-Pakistan, Phone 0320-4875973, Email <daima@brain.net.pk>, Website <www.brain.net.pk/~daima>. *February 3, Houston, TX, USA: CHINA AND TIBET IN THE NEW CENTURY, a talk by Ambassador Nicholas Platt, an international diplomat, China expert, and President of the Asia Society, followed by a talk on THE MESSAGE OF TIBETAN BUDDHISM FOR THE WORLD TODAY by William McKeever, Director of Asian Activities and Regional Centers for the Asia Society, at 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., at Warwick Hotel. " Tickets $15 (nonmembers). More info from 713.439-0051. *February 3-6, Pune, Maharashtra, India: MEETING NEW & OLD CHALLENGES
is the theme of a South Asian conference on Information being organized
by Akshara Sangat/Jagori, Sanhita at BAIF Development Research
Foundation Banglore-Mumbai Bypass Highway, Opp. Popular Nagar, WARJE- Malwadi,
Pune 411 029, Phone 020-5465494, 5469955 or 5465496, Fax 020- 5466788
*February 10, USA: IUNET/ Sankhya Vahini: BRINGING INDIA'S BANDWIDTH UP TO SPEED, a live web event by Kartik Kilachand, Principal, ASG-Omni, at 6:30 p.m. EST/3:30 p.m. PST. More info from <www.indiaserver.com/asiasociety> *February 15, Seattle, WA, USA: Refugees, Cosmopolitans and Americans: NARRATING SOUTH ASIAN SIKH WOMEN IN THE US, a talk by Professor Inderpal Grewal, Chair, Women's Studies Department, San Francisco State University, a presentation of the Jackson School, the Department of English and the South Asia Center, at 3:30 PM, at Thomson Hall 317, University of Washington Campus. For more info sascuw@u.washington.edu>. *February 16 & 23, San Francisco, CA, USA: RE-ORIENTING ASIAN AMERICA, a lecture series hosted by the Davies Forum Professors. 2/16 lecture by Carlos Villa at 5:30 p.m. at S.F. State University, Lone Mountain Campus Room 140, 2800 Turk Bvd; 2/23 lecture by Tony Bui and Quentin Lee at 7:30 p.m. at Gershwin Theater at USF 2350 Turk Bvd. More info from 415.422.6147. *February 23-25, Multan, Pakistan: CONSULTATION WORKSHOP ON WATER POLICY, organized by Development VISIONS at the Pastoral Institute. More info from Development VISIONS, 37-A, Judicial Colony, Thokar Niaz Beg, Lahore-Pakistan, Phone 0320-4875973, Email <daima@brain.net.pk>, Website <www.brain.net.pk/~daima>. *March 11, New York, NY, USA: DALITS: A PEOPLE, A CULTURE, A HISTORY, a fund-raising banquet organized by Dalit Solidarity Forum-USA (DSF-USA <dalit@aol.com>) at Columbia University's Alfred Lerner Hall. Tickets at $100 per person or $800 per table of eight is. More info from 212.726.1638, or <nycbanquet@altavista.com>. *May 3 - 8, Tel Aviv, Israel: The first ever INDIAN TRADE FAIR will be held here to show case India's consumer products and to promote bilateral trade. Israel is the ninth largest foreign investor in India. HOLIDAYS: * February: 10 Basant Panchmi (India), 14 Valentine's Day ,19 Guru Ravidas Birthday (India), 21 Language Movement Day (Bangladesh) President's Day (USA), 29 Maharishi Dayanand Jayanti (India), * VIJAY KUMAR DAR, a Kashmiri Hindu has been inducted for the first time in the National Commission for Minorities, which will headed by Justice M. SHAMIM of Delhi High Court. The appointment, it is reported, was in tune with the recommendation of TAHIR MAHMOOD, the outgoing chairman. *India-born GURDEV S. KHUSH of the International Rice Research Institute in Manila has been awarded this year's Wolf prize for agriculture by the Jerusalem-based Wolf Foundation for his contribution to theoretical research in plant genetics. * Noted scholar ALI MIAN, widely respected for his knowledge of Islam and Arabic died following a heart attack at Rae Bareli, U. P., India, on December 31 at the age of 86. He was the rector of Lucknow-based Nadwat-ul-Ulema and had written in Arabic and Urdu 80 books on Islam, which have been translated into many languages all over the world. *T.S. KRISHNA MURTHY, a secretary in the Department of Company Affairs has been appointed Election Commissioner, following the retirement of G. V. G. KRISHNAMURTHY last September. *BAKULESH "BUGGSI" PATEL has been elected chairman of the Asian American Hotel Owners Asociation (AAHOA). *HARI SREENIVASAN will co-host CNET TV.COM, the syndicated technology news program seen in over 120 markets all over the US. He and provide perspective, insight, and context on the latest Internet trends, the newest forms of e-commerce, and the companies and people influencing consumer decisions and spurring the growth of the Web today (<http://www.rediff.com/news/ 2000/jan/18us4.htm>). *DR. ALEXANDER MAR THOMAS, the 19th metropolitan of the Kerala-based Mar Thomas Church, which has some 60 parishes in USA and Canada under its Diocese of North America, Europe and Africa, with its head office in Merrick, Long Island, NY. A bishop since 1953, he died at Tiruvalla, Kerlaa, on January 11. Having received post-graduate education at Union Theological Seminary in New York, and Hartford Seminary in Hartford, CT, his doctoral thesis was based on the universal vision of Bhagvad Gita, the Hindu holy book, according to an obituary published in India Abroad. *<rabindrasudha.com>, created by Calcutta branch of World Wide Web Institute, is the first ever website on Hindi adaptations of Rabindranath Tagore's songs, according to the Institute director, R. K. Goenka. *<www.jainspirit.org> is the website of Columbus, Ohio-based full-color quarterly magazine, Jain Spirit. It is a joint publication of the U.S.-based Mahavir World Vision and U.K.-based Young Jains.
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