Libya and Gaddafi

Yesterday's allies are today's enemies. Some maintain that Gaddafi will not resign like Mubarak, and that he will fight to the death. The irony is that Gaddafi began his career in Benghazi, Libya's second largest city, where the uprising began. It was the first city to catch the revolutionary bug from Egypt. Now it has spread to the capital, Tripoli.

The Middle East and North Africa have become utterly unpredictable. Literally anything could happen at this point. It remains unclear who will fill the void left by the ousted leaders. Instability will breed further instability. The situation is reminiscent of the Balkans on the eve of World War I. We are on very dangerous ground, indeed.


Muammar Abu Minyar Abdel Alam ben Hamid al-Gaddafi (his family name originates from the Bedouin tribe of al-Gaddafi) wrote himself into the pages of history in September 1969, when he helped overthrow King Idris in a military coup. At the time, the Middle East was a battleground in the proxy war fought between the Soviet Union and the United States. This was the time of Richard Nixon, Leonid Brezhnev, and Egyptian President Abdel Nasser (who was an inspiration to the 27 year-old Captain Gaddafi).

After taking power, Gaddafi introduced sweeping changes in Libya. It was a fresh breeze of colonial liberation, social justice, battles against corruption and red tape, and freedom for the people, not to mention Islamic morals and Sharia law. It was the Arab Muslim version of people's power.

All the "adult" nations - America, the USSR, Egypt, the UK, France, Italy - watched in amazement as the young and charismatic captain eliminated all foreign military bases and nationalized the oil industry as well as all foreign companies and banks. The Soviet Union would have been pleased by this turn of events, except that Gaddafi also started clearing the political playing field of all communists, left-wing and rampant right-wing forces and Muslim radicals.

The political harmony he created was both anti-imperialist and anti-Soviet. However, this did not prevent Moscow and Tripoli from working together as a counterweight to Anwar Sadat's pro-U.S. Egypt.

Gaddafi tried to strike up alliances with his Arab neighbors in a very strange way - by claiming the role of pan-Arab leader for himself. Gaddafi wanted to be first among equals. His megalomania became more pronounced with time. Gaddafi failed to unite Libya with Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria. His union with Morocco fell apart, and his alliance with Iran proved short-lived.

He did away with the presidency, the government, the office of prime minister, parliament and local bodies of state authority and replaced them all with Jamahiriya - a state of the masses ruled by various levels of people's committees.

He ultimately turned his back on nationalization, and again opened Libya's doors to foreign companies. Once a total outcast he turned himself into an acceptable if not a respectable politician in Europe. It's hard not to accept a politician whose country ranks fifth in oil reserves in Africa. Italy was particularly accepting, as it receives almost 60% of its oil and gas from Libya.

It is hard to believe that Captain Gaddafi, the leader of the 1969 coup, is the same person as Col. Gaddafi today. There was a time when he was called "brother-leader" and hailed as the liberator of Libya. Some even believed he was the savior of the entire Arab world.

WikiLeaks cables:

US embassy cables shed light on Gaddafi family – including son Saif al-Islam, who vowed in TV address to eradicate enemies.

According to US diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks the leader of the Libyan revolution presides over a "famously fractious" family that is powerful, wealthy, dysfunctional and marked by internecine struggles. The documents shed light on how his eight children – among whom rivalries have sharpened in recent years – his wife and Gaddafi himself lead their lives.

  

Muammar Gaddafi, the patriarch, now 68, was described by US ambassador to Tripoli, Gene Cretz, in 2009 as a "mercurial and eccentric figure who suffers from severe phobias, enjoys flamenco dancing and horseracing, acts on whims and irritates friends and enemies alike." Gaddafi has an intense dislike or fear of staying on upper floors, and prefers not to fly over water, the cables add.

Safiya (nee Farkash)

Gaddafi's second wife travels by chartered jet in Libya, with a motorcade of Mercedes vehicles waiting to pick her up at the airport to take her to her destination, but her movements are limited and discreet. Hosted a banquet in the Bab al-Azizia compound on the occasion of the anniversary of the revolution that was festive but not extravagant. Hails from Benghazi, the centre of the rebellion in eastern Libya.

Saif al-Islam

Second-eldest son. Presumed heir-apparent in recent years who warned of civil war when he addressed the nation on Sunday night. A trained engineer who promotes political and economic reform and backed NGOs under the aegis of the International Charitable Gaddafi Foundation. Has PhD from the London School of Economics.

"Saif al-Islam's high-profile role as the public face of the regime to the west has been a mixed blessing for him. Has bolstered his image but many Libyans view him as self-aggrandising and too eager to please foreigners," the US embassy said.

Escorted the convicted Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi home to die in August 2009 "and persisted in his hard-partying, womanising ways, a source of concern in a socially conservative country like Libya". Cables claim at odds with siblings Muatassim, Aisha, Hannibal, and Sa'adi.

Sa'adi

Third-eldest son. "Notoriously ill-behaved Sa'adi has a troubled past, including scuffles with police in Europe (especially Italy), abuse of drugs and alcohol, excessive partying, travel abroad in contravention of his father's wishes Former professional footballer (a single season with Perugia in Italy's Serie A league, he owns a significant share of al-Ahli, one of the two biggest soccer teams in Libya, and has run Libya's football federation). An engineer by training, Sa'adi was briefly an officer in a special forces unit.

Used troops under his control to affect the outcome of business deals. Owns a film production company. Reported to have been involved in crushing the protests in Benghazi.

Muatassim

Fourth-eldest son. Father's national security adviser and until recently a rising star. In 2008 he asked for $1.2bn (£739m) to establish a military or security unit akin to that of his younger brother, Khamis. Lost control of many of his personal business interests between 2001 and 2005 when his brothers took advantage of his absence to put in place their own partnerships. Described as "not very bright" by Serbian ambassador. Gets on badly with Saif al-Islam.

Hannibal

Chequered history of unseemly behavior and public scuffles with authorities in Europe and elsewhere. Arrest in Geneva over alleged beating his servants led to bilateral spat with Switzerland, in which Swiss were forced to back down under threat of withdrawal of Libyan investments.

In December 2009, police were called to Claridge's hotel in London after staff heard a scream from Hannibal's room. Aline Skaf, now his wife, was found to have suffered facial injuries but charges were not brought after she maintained she had sustained the injuries in a fall. Fifth eldest son.

Khamis

Gaddafi's sixth son and the "well-respected" commander of a special forces unit – 32nd battalion or Khamis brigade that effectively serves as a regime protection unit and was reportedly involved in suppressing unrest in Benghazi. Trained in Russia.

Aisha

Daughter who mediates in family disputes ands runs NGO. Reported to have financial interests in a private clinic in Tripoli, one of two trustworthy facilities that supplement the unreliable healthcare available through public facilities. Lionel Richie was flown to Libya several years ago to sing at her birthday celebration. A younger adopted daughter, Hanna, was killed in the US bombing of Tripoli in 1986.

Muhammad

The eldest son, but by Gaddafi's first wife. Heads the Libyan Olympic committee that now owns 40% of the Libyan Beverage Company, currently the Libyan joint venture Coca-Cola franchisee. Also runs general post and telecommunications committee.

Saif al-Arab

Least publicly known of the eight children. Reportedly lives in Munich, where it is claimed he pursues ill-defined business interests and spends much time partying.

Like all the Gaddafi children and favourites is supposed to have income streams from the national oil company and oil services subsidiaries. A seventh son, Milad Abuztaia, is an adopted nephew.


Courtesy : Excerpts form article published in the RIA Novosti and WikiLeaks

Washington a hot bed for sex trafficking . Human trafficking to rise due to financial crisis

http://rt.com/usa/news/usa-washington-sex-trafficking/

America is quick to condemn other nations for the sexual exploitation of girls, when in fact it occurs daily in the United States.

Contrary to public belief in America sexual exploitation of children does not only take place in developing countries.

The trafficking of minor is a big moneymaker, the third highest profit driver among organized crime in the United States. Often, American teens and children are recruited in public areas, such as malls, entertainment centers and schools.

Tina Frundt, the founder of Courtney’s House, a non-profit organization that helps girls who have been victims of human or sex trafficking, explained many in the US believe there are lots of laws put in place to protect trafficked children, when in reality there are not.

Powerful and rich men in the United States, specifically in Washington DC, seek out sex with girls that are often trafficked blocks from the White house.

Frundt, a survivor of sex trafficking, works in Washington to find and help those who are in danger.

“How do you identify a victim? Well at 3:00 and 4:00 in the morning downtown there’s nothing open, but there are many many men watching the girls. That’s what you look for to find the victims, the men watching them,” she explained.

Even with all all the police forces in Washington, the city is still a hot bed for trafficking, because currently the laws target victims, not traffickers.

“There is no risk for the traffickers or the buyers if we’re going after the victims,” she said. “Prostitution is illegal in the United States, so unfortunately we have to make laws to make the two different.

Frundt argued changes need to be made to help those who are forced into prostitution, to target traffickers and buyers as opposed to prostitutes.

http://rt.com/news/human-trafficking-to-rise-due-to-financial-crisis/

Human trafficking to rise due to financial crisis

A network of 13 people, reportedly headed by a senior intelligence official, are facing charges of human trafficking. It follows a case where more than 130 women were sold as slaves across Europe.

This most recent slave-trade case has shocked the public as the man who allegedly pulled the strings of the crime network is a senior official in Russian Intelligence. Leaks from the prosecution claim he acquired documents for the women under the pretence they were needed for secret intelligence missions abroad.

“The investigation has shown that in the period from 1999 to 2007, this criminal organization sold over 130 women, most of whom were citizens of Moldova, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Belarus and Russia. They were sold to Israel, Italy, Spain, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates,” investigator Alexander Kudlay said.

In the nineties tempting offers of work abroad flooded the internet and are still found in abundance. Dubious employers promise high wages for working as waitresses or nurses, but upon arrival the women are stripped of their passports and forced into slavery.

Olga was among those who swallowed the bait. Her fate was decided over a cup of coffee.

“We arrived in Jerusalem. The guy who escorted me met with another man. We were sitting in a cafe and as I listened to their conversation, I suddenly realised that I was being sold. When they struck the deal I was taken to a brothel where I stayed for a year,” she remembered.

She spent one year in captivity in Tel-Aviv.

Today she is working in a rehabilitation centre for women who were victims of trafficking.
“People are easily deceived by new illusions to find a job elsewhere,” Alberto Adriani from International Organization for Migration said.

Russia has one of the worst records for human trafficking, both importing and exporting slaves.
It is a profitable business with an estimated trade worth $42 billion a year. Experts say statistics are likely to rise with the current economic downturn.

“It was increasing before, it will increase always. What I think is necessary is to increase the exchange of information on the international level to find a common strategy,” Alberto Adriani said.

Thirteen men have been detained on various charges, ten of them in custody, and may face trial in the spring. With human rights organizations suggesting that tens of thousands of women are enslaved in the sex-trade, experts say that this one case alone is merely the tip of the iceberg.

Suleiman: America’s new man in Egypt

http://rt.com/usa/news/usa-suleiman-cia-egypt/

Egypt's Vice-President Omar Suleiman is the nation’s former spy chief, a friend of the US, a reported torturer, and has long been touted as the next presidential successor.

As the Egyptian revolution unfolds, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak remains in power, but his is not the only US backed political leader in the nation.

Suleiman, or as the protestors have referred to him, “Sheik al-Torture" has long been an ally of the United States. US President Barack Obama has been careful not to call for “free elections” in Egypt, and instead insists on an orderly transition, one which could see another US backed leader ascend to power.

Mubarak may still be in charge officially, Suleiman is currently operating as the nation’s de-facto president.
Journalist Pepe Escobar from the Asia times explained the US fears Arab democracy. The US needs dictators and autocracies which are controlled to secure oil supplies and the security of Israel, he argued. It is easier to control one or a small body then a large democratic body.

Escobar said Suleiman fits the same mold Mubark and numerous other Arab dictators in the past also fit, making his assent to power an easy transition for the United States. Suleiman is a CIA point-man.

Suleiman is not real change, he explained.

“Real change is the enormous list of demands that’s being circulated among the protestors, among youth groups,” Escobar said. “This implies, first off all, Mubarak stepping down. A committee that is going to study the Constitution and alter the Constitution then submits this altering to a referendum, judges to supervise the process and the end of the state of emergency. Suleiman, if I am not mistake, said two days ago, no.”

He explained if you listen to the Egyptians that is the roadmap for change in the country. They want change, not more of the same.

The face of Egypt is not the Muslim Brotherhood, Escobar explained. He argued the majority of the Egyptians want a true democratic society. In addition, the Muslim Brotherhood has denounced violence and a number of previous extremist views. They want to have a say in the government, not rule it as an Islamic state.

However, the US continues to believe Muslim Brotherhood is a threat, no matter what the people of Egypt want or actually believe.

Egypt it pivotal to US policy in the Middle East, and they fear any change to their control over oil and the security of Israel, argued Escobar.

Lisa Hajjar, an associate professor of sociology at the University of California in Santa Barbara argued Suleiman is the CIA’s man in Egypt, and has been for years.

Suleiman ran Egypt’s counterpart to the CIA up until just a few days ago when we was appointed as Vice President by Mubarak. He has actively worked with the CIA is programs targeting al-Qaeda and other groups, she said.

Following 9/11 Suleiman became even more relevant, acting as a major player in carrying out America’s “Dirty work.”

“Suleiman had his hands literally dirty in the torture of several people,” Hajjar commented.
There is a great deal of torture that goes on routinely in Egypt, she explained. Suleiman has focused on targeting international terrorist criminals, at the behest of the United States.

Many of the protestors see him as another Mubarak and it is unclear whether the Egyptian military fully supports him.

“Suleiman probably will not survive beyond September when there is an election. He is unlikely to be a democratically elected president,” she added.

US concern for Mideast public not genuine – Egypt specialist

http://rt.com/news/middle-east-unrests-usa-interests/

Published: 15 February, 2011, 20:31
Edited: 16 February, 2011, 11:40
  
The US is defending its own interests in the region and that is impossible without pretending to support the democratic process prevailing in the region, says Middle East expert Barah Mikhail from Islamabad.
­In the wake of the Egyptian revolution, activists in the Middle East are turning up the heat on their governments.

Riots have broken out across the region. Two demonstrators were killed in Bahrain on Monday. An activist was also shot dead by police in the Iranian capital. The protest in Tehran took place just a day after the US State Department began inspiring Iran's opposition with Twitter messages. It's the first such riot in the country in over a year.

On Tuesday, Iranian MPs called for opposition leaders to be tried and executed. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says Washington "clearly and directly" supports the protesters.

Hillary Clinton called the Iranian regime “hypocritical.” She said that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad rallied behind the protesters on the streets of Egypt, but now that he is witnessing protests in his own country, he is using harsh violence against the demonstrators. What to do with Iran is a big concern for the US.

At the same time, the US is very nervous after watching events unfold in Egypt, where it supported President Mubarak for 30 years. The US now has to redefine its role there and also send out a message to other allies in the region that it will not leave them out in the cold – as it did, many say, to Mubarak.

Mikhail argues that over the last decade US policy in the region has been based on support for authoritative governments, and that now it is trying to play both sides of the fence.

“For example, at the beginning of riots in Egypt they did not really support the public,” he said. “But when they noticed that they could not do anything against the revolution which was taking place, then they decided to conform with public opinion and tell them they were in favor of the democratic process.”

Egypt is gripped by labor strikes, where interim power is now in the hands of the military which is reworking the constitution.

Professor Robert Springborg of the Naval Postgraduate School believes that with ideological splits in the military, the army leadership has more to worry about than US interference.

“They will not want the military to be subject to civilian political control,” he said, adding that the primary concern of Egypt’s defense minister is business, not the military, but there are “officers who are professional and who think the business of the military should be the military, not the business itself.”

Author and researcher Adrian Salbuchi from Argentina says that US policy in the Middle East might work against national interests.

“The US is trying to achieve a way to promote change in a way which will facilitate things for them,” Salbuchi said. “The global power structure which is entrenched inside the US might not be working in the national interest of the people of the United States. It has other, very specific interests which might even go against the national interest of the United States of America.”

Courtesy : RT

Hindu Janajagruti Samiti on Valentine Day

http://www.hindujagruti.org/activities/campaigns/religious/valentine-day/

Contents -

• Introduction
  
• The history of 'Saint (?) Valentine'
  
• The detrimental effects of 'Valentine day' celebration
  
• Valentine's celebration given up by western countries
  
• 'Valentine Day' confers no spiritual benefit!
  
• A call to Citizens for Protection of Culture!
  
• Remember the National Heroes!
  
  
• Article - Oppose 'Valentine's Day' that promotes immorality!  

What is the harm in celebrating 'Valentine day' ?

1. There is no scientific or cultural basis to celebrating this day.
2. Valentine the 'saint' himself was involved in the anti-national acts during his time, then how one can get any benefit by celebrating this day in his name ?
3. On this day young girls and boys come together at pubs, sea shores, hotels, colleges etc and indulge in indecent acts. A common person finds it difficult to even go around such places at this time. Some organisations organize such programs where the young boys and girls can stay together.
4. The young students of schools and colleges are falling prey to this alien cultural influence and express their 'love' for each other by way of exchanging greeting cards. In reality what they experience at this tender and immature age is not love but a mere superficial attraction to the opposite sex.
5. Psychiatrists can site several cases of people who have 'proposed' on 'Valentine's day' due to various shades of mental turmoil. Women who have been duped or lured by them and have married them have had to suffer great mental and physical torture.
6. This practice is damaging as it results in a long lasting negative effect on any youth's career and also on society.
7. The seeds of immorality which are planted on this day, later cause the destabilization of society through a general fall in morality.
8. We can recognize a direct attack from an enemy outside but this cultural invasion is insidious and very difficult to recognize and so it is difficult to defend ourselves from its evil results.
9. Cultural derailment always results in society heading towards destruction. This is what we are experiencing today in our Bharat (India).
10. Many western countries do not celebrate this day. The Calendar of Roman Catholic Saints' was prepared in 1969, 'Valentines Day' was omitted from the general Roman calendar. If this is so, then why should we honour this day in our Hindustan?
11. Western culture provides for placing parents in 'old age homes' and then superficially celebrates Mother's Day' and Father's Day' for just one day ! Can real love be limited to just a day ? Indian culture has a number of festivals that express love towards each other and these deep rooted bonds of love are an intrinsic part of our lifestyle.

O, Hindu Youth, Why fall for the trap of 'Valentine Day'?

Get ready to fight the calamities befalling the Nation and Hindu Dharma instead !

14th February is known as 'Valentines Day' in some countries. On this day, both male and female youngsters exchange flowers and gifts as a token of love. Does real love require this superficial display and can it be confined to just one day? It is the western custom to put parents in old age homes and then celebrate flashy Mother's Day and Father's Day love which is put on display for just one day ! Now this madness is taking root in our beloved Hindustan which has the richest and most sublime culture in the world.

Is love only limited to physical attraction ? Love is present in sacred relationships such as the Guru and the disciple, brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers and even towards ones motherland. If young revolutionaries, such as Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev, Madan Lal Dhingra and Chapekar who sacrificed their lives in their youth, had spent their days celebrating days such as Valentine's days then we would never be able to enjoy freedom today. What pain their souls must be suffering in seeing their dreams being shattered in this way !

Shivaji Maharaj took the vow of establishing Hindavi Swarajya at a tender age of sixteen and went on to unite the Mawala youth of his age and thus sowed the seeds of Swarajya (self governance) and pride in Dharma. Why don't we look at these great people as our ideal? Do you really think that the so called 'Saint Valentine' who directs the youth towards the wrong path of allurement of woman is superior to the above mentioned Great men?

It is said that love can conquer the world; then why couldn't we win Kashmir with love? If the love of 'Valentine' is so powerful then why can't his love change the hearts of terrorists creating havoc in Kashmir and killing innumerable innocent brethren of ours in rest of Hindustan? In today's times when 10 young terrorists from Pakistan attack our country with an intention to destroy it, why should our young generation in contrast get trapped in the celebration of 'Valentine Day' ? Therefore this is a call to harness the power of our youth to turn them towards the defence of the Nation and Dharma...

The History of Christian Saint (?) Valentine

In the olden days Rome had the culture of Idol-worship. In those days, the period between February 13 to 15, used to be celebrated as the 'Reproduction Festival' and was called 'Lupercalia'. However to destroy their culture of idol worship and their Christianisation, Pope Galasis (First) connected Valentine with 14th February and started the practice of celebrating 'Valentine Day'. There was no connection between 'Valentine Day' and 'Love' until the fourteenth century.

Similarly according to some, in third century the King Claudius (Second) of Rome took out the order that the young men should not marry and should join the army to face the repeated attacks occurring on the nation. However a priest named Valentine did not pay heed to this order and performed marriages of many young men and women secretly. He was sentenced to death and was sent to prison for his traitorous act. This so called saint then seduced the young daughter of a prison official while being in prison. Thus this Valentine who was supposed to have sacrificed all attachment while being initiated as a missionary fell prey to allurement. What benefit are Hindus going to derive by remembering such 'Saints'?

The detrimental effects of 'Valentine Day'!

Today we are blindly following the western culture under the name of 'Valentines Day'. The young students of schools and colleges are falling prey to such culture and express their love to each other by way of exchanging greeting cards. But actually speaking it is not love but a mere attraction to the opposite sex at a tender and immature age. During my practice of over 15 years I have seen several such mentally ill patients who have stuck to their mental illness by 'proposing' on 'Valentine Day'. Following are some live examples -
1. One day one couple came to the Panchakarma Department of 'Yerala Ayurved College' for undergoing Pancha Karma treatment and health consultation. The woman was a Maharashtrian and the man was from Punjab. They had done inter-caste marriage. Both of them were studying at a private college. They were classmates. They had proposed to each other by way of exchanging love in the form of a greeting card on a Valentines Day function in the college. After the marriage however the man was found to be a sadist. The different nature and environment affected her emotional, mental and spiritual development and her condition deteriorated into a grave mental illness.
2. In a second case, a couple visited the 'Keraliya Ayurved Centre' at Panvel for psychological treatment. The husband was a Malyali and his wife a Maharashtrian. They got acquainted with each other while working in the office. They got married on Valentine's Day by going to a church. However after marriage she came to realize the huge difference between their culture, language, customs and in their intellectual level of functioning. This made a huge impact on the woman and lead to her health deteriorating. - Dr. Rajiv Bhosekar, Psychiatrist, Hyderabad, AP, Bharat.

'Valentine Day' confers no spiritual benefit !

Most of the 'days' which have arisen out of a blind following of western culture are mostly based on a 'fun and frolic' philosophy. Their following devalues the morality and politeness and the attitude of the person becomes predominant in raja-tama attributes (raja-passion, tama-inertia and ignorance). As against this, when we celebrate rituals, festivals, religious festivals and observed religious vows, we are benefitted by the frequencies of Deities transmitted from the Universe. The observance of rituals, festivals, religious festivals and observed religious vows makes our attitude predominant in sattva (purity and knowledge) and life becomes balanced, happy and contented.

Taking advantage of the suicidal attitude of Hindus to celebrate 'Valentine Day' ( the so called day of �love'), modern media and some companies selling greeting-cards vigorously propagate 'Valentine's Day' with a selfish motive. In this way, the intellectual and cultural conversion of Hindus is taking place.

Remove this infestation of Hindu Culture in the form of 'Valentines Day' and protect the coming generations from a cultural viewpoint!

'Valentine Day' (14th February) is not celebrated in many of the western countries!

To celebrate various 'days' of the westerners is a sign of greatness for most of us. However it is a fact that in many western countries 'Valentine's Day' is not celebrated on 14th February. Instead various other days are celebrated. (For example 1. Slovenia-12th March- Saint Gregory Day, 2. Wales State-25th January- Saint Donwen Day, 3. Brazil-12th June - Enamoured Day). What is more, when the 'Calendar of Roman Catholic Saints' was prepared in 1969, 'Valentine Day' was omitted from the general Roman calendar. If this is so why then should we value this day in our Hindustan?

A call to Citizens for Protection of Culture! Meet Principals, Professors, the Board of Directors and Representatives of Students' organizations by going to Schools, Colleges and Private tuitions and request them to educate the youth against the observation of 'Valentine's Day' ! Distribute pamphlets such as this to prevent the celebration of 'Valentine's Day' ! Display the banners or boards in your area with such contents ! Lodge protests with those companies manufacturing greeting cards meant for canvassing 'Valentine Day'! Lodge protests with such colleges who silently give consent for celebrating 'Valentine's Day' by way of actual visits, telephone calls or other constitutional ways ! Article - Oppose 'Valentine's Day' that promotes immorality! [^Top] Remember the National Heroes for the protection of Nation and Dharma! The time has come when all the people including the young generation have to be explained about the depth in the divine meaning of Love in addition to educating them about 'Valentine Day'. It is the need of the hour that those national heroes who have sacrificed so much for the love of this Hindu land ought to be remembered not only for the benefit of the young generation but also for the whole population to get ready for the protection of our languages, our Nation and our Dharma. Therefore do celebrate the following remembrance day programmes in February 2009 ! 1. Revolutionary Vasudev Balwant Phadke Remembrance Day ( 17 th February) 2. Swatantryaveer V.D.Sawarkar ( 26 th February) 3. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti ( 13 th March, according to Hindu Lunar calendar) On these occasions we can arrange image worship and lectures in schools, colleges, Chowks and educate the people about the current state of our languages, our nation and our Dharma. Prevent the intellectual and cultural proselytization ( conversion) of Hindus on 'Valentine Day'! Latest News Date News Feb 8, 2011 Celebrate Valentine's Day not with your lover, but with your parents Feb 10, 2010 HJS appeals to boycott ‘Valentine Day’ ! Sep 26, 2009 Wrong practices taking place in pubs and colleges, on Valentine’s Day to be curbed Feb 17, 2009 Success for HJS's anti-Valentine Day campaign! Feb 16, 2009 Activist of HJS arrested unreasonably! Feb 14, 2009 Anti-saffron media falsely implicates Bajrang Dal in V-Day attack Feb 14, 2009 Won't allow obscene scenes in public, says Sri Ram Sena Feb 14, 2009 Mulund school to celebrate V-Day as 'Matru-Pitru Din' Feb 13, 2009 Shivsena will always oppose Valentine's Day: Manohar Joshi Feb 12, 2009 Fatwa against Valentine's Day - Valentine's Day Massacre

Amnesty International: UK-trained security forces must stop extrajudicial executions in Bangladesh

http://www.amnesty.org/en/for-media/press-releases/uk-trained-security-forces-must-stop-extrajudicial-executions-bangladesh-20

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
PRESS RELEASE

27 January 2011

UK-trained security forces must stop extrajudicial executions in Bangladesh

Amnesty International is calling on the UK government to raise concerns about reports of torture, extrajudicial executions, and excessive use of force by the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) with the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina.

Sheikh Hasina is in the United Kingdom this week amid a flurry of accusations about extrajudicial executions carried out by Bangladeshi security forces.

Amnesty International and other human rights organisations have documented repeated instances of human rights violations by the RAB in the past five years. More than 600 people are thought to have been killed by RAB personnel since 2004 when the battalion was created.

In most cases, victims have died in the custody of the RAB, but police authorities routinely reported that the victims were killed during "crossfire", police "shoot-outs" or "gun-battles".

Abbas Faiz, Amnesty International’s Bangladesh researcher, said:

“Suggestions that these deaths in custody are just unrelated random incidents, as opposed to targeted executions, are simply not credible. The chances of this same fate befalling so many apprehended individuals defies belief and contradicts eye-witness testimony. These deaths amount to extrajudicial executions.”

“The deaths must stop now, and the responsible personnel must be brought to justice without delay,” Abbas Faiz said.

Comments and announcements from Bangladeshi government authorities over recent days have demonstrated a hostile defiance in response to national and international calls to address the claims.

The Bangladeshi Home Minister, Shara Khatun, yesterday denied that extra-judicial executions have ever taken place in Bangladesh during the time of the present government and today went on to accuse human rights organisations of "siding with the criminals"

Recently Wikileaks sources alleged that UK police have been training the RAB in Bangaldesh.

Abbas Faiz, added: “Any country that knowingly trains a force, which systematically violates human rights, might itself bear some responsibility for those violations. “

Public Document
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For more information please call Amnesty International's press office in London, UK, on +44 20 7413 5566 or email: press@amnesty.org
International Secretariat, Amnesty International, 1 Easton St., London WC1X 0DW, UK