CounterCurrents: Teesta Setalvad: Foot Soldier Of The Indian Constitution

Dear Friend,

Just weeks after the [UN] Security Council’s unanimous passage of Resolution 2334 on the illegality of settlements Israel has passed a law legalising 4000 settlements in the occupied territories showing its total disregard for internation law and public opinion. 

Yes, America is protesting against its CEO, Donald Trump. Chris Hedges has a warning. The protests should go on but must not play into the hands of 'the lesser of two evils'. He says "resistance alone, however, is not enough. It must be accompanied by an alternative vision of a socialist and anti-capitalist society. It must reject the Democratic Party’s attempt to ride anti-Trump sentiment back into power. The enemy is, in the end, not Trump or Bannon, but the corporate state. If we do not dismantle corporate power we will never stop fascism’s seduction of the white working class and unemployed."

Cauvery delta districts of Tamil Nadu are facing severe droughts. The distressed death has passed 250. In the second part of our three part series on the plight of the farmers in the area Prema Revati and Senthil Babu looks at the debt crisis farmers are facing. 

Teesta Setalvad, who fights doggedly for justice for the victims and survivors of Gujarat pogrom, in which over 2000 people were killed, is facing the ire of the government of India. CBI has slapped a criminal case against this indomitable fighter. Recently, Teesta's memoir,"Foot Soldier of the Constitution”  came out. I have written an appreciation of the book. It's a compelling reading and a MUST READ for all those who value and respect the constitution of India. 

And also more stories from around the world. 

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In Solidarity

Binu Mathew
Editor
www.countercurrents.org






Israel Passes Law To Legalize Theft Of Private Palestinian Land
by Charlotte Silver 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/02/07/israel-passes-law-to-legalize-theft-of-private-palestinian-land/

Late Monday night, Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, approved a bill to retroactively legalize the expropriation by settlers of private Palestinian land that has taken place over the last two decades. Passed by 60-52, the so-called Regularization Bill will legalize around 4,000 settlement homes in so-called unauthorized outposts and settlements. Human Rights Watch swiftly condemned the vote, noting that the Regularization Bill “undoes years of established Israeli law and, coming just weeks after the [UN] Security Council’s unanimous passage of Resolution 2334 on the illegality of settlements, reflects Israel’s manifest disregard of international law.”






Make America Ungovernable
by Chris Hedges 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/02/07/make-america-ungovernable/

We have the power to make the country ungovernable. But we do not have much time. The regime will make it harder and harder to organize, get into the streets and carry out the nationwide strikes, including within the federal bureaucracy. Resistance alone, however, is not enough. It must be accompanied by an alternative vision of a socialist and anti-capitalist society. It must reject the Democratic Party’s attempt to ride anti-Trump sentiment back into power. The enemy is, in the end, not Trump or Bannon, but the corporate state. If we do not dismantle corporate power we will never stop fascism’s seduction of the white working class and unemployed.






Death Ravages Cauvery Delta Districts: The The Business of Credit
Co-Written by Prema Revati and Senthil Babu

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/02/07/death-ravages-cauvery-delta-districts-the-the-business-of-credit/

This is the second essay in our series on the distress deaths in the Cauvery delta districts of Tamil Nadu, which has now climbed into the 250s.






Teesta Setalvad: Foot Soldier Of The Indian Constitution
by Binu Mathew

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/02/07/teesta-setalvad-foot-soldier-of-the-constitution/

It is her stubborn commitment to constitutionalism and justice that drives this foot soldier of Indian Constitution. It is this commitment that gives her energy to fight all her battles. It is sad that this fighter for constitutionalism being targeted, vilified to the point of crucifixion. When our constitution faces one of the greatest threats in the history of this republic, reading this book will give you immense courage and strength. Standing up for justice is our constitutional right. Standing up for Teesta Setalvad in this moment of crisis also a way of protecting the constitution.






“On Western Terrorism” – Interview with André Vltchek
by Alex Anfruns 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/02/07/on-western-terrorism-interview-with-andre-vltchek/

As an American investigative journalist, documentary filmmaker and novelist, André Vltchek has covered countless armed conflicts around the world. Among his most recent work we find “On Western Terrorism”, a discussion with Noam Chomsky, a renowned expert on propaganda. Together, they explore the legacy of colonialism that lasts to this day and denounce the hypocrisy of the West in regard to terrorism since it is largely responsible for its development. We have interviewed André Vltchek to get his thoughts on the book and much more.







Monsanto’s Communications Guru To Visit The UK: Instead Of Promoting GM, Take Responsibility For Your Company’s Actions In Wales
by Colin Todhunter 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/02/07/monsantos-communications-guru-to-visit-the-uk-instead-of-promoting-gm-take-responsibility-for-your-companys-actions-in-wales/

Monsanto is preparing a fresh effort to promote genetically modified (GM) crops to the UK public, according to a piece in The Scottish Farmer. The article notes the company recently appointed former World Bank communications strategist Vance Crowe as its ‘Director of Millenial Engagement’, a job that involves convincing the public about the benefits of GM.






Facebook Server Farm Powered by “Clean Energy” Will Increase Denmark’s Greenhouse Emissions
Co-Written by Stan Cox and Paul Cox

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/02/07/facebook-server-farm-powered-by-clean-energy-will-increase-denmarks-greenhouse-emissions/

Recent reports by Rasmus Svaeborg for the Danish newspaper Information tell a different story. What may resemble, at least in the view from Silicon Valley, an exercise in green corporate responsibility will actually mean a big increase in Denmark’s contribution to greenhouse warming.






Agha Shahid Ali: Kashmir’s Own Poet of Pain
by Basharat Shameem 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/02/07/agha-shahid-ali-kashmirs-own-poet-of-pain/

As a poet, Agha Shahid Ali (1949-2001), the well-known Kashmiri, had a conspicuous allegiance to the aesthetics of art. However, in giving prominence to this undeniable facet of his poetry, critics, in the words of Claire Chambers, have “soft-pedalled the political message” of Agha Shahid’s poetry (1). As Kashmiris come to terms with what they suffered in the last seven months, it is imperative and pertinent to revisit the poetry of Agha Shahid Ali who poignantly rendered Kashmir’s pain to the outside world in the tragic decade of 1990s when there were not many like him doing so.






NGT Verdict On Jindal’s Hazardous Okhla ‘Waste To Energy’ Plant Fails To Give Relief To Residents And Birds
by Gopal Krishna 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/02/07/ngt-verdict-on-jindals-hazardous-okhla-waste-to-energy-plant-fails-to-give-relief-to-residents-and-birds/

From page no. 137 to 142, paragraph 60, the verdict provides its orders and directions in the matter of mixed waste incineration based power plant of Jindal Urban Infrastructure Ltd (Sukhdev Vihar Residents Welfare Association & others V State of NCT of Delhi & others).