Association for
For Immediate
Release:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
International Groups
Demand Justice on the Second Anniversary of Dr. Binayak
Sen’s Continued Incarceration
Press Contact: Somnath Mukherji
Phone:
Dr. Sen, a human
rights activist and physician for the poor, has been under detention without
bail since May 2007, and the protests are part of an ongoing global campaign by
a coalition of over 50 International groups, including Amnesty International,
Association for India’s Development (AID), National Lawyers’ Guild and a group
of 22 Nobel Laureates, who have all called for the immediate release of Dr.
Sen. In India, thousands of supporters are courting arrest as part of the Raipur Satyagraha, a mass civil
disobedience action in
Over 70
supporters raised slogans at Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA, demanding the
immediate release of Dr. Sen. Protesters questioned why bail had been denied to
Dr. Sen despite his record of over 25 years of public service, both as a medical doctor
that served underprivileged communities, and as a human rights crusader. Dr.Bobby Cherayil, a physician and a
friend of Dr.Sen’s said “Dr.Sen
is being penalized for drawing attention to the utter marginalization of indigenous
communities from civil polity, and to the neglect and outright abuse that these
communities are subjected to by agents of the government”. In Washington D.C.,
volunteers of AID, along with Mr. T.Kumar,
Asia-Pacific Advocacy Director at Amnesty International, met with officials at
the Indian embassy and submitted a petition with hundreds of signatures
demanding the release of Dr. Sen. Amnesty has declared Dr. Sen
to be a Prisoner of Conscience and has demanded his immediate and unconditional
release.
Dr. Sen
attracted the ire of the government of Chhattisgarh
for his outspoken criticism of atrocities committed by the Salwa
Judum, a state-sponsored militia that has
been attacking local indigenous communities under the guise of containing
Maoist groups, and which has caused large-scale displacement of these
communities. Dr. Sen was arrested under the
provisions of the Chhattisgarh Special Public
Security Act 2005, and the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act 1967, two
draconian laws that shield the government from public scrutiny by criminalizing
any investigation of, or reporting about, activities deemed “unlawful” by the
state.
Dr. Sen has been on medication for angina since 2004, and has
developed a serious coronary problem warranting immediate attention while being
imprisoned. His deteriorating health is being made worse by the government’s
apathy and failure to provide appropriate medical treatment. “It is a travesty
of justice that Dr.Sen, who served the poorest in Chhattisgarh for over 25 years as a physician, is now being
denied medical attention,” said Karthik Shekhar, a volunteer with AID-Boston. Although the Supreme
Court of
Over a hundred
physicians from around the world have written to the Prime Minister of India,
expressing concern over the deteriorating health of Dr. Sen
and the State’s apathy. “Dr. Binayak has a blemishless record of public service both as a medical
doctor amongst the poor and as a human rights crusader,
and it is our humble opinion that a great injustice has already been done to
him,” the letter stated.
Several students
fasted in
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Information on the Raipur Satyagraha for the Release
of Dr. Binayak Sen is here:
http://raipursatyagraha.wordpress.com
More information on Dr. Binayak Sen
and his case:
1.
For
a detailed analysis of the state’s case against Dr. Sen,
read the 3-part series in Indian Express by Vinay Sitapati: http://www.binayaksen.net/2009/01/indian-express-series-on-binayak-sen/
2.
A
timeline of Binayak Sen’s
case is available here: http://www.binayaksen.net/2009/01/timeline-of-events-in-the-strange-case-of-dr-binayak-sen/
3.
A
compilation of news articles on Dr. Sen can be found
at www.binayaksen.net , www.freebinayaksen.org
and http://www.aidboston.org/FreeBinayakSen/media.htm
On Chhattisgarh Special
Public Security Act, 2005:
1.
The
text of the law and its analysis by People’s
2.
A
law and its victim, Ajoy Ashirwad
Mahaprashasta, Frontline, Oct-Nov 2008 http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl2522/stories/20081107252212400.htm
3.
Caught
between Naxals and police, Indian Express,
Fact-finding reports on Salwa Judum
can be obtained from the website for the Campaign for Peace and Justice in Chhattisgarh, http://cpjc.wordpress.com/reports-by-fact-finding-teams-on-salwa-judum/
Letter to the Chhattisgarh government by over 50
international peace and justice groups can be found here: http://docs.aidindia.org/Documents/AID-Chapters/Maryland/campaign/Binayak_Sen_Org_Endorsement.pdf