Human rights in India
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The situation of human rights in India is a complex one, as a result of the country's large size and tremendous diversity, its status as a developing country and a sovereign, secular, democratic republic, and its history as a former colonial territory. The Constitution of India provides for Fundamental rights, which include freedom of religion. Clauses also provide for Freedom of Speech, as well as separation of executive and judiciary and freedom of movement within the country and abroad. It is often held, particularly by Indian human rights groups and activists, that members of the Dalit or Untouchable caste have suffered and continue to suffer substantial discrimination. Although human rights problems do exist in India, the country is generally not regarded as a human rights concern, unlike other countries in South Asia[1]. Based on these considerations, the report Freedom in the World 2006 by Freedom House gave India a political rights rating of 2, and a civil liberties rating of 3, earning it the designation of free[2]
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[edit] Chronology of human rights in India
- 1829 - The practice of sati was formally abolished by Governor General William Bentick after years of campaigning by Hindu reform movements such as the Brahmo Samaj of Ram Mohan Roy against this orthodox Hindu funeral custom of self-immolation of widows after the death of their husbands.
- 1929 - Child Marriage Restraint Act, prohibiting marriage of minors is passed.
- 1947 - India achieves political independence from the British Raj.
- 1950 - The Constitution of India establishes a sovereign democratic republic with universal adult franchise. Part 3 of the Constitution contains a Bill of Fundamental Rights enforceable by the Supreme Court and the High Courts. It also provides for reservations for previously disadvantaged sections in education, employment and political representation.
- 1955 - Reform of family law concerning Hindus gives more rights to Hindu women.
- 1973 - Supreme Court of India rules in Kesavananda Bharati that the basic structure of the Constitution (including many fundamental rights) is unalterable by a constitutional amendment.
- 1975-77 - State of Emergency in India - extensive rights violations take place.
- 1978 - SC rules in Menaka Gandhi v. Union of India that the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution cannot be suspended even in an emergency.
- 1984 - Operation Blue Star and the subsequent 1984 Anti-Sikh riots
- 1985-6 - The Shah Bano case, where the Supreme Court recognised the Muslim woman's right to maintenance upon divorce, sparks protests from Muslim clergy. To nullify the decision of the Supreme Court, the Rajiv Gandhi government enacted The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act 1986
- 1989 - Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is passed.
- 1989-present - Kashmiri insurgency sees ethnic cleansing of Kashmiri Pandits, desecrating Hindu temples, killing of Hindus and Sikhs, and abductions of foreign tourists and government functionaries.
- 1992 - A constitutional amendment establishes Local Self-Government (Panchayati Raj) as a third tier of governance at the village level, with one-third of the seats reserved for women. Reservations were provided for scheduled castes and tribes as well.
- 1992 - Babri Masjid demolished by Hindu mobs, resulting in riots across the country.
- 1993 - National Human Rights Commission is established under the Protection of Human Rights Act.
- 2001 - Supreme Court passes extensive orders to implement the right to food.[3]
- 2002 - Violence in Gujarat, chiefly targeting its Muslim minority, claims many lives.
- 2005 - A powerful Right to Information Act is passed to give citizen's access to information held by public authorities.[4]
- 2005 - National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) guarantees universal right to employment.
- 2006 - Supreme Court orders police reforms in response to the poor human rights record of Indian police.[5]
[edit] Custodial death
Despite state prohibitions against torture and custodial misconduct by the police, torture is widespread in police custody, which is a major reason behind deaths in custody.[6][7] The police often torture innocent people until a 'confession' is obtained to save influential and wealthy offenders.[8] G.P. Joshi, the programme coordinator of the Indian branch of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative in New Delhi comments that the main issue at hand concerning police violence is a lack of accountability of the police.[9]
In 2006, the Supreme Court of India in a judgment in the Prakash Singh vs. Union of India case, ordered central and state governments with seven directives to begin the process of police reform. The main objectives of this set of directives was twofold, providing tenure to and streamlining the appointment/transfer processes of policemen, and increasing the accountability of the police.[10]
[edit] Press Freedom
According to the estimates of Reporters Without Borders, India ranks 120th worldwide in press freedom index (press freedom index for India is 39.33 for 2007).[11]The Indian Constitution, while not mentioning the word "press", provides for "the right to freedom of speech and expression" (Article 19(1) a). However this right is subject to restrictions under subclause (2), whereby this freedom can be restricted for reasons of "sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, preserving decency, preserving morality, in relation to contempt of court, defamation, or incitement to an offence". Laws such as the Official Secrets Act and Prevention of Terrorism Act [12] (PoTA) have been used to limit press freedom. Under PoTA, person could be detained for up to six months for being in contact with a terrorist or terrorist group. PoTA was repealed in 2006, but the Official Secrets Act 1923 continues.
For the first half-century of independence, media control by the state was the major constraint on press freedom. Indira Gandhi famously stated in 1975 that All India Radio is "a Government organ, it is going to remain a Government organ..." [13] With the liberalization starting in the 1990s, private control of media has burgeoned, leading to increasing independence and greater scrutiny of government. Organizations like Tehelka and NDTV have been particularly influential, e.g. in bringing about the resignation of powerful Haryana minister Venod Sharma. In addition, laws like Prasar Bharati act passed in recent years contribute significantly to reducing the control of the press by the government.
[edit] LGBT rights
Homosexuality is criminalised in India by interpretations of the ambiguous Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The punishment ranges from ten years to lifelong imprisonment. The law has been used to harass HIV/AIDS prevention efforts, as well as sex workers, men who have sex with men, and other groups at risk of the disease.[14] Scott Long, director of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights Program at Human Rights Watch sent a letter to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh regarding the arrests of 4 men in 2006 in Lucknow and another 4 in 2001. However, in most areas of India, this law is very rarely enforced.[15]
The People's Union for Civil Liberties has published two reports of the rights violations faced by sexual minorities and, in particular, transsexuals (hijras and kothis)in India.
[edit] Human trafficking
Human trafficking is a $8 million illegal business in India. Around 10,000 Nepali women are brought to India annually for commercial sexual exploitation.[16] Each year 20,000-25,000 women and children are trafficked from Bangladesh.[17]
[edit] Religious violence
Communal conflicts between religious groups (mostly between Hindus and Muslims) have been prevalent India since around the time of it's independence from British Rule. Among the oldest incidences of communal violence in India was the Moplah rebellion, when Militant Islamists massacred Hindus in Kerala. Communal riots took place during the partition of India between Hindus/Sikhs and Muslims where large numbers of people were killed in large-scale violence.
The 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots was a four-day period during which Sikhs were massacred by members of the secular-centrist Congress Party of India; some estimates state that more than 4,000 were killed.[18] Other incidents include the 1992 Bombay Riots and the 2002 Gujarat violence —in the latter, more than 2,000 Muslims were killed following an alleged militant Islamist attack on a train full of Hindu pilgrims in the Godhra Train Burning, where 58 Hindus were killed.[19] Lesser incidents plague many towns and villages; representative was the killing of five people in Mau, Uttar Pradesh during Hindu-Muslim rioting, which was triggered by the proposed celebration of a Hindu festival.[19] Other such communal incidents include the 2002 Marad massacre, carried out by the militant Islamist group National Development Front, as well as communal riots in Tamil Nadu executed by the Islamist Tamil Nadu Muslim Munnetra Kazagham against Hindus.[1][2][3]
[edit] References
- ^ India, a Country Study,United States Library of Congress
- ^ "Freedom in the World 2006: Selected Data from Freedom House's Annual Global Survey of Political Rights and Civil Liberties"PDF (122 KiB), Freedom House, 2006
- ^ The Right to Food
- ^ Right to Information
- ^ Police Reforms ordered by Supreme Court
- ^ Torture main reason of death in police custody The Tribune
- ^ Custodial deaths in West Bengal and India's refusal to ratify the Convention against Torture Asian Human Rights Commission 26 February, 2004
- ^ Custodial deaths and torture in India Asian Legal Resource Centre
- ^ Police Accountability in India: Policing Contaminated by Politics
- ^ The Supreme Court takes the lead on police reform: Prakash Singh vs. Union of India, CHRI
- ^ Worldwide press freedom index 2007 Reporters Without Borders
- ^ The Prevention of Terrorism Act 2002.
- ^ "Freedom of the Press" (July 1982). PUCL Bulletin,. People's Union for Civil Liberties.
- ^ India: Repeal Colonial-Era Sodomy Law, report from Human Rights Watch, January 11, 2006.
- ^ Letter to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh On the arrest of four men on charges of homosexual conduct in Lucknow letter by Scott Long, director of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights Program at Human Rights Watch
- ^ Human trafficking turning into organised crime in India Zee News
- ^ India among top human trafficking destinations India eNews
- ^ Nichols, B (2003). "The Politics of Assassination: Case Studies and Analysis". Australasian Political Studies Association Conference.
- ^ a b Human Rights Watch 2006, p. 265.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Freedom of Expression in India - IFEX
- Domestic violence in India
- Human Rights Law in India
- Human rights situation in India including police abuse, torture and custodial deaths
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