Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee. India

On the occasion of Minorities Rights Day, demand to present the Prevention of Communal and Targeted Violence (Access to Justice and Reparations) Bill, 2011

It is Governments’ responsibility to protect Religious and Linguistic Minorities

Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee on the occasion of 18th December 2011, which is celebrated as Minorities Rights Day in India issued a statement by stating that on this day United Nations in the year 1992 recognized the Minorities Rights and released a declaration. It is mentioned that national and ethnic, religious and linguistic minority rights have to be protected by the concerned governments. In this chapter, it has been made clear that minorities protection is the responsibility of the state and the government is bound to safeguard minorities religion, culture and language. It is the duty of the government to protect the identity, heritage and promote their culture and language.

By keeping in mind the importance of this day, Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee sent a fax to the Prime Minister of India, with a demand, according to the International Laws and the laws prepared by its own government must present the Prevention of Communal and Targeted Violence Bill, 2011 in the Parliament and pass and implement it as soon as possible so that Minorities can get minimum safeguards whereby they can live their lives with human dignity. In this letter, this committee also mentioned categorically that at this moment Muslims and Christians in India are the target of Hindutva terrorism. The human rights violation is at peak level in the Kashmir and North East states; in these regions, the people who are struggling for their democratic demands and those are engaged in their identity struggle, government is suppressing them by giving special powers to the army to crush them.

Now, the time has come to repeal the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and other draconian laws that are made to suppress the struggle of the voiceless Minority people. Now it is high time for the government of India to control the expanding Hindutva fanaticism in extremist elements of majority community. On this occasion, Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee wrote a letter to the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh demanding that the guilty police officers should be brought under the purview of law, those who are involved in Sohrabuddin and Kauser Bibi killing and are under the protection of government of Andhra Pradesh and hiding in the DGP and Commissioners office of Hyderabad.

Hundreds of Muslim youth were targeted by the Hyderabad police officers by taking the advantage of Makkah Masjid bomb blast and in the name of investigation. Now the real terrorists are exposed. So, it is the duty of the government to compensate and rehabilitate those youth as well as punish the tainted police officers as per the law.

On this occasion Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee pay homage to the people who are struggling for the protection of Minorities rights by their service. We express our solidarity to all the minority people of this world who are struggling for the protection of their identity. We demand the government of India to present the Protection of Communal and Targeted Violence Bill, 2011 in the present session of the Parliament.

Lateef Mohammed Khan
General Secretary