tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88687342066748727012024-03-13T09:28:34.725+05:30VartaBioscope of your intimate dreams!Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.comBlogger233125truetag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-70178485309119825182016-08-25T12:07:00.002+05:302019-12-24T19:11:34.556+05:30We have moved . . .<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Notice, Aug '16</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We have moved to </span><a href="http://www.vartagensex.org/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">www.vartagensex.org</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">
– our new website, which will henceforth include also the monthly issues of <i>Varta</i>
in a new webzine format. The 36th (August 2016) issue is already up on the new site.
But this blog site is not going anywhere. We will continue to maintain it with
all information related pages up-to-date.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Before you move on, spare a look at our new page on <a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/p/anthologies.html">Anthologies</a>
– another debut in <i>Varta’s</i> third birthday month! Our first anthology titled <i><a href="https://www.instamojo.com/QueerInk/queer-potli-memories-imaginations-and-re-ima/">Queer Potli: Memories, Imaginations and Re-Imaginations of Urban Queer Spaces in India</a></i>, a collaborative venture with <a href="http://www.queer-ink.com/">Queer Ink</a>, Mumbai, is just out in an e-book
format (print version in the works). Buy, read, share!</span></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Best
wishes from the Varta team!</span></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-67165272840483624082016-07-26T11:09:00.000+05:302016-07-26T11:09:16.557+05:30We're transitioning!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Notice, Jul '16</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hello readers! </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Apologies for the long silence. We've been preparing for a transition to a new format the last few months. We're ever so near the final step, and as with all change, this move has not been without a few hiccups. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For the first time since <i>Varta </i>started on August 1, 2013, there will be no monthly issue (the 36th) of the blog in July 2016. But we will be back next month, the third birthday month of <i>Varta</i>, in a new avatar!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The new format will be a comprehensive website that will include the <i>Varta </i>webzine (with many new and old features) as well as many new links to the different activities of Varta Trust. The webzine will continue to be published with a monthly frequency. With this change Varta Trust aims also to initiate a new set of journalistic and publishing activities.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, more on those when the time comes nearer. In the meantime, we will continue to maintain this blog version of <i>Varta </i>with all information related pages up-to-date. Looking forward to resuming our monthly dates with you!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Best wishes from the Varta team!</span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-3468036541576747762016-06-24T17:26:00.003+05:302016-06-24T17:26:58.391+05:30Vigils for trust and kindness<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Vartanama, Jun '16</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>By Pawan Dhall</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had forgotten many details of this family story from the time of India’s partition in 1947 – till a cousin sister recounted it recently. My late father, then all of 19 and unmarried, along with his younger brother and parents, lived in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shorkot" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Shorkot</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> town in the Punjab now in Pakistan. A time came when they had to leave home in a rush and take refuge in a camp within the town. Only to realize that they had left behind some valuables, which would have proved more than handy if and when they crossed the border.</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-69xGXojdjCk/V20eiApA8RI/AAAAAAAADpI/3Uzs7b1RL58hbUIaSM81JUADWIQTZdycQCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-vartanama-pawan-quote.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-69xGXojdjCk/V20eiApA8RI/AAAAAAAADpI/3Uzs7b1RL58hbUIaSM81JUADWIQTZdycQCLcB/s400/varta-blog-issue35-vartanama-pawan-quote.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My grandfather was a teacher and two of his students played
significant roles in this story, which may be of some value even in today’s
circumstances. Both turned up at the refugee camp to offer help. One of the
students was Muslim, the other Hindu (their names now long forgotten). When the
Muslim student came to know about the dilemma around the valuables left behind,
he assured my grandparents and escorted my father home from the camp to collect
the valuables.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My father often said that the moments he spent in the
deserted house collecting the valuables were possibly the most sinister and nerve-wracking
ever. An oppressive silence, neighbours staring at him, suspicions about his
escort’s intentions . . . nevertheless he was back in the camp with both life
and valuables intact. The student refused to accept anything even as a token of
gratitude, paid respect to his teacher and left.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Soon, a second dilemma offered itself. Now that many people
knew about the existence of the valuables, what if they were robbed during the
journey to India? Worse, what if they became reason for the family to be hurt
or even killed? At this stage, the second student, who was from a well-to-do family
better placed than my father’s in terms of security, happened to visit the
camp. It was decided that the valuables should be handed over to him and once his
family too had crossed the border, both sides would try to establish contact
and the valuables returned to their owners. Niggling doubts about whether this
would really happen were quelled as there was little choice and somewhere there
was a kernel of expectation from a fellow religionist.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Eventually, after more halts at refugee camps, road and
train journeys, my father and others reached Amritsar in India. My aunt, my
father’s younger sister (and my cousin sister’s mother), married and settled in
Delhi before partition, met them on arrival and was aghast to see them just
about able to stand on their feet. After some time, when immediate matters had
been dealt with (my father settled in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gohana">Gohana</a>, now in Haryana), it was decided
to see if the valuables could be retrieved. Till then there was no
communication received from my grandfather’s student.</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fqfGhRtTM2w/V20frH929UI/AAAAAAAADpY/lyhnBt1U78MCkWWoWU3eu_jLvL_SCquGQCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-vartanama-pawan-quote-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fqfGhRtTM2w/V20frH929UI/AAAAAAAADpY/lyhnBt1U78MCkWWoWU3eu_jLvL_SCquGQCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue35-vartanama-pawan-quote-2.png" width="249" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My aunt’s husband, a gentle but firmly persuasive man to say
the least, through his contacts and records of refugees, finally did track down
the student’s family. But he was in for a shock when the student flatly denied
having taken custody of the valuables. Not one to give up, my uncle got a
government official to put pressure till the student agreed to return the
valuables. It’s another matter that later my grandmother discovered that some
of the valuables were missing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m mesmerized by the story every time I hear it (after all
it has a close connection with my existence and my being able to write this
today). But I was not aware about the role played by the students till recently,
and that seems to be of significance today. This is a story of trust and
distrust – implicit distrust in the ‘other’ and trust in ‘our own’.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is this story evidence that all Muslims are saviours and
Hindus thieves? The question itself seems unnecessary, but given that as a
society we are still stuck in juvenility (no disrespect to adolescents), it has
to be asked. The answer, of course, is most certainly not. Yet the story is some
sort of evidence that generalizations get us only so far as a pool of
prejudice, where, stripped of our discernment, we stand to be demonized as much
as we demonize others.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘Fiberal’, ‘sickular’ and ‘infidel’ are the chants I can
visualize as I write this. But I must refuse to believe and do what
fundamentalists, irrespective of hue and denomination, would have us believe and
do. The inherent limitations of holy books, epics and social systems, and the
shortsightedness of those who propound or pound them for their own narrow ends hold
no fascination for me. Not beyond literary curiosity, never to the extent of
castigating entire communities.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One can argue that fundamentalists are not born in or off a
vacuum; that their genesis is in us as a society, community or even individuals.
So can any one of us truly claim to be on higher ground? Most likely not, and that’s
all the more reason we need to introspect our actions, even the well-intentioned
ones. I say we need candlelight vigils not so much for the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_Orlando_nightclub_shooting">Orlando’s</a> of our
lives, but for the little acts of enlightened self-interest (also known as
kindness) – the kind that helps people cross borders.</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9p-sV81yLSo/V20eWeXnljI/AAAAAAAADpA/OoutH-f3Xg4dBE8LmIKPZ_bciBK5PQS3wCLcB/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9p-sV81yLSo/V20eWeXnljI/AAAAAAAADpA/OoutH-f3Xg4dBE8LmIKPZ_bciBK5PQS3wCLcB/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Pawan
Dhall aspires to be a rainbow journalist and believes in taking a stand, even
if it’s on the fence – the view is better from there!</i></span></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-27182506697654123122016-06-24T17:11:00.000+05:302016-06-24T17:11:05.904+05:30Teach India gender and sexuality<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Insight, Jun '16</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>By Shampa Sengupta</b></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Ma, are there only two kinds of human beings – male and female and no more?” This was the question my daughter Suchetana asked me 14 years ago when she was four. As usual, I pretended to be busy (which I often did whenever she asked me difficult questions) and told her I would explain later.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had to take help of mythology when I came back to her with explanations – since story telling was part of my daily routine when I was with her, I started telling stories from <i>Mahabharata</i> – so Shikhandi’s story was told and retold a number of times, as also those of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brihannala">Brihannala</a><span id="goog_1912194555"></span><span id="goog_1912194556"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iravan">Iravan</a>. But I distinctly remember Shikhandi was a favourite with both of us.</span></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zNyZfvFOpGM/V20Z0Z_3MWI/AAAAAAAADoM/WHDNeqQYRogUgx9ArXzVasRdWvFvcVBCgCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-insight-ssg-photo-tf.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zNyZfvFOpGM/V20Z0Z_3MWI/AAAAAAAADoM/WHDNeqQYRogUgx9ArXzVasRdWvFvcVBCgCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue35-insight-ssg-photo-tf.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Books, comics, films, teaching aids are needed to make<br />children aware about gender and sexuality diversity.<br />Photo courtesy: <a href="http://thoughtshopfoundation.org/">Thoughtshop Foundation</a>, Kolkata</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A couple of times I wondered why she asked
this question – she was exposed to different kinds of people from early
childhood as she had to accompany me to meetings, workshops as well as protest
meets, as there were days I didn’t have anyone with whom I could leave her at
home. So she met persons with disabilities and members of women’s rights groups
(no, we didn’t say gender rights in those days but said women’s rights). Was it
because she saw and met members of <a href="http://www.sapphokolkata.in/">Sappho</a> regularly around that time?</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Incidentally, when I met a few members of Sappho,
Kolkata’s first lesbian and bisexual women’s support group, they said they were
looking for a room which they could use for their meetings as they did not have
resources for a full-fledged office. I offered them one room of my house, which
was lying vacant then. I mentioned the conversation with my daughter to my
friends in Sappho, and in one of our informal gatherings we discussed at length
whether mythology was a good way to explain gender roles and fluidity to
children.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I recall that about 15 years ago it was not
so easy to talk about diverse sexual orientations and gender identities as it
is today. It was only my husband and I who knew about Sappho’s work. I told my
in-laws tactfully that it was an all women’s group who would be using the room for
their work – well, I was truthful, after all. I gave similar answers to all the
neighbours – not just neighbours, even the local shopkeepers repeatedly asked
me who came to our house and for what purpose.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Would the answer be any different if I was
asked similar questions today? How much has time changed? How much has our
vocabulary on gender and sexuality changed in the past 15 years or so? I know these
issues are discussed much more now; the media also gives more space to these
issues but somewhere there is alienation when it comes to languages other than
English. Even in the context of English, speaking about gender and sexuality to
adults is likely to be easier, but till date I lack the skills if children ask
about similar issues.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lAhjpxuW5lM/V20cJIiV4nI/AAAAAAAADo0/WKg8pY0fbYost-FxSTOrGI3Smdtmvp9eQCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-insight-ssg-quote-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lAhjpxuW5lM/V20cJIiV4nI/AAAAAAAADo0/WKg8pY0fbYost-FxSTOrGI3Smdtmvp9eQCLcB/s400/varta-blog-issue35-insight-ssg-quote-1.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I realised this when last year I attended the
‘</span><a href="http://kindlemag.in/who-said-it-was-simple/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kolkata Rainbow Pride Walk</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">’
for the first time. As I entered the park where the walk was supposed to end, I
saw several children playing around. A few of them asked me what the procession
was about and once again I fumbled for words – how to explain ‘rainbow pride’
to the children? I didn’t have enough vocabulary in their language or the
expertise to clarify diversity that ‘rainbow pride’ was made of.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While carrying out a needs assessment on sexuality
education for children with developmental disabilities, the principal of a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_education">special school</a> told me that she found it difficult these days to explain the concepts of ‘boy’
and ‘girl’ to her students. I wasn’t surprised. She said, “Previously, we used
to show a doll in a dress with long hair and said this was a girl, but now with
the whole concept of cross-dressing and gender-fluidity coming up, we don’t
know how to explain these concepts to our children.”</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She added that previously teaching young
adults with intellectual disabilities how to prevent ‘sexual abuse’ meant
saying “Don’t let people of the other sex touch your private parts”. Now with
so much more openness about same-sex relationships, this concept too should be reframed.
But when she asked me for suggestions, I had none – because we haven’t developed
a simple vocabulary that can be used to explain queer issues to our children.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Every single time I plan sexuality
education sessions for persons with developmental disabilities I find this gap
increasing. Today, how can I take sessions on gender and sexuality without talking
about queer issues?</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xjpVb7C3IVU/V20bAaS6DaI/AAAAAAAADok/hPBvvac939sUl-eHsodIJlIuy0lwNabsQCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-insight-ssg-quote-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xjpVb7C3IVU/V20bAaS6DaI/AAAAAAAADok/hPBvvac939sUl-eHsodIJlIuy0lwNabsQCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue35-insight-ssg-quote-2.png" width="226" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is also important to be alert about how children
receive totally different views on gender and sexuality from different sources and
it confuses them more. For example, when my nephew was a student in the sixth
standard in one of the most reputed schools in Kolkata, he came and told us
that a cuss word used by some of his friends was ‘gay’. It was an all-boys school
and when a gang of boys wanted to tease a particular child, it was usual to
call him ‘gay’. My nephew thought it must be the ultimate bad thing to be gay. This
was in the ‘90s and he was not aware what this particular word meant. When he asked
his family, his mother felt too shy to answer. So he came to me. My explanation
that being gay was nothing bad didn’t satisfy him. It was difficult for him to disbelieve
his peer group, his friends.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lack of books, comics and films on queer issues
also makes things more difficult. Somewhere we need to understand that the more
invisible this issue becomes, the more complex it is for a child to understand
the issue of gender and sexuality diversity.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is one thing to talk about these issues at
seminars using English and quite another to make children understand complex (or
not-so-complex) issues. More discourse at the ground level may well mean
greater chances of societal acceptance. We do need to discuss legalities and policies.
But definitely the need is much more to put in energy to make the issues comprehensible
to children, adolescents and the public at large.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UIS7X87kKt4/V20ZYeMrg7I/AAAAAAAADoE/ULz8z1i76mIGws1lYIC5zOC04jaKuIZfwCLcB/s1600/shampa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UIS7X87kKt4/V20ZYeMrg7I/AAAAAAAADoE/ULz8z1i76mIGws1lYIC5zOC04jaKuIZfwCLcB/s1600/shampa.jpg" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Shampa Sengupta is a Kolkata-based activist
working on gender and disability issues for more than 25 years. She is the
founder of an advocacy group called Sruti Disability Rights Centre and is
Executive Committee Member, National Platform for Rights of the Disabled.</i></span></span><br />
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Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-70996436564346952892016-06-24T16:50:00.001+05:302016-06-24T16:50:31.122+05:30Odisha awaits transgender welfare board<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Happenings, Jun '16</b></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Anupam Hazra reports on the ‘2nd Transgender Day’ event
in Bhubaneswar, Odisha</b></span></span><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3eJia3vJOOc/V20Vk8DNdvI/AAAAAAAADno/kJMsElnyaZURXENF62X78Fyg7UOkK47LwCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-happenings-ah-photo-ah-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3eJia3vJOOc/V20Vk8DNdvI/AAAAAAAADno/kJMsElnyaZURXENF62X78Fyg7UOkK47LwCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue35-happenings-ah-photo-ah-1.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inauguration of '2nd Transgender Day' event at<br />Bhubaneswar. Photo credit: Anupam Hazra</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Bhubaneswar, April 25, 2016: </b>Trans women’s community groups
in Odisha made an emphatic presentation of their demands at the observation of
the state’s ‘2nd Transgender Day’ at Hotel Keshari in Bhubaneswar today. Odisha
Law Minister Arun Kumar Sahoo was presented with a charter of demands for the
formation of a transgender welfare board in the state, reserved seats in
educational institutes, opportunities to participate in the political sphere,
separate beds in government hospitals, pension for individuals above 40 years,
and access to benefits under a number of social welfare schemes. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While the minister assured that he would try his best to
fulfill the demands of the transgender communities in Odisha, others felt that the
state government should move faster in this regard. Among them was human rights
defender Biswa Priya Kanungo, who a few months ago filed a complaint with the Odisha
Human Rights Commission questioning the state government for not implementing
the Honourable Supreme Court of India’s <a href="http://www.lawyerscollective.org/updates/supreme-court-recognises-the-right-to-determine-and-express-ones-gender-grants-legal-status-to-third-gender.html">judgment on transgender identities andrights</a> speedily enough.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hijra activist Laxmi Narayan Tripathi said by now (more than
two years since the judgment) a transgender welfare board should have been set
up in Odisha. She said the transgender communities were not looking for alms
from the government – they wanted their constitutionally guaranteed rights to
be recognized and respected. She added: “There are a large number of agencies
under the United Nations umbrella, and Odisha is among the states that receives
the largest amounts of aid from these agencies. A transgender welfare board
must be set up immediately to avail of these resources and opportunities.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nitin Chandra, Secretary and Mansi Nimbhal, Director,
Department of Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities,
Government of Odisha, stressed on the need for enumeration of the transgender
populations in the state. They said their department had contracted <a href="http://www.ximb.ac.in/">Xavier Institute of Management</a>, Bhubaneswar to carry out the enumeration.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G2wI3sdVqjY/V20WLnBJqhI/AAAAAAAADn0/gaDvOr1KNyEbtIK_oLUw--R8LFiaGxzfwCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-happenings-ah-photo-ah-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="277" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G2wI3sdVqjY/V20WLnBJqhI/AAAAAAAADn0/gaDvOr1KNyEbtIK_oLUw--R8LFiaGxzfwCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue35-happenings-ah-photo-ah-2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hijra activist Laxmi Narayan Tripathi (right) with Meera Parida<br />of SAKHA (to her left). Photo credit: Anupam Hazra</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dr. Akshay Rout of <a href="http://vivekanandhospital.com/">Vivekananda Hospital</a>, who regularly
performs sexual reassignment surgeries for both trans women and trans men, said
he started undertaking such operations in 2009-10. His clients included even
senior and / or retired professionals. He urged for wider availability of
quality health services around feminization and masculinization procedures.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The event, supported by Project Diva of <a href="http://vhschennai.org/">Voluntary Health Services</a>, Chennai and <a href="http://osacs.nic.in/">Odisha State AIDS Control Society</a>, drew participation by
a number of transgender community members from across the state. Many of them
were a testament to the courage and enterprise of transgender individuals in
their daily lives. Among them were Phulo, a school teacher from <a href="http://kandhamal.nic.in/">Kandhamal</a>
district, and Madhuri, whose birthday was celebrated at the event. The parents
of Meghna, a Hijra leader, were also felicitated at the event.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The event winded up with a talent show, with transgender and
Hijra community members dancing to Odia and Bollywood songs.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Subsequent to this event, on May 29, 2016, the Odisha
government decided to accord ‘below poverty line’ status to transgender persons
as well as cover them under the <a href="http://dfpd.nic.in/nfsa-act.htm">National Food Security Act 2013</a>.
See Press Trust of India news report <i><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.in/2016/05/29/transgendersbplstatusodisha_%20n_10190040.html">Transgenders in Odisha to Get BPL Status, Will be Covered under National Food Security Act</a></i> published in <i>Huffington Post</i>. Welcome as these initiatives are, they will
address only a small part of the problem and are not likely to capacitate
transgender individuals with education, new life skills and livelihood
opportunities, something which the community has been demanding for long <i>–
Editor.</i></span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cncchRUdbys/V20VQABD-VI/AAAAAAAADng/BjsYohdpYdAaBYapz8netM4Gxckp7TJdwCLcB/s1600/anupam.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cncchRUdbys/V20VQABD-VI/AAAAAAAADng/BjsYohdpYdAaBYapz8netM4Gxckp7TJdwCLcB/s1600/anupam.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anupam
Hazra works for the Kolkata office of Solidarity and Action Against The HIV
Infection in India (SAATHII).</span></i></span><br />
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Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-74327597029989160052016-06-24T16:13:00.001+05:302017-10-15T18:03:48.739+05:30Qatha: Recalling dark room discoveries and more (part 1)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">People, Jun '16</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">By Pawan Dhall</span></b><br />
<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-luIAl_dh_UE/V20E0i6Z64I/AAAAAAAADmM/F8cWbrF4u9wES9BSNIrMkABuOiHYHNG4wCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-qkohp-ppl-ivw-hem-pd-quote-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="173" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-luIAl_dh_UE/V20E0i6Z64I/AAAAAAAADmM/F8cWbrF4u9wES9BSNIrMkABuOiHYHNG4wCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue35-qkohp-ppl-ivw-hem-pd-quote-1.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Varta</i> brings you the ‘Queer Kolkata Oral
History Project’, an initiative to document five decades of queer lives in
Kolkata (1960-2000). Our aim in this project is to go back in time and bring
forward diverse queer voices through a series of interviews, which will provide
a landmark to Kolkata city's queer history. Typically, the focus will be on the
queer scenario in Kolkata during the growing up years of each interviewee – how
it was to be queer in Kolkata in different decades since the 1960s till more
recent times. The effort will be to bring forward a mix of the well known and
the lesser known voices. Apart from the excerpts published here, the project
also aims to publish a collection of the interviews in different formats. All
interviews are based on informed consent and where requested, all markers of
identity have been removed for reasons of confidentiality.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">In this issue we bring you the first part
of an interview with <b>Suresh,</b> 68, a teacher of marketing management who used to
live in Kolkata till the late 1990s and is now based in a coastal town in
southern India. Suresh talks about his early sexual discoveries and negotiations
around relationships, never mind if terms like ‘gay’ didn’t exist back then.</span></span></div>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The
interview was conducted by Pawan Dhall over Skype on June 4, 2016, and later transcribed
by the interviewer.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oZA-zTAf8kA/V20E-21X-aI/AAAAAAAADmU/nDQt2OoF5Ew0YyXrL517Uqv7xBYEJg5BwCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-qkohp-ppl-ivw-hem-pd-artwk-clip-art.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oZA-zTAf8kA/V20E-21X-aI/AAAAAAAADmU/nDQt2OoF5Ew0YyXrL517Uqv7xBYEJg5BwCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-qkohp-ppl-ivw-hem-pd-artwk-clip-art.png" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Okay, so to begin with Suresh can you
tell me a little bit about yourself, how old are you, what do you do, where do
you stay?</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh: </b>Yeah, I used to stay in Tollygunge . .
. near Bangur Hospital . . . and right from the age of say, six years old, when
I was six years old, I’d come to that locality called HP.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b><i>Achha</i>.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh: </b>So we’d been staying there first in a
smaller house, then we shifted to a bigger house, when our family started to
grow, that means first we were two brothers, then the sisters came one by one,
so later family became two brothers and two sisters.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>You were telling me about where you
were staying in Calcutta. So which years were those?</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh: </b>1954 onwards we were staying there. So
when I was about six years old, I started going to school . . . I was this – ABC
School in Dhakuria . . . from the primary actually, and actually I finished my
higher secondary from there itself, from ABC School.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>So you said that you were there with
your sisters, where were your parents?</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>They were also there, parents,
brothers, sisters . . . There were about four rooms – so in one room my brother
and I used to sleep. One was dining-cum-kitchen and hall and all that . . .
hall was a huge one.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Okay.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>So, I started going to school at the age
of about six, six and a half . . . I was a bright student, so I got a double
promotion actually in class two . . .</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b><i>Accha</i>, okay!</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>So, what happened is, I was a bit
young for my class there (laughs) . . .</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b><i>Haan</i>.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>So, here in my locality, I had a lot
of friends, lot of friends. And then when I grew up a little, when I was say
10, 11, then I started going for swimming . . . with locality boys, we used to
go in a group of 10-12 for swimming in the Dhakuria Lakes . . . morning five o’
clock we used to get up and go, and that is how I learnt swimming, little bit
of swimming . . . there were drums fixed across, so from one drum to another
drum to another, like that, we used to go . . . It was fun actually.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Okay, and before coming to Calcutta
– you said you were six years old – before Calcutta where were you?</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>In southern India.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>So when you started going to school
and learning swimming and all, anything interesting happened at this stage that
you would like to share?</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>No, nothing interesting as such, but
you see . . . my keen interest was . . . male sex organ as you can say, because
. . . if I’d seen somebody naked on the road, I’d be staring at the organ
and get excited, all that . . .</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b><i>Achha</i>.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>So, at that time I didn’t understand
what it was, because I was too young to follow any sexual this thing (laughs) .
. . But I could feel something; that is the thing. So that was my initial
experience, as far as this is concerned.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>And when did you start realizing
that you were any different, did you feel any different from the other guys?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EpN5vW9xgmA/V20MD_qxZ_I/AAAAAAAADmw/U0FrECjcuAsIey78m9FlYoU2E5NUiwBmgCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-qkohp-ppl-ivw-hem-pd-artwk-clip-art.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EpN5vW9xgmA/V20MD_qxZ_I/AAAAAAAADmw/U0FrECjcuAsIey78m9FlYoU2E5NUiwBmgCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-qkohp-ppl-ivw-hem-pd-artwk-clip-art.png" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>Not exactly, you know, I didn’t feel
anything different as such, but you see the attitude towards sex there was, you
know boys also used to horse around, and we also used to you know touch one
another and this thing, all that thing used to go on. And talking about girls,
we used to think it was funny, and . . . it’s quite long ago you see, 60 years
ago (laughs) . . .</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>I know, I know, yeah, so whatever
you can remember, so essentially when did you first realize very strongly about
your attraction for other boys?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>Uh, you see, we had one servant man –
man servant . . . and he used to sleep in that room where we used to sleep, so
sometimes brother was not there, he had gone to someone’s place . . . and he
used to tell . . . you know what they’re doing and all that, and then one day
he told me that you know men can also enjoy with men. So I was interested,
wanted to know and also I wanted to see this organ of sex. So, then one thing
led to another and slowly we started having sex. First time it was really
painful . . .</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And, hmm, he told that you know first time
it will be painful, next it will be very – slowly, slowly you will start
enjoying it, so after two-three days again we had – it was much better but pain
was there. But then I was . . . enjoying it, you know I was coming to the point
of what they call it ejaculation.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Okay.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>And he was very, you know, that way
very good at that, and . . . this went on for about two years . . .</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>This was in the early ‘60s?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>Yes . . .</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>So you would have been around . .
. how many years?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>Twelve or 13 . . . I was maybe 12 or
13 years.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Okay, and then what happened?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>And then he got a job and he had to
go, so I lost one partner, I was feeling bad. Then searching around for anybody
and then, I used to play top also.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Okay.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uv4xP4BQ0gw/V20ifxL4OwI/AAAAAAAADpk/m2jqQBtus74nfB_8OF8cYGK2MgRdAWGTgCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-qkohp-ppl-ivw-hem-pd-quote-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uv4xP4BQ0gw/V20ifxL4OwI/AAAAAAAADpk/m2jqQBtus74nfB_8OF8cYGK2MgRdAWGTgCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue35-qkohp-ppl-ivw-hem-pd-quote-2.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>And once I also enjoyed having that
role of top, and there was one boy in our locality, one boy he was very
interested in sex, and whenever his mother, father was always out on tour, when
his mother would go somewhere, he would call of us, there would be about eight
or nine people in the room – there was a room and we used to play dark room.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Okay.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>:</b> (Laughs) So those were the days, and
partners were selected and in a dark room . . . And then somebody will shout .
. . and then suddenly the light would come on and all would be in awkward
positions.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Okay (laughs).</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>Of course, that time we didn’t have
any camera or anything to take photos. Otherwise, it would have been fun
watching them now, those photos.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Yeah, indeed, those were the days of
no, no mobile phones and . . . So, you said somebody would put on the light,
who would be that?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>Uh, whoever was near the switch?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b><i>Achha</i>, that was because your
friend’s mother would be returning?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>No, no, no, just fun . . . to see how
the pose, who is in which position?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Just being naughty (laughs).</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>Yeah, just being naughty.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Alright, so how long did this go on?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>This was there for about . . . say,
three years to two and a half, three years, till the school life was coming to
an end . . . and then college . . .</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Hmm . . . so did you find any
friends in, gay friends or, you know, first of all in those days how did you
address this issue – were there any terms like gay etc.?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>No, we never used that term gay or
anything. We just, you know, call and then have sex . . . all that.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Okay, hmm.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>But that was just supposed to be
normal thing, you know.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Nothing special, nothing different .
. .</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>Nothing special, nothing different,
yeah.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>So then anything else in college
life?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>College, of course, there were . . .
friends, but we never had any sexual relationship as such, but we were
attracted, some of us towards each other.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Hmm.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DVi5UxG4Zhc/V20MT9NFrkI/AAAAAAAADnA/BBI1Jb1LD7YXLMyts2QgQ3OLcbfwHZAcQCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-qkohp-ppl-ivw-hem-pd-artwk-clip-art.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DVi5UxG4Zhc/V20MT9NFrkI/AAAAAAAADnA/BBI1Jb1LD7YXLMyts2QgQ3OLcbfwHZAcQCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue35-qkohp-ppl-ivw-hem-pd-artwk-clip-art.png" /></a></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>I think lack of space, lack of so many
other feelings at that time, we could not – this thing, think about having
relationship as such. You see this word relationship came later, much later.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Right, but in those days you’re
saying anyways there were no specific words, but you felt attraction, did you
talk about these issues, did you talk about your attraction?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>Yeah, yeah, we talked about it, in
fact, I had petted him also, he had petted me also. And then, that was the end
because there was no space after that to go forward.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan: </b>Okay, but were there any other
places, where you could go to find people interested in same-sex behaviour?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>You see, there may have been – for the
older people. But we never ventured because we, you know, there was strict
discipline among the age groups . . . So we never interfered with what the
elder people were doing, because we would get nice thrashing in the locality.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan:</b> But how did you know about these
older people?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Suresh</b><b>: </b>Yeah, you see there were older people
going around, say, a . . . couple, two of them always going together, to
pictures and then where all they go, they didn’t tell <i>na</i>, and we didn’t ask
also. So but some sort of, you know, suspicion was there.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>To be continued.</b></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HIkM1cSI4Og/V20F4E-LSuI/AAAAAAAADmg/8201Ie_wchwayjudMWMtF-bRJDSnDb_tQCLcB/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HIkM1cSI4Og/V20F4E-LSuI/AAAAAAAADmg/8201Ie_wchwayjudMWMtF-bRJDSnDb_tQCLcB/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;">Pawan
Dhall aspires to be a rainbow journalist and believes in taking a stand, even
if it’s on the fence – the view is better from there!</span></i></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></i></span></span>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></i></span></span>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></i></span></span>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></i></span></span>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><b>Artwork source: </b>Clip Art from MS Office.</span></span></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-66151948535371420052016-06-24T15:00:00.000+05:302016-06-24T15:00:24.156+05:30Trapped in transit<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Clickhappy! Jun '16</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>By Vahista Dastoor</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“The photographer is an armed version of the solitary walker
reconnoitering, stalking, cruising the urban inferno, the voyeuristic stroller
who discovers the city as a landscape of voluptuous extremes” – Susan Sontag,
1977 </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Trapped
in transit, Vahista Dastoor spends 13 hours in Bangkok airport – anonymous and
unseen, honing her street photography skills.</span></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Vahista
Dastoor wields the camera to get her point across when she is not documenting
child rights, mental health or gender related issues.</i></span></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-19283482926980916202016-05-28T02:57:00.000+05:302016-05-28T02:57:08.830+05:30Queer readings to remember Rituparno Ghosh<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Happenings (Preview), May '16</b></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><i>Varta</i> previews an upcoming event in homage
to the late Rituparno Ghosh</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a><span lang="EN-US"><b>Kolkata, May 28,
2016: </b>Three days from today – on May 31, 2016 – art personality Sujoy Prosad
Chatterjee will pay homage to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rituparno_Ghosh">Rituparno Ghosh</a>, a queer icon in the world of
cinema, through dramatized readings of queer writings from across the globe.
The event will take place at the Ahuja Museum for Arts, Lee Road, Bhawanipur,
from 7.30-8.30 pm.</span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In a historical sense, ‘queer literature’ (if
it can be called that) is a fairly new innovation. The current understanding of
queer genders and sexualities as distinct from compulsory heterosexuality is itself
the outcome of a social process that started only in the late 19th century. </span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Because of the strong stigma and
condemnation in many cultures around the world, lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender and other queer individuals have often turned to literature as a
source of validation and understanding of their genders and sexualities. Mythology
and classical literature have long had traces of queerness. In more modern
times, the discussion around queer issues in literature became more evolved,
including the last two decades or so in the Indian context.</span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Rituparno
Ghosh, who passed away three years ago almost to the date, had contributed significantly
to a more nuanced understanding of queer genders and sexualities through his
cinematic work and writings in Bengali newspapers. With that perspective, Sujoy
Prosad Chatterjee couldn’t have chosen a more apt manner to pay homage to
Rituparno Ghosh.</span></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-47426621729262140112016-05-23T01:47:00.000+05:302016-05-23T01:57:51.859+05:30Of unusual love angles (and pickles)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Vartanama, May '16</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>By Pawan Dhall</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yz7Kz3V8jng/V0ISrusvEFI/AAAAAAAADjM/qp_7523Z5bk51Y-4WAC9lHayfqrhT934wCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-vartanama-pawan-photo-pd-fnl.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="165" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yz7Kz3V8jng/V0ISrusvEFI/AAAAAAAADjM/qp_7523Z5bk51Y-4WAC9lHayfqrhT934wCLcB/s200/varta-blog-issue34-vartanama-pawan-photo-pd-fnl.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo and artwork credit: Pawan Dhall</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Labels and identities have a habit of getting in the way. So
if I were to put the word ‘<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyamory">polyamory</a>’ in the title of this article, many readers may
conclude that it is about what <i>Wikipedia</i> explains as the “practice of,
or desire for, intimate relationships involving more than two people, with the
knowledge and consent of everyone involved”.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Wikipedia</i> goes on to further say that polyamory is “consensual,
ethical, and responsible non-monogamy”. So that should clarify that polyamory is
not quite the same as polygamy (the practice of having more than one spouse at
the same time, many times without the knowledge of the spouses involved, or
even with the knowledge but not consent based on equal terms).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Neither is polyamory the same as pansexuality – sexual
attraction, romantic love or emotional attraction towards people of any sex or
gender identity – gender-blind attraction so to speak (<i>Wikipedia</i> to the rescue
again).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For my bosom pal Kishore, though, none of these labels,
identities or explanations seems to quite describe the turning point he is at
in life. About to enter the grand 50s, he’s had his share of crushes and romances
(intense and stormy ones, bordering on ‘Bollywood-ish’, to fleeting and
flirtatious) as well as sexual relations (casual one-off, friends-with-benefits
types to ‘Oscar Wilde-ish’ dramas) in the younger years.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, Kishore is not given to any fondness for what is famed
as <i>shaadi ka laddu</i>, a conceptual Indian sweet concoction believed to mess up
the lives of both those who marry and those who don’t (my definition, not <i>Wikipedia’s</i>).
Neither is he impressed by the fact that increasingly even queer individuals
seem to be making this <i>laddu</i>, sorry, marriage as the reference point of their
lives. So occasionally he gets a creeping feeling about what has he been left with
after all these years of adventures of the body and mind (or body-mind). That’s
till I have given him a pep talk, and then he’s back on an optimistic track.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In fact, just like the complexity and tanginess of Indian
pickles, he’s come up with a delectable life recipe. Much like the line <i>Dil Khudgarz
Hai, Phislaa Hai Yeh Phir Haath Se</i> from a song in that 2007 Hindi drama film <i>Life
in a… Metro</i>, Kishore has decided to try out another episode of romance, for intimacy,
companionship and all that. He’s silently happy at this turn of events even
after he’d decided to relegate romance to the bottom of the bucket list
indefinitely. But then he’s not going to invest all of himself in this one
relationship and run the risk of staring at an abyss again one day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">His heart beats equally for an old friend, who has been with
him through the thick and thin of it all (personally, professionally and
socially) over the last 16 years and still going strong. So the next somewhat
crude line in the <i>Life in a… Metro</i> song <i>Kal Uskaa Rahaa, Abb Hai Teraa Iss Raat
Se</i> doesn’t ring a bell for Kishore. He wouldn’t be what he is today for his new
romantic partner if it were not for his old friend, would he?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But wait, the story isn’t over! Kishore says that given the
way life has turned out for him, if he shuts his eyes and thinks of his old
friend, he visualizes also a number of other individuals who, along with
Kishore and his friend, spent many formative and challenging years together
professionally. Each one of them gives Kishore a lift in a different way. So this
small multitude of individuals is what he thinks of as integral to his support
system for now and the future. Traditional family members apart, he’s keen to
remain connected with these individuals and to keep them connected for the sake
of good old times, at least to the extent they are willing to.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When I tell Kishore that none of these plans may work out,
he retorts that in the first place this isn’t a <i>zyada ka fayda</i> ‘systematic
investment plan’. Rather it is simply his current ‘state of being’. Of course,
there are uncertainties involved, and the individuals he thinks about may not
reciprocate in the same way or relate to each other beyond nominal friendship or
courteous acquaintance. But they can’t stop him from feeling what he does and this
state of being helps him remain rooted to a strong sense of respect for all
those who shaped his life and allowed him to shape theirs.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I did think of asking Kishore about matters sexual in this <i>satrangi</i>
or rainbow pickle and about the genders of the ingredients involved, but then
decided against it. Decoding isn’t fun all the time. When we lick our fingers
and smack our lips, it is often for the goodness of the experience as a whole –
the experience of having pickles, that is.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Pawan Dhall aspires to be a rainbow journalist and believes
in taking a stand, even if it’s on the fence – the view is better from there!</i></span></div>
</div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-52680850799394903042016-05-23T01:33:00.000+05:302016-05-23T01:33:27.914+05:30Pehchān conundrum<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Insight, May '16</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Pehchān, an ambitious civil society-government partnership to
provide sexual and reproductive health, HIV, legal aid and social security services
to nearly 4,50,000 sexual and gender minority people in India, has drawn to a
close. Its scale and implementation attracted both praise and criticism, but the
completion of its term will leave behind a vacuum feel Anupam Hazra and Souvik
Ghosh of SAATHII, a national NGO that implemented the programme in eastern
India</b></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-d9VQzUMDIRQ/V0IKQVppErI/AAAAAAAADiE/Vsxmg2hoK2ALbQursM314uvNI_GcFCFzwCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-dna-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-d9VQzUMDIRQ/V0IKQVppErI/AAAAAAAADiE/Vsxmg2hoK2ALbQursM314uvNI_GcFCFzwCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-dna-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Solidarity event organized by Dinajpur Notun Aalo Society at<br />Jibonmore, Islampur in Uttar Dinajpur district</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Kolkata, May 2016: </b>Even as we write this, West Bengal is counting
votes cast for a Legislative Assembly election, and by the end of this month a ‘new’
state government may well be in place. But what will be new about it from the
public health perspective? Will the five-year cycle of polls yield fresh hope
for some of the most marginalized communities like <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trans_woman">transgender women</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hijra_(South_Asia)">Hijras</a>
and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men_who_have_sex_with_men">men who have sex with men</a> (MSM)? Barring one or two political parties, none
seem to have included their socio-economic and associated concerns in the election
manifestos. One party fielded two transgender women as candidates from
prominent seats in Kolkata, but <a href="http://indianexpress.com/article/elections-2016/cities/kolkata/west-bengal-elections-today-in-one-corner-of-kolkata-a-symbolic-victory-for-transgenders-a-hope-for-future/">how respectful was such inclusion</a> is open to debate (the candidates withdrew from the contest in protest against
what they felt was tokenism and a publicity stunt).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just about two years ago, the Honourable Supreme Court of
India gave a <a href="http://www.lawyerscollective.org/updates/supreme-court-recognises-the-right-to-determine-and-express-ones-gender-grants-legal-status-to-third-gender.html">landmark judgment</a> on transgender identities and rights. In line
with that judgment, West Bengal now has a <a href="http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/kolkata/bengal-govt-announces-transgender-development-board/">development board</a> for transgender
communities, one of the few of its kind in India. But other than the efforts of
this body and individual community groups or networks, there seems to be no new
government policy or programmatic hope to ensure that sexual minorities in West
Bengal will be able to lead healthier and more dignified lives as a matter of
human rights. In this context, the completion of <a href="http://www.allianceindia.org/our-work/pehchan/">Pehchān’s</a> term bears
significance.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Started in 2010, the programme was funded by <a href="http://www.theglobalfund.org/">Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria</a> and lead nationally by India HIV/AIDS
Alliance. Attempting to build the leadership and service-provision capacity of
around 200 community-based organizations (CBOs) spread across 18 states, the
five-year programme complemented the <a href="http://www.naco.gov.in/">National AIDS Control Programme</a>. <a href="http://www.saathii.org/">Solidarity and Action Against The HIV Infection in India</a> (SAATHII), one among six regional
partners, lead the implementation in West Bengal, Odisha, Manipur and Jharkhand
in partnership with 38 district-level CBOs and the health departments of the
respective state governments and district administrations.</span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0h3uaQJ3teg/V0IMIJaWQ4I/AAAAAAAADiY/Le1BryU6P5oFZ5Yf4M-iTiEc4OypukHRgCKgB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-ad.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0h3uaQJ3teg/V0IMIJaWQ4I/AAAAAAAADiY/Le1BryU6P5oFZ5Yf4M-iTiEc4OypukHRgCKgB/s200/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-ad.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In West Bengal, the programme reached out to more than
23,000 MSM, Hijra and other transgender women with a range of health, legal aid
and social security services in places across the length and breadth of the
state where previous government programmes could not – in particular, northern districts
like </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alipurduar_district" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Alipurduar</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, </span><a href="http://ddinajpur.nic.in/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dakshin Dinajpur</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, </span><a href="http://malda.gov.in/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Malda</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and </span><a href="http://uttardinajpur.gov.in/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Uttar Dinajpur</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. Tourist spots like
</span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digha" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Digha</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, pilgrimage centres like </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarapith" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tarapith</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and areas around </span><a href="http://www.visvabharati.ac.in/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Visva-Bharati University</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> in Santiniketan were other places where the programme helped extend
the provision of HIV and related services to MSM, Hijras and other transgender
women.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jC-UqghXdTE/V0IMdAt7RnI/AAAAAAAADic/qfJWlq4cbgUNnP0elgF9-9rhFEinv8yEACLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-bs.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jC-UqghXdTE/V0IMdAt7RnI/AAAAAAAADic/qfJWlq4cbgUNnP0elgF9-9rhFEinv8yEACLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-bs.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Health camps organized by Astitva Dakshin (previous paragraph)<br />and Birbhum Samparko (above) at Haldia, Purba Medinipur<br />district and Bolpur, Birbhum district, respectively</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The successes in geographical coverage should be seen with the
perspective that the communities served by Pehchān are among the most
stigmatized and discriminated against in society, and therefore extremely
difficult to mobilize. These achievements were in large measure because of Pehchān’s
emphasis on the formation and strengthening of CBOs, which built contact with
the programme clients through outreach, drop-in centre and counselling
services. For instance, Dinajpur Notun Aalo Society in Uttar Dinajpur district
facilitated HIV testing for 53% of its 1,554 clients, a commendable rate for an
organization that came into being only in the last few years. An outreach staff
member from the same agency rose through the ranks, trained to become a
counsellor and now works at a government HIV testing and counselling centre.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6JKhElQlaTM/V0IN98iuP6I/AAAAAAAADis/_FNxKXRF670Ejas0qHCPJqzqBLbuQvAMwCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-amt-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6JKhElQlaTM/V0IN98iuP6I/AAAAAAAADis/_FNxKXRF670Ejas0qHCPJqzqBLbuQvAMwCLcB/s400/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-amt-1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amitie' Trust joined a rally organized by the District Magistrate, Hooghly to<br />encourage all citizens to cast their votes in the recent polls</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mass awareness and sensitization was another area where the
CBO partners took big strides. Amitie’ Trust, which worked in </span><a href="http://www.hooghly.gov.in/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hooghly</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and </span><a href="http://howrah.gov.in/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Howrah</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
districts, brought </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chandannagar" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chandannagar</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> town onto India’s rainbow pride walk map – </span><a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/2015/07/pride-in-chandannagar.html" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">last year’s walk on June 26</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> was the third such walk in the erstwhile French colony.
Gokhale Road Bandhan and its partners in the Association of Transgender and
Hijra in Bengal generated mass interest and support for transgender issues
through queer-themed events like the annual Transgender Day celebrations in
April.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Nn4317n0c6M/V0IKxBtKhnI/AAAAAAAADiI/-LZwmfNyzGo94cNx7iSnQCFg7E2pEnrZgCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-dna-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Nn4317n0c6M/V0IKxBtKhnI/AAAAAAAADiI/-LZwmfNyzGo94cNx7iSnQCFg7E2pEnrZgCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-dna-2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the inauguration of Dinajpur Notun Aalo Society's<br />shelter home for the aged</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The programme also enabled the CBOs to mobilize financial
and other resources. While Amitie’ Trust raised funds from corporate bodies,
Astitva Dakshin in <a href="http://purbamedinipur.gov.in/">Purba Medinipur</a> built links with industrial bodies, which
aided them in accessing space to organize health camps. Similarly, Dinajpur Notun
Aalo Society expanded its ambit by receiving funds from the district administration
to implement a <a href="http://nrhm.gov.in/nhm/nrhm/guidelines/nrhm-guidelines/constitution-of-rogi-kalyan-samities.html">Rogi Kalyan Samiti</a> project and set up a shelter home for the
aged. Transgender women will be employed as service providers in both projects but
the service recipients need not be restricted to the transgender communities.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Interestingly, one achievement of the programme was to enable
transgender women acquire voter identity cards in their desired genders. So,
one hopes that many transgender women exercised their right to vote in the recent
polls and more and more will in future polls. But when will these votes
transfer into policies and long-term programmes that are inclusive of the
gender and sexuality diversity prevalent in our society?</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0Js0Fjc1a8M/V0IPTxTUtBI/AAAAAAAADi4/TlTRO_OPVN0Vd9xlUnBQSH5GWHyYFdpFgCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-amt-2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0Js0Fjc1a8M/V0IPTxTUtBI/AAAAAAAADi4/TlTRO_OPVN0Vd9xlUnBQSH5GWHyYFdpFgCLcB/s200/varta-blog-issue34-insight-ah%2526sg-photo-amt-2.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At a World AIDS Day rally<br />organized by Amitie' Trust</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Perhaps more programmes like Pehchān are needed – programmes
that enable communities to engage both government and non-government stakeholders,
and push for greater inclusion in the education, livelihood, health, legal,
social security and other spheres; definitely programmes that last longer than
five years to make a stronger and lasting impact.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pehchān’s completion doesn’t mean completion of the larger
objectives the programme served. In fact, its closure at this stage seems to
raise the question “But there is so much more to do and so, what next?”
Community groups, funding bodies, political parties, government agencies – all
of us should be looking for answers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Photo credits:</b> Respective organizations.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Anupam Hazra and Souvik Ghosh are colleagues in
the Kolkata office of SAATHII. The authors would like to thank all individual
and organizational stakeholders involved in planning, funding, guiding and implementing
Project Pehchān.</i></span></span><br />
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Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-3596539208822734332016-05-22T22:59:00.000+05:302016-05-23T00:36:05.075+05:30Church coalition mulls rainbow inclusion<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Happenings, May '16</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Pawan Dhall participated in a meeting on gender and
sexuality diversity called by the National Council of Churches in India, a
forum of Protestant and Orthodox Churches in India</b></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dr. George Zachariah, Akkai Padmashali and Fr. Philip Kuruvilla<br />
at the launch of <i>Disruptive Faith, Inclusive Communities:<br />Church and Homophobia. </i>Photo credit: Pawan Dhall</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Bangalore, April 20, 2016:</b> “’I hope you never worship a God
who makes you feel that He hates the person you have become. May you never grow
up denying every feeling that comes from your heart. May you be able to visit
your place of worship without fear that you will be rejected, judged, or have
to listen to teachings that call your life wrong. I hope that nobody ever uses
the name of their God to let you know that the world's salvation depends on
whether you follow a loosely interpreted book or your evil desires’. These
lines reflect the pain of the Key Affected People, and their struggle to find
fellowship and solidarity within the church.
Constructing people as ‘other’ who refuse to submit their lives to the
dominant Christian norms of what it means to be human is the approach of almost
all Christian communities. We are gathered here in the true spirit of
repentance and conversion to realize our sin of self-righteousness and to dream
together the birthing of a Church – an inclusive community of hospitality,
fellowship, and solidarity.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So read the opening of a position statement shared at a two-day
national meeting of around 60 church leaders, theologians and queer activists
on gender and sexuality diversity at the Ecumenical Resource Centre of the
<a href="http://www.utc.edu.in/">United Theological College</a> (UTC) in Bangalore. The statement prepared by Dr.
George Zachariah, a professor in the Department of Theology and Ethics at the
UTC, reflected the growing engagement of Christian religious institutions in
India with the subject of gender and sexuality and a welcome willingness to
revisit their stand on diverse sexual orientations and gender identities.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The meeting, held over April 19-20, 2016, was organized by
the ESHA Programme of the <a href="http://www.nccindia.in/">National Council of Churches in India</a> (NCCI). The
NCCI has 30 member churches and other associate bodies across India. Fr. Philip
Kuruvilla, General Coordinator, ESHA Programme, in his opening presentation
said NCCI’s engagement with the issues of people with diverse sexual
orientations and gender identities dated back to June 2001 when it organized the
‘1st Study Institute on Human Sexuality’ at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ooty">Ootacamund</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the years since then NCCI undertook similar other
initiatives, including a theological roundtable in Kolkata in 2009 in support
of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naz_Foundation_v._Govt._of_NCT_of_Delhi">Delhi High Court’s judgment on Section 377</a> of the Indian Penal Code
(which generated heated debate on homosexuality among the NCCI members) and the
creation of the National Ecumenical Forum for Gender and Sexual Diversity in
the NCCI’s centenary year in 2014.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-L0hkQ0pHb0A/V0Hr-3OxPhI/AAAAAAAADgw/jtTmpyDrfR4FQosc2C4k5_VXI5DiRRJ9wCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-happenings-pawan-photo-pd-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-L0hkQ0pHb0A/V0Hr-3OxPhI/AAAAAAAADgw/jtTmpyDrfR4FQosc2C4k5_VXI5DiRRJ9wCLcB/s400/varta-blog-issue34-happenings-pawan-photo-pd-2.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A view of the United Theological College<br />
campus. Photo credit: Pawan Dhall</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Elaborating on the agenda of the meeting at UTC, Fr. Philip
Kuruvilla said, “Apart from discussing key aspects of gender and sexuality, the
meeting offers an opportunity to interact with queer individuals, listen to
their personal stories and introspect on our stand on gender and sexuality
diversity. The meeting will also aim at identifying a core group to develop
material for a handbook on gender and sexuality for the churches as well as
prepare a booklet on integrating gender and sexuality issues into sermon
guidelines over the next 18 months.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Among the highlights of the two-day meeting were panel
discussions and question and answer sessions on gender and sexuality concepts.
The questions asked by some of the participants also reflected their internal
negotiations in understanding and accepting gender and sexuality diversity. For
instance, there were questions on whether homosexuality was psychological or
physiological, how long same-sex relationships lasted and the reproductive
abilities of transgender persons.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Personal stories and discussion on social, legal and medical
perspectives around transgender identities and homosexuality were lead by queer
activist Akkai Padmashali from <a href="https://ondede.wordpress.com/">Ondede</a>, Bangalore; journalist Romal M. Singh and
transgender activist Suma (both from Bangalore); Dr. L. Ramakrishnan, queer
activist and Country Director – Programs and Research, <a href="http://www.saathii.org/">SAATHII</a>, Chennai;
Gowthaman Ranganathan, an advocate associated with the <a href="http://altlawforum.org/">Alternate Law Forum</a>,
Bangalore; and the author of this article on behalf of <a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.com/p/about-varta.html">Varta Trust</a> from
Kolkata.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On the first day, Akkai Padmashali was invited to launch <i>Disruptive
Faith, Inclusive Communities: Church and Homophobia</i>, a book edited by Dr.
George Zachariah and Vincent Rajkumar and jointly published by the Indian
Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, Delhi and Christian Institute for
the Study of Religion and Society, Bangalore.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Perhaps the most encouraging sign of a change in perspective
on gender and sexuality was the introspective and radical content of three
theological papers presented during a pedagogical session. Among these were
Rev. Sweety Helen Chukka’s <i>The Untamed Me: Sexuality at the Crossroads</i> that
questions the long held belief that the <i>Bible</i> condemns homosexuality as a sin. A
short excerpt from the paper follows (readers may find it worthwhile to also
read the accompanying inset, a simplified extract from <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodom_and_Gomorrah">Wikipedia</a></i> and <i><a href="http://queergrace.com/sodom-and-gomorrah/">Queer Grace – An Encyclopedia for LGBTQ and Christian Life</a></i> on the cities of Sodom and
Gomorrah):</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“Genesis 19: 1-29</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This story of Sodom and Gomorrah is consistently cited to
condemn homosexuality. ‘Even the Sodomy laws in the jurisprudence refer back to
this text’ (quoting George Zachariah from <i>Church – A Rainbow Community of the
Beloved and Equals</i> published in <a href="http://www.academia.edu/">www.academia.edu</a>). The <i>Bible</i> shares a different
reason for the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. But we are continuously
taught to believe that it is homosexuality that provoked God’s anger. Everyone
has byhearted this story as a defence of their homophobic behaviour. Isaiah
1:10-17 tells us in detail about the sin of Sodom as lack of social justice,
Jeremiah 23:14 confirms the evilness of Sodom as not turning from wickedness
and in Amos 4, we see the Prophet reconfirming the sin of Sodom as oppressing
the poor and the needy. ‘The barbaric sexual act described in the Sodom account
is an attempted gang rape’. Rape is an intimate invasion of violence and ‘it is
an act of domination in which pleasure is achieved through humiliation and
subjugation of the victim (quoting George Zachariah). Ezekiel 16:49 makes it
further more clear that the sin of Sodom is pride, greed and inhospitality. Now
it is obvious that the sin of Sodom is not so much about Homogenitality but
about the hard-heartedness, abuse and inhospitality of the inmates. It is
surprising to know that the issue of Lot offering his own daughters to the
Sodomites was comfortably overlooked and the male-to-male sex issue is
emphasized. Our preconceived notions of sexuality have hindered us to see the
truth and read the text at its face value without a deeper knowledge and
understanding of it. Genesis 19 in connection with Ezekiel 16 calls us to look
beyond the text and nail the exact sin of Sodom and Gomorrah.”</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wNZFmhR418U/V0ICNLEEIgI/AAAAAAAADh0/3t4_ofzy5MEGfL1p5TIuZvtUV17OASEEACLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-happenings-pawan-inset.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wNZFmhR418U/V0ICNLEEIgI/AAAAAAAADh0/3t4_ofzy5MEGfL1p5TIuZvtUV17OASEEACLcB/s400/varta-blog-issue34-happenings-pawan-inset.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Please click on the image to enlarge it</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The conclusion of Fr. Philip Kuruvilla’s opening
presentation summed up the purpose of the meeting at UTC rather well: “We have
evolved a long way from 2001. Individual Christians, Churches, Christian
organisations and theologians are looking at new questions and working out new
responses. No one has all the answers but we continue to search our hearts and
the Holy Scriptures. We need to believe that the Holy Spirit will guide us on
our journey.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">For
ESHA’s </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Statement of Concerns for Persons with Diverse Sexualities</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> issued
subsequent to the meeting, </span><a href="http://ncciassembly2016.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/4.-ESHA.pdf" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">click here</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">.</span><br />
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</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-A8tIuS4GpNo/V0HhLVjFEKI/AAAAAAAADf0/5C0RvNtbxbc7G2Udef9rreiCOMQcvBO_QCLcB/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-A8tIuS4GpNo/V0HhLVjFEKI/AAAAAAAADf0/5C0RvNtbxbc7G2Udef9rreiCOMQcvBO_QCLcB/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Pawan Dhall aspires to be a rainbow journalist and believes
in taking a stand, even if it’s on the fence – the view is better from there!</i></span></div>
</div>
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Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-69374143894897895652016-05-22T22:02:00.001+05:302023-01-19T12:59:10.113+05:30Does disability need divinity?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Happenings, May '16</b></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Shampa Sengupta reports on a consultation titled ‘From
Handicapped to Divyang: Politics of Identity’ held at Jadavpur University,
Kolkata earlier this year</b></span></span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PzouhKFPUdc/V0HCTpHr1RI/AAAAAAAADfI/2b_7PD6ISa0MRut_CYLlY3MPJZdrwDBTgCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-happenings-shampa-photo-sdrc.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PzouhKFPUdc/V0HCTpHr1RI/AAAAAAAADfI/2b_7PD6ISa0MRut_CYLlY3MPJZdrwDBTgCLcB/s400/varta-blog-issue34-happenings-shampa-photo-sdrc.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Consultation at Jadavpur University. Photo credit: Sruti Disability Rights Centre</td></tr>
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kolkata, March 16, 2016:</b><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> In December last year, in a radio
show named </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mann Ki Baat</i><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">, Prime Minister Narendra Modi referred to </span><a href="http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2015-12-27/news/69334731_1_mann-ki-baat-pm-narendra-modi-disability-affairs" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">persons with disabilities as ‘<i>divyang</i>’ (divine body)</a><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">. This generated much debate in the
country, and in light of this, the School of Media, Communication and Culture,
</span><a href="http://www.jaduniv.edu.in/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jadavpur University</a><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> and </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Sruti-Disability-Rights-Centre-311750672203155/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sruti Disability Rights Centre</a><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> teamed up today to
organize a consultation on the ‘politics of naming’ persons with disabilities.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">A number of disability rights activists (including the
author of this article) and researchers engaged with the concerns of persons
with disabilities participated in the consultation held at Jadavpur University.
The author began the discussion by introducing the problem at hand – the
assignment of different and often disrespectful nomenclature to persons with
disabilities. She pointed out: “Many apex bodies like the <a href="http://www.niohkol.nic.in/">National Institute for the Orthopaedically Handicapped</a> and <a href="http://nivh.gov.in/">National Institute for the Visually Handicapped</a>
use the term ‘handicapped’ in their very names, a term that has been much
criticized!”</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Now, the term <i>divyang</i> is slowly coming into vogue. Even the
national media is using the term without critical thinking, though not so much
in West Bengal. Yet, the state government used the term while laying down its
annual budget this year, as was the case with the Railway Budget of India,
2016. The author elaborated that one problem with this term was that it did not
specify which kind of disabilities it referred to. This was similar to the
confusion created by the West Bengal government when it launched the Kanyashree
programme in 2013. The programme mentioned coverage of girls with physical
disabilities, but did not specify which physical disabilities. A reply is
awaited to a letter sent to the concerned department demanding an explanation.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The author further commented that </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">divyang</i><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> seemed to identify
persons with disabilities as ‘part of god’ and this had religious implications.
Religion’s outlook towards persons with disabilities was that they were sin
bearers from their previous birth, that their disability was a consequence of
the sins they committed in their previous birth. </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manu_Smriti">Manusmriti</a></i><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">, an ancient Hindu
legal text, even denied participation to persons with disabilities in different
activities and forms of work.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Bubai Bag, who has completed a PhD on the disability rights
movement in West Bengal, said it was language that often created discrimination
and divisions. He said that terminologies related to disability were not always
used responsibly and that language in relation to disability differed in urban and
rural areas. While in the urban space disability was often assigned broad nomenclature
like ‘differently abled’ or ‘persons with disabilities’, in rural areas the
naming was more direct and distinctive. Visually impaired people were called <i>kana</i>
and the deaf <i>kala</i>. Mute individuals were called <i>boba</i>, individuals with
disabilities in their legs were called <i>khora</i> or <i>lula</i>.</span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rVKOirvypXQ/V0HC9o63EnI/AAAAAAAADfU/i1fmXYLY3tctlO71EL9Vf02j3zjzc-M8QCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-happenings-shampa-quote-2.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rVKOirvypXQ/V0HC9o63EnI/AAAAAAAADfU/i1fmXYLY3tctlO71EL9Vf02j3zjzc-M8QCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue34-happenings-shampa-quote-2.png" width="272" /></a></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Discussing the history of the disability rights movement in
India, he said that after independence persons with disabilities were grouped
with the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. It was former Prime Minister
Indira Gandhi who first used the expression ‘disabled person’ and later in
1995, the same nomenclature was used in the <a href="http://socialjustice.nic.in/pwdact1995.php">Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act</a>. He argued that
an element of sympathy lurked behind terms like differently abled, but it was a
positive attitude towards persons with disabilities that would be far more
effective in helping them overcome their disabilities.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Activist Anirban Mukherjee from <a href="http://prps.org.in/">Paschimbanga Rajya Pratibandhi Sammilani</a>, on the other hand, reflected that the entire discussion on
naming of persons with disabilities was unnecessary. “Whatever be the
nomenclature, the reality is that all persons with disabilities constantly face
certain problems,” he said. What mattered to him was a sense of respect and
empathy towards a disabled person. Some people might lack knowledge and use
words like <i>ondho</i> (blind), <i>boba</i> or <i>khora</i>, but they gave much more respect to persons
with disabilities than individuals who were aware of the right terms to use. He
felt that the use of terms like <i>divyang</i> by the State was an act of injustice
towards persons with disabilities. In the garb of sympathy and kindness, the
State seemed to be strategizing how to silence the voices raised for the rights
of the disabled. Instead it should focus on building appropriate infrastructure
for persons with disabilities.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">After the initial presentations, a discussion session
followed. Activist Jeeja Ghosh said the expression ‘challenged’ was a baseless
one. She agreed with Anibran Mukherjee on the political implications of the
term <i>divyang</i>, which reflected a tendency to elevate persons with disabilities
to the level of gods, while doing little for them in terms of securing their
rights. Similarly, Swati from the <a href="http://www.iicpindia.org/">Indian Institute of Cerebral Palsy</a> (IICP) felt
<i>divyang</i> seemed to be a way of ‘appeasing’ a marginalized community.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">For Den, who is also associated with IICP, the key issue was
one of respect, and he argued: “The right terminology should be adopted and
disseminated widely among the masses, including persons with disabilities.” He
also made a few unusual recommendations. First, an appropriate term should be
decided on and then it should be used in all policies and programmes for the
disabled, not just in India but internationally. This would enable smoother
exchange of ideas and resources for projects. Second, translation of the term
in different languages should be avoided as often the import of the term
changed in the process of translation. Finally, it was necessary that persons
with disabilities entered the world of ‘mainstream’ politics as this would
strengthen the disability rights movement. </span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KHr1l3yBYbw/V0HD0uM6T2I/AAAAAAAADfk/MU9J0sPU6isjXmWri8447UZwhh-nMLKeACLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue34-happenings-shampa-quote-3.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KHr1l3yBYbw/V0HD0uM6T2I/AAAAAAAADfk/MU9J0sPU6isjXmWri8447UZwhh-nMLKeACLcB/s400/varta-blog-issue34-happenings-shampa-quote-3.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Soumen Upadhyay of NGO Parivaar Bengal said, “There should
be a protest against terms like <i>divyang</i>, and all institutes and organisations
should unite to make such a movement stronger.” This led the discussion into a
different sphere. Prof. Samantak Das said that for institutional work and for
the purpose of addressing persons with disabilities there should be freedom in
terms of what the community wanted to identify with. But there were barriers to
be dealt with at the political level. At the university level, one had to follow
the use of terms directed by the University Grants Commission. </span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Various participants, mostly students from Jadavpur
University, at this point talked about the discrimination they faced within the
university. Prof. Samantak Das promised to take up these concerns with the
university authorities.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The author felt that the debate over terminology
notwithstanding, identification of certain universal terms was necessary for
the sake of successful formulation of laws and policies and implementation of
programmes for persons with disabilities. But no amount of ornamentation in
terminology would help as the disability at the individual level would persist.
She called upon the student movements in universities to take up the cause of
disability rights and give it added impetus.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Prof. Nilanjana Gupta thanked everyone and conveyed on
behalf of the School of Media, Communication and Culture that letters would be
sent to both central and state government officials on the concerns around
nomenclature like <i>divyang</i>.<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a> The media too would be
sensitized on this issue that was at the core of the disability rights
movement.</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jnreYgvT1Rc/V0G9RXBWBFI/AAAAAAAADe4/624f48bxf20giZw7CMfbhQs73uhl1cP3gCLcB/s1600/shampa.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jnreYgvT1Rc/V0G9RXBWBFI/AAAAAAAADe4/624f48bxf20giZw7CMfbhQs73uhl1cP3gCLcB/s1600/shampa.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><i>Shampa
Sengupta is a Kolkata-based activist working on gender and disability issues
for more than 25 years. She is the founder of an advocacy group called Sruti Disability
Rights Centre and is Executive Committee Member, National Platform for Rights
of the Disabled.</i></span></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-18345533187377957092016-05-22T22:00:00.000+05:302016-05-22T22:05:29.367+05:30‘Man-ghat’ ahead! Cover your eyes<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Clickhappy! May '16</b></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Suchandra
Das was candid behind the camera at Dashashwamedh Ghat in Varanasi – perhaps
to compensate for the shame felt by the women, or compliment the candidness among the men</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Suchandra
Das left her corporate job in search of moments – moments to freeze, capture
and cherish forever. She's a wife, pet lover, photographer, cinematographer,
independent filmmaker, dependent homemaker, foodie and bitten by the travel
bug.</span></i></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-54059124534324320592016-04-24T12:14:00.001+05:302018-06-29T23:23:12.848+05:30'Allah megh de . . .'<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Vartanama, Apr '16</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>By Pawan Dhall</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">April and even the run-up to it has been someone’s handiwork
of a scorching earth policy. Even as the unprecedented heat snuffs physical
strength and life across India, human-made or human-induced disasters seem to
be sapping emotional reservoirs dry.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Greed and callousness led to a murderous <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kolkata_flyover_collapse">flyover collapse in Kolkata</a> on March 31, and was soon followed by social media rants blaming
India’s reservation policy for the collapse. If <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6169DC193C7EFCAA"><i>Pee</i> (Shit)</a>,
a short Tamil film shown at an event ‘In the Name of Caste’ organized by
Peoples Film Collective in Kolkata early March, was made compulsory viewing in
schools and colleges, there just might be fewer such insensitivities.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In neighbouring Bangladesh, a <a href="http://tribune.com.pk/story/1084525/four-revellers-held-after-bangladesh-bans-rainbow-rally/">rainbow pride rally on Bengali New Year</a> on April 14 was cancelled and some of the participants detained by the police.
A month or so earlier, Kolkata saw the release of <i>Jenana</i>, a Bengali film that purported
to represent the life stories of trans women, but instead reinforced deep-seated
social stigma against them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Even the ongoing Legislative Assembly polls in West Bengal
have become an
<a href="http://indianexpress.com/article/elections-2016/cities/kolkata/west-bengal-elections-today-in-one-corner-of-kolkata-a-symbolic-victory-for-transgenders-a-hope-for-future/">arena of false hopes</a> for
trans women in the state. Two individuals from the community projected as
candidates by a prominent political party with much fanfare have withdrawn
because they felt betrayed, even as a lone trans woman has been appointed to
work with Election Commission-appointed polling agents in the Belgachia constituency
of Kolkata. One individual from a community estimated to be in tens of
thousands and present in every district of the state!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In this parched social landscape, there have been a few welcome
drops of relief. Recent films like <i>Aligarh</i> and <i>Kapoor & Sons (Since 1921)</i>
provided some respite. More recently, a <a href="http://www.telegraphindia.com/archives/archive.html">student from Presidency University, Kolkata</a> decided not to cow down and filed a complaint against a bunch of men
who harassed her for “smoking in public wearing half-pants” in a locality of supposedly
‘decent’ people. This issue of <i>Varta</i> too carries similar stories of resilience
– see <i>Star Quest</i> interview with artist Anurag Maitrayee – <i><a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/2016/04/star-quest-fighter-with-heart.html">Fighter with a Heart</a></i>.
Or, click on <a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/2016/04/maid-in-india.html"><i>Maid in India</i></a> to get to know Akka from Chennai!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As for the heat though, nothing short of some merciful rain
will do. Of course, we understand that the political gods or the moral
guardians of this country can do nothing to convince the mighty <a href="http://www.livescience.com/3650-el-nino.html">El Niño</a> to
hasten rainfall. But the least they can do is to not let flyovers fall, and
surely they don’t have to prevent people from wearing half-pants or whatever
they like to beat the heat – gender no bar!</span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jkOSv8GSViQ/VxxqoyGbXjI/AAAAAAAADdY/-dUw30O-wpccFC9L2w8Se3YG5u6HHIoSwCLcB/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jkOSv8GSViQ/VxxqoyGbXjI/AAAAAAAADdY/-dUw30O-wpccFC9L2w8Se3YG5u6HHIoSwCLcB/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Pawan
Dhall aspires to be a rainbow journalist and believes in taking a stand, even
if it’s on the fence – the view is better from there!</i></span></span><br />
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Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-82690151359341098982016-04-24T11:32:00.000+05:302018-06-10T12:20:28.251+05:30Inconvenient desires<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Insight, From the Archives, Apr '16</b></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Sayan Bhattacharya comes across ‘marriage of
convenience’ as an issue reflected in the Counsel Club archives and wonders
what such arrangements mean for ‘queerness’, ‘desire’ and ‘identity’. These
series of articles intend to create an archive of the queer movement in Bengal
and India – not a chronological narrative of the movement, rather anecdotal
histories capturing the little voices that are often lost in general historical
accounts – voices from thousands of letters received by Counsel Club, one of India’s earliest queer support groups (1993 to 2002), and from the group’s
house journal <i>Naya Pravartak</i>.</b></span></span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9AbCRmcOXws/Vxxf1gJqKYI/AAAAAAAADcw/A8S1ShGAn8IFQdQPZrhOHdttxsf-d8uxACLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-insight%2526fta-syb-graphic-vd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9AbCRmcOXws/Vxxf1gJqKYI/AAAAAAAADcw/A8S1ShGAn8IFQdQPZrhOHdttxsf-d8uxACLcB/s200/varta-blog-issue33-insight%2526fta-syb-graphic-vd.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Graphic credit: Vahista Dastoor</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A recent campaign called ‘<a href="http://comeoutloud.com/home">Come Out Loud</a>’
has been documenting queer narratives across India to forcefully challenge the ‘<a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/2014/01/not-on-margins.html">minuscule minority</a>’ claim made by the Supreme Court of India in its verdict on Section
377, Indian Penal Code in December 2013. Stories of varying degrees of struggle
with a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heteronormativity">hetero-normative economy</a> and violent institutions like the education
system, workspace and the family <span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%;">–</span> to establish one’s sense of self, to live on one’s own terms. Perhaps these stories can be an inspiration for those who are
discovering their selves or who are struggling with similar situations.
Moreover, to be able to say that we are a large number of people and there is
no way that the State can deny us our rights, might serve on a strategic level.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">However, such a method of mobilization is problematic to me
on two levels. First, if we go by our <a href="http://indiacode.nic.in/coiweb/welcome.html">Constitution</a> (or the sense of
constitutional morality invoked in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naz_Foundation_v._Govt._of_NCT_of_Delhi">Delhi High Court judgment</a> on Section 377
in 2009), every citizen of the country is supposed to be equal. Their numbers
cannot be a criterion to determine their rights. In other words, even if there is
a single queer individual in the country, she will still be a rights-bearing
citizen. So then, doesn’t this effort at proving numerical strength a turn away
from constitutional values?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is a complex question and merits another article but
this current piece is concerned more with the second problematic. Do the ‘Come
Out Loud’ videos essentially about surmounting all challenges to proudly
proclaim oneself as <a href="http://www.bouldercounty.org/family/lgbtiq/pages/oasosdefinitions.aspx">LGBTIQ</a> not set up a hierarchy on the basis of those who can
come out and those who can’t? Is coming out a once and for all process? Don’t some
of us come out strategically at some spaces and not at others? Isn’t this idea
of coming out utterly irrelevant for many gender non-conforming people whose
bodies and gestures already fail to fit the hetero-normative mould and hence
there is no closet for them? How do our caste and class positions inform this
so called coming out process?</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uS6CmZfyA-g/VxxgsvB2EDI/AAAAAAAADdA/5fXJ27NxmZILDTZzx64fy_SpIccYNxK2gCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-insight%2526fta-syb-graphic-pd.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="226" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uS6CmZfyA-g/VxxgsvB2EDI/AAAAAAAADdA/5fXJ27NxmZILDTZzx64fy_SpIccYNxK2gCLcB/s400/varta-blog-issue33-insight%2526fta-syb-graphic-pd.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: Pawan Dhall</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Finally, when indeed someone comes out as gay, lesbian, bisexual
or gender non-conforming, isn’t that person expected to live a certain way? Say,
for example, the gay man </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">must</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> have partners of the same gender. The gender non-conforming
one will </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">always</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> have to have some marker on </span><a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/hir" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">hir body</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">to prove hir gender variance and so on. In other words, doesn’t coming out stamp
a mark of authenticity on your way of living?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We shall return to this question of authenticity soon but let
us pause at this point and turn towards the Counsel Club archives. A letter
from September 1996 has an Indian researcher working in USA, who identifies
himself as gay and signs off as Deepak, PhD (name changed), write: “I am seeking
a bisex / lesbian partner to work towards a marriage of convenience. I have put
an ad in some of the local papers and is still awaiting response . . . Have you
seen any ad of this kind (gay / bisex male seeking lesbian) in the past?”
Deepak continues to say that he will shortly arrive in Bombay for his wedding
and he wants to marry a queer woman.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Or sample this advertisement in the May-December 1995 issue
of <i>Naya Pravartak</i>: “31-year old handsome guy from Assam seeks friendship with
young gay men. Also open to a relationship with a lesbian . . .” There are other
letters and writings too in the Counsel Club archives that talk about similar
marriages or relationships.</span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Up819keH_70/VxxgOsvHNeI/AAAAAAAADc0/slyxdBYw3i4z5TyGxTTaUM3jCC0s2dqvwCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-insight%2526fta-syb-quote-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Up819keH_70/VxxgOsvHNeI/AAAAAAAADc0/slyxdBYw3i4z5TyGxTTaUM3jCC0s2dqvwCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue33-insight%2526fta-syb-quote-1.png" width="225" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A marriage of convenience (MOC) allows both parties to have
the freedom to lead their respective lives while maintaining the façade of
marriage for society and family. Sometimes these marriages could also take
place for acquiring a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permanent_residence_(United_States)">green card</a> or for financial benefits, but in the case of
the Counsel Club archives, the issue seems to have been more about marriage
giving the sanction for one’s non-normative desires. It is but obvious that the
very term MOC has a derogatory connote and is frowned upon. So let us first
rehearse the arguments against such marriages. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">MOC is often looked upon as a compromise on one’s life, a
desperate surrender under family pressure. It is seen as a betrayal of one’s
desires. In fact, often NGOs receive phone calls from queer men wishing to meet
queer women for marriage. Their calls are not encouraged. They are told that
this is not the ‘right’ way to live life. Queer women who want such marriages
too are castigated by these NGOs. Yet, more than we like to acknowledge, a lot
of queer people do explore the idea of MOC. I have been privy to several such
conversations in queer circles where a lesbian and a gay man, who are also very
close friends, have explored the idea of marriage. So then, is it possible to
read these letters and advertisements in a way that takes cognizance of such
commonplace desires? How do we read such an archive of emotions that involves
both criticality and empathy?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The stranglehold of <a href="http://www.collinsdictionary.com/submission/11555/heteropatriarchy">hetero-patriarchy</a> is so strong on our
lives that MOC could indeed be that one last attempt at freely following one’s
desires in private without earning the wrath of one’s family and society at
large. The public performance of marriage could offer that leeway to many queer
individuals. Yet, how many MOCs have actually taken place? In the absence of
any study, it is anybody’s guess.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">However, what is indeed obvious is that a lot of gay men do
end up marrying heterosexual women and the same goes for queer women. Keeping
that in relief, isn’t MOC a better idea at creating an equitable space within
an institution which is intrinsically violent? At least, in such a marriage
there is absolute transparency between the two parties about how they would
like to transact their respective desires. In fact, the idea of the MOC comes
from the desire to continue to follow one’s intimate desires. This is not
really to advocate MOC or to extol its virtues. It is to try and understand
what could motivate two individuals to contemplate such an arrangement.</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wBZVaRcraUI/VxxgZoOLssI/AAAAAAAADc8/SIjz8d1pZTYqLzCRW9q5ugPJFFHeKyTVQCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-insight%2526fta-syb-quote-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wBZVaRcraUI/VxxgZoOLssI/AAAAAAAADc8/SIjz8d1pZTYqLzCRW9q5ugPJFFHeKyTVQCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue33-insight%2526fta-syb-quote-2.png" width="225" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We are all implicated within different power structures and
we try to negotiate with them, we try to subvert them in different ways. These
negotiations could depend on our socio-cultural and economic settings too. Are
there some pre-ordained and ideal ways to negotiate systems such that any
departure from them marks one as inauthentic? This brings us back to ‘loud’ coming
out campaigns. In this time and age of ‘NGOised’ movements, are we in a hurry to
circumscribe the meanings of identities and what all they can or can’t do? If
that be the case, where do we fit in the grey zones in such a scheme?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One may ask where is the grey zone in an MOC? Where could be
the ambiguous area in what is essentially a compromise? That brings me to the idea
of friendship. We talk so much about ideological wars between various sexual
and gender minorities, but do we talk enough about friendships across
sexualities and genders? Friendships that often survive bitter organizational
rivalries or ideological differences? Say, friendships between gay men and
lesbian women? Friendships between trans men and trans women?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In today’s turf wars among NGOs (where identities are seen
as territories that need to be fiercely defended and any attempt at trying to
work across them are seen as sinister designs at expansion of territories),
isn’t such a friendship a radical attempt that blurs how we understand our
selves and desires? Who is to say what the limits to such friendships are?
Mutual understanding, dependence, love, even romance . . . are there any limits
really?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It isn’t necessary that an MOC can engender such feelings
but is it necessary that an MOC can’t engender any kind of attachment between
two marginalized individuals? I can totally imagine some NGOs interjecting, “If
there is any romance between a gay man and a lesbian, they must be bisexual!”
Perhaps, that’s what the NGOs are hardwired to do, to reduce ways of being into
neat definitions. But why can’t one be many things at the same time?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Perhaps too politically incorrect? On my part, I hope Deepak
succeeded because I didn’t find another letter from him in the Counsel Club archives.
That could be because Counsel Club didn’t know how or whom to connect Deepak to
(his letter was replied to but there is no copy of the response available). But
it could also be because of disappointment at being scoffed at by lesbian and
gay communities at large.</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yc8t1ZyWCIQ/VxxfqLJadBI/AAAAAAAADcs/THn_L1q-ozYVNF84N2G9qVFMCPnqmjFdgCLcB/s1600/sayan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yc8t1ZyWCIQ/VxxfqLJadBI/AAAAAAAADcs/THn_L1q-ozYVNF84N2G9qVFMCPnqmjFdgCLcB/s1600/sayan.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Sayan
Bhattacharya is currently enjoying himself outside of any institutional space,
but he is happy and sad to report he is returning to the university in three
months for a PhD. Meanwhile, he continues to work as a freelance journalist and
research consultant. He can be reached at sayanb360@gmail.com.</i></span></span><br />
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Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-49004978228934148862016-04-24T02:51:00.000+05:302018-06-29T23:19:08.327+05:30Star quest: Fighter with a heart<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Clickhappy! Star Quest, Apr '16</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>By Kaustav Manna</b></span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T3Afz71Ue3U/VxvkZZXn8AI/AAAAAAAADb0/laOeuFBcgHAY93TgDPGloRrhvFL-SxoKgCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T3Afz71Ue3U/VxvkZZXn8AI/AAAAAAAADb0/laOeuFBcgHAY93TgDPGloRrhvFL-SxoKgCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-4.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: red;">Star of the month:</span></b> Anurag Maitrayee at the 'Kolkata Rainbow<br />
Pride Walk 2011'. All photo credits: Nilanjan Majumdar</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Star Quest </i>is a series of photo-stories of individuals who
may not be public figures like politicians, artistes, social activists or media
persons, but have in their own way contributed to social equity and empowerment
around gender, sexuality and related issues.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The contribution of the ‘stars’ we zoom in on may be in an
intimate arena – among friends and neighbours, their local community, a village
or slum school, their own work place and so on. It may not have attracted any media
attention, yet the importance of their efforts cannot be underscored enough. <i>Varta
</i>is happy to bring to light such hidden ‘stars’ and focus on endeavours that generate
hope for a better present and future.</span></div>
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<a name='more'></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Varta </i>welcomes its readers to contribute to <i>Star Quest </i>by
sending information about individuals living anywhere in India who can be
portrayed in the column. Please send a brief description of the individual and
their work in about 100 words to <a href="mailto:vartablog@gmail.com">vartablog@gmail.com</a>,
and also include three to five high quality photographs of the individual
depicting their day-to-day life.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Please note that no individual will be portrayed
in this column through text or photographs till the <i>Varta</i> team has interacted
with them and obtained their informed consent. Therefore it is vital that
readers also obtain the consent of the individuals concerned before sending
information about them to <i>Varta</i>.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9tFVEfL_YWU/VxvllXI1i_I/AAAAAAAADcA/LupTC_fVJgsFaLspW7U8ZDNSH9oWi02cQCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="209" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9tFVEfL_YWU/VxvllXI1i_I/AAAAAAAADcA/LupTC_fVJgsFaLspW7U8ZDNSH9oWi02cQCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Star of the month: </span></b>Anurag Maitrayee, 31, resident of Kolkata.
She identifies herself as a trans woman and strives to make a change through her
art commune Muhurto. She has faced severe transphobia and yet doesn’t believe
in labelling people as ‘transphobic’ or ‘homophobic’ and pushing them away. She
believes there is goodness in everyone and wishes to embrace everyone and move
forward.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The term <i>muhurto</i> translates as ‘a moment’. Muhurto, through
their plays, intend to bring forth stories from the margins to the centre of
collective consciousness. They have staged a few plays in the recent past like <i>Akash</i>
(first staged in 2014), which is about a journey towards change – a change of
heart. It is the story of the transformation of a homophobic person and their friendship
with a queer person.</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-K_jUiZIJDZU/VxvlyzCv0UI/AAAAAAAADcE/mEIxocCvUP8NdLusBDgKAfUw5RjmzGNhwCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-K_jUiZIJDZU/VxvlyzCv0UI/AAAAAAAADcE/mEIxocCvUP8NdLusBDgKAfUw5RjmzGNhwCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-2.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Anurag Maitrayee wasn’t always vocal about her needs. There
was a time when she had to struggle hard to be heard, to be herself. She says
that institutions that confine people still give some visibility to the
inhabitants’ pain, but people on the margins are denied even that. Society
doesn’t grant the wishes of people who crave for things different from the
already ‘assigned list of wishes’. She believes that every voice matters. She
doesn’t like to discriminate between the struggles of a transgender queer
person and those of a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cisgender">cisgender</a> queer person. She believes that every struggle
is important and thus every fight for existence must be respected.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She recalls how as a teenager she was attracted to a
particular boy but could never express herself. She had to hide her feelings
and that is the earliest she remembers of being in ‘solitary confinement’. Her
parents, after she came out to them, took time but came around to accept her. Sadly,
she lost them both very recently, but to her surprise she was accepted as a
part of the family of her best friend. She feels at home with her friend’s
parents. This makes her question society’s emphasis on stereotypical notions of
family.</span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-alQckGsxBkw/VxvmEZxmWPI/AAAAAAAADcI/dp9chknikCEv_satWN0hST4hUGYeyYG3wCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-alQckGsxBkw/VxvmEZxmWPI/AAAAAAAADcI/dp9chknikCEv_satWN0hST4hUGYeyYG3wCLcB/s320/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In September 2015, Anurag Maitrayee went through another
challenging experience. She still remembers vividly what a dark night it was. Amid
the Durga Puja fervour she was out with some friends in the evening, travelling
by the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kolkata_Metro">Kolkata Metro</a>. As she and her friends boarded the train at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shyambazar">Shyambazar</a>, a
bunch of goons made a pass at them. They protested, and the nuisance stopped – or
so they thought. Later, when they got off at <a href="http://wikimapia.org/10479609/Jatin-Das-Park">Jatin Das Park</a> station to go to <a href="http://wikimapia.org/130742/Maddox-Square">Maddox Square</a>, the goons followed and attacked them in full public view on Hazra Road.
They reported the goons to police officials present nearby, but the police
merely rebuked the criminals with a fatherly empathy.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The police then misinformed Anurag Maitrayee about the police
jurisdiction of the site where the attack took place. They asked her to file a complaint
at Bhowanipur Police Station, whereas she should have been guided to Tollygunge
Police Station. At Bhowanipur Police Station, the designated duty officer that
night kept her waiting without taking a note of her plea. Ultimately, he ordered
a police van to take her and her friends to Tollygunge Police Station. Exhausted,
when they finally reached the right police station, the Officer-in-Charge (OC),
instead of helping them, showered them with extreme verbal abuse.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OuBH20ewfx8/VxvmUeen7sI/AAAAAAAADcQ/Nj7QfHVWiXMxBkHfQ-D0g74WuLI65JbzgCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="276" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OuBH20ewfx8/VxvmUeen7sI/AAAAAAAADcQ/Nj7QfHVWiXMxBkHfQ-D0g74WuLI65JbzgCLcB/s400/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The OC demanded to see signs of physical violence and
refused to register <a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/2013/11/fir-basics.html">an FIR</a>. He repeatedly asked for marks of blood on the
complainants’ bodies. Anurag Maitrayee found it amusing how physical marks became
a validation for violence. Even after a lot of requests, when the OC refused to
register an FIR, Anurag Maitrayee had to resort to speaking in English. This worked
like a miracle! Her FIR was finally recorded, but by this time it was already midnight.
The police failed to provide her and her friends any transport home, and it was
an old cabbie who came to their rescue and helped them immensely.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The incident left a deep wound on Anurag Maitrayee’s mind –
she went into a phase of post-traumatic stress disorder and was unable to use the
metro railway for several days to come. It was with the help of her newfound
family that she could finally recover. In the meantime, <i><a href="https://www.facebook.com/ardhek.akash.9">Ardhek Akash</a></i>,
a journal focussed on fighting gender-based discrimination, and Chandak
Chatterjee of Presidency University stepped in to help her. Messages put up by
them on social media helped mobilize a big protest outside Bhowanipur Police Station.
Several civil society groups like <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/455971437893907/?fref=nf">Das Theke Das Hajar</a>, <a href="http://durbar.org/">Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee</a>, Kolkata Rista, <a href="http://prantakathaindia.org/">Prantakatha</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PratyayGenderTrust/">Pratyay Gender Trust</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Samabhabana-1179257202103195/">Samabhabana</a>, <a href="http://www.sapphokolkata.in/">Sappho for Equality</a> and Swikriti came together for the protest.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cw6thkTQtpo/Vxvmeuzmf7I/AAAAAAAADcY/weTCBTfs-6g0JbYI3WxsPdrvXLLddw1LACLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cw6thkTQtpo/Vxvmeuzmf7I/AAAAAAAADcY/weTCBTfs-6g0JbYI3WxsPdrvXLLddw1LACLcB/s400/varta-blog-issue33-clickhappy-strqst-anurag-photo-nm-6.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Eventually, the higher echelons of <a href="http://www.kolkatapolice.gov.in/">Kolkata Police</a> were
forced to take action against the police officials who failed to perform their
duties. After a deputation meeting with Murali Dhar, Deputy Commissioner of
Police, South Division, it was decided that the culprits would meet with exemplary
punishment. After a second deputation from Das Theke Das Hajar, the OC of Tollygunge
Police Station was demoted, two other police officials had their payments
stopped, and another two were suspended for two months. But the goons who
harassed Anurag Maitrayee and her friends last September remained
unapprehended.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The ‘mainstream’ media did no better than to exoticize the
developments and paint them as something of concern only to queer people. Anurag
Maitrayee, with help from her friend Mitali, wrote to <i>Ei Samay</i> newspaper to
point out that the protests against the police were not just a struggle for
queer rights, but a larger movement for freedom of expression.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Anurag Maitrayee believes that the queer movement should transform
into a mass movement because laws like <a href="http://www.lawyerscollective.org/vulnerable-communities/lgbt/section-377.html">Section 377</a> of the Indian Penal Code affect
everyone’s lives. As an artist, she remains committed to the belief that art is
the biggest form of protest.</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4xMCWVWVMNU/Vxvj0PoYCcI/AAAAAAAADbs/mk6UnVxaN3YjMN2EYQeV0CYjk8B5iu_WQCLcB/s1600/kaustav.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4xMCWVWVMNU/Vxvj0PoYCcI/AAAAAAAADbs/mk6UnVxaN3YjMN2EYQeV0CYjk8B5iu_WQCLcB/s1600/kaustav.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Kaustav Manna, a graduate in psychology, is a
photography enthusiast and freelance writer.</i></span></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-4378286266776481792016-04-24T01:46:00.000+05:302018-07-29T13:16:21.875+05:30Maid in India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Clickhappy! Apr '16</b></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Suchandra
Das narrates the story of Akka, a house maid in Chennai</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is the story of a house maid. I call her Akka, which
means <i>didi </i>or elder sister in Tamil. I asked her name but she just smiled and
said "Akka okay". She travels 28 kilometres everyday from Poonamallee to my
residence in Thiruvanmiyur. She was my ‘rescuer’ when I shifted from Kolkata to
Chennai in December 2015. She works in 15 houses in my colony. We don’t
understand each other’s language but we still communicate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Akka is the only earning member of her family and has two
daughters who go to school. Initially her family members were not comfortable
with her working as a house maid, but eventually they relented because of their
circumstances. She started working five years ago and now is the President of
the local association of house maids. She’s very particular about what she does,
and accepts only <i>cha</i> if I have to give her food sometimes. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Every day when she comes to my apartment, the first question
she asks is whether I had food or not. If not, then she takes whatever food is
available in the refrigerator and arranges my lunch plate. Her smile touches me
the most – she smiles irrespective of the workload or the killing heat.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I would like to thank
my neighbour Rekha for translating Akka’s words for me.</span></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Suchandra
Das left her corporate job in search of moments – moments to freeze, capture
and cherish forever. She's a wife, pet lover, photographer, cinematographer,
independent filmmaker, dependent homemaker, foodie and bitten by the travel
bug.</span></i></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-39375513213873840522016-04-24T00:59:00.002+05:302023-09-28T20:11:03.284+05:30Quick HIV primer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Advice - Mind, Body and Family, Apr '16</b></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>By Dr. Prasenjit Saha</b></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">For your concerns about HIV exposure, its prevention and
treatment (in the Indian context). </span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>Reader queries</b></span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;">There is so much half information about HIV floating around.
Can one have a simple list of the most important things that should not be done
if one has to prevent HIV infection? And where does one go to find out if one
has HIV?</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Sameera, West Bengal</span></span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>Dear Sameera</b></span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">HIV or the human immunodeficiency virus is primarily transmitted
through blood and sexual fluids (semen and vaginal fluids). So penetrative sex (especially
vaginal and anal) without a condom; sharing of needles for medical purposes,
tattooing, body piercing and injecting drugs; and transfusion of untested blood
or blood products are a strict no-no!</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">If you want to get tested for HIV, the best option is to
head to an <a href="http://www.naco.gov.in/documents/details-service-facilities">integrated counselling and testing centre</a> (ICTC) in any government
hospital. The HIV test will be preceded by a pre-test counselling and will be
carried out only after you have understood the issues involved and consented to
the test. After the test, there will be post-test counselling when the test
result is shared with you – to help you decide on the next steps whether you
test positive or negative for HIV. Confidentiality of the test results will be
strictly maintained – unless you are incapacitated for some reason, you should
be the first one to know your test result from the counsellor.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Just a note of caution – HIV tests are also carried out at private
sector clinics and hospitals, but they may not follow standardized testing
techniques and protocols. They will also be more expensive than government
hospitals, where testing is free.</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XF34REA4nPc/VxvN7KTxNxI/AAAAAAAADZU/KhBzixz5E7g3c2PzGFm4MnI6J3XtZrxPgCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-gensex%2526hlth-q%2526a-col-psh-quote.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XF34REA4nPc/VxvN7KTxNxI/AAAAAAAADZU/KhBzixz5E7g3c2PzGFm4MnI6J3XtZrxPgCLcB/s1600/varta-blog-issue33-gensex%2526hlth-q%2526a-col-psh-quote.png" /></a></div>
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;">People say HIV has become a chronic manageable disease like
diabetes and hypertension. What exactly does this mean?</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;">Anonymous, Kolkata</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>Dear Anonymous</b></span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">First, a matter of principle: A person is far more than what
infections they have in their body. Therein lies the issue of HIV being a
manageable disease. But how does this work out in practical terms? </span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">If a person tests positive for HIV at an ICTC, post-test
counselling helps them deal with feelings of shock, fear, denial, anger,
depression and even vengeance. After all, no disease is welcome, especially one
that can be fatal and has so much stigma and discrimination associated with it.
The counselling helps the person come to terms with their new situation and
informs them about the next steps that can be taken. The very first of these is
registration with a government-approved <a href="http://www.naco.gov.in/sites/default/files/List%20of%20ARTC.pdf">antiretroviral treatment (ART) centre</a> –
the counsellor provides guidance for this process. One just needs a photocopy
of the HIV test report for the registration (other relevant documents may be provided
later).</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">At the ART centre, the person goes through further counselling
and medical examination, screening for <a href="http://www.aidsinfonet.org/fact_sheets/view/500">opportunistic infections</a>, baseline investigations
and <a href="http://www.aidsinfonet.org/fact_sheets/view/124">CD4 count</a> testing. Starting ART is dependent on criteria like CD4 count (a
special blood test that signifies the level of immunity the person has) and clinical
staging (the <a href="http://www.whoindia.org/">World Health Organization</a> classifies HIV infection into four stages
depending on the severity of the infection). Generally, the lower the CD4
count, the more severe the infection is.
</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Once started, ART has to be taken lifelong and periodic or monthly
ART centre visits to refill the medicine containers, clinical examinations and
investigations also become regular companions. And yet, home-based care is of
prime importance, and counselling the person concerned as well as their family
members or other caregivers in this regard is an important pillar of HIV management.
Do you see here the similarities with management of other diseases?</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The medical side apart, there is also something called ‘positive
living’. This means making positive choices – developing a positive outlook in
life, eating well and eating right, avoiding addictions, practising safer sex and
physical exercise go a long way to boost the confidence of a person <i>living with</i>
HIV (note the emphasis). </span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">It is time to bid adieu to stigma, discrimination and fear
associated with HIV. Let us all take a stand and reiterate that the person is
more important than the problem. Reassurance works like a miracle for the
persons infected or affected. Trust me! </span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Please <a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/2014/09/vertical-infections.html">click here</a> to learn about prevention of mother to
child transmission of HIV, and concerns around an HIV positive woman
breastfeeding her child – <i>Editor.</i></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><i><br /></i></span>
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Since this article was published, the guidelines for
starting ART have been revised in India. According to an <a href="http://www.vartagensex.org/download.php?name=admin/document/_1494137341060-naco-art-start-revised-guidelines-05may17.jpg">office memorandum</a> issued by the
National AIDS Control Organisation, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare,
Government of India on May 5, 2017, starting ART will no longer be dependent on
CD4 count and other criteria like clinical stage of HIV infection, age and population.
All people who test positive for HIV will be treated with ART at the earliest <i>–
Editor.</i></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hBYT4mqGx5M/VxvMF2jSYWI/AAAAAAAADZE/sREFVh_iOxch35nSMvJmSyDTfFsw8SbHACLcB/s1600/prasenjit.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hBYT4mqGx5M/VxvMF2jSYWI/AAAAAAAADZE/sREFVh_iOxch35nSMvJmSyDTfFsw8SbHACLcB/s1600/prasenjit.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><i>Dr.
Prasenjit Saha is a public health professional working for people in pain. Write
in your queries on the mind, body and family to <a href="mailto:vartablog@gmail.com">vartablog@gmail.com</a>, and we will be happy
to answer them in consultation with the author – with due respect to
confidentiality.</i></span></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-70710239566213781532016-03-21T22:56:00.001+05:302016-03-22T17:54:26.813+05:30'Mere paas moo hai'<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Vartanama, Mar '16</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>By Pawan Dhall</b></span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yy6vonOrRZM/VvAuM1u3svI/AAAAAAAADYU/0VT_3H2gVVUQV00iek0zJFO98WdX_79Ig/s1600/varta-blog-issue32-vartanama-pawan-illus.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yy6vonOrRZM/VvAuM1u3svI/AAAAAAAADYU/0VT_3H2gVVUQV00iek0zJFO98WdX_79Ig/s320/varta-blog-issue32-vartanama-pawan-illus.png" width="253" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: Pawan Dhall</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“Why isn’t the milk curdling well these days?” My mother has
no satisfactory explanation in response to my complaint made the nth time in
the last couple of months. We try to figure out what could have gone wrong. It is
the same brand of milk that gave delicious results till last year. Firm-textured
curd – no, actually <i>dahi</i> sounds better – with just a thin layer of sinful fat!
It has been my comfort food since childhood, either to be had plain, as a <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raita">raita</a></i>,
with <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paratha">paranthas</a></i> or rice, or as a dessert (mixed with sugar, <i>gur</i>, <i>shakkar</i> and
even sugar free powder). So much so that I can wear the tag of <i>dahi chor</i> with
mischievous pride!</span></div>
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<a name='more'></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A scientist friend offers an explanation for the lumpy curd –
it could be the wrong bacteria at work. Mother conjectures it must be the usual
winter-months problem of keeping milk mixed with <i>jaag</i> (spoonful of curd with live
cultures) warm long enough for the curd to set. But winter is now long gone,
and yet things haven’t improved. We think of buying higher-priced milk but that
kind of generates a sourness of taste at the thought of my personal economy
becoming unsettled – the same reason why we can’t buy <i>tak doi</i> (that which is
not <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitha_dahi">mishti doi</a></i>) from the neighbourhood confectioners every day, or for that
matter yoghurt from fancy retail outlets.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m still mulling a way out of this dilemma, but a sinister
plan is already thieving around in my <i>dahi</i>-craved mind. Actually, I must be so
dumb to not have thought of it before. The solution has been staring back at me
from the newspaper headlines every morning. Today I’m going to log in on to
various social media and stalk bacteria that have been messing up with the
firmness of my <i>dahi</i> pride. Later I’m going to go out wearing a t-shirt
emblazoned with a slogan “<i>Dahi devi ki jai ho</i>!” I’m going to pump and thump my
fist and outshout the baleful music playing at red light crossings of Kolkata
with the very same slogan. Wherever I go, I will wag a menacing finger at bacteria
who I think look likely to be conspiring at breaking up my <i>dahi</i> before it sets.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When I’m back home at night, I’m going to dip the fingers
used for typing, pumping, thumping and wagging the whole day in a bowl of warm
milk. I’m pretty sure this is going to do the trick and I won’t even need <i>jaag</i> to
curdle the milk. All the fervour-filled typing, pumping, thumping and finger wagging
going around us these days has been curdling people’s blood in their very
veins. Why shouldn’t it curdle some milk?</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SrZpFyPcNNI/VvAt4qbq48I/AAAAAAAADYQ/ZDuUo8aePnUfNfE4dWN8X_Pjv32vljo5A/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SrZpFyPcNNI/VvAt4qbq48I/AAAAAAAADYQ/ZDuUo8aePnUfNfE4dWN8X_Pjv32vljo5A/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Pawan
Dhall aspires to be a rainbow journalist and believes in taking a stand, even
if it’s on the fence – the view is better from there!</i></span></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-56974400003186428812016-03-21T22:56:00.000+05:302020-05-14T20:11:44.353+05:30Ponnayā – an identity makeover movement in Sri Lanka<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Insight, Mar '16</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Damith Chandimal believes in reclaiming ‘Ponnayā’, a
derogatory term for feminine men and homosexuals in Sinhalese, as a
self-reaffirming identity, not just in relation to one’s sexuality but also in
questioning ethnic, religious and caste rigidities. Excerpts follow from an
article he wrote recently (with editorial support from Kenneth Gunasekera): <i>Giving
up Sinhala Identity and Proudly Embracing Ponnayā as a Self-identity</i>.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What does it mean exactly to give up an ethnic identity? Is it possible to erase one’s ethnic identity? Though it may not be possible to erase one’s ethnic roots, giving up identity could be a political decision and a political statement. Furthermore one does not have a singular identity, but multiple identities, all of which are socially constructed. It is easier to define ourselves within frameworks of these existing identities, especially within identities that are assigned at birth such as gender, ethnicity, caste, and so on. But deviating from, refusing to accept assigned identities, or even criticizing these identities is usually punished, stigmatized and discriminated against in our societies.</span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8R9awvPIQGs/VvAo1bmSMSI/AAAAAAAADXs/ADtpBAeSyCoZO3iRHytysC2JRQ0qRr9PQ/s1600/varta-blog-issue32-insight-damith-photo-dc-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8R9awvPIQGs/VvAo1bmSMSI/AAAAAAAADXs/ADtpBAeSyCoZO3iRHytysC2JRQ0qRr9PQ/s400/varta-blog-issue32-insight-damith-photo-dc-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Buddhist monks clash with military and police officers at a protest held in<br />
front of Homagama Court against the arrest of Gnanasero Thero, General<br />
Secretary of Bodu Balu Sena, an extremist Buddhist organization.<br />
Photo credit: Eshan Fernando </td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The punishment, stigmatization and discrimination one must
bear in the process of refusing an identity inevitably supply a political
consciousness to the refuser. Why should I step outside, conventional norms of
masculinity, ethnicity and caste (and face the punishment, stigmatization and discrimination)?
Why can I not bring a constructive criticism about an identity while keeping
myself within the identity? Perhaps, even when I refuse the ethnic identity, I
might be still unable to abandon myself from the framework of ethnic identity
completely. I might be still attempting to reframe the identity.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I don’t mean to say that I have completely abandoned my
ethnic identity, but this issue came to light upon reception of a Facebook post
I published denouncing my Sinhalese ethnic identity.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The post said: “I am not a Sinhalese. I don’t have an
ethnicity. I am more proud calling myself an outcast than calling myself
Sinhalese. Below is a quote from an article I wrote in 2014 (<i>Teaching Racism through
School Curriculum, My ‘Ala’ Story, Grade Six Story, Parrot Story and Gnanasara
Story</i>):</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘I am a Sinhalese. How do I know I am a Sinhalese? Because
my parents are Sinhalese. How do I know my parents are Sinhalese? Because their
lineage has been Sinhalese. But how can I reduce my background to say that I am
simply Sinhalese? With the surname De Alwis my great grandfathers were
influenced by the Portuguese; further my great grandmothers were married to the
Dutch. No. I am not Sinhalese by lineage.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1g80EqByHUM/VvApw3TSXmI/AAAAAAAADX0/8nR_pVvOzKEGnlFSWSL1OUPep5OeZ7Hhg/s1600/varta-blog-issue32-insight-damith-quote-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1g80EqByHUM/VvApw3TSXmI/AAAAAAAADX0/8nR_pVvOzKEGnlFSWSL1OUPep5OeZ7Hhg/s400/varta-blog-issue32-insight-damith-quote-1.png" width="250" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘The second argument is as follows: I am Sinhalese because I
speak and write the Sinhala language. I have problems with this argument as
well. I have two friends. One’s father is Tamil. The other’s father is Muslim. Their
fathers have died. The first friend has a Tamil surname and Sinhala name, and
he grew up with his Sinhala mother and her relatives. The latter’s surname and
name are both Muslim and he also grew up with his Sinhala mother and her
relatives. Though they don’t know a word of Tamil, my friends are identified as
Tamil and Muslim, respectively, on their birth certificates. Sinhala-ness is
neither related to our lineage, nor does it relate to our language. It is only
tradition. Even being Tamil and Muslim is solely tradition.’”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The first comment I received for this Facebook post was from
a young man who stated “You, outcast <i>ponna kæriyā</i>. You better eat shit than [write]
this.” <i>Kæriyā</i> is a word considered obscene and insulting. However, it is also
used in the sense of ‘thug’ with connotations of masculinity. Literally <i>kæri</i>
means ‘seminal fluid’. The second comment, from the same person, was a picture
of shit with text stating “Here, eat!”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Before I could respond, one of my friends did: “When you say
<i>ponna kæriyā</i>, isn’t it paradoxical? Then tell me whether you have tasted shit.”
The paradox was evident as <i>ponna</i> connoted a meaning of emasculation while the
term <i>kæriyā</i> connoted a meaning of masculinity and power . . . While I was glad
to see my friend note this paradox, I was interested in the rhetoric of the
violent response my post had evoked from the first respondent.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I first noted his use of the term Ponnayā, a derogatory term
for feminine men and homosexuals in general, often used in the context of hate
speech. Reading into his use of the word, one may wonder if Ponnayās can become
Kæriyās? Are Ponnayās the ones who criticize religion and ethnicity? Are there
Sinhala Ponnayās? Are there Buddhist Ponnayās? This is not the first time that
I have been called Ponnayā by racists . . . Why do I become <i>ponna</i>? What will be
taken away from me when I am <i>ponna</i>? Do I become <i>ponna</i> when I leave my Sinhala
identity? Can I continue being Ponnayā while keeping my Buddhist identity? Does
it mean my sexuality, when the term Ponnayā is stated?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the middle of the conversation, the young man who called
me “outcast <i>ponna kæriyā</i>” in the first comment left the conversation after
blocking me from his profile. Soon after, a second person joined the
conversation and elaborated the notion of being outcast by relating it to ‘illegitimate
birth’. <span lang="AR-SA">“</span>Don’t you doubt who made you born to
your mother – whether it was your father or a dog or a mule?” I answered him with
“No. I don’t have such a doubt. Because I believe that human beings can’t make
children by having sex with a dog or a mule. But I don’t think I should
obstruct your imagination of possibility to have a human child born out of a lion-human
relationship.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">According to <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahavamsa">Mahavamsa</a></i> epic
story, the Sinhala nation was born from a sexual relationship between a woman
and a lion. In the Facebook conversation with the second person, the lion symbolized
a respected animal and a ‘legitimate birth’, while the dog was used a as a
symbol of inferiority and an ‘illegitimate birth’. Paradoxically the lion lives
away from us in a foreign country, in a forest, while the dog lives amongst us.
Does our understanding of so called culture refers to things which are foreign
and outside of our lives?</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S9kZ715bRi8/VvAqCGGnYtI/AAAAAAAADX4/CdYb5V5Yd4kkvwe9RL8KilrH3S6vs1mNg/s1600/varta-blog-issue32-insight-damith-quote-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="290" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S9kZ715bRi8/VvAqCGGnYtI/AAAAAAAADX4/CdYb5V5Yd4kkvwe9RL8KilrH3S6vs1mNg/s400/varta-blog-issue32-insight-damith-quote-2.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I did not become angry with their (the Facebook
respondents’) insulting words against my arguments. Not getting angry could be
a </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ponna</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> characteristic. Perhaps those who are not </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ponna</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> become angry. The macho
guys declare wars, start fights. Peace could be a </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ponna </i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">characteristic. I understood
that my critics placed their ethnicity on the ground of Buddhism, so I responded
with a story from the Buddhist texts (</span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/sn/sn07/sn07.002.than.html">Akkosa Sutta: Discourse on Insult, Brahmana Sanyutta, Sanyuktta Nikaya</a></i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> translated from Pali by Thanissaro Bhikkhu, 1999):</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“The Blessed One was staying near Rajagaha in the
Bamboo Grove, the Squirrels' Sanctuary. Then the Brahman Akkosaka
Bharadvaja heard that a Brahman of the Bharadvaja clan had gone forth from the
home life into homelessness in the presence of the Blessed One. Angered and
displeased, he went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, insulted and cursed him
with rude, harsh words. When this was said, the Blessed One said to him: ‘What
do you think, Brahman: Do friends and colleagues, relatives and kinsmen come to
you as guests?’</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘Yes, Master Gotama, sometimes friends and colleagues,
relatives and kinsmen come to me as guests.’</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘And what do you think: Do you serve them with staple and
non-staple foods and delicacies?’</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘Yes, sometimes I serve them with staple and non-staple
foods and delicacies.’</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘And if they don't accept them, to whom do those foods
belong?’</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘If they don't accept them, Master Gotama, those foods are
all mine.’</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘In the same way, Brahman, that with which you have insulted
me, who is not insulting; that with which you have taunted me, who is not
taunting; that with which you have berated me, who is not berating: that I
don't accept from you. It's all yours, Brahman. It's all yours.’</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘Whoever returns insult to one who is insulting, returns
taunts to one who is taunting, returns a berating to one who is berating, is
said to be eating together, sharing company, with that person. But I am neither
eating together nor sharing your company, Brahman. It's all yours. It's all
yours.’”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This comment adds a different dimension to my Ponnayā
identity . . . In his response, the second person on Facebook accused me of
being a ‘radical’, and that I had studied in an art faculty in a university. Does
my Ponnayā identity go together with radicalness and art? I am not the only one
who was recently recognized as “radical Ponnayā”. Filmmaker Chinthana
Dharmadasa who questioned the Buddhist identity of the ancient ‘Buddhist’ King Dutugemunu
in a TV programme was also blamed as ‘radical Ponnayā’ on social media.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This further complicates the meaning of the term Ponnayā. It
is not simply a term related to gender or sexuality. A Ponnayā criticizes the
beliefs of the majority. We should not abandon the term Ponnayā by simply rejecting
it as a violent word. The Ponnayā identity should be embraced proudly. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Ponnayā – an identity to be embraced</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In general there is an acceptance that the term Ponnayā is a
derogatory term used in relation to a person with same-sex feelings, or a
feminine man. It is also used in the context of a person with ‘weak or
pusillanimous characteristics’. However, an additional meaning is now emerging
to the term Ponnayā based on its use in the context of hate speech on social
media platforms such as Facebook. According to this emerging new meaning, Ponnayā
can be a radical person who criticizes the way the majority thinks. Looking
more in-depth into this meaning helps us to redefine the term. Hence I would
like to associate the term Ponnayā with an important political sense. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ponnayā is the one who challenges the hegemony in a system
of existing beliefs and practices. Even if we consider the definition of Ponnayā
relating to sexual minorities, it still challenges the hegemony of heteronormativity.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I am a Ponnayā. I am proud of being a Ponnayā. I understand
the importance of <i>ponna</i> political usage. I question the logic of hypocritical
morality. I understand when replying to Sinhala-Buddhist nationalists, the use
of Buddhism helps to problematize their ego consciousness. Is Buddhism a
knowledge base or a religious identity which could be used only by Sinhala nationalism,
masculinity and heteronormativity? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The use of teachings of Buddha to support racism,
nationalism, violence and hypocritical bonds to ‘culture’ is inherently
non-Buddhist, but Buddhism has been used to support violence, racism and
nationalism in the historical evolution of Sinhala-Buddhist identity in Sri
Lanka. Identity politics of Sinhala-Buddhism strongly contradicts with the
Buddhist scripture. If a Sinhala-Buddhist identity can exist, a Ponnayā-Buddhist
identity can also exist<span lang="AR-SA">. </span>I suggest that Ponnayā identity is
more harmonious with Buddhism than the Sinhala identity. In Buddhist
understanding, one’s attachment to an ethnicity, caste, <i>varna</i> or family is a
desire which binds one to the cycle of births. When such a desire turns into violence,
can Buddhism further advocate for it in any sense?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Note:</b> Buddhists are a minority in Sri Lanka though the
census statistics may identify the Buddhists as the ‘majority’. No one can be
born into Buddhism. Being born into Buddhism is a product of a colonial
understanding of religion. Ponnayās, too, are a minority in this country.
Nobody can become a Ponnayā by birth. To become a Ponnayā, one must have the courage
to challenge the hegemony<span lang="AR-SA">.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0coOaoPx6HE/VvAqd7ubO0I/AAAAAAAADYA/yAS1n8Ci17sQ9AhF0DAijubMY5mJF9TSw/s1600/damith.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0coOaoPx6HE/VvAqd7ubO0I/AAAAAAAADYA/yAS1n8Ci17sQ9AhF0DAijubMY5mJF9TSw/s1600/damith.jpg" /></a></div>
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<i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 107%;">Damith Chandimal is a human rights defender,
queer activist, writer and social researcher based in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He
works as a consultant to the INFORM Human Rights Documentation Centre on the
protection of human rights defenders and documenting human rights violations. He
is also a student in the Master's Programme in Gender and Women’s Studies at the
University of Colombo.</i></div>
</div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-17466797485063249422016-03-21T22:45:00.000+05:302016-06-14T11:00:04.970+05:30Decoding consent<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Happenings, Mar '16</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Cracking the consent conundrum was the focus of a panel
discussion organized by Civilian Welfare Foundation, Kinky Collective and Varta
Trust last month in Kolkata. Pompi Banerjee reports</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Kolkata, February 20, 2016: </b>Nearly 30% out of 71 people felt
that the age of sexual consent in India should be 15 years. Almost 25% agreed
that long-term intimate partners need not explicitly seek verbal consent every
time they wanted to have sex with each other, another 30% were undecided. Among
those who clearly disagreed with this statement, there were far more women than
men. Not saying no or not resisting advances implies consent for sex – only 54%
of the audience disagreed with this statement. Consent for sex can be withdrawn
at any point of time – 79% agreed, but 21% did not or were undecided, which was
equally worrying!</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4F7nSubU-W8/VvAUzn1N4pI/AAAAAAAADXc/Orqjsxl9ApECEmPdb6ljNSXeBVOk39j5w/s1600/varta-blog-issue32-happenings-pompi-photos-aru.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4F7nSubU-W8/VvAUzn1N4pI/AAAAAAAADXc/Orqjsxl9ApECEmPdb6ljNSXeBVOk39j5w/s400/varta-blog-issue32-happenings-pompi-photos-aru.png" width="370" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: Arunabha Hazra</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">These and more statistics emerged from a panel discussion
‘Whoever Voluntarily... Decoding Consent’ organized by NGOs <a href="http://cwforg.com/">Civilian Welfare Foundation</a>, <a href="http://kinkycollective.blogspot.in/">Kinky Collective</a> and <a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/p/about-varta.html">Varta Trust</a> at the Academy of Fine Arts on February
20, 2016. More than a 100 people attended the event, leaving little space to
move around in a conference hall that had space for 90. Of these, 71 responded
to a pre-event questionnaire that helped evaluate audience knowledge levels and
perceptions around issues of consent, particularly sexual consent.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The responses, albeit drawn from a sample with limitations
(most people in the audience were residents of Kolkata and its neighbourhood,
and most had learnt about the event through Facebook), pretty much reflected
what the panellists had to say about the ‘greyness’ of consent, and the urgent
need for widespread and continuing dialogue on the issue. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The panel included women’s rights activist Anuradha Kapoor
(also Director, </span><a href="http://www.swayam.info/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Swayam</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> – Ending Violence Against Women), psychiatrist Dr.
Aniruddha Deb, advocate Kaushik Gupta (also a part of Kinky Collective and
Trustee with Varta Trust) and queer activist Pawan Dhall (Founding Trustee, Varta
Trust). After Suchandra Ganguly of Civilian Welfare Foundation presented the
welcome note, clips of songs and scenes from Hindi films were screened. Each
clip portrayed how blatantly presumption and violation of consent were passed
off as harmless pranks and romance in Bollywood. The last video was an </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">animation (</span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQbei5JGiT8">Tea Consent</a></i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">) that drew an effective analogy between consent and preference for tea
as a drink</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">.
This set the perfect opening for the panel discussion with the question “What
is consent?”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The panellists were invited by moderator Sayan Bhattacharya
to speak about different facets of consent. A dictionary would probably explain
consent as ‘</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">permission</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> for something to happen or
agreement to do something’. But </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anuradha Kapoor</b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> said defining consent was a
difficult task because of the innumerable layers to it. Any definition of
consent must capture who the consent seeker was and who the giver, and then
also to what it was that consent was sought for. This would inevitably point at
power dynamics within relationships influenced by patriarchy and heteronormativity.
These factors determined who had the power to say yes or no. For instance, in
marriage, the wife’s consent was often taken for granted, and not only in the sexual
context. Sometimes something as seemingly small as whether to wear a </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">bindi</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> or
not while going out would be decided by the husband!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pawan Dhall </b>remarked that it was easier to define what
consent was not. Like buying a local train ticket for every journey, you should
ask for it each time, and so consent should not be mistaken for a monthly train
ticket that would allow you to hop on without queuing up at the ticket counter.
<b>Kaushik Gupta,</b> on the other hand, provided the legal definition of consent under
the <a href="http://indiankanoon.org/doc/171398/">Indian Contract Act, 1872</a>:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“Section 13: Two or more persons are said to be consented
when they agree upon the same thing in the same sense (<i>consensus-ad-idem</i>).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“Section 14: Consent is said to be free when it is not
caused by coercion or undue influence or fraud or misrepresentation or
mistake.”</span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dLfeZENmk7g/VvASzeavDSI/AAAAAAAADW4/Dy9KYE66XugZqEJ8FuEt6Jmf0Xbm7cNpQ/s1600/varta-blog-issue32-happenings-pompi-inset-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dLfeZENmk7g/VvASzeavDSI/AAAAAAAADW4/Dy9KYE66XugZqEJ8FuEt6Jmf0Xbm7cNpQ/s400/varta-blog-issue32-happenings-pompi-inset-2.png" width="278" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click here for <i><a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/2016/01/salt-pepper-and-sex-on-table.html">Salt, Pepper and Sex - on the Table!</a></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The advocate observed that what the law didn’t specify was the
right to withdraw consent, especially in the context of marriage. He argued that
the right to say yes must also lead to the right to say no! Clearly, even the
law was not entirely ‘black and white’ with regard to consent.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The discussion moved on to ‘shades of consent’. <b>Pawan Dhall</b>
shared key findings from recent qualitative research studies he was part of.
These studies focussed on violence experienced by queer people, in particular
men who have sex with men (MSM) and trans women in India and other parts of
South Asia, and how the violence impacted their health. It was seen that there
were diverse contexts in which sexual consent was given to male sexual partners,
especially consent for unprotected sex, often with multiple partners and at the
risk of STI and HIV exposure.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While the consent could be based on free choice and
motivated by love, romance or sexual attraction, it could also be motivated by
financial compulsions. Many respondents to the studies shared that they
consented to paid sex so that they could earn a living or maintain their
partners and families. This was true of many queer individuals who, thanks to
strong social stigma and discrimination, suffered loss of education and
livelihood opportunities.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yet other respondents spoke about peer pressure to live up
to gender and sexual norms, or when sex seemed to offer an escape from
incessant violence committed by homophobic or transphobic family members. In
countries or regions where men in uniform (collective term for the armed and
police forces) wielded considerable power, there were those who agreed to have
sex with them to avoid arbitrary arrests and violence. The speaker felt that in
these circumstances the key concern for policy makers, law enforcers and health
workers should not be just the provision of consent but the ‘quality’ of
consent provided.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As the discussion progressed, audience questions and their
answers treaded more and more difficult terrain. For example, did women have
space to ask for sex, when the terms were decided by men regarding when, where
and even what kind of sex to have? <b>Anuradha Kapoor</b> reflected that different
people had different notions of consent, and this was based on their
upbringing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Kaushik Gupta </b>upped the ante when he spoke about how the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BDSM">kink community</a> treated sexual consent. Kink practitioners always started with
consent, and a lot of emphasis was put on the process and experience of
negotiating consent. A fair negotiation could take place only when all people
involved were on a level platform in terms of possibility of finding play
partners, skills of negotiation, and level of information available regarding
the consequences of what was being negotiated for.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">At the beginning as well as during the negotiation, a
proactive exchange of information took place from the more experienced to the
less experienced. This created a space held with respect and exploration.
Within this space, sex was never presumed irrespective of the nature of
relationship between the kinksters involved.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He further elaborated that some kinky sexual acts might seem
violent, but they were not a violation because they were based on informed consent.
Moreover, there were safeguards built in. Once a person uttered the ‘safe word’
or performed the ‘safe gesture’, a kink session would stop and there would be
communication about what transpired (what worked, what didn’t and so on). Quite
the opposite of the taboo society placed on talking about sex and desire!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Dr. Aniruddha Deb</b> led the audience into the world of fantasy.
He wondered if we needed permission from the ‘object’ of our fantasy in order
to fantasize about them. Different people dealt with their fantasies
differently – some chose to live the fantasy in their imagination, while others
carried out the fantasy within the boundaries of reality.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He raised further provocative questions through narrations
of his professional experience: Was consent derived through seduction free or
coerced? What could be the language of letting one’s sexual partner know that we
were uncomfortable with something? Would it have to be verbal communication or
something to be inferred by the partner by observing our body language?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mental health activist Ratnaboli Ray from the audience questioned
to what extent consent was emotional and to what extent cognitive. <b>Dr. Aniruddha
Deb</b> replied that consent was equally emotional and cognitive. Without either
element, it might not be free. “If my consent is divorced from emotion, it’s
incomplete, and may lead to regret,” he clarified.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Several questions were raised regarding consent in sex work,
degrees of consent and who could talk about lack of consent. One individual
wanted similar events in future to dwell on informed consent in the context of counselling
and medical treatment in hospitals. In a perfect ending note, transgender
activist Aparna Banerjee remarked that before consent could be given to someone
else, it was important for us to give consent to ourselves to be something that
we wanted to be!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We live in the land of “</span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">mounam sammati lakshanam</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">” (an adage
that says silence is indicative of consent), and the predominant culture
globally is one of normalization of sexual violence because of attitudes around
gender and sexuality. The understanding of consent is further twisted and the
line between consent and non-consent blurred by popular films, music and other media.
But slowly and surely a revolution is in the making – that of nurturing a ‘consent
culture’ rather than a ‘rape culture’; a more respectful social scenario where
asking for consent is normalized and where consent is not a matter of
presumptions, ego or hesitation.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The range of issues around consent may be mindboggling –
marital rape, flirting, violence versus violation in the context of kink,
consent in non-sexual contexts like medical treatment – but a start has been made.
This panel discussion is a small contribution towards generating a culture of
transparency, and the organizers have plans to go deeper into the issues
involved through a series of similar events with different audiences in 2016.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a><span style="line-height: 115%;">Pompi
Banerjee is a psychologist and works with an NGO for their health rights
programme. She identifies as queer, gender fluid and kinky, and is a member of
Kinky Collective. On her holidays she’s either glued to books or out and about
– organizing or taking part in events on gender and sexuality rights.</span></span></i><br />
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Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-57685283388463828812016-03-21T22:35:00.000+05:302016-03-22T17:56:50.483+05:30When the mind disassembles<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>My Story, Mar '16</b></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Dementia is the focus of Pallav Bonerjee’s
next in a series of personal narratives on psychology, people and destiny</b></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Many of you will have encountered this
nebulous term called ‘dementia’. Unfortunately, it is becoming a rather familiar
term these days. Dementia is a collection of symptoms essentially as a result
of a chronic degenerative disease of the brain. These symptoms can include
disturbances in memory (short-term memory), orientation and comprehension,
calculation, learning capacity, language, thinking and judgement. There is
currently a great deal of academic and clinical interest (both national and
international) in trying to find a cure for this disorder, which mostly affects
the elderly (typically, post 65 years of age).</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-de8d_QUGZHU/VvACSxCQRWI/AAAAAAAADWQ/htiLSFOPPU8dxHNHgtvvj3g_5wbLsIOmg/s1600/varta-blog-issue32-my-story-pallav-illus-pbo-pp.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="316" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-de8d_QUGZHU/VvACSxCQRWI/AAAAAAAADWQ/htiLSFOPPU8dxHNHgtvvj3g_5wbLsIOmg/s320/varta-blog-issue32-my-story-pallav-illus-pbo-pp.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Graphic credit: Pallav Bonerjee, Prosenjit Pal</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The most common cause of dementia is <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alzheimer%27s_disease">Alzheimer’s disease</a>, which was first discovered in 1906. Since then we have had over a 100 years
to identify a cure and we haven’t been able to reach there yet. Just to give
you a picture of the magnitude of its impact, currently around 35 lakh people
in India have Alzheimer’s dementia. It is estimated that this number will double
in the next 15 years. According to the <a href="http://time.com/4217189/in-the-latest-issue-59/">February 2016 issue of <i>TIME Magazine</i></a>, “Globally,
nearly 50 million people are living with dementia, most of which is caused by
Alzheimer’s and in the absence of effective drugs and other interventions, this
number is expected to double every 20 years”. Now, that is not a pretty
picture.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">To add to the complexity of this condition,
we now know that it is an irreversible condition (once diagnosed, we simply can’t
help a person out of it). All medicines available today can at best slow down
the process of degeneration but not stop it. Which is why, it becomes so
important to recognise and detect the symptoms of this disease early on. One
also has to become familiar with the potential risk factors that may
pre-dispose a person to develop this condition, like a family history of
Alzheimer’s dementia. Other risk factors could include obesity, smoking, high
blood pressure and diabetes, all of which should be controlled between the ages
of 40 and 50 years rather than wait for the onset of the illness. Timely and
accurate diagnosis not only helps doctors manage the symptoms better, but also
slows down the decline of memory and other cognitive impairments.</span></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-i0TvZpwqtS4/VvACnlNRoNI/AAAAAAAADWM/t8fZvOvAeoYq55OPmd2IXpeOLV3Mk0VpA/s1600/varta-blog-issue32-my-story-pallav-artwk-sbr-final.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="365" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-i0TvZpwqtS4/VvACnlNRoNI/AAAAAAAADWM/t8fZvOvAeoYq55OPmd2IXpeOLV3Mk0VpA/s400/varta-blog-issue32-my-story-pallav-artwk-sbr-final.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Artwork credit: Shubhrajit Roy</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A person suffering from dementia
(Alzheimer’s type) will find it progressively difficult to carry out their
day-to-day activities like brushing, bathing, combing, dressing, eating, taking
care of personal hygiene and using the toilet. They will become more dependent
on caregivers and family members. Sadly, in the absence of any previous
experience, care giving ends up becoming a real challenge for the family as
well.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Interestingly, most memory loss in
Alzheimer’s dementia in the initial phase concerns newly learned information or
short-term memory loss. This means the sufferer may not be able to remember
what they had for breakfast later the very same day, or remember people who
visited them or called on phone the day before, or for that matter, give a correct
account of a programme that they just saw on TV a while ago. Frequently, to
fill in these gaps in their memories, they create new events and situations (technically
known as confabulations) in their minds to achieve a sense of closure while
trying to remember. Surprisingly, even while their short-term memory starts
getting fuzzy, they will accurately recollect in great detail most information
from their long-term memory store (for example, events from childhood and
school, names of friends and neighbours, happenings in their jobs, and dates of
significance in their lives).</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As the disease progresses through the
different stages, more and more everyday functions start getting compromised in
the individual. Language processing is usually next after short- term memory
loss. When this happens, it becomes exceedingly difficult for the person to
find the right words to communicate adequately and name common objects around
them. This usually turns out to be a frustrating experience for both the
individual suffering from dementia as well as the family members who have to
constantly guess the right words.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-de8d_QUGZHU/VvACSxCQRWI/AAAAAAAADWQ/htiLSFOPPU8dxHNHgtvvj3g_5wbLsIOmg/s1600/varta-blog-issue32-my-story-pallav-illus-pbo-pp.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="197" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-de8d_QUGZHU/VvACSxCQRWI/AAAAAAAADWQ/htiLSFOPPU8dxHNHgtvvj3g_5wbLsIOmg/s200/varta-blog-issue32-my-story-pallav-illus-pbo-pp.png" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After this, the disease targets an individual’s
ability to understand concepts, make plans and solve problems on a daily basis.
This takes away the independence and individuality of the person as they now have
to rely on family members and caregivers for the most basic of their decision
making processes. The next victim of this illness is usually the faculty of
emotional regulation. People with difficulties in this crucial internal
mechanism are erratic, impulsive, edgy, irritable and unpredictable with
respect to displaying their emotions. They may get terribly angry without
provocation or may feel absolutely devastated and hopeless. These mood swings
are a major challenge at home and are most often the reason for admission in
geriatric wards in hospitals all over the world.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In its final stages, the disease makes a
person forget their own family members. This could also be accompanied by false
perceptions (hearing things in the absence of any noise or seeing things in the
absence of anyone around). Eventually, it damages the parts of the brain
responsible for breathing, resulting in the death of the person. Typically,
this progression from one stage to another and eventual fatality can last
anywhere between 8-10 years after the onset of the illness.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Having said this, are we then to just sit
tight and pray to god that this curse of an illness doesn’t happen to us, or to
anyone that we have ever come in contact with? Or is it possible for us to do
some things to try and prevent it or push it back to the extent possible? Thankfully,
the second option is correct as more and more research seems to suggest today.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Making consistently healthy lifestyle
choices and modifications during our young adulthood years seem to hold a vital
key to modify the chances of our falling prey to this condition during our
later years. Moreover, even as an elderly free from any of the challenges
mentioned earlier, one may opt to age actively as against depriving oneself
adequate stimulation (both physical and mental).</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There are many studies that strongly
support the hypothesis that solving crossword puzzles, assembling jigsaw puzzles
and playing Sudoku on a regular basis help delay the onset of accelerated
memory decline in most adults. The good news is that one need not necessarily depend
on such complex cognitive challenges all the time. Apparently, even simple
activities like regular newspaper reading, mental calculations, listening to
music or playing a musical instrument, gardening, cooking, learning a new
language (over and above one’s mother tongue), visiting new places, playing a
sport and socialising regularly (making new friends) also help a great deal in
achieving the same objective.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xPqs5OqlFk8/VvADGutwgvI/AAAAAAAADWU/B0BbV95ppXwJeGqCCre9kBvlPfpqvO_Ig/s1600/varta-blog-issue32-my-story-pallav-quote.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xPqs5OqlFk8/VvADGutwgvI/AAAAAAAADWU/B0BbV95ppXwJeGqCCre9kBvlPfpqvO_Ig/s400/varta-blog-issue32-my-story-pallav-quote.png" width="250" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One reason to explain this is the fact that
the brain is usually better stimulated when one is trying to perform a novel
task. Thus, engaging in something new on a regular basis apparently safeguards
the brain from the onslaught of degenerative conditions like dementia. Such
activities also serve an additional function of de-stressing the individual and
have an overall calming effect on them.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Aerobic exercises have also been proved to
work wonders for most elderly in helping them combat mental fatigue and slowdown.
What it does is push more oxygen to multiple brain regions, thereby facilitating
speed of information processing at its most basic level.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Dietary and nutritional changes also become
necessary to stall dementia from advancing. What, how much and when we eat
become progressively important questions to ask as we age. Foods rich in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antioxidant">anti-oxidants</a>
(fruits and vegetables) are a must. Saturated fat (ghee and butter) and deep
fried products need to be avoided. Try foods rich in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omega-3_fatty_acid">omega-3 fatty acids</a> (these
are present in fish). Raise your <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-density_lipoprotein">good cholesterol</a> (HDL) by exercising regularly
and decreasing body weight. Finally, if you must drink alcohol, choose red wine
and drink conservatively (one glass a day).</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It is also important to get regular health
check-ups done, ideally once in six months, just to be aware of one’s health
status and address any deficiency or excess right away. In the same way, it is
also important to get a brief evaluation done on aspects of one’s cognition as
one crosses the age of 60. These tests will check cognitive parameters like
attention, concentration, memory, problem solving, language, calculation and
learning ability. Most of these tests are paper-pencil based evaluations and
non-invasive in nature. They are carried out by trained professionals who
compare the test results to matched control groups and make inferences on the
report and explain the results.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Just as it is important to recognise the
symptoms of dementia early and start interventions quickly, one should also not
self-diagnose occasional forgetfulness as inevitable symptoms of dementia and
cause panic. It is always safer to get a proper evaluation done and then
respond to it appropriately. As a senior neuro-psychiatrist once remarked of
dementia, “Forewarned, is forearmed!”</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Readers who want to know more about
Alzheimer’s dementia and its care are welcome to send in their queries to <a href="mailto:vartablog@gmail.com">vartablog@gmail.com</a>. We will respond to
the queries in consultation with the author of this article and other mental
health professionals <i>– Editor.</i></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2alHTdWbyPs/VvAB62kisQI/AAAAAAAADWA/mO8rb_VVDNE5ber2liTZPYbBP8wx8COng/s1600/pallav.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2alHTdWbyPs/VvAB62kisQI/AAAAAAAADWA/mO8rb_VVDNE5ber2liTZPYbBP8wx8COng/s1600/pallav.jpg" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Pallav Bonerjee is Consultant Clinical
Psychologist at VIMHANS Hospital, New Delhi. Whenever stressed, he never fails
to spend some time with his own therapist, who has a wet, black nose and goes
by the name of Copper!</i></span></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-246004344366534262016-03-21T22:30:00.000+05:302016-03-21T22:30:10.155+05:30Star quest: Fire and hope<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Clickhappy! Star Quest, Mar '16</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>By Pawan Dhall</b></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hgJRtzF1C24/Vu_3fIgaOWI/AAAAAAAADVE/ch8_RIxS5bskwyoA7AzMojMydefsmYtFg/s1600/varta-blog-issue32-clickhappy-strqst-jck-photo-jck-3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hgJRtzF1C24/Vu_3fIgaOWI/AAAAAAAADVE/ch8_RIxS5bskwyoA7AzMojMydefsmYtFg/s320/varta-blog-issue32-clickhappy-strqst-jck-photo-jck-3.JPG" width="308" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: red;">Star of the month:</span></b> Jacinta Kerketta on a visit to St. Augustine's<br />College, Manoharpur where she completed her intermediate<br />studies (all photographs courtesy Jacinta Kerketta)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The third (<a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/2013/10/star-quest-1st-encounter.html">October 2013</a>) and fourth (<a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/2013/11/star-quest-2nd-encounter.html">November 2013</a>) issues
of <i>Varta</i> carried a column called <i>Star Quest</i>, a series of photo-stories of
individuals who may not be public figures like politicians, artistes, social
activists or media persons, but have in their own way contributed to social
equity and empowerment around gender, sexuality and related issues. For a
variety of reasons, including priority given to other interview and photography
based columns, <i>Star Quest </i>was discontinued. With the <a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/2015/10/star-quest-straight-from-queer-positive.html">October 2015</a> issue of <i>Varta</i>,
we revived the column to continue sharing innumerable untold stories twinkling
with inspiration!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The contribution of the ‘stars’ we zoom in on may be in an
intimate arena – among friends and neighbours, their local community, a village
or slum school, their own work place and so on. It may not have attracted any media
attention, yet the importance of their efforts cannot be underscored enough. <i>Varta</i>
is happy to bring to light such hidden ‘stars’ and focus on endeavours that generate
hope for a better present and future.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Varta </i>welcomes its readers to contribute to <i>Star Quest</i> by
sending information about individuals living anywhere in India who can be
portrayed in the column. Please send a brief description of the individual and
their work in about 100 words to <a href="mailto:vartablog@gmail.com">vartablog@gmail.com</a>,
and also include three to five high quality photographs of the individual
depicting their day-to-day life.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Please note that no individual will be portrayed in this
column through text or photographs till the <i>Varta </i>team has interacted with them
and obtained their informed consent. Therefore it is vital that readers also
obtain the consent of the individuals concerned before sending information
about them to <i>Varta</i>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Star of the month:</span></b> Jacinta Kerketta, 32-year-old resident of
<a href="http://ranchi.nic.in/">Ranchi</a>, is on a mission to highlight the concerns of tribal communities in
Jharkhand through poetry and freelance journalism. The author of a widely read
blog </span><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://jacintakerketta.blogspot.in/">Aag Aur Ummeed</a></span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, Jacinta Kerketta has a quiet determination </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">about her that compels you to listen to what she has to say. I heard her recite and
sing at the closing event of the <a href="http://www.commutiny.in/changelooms-with-in-%E0%A4%AF%E0%A5%82%E0%A4%A5sav-meet-100-changemakersloomers-on-10th-september-2015/">Changelooms With.in</a> initiative of NGOs <a href="http://www.pravah.org/">Pravah</a>
and <a href="http://www.commutiny.in/">ComMutiny – the Youth Collective</a> in Delhi last year, and decided to learn
more about her work. What strikes me is her deployment of poetry to challenge
the harsh ravages of ‘development work’ in the homelands of tribal communities.
Her poem <i>Saranda Ke Phool</i> (see inset) seems to exemplify the spirit of her
quest – keeping hope alive for conservation, justice and a better tomorrow for
the tribal peoples of Jharkhand.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Born in Khudpos Bandhtoli in <a href="http://chaibasa.nic.in/">Singhbhum (West)</a> district of
Jharkhand, Jacinta Kerketta went to school in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumka">Dumka</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chakradharpur">Chakradharpur</a>, and
intermediate college in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monoharpur">Manoharpur</a>. She took to writing stories and poems for
magazines when she was in the eighth standard and later articles for newspapers
while studying mass communication in <a href="http://www.sxcran.org/">St. Xavier’s College, Ranchi</a>. She landed a
reporter’s job in a newspaper right after graduation. But three years later,
she left the job to freelance with <i>Gulel.com</i> website and other publications.
This was in 2014, when she also received a UNDP-sponsored media fellowship from
the <a href="http://www.csds.in/">Centre for the Study of Developing Societies</a>,
Delhi. The fellowship supported her to write about the concerns of tribal
communities in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santhal_Pargana_division">Santhal Pargana</a> division of Jharkhand state in different
publications. During this time she also managed to go back to her first love –
poetry, which had taken a backseat because of professional commitments.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A photograph (top) and micro poetry from <i>Aag Aur Ummeed </i>reflect<br />issues that motivate Jacinta Kerketta's efforts</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Later in 2014 poetry it was that became the centre-point of
another fellowship she was awarded by Changelooms With.in. She took up the
challenge of encouraging school girls in two blocks of <a href="http://simdega.nic.in/">Simdega</a> district to
highlight the problems in their areas through poetry and other forms of
writing. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The fellowship is over but Jacinta Kerketta has managed to
sustain her work with the girls. She’s enthused by the initial signs of success,
and she aims to interact more with the girls to understand their concerns
better.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With a school girl in a village in Simdega district </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Imagination, conviction and willingness to hear the other
side’s view point have brought Jacinta Kerketta to where she is today. Her
stint in the newspaper taught her new skills and her stories on tribal issues
were always encouraged by the editorial team. But she was conscious that the
coverage of tribal issues by the newspaper she worked for, or any ‘mainstream’
media house, would probably always be limited by readership and commercial
priorities. Thus as soon as she helped her sisters complete college, she
decided to take the plunge into independent writing. <i><a href="http://jacintakerketta.blogspot.in/">Aag Aur Ummeed</a></i> is an
outcome of that decision.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The blog, as also other social media, helps her network
extensively. She is the happiest when during her travels she bumps into people
who recognize her and tell her that they read her blog regularly. One such
occasion was when she met the Block Development Officer of <a href="http://www.onefivenine.com/india/villag/Godda/Boarijor">Boarijor block in Godda district</a> of Jharkhand for some work. He turned out to be an ardent follower of
her blog. Such impromptu reader feedback strengthens her belief that she is on
the right track.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jacinta Kerketta loves her poetic creations, but always
feels there is scope to do better. Yet, she is not one to sit and agonize over
‘writing’ poetry and says, “Just as the birds choose a tree to flock home to in
the evening, poems choose the souls through which they become a creation. I
don’t have to try to write a poem, it flows through me on its own. All I do is
try and listen to which way the energy within me wants to flow and what form it
wants to take.”</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XpHhP_5x_gM/Vu_22meLpVI/AAAAAAAADU8/MysXsY5TTUYz_3HnS1fVjwXKBOLgHFJ9Q/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XpHhP_5x_gM/Vu_22meLpVI/AAAAAAAADU8/MysXsY5TTUYz_3HnS1fVjwXKBOLgHFJ9Q/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Pawan
Dhall aspires to be a rainbow journalist and believes in taking a stand, even
if it’s on the fence – the view is better from there!</i></span></span><br />
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Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-80738261773885672202016-02-23T00:55:00.001+05:302016-02-23T01:18:53.325+05:30Wow, what a month!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Vartanama, Feb '16</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">By Pawan Dhall</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2ZMK9qyOtYo/Vstk2TpckEI/AAAAAAAADT4/Q_P8zlGamqo/s1600/varta-blog-issue31-vartanama-pawan-photo-pp.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2ZMK9qyOtYo/Vstk2TpckEI/AAAAAAAADT4/Q_P8zlGamqo/s320/varta-blog-issue31-vartanama-pawan-photo-pp.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">WOW felicitation ceremony. Photo credit: Prosenjit Pal</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It is Valentine’s Day eve and Saraswati
Puja (often considered Bengal’s homegrown Valentine’s Day). Just back from an
inspiring launch of the </span><a href="http://azadfoundation.com/women-on-wheels/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Women on Wheels</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> (WOW) programme in Kolkata and it is </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">the</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">
time to pen down these thoughts – lest the ‘wow moment’ writers swear by passes
away!</span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">WOW, a joint initiative of </span><a href="http://azadfoundation.com/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Azad Foundation</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">
and </span><a href="http://sakhaconsultingwings.com/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Sakha Consulting Wings Pvt. Ltd.</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> (both based in Delhi), is a women
chauffeur placement service and already operates in Delhi and Jaipur. This
unique programme is more than about livelihood – it is a gender equity mission,
and its launch event was part of the global '</span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Billion_Rising" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">One Billion Rising</a>'<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> campaign to end
violence against women. Organized in partnership with </span><a href="http://thoughtshopfoundation.org/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Thoughtshop Foundation</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">
and </span><a href="http://www.kolkatasanved.org/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Kolkata Sanved</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, the event felicitated the first batch of fully trained nine
chauffeurs, and to make a booking you can call 0091 90516 06189 or write to </span><a href="mailto:placementskolkata@sakhaconsultingwings.com" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">placementskolkata@sakhaconsultingwings.com</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">.</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One rider though (pun unintended). Several
speakers at the launch event said that women drivers, including professional
ones, made for better, more disciplined drivers than men. This could well be
true and would seem justified as a rejoinder to the widespread male chauvinism that
discourages and demeans women drivers. But do women drivers have to be
necessarily better than their male counterparts to justify their right to drive
an automobile? One wonders if the emphasis on ‘better’ may put an unnecessary
burden on the WOW drivers and give the status quoists a handle to crow “We told
you so!” every time a woman driver makes a mistake. If gender equity is about
equal opportunities, it should also be about the right to make mistakes and
learn every step of the way.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-j9vUq9S4oCs/Vstfyxa488I/AAAAAAAADTU/gxodCTIvZYw/s1600/varta-blog-issue31-vartanama-pawan-quote-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-j9vUq9S4oCs/Vstfyxa488I/AAAAAAAADTU/gxodCTIvZYw/s320/varta-blog-issue31-vartanama-pawan-quote-1.png" width="224" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another wow occasion unfolded earlier in
the month on February 2 when the Honourable Supreme Court of India surprised
many by referring a batch of curative petitions against Section 377, Indian
Penal Code to a five-judge Constitution Bench for possible in-depth hearing
(see <a href="http://varta2013.blogspot.in/2016/02/twist-in-section-377-saga.html"><i>Twist in Section 377 Saga!</i></a> by Vivek Divan published earlier in <i>Varta</i>).
Given the poor track record of success curative petitions have had, it was
widely feared that the petitions against the Supreme Court’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Section_377_-_CIVIL_APPEAL_NO.10972_OF_2013_Judgement.pdf">December 2013 judgment</a> on Section 377 would be dismissed outright. That this didn’t happen,
that the three senior-most judges of the Supreme Court felt there might be a
case to revaluate the constitutionality of Section 377 added a new zest to the
16-year old campaign against Section 377.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It is not known when the Constitution
Bench will be set up and by no means can one assume what its decision will be.
But hope dies hard, and there is no cure or curative for that, which is why one
is hopeful that yet another wow-inducing development in February – this time in
the sense of dismay and shock – will ultimately only strengthen the struggle for
social equity.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On February 12, the central government
ordered a police crackdown on students in <a href="http://www.jnu.ac.in/">Jawaharlal Nehru University</a>, Delhi on
charges of sedition. The reason cited was anti-India sloganeering at an event held
in the university campus on February 9 to mark the death of Afzal Guru, who was
convicted and sentenced to death for his alleged role in the December 2001
terrorist attack on the Parliament. The crackdown included an <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanhaiya_Kumar">arrest of Kanhaiya Kumar</a>, President of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union,
and later detention of more students. The government acted on the basis of a complaint
received from a Bharatiya Janata Party leader.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kTpKDIlIAmo/Vstf7RzdLXI/AAAAAAAADTY/Iz0jW8Hmq60/s1600/varta-blog-issue31-vartanama-pawan-quote-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kTpKDIlIAmo/Vstf7RzdLXI/AAAAAAAADTY/Iz0jW8Hmq60/s320/varta-blog-issue31-vartanama-pawan-quote-2.png" width="233" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the subsequent high-decibel
accusations and counter-accusations, statements by political leaders of
different hues and social media wars, the question that stands out is how can India
claim to be a democracy if it cannot accommodate criticism from its own people?</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The government or anyone else doesn’t have
to agree with its critics, but they must respect the right of the critics to
free expression, however irrational or unjustified it may seem. And criticism
can always be responded to with counter-criticism. But how will the country be disintegrated
if it introspects why some people are critical of its functioning or why some
of them want to secede? Will suppressing such expression actually eliminate or
resolve the simmering discontent in people’s minds? What if it erupts one day
in the form of actual revolt? Shouldn’t silencing dissent count as anti-national rather than anti-establishment sloganeering, which for all its supposed
viciousness at least leaves the door ajar for dialogue? </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-06rBgmZxYfc/VssgUhb8J3I/AAAAAAAADS0/kq6mP5iDxXM/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-06rBgmZxYfc/VssgUhb8J3I/AAAAAAAADS0/kq6mP5iDxXM/s1600/pawan-2.jpg" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Pawan
Dhall aspires to be a rainbow journalist and believes in taking a stand, even
if it’s on the fence – the view is better from there!</i></span></span></div>
Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8868734206674872701.post-26646796799115442312016-02-22T12:24:00.000+05:302016-03-02T11:59:16.556+05:30Some murders ‘more foul’ than others?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Insight, Feb '16</b></span><br />
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Terror attacks in Paris last year set Aude
Vincent thinking about the ‘hierarchy’ of genders, races, aggressors and
violence in France</b></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dAptrd-L3IA/VsquoCXQDSI/AAAAAAAADSI/DWYto3h_tWc/s1600/varta-blog-issue31-insight-aude-photo-av.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dAptrd-L3IA/VsquoCXQDSI/AAAAAAAADSI/DWYto3h_tWc/s400/varta-blog-issue31-insight-aude-photo-av.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Posters in support of Jacqueline Sauvage: "Before rapists and aggressors all<br />
our answers are legitimate!" and "It's never too late to end domestic violence!<br />
We're not alone!" Photo provided by Aude Vincent</td></tr>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In 2015 in France, 147 people were killed in
terror attacks by Islamist extremists. In 2014 in France, 134 women were killed
by their partners or ex-partners (all males) – numbers for 2015 are yet to be
communicated. If you include suicides by victims of domestic violence, you can
add around 200 women to the figure for 2014.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The first number of 147 is supposed to be an
‘historical record’, a ‘premiere’ and a ‘shock’, widely reported and commented
on by the media. The second number of 134 is just ‘business as usual’. Since as
long as these deaths have been counted (at least since 20-30 years), on an
average in France a woman is killed by her partner every two or three days.
Information about it does exist, and more now than a few years ago, but
certainly not as massively as for the terrorist killings.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Following the terror attacks we had (and are
still having) an emergency state, policemen and soldiers are showing up all
around, our President is saying we're ‘‘at war’’, we have hours of special
editions on radio and TV, newspapers are thick with all that we've already
heard on TV or looked up on the Internet, and then there are declarations by
politicians, intellectuals and artists. </span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On the murders of women we have . . . well
what do we have? Not much really, certainly not all the fuss around terrorist
killings (not that it would be desirable, those hawkish and Big Brother-like
responses are not a good or efficient idea, ever).</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We have a Justice condemning last December a
woman (Jacqueline Sauvage) to 10 years of prison time (and she's already in
jail) for having killed her husband, who assaulted her and her children for
decades. She killed her husband just after her son committed suicide. We have
also, thankfully, petitions and demonstrations in support of her – enough to
get her the Presidential ‘pardon’ on January 31, 2016! She should be out of
jail coming April. But a lot of pressure had to be put on the President! </span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There are also the events of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cologne">Cologne</a> (in
Germany) and other cities, where on New Year's Eve, or other party occasions,
crowds of ‘foreign’ men sexually assaulted women. This was closely followed by
an outpouring of racist comments and fascist demonstrations. Thankfully,
numerous feminists raised their voices against such insanities, and took the
stand to say ‘‘We will denounce every rape, every aggression – those committed
by the migrants, ‘second’ or ‘third generation’, and by the local white men’’.
You know the ones who go out in bunches – in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Munich">Munich</a> (Germany) for beer
festivals, or in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bayonne">Bayonne</a> (in France) for the city festival? Those annual
celebrations during which numerous women are assaulted and raped. You didn't
know about it? Well, they don’t make the headlines as the Cologne ‘‘night of
fear’’ does!</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Why is this so? Why do some murders provoke
national sorrow, while others are passed by quite unnoticed? Why are some
sexual assaults so commented on while others are just ignored or presented as
‘supposed rape’, suggesting that the woman might have somehow wanted it . . .</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The identity of the aggressors seems to be
part of the explanation – if they can be put in a Muslim-Arab-migrant kind of a
bag, then jackpot, that's a headline, that's a topic worth writing about. If
they are white-non-Muslim, it's still worthwhile information if we're talking
terror attacks (though the preferred term is usually ‘‘gun fire’’ rather than ‘‘terror
attack’’), but a woman’s murder will at most make for a short piece of news,
and the rape of a woman not even that.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The identity of the victims might be another
part of the explanation. When the victims are ‘normal’, that is, if they are
men, and white, or at least if they include some white men without a police
track record, information and comments will be present in the media. But if
they are only women, well you know, why bother! The interest then will only be
if the aggressors can be qualified as ‘others’ – </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Arabs, migrants, whatever.</span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Hebdo">Charlie Hebdo</a></i> terror attacks in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris">Paris</a> and
its suburbs <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Hebdo_shooting">in January 2015</a> took place over three days. On the second day,
‘‘only’’ one person was killed, a policewoman. If not for the <a href="http://www.english.rfi.fr/general/20160109-hollande-unveils-plaque-slain-policewoman-charlie-hebdo-anniversary">protestations by her family</a>,
she would have been forgotten in the official commemorations of the terror
attacks in January this year.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Also it's ‘much better’ if the aggressors
don't know their victims. After the second slaughter by terrorists in Paris <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/November_2015_Paris_attacks">in November 2015</a>, someone was interviewed in the street (it's the kind of event
after which so many street interviews are done, where such shrewd remarks are
made – ‘‘I was in the area’’ – ‘‘I often drink in that cafe’’ – ‘‘I know someone
whose second cousin was at the concert’’, so on and so forth), and this someone
said: ‘‘It's terrible to be murdered by someone you don't know.’’ Like it's so
great to be murdered by someone you knew! Like perhaps your violent husband?</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It appears that the gravity of the crime in a
lot of people’s heads depends on the relationship between aggressor and victim.
If a woman knew or knows her aggressor, what he's done to her is not as big an
issue as it will be if he's a stranger, and if they are, or were at one time in
a romantic / sexual / intimate relationship, then is the aggression even a
crime?</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Do you think I'm overdoing it? On January 4
this year, Internet users alerted the police after seeing videos of two men
raping a woman who was obviously inconscious. The alert was quick, the police
too acted fast and caught the rapists in the following hours in an apartment in
southern France. The victim was still there, barely regaining consciousness.
When it was found out that she knew her rapists (like it is in more than half
of the rape cases), the media jumped to the conclusion that she was the
girlfriend of one of the rapists, and rapidly changed the rape into a
‘‘presumed rape’’ and finally ‘‘libertinism’’ because she did not file a
complaint right away.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Later the victim clearly stated that she did
not consent to any part of what happened. Imagine her shock when the
prosecutor opened an enquiry based on ‘‘medical, informatic, toxicological and
psychological expertise’’ to determine if the sexual contact between the woman
and the rapists was ‘‘completely and freely consented to’’!</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Aude Vincent is a French feminist activist
with a tropism to India. She has written articles for the magazine </i>Offensive<i>,
an essay on Vandana Shiva, and is the co-author of books about sexism in
advertisements and in the toy business.</i></span></span></div>
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Vartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08244753493592236002noreply@blogger.com0