Friday, May 7, 2010
By Abusegate Bob
This flyer was distributed to all members of the House and Senate today
USAID Exports Feminist Ideology,
Undermines Democracy in India
Over the last several years, the US Agency for International Development – USAID — has funded organizations that sought to implement laws in India that have led to widespread civil liberties violations and the undermining of fundamental democratic principles. USAID has a budget of about $100 million for India. USAID openly brags on its website:
“USAID’s program was instrumental in the formation of Women Power Connect, a national coalition that advocates for women at all levels of the government. WPC’s priority issues include: the implementation of the Domestic Violence Act; [and] the 33% reservation for women in Parliament.”
We therefore demand the following:
1. Immediate suspension of all USAID “Women in Development”-sponsored programs in India until a full investigation is carried out.
2. Exclusion of India from the statutory scope of the proposed International Violence against Women Act (I-VAWA) (S. 2982, H.R. 4594), which would provide additional funding for such harmful programs.
Domestic Violence Laws Assault Civil Rights
It is well-known that women in India (and elsewhere) are as likely to instigate domestic violence as men: http://pubpages.unh.edu/~mas2/ID41E2.pdf But USAID has worked to implement domestic violence laws that are openly gender-biased and shred the fundamental right of “equal treatment under the law.”
Section 498a, designed to curb domestic violence and dowry abuse, was implemented in India in 1983, a full decade before passage of the Violence Against Women Act in the U.S. Section 498a mandates arrest on the basis of any allegation of partner violence. Due to an acute shortage of judges, a trial takes an average 5 years to complete. So a mere allegation of abuse can imprison a person for months, if not years, until the trial takes place.
These draconian laws have led to situations that are nearly unimaginable to Indians and Americans alike:
Police Drag 92-yr-old to Court
The officer in-charge of Bainsada police station had arrested Badan Devi (92), a widow, and her 40-year-old daughter Minatee of Ichhapur village on Saturday. The police action followed an FIR lodged by the woman’s daughter-in-law, Santilata. Police did not even bother to make special arrangements for the old woman. They virtually dragged the tottering “accused” to court along with other criminals.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Police_drag_92-yr-old_to_court_rapped/articleshow/2679345.cms
Stepmom Names Two-Month-Old in Dowry FIR
In diapers, lying in her mother’s lap and yet to sprout teeth, but Zoya is an accused in a dowry harassment case. The two-month-old baby was named along with seven adults by her stepmother in a complaint letter to the police. What is worse is that the police has included the child’s name in the FIR [“First Information Report,” the Indian equivalent of a police report].
Her mom: I told them (police) that she is a baby and how can you write her name in the police FIR.
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/stepmom-names-twomonthold-in-dowry-fir/95365-3.html
From 2004 to 2008, more than 160,000 women and 550,000 men were arrested or jailed under this law without investigation or trial. Alarmed by the widespread Civil Liberties violations, the Indian Supreme Court warned of “Legal Terrorism” due to false accusations of domestic violence.
Despite these concerns, USAID-funded groups shamefully went ahead and lobbied for a second law, which came to known as the Domestic Violence Act 2005, which made the problems even worse.
Gender Quotas for Parliamentary Elections
One of the hallmarks of democracy is open and free elections. But that didn’t deter USAID from funding Women Power Connect to openly lobby for an amendment of the Indian Constitution to reserve 33% of Parliamentary seats for women.
And two months ago, the Indian Parliament approved a quota-setting constitutional amendment. Soon 181 of the 543 seats in the Lower House will say “men not welcome.”
Columnist Carey Roberts dubbed this an “Ugly American initiative.” Rigging the national elections is a gross violation of democratic principles, a repudiation of justice, and a cavalier infringement on the sovereignty of India.
Men and Women Say, “USAID, Stay Away”
India is a democratic nation of more than 1 billion people. Like Americans, Indians have cherished our freedom and independence since our earliest years.
But the USAID Women in Development program has endorsed a radical feminist agenda that aims to undermine foundational democratic processes. This has contributed to civil rights violations and family break-down.
The U.S. Congress should not allow India to be turned into the plaything of a destructive gender ideology. Aid to the poor must not be used as a pretense to subvert democratic processes or civil liberties in India, or anywhere else in the world.
Save Indian Family Foundation
http://www.saveindianfamily.org/
References:
http://www.womenpowerconnect.org/
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Police_drag_92-yr-old_to_court_rapped/articleshow/2679345.cms
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/stepmom-names-twomonthold-in-dowry-fir/95365-3.html
http://presidentofindia.nic.in/sp261208.html
http://ncrb.nic.in/ (National Crime Records Bureau of India)
http://www.hindu.com/2005/07/22/stories/2005072202631500.htm
http://abusegate.mensnewsdaily.com/2010/05/07/flyer-usaid-exports-feminist-ideology-undermines-democracy-in-india/
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