epubdos : Afghanistan
SCA MORNING PRESS CLIPS
Prepared for the U.S. Department of State
Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs
TO:
SCA & Staff
DATE:
Monday, May 6, 2024 6:30 AM ET

Afghanistan
Afghanistan’s only female diplomat resigns in India after gold smuggling allegations (AP)
AP [5/4/2024 10:14 AM, Rahim Faiez, 761K, Negative]
An Afghan diplomat in India, who was appointed before the Taliban seized power in 2021 and said she was the only woman in the country’s diplomatic service, has resigned after reports emerged of her being detained for allegedly smuggling gold.

Zakia Wardak, the Afghan consul-general for Mumbai, announced her resignation on her official account on the social media platform X on Saturday after Indian media reported last week that she was briefly detained at the city’s airport on allegations of smuggling 25 bricks of gold, each weighing 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds), from Dubai.

According to Indian media reports, she has not been arrested because of her diplomatic immunity.

In a statement, Wardak made no mention of her reported detention or gold smuggling allegations but said, “I am deeply sorry that as the only woman present in Afghanistan’s diplomatic apparatus, instead of receiving constructive support to maintain this position, I faced waves of organized attacks aimed at destroying me.”

“Over the past year, I have encountered numerous personal attacks and defamation not only directed towards myself but also towards her close family and extended relatives,” she added.

Wardak said the attacks have “severely impacted my ability to effectively operate in my role and have demonstrated the challenges faced by women in Afghan society.”

The Taliban Foreign Ministry did not immediately return calls for comment on Wardak’s resignation. It wasn’t immediately possible to confirm whether she was the country’s only female diplomat.

She was appointed consul-general of Afghanistan in Mumbai during the former government and was the first Afghan female diplomat to collaborate with the Taliban.

The Taliban — who took over Afghanistan in 2021 during the final weeks of U.S. and NATO withdrawal from the country — have barred women from most areas of public life and stopped girls from going to school beyond the sixth grade as part of harsh measures they imposed despite initial promises of a more moderate rule.

They are also restricting women’s access to work, travel and health care if they are unmarried or don’t have a male guardian, and arresting those who don’t comply with the Taliban’s interpretation of hijab, or Islamic headscarf.
Taliban face rare public uprising against their rule in northeastern Afghanistan (VOA)
VOA [5/5/2024 10:39 AM, Ayaz Gul, 761K, Negative]
Afghanistan’s hardline Taliban leaders have threatened to militarily suppress unprecedented violent public protests in a northeastern border region against a nationwide ban on poppy cultivation.

The unrest erupted last Friday when the Taliban’s anti-narcotics forces began destroying poppy fields in Badakhshan province, prompting angry farmers to resist it with the support of local residents.

Multiple sources confirmed Sunday that Taliban security forces used firearms to disperse the demonstrators, killing two of them during the two days of protests.

Videos circulating on social media showed residents chanting slogans against reclusive Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, who has banned poppy cultivation across Afghanistan through a religious decree. VOA could not ascertain the authenticity of the footage independently.

While Taliban authorities claimed Sunday the situation had returned to normal, residents said tensions were running high, and they were waiting for a high-powered government team to address their complaints.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in an overnight official announcement that their army chief, Qari Fasihuddin, a Badakhshan native, would lead the team to thoroughly investigate the violence and circumstances leading to it.

Mujahid said that an anti-poppy campaign in Badakhshan was under way in line with Akhundzada’s decree to prevent the cultivation of the illegal crop and its smuggling.

“This decree extends to all regions without exception. Regrettably, there have been incidents where offenders attempted to attack the security forces involved in the fight against poppy cultivation, resulting in tragic events,” he said.

Fasihuddin reportedly warned on Sunday that he would be compelled to deploy additional military forces to “quell the rebellion” if the demonstrations persist. He reiterated the Taliban’s resolve to eradicate poppy cultivation in Afghanistan and vowed to achieve this goal, come what may.

Badakhshan and surrounding Afghan provinces are ethnically non-Pashtun regions. The province borders Tajikistan and Pakistan.

The Taliban, who represent the country’s majority Pashtun population, were unable to take control of these provinces during their first stint in power in the 1990s.

Following their takeover of Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban have successfully established control over all 34 Afghan provinces.

However, some experts argue that the public uprising in Badakhshan highlights the potential obstacles that the Taliban may face in maintaining their authority.

The international community has not yet formally recognized the Taliban government, citing its restrictions on Afghan women’s access to education and work, among other human rights concerns.

Afghanistan has faced dire economic problems since the Taliban takeover nearly three years ago. The Afghan banking sector largely remains isolated, and terrorism-related sanctions on Taliban leaders continue to deter donors from resuming financial assistance for development programs.

The restrictions have fueled unemployment and economic problems for the poverty-stricken country’s estimated 40 million population.

The World Bank noted in its latest report released on Thursday that the Taliban’s ban on opium cultivation precipitated a staggering $1.3 billion loss in farmers’ incomes.

Citing U.N. estimates, the report said that the opiate economy’s value has contracted by 90 percent, while the area under cultivation declined by 95 percent, costing Afghans 450,000 jobs at the farm level alone.

The World Bank report noted that Afghanistan’s economic outlook remains uncertain, with the threat of stagnation looming large until at least 2025. “For a sustainable future, Afghanistan needs to address harmful gender policies, invest in health and education, and focus on the comparative advantages it has in the agricultural and extractive sectors,” it said.

Afghanistan used to be the world’s largest opium-poppy producer until the Taliban imposed the ban on cultivation in early 2022.

The ban strictly prohibits the cultivation, production, usage, transportation, trade, export, and import of all illicit drugs in Afghanistan. Afghan poppy farming accounted for 85% of global opium production until recently, according to United Nations estimates.
Russia Inches Toward Marriage Of Convenience With Taliban In Terror Fight (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [5/5/2024 8:29 AM, Michael Scollon, 223K, Negative]
Shortly after the Taliban seized power, Russia addressed the question of whether it was time to review the militant group’s status as a terrorist organization.

"It is very important to see what the Taliban’s first steps in governing Afghanistan will be like," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on August 30, 2021. "Conclusions can be formed after this."

Two and a half years later -- despite the Taliban’s failure to deliver on its promises to form an inclusive government, adhere to basic human rights norms, and prevent Afghan territory from becoming a safe haven for transnational extremist groups -- a mutual enemy appears to be forcing a decision.

Since a deadly terrorist attack claimed by the Islamic State (IS) extremist group near Moscow on March 22, Russia has increasingly talked up its relationship with the Taliban, which is battling the Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) offshoot in Afghanistan that is believed to have carried out the attack.

While the Taliban’s government is globally unrecognized, Peskov said last month that Moscow has to resolve "pressing issues" that demand increased dialogue with the militant group, whose leaders are "actually the ones in power in Afghanistan."

Considering the importance Russia places on Afghanistan in maintaining regional security in the face of a rising IS-K threat, boosting engagement with the Taliban holds benefits for Moscow, observers say.

Alec Bertina of Militant Wire, a research outlet that tracks militant groups, says that Russia removing the Taliban from its terror blacklist could be the beginning of a "marriage of convenience."

"As much as it’s kind of an amusing idea for Russia and the Taliban to get cozy, it’s in their security interest to do so right now," Bertina said. "Given the mutual security threat, and that the Taliban can be used basically to take the hits and casualties that come with fighting IS, it’s sort of a no-brainer."

When it emerged in Afghanistan a decade ago, IS-K staged attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Its targets included Western forces in Afghanistan as well as the Taliban, which opposed the former Afghan government and vied with IS-K for influence among the dozens of extremist groups active in the country.

Since the Taliban took over, IS-K has maintained pressure on the Taliban, whose rule it rejects, and has worked to "make life as difficult as possible" for its de facto government, said Michael Kugelman, director of the South Asia Institute at the Wilson Center in Washington.

Its attacks against the Taliban, religious minorities, and foreign targets in Afghanistan were designed to "undermine the Taliban’s legitimacy in order to convince the Afghan people that the Taliban is unable to provide peace and security in the country," Kugelman told RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi.

IS-K has also openly challenged its rival in a sophisticated propaganda campaign, mocking the Taliban government’s desire to be recognized by the international community and accusing it of adhering to an "ignorant" brand of Islam.

The group has also increasingly expanded its reach further abroad, including with deadly attacks in Iran, Russia, and Central Asia, a major recruiting ground for IS-K fighters.

"Its main bases are still in Afghanistan, most of its attacks are in Afghanistan, but this is a regional affiliate of Islamic State that has increasingly global goals," Kugelman said of IS-K.

As evidenced by the recent attack on a concert venue that killed more than 140 people and injured hundreds more -- the deadliest terrorist attack on Russian soil in two decades -- Moscow has reason to treat the IS-K with urgency and to forge greater cooperation with one of the group’s main adversaries.

"Russian outreach and concessions to the Taliban are likely meant, at least in part, to signal Moscow’s confidence in the Taliban’s ability to degrade the IS-K threat," Kugelman told RFE/RL in written comments.

The Taliban was designated as a terrorist organization by Russia in 2003, two years after it was pushed from power by U.S.-led forces.

After returning to power, the Taliban initially dismissed the IS-K threat and has insisted that the group is not active on Afghan soil, even as it consistently developed its capabilities to confront the group and destroyed IS-K cells.

Most recently, in April, the Taliban reportedly ordered the creation of a special military unit to fight the IS-K.

But "whatever the Taliban has done against IS-K, it hasn’t stopped IS-K from being able to conduct external operations in other countries," Bertina said, noting that it has proved incapable of preventing IS-K’s recruitment efforts.

That, Bertina said, has led Russia and other countries to discuss "whether it may be of interest to help [the Taliban] out a little bit in their fight."

Moscow’s de-listing of the Taliban from its terror blacklist, Bertina said, could pave the way for Russia to potentially "start giving the Taliban resources to better fight IS-K."

Bertina says he envisions a situation in which the Taliban would bear the brunt of the fighting on the ground in Afghanistan, with Russia providing intelligence. Russia would be unlikely to "be too vocal" about direct raids on IS-K in Afghanistan, "considering the uncomfortable history Russia has regarding counterterrorism operations when it comes to countries like Afghanistan."

Kugelman also sees value in Russia cooperating with the Taliban on the counterterrorism front, citing the Taliban’s "willingness and capacity to carry out scorched-earth ground campaigns against IS-K."

Russia, while bogged down in its war against Ukraine, could potentially offer the Taliban "arms, money, and even training and advising to help the Taliban do more damage against the IS-K," Kugelman said.
An Afghan Woman Activist’s Visit to Taliban-Ruled Afghanistan (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [5/4/2024 4:14 PM, Freshta Jalalzai, Neutral]
Amid Afghanistan’s turbulent transition under Taliban rule, Zerka Malyar, a former Kabul prosecutor and advocate for women’s rights, embarked on a bold mission. On April 13, she flew to Kabul with a 12-member anti-war delegation, all hailing from the Afghan diaspora in England and the European Union, to engage directly with Taliban leadership. Their objective: to advocate for the resumption of girls’ education in the country and confront Taliban officials on critical issues of women’s civil liberties.

For Malyar, a graduate of Kabul University’s esteemed School of Law and Political Sciences who now lives in Vienna, her return to Afghanistan was an emotional and difficult homecoming. She found herself in a city where women and girls, who once thrived in sciences, literature, and history, were now barred from their fundamental rights, like going to school beyond sixth grade. Despite the tragedy and the absurdity of the situation, she donned a black scarf, spectacles, and a long overcoat with a smile on her face as she set foot once more in the city that was once her home.

Malyar and her team sought to confront the Taliban on the critical issue of women’s rights, including their freedom to work and exercise civil liberties in her homeland. They were uncertain of the reception they would receive from the Taliban’s strict leadership.

However, during their two-week stay in Kabul, they had the opportunity to meet with several key members of the Taliban’s Islamic Emirate, notably acting Minister of Interior Khalifa Sirajuddin Haqqani, acting Minister of Defense Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid, and acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Amir Khan Muttaqi. The trio, all influential figures within the Taliban movement, embody distinct dynamics of power, political influence, and representation among the Afghan masses. While they have occasionally engaged with foreign female political delegations, and some have met high-profile female journalists like Christine Amanpour, their willingness to meet with an independent Afghan woman was unprecedented and positively surprising to Malyar. Such an occurrence was unheard of during the Taliban’s previous regime (1996–2001), perhaps indicating a shift in attitude within the movement.

“None of them expressed opposition to the reopening of schools for girls,” she stated. In fact, she said, several Taliban mid-level leaders conveyed concerns about their own daughters’ futures, fearing they wouldn’t have access to modern education after sixth grade.

“In our meetings, some of the Taliban leaders, and other men cried as I spoke about the tragedy faced by Afghan girls and women. However, I remained composed, feeling the need to stay strong,” she said. Witnessing such vulnerability from individuals within a powerful Taliban force and, moreover, from men in a strictly patriarchal society like Afghanistan was unexpected. Malyar found herself amused by this unexpected display of helplessness.

But the most profound moment was not her meetings with some of the most powerful men in the country. Instead, it was a group of schoolgirls who brought her fresh flowers.

“It was an emotional moment. They had come because they knew I was there to fight for their right to get back to school,” Malyar shared in a voice message over WhatsApp. She noted that the girls had journeyed from Khost, a predominantly Pashtun ethnic province that adjoins Pakistan, enduring hours of driving through heat and dust on a bumpy and perilous road to reach Kabul.

“It was difficult to hold my tears back, but I did not cry; I stayed strong for them.”

Since assuming power in August 2021, the Taliban have imposed severe restrictions on women and girls in Afghanistan. They have banned girls from pursuing education beyond the sixth grade and shuttered universities. Additionally, women are prohibited from participating in politics or holding positions in the government.

Despite permitting a number of women to work in certain sectors and in limited capacities – such as police searches, the health sector, and banks – the Taliban’s policies continue to erode access to education, employment, public spaces, and other basic freedoms for girls and women. These restrictions are subject to frequent updates, further exacerbating the challenges faced by Afghan women.

These actions have elicited condemnation from the vast majority of the Afghan public and have raised serious concerns globally among rights groups. Such restrictions are viewed as blatant and egregious violations of basic human rights.

However, it remains imperative to note that the ultimate decision-making authority lies with the Taliban’s supreme leader. According to the Crisis Group, the Taliban’s supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, who is largely hidden from the sight of the Afghan public, remains steadfast in his dedication to these policies. His motives seem to arise from personal beliefs and a drive to solidify his control over both the movement and the nation. Despite facing significant global criticism and legitimate concerns regarding these measures, there is little indication of an immediate change in Akhundzada’s ideological position or his pursuit of authority.

Were the Taliban leaders Malyar’s group met in Kabul sincere in their support for girls’ education? Malyar does not have a definitive answer, but she knows that a Taliban representative traveled to Kandahar with a list of their suggestions to present to the supreme leader, and others have promised to continue the conversation.

The Taliban leader lives in Kandahar province, while the rest of the de facto authorities remain in the capital, Kabul.

Malyar remains hopeful. “Regardless, we will go again, and this time to Kandahar, to meet with the esteemed leader of the Taliban,” she told the BBC.

Since their return to power, the Taliban’s heavy-handed rulings have prompted many aid organizations to halt operations, exacerbating fear and hardship in a country already grappling with widespread poverty and unemployment. Western donors, alarmed by these developments, have threatened to reduce aid and further isolate Afghanistan’s struggling economy.

The dire situation at home has not only deepened poverty and a pervasive sense of disillusionment among the populace, but also driven thousands of Afghan youths, many of whom are skilled and educated, to emigrate to other countries, often resorting to illegal routes and accepting underground jobs under extremely harsh conditions.

Given the current state of affairs, it is crucial to alleviate the tension between the Taliban and the understandably frustrated international community in order to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe.

Afghanistan’s representation in the United Nations, crucial for fostering a better global understanding of the country’s current situation, is currently upheld by representatives of the former government, who are severed from the country. The team’s staunch opposition to engaging with the Taliban is widely recognized, adding another layer of complexity to Afghanistan’s dire situation, characterized by one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises and the looming threat of terrorism.

The Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP) poses a significant threat to the region, particularly Afghanistan. In a recent incident, a gunman attacked a mosque in Herat province, near the border with Iran, resulting in the reported deaths of six individuals. Subsequently, ISKP claimed responsibility for the attack.

Despite the Taliban’s attempts to secure access to Afghanistan’s United Nations seat and international recognition for their government, official acknowledgment from any nation appears improbable, in part due to their harsh limitations on women.

In discussions about the future of Afghanistan, the fact that the country comprises not just the Taliban as a political movement, but also an estimated 35 to 40 million human beings, including women and children, is generally conveniently overlooked. Afghanistan remains in near-total global isolation. No country has officially stepped forward to recognize the Taliban government, and the country’s central bank assets are frozen. Indeed, the Afghan people lack a direct means of communication with the outside world.

Karen Decker, chargé d’affaires of the U.S. mission to Afghanistan, recently told The New Humanitarian that Washington has come to understand “the hard way” the destructive consequences of isolation. She emphasized that such isolation is detrimental not only to the Afghan people but also to the wider region. “Isolation is ruinous. It’s ruinous for the Afghan people. It’s ruinous for the region.”

Easing sanctions and integrating Afghanistan into the global community through political negotiations would provide a lifeline for the millions of Afghans trapped in isolation. Afghanistan, one of the youngest countries in the region, is home to millions of young men and women who currently lack hope for a future. Re-establishing contact with Afghanistan will also provide a direct avenue to reach out to the millions of Afghan women and girls who are not only barred from accessing education or employment but also face a reported increase in domestic violence and soaring rates of suicide.

In the April 30 daily press briefing, Vedant Patel, the deputy spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, emphasized that the United States views engagement with the Taliban as a chance not only to safeguard U.S national interests but also to support the Afghan people. According to Patel, speaking directly with the Taliban allows for direct discussions on the Taliban’s commitment to counterterrorism. It also provides an opportunity for the U.S. government to advocate for the “immediate and unconditional release of U.S. nationals in Afghanistan, including those we have determined to be wrongfully detained.” Patel affirmed that human rights in Afghanistan always remain on the agenda during these discussions.

Having witnessed Afghanistan’s highs and lows over the past two decades, Malyar advocates for prioritizing dialogue, diplomacy, and collaboration. She wants to see more independent Afghans courageously step forward and drive change that could potentially save lives in Afghanistan’s socioeconomic and political context, thereby averting a potentially greater disaster in the country – the return of yet another conflict.

Recognizing the urgency of the situation in her home country, Malyar and her team opted not to wait for the world to take action. Instead, they took matters into their own hands and adopted a traditional approach, labeling their initiative a “jirga.” This term refers to a customary assembly or council of elders with a rich history of decision-making and conflict resolution within Afghan communities. With deep roots in Afghan political history and tribal culture, the jirga has served for centuries as a platform for addressing governance, justice, and social matters. Decisions reached within a jirga typically rely on consensus and hold significant respect among community members.

Despite their jirga not receiving an unequivocal response or a final decision from the Taliban, Malyar emphasized the crucial role of independent voices in rebuilding trust with disillusioned Afghans. Against the backdrop of decades of conflict and military interventions, she asserted that their self-funded trip aimed to build bridges and foster mutual trust.

“We will return repeatedly, as long as there is breath in our bodies. This nation deserves peace and the right to live with dignity. We do not want another war on this land,” she told journalists in Kabul.
Attacks Target Afghanistan’s Hazaras (Human Rights Watch)
Human Rights Watch [5/3/2024 11:22 AM, Fereshta Abbasi, Neutral]
For many Afghans, the country’s armed conflict has never ended.

The armed group Islamic State of Khorasan Province (ISKP) attracted worldwide attention in March when it attacked the Crocus City Hall in Moscow, killing at least 143 people and injuring many others. Since emerging in Afghanistan in 2015, the group has carried out a bloody campaign mostly targeting Shia-Hazara mosques and schools and other facilities in predominantly Hazara neighborhoods.

In the most recent attack, on April 29, an armed member of the group opened fire on worshippers at a Shia-Hazara mosque in western Herat province, killing six, including a child. On April 20, a magnetic bomb attached to a bus whose passengers were primarily Hazara exploded, killing one and injuring 10. On January 6, a similar attack on a bus in Dasht-e Barchi, a predominantly Hazara neighborhood of Kabul, killed five people, including at least one child, and injured 14. Dasht-e Barchi has been the site of numerous ISKP attacks. When ISKP claimed responsibility for the January 6 attack, they said it was part of their “kill them wherever you find them” campaign against “infidels.”

Between 2015 and mid-2021, ISKP attacks killed and injured more than 2,000 civilians primarily in Kabul, Jalalabad, and Kandahar. Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021, these attacks have continued – killing and injuring over 700.

The Taliban have long battled the ISKP, which have also targeted Taliban personnel. A suicide bombing outside a Kandahar bank on March 21 killed at least 21 people and injured 50, many of them Taliban ministry employees who had lined up to collect their salaries.

Attacks on Hazara and other religious minorities and targeted attacks on civilians violate international humanitarian law, which still applies in Afghanistan. Deliberate attacks on civilians are war crimes. Beyond the immediate loss of life, such attacks incur lasting damage to physical and mental health, cause long-term economic hardship, and result in new barriers to education and public life.

Like the previous Afghan government, Taliban authorities have not taken adequate measures to protect Hazaras and other communities at risk or provide assistance to survivors of attacks, though they are responsible for ensuring the safety of all Afghan citizens.
Pakistan
IMF says its mission will visit Pakistan this month to discuss new loan (Reuters)
Reuters [5/5/2024 9:12 AM, Ariba Shahid, 5239K, Neutral]
An International Monetary Fund mission is expected to visit Pakistan this month to discuss a new programme, the lender said on Sunday ahead of Islamabad beginning its annual budget-making process for the next financial year.

Pakistan last month completed a short-term $3 billion programme, which helped stave off sovereign default, but the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has stressed the need for a fresh, longer term programme.

"A mission is expected to visit Pakistan in May to discuss the FY25 budget, policies, and reforms under a potential new programme for the welfare of all Pakistanis," the IMF said in an emailed response to Reuters.

Pakistan’s financial year runs from July to June and its budget for fiscal year 2025, the first by Sharif’s new government, has to be presented before June 30.

The IMF did not specify the dates of the visit, nor the size or duration of the programme.

"Accelerating reforms now is more important than the size of the program, which will be guided by the package of reform and balance of payments needs," the IMF statement said.

Pakistan narrowly averted default last summer, and its $350 billion economy has stabilised after the completion of the last IMF programme, with inflation coming down to around 17% in April from a record high 38% last May.

It is still dealing with a high fiscal shortfall and while it has controlled its external account deficit through import control mechanisms, it has come at the expense of stagnating growth, which is expected to be around 2% this year compared to negative growth last year.

Earlier, in an interview with Reuters, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said the country hoped to agree the contours of a new IMF loan in May.

Pakistan is expected to seek at least $6 billion and request additional financing from the Fund under the Resilience and Sustainability Trust.
Pakistani Security Forces Reportedly Fire On Protesters Near Afghan Border (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [5/4/2024 10:16 AM, Staff, 223K, Negative]
Protesters who have been staging a sit-in at a key border-crossing point in southwestern Pakistan near the border with Afghanistan say that security forces have opened fire on them, killing one and injuring several more.

Sadiq Achakzai, a spokesman for the protests staged in Balochistan Province’s Chaman district for months by traders and shopkeepers over new travel restrictions, told RFE/RL on May 4 that local security forces raided the demonstrators’ camp and set fire to their tents while they were away.

Achakzai said that members of Pakistan’s Frontier Corps "opened fire on peaceful protesters when they reentered their agitation camp."

Achakzai said one person was killed and more than a dozen were injured, and that victims were rushed to a local hospital for treatment.

Video purporting to show victims at a local hospital was posted on social media, but RFE/RL was unable to independently verify the claims.

When asked by RFE/RL about the alleged incident, Colonel Abdul Wahab, a spokesman for the Frontier Corps in Balochistan, said only that an investigation was under way.

Traders have been protesting at Chaman, which borders the Afghan town of Spin Boldak, since October. They have demanded that the government rescind a new policy that requires them to present valid documents to cross the border.

In October, Pakistan unilaterally ended the century-old "Easement Rights," an arrangement that allowed members of some communities straddling the 19th-century Durand Line border to cross freely.

The policy has been heavily criticized by members of Pashtun communities on either side of the border who have complained that its has harmed their livelihoods and resulted in huge financial losses.

The Taliban’s de facto government in Kabul has also criticized the policy, which has resulted in the Chaman border crossing -- the second-busiest between Pakistan and Afghanistan -- and others to be shut.

In January, talks between the Taliban and Pakistani officials to reopen the crossings broke down.
Restive Province In Northwestern Pakistan To Invest Heavily In Police Weaponry (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [5/4/2024 7:00 AM, Staff, 223K, Negative]
Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province plans to spend more than $25 million to boost security efforts in the restive region. Provincial government spokesman Muhammad Ali Saif told RFE/RL on May 3 that "the police need more weapons and equipment" to counter the rise of militant attacks in recent months. Residents have said that the security situation has worsened significantly, particularly in the province’s south. Recently elected Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari expressed concern over the security situation in the province during his speech to a joint session of parliament on April 18.
Pakistan records its wettest April since 1961 with above average rainfall (AP)
AP [5/4/2024 7:50 AM, Staff, 2565K, Negative]
Pakistan has recorded its wettest April since 1961, with more than double the usual rainfall for the month, the national weather center said.

The country experienced days of extreme weather in April that killed scores of people and destroyed property and farmland. Experts said Pakistan witnessed heavier rains because of climate change.

Last month’s rainfall for Pakistan was a 164% increase from the usual level for April, according to a report published Friday by Pakistan’s national weather center.

The intense downpours affected the country’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the southwestern Baluchistan provinces the most.

Devastating summer floods in 2022 killed at least 1,700 people, destroyed millions of homes, wiped out swaths of farmland, and caused billions of dollars in economic losses in a matter of months.

At one point, a third of the country was underwater. Pakistani leaders and many scientists worldwide blamed climate change for the unusually early and heavy monsoon rains.
China carries Pakistan into space (VOA)
VOA [5/3/2024 5:54 PM, Sarah Zaman, 761K, Positive]
Pakistan on Friday witnessed the launch of its first lunar satellite aboard China’s historic mission to retrieve samples from the little explored far side of the moon in a technologically collaborative mission that signals deepening ties between the countries.

China’s largest rocket, a Long March-5, blasted off from the Wencheng Space Launch Center on Hainan Island at 09:27 UTC, ferrying China’s 8-metric-ton Chang’e-6 probe.

If successful, the uncrewed mission will make China the first country to retrieve samples from the moon’s largely unexplored South Pole, also known as the “far side” of the moon that is not visible from Earth.

Chang’e-6 will spend 48 hours digging up 2 kilograms of surface samples before returning to a landing spot in Inner Mongolia.

In 2018, China achieved its first unmanned moon landing on the far side with the Chang’e-4 probe, which did not retrieve samples. India became the first country to land near the moon’s South Pole in August with its Chandrayaan-3.

Chang’e-6 is carrying cargo from Pakistan, Italy, France and the European Space Agency.

According to the Institute of Space Technology (IST) in Islamabad, Pakistan’s lunar cube satellite named ICUBE-Qamar (or ICUBE-Q for short) will be placed into lunar orbit within five days, circling the moon for three to six months, photographing the surface for research purposes.

IST engineers say ICUBE-Q is also designed to "obtain lunar magnetic field data; establish a lunar magnetic field model and lay the foundation for subsequent international cooperation on the moon.”

IST developed the iCUBE-Qamar satellite in collaboration with the country’s space agency SUPARCO and China’s Shanghai University. Qamar, which means moon in Urdu, is the nuclear-armed South Asian nation’s first mission in space.

The iCUBE-Q orbiter has two optical cameras that will gather images of the lunar surface.

‘Milestone’

The mission’s launch from China was carried live on Pakistan state television.

Calling it a "milestone,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said it would help the country build capacity in satellite communications and open new avenues for scientific research, economic development and national security, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Information.

The Pakistan-China friendship, Sharif said, has “gone beyond borders to reach space,” according to the official statement.

Beijing is one of Islamabad’s closest allies. Pakistan is home to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a multibillion-dollar development project that is part of Beijing’s Belt and Road global infrastructure initiative.

Pakistan’s navy in late April launched its first Hangor-class submarine, built jointly with China, with a ceremony in China’s Wuhan province.

According to the Washington-based U.S. Institute of Peace, Beijing is Islamabad’s leading supplier of conventional and strategic weapons platforms. China is also the dominant supplier of Pakistan’s higher-end offensive strike capabilities, the report found.
India
India’s foreign minister rejects Biden’s ‘xenophobia’ comment (Reuters)
Reuters [5/3/2024 12:34 AM, Arpan Chaturvedi, 5.2M, Neutral]
Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar rejected U.S. President Joe Biden’s comment that "xenophobia" was hobbling the South Asian nation’s economic growth, The Economic Times reported on Saturday.

Jaishankar said at a round table hosted by the newspaper on Friday that India’s economy "is not faltering" and that it has historically been a society that is very open.

"That’s why we have the CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act), which is to open up doors for people who are in trouble ... I think we should be open to people who have the need to come to India, who have a claim to come to India," Jaishankar said, referring to a recent law that allows immigrants who have fled persecution from neighbouring countries to become citizens.

Earlier this week, Biden had said "xenophobia" in China, Japan and India was holding back growth in the respective economies as he argued migration has been good for the U.S. economy.

"One of the reasons why our economy’s growing is because of you and many others. Why? Because we welcome immigrants," Biden said at a fundraising event for his 2024 re-election campaign and marking the start of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast last month that growth in Asia’s three largest economies would slow in 2024 from the previous year.

The IMF also forecast that the U.S. economy would grow 2.7%, slightly brisker than its 2.5% rate last year. Many economists attribute the upbeat forecasts partly to migrants expanding the country’s labour force.
Canadian Arrests Highlight Alleged Gang Role in India’s Intelligence Operations (New York Times)
New York Times [5/5/2024 4:14 PM, Mujib Mashal and Suhasini Raj, 831K, Neutral]
Months after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada accused India’s government of plotting a murder on Canadian soil — plunging diplomatic relations between the two countries to their lowest level ever — the first arrests in the killing, which came on Friday, did little to demystify the basis of his claim.

The police didn’t offer clues or present any evidence that India had orchestrated the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh nationalist leader who was gunned down at the temple he led in Surrey, British Columbia, in June. What they did say was that three Indian men had committed the killing and that an investigation into India’s role was ongoing.

Before the arrests, Indian officials had maintained that Canada was trying to drag New Delhi into what it described as essentially a rivalry between gangs whose members were long wanted for crimes back in India.

After the arrests, a report from the CBC, Canada’s public broadcasting corporation, based on anonymous sources, also said the suspects belonged to an Indian criminal gang.

But analysts and former officials said that the possible role of a gang in the killing does not necessarily mean the Indian government was not involved in the crime.

India’s external spy agency, the Research and Analysis Wing, or RAW, has long been suspected of tapping into criminal networks to carry out operations in its immediate neighborhood in South Asia while maintaining deniability.

Canada’s accusation, if proven, that India orchestrated the Nijjar killing — and a similar accusation made soon after by the United States in a different case — may suggest that RAW is now extending its playbook of working with criminals to carry out operations in Western countries, analysts said.

U.S. officials have produced strong evidence in their accusation that an agent of the Indian government participated in a foiled attempt to assassinate a dual American-Canadian citizen. And Canada and allied officials have maintained that Canada has evidence supporting Mr. Trudeau’s claim that Indian agents carried out Mr. Nijjar’s killing.

But the Canadian failure to reveal any evidence that India took part, nine months after Mr. Trudeau’s explosive allegation, leaves the killing of Mr. Nijjar in the realm of accusations and counter-accusation in what is a highly tense political environment in both countries, analysts said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been flexing his muscles as a nationalist strongman, pitching himself during his ongoing campaign for a third-term in office as a protector of India who would go as far as it takes to target security threats.

During speeches, he has boasted about how his government eliminates enemies by “descending in their homes.” While he has made those references in relation to the country’s archenemy — Pakistan — right wing accounts on social media had celebrated the slaying of Mr. Nijjar in Canada as a similar reach of Mr. Modi’s long arm.

Mr. Trudeau, on the other hand, had been facing criticism of weakness in the face of Chinese election interference activities on Canadian soil, and his getting ahead of the Nijjar killing was seen as compensating for that.

Canadian police announced on Friday that they had arrested the three Indian men in Edmonton, Alberta, the same day and charged them with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in the killing of Mr. Nijjar. The suspects had been living in Canada for three to five years but were not permanent residents of Canada, the police said.

The gang that the CBC reported that the hit-men are connected to is led by Lawrence Bishnoi, 31, who is accused of several cases of murder, extortion and narcotics trafficking. He has orchestrated much of it from an Indian jail, where he has been held since 2014. His members are seen as being behind the murder of a popular Punjabi rapper, and threats of attacks on Bollywood celebrities.

Indian security officials have frequently arrested criminals connected to Mr. Bishnoi, often with allegations that the gang’s network stretched as far as Canada and overlapped with those promoting from Canadian soil the cause of Khalistan, a once deeply violent separatist movement with the goal of carving out the Indian state of Punjab as an independent nation.

A large Sikh diaspora resides in Canada, many of them having migrated there after a violent and often indiscriminate crackdown by the Indian government in the 1980s against the movement for an independent Khalistan. While the cause has largely died down inside India, it continues to have supporters among some segments of the diaspora. The Indian government has accused Canada, and several other Western countries, of not doing enough to crack down on the separatists.

Analysts and former security officials said that in India’s immediate geographic neighborhood, RAW has often been willing to venture into murky spaces to recruit killers. Senior officials of Mr. Modi’s administration, including Ajit Doval, the storied former spymaster who now serves as his longtime national security adviser, have in the past been accused of reaching into the underworld to find hit men willing to go after targets both inside the country as well as abroad.

Mr. Bishnoi has demonstrated enormous power from behind bars, even giving a television interview from jail last year to pitch himself as a nationalist warrior rather than a criminal mastermind. That, one former security official said, was a signal of his trying to align himself with the spirit of nationalism for a potential deal.

“I am a nationalist,” Mr. Bishnoi said in that interview. “I am against Khalistan. I am against Pakistan.”

Ajai Sahni, a security analyst who runs the South Asia Terrorism Portal in New Delhi, said the exploitation of criminal gangs by spy agencies to carry out operations with deniability was something that “happens all over the world.”

“It is definitely possible for agencies like RAW to use gang rivalries instead of exposing their own covert operators,” Mr. Sahni added. “But just because that is generally how one would expect it to be done, it doesn’t necessarily mean we know this is exactly the case in Nijjar’s killing.”

The failed plot on American soil had some of the sloppy hallmarks of an agency trying to extend an old playbook into a different, unfamiliar space.

A U.S. indictment in November laid out evidence, including electronic communication and cash transactions between the hired hit man — who turned out to be an undercover cop — a boastful middleman, and an Indian intelligence handler whom The Washington Post recently identified as Vikram Yadav.

The Indian government’s response suggested worry: India’s top diplomat said the action was not government policy, while the government announced an investigation into the matter and promised cooperation with the United States.

Canada’s case has played out very differently. The country has not publicly disclosed any evidence backing up Mr. Trudeau’s claim, even as allied officials said in September that Canadian officials had found a “smoking gun”: intercepted communications of Indian diplomats in Canada indicating involvement in the plot.

Indian officials have pushed back against Mr. Trudeau’s claims with the kind of aggression that suggested it either wasn’t involved or that it was confident of its deniability.

The Indian government expelled Canadian diplomats, and doubled down by putting out a list of individuals on Canadian soil that it said were long wanted as part of what it described as a crime and terror nexus.

Last week, officials in Mr. Modi’s government jumped on scenes of an event that Mr. Trudeau had attended to say it showed his accusations were simply to appease what they say is a Sikh vote bank for him. They pointed to videos of an event where Mr. Trudeau was the chief guest and where chants of “long live Khalistan” were shouted. Mr. Trudeau, in his speech, said he will always be there “to protect your rights and your freedoms, and we will always defend your community against hatred.”

After the speech, the Indian foreign ministry summoned Canada’s second highest ranking diplomat in New Delhi to lodge a complaint.

“His remarks to us illustrates once again the kind of political space that has been given in Canada to separatism, extremism and people who practice violence,” Randhir Jaiswal, the foreign ministry spokesman, said at a news conference.
Police Arrest 3 in Slaying of Sikh Leader That Shocked Canada (New York Times)
New York Times [5/3/2024 4:14 PM, Vjosa Isai, 831K, Neutral]
Three Indian men were charged in the brazen slaying of a Sikh separatist on Canadian soil, the police said on Friday, a killing that set off a diplomatic clash with New Delhi after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau blamed “agents of the government of India” for orchestrating the shooting.

India’s government called the claim “absurd” and took steps that led Canada to withdraw more than 40 of its diplomats from the country. But amid the denials, Canada said it had a “smoking gun,” supported by information from the United States. And a federal indictment in New York linked the Indian government to another murder-for-hire-plot against another Sikh separatist.

The three men were arrested in Edmonton, Alberta, and charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in the killing of the Sikh nationalist, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in June, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said. The suspects — Karan Brar, 22; Kamalpreet Singh, 22; and Karanpreet Singh, 28 — had been living in Canada for three to five years but were not permanent residents of Canada, the police said.

“This investigation does not end here,” Superintendent Mandeep Mooker, head of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team for the Mounties, said at a news conference on Friday. “We are aware that others may have played a role in this homicide, and we remain dedicated to finding and arresting each one of these individuals.”

Several other investigations are ongoing, including into any possible involvement by the Indian government in Mr. Nijjar’s killing, Assistant Commissioner David Teboul said at the news conference. He also said, without providing further details, that the relationship with India in investigating the killing had been challenging.

The Indian government did not immediately comment on the arrests.

The arrests were the culmination of an investigation into a shooting that shocked Canada and put Sikhs in the country on edge. Over the past year, the Canadian police investigating Mr. Nijjar’s death had released little information on their progress, other than a map outlining the getaway vehicle’s route and some grainy images of the assailants’ silver Toyota Camry.

Mr. Nijjar, 45, was in the parking lot of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia, where he had been president, when three masked men ambushed and shot him dead on June 18.

A Canadian citizen, he was born in Punjab and moved to Canada in the heat of India’s crackdown on Sikh leaders in the 1990s, according to Indian news reports. He had been a leader in the local Khalistan movement, which has long sought a separate Sikh nation that includes the northern Indian state of Punjab. Surrey, a city outside Vancouver, is home to one of the largest Sikh populations in Canada.

The Indian government has labeled Mr. Nijjar as a terrorist and had called for his arrest. And the Mounties had warned Mr. Nijjar and several other Sikhs about threats to their lives.

During a foreign-interference inquiry last month established to investigate allegations that India and China had interfered in Canadian elections, Jagmeet Singh, leader of the federal New Democratic Party who represents a British Columbia district, testified that he, too had been warned by the police of potential threats against his life.

The public killing of Mr. Nijjar heightened diplomatic tensions between Canada and India after Mr. Trudeau bluntly accused India of being behind the killing. He said he had based his accusation on intelligence gathered by the Canadian government.

Though the United States was wary of undermining its relations with India, which it sees as an important global partner, U.S. intelligence agencies had offered their Canadian counterparts information that helped Canada reach that conclusion. But allied officials said that Canada itself had hit upon the intercepted communications of Indian diplomats in Canada indicating involvement in the plot.

Mr. Trudeau told the House of Commons in September that he had “in no uncertain terms” raised India’s suspected involvement in the shooting directly with Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India at the Group of 20 summit that month.

The Indian government strongly denied the accusation, and threatened to revoke the immunity of 41 Canadian diplomats in India, forcing Canada to withdraw two-thirds of its diplomats based in that country. Mélanie Joly, the Canadian foreign minister, said that India’s move violated international law, and that Canada would temporarily close three consulates there.

In November, federal prosecutors in Manhattan revealed what they said was a separate murder-for-hire plot in the United States against another Sikh activist. A federal indictment filed in Manhattan accused an Indian national in a scheme targeting Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a dual American and Canadian citizen living in New York who has been outspoken in calling for a Sikh-majority homeland.

The plot had been organized by an Indian government official who was also involved in the killing of Mr. Nijjar, according to the unsealed indictment. Nikhil Gupta, an Indian national, was later arrested in the Czech Republic in connection with the U.S. scheme. Mr. Gupta had boasted of his criminal links to an undercover agent who he thought was an assassin and offered him $100,000, officials said.

In December, sources told The Globe and Mail, a Canadian newspaper, that arrests were imminent. But the passing months had left some concerned that the anniversary of Mr. Nijjar’s death would go by without a resolution.

“We would not be at this point without the bravery and the courage of the Sikh community coming forward,” Superintendent Mooker said at the news conference. He also said that the police would release photos of the three suspects to gather more information about their presence in Surrey at the time of the shooting.

Posters celebrating Mr. Nijjar, who members of the temple view as a martyr for the Khalistani cause, are still displayed throughout and around the building. Dozens of people gathered for a community lunch on Friday afternoon, and to hear an update from the temple’s leaders, who said in an official statement that they were committed to furthering the causes that Mr. Nijjar “laid his life for.”

But Balpreet Singh Boparai, a Toronto-based lawyer at the World Sikh Organization of Canada, said the arrests announced on Friday would most likely provide little comfort to Sikhs there if those implicated in the killing and other interference activities were not also held accountable.

“We just hope that Canada has the guts to be transparent and identify those individuals who are behind this plot,” he said.
India waits for details on arrests in Canada over Sikh separatist’s murder (Reuters)
Reuters [5/4/2024 12:22 PM, Jatindra Dash and Promit Mukherjee, 5239K, Negative]
India will wait for Canadian police to share information on the three Indian men it has arrested and charged with the murder of a Sikh separatist leader last year, Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said on Saturday.

Canadian police charged the three on Friday over the murder of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar and said they were probing whether the suspects had links to the Indian government.

Jaishankar said he had seen news of the arrests and said the suspects "apparently are Indians of some kind of gang background... we’ll have to wait for the police to tell us."

"But, as I said, one of our concerns which we have been telling them is that, you know, they have allowed organized crime from India, specifically from Punjab, to operate in Canada," said Jaishankar.

Sanjay Verma, India’s high commissioner to Canada, said that it hopes to get regular updates from Canadian authorities regarding the three arrested Indians.

"I understand that the arrests have been made as a result of investigations conducted by the relevant Canadian law enforcement agencies. This issue is internal to Canada and therefore we have no comments to offer in this regard," Verma added.

The trio, all Indian nationals, were arrested in the city of Edmonton in Alberta on Friday, police said.

Nijjar, 45, was shot dead in June outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, a Vancouver suburb with a large Sikh population. A few months later, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cited credible allegations of Indian government involvement, prompting a diplomatic crisis with New Delhi.

Nijjar was a Canadian citizen campaigning for the creation of Khalistan, an independent Sikh homeland carved out of India. The presence of Sikh separatist groups in Canada has long frustrated New Delhi, which had labeled Nijjar a "terrorist".

Canadian police said they had worked with U.S. law enforcement agencies, without giving additional details, and suggested more detentions might be coming.
India calls Canada arrests over Sikh activist murder ‘political compulsion’ (Al Jazeera)
Al Jazeera [5/5/2024 7:11 AM, Staff, 2060K, Negative]
Canada’s investigation into alleged Indian involvement in the assassination of a Sikh separatist in Vancouver last year is a “political compulsion”, India’s foreign minister has said after three Indian citizens were arrested over the killing.

Canadian police on Friday arrested the trio for the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, saying they were investigating their links to the Indian government, “if any”. He migrated to Canada in 1997 and acquired citizenship 18 years later.

He was wanted by Indian authorities for alleged terrorism and conspiracy to commit murder, the allegations he had denied. On June 18, 2023, he was shot dead by masked assailants in the car park of the Sikh temple he led in suburban Vancouver.

Nijjar’s killing sent diplomatic relations between Ottawa and New Delhi into a tailspin last year after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there were “credible allegations” linking Indian intelligence to the crime.

India rejected the allegations as “absurd”, temporarily halting the processing of visas and forcing Canada to reduce its diplomatic presence in the country significantly.

“It is their political compulsion in Canada to blame India,” the Press Trust of India news agency quoted India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar as saying on Saturday.

New Delhi has sought to persuade Ottawa not to grant Sikh separatists visas or political legitimacy, Jaishankar said, since they are “causing problems for them [Canada], for us and also for our relationship”.

He added that Canada does not “share any evidence with us in certain cases, [and] police agencies also do not cooperate with us”.

Jaishankar said India will wait for the Canadian police to share information on the arrested men, adding that the suspects “apparently are Indians of some kind of gang background”.

“We’ll have to wait for the police to tell us,” he said. “But, as I said, one of our concerns which we have been telling them is that, you know, they have allowed organised crime from India, specifically from Punjab, to operate in Canada.”

The three Indian nationals, all in their 20s, were arrested in Edmonton, the capital of Alberta province, on first-degree murder and conspiracy charges. They were accused of being the attacker, driver and lookout in his killing last June. The Canadian police said they were aware that “others may have played a role” in the murder.

Meanwhile, Trudeau, speaking on Saturday at an event in Toronto to celebrate Sikh heritage and culture, acknowledged that many Sikhs in Canada are “feeling uneasy, and perhaps even frightened right now”, but urged faith in the justice system.

“Let us remain calm and remain steadfast in our commitment to our democratic principles and our system of justice,” he said.

Trudeau said the arrests were “important because Canada is a rule of law country with a strong and independent justice system, as well as a fundamental commitment to protecting all its citizens”.

Nijjar advocated for a separate Sikh state, known as Khalistan, carved out of India. Thousands of people were killed in the 1980s during the separatist movement, which was put down by the Indian security forces. The movement has largely petered out within India, but in the Sikh diaspora – whose largest community is in Canada, with about 770,000 people – it retains support among a vocal minority.

India has warned governments in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom repeatedly that Sikh separatists were trying to make a comeback.

In November, the US Department of Justice charged an Indian citizen living in the Czech Republic with allegedly plotting a similar assassination attempt on US soil.

A Washington Post investigation found last week that Indian foreign intelligence officials were involved in the plot, a claim rejected by New Delhi.
‘No choice’: India’s Manipuris cannot go back a year after fleeing violence (Al Jazeera)
Al Jazeera [5/4/2024 12:43 AM, Greeshma Kuthar, 2060K, Negative]
Lingneifel Vaiphei collapsed to the ground in agony after she saw the lifeless body of her infant child laid out on a cold steel stretcher in a mortuary in Chennai, the capital of India’s southern Tamil Nadu state.

Steven’s body was tightly wrapped in a striped woollen shawl, traditionally worn by the Kuki-Zo tribe in the northeastern Manipur state. His face had turned blue. He was only six months old.

Crying profusely, the 20-year-old mother kept kissing her child’s face as she carried his body towards an ambulance, her husband Kennedy Vaiphei walking beside her. Amid sobs and muted rage, the family made their way to a burial ground, about 7km (4 miles) away, and laid their only child to rest. Nine months after Lingneifel and Kennedy had moved to Chennai in search of a fresh start away from violence, a nightmare they had never imagined had visited them.

Less than 24 hours earlier, on the night of April 25, the couple had rushed Steven to Chennai’s Kilpauk Medical Hospital after his week-long fever refused to subside and kept getting worse.

But the infant died on the way in his mother’s arms – before the family could even reach the hospital.

A year of deadly violence

Steven was born last winter in Chennai, nearly 3,200km (1,988 miles) away from the place his parents call home in Manipur, which has been in the grip of deadly ethnic clashes between the predominantly Hindu Meitei and the mainly Christian Kuki-Zo tribes for a year now.

The Meiteis – about 60 percent of Manipur’s 2.9 million people – are concentrated in the more prosperous valley areas around the state capital, Imphal. The Kuki-Zo and the Nagas, another prominent tribal group, mostly live in scattered settlements in the hills around the valley. The tribes constitute about 40 percent of the Himalayan state’s population.

The Meiteis are politically dominant. The state government is led by Chief Minister N Biren Singh, a Meitei and member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In the 60-member Manipur legislative assembly, 40 are Meitei.

The Kuki-Zo and the Nagas are protected through Scheduled Tribe (ST) status given by the Indian constitution, making them eligible for various state-run affirmative action programmes. The status provides them quotas in state-run educational institutions and government jobs – a provision which, for decades, has caused tensions between the tribes and the Meities.

Those tensions came to a boil in March last year when a local court recommended that the ST quotas should also be extended to the Meiteis. The court order angered Kuki-Zo and Naga groups, who, fearing a takeover of their entitlements by the majority Meiteis, held protest marches mainly in the hill districts, demanding the withdrawal of the court order. The protests led to threats of a Meitei backlash.

During a Kuki-Zo rally on May 3, 2023, in the hill district of Churachandpur, a centenary gate built to commemorate the tribe’s 1917-1919 rebellion against the colonial British was set on fire, allegedly by the Meiteis. The incident immediately triggered deadly clashes between the two communities across the state.

Amid the killings, mutilations and lynchings, there were also multiple allegations of sexual assault on Kuki-Zo women and burning of dozens of their villages and churches. The internet remained suspended for months across the state and the army was called in to contain the bloodshed.

A year later, however, the violence has not abated – making it one of India’s longest-running civil wars that has already claimed more than 200 lives and displaced tens of thousands of mainly Kuki-Zo people.

Among the displaced were Lingneifel and Kennedy, who moved to Tamil Nadu in July last year after their villages were burned down in the first week of the clashes. As they rebuilt their lives in a new city despite barriers of language and culture, the struggle for a livelihood trumped their worries over the violence back home.

Lingneifel, who works in a Chennai restaurant that serves the local cuisine, had to return to work within days of Steven’s death, fearing she could be fired over absence. Kennedy is yet to find work.

“When we first came to Tamil Nadu, we didn’t know anybody here. We weren’t even sure what to do when our baby fell sick,” she told Al Jazeera, lamenting that she could barely make time for her son due to her long working hours at the restaurant.

However, a larger support network for the displaced Kuki-Zo is slowly emerging. Comprising professionals from the community, the network is now in place in Chennai, New Delhi and Bengaluru cities, helping them find accommodation and work.

Haoneithang Kipgen, 26, is a member of the network. He reached Chennai last June.

Days before the violence broke out, Haoneithang had borrowed 300,00 rupees ($3,600) from a local moneylender to set up a customer support business in his K Phaizawl village in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district. But his shop was burned down, along with the rest of the village.

The debt, however, had to be paid, forcing Haoneithang to migrate to Chennai, where his small, rented apartment also operates as a transit home for other Kuki-Zo displaced by the violence.

Haoneithang said many from his tribe also send a part of their salaries towards a fund to support volunteers back home, who have been guarding the periphery areas between the hills and the valley – referred to as buffer zones. These zones have been the most vulnerable in the conflict as government forces deputed there have withdrawn from many of its areas over the last few months.

But Haoneithang also stressed that he cannot look at all Meitei people as his enemies.

“During my first job at a restaurant, my roommate was a Meitei. We were away from our state, our communities at war, but we weren’t,” he told Al Jazeera. “So many of them are my friends, how can I? My problem is with [Chief Minister] Biren Singh and the government of Manipur.”

Singh’s government has been accused of enabling the violence for political gains – a charge the chief minister and the BJP have denied.

Most of the displaced Kuki-Zo across India share a similar sentiment. “We don’t want to go back now, the violence is only increasing and the government is doing nothing,” said Kennedy.

Thanggoulen Kipgen, professor of sociology at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras in Chennai, said the violence has set Manipur back by decades.

Referring to both the collapse of the economy and the distrust between the communities, Thanggoulen saw migration as the only option for those affected by the war and seeking survival.

“The Meitei are also fleeing the state to protect their families from being sucked into violence. The Kuki-Zo have no choice but to migrate and work to support their families back home,” Thanggoulen told Al Jazeera.
Ruling BJP’s ‘denial’

The scale of death and displacement faced by Manipuris on both sides of the ethnic divide has, critics of the BJP say, largely been missing from the prime minister’s narrative.

In an interview on April 8 with a newspaper based in the neighbouring Assam state, Modi said a “timely intervention” of the federal and state governments resulted in a “marked improvement in the situation”.

“We have dedicated our best resources and administrative machinery to resolve the conflict,” the prime minister said. “Remedial measures undertaken include a financial package for the relief and rehabilitation of people living in shelter camps in the state.”

However, less than a week after Modi’s statement, videos showing the mutilated bodies of two Kuki-Zo men went viral on social media. And on April 27, an army post in Bishnupur district was bombed by unidentified men, killing two paramilitary personnel and wounding two others.

The violence forced the authorities to hold the ongoing general election in Manipur’s two seats over two phases – April 19 and April 26. Yet, despite massive security, several incidents of violence and alleged vote rigging were reported from there, forcing authorities to carry out re-polling in several of about a dozen election booths.

Many in Manipur accuse Arambai Tenggol, an armed militia allegedly backed by the ruling BJP, of the violence and election rigging. The opposition Indian National Congress, in a news conference on April 19, complained of “unprecedented mass violence and booth capturing in the valley region by armed groups”.

At least three witnesses Al Jazeera spoke to claimed they saw Arambai Tenggol members forcing voters to vote for the BJP in the valley districts. The group and the BJP have denied the allegations. The BJP’s state vice president Chidananda Singh told Al Jazeera the party “always stands for free and fair elections”.

But Congress politician in Manipur, Kh Debabrata, said the crisis has only worsened under the BJP.

“There is total breakdown of the economy and a complete militarisation of society, with armed groups in power everywhere. This is well out of the control of the BJP government,” he said, demanding the sacking of the state chief minister and the imposition of the president’s rule – an administrative provision that brings a state under New Delhi’s direct control during a political or security crisis.

“If we have to address this divide between the hill and the valley, the CM [chief minister] has to go. There is no other option,” said the Congress politician.

The BJP’s Chidananda Singh rejected the charge, blaming the Congress for being unaware of the ground reality of Manipur. “It is part of their politics to only blame us,” he told Al Jazeera.

However, many in Manipur, including among Meiteis, accuse the BJP of militarising their community through groups such as the Arambai Tenggol.

Disillusioned with the violence, Amar L* left his home in Imphal and settled in New Delhi to pursue a degree in history as “staying in Imphal would have come in the way of my education”.

“The way in which the Arambai Tenggol are taking so many young men into their fold is scary. Our aspirations for Manipur were and are different,” the 20-year-old told Al Jazeera.

Patricia Mukhim, editor of The Shillong Times newspaper, said continuing political incompetence had failed to check the violence in Manipur.

“The nature of politics is to thrive on division and fear-mongering,” she said, calling on the warring communities to discuss their issues “without placing too much reliance on either the government or armed groups”.

“There is no alternative to peace,” she said.
‘Destruction of jobs’: India election turns spotlight on a dream gone sour (Al Jazeera)
Al Jazeera [5/5/2024 9:36 PM, Saumya Roy, 2060K, Neutral]
Ever since he can remember, Rohit Kumar Sahu knew he wanted to go to college and get a well-paying, white-collar job. His father delivered courier packages across the eastern Indian city of Ranchi on a bicycle, and Sahu had no idea how to realise his dream.

He signed up for a job with the food delivery app Zomato, thinking this could be his path to earning money to pay for college fees.

Sahu began with just a few hours of work so he could attend college alongside his job, but he could’t make enough deliveries on his bicycle — and that meant he couldn’t earn much.

He took a loan from friends and a finance company and bought a scooter so he could take on more work. Even as the loan repayments kicked in, Zomato reduced its payment to delivery workers like Sahu, and he got fewer deliveries as more drivers joined the app.

Sahu scaled up his work to as much as 14 hours a day, going to college only to take exams, but he still had to borrow money from his parents for loan repayments.

Frustrated, Sahu and other drivers in Ranchi staged a strike asking to be paid better. But, Sahu says, company officials told them they could hire others from India’s growing army of bike riders instead and could block the strikers from the app.

This broke the strike – and left Sahu with loans and his dream of college and a steady job seeming more distant than before.

Sahu is among a growing number of Indians bearing the brunt of the increasing informalisation of work in India. The India Employment Report 2024, a study released in March by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Institute for Human Development, says that India’s workforce is getting more informalised and that the quality of employment has suffered especially in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sahu’s experience is characteristic not only of India’s growing gig economy, but also seems symptomatic of the broader employment landscape. About 70 percent of India’s construction workers and 62 percent of its casual agricultural workers earn salaries below minimum wage, found the study, which uses government data.

Even in the formal sector, about 18 percent of workers did not have work contracts that could protect them. They also had fewer benefits than before, the study found.

‘Slippage’ in job quality

While India’s economy is pegged to grow at a robust 6.5 percent in the financial year ending March 2025, according to the United Nations Trade and Development, its ability to create quality jobs to meet the aspirations of its increasingly educated youth has emerged as one of the key issues of the national election currently under way.

Jayati Ghosh, a professor of economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, wrote in a recent column, “With tens of millions of highly educated young people joining the workforce every year, unmet expectations and growing social unrest threaten to turn the country’s much-anticipated ‘demographic dividend’ into a disaster”.

Not surprisingly, opposition leaders such as Rahul Gandhi have accused the government of “destroying employment”. INDIA bloc, the coalition of opposition parties that Gandhi’s Congress Party is a part of, has announced that it will create a right to apprenticeship that could lead to a job for young people if the coalition is elected.

While recent reports have pegged employment differently, the quality of jobs seems more tenuous than before.

“There has been a slippage in the quality of jobs,” said Amit Basole, head of the Centre for Sustainable Employment at the Azim Premji University in Bengaluru.

Ravi Srivastava, one of the lead authors of the India Employment Report and director of the New Delhi-based Institute for Human Development’s Centre for Employment Studies, said “The share of informal workers in the economy went up.”

Nearly 90 percent of the workforce is informally employed, the report says. Self-employment as a form of work grew 3.8 percentage points between 2019 and 2022, while regular employment declined to 21.5 percent from 23.8 percent. The share of casual employment declined to 22.7 percent in 2022 from 24.2 percent in 2019.

Basole noted, “We see a shift since the 2000s, with a destruction of jobs at the lower end.”

This trend seems to have accentuated sharply after 2019, when the pandemic hit, and millions were pushed into more insecure employment as the country went into a sudden lockdown overnight and businesses big and small shut, with many of the latter never recovering from that shock.

With workers back in their villages, agriculture saw an increase in workers of nearly 56 million from 2020 to 2022, reversing a slow trend of workers moving from agriculture into more value-added service sector jobs, the report said.

Women also increasingly entered the workforce during this period, but a little more than half of them did unpaid work in agriculture, usually on family farms, Srivastava said, adding that it is a trend that has continued.

“The data shows the precarity of women’s work. The degree of informality for women workers is higher than for men,” he said.

Precariousness of the gig economy

Work for both men and women may have remained precarious even after the pandemic as men often returned to big cities for jobs in construction or in the gig economy, both areas with little security.

The Indian government has objected to the ILO report and its employment estimates, adding that the growing gig sector was not well accounted for in the report.

India’s government think-tank, NITI Aayog, estimated that 7.7 million people worked in such jobs in 2020-2021. It expects more than 23.5 million workers could be employed in gig work by 2029-2030.

Srivastava says that while it is hard to estimate the number of gig workers, the total has only gone up since the pandemic.

In cities, too – as not all shops, restaurants and salons had reopened – women were forced to take up gig work.

In May 2022, Mumbai beautician Gurpreet Sharma’s two fingers got stuck together while fixing nail extensions for a client. Unsticking them with oil had led to swelling and burns on her fingers, limiting her ability to work or do household chores for months. Urban Company, a platform offering at-home services through which she got the job, did not provide her medical insurance since it covered only hospitalisation.

Months later, with her husband’s work as an assistant dance choreographer in Bollywood getting more irregular, Sharma once again restarted work with Urban Company. A client’s dogs bit her while she was at a home pedicure appointment. She had pressed the app’s emergency button, but to no avail. The client paid for Sharma’s anti-rabies shots after she filed a police complaint. Another time, a friend accepted on the Urban Company app a job of doing a facial for a man. But she fled that client’s house unpaid because of sexual advances he made.

Like Sahu, Sharma and her Urban Company colleagues have spent the last two years trying to form a union. They asked to be called employees rather than partners and get benefits accordingly, but to no avail.

Pratik Mishra, of the All India Gig Workers Union, which had helped Sahu in organising efforts, said he had worked with unions in Ranchi’s large coal and steel sector for years, but what he encountered with delivery workers was like nothing he had seen before.

“They were so replaceable, the company did not even consider them to be workers and they could get blocked by an algorithm anytime. They were so vulnerable.”

After his fiasco with unionising, Sahu looked for other means to fund his studies and joined a loan collection agency where his job was to make calls to chase outstanding dues along with occasional food deliveries.

Now 22, he has also enrolled for a master’s degree in computer applications, along with preparing for several of India’s competitive exams for coveted, and stable, federal government jobs.

He can hardly afford to attend college due to work commitments, and he studies through free tutorials on YouTube.

He is downbeat about his job prospects. More than 400,000 applicants take the exams for less than 12,000 government jobs. “Kya chance hai?” he asks rhetorically. “What are my chances?”

Then he answers himself: “0.001 percent”.

Chance for betterment

Tapping into this aspiration for government jobs, Tejashwi Yadav, the opposition leader from Sahu’s neighbouring state of Bihar, has announced that the opposition INDIA bloc will provide 10 million jobs, partly by filling open government positions.

For now, Sahu worries he is not developing the skills he needs through the practical training that the college provides, but the need to earn money has limited his choices. “Hum to saari taraf se phas rahe hain [We are trapped all around],” he said, referring to his job prospects.

Alexandra Hermann, lead economist in London at Oxford Economics, said a major “impediment [to creating quality jobs] has been human capital levels”.

Just as Sahu worries about the skills he’s acquiring, surveys have shown that learning levels have been low in Indian schools and colleges although enrolment is up.

Government spending on infrastructure development has led to the creation of construction jobs rather than the service sector jobs that India’s increasingly educated youth such as Sahu aspire to, Hermann pointed out, adding, that those are “not necessarily the kind of jobs we want”. It is time for the government to spend on improving educational levels and creating service sector jobs, she said.

The Indian employment report also found that when students do get a higher education, it leads to better employment.

Lal Singh, a 24-year-old from Mumbai, earned enough money from food delivery jobs to pay for courses that enabled him to become an app developer, the job he dreamed of.

Growing up, Singh’s father had sold magazines at Mumbai’s busy traffic signals, and the family lived in a packed slum in the city’s southern tip. But Singh had grown up playing video games and idolising Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.

While in college, he had joined a skills training course by the non-profit Antarang and found a job with a software company. While there, he continued doing courses to upgrade his skills. He now develops apps for United States companies, but is finding it hard to move to a better role in the currently tight job market.

But Singh’s success is not easy to replicate. While more Indians are getting a college education than before – and the enrollment for women in science degrees is among the highest in the world, according to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman – more than 83 percent of India’s unemployed are among the youth, the ILO report says.

Sahu’s exam for a government job is in July, but juggling between loan collection work, deliveries, college and test preparation means he constantly feels he is failing somewhere, and the prospect of landing a good job is only getting more difficult. When things get hard, Singh occasionally turns back to food delivery.
Activists warn about intergenerational domestic violence in Indian tribes (VOA)
VOA [5/4/2024 9:53 AM, Sarah Aziz, 761K, Negative]
Eighteen-year-old Jaya comes from the Munda tribe in India’s eastern state of Jharkhand. She has not seen her father in more than a decade. In 2013, Jaya’s mother — who works as a daily wage laborer in agricultural fields — took her two daughters and fled her marital home in Ranchi, the capital of the state, to settle down instead on land owned by her parents in their village, located in the interiors of Jharkhand.

“My father is an extreme alcoholic and used to get drunk and badly beat up my mother, my sister and me every single day when we lived with him,” Jaya, who asked that her real name not be used to protect her security, told VOA in a phone interview.

According to the fifth National Family Health Survey of India, more than 30% of Indian women belonging to scheduled tribes — tribal and indigenous communities recognized by the government — reportedly have faced physical domestic abuse.

Experts say the problem of domestic violence — physical, emotional, verbal and sexual — is exacerbated in tribal communities because of the deep-rooted culture of alcoholism in certain areas. Most cases go unreported.

Violence in every home

Rashmi Tiwary, founder of Aahan Foundation, a nongovernmental organization that works to prevent gender-based violence in Jharkhand’s tribes, told VOA that 100% of the girls she has worked with have faced or witnessed domestic violence of some kind.

“Domestic abuse has become a part of the tribal social fabric in Jharkhand, and a lot of it is connected to intergenerational alcohol addiction and inherited trauma. Despite being very strong physically, tribal women will often take extreme beatings simply because they think it is the men’s right to abuse them,” said Tiwary.

“Hadiya, an indigenous alcoholic drink prepared with fermented rice, was traditionally used as a coolant in Indian tribal communities. However, now it is produced in every other rural tribal home, using chemicals for quick fermentation and mass selling. For several such socioeconomically underprivileged families, selling Hadiya may be the only source of livelihood — and often seeps into their family’s culture as well,” she said.

Jaya, who resides with her grandparents, maternal uncles and their families, said that she “is not doing very well here, either.”

“My grandfather, who is an agricultural laborer, drinks often to blow off steam after work. But when he gets drunk, he beats up my mother and me very badly. Sometimes he even withholds food from us. No other family member tries to stop him, because this behavior is considered normal,” she told VOA.

Witch hunting

Rishi Kant, co-founder of Shakti Vahini, a New Delhi-based nongovernmental organization that works closely with several tribal communities, told VOA that domestic violence is “ingrained in the culture” of many tribes, and may not always look like what is conventionally understood as such.

“Superstitions prevail in Jharkhand’s tribes, and women and girls often face the brunt of it. A harrowing but common way in which domestic violence manifests in such cases is through witch hunting,” he said.

“If there is a problem in the family, like an illness or unemployment, a woman of the house is blamed — a daughter-in-law, a young girl, an elderly grandmother and so on. She is deemed as ‘possessed,’ beaten up, hung by the limbs from a tree with her body being mutilated,” Kant said.

In 2022, Jharkhand recorded 11 cases of witch hunting that ended in murder, according to the National Crime Records Bureau, or NCRB. Estimates suggest that between 60 to 70 women are killed for “practicing witchcraft” in Jharkhand every year, many of them belonging to indigenous tribes.

With both their parents often under the influence of alcohol, tribal children — especially girls — often become vulnerable to abuse, trauma and, in many cases, human trafficking.

Tiwary told VOA: “When tribal men become alcoholics, they get violent. But for women, Hadiya often leads them to withdraw from their family and neglect their children.

“There have been cases of young girls burning their hands while cooking because no adult in the house would prepare food. We have also encountered children who are beaten up by their mothers when drunk. Simultaneously, tribal girls take active part in preparing Hadiya and serving to customers — it is all a family business. In rare cases, the children partake in drinking, too,” she said.

Generational trauma

Clinical psychologist and trauma therapist Prachi Saxena Vaish said that witnessing regular domestic violence between parents can make a child especially vulnerable to abuse in future relationships.

“An experience of witnessing abusive relationships in early childhood can create a new normal for a child where they learn to associate ‘love’ with abuse. Even if they feel anger and rebellion toward what they are witnessing, they are unable to break away from this normalized abuse to create a healthy prototype of love in their minds,” she told VOA.

“Later, they may become easy victims of abuse in their own future relationships or adopt abusive behaviors themselves toward their partners because they believe that to be an expression of love,” she said.

Aahan Foundation founder Tiwary said that despite the high rates of violence in their families, tribal communities have little to no access to mental health resources.

“At Aahan, we offer free counselling, trauma therapy and dance therapy — all by licensed professionals — for tribal girls and boys. We also provide peer counseling, and with our main goal being to make the child feel loved, valued and protected through education, arts training and sports,” Tiwary said.

“However, Aahan has only reached the tip of the iceberg. We need support from the government and the global community — rehabilitation centers for tribal men and women struggling with alcohol addiction, improved mental health resources and awareness initiatives.”
Journalism in India is under assault (Washington Post – opinion)
Washington Post [5/3/2024 6:00 AM, Rana Ayyub, 6.9M, Negative]
Journalism has become a dangerous occupation in India.

Indian journalists, especially from the region of Kashmir, have been incarcerated on terrorism charges or forced to self-censor. Elsewhere in the country, journalists’ homes have been raided and some have been charged with money laundering and income tax evasion. Many have been jailed before their cases are adjudicated. India ranks 161st out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index, published annually by Reporters Without Borders.

In the past few months, two foreign journalists — one a bureau chief with the Australian Broadcasting Corp., one a French reporter who had lived in India for 23 years — had their credentials revoked or blocked for renewal, and left the country after the government criticized their work.

To find out more about the state of journalism in India, Post columnist Rana Ayyub interviewed N. Ram, a veteran journalist and former editor in chief of the Hindu, one of the most respected publications in the country, at his home base in Chennai.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Rana Ayyub: The Indian election has begun. And there is an inevitability to it, in the sense that Narendra Modi will have a third term. What do you think will happen?

N. Ram: Yes, people do expect the BJP [Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party] to emerge with enough numbers, either by itself or with allies, to form the next government. But we don’t know. I wouldn’t despair at this point at all, although Hindutva [Hindu-centric] authoritarianism is very aggressive. A lot of it is clearly against the spirit and values of the constitution and in some cases also against the letter of the constitution.

The other important thing is Prime Minister Modi himself. He has campaigned with appeals to the Hindu religion, and speaking against Muslims specifically. The CPI(M) [Communist Party of India (Marxist)] has filed a formal complaint with the Election Commission of India, pointing out that this is both against the Model Code of Conduct, which is supposed to be binding on political parties and candidates, and in some cases against particular sections of the Indian Penal Code. So far, silence. We don’t know whether the election commissioners have even discussed it.

When you say you don’t despair, what gives you hope?

That India is so diverse and pluralistic. And I don’t think any central dispensation will be able to control all of India, given the diversity in terms of religion, in terms of language, in terms of ethnicity, in terms of culture. I don’t think any strongman or authoritarian regime would be able to suppress the divergences. And sooner rather than later, I think, these are going to burst out.

I lived through the Emergency [the state of emergency declared in India from 1975 to 1977, when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi suspended civil liberties and ruled by decree]. We saw a total clampdown. We were thinking that democracy would never return. But as you know, very quickly — in 21 months — the people of India were able to defeat the Emergency regime.

But now, I think, the electoral bond scandal [a scheme that allowed companies to secretly make unlimited campaign contributions] surely has had an impact. It’s a scandal of the worst kind. It has involved the use of coercive agencies of the state to punish those who didn’t cough up money for the ruling party. Then the Hindenburg report [a report by a U.S. investment firm accusing an Indian firm close to the government of stock manipulation and accounting fraud]. All of this must have taken a toll. Plus, of course, the real issues on the ground: Youth unemployment runs at 40 percent. Fewer women are in the workforce today, the lowest participation rate among all the Group of 20 countries.

Here is a prime minister who, in 10 years in power, has not held a single press conference. He gives one-on-one interviews with chosen journalists but no hard questions are being put to him. We have seen the raids on NewsClick, the tax notices to Newslaundry, the cases against The Quint and The News Minute, and the incarceration of independent journalists. They are getting investigated for money laundering and income tax evasion. How do journalists survive in this atmosphere?

It’s becoming increasingly difficult. It’s taking a toll.

Yes, the prime minister doesn’t believe in giving interviews to independent journalists. He wants somebody to basically be in awe of him. It’s shameful that there are journalists like that, willing to let themselves be used, and they don’t ask any serious questions. I have no respect for journalists of that kind.

But another issue, which is even more serious: the number of journalists who have been arrested. And then even more seriously, I looked at the Committee to Protect Journalists database, the number of journalists killed in connection with their work in India. In the decade this government has been in power, 19 have been killed. And in the previous decade, before this government came in, it was 10, which was bad enough.

And even worse, India figures in the Global Impunity Index. Journalists are killed in connection with their work — targeted and murdered. Those who cover corruption, crime, politics, human rights. And there is impunity for the killers. The killers are not arrested in several cases, or when they are arrested, they are let out on bail and the case is not resolved. So we have been a founding and permanent member of this club of shame.

Kashmiri journalists’ passports are being impounded. They’re not allowed to travel outside the country. A photojournalist was not allowed to collect her Pulitzer Prize. Do you think the press is doing enough for these Kashmiri voices?

Of course not. I think the Press Council of India should do much more. The families of journalists are being harassed and intimidated. Media freedom and independence have been extinguished. It’s a different level of repression and authoritarianism in Jammu and Kashmir, and journalists just can’t function professionally. And yet there are heroic voices among journalists who work there.

When you heard about the raids on the houses of 46 NewsClick journalists, what did you think? I also wonder about what happens to the minds of young journalists when they see these raids. They will be disillusioned, they will not want to be a part of the setup.

Some would not want to be, a good number. But others would want to meet the challenge. I know a number of, increasingly, women who are quite willing to accept the challenge and stand up.

Recently, Newsweek did an interview with Modi. That interview was shared by the prime minister and almost every Indian embassy across the world. But whenever any criticism of Modi comes in the international press, it is seen as an attack on India, on the sovereignty of the country. A lot of people in India don’t want to speak to the international press because they don’t want to be seen as enemies of the state.

I see plenty of criticism, exposés of the Modi regime’s authoritarianism, out there. I see people like you, like me, who talk freely to the international media. The point I’m making is they haven’t been able to completely control or suppress these critical voices. Recently, I did such a piece for Prospect magazine, “The Making of Modi.”

How has the Hindu newspaper been able to maintain its independence?

The Hindu was founded in 1878, and the family I’m part of took over in 1905. I think there’s a certain bond of trust that’s been built up. Secondly, we are in the south — this is alien territory for the BJP. And that, I think, is a great help. And people like me, we were brought up in the old school, and we believe in the independence of journalism. If you’re independent, have an ingrained independent mind-set as a journalist or writer, I think nothing can really, truly rule you out of the game.

Even if Modi were to lose this election, do you think irreversible damage has been done to the country?

I don’t think it’s irreversible. It’s deep damage, no question about it, because it’s also in educational institutions and the judiciary. There are judges who make no secret of their affiliation with the BJP or indeed the RSS [a right-wing paramilitary group of Hindu nationalists]. So it’s deep damage. But irreversible? No. I think things change quickly. Realities on the ground quickly change. So all this gives me hope.

Do you think the world really understands Modi and his motivations?

I think a lot of perceptive people in the world understand Modi, and people like us are trying to inform them about the nuances of what’s happening here. Remember when Modi was denied a visa [in 2005, before he became prime minister]. The United States invoked laws to say that anyone who has indulged in severe religious persecution must be denied a visa. He was actually blocked. And then ambassadors of the various countries of the European Union informally boycotted him — until the political situation began to change. These governments then realized that you couldn’t boycott a prime minister of India, especially when they were looking for allies against China. And then they started praising Indian democracy.

But I have very little respect for these regimes, whether it’s a Biden administration or, before that, the Trump administration or the Rishi Sunak dispensation. Because they look to their so-called strategic interests, these principles and values — democracy, secularism, freedom of the press, human rights — take a back seat.

Last year, emergency powers were invoked to ban the BBC documentary on Modi. Twitter was asked to remove all links. Have you ever seen an assault on the press like this?

I won’t compare it with the Emergency, when there was total censorship. They cannot impose total censorship today on all of us, the entire press. But look at what happened with the two-part BBC Two documentary, “India: The Modi Question.” It was not meant for telecast in India. But thanks to the government’s blocking of the first part — the second part they didn’t block — more people saw it than would have seen it otherwise. It’s called the Streisand effect — that if you block something, more people end up seeing it. And I’m a petitioner in that case before the Supreme Court of India, challenging this blocking of the BBC documentary. It’s not over yet.

But the BBC had their offices raided and were later investigated for alleged violations of foreign exchange rules.

That’s the government’s crude way of functioning. But this did not stop the BBC. The government cannot afford to kick the BBC out of India. It would seriously imperil bilateral relations with the United Kingdom. Noam Chomsky and others have written on this: that if you are smart, you do it through persuasion and the ‘manufacture of consent.’ But if you’re crude, you do it like this.

What is the way forward to protect free speech and the press in India?

The only way is to exercise your right to free speech and independence, come what may. Journalists in India are lucky that a number of lawyers, including some of our top lawyers, are coming forward to appear pro bono in their defense. I think we can maintain our independence, whatever pressure comes at us.
NSB
Bangladesh reopens schools as searing temperatures drop (Reuters)
Reuters [5/5/2024 9:02 AM, Ruma Paul, 761K, Neutral]
Schools in Bangladesh reopened on Sunday and classes were continuing over the weekend after a searing heatwave a week ago that suspended lessons as the country baked in temperatures that surged to well over 40 degrees Centigrade.

Bangladesh has wavered over reopening schools for some 33 million students amid pressure to prepare pupils for exams, even as the worst heatwave in seven decades sent temperatures as high as 43.8 C (110.84° Fahrenheit) last week.

Many people have died across the region, and experts warned the heat could exacerbate inequalities, widen a learning gap between developing and developed nations in the tropics.

Bangladesh, which follows the Islamic work week from Sunday to Thursday, will hold classes on Saturdays until further notice, the education ministry said. Education Minister Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury has said schools would open on Friday if needed to complete the curriculum.

Parents have welcomed the decision.

"Children don’t want to study at home. This will help them make up for the loss," said Fatema Akhtar, who was waiting to pick up her grade-two daughter outside a school.

Scientists have said climate change is causing more frequent, severe, and lengthy heat waves during summer months.

The U.N. children’s agency has estimated that one in three children, or nearly 20 million children, in low-lying Bangladesh bear the brunt of such climate change every day.

Separately, a fire that broke out amid the heatwave on Saturday and spread across three acres of the Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangrove forest that is home to the Royal Bengal tiger, was brought under control on Sunday, officials said.

Intense heatwaves have caused water shortages and frequent power cuts, hitting the key apparel sector which accounts for more than 80% of exports and supplies retailers such as H&M (HMb.ST), Walmart (WMT.N), opens new tab and Gap Inc (GPS.N).
Sri Lanka, Japan agree to resume stalled projects such as light rail (Reuters)
Reuters [5/4/2024 6:54 AM, Uditha Jayasinghe, 293K, Neutral]
Sri Lanka and Japan agreed on Saturday to work to resume stalled bilateral projects including a $1.5 billion Japanese-funded light railway.

The two nations announced the agreement during a visit to Sri Lanka by Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa.

Sri Lanka is working to restructure its foreign debt as part of a $2.9 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), after its worst financial crisis in more than seven decades in 2022 triggered a foreign debt default.

Japan expects the early signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Sri Lanka and the official creditor committee appointed to assist in restructuring Sri Lanka’s bilateral debt, which Japan co-chairs, Kamikawa said.

"I also conveyed Japan’s intention to further support Sri Lanka’s development by swiftly resuming yen loan projects once the MoU on debt restructuring is signed and the Sri Lanka government’s intention to swiftly conclude a bilateral agreement is confirmed," she told reporters in Colombo.

Sri Lanka pulled out of the rail project in 2020, when it was moving closer to China under the then-president.

The Sri Lankan cabinet in July gave approval for President Ranil Wickremesinghe to decide on the appropriate time frame to reactivate projects with Japan.

Japan is Sri Lanka’s biggest bilateral lender after China, with about $2.7 billion in outstanding loans, according to finance ministry data. India is the third key creditor.

Sri Lanka is confident of concluding the necessary agreements in time to complete the next IMF review, Sri Lanka Foreign Minister Ali Sabry said.
Central Asia
Booming Demand For Madrasahs Fuels Islamization Concerns In Kyrgyzstan (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [5/4/2024 8:39 AM, Chris Rickleton, 223K, Neutral]
At a spotless and modern-looking madrasah in Kyrgyzstan’s southern Osh Province, two teenage girls studying the Koran admit that they know little about the Arabic text they have just recited.

"I don’t know its meaning," replied one student when asked to explain the message of the 30th Surah, known in Arabic as Ar-Rum.

"I just read An-Naba," said another student, referring to the 78th of 114 surahs in the Islamic holy book. "But I don’t yet understand its meaning."

Ibadat Mozhueva, a teacher at the all-girls Islamic school in the village of Myrza-Ake in Osh’s Uzgen district, says that this is to be expected.

"In general, three years of madrasah [Islamic schooling] is not enough to study ‘tafsir,’" Mozhueva explained, using the Arabic word for Koranic commentaries, or interpretations of the holy book.

"You need to learn grammar, read a lot, and only then progress to the interpretation of the Koran," she said. "We do not study ‘tafsir’ here."

Schools like this one, called the Abdiraim Kari madrasah and situated in the village of Myrza-Ake, are at the center of a heated debate around Islamic education in Kyrgyzstan.

On the one hand there is growing demand for religious schooling, including by families interested in preparing girls to serve as brides steeped in Islamic mores and traditions.

On the other hand, there are concerns about government regulation of the often closed-off institutions, including over funding sources, the quality of education, and their potential to decouple students from secular society -- a trend that many argue could empower extremist ideologues.

‘Too Many’ Madrasahs?

According to Kyrgyzstan’s state-endorsed Muftiate, there are presently 130 registered institutions providing Islamic religious education in the country, including 34 madrasahs for girls who have finished the ninth grade. Altogether more than 6,000 female students, typically aged 15 and above, are presently enrolled in religious education in the country of around 7 million people.

By comparison, neighboring Kazakhstan -- a country with nearly three times the population of Kyrgyzstan -- has only 12 state madrasahs, including three for girls and women. In Uzbekistan, with nearly 35 million people, there are just 15 madrasahs in total, overwhelmingly catering to university-age students.

The numbers reflect the comparatively relaxed stance toward religious freedom in Kyrgyzstan. But Orozbek Moldaliev, a former chairman of the State Commission on Religious Affairs, said that there were probably "too many" madrasahs in the country.

"Moreover, the level of teaching is low," Moldaliev complained. "Among those who teach, there are some literate people, but there are also those who do not understand [Islam], who are poorly educated."

The Abdiraim Kari madrasah, where 200 girls are taught and housed free of charge, is proud of its curriculum.

Other than religious instruction, girls learn basic computing, including graphic design, sewing, handicrafts, and cooking, all over a three-year-period.

RFE/RL correspondents who recently gained access to the madrasah watched students fully attired in white hijabs and flowing black dresses smile and laugh as they competed in a game of volleyball refereed by a male cleric.

Mobile phones are prohibited except at weekends, both in the classroom and in the dormitory, with lights off at around 11.

"Before going to bed we read a prayer. And we teach the girls to sleep with their hands on their chest [after] saying the name of Allah," said Nazgul Ryskulova, who oversees the dormitory.

The diploma offered by madrasahs like Abdiraim Kari -- which qualifies graduates to teach "the fundamentals of Shari’a sciences" -- offers few prospects for employment aside from in religious schools.

It also has no value to secular universities, although the madrasah’s founder, Abdirakhman Atabaev, says that some of his students do reach university after supplementing their religious training with classes at a nearby secular school.

‘Signals’ Received

When asked about financing, Atabaev offers few specifics, saying only that his institution is locally funded and has "no major sponsor." Local "aksakals" (elder males) and "zhigits" (young men) provided the most important contributions, he says.

A number of religious buildings in Kyrgyzstan have been built with funding from Persian Gulf states looking to expand their influence in the country, raising fears of brands of Islam other than the moderate Hanafi strain presaged by the Kyrgyzstan’s Muftiate being imported into Kyrgyz society.

Others have been built by local politicians seeking to court influence among an Islam-hungry population.

Every so often, Kyrgyz security services report on raids targeting both licensed and "underground" madrasahs as well as closures and suspensions of licensed madrasahs.

In March, the State Committee for National Security (UKMK) reported on the bust of a boys madrasah where 12 children aged between 6 and 9 were taught “according to religious literature not verified by the [Muftiate].”

The man detained for organizing the classes did not have any religious education, the UKMK said, while many of the children did not attend regular school in parallel with the classes. The organizer was fined the equivalent of $85 but faced no jail time.

In 2023, the UKMK said it had shut down 21 Islamic schools in Osh Province over "violations of construction, sanitary and fire regulations, as well as [deviation from] uniform educational standards in religious schools."

Zamir Kozhomberdiev, a top official in the State Commission on Religious Affairs, says that those institutions have now reopened, having corrected their failings, and argues that the government does not need to change its approach to regulating the madrasahs.

"If...there are destructive calls or ideologies [in madrasahs], we will definitely receive such signals. Because the people working there are citizens of Kyrgyzstan, they are patriots and immediately speak openly if something is done differently. They themselves are against it," Kozhomberdiev said.

‘Upbringing Hours’

This has not convinced critics of religious education, who see the madrasahs as operating with a relatively free hand.

Jamilya Kaparova, whose nonprofit Ensan-Diamond group attempts to monitor the activities of madrasahs, says that some madrashas are registered as private foreign-language-teaching institutions, with no reference to religion in their documents.

While teachers at some madrasahs claim that their courses are free as part of charitable work, students often say that they pay fixed fees every month, Kaparova says.

Kaparova echoes concerns about the content of courses. At one girls’ madrasah that she visited, students participated in "upbringing hours."

“Mentors basically explained to the girls what kind of wives, daughters-in-law they should be, how to serve their husband’s family," she said. "It seems to me that basically their upbringing comes down to this."

Concerns about Kyrgyzstan’s national madrasah system were aired in a comprehensive 2019 report by the Geneva-based Bulan Institute, headed by the Kyrgyzstan-born expert Cholpon Orozbekova, which called for the system’s "urgent reformation.”"

But the Bulan Institute’s main recommendations, which included the introduction of secular subjects into madrasahs, as well as teachers that have achieved both secular and theological degrees, have not been implemented to date.

Worries about the work of madrashas come from within the Islamic community, too.

Jamal Frontbek-kyzy, whose nonprofit Mutakallim group works regularly with communities of Islamic women, has called on madrasahs to include subjects like math, physics, and civics into their curricula, in order to better prepare their graduates for the outside world and make them less vulnerable to ultraconservative or extremist ideology.

"As part of one project, we introduced civics lessons in 12 madrasahs," said Frontbek-kyzy, whose organization regularly engages the government and has in the past received financing from Western donor organizations.

"But when the project stopped, some madrasahs continued to teach it, while others did not," she said.

One indicator that suggests girls’ madrasahs may be failing in their collective missions at present is the high dropout rate.

According to the director of another madrasah in Osh, this one in the city itself, many students leave madrasahs before graduation, either to get married, or because they need to find work, or cannot make progress in classes.

"Our main goal was to raise girls who respect their parents. To raise pious souls, as well as mothers who will give this society good people who love their homeland," said Zhanara Maksutova, whose Sayida Khadijah school costs parents the equivalent of $350 per year in food, board, and classes.

But those students at Maksutova’s madrasah who spoke to RFE/RL showed ambition to complete their studies.

"In the future, I would like to become an Arabic teacher," said one of her pupils, Makhbuba Abazova.

"Then, God willing, in two years, I will be a ‘hafiz’ [guardian of the Koran]."
Russian influence in Kyrgyzstan rising despite local consternation (VOA)
VOA [5/5/2024 8:56 AM, Staff, 761K, Neutral]
Talas, a dusty town in northwestern Kyrgyzstan, is not accustomed to foreign dignitaries. Tourists occasionally stop there, but even officials from the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek, rarely visit this remote part of the country.

In mid-April, though, a high-level Kremlin delegation descended on the town of 30,000, putting it in national spotlight.

On April 18 and 19, a Russian government delegation led by Igor Maslov, chief of the external cooperation directorate in President Vladimir Putin’s executive office, took part in ceremonies honoring local World War II veterans. The Kremlin officials gave a $2,000 award to Arake Arstanbekov, one of the few living veterans of that war from Talas, and donated textbooks and equipment to several local schools.

Addressing a group of Talas residents, Vladimir Korobovski, a representative of the Russian delegation, said the visit and assistance provided “clear symbols of friendly relations between Russia and Kyrgyzstan.”

“This act underscores the importance of humanitarian and social initiatives in supporting the development of [Kyrgyzstani] regions,” he said.

The delegation’s visit, some regional experts say, is part of a broader Russian charm offensive to bolster Moscow’s influence in Central Asia. While Russia views Central Asia as vital to its national interests and its regional governments have cast themselves as Russia’s partners because of historical, political and trade relations, some observers say Russian influence has been waning there because of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Temur Umarov, a fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, said in a December 2022 analysis that the invasion significantly weakened Moscow’s influence among former Soviet republics, including those in Central Asia.

"None of the Central Asian nations have supported Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and all are adhering to Western sanctions against Russia,” the report said.

“The region’s banks do not accept Russian MIR payment cards [used since Visa and Mastercard suspended Russian activity], for example, and only Kazakhstan allows their use by private individuals—and only after getting U.S. approval to do so. Not one of the countries in Central Asia has recognized the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics — or other Ukrainian territory that Russia claims to have annexed — as part of Russia,” it said.

Russian officials showed their displeasure with this seeming disloyalty, with some MPs in Russia’s Duma calling for stiffening restrictions on Central Asian migrants.

However, instead of relying on arm-twisting, Kremlin officials are evidently relying on soft-power diplomacy to win the hearts and minds of the regional countries. The campaign targets all of the five Central Asian republics, but the main focus is on Kyrgyzstan, long a key ally where Russian language and culture are particularly strong.

According to Russian Embassy in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan’s capital, more than 350,000 people in the country are registered with the embassy as Russian “compatriots,” a category usually referring to those with Russian citizenship or who have family or professional ties to Russia.

Kyrgyzstan is also a member of two Russia-dominated organizations – the Collective Security Treaty Organization, a military alliance also including Armenia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Belarus, and the Eurasian Economic Union, which also includes Armenia Balarus and Kazakhstan. In addition, Russia maintains a military airbase on the Kyrgyzstani territory, as part of CSTO cooperation.

Moscow unveiled plans in September to build nine Russian-language schools in Kyrgyzstan. At an estimated cost of $5.5 million, construction is to be completed by 2029. Russia also announced plans to build 10 schools in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

Moscow officials have adopted a variety of other measures to keep Kyrgyzstan within Russia’s orbit of influence. A Russian-Kyrgyz Development Fund gave out more than $500 million for development projects in Kyrgyzstan between 2014 and 2023. The fund, established in 2014, is mainly financed by Russia.

Russia is also financing the Kyrgyz-Russian Slavonic University, a well-regarded higher educational institution in Kyrgyzstan. Each academic year, Russia gives out stipends to 1,000 Kyrgyzstani students for undergraduate arts and sciences study in Russia. As part of the annual academic exchange program, approximately 120 Russian secondary school teachers spend an academic year in Kyrgyzstan, where they teach Russian language and literature. An organization called the Coordination Council of Russian compatriots in Kyrgyzstan has united approximately 40 pro-Russian nonprofit organizations, and it serves as a conduit for Russian diplomacy.

Russian efforts working

Russia’s diplomacy is paying off in Kyrgyzstan, according to analysts.

A Bishkek-based expert on Kyrgyz-Russia relations, speaking on condition of anonymity, told VOA Kyrgizstan “is one of the few countries in the region where Russian language and culture play dominant roles in society."

“Russian language has a status as an official language, and a lot of people rely on Russian media for their news," he said.

The expert said that because the Kremlin uses Russian media as a propaganda tool in Kyrgyzstan, many people have pro-Russian views of international affairs.

He cited the Kyrgyz foreign agents law, enacted last month, as among the most recent examples of Russian influence, saying it “was modeled after a Russian one, and it gives [Kyrgyz] authorities wide powers to control local NGOs."

He said the closure of Western organizations under the law will allow more Russian influence.

Some activists have voiced concerns that Kremlin is using rising influence to promote Russian state propaganda in Kyrgyzstan. Local media reports said Russia will not only build the nine schools in Kyrgyzstan, it will also provide all the technical resources and choose the school principals.

In a September 3 interview with RFE/Rl, Bishkek political analyst Aibek Tenizbaev asked what kind of educations programs the schools would follow.

“Kyrgyz authorities need to sort this issue out,” he said.

“Russia has adopted new standards. In their history textbooks, Russian authorities have included a section on their justification for the invasion of Ukraine in these textbooks, and these textbooks contain blunt [Russian government] propaganda," he said.

Politicians bothered

Russian efforts to expand its influence in Kyrgyzstan is bothering some politicians too.

Nurlanbek Shakiev, speaker of the Supreme Council, the country’s parliament, has emerged as a voice for political groups lamenting that Russian language and culture’s dominant role in Kyrgyzstan has been undercutting government efforts to spread use of Kyrgyz language.

Shakiev told Kyrgyz MPs on April 11 that, with children speaking Russian in villages across the country, “Kyrgyz [is disappearing because children are watching mainly Russian-language content on the internet.

“We need to block all broadcasts, all cartoons in Russian and other foreign languages," he said.

President Sadyr Japarov, apparently fearing to alienate Russia, quickly distanced himself from Shakiev’s statement, calling it "Shakiev’s personal opinion," adding that he disagreed with Shakiev’s claim Kyrgyz is disappearing in villages.

"I haven’t heard our children speaking Russian since the childhood. On the contrary, there are cases when students leave school without knowing a word in Russian and go to Russia. They go there, and they have problems with the language. That is why I personally took the initiative and asked Vladimir Vladimirovich [Putin] to build nine Russian-language schools for us. Construction work will begin soon,” he said.

Japarov had previously played down activists’ concern about Russian-financed schools.

Addressing a September 1 groundbreaking ceremony for one of the schools, he said, “The language of instruction in these schools is Russian, and the curriculum will be based on the standards adopted in both of the two countries."
Rights Watchdogs Concerned Over Missing Tajik Opposition Leader (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [5/3/2024 4:14 PM, Staff, 235K, Negative]
Three international human rights organizations have expressed concern over the fate of Suhrob Zafar, the leader of the outlawed opposition Group 24 movement whose whereabouts have been unknown since early March.

Human Rights Watch, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, and the International Partnership for Human Rights on May 3 called on Tajik authorities in a joint statement to "immediately confirm the detention and whereabouts of and release" Zafar, who was "forcibly disappeared” while in Turkey despite holding official UNHCR asylum seeker status there.

The statement cited unnamed sources as saying the Tajik State Committee for National Security is holding Zafar in its detention center in Dushanbe, "periodically torturing him, and [denying] him medical assistance."

The Tajik government has not confirmed whether he is in state custody or if it knows of his whereabouts.

"There are devastating reports that Suhrob Zafar may already have lost his ability to walk as a result of torture, so prompt action could be a matter of life and death," said Syinat Sultanalieva, Central Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch.

"Tajik authorities should immediately verify Zafar’s detention status and whereabouts and urgently investigate allegations that he has been tortured."

Authorities should also ensure and confirm that Zafar’s legal rights are respected, the rights groups said, including contact with his family, access to a lawyer of his own choosing, and necessary medical treatment.

Another member of the Group 24, Nasimjon Sharifov, went missing in late February while residing in Turkey.

Dozens of Tajik activists have been imprisoned for being members of the Group 24 movement in recent years.

Group 24 was labeled as terrorist and extremist and banned in the tightly controlled former Soviet republic in 2014. In March 2015, the movement’s founder, businessman Umarali Quvatov, was assassinated in Istanbul.

Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, who has run the Central Asian nation for almost 30 years, has been criticized by international human rights groups over his administration’s alleged disregard for independent media, religious freedoms, civil society, and political pluralism.
International Rights Group Calls On Tashkent To Investigate Attack On Uzbek Activist (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [5/3/2024 4:14 PM, Staff, 235K, Negative]
A global human rights coalition has urged Uzbek authorities to thoroughly investigate an attempt to intimidate noted activist Umida Niyazova and her associate.

In a May 2 statement, the Cotton Campaign said Niyazova, the founder and director of the Uzbek Forum for Human Rights, and journalist Sharifa Madrahimova had to cut short a planned tour around the Ferghana region to meet with cotton-producing farmers and companies after two men intimidated them on April 18 near Madrahimova’s house, accusing Niyazova of "organizing information attacks against Uzbekistan."

"Niyazova and Madrahimova got in their car to avoid further interaction and one of the men held the door to prevent them from closing it and driving away... Fearing for their own safety and that of the farmers and local human rights activists they were planning to meet, Niyazova cut her trip short," the statement said.

One of the men was later identified as a Ferghana resident, Shuhrat Esanov, and it remains unclear how he knew Madrahimova’s home address and that Niyazova would be there that morning.

Allison Gill, legal director at Global Labor Justice, which hosts the Cotton Campaign, said that as an independent monitor the forum plays a critical role in ending the systemic state-imposed forced labor of children and adults in the Uzbek cotton sector, a vital sector in the country that accounts for around 17 percent of its total economy.

"Their work is vital to further Uzbekistan’s progress toward meeting international standards in its cotton and textile industry," Gill said.

"If Uzbekistan wants to demonstrate its readiness to participate in global supply chains that pay increasing attention to labor rights, it is essential that labor rights monitors and workers can monitor and report on conditions without fear of intimidation, harassment, or surveillance," Gill added.

The Cotton Campaign and the Uzbek Forum for Human Rights ended their campaign to boycott Uzbek cotton and textiles in March 2022, citing progress in eliminating forced labor during crop harvesting in 2021.

The boycott, launched in 2006, was followed by more than 260 apparel manufacturers and retailers globally.

For many years rights groups called on Uzbekistan to eradicate a long-running state-controlled system forcing millions of citizens, including children, to pick cotton to meet harvest quotas.
Eastern Europe, Central Asia See ‘Spectacular’ Rise In Media Censorship, RSF Says (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [5/5/2024 4:14 PM, Staff, 235K, Negative]
Suppression of press freedom rose over the past year in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where governments with increasingly authoritarian tendencies have followed Russia’s example of stifling and punishing free speech, media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said.

Highlighting the situation in in its annual media world ranking, published on May 3, RSF noted the worsening media situation in Belarus, where strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s regime persecutes reporters under the excuse of fighting “extremism”; Georgia, where the government has been pushing "foreign agent" legislation modeled on a Russian law, despite massive public protests; and in Kyrgyzstan.

"Media censorship has intensified in a spectacular mimicry of Russian repressive methods," RSF said.

Belarus dropped 10 positions to 167th in the world, while Georgia, at 103th, fell a whopping 26 places.

RSF said Russia, which ranked 162nd out of 180 countries, has continued its campaign against independent journalism, using the “foreign agent” or “undesirable” legislation to arbitrarily imprison remaining journalists as more than 1,500 have left the country since the start of the war. RFE/RL journalist Alsu Kurmasheva and Evan Gershkovich of The Wall Street Journal are currently imprisoned in Russia.

Azerbaijan fell 13 places to 164th mainly due to the authorities’ crackdown on the media before its presidential election, RSF said.

The report pointed to the deteriorating situation in Serbia -- down seven positions to 98th place -- as an example of the Kremlin’s long reach.

Press outlets affiliated with the pro-Russian government of Serbia relayed Moscow’s propaganda, while anti-war Russian journalists who found refuge in Serbia after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine are being threatened with expulsion.

RSF notes as a positive development the 18-place jump made by Ukraine due to what it says are improvements in the security and political indicators. Political interference in Ukraine has fallen, with the country being currently ranked 61st, the report said.

In Eastern Europe, the report notes a "dangerous trend" by some governments to stifle independent journalism, which RSF calls "Orbanization," after Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Orban, in power since 2010, has been accused of muzzling the free press. Hungary is currently in 67th place.

In Slovakia, ranked 29th, the situation is also deteriorating under Russia-friendly Prime Minister Robert Fico, RSF says.

In Central Asia, Turkmenistan, where independent reporting is completely banned, is listed 175th, while Kyrgyzstan is listed 120th.

Afghanistan, where the persecution of journalists has been "incessant" since the return of the Taliban to power in 2021, three journalists were killed and at least 25 were detained over the past year. Afghanistan dropped 26 places to 178th out of a total of 180 countries in the index.
Twitter
Afghanistan
Suhail Shaheen
@suhailshaheen1
[5/5/2024 12:34 PM, 728.8K followers, 14 retweets, 85 likes]
1/2 Pleased to meet Dr. Abdul Razak Ahmad, the Founding Director of Bait Al Amanah,a political think tank in Kuala Lumpur and a well-known academic personality and Dr Atsushi Sunami, President, Sasakawa Peace Foundation. We discussed various topics including

Suhail Shaheen
@suhailshaheen1
[5/5/2024 12:34 PM, 728.8K followers, 9 likes]
2/2 need for more humanitarian assistance , creation of job opportunities, education, capacity-building programs, development projects in the country etc. Both sides emphasized to continue bilateral meetings in the time to come as well.

Suhail Shaheen
@suhailshaheen1
[5/3/2024 12:13 PM, 728.8K followers, 3 retweets, 52 likes]
1/2 I had a fruitful meeting with Mr Necephor Mghendi, Head of Delegation - IFRC International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and
Homa Zikria Nader, Manager of Strategic Engagement and Partnerships - IFRC.

Suhail Shaheen
@suhailshaheen1
[5/3/2024 12:13 PM, 728.8K followers, 16 likes]
2/2 We discussed IFRC humanitarian assistance in various areas in Afghanistan , particularly, assistance with widows, orphans and children with cardiac problems. We both emphasized that there was growing need for more humanitarian assistance and basic development projects.

Bilal Sarwary
@bsarwary
[5/5/2024 4:33 PM, 253.5K followers, 20 retweets, 31 likes]
Unprecedented flooding in Murghab district, Ghor province deep in Western Afghanistan https://twitter.com/i/status/1787219140152901670

Bilal Sarwary
@bsarwary
[5/3/2024 12:04 PM, 253.5K followers, 11 retweets, 53 likes]
#AFG Social media landscape is increasingly very toxic - from ethnic divisions to finger pointing, labelling & ethnic hijackers are in full display. High time to focus on 40 million Afghans, poverty,Taliban shutting doors for girls & lack of genuine dialogue for a durable peace. #WorldPressFreedomDay2024

Nilofar Ayoubi
@NilofarAyoubi
[5/5/2024 12:45 PM, 65K followers, 23 retweets, 57 likes]
The purported freedom and safety, as boasted by Western Governments and media, allegedly offered by the Taliban to the Afghan people, is far from reality. The residents of Badakhshan are fed up with these racist, extremist, and uneducated clerics!

Jahanzeb Wesa
@Jahanzi12947158
[5/5/2024 11:42 AM, 2.5K followers, 1 retweet, 3 likes]
Horia Mosadiq human rights activist stopped Zalmay Khalilzad, the former US special representative for Afghanistan, at London’s Heathrow Airport on Sunday. Ms. Mosadiq accused Khalilzad of "destroying" Afghanistan, and she also asked about the difficult situation of Afghan women

Jahanzeb Wesa
@Jahanzi12947158
[5/3/2024 9:12 AM, 2.5K followers, 2 likes]
According to the World Press Freedom Index presented by Reporters Without Borders, Afghanistan has fallen 26 places to rank 178 in 2024, after North Korea. It began with smaller directives early on, just after the Taliban took power in Afghanistan: https://rukhshana.com/en/afghanistan-has-lost-more-than-80-percent-of-its-female-media-workforce-how-much-longer-can-the-rest-last
Pakistan
Shehbaz Sharif
@CMShehbaz
[5/3/2024 11:05 AM, 6.7M followers, 1.4K retweets, 6K likes]
I congratulate the entire Pakistani nation on this historic milestone of Pakistan’s first lunar satellite mission launch, in collaboration with China’s ChangE6 mission. Today marks a momentous leap for Pakistan space science program. We are proud of our scientists and Pakistan collaboration with China. This achievement will inspire young minds in science and research, strengthen our Lunar Programme and expand our knowledge of the Moon.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Pakistan
@ForeignOfficePk
[5/4/2024 4:40 AM, 476.7K followers, 13 retweets, 27 likes]
At her Weekly Press Briefing, Spokesperson @Mumtazzb refutes Indian PM Modi’s claims of prior notification before Balakot strikes, denounces alleged rewriting of history for political gain. Emphasizes readiness to defend against any intrusions.

Hamid Mir
@HamidMirPAK
[5/3/2024 12:40 PM, 8.4M followers, 340 retweets, 872 likes]
Pakistan going down on World Press Freedom Index of @RSF_inter . World Press Freedom Index, dropped Pakistan’s ranking from 150 to 152 in 2024, indicating a worsening situation for press freedom in the country. https://www.voanews.com/a/bomb-blast-kills-pakistani-journalist-on-world-press-freedom-day/7596725.html

Madiha Afzal
@MadihaAfzal
[5/3/2024 10:16 AM, 42.6K followers, 4 retweets, 29 likes]
Will Shehbaz Sharif become the first Pakistani prime minister to complete a five year term in office? Given his close relationship with the military establishment, he very well could. Before fall 2021 many would have predicted that Imran Khan might be the first such PM.

Madiha Afzal
@MadihaAfzal
[5/3/2024 10:17 AM, 42.6K followers, 1 retweet, 4 likes]
But such "stability" would be personality driven, not because the system is any more stable -- or democratic. If anything, it’s less so.
India
Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/5/2024 2:09 PM, 97.6M followers, 4.7K retweets, 28K likes]
After programmes in Uttar Pradesh, landed to a warm welcome in Bhubaneswar. I can clearly see Odisha is all set to vote BJP in the state and Centre. People want a Government that can develop Odisha and also protect the vibrant local culture.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/5/2024 5:19 AM, 97.6M followers, 6K retweets, 38K likes]
Srila Gopal Krishna Goswami Maharaja was a revered spiritual icon, globally respected for his unwavering devotion to Bhagwan Shri Krishna and his tireless service through ISKCON. His teachings emphasized the importance of devotion, kindness and service to others. He also played a significant role in expanding the community service efforts of ISKCON, particularly in areas like education, health and serving the needy. My thoughts are with all devotees in this tragic hour. Om Shanti.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/5/2024 5:10 AM, 97.6M followers, 3.2K retweets, 15K likes]
Shared my thoughts on a wide range of issues with @sandeshnews. I highlighted the good governance efforts and expressed confidence that the people will bless us yet again for a third term. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GMzT69jWEAAZuE9?format=jpg&name=small

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/5/2024 4:38 AM, 97.6M followers, 2.1K retweets, 7.6K likes]
The progress in the last decade is merely a trailer. There is much more work to be done and we are all set to take India to newer heights of progress. Sharing my interview with Phulchhab newspaper. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GMzWuuPXYAAYK0n?format=jpg&name=900x900

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/5/2024 4:37 AM, 97.6M followers, 1.7K retweets, 6.1K likes]
The development journey of Gujarat over the last two decades has been phenomenal and that is why the bond between Gujarat and BJP is very strong. Here is my interview with @gujratsamachar on various topics. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GMzWguxWMAAPtGz?format=jpg&name=medium

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/5/2024 4:36 AM, 97.6M followers, 2.3K retweets, 8.2K likes]
Gujarat is all set to elect BJP again! Congress’ anti-Gujarat mindset will never be accepted by people. Do read my interview with @Divya_Bhaskar on issues relating to Gujarat, the General Elections and more. https://divyabhaskar.co.in/local/gujarat/ahmedabad/news/pm-modi-fight-against-corruption-at-a-critical-juncture-every-corrupt-person-must-go-to-jail-132973196.html

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/5/2024 4:24 AM, 97.6M followers, 1.9K retweets, 6.7K likes]
Gujarat has always placed utmost faith in me and I have always worked to ensure the state reaches new heights of progress. Here is my interview with Kutch Mitra Daily. https://kutchmitradaily.com/news/latest_news/17228

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/5/2024 2:20 AM, 97.6M followers, 3K retweets, 11K likes]
BJP is committed to the welfare of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. In this interview with Eenadu, I talk at length about our work for these states and vision in the third term. @eenadulivenews https://eenadu.net/telugu-news/elections/general/3604/124086223

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/5/2024 10:36 AM, 97.6M followers, 6.8K retweets, 35K likes]
What I saw in Kanpur will remain etched in my memory! It is as if the entire city was on the roads to shower their blessings on me. There were record number of women and youth. Our Party will work even harder for the development of Kanpur and to give wings to people’s dreams.

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[5/6/2024 12:44 AM, 3.1M followers, 149 retweets, 868 likes]
My conversation at the ET Roundtable. @EconomicTimes. https://m.economictimes.com/news/india/et-roundtable-india-cant-in-the-name-of-open-economy-open-up-its-national-security-to-work-with-china-s-jaishankar/amp_articleshow/109864575.cms

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[5/5/2024 10:58 AM, 3.1M followers, 693 retweets, 7K likes]
Meeting Shri Subramaniam and his family members in Sambalpur. He spoke of his daughter’s return from Ukraine through Operation Ganga. #ModiKiGaurantee evokes a response across the nation.

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[5/5/2024 2:23 AM, 3.1M followers, 152 retweets, 778 likes]
An interactive session in Cuttack, Odisha. https://twitter.com/i/broadcasts/1ypJdkvMEnnGW

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[5/4/2024 10:49 PM, 3.1M followers, 1.1K retweets, 3.8K likes]
Under PM @narendramodi, we have a Bharat First foreign policy. My interview in @SundayGuardian : https://sundayguardianlive.com/top-five/under-pm-modi-we-have-a-bharat-first-foreign-policy-eam-jaishankar

Michael Kugelman
@MichaelKugelman
[5/3/2024 9:17 AM, 209.9K followers, 299 retweets, 853 likes]
Indian baseless allegations that Western media and governments are colluding to interfere in Indian elections are to a degree performative, meant to rally Indian voters. But this criticism, especially of Western media, has been longstanding. All I can say is that as India’s global influence continues to increase, the Western media will continue to scrutinize it, and continue to focus on the good (there has been extensive Western media coverage of India’s rapid economic growth, for example) but also the bad. That’s what independent media do. They’re not meant to be cheerleaders. Criticism happens. Nothing wrong with just letting it go and focusing on other things.
As for the allegations, I end with two data points:
-The Biden administration gave an advance heads up to India’s government that the Washington Post report was coming out. Doesn’t sound like collusion to me.
-US ties with India grew stronger than ever in the Modi era. Washington is clearly comfortable working with Modi, just as he is comfortable working with the US.

Michael Kugelman
@MichaelKugelman
[5/3/2024 9:00 AM, 209.9K followers, 309 retweets, 1.1K likes]
Modi’s increasingly ugly and communal rhetoric and anti-Pakistan comments on the campaign trail suggest he’s going all out to do everything possible to secure BJP that much-coveted super-majority. He could have stuck with trumpeting achievements, but...that’s not how he rolls.
NSB
Awami League
@albd1971
[5/6/2024 2:00 AM, 637.3K followers, 12 retweets, 27 likes]
In the last 15 years, #Bangladesh has experienced a massive transformation in the #power and energy sector. Govt is making strides in every segment of this sector including Supply of electricity, power generation through green methods, gas mining etc. @MoPEMR @NasrulHamid_MP

Awami League
@albd1971
[5/5/2024 12:16 PM, 637.3K followers, 20 retweets, 38 likes]
Near East South Asia (NESA) Center for Strategic Studies (@TheNESACenter), an institution of @DeptofDefense, has praised #Bangladesh’s success in combating #terrorism, violent #extremism and #climatechange challenges. https://bssnews.net/news-flash/186942 @DrHasanMahmud62 @BDMOFA

Awami League
@albd1971
[5/5/2024 12:46 AM, 637.3K followers, 27 retweets, 74 likes]
During his meeting with Dr Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer of @Palestine_UN at the @UN, Foreign Minister @DrHasanMahmud62 said that the unity among muslim nations is crucial in resolving the #PalestineCrisis and stop #PalestineGenocide. https://unb.com.bd/category/Bangladesh/muslim-unity-can-play-crucial-role-in-resolving-palestinian-crisis-foreign-minister/134955

Awami League
@albd1971
[5/3/2024 9:38 AM, 637.3K followers, 41 retweets, 118 likes]
HPM #SheikhHasina came down heavily on #USA for its action against students and teachers for protesting #Israeligenocide in #Palestine. "The way police behaved with them raises the question about how much #humanrights are there", she said. https://link.albd.org/ee5d2

Awami League
@albd1971
[5/3/2024 6:31 AM, 637.3K followers, 31 retweets, 80 likes]
At the 57th Session of the @UN-CPD, State Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr Rokeya Sultana said that #Bangladesh is committed to ensuring the #healthcare and wellbeing of all #mothers and #children across the country by achieving #SDGs. https://link.albd.org/212yw #CPD57

The President’s Office, Maldives
@presidencymv
[5/5/2024 12:47 PM, 108.1K followers, 95 retweets, 109 likes]
The President’s Special Envoy delivers Maldives’ statement at 15th session of the OIC Islamic Summit https://presidency.gov.mv/home/dv/#lg=1&slide=0

Moosa Zameer
@MoosaZameer
[5/5/2024 12:30 PM, 13.1K followers, 39 retweets, 47 likes]
As Special Envoy of President Dr @MMuizzu, the Minister of Islamic Affairs, Dr @Mohamedshaheem1, delivered the national statement at #OICBanjulSummit. In his remarks, he urged Islamic nations to do more to prevent genocide in Gaza and stressed the urgency for an immediate and sustained ceasefire, & provision of timely & adequate humanitarian aid. #Maldives is committed towards supporting Palestinian membership of the @UN and their equal participation in the multilateral arena. Maldives also assured support for The Gambia in their efforts to seek justice for the Rohinya people on behalf of the @OIC_OCI at @CIJ_ICJ, as an intervening state in the case. The Government of President Dr @MMuizzu is committed to building closer ties with the Muslim world. https://youtube.com/watch?v=o6WkVn9p9T8

Namal Rajapaksa
@RajapaksaNamal
[5/3/2024 10:47 PM, 436.9K followers, 20 retweets, 74 likes]
Visited the Muhiyadeen Jumma Masjid in Wellawatta today. Received blessings from the Islamic cleric and had a friendly conversation with the community members.
Central Asia
UNODC Central Asia
@UNODC_ROCA
[5/6/2024 2:42 AM, 1.4K followers]
The #CASC celebrates its 10th anniversary! On 2-3 May in Astana, Kazakhstan, #CASC members and key partners reflected on achievements & next steps to strengthen international cooperation in criminal matters in #CentralAsia, thanks to @StateINL support.

Joanna Lillis
@joannalillis
[5/6/2024 2:28 AM, 28.9K followers, 1 retweet, 3 likes]
As his murder trial draws to a close, Bishimbayev again denies he’s guilty of murdering his wife. I’ll be on @TimesRadio today talking about the case, tune in here at 1350 UK time/1750 in #Kazakhstan https://thetimes.co.uk/radio/live (create free account to listen)

MFA Tajikistan
@MOFA_Tajikistan
[5/6/2024 2:35 AM, 4.7K followers, 1 retweet, 2 likes]
Participation in the Banjul Islamic Summit https://mfa.tj/en/main/view/14978/participation-in-the-banjul-islamic-summit

Navbahor Imamova
@Navbahor
[5/5/2024 7:48 PM, 23K followers, 5 retweets, 7 likes]
Instead of relying on arm-twisting, Kremlin officials are evidently relying on soft-power diplomacy to win the hearts and minds of #CentralAsia. The main focus is on Kyrgyzstan, long a key ally where Russian language and culture are particularly strong. https://www.voanews.com/a/russian-influence-in-kyrgyzstan-rising-despite-local-consternation/7598553.html

Navbahor Imamova
@Navbahor
[5/5/2024 10:59 AM, 23K followers, 1 retweet, 3 likes]
Finally confirmed: Elizabeth Rood to be US Ambassador to Turkmenistan. https://www.congress.gov/nomination/118th-congress/1341

{End of Report}
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