People’s Movement
Against Nuclear Energy
Idinthakarai 627 104
PRESS RELEASE
September 12, 2012
Let us Do Some
Soul-search and Talk Again!
Just like a hapless wife brutally assaulted by
her male chauvinistic and drunken husband, like an innocent little child beaten
up by his abusive parent, our honest, hardworking, and pious people have been
violated, their possessions vandalized, their 400-day long nonviolent movement
vilified. By our own government! By our own Chief Minister who we brought back
to power to rescue us from corruption, power abuse, nepotism, dynastic rule and
double speak! An overwhelming majority of the Tamil voters including almost all
the coastal communities voted for the Chief Minister’s party.
When the biggest nuclear power plants in the
country or the largest nuclear power park is being set up on our seas that will
have deleterious effect on our sea and seafood, land and crops, water bodies
and ground water, on our livelihood and on our progeny, we have opposed
peacefully, democratically and nonviolently. Don’t we have at least that much
freedom in our country?
In fact, the Chief Minister sympathized with
our cause in the beginning. She had objected to the Chennai visit of the
nuclear-armed ship, the USS Nimitz; and she had opposed the India-US nuclear
deal with so much conviction. Our team met with the Chief Minister twice and
the Prime Minister once at her own personal initiative. The Chief Minister kept
talking about solar power and other renewable sources of energy, kept demanding
more electricity from the central pool and more finance for electricity
projects in Tamil Nadu. She even said that she would be one among us in our
struggle.
We took to the streets, voiced our concerns to
the Central Government and asked them to stop the Koodankulam nuclear power
project, change our energy policy and to save our natural resources. The
District Collector, Dr. R. Selvaraj, entertained us in his office and served us
tea and biscuits. The Superintendent of Police, Mr. Vijayendra Bidari, gave
oral ‘go-ahead’ every time we sought permission over phone for our
demonstrations, agitations and public meetings. But they kept on filing false
cases on us all with serious charges such as sedition, waging war on the state
and so forth.
The ‘love scene’ changed to ‘hate scene’ in
March 2012! The script changed! The situation, the lighting, and the overall
direction changed! The Chief Minister alleges that we are all in a ‘maya
valai’ (mystical net). Maybe she is referring to nuclear radiation that is
indeed like a ‘maya valai’ you cannot see, hear, smell, taste or touch.
Today we are surrounded by police, beaten up
by police, harassed by police, accused of committing all kinds of crimes by
police, arrested by police and above all, mentally, emotionally, spiritually
assaulted by police. And the Chief Minister is the police minister!
We are all fisherfolks, shopkeepers,
agricultural laborers, beedi-rolling women, and to be brief, working class
people. We do not steal public money, we do not amass wealth through illegal
business deals, and we do not plunder the nation’s natural wealth. But we are
treated like criminals; dangerous, seditious, violent, vicious and wicked
lawbreakers. Our leaders, who have been invoking the names and wisdom of
Thiruvalluvar, Buddha, Mahavir, Ashoka, Guru Nanak, Mahatma Gandhi, Khan Abdul
Gaffar Khan and Mother Teresa, are treated like dreaded terrorists. Our people
who worship Sage Vishwamitra, Lord Jesus Christ and Prophet Mohamed are treated
with contempt and dislike. The St. Lourdes Church at Idinthakarai has been
desecrated by urinating and a holy statue destroyed. Naval boats are patrolling
our seas; air force planes are hovering over our villages; the police are
blocking our roads; we are short of food, water and other basic essentials; and
the state is waging a war on us! But we cannot do a thing!
The global nuclear mafia sees our people as
their sworn enemies. The KGB, the CIA and other international intelligence
agencies consider us serious threats to their respective ruling cliques. The
Delhi Government is infuriated with us as they are worried about their billion
dollar nuclear business deals and commissions and kickbacks. The Tamil Nadu
Government also tends to treat us like dreaded terrorists and dangerous
criminals.
The police have shot down an unarmed civilian
Anthony John at Manappadu coastal village. Several people including a small
baby are said to be missing. Some 53 nonviolent protesters, men and women, are
charged with sedition and waging war on the State cases and are languishing in
distant prisons in Tamil Nadu. Thousands and thousands of families are living
in fear and despair.
We do not expect or want any awards or
accolades for practicing democracy and protesting in a nonviolent manner. But
can’t we be treated with a little bit of humanness, civility and dignity? Who
should we turn to? Who could we talk to? The Chief Minister may not even see
this. Her arrogant upper caste advisors may say everything bad about us and our
lower caste people.
We would request the Chief Minister to stop
fuelling the KKNPP, remove police from our area, provide compensation for the
people who lost their boats, vehicles and household items, and release those
who are arrested.
We thank all the leaders and members of
various political parties, social movements, lawyer associations, fishermen
associations, student groups, labor unions, village committees and other
organizations in Tamil Nadu and other states for organizing various
demonstrations and agitations in support of our struggle. We would solicit
their continued support for our struggle and for the above-mentioned immediate
demands as well.
The Struggle Committee
People’s Movement
Against Nuclear Energy
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