C. Flower
18-08-2011, 06:40 AM
There were mass demonstration all over India in the last few days in support of Anna Hazare, anti-corruption campaigner who plans to fast in public for two weeks.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/18/us-india-protest-idUSTRE77G0PF20110818
Anna Hazare, a 74-year-old Gandhian-style campaigner, was arrested on Tuesday, hours ahead of a planned fast until death for tougher laws against graft, sparking nationwide protests and putting the government on the backfoot as he stayed in jail.
"None of us is looking at this as a victory," Kiran Bedi, a former police officer and widely respected figure for her anti-graft drive, told Times Now television after helping negotiate permission for Hazare's public fast in the capital.
"We are not playing games. We are doing this to move the country forward," Bedi, who had herself also been briefly arrested.
The government, facing spontaneous protests by tens of thousands of people across Indian cities and villages, was forced to release Hazare, but he refused to leave the Tihar jail until he won the right to lead an anti-corruption protest.
Crowds outside the jail erupted in joy at news of the deal, reached early on Thursday shouting his name "Anna" and "we are with you," singing, playing guitar and waving the Indian flag. He is expected to go to the protest ground at 3 pm (5:30 a.m. ET).
A medical team is on standby to monitor Hazare's health, and a sharp deterioration could further worsen the crisis for the government.
A beleaguered Singh and his government had appeared at a loss over how to end the standoff and failing to grasp the mounting anger from India's growing urban middle class.
"It exposes how far removed the Manmohan Singh-led government is from popular sentiment. Were elections to be held today, the UPA (Congress party-led coalition) would have struggled to hold on to power," The Times of India said in an editorial. The next national polls are in 2014.
There's been a lot of anger against corruption expressed in the Arab Spring, in Ireland and now in the U.K., but as a political cause, it doesn't advance much. I remember seeing a local Councillor lose his seat to an anti-corruption candidate, who in turn was convicted of corruption after less than a year in office (not in Ireland ;)).
There's no such thing as clean capitalism, imo, the rich and powerful are always going to ignore the rules they apply to everyone else.
Delhi Police Arrests Anna Hazare, Aides - YouTube
TV9 - Protest Against Anna Hazare's Arrest At Udupi - YouTube
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/social-media/Anna-Hazares-anti-corruption-campaign-a-hit-on-YouTube-Facebook/articleshow/9634563.cms
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/18/us-india-protest-idUSTRE77G0PF20110818
Anna Hazare, a 74-year-old Gandhian-style campaigner, was arrested on Tuesday, hours ahead of a planned fast until death for tougher laws against graft, sparking nationwide protests and putting the government on the backfoot as he stayed in jail.
"None of us is looking at this as a victory," Kiran Bedi, a former police officer and widely respected figure for her anti-graft drive, told Times Now television after helping negotiate permission for Hazare's public fast in the capital.
"We are not playing games. We are doing this to move the country forward," Bedi, who had herself also been briefly arrested.
The government, facing spontaneous protests by tens of thousands of people across Indian cities and villages, was forced to release Hazare, but he refused to leave the Tihar jail until he won the right to lead an anti-corruption protest.
Crowds outside the jail erupted in joy at news of the deal, reached early on Thursday shouting his name "Anna" and "we are with you," singing, playing guitar and waving the Indian flag. He is expected to go to the protest ground at 3 pm (5:30 a.m. ET).
A medical team is on standby to monitor Hazare's health, and a sharp deterioration could further worsen the crisis for the government.
A beleaguered Singh and his government had appeared at a loss over how to end the standoff and failing to grasp the mounting anger from India's growing urban middle class.
"It exposes how far removed the Manmohan Singh-led government is from popular sentiment. Were elections to be held today, the UPA (Congress party-led coalition) would have struggled to hold on to power," The Times of India said in an editorial. The next national polls are in 2014.
There's been a lot of anger against corruption expressed in the Arab Spring, in Ireland and now in the U.K., but as a political cause, it doesn't advance much. I remember seeing a local Councillor lose his seat to an anti-corruption candidate, who in turn was convicted of corruption after less than a year in office (not in Ireland ;)).
There's no such thing as clean capitalism, imo, the rich and powerful are always going to ignore the rules they apply to everyone else.
Delhi Police Arrests Anna Hazare, Aides - YouTube
TV9 - Protest Against Anna Hazare's Arrest At Udupi - YouTube
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/social-media/Anna-Hazares-anti-corruption-campaign-a-hit-on-YouTube-Facebook/articleshow/9634563.cms