[WSMDiscuss] India in movement… : Fwd: VICTORY THE PEOPLE ! TN govt orders permanent closure of Vedanta group's Sterlite plant in Tuticorin | India News - Times of India

Tue May 29 17:55:07 CEST 2018

Tuesday, May 29, 2018

In follow-up to my post yesterday :

Hi Dave, on World Social Movement Discuss

And hi Patrick on Debate

And cc on other lists where I did my post :

            Thanks for this and for your enthusiastic responses to my (enthusiastic) post.  But unfortunately, I think that reality is perhaps a little different, and more complicated – as it often is, after the first glance, and where I myself had said in my post I was in disbelief.  (I should have trusted my instinct, though perhaps like so many of us, am constantly struggling with my tendency to be cynical about good news…)

            In short, and where this is just an interim follow-up to my post, the first thing is that we now have in hand (a draft translation into English) of the original (in Tamil) of the statement that has been issued by the Chief Minister of the state of Tamil Nadu, and as Leo Saldanha of ESG (Environment Support Group in Bangalore) has written to comment on another list :

This is all a drama. The closure order is super weak and the Govt expects it to be challenged by Vedanta, and the order will be stayed.  If then the Govt fights to protect its closure order, there will be some hope. But on what grounds will the Govt fight? As it is one of the most flawed closure orders I have seen in a long long time.

This is paving the road for Vedanta to come back stronger.  And to claim the Govt did its best to stop that from happening 

            So that is the first, and very sobering, reality – and so we should put on hold whatever celebrations we may have started about this “closure”.  (Thanks, Leo.)  (I am not posting the translation here as yet, because as I say it is so far only a draft translation.)

            Second, and even though I’m not posting the draft translation, I’m copy pasting in here my reaction to the draft on the list where it appeared :

… it is absolutely stunning to see the audacious mendacity of the Statement, where the Chief Minister / government says NOTHING in this statement about the massive people’s protests that [have actually] forced them to take this step, or about the killings by police – let alone acknowledging responsibility - and instead it has turned the issue around and claimed the moral high ground by saying that Amma’s [referring to the late Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Jayalalitha, who the party in power worships] government has, in effect, been in favour of this shutdown ever since the first complaint by the people of Tuticorin [“On 23.03.2013, people of the district complained of eye irritation, due to a gas leak emanating from the factory”], have taken steps towards it, etc etc – and so, and in short, that it has hidden the actual, criminal, recent history of the [events leading up to the closure] and claimed all the credit.

[end quote]

            We now therefore have to see how the local movement and their supporters read the Statement and what steps they take in response to what seems to me to be this grossly mendacious act by the government; and then measure our further responses…

            I’m not sure that apologising for the enthusiasm of my post makes sense, but I in any case regret raising hopes unduly high.

            JS

> On May 28, 2018, at 12:44 PM, Ranney, David C <dranney at uic.edu> wrote on WSMDiscuss :
> 
> Great news! Congratulations to all the activists and to the people of India.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone
> 

> On May 28, 2018, at 11:49 AM, Patrick Bond <pbond at mail.ngo.za> wrote on Debate :
> 
> Thanks Jai, this is great news, coming two months before Brazil-Russia-India-China-SA gangsters - including the charlatan-riddled BRICS Business Council - meet in Johannesburg, 25-27 July. 
> 
>     From a corporate standpoint, a brilliant personification of BRICS-from-above collaboration against people and nature would be Vedanta's Anil Agarwal - who has recently bought 20% of the Anglo American Corporation.
> 
>     Yesterday at a United Front-Joburg meeting, a decision was taken by several organisations to launch a brics-from-below project called the Break the BRICS coalition, so as to counter-summit the BRICS with information and inspiration of the sort below. 
> 
>     For more on the potentials for bottom-up solidarity against the likes of Agarwal, see the excellent network http://www.foilvedanta.org/ <http://www.foilvedanta.org/> ... which also highlights Agarwal's dastardly deeds in Zambia, and a superb resistance spirit. Soon we'll be announcing more online information about solidarity that puts on the pressure on the likes of Vedanta, to voetsek!
> 
> Patrick
> 

> On May 28, 2018, at 8:11 AM, JS CACIM <jai.sen at cacim.net <mailto:jai.sen at cacim.net>> wrote:
> 
>> Monday, May 28, 2018
>> 
>> India in movement…
>> 
>> [I’m in some disbelief… just got this news… we’ve won this battle !  More to the point, the people have won !  The government in Tamil Nadu has actually ordered the permanent – permanent – shutdown of the Vedanta-Sterlite plant in Tuticorin !  (And even if not all of Vedanta’s plants, which was what the movement has demanded.)  And specifically, because of the people’s demand.
>> 
>> [And where so what some call revolutionary non-violence can indeed win.  And so, and even while we need to reflect on how and why this resistance and protest worked – where others haven't –, here is the good news :
>> 
>> Tamil Nadu govt orders permanent closure of Vedanta group's Sterlite plant in Tuticorin
>> 
>> Times of India
>> 
>>             Hallelujah !  Jai andolan !  (Jai in andolan !)  Spread the word !  And thanks, Namrata and ESG for this amazing heads up !
>> 
>>             JS
>> 
>> fwd
>> 
>>> Begin forwarded message:
>>> 
>>> From: Jai Sen <jai.sen2000 at gmail.com <mailto:jai.sen2000 at gmail.com>>
>>> Subject: Fwd: TN govt orders permanent closure of Vedanta group's Sterlite plant in Tuticorin | India News - Times of India
>>> Date: May 28, 2018 at 8:51:00 AM EDT
>>> To: Jai Sen <jai.sen at cacim.net <mailto:jai.sen at cacim.net>>
>> 
>> 
>> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
>> From: Namrata Kabra <namrata at esgindia.org <mailto:namrata at esgindia.org>>
>> Date: 28 May 2018 at 08:18
>> Subject: TN govt orders permanent closure of Vedanta group's Sterlite plant in Tuticorin | India News - Times of India
>> To: Coalition for Environmental Justice in India <coalition-for-environmental-justice-in-india at googlegroups.com <mailto:coalition-for-environmental-justice-in-india at googlegroups.com>>
>> 
>> 
>> 
>>> 
>>> https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/sterlite-plant-in-tuticorin-to-be-shut-down-permanently-orders-tn-govt/articleshow/64355727.cms <https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/sterlite-plant-in-tuticorin-to-be-shut-down-permanently-orders-tn-govt/articleshow/64355727.cms>
>>> 
>>> TN govt orders permanent closure of Vedanta group's Sterlite plant in Tuticorin
>>> 
>>> TUTICORIN: The Tamil Nadu <https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/tamil-nadu> government on Monday ordered permanent closure of Vedanta group's copper plant <https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/copper-plant> in Tuticorin, days after 13 people died in police action during anti-Sterlite protests. 
>>> 
>>> The state government has asked the TN Pollution Control Board to seal the copper plant. 
>>> 
>>> "Today, the main demand of the people is that the copper plant should be permanently closed. In keeping with their demand, it is shut now. I would like to make it clear that Sterlite plant <https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/Sterlite-plant> will be permanently shut," state deputy CM Panneerselvam said earlier today. 
>>> 
>>> Large-scale violence on May 22 against the Sterlite copper plant and police firing led to the death of 12 persons and the next day saw one more youth succumbing to injuries sustained in police firing. 
>>> 
>>> Sterlite Copper is a unit of Vedanta Ltd which operates a 400,000-tonne per annum capacity plant here.  
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> ______________________________
>> 
>> Jai Sen
>> 
>> jai.sen at cacim.net <mailto:jai.sen at cacim.net>
>> www.cacim.net <http://www.cacim.net/> / http://www.openword.net.in <http://www.openword.net.in/>
>> Now based in New Delhi, India (+91-98189 11325) and in Ottawa, Canada, on unceded Anishinaabe territory (+1-613-282 2900) 
>> 
>> CURRENT / NEW publications :
>> 
>> Jai Sen, ed, 2018b – The Movements of Movements, Part 1 : What Makes Us Move ?, Indian edition.  New Delhi : Authors Upfront, in collaboration with OpenWord and PM Press.  Hard copy available at MOM1AmazonIN <https://www.amazon.in/dp/9387280101/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1522884070&sr=8-2&keywords=movements+of+movements+jai+sen>, MOM1Flipkart <https://www.flipkart.com/the-movements-of-movements/p/itmf3zg7h79ecpgj?pid=9789387280106&lid=LSTBOK9789387280106NBA1CH&marketplace=FLIPKART&srno=s_1_1&otracker=search&fm=SEARCH&iid=ff35b702-e6a8-4423-b014-16c84f6f0092.9789387280106.SEARCH&ppt=Search%20Page>, and MOM1AUpFront <http://www.authorsupfront.com/movements.htm>
>> Jai Sen, ed, 2017 – The Movements of Movements, Part 1 : What Makes Us Move ?.  New Delhi : OpenWord and Oakland, CA : PM Press.  Ebook and hard copy available at PM Press <http://www.pmpress.org/>
>> Recent publications :
>> 
>> Jai Sen, ed, 2016a  – The Movements of Movements, Part 1 : What Makes Us Move ?  and Jai Sen, ed, 2016b – The Movements of Movements, Part 2 : Rethinking Our Dance (both forthcoming in 2017 from New Delhi : OpenWord and Oakland, CA : PM Press), ADVANCE PREFINAL ONLINE MOVEMENT EDITIONS @ www.cacim.net <http://www.cacim.net/>
>> FORTHCOMING PUBLICATIONS  :
>> 
>> Jai Sen, ed, 2018 – The Movements of Movements, Part 2 : Rethinking Our Dance.  Volume 5 in the Challenging Empires series (New Delhi : OpenWord and Oakland, CA : PM Press)
>> 
>> CHECK OUT CACIM @ www.cacim.net <http://www.cacim.net/>, OpenWord @ http://www.openword.net.in <http://www.openword.net.in/>, and OpenSpaceForum @ www.openspaceforum.net <http://www.openspaceforum.net/>
>> 
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______________________________

Jai Sen

jai.sen at cacim.net <mailto:jai.sen at cacim.net>
www.cacim.net <http://www.cacim.net/> / http://www.openword.net.in

Now based in New Delhi, India (+91-98189 11325) and in Ottawa, Canada, on unceded Anishinaabe territory (+1-613-282 2900) 

CURRENT / NEW publications :

Jai Sen, ed, 2018b – The Movements of Movements, Part 1 : What Makes Us Move ?, Indian edition.  New Delhi : Authors Upfront, in collaboration with OpenWord and PM Press.  Hard copy available at MOM1AmazonIN <https://www.amazon.in/dp/9387280101/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1522884070&sr=8-2&keywords=movements+of+movements+jai+sen>, MOM1Flipkart <https://www.flipkart.com/the-movements-of-movements/p/itmf3zg7h79ecpgj?pid=9789387280106&lid=LSTBOK9789387280106NBA1CH&marketplace=FLIPKART&srno=s_1_1&otracker=search&fm=SEARCH&iid=ff35b702-e6a8-4423-b014-16c84f6f0092.9789387280106.SEARCH&ppt=Search%20Page>, and MOM1AUpFront <http://www.authorsupfront.com/movements.htm>
Jai Sen, ed, 2017 – The Movements of Movements, Part 1 : What Makes Us Move ?.  New Delhi : OpenWord and Oakland, CA : PM Press.  Ebook and hard copy available at PM Press <http://www.pmpress.org/>
Recent publications :

Jai Sen, ed, 2016a  – The Movements of Movements, Part 1 : What Makes Us Move ?  and Jai Sen, ed, 2016b – The Movements of Movements, Part 2 : Rethinking Our Dance (both forthcoming in 2017 from New Delhi : OpenWord and Oakland, CA : PM Press), ADVANCE PREFINAL ONLINE MOVEMENT EDITIONS @ www.cacim.net <http://www.cacim.net/>
FORTHCOMING PUBLICATIONS  :

Jai Sen, ed, 2018 – The Movements of Movements, Part 2 : Rethinking Our Dance.  Volume 5 in the Challenging Empires series (New Delhi : OpenWord and Oakland, CA : PM Press)

CHECK OUT CACIM @ www.cacim.net <http://www.cacim.net/>, OpenWord @ http://www.openword.net.in <http://www.openword.net.in/>, and OpenSpaceForum @ www.openspaceforum.net <http://www.openspaceforum.net/>
AND SUBSCRIBE TO World Social Movement Discuss, an open, unmoderated, and self-organising forum for the exchange of information and views on the experience, practice, and theory of social and political movement at any level (local, national, regional, and global), including the World Social Forum.  To subscribe, simply send an empty email to wsm-discuss-subscribe at lists.openspaceforum.net <mailto:wsm-discuss-subscribe at lists.openspaceforum.net>
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