The Hindu : Arundhati Roy supports tribals' cause

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 23, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Kerala

Arundhati Roy supports tribals' cause

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI FEB. 22. A couple of days after the police firing on tribals in Wayanad district of Kerala, the Booker Prize-winning author, Arundhati Roy, today lent her voice to their ``struggle for land and justice''.

In a letter to the Kerala Chief Minister, A. K. Antony, the activist-author noted that it was ``the unforgivable and cynical delay in delivering the land promised by the Government of Kerala to the poorest and the most needy of people that has resulted in an unfortunate and needlessly brutal confrontation that would make any citizen of Kerala ashamed.''

Expressing solidarity with the cause of tribals, Ms. Roy urged the Chief Minister to ensure that C. K. Janu and other adivasis remanded to police custody and others arrested were treated humanely and in accordance with the law.

``This is to urge you to make sure that no further brutality takes place while they are in police custody. It is your responsibility to ensure that the arrested people are not subjected to any form of physical violence and that the women will not be sexually harassed.''

She underlined the need for bringing police and Government officials involved in the action against tribals to book.

Her letter, she explains, is not just to lend voice to the tribals' struggle and ensure their security, but to ``urge you to see that the police and officials who embarked on an inexcusable spree of violence are tried and punished under the same Indian law''.

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