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The UK House of Lords debate on India and Human Rights
13th August 2021
On 22 July 2021, Lord Harries of Pentregarth (Co-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Dalits) opened a debate in the House of Lords on India and Human Rights. Whilst expressing his enormous admiration for those in India, and appreciating their long history of discussion and debate, he also raised his sadness over the rise of nationalism and increasing denial of fundamental human rights.
Aside from the lack of academic freedom, Lord Harries mentioned the targeting of journalists; human rights groups who have had bank accounts frozen and been denied travel visas; Muslims who have suffered attacks stemming from an anti-Muslim Hindutva policy and their lack of inclusion in the new terms of the Citizenship Amendment Act; Christians who have tried to escape the stigma of being ‘untouchable’; and Dalits. Lord Harries was keen to point out that while the Indian constitution is in many ways admirable, including its emphasis on equality for all, being born into ‘untouchability’ is worse than slavery and requires more than legislation to remove it. Dalits suffer disproportionately by every indicator, and as many are bonded or day labourers, they are particularly vulnerable to abuse and a lack of access to justice. Currently there are 24 Dalit activists being detained under anti-terrorism laws, and this is unacceptable.
India is on the UN Human Rights Council, and as such, it must be held to certain commitments. He urged that submissions should be made at the highest level to encourage change.
Lord Parekh and Baroness Verma both acknowledged that there were some issues that still needed to be considered, including the treatment of Dalits, but warned that with such a large population, incidents were inevitable and that the situation should not be exaggerated. Lord Parekh pointed out that while independent India has adopted positive discrimination, there is still a long way to go and that there needs to be a greater sense of urgency. However, while India welcomes critical advice, it should be accompanied by humility and based on a sympathetic understanding of India’s culture. Baroness Verma added that over the last seven or eight years the government has embedded policies to improve equality, particularly for women, including protection from the Muslim Triple Talaq divorce law. However, she argued that the UK has a habit of ‘lobbing charges into India without contextualising the progress that has been made’, and that when pointing fingers, we have our own prejudicial barriers. Baroness Verma criticised the number of commentaries coming from the House of Lords without providing evidence of the accusations being levelled, and voiced her concern that many of the comments were inflammatory.
Lord Hussein agreed that the current human rights record ‘paints a very dark picture’ in some areas, with daily life for Muslims and Christians becoming a daily struggle under the Hindutva far-right influence. The violence against the Dalit community never seems to end and he questioned why India has not been mentioned in the Foreign & Commonwealth Office’s latest report on Human Rights. Lord Singh added that under the current government, with its desire to become a Hindu state, Muslims and Dalits continue to suffer brutality.
The Earl of Sandwich, Lord Cashman and Lord Collins of Highbury expressed that it was important that as friends of India we should be able to speak out much more often and more loudly. Despite the deterioration of Human Rights, India has shielded itself from international criticism due to its economic prospects and the desire of other countries to solidify trade agreements. Lord Cashman in particular wants reassurance from the UK government that when strengthening its ties, it ensures that there are human rights clauses included within any agreement, while Lord Collins asked what would be done to end violence against Dalit Women.
Lord Alton quoted Dr Ambedkar, one of the founding fathers of India’s constitution: ‘If I find the constitution being misused, I will be the first to burn it.’ Again, the denial of rights to Dalits, despite this constitution, and the dubious sedition laws being used to arrest and detain opposition voices was mentioned. Though he praised the British High Commission project to provide legal training for women his concern was that the high levels of rape perpetrated against them was not given enough significance. Furthermore, Covid has had more impact on Dalits as bonded or daily labourers, further deteriorating their well-being. This was also cited by Baroness Northover, along with her concern that the FCDO has not taken this into account when looking at funding. It was also noted that Freedom House has downgraded India to being only ‘partly free’.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister of State for the Commonwealth and United Nations at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, responded to the questions by stating his credentials as both the minister responsible for relationships with India and the Minister for Human Rights. He agreed with Lord Parekh and Baroness Verma about the UK’s relationship with India and its importance, and stated he has engaged in candid discussions with his counterparts. At the G7 partners committed to tackle all forms of discrimination, and media freedom plays an important role in that. However, everyone recognises that human rights work is never done. This month the 2020 Human Rights and Democracy Report from the FCDO was published and the UK has stepped up its efforts all over the world, including in its close collaboration with India to provide oxygen during the Covid pandemic. He added that just because a country is not specifically mentioned in the Human Rights Report, it doesn’t mean that these issues are not raised with the relevant countries. Furthermore, the Foreign Secretary has raised a number of issues, including the position of Kashmir, minorities communities and religious communities. They have also asked for Amnesty India’s funds to be unfrozen in order for them to continue their crucial work. Meanwhile the government’s ‘recent project work with the Dalits has included the provision of legal training for over 2,000 Dalit women to combat domestic violence and the creation of the first ever network of Dalit women human rights defenders trained as paralegals.’ Lord Ahmad concluded by assuring the other members that the UK government would continue to engage with India on various issues, including trade, of which human rights will remain a central part.
Online Caste-Hate Speech – A Growing Concern
6th April 2021
On 22 March a side-event to the 46th Session of the UN Human Rights Council highlighted the impact of caste-hate speech on-line and what could be done to combat it. The keynote speaker was Dr. Fernand de Varennes, UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, who argued that ‘Dehumanization of minorities such as Dalits through use of hate-speech is a precursor to violence.’ The event was also used as a launching pad for IDSN’s excellent report on Caste-hate speech researched by Dr Murali Shanmugavelan, with support from the IDSN team.
In the UK we are well aware of the impact of hate speech on social media, the effects of bullying and the consequent mental health problems that can arise. But one of the issues that needs to be confronted globally is how platforms deal with this kind of behaviour, regardless of whether one is in India or Great Britain. While traditional media are liable for harmful consequences, social media is not held up to the same standards. Bigotry can grow exponentially when groups of like-minded people find each other in an anonymous setting, having their opinions reinforced and leading to groupthink that can have devastating real-world consequences. And this can often happen with complete impunity.
As part of the general movement to end hate-speech in all its forms, focus on casteism requires a particular response – namely involving those in moderation roles from the affected communities, who understand the nuances of what is being said. While many in South Asia would be aware of what counts as a casteist slur, in the UK few outside the Diaspora would understand, and therefore much of what is posted online raises no red flags.
In the UK we have enough difficulty getting the government to take caste-based discrimination seriously – the repeal to include ‘caste’ in the Equality Act is intended, but has not gone through yet. Consequently, social media companies have no legislation to adhere to and therefore no necessity to take down caste hate-speech when it pops up online. Don’t think that it’s happening here? Just as an example, those in the UK expressing support for the Farmers’ Protest in India have received a disturbing amount of abuse online, and as many agricultural workers are Dalits, you can imagine the sort of language that is being used.
Nevertheless, we would encourage anyone who encounters caste-hate speech on-line to report it both to moderators and to DSN-UK via our Report Everyday Casteism form. Unless we hold social media companies responsible, we are unlikely to see change.
ARISA Hosts a Session on Caste-Based Discrimination
4th March 2021
‘Caste-based discrimination, an Invisible Issue in the Garment Industry in South Asia’ was presented by IDSN, READ (India), ETI (UK) and Advocating Rights in South Asia (ARISA, Netherlands) on 25th February, with our Director Meena Varma amongst the line-up. There were participants from the Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, Norway, India and the UK, consisting of both NGOs and companies from the garment industry, ably hosted by Sandra Claassen from ARISA.
Kicking off the proceedings, Meena introduced the issue of caste-based discrimination and why it needs to be addressed. She emphasised the key labour rights issues arising from caste discrimination, including bonded and forced labour, no rights to freedom of association, hazardous and poor working conditions, child labour, low pay, longer working hours, gender discrimination and sexual harassment. Some disturbing figures were given, including that in the carpet industry 20% of all workers are children under the age of 14. Of particular worry right now, following on from the pandemic, is that some states in India have sanctioned extensive relaxations of key labour laws, citing the need for economic recovery – but without considering the increased discrimination against Dalits. Meena stressed how important it was to address the situation, and that companies should adopt solutions from the ETI Caste in Global Supply Chains Guidance document.
This presentation was followed by Karuppasamy from READ (a former DSN-UK project partner), who gave case studies from a Survey on Caste-Based Discrimination in the Textile Supply Chain. Focusing on textile workers in Tamil Nadu, he highlighted how women are facing intersectional discrimination, and are recruited through multiple exploitative schemes: only 40% of workers in the industry are permanent. Karuppasamy emphasised that as soon as a caste name is given, Dalits are treated differently, and many workers have to apply multiple times for a job. Indeed, 68% of workers believe there is caste discrimination in the industry, with 72% suffering abuse by management on the basis of caste and 78% claiming that there is discrimination amongst co-workers. ‘Lower’ caste workers say that overtime and target completion disproportionately fall on them, with little ability to question management, as they are voiceless. Untouchability practices are common: Dalits can’t drink from the common drinking system and must bring their own bottles from home and eat separately from other workers as so-called ‘upper’ caste people consider that sharing food and drinking water with Dalits is a curse. Disturbingly, 90% of lower caste workers are not part of a committee (chosen by management), so that the interests of Dalit workers are completely ignored. Wages differ based on caste, as do promotions, and on industry transportation Dalits must not touch ‘upper’ caste workers or sit next to them on buses, often leaving them to travel standing up. Lastly, 61% of lower caste workers say that they don’t have the same access to accident compensation, and often there is only first aid treatment in government or private hospitals, but for other treatment they must bear the medical expenses themselves.
Glenn Bradley from Hardscape UK presented next, giving a personal insight with ‘My Journey to Understanding and Addressing Dalit Rights and Caste-Based Discrimination in our Supply Chains’. He took the audience through his journey of discovery while working in the natural stone sector, and the difficulties in convincing his suppliers to treat Dalits equally after witnessing the levels of discrimination. Despite being involved in the industry since 1999, it wasn’t until 2012 that he saw real change as the ETI base code was rolled out and ETI’s Rajasthan Sandstone Working Group was set up. This began a process to educate, inform and support, identifying who were Dalits within the staff and ensuring that they had PPE and equipment on the same level as other workers. A process of training people, not just Dalits, of their rights and the importance of participation took place, aiming to change the attitudes of the entire staff on equality. Glenn stressed that there were six steps necessary to resolve the problem in the industry: education and training; political lobbying; mark 1 eyeball in supply chains; pressure for honesty; teach Indian suppliers that this is a human rights violation; and not purchasing from suppliers where discrimination was still evident. He finished by stressing that if a company wants to call themselves ethical, they need to go past the gimmicks and consider human rights to bring about meaningful change.
Finally, Peter McAllister from ETI UK presented ‘Key Messages for Businesses on how to address Caste in Global Supply Chains’. He argued that applying the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights means identifying salient risk. Due to the high numbers of migrant and seasonal workers, and particularly Dalit workers, there is considered to be a high risk of caste-based discrimination in South Asian supply chains. Although companies may carry out audits on their suppliers, they are typically blind to the presence of caste-based discrimination, and unaware that Dalits, particularly women, are vulnerable to abuse, discrimination, long hours, sexual harassment, child and forced labour. Therefore, it is essential to assume that caste is a potential risk factor and enhanced due diligence is needed. Regular social audits are not enough, and instead it is important to increase internal awareness by working with local experts to help promote change in the workplace. Peter was keen to point out that companies tackling caste-based discrimination shouldn’t expect problems to be solved in a year, and that it requires commitment and hard work.
All in all, it was a highly successful session, with a varied group of speakers that went beyond the theoretical and into real-life experience. ARISA and the participating groups hope that the companies who attended will start to consider caste-based discrimination with greater intent to make change.
Casteism in the US: Entrepreneurs and a new report on Indian American attitudes
19th February 2021
We continue to cover stories of the South Asian diaspora across the globe. And in America, there have been a couple of interesting articles that have come out over the last week.
As is well known, many US companies employ Indian immigrants to work in technology and, as has only recently been revealed, casteism seems to follow them. The statistics suggest that less than 2 per cent of the Indian immigrants that make up senior executives in the US are from ‘lower’ castes. At junior levels, when an employee’s caste is discovered, they may be ousted from social circles, have their work criticised where previously there were no complaints and have difficulty getting promoted. However, it seems that some have taken advantage of immigration to the US by setting themselves up as entrepreneurs, free from the hierarchy of ‘caste’, where there is the belief that business trumps all. Yet despite this, some who have reported on their success as an entrepreneur prefer not to be named, as even a surname can denote one’s caste and leave one open to criticism.
The other article of note discusses how significant the impact of Indian Americans is on government and policy. Making up the second-largest migrant population and just over 1% of the total population of the US, Vice-President Kamala Harris, whose mother is Indian, is probably the most high-profile example of Indian Americans holding a political position. Consequently, it has become increasingly important to gather information on the concerns and beliefs of South Asians.
The research was carried out by the Carnegie Endowment for National Peace, and covers a wide range of subjects. Interestingly, the issue of casteism was rated 7th most concerning in the list of top issues in India, behind Government Corruption, Economy, Religious Majoritarianism, Healthcare, China and Terrorism, but before Education, Income Inequality, Environment/Climate Change, and Sexism/Gender Discrimination. It was the first issue of concern for just 6% of Indian Americans, the second for 11% and third for 9%. The low figures perhaps reflect the proportion of so-called ‘higher’ caste members within the diaspora, to whom caste is of little relevance – as discrimination does not affect them – backed up by associating the figures for the level of support for Modi, the BJP and Hindu nationalism.
The report provides some very interesting information, but it also highlights that there is still a lot to do in terms of raising awareness of casteism amongst these US citizens.
Caste discrimination continues its journey – now within the Australian diaspora
11th February 2021
It was great news to hear that Australia, back in 2018, passed a motion to urge the government to take action on fighting caste-based discrimination. It requested that, amongst more international aims, the government considered interventions in inclusive recruitment practice and management practice in all business partners.
ABC National Radio recently broadcast a programme about caste-based discrimination amongst the South Asian diaspora in Australia. Disturbingly, there were many echoes of the forms that caste-based discrimination manifests here in the UK. As academic and filmmaker Vikrant Kishore says, ‘caste goes where South Asians go… Australia is no exception’. And while some South Asians in Australia take great pride in their ‘dominant’ caste – such as personalising their car license plates – others find the obsession with finding out people’s surnames (and thus their caste) deeply uncomfortable.
There are, of course, the typical stories that we’ve come to recognise throughout the diaspora, such as being evicted from rental apartments after their South Asian landlord found out the occupant was a Dalit, or refusing to let Dalits enter their house or eat food that they have touched. And much as with the dating app Shaadi.com in the UK, an Australian dating app called Dil Mil allows filters to match within ‘dominant’ castes but has no options for ‘lower’ caste groups. Even in the big cities, casteist slurs can be heard.
Perhaps one of the saddest stories is that of a man from Cairns whose father-in-law passed away. They were unable to find a priest to conduct the last rites, and certainly not one that would enter the house. In the end they found someone from Adelaide who gave directions over the phone as to how to perform the ritual. Even in death, casteism shows a disturbing lack of humanity.
Yes, this was a damning report on the situation in Australia, but what should give us hope was that the documentary maker herself came from an upper middle-class Asian background and had come to the realisation that her privileged position had made her blind to the casteism that surrounded her.
Recently we at DSN-UK have been approached by and are talking to others in the UK, previously caste-blind, now making strides both to educate themselves and raise awareness. We look forward to the day when rather than denying that caste-based discrimination exists, ‘dominant’ castes accept that they have been lucky enough to avoid the suffering that Dalits have endured, accept their role in its persistence and start working towards its abolishment.
The Hindu American Foundation file against the County of Santa Clara in the Cisco case
2nd February 2021
There are some stark parallels with the actions of the Hindu American Foundation in the US and those of the Hindu lobby here in the UK, who argue that inclusion of caste as a discriminatory factor in the Equality Act 2010 is a ‘hate crime’ against Hindus!
So to hear that the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) has filed to intervene in the case is deeply disturbing and indicates a lack of willingness to even discuss that caste-based discrimination exists. In amongst the wording of the case brought against Cisco, the State argues that caste is ‘a strict Hindu social and religious hierarchy’. This would contravene the First and Fourteenth Amendment rights of all Hindu Americans according to HAF’s Executive, Suhag Shukla, by attempting to define Hindu religious doctrine. The HAF has openly stated that they are anti-casteism, but their actions undermine the importance of the Cisco case by attempting to deflect the issue on to something else.
For those who are human rights activists, the decision by the State of California to sue tech giant Cisco for allowing caste-based discrimination to occur unchecked was a major breakthrough. It felt like there was finally some sign of responsibility taken by a government to tackle the issues of casteism imported by the South Asian diaspora, and that such behaviour would no longer go unnoticed. Most importantly of all, it was widely covered by a number of news outlets and raised awareness of the insidious nature of caste-based discrimination, and the ‘real life’ effects on individuals.
In effect, the HAF is accusing California of Hinduphobia. This, sadly, is a claim that activists have come up against repeatedly in the UK. During the Public Consultation on Caste-based Discrimination in the UK, the Hindu Forum repeatedly accused pro-legislation activists of trying to put blame on all Hindus and create a schism. It was erroneously claimed that DSN-UK was a Christian organisation (despite the fact that our Director was up for an award for Secularist of the Year) and that the concept of caste played no role in Hindu teachings. It is a moot point as to where casteism originated: the fact is that it is still taking place across the world, and our work is to end it, regardless of whether it affects or is perpetrated by Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, Sikhs or Christians – or indeed those of no faith.
It is nigh on impossible to have an open discussion about casteism today – those who are anti-legislation are immediately on the defensive as soon as the subject is mentioned. The fact of the matter is that, like any discrimination, it is perpetrated by individuals; what is unacceptable is that certain institutions (whether cultural or religious) allow it to happen and then go on to paint the perpetrators as victims. Until both sides join forces to eliminate it as a cultural norm or legislation provides adequate protection for victims, progress will continue to be slow.
The Impact of the UK’s Decision to reduce Foreign Aid
12th January 2021
Much has been made recently of the UK government’s decision to reduce the Foreign Aid budget to 0.5% of gross national income from its usual level of 0.7%. While times are indeed hard due to the financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic (and potentially due to get harder as a result of Brexit), this holds for nearly every country in the world at the moment. However, hardship for the UK is on a different level than hardship for countries in the developing world. We are fortunate enough to live in a place where we are both able and willing to fund our Public Borrowing. Other governments are not as well set up or lack the political desire to support those most in need.
According to the World Economic Forum, under the Principled Aid Index, the UK is the second most generous nation from the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee. So what impact will this 0.2% reduction have on tackling caste-based discrimination? While it’s difficult to quantify, we can put it in perspective. The top recipient of Foreign Aid from the UK in 2019 was Pakistan, while Bangladesh lay in 6th position and India in 17th – countries where the Dalit community requires the most help. Consequently, there is no doubt that a drop in foreign aid will mean that life will get most difficult for those most in need.
Lord Alton of Liverpool (a member of the APPG for Dalits), recently asked what assessment the government made of reports that minorities are being persecuted in India, which has increased during the Covid-19 pandemic, and the marginalisation of the Dalit community. In response, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon said that the human rights situation is continually assessed, and that in 2016-18 they funded a project in Uttar Pradesh empowering 400 Dalit human rights defenders to challenge discrimination and violence against Dalit women. It is devastating to think that projects such as these risk being cancelled because of the cut in foreign aid funding.
Previously we were among the few countries that have hit the UN’s target of 0.7%, but we are also in an exceptionally fortunate position: we have unemployment benefits for those laid off, as most workers are registered and on contracts of one sort or another, and we have a number of incredible charities that provide shelter, food banks and clothing for those most in need. Of course, it’s not perfect, but in the UK you rarely hear of people starving to death, dying because of poor sanitation or being denied access to help just because of their caste. The same cannot be said of those countries where caste-based discrimination occurs – they are the most vulnerable at the best of times, and suffer the most at the worst of times. One can only hope that the government’s reduction in Foreign Aid will be very, very temporary.
News from DSN-UK’s 2020 AGM
24th November 2020
This year’s Annual General Meeting, held on 5th November, was a bittersweet event. While DSN-UK has had lots to celebrate, it was also time to say goodbye to two significant people in the organisation.
Corinne Lennox, our Chair, was at the helm and was delighted to welcome such a large number of attendees from across the globe for our first Virtual AGM. The Annual Report & Accounts were presented by Kate Solemeyina, DSN-UK Treasurer and she was pleased to announce that for the year ending March 2020, our accounts are looking healthy, and despite the pressures that the pandemic and lockdown have caused, we have good reserves to see us through the next few months – though future funding, as always, remains a priority.
We welcomed a new trustee, voted in at this meeting. Bala Gnanapragasam has been a Labour councillor for the London borough of Lewisham, and served on a number of charitable bodies, including Change Alliance (India), Age Exchange and Christian Aid. We welcome his skills to the Board and look forward to working with him.
Meena Varma took us through the Annual Review and the highlights and challenges over the last year, and Danni Kleinaityte presented our newest campaign on ‘Everyday Casteism’.
The highlight of the event was two incredible presentations. The first came from Andrés Huesos of WaterAid discussing the ongoing issues of sanitation workers, particularly in the light of the Covid-19 crisis, and what steps need to be taken in order to change the current situation. This was followed by Bezwada Wilson from Safai Karmachari Andolan, reflecting on the 10 years since the DSN-UK campaign ‘Foul Play – End Manual Scavenging’ and the impact in India. Both presentations are available here.
On a sadder note, David Haslam has stepped down from the Board after twenty years’ service to DSN-UK. A founding member of the charity, many of the AGM’s attendees gave testament to what an inspiring figure he has been over the years, and the energy and effort he has put into supporting the cause of ending caste-based discrimination.
The second member of the team leaving us is Meena Varma, our Director, who has seen the charity through significant changes. Danni prepared a wonderful tribute in the form of a video to celebrate the highlights of Meena’s time with us, and honorary chair Jeremy Corbyn gave a speech in which he praised both her dedication and determination to change things. Several other members also added their thanks to her, and we wish her the best in her role as Executive Director at the International Dalit Solidarity Network.
Our thanks go out to the Board, our special guests and all the attendees for a highly successful event.
Director of DSN-UK to step down to lead global network
26th October 2020
Dalit Solidarity Network UK are sad to announce the departure of our Director, Meena Varma, who has been at the helm of our organisation for over 13 years. As some of you will know, she has been working full-time for both DSN-UK and our sister organisation, the International Dalit Solidarity Network, for the last few years, dedicating a huge amount of her time to keeping both charities running effectively. She has now decided that it is time to focus her efforts on IDSN and ensure that the issues of caste-based discrimination are kept on the agenda on the global stage. Under her directorship she has played a significant role in trying to implement legislative change to the Equality Act 2010, assisted in setting up the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Dalits, and run a number of incredibly successful campaigns that have raised awareness throughout the UK. Her expertise has been called upon by numerous parliamentarians, journalists and activists, and her wealth of knowledge, unflagging energy and absolute passion for justice will be sorely missed. We wish her the very best of luck for the future.
Our Chair, Dr Corinne Lennox, has written a note about Meena and her contributions, which you will find below.
Launch of DSN-UK Report Everyday Casteism campaign
19th October 2020
Today DSN-UK is launching our ‘Report Everyday Casteism’ campaign to collect evidence of caste-based discrimination and casteist hate speech in the UK experienced by non-dominant caste people. Our dedicated webpage has a succinct reporting form with an option to remain anonymous. Everyone who has faced casteist behaviour in the UK is encouraged to submit incidents that might be serious or negligible, very offensive or so minor and normalised that you do not even give it much thought or feel the need to protest.
DSN-UK together with other like-minded organisations in the UK campaigned to include caste in the Equality Act 2010. However, after the public consultation on caste, the UK government announced its decision to repeal the duty in the Equality Act 2010 to make caste an explicit aspect of race discrimination. Since then, MP Bob Blackman has been pushing to ensure this is done as soon as possible.
We have often faced the challenge of providing enough concrete evidence on how widespread the issue of caste-based discrimination is in the UK. At the last DSN-UK Annual General Meeting suggestions were made of looking at the possibility of collecting everyday casteist incidents that may not reach courts or mass media attention. A catalogue of reported casteist incidents will strengthen our campaign by allowing us to illustrate how casteist behaviour manifests in the UK and what type of legislative or policy protections are needed to protect the victims and prevent such incidents in the future.
Report Everyday Casteism in the UK now and encourage others to do the same.