Bengaluru: A book titled ‘Fr. Stan Swamy: A Moaist or a Martyr?’ by renowned activist and academician Fr Prakash Louis SJ will be released at Bangalore Press Club on Friday.
The death of 84-year-old renowned human rights activist, Fr. Stan Swamy in the judicial custody on July 5th, 2021, is considered by millions of Indians and conscious persons world over as an institutional murder. The state and the ruling elite and capitalist class, termed Fr. Stan Swamy a ‘Maoist’ and ‘anti-national’.
The book tries to unravel the life and mission of Fr Stan Swamy who spent over four decades accompanying the Adivasis of central India in their struggle to obtain Constitutional provisions. The book is being translated into Hindi, Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, Konkani, Telugu, Odiya, Marathi, Gujarati and Bengali.
As was evident, vested interests did not even show basic human concern for a 84-year-old senior person, a person who suffered due to Parkinson’s disease and other ailments at this time of the pandemic. It did not even have the normal legal consideration for a person who spent all his life among the Adivasis of central India when they falsely accused him of being connected with Bhima Koregaon case and interrogated him for long hours, arrested him under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, refused treatment and bail and finally led to his death in custody.
The Adivasis, masses of India and concerned and conscious citizens of this country consider him a martyr. They do so on this reason that this octogenarian spent his entire life for the emancipation of the Adivasis of central India who are exploited and oppressed by the dikus, that is, outsiders and exploiters.
The books speaks of Fr. Stan Swamy’s only crime which was that he understood the various provisions of the constitution and joined the Adivasis in their struggle to obtain these.
This book aims at presenting facts and figures, arguments and counter-arguments, dates and data to highlight this fact that Fr. Stan Swamy was a law abiding, constitution upholding and truth speaking citizen of this country. It also examines the fact that he was fundamentally associated with the lives and the struggles of the Adivasis of central India, whose lives, dignity and constitutional rights were his primary focus. To achieve this constitutional mandate, he aligned with the Adivasis, tribal activists and leaders, social and human rights activists and every conscious citizen. He saw, observed, researched the exploitation that the Adivasis are subjected to and spoke, wrote and approached the executive, the legislative and the judiciary of the country on the issues that affect the Adivasis.
The title of the book has conceived in this manner to show that the accusations labelled against Fr. Stan Swamy by the vested interests. The term Maoist is not used here to denote that the Maoists or Maoism is something fundamentally wrong and bad for this country. Like Nationalism, Socialism, and Secularism, Maoism is an ideological stand and a political option made by some people. Maoism or the Maoists are right in holding their view and ideology. But there are differences about the method used by them. But that does not make them anti-national. They are opposed to exploitation and structural injustices and mobilise people to resist these. Here this term is used to show what the state called likes of Fr. Stan Swamy, ‘Maoist’ and ‘anti-national’, etc.
This book begins with a Foreword, written by Gladson Dung Dung, a Tribal rights activist and writer who was a co-traveller with Fr. Stan Swamy in the struggle of the Adivasis for self-rule. The author Prakash Louis instead of writing a Preface has written ‘That we many not forget…’ so that all those who a re friends and well wishers not only remember Stan but remember the issues for which Stan dedicated his life. Prakash Louis also wants all the activists, human rights defenders and citizens of this country that 15 more persons who were falsely arrested in the name of Bhima Koregaon case are also languishing in the jail and we all need to carry out the struggle for their release. The first chapter presents A Brief Life Sketch of Stan. The second chapter narrates the events and highlights of the period from Bangalore to Bagaicha (Ranchi, Jharkhand). The third chapter sketches the crucial phase of Fr. Stan Swamy’s life Pathalgari to Bhima Koregaon. The fourth chapter elaborates the Issues and Struggles Stan was part of. The fifth chapter talks about Fr. Stan Swamy’s Arrest and Custodial Death. The sixth chapter presents The Uprising at his Martyrdom and the seventh chapter briefly presents the Way Forward. At the end there are the Writings of Fr. Stan Swamy and some references of the material used in this book.
The Indian Social Institute, Benson Town, Bangalore was the training ground for Fr. Stan Swamy. It is here he underwent training in social analysis and later became trainer too both at the institute and in the field. This text and context and the praxis drove him to become closer to the lives of the common masses of the country. From here when he went back to Chaibasa then Bihar and now Jharkhand, he was affected by the struggles of the Adivasis and that opened up his eyes to be part of their lives and struggles. Setting up of Bagaicha at that time came handy for Fr. Stan to be engaged in the study and action regarding the Constitutional provisions in favour of the Tribals of India.
It needs to be reiterated here that the last 200 years of struggles of the Adivasis for self-assertion and self-rule oriented Fr. Stan Swamy to be part of their struggles. For instance, in the past, whenever a struggle erupted to oppose displacement and land alienation, the Adivasis would say, “Jaan denge, par zameen nahi denge!” (We will give our lives, but will not give our land!). This was a slogan which united the exploited Tribals. But over the years, the tribal movements realised that though this slogan communicates the centrality of their struggle, it was defeatist in its purpose. Hence, they evolved another slogan, “Zameen nahi denge aur Jaan bhi nahi denge,!” (We will not give our land and will not give our life!).
In the mid-2010s, the Munda Adivasis of Jharkhand’s Khunti district began erecting stone slabs in their villages inscribed with the provisions of the Schedule Five of the Indian Constitution that grants special autonomy to tribal areas. This followed an age-old tradition of erecting stone slabs to demarcate ancestral lands by commemorating the contributions of ancestors and came to be known as the ‘Pathalgari Movement’. The Adivasi communities, tribal youth, tribal activists and other activists like Fr. Stan Swamy were drawn into this since it emerged from the people themselves. Also, it showed their resolve for self-dignity, self-rule and self-assertion.
However, the state’s then ruling dispensation projected the movement to be “anti-development and anti-national”. Without really going into the root cause of this movement, the government deployed paramilitary troops and police forces to suppress the movement. As the news of the repression spread, many people posted comments on social media about the government’s ruthless approach. The state government filed sedition cases against 20 activists, including Stan Swamy, on the basis of their Facebook posts stating that the government should engage in peaceful dialogue with the Adivasi people involved in Pathalgari movement rather than repressing it. This is the age-old trick used by the ruling elite to divert the attention from the real issues and to label the people who are resisting the sinister plans of the vested interests to appropriate tribal land and resources. But all those associated with this movement understood this ploy and were not disturbed by it.
At this juncture, one also acknowledges the contributions made by Tribal Martyrs like Birsa Munda; Poto Ho of Singhbhum; Bijay Manjhi and his sons Chandrai and Singharai of Littipara of Santhal Pargaanas; Chandaria was Sidhu, Kanu, Chand and Bhairav brother Martyrs of Santhal Parganas who revolted against the British colonisers to maintain Adivasis self-rule and rights over jal, jungle aur zamin. Later Antony Murmu and 14 other Santhals who were butchered by the police, administration and banias; and innumerable Adivasis who in the independent India were massacred when they opposed the state and the corporates. We also acknowledge the commitment and contributions of all those over 4,000 youth who are languishing in the jails of Jharkhand for opposing a oppressive and repressive state and exploitative capitalist class.
The Bhima Koregaon case has added more darkest pages of Indian history. It is more than three years that some of them arrested as ‘conspirators’ are still languishing in jail and those who instigated the violence are moving about freely. But this case became handy for the ruling elite to book many law abiding and conscious citizens and activists under the infamous Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act [UAPA]. It is under this extraordinary law or exploitative law Fr. Stan Swamy and 15 others were arrested.
In short, Jharkhandi Adivasis’ history can be described as, original masters of Land and Nature, with communitarian ownership and use of land through khuntkatti system tenants in a feudal tributary state, individual pattadars in a capitalist order, and lastly, deprived of land and other sources of sustenance, landless wage labourers. Stan saw in Ranchi town itself, they becoming wag labourers, cycle rickshaw pullers, domestic workers, etc. In his observation, studies, discussion and analysis saw innumerable Constitutional provisions for the rights of the Adivasis. He also realised these are framed not to be implemented but to be violated.
This book is dedicated to the Adivasis who were the real motivators of Fr. Stan Swamy, since it is their lives and struggles which inspired Stan to commit himself with them for their emancipation. I dedicate this book to all the Tribal activists, social activists, human rights activists, political and cultural activists, and others who like Stan accompany the Adivasis, Dalits, minorities and most backward caste and class citizens of this country for their rights and dignity. I dedicate this book to the 15 co-accused comrades in the Bhima Koregaon case and are languishing in jail, whose commitment and courage to establish rule of law, democratic values and constitutional principles in this country which is threatened by fascist, authoritarian, autocratic, undemocratic and anti-people policies and programs.
This book release is aimed at articulating and highlighting the rights and dignity of the Adivasis and in extension, the rights and dignity of all the excluded, exploited and oppressed masses of India. It is also aimed at highlighting the issues Fr. Stan Swamy was part of and the need to keep these issues a talking point and an action point. The book release is also planned to demand for the release of 15 of our friends and comrades who are incarcerated in Tajola jail for no mistake of theirs. It is also organised to demand for the release of all the political prisoners. It is also done to express this fact that an alternative idea is possible and in a democratic, socialist, republic and secular India, one can hold a view of one’s own and also strive to build a country where all the citizens irrespective of caste, class. Gender, religion, region, language and orientation can live and work together.
National Level Demands are:
- Repeal all the sedition law
- Repeal UAPA (and all other draconian laws, including state laws that allow preventive detention)
- Restore Citizen’s Right to Bail
- Release all Political Prisoners
- Fix accountability for filing false cases and charge the police and judicial officials who falsely arrested citizens of this country
- Compensate the victims who were falsely accused and incarcerated in jails
- Stop illegal detentions and weaponizing the criminal justice system.
Fr. Prakash Louis is an activist and academician; development practitioner and human rights defender. He has been working and writing on the issues of the Dalits, Tribals, Minorities and all marginalised communities. He holds a doctorate in Sociology of Social Movements and his thesis is published as People Power: The Naxalite Movement in Central Bihar. He was Executive Director of Indian Social Institute, New Delhi and Bengaluru; South Asia Director of Jesuit Refugee Services; Co-Founder of South Asian People’s Initiative; Initiator of Indian Christians for Democracy; etc. He was and is part of many organisations, forums, campaigns, networks and movements. Some of his works are: Extraordinary Laws in India, Political Sociology of Dalit Assertion, Indigenous Peoples’ Struggle for Self-Determination, Rights of the Minorities in India, Catholic Social Teachings, etc.