VFJ Conference at the LSE.jpg
Tipaimukh Dam Will Spell Humanitarian Disaster
Voice for Justice Inaugural Conference
London, August 9th, 2009
By Syed Nahas Pasha
BDNews24.com
London, August 11, 2009
(bdnews24.com)--The planned unilateral construction of Tipaimukh Dam by India
will have serious environmental, ecological, social and economic effects on the
millions of people of Bangladesh and northeastern India, speakers at a
conference at the London School of Economics warned.
The conference, dubbed world forum, of the Voice for Justice World Forum on
Sunday in London called upon the governments of Bangladesh and India to enter
into a joint feasibility study before construction of any dam for a fair and
equitable solution to the impending environmental catastrophe.
It also underlined that as an upper riparian country India has a clear moral and
legal obligation to consult Bangladesh before building any such dam.
Convenor of the World Forum of the Voice For Justice, a global human-rights and
justice organisation, Dr Hasanat Hussain MBE chaired the conference.
British treasury minister Stephen Timms congratulated the organisers for
convening its world forum in London. He told the conference that the British
government will always stand by the oppressed all over the world and work with
people's organisations such as VFJ to promote human rights and justice for the
poor and marginalised.
This was the first world forum of VFJ convened at the London School of Economics
by a coalition of its European, US, Canadian and Asian chapters. It was
participated, among others, by expatriate Bangladeshi academicians, experts, VFJ
members and a wide cross-section of people from the British-Bangladeshi
community in the UK.
Abdul Moyeen Khan, former planning and science minister, and Sabih Uddin, former
Bangladesh high commissioner to the UK, participated in the discussion via
internet.
Concerns were raised at the conference that the possible construction of any
such obstruction to common rivers will create humanitarian crisis for millions
of people who depend on the rivers Surma and Kushiara.
A paper was also presented at the conference by Dr K M A Malik of University of
Cardiff on Climate Change in South Asia with special reference to Bangladesh.
The conference also deliberated on two separate papers on 'Rights of Migrants
Workers in Gulf States' and 'Women's rights in Islam' presented by Dr Mahbub
Khan of California State University and Hasan Mahmud, Director of Sharia Law of
Muslim Canadian Congress, respectively.
Speakers stressed formal bilateral agreements between Bangladesh and other
migrant-sending states with the migrant-receiving states in the Gulf, where
serious allegations of violation of human rights and dignity of migrant works
have been widespread.
The conference called specially upon the migrant-receiving governments to
respect and prioritise the human rights of migrant workers who contribute to
their economies and also bring back millions of dollars in remittances for their
home countries, and yet receive very little in minimum wages, working
conditions, and job security in the host country.
In his paper on women's rights and Sharia, Hasan Mahmud reaffirmed that Islam
and the authentic Sharia promote and protect women's right in a most equitable
and just manner.
He regretted that the misinterpretation and distortion of these laws over time
due to social and cultural biases have led to discriminatory treatment of women
in many societies.
Professor Anthony Booth, Head of International Education, Christchurch
University, Kent, UK, Prof. Shamsul Islam Choudhury of Roosevelt University, US,
Dr. Abdur Rahman and Dr. Zakia Rahman of Limerick University, Ireland, Dr.
Stephanie Eaton of Kingston University, UK, Luthfur Rahman Choudhury and joint
convenors of the World Forum of Voice For Justice from London, Kent, Birmingham,
Manchester, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Newcastle joined in the question and answer
sessions at the end.
Voice For Justice Conference at the London School of Economics
August 9, 2009