The long dark tea time of the soul

  Dr Hanef has been in jail for more than a week. His crime: a. he is a cousin of the man who drove the explosive-laden jeep at Glasgow airport and had once taken a loan from that man. b. He lent his sim card to the brother of that man (his explanation that he wanted them to utilize the scheme of the mobile connection while leaving england is ignored), and c. he had a one-way ticket leaving australia the day after the bombing.

These are the times of terror. Governments across the world, especially those who have taken the front seat in fighting terror, have passed disgusting laws, in the garb of anti-terrorism. And claiming to be democracies, all these countries need cases to sell the laws to their constituencies. In Dr. Haneef, John Howard has got his prized possession. Dr Haneef being innocent is not a bar. Rightly enough, the australian students, judiciary and civil society have condemned the detention.

Because of his ‘crimes’ the aussie government have branded him a terrorist, cancelled his visa, arrested him after the court gave him bail and subjected him to solitary confinement. It took full 7 days for India to take notice of the matter and there was no signs of outrage in the officials. That an Indian citizen is pushed to harsh treatment abroad on trumped up charges, seems nothing of consequence to the leaders of the country. Had Dr. Md. Haneef been a white man, he would be treated such harshly by the aussies. If that is not racism, then what is. The public reaction was also muted with many claiming that the Australians should be allowed to follow their laws.

Not that India is a great country for upholding the human rights of its citizens. Our own records in fair treatment of alleged accomplices is pathetic. A voice inside me says that Dr. Haneef would have been in a far worse shape had he been arrested in India. But does that mean that we silently ignore what is happenning in Australia as a mere-unfortunate case. It is the responsibility of our foreign office, our government and our civil society that Indian citizens are treated with respect and laws conforming to international standards of justice.