Writers in India protesting government

[mrsukyankee]

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41 Indian writers return highest literary honour to protest against PM Narendra Modi

The writers have claimed that India has been experiencing growing intolerance since Prime Minister Narendra Modi assumed office. 

Dozens of writers have returned India’s highest literary honour to protest what they call a growing climate of intolerance in the country since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government took office.

So far 41 novelists, essayists, playwrights and poets had returned the awards they received from India’s prestigious literary academy, saying they cannot remain silent about numerous incidents of communal violence or attacks on intellectuals across the country over the past year.

The writers, who write in English as well as regional languages, are also angry that India’s National Academy of Letters has said little about the attack on the well-known rationalist Malleshappa Kalburgi, an award-winning writer in the Kannada language gunned down in August for his writings against superstition and false beliefs.

Internationally renowned novelist Salman Rushdie, who was born in Mumbai, has come out strongly in support of the Indian writers, saying the government’s silence is allowing a new “degree of thuggish violence” in India.

The government has dismissed the writers’ protests, questioning their motives and accusing them of being politically motivated.

“If they say they are unable to write, let them stop writing,” Mahesh Sharma, India’s minister for culture, told reporters, further aggravating the writers.

What has angered the writers is the growing climate of intolerance and the curbs on free speech to which they say they cannot remain mute spectators.

“It’s become a question of an individual’s right to speak, to think, to write, to eat, to dress, to debate,” said Maya Krishna Rao, a playwright and theater actress, who returned her award to the academy this week


My own words: Narendra Modi is the current Prime Minister of India.  He is criticised as being Anti-Muslim, misogynistic, far right conservative (wanting India to go back in time to when it was less 'Western', or in other words, male powered) and much to focused on corporate rights versus human rights. I think we'll see a lot more of these things happening as people feel empowered to attack 'liberal' views.  His party's view on rape is that it's due to 'moral decadence'.  He, like some of our Republican candidates, are feeding into the views of the uneducated masses but are supported by those in big business as well (who feel he'll make the economy great)...it's scary.

[erbear]

I can get behind this. Something new to change. I read a horrifying story this morning that made me want to vomit. Something has to change about the culture around rape.