<< Prev Page    PRESS ADVISORY December 13, 2002 284 U.S./South Asian Academics Call for Halt to IDRF Funding The pernicious effect of long-distance nationalism is the subject of a recent petition signed by over two-hundred and fifty South Asian faculty and South Asian studies professors from some of the top universities in the US. The petition asks US-based corporations to stop funding the India Development Relief Fund (IDRF), a popular US-based charity that has been funding organizations in India linked to hate and violence against minority communities.   A recent report entitled "The Foreign Exchange of Hate" reveals that the IDRF channels 80 percent of its funds to sectarian activities in India, although it claims to make donations to groups irrespective of caste, creed or religion. The IDRF has denied involvement in Hindu nationalist organizations, however, the report systematically documents the IDRF's connections to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the parent organization of the Hindu nationalist movement in India. This is documented through IDRF's own published materials and web-site links (For more information, go to: http://www.stopfundinghate.org ).   Companies like Cisco, Sun and Oracle provide matching funds to IDRF to encourage charitable contributions from their employees, while others such as PayPal and the National Scrip Center allow IDRF the use of their services for its fundraising activities. In the year 2000 alone, the IDRF raised 3.8 million in the United States. The majority of these funds did not go to secular organizations, but to sectarian charities linked with the Sangh Parivar family of nationalist organizations.  These organizations have widely been held responsible for the recent violence against Muslims in Gujarat that has claimed as many as two thousand lives, according to independent human rights reports (see http://www.onlinevolunteers.org for details).   As Yale Professor Arjun Appadurai, the William K. Lanman Jr. Professor of International Studies and the Director of the Initiatives on Cities and Globalization , states: "Long-distance nationalism should not be the alibi for any form of violence against minorities in India and major corporate funders in the United States must be as accountable to democratic values, secularism, inclusion and social responsibility overseas, as they aspire to be in their workplaces and communities in the United States. The evidence on which this petition is based meets the highest academic standards and demands the attention of anyone who believes in responsible globalization, democratic pluralism and informed advocacy. The safety and dignity of India's minorities cannot be further endangered by misinformed philanthropy in the United States."   According to petition organizers, the fact that some IDRF sponsored charities focus on "tribal re-education" in areas that witnessed violence against Christian and Muslim populations casts serious doubt upon the kind of education offered by these charities. They find it unreasonable to expect the IDRF to separate itself from the overall program of hatred and sectarian religious violence propagated by the Hindu nationalist organizations like the Sangh Parivar.   Says Professor Gauri Viswanathan, the Director of the Southern Asia Institute at Columbia University "Few NRI (non-resident Indian) donors may be sufficiently aware that money they contribute for relief and rehabilitation measures actually ends up supporting RSS activities. It is truly shocking to learn from the report how well-meaning charity has been diverted to serve narrow, sectarian, ideological goals."   Paola Baccheta, an Associate Professor of Women's Studies at UC Berkeley and the author of a book on women in the Hindu nationalst movement, concurs:  “Many conscientious people desiring to give to legitimate charities have been misled into contributing to Hindu sectarian organizations via the IDRF. The Hindu sectarian Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) founded many of the organizations on the IDRF recipient list as part of the RSS' own network. Some of these date from the 1950s, such as the Vanavasi Kalyan Ashrams and Vidhya Bharatis. Others, such as Hindu Seva Pratishthana, which trains full-time RSS workers, began in the 1980s. Still other organizations on the list bear the names of notorious RSS leaders Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgevar (RSS founder and first Supreme Leader from 1925-1940) and Bhaurao Deoras (a long time RSS officer and brother of the third RSS Supreme Leader, Balasaheb Deoras,1973-1992). The Devi Ahilyabai Smarak Samithi, also on the list, is run by the RSS women's wing, the Rashtra Sevika Samiti. “   The list of faculty signatories includes several scientists and engineers, professors who hold endowed chairs, as well as leading South Asian Area Studies scholars in the U.S-economists, political scientists, anthropologists, sociologists, philosophers, historians, professors of religion, and professors of literature-who are concerned with the growth of the Hindu fundamentalist movement in India and its increasing use of violence to achieve its ends.   The faculty signatories believe that it is important to let the "business community and South Asian community at large know that those of us in universities who are entrusted with educating South Asian youth do not support the violent sectarian activities of the Sangh Parivar." Physics and Astronomy Professor Sumit Das from the University of Kentucky concludes "it is alarming to see that organizations like this use the money donated by well meaning persons in activities which directly or indirectly support communal outfits."   The complete list of faculty petitioners is available at http://stopfundinghate.org/faculty/index.htm   Press Contacts:   1. Sumit Guha, St. Purandara Das Distinguished Professor of History, Brown University;   2. Paola Bacchetta, Associate Professor of Women's Studies, UC Berkeley and Visiting Fellow, Women's Studies in Religion Program, Harvard Divinity School.