Published in The SouthAsian Times, August 28,2009
Edward Kennedy, who died at the age of 77 after battling with cancer, was a true leader and a celebrity in his own right. His most ambitious goal as a legislature was overhauling the health care which he pushed through at Capitol Hill till the end of his life. Universal health care remained the main cause of his life. He championed the cause of millions of uninsured Americans whom he didn't want to be marginalized. I spite of his poor health he continued to be a great fighter and architect of the health care reform proposals currently being debated at the Capitol Hill and around the length and the breadth of United States. Unfortunately he didn't live to see the proposal being voted into a law even as the Senate committee on Health and Education passed the legislation.
His struggle for improving health care for the poor goes back to early years of his tenure in the Senate. In 1966 he succeeded in getting federal funding that helped create 30 community health centers. He campaigned for continued federal aid for this program that resulted into opening up more than 1,200 such centers that serve the poor communities.
The last surviving icon of the most famous political family of America, Ted, as he was affectionately called by friends and admirers, served for 46 years as a Democrat, longer than his other two brothers, John and Robert Kennedy, both of whom were assassinated. He lived through much of the post World War political storm in America. His life was full of triumphs and tragedies. He witnessed the deaths of his brothers and three nephews and escaped his own death in a plane crash in 1964.
He paid for being reckless in life in more ways than one. He is considered responsible for the death of his female friend who drowned in water after the car they were riding skidded in the water. He swam to safely leaving her struggling in the submerged car. He didn't report the accident to police for nine hours. This was an episode that followed him later in his life and remained an obstacle in his bid for the presidency.
In 1979, he failed in his bid for the American presidency when he was defeated by Jimmy Carter in the Democratic primary. He never again announced any plan for announcing his candidature for the post. However, he won the re-election for the Senate in 1982 and focused to his responsibilities as a Senator. The following years turned into a glorious phase of his career. He fought successfully against Republican efforts to weaken the Voting Rights Act. He was instrumental in passing the civil rights measure to pass the Disabilities Act that required employer and public facilities to make accommodation for the disabled.
Edward Kennedy achieved a few milestones in changing the course of the US foreign relations. He was a vocal critic of the Vietnam War. He was one of the very few legislatures who voted against authorizing President Bush for the Iraq War. He led a Congressional effort to impose sanctions on South Africa over apartheid. He visited Northern Ireland to voice his support for a peaceful settlement of conflicts between the IRA and the Unionists. He took a bold stance against the genocide committed by Pakistan during the Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971 despite the US government's opposition to Bangladesh's struggle for independence. The Democrat senator has been considered a true friend of Bangladesh since 1971, extending his support towards the country.
In 1972, Edward Kennedy visited the newly born Bangladesh. He planted a banyan tree at the Dhaka University campus. After his visit to the refugee camps, Kennedy continued raising his voice against the genocide of Pakistan criticizing official US stand that favored Pakistan against Bangladesh.
On August 17, 1971, the New York Times in its report titled "Kennedy, in India, Terms Pakistani Drive Genocide" said, "Mr Kennedy--who spent most of his time here visiting the squalid border camps that hold East Pakistani refugees, seven million of whom are said to have fled--said President Nixon's policy 'baffles me--and after seeing the results in terms of human misery, I think it's an even greater disaster'."
"Simply humanity demands that America and the United Nations must accept the truth that this heavy burden should be borne by the entire international community, and not by India alone," Kennedy said in the statement.
During the 2008 presidential election campaign Edward Kennedy's early endorsement of Barack Obama helped ensure the election of America's first Black President. President Obama recently awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Fighting with cancer he could foresee his death. He told friends recently that he was looking forward to a 'reunion' with his seven departed siblings, particularly his brothers, whose lives had been cut short. America and the world will always remember him for his bold stand in favor of the poor and the oppressed.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Monday, August 10, 2009
Corruption, overlooked in India, shocks New Jerseyans.
published in The South Asian Times
by Ashok Ojha
As 44 people, many of them public officials in city administrations, walked handcuffed before cameras, Americans, especially New Jerseyans were shocked to see a huge corruption scandal unfolding. It was evident that corruption spread far and wide in the administrative network of the state. Among public officials arrested were Mayor Petr J. Cammarano of Hoboken, Mayor Dennis Elwell of Secaucus, Assemblyman L. Harvey Smith of Jersey City.
Most of charges arose in Hudson county. President of the city council in Jersey City, Mariano Vega Jr. and City's Deputy Mayor, Leona Beldini were also arrested. Anthony Suarez, Mayor of Ridgefield in Bergen County was charged with accepting bribe of $10,000. Federal investigators charged dozens of public officials and political aides in New Jersey and members of the Syrian Jewish Community in Brooklyn and Deal. Joseph Doria, state consumer affairs director, resigned after authorities searched his home and office. One businessman accused of trying to broker the purchase of a kidney for $160,000, told an undercover investigator that he had been brokering the sale of organs for ten years. The undercover approached other officials such as Mayors, to accept bribes.
These officials, who were elected by the people to run local governments and provide civic amenities in an honest manner, were shadowed by the investigating authorities. While in power they succumbed to pay offs and favored interest groups and contractors. It is conclude that a culture of corruption existed in New Jersey. Robert Botti became Mayor of Union City in 1982 after his predecessor sentenced to seven years for seeking bribes for school construction contracts. He rigged bids for school janitorial contractors, earned an 18 month prison sentence. Botti was one of the public officials who were investigating in the corruption cases.
The scandal has so deeply created an impact in the state that the ruling Democratic party is finding difficult to face its electorates. Political pundits believe that Governor Jon Corzine's good work is overshadowed by the corruption scandal during the campaign for the forthcoming Gubernatorial election.
The uncovering of the scandal in New Jersey was made possible by relenting efforts of informers working for federal investigating agencies. The United States has a long tradition of investigating corruption in high places and effectively collecting proofs of corruption at the highest levels including the White House. In contrast, the investigating agencies in India are so handicapped, negligible number of corrupt officials have so far been prosecuted while fewer of them were ever brought to justice.
Those of us who have lived through numerous instances of political corruption in India are no longer shocked by the enormity of such cases, the most recent of which involved an IT company, Satyam that attracted worldwide attention. The former Chief Minister of Bihar state who was prosecuted by the Central Bureau of Investigation, an investigating arm directly reporting to the Prime Minister's office, was later became a celebrated minister in a Congress led government in Delhi.
Indira Gandhi, the late prime minister of India, once said that corruption was a worldwide phenomenon. Her utterances were seen as legitimizing corruption in public offices. She faced public wrath when a nationwide movement was launched against her on the issue of corruption that resulted into declaration of emergency rule by her and was subsequently defeated in the 1977 general election.
Four decades later corruption still dogs the political and financial sectors of the world's largest democracy. Overlooking the impact of corrupt practices most Indians continue to be benefited by corruption for short term benefits created long term consequences.
India ranks 85th in a corruption perception index created by the nonprofit anti graft group Transparency International, worse than China, Mexico or Brazil. Transparency International estimates that truckers pay annually $5 billion in bribes. In 2008, Washington Times reported that nearly a fourth of the 540 members of Indian parliament faced criminal charges, such as, human trafficking, immigration rackets, rape and even murder. In Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections 2002, candidates with criminal records won the majority of seats.
Officials often steal state property. In Bihar, more than 80% of the subsidized food aid to poor is stolen. An investigation into top officials at the All India Council for Technical Education, a group created by the government to improve the vocational skills of India’s youth, uncovered 36 bank accounts that were used to hide illicit cash.
India has its share of upright officers who were credited to have challenged the politicians and the corrupt culture of Indian administration. Ashwini Kumar, the current chief of CBI is one of the few such officers. After he took office, his agency arrested dozens of bank managers, bureaucrats, engineers and contractors on suspicion of crimes including accepting bribes, forging documents and stealing petroleum. Kumar's zeal earned him media coverage, including one in New York Times.
Unfortunately, most of the investigating agencies lack enthusiasm like Ashwini Kumar to fight corruption. Unlike USA Indian agencies rarely dare to shadow a corrupt politicians or a powerful official. After pressure from private citizens and the judiciary the Government of India directed the Central Vigilance Commission to and protect those who chose to challenge corruption in high places. The Administrative Reforms Commission also suggested to encourage and protect those who dared to expose corruption.
by Ashok Ojha
As 44 people, many of them public officials in city administrations, walked handcuffed before cameras, Americans, especially New Jerseyans were shocked to see a huge corruption scandal unfolding. It was evident that corruption spread far and wide in the administrative network of the state. Among public officials arrested were Mayor Petr J. Cammarano of Hoboken, Mayor Dennis Elwell of Secaucus, Assemblyman L. Harvey Smith of Jersey City.
Most of charges arose in Hudson county. President of the city council in Jersey City, Mariano Vega Jr. and City's Deputy Mayor, Leona Beldini were also arrested. Anthony Suarez, Mayor of Ridgefield in Bergen County was charged with accepting bribe of $10,000. Federal investigators charged dozens of public officials and political aides in New Jersey and members of the Syrian Jewish Community in Brooklyn and Deal. Joseph Doria, state consumer affairs director, resigned after authorities searched his home and office. One businessman accused of trying to broker the purchase of a kidney for $160,000, told an undercover investigator that he had been brokering the sale of organs for ten years. The undercover approached other officials such as Mayors, to accept bribes.
These officials, who were elected by the people to run local governments and provide civic amenities in an honest manner, were shadowed by the investigating authorities. While in power they succumbed to pay offs and favored interest groups and contractors. It is conclude that a culture of corruption existed in New Jersey. Robert Botti became Mayor of Union City in 1982 after his predecessor sentenced to seven years for seeking bribes for school construction contracts. He rigged bids for school janitorial contractors, earned an 18 month prison sentence. Botti was one of the public officials who were investigating in the corruption cases.
The scandal has so deeply created an impact in the state that the ruling Democratic party is finding difficult to face its electorates. Political pundits believe that Governor Jon Corzine's good work is overshadowed by the corruption scandal during the campaign for the forthcoming Gubernatorial election.
The uncovering of the scandal in New Jersey was made possible by relenting efforts of informers working for federal investigating agencies. The United States has a long tradition of investigating corruption in high places and effectively collecting proofs of corruption at the highest levels including the White House. In contrast, the investigating agencies in India are so handicapped, negligible number of corrupt officials have so far been prosecuted while fewer of them were ever brought to justice.
Those of us who have lived through numerous instances of political corruption in India are no longer shocked by the enormity of such cases, the most recent of which involved an IT company, Satyam that attracted worldwide attention. The former Chief Minister of Bihar state who was prosecuted by the Central Bureau of Investigation, an investigating arm directly reporting to the Prime Minister's office, was later became a celebrated minister in a Congress led government in Delhi.
Indira Gandhi, the late prime minister of India, once said that corruption was a worldwide phenomenon. Her utterances were seen as legitimizing corruption in public offices. She faced public wrath when a nationwide movement was launched against her on the issue of corruption that resulted into declaration of emergency rule by her and was subsequently defeated in the 1977 general election.
Four decades later corruption still dogs the political and financial sectors of the world's largest democracy. Overlooking the impact of corrupt practices most Indians continue to be benefited by corruption for short term benefits created long term consequences.
India ranks 85th in a corruption perception index created by the nonprofit anti graft group Transparency International, worse than China, Mexico or Brazil. Transparency International estimates that truckers pay annually $5 billion in bribes. In 2008, Washington Times reported that nearly a fourth of the 540 members of Indian parliament faced criminal charges, such as, human trafficking, immigration rackets, rape and even murder. In Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections 2002, candidates with criminal records won the majority of seats.
Officials often steal state property. In Bihar, more than 80% of the subsidized food aid to poor is stolen. An investigation into top officials at the All India Council for Technical Education, a group created by the government to improve the vocational skills of India’s youth, uncovered 36 bank accounts that were used to hide illicit cash.
India has its share of upright officers who were credited to have challenged the politicians and the corrupt culture of Indian administration. Ashwini Kumar, the current chief of CBI is one of the few such officers. After he took office, his agency arrested dozens of bank managers, bureaucrats, engineers and contractors on suspicion of crimes including accepting bribes, forging documents and stealing petroleum. Kumar's zeal earned him media coverage, including one in New York Times.
Unfortunately, most of the investigating agencies lack enthusiasm like Ashwini Kumar to fight corruption. Unlike USA Indian agencies rarely dare to shadow a corrupt politicians or a powerful official. After pressure from private citizens and the judiciary the Government of India directed the Central Vigilance Commission to and protect those who chose to challenge corruption in high places. The Administrative Reforms Commission also suggested to encourage and protect those who dared to expose corruption.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
For many immigrants racial discrimination is a way of life.
Published in The South Asian Times, New York, August 1, 2009
Many non-white residents in USA quickly identified with Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., a highly respected academician belonging to the African American community, whose arrest outside his home in Cambridge, MA, sparked a nationwide debate on race and treatment of minority groups by police.
Professor Gates' arrest was strongly criticized by none other than President Obama who later backtracked on a reconciliatory move. Both Obama and Gates belong to a generation that attended Ivy League universities at a time when the affirmative action policy was tested in this country.
It has been reported that the Harvard Professor, who lived in Cambridge, MA, known as a hub of its racial diversity, confronted a White policeman who had responded to a 911 call about a possible robbery attempt in the house that incidentally happened to be his home. The professor had earlier provided his identity but the officer was not satisfied and asked him to step outside of the house for further questioning. He was charged for disorderly behavior as he didn't respond to officer's questions properly and referred the White officer's mother in his outbursts.
The fear of being caught for traffic and other unforeseen violations are real for a common American who goes around his daily chores. As a non-white Asian man I have dealt with this fear and psychological turmoil many times in the past. A few years ago I was stopped by police for driving on yellow lines. On a rainy afternoon I was driving home from work. A long line of cars was ahead of me. As cars lined up in front of me I passed over yellow lines so that I could align in the left lane meant for left turn. As soon as the signal turned green, I turned to my left only to be followed and stopped by a police car. Shivers ran through my veins as I couldn't conceive the reason of being stopped until the officer informed about the reason while he handed me a ticket.
It is not uncommon to see people crossing over yellow lines. I am not sure if these violations are thoroughly monitored. I am not sure how necessary it was for the police to stiop me for a minor violation on a messy day at a time when everyone was impatient to reach home. When I reached the Municipal Court on the day assigned for me to appear and settle the case I could see that most of the 'violaters' were non-White people. The woman judge ordered me to choose between a higher penalty or being slapped with points on my car insurance policy. There was no scope for arguments. I choose to pay the penalty and avoid points on my policy.
Shivers run in my veins when I imagine being arrested and handcuffed in my own home. Once I called 911 after in the middle of the night when I saw two men on the roof of my neighbor's garage. They fled before the police came. I was pleased with the cops behavior as they assured me not to worry since they were going to petrol the area in the night time. However, the neighbors, a White family, never bothered to thank me for saving their garage from robbery.
Such experiences are common for people who can be identified as 'others' on the basis of their skin color. However, every one of us fail to notice it as we are too accustomed to make compromises for our livelihood. Most of us are too busy to recognize that we are being profiled on the basis of the color of our skin during the course of our daily routine.
“I am living in this country for three years but I never experienced any discrimination”, says Ravjit, a Sikh who wears a turban. “I work in a store and most of my customers are White. However, I am unable to recall if they threw any attitude at me because I am not one among them”, he concluded.
The experience of Jatinder Sethi is somewhat different. Sethi, a marketing professional, recalled the days after 9/11 when he was subjected to comments targeted at his turban. “I used to feel very concerned when people looked at me, first at my turban and then at my face. I could sense a kind of resentment on their faces”, he said.
The Indian American residents of Edison Township haven't forgotten the days when police was not treating them with respect. Indian Americans got agitated when they felt marginalized by the police. They were abused by supporters of police during a demonstration at the Municipal Boulevard while police stood silent. It was natural for the Indians Americans to agitate as they were abused with words like 'cockroaches'.
The issue of racial discrimination was a matter of contention during the 2005 Mayoral election in Edison. Subsequently the Township Mayor Jun Choi introduced a special program to recruit cops from the Asian American community and train the police force through cultural awareness workshops. “Now Edison police force understands the need to show respect to other cultures. Our officers value racial diversity and familiar with expressions like 'Namaste'”, Mayor Choi commented recently.
Many non-white residents in USA quickly identified with Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., a highly respected academician belonging to the African American community, whose arrest outside his home in Cambridge, MA, sparked a nationwide debate on race and treatment of minority groups by police.
Professor Gates' arrest was strongly criticized by none other than President Obama who later backtracked on a reconciliatory move. Both Obama and Gates belong to a generation that attended Ivy League universities at a time when the affirmative action policy was tested in this country.
It has been reported that the Harvard Professor, who lived in Cambridge, MA, known as a hub of its racial diversity, confronted a White policeman who had responded to a 911 call about a possible robbery attempt in the house that incidentally happened to be his home. The professor had earlier provided his identity but the officer was not satisfied and asked him to step outside of the house for further questioning. He was charged for disorderly behavior as he didn't respond to officer's questions properly and referred the White officer's mother in his outbursts.
The fear of being caught for traffic and other unforeseen violations are real for a common American who goes around his daily chores. As a non-white Asian man I have dealt with this fear and psychological turmoil many times in the past. A few years ago I was stopped by police for driving on yellow lines. On a rainy afternoon I was driving home from work. A long line of cars was ahead of me. As cars lined up in front of me I passed over yellow lines so that I could align in the left lane meant for left turn. As soon as the signal turned green, I turned to my left only to be followed and stopped by a police car. Shivers ran through my veins as I couldn't conceive the reason of being stopped until the officer informed about the reason while he handed me a ticket.
It is not uncommon to see people crossing over yellow lines. I am not sure if these violations are thoroughly monitored. I am not sure how necessary it was for the police to stiop me for a minor violation on a messy day at a time when everyone was impatient to reach home. When I reached the Municipal Court on the day assigned for me to appear and settle the case I could see that most of the 'violaters' were non-White people. The woman judge ordered me to choose between a higher penalty or being slapped with points on my car insurance policy. There was no scope for arguments. I choose to pay the penalty and avoid points on my policy.
Shivers run in my veins when I imagine being arrested and handcuffed in my own home. Once I called 911 after in the middle of the night when I saw two men on the roof of my neighbor's garage. They fled before the police came. I was pleased with the cops behavior as they assured me not to worry since they were going to petrol the area in the night time. However, the neighbors, a White family, never bothered to thank me for saving their garage from robbery.
Such experiences are common for people who can be identified as 'others' on the basis of their skin color. However, every one of us fail to notice it as we are too accustomed to make compromises for our livelihood. Most of us are too busy to recognize that we are being profiled on the basis of the color of our skin during the course of our daily routine.
“I am living in this country for three years but I never experienced any discrimination”, says Ravjit, a Sikh who wears a turban. “I work in a store and most of my customers are White. However, I am unable to recall if they threw any attitude at me because I am not one among them”, he concluded.
The experience of Jatinder Sethi is somewhat different. Sethi, a marketing professional, recalled the days after 9/11 when he was subjected to comments targeted at his turban. “I used to feel very concerned when people looked at me, first at my turban and then at my face. I could sense a kind of resentment on their faces”, he said.
The Indian American residents of Edison Township haven't forgotten the days when police was not treating them with respect. Indian Americans got agitated when they felt marginalized by the police. They were abused by supporters of police during a demonstration at the Municipal Boulevard while police stood silent. It was natural for the Indians Americans to agitate as they were abused with words like 'cockroaches'.
The issue of racial discrimination was a matter of contention during the 2005 Mayoral election in Edison. Subsequently the Township Mayor Jun Choi introduced a special program to recruit cops from the Asian American community and train the police force through cultural awareness workshops. “Now Edison police force understands the need to show respect to other cultures. Our officers value racial diversity and familiar with expressions like 'Namaste'”, Mayor Choi commented recently.
University of Pennsylvania leads a quiet revolution to promote Indian Languages.
A group of men and women between the ages 30 to 70 converged at the leafy campus of the Ivy-league University of Pennsylvania this summer to attend a language workshop for teaching Hindi and Urdu. They came from as far as Vancouver, British Columbia to participate in a two-week long program to learn modern teaching methods. The workshop was hosted by the university under a federal funded program, 'Startalk'.
“I didn't know if there was a scientific way to teach Hindi”, said Dolly Chatterjee, a native of Kolkata, India and mother of two, who came from Swedesboro, NJ, to attend the workshop. “I have been teaching Hindi in a private setting in my township. Now I am going to apply modern methods and activities”, she said with confidence at the end of the workshop.
According to Dr. Surendra Gambhir, advisor of Startalk program and a retired professor of Hindi at University of Pennsylvania, the US government was creating new opportunities for Hindi teachers and learners that will lead to promoting the language in the USA. “It is a wonderful opportunity for the Indian American community to take advantage of the government initiative and campaign for teaching Hindi in private and public schools”, he commented.
Both Dr. Gambhir and his wife Vijay taught Hindi at University at Pennsylvania for 36 years until they retired last year. They were instrumental in starting the program under the South Asian Regional Studies department of the university. They reached out to the South Asian community and encouraged volunteers, who moonlighted as Hindi teachers during after school hours and weekends, to apply for attending the workshop. As a result dozens of Hindi and Urdu teachers, who met the criteria, were accepted for the workshop.
“The 'Startalk' program aims at familiarizing these teachers, who worked in community settings, such as temples, about various techniques that are commonly applied to teach foreign languages. One of the major factor of these techniques is connecting with the culture”, explained Vijay who addressed the participants every morning during the workshop.
The Department of South Asian Studies of the University of Pennsylvania, that hosted the workshop for Hindi Teaching, is involved in teaching and research in Indian languages for decades. “The department provides rich resource for studies of South Asian languages, including Sanskrit, Bengali, Punjabi, and Urdu”, said Dr. Vijay Gambhir who is the chief instructor for Startalk program. “In recent years number of students enrolled in Indian language courses has dramatically gone up. University of Pennsylvania has introduced a number of programs aimed at developing knowledge about India”, she said.
The credit to initiate Startalk program goes to the former US president, George W. Bush, who decided to expand and improve the teaching and learning of strategically important world languages that were not now widely taught in the US. One of the outcomes of his decision was to include Hindi as a component of the National Security Language Initiative in 2006. It categorized Hindi as a critical need foreign language along with Chinese and Arabic. The mission of the program was to increase the number of Americans learning, speaking, and teaching languages, such as, Hindi. To achieve the goal of exemplifying best practices in language education and teacher development, summer workshops like the one at University of Pennsylvania were designed.
“We hope that a community of teachers will be developed that would engaged itself in creating lesson plans based on learner-centered approaches”, commented Martin Smith, one of the guest speakers at the workshop and Supervisor of World Languages, who has been credited with introducing Hindi in Edison public schools system as a full fledged subject. “We shouldn't teach Hindi for namesake. With its wide range of dialects Hindi is a very challenging language that is spoken in many different ways. We need to keep in mind the varied needs of the students who spoke different languages at their homes”, he said.
“There is an explosion of the phenomenon of learning and teaching the Chinese language in USA because of the tremendous push from the Chinese-American communities. As India occupied an important part in the international trade and commerce, it was an ideal situation to promote Hindi on a wider scale. It is for the Indian American community to demand for teaching Hindi in more schools”, he suggested.
“Startalk is a great program to promote Hindi in the USA”, said Sanjay Kumar, a participant to the program who teaches Sanskrit and Bollywood movies at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. “The fact that so many men and women are teaching Indian languages in schools is an ample proof of increasing awareness of Indian culture in the community.”
Manju Tiwari, who came from Atlanta, GA to attend the Startalk workshop has been teaching Hindi for two decades. After a teaching stint of more than a decade at Emroy she moved to a local school for children, Bal Vihar. She said the theories and methods she learned sounded more meaningful. “I think we are now better trained than ever to teach Hindi in local schools”, she said adding that Indian American community possessed sufficient resources to press upon the school districts to introduce Hindi in local schools.
The history of teaching Indian languages goes back to a couple of hundred years. “We have collected thousands of books in Sanskrit, Hindi and other Indian languages in our library”, said Dr. David Nelson, South Asian Bibliographer at the University Libraries of the University of Pennsylvania. Nelson, who researched on early Vedic studies, said that the numbers of students eager to learn about India and its culture was growing every day. “I think the university conducts highly successful programs on South Asian studies. In recent years Americans have become tremendously interested in India that resulted into introduction of a host of programs in the universities”, commented Nelson.
Rita Sheth, who teaches Hindi at Bharatiya Temple in Blue vale, PA, intended to use the training in her school where students learn a number of India languages including Tamil, Telugu, Marathi and Sanskrit. She said that there was a great demand to learn Hindi and Gujarati in local schools.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Promoting Marathi, Uniting the Community.
Published in Indian Express, USA, June, 2009.
Interview with Mukund Kute, President of Philadelphia Marathi Mandal and Convener of 2009 Brihan Maharashtra Mandal Convention.
I met Mukund at his home in North Wales, PA where he enlightened me about his efforts to promote Marathi art, culture, and language in USA. I could feel his love for Hindi and the Indian culture as a whole and concerns about dangers of regionalism. He spoke about his association with a temple, that is called Bharatiya Temple, not Hindu Temple. He told me about various ways he is helping the community to celebrate festivals, such as, Ganeshotsav-as celebrated in all parts of India, not just in Maharashtra.
Q. Can you provide some of the achievements of your organization?
Kute: We have achieved a lot at a local level. Marathi Mandals are flourishing all over USA and Canada. We organize festivals like Ganeshotsav with gusto. For the first time Philadelphia Marathi Mandal is hosting an event of international level that will project the image of India in a very positive way.
Q. What are you doing to attract Indian Americans with roots in states other than Maharashtra to your events?
Kute: Philadelphia chapter, of which I am the president, has been organizing events that are very popular among non-Marathi community. I am very conscious about it. Our kids don't think themselves as Marathi people. They consider themselves Indians first because their American friends don't care about them being Marathi. Truly speaking we are Indians first and it must reflect in our culture and our functions that we so proudly organize.
Every year during 'Ganesotsav' (festival to worship Lord Ganesha) we invite artistes from various regions of India. We make sure to hold cultural programs that represent all parts of India. If you visit our ten-day long Ganesh festival you will be happy to find music and dance from Gujarat, Punjab, Karanataka, Kerala, Bengal and other states of India. We are offering the younger generation everything that is necessary to make them involved and enjoy.
Q. Can you elaborate upon some of the salient features of this year's convention?
Kute: We are working to present a show case of economic growth and cultural richness of India. The convention has been divided into three parts: social, cultural, and economic. A number of celebrities including Bollywood playback singer Asha Bhosle and actor Nana Patekar will attend the convention. We are expecting some of the leading industrialists and businessmen as well as representatives of the Maharashtra Government to participate in the convention.
Q. What are your strategies to make this convention successful?
Kute: Our volunteers represent a cross section of experts in management and technological fields. They are well connected with major businesses and corporations in various fields, such as, health care, IT, pharmaceuticals, engineering. We are pooling our expertise together to organize exhibitions, seminar and workshops. We have partnered with important tourist organizations in India and the USA. We are planning to market our expo to general public visiting Philadelphia during the Independence Day weekend. For this purpose we will partner with city's visitors bureau. The city government as well as Pennsylvania's Governor's office is taking keen interest in this convention.
Q. What is your vision to unite the Indian American community?
Kute: It is important to make our organizations at local level strong. I think that we should sincerely work for the development of our culture and promotion of our ways of life. If we succeed involving the younger generation in our culture it will be easier to create a strong national organization. A strong body is needed for representing our voice at the federal level.
We should learn from our brothers and sisters in the Caribbean countries and the West Indies who successfully preserved their heritage for hundreds of years. Their dedication to their ancestors' culture and religion is applaudable.
We, at Philadelphia Marathi Mandal, are very conscious of working for the Indian American community. We celebrate our festivals in association with the Bharatiya Temple that represents whole of India. The time has come to build supportive organizations, such as, Senior Centers for the welfare of our elders. Such a center can't be build without active cooperation of all Indian Americans. For this purpose we have invited a few of NGOs who would share their experiences in institution building for the needy people including seniors.
Q. What future do you foresee for your organization?
Kute: The Indian community is growing at fast pace. We continue to have new immigrants from India who arrive in USA for work and then settle down to raise their family here. It is a good sign. I trust that the younger generation is capable of helping communities. The young volunteers in my organization possess talent and vision and I am sure they will take organizations like BMM to great heights.
I hope that our people will develop collective consciousness and come together to build strong organizations. I also hope that Indian American community will retain a strong voice in Washington. The trend is taking roots and representatives of our communities are entering public life as councilmen, senators, board members, etc.
Interview with Mukund Kute, President of Philadelphia Marathi Mandal and Convener of 2009 Brihan Maharashtra Mandal Convention.
I met Mukund at his home in North Wales, PA where he enlightened me about his efforts to promote Marathi art, culture, and language in USA. I could feel his love for Hindi and the Indian culture as a whole and concerns about dangers of regionalism. He spoke about his association with a temple, that is called Bharatiya Temple, not Hindu Temple. He told me about various ways he is helping the community to celebrate festivals, such as, Ganeshotsav-as celebrated in all parts of India, not just in Maharashtra.
Q. Can you provide some of the achievements of your organization?
Kute: We have achieved a lot at a local level. Marathi Mandals are flourishing all over USA and Canada. We organize festivals like Ganeshotsav with gusto. For the first time Philadelphia Marathi Mandal is hosting an event of international level that will project the image of India in a very positive way.
Q. What are you doing to attract Indian Americans with roots in states other than Maharashtra to your events?
Kute: Philadelphia chapter, of which I am the president, has been organizing events that are very popular among non-Marathi community. I am very conscious about it. Our kids don't think themselves as Marathi people. They consider themselves Indians first because their American friends don't care about them being Marathi. Truly speaking we are Indians first and it must reflect in our culture and our functions that we so proudly organize.
Every year during 'Ganesotsav' (festival to worship Lord Ganesha) we invite artistes from various regions of India. We make sure to hold cultural programs that represent all parts of India. If you visit our ten-day long Ganesh festival you will be happy to find music and dance from Gujarat, Punjab, Karanataka, Kerala, Bengal and other states of India. We are offering the younger generation everything that is necessary to make them involved and enjoy.
Q. Can you elaborate upon some of the salient features of this year's convention?
Kute: We are working to present a show case of economic growth and cultural richness of India. The convention has been divided into three parts: social, cultural, and economic. A number of celebrities including Bollywood playback singer Asha Bhosle and actor Nana Patekar will attend the convention. We are expecting some of the leading industrialists and businessmen as well as representatives of the Maharashtra Government to participate in the convention.
Q. What are your strategies to make this convention successful?
Kute: Our volunteers represent a cross section of experts in management and technological fields. They are well connected with major businesses and corporations in various fields, such as, health care, IT, pharmaceuticals, engineering. We are pooling our expertise together to organize exhibitions, seminar and workshops. We have partnered with important tourist organizations in India and the USA. We are planning to market our expo to general public visiting Philadelphia during the Independence Day weekend. For this purpose we will partner with city's visitors bureau. The city government as well as Pennsylvania's Governor's office is taking keen interest in this convention.
Q. What is your vision to unite the Indian American community?
Kute: It is important to make our organizations at local level strong. I think that we should sincerely work for the development of our culture and promotion of our ways of life. If we succeed involving the younger generation in our culture it will be easier to create a strong national organization. A strong body is needed for representing our voice at the federal level.
We should learn from our brothers and sisters in the Caribbean countries and the West Indies who successfully preserved their heritage for hundreds of years. Their dedication to their ancestors' culture and religion is applaudable.
We, at Philadelphia Marathi Mandal, are very conscious of working for the Indian American community. We celebrate our festivals in association with the Bharatiya Temple that represents whole of India. The time has come to build supportive organizations, such as, Senior Centers for the welfare of our elders. Such a center can't be build without active cooperation of all Indian Americans. For this purpose we have invited a few of NGOs who would share their experiences in institution building for the needy people including seniors.
Q. What future do you foresee for your organization?
Kute: The Indian community is growing at fast pace. We continue to have new immigrants from India who arrive in USA for work and then settle down to raise their family here. It is a good sign. I trust that the younger generation is capable of helping communities. The young volunteers in my organization possess talent and vision and I am sure they will take organizations like BMM to great heights.
I hope that our people will develop collective consciousness and come together to build strong organizations. I also hope that Indian American community will retain a strong voice in Washington. The trend is taking roots and representatives of our communities are entering public life as councilmen, senators, board members, etc.
The Young Leaders of Indian American Physicians.
A commentary on the annual convention of AAPI held in Disney Dolphin Resort at Disney World in Orlando, Fl., USA during 11-14 June, 2009, published in the special supplement of South Asian Times.
The most impressive thing was the venue of the 27th annual convention of American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin-the tall building of Disney Dolphin resort overlooked a manicured lawn that spread around a huge man made lake. A boat frequented the pier picking up hotel guests to Epcot center and the nearby board walk.
For a visitor the twin hotel complex is gateway to Central Florida’s theme parks and attractions. ‘Entertainment architecture’ has been the central theme of the Walt Disney’s Swan and Dolphin hotels. It seems that the designers of this place kept in mind that the theme of the structures outside the boundaries of the Disney property should embody the same fantasy and sense of story as the structure in the park.
An ever smiling outgoing president of AAPI, Sanku Rao, greeted us. While we were still holding our luggage in the lobby, he invited us to a reception in one of the hotel suits. The incoming president Dr. Vinod Shah made a presentation about a letter he was planning to submit to President Obama. His colleagues in AAPI’s executive board looked very impressed. The aesthetically produced document graphically illustrated the theme of ‘yes, we can’, the mantra of President Obama’s election campaign as well as excerpts from his books, ‘Audacity of Hope’, and ‘The Dreams of my father’.
The letter was a well produced book of printed pages with plenty of photographs graphically integrated on the pages of the book. Dr. Shah wrote about poor compensation doctor received for their services. The letter highlighted the great shortage of doctors in this country. Dr. Shah advised the government to allow residency to the applicant doctors of Indian origin. Addressing the delegates at the convention, he said that thousands of such applicants were eagerly awaiting permission to start residency program in USA. “Out of 37,000 Indian students who applied for residency only 21,000 were given permission.
It is commendable how forcefully Dr. Shah demanded to allow more applicants in the residency program. I am sure the President’s representatives took note of the concerns of AAPI.
After the reception we were invited to a dinner at the board walk. The boulevard was full of tourists. We boarded a boat that dropped us at the board walk. Walking aimlessly from one end to the other, we finally spotted a sign that said ‘Welcome to AAPI’. As soon as we entered the hall we were treated with sumptuous Indian dinner. The caterer Jyoti Soni had put a lot of creativity to work while designing and presenting Indian dishes during the four days of the convention.
We met the legendary figure in Classical Indian music, Pundit Jasraj in the lobby. It was a rare occasion to meet the great vocalist in person. Raising his hands he returned our greeting. Though Bollywood music dominated the entertainment scene at the convention AAPI leadership reflected thoughtfulness by inviting Pundit ji.
A grand exhibition was inaugurated the next day. Considering the medical professionals of the Indian American community as rich and resourceful, a number of jewelry designers and business owners expected brisk sale. So did garment traders from India. Many of them were disappointed at the low turnover. I was also attracted to a number of booths that belonged to non profit organizations. Professionals like investors, pharmaceutical companies representatives were also present hoping to promote their products.
Air India offered an attractive discount of $250 for registered members of AAPI for travel to India. Announcing this gesture at the concluding function, Air India’s Executive Director for Americas, Chitra Sarkar, said Air India enjoyed an emotional bond with the Indian American medical fraternity who migrated many decades ago from India to settle in USA. “They remained loyal to us as they moved up in their career and prospered in a distant land. It is now our turn to translate this feeling of emotional attachment with our long time customers into loyalty.”
The young physicians made their presence in more ways than one. They organized their own seminars and addressed a number of questions faced by upcoming doctors in the process of establishing their practice. I found that the participants were very keen to sort out problems arising out of electronic record keeping requirement of the US government. The physicians were informed about benefit and incentives that the government was offering to doctors who were switching to electronic record keeping.
It did not take long to realize that the younger generation of physicians, unlike their parents, had different aspirations as they grew up and educated in mainstream America.
The young physicians are an asset for the organization and can help boost its membership. It was evident that AAPI was at a cross road to strengthen its strategies with more emphasis on how to turn itself in to a meaningful organization relevant to the needs of the younger physicians.
Like most Indians, physicians love Bollywood music too. It was amazing to see middle aged doctors and their wives swinging to the tune of Bollywood’s popular singer Sunidhi Chauhan. As my friend, Sudhir Vyas told me: ‘The times have changed, Ashok! So has the popular Indian music. There may not be new lyrics but the new generation is hooked to remixed songs of olden days that Sunidhi was performing for the elder generation of doctors’.
The most impressive thing was the venue of the 27th annual convention of American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin-the tall building of Disney Dolphin resort overlooked a manicured lawn that spread around a huge man made lake. A boat frequented the pier picking up hotel guests to Epcot center and the nearby board walk.
For a visitor the twin hotel complex is gateway to Central Florida’s theme parks and attractions. ‘Entertainment architecture’ has been the central theme of the Walt Disney’s Swan and Dolphin hotels. It seems that the designers of this place kept in mind that the theme of the structures outside the boundaries of the Disney property should embody the same fantasy and sense of story as the structure in the park.
An ever smiling outgoing president of AAPI, Sanku Rao, greeted us. While we were still holding our luggage in the lobby, he invited us to a reception in one of the hotel suits. The incoming president Dr. Vinod Shah made a presentation about a letter he was planning to submit to President Obama. His colleagues in AAPI’s executive board looked very impressed. The aesthetically produced document graphically illustrated the theme of ‘yes, we can’, the mantra of President Obama’s election campaign as well as excerpts from his books, ‘Audacity of Hope’, and ‘The Dreams of my father’.
The letter was a well produced book of printed pages with plenty of photographs graphically integrated on the pages of the book. Dr. Shah wrote about poor compensation doctor received for their services. The letter highlighted the great shortage of doctors in this country. Dr. Shah advised the government to allow residency to the applicant doctors of Indian origin. Addressing the delegates at the convention, he said that thousands of such applicants were eagerly awaiting permission to start residency program in USA. “Out of 37,000 Indian students who applied for residency only 21,000 were given permission.
It is commendable how forcefully Dr. Shah demanded to allow more applicants in the residency program. I am sure the President’s representatives took note of the concerns of AAPI.
After the reception we were invited to a dinner at the board walk. The boulevard was full of tourists. We boarded a boat that dropped us at the board walk. Walking aimlessly from one end to the other, we finally spotted a sign that said ‘Welcome to AAPI’. As soon as we entered the hall we were treated with sumptuous Indian dinner. The caterer Jyoti Soni had put a lot of creativity to work while designing and presenting Indian dishes during the four days of the convention.
We met the legendary figure in Classical Indian music, Pundit Jasraj in the lobby. It was a rare occasion to meet the great vocalist in person. Raising his hands he returned our greeting. Though Bollywood music dominated the entertainment scene at the convention AAPI leadership reflected thoughtfulness by inviting Pundit ji.
A grand exhibition was inaugurated the next day. Considering the medical professionals of the Indian American community as rich and resourceful, a number of jewelry designers and business owners expected brisk sale. So did garment traders from India. Many of them were disappointed at the low turnover. I was also attracted to a number of booths that belonged to non profit organizations. Professionals like investors, pharmaceutical companies representatives were also present hoping to promote their products.
Air India offered an attractive discount of $250 for registered members of AAPI for travel to India. Announcing this gesture at the concluding function, Air India’s Executive Director for Americas, Chitra Sarkar, said Air India enjoyed an emotional bond with the Indian American medical fraternity who migrated many decades ago from India to settle in USA. “They remained loyal to us as they moved up in their career and prospered in a distant land. It is now our turn to translate this feeling of emotional attachment with our long time customers into loyalty.”
The young physicians made their presence in more ways than one. They organized their own seminars and addressed a number of questions faced by upcoming doctors in the process of establishing their practice. I found that the participants were very keen to sort out problems arising out of electronic record keeping requirement of the US government. The physicians were informed about benefit and incentives that the government was offering to doctors who were switching to electronic record keeping.
It did not take long to realize that the younger generation of physicians, unlike their parents, had different aspirations as they grew up and educated in mainstream America.
The young physicians are an asset for the organization and can help boost its membership. It was evident that AAPI was at a cross road to strengthen its strategies with more emphasis on how to turn itself in to a meaningful organization relevant to the needs of the younger physicians.
Like most Indians, physicians love Bollywood music too. It was amazing to see middle aged doctors and their wives swinging to the tune of Bollywood’s popular singer Sunidhi Chauhan. As my friend, Sudhir Vyas told me: ‘The times have changed, Ashok! So has the popular Indian music. There may not be new lyrics but the new generation is hooked to remixed songs of olden days that Sunidhi was performing for the elder generation of doctors’.
Monday, May 25, 2009
क्यूबा में बहने लगी नई बयार
नवभारत टाईम्स, २ मई:
अमेरिका के दक्षिणी प्रदेश फ्लोरिडा के कीवेस्ट द्वीप से लगभग एक सौ मील दूर बसा क्यूबा
पिछली आधी शताब्दी से अमेरिकी विदेश नीति की वर्ण व्यवस्था में अछूत की तरह खड़ा है। दोनों देशों के बीच 1961 से ही कोई कूटनीतिक संपर्क नहीं है। फिदेल कास्त्रो की साम्यवादी तानाशाही के कारण क्यूबा से विस्थापित होकर अमेरिका और खासकर मियामी शहर में बसे लाखों आप्रवासी अपनी मातृभूमि जाने से वंचित थे। उन्हें यह भी छूट हासिल नहीं थी कि वे अपने परिवार वालों को पैसे भेज सकें, जैसा कि अमेरिका के ज्यादातर आप्रवासी करते हैं। अमेरिका ने क्यूबा पर कड़े आर्थिक प्रतिबंध लगा रखे थे। पर 13 अप्रैल से इस स्थिति में थोड़ा परिवर्तन आ गया है। असल में बराक ओबामा ने घोषणा की है कि अब से क्यूबा मूल के आप्रवासी न सिर्फ अपनी मातृभूमि की यात्रा कर सकते हैं, बल्कि अपने परिवार को पैसे भी भेज सकते हैं। इससे क्यूबा मूल के वे आप्रवासी बेहद प्रसन्न हैं, जिनके परिवार के सदस्य क्यूबा में हैं।
क्यूबा के अप्रवासियों के लिए अपने देश में पैसा भेजने की छूट एक बड़ी सुविधा है। अमेरिका में रहने वाले फिदेल कास्त्रो के घोर विरोधी क्यूबावासी कास्त्रो को दंडित करने की मांग वर्षों से करते आ रहे थे, लेकिन अब वे ओबामा की नई नीति का खुल कर स्वागत कर रहे हैं।
ओबामा के इस फैसले से 2004 में भूतपूर्व राष्ट्रपति बुश द्वारा लगाई गई आर्थिक नाकाबंदी ढीली पड़ गई है। इससे दोनों देशों के बीच नया दौर तो शुरू हुआ ही है, अमेरिका और दक्षिण के गरीब देशों को यह संदेश भी मिला है कि वॉशिंगटन दक्षिण के गैर पूंजीवादी देशों के साथ तनाव कम करना चाहता है और उनके साथ अच्छे पड़ोसी का व्यवहार करना चाहता है। पूर्व राष्ट्रपति जॉर्ज बुश का रवैया मोहल्ले के उस दादा की तरह था, जो अपने पड़ोसियों को धमकाता रहता है। ग्रेनाडा में अमेरिकी सैनिकों को भेजने की रोनाल्ड रेगन की नीति और पनामा के राष्ट्रपति को गिरफ्तार कर मियामी की जेल में कैद करने का कदम ऐसी ही नीति का अंग था। अमेरिका अपने राष्ट्रीय हितों के लिए अमेरिकी-महादेश के किसी भी कोने में बेरोकटोक सैनिक कार्रवाई करता रहा है।
बुश के शासनकाल में मेक्सिको सहित तमाम दक्षिण अमेरिकी देशों के साथ अमेरिका की नीति में बेहद तनाव आ गया था। फिदेल कास्त्रो के सबसे बड़े प्रशंसक बन कर वेनेजुएला के राष्ट्रपति ह्युगो चावेज अमेरिका को चुनौती दे रहे थे। ब्राजील के लोकप्रिय राष्ट्रपति लूला डि सिल्वा अमेरिका के बदले भारत और चीन जैसे विकासशील देशों के ज्यादा नजदीक जा रहे थे। अमेरिका में मेक्सिको से आए अनधिकृत अप्रवासियों के साथ बुरा सलूक किए जाने के कारण मेक्सिको-अमेरिका के बीच भी तनाव काफी बढ़ गया था।
क्यूबा के प्रति अमेरिकी रुख में बदलाव ओबामा की विदेश नीति का महत्वपूर्ण अंग है, जिसे वे अपने चुनाव प्रचार के दौरान रेखांकित कर चुके हैं। दुनिया के अमेरिका-विरोधियों से मुंह न मोड़ कर उनके साथ बात करने की नीति को वे कमजोरी नहीं मानते। 9/11 के बाद बुश की नीतियों से दुनिया भर में अमेरिका की छवि धूमिल हुई है, इस छवि को ओबामा सुधारना चाहते हैं। वे चाहते हैं कि दुनिया अमेरिका को एक सहयोगी राष्ट्र के रूप में देखे, न कि एक ऐसे ताकतवर देश की तरह जो अपनी बात मनवाने के लिए जबरदस्ती करता रहता है।
अमेरिका और क्यूबा के बीच कड़वाहट का इतिहास साठ साल से भी ज्यादा पुराना है। 1959 में फिदेल कास्त्रो ने क्रांतिकारी विद्रोह की ताकत से देश की सत्ता अपने हाथों में ले ली। लेनिन और मार्क्स की विचारधारा से प्रेरित कास्त्रो ने निजी कंपनियों का राष्ट्रीयकरण कर दिया और अमेरिकी आयात पर अनेक प्रतिबंध लगा दिए। संबंध इतने खराब हो गए कि अमेरिकी राष्ट्रपति जॉन एफ कैनेडी ने क्यूबा पर स्थायी प्रतिबंध (अम्बर्गो) लगाने की घोषणा कर दी।
सन 1962 के उन दिनों में क्यूबा में सोवियत मिसाइल लगाने के सवाल पर सोवियत राष्ट्रपति ख्रुश्चेव और अमेरिका के राष्ट्रपति जॉन कैनडी के बीच टकराव इस हद तक पहुंच गया था कि उसका अंजाम तीसरे विश्व युद्ध के रूप में हो सकता था। आणविक हथियारों से लैस दुनिया की दो महाशक्तियां एक दूसरे की चाल का जवाब देने के लिए तैयार थीं। अमेरिका की खुफिया एजंसियों ने खबर दी कि सोवियत संघ ने क्यूबा की धरती पर न्यूक्लियर मिसाइल स्थापित कर दी है तो अमेरिकी विदेश विभाग ने क्यूबा पर आक्रमण करने की सलाह राष्ट्रपति कैनडी को दी। लेकिन धैर्य और कूटनीति का सहारा लेते हुए कैनेडी ने क्यूबा की नौसैनिक घेरेबंदी का निर्णय किया, जिसके एक सप्ताह बाद ही ख्रुश्चेव को मिसाइल हटा लेने की घोषणा करनी पड़ी।
तब से फिदेल कास्त्रो और अमेरिका के रिश्ते बिगड़ते ही चले गए। कास्त्रो ने अमेरिका को साम्राज्यवादी देश कहकर सोवियत रूस कैंप में शरण ली, तो सीआईए ने कास्त्रो को मार डालने के लिए क्यूबन आप्रवासियों के गिरोह हवाना भेजने से लेकर कास्त्रो के लिए सिगार में विस्फोटक डालने तक की साजिश रची। लेकिन कास्त्रो अभी तक जिंदा हैं और अब देश का शासन उन्होंने अपने भाई राउल कास्त्रो को सौंप रखा है।
फिलहाल ओबामा के लचीलेपन की नीति का अर्थ सिर्फ इतना है कि वे हवाना को बताना चाहते हैं कि दोनों देशों के बीच संबंध बेहतर बनाने की अगली पहल क्यूबा को करनी होगी। अमेरिका चाहता है कि क्यूबा लोकतंत्र का रास्ता पकडे़। वहां राजनीतिक कैदियों को रिहा किया जाए और मानवाधिकारों का उल्लंघन बंद हो। एक जमाने में क्यूबा अमेरिका की आंख की किरकिरी था। आज हालात बदल चुके हैं। कास्त्रो सक्रिय राजनीति से अलग हो चुके हैं। सोवियत संघ बिखर चुका है। क्यूबा अपनी गरीबी का बोझ झेलने के काबिल नहीं। वह अमेरिका द्वारा लगाए गए आर्थिक प्रतिबंधों से मुक्त होना चाहता है।
अमेरिका के लिए क्यूबा से अधिक महत्वपूर्ण दूसरे मुद्दे हैं। वह चावेज को काबू में करना चाहता है और कोलंबिया से मेक्सिको तक फैले नशीले पदार्थों के विशाल साम्राज्य को समाप्त करना चाहता है। इसके लिए ओबामा इन देशों से टकराव के बदले उनका सहयोग लेना बेहतर समझते हैं।
अमेरिका के दक्षिणी प्रदेश फ्लोरिडा के कीवेस्ट द्वीप से लगभग एक सौ मील दूर बसा क्यूबा
पिछली आधी शताब्दी से अमेरिकी विदेश नीति की वर्ण व्यवस्था में अछूत की तरह खड़ा है। दोनों देशों के बीच 1961 से ही कोई कूटनीतिक संपर्क नहीं है। फिदेल कास्त्रो की साम्यवादी तानाशाही के कारण क्यूबा से विस्थापित होकर अमेरिका और खासकर मियामी शहर में बसे लाखों आप्रवासी अपनी मातृभूमि जाने से वंचित थे। उन्हें यह भी छूट हासिल नहीं थी कि वे अपने परिवार वालों को पैसे भेज सकें, जैसा कि अमेरिका के ज्यादातर आप्रवासी करते हैं। अमेरिका ने क्यूबा पर कड़े आर्थिक प्रतिबंध लगा रखे थे। पर 13 अप्रैल से इस स्थिति में थोड़ा परिवर्तन आ गया है। असल में बराक ओबामा ने घोषणा की है कि अब से क्यूबा मूल के आप्रवासी न सिर्फ अपनी मातृभूमि की यात्रा कर सकते हैं, बल्कि अपने परिवार को पैसे भी भेज सकते हैं। इससे क्यूबा मूल के वे आप्रवासी बेहद प्रसन्न हैं, जिनके परिवार के सदस्य क्यूबा में हैं।
क्यूबा के अप्रवासियों के लिए अपने देश में पैसा भेजने की छूट एक बड़ी सुविधा है। अमेरिका में रहने वाले फिदेल कास्त्रो के घोर विरोधी क्यूबावासी कास्त्रो को दंडित करने की मांग वर्षों से करते आ रहे थे, लेकिन अब वे ओबामा की नई नीति का खुल कर स्वागत कर रहे हैं।
ओबामा के इस फैसले से 2004 में भूतपूर्व राष्ट्रपति बुश द्वारा लगाई गई आर्थिक नाकाबंदी ढीली पड़ गई है। इससे दोनों देशों के बीच नया दौर तो शुरू हुआ ही है, अमेरिका और दक्षिण के गरीब देशों को यह संदेश भी मिला है कि वॉशिंगटन दक्षिण के गैर पूंजीवादी देशों के साथ तनाव कम करना चाहता है और उनके साथ अच्छे पड़ोसी का व्यवहार करना चाहता है। पूर्व राष्ट्रपति जॉर्ज बुश का रवैया मोहल्ले के उस दादा की तरह था, जो अपने पड़ोसियों को धमकाता रहता है। ग्रेनाडा में अमेरिकी सैनिकों को भेजने की रोनाल्ड रेगन की नीति और पनामा के राष्ट्रपति को गिरफ्तार कर मियामी की जेल में कैद करने का कदम ऐसी ही नीति का अंग था। अमेरिका अपने राष्ट्रीय हितों के लिए अमेरिकी-महादेश के किसी भी कोने में बेरोकटोक सैनिक कार्रवाई करता रहा है।
बुश के शासनकाल में मेक्सिको सहित तमाम दक्षिण अमेरिकी देशों के साथ अमेरिका की नीति में बेहद तनाव आ गया था। फिदेल कास्त्रो के सबसे बड़े प्रशंसक बन कर वेनेजुएला के राष्ट्रपति ह्युगो चावेज अमेरिका को चुनौती दे रहे थे। ब्राजील के लोकप्रिय राष्ट्रपति लूला डि सिल्वा अमेरिका के बदले भारत और चीन जैसे विकासशील देशों के ज्यादा नजदीक जा रहे थे। अमेरिका में मेक्सिको से आए अनधिकृत अप्रवासियों के साथ बुरा सलूक किए जाने के कारण मेक्सिको-अमेरिका के बीच भी तनाव काफी बढ़ गया था।
क्यूबा के प्रति अमेरिकी रुख में बदलाव ओबामा की विदेश नीति का महत्वपूर्ण अंग है, जिसे वे अपने चुनाव प्रचार के दौरान रेखांकित कर चुके हैं। दुनिया के अमेरिका-विरोधियों से मुंह न मोड़ कर उनके साथ बात करने की नीति को वे कमजोरी नहीं मानते। 9/11 के बाद बुश की नीतियों से दुनिया भर में अमेरिका की छवि धूमिल हुई है, इस छवि को ओबामा सुधारना चाहते हैं। वे चाहते हैं कि दुनिया अमेरिका को एक सहयोगी राष्ट्र के रूप में देखे, न कि एक ऐसे ताकतवर देश की तरह जो अपनी बात मनवाने के लिए जबरदस्ती करता रहता है।
अमेरिका और क्यूबा के बीच कड़वाहट का इतिहास साठ साल से भी ज्यादा पुराना है। 1959 में फिदेल कास्त्रो ने क्रांतिकारी विद्रोह की ताकत से देश की सत्ता अपने हाथों में ले ली। लेनिन और मार्क्स की विचारधारा से प्रेरित कास्त्रो ने निजी कंपनियों का राष्ट्रीयकरण कर दिया और अमेरिकी आयात पर अनेक प्रतिबंध लगा दिए। संबंध इतने खराब हो गए कि अमेरिकी राष्ट्रपति जॉन एफ कैनेडी ने क्यूबा पर स्थायी प्रतिबंध (अम्बर्गो) लगाने की घोषणा कर दी।
सन 1962 के उन दिनों में क्यूबा में सोवियत मिसाइल लगाने के सवाल पर सोवियत राष्ट्रपति ख्रुश्चेव और अमेरिका के राष्ट्रपति जॉन कैनडी के बीच टकराव इस हद तक पहुंच गया था कि उसका अंजाम तीसरे विश्व युद्ध के रूप में हो सकता था। आणविक हथियारों से लैस दुनिया की दो महाशक्तियां एक दूसरे की चाल का जवाब देने के लिए तैयार थीं। अमेरिका की खुफिया एजंसियों ने खबर दी कि सोवियत संघ ने क्यूबा की धरती पर न्यूक्लियर मिसाइल स्थापित कर दी है तो अमेरिकी विदेश विभाग ने क्यूबा पर आक्रमण करने की सलाह राष्ट्रपति कैनडी को दी। लेकिन धैर्य और कूटनीति का सहारा लेते हुए कैनेडी ने क्यूबा की नौसैनिक घेरेबंदी का निर्णय किया, जिसके एक सप्ताह बाद ही ख्रुश्चेव को मिसाइल हटा लेने की घोषणा करनी पड़ी।
तब से फिदेल कास्त्रो और अमेरिका के रिश्ते बिगड़ते ही चले गए। कास्त्रो ने अमेरिका को साम्राज्यवादी देश कहकर सोवियत रूस कैंप में शरण ली, तो सीआईए ने कास्त्रो को मार डालने के लिए क्यूबन आप्रवासियों के गिरोह हवाना भेजने से लेकर कास्त्रो के लिए सिगार में विस्फोटक डालने तक की साजिश रची। लेकिन कास्त्रो अभी तक जिंदा हैं और अब देश का शासन उन्होंने अपने भाई राउल कास्त्रो को सौंप रखा है।
फिलहाल ओबामा के लचीलेपन की नीति का अर्थ सिर्फ इतना है कि वे हवाना को बताना चाहते हैं कि दोनों देशों के बीच संबंध बेहतर बनाने की अगली पहल क्यूबा को करनी होगी। अमेरिका चाहता है कि क्यूबा लोकतंत्र का रास्ता पकडे़। वहां राजनीतिक कैदियों को रिहा किया जाए और मानवाधिकारों का उल्लंघन बंद हो। एक जमाने में क्यूबा अमेरिका की आंख की किरकिरी था। आज हालात बदल चुके हैं। कास्त्रो सक्रिय राजनीति से अलग हो चुके हैं। सोवियत संघ बिखर चुका है। क्यूबा अपनी गरीबी का बोझ झेलने के काबिल नहीं। वह अमेरिका द्वारा लगाए गए आर्थिक प्रतिबंधों से मुक्त होना चाहता है।
अमेरिका के लिए क्यूबा से अधिक महत्वपूर्ण दूसरे मुद्दे हैं। वह चावेज को काबू में करना चाहता है और कोलंबिया से मेक्सिको तक फैले नशीले पदार्थों के विशाल साम्राज्य को समाप्त करना चाहता है। इसके लिए ओबामा इन देशों से टकराव के बदले उनका सहयोग लेना बेहतर समझते हैं।
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