‘Gujarat - a laboratory of Hindu Rashtra’ will be followed by a launch of a new report by the International Initiative for Justice in Gujarat and an opportunity for discussion
(Box office: 0207 930 3647, tickets: £6.50 / £5.50)
Organised by South Asia Solidarity Group :  southasia@hotmail.com

This report launched on the aftermath of the Gujarat genocide was produced by the International Initiative for Justice in Gujarat which was set up by the following organisations and has focussed particularly on women’s experiences:
Citizen's Initiative (Ahmedabad), People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) - Shanti Abhiyan (Vadodara),Communalism Combat, Awaaz-E-Niswaan Forum Against Oppression of Women (FAOW) and Stree Sangam (Mumbai), Saheli, Jagori, Sama, and Nirantar (Delhi), Organised Lesbian Alliance for Visibility and Action (OLAVA, Pune), and other women's organizations in India.

'Gujarat - a laboratory of Hindu Rashtra’ will also be screened on Saturday 13 December and Sunday 14 December 3pm with ‘Miles to Go’ (dir. Nina Subramani) followed by discussion.


"Miles to Go" by Nina Subramani
This film is about Greenpeace activists organising against the authorities and big business who fail to take action against environmental destruction in India


"Gujarat - A laboratory of Hindu Rashtra" by Suma Josson

This film looks at the violence which engulfed Gujarat in March 2002 in which more than 2,000 women, children and men were brutally massacred, and many thousands more saw their families, homes and livelihoods destroyed. Using the events in villages and towns where the violence took place as a starting point, the film exposes the role of the Indian diaspora in promoting the genocide. It also shows why Gujarat with its skewered economic growth, high unemployment, the mood of despair among working people and caste discrimination is a fertile ground for divisive ideologies.

The film examines the role of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) the ideological core of the family of Hindu fascist organisations, the Sangh Parivar, and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in the present political scenario. The film also talks to prominent religious leaders (mahants)in the VHP and explores their ideas of democracy, Hindu Rashtra, the constitution, and the status of ‘lower caste’ communities.

At the same time, it explores the very different perspectives on the same issues from trade unionists, human rights lawyers and other activists, specialists and ordinary citizens.

The film with its warning of ‘Gujarat today, India tomorrow’ sends out an urgent call for action against the growth of fascism in India.