The Hindu : Kerala News : In search of an alternative to hartal

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Kerala

In search of an alternative to hartal

Special Correspondent

Hartal Virudha Munnani is holding awareness drive

The Munnani wants society to find an alternative, non-intrusive means of expressing protest
It believes hartal is a barbaric form of protest that hurts people’s fundamental human rights

KOCHI: Guess what? Keralites drink more on the evening before every hartal. Liquor bars do roaring business and the Beverages Corporation outlets have longer lines in front of them on the hartal eve, if the experience and the statistics of the Hartal Virudha Munnani are anything to go by.

The munnani activists have also noticed that there is a substantial rise in drinking at home on the hartal day, says Francis Perumana, secretary of the munnani. This shows, according to him, three things: one, people take it for granted that the hartal day is a day to stay at home; two, people think that they are helpless to prevent the hartal, though they feel outraged by it; and three, they have accepted hartal as a way of life.

Apart from the inconveniences and pain (even injuries and deaths) it causes to millions of people, a State-level dawn-to-dusk hartal causes a loss of Rs.4,000 crore to Kerala, the munnai has estimated.

This includes losses to the government, public sector bodies such as the KSRTC, industries, businesses, shops, offices and individuals. If the woes caused to millions of people are monetised and put a price to, the loss could run into several billions of rupees.

In 2006, there were 168 hartals in Kerala - local ones, town-specific, district-level and State-level included. This was in spite of the specific orders by the High Court against holding bandhs and asking the government to ensure that the public is not inconvenienced. So far this year, Kannur district alone witnessed nearly ten hartals, in various towns.

The munnani wants the Kerala society, especially the political parties, to find an alternative, non-intrusive means of expressing protest and disagreement in a democratic way. It believes hartal is a barbaric form of protest that hurts people’s fundamental human rights and causes pain, injuries and violence.

To gather support for getting hartal banished, the munnani is holding debates, seminars and other forms of public awareness programmes in each district. It has so far organised debates in Kozhikode, Idukki and Kannur. On February 15, a photo exhibition that depicts the sufferings of the ordinary people on hartal days will be put on show near Subhash Park in Kochi.

The munnani urged the UDF to abandon its February 19 State-level hartal. Schoolchildren will be asked to send postcards to UDF leaders pleading for dropping the agitation. Students are the worst-affected section of the populace as educational institutions are forced to shut and exam schedules go haywire. It is also planning to bring together on stage the victims of hartals from across the State.

The munnani is planning to move the High Court to get the government penalise parties and organisations for causing damage to public property on hartal days.

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