Pressenza Pressenza International Press Agency Hong Kong, 22/08/11 “It was notable that the previous meeting held on fourteenth August drew close to 90 people while, a week later, 400 participated!” says Dilip K. Pandey, speaking as just another volunteer for India Against Corruption. “This shows just how much Indians have been fired up by the peaceful activism of the 74-year-old Anna Hazare with his team. The unanimous feeling amongst us is that we are all more aware now about the importance of this bill and see it as more important than any other bill that was ever passed in India. The government and the political parties would be well-advised to respond appropriately to the people's needs as highlighted by the mass movement of the people who have clearly expressed their solidarity in the demand for a fair and effective Jan Lokpal Bill. We are more aware of this Bill than any other Bill ever passed in India, and, we know the difference between Government Lokpal and Jan Lokpal. It is only logical to support Team Anna.”
The group is well aware of Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and the territory’s history fighting corruption which was greatly helped by the setting up of the ICAC. With that knowledge under their belts the Hong Kong residents feel they are in a special position to contribute to a better understanding of how valuable the Jan Lokpal Bill can be when implemented at the scale demanded by the diverse Indian geography and demography.
India Against Corruption (IAC) is a citizen's movement to demand strong anti-corruption laws. Lokpal bills were introduced several times since 1968, yet they were never passed by the Indian Parliament. After a fast by veteran social activist Anna Hazare and widespread protests by citizens across India the Government of India constituted a 10-member Joint Committee of ministers and civil society activists to draft an effective Jan Lokpal Bill. The primary focus of IAC movement is to ensure a strong Lokpal bill.
“The turn-out clearly indicates that Hong Kong’s Indian population is not willing to be left behind in this grassroots movement that has captured the minds of young and old, male and female, and has managed to unite everyone where many other initiatives did not,” added Mr Pandey.
After patriotic songs, there were videos shown, “Team Anna”, with key Anna aid Arvind Kejriwal and Anna himself. The videos helped clear misconceptions about the Lokpal bills and inform people that this time it really is a people's bill granting that anyone can actively criticize any point or give a their particular point of view to be taken into account.
A petition signing exercise is underway to garner further support and when finalised it will be handed over to the Indian Embassy in Hong Kong for sending on to the Government of India and to the UN Office as well.
UPDATE: September 1, 2011 Over 1400 signatures were collected by volunteers of IAC-HK positioned at key junctions [of the city] during evenings of the past 5 days. During the signature campaign, volunteers discussed the petition with those passing by before seeking signatures. It was interesting to note unanimous support for the movement itself along with broad knowledge of the differences between the various versions of the bills," said Mr Pandey
The message was send in form of a petition submitted to Indian Embassy here in Hong Kong. The petition handed over to the Consul-General of India, Hong Kong, which is to be forwarded to Shri. K P Singh, Director, Rajya Sabha Secretariat. Mr. Singh is in charge of collecting all public opinion about the Govt. Lokpal Bill. The Indian Community members also sent an additional copy to the PMO, addressed to Shri Manmohan Singh.
The petition stated that the signees are categorically against the Govt.'s original draft of the Lokpal Bill and for Team Anna's version, the Jan Lokpal bill. Petition provides the example of ICAC in Hong Kong as a successful implementation of a strong anti-corruption system.
