[Imc-india] Editorial changes

Thu Sep 11 02:05:30 PDT 2003

Dear Sivaram and everyone,

I once again write here to people from the Madurai collective 
requesting them to signal back and join us in this process. IMC India 
was groomed Mudurai Collective and there is no reason why they the 
original parent should suddenly have no access or sway over the way 
things move at IMC india. Please get back to work, our urgent 
intervention was triggered by what we consider a crisis situation. 
There is need for us to reflect on what happened and to develop IMC 
India in ways that the far right does not continue to poison and 
damage the progressive space that IMC is supposed to represent.

The technical  issues in hiding matter or other problems faced should 
be resolved. There is no reason that because the IMC India publishing 
interface is the way it is that we cant work towards changing it or 
develop strategies to prevent / preempt the far right from mauling 
our work. And no IMC collective particularly if its a national should 
operate in an inaccessible manner . . . .

I would also like to clear doubts, re this as being seen as power 
grab. I have no ulterior motives here what so ever, other than see 
IMC move out of a crisis and a team consisting of old and new people 
collaborating, to give it new vigour.

But till that happens we would like to keep IMC India afloat and 
active. People based in India on this list should speak up please. 
Let us carry this process further in as transparent a manner. In the 
months ahead lets develop and expand this process and also work 
towards a workshop at the upcoming Bombay WSF  to carry this further.

greetings

Harsh

At 4:13 PM -0700 9/8/03, Sivaraman Balachandran wrote:
>Hi all,
>
>I did not write earlier simply because I didn't want
>to get embroiled in a long email discussions - I don't
>have the time nor the email tenaciousness.  But here
>goes....
>
>Thanks Ganesh and Harsh for responding to my first
>email.  It did clarify some things.  Here are some
>further thoughts that will hopefully get across where
>I'm coming from.
>
>I couldn't block the proposal since I don't live in
>India and am not technically part of the IMC India
>collective.  I was part of the IMC-India support group
>based in the US, but we were asked by global IMC folks
>that IMC-india needs to be run locally (i.e. people
>living in India).  We agreed to this and I have to
>respect that line.
>
>But when I see Boud (living in Poland), Harsh from
>FRance, and Ganesh (in Calcutta, but I thought from
>the email address that you're in Ireland - Sorry),
>proposing and changing IMC India rules, it comes off
>as very inconsistent with previous decision have local
>control of IMC-INdia.
>
>On top of all this, Sanat's email from 8/28 was
>basically ignored (at least no messages to the list).
>Sanat was also a member of the US based support group
>for IMC-India.
>
>This proposal comes across as giving IMC India control
>to a Europe based support group with Ganesh as a local
>proxy.  Hence my sentiments of a power grab.
>
>
>The proposal itself:
>
>Please go to the bottom of each these links that are
>shown in the proposal.  5 out of the 6 have a
>particular picture of a mutilated murdered man.  I'm
>assuming that'w why the Madurai collective hid them,
>but I'm not sure.  I do not believe that the Madurai
>collective was hiding these posts because the
>collective turned right wing. 
>
>Articles hidden by the Madurai collective, which have
>no racist or violence content
>?Resources for secular action?, 30 August,
>http://india.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=7245
>?Is India going the way of 1930s Germany??, 29 August,
>http://india.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=7212
>?Nickerwalas suck history out of their thumbs. Who
>needs facts??, 29 August,
>http://india.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=7209
>?VHP has hijacked Hindu religion?, 29 August,
>http://india.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=7191
>?My letter to the President of India?, 27 August,
>http://india.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=7085
>?Anti-Modi demonstration in London?, 26 August,
>http://india.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=7010
>
>I think these posts underscore the nature of how
>difficult it is to moderate open publishing.  I agree
>the articles should not have been hidden, but I can
>also see why some would choose to hide the pictures.
>
>I agree with you that something is wrong with the
>Madurai collective - they are not responding.  And I'm
>not against proposals to change how IMC-india is
>operated but I want to make sure that we follow a fair
>process. 
>
>If the local people on this list (people currently
>living in India) have agreed that IMC-INdia is in
>disarray and needs to be overhauled, then I think they
>need to go through a more formal process on
>IMC-process at the global level. 
>
>This would solidify their foothold in the IMC and
>legitimize a transfer of control from the Madurai
>Collective to them.
>
>I hope I've explained why this does feel like a power
>grab to me.
>
>I want to finally qualify again that this is not a
>block - I'm expressing my concerns and if one could
>allay my fears, I would really appreciate it. 
>
>BTW, who has the hiding control of the newswire? 
>
>Thanks for listening.
>
>Sivaram
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>--- Montgomery Cheddar <ganeshmukti at yahoo.ie> wrote:
>>  Sivaram,I write in response to your email.As far as
>>  I can see, the Madurai collective had plenty of
>  > opportunity to respond to complaints made about hate
>>  messages on India Indymedia - complaints that have
>>  been made for months. They have not responded. The
>>  emergency editorial policy was proposed with a
>>  seven-day deadline, in consultation with members of
>>  the global IMC process team as well as members of
>>  the IMC India list. No-one - not even you - raised
>>  an objection. If you had, the policy would not have
>>  been passed or would have been reviewed. The new
>>  policy is by no means a coup d'etat, but a
>>  reaffirmation of India IMC's democratic values and
>>  desire to maintain an alternative media free of
>>  prejudice.There is nothing to stop members of the
>>  Madurai collective from being involved in India
>>  Indymedia. I don't think anyone is stopping them.
>>  The problem has been, all along, the Madurai
>>  collective's failure to open up their editorial team
>>  to new-comers. In fact, it seems the Madurai
>>   collective has faded out of existence, causing many
>>  problems.I hope the new policy will enable more
>>  people, not just the Madurai collective, becoming
>>  involved in the editorial process, making IMC India
>>  a more democratic form of alternative media.
>>  EVERYONE is invited to participate and contribute.
>>  No one group has or should have "control".The
>>  response to the new policy on the India IMC newswire
>>  has largely been positive
>>
>(http://india.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=7704).
>>  So it's a shame that you have now voiced objections,
>>  particularly given your long association with India
>>  IMC.It would be good to have constructive,
>>  forward-thinking proposals on how India Indymedia
>>  can develop and how we can build on this new
>>  situation.Ganesh.
>>  Yahoo! India Matrimony: Find your partner
>>  online.Post your profile.>
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