Tag: Human Rights | Page 3

This illustration is a combination of an artwork created with pen ink and water colour, and text extracted from the accompanying article. The artwork shows the close-up of a young man sitting on one edge of a small brown wooden boat and talking on his mobile phone, holding it against his right ear. The boat is floating in the middle of a deep blue lake, surrounded by mountains and trees. The sky above the mountains is blue-grey. While visually striking, the scene also strikes a somber note. The accompanying text says: “My Aunt Rosemary insisted that I call her so that she could understand what I needed, but I had to carefully plan for the simple act of making a phone call. I couldn’t afford to be heard speaking in Mizo by the neighbours in Thanga, and I had to row out into the lake and make the call from open water where I’d be safe. I shared my plight with my aunt and she reminded me that she’d asked me to live in Mizoram earlier as well.” Artwork credit: Souvik Rakshit

Fractured geographies and minds

By Saki

Saki, a young student of history, continues his account of the communal conflict in Manipur and the conflict in his mind when he was compelled to leave the state

This is an early evening mid-range shot of around 14 trans masculine and other queer persons associated with the Samarth trans collective of Odisha standing behind a large rainbow pride flag during the ‘Puri Rainbow Pride Walk’ held on June 13, 2023. The flag is held at chest level across several of the walkers. Some of them are also holding posters with Odia and English text or small rainbow pride flags. They are all smiles as they look at the camera, and exude happiness. A number of other walk participants can be seen behind them. In the background, to the left, are several buildings, while to the right are some more buildings, a couple of palm trees, and a handful of open sky. Photo courtesy SAATHII

Vartanama Nov '23

Dreams and demands

By Bana, Pawan Dhall

Trans masculine individuals in Odisha are speaking up louder about their aspirations for the future – Bana shares a wish list with ‘Varta’ – hopefully most of it will come...

This photograph is an example of fine-art photography, consisting of several intersecting frames within an overall frame created by the unpainted red-brown brick walls of a poor household, lit up only with daylight from outside. To the left of the photograph is a woman dressed in a patterned cotton saree, worn in a style common in Bengal, wearing ‘shankha-pola’ in her hands, and leaning against a wall, which seems to be at the entrance of her house. She is looking down at the camera as the photographer seems to be seated on the floor. Her face is shrouded in half-light and she seems to have a grim demeanour. A younger person is seated on the floor next to her holding up a vertically rectangular frame that seems to be made of glass. The person is not visible, only a part of their head and hands holding up the frame are visible in the photograph. The frame shows the portion of an open window with an ornate grill design. Greenery is visible outside the window. Inside, just below the window and next to an unpainted brick wall, food is cooking in a pan placed on a mud ‘chulha’. A ladle is placed in the pan. Next to the ‘chulha’ seems to be a pile of twigs and wood shavings, possibly for use in the ‘chulha’. An interesting interplay of light, shadow and subdued colours dominates the photograph. Photo credit: Debalina

Insight, Policy Matters Nov '23

Domestic violence and disabled women – reflections from the field

By Dr. Nandini Ghosh

Domestic violence and lack of access to legal redress still pose serious challenges to the wellbeing of disabled women in India, says Dr. Nandini Ghosh

This illustration is a combination of a photograph and text extracted from the accompanying article. The photograph is a display of a set of four tote bags made with cloth in combinations of bright colours like pink, blue, maroon, green and yellow. The fabric of the bags is sourced locally from Manipur. The bags have a vertical rectangular shape and have long handles made with thick cloth for ease of hanging the bag from one’s shoulder. The bags have a label made with thick paper clipped on one corner just below the handle – the label carries the name Matai Makes and provides details of Matai Society’s livelihood initiative to support the internally displaced people in Manipur. The accompanying text says: “The more prolonged the communal tension in the state, the longer will it take for normalcy to return in Manipur. This is where livelihood initiatives can play a crucial role because they help prioritize issues of survival and economic sustenance. Livelihood initiatives like those of Matai Society hold out the hope for a much larger process of self-reliance, recovery and healing in the state. This means that agencies like Matai Society and their partner organizations also need to sustain themselves.” Photo credit: Matai Society

Happenings, Manipur Relief Nov '23

Livelihood route to healing and recovery in Manipur

By Matai Society

Trans and queer youth are working out innovations to revive livelihood options for the internally displaced in Manipur. Matai Society urges you to join in

Quote: Justice Bhat issued a direction to the State to address the discrimination that trans and queer couples face in relation to social welfare entitlements and employment benefits in cases where such benefits can only be available to legally married couples. Justice Chandrachud spoke about the urgent need for anti-discrimination laws which prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and give full effect to all civil and social rights of trans and queer persons. Justice Kaul agreed with him on the need for an anti-discrimination law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Advice - Rights and Laws, Vartanama Oct '23

Anti-discrimination mantra for long and happy trans and queer lives (married or not)

By Namrata

Namrata examines the Supreme Court’s marriage equality verdict and suggests further advocacy and litigation possibilities for queer activists and lawyers – with inputs from Lalit Panda, Senior Resident Fellow (Charkha),...

This illustration is a combination of two sketches and a small piece of text extracted from the accompanying article. The sketches depict some of the scenes of arson and rioting described by the author in the article. One of them shows a church in the countryside engulfed in smoke, while the other shows a car aflame on a city road and large clouds of smoke rising from the car. Stones and shards are scattered on the road beside the car. No human beings are visible in the sketches. The backdrop in both the sketches includes outlines of the verdant hills rising into the sky that Manipur is well known for. Both the sketches are in grey scale and have been made with pen ink and water colour on art paper. The accompanying text says “An hour into the journey, my eyes blinked to let go the misery they were withholding. It finally dawned upon me that Manipur had meandered away from the one I’d known in my lifetime of around two decades.” Artwork credit: Souvik Rakshit, Pawan Dhall

Insight, Manipur Relief Oct '23

Darkest homecoming

By Saki

A personal account of a survivor of the communal conflict that has engulfed Manipur – the first in a series of stories by Saki, a young student of history

This illustration is a combination of a photograph and text extracted from the accompanying article. The photograph shows a midrange, semi silhouette shot of the author standing barefoot on a sea beach during sunrise. She has her back to the camera, looking out at the open sea. The sea water laps at her feet. Barring a small wave at some distance from the author, the surface of the sea is a calm golden, reflecting the light of the sun still low on the horizon. The sea water seems to extend indefinitely and one cannot make out where it merges with the sky. The accompanying text says: “Despite everything, I’m hopeful about the upcoming 10 years. Our community is resilient and deeply engaged in the resistance against oppression. In 10 years from now, we may yet be able to have better queer representation at the government level. We may yet succeed in pushing gender and sexuality education at the school level, and gain horizontal reservation for the trans community in the spheres of education and employment. I believe that the process of queer inclusion will be gradual but it can’t be stopped or reversed.” Photo courtesy Meghna Mehra

Commentary Oct '23

Wishlist for queer pride and asexual visibility

By Meghna Mehra

Meghna Mehra believes that the future will be queer, along with freer expressions of asexuality becoming a reality in India and elsewhere in the next 10 years

Cinemascope, Vartanama Sep '23

Celebrating the queer gaze in Hindi cinema

By Debjyoti Ghosh

As ‘Varta’ turned 10 on August 1, 2023, Debjyoti Ghosh caught up with pioneering filmmaker Onir for a chat on his vision for queer empowerment in Hindi cinema and beyond

This illustration is a combination of a photograph and text extracted from the accompanying article. The photograph shows a set of six colourful drawings made by children living in one of the trauma response centres for conflict-affected children and youth run by Matai Society in the Bishnupur district of Manipur. The centres are run in association with various relief camps. The drawings display a diversity of imaginations of their creators – a house and a tree beside it, a lust tree with heart signs and a child on a swing hanging from the tree, abstract representation of flowers, hearts, fish, and gift boxes, and even a ship sailing on a blue sea under a blue sky with the sun shining bright. The drawings have been created with pencil colours, crayons, and sketch pens on chart papers. The accompanying text says: “The conflict has lasted beyond four months now. During these excruciating days, many local clubs, youth groups, and NGOs have been running relief camps to host the masses that have become homeless. Most of the displaced hail from the hill-valley buffer area. Despite the goodwill and support from various government and non-government agencies and donors, these camps are struggling to make ends meet because of the sheer numbers of people affected. So many have lost their homes, many others their close ones.” Photo courtesy Matai Society

Insight, Manipur Relief Sep '23

Hope amid loss, pain and anxiety in Manipur

By Matai Society

Matai Society reports on the situation in and around the Bishnupur district of Manipur months into the communal conflict in the state and lists the urgent relief requirements

This photographic collage shows close-up glimpses from the archival records maintained by Varta Trust on the sociolegal campaigns against Section 377, Indian Penal Code since the early 1990s. Portions of a couple of pages from the 172nd report of the Law Commission of India on a review of the rape laws published in March 2000 can be seen in the collage. The title page of the report is presented inside an oval shaped inset. The State Emblem of India, an adaptation of the Lion Capital of Ashoka, is visible on the top of one of the pages in the collage. The pages are presented in a stylized manner, with only a portion of the text on the pages visible to the reader. Photo credit: Pawan Dhall

From the Archives Sep '23

Conversations between movements, collaborations across identities, 10 years on

By Dhamini Ratnam

The struggle for equal rights must be a collaborative one – Dhamini Ratnam dwells on this lesson from the past reflected in the queer archives maintained by Varta Trust

Quote: Somewhere amid all these positives, I also expect queer people with disabilities to be more visible, do well in life, and not be silenced in both queer and disability communities. Homophobic, transphobic and ableist people will still be around, but they may well be pushed to the fringes. A decade hence we may sit down and compare the predictions made by various authors on the pages of Varta and calculate the percentage of those that have come true.

My Story Aug '23

Cautious predictions for 2033 CE

By Rajib Chakrabarti

On ‘Varta’ webzine completing 10 years, Rajib Chakrabarti writes about the changes he expects to see for queer people and persons with disabilities a decade from now

Vartanama Jul '23

Tensions of the past and future

By Pawan Dhall

An imperfect digest of ‘Varta’ webzine’s journey through a decade of climaxes, anti-climaxes, and explorations for a social G-spot

This graphic is a combination of a photograph and text extracted from the accompanying article. The photograph shows a scene from a Woolworths outlet in Johannesburg. Two mannequins clad in t-shirts, jeans and shoes stand next to rows of t-shirts and other clothes. One of the mannequins stands on a pedestal, with a long rainbow pride flag hanging behind it, and a poster in the forefront that says: “Be an ally – celebrating Pride 2023”. The extract of text says: “Pride isn’t about stating that we’re good enough to be accepted a month in a year. Pride is about making sure we’re accepted each and every day all through the year. Corporates play a big role in making that happen. However, when we will see performative allyship, we will call you out and remind you exactly how we contribute to your market. Because not only does our money matter – we matter too.” Photo credit: Debjyoti Ghosh

Insight, Vartanama Jun '23

Show us what pride is really all about

By Debjyoti Ghosh

Debjyoti Ghosh calls upon corporates to demonstrate stronger allyship that transcends anti-queer social and political pressures

This is a close-up indoor shot of a pile of six mid-sized ‘motichoor’ laddus placed on parchment paper on a black plate. The gorgeous and mouthwatering orange colour of the laddus is marked with specs of green, red and white condiments. The background of the photograph is blurred to enhance the appeal of the laddus. Main photo credit: Priyam1307 via ‘Wikimedia Commons’

Vartanama Apr '23

All this marriage (equality) talk!

By Pawan Dhall

Pawan Dhall has something to say to argumentative Indians who’ve been bickering over who can have the marriage laddu and who can have only the laddu

This illustration is a combination of a graphic and an extract from the accompanying article on marriage equality in India. The graphic shows a floral photo frame (orange flowers interspersed with green leaves), but the space for the photo is empty. This is symbolic of the assertion in the article that everyone should be free to fill up this space in the way they find it meaningful – the photo in the frame need not be one of marriage. The extract from the article says: “Of all the petitions on marriage equality being heard by the Supreme Court, the one that stands out is Rituparna Borah & Others Vs. Union of India, which has been filed by four queer-feminist activists and three anonymized couples. The prayers in it go beyond the legal recognition of same sex / same gender marriages. It argues that rather than just rule on the constitutional validity of marriage equality, the court should also grapple with the issue of family diversity as well as protect queer people who face violence from natal families, those who may not want to get married but should be entitled to other rights traditionally emanating from marriage, and those who want to get married, but do not have support from their families.” Graphic credit: OpenClipart on ‘Wikimedia Commons’

Insight, Policy Matters Apr '23

Marriage equality – petitions, pushback and politics

By Namrata, Shreyashi

Namrata and Shreyashi trace the developments in the marriage equality litigation and bring to light issues and claims from queer activists that go beyond marriage equality

This photograph is an early evening-time long shot of a spectacular view of the north-western coast of the Antarctic Peninsula. It shows a vast expanse of blue and placid sea water leading up to a number of icebergs and partially snow-covered mountains stretching across the horizon. The light of the setting sun has turned the white of the icebergs and snow on the mountains into a striking gold that contrasts sharply with the deep blue of the sea. Above the mountains, grey-pink clouds adorn a greyish sky. We stand to lose the incredible beauty and serenity of innumerable such scenes because of global warming and the resultant melting of the polar caps. Photo credit: Murray Foubister via Wikimedia Commons

Poetry Feb '23

The polar caps

By Rajib Chakrabarti

Rajib Chakrabarti is cautiously hopeful about our planet’s future

Tagged Under: Human Rights