FDH volunteers are already on the move
	News from the field: Janadesh Zindabad! (newsletter) - N° 4 - August 2007 - N° 3 - July 2007 - N° 2 - June 2007 - N° 1 - May 2007 Janadesh in the international press Janadesh Fact Sheet Janadesh Cycle Tour : - " Today the Janadesh Cycle yatra reached the Gandhi Museum in Maduri ..."      (08/02/07) - On the road from January 12th to May 1st (jan 07)
	India, between image and reality
	A Marcher’s Testimonial
	Ekta Parishad: Mobilize for Action!
	Ekta Parishad and Frères des Hommes : An Historic Partnership
	More information : Website of Ekta Parishad

“Janadesh” (or “the decision of the people”) is a demonstration organized by our partner Ekta Parishad, that promotes respect for the rights of the most poor to access land and other natural resources (water, seeds…) as the means to live and work with dignity.

From October 2nd (Gandhi’s date of birth) to October 22nd 2007, 25,000 people of rural areas (those without land, agricultural workers, and members of human rights organizations) will walk the 250 kilometers from Gwalior to New Delhi. In the federal capital, nearly 100,000 others will with join them to take part in a sit-in that has been organized in front of Parliament. The duration of the sit-in will depend on the farming commitments made by the government, recognizing the rights of the majority of these rural peoples!

Local objectives:

• Significant distribution of land to landless farmers.
• Financial or natural compensation for displaced families, whose land was taken by the state in the name of public interest.
• Judicial resolutions to the lawsuits filed for access to land (100,000 complaints are in the process of being prepared).
• The return of land to titled landowners, who have been stripped of this right.

National objectives:

• Put into place an agrarian reform, an access system to resources, and a reasonable system to manage natural resources.
• Denounce the extremely precarious living situations of millions of mistreated rural families.
• Create a “National Land Authority” within the central state government to counter the arbitrary/ instability that currently reigns in rural areas.

A Principle of Action: Non-violence

In responding to the violent situations that are part of daily life in rural India, millions of Indian citizens have refused to react aggressively. However, far from being passive or silent, they have employed symbolic and creative acts to achieve their goals. “Janadesh,” the march for rights, will be the capstone. Idealistic? Didn’t this principle cause the diversion of the entire British army and obtain independence for India without resorting to the use of weapons?

United we stand ! © Emmanuel Louail / FDH

To take charge of their own common destiny, these millions of marginalized people chose not to yield to feelings of resentment and have instead decided to take advantage of the power of education. By informing themselves of their rights and organizing themselves to defend them, they have developed a strength that has permitted them to maintain their goals and objectives while holding onto their ideals regarding non-violence.

These citizens have left behind feelings of fear and hostility—products of the power exercised over them, by the “other” (landowners, dishonest moneylenders, corrupt state representatives)—to strengthen and fuel a debate, to gather evidence of the violent acts that have taken place against them…, that will help them to weaken opponents whose only tool is violence.
Patience has become, for them, the virtue that has helped them overcome hurdles and to persist in their struggle.
The ultimate goal of their effort is not a victory over their opponents, but rather a path towards gaining official recognition of their right to justice.

Sabine Benjamin

Translation Jordan MARIL