Writers urge British Government to safeguard freedom of expression in India

Open letter to the Prime Minister calling on the British government to take action to safeguard freedom of expression in India ahead of Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the UK later this week.

Dear Prime Minister

Re: Urging action by British government to safeguard freedom of expression in India

As writers and writers’ organisations committed to protecting and defending freedom of expression around the world, we, the undersigned, are extremely concerned about the rising climate of fear, growing intolerance and violence towards critical voices who challenge orthodoxy or fundamentalism in India. As the three-day state visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the United Kingdom between 12 and 14 November draws near, we urge you to engage with Prime Minister Modi both publicly and privately on this crucial issue. Please speak out on the current state of freedom of expression in his country, urging him to stay true to the spirit of the democratic freedoms enshrined in India’s Constitution.

As you will no doubt be aware three public intellectuals, Malleshappa Madivalappa Kalburgi, Govind Pansare and Narendra Dabholkar, have been killed by unknown assailants in the last two years alone. At least 37 journalists have been killed in the country since 1992. Other writers have received threats.

Over the past month, at least 40 Indian novelists, poets and playwrights have returned the prize awarded to them by the Sahitya Akademi, the National Academy of Letters, to protest against these attacks. In their statements, the writers have criticised the Akademi’s silence over the murders, the deteriorating political environment in which those expressing dissent have been attacked by government ministers, and challenged the government to demonstrate tolerance and protect free speech.

After this, and a silent march by protesting writers, the Akademi issued a statement condemning the murder of Kalburgi and a resolution asking ‘governments at the centre and in the states to take immediate action to bring the culprits to book and ensure the security of writers now and in the future.’ It also requested the writers who had returned awards to reconsider their decisions. Dissenting writers responded to the Akademi saying it should have spoken out much earlier, and urged the Akademi to rethink how it can support ‘writers all over India, and by extension, the people of the country.’ They reminded the Akademi of the urgency, calling the present time a ‘moment of spiralling hatred and intolerance.’ Mr Modi’s government has not yet formally responded to the
Akademi’s resolution.

The protests have grown beyond the community of Indian writers of all languages. Scientists, artists, film-makers, academics, scholars, and actors have either complained the climate of intolerance or returned awards on a scale unprecedented in India.

In October, Pakistani singer Ghulam Ali had his performance in Mumbai cancelled by the Shiv Sena party, an ally of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. The Shiv Sena has said it will not allow any Pakistani artist to perform until the situation in Kashmir has improved. A few days later, Sudheendra Kulkarni, chairman of Observer Research Foundation, was attacked by Shiv Sena activists and smeared with black paint for hosting the book launch of former Pakistan foreign minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri’s book launch and refusing to cancel it.

India’s Constitution recognises freedom of expression as a cornerstone of India’s democracy; however despite its constitutional commitments, India’s legal system makes it surprisingly easy to silence others. In a report earlier this year, PEN and the International Human Rights Programme (IHRP) at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Law outlined the overreaching legislation and longstanding problems with the administration of justice, which have produced cumbersome legal processes that deter citizens from exercising their right to free expression. The resulting chilling effect silences political criticism and often discourages marginal voices from speaking out on sensitive social, cultural, and religious matters.

In line with the United Kingdom’s stated commitment to promoting human rights, we ask that you raise the above issues with Prime Minister Modi and urge him to provide better protection for writers, artists and other critical voices and ensure that freedom of speech is safeguarded. Without these protections a democratic, peaceful society is not possible.

Raficq Abdulla

Jim Aitken

Lee Allane

Maggie Anderson

Kate
Armstrong

Alan
Ayckbourn

Sally Baker,
Director, Wales PEN Cymru

Marion Baraitser

Marge Berer

Terence
Blacker

Ricky Brown

Peter
Buckman

Tom Bullough

Katie Burden

Jim Burnside

Maoilios Caimbeul

Jenni Calder,
Membership Secretary, Scottish PEN

Fiona Cameron

Drew
Campbell, President, Scottish PEN

Joyce Caplan

Aimee
Chalmers

Regi Claire

Anne Clarke

Jennifer
Clement, President, PEN International

Jo Clifford

Ken Cockburn

Anne
Connolly

Michael
Connor

Nicki
Cornwell

Christine
Crow

Manishita
Dass

Suzy Davies

Christine De
Luca

Patrick
Dobbs

Colin Donati

Sasha
Dugdale

William Duncan

Anne Dunford

Jonathan
Edwards

Suzanne
Egerton

Dorothy-Grace
Elder

Menna Elfyn,
President, Wales PEN Cymru

Moris Farhi

Penelope
Farmer

Vicki Feaver

Euna Fisher

Matthew Fitt

Una Flett

Steven
Fowler

Miranda
France

Lindsey Fraser

Maureen
Freely, President, English PEN

Vivian
French

Leah Fritz

Iain Galbraith

Omar Garcia

Alan Gay

Maitreesh
Ghatak

Magi Gibson

Anne Lorne
Gillies

Brian Girvin

Jo
Glanville, Director, English PEN

Fiona Graham,
Vice President, Scottish PEN

Niall
Griffiths

Jay
Griffiths

Bishnupriya
Gupta

Daniel Hahn

Georgina
Hammick

Ann
Harrison, Director, Freedom to Write Programme, PEN International

David
Harrower

Jonathan
Heawood

Mairi
Hedderwick

Joy Hendry

Diana Hendry

Daisy Hirst

John William
Hodgson

Eva Hoffman

Amanda
Hopkinson

Sarah Howard

Sunny Hundal

Brian
Johnstone

Alice Jolly

Carole Jones

Sally
Roberts Jones

Beth Junor

Meena
Kandasamy

Nitasha Kaul

Peter Kerr

Andrew Kidd

1. Kimber

Hari Kunzru

Nikita
Lalwani

Lee Langley

Joanne Leedom-Ackerman

Thomas
Legendre

Joan Lennon

Paul Levy

Gwyneth
Lewis

Marina Lewycka

Jean Liddiard

David Lodge

Sarah Lutyens

Pauline Lynch

Neil Mac
Neil

Ian
Macdonald

Carl
MacDougall

Shena Mackay

Iseabail Macleod

Aonghas
MacNeacail

Iain Maloney

Colin
Manlove

Karen
Margolis

Robyn
Marsack

Henry Marsh

Annabelle
May

Val McDermid

David
McDonald

David
McDowall

Ian McEwan

Sarah
McIntosh

Sophie McKeand

Pauline Melville

Greg
Michaelson

Paul Moore

Cathy Moore

David Morgan

Neel
Mukherjee

Anne Murray

Rebekah
Murrell

Maureen
Myant

Beverley
Naidoo

Liz Niven

Katharine
Norbury

Georgina
Norie

Heather
Norman-Soderlind

Claire
O’Kell

Ruth Padel

Simin Patel

Penny
Perrick

Catherine
Peters

Rosemary
Phipps

Naomi Popple

Tom Pow

Chris Powici

Angharad
Price

Faith Pullin,
Chair of Women Writers Committee, Scottish PEN

Anna Purser

Jean
Rafferty, Chair of Writers at Risk Committee, Scottish PEN

Monisha
Rajesh

Ravinder
Randhawa

Lynne Reid
Banks

Elizabeth
Rimmer

Fiona
Rintoul

Prof Richard
H Roberts

Ferial
Rogers

Lesley Anne
Rose

Sioned Rowlands

Salman Rushdie

Michael Russell

Gita Sahgal

Angela Saini

Chrys Salt MBE

Philippe Sands

Ros Schwartz

Andrew Sclater

Lawrence
Scott

Robert Sharp

Owen Sheers,
Chair, PEN Wales Cymru

Sara
Sheridan

Nikesh Shukla

Salma Siddique

Francesca Simon

Penny
Simpson

Joan Smith

Dennis Smith

Nicola Spurr

Tom Stacey

Anne
Stevenson

Leslie
Stevenson

Anne Stokes

Zoe Strachan

Lynsey
Sutherland

Aniko
Szilagyi

Mary Taylor

Carl Tighe

Carles
Torner, Executive Director, PEN International

Hannah
Trevarthen

Jonathan
Trigell

Salil
Tripathi, Chair of the Writers in Prison Committee, PEN International

Mirza Waheed

Jehanne Wake

Harriet Walter

Lynnda Wardle

Val Warner

Eleanor Watts

Nicola White

Zoe Wicomb

Colin Will

Karina
Williamson

Les Wilson

Fiona Wilson

Peter Wood
Cotterill