American lawmakers have spoken up for farmers’ right to protest peacefully and urged the Narendra Modi government to hold a “productive” dialogue with them, following in the footsteps of their Canadian and British counterparts.
New Delhi had bristled after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau amplified the Canadian lawmakers’ concern but has been silent about the remarks from the UK and the US, apparently drawing comfort from these countries’ governments not having yet thrown their weight behind the legislators’ views.
The lawmakers who have spoken up in the US come from both sides of the political divide, as in Canada and the UK.
“I stand in solidarity with the Punjabi farmers in India protesting for their livelihoods and protection from misguided, manipulative government regulations,” Republican Congressman Doug LaMalfa, a rice farmer himself, tweeted. “Punjabi farmers must be allowed to protest peacefully against their government without fear of violence. #IstandWithFarmers.”
Similar views were expressed by Democrat Josh Harder, who represents a district of California in the House of Representatives.
“India is the world’s largest democracy — they owe it to their citizens to allow peaceful protest. I encourage these folks and PM Modi to have peaceful, productive discussions,” he tweeted.
Congressman T.J. Cox, a Democrat, said: “India must uphold the right to peaceful demonstration and ensure their citizens’ safety. The rights of farmers protesting must be respected and meaningful dialogue is the way forward.”
For Congressman Andy Levin from Michigan, a union organiser, the farmers’ protest is an inspiration. “I’m inspired by this movement, and I see it as a harbinger of a people power year in 2021!!” he tweeted.
Letter to ambassador
Three other members of the House of Representatives — all Democrats — have written a joint letter to the Indian ambassador in the US urging the “Indian government to demonstrate its respect for these crucial democratic freedoms, and to be a model of democratic values in the vital Indo-Pacific region”.
Conceding that agricultural policy is an internal matter of India, the three signatories focused on the protests and the clampdown by the Modi government, adding that many of the farmers who faced the force of the state have children, relatives and friends in the US as citizens who have reached out to their elected representatives with concerns about these developments.
The letter also articulates their distress over the “actions by the Indian governments that have restricted these (democratic) rights for many Indians; not only for farmers, but also for religious minorities, and human rights organisations”.
