Dongria Kondh Tribal leader dies in police custody – as tribe denounce harassment campaign
A leader of a tribe in
India, which made headlines around the world when it won a David and Goliath battle against a British
mining corporation, has died in police custody – following a violent police
campaign of harassment and intimidation against activists. Bari Pidikaka of the
Dongria Kondh tribe was arrested and detained on his way back from a protest in
October 2015, and died this week.
The Dongria from central India report systematic
“intimidation, abduction and wrongful incarceration” of their leaders by state
police, who they claim are acting to “further the interests”
of Vedanta Resources, a British-based mining company. Local police also
arrested Kuni Sikaka, a 20-year-old Dongria activist and relative of the two
most prominent Dongria leaders. She was dragged out of her house
at midnight, despite the fact that police had no warrant.
She was then paraded
in front of officials and local media as a “surrendered Maoist [member of an
armed resistance group]” despite there being no evidence to support this. Other members of the
tribe have also faced brutal harassment. Activist Dasuru Kadraka has been
detained without trial for over 12 months. Dongria have been beaten, and
tortured with electric wires to force them to stop campaigning for their
rights. With the support of
local officials, Vedanta has previously attempted to pressure the tribe into
allowing bauxite mining on their ancestral land in the Niyamgiri Hills. In a historic referendum in 2013, the tribe unanimously
rejected the proposal
But the Dongria fear that, as long as Vedanta operates its
refinery at the foot of the hills, the threat of mining remains. Those detained
claim that police demanded that they stop protesting against the mine. In an open letter to the President of India, over 100
independent Indian organizations said: “In the last 2-3 years, several Dongria
Kondh youth and elders have been arrested, harassed, and killed, and one has
committed suicide after repeated harassment and alleged torture by security
forces. In none of these cases have [officials] been able to produce evidence
linking them to so-called Maoists.”
Dasuru Kadraka said: “I was arrested and
taken to the superintendent of police’s office. There I was tortured with my
hands tied and electric wires attached to my ears and electric shock given to
me, to force me to surrender… and to make me leave the Save Niyamgiri movement.
But I refused… The movement is my life, I will never stop protecting the
Niyamgiri hills and forests.”
The Dongria Kondh’s right to their
ancestral land has been recognized in Indian and international law. Survival
International led the global campaign to protect their land, and will continue
to fight for the Dongria to be allowed to determine their own futures without
harassment. Survival’s Director Stephen Corry said:
“It’s now clear that there’s a brutal campaign to harass, intimidate and even
murder the Dongria Kondh, to weaken their resistance to the exploitation of
their land. But the Dongria are absolutely determined to protect the Hills,
which not only provide them with food, housing and clothing, but are also the
foundation of their identity and sense of belonging.”
For more information and images, contact:
press@survivalinternational.org
