Rapid Responses to:
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Rapid Responses: Rapid Responses published:
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Heroic doctor
- Joel Almeida (23 May 2008)
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Haiku Government Screw
- Hugh Mann (23 May 2008)
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Joel Almeida, Independent Consultant Trowbridge, Wiltshire, BA14 9EN
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Dr. Binayak Sen's long track record of unobtrusive service to some of the poorest people in India has suddenly catapulted him to the status of a global icon: a status he has never sought. Despite three decades of peaceful service among vulnerable adivasis (indigenous tribes people), strong advocacy for peaceful resolution to armed conflicts in Chhattisgarh state of India, and a clear statement that he does not support armed rebels, Dr. Sen has been accused of conspiring with armed rebels. This was on the basis of his prison visits to an ailing and elderly imprisoned rebel. These visits were in his official capacity as the national vice- president of the People's Union for Civil Liberties, all duly authorised by the police and closely supervised by prison authorities. His family believes that Dr. Sen is being victimised for his outspoken criticism of crimes committed by the government-armed civilian militia. Dr. Sen, a graduate of the Christian Medical College Vellore, won the gold medal for topping Madras university in his MD paediatrics exam. Instead of pursuing the glittering city career open to him, he chose to work in Chhattisgarh (then part of Madhya Pradesh state) among mineworkers and adivasis. His efforts to ensure that no child went hungry soon led him to realize that human rights and the right to livelihood were indispensable if his patients were to have any realistic chance of health. Dr. Sen's mentor, the mineworkers' leader Shankar Guha Niyogi, had been assassinated by powerful interests. Undaunted by this, Dr. Sen joined the People's Union for Civil Liberties - India's first and leading civil liberties organization - and eventually became its national Vice- President. In this capacity he investigated violations of human rights such as murders of unarmed people in staged "encounters", forcible eviction of adivasis from their land, custodial torture and more. This was at great personal risk. It also earned him the wrath of the authorities. He was arrested on 14 May 2007. Dr. Sen denies all wrongdoing and rejects all the charges against him. On 10 April 2008 it was revealed that Dr. Sen had been subjected to several weeks of solitary confinement. Such mistreatment of an untried person is against all national and international norms. His supporters launched a petition and the solitary confinement was brought to an end. The delay in according Dr. Sen his right to a speedy, fair and public trial suggests that the authorities in Chhattisgarh state do not have any exaggerated respect for his rights. Dr. Sen is 58 years old, suffers from various ailments and has lost over 15 kg during his imprisonment. The Chhattisgarh government had also threatened a ban on Nobel Peace Prize winners Medecins Sans Frontieres in Chhattisgarh, on the premise that MSF were treating rebels. MSF replied that they treated anybody who sought their help, without enquiring about the patient's ideology. Only a strong public outcry caused the government to relent from the ban on MSF. Public opinion appears to be Dr. Sen's only shield against mistreatment. The global scientific fraternity, including several Nobel laureates and the US Institute of Medicine's Human Rights section, have been speaking out against mistreatment of Dr. Sen. The brighter the spotlight cast by supporters, the harder it becomes for dark deeds to be done against Dr. Sen. It is not difficult to see that evicting people from the land, their only means of livelihood, and perpetrating murder and rape against them, can seriously damage their health. Whilst we acknowledge this and go on with our lives, Dr. Sen has chosen to speak out, put himself in the line of fire, and defend the defenceless. Here is a physician and public health specialist who has not only inspired a whole generation of idealistic young Indian doctors, but also shown how heroic the medical profession can be. Hopefully Dr. Sen's well-deserved Jonathan Mann Award for Global Health and Human Rights will rouse the global medical fraternity to speak out more vociferously in defence of Dr. Sen's own human rights. Competing interests: None declared |
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Hugh Mann, Physician Eagle Rock, MO 65641 USA
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Abuse of power: Competing interests: None declared |
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