Sunday, July 29, 2007

Discrimination and Dissent

I have been working with India Today's Tamil Edition for the last seven years. This is my eighth year of service in that reputed organisation. India Today is known for its professionalism and seriousness. But the kind of discrimination I am facing within the organisation is unknown to the world. Between 2003 and 2004, I was not allowed to write anything except small news items for one and half years. Thanks to my Executive Editor Anand Natarajan, I am still given a meagre sum as a salary when compared to my colleagues.
The interview I did with Tamil Actor Kushboo in September 2005 helped increase the circulation of the magazine for the next six months. I thought the discrimination era was over.
The story of injustice does not stop there. During May 2007, I was asked to write about the tussle between Chief Minister M.Karunanidhi and his grandnephew and former IT minister Dayanidhi Maran for India Today English Edition. That was a Wednesday night when I was called by Mr.Anand Natarajan to do the story. I came back from my girlfriend's place to file the story. That was a four page story in English. It took me till 1 a.m to send the story. It appeared with Mr.Anand Natarajan's byline in English. When I asked him, he said it was Delhi's (India Today English Office) mistake.
This piece of of information can cost me my job. But speaking out is much more important for a journalist than anything else.

Thursday, July 26, 2007

Srilankan Tamil Poet Majeeth escapes attempt on life

Srilankan Tamil poet Majeeth(35), who had authored seven books and is one of the Editors of literary magazine "Peruveli", escaped unhurt in an attempt on his life. A powerful bomb exploded on Thursday, 19th July, 2007, 23.15 hrs SLT (Srilankan Time) in the verandah of his house at Beach Road, Akkaraipatru, Eastern Srilanka. The poet used to to have his literary meetings (which was attended by about dozen writers) in that portico of his house.Majeeth writes on the pains of war and is an advocate of peace.His famous line "Sarikanin pinangal thinnum kahangal pookkum thennaiyai tamil eelam" (Eelam looks like a coconut tree blooming with corpse-eating crows; the corpses are that of the righteous). Majeeth who supported the struggle for a separate Eelam since his early days became disillusioned with the LTTE in the recent years when they started using Muslims as pawns in their war against the Srilankan Army. The incident of Mutur where Muslims were used by LTTE as a shield against Srilankan Army was strongly criticised by Majeeth in "Peruveli".His new book titled "Puli painthapothu iravugal kodaigalaga irunthana" (when tiger bounced, nights turned into summers) never got printed following veiled threats from LTTE sympathisers. Majeeth is also afflicted with some illness related to brain for quite sometime now. He lives with his wife and only daughter.Though Majeeth's house has police protection after the incident, he feels insecure and threatened. (CBC)