Gates Foundation under fire over award to Indian PM Modi

[MenInG]

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has once again come under fire, this time from three Nobel Peace Laureates over the foundation’s decision to honour Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Mairead Maguire (Nobel Peace Laureate, 1976), Tawakkol Abdel-Salam Karman (Nobel Peace Laureate, 2011) and Shirin Ebadi (Nobel Peace Laureate, 2003) have called on the Gates Foundation to rescind Modi’s award.

Gates Foundation is due to give Modi Global Gatekeeper award for his sanitation and toilet access project across India.

“We were deeply disturbed to discover that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will be giving an award to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi later this month. Under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership, India has descended into dangerous and deadly chaos that has consistently undermined human rights, democracy. This is particularly troubling to us as the stated mission of your foundation is to preserve life and fight inequity,” the letter reads.

Citing an example on the attacks on minorities, specifically Indian Muslims, Christians and Dalits, the laureates said, “Since the BJP, Prime Minister Modi’s party, came to power in 2014, the use of organised mobs to respond to alleged sectarian “offenses” with violence has undermined the rule of law so frequently that the Indian Supreme Court warned that these “horrendous acts of mobocracy cannot be permitted to inundate the law of the land,” according to Human Rights Watch.”

The letter added the situation in the state of Assam and Indian occupied Kashmir are cause for grave concern as well.

“The organisation “Genocide Watch” has issued not one, but two alerts for India in these regions. In Assam, 1.9 million Indians have been stripped of citizenship; in Kashmir, since August, 800,000 Indian armed forces have kept eight million Kashmiris without phone or internet service for the last month.”

The letter noted that because of these human rights abuses, children in Kashmir from kindergarten to college are unable to attend school.

“As one of your organisation’s goals is to “ensure that young people survive and thrive,” please consider this statistic: In 2016 (the year the most recent data has been available), schools in Kashmir were open for only four months out of the year,” it said.

Bringing light to the 2002 Gujrat massacre, the statements said, scholars inside and outside of India have never cleared Modi of his involvement in the horrific massacre.

Modi was banned from entering the United States, the UK, and Canada for 10 years until he acquired diplomatic immunity by becoming India’s Prime Minister. To be sure, his role in that crisis as the then Chief Minister of the state of Gujarat cannot be ignored, it added.

“In view of these facts — and the overall vision and goals of your Foundation — we respectfully ask that you rescinding your award to Prime Minister Modi. Doing so will send a clear and powerful message that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation takes its aim of equity, justice, and human rights for all seriously — and that it is committed to promoting these values in a consistent fashion,” it added.

https://www.geo.tv/latest/247550-gates-foundation-under-fire-over-award-to-modi

 

[cricketjoshila]

Scholars never cleared Modi. Lolfer.

In which country scholars acquit or convict people?

 

[cricketjoshila]

Suddenly non Indians are spokespersons of Indian Dalits Christians and Muslims. This is getting funnier by the day.

 

[Romali_rotti]

LOL What ?, Modi is getting another award ?? Oh this would be killing Imran,.. To be fair Modi, must be getting sick of awards, he gets one everywhere he goes it seems...

 

[Napa]

Three persons for economically insignificant countries are criticizing Microsoft for an award it has given to the PM of a country where it has the majority of its employees. The phrase "fall upon deaf ears" aptly describes Microsoft's reaction.

Btw, the Nobel Peace Prize was also given to some of the biggest warmongers in history like Kissinger and Obama (who is part of the group that started the Syria, Ukraine, Libya and Yemen wars).

 

[Iqbal'sh]

Btw, the Nobel Peace Prize was also given to some of the biggest warmongers in history like Kissinger and Obama (who is part of the group that started the Syria, Ukraine, Libya and Yemen wars).

Thanks for confirming. If the prestigious Nobel awards were given to undeserving, unfit individuals then nobody needs to worry about less acclaimed and meaningless awards going to a recognised extremist

 

[pillionrider]

The award should be removed not because some spiteful so and so said so. But because of the lack of research into the success of a project that has been a classic BJP failure - good for talk, useless in practice.

Also, the group that nominated him within the foundation need to have their credentials rechecked.

 

[jaisan]

Probably modi s only achievement. Definitely deserves this award.

 

[subbu]

Agree... Not sure about other awards
for sanitation and Toilets project deserves some appreciation

My personal experience: Visited my village( home town) after 8 years looked completely different..very good improvement

I think sanitation project may not be 100℅ successful as govt boasts but there's a Huge improvement

 

[MenInG]

Actors Jameela Jamil and Riz Ahmed have pulled out of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation ceremony where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to receive an award for the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan,

“Jameela Jamil and Riz Ahmed are no longer participating in Goalkeepers,” the foundation told HuffPost India on Monday. The two actors have not publicly commented on their withdrawal from the ceremony.

Modi will attend the ceremony early next week during his visit to the US.

For the latest news and more, follow HuffPost India on Twitter, Facebook, and subscribe to our newsletter.

The Gates Foundation’s decision to award Modi for Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan (Clean India Mission) has invited sharp criticism from various quarters, with academics and activists calling on the organisation to rescind the award.

Days after the award was announced, executive director of the Polis Project Suchitra Vijayan and adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University Arjun Singh Sethi called on the foundation to withdraw the award

“Under his leadership the country has witnessed a spike in hate crimes and mob violence, particularly against Muslims and Dalits. Rarely are the perpetrators held accountable,” Vijayan and Sethi wrote in The Washington Post.

“Modi’s sanitation campaign has no doubt benefited people, but how can access to a clean toilet outweigh the violence and persecution they may face in the rest of their lives? Giving Modi this award would legitimize his policies and embolden the ethnonationalist forces he has championed,” they said.

An online petition by Justice For All, which cited the restrictions in Kashmir and the Assam NRC, said the award had come at an “awkward time” and called on the Gates Foundation to reconsider its decision. The petition has garnered over 100,000 signatures.

An open letter by a group of South Asians, who said they were “peers in the philanthropic sector”, urged the foundation to withdraw the award, saying, “Given the Gates Foundation’s global influence and impact on the needs of vulnerable communities, the decision to honor PM Modi sends the message that the lives of Kashmiris, Muslims, Sikhs, Dalits, Christians, and other minority populations in India who are under siege are of less value”.

In its statement to HuffPost India, the Gates Foundation stood by its decision, saying Modi was receiving the award for “the progress India is making in improving sanitation, as part of its drive toward achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.”

“Before the Swachh Bharat mission, over 500 million people in India did not have access to safe sanitation, and now, the majority do. There is still a long way to go, but the impacts of access to sanitation in India are already being realized. The Swachh Bharat Mission can serve as a model for other countries around the world that urgently need to improve access to sanitation for the world’s poorest,” it said.

https://www.huffingtonpost.in/amp/e...paign=share_twitter&__twitter_impression=true

 

[MP2011]

The award should be removed not because some spiteful so and so said so. But because of the lack of research into the success of a project that has been a classic BJP failure - good for talk, useless in practice.

Also, the group that nominated him within the foundation need to have their credentials rechecked.

This. even in Delhi, the national capital where I live, it is nothing more than another PR exercise for gang leader. Delhi has become even more dirty over last 5 years.

 

[PakLFC]

Does not bother me if Modi receives awards. We live in a world where money, economy and business is everything. Pak does not have any off that at the moment. This should be no surprise when we know western countries and organisations have their own agenda. There is no need for Gates to do Pak any favours when even the Arab Muslims are not siding with us neither have we really done so with them. Become a business hub and improve the economy if we want the world to listen to us instead of attacking others. At the moment us Pakistanis really have nothing that we can bargain with the world.

 

[Rana]

Indian Internet trolls lol. They are everywhere! The first 6-7 posts on this thread are a defensive response by Indians.

 

[Rana]

Does not bother me if Modi receives awards. We live in a world where money, economy and business is everything. Pak does not have any off that at the moment. This should be no surprise when we know western countries and organisations have their own agenda. There is no need for Gates to do Pak any favours when even the Arab Muslims are not siding with us neither have we really done so with them. Become a business hub and improve the economy if we want the world to listen to us instead of attacking others. At the moment us Pakistanis really have nothing that we can bargain with the world.

Its not as simple as that im afraid. Lets be very honest here, our business and economic stature is likely to suffer if we cannot get our own house in order. Money is not the solution to everything. Im afraid Zia ul Haq and the ultra pro Islamic organisations in Pakistan of the 60s and 70s have done a considerable amount of damage to the country and it may take centuries to repair.

 

[ArendtFan]

The Gates Foundation awards are focused on sanitation and polio eradication - both of which have had tremendous success in India. Bill Gates considers India becoming polio free a big feather in his cap and rightly so - the Foundation has spent millions in India. It is not a humanitarian award - nevertheless the people opposing it are concerned that these awards will continue building a favourable image of Modi while neglecting the deeper concerns.

 

[Rana]

The Gates Foundation awards are focused on sanitation and polio eradication - both of which have had tremendous success in India. Bill Gates considers India becoming polio free a big feather in his cap and rightly so - the Foundation has spent millions in India. It is not a humanitarian award - nevertheless the people opposing it are concerned that these awards will continue building a favourable image of Modi while neglecting the deeper concerns.

Did the Gates foundation start its work in India before Modi was elected? If so, then why is Modi the one picking up the award?

 

[ArendtFan]

Did the Gates foundation start its work in India before Modi was elected? If so, then why is Modi the one picking up the award?

Because he made sanitation an institutional and governmental effort. Swachh Bharat Abhayan (Clean India Drive) has a separate indirect tax component that citizens have to pay, the municipal corporations have to separate wet / dry / recyclable garbage, garbage processing units have been set up in multiple cities where plastic is converted to fuel / bricks and organic garbage into fertilizer - all overseen by government organisations. There are fines if homes don't have toilets and easy bank loans to rural India for building in-residence toilets.

Bill Gates has always talked about the state taking responsibility for social programs by institutionalising efforts - he and his Foundation have worked very closely with the Indian government and individual state governments on how to execute this at a ground level. With the award, he is sending a message to other leaders that the 'Gates-India model' has had a successful pilot and should be adopted in other countries.

 

[Rana]

Because he made sanitation an institutional and governmental effort. Swachh Bharat Abhayan (Clean India Drive) has a separate indirect tax component that citizens have to pay, the municipal corporations have to separate wet / dry / recyclable garbage, garbage processing units have been set up in multiple cities where plastic is converted to fuel / bricks and organic garbage into fertilizer - all overseen by government organisations. There are fines if homes don't have toilets and easy bank loans to rural India for building in-residence toilets.

Bill Gates has always talked about the state taking responsibility for social programs by institutionalising efforts - he and his Foundation have worked very closely with the Indian government and individual state governments on how to execute this at a ground level. With the award, he is sending a message to other leaders that the 'Gates-India model' has had a successful pilot and should be adopted in other countries.

Fair enough.

 

[PakLFC]

Its not as simple as that im afraid. Lets be very honest here, our business and economic stature is likely to suffer if we cannot get our own house in order. Money is not the solution to everything. Im afraid Zia ul Haq and the ultra pro Islamic organisations in Pakistan of the 60s and 70s have done a considerable amount of damage to the country and it may take centuries to repair.

That is also what I am saying that our economy is the reason we can't bargain with others to see our side. Money means people listen to what you have to say....that they want to invest in the country and so forth. The other problem is the law and order situation in the country as well. Zia had to do what he did otherwise the Russians were ready to cross over in to Pak.

 

[imrankhannsu]

Must be a computer virus or a bug that selected Modi

 

[pillionrider]

the municipal corporations have to separate wet / dry / recyclable garbage, garbage processing units have been set up in multiple cities where plastic is converted to fuel / bricks and organic garbage into fertilizer - all overseen by government organisations.

Eh? This has been happening long before Modi descended upon us in in his current avatar from the Himalayas. At least in cities like Bengaluru.

I don't think you live in India.

 

[ArendtFan]

Eh? This has been happening long before Modi descended upon us in in his current avatar from the Himalayas. At least in cities like Bengaluru.

I don't think you live in India.

Eh? This has been happening long before Modi descended upon us in in his current avatar from the Himalayas. At least in cities like Bengaluru.

I don't think you live in India.

Not at the scale it is happening now. Especially in the North - Indore is a prime example.
That said, a large part of the credit goes to the southern cities for being outstanding examples in recycling and water harvesting.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1176755055581519872

 

[Ram Shekhar]

And now this..

https://thewire.in/rights/gates-foundation-staffer-resigns-over-award-to-narendra-modi-for-swachh-bharat

Sabah Hamid, a 42-year-old communications specialist, told TRT World that honouring Modi while he imposed a communications and movement lockdown in Kashmir was a grave error. “Since the foundation seemed set on its course of action to go ahead with the award – which as a private foundation it is entitled to – I could do just one thing: leave,” Hamid said.

 

[cricketjoshila]

And now this..

https://thewire.in/rights/gates-foundation-staffer-resigns-over-award-to-narendra-modi-for-swachh-bharat

Lolfer.

I heard Gates foundation is going to close down because of this. LMAO.