Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann replaces Dharam Vira Gandhi as AAP leader in Lok Sabha

NEW DELHI: As an expected fallout of the brawl in Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Patiala MP Dharam Vira Gandhi -- who had raised his voice against the treatment meted out to now expelled Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan -- was removed as the party's leader in Lok Sabha on Tuesday. In his place, the party appointed stand-up comedian and Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann to articulate its views in the lower House. 

This is an unprecedented rise for an entertainer who rode his punchlines through his poll campaign and eventually to Lok Sabha, although the jury may still be out on whether it is a sign of the readiness of the political class to put satire on the same pedestal as serious criticism. 

Even though Gandhi's removal was explained by AAP merely as a "party decision", it is hardly lost on anyone that he has paid the price for siding with rebels. The Patiala MP gave considerable grief to Arvind Kejriwal and his aides when he endorsed the version of Bhushan and Yadav that the dominant faction resorted to strong-arm methods to intimidate dissidents and stifle their protest. That Gandhi had till then kept himself aloof from the ugly factional fight lent credence to the rebels' narrative. 

Party member Ashutosh, while confirming the development, refused to go into the reason why Gandhi had to be dumped. "This is a party decision and we need not explain it," he said. 

Mann, who had defended Kejriwal and his group, was pleased with the development, and he attacked Bhushan and Yadav saying the two leaders were sacked for carrying out anti-party activities. "I have raised maximum questions, participated in maximum debates and raised concerns about various bills in the House. If the party wants to give me more responsibilities, then I am ready to shoulder them," Mann said. 

Mann's rise is significant as a leg-up to entertainers in Indian politics which has seen many actors enter the fray but rarely any rising beyond a point. 

As a stand-up comedian, Mann also joins the league of several such personalities across the world who have literally laughed their way to election wins and upset political calculations. 

From Italy to Iceland and Miyazaki to Minnesota, comedians and entertainers have left a trail of political surprise. Italian comedian Giuseppe Piero 'Beppe' Grillo spent much of his career pillorying political parties until he launched the 'Five Star Movement' which went on to win over 25% votes in the 2013 general elections in Italy. Icelandic standup comic Jon Gnarr fought mayoral elections in the capital Reykjavik as a "fun thing" only to be declared the winner to his and the political establishment's horror. 

In 2007, Japanese comedian Hideo Higashikokubaru decided to run a serious campaign for governor of the Miyazaki Prefecture and won it in an atmosphere of complete dejection among voters with the political class. Most famous of all, however, was the victory of WWE Hall of Fame wrestler Jesse Ventura's win in Minnesota gubernatorial elections in 1998 when he defeated both the Democratic and Republican candidates. 

Mann's rise comparatively is circumstantial but given that he lost no minute in siding with Kejriwal after the quarrel broke out in the party shows that he is equipped, besides a sense of humour, with political smarts. The reward that he has received from the party will encourage him to further burnish his 'loyalist' credentials.

NRIs are proud of Narendra Modi: Lord Swraj Paul

GANDHINAGAR: Lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's initiatives of connecting NRIs across the world, leading NRI industrialist Lord Swraj Paul today said the BJP government at the Centre is moving in the right direction and doing everything to uplift the poor. 

Paul, who called on Gujarat chief minister Anandiben Patel and pledged his support to the education sector in the state, said though one year is too early a period to assess the performance of a government, in his opinion the Modi government is moving in in the right direction. 

"He (Modi) is moving in the right direction. He has raised the profile of India and Indians all over the world. From an NRI's point of view, he is the first PM after 35 years who has recognised the strength and ability of NRIs. For that, NRIs are proud of Modi," Paul said. 

"He is having lots of ideas, dynamism and desire to take this country ahead. We wish him luck," he said. 

Amidst the allegations that Modi is favouring only the rich and ignored the downtrodden people, Paul said the Modi government is doing everything it can to uplift the poor. 

"I believe that this government does more for the poor than the rich. After a long time, people at least heard that something should be done for the poor. I think Modi is talking about the poor and paying due attention to their problems," he said. 

To a question on what has changed on the ground during the Modi government's rule which will soon complete one year in power, Paul said that it is too early to rate the performance of any government. 

"It is a general tendency to measure the performance of government after one month or one year. Let me tell you that no miracle happens in one year. But, there is buzz all around that something positive is happening, which is a good sign," said Paul. 

During his meeting with chief minister Anandiben Patel, Paul offered all support to boost the education sector in Gujarat. 

Paul, the Chairman of UK-based Caparo Group, also visited his company's manufacturing facility at Sanand after his meeting with the chief minister.

2 Jalandhar boys feared drowned in Italy

Jalandhar, August 23
Two Punjabi boys, Ravinder Singh and Gurpreet Singh from village Sanora in Jalandhar, are reported to have died after the boat they were in capsized while on its way from Libya to Italy.

The duo was among the 150 passengers aboard the boat. Though the incident occurred on the night of August 14/15, the victims’ families came to know about it yesterday. The relatives of a fellow passenger informed them.

Karnail Singh, Gurpreet’s father, said, “We received a call from Dalbir Kaur of Moga, who said her husband Cheter Singh too was on the boat along with the boys.”

Though Cheter was rescued by the by the Italian army, the fate of the boys was still not known.

Jagdish Singh, Ravi’s father, said he had received a call from his son a day before the incident that he was leaving for Italy, and that he would not be able to call up home for the next 12 days.

“He was very upset for the last four months as he had not been able to earn money due to tension in Libya. A day before the incident, he informed us that he along with many other Punjabi boys was boarding a ship for Italy. I haven’t heard from him ever since,” said Jagdish.

The families also informed that though their travel agent had promised them a visa for Dubai, he could only send them to strife-torn Libya after charging them Rs 1.5 lakh each. 

Ukraine crisis: More buildings seized in east

Keiv - Armed men have seized a police station and a security services building in eastern Ukraine, according to officials.

Police said the men fired shots and used stun grenades to seize the offices in Sloviansk, near the Russian border.

Meanwhile, a gun battle has erupted in the eastern Ukrainian town of Kramatorsk, according to the Ukrainian acting interior minister.

Pro-Russian activists have seized government buildings elsewhere in east Ukraine in recent days and Kiev has accused Moscow of orchestrating the unrest.

Mikhail Kalashnikov, designer of the AK-47 rifle, dead at 94

Mikhail Kalashnikov shows his AK-47 assault rifle at his home in
the Ural Mountain city of Izhevsk, Russia on Oct. 29, 1997

MOSCOW -- Mikhail Kalashnikov started out wanting to make farm equipment, but the harvest he reaped was one of blood as the designer of the AK-47 assault rifle, the world's most popular firearm.

It was the carnage of World War, when Nazi Germany overran much of the Soviet Union, which altered his course and made his name as well-known for bloodshed as Smith, Wesson and Colt. The distinctive shape of the gun, often called "a Kalashnikov," appeared on revolutionary flags and adorns memorabilia.

Kalashnikov died Monday at age 94 in a hospital in Izhevsk, the capital of the Udmurtia republic where he lived, said Viktor Chulkov, a spokesman for the republic's president. He did not give a cause of death. Kalashnikov had been hospitalized for the past month with unspecified health problems.Kaslashnikov often said he felt personally untroubled by his contribution to bloodshed.

"I sleep well. It's the politicians who are to blame for failing to come to an agreement and resorting to violence," he told The Associated Press in 2007.

100 million made

The AK-47 -- "Avtomat Kalashnikov" and the year it went into production -- is the world's most popular firearm, favoured by guerrillas, terrorists and the soldiers of many armies. An estimated 100 million guns are spread worldwide.

Though it isn't especially accurate, its ruggedness and simplicity are exemplary: it performs in sandy or wet conditions which jam more sophisticated weapons such as the U.S. M-16.

"During the Vietnam war, American soldiers would throw away their M-16s to grab AK-47s and bullets for it from dead Vietnamese soldiers," Kalashnikov said in July 2007 at a ceremony marking the rifle's 60th anniversary.

The weapon's suitability for jungle and desert fighting made it nearly ideal for the Third World insurgents backed by the Soviet Union, and Moscow not only distributed the AK-47 widely but also licensed its production in some 30 other countries.

The gun's status among revolutionaries and national-liberation struggles is enshrined on the flag of Mozambique.

Kalashnikov, born into a peasant family in Siberia, began his working life as a railroad clerk. After he joined the Red Army in 1938, he began to show mechanical flair by inventing several modifications for Soviet tanks.

The moment that firmly set his course was in the 1941 battle of Bryansk against Nazi forces, when a shell hit his tank. Recovering from wounds in the hospital, Kalashnikov brooded about the superior automatic rifles he'd seen the Nazis deploy; his rough ideas and revisions bore fruit five years later.

"Blame the Nazi Germans for making me become a gun designer," said Kalashnikov. "I always wanted to construct agricultural machinery."

In 2007, President Vladimir Putin praised him, saying "The Kalashnikov rifle is a symbol of the creative genius of our people."

Never patented

Over his career, he was decorated with numerous honours, including the Hero of Socialist Labor and Order of Lenin and Stalin Prize. But because his invention was never patented, he didn't get rich off royalties.

"At that time in our country patenting inventions wasn't an issue. We worked for Socialist society, for the good of the people, which I never regret," he once said.

Kalashnikov continued working into his late 80s as chief designer of the Izmash company that first built the AK-47. He also travelled the world helping Russia negotiate new arms deals, and he wrote books on his life, about arms and about youth education.

"After the collapse of the great and mighty Soviet Union so much crap has been imposed on us, especially on the younger generation," he said. "I wrote six books to help them find their way in life."

He said he was proud of his bronze bust installed in his native village of Kurya in the Siberian region of Altai. He said newlyweds bring flowers to the bust. "They whisper 'Uncle Misha, wish us happiness and healthy kids,"' he said. "What other gun designer can boast of that?"

Russian Actor: Gays Should Be Burned Alive in Ovens

The star of a popular Russian sitcom said that gay people in his country should be burned alive in ovens, to which the studio audience cheered.

Ivan Okhlobystin, star of a Russian show loosely based on the American show Scrubs, used gay slurs, and ranted about gay fascism in front of a crowd of fans during a spiritual event in Novosibirsk.

"I'd put them all alive in the oven…it's a living danger to my children,"Ria Novosti reports him saying. His additional comments that gay people are a danger to his six children, and should be stripped of their rights to vote garnered overwhelming applause, according to Buzzfeed.

Okhlobystin previously served as an Orthodox Christian priest until his priesthood was suspended in 2010. He also made a bid for the presidency in 2011.

After news of his statements grew, Okhlobystin tweeted that he received death threats from "sodomites," according to Buzzfeed.

http://www.advocate.com/news/world-news/2013/12/14/russian-actor-gays-should-be-burned-alive-ovens

UK to scrap £3,000 visa bond scheme

LONDON: In a big victory for India, Britain has decided to abandon its controversial plan to impose a £3,000 immigration bond on visitors from "high-risk" countries in Africa and Asia. 

India, which was one of the countries targeted with the bond, had lodged strong protests against the project at the highest level of government in UK. 

The scheme if introduced would have been applicable to visitors from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nigeria and Ghana. 

The fee would be over and above the existing visa costs. 

The bond was to deter over stayers as part of the government's intention to reduce the number of immigrants to less than 100,000 per year. 

An applicant would have to forfeit the amount unless they left when required. 

A home ministry official confirmed on Sunday that the proposal of a visa bond has now been dropped. 

"The government has been considering whether we pilot a bond scheme that would deter people from overstaying the visa. We have decided not to proceed," a home office spokesperson said. Outrage from all corners of India - the third largest investor in the UK in 2011, was one of the major reasons for Britain's U-turn over the plan. 

It is believed that British Prime Minister David Cameron who will stop in New Delhi on November 14 on route to Colombo to attend the Commonwealth meet will inform his Indian counterpart Dr Manmohan Singh of the decision. 

The latest decision was also influenced by Britain's deputy prime minister Nick Clegg threatening to block the policy. With general elections coming up, Cameron didn't want a confrontation with the Liberal Democrat leader. Another of Cameron's heavy weight cabinet ministers - business secretary Vince Cable also launched a full-fledged attack against the visa bond recently. 

He said "it has caused outrage in India - one of UK's biggest trading partners". 

The pilot was announced originally by Home secretary Theresa May who said this was the next step in making sure "our immigration system is more selective, bringing down net migration from the hundreds of thousands to the tens of thousands, while still welcoming the brightest and the best to Britain." 

She had also confirmed that in the long run, UK would formally introduce a system of bonds that deter overstaying and "recovers costs if a foreign national has used public services." The announcement had left Cameron's cabinet divided. 

MP Keith Vaz who is chairman of the Home affairs select committee had shot down the scheme warning that such bonds would "antagonise settled communities in Britain and enrage our allies such as India". 

UK's Immigration & Asylum Act gives the government the right to force such a financial security from temporary migrants, which would be forfeited if they fail to leave after the expiry of their visa. 

Britain's former attorney general also trashed the controversial immigration visa bond calling it "highly discriminatory that will never pass through the House of Lords". 

Patricia Scotland, better known as Baroness Scotland of Asthal who was voted one of the 100 great Black Britons and had created history by becoming the first black female QC (Queens Counsel) vehemently opposed the introduction of a visa bond as a deterrent for illegal immigration and said it could never be explained "by the rule of law". 

Baroness Scotland asked Britain's home minister May to explain "how she can assert that the visa bond will be lawfully delivered". 

The Baroness called May's proposal "a populist measure" and an "emblematic move" to retain their vote bank before the next general election. 

Lawyer Sarosh Zaiwalla who has earlier defended high profile clients like Sonia Gandhi, and theDalai Lama had said it was possible to challenge the visa bonds before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasburg as "such a requirement from a few select countries will in my view amount to discrimination against Indians". 

Mr Zaiwalla said "The bonds have not yet come into existence and needs to be approved in parliament. But it's a clear case of discrimination on the basis of race and country". 

May had recently indicated that she was backing down on the idea of the visa bonds. In a speech to the Conservative Party conference in Manchester recently, Britain's home secretary said she would "scrap the immigration bonds scheme altogether if she did not have the full support of her Liberal Democrat coalition partners". 

Taking a dig at the Lib Dem partners, May had said "The latest policy they're fighting is immigration bonds. It's a simple idea - the government should be able to take a £3,000 deposit from temporary migrants and return it when they leave. If they overstay their visa, they'll lose their money. Bonds were in our manifesto at the last election. But the Lib Dems suddenly announced that it was their idea. Then they said they were against them. Then they said they were for them - but only to help more immigrants to come here. Now they say they're against them after all. So let me be clear - if the price of Lib Dem support for bonds is more immigration, I will scrap the scheme altogether". 

Ironically it was Nick Clegg who had announced earlier this year that migrants from "high risk countries" that is expected to include the Indian sub-continent would soon have to mandatorily sign a cash bond of thousands of pounds to enter Britain. 

The British deputy prime minister said he had asked the UK home office to introduce a "powerful new tool" that will see immigrants requiring to pay the entry fee as a guarantee that they will leave the UK when their visa expires. The cash guarantee could cost anywhere between £1,000 rising to as much as several thousand pounds for visitors from the countries deemed to pose the highest risk. 

The cash would be refunded when they leave. 

Clegg, who chairs the Cabinet's home affairs committee had asked the home office to run a trial "security bonds" scheme by the end of this year. 

The Liberal Democrat leader who said he himself "was the son of a Dutch mother - she, herself, raised in Indonesia by a half-Russian father and husband to a Spanish wife" however added that "the bonds would need to be well-targeted - so that they don't unfairly discriminate." 

"The amounts would need to be proportionate - we mustn't penalise legitimate visa applicants who will struggle to get hold of the money. Visiting Britain to celebrate a family birth or a relative's graduation or wedding should not become entirely dependent on your ability to pay the security bond," Clegg had said. 

Venezuela airs doubts about French probe of Air France drugs

CARACAS: Venezuela voiced concerns Sunday about France's probe of a huge cocaine haul from an Air France flight from Caracas, complaining over "worrisome" facts in the case. 

About 1.3 tonnes of cocaine were found aboard an Air France jet that departed from Simon Bolivar International Airport outside Caracas on September 11 and landed in Paris. 

At least 28 people have been detained in the case, including eight members of Venezuela's National Guard, various airport officials and an Air France employee. 

French authorities seized the shipment, the largest bust ever on French soil. 

However, national antidrug office director Alejandro Keleris cast doubt over French authorities' claims about the circumstances surrounding the find. 

"It seems quite strange to me that 10 days went by after the plane landed in France before the drugs appeared, and then they were 32.9 kilometers (20 miles) from Charles de Gaulle (airport), where one would think that there is security," he told Televen television. 

French officials made the announcement September 21 in Nanterre, saying the seizure took place at a Paris airport terminal. 

Keleris said French authorities' conduct in the case, including how the drugs apparently made it through customs, was "worrisome," though he acknowledged cooperation from Paris. 

Venezuela has asked French authorities for answers on several points, and is still awaiting replies, he added. 

Asked if US authorities could have planted the drugs in cooperation with French authorities, Keleris said "we could not rule that out." 

Venezuela's revolutionary socialist government is a staunch critic of the United States. Washington has strained ties with Caracas but remains a major oil buyer. 

Last month, President Nicolas Maduro said Venezuela was looking into any possible US Drug Enforcement Administration in the Air France flight case. 

Venezuela is said to be a transit point for South American cocaine flowing to Europe and the United States.

Swiss to pay basic income 2,500 Francs per month to every adult

Switzerland may start paying every adult (whether they work or not) a salary of over $2000 per month, based on the idea that everyone has a right to live well without being blackmailed into degrading jobs. The income initiative promises every Swiss citizen a living wage , so they can always survive without basic financial worry.

The 2,500 francs would work out to be an income of 30,000 Swiss francs per year. Statistics released by the European Union in 2002 showed that Switzerland was the third most expensive country in Europe, after Norway and Iceland, to live in. Switzerland currently has a population of 8.02 million people, equivalent to that of large cities such as the San Francisco Bay Area which has a population of 7.15 million. They pay particularly high prices for meat, cooking oil, fish and vegetables. Basic utilities (electricity, heating, water, garbage) are around 200 francs per month, and the average rent of a one bedroom apartment in the city center runs about 1,400 francs.

“Imagine you are being born and society tells you ‘Welcome, you will be cared for, and asks you what you want to do with your life, what is your calling? Imagine that feeling, that’s a whole different atmosphere “ – Daniel Straub, Co-founder, Basic Income Initiative

Parliament was presented with a petition signed by over 100,000 people, proposing to afford every citizen, regardless if they are working or not, a monthly paycheck of 2,500 Swiss francs. To mark the day, a truck full of 8 million five-cent coins was deposited on the square and spread out in front of the Swiss Parliament in Bern, supporters gathered around and spread the coins out using shovels. A typical fast-food worker in the US earns roughly $1,500 per month. Anything less than that specified amount of 2,500 francs, would be deemed illegal, even for people working in one of the lowest paid jobs.

A date for the vote itself is yet to be confirmed, however, it could take place before the end of this year, depending on the decision of the Swiss government. The money to fund the measure would likely be supplied by the Swiss social insurance system, so in other words it would be taken from taxpayers. We know that the government has no money itself, everything that it gives to others it must first take from others or print it out of thin air. But, are individuals who receive these funds going to be participating tax payers as well? If not, is it safe to assume that the more individuals who rely on this system, and the fewer who are contributing and fueling it, the more unlikely it is to run out of funds? Is this only possible due to Switzerland’s low population and impressive bank profits?

This new system will force business owners to pay their workers a certain wage, regardless if their labor is considered worth less than the stipulated amount. This idea aims to set the minimum standard of living higher, and that is admirable. But this might prompt business owners to take their company elsewhere, to where they have more freedom over the decision of what wages they are going to pay. Of course this would also mean they get no cut whatsoever of the Swiss market. And on the other hand, the new income may also allure new business owners to the country in looks of attracting those new consumers. One prominent CEO in Switzerland has stated that if the measure passes, he would seriously contemplate moving his company out of the country:

“I can’t believe that Switzerland would cause such great harm to its economy,” Glencore CEO Ivan Glasenberg told the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation.

The unemployment rate currently remains at 3 percent in Switzerland. Switzerland is arguably one of the most stable economies in the world. The nation has built the reputation of having some of the most friendly laws toward foreign investors. Will this measure make more money flow, by putting liquidity in the hands of those more prone to putting it back in the economy, or will it drive investors away and cause the Swiss economy to stumble?

New sex abuse crisis in Scottish Catholic church

Priest claims he was abused by older cleric, and church is punishing him for speaking out

London: The Catholic church in Scotland faces a fresh sex-abuse crisis involving some of the country’s senior clerics. The Observer has seen documents suggesting a scandal similar to the one that led to the resignation of Cardinal Keith O’Brien as Archbishop of Edinburgh and St Andrews. As a seminarian, a priest known as “Father Michael”, who wishes to remain anonymous while an appeal to Rome is made, said he was sexually assaulted by a parish priest, Father Paul Moore. Father Michael said the church failed to deal appropriately with his complaint over a 17-year period, and that he is now being ousted from the church while, he feels, his abuser is being protected. Father Michael is recovering from cancer but has been refused permission by Bishop John Cunningham of Galloway to reduce his workload during his convalescence. The church has demanded that he resign or face removal. The priest, who reported Moore to the police in 1997, said he feels this treatment amounts to punishment for whistle-blowing. “It’s a tragic story,” said Father Michael. “It’s about cover-up, deceit and lies. The church is a big mafia, and they trash you. They will do everything to destroy me.” The bitter internal division comes just days after the “new broom” appointment of Vatican diplomat Leo Cushley to replace O’Brien, who resigned after admitting inappropriate sexual behaviour towards priests in his care. Father Michael requested Cardinal O’Brien’s intervention in 1996 and again in 2013. O’Brien expressed “shock”, he said, but said he could not help. Father Michael also appealed to Cunningham’s predecessor, Bishop Maurice Taylor, and, recently, to O’Brien’s temporary successor, Archbishop Philip Tartaglia. Tartaglia, the senior cleric in Scotland, claimed he could not help as he had no authority in the matter. “I think it is better for me to return these documents to you,” he wrote in March 2013. Father Michael alleged the assault took place at St Quivox church in Prestwick in 1996. “I woke to find Moore fondling me under the bedclothes. I placed a chair behind the door and would sometimes hear it rattling,” he said. He claimed the incident was repeated and he didn’t know where to turn. While Moore was away from the parish, a young man visited. He claimed to Father Michael that Moore had sexually abused him as an altar boy. He gave Father Michael details of another alleged victim. Father Michael claims that Taylor insisted he remain in the parish and advise Moore to visit him. Confronted by Father Michael, he alleges Moore reacted violently and a scuffle broke out. Suddenly, Moore began to weep, confessing everything, including inappropriate behaviour with relatives. He also admitted the abuse to Taylor. Moore emerged, euphoric, from a subsequent meeting with Taylor. He understood that the bishop said Moore had come voluntarily, so nobody could blame him. Father Michael said he was instructed by Taylor to remain silent. But he became suicidal and informed police about the incident with Moore. Taylor later said that he spoke to the authorities, but that was after Father Michael had reported the matter to the police. The Procurator Fiscal told Father Michael the case would proceed, but it did not happen. Moore, who now lives in a church-owned home, is reported to have said that he regretted any of his actions being seen as abusive, and he had not intended them to be so. Taylor refused Father Michael’s repeated pleas for help, it is understood, only allowing him counselling when a centre waived the fee. Moore, however, was sent to Southdown, a Canadian treatment centre for clergy with psychological problems, for reasons that were not made clear. “A letter has been issued to the parish saying I am on leave of absence after sabbatical,” he wrote to Father Michael. When Moore returned from Canada he went to Fort Augustus Abbey, following which Taylor tried to place him in a home for the elderly in Scotland. Protests ensued and Moore retired to the church property. “He should have been laicised,” insisted Father Michael. When Taylor retired, Father Michael lobbied his successor. “I know Maurice made mistakes but it’s too late,” Bishop Cunningham allegedly told him. “What would Maurice think of me?” In 2004, Father Michael was posted to a three-church parish. He merged two but when he was diagnosed with cancer, doctors advised him to drop the third. In February, the Diocese’s vicar general, Willie McFadden, told parishioners to put complaints in writing. Father Michael was told there were 23 complaints but more than 130 letters of support, including one from the parish council, which has petitioned Rome. “This is really about his stance over Paul Moore,” one member claimed. In June, Bishop Cunningham insisted that Father Michael, who is in his mid-fifties, retire. Still physically weak, he sought counselling. Supportive letters from both his doctor and his therapist were sent to the Bishop but he feels they were used against him. Last week, a letter signed by Bishop Cunningham told Father Michael he must retire because of “your ill-health, both physical and psychological, as you yourself have detailed to me in your letters and in those sent by your medical doctors and psychotherapist”. Father Michael has been told to leave by mid-August. “What I have had to face is something very evil. Had I known what I would experience when I was lying on the floor at ordination, I would have stood up and walked out. I focused my life on priesthood, thinking it was about goodness, kindness and everything I wanted to aspire to. I discovered it was nothing like that.” The Catholic Church refused to comment, “due to the complex legal situation, criminal, civil and canonical”.

9-year-old UK schoolgirl enters Turkey using toy passport

LONDON: A nine-year-old British schoolgirl managed to get past Turkish customs officers with a toy passport identifying her as a unicorn.

Emily Harris, from Cwmbran, South Wales, had taken the toy passport she had made for her pink toy unicorn on holiday with her.

When the family passed through customs at Antalya airport to start their one-week holiday, Emily's mom Nicky accidentally handed over the toy's passport, instead of her daughter's, 'The Daily Express' reported.

However, the parents were shocked when they later realised their mistake - and discovered passport officials had even stamped the unicorn's passport.

The passport is quite obviously a fake, Nicky said, pointing out that it is not only a completely different size and shape to the official document, but that it also has gold teddy bears on the front.

"The man even asked Emily how old she was, and she told him nine, before he stamped it," Nicky said.

"The picture ID wasn't even of Emily, it was of a pink unicorn," she said.

It was only when they got outside that Nicky realised that instead of handing in Emily's passport, she had shown her daughter's Bear Factory passport for a unicorn toy called Lily Harris.

"We saw the funny side, and laughed at the fact that the officer had even stamped the passport. But at the same time, it's a worry to any parent, how easy it would be to smuggle a child through customs and into another country."

Avtar Henry’s citizenship issue: Notice issued to Centre on PIL

Chandigarh, April 8
The Punjab and Haryana High Court today issued a notice to the Union Home Ministry on a PIL filed by Jalandhar-based RTI activist Ajay Seghal for becoming party to the revision petition filed by former minister Avtar Henry against the termination of his Indian citizenship. Sehgal had brought Avtar Henry’s citizenship issue under the judicial scanner.

Taking up the matter, Justice RN Raina issued a notice to Union Home Secretary and to Avtar Henry for April 23.

Directing Jalandhar Commissioner of Police to examine the complaint against Punjab's former minister regarding his citizenship, the High Court in December last year had made it clear that an FIR would have to be registered in case the allegations were prima facie found to be true.

The Bench of Chief Justice Arjan Kumar Sikri and Justice Rakesh Kumar Jain had directed the Commissioner to examine the complaint dated September 27, 2012, filed by Sehgal and to order registration of an FIR against him, if a prima facie case was found to have been made out, within two months.

Sehgal, through advocate HC Arora, had stated that Avtar Henry acquired the British citizenship in 1969 under the name of Avtar Singh. He came to India on the British passport the same year and obtained an Indian passport, which was renewed from time to time. He also registered himself as a voter in the Jalandhar (North) constituency and contested the elections in 1986, 1992, 1997, 2002, 2007 and 2012.

Novartis loses case, Indian firms have edge

• SC rejects Swiss pharma giant’s cancer drug patent plea 
• Verdict to prevent steep hike in prices

New Delhi, April 1

In a landmark verdict that will check steep hikes in the prices of life saving drugs, the Supreme Court today rejected Swiss pharma giant Novartis’ plea for a patent on cancer medicine Glivec/Gleevec.

A Bench comprising Justices Aftab Alam and Ranjana Desai held in a 97-page judgment that the cancer drug being manufactured by Novartis AG was not the result of any invention and as such did not deserve a patent.

The patent plea “fails in both the tests of invention and patentability” as provided under the relevant sections of Indian patents law, the SC ruled.

The Novartis case was closely monitored by global drug manufacturers and a verdict in favour of the Swiss company would have opened the flood gates for frivolous applications seeking patent for several drugs. Grant of patent on any drug prevents other companies to make use of the formulation, thereby resulting in monopoly and cost escalation.

A victory for Novartis in the SC would have thus affected the status of India as a major hub for production of generic versions of cheaper medicines for life threatening diseases such as HIV/AIDS which is benefiting patients within the country as well as developing nations across the globe which are importing them from India.

At one point of time, the cost of generic cancer medicines produced by Indian companies was less than eight per cent of Novartis’ Gleevec.

The SC said it was unfortunate that the “scope of the patent is determined not on the intrinsic worth of the invention but by the artful drafting of its claims by skillful lawyers” and that patents “are traded as a commodity not for production and marketing of the patented products but to search for someone who may be sued for infringement of the patent.”

Novartis described the SC ruling as a “setback for patients” as it would hinder medical progress that would deprive patients of effective treatment options. On the other hand, domestic drug manufacturers represented by Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) and Indian Drug Manufacturers’ Association (IDMA) welcomed it, stating that it had come as a relief to patients suffering from dreadful diseases.

Novartis had come to the Supreme Court in 2009 challenging the order of the Chennai-based Intellectual Property Appellate Board rejecting its claim for patent.

India votes against Sri Lanka at UN

Geneva/New Delhi, March 21

India today voted in favour of the US-sponsored resolution for promoting reconciliation and accountability in Sri Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva. It however failed to get its amendments incorporated in the text of the document.

The resolution, critical of human rights record of Sri Lanka, called on Colombo to conduct an independent and credible investigation into alleged war crimes. However, what must have brought some relief to Sri Lanka was the fact that the resolution avoided references like call for an international probe into alleged human rights violations or “genocide” in the context of civilian killings during the prolonged conflict.

The resolution was adopted with 25 votes in favour, 13 against and eight abstentions in the 47-member body. Gabon, a member-nation, could not vote due to voting rights issue.

Pakistan voted against the resolution, saying the resolution would fail to engage Sri Lanka constructively and negatively impact the ongoing reconciliation process.

Last year too, India had voted for the resolution against the island nation.

Official sources said India wanted to introduce some tough amendments to the resolution in view of the overwhelming concerns over the plight of Tamils in the island nation but was dissuaded from doing so by the US. India’s envoy to the UN offices Dilip Sinha, who returned to Geneva early this morning carrying instructions from New Delhi, was told by the sponsors that the attempt was to make the resolution “broadest possible” and that certain words in the text might make things difficult for its smooth passage.

The Indian representative was allowed to make intervention during the discussion. In his remarks, Sinha criticised Sri Lanka for making “inadequate progress” in fulfilling its commitment to the UNHRC in 2009 for genuine national reconciliation and full enjoyment of human rights by all its citizens. He said India would encourage Lanka to expedite the process of a broad-based, inclusive and meaningful reconciliation and political settlement that ensured all communities live in dignity, with equal rights and equal protection of the laws. “As a neighbour with thousands of years of relations with Sri Lanka, we cannot remain untouched by developments in that country and will continue to remain engaged in this matter.”

The Sri Lankan envoy strongly opposed the resolution, contending that it was based on misrepresentation of facts. “The resolution casts aspersions on domestic processes without any foundation and could hinder the reconciliation process.”

The resolution called upon Colombo to effectively implement the constructive recommendations made in the report of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission.

The Resolution

• Calls for independent investigation by Colombo into alleged war crimes
• Seeks implementation of recommendations made in the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation panel report
• Avoids references to international probe into alleged human rights violations or term ‘genocide’

Disappointing: DMK

Expressing 'surprise' over India supporting a 'weak' and 'diluted' US resolution against Sri Lanka at UNHRC, former UPA ally DMK on Thursday said New Delhi had by its action "totally disappointed" the entire Tamil diaspora.

India's tough stand forces Italy to send back marines to face murder trial

Massimiliano Latorre (R) and Salvatore Girone

Rome/ New Delhi,  March 21:
The Italian Government has said it will return to India two marines facing charges of killing two fishermen.
The two — Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone — had been granted a special leave last month by an Indian court to return to Italy to vote in elections but had skipped bail. This reverses an earlier decision by the Foreign Ministry saying the two would not return on March 22.

It is a victory for India in the stand-off with Italy over the fate of the two Italian marines, Massimiliano Lattore and Salvatore Girone, accused of killing two Kerala fishermen. The Italian government has said that the marines will be sent back to India on Friday.

Italian authorities say that the decision was taken after they requested and received a written assurance from the Indian government regarding the treatment and protection of the marines' fundamental rights. An official statement from Rome said, "The Italian government requested and received a written assurances from the Indian authorities regarding the treatment of the marines and the protection of their fundamental rights."

The Ministry of External Affairs in its first official reaction has confirmed that Italy has informed India at a very senior level that the marines will be back on Friday. The government will make a statement in Parliament after noon.

Minister of State for Home Affairs RPN Singh welcomed Italy's decision. Singh tweeted, "India's tough stand as articulated by the PM and Sonia Gandhi has worked. Italy sending back its 2 marines to face trial in India."

Italy's decision to not send the marines back had sparked a diplomatic row earlier this month. India had warned Italy of dire consequences if the marines were not returned and the tough stance seems to have forced the Italian government to reverse its position.

The Supreme Court had also taken a tough stance barring Italian ambassador Daniele Mancini from leaving India. Coming down heavily on Mancini while hearing the case of the Italian marines, the Chief Justice of India Altamas Kabir had not only restrained him from leaving the country till further orders, he also added that a person who comes to the court and gives an undertaking has no immunity.

The Supreme Court also said that that it had lost all trust in the Italian ambassador while adjourning the matter till April 2. The court had ruled that no further affidavits will be accepted from the Italian ambassador on whether he wants to leave the country.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last week termed as "unacceptable" Italy's refusal to send its two marines back to India and said the issue will be taken up with that country. Congress President Sonia Gandhi had also spoken out strongly saying that no country should take India for granted.

ਮਨ ਪਰਦੇਸੀ ਜੇ ਥੀੲ

ਕਿਸੇ ਖਿੱਤੇ ਦੀ ਜ਼ਮੀਨ, ਕਿਸੇ ਚੌਗਿਰਦੇ 'ਚ ਵਗਦੀ ਹਵਾ-ਪਾਣੀ ਤੇ ਪਲਰਦੀਆਂ ਫ਼ਸਲਾਂ ਉਥੋਂ ਦੇ ਵਾਸੀਆਂ ਦੀਆਂ ਸੋਚਾਂ ਪਾਲਦੇ-ਢਾਲਦੇ ਤੇ ਉਸਾਰਦੇ ਰਹੇ ਹਨ ਪਰ ਜਦੋਂ ਜਰਬ ਤਕਸੀਮ ਹੁੰਦੇ, ਉਹੀ ਖੇਤ ਭੀੜੇ ਹੋ ਜਾਣ, ਖੜ੍ਹੀਆਂ ਫਸਲਾਂ ਸਮੇਂ ਦੀ ਮਾਰ ਨਾ ਝੱਲਦੀਆਂ ਸਿਰ ਸੁੱਟ ਜਾਣ, ਮੁਰਝਾ ਜਾਣ ਜਾਂ ਬੀਜਣ ਵਾਲਿਆਂ ਦੀ ਭੁੱਖ ਦਾ ਸਿਰ ਪਲੋਸਣ ਤੋਂ ਬੇਵੱਸ ਹੋ ਜਾਣ ਤਾਂ ਉਸ ਧਰਤੀ ਦੇ ਬਸ਼ਿੰਦੇ ਆਪਣੀਆਂ ਊਣੀਆਂ ਝੋਲੀਆਂ ਪੁਰ ਕਰਨ ਲਈ ਅੱਕੀਂ ਪਲਾਹੀਂ ਹੱਥ ਮਾਰਦੇ ਹੋਰਨਾਂ ਧਰਤੀਆਂ ਵੱਲ ਅਹੁਲਦੇ ਹਨ। ਲੋੜਾਂ ਥੋੜਾਂ ਦੀਆਂ ਖੱਡਾਂ ਮੁੰਦਦਿਆਂ ਗਰਜਾਂ ਦੇ ਮੇਚਦਾ ਹੋ ਕੇ ਖੜ੍ਹਦਿਆਂ ਜਾਂ ਸੁਪਨਿਆਂ ਦਾ ਸਿਰ ਪਲੋਸਦਿਆਂ ਲੋਕ ਇਕ ਖਿੱਤੇ ਤੋਂ ਦੂਜੇ ਵੱਲ ਸਰਕਦੇ ਹਨ। ਪਿੰਡ ਦੀਆਂ ਜੂਹਾਂ ਟੱਪਦੇ ਹਨ, ਸੁਪਨਿਆਂ ਨਾਲ ਸਜਾਏ ਸ਼ਹਿਰ ਲੰਘਦੇ ਹਨ ਤੇ ਫਿਰ ਕਦੇ ਦੇਸ਼ ਨੂੰ ਹੀ ਅਲਵਿਦਾ ਆਖਦੇ ਸਰਹੱਦਾਂ ਟੱਪ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਹਨ। ਪੰਜਾਬ ਦੀ ਧਰਤੀ ਨੂੰ ਆਖਰੀ ਸਲਾਮ ਆਖਦਿਆਂ ਹੀ ਕਈ ਮਨਾਂ ਅੰਦਰ ਸ਼ੂਕਦੇ ਦਰਿਆਵਾਂ ਵਰਗੀ ਖੁਸ਼ੀ ਇਸ ਰੀਝ ਨੂੰ ਜਨਮਦੀ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਅਸੀਂ ਤਾਰਿਆਂ ਦੀ ਧਰਤੀ ਵੱਲ ਜਾ ਰਹੇ ਹਾਂ। ਮਿੱਟੀ, ਘੱਟੇ, ਧੂੜ, ਸ਼ੋਰ-ਸ਼ਰਾਬੇ ਤੋਂ ਦੂਰ ਭੱਜਣ ਨੂੰ ਮਨ ਸੱਚ ਹੀ ਵਿਆਕੁਲ ਹੋ ਉਠਦਾ ਹੋਵੇਗਾ। ਇਥੋਂ ਤੁਰਨ ਵੇਲੇ ਇਹ ਥਾਂ ਭੀੜੀ-ਭੀੜੀ ਲਗਦੀ ਹੈ। ਸੀਨੇ ਵਿਚ ਸਰਕਦੇ ਸੁਪਨਿਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਮੋਕਲੀ ਥਾਂ ਲਈ ਪੈਂਦੀ ਦੱਸ ਹਾਕ ਮਾਰਦੀ ਹੈ। ਜਿਥੇ ਕਲਮਨੋਕ 'ਤੇ ਵੀ ਸੰਗੀਨਾਂ ਦੇ ਪਹਿਰੇ ਨਾ ਹੋਣ, ਜਿਥੇ ਨਿਆਂ ਵੱਲ ਝਾਕਦੀ ਕਿਸੇ ਫਰਿਆਦੀ ਦੀ ਫਾਈਲ ਊਠ ਦਾ ਬੁੱਲ੍ਹ ਡਿੱਗਣ ਵਾਲੀ ਜੂਨ ਨਾ ਭੋਗਦੀ ਹੋਵੇ। ਬਿਨਾਂ ਕਿਸੇ ਅਨੁਸ਼ਾਸਨ, ਬਿਨਾਂ ਪਾਬੰਦੀ ਅਤੇ ਲਾ-ਇਲਾਜੀ ਨਾਲ ਜੂਝਦਿਆਂ ਹਰ ਮਨੁੱਖ ਦੀ ਇਹ ਇੱਛਾ ਰਹੀ ਹੋਵੇਗੀ ਕਿ ਨਵੀਂ ਧਰਤੀ 'ਤੇ ਨਵੇਂ ਰਾਹ ਉਲੀਕਦਿਆਂ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਨੂੰ ਮੁੜ ਵਿਉਂਤ ਲੈਣ ਦਾ ਮੌਕਾ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਕੀਤਾ ਜਾਵੇ, ਜਿਥੇ ਇਸ ਦੇਹੀ ਦੇ ਪੂਰੀ ਤਾਣ ਨਾਲ ਦੁਨੀਆ ਭਰ ਦੀਆਂ ਖੁਸ਼ੀਆਂ ਇਕੱਤਰ ਕਰਕੇ ਮਨ ਅੰਦਰ ਪਸਰੀ ਭੁੱਖ ਨੂੰ ਤ੍ਰਿਪਤ ਕਰਨ ਦਾ ਹੀਲਾ ਜੁਟਾਇਆ ਜਾਵੇ, ਕਈ ਵਸਤਾਂ ਤੋਂ ਸੱਖਣੇ ਘਰਾਂ ਵਿਚ ਪਲਦਿਆਂ ਅੰਦਰਲੇ ਤਰਸੇਵੇਂ ਦਾ ਸਿਰ ਪਲੋਸਿਆ ਜਾਵੇ। ਉਸ ਸਮੇਂ ਪਰਾਈ ਧਰਤੀ ਵੱਲ ਤਾਂਘ ਅਤੇ ਇਹ ਤਰਸੇਵਾਂ ਏਨਾ ਮੂੰਹ ਜ਼ੋਰ ਹੋ ਖੜ੍ਹਦਾ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਗੱਲ ਲਗਭਗ ਵਿਛੜਦੇ ਸਭ ਰਿਸ਼ਤਿਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਅੰਦਰਲੀ ਕਾਹਲ ਲਾਹ-ਲਾਹ ਸੁੱਟ ਜਾਂਦੀ ਹੈ। ਜਿਹੜੇ ਅਜਿਹੀ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤੀ ਤੱਕ ਨਹੀਂ ਪੁੱਜ ਸਕਦੇ, ਉਹ ਉਸ ਨਾਲ ਜਾਂ ਈਰਖਾ ਕਰਦੇ ਹਨ ਜਾਂ ਰਸ਼ਕ ਕਰਦੇ ਵਿਥ 'ਤੇ ਖੜ੍ਹੋ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਨੇ। ਫਿਰ ਓਪਰੀਆਂ ਧਰਤੀਆਂ ਤੋਂ ਪਰਤੇ ਲੋਕਾਂ ਮੂੰਹੋਂ ਦੱਸੀਆਂ ਪਰਚਾਰੀਆਂ ਗੱਲਾਂ ਤੋਂ ਦੂਰ ਵਸਦੀ ਧਰਤੀ ਦਾ ਕਿਆਸ ਪਲਦਾ ਹੈ। ਹਰਚੰਦ ਸਿੰਘ ਬਾਗੜੀ ਦੀਆਂ ਸਤਰਾਂ ਇਥੇ ਪੁਸ਼ਟੀ ਕਰਦੀਆਂ ਹਨ:-
ਕਰਕੇ ਸ਼ੌਪਿੰਗ ਵੀਜ਼ੇ 'ਤੇ
ਅਸੀਂ ਵਤਨੀ ਗੇੜਾ ਲਾਨੇ ਹਾਂ,
ਸਾਨੂੰ ਪੱਟਿਆ ਹੋਰਾਂ ਨੇ
ਅਸੀਂ ਹੋਰਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਪੱਟ ਜਾਨੇ ਆਂ।
ਆਪਣੇ ਪੇਟ ਨੂੰ ਦੇ ਗੰਢਾਂ
ਚੰਦ ਪੇਟ ਹੋਰਾਂ ਦਾ ਭਰਦੇ ਹਾਂ,
ਨਾ ਪੁੱਛ ਕੈਨੇਡਾ ਵਿਚ
ਯਾਰਾ ਅਸੀਂ ਕਿਵੇਂ ਗੁਜ਼ਾਰਾ ਕਰਦੇ ਹਾਂ।
ਪਰ ਗੌਲਣ ਵਾਲਾ ਨੁਕਤਾ ਇਹ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਦੋਵਾਂ ਅੰਦਰ ਹੀ ਇਕ ਖਲਾਅ ਪਲਦਾ ਹੈ। ਏਧਰਲਿਆਂ ਅੰਦਰ ਉਸ ਅਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਸੰਸਾਰ ਨੂੰ ਵੇਖਣ ਨੂੰ ਜੀ ਭਰਮਾਉਂਦਾ ਹੈ। ਉਧਰ ਵਸਦਿਆਂ ਅੰਦਰ ਇਥੋਂ ਮਨਫ਼ੀ ਹੋ ਜਾਣ ਦਾ ਖਦਸ਼ਾ, ਤੇਰ-ਮੇਰ ਵਾਲੇ ਦਾਅਵੇ ਦੇ ਹੂੰਝੇ ਜਾਣ ਦਾ ਝੋਰਾ ਸਿਰ ਚੁੱਕਦਾ ਹੈ। ਪੰਜਾਬ ਬੈਠਿਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਕੈਨੇਡਾ, ਅਮਰੀਕਾ, ਇੰਗਲੈਂਡ ਦੂਰ ਵਸਦਾ ਸੰਸਾਰ ਹੈ। ਪਰੀ ਕਥਾ ਵਰਗਾ, ਮੁਹੱਬਤੀ ਖਤਾਂ ਦੇ ਪੜ੍ਹਨ ਵਰਗਾ ਜਾਂ ਰੱਜ ਕੇ ਮਾਣੇ ਸਾਹਾਂ ਦੇ ਸਾਥ ਵਰਗਾ, ਜਿਸ ਨੂੰ ਵੇਖਣ ਨੂੰ, ਵਰਤਣ ਨੂੰ ਅਤੇ ਵਸਣ ਲਈ ਮਨ ਤਾਂਘਦਾ ਹੈ। ਹੋਰਨਾਂ ਤੋਂ ਕਾਤਰਾਂ ਵਿਚ ਸੁਣੀਆਂ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦੀਆਂ ਸਭ ਟਾਕੀਆਂ ਸਿਉਂ ਕੇ ਬਣਾਈ ਵਧੀਆ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ, ਸੁਪਨਿਆਂ ਵਿਚ ਪੁੰਗਰਦੀ ਹੈ। ਥੋੜ੍ਹੀ ਸਮਾਈ ਕਰਕੇ ਵੇਖੀਏ ਤਾਂ ਸਮਾਜ ਦੇ ਝੱਗੇ 'ਤੇ ਲੱਗੀਆਂ ਜੇਬਾਂ ਵਰਗੇ ਬੰਦੇ ਹਰ ਥਾਂ ਹੀ ਹੁੰਦੇ ਹਨ। ਉਹ ਉਥੇ ਵੀ ਹਨ, ਇਥੇ ਵੀ ਹਨ। ਮੈਨੂੰ ਇਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਵਿੱਥਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਗੌਲਣ ਦਾ ਕਈ ਵਾਰ ਮੌਕਾ ਮਿਲਿਆ ਹੈ। ਕਹਿੰਦੇ ਹਨ ਜਿਹੜੇ ਲਾਹੌਰ ਕਮਲੇ ਸੀ, ਇਧਰ ਵੀ ਕਮਲੇ ਈ ਹਨ। ਭਲਾ ਥਾਂ ਬਦਲਣ ਨਾਲ ਮਨ, ਸੁਭਾਅ, ਆਦਤਾਂ, ਬਚਪਨ ਹੰਢਾਇਆ ਅਹਿਸਾਸ, ਸੀਨੇ ਵਿਚ ਸਮੋਈਆਂ ਯਾਦਾਂ ਥੋੜ੍ਹੋ ਤਬਦੀਲ ਹੋ ਸਕਦੀਆਂ ਹਨ। ਪਿਆਰ, ਮੋਹ-ਤ੍ਰੇਹ, ਮਮਤਾ ਭਰਿਆ ਮਨ ਉਹ ਵੀ ਰੱਖਦੇ ਹਨ, ਇਹ ਵੀ ਰੱਖਦੇ ਨੇ। ਲਾਲਸਾਵਾਂ ਦੀ ਉਂਗਲ ਫੜ ਕੇ ਉਹ ਵੀ ਰਿਸ਼ਤੇ ਮਧੋਲ ਸੁੱਟਦੇ ਨੇ, ਇਹ ਵੀ ਦਗਾ ਕਰ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਨੇ। ਫਿਰ ਦੂਰ ਖੜ੍ਹੋ ਕੇ ਤੋਹਮਤਾਂ, ਮੇਹਣੇ-ਤਾਅਨੇ ਦੇਣ ਨਾਲ ਕੁਝ ਵੀ ਹੱਥ ਨਹੀਂ ਲਗਦਾ। ਦੋਵਾਂ ਪਾਸਿਆਂ ਤੋਂ ਹੀ 'ਬੁਰੇ ਭਲੇ ਹਮ ਥਾਰੇ' ਤੱਕ ਪੁੱਜਣਾ ਪਏਗਾ। ਸੋ ਜੀਅ ਤਾਂ ਸਭ ਦਾ ਕਰਦਾ ਹੈ ਵੱਖ-ਵੱਖ ਥਾਂਵਾਂ 'ਤੇ ਵਸਦੇ ਸਭ ਪੰਜਾਬਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਖੁੰਗ ਕੇ ਨਾਲ ਲਾ ਜਾਈਏ ਜਾਂ ਦੋਵਾਂ ਥਾਂਵਾਂ 'ਤੇ ਵਸਦੇ ਲੋਕਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਵਟੇ-ਵਟਾ ਲਈਏ। ਪਰ ਇਹ ਹੋਣਾ ਸੰਭਵ ਨਹੀਂ। ਸੋ, ਆਪਾਂ ਦੋਵਾਂ ਥਾਂਵਾਂ ਦੀਆਂ ਵੱਖ-ਵੱਖ ਸਥਿਤੀਆਂ ਵਿਚ ਵਸਦੇ ਲੋਕਾਂ ਦੀਆਂ ਖਾਹਿਸ਼ਾਂ ਦਾ, ਸੁਪਨਿਆਂ ਦਾ ਜਾਂ ਸਾਂਝਾਂ ਦਾ ਤੇ ਹੋਈਆਂ-ਬੀਤੀਆਂ ਦਾ ਬਸ ਲੇਖਾ-ਜੋਖਾ ਜਿਹਾ ਹੀ ਪੇਸ਼ ਕਰ ਸਕਦੇ ਹਾਂ।
ਐਨਾ ਹੂਲਾ ਫਕ ਕੇ, ਜਾਨ ਜੋਖੋਂ ਵਿਚ ਪਾ ਕੇ, ਨਹੁੰ-ਮਾਸ ਵਰਗੇ ਰਿਸ਼ਤੇ ਵਖਰਾਅ ਕੇ ਜਦੋਂ ਬਿਗਾਨੇ ਮੁਲਕਾਂ ਦੀ ਮਸ਼ੀਨੀ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦੇ ਪੁਰਜ਼ਿਆਂ ਨਾਲ ਆਪਣਾ-ਆਪ ਤਰਾਸ਼ਦੇ ਲੋਕ ਅੰਦਰੋਂ ਊਣੇ-ਊਣੇ ਫਿਰਦੇ ਦਿਸਦੇ ਨੇ ਤਾਂ ਹੈਰਾਨੀ ਹੁੰਦੀ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਖੁਸ਼ੀ ਵਿਹਾਜਣ ਗਏ, ਚੰਗੀਆਂ ਪੂਰੀਆਂ ਪਾ ਆਏ ਨੇ। ਵਸਤਾਂ ਨਾਲ ਝੋਲੀਆਂ ਭਰਦੇ ਰੂਹ ਵਿਚ ਮੋਰੀਆਂ ਕਰਵਾ ਆਏ ਨੇ। ਫਿਰ ਇਹ ਲੋਕ ਉਥੋਂ ਦੇ ਕਾਇਦੇ-ਕਾਨੂੰਨ ਨੂੰ ਨਵਾਬੀ ਜੁੱਤੀ ਦੀ ਕੈਦ ਜਾਣਦੇ ਨੇ। ਇਹ ਲੋਕ ਨੁੱਚੜੇ ਜਿਹੇ, ਉਨੀਂਦਰੇ ਜਿਹੇ, ਅਤ੍ਰਿਪਤ ਜਿਹੇ ਤੇ ਰਸਹੀਣ ਜਿਹੇ ਹੋ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਨੇ। ਵੰਨ-ਸੁਵੰਨੀਆਂ ਵਸਤਾਂ ਜਾਂ ਸਾਮਾਨ ਨਾਲ ਤੁੰਨੇ ਘਰ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦੀ ਤਸੱਲੀ ਦਾ ਦਮ ਨਹੀਂ ਭਰਦੇ। ਜਦੋਂ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਅੰਦਰ ਇਹ ਖਲਾਅ ਪਲਦਾ ਹੈ ਤਾਂ ਵਸਤਾਂ ਤੋਂ ਸੱਖਣੇ ਪਰ ਰਿਸ਼ਤੇ ਨਾਤਿਆਂ, ਸਕੀਰੀਆਂ ਨਾਲ ਭਰੇ-ਭੁਕੰਨੇ ਘਰਾਂ ਦੀਆਂ ਯਾਦਾਂ ਸਕੂਨ ਦਿੰਦੀਆਂ ਹਨ। ਫਿਰ ਖੇਤ ਦੀ ਵੱਟ 'ਤੇ ਬੈਠ, ਹੱਥ 'ਤੇ ਧਰ ਕੇ ਰੱਖੀ ਰੋਟੀ ਤੇ ਅੰਬ ਦੇ ਆਚਾਰ ਦੀ ਫਾੜੀ ਦਾ ਮਹਿਕ ਭਰਿਆ ਸਵਾਦ ਛੱਤੀ ਪਦਾਰਥ ਚੱਖੇ ਹੋਣ ਪਿੱਛੋਂ ਵੀ ਉਘੜ ਪੈਂਦਾ ਹੈ।
ਖੁਸ਼ੀ ਵਿਹਾਜਨ ਲਈ ਚਾਰਦੀਵਾਰੀ ਅੰਦਰ ਬੰਦ ਹੋਣਾ ਨਹੀਂ, ਸਗੋਂ ਹੋਰਨਾਂ ਕੋਲ ਨਿਰ-ਸਵਾਰਥ ਸਾਥ ਲੈ ਕੇ ਜਾਣਾ ਪੈਂਦਾ ਹੈ। ਜਿਥੇ ਰੂਹ ਸ਼ਾਂਤ ਹੋ ਸਕੇ, ਜਿਥੇ ਯਾਦਾਂ ਘਰ ਦੇ ਬਨੇਰਿਆਂ ਤੇ ਖਿਲਰੀ ਧੁੱਪ ਦੇ ਸੁਪਨੇ ਪਾਲ ਸਕਣ। ਅਜਿਹੇ ਅੰਤਲੇ ਪੜਾਅ 'ਤੇ ਹਰ ਕੋਈ ਆਪਣੇ ਅੰਦਰ ਲੱਗੀ ਉੱਲੀ ਨੂੰ ਲਾਹੁਣ ਲਈ ਹੀਲੇ ਜੋੜਦਾ ਹੈ। ਕਦੇ ਗੁਰਦੁਆਰੇ ਦੀ ਸੰਗਤ, ਕਦੇ ਮੇਲੇ ਦਾ ਹਿੱਸਾ, ਕਦੇ ਕਿਤੇ ਘਰ ਵਿਚਲੀ ਰੌਣਕ ਦਾ ਟੋਟਾ ਬਣਦਾ ਖੁਸ਼ੀਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਪੌੜੀ ਲਾਉਣ ਦੇ ਬਹਾਨੇ ਘੜਦਾ ਹੈ। ਉਮਰਾਂ ਸਿਰੋਂ ਲੰਘੀਆਂ ਧੁੱਪਾਂ-ਛਾਵਾਂ ਸੱਜਰੀਆਂ ਹੋ ਹੋ ਖੜ੍ਹਦੀਆਂ ਨੇ, ਕੰਨ ਪਛਾਣੀਆਂ ਆਵਾਜ਼ਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਤਰਸ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਹਨ। ਰੱਬ ਨਾ ਕਰੇ ਜੇ ਇਸ ਪਹਿਰ ਤੱਕ ਪੁੱਜਦਿਆਂ ਔਲਾਦ ਦਗਾ ਦੇ ਜਾਏ ਤਾਂ ਪਛਤਾਵਾ ਹੀ ਪੱਲੇ ਰਹਿ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੋਵੇਗਾ।
ਬੀਤੀ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦੇ ਵਰ੍ਹੇ ਨਾ ਡਿਲੀਟ ਹੋ ਸਕਦੇ ਨੇ ਤੇ ਨਾ ਰਿਪੀਟ ਹੋ ਸਕਦੇ ਨੇ। ਪਰ ਮਨ ਵਾਰ-ਵਾਰ ਅਜਿਹਾ ਕਰਨ ਦੀ ਲੋਚਦਾ ਹੈ। ਇਹੀ ਸਭ ਸੋਚਦਿਆਂ ਸਾਹਾਂ ਦੀ ਮੋਹਲਤ ਪੁੱਗ ਜਾਂਦੀ ਹੈ। ਪਰ ਕੁਝ ਗੱਲਾਂ ਤੈਅ ਹਨ ਕਿ ਖੁਸ਼ੀ ਖਰੀਦੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਜਾਂਦੀ। ਕਿਸੇ ਨੂੰ ਆਪ ਦੇ ਕੇ ਬੈਂਕ ਵਿਚ ਜਮ੍ਹਾ ਪੂੰਜੀ ਵਾਂਗ ਪਹਿਲਾਂ ਕਿਸੇ ਨੂੰ ਦੇ ਕੇ ਫੇਰ ਹੀ ਹਾਸਲ ਕੀਤੀ ਜਾ ਸਕਦੀ ਹੈ। ਵੈਨਕੂਵਰ ਦੀ ਨਿਰਮਲ ਆਖਦੀ ਹੈ, ਇੰਡੀਆ ਮੈਂ ਸੁਣਦੀ ਸੀ ਬਈ ਸਰੀਰ ਮਰ ਜਾਣ, ਆਤਮਾ ਜਿਊਂਦੀ ਰਹਿੰਦੀ ਐ। ਪਰ ਕੈਨੇਡਾ ਮੈਂ ਕਈਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਜਾਣਦੀ ਆਂ ਜਿਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦੀ ਆਤਮਾ ਤਾਂ ਮਰੀ ਹੋਈ ਐ ਪਰ ਬੰਦੇ ਤੁਰੇ ਫਿਰਦੇ ਨੇ। ਮੈਂ ਕੈਨੇਡਾ ਬੱਬੀ ਨੂੰ ਪੁੱਛਿਆ, ਕੀ ਫਰਕ ਹੈ ਆਪਣੇ ਤੇ ਇਸ ਮੁਲਕ ਦਾ। ਉਸ ਨੇ ਇਕ ਸਤਰ ਜਵਾਬ ਦਿੱਤਾ, ਇੰਡੀਆ ਵਿਚ ਕੋਈ ਸਿਸਟਮ ਨਹੀਂ ਹੈ, ਇਥੇ ਬਸ ਸਿਸਟਮ ਹੀ ਸਿਸਟਮ ਹੈ।
ਸੰਘਾ ਦੱਸ ਰਿਹਾ ਸੀ, ਬਈ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਵਿਚ ਸੜਕ 'ਤੇ ਤੁਰਦਾ ਆਦਮੀ ਡਰਦਾ ਹੈ, ਕਿਤੇ ਭੱਜੀ ਜਾਂਦੀ ਕਾਰ ਹੇਠ ਈ ਨਾ ਆ ਜਾਵਾਂ। ਪਰ ਕੈਨੇਡਾ ਵਿਚ ਕਾਰ ਸਵਾਰ ਡਰਦਾ ਹੈ ਕਿਤੇ ਤੁਰਿਆ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਆਦਮੀ ਕਾਰ ਹੇਠ ਨਾ ਆ ਜਾਵੇ। ਪੰਜਾਬ ਵਿਚ ਰੋਟੀ ਖਾਂਦੇ ਸੀ ਜਦੋਂ ਰੋਟੀ ਮਿਲਦੀ ਸੀ ਪਰ ਇਥੇ ਰੋਟੀ ਖਾਂਦੇ ਹਾਂ ਜਦੋਂ ਵਿਹਲ ਮਿਲਦੀ ਹੈ। ਪੰਜਾਬ ਵਿਚ ਬਿਨਾਂ ਵਿਹਲ ਮਿਲੇ ਤੋਂ ਸੌਂ ਲਈਦਾ ਸੀ ਪਰ ਇਥੇ ਸਾਰਾ ਕੈਨੇਡਾ ਅਣਸਰਦੇ ਨੂੰ ਸੌਂਦਾ ਹੈ। ਪੰਜਾਬ, ਜੇ ਅਸੀਂ ਬੇਲੀਆਂ ਨਾਲ ਰਲ ਕੇ ਖੇਡਣ ਭੱਜਦੇ ਸੀ, ਘਰ ਦੇ ਨਿੱਤ ਸਾਡੀ ਗਰਦ ਝਾੜਦੇ ਸੀ ਪਰ ਅਸੀਂ ਇਥੇ ਆਪਣੇ ਬੱਚਿਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਭੱਜ-ਭੱਜ ਪੈਂਦੇ ਹਾਂ ਕਿ ਕਦੇ ਤਾਂ ਨਾਲ ਦਿਆਂ ਨਾਲ ਰਲ ਕੇ ਖੇਡ ਲਵੋ। ਇਉਂ ਅਸੀਂ ਸਭ ਜੋ ਸਾਡੇ ਕੋਲ ਹੁੰਦਾ ਹੈ, ਉਸ ਨੂੰ ਗੌਲਣ ਦੀ ਥਾਂ ਜੋ ਨਹੀਂ ਹੁੰਦਾ ਉਸ ਵੱਲ ਨੂੰ ਅਹੁਲਦੇ ਹਾਂ। ਮਰਨ ਤੋਂ ਪਹਿਲਾਂ ਰੱਜ ਕੇ ਜੀਅ ਲੈਣ ਨੂੰ ਸਭ ਦਾ ਮਨ ਕਰਦਾ ਹੈ। ਜਦੋਂ ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀ ਵਸਿਆਂ ਦੀਆਂ ਕਿਸ਼ਤਾਂ ਭਰਦਿਆਂ ਕਿਸ਼ਤਾਂ ਵਰਗੀ ਜੂਨ ਵੇਖਦੇ ਹਾਂ ਤਾਂ ਮਨ ਆਪਣੇ ਇਸ ਹਾਸਲ 'ਤੇ ਸੰਤੁਸ਼ਟ ਹੋ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ। ਲਿਖੀ ਸਤਰ ਦੀਆਂ ਖਾਲੀ ਥਾਂਵਾਂ ਭਰਨ ਜੋਗੀ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਜਿਊਂਦੇ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਲੋਕਾਂ 'ਤੇ ਤਰਸ ਆਉਂਦਾ ਹੈ। ਕਦੇ ਕਿਹਾ ਗਿਆ ਸੀ, 'ਨਾਨਕ ਦੁਖੀਆ ਸਭ ਸੰਸਾਰ' ਪਰ ਹੁਣ ਕਈ ਲੋਕ ਇਸ ਦੀ ਅਗਲੀ ਸਤਰ ਪੂਰਦੇ ਹੋਏ ਘਰ ਤੋਂ ਬਾਹਰ ਹੋਣ ਨੂੰ ਸੁਖ ਦਾ ਆਧਾਰ ਮੰਨ ਰਹੇ ਹਨ। ਪਰ ਜੇ ਮਨ ਪਰਦੇਸੀ ਹੋ ਜਾਏ ਤਾਂ ਹਰ ਥਾਂ ਹੀ ਓਪਰਾ ਹੋ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ। - ਬਲਵਿੰਦਰ ਕੌਰ ਬਰਾੜ-

Italy's secret anti-mob weapon

ROME (AP) — A woman who dares to cooperate with police in the fight against a dreaded Italian mob network is murdered, her body dumped in a barrel of acid in the countryside near Milan. Her 17-year-old daughter steps forward and testifies, helping to send six people to prison for life.

The lurid 2009 murder and the court verdict delivered in April gave a rare peek into Italy's secretive witness protection program, which marked its 20th anniversary this year and is considered Italy's single most important window into the secretive world of organized crime. Hundreds of mobsters have been given new identities in exchange for information that helped put longtime fugitive leaders behind bars, including the "boss of bosses" Salvatore Riina.

The use of insiders has combined with the seizure of mob assets to help Italy achieve a once unattainable goal: crippling the Sicilian Cosa Nostra. "It has advanced immensely the fight against organized crime," said Felia Allum, a British academic who studies organized crime.

Italy's famed anti-Mafia prosecutors Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino had fought in the 1980s to establish the two anti-mob weapons, arguing that criminals needed some incentive to step forward and turn state's evidence. They were killed by mob bombs within two months of one another in 1992, but not before they'd laid the foundations for a crime-fighting system that has largely tamed, if not defeated, the Mafia.

Living under state protection does take exact a heavy toll on witnesses. A major problem is that most mobsters in the program are from Italy's underdeveloped south, and they are generally exiled to what they see as a hostile environment in the prosperous north, because it's easier to hide them there. There have been suicides. Some return to crime when their collaboration with the state comes to an end.

"They are given a new identity and a lump sum of money to start their new life but they are not helped as much as they should be to reintegrate back into society," said Allum. The dead woman in the 2009 murder, 36-year-old Lea Garofalo, had left the government program "feeling uneasy" about her protection, her lawyer Vincenza Rando said, adding that she was subjected to unwanted sexual advances from her police guards. "She didn't feel well protected and risked it on her own."

Garofalo's daughter Denise felt that her mother's decision had cost her life, so she decided to put her trust in the program. She was the key witness in the trial and now lives with a new identity in an undisclosed location. The contrasting fates of mother and daughter underscore how critical it is for witnesses in mob cases to obtain new identities. Without one, experts say, turncoats like Lea Garofalo become sitting ducks for inevitable revenge killings.

Denise Garofalo is one of nearly 4,700 people in the program -- about 1,000 so-called "collaborators" who have turned state's evidence and the rest family members, according to a document obtained by The Associated Press on figures up to 2010. It is believed to be the second largest program after that of the United States. Most have been witnesses in cases against the Sicilian Mafia, the Neapolitan Camorra and the Calabrian 'ndrangheta --the crime syndicate in the Garofalo case.

Prosecutors say that no one who has followed the protection rules has been harmed. Those who stray do so at their own peril, like the son of a Camorra boss who returned to his hometown and was slain. Changing immigration patterns and the spread of international terrorism have led authorities to open the program to eastern Europeans, North Africans and several other nationalities, according to the Interior Ministry report to parliament.

Lazhar Ben Mohamed Tlil, a Tunisian who became an Islamic militant and was trained in Afghanistan to kill Americans, entered the witness protection program after providing information to Italian investigators about several detainees at Guantanamo, his court-appointed lawyer, Davide Boschi, told The Associated Press.

The lawyer has said that Tlil, considered an important witness by both Italians and Americans, would not talk to prosecutors without firm guarantees of a new identity, documents, a job, medical coverage and a visit to his parents in Tunisia.

An Interior Ministry report to parliament acknowledged criticism of the way the program works due to a "large, unexpected influx of people" into the program recent years. Witness protection costs some €100 million (more than $100 million) a year. It often fails to help former criminals return to normal life. And foreigners in the program face tough bureaucratic roadblocks to creating decent lives in Italy.

Still, criminal experts give the program high marks despite the headaches it faces in determining who may be lying, creating new identities and trying to hide the turncoats in Italy, where authorities have fewer options than in the much larger United States.

"By demonstrating that its institutions are standing as one in facing the Mafia, Italy is setting an example for the world against organized crime," Interpol Secretary-General Ronald K. Noble told a convention on organized crime in Sicily over the summer.

Until Italy established the program in the early 90s, the most famous witness, Tommasso Buscetta, needed to be sheltered abroad. He helped convict some 350 mobsters in the 1980s before being given a new identity in the United States in the American witness protection program.

While the release of criminals with blood on their hands has been contentious, Alfonso Sabella, a former Palermo prosecutor defended Italy's witness protection program in an interview with the Turin newspaper La Stampa.

It was, he said, a "necessary choice — when it was clear that the Mafia couldn't be brought to its knees through traditional means."

Pussy Riot members face tough life in penal colony

Imprisoned women wait to be escorted for work at a women's prison outside the city of Orel, central Russia. Two members of the punk band Pussy Riot will serve their sentence in a penal colony far from Moscow 

MOSCOW (AP) — It's a far cry from Stalin's gulag, but the guiding principle of the Russian penal colony -- the destination of two members of punk band Pussy Riot -- remains the same: isolate inmates and wear them down through "corrective labor."

Maria Alekhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova will have to quickly learn the inner laws of prison life, survive the dire food and medical care, and risk bullying from inmates either offended by their "punk prayer" against President Vladimir Putin or under orders to pressure them.

"Everyone knows the rule: Trust no one, never fear and never forgive," said Svetlana Bakhmina, a lawyer who spent three years in a penal colony. "You are in no-man's land. Nobody will help you. You have to think about everything you say and do to remain a person."

Alekhina, 24, Tolokonnikova, 22, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 30, were convicted of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred for an impromptu performance in Moscow's main cathedral as Putin headed into an election that handed him a third term as Russia's president. The women insisted their protest was political. But many believers said they were deeply offended by the sight of the band members dancing on the altar in balaclavas.

Imprisoned women stand during a morning inspection at a women's prison in a town of Sarapul, central Russia. Two members of the punk band Pussy Riot will serve their sentence in a penal colony far from Moscow that is like what a former inmate describes as a "nasty Girl Scout camp.”

An appeals court released Samutsevich on Wednesday, but upheld the two-year prison terms of the others. The presiding judge said that "their correction is possible only in isolation from society." In colonies for women, inmates live in barracks with 30 to 40 to a room. They begin the day by shuffling outside for compulsory exercises at daybreak, in temperatures as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius in winter. After roll call and a breakfast of gruel, they spend seven to eight hours a day at work, usually hunched over sewing machines working on uniforms and other clothing.

Since there is only one women's penal colony near Moscow, female prisoners from the capital are commonly sent to Mordovia, a swampy, mosquito-infested province on the Volga River. Defense lawyers said Alekhina and Tolokonnikova would be transported to a penal colony within two weeks, after receiving copies of their sentences. The location was not yet known.

Despite the harsh conditions, many prisoners nonetheless prefer the colonies to the pre-trial detention centers, where they are kept in cramped, sometimes spectacularly unhygienic cells and only allowed out for an hour a day. The three Pussy Riot members were held in such a center since their February arrest.

Russian inmates are kept in a system that Russia's own justice minister has described as "monstrously archaic" and whose purpose has changed little for hundreds of years. Czarist Russia sent prisoners to remote Siberian colonies where labor was in short supply; the system was inherited and expanded by the Soviet Union, which worked millions of prisoners to death in the gulag. Russia incarcerates more people than any country in the world bar the United States and China, according to the International Centre for Prison Studies.

There have been other high-profile penal colony inmates in Putin's Russia. Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the imprisoned head of the Yukos oil company, served part of his 14-year sentence in an Eastern Siberian colony. Once Russia's richest man, he served his time making mittens. Arrested in 2003, Khodorkovsky was convicted in two cases seen as punishment for challenging Putin's power.

Bakhmina, who once worked for Khodorkovsky, said you have little free time to yourself in the prison colony, where guards often compel prisoners to attend classes or participate in cultural activities. In a U.S. diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks in 2010, former Ambassador William Burns recalled visiting a women's prison where inmates put on a "bizarre fashion and talent show" for American officials.

"Boredom doesn't exist in the colony. It's too good a concept for it. You just regret the time you spend," Bakhmina said. "A normal person can't even imagine that environment — you have to get used to it and people have to get used to you. It takes several months, maybe half a year. It's all about how you behave — you have to not be conceited and respect other people."

Prisoners are typically paid the equivalent of about $10 a day, which they can use to buy food, cigarettes, and toiletries. Those whose families don't send them supplies scrape through on the unofficial labor market, cleaning up the facilities or doing work for wealthier inmates. Cigarette packs are the colony's internal currency.

Alekhina and Tolokonnikova, both university graduates, are unlikely to have much in common with their fellow inmates. "I didn't think there even were people like 90 percent of the people I met," Bakhmina recalled. "I never had any idea there were so many drug addicts, or so many people with speech impediments."

Spouses are allowed three-day conjugal visits four times a year. Prisoners who show especially good behavior can even be given two weeks' leave outside the camp. Bakhmina became pregnant while serving her term and was released several months after giving birth to a daughter. She saw her two older sons only twice during her three years in the penal colony, afraid it would be too traumatic for them to see their mother imprisoned.

Mothers with children under the age of 3 can keep them in centers on penal colony grounds, or in the case of one colony in Mordovia in their barracks. Alekhina's 5-year-old son and Tolokonnikova's 4-year-old daughter will live with relatives.

The two punk band members can be punished with up to 15 days in solitary confinement for minor infractions such as failing to make their beds or to put their hands behind their backs at roll call or to greet guards quickly enough.

Perhaps the greatest danger for the band members, however, will be posed by their fellow inmates. Physical violence, while a danger, is relatively rare in comparison to men's colonies. But the psychological pressure can be greater, said Vitaly Borshchyov, head of the Public Monitoring Commission, a human rights organization that works with the government to improve prison conditions.

"Colonies are all-consuming for women," he said. "Having a large group of women together in a single space is a recipe for tension and conflicts. You might get beaten up, sexually humiliated or forced to be someone's lover, especially if you're a young woman."

The Pussy Riot members' lawyers and supporters also fear that Orthodox believers may attack them, either inspired by the extremely negative coverage of their protest on state television or egged on by state officials.

"When things get worse on the outside, it gets transferred into the colonies," said Lev Ponomarev, a Soviet dissident who runs the Defending Prisoners' Rights foundation. "Scoundrels think they can get away with more. The authorities are totally indifferent."

The band members have vowed to remain defiant. "We will not be silent," Alekhina told the appeals court Wednesday. "And even if we are in Mordovia or Siberia we will not be silent ... however zealously you try to smear us."