(Below is a note from the Chashma Inspection Requesters to the Secretariat of the ADB Board Inspection Committee.)

Dear Ms. Jill Drilon,

Attached is the response of the Chashma Inspection Requesters on the Mid Term Report on Progress of the GRSC. As you know we have never accepted the establishment of GRSC as a credible, transparent, democtaric and participatory grievance redress mechanism. We have therefore prepared a principal statement and attached all correspondence we have been doing in this regard. I hope all this material will be posted on ADB website.
I am sorry for this delay. It was caused because of illness as I have already communicated you. I hope this delay will not cause any problem in terms of posting this material on ADB website.

Regards,

Mushtaq Gadi
On the belhalf of Chashma Inspection Requesters

• Salt in Our Wounds
• A Statement from Chashma Lok Sath
• A Letter from the Beggars
• A Letter to the Grievance Redress and Settlement Committee
• A letter to the Chair Person of the Board Inspection Committee
• A letter to the Chair Person of the Board Inspection Committee

There are countless reasons for denouncing, rejecting and resisting it. First and foremost, we don't have any grievance at all. Rather, we are struggling to uphold the truth, seeking justice and recognition of our fundamental rights. We believe what has been forcibly snatched away from us should be returned to us. Our Rowed-Kohee, lands, houses, means of livelihoods, ways and paths, dignity, bonds, everything. If your laws and pocket do not permit it, then you should at least confess this before us. We are ready to forgive but not ready to forget.

Even if we accept your language and laws and enter into this trade of rights and entitlements, you have little to offer us. You know the business of trade was started when Man invented the number game. It peaked in the age of Market and Capital when the knowledge of statistics and tools of documentation were fully developed. You advocate and defend yourself this ideology and methodology. Why then do you deprive us from the Right that you advocate and defend day and night? Why not record and price our losses before entering into any negotiation and bargaining? The trade should be fair, voluntary and transparent.

Your consultants first said we would not loose a single dwelling because of your investment. Within few years, the figure went up to fourteen thousand. We believe thousands are not yet counted. But, this ugly play of figures and numbers does not stop here. We are now told that the total land forcibly snatched away from us has been now decreased by 29 percent(*2) . Even this number game has not stopped here. Why don't you count the thousand acres of land that are regularly eaten up by the infuriated Rowed-Kohee after the construction of your canal? Why don't you value those lands in the riverine belt that are destroyed every year? The list is very large.

We have read the report of your Committee. It is nothing but a cruel joke and bundle of lies.

We demand that you stop this game of grievance redress. We demand the excavation of the truth. We demand justice.

Chashma Inspection Requesters

We, the people of Chashma irrigation project, gather here to pronounce our sufferings and denounce the violations inflicted upon us. We assemble here to guard the Truth.

The Truth that is eclipsed by perpetual fabrication of falsehood and mendacity. The Truth that is mutilated by dishonest reports, wrongs of high-paid consultants and officials and lust for money and profit.

We now stand up and tell the Truth.

Truth! We were the people who had abundant water and land. God used to send Rowed Kohee-the cherished hill torrents- to us. Rowed Kohee was like our mother that nourished her children. The mighty Indus River was our father, ever flowing to ensure our sustenance. We had perennial springs, wells and jhallars. Our life was simple and modest, and sometimes involved hardships and difficulties. We were, however, cooperative, reciprocal and loved each other. Most importantly, everything was ours and we were devoted to everything. We were free from the clutches of Sarkar (the government) and Suhkar (the banker).

We denounce the falsehood that our lands were desert and the canal brought us abundant water.

Truth! Then came the officials of Sarkar and Suhkar. Their dreadful imagination produced awful conditions. The canal was built. Everything changed. Rowed Kohee, our mother, turned its back from her children. She went through a strange metamorphosis. She turned into violent and raging floods. The Indus River, our father, abandoned us and inflicted unbearable sufferings upon us. Our springs disappeared. Our wells vomited poisonous canal water. Our lands were snatched away. Houses were demolished. Old ways and paths started to disappear.

Now, there are endless labyrinths to traverse.

Sarkar and Suhkar come to us and offer sympathies and promised to alleviate our sufferings and correct wrongs. A strange happening. Whenever we assemble and cement our alliances we are offered futile dialogues and false promises. When we stopped the canal at different points, we were promised that we would be provided alternative lands and houses. We were left wounded and annoyed. Then we were invited to participate in multi-stakeholders' dialogue. It left us bleeding. It is now third time that Sarkar and Suhkar have made the Committee to alleviate our sufferings and hardships. The old drink in a new bottle. It will also pass, leaving us without any destiny.

We denounce the falsehood of the promises. We reject the Committee and its recommendations. The Committee was imposed on us. It was established without our consent and participation. We refuse to play the old game.

The Committee even failed to properly assess our losses. We know our losses are immense and full compensation is not possible. Some of the losses are permanent and continue to occur time and again. Flooding. Some of the losses will start to surface in near future. Silting. Some of the losses are immaterial, like our community bonds and knowledge. Some of the losses can be however assessed and compensated. The Committee even failed to fully assess and offer any acceptable compensation for such losses.

We declare that our losses are in billions. We demand that these losses should be first recoded and properly assessed. Then we will engage in any meaningful dialogue with Sarkar and Suhkar.

We resolve hereby not to pay any abiana or water charges unless our losses are fully assessed and compensated. We are peaceful and non-violent people and resorting only to peaceful means - non-cooperation and disobedience.

Attended and endorsed by:

1. Chashma Requesters
2. Representatives of the following villages

3. Attended by the following solidarity networks and organizations:
O Pakistan NGO Forum
O Peoples Rights Movement
O Pakistan Network of Rivers and Dams and Peoples
O SUNGI Development Foundation
O Action Aid Pakistan
O Hirak Development Center
O Damaan Development Organization
O Mauj

Once upon a time, a monk takes in a wounded beggar and cares for him. The beggar only gets more and more annoyed until one day he bursts out in anger.
'I cannot stand your face, leave me. I hate you because I see that whatever you do, you are not doing for me, that you do not love me, but just want to save yourselves through me. Take me back to the street; it was easier for me there than here accepting your services'

The laws? First he robbed everybody, took all the earth, and all rights away from men took them for himself - killed all those who were against him, and then wrote laws forbidding to rob and to kill. He should have written those laws sooner.

The present situation of our relationship with Power is that of the monk and the beggar. Your piousness seems eager to service us, to take care of our sufferings. Even more, you have yourself invited us twice to register our grievances before you - the monk that listens to the beggar? In your letter, you tell us that 'alleviating the sufferings and difficulties of our people is your noble cause' and that everyone on this earth should agree with such a noble cause. And in that you claim the world, you make the world in your image, seeking your salvation in this world you become the god of our world, seeking your Paradise through us here and now.

Alas! This earth is not made alike Paradise.

In Paradise, everyone would be unaware of words such as suffering and grievance. In Paradise, everyone would love each other. Most importantly, dissent would not have any place in Paradise. In Paradise, dissent is considered an unforgivable sin and its punishment is nothing less than permanent exile from Paradise. Paradise Lost - a place permanently far away.

Yet what you need to know is that dissent is seeded in the most dangerous human quality - the will to experiencing and knowing.

We, the beggars, the so-called 'affected people', are those who are suffering. This very experience and knowledge of our sufferings would be reason alone to permanently exile us from your Paradise. We are thus relegated to the status of beggars and should have made an appeal to your court for 'alleviating our sufferings and difficulties'. And you seek salvation.
Alas! There are some beggars who do not pay due honour to your monk(ey)'s piousness.

These beggars are ones who are very much annoyed and claim that whatever you do you are not doing for them. They first make judgment about your commitment and then decide to accept your alms - a very unusual and rare trait among the beggars biradri. Their problem is that they know and recognize - they know the story of their becoming.

They exclaim: Are not you those who robbed us? Are not you the same people who rendered us to this wretched state of begging? Now we can remember all that is the past. Our memory is now fully retrieved. We can now clearly see it was you who came and told us about the Law. You said, 'the law permits you to forcibly snatch away our ancestral lands and destroy our houses, crops and trees'. The law sanctions you simply to do everything you want to do'. We knew not of such Law and such method.

To our surprise, your law author(is)ed and capable of damming and diverting Rowed-Kohee. We trembled. Our forefathers would often recite that whenever Rowed-Kohee was diverted, catastrophe followed. You thought us ignorant and considered our knowledges myths, superstitions and rendered it worthless. You talked about your science and satellite imageries. You then brought strange and unimaginable machines that sliced our land into countless pieces with unbelievable speed, swallowing everything, and building high walls before the way of Rowed-Kohee. The catastrophe though delayed was always already imminent. And then it finally fell upon us. Rowed-Kohee thundered in anger and rushed down to destroy everything in her way. Lands, houses, crops, roads, everything.

And in this destruction you seek your salvation. This is not the first time you are talking of 'alleviating our sufferings and difficulties and addressing our grievances'. You made false promises about compensation and resettlement. You invited us to your stakeholders' dialogue We never knew then what the stake-holder was but it passed.

Now, you want us to appeal in your court. You are again talking about the law. How can we trust you and your laws?

We see you are doing it not for us. Like the monk, the sole purpose of your polite talk and tender behavior is your own salvation. You want to save yourself and your Masters through us. But a true salvation starts from the confession. A confession of the truth. A confession of committing sins and crimes. A true confession will then follow the love that is only capable to build trust between you and us.

Thank you very much for inviting the Chashma Inspection Requesters to appear before the Grievance Redress and Settlement Committee (GRSC). It is not, however, possible for us to appear before the members of the GRSC because of a variety of reasons. Why should we appear before the members of the GRSC? Neither we are witnesses, nor the GRSC is the standard and formal court. We believe and have been reiterating it since long time that the people who are sufferers and violated should have primary role in deciding-making process. Simply reducing them into the awful category of witness is in fact another violation imposed upon them through the apparatus and process of law itself. What does it implicate is that the GRSC is not only the product of this politics of law but its working and decisions should also reflect it.

What is this politics of law? Like typical politics, it requires financial investment. Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved the grant of approximately $3 million to finance the salaries and activities of the GRSC members. How can we believe that ADB consultants who are receiving fat salaries to perform prescribe duties are independent and their integrity is beyond any questioning. Similarly, the members of the GRSC representing various executing agencies (EAs) are salaried staff and are thus directly and indirectly accountable to the government for their actions. Even the members from the district governments are also paid and are part and parcel of larger government system.

Majority of the government members of the GRSC are directly responsible for the sufferings of local communities and violations committed in the process of decision-making. If you visit the project field areas, you would find dreadful stories how the staff of Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) cheated local communities and made false promises. You would come across the evidences of the brutality and sheer force that was used against powerless and poor local communities who demanded nothing but justice and realization of their rights. They might be prepared to forgive it but they are not ready to forget it. Ok, come to the present. What is happening with regard to the compensation of land? Each village will tell you how they are asked and compelled give to bribe the land revenue staff in order to get their lawful but already low land compensation. Many of them have now become landless because of illegal massive land acquisition. You will not to do any hard labor to find how the staff of the Provincial Irrigation Department is asking bribe from poor villagers to sanction sump pumps in the low lying distributaries in the project area. All these officials who are directly and indirectly responsible for these sufferings and violations are yet part of the GRSC. How can we expect that they are going to vote against themselves? Primary concern of the law should be the excavation of truth and delivery of justice. Can the violators of law fulfill this universal requirement of the law?

Sufferings? This year, thousands of farmers in Makwal Kalan and Haeero Union Council have not ploughed and cultivated their lands. Why? For they have had to suffer the loss of more than Rs.500 million last year because of the project-induced flooding in the riverine belt. They have now little courage as well as resources to bear such losses this year. If you visit Mor Jhangi village in the riverine belt, you would find the excessive water of canal distributary ponding all around the village. Villagers have spent hundered thousands rupees to construct temporary protection bund in order to save their homes from the project induced flooding. There is no account of the losses in terms of land, agriculture produce, mobility, health etc. The villagers in the riverine belt are now sandwiched between the project induced flooding and the destruction of the Indus River. You would be told in the riverine belt how the flow patterns of the Indus River have been greatly changed because of the continuous silt deposition of the floodwater in that area. The Indus River have now started to erode its right bank and thousands acres of land have already been completely lost in this process. Most importantly, such is not an isolated place and event. More than fifty thousand people are experiencing this destruction without any hope in future. The members of the GRSC can easily find and observe such destruction and sufferings all along the riverine belt of the Indus River. It is even hard to think what will happen with these villages after massive water logging which is likely to happen in near future.

Sufferings? The village of Jadewala in the west side of the main canal is now deserted place wherein the joy and celebration of life was at once in its full blossom. If you now visit that village, you will come across mere the remains of rooms without any ceiling. It looks as some ghosts inflicted destruction on this village. These ghosts are no one else but high paid ADB consultants and engineers who once thought that the village will be flooded because of the main canal and the people in the village should, therefore, forever abandon their place of birth, identity, and joy. Never in the known history that area experienced any flooding, nor it is expected to occur in the imagined future. It was only the mistake of the official record that produced such dreadful imagination and thus inflicted sufferings and destruction. But, it is not the end of this sad story. The people of Jhangi are now walled against that imagined flooding and are thus suffering a variety of problems.

Let us leave the sufferings of these villages. Let us leave the reality how the people in Jhangi are facing problems in terms of mobility and drainage. But, should we also forget how about Rs.200 million was wrongly spent to provide protection against the floods that will never come in that area. Should we also forget what happened and is still happening with the village of Katehrewala? They have been sentenced to forever live in prison like conditions. The walls of flood embankments are so closed to their houses that it is impossible for them to view freely. The living rooms are flooded in rainy season because no drainage was imagined at the time of designing the embankments. There is no privacy for them because the flood embankments are now being used as common road in the area. The elders complain that it is now difficult for them to climb up and down the embankments. There is no space left for the construction of an additional room as it was thought no population growth would occur in this village. Now, take up the example of the Sokkar village. During 2001, it was flooded thrice because of wrong project designing and implementation. More than 80 houses were demolished and one person lost his life. As usual, flood protection embankments are constructed to save this village. In our view, this village is just waiting to receive its ultimate fate that is burying in the watery grave. The people in the Sokkar village rightfully believe that the flood protection embankments are bound to fail. These are bound to fail because the Nature will inevitably take its revenge in the due course against what is done with it.

You tell us in your letter that the terms of reference of the Committee does not contemplate the matter pertaining to the failure of the project technical design and we should be, therefore, constrained in taking up these issues. It is not merely the technical design that bothers us. We are concerned with the Nature and Ecology, which has been greatly manipulated and altered through mindless and hyper scientific imagination and subsequent wrong engineering interventions. For ADB consultants and engineers, the Nature and Ecology might be an indispensable challenge to be overcome. Nonetheless, the people of Damaan are of the contrary opinion. They have learnt from their centuries old experience that they need to respect the Nature and follow its principles as much as possible. They have learnt it not from any mediation, nor through the scientific abstract knowledge. They have learnt the mystery of the Nature and Ecology through their concrete experiences and simple wisdom. They have learnt that floodwater is bound to change its course and will thus render the costly flood protection works i.e. super-passages, flood carrier channels, etc., not only irrelevant but destructive as well. They know that the massive silt deposition as caused by the main canal will ultimately bring the change in the geography and make their settlements further insecure and prone to flooding. I was a small child when my father raised about 30 feet high earthen platform and then constructed over it our house. He was very much afraid of the flooding. Now, our house is lying low the adjacent fields. Even our colonial masters were aware of this fact when they write in the Gazetteer of the Dera Ismail Khan (1883-84) that" Village 40 or 50 years old often lie quite a hollow, and the fields outside being on a level with the roofs of the houses; but sooner and later a flood comes, which breaks the protecting embankments and drown the peoples". Now imagine the grave flooding threat after the construction of the main canal and massive obstruction it created in the natural courses of the floodwater. Should we not be bothered about it? Should it not be a matter of our concern that the majority of the super-passages are wrongly designed and thus don't allow the floodwater to safely pass through them? Should we remain irrelevant from the fact that most of the flood carrier channels are not constructed at right places? But it is not possible for us. It is impossible for us not to think and talk about the distribution canals that are incapable to convey the irrigation water to minors because of visible design wrongs. We believe that the wrong technical design is responsible for many of our losses and damages and should be part of any investigation and redress process.

You tell us that we need to pinpoint exact type of grievances, losses and how these can be mitigated. Our grievances are of diverse nature and losses are almost countless. Our damages range from the loss of free and fertile floodwater, agricultural land, houses, and rich biodiversity to the loss of community networks, graveyards, market linkages and deteriorating health. Most importantly, we have lost our destiny and freedom. These are now the state institutions that have the control over our everyday life. Much of our losses are not quantifiable and unable to mitigate and redress. The losses that are quantifiable require thorough social and environmental impact assessment. This is what we demanded from ADB Board Inspection Committee and the Government of Pakistan that they needed to ensure the full social and environmental impact assessment prior to any grievance redress and settlement process. Nonetheless, our demand was turned down and the GRSC was established without having proper and systematic documentation of losses and damages.

Lastly, there are special reasons behind the decision to disengage from current grievance redress and settlement process. Our past experiences instruct us that ADB and EAs had always wrongly used and manipulated our sincere and constructive engagements with them. We have not only been told bundle of lies and thus misguided but were also refused to give access to fundamental and primary information pertaining to the Project. You might be aware that the establishment of the GRSC is also the product of such maneuvering game that was aimed to obstruct our demand for immediate and unconditional inspection of the Project. We are unable to re-engage constructively unless our primary demands are not fulfilled.

Dated: August 27, 2003

Dear Mr. Sedgwick

Thanks for your email dated August 19, 2003.

Logic is an arbitrary tool of knowledge. It can be used in many ways. It can be linear, circular, spiral, positivist, etc. What determines its effectiveness and authenticity is the power. I mean the logic that prevails and counts in final analysis is the dominant logic.

The Logic of the Master. The Logic of the Powerful.

The Bank is the powerful. Its logic/truth prevails and counts. It prevailed when the decision about the establishment of the Grievance Redress and Settlement Committee (GRSC) was taken. The ADB Management argued that the inspection process would be counter-productive to the GRSC. We argued that the GRSC would be counter-productive to the inspection. A very circular argument from both sides. Whose logic and reality prevailed and counted? The Logic of the Powerful. Then followed the fine judgment from the BIC. Thus, the GRSC was established.

Alas! There is not a single incident in the histories of this project when the logic of the weak has prevailed and counted.

What is left to the powerless and weak? Non-violent disobedience and non-cooperation. But again the Logic of the Powerful will be circular. It will be said that the weak/aggrieved are not constructive and always adversarial. True. The weak then should be silent. So we are silent and muted.

Do whatever you want to do.

Regards,

Mushtaq Gadi

Date: August 9, 2003

Mr. Stephen Sedgwick
Chairperson,
Board Inspection Committee
Asian Development Bank

Subject: Mid Term Report of the Grievance Redress and Settlement Committee (GRSC)

Dear Mr. Stephen Sedgwick,

One major reason that we stopped to engage with ADB Management was our bitter experiences regarding Chashma Multi-Stakeholders' Dialogue held in March 2002. Despite the fact that most important and relevant information, such as resettlement survey report, environmental management plan, etc. was not disclosed to us and the dialogue and consultation process was not designed in an equitable and participatory manner, we decided to engage with ADB Management and the executing agencies (EA) in the hope that our voices would be at least heard. Instead, the outcome of that process was an effort to impose the so-called consensus in the form of "agreed action plan". Furthermore, our demand to provide the detailed documentation of various field visits and proceedings of the 'Chashma Stakeholders Dialogue' was rejected by ADB Management and consultants. After this experience of being betrayed, we decided to disengage from the dialogue and consultation process with ADB Management and EAs, and opted to file inspection claim.

After having gone through the Mid Term Report of the Chashma GRSC, the same feelings of betrayal, dis-empowerment, tricky and shrewd manipulations performed by the powerful, construction of truth out of falsehood and uncivil and unethical manners of treating the violated have once again been aroused in my heart. I was totally stunned when I read the 'Minutes of GRSC' in which the detailed but totally one-sided, biased and false description of its meeting with me and my two other friends is given. In addition to it, 'a note to file' prepared by Mr. Sohail Sober, ADB staff member in Pakistan, which falsely describes my full satisfaction regarding GRSC was also attached. These 'Minutes of GRSC' have been prepared without my consent and knowledge, and both the minutes and notes prepared by Mr. Sober completely misrepresented and manipulated.

In reality, the purpose of my meeting with GRSC was to get up-dated about its activities and plan. Furthermore, the meeting was intended to assure the members of the GRSC that we will not initiate any adversial campaign against the GRSC despite the fact that we were neither satisfied with its design nor the scope of its investigation and recommendations. It was also made clear from my side that the requesters would not like to engage with the GRSC because of the reasons narrated in the 'Second Supplement to the Chashma Inspection Claim'.

I consider this manipulation of facts completely unethical. It is clear that the purpose of such an unethical practice is to make record good for the forthcoming inspection. I strongly feel that my good intention and remarks during the meeting are manipulated and filed as formal part of Mid Term Report in order for ADB Management to achieve leverage in review process and defend its obvious failure regarding the GRSC. It was ethically and procedurally important to bring the Minutes of the GRSC and other related documentation regarding my participation in my knowledge and get my consent before filing those as formal part of Mid Term Report.

I would therefore like to demand to BIC that these one sided, biased and shrewdly manipulated version of my meeting with the GRSC and 'a note to file' prepared by Mr. Sohail Sober should be detached from Mid Term Report. In the case of failure to do so, I would stop any future correspondence with BIC as inspection requesters and resort to other peaceful and non-violent manners of protest to invoking the conscience and will to excavate truth and perform justice.

After being deprived from the right of representation, we are now once again being violated and misrepresented in this process.

With best regards,
Mushtaq Gadi

PS: Please note this is my personal response as one of the inspection requesters and also being violated in this process. A collective response from the inspection requesters will be hopefully sent to you later on.