ACDA held its first AGM and Elections on Saturday 22 May 2010. The AGM was well attended by a number of stakeholders, members and invited guests. ACDA’ Chair, Pashori Lal, set the scene by informing the attendees how ACDA was formed in 2008 and what it had achieved since then. Pashori gave example of the challenges ACDA faced particularly in engaging key stakeholders over a short time period and of bringing a degree of unity between similar organisations.
ACDA had lived up to one of its aims – to become an umbrella organisation for a number of likeminded organisations “to take steps to involve all interested people in uniting against caste discrimination”. A key achievement was ACDA’s significant contribution in securing provisions in the form of an amendment clause to protect victims of caste discrimination in the UK in the Equality Act 2010.
Pashori said “the future now gives us added opportunities to extend the reach of ACDA in the UK, internationally and ultimately, on the global stage.”
AGM 2010
Lekh Raj Pall, General Secretary, ACDA, presented the Secretary’s Report for the year. Starting from the group formation, he explained how everyone had got together, formed the unity of thought and ideas, identified the strategies that could be adopted, captured the actions required to deliver those strategies and the journey to delivery of them. Lekh informed attendees that numerous meetings had been held with key stakeholders and of the committed efforts taken by ACDA to unite the different, and sometimes disparate, NGOs with similar aims and goals. These efforts had paid off and such unity demonstrated to the then Government and our collective voices which had led to a change in Government thinking on this issue of legal protection for victims of caste discrimination in the UK, in the historic 4 February meeting at the House of Lords.
The amendment clause on caste worded by the Government and raised by Lord Avebury and Lord Harries of Pentregarth, was agreed and now gives a Minister the power to include caste as a protected characteristic under Race, within the Equality Act.
Lekh highlighted the importance of the research commissioned by the then government currently underway by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) and encouraged all organisations to come forward and present examples of caste discrimination, direct to NIESR.
Lekh also gave examples of ACDA’s work alongside the Equality Bill. He said ACDA had lent its voice behind other bodies and organisations in seeking solutions on behalf of victims. This se included opposing the:
§ Installation of the Tata Car plant in Nandigram
§ POSCO Chemical plant in Orissa
§ Jindal Steel Works in Lalgarh.
The Treasurer, Ravi Kumar, presented his Report and Accounts, in which he gave thanks to many stakeholders who had made donations to ACDA. After presenting the Accounts Ravi outlined his assessment of the funding climate and economic landscape.
Dr Radha D’Souza, Faculty Member, School of Law at the University of Westminster, and a social activist from India, gave a moving account of the global forces ranged against the schedules castes/ scheduled tribes (SC/ST) and adhivassis in India. Radha explained how the Indian Government , in signing up to World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreements and having to then work under the agreement conditions for liberalising the economy and reducing restrictions to trade, had effectively thrown India’s Constitution out of the window. By opening trade barriers, relaxing laws allowing private operators to take over areas of State operations, the reservations specified within the constitution for SC/ST/Adhivassis and backward castes, were not applicableto the private sector.
Radha explained how the poorest sections of Indian society were being made poorer, were being treated badly through their reserved rights being withdrawn and how change was
If you would like a copy of the AGM Report please send an email to p.lal@acdauk.org.uk and we will be pleased to send you a copy by email.
