Unshackle Khobragade

Exclusive: A music concert and other measures being taken by MEA to uphold the rights of Indian diplomats in the US.

WrittenBy:Rajyasree Sen
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Unshackle Khobragade – An MEA Initiative

Delhi, December 18, 2013: As you may be aware, the embarrassment caused to our diplomatic envoy Devyani Khobragade and India has increased since last evening. It is after all not easy to digest the news that ArmaanKohli, of Jaani Dushman and Bigg Boss 7 fame, was given bail and released even before Khobragade has been. He was arrested and escorted to the lockup without handcuffs, his autograph was taken and then driven back to the Bigg Boss house in a chauffeured SUV – so he can get on with his duties of verbally abusing female contestants in the house.  If India can treat suspected criminals in India in this manner, why should the US not? Is it not the land of the free? We have been informed that the news of Kohli’s bail has taken a further toll on Khobragade and we are deeply dismayed by this added insult.

The Indian government refuses to take this quietly. To generate public opinion and mobilise people – as we know a lot of you who travel to the US with personal staff are disturbed by the fallout on who will wash the dishes for you when you live in the US – the MEA is planning a music concert.

The Unshackle Khobragade Concert will take place at 6pm on Saturday, December 21, 2013. Well-known musicians with similar leanings as Khobragade will perform at the Rashtrapathi Bhawan’s Durbar Hall Lawns. Daler Mehendi and Mika Singh are our opening acts. They will also be releasing their book, Releasing Punjabi Subalterns In Canada Without Hitch Or Arrest, at the venue. Those who attend the concert will also be able to hire staff on a 3-month trial basis free of cost from the government’s new service providing agency – Maids R Us.This is a new initiative by GOI which will source and provide domestic staff for all Indian passport holders who have up to six degrees of separation from any nominated politician in the NDA. The staff provided will sign a bond which will state that if they’re taken to the US, they will not ask to be paid by minimum wage standards in that country.  This is just one of the steps the MEA is taking to ensure our diplomats never have to pay an extra penny or wash an extra dish while in a foreign land. The concert will also have video testimonials by other human rights activists in support of Khobragade. Some of these domestic help activists are Vandana Dhir, Jagriti Singh, Shiney Ahuja and Aditya Pancholi – who will talk about “Domestic help – an employer and owner’s journey”.

We look forward to your participation in joining hands against the illogical demands by the US that domestic staff in our diplomats’ homes in the US should be paid according to US standards. This is our attempt to educate them that not all people are equal in India and we shall not allow anyone to break down our class barriers. And that they should commend Khobragade for paying her maid USD 3.31 for 40 hours work a week.

We have also started two petitions on change.org called Help Khobragade Break Free and We Like Being Bonded Labour. Please ask your friends and family to sign the first one. Please make your maids, drivers and sweepers and their families sign the second one. Both will be presented to U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara and US President Barack Obama. A peace march will also take place at noon from 10, Race Course Road to Hotel Imperial, where chai and naashta will be served. Salman Khurshid will be leading this march. If you would like to make any donations to the Zakir Hussain Memorial Trust which is famed for helping the downtrodden, it shall be most welcome.

This is a movement that needs your help. Remember your support today means freedom not just for Khobragade, but also for you. After all, if Indians – that too diplomats – aren’t allowed to forge visa papers and official documents, what will happen to the common man. This is a fight for our rights to play Twister with laws – both domestic and international.

We look forward to your presence at the Unshackle Khobragade Concert. Candles will be provided free of cost at the venue. Please bring your own domestic help and matches to light the candles for you and guard your belongings and sign the We Like Bonded Labour petition while you enjoy the concert.

In case you’re thick, this is satire. Please do not go to Rashtrapati Bhawan with candles or your domestic help. 

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