Nandigram conflict continues

The western media do not seem to cover it at all, but the Nandigram SEZ conflict I posted on from Kolkata in January is still very much going on, or has even escalated dramatically.

Sanhati | Fighting Neoliberalism in Bengal | keeps reporting.

What continues to strike me as paradoxical is that it is a communist party – which should by definition defend the interests of the common people – that is behind this forcible acquisition of agricultural land for industrialization.

But then again it could be said that communist parties have a long history of not representing the people's interests, be it in Russia, China, North Korea or elsewhere.

Even more generally speaking, it could be questioned whether any party whatsoever and anywhere actually represents the people's interests.

Reminds me of a President Bush joke.

Blog from Kolkata

Not very far from here in the state of West Bengal there's warfare going on - villagers are tearing up roads to prevent the police from coming in. There was an exchange of fire two nights in a row. Supporters of the CPM (the Marxist Communist Party) and inhabitants of Nandigram and other villages were going at each other with rifles and home-made bombs.

What it's about - the government's intent to create an SEZ (special economic zone) on village land.