उस किशोर का नाम एतज़ाज हस्सन बंगश था, जिसे आज की तारीख में एक नए नायक का दर्जा दिया गया है, जिसने अपनी शहादत से हजारों सहपाठी छात्रों की जान बचायी। तालिबानी ताकतों के प्रभुत्ववाले पाकिस्तान के खैबर पख्तुनवा सूबे के शिया बहुल इलाके के एक इब्राहिमजई स्कूल का विद्यार्थी एतज़ाज उस दिन सुबह अपने चचेरे भाई मुसादिक अली बंगश के साथ स्कूल जा रहा था जब रास्ते में मिले एक शख्स को देख कर उनके मन में सन्देह प्रगट हुआ। उन्हीं के स्कूल यूनिफार्म पहना वह युवक उनके ही स्कूल का रास्ता पूछ रहा था। बाकी बच्चे तो वहां से भाग निकले, मगर कुछ अनहोनी देख कर एतज़ाज ने उसे ललकारा, इस हड़बड़ी में उस आत्मघाती बाम्बर ने बम विस्फोट किया। दोनों की वही ठौर मौत हुई और दो लोग घायल हुए। मालूम हो कि उस दिन सुबह की स्कूल असेम्ब्ली के लिए लगभग दो हजार छात्र एकत्रित थे। इस आतंकी हमले के लिए लश्कर ए झंगवी नामक आतंकी संगठन ने जिम्मेदारी ली है।
अपने बेटे की मृत्यु पर उसके पिताजी मुजाहिद अली का कहना था कि यह सही है कि मेरे बेटे ने उसकी मां को रूला दिया, मगर उसने सैकड़ों उन माताओं को अपनी सन्तानों के लिए रोने से बचाया और उसके लिए उसकी मृत्यु का शोक नहीं बल्कि उसकी जिन्दगी को हमें मनाना (celebrate) चाहिए। Continue reading पाकिस्तान के प्रबोधन शहीद
Category Archives: Bad ideas
आरोन श्वार्त्झ: मुक्त सूचना आन्दोलन का पहला शहीद (1986 –2013)
बीते शनिवार 11 जनवरी को इण्टरनेट की आज़ादी के कार्यकर्ता आरोन श्वार्त्झ की पहली बरसी थी। बीती 11 जनवरी को आरोन ने अपनी जीवनलीला खुद समाप्त की थी। मेसेच्युएटस इन्स्टिटयूट आफ टेक्नोलोजी के नेटवर्क का इस्तेमाल कर लाखों अकादमिक लेख डाउनलोड करने के लिए – जिन्हें वह मुफ्त उपलब्ध करना चाहता था – उस पर मुकदमा शुरू होनेवाला था। उसे 30 साल की कैद की सज़ा होती और काफी जुर्माना देना पड़ता। रविवार को हैकर ग्रुप ‘अनानिमस’ ने एमआईटी की कई वेबसाइटस् पर हमला कर उस पर आरोन पर मुकदमा चलाने के उसके निर्णय के खिलाफ मेसेज लिखे और इण्टरनेट नियमन में सुधार की मांग की। मेसेज में लिखा गया था ‘‘इस शोक की घड़ी में हम आवाहन करते हैं कि एक मुक्त एवं निर्बंधमुक्त इण्टरनेट के प्रति अपनी समझौताविहीन प्रतिबद्धता के लिए, जिसे किसी सेन्सरशिप का सामना न करना पड़े और जिस तक सभी की सुगम एवं आसान पहुंच हो, हम नए सिरेसे संकल्पबद्ध हों।’ सप्ताह के अन्त में श्वार्त्झ से जुड़े कार्यकर्ताओं के एक समूह ने ‘न्यू हैम्पशायर रिबेलियन’ की शुरूआत की जिसके तहत वह सरकारी भ्रष्टाचार के खिलाफ जनजागृति हेतु दो सप्ताह की यात्रा करेंगे। इस मार्च का अन्त डोरिस ‘ग्रेनी डी’ हेडोक के जनमदिन पर समाप्त होगा जिन्होंने वित्तीय सुधार की मुहिम के तहत 90 साल के उम्र में संयुक्त राज्य अमेरिका की पैदल यात्रा की थी।
यहां प्रस्तुत है वह आलेख जिसे मैंने ‘सूचना आन्दोलन के इस पहले शहीद’ के सम्मान में पिछले साल लिखा था : Continue reading आरोन श्वार्त्झ: मुक्त सूचना आन्दोलन का पहला शहीद (1986 –2013)
‘आप’ से मुलाक़ात
दुनिया के सबसे बड़े लोकतंत्र कहे जानेवाला हिन्दोस्तां और दुनिया के सबसे ताकतवर लोकतंत्र में शुमार संयुक्त राज्य अमेरिका – जो पिछले दिनों बिल्कुल अलग कारणों से आपस में एक नूराकुश्ती में लगे हुए रहे हैं – के दो अहम शहर न्यूयॉर्क और दिल्ली, पिछले दिनों लगभग एक ही किस्म के कारणों से सूर्खियों में रहे। अगर न्यूयॉर्क में मेयर पद पर डी ब्लासिओ का चुनाव और उनका शपथग्रहण, जिन्होंने 12 साल से कायम रिपब्लिकन नेता को बेदखल किया, और सबसे बढ़ कर उनका प्रोग्रेसिव एजेण्डा सूर्खियों में रहा तो सूबा दिल्ली में एक साल पुरानी पार्टी ‘आप’ (आम आदमी पार्टी) के नेता अरविन्द केजरीवाल और उनकी टीम ने सूर्खियां बटोरी।
दोनों को एक तरह से आन्दोलन की ‘पैदाइश’ के तौर पर देखा गया।
दो साल पहले अमेरिका में ‘आक्युपाई वॉल स्ट्रीट’ के नाम से खड़े आन्दोलन ने आर्थिक विषमता पर बहस को एक नयी उंचाई दी थी, जब उसने 1 फीसदी बनाम 99 फीसदी का नारा दिया था, हजारों लोगों की सहभागिता ने और उनके अभिनव तौरतरीकों ने पूरी अमेरिका के मेहनतकशों में नयी ऊर्जा का संचार किया था। डेमोक्रेट पार्टी से जुड़े शहर के वकील डी ब्लासिओ ने आन्दोलन की हिमायत की थी, एक अस्पताल की बन्दी को लेकर चले विरोध प्रदर्शन में उनकी गिरफ्तारी भी हुई थी। मेयर पद के लिए चले चुनाव प्रचार के दिनों में ही उन्होंने रईसों पर अधिक कर लगाने की बात की थी और ‘रोको और तलाशी लो’ जैसे न्यूयॉर्क पुलिस के विवादास्पद कार्यक्रम को चुनौती दी थी। वहीं अरविंद केजरीवाल , जनलोकपाल के लिए चले आन्दोलन जिसे लोकप्रिय जुबां में ‘अण्णा आन्दोलन’ कहा गया, उसके शिल्पकार कहे गये Continue reading ‘आप’ से मुलाक़ात
AAP and the Ideology Warriors
If ideology-warriors had their way, they would rather have Narendra Modi as the next prime minister than have their ideological purity compromised. Soon after AAP’s victory, many secularists rushed to declare, on Facebook and elsewhere, that they do not and will not partake of the AAP euphoria. ‘What is their stand on communalism?’, they asked indignantly. Some other friends insisted that Muslims need an assurance about AAP’s position on communalism and it should clarify its stand if it wanted the Muslim vote.
So what do the ideology warriors want? Just when the political agenda for the elections has decisively changed, throwing the BJP into a complete quandary, upsetting its strategic plans, they want the old familiar, secular/ communal divide back in place, opening up the political field once more to the same Hindu-Muslim polarization that we are so used to. The secular/ communal divide has been the millstone around our neck, preventing any other issue from being brought into public debate at election time and effectively preventing the emergence of any new force or formation. And let there be no mistake that in a communal polarization of Hindus and Muslims, secular forces will always, in the on-going drama of secular masochism, have to deposit themselves tied hand and foot, into the Congress party’s dungeon. The Amit Shahs will have a field day, creating one Muzaffarnagar after another, and erstwhile secular mascots like Mulayam Singh Yadav will vie with them in further entrenching the Hindu-Muslim divide. In all of this, the Congress will present itself as the saviour of Muslims.
The Congress, the BJP, the imaginary ‘third front’ – all have been able players and winners in this game. Continue reading AAP and the Ideology Warriors
Who will chop the Tree of Hubris?
This is a photograph which appeared in the ‘Nagaram’ pullout on city affairs of the Mathrubhumi newspaper (Trivandrum edition,8 January 2014, p. III). The caption to the original photograph reads: ‘A man in Adivasi woman’s dress during the Secretariat March conducted by the Highrange Samrakshana Samithi and other farmer organizations’. The Highrange samrakshana Samity led by the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, as is well-known, has monopolized the identity of ‘farmer’ in the hill districts and has been leading the protest against the implementation of the Gadgil Report and the Kasturirangan Report. Their rhetoric of helplessness in the face of state onslaught often leaves us blind to their history of ruthless exploitation and near-enslavement of adivasi people in these areas.No, they have never been helpless, and they never will be — the most powerful sections of civil and political societies in Kerala are on their side, as always. What else explains their hubris so well-reflected in this photograph? Continue reading Who will chop the Tree of Hubris?
Condemn Attack on AAP Headquarters, Defend Freedom of Expression, Oppose Politics of Hurt Sentiments : New Socialist Initiative
New Socialist Initiative Condemns Attack on AAP Headquarters
New Socialist Initiative condemns the attack on the headquarters of AAP (Aam Aadmi Party) office at Kaushambi, Ghaziabad by vigilantes of the Hindutva Brigade and demands stern action against the culprits. Given the inordinate delay by the police in reaching the place and nabbing the hooligans in the case of an emergent political party and high-profile politicians, one can only imagine the safety and security of common citizen under such dispensation.
It is distressing that each time any individual or group has expressed views on the violation of human rights by Armed Forces protected by the draconian Armed Forces Special Powers Act, frenzied jingoism by the rightwing forces as well as by the print and electronic media turn to the rhetoric of hurt sentiments. It is equally distressing that the Aam Aadmi Party too succumbed to such jingoism, found it necessary to distance itself from Prashant Bhushan and turned the question of human rights violation by the armed forces into a question of national integrity. Continue reading Condemn Attack on AAP Headquarters, Defend Freedom of Expression, Oppose Politics of Hurt Sentiments : New Socialist Initiative
Beating AAP with the Kashmir stick
When Prashant Bhushan first made his remarks supporting a referendum in Kashmir to decide whether Kashmir will stay in India, a hooligan had gone to his office and slapped him. The Aam Aadmi Party made it clear that these were Bhushan’s personal views and were not endorsed by the AAP, but the stick was too good to ignore. At a loss of words to see the rise of the AAP, somewhat dimming the euphoria over the rising fortunes of Narendra Modi, the BJP has gone on and on over Bhushan’s views on Kashmir. Even when the AAP was proving its majority on the floor of the house, the leader of the opposition, Harsh Vardhan, made Prashant Bhushan’s personal views out be somewhat of a national security threat to India. Just saying that a people should be allowed to decide their fate is anti-national because we know that making such an allowance would bring results we’d rather not see. Continue reading Beating AAP with the Kashmir stick
Living to tell the tale: Neerja Dasani
NEERJA DASANI on the Kabir Kala Manch, their life, art and the constant hurdles set before them by the State. Previously published in Literary Review section of The Hindu on January 5, 2014.
The art of irony is something that the members of Kabir Kala Manch (KKM), who identify themselves not as a cultural troupe but as a political movement, are well-versed in. This could be because life for them has been a series of curious contradictions. Emerging from mohallas and bastis, their voices reverberated through the corridors of power, disturbing the slumber of those within. Finding democracy’s din too unsettling, its elected guardians branded KKM as anti-national. The resultant time spent either in jail or underground, strengthened their resolve instead of silencing them into submission.
Read the rest of the article here.
National Interest and the Aam Aadmi: Abhijit Dutta
Guest post by ABHIJIT DUTTA
Yesterday, Delhi Chief Minister and Common Man-in-Chief of the AAP, Arvind Kejriwal, declared that “We don’t agree with what Prashant Bhushan said about Kashmir, it’s his personal view. Whatever the Army wants to do regarding the deployment, there is no question of a referendum on it. We do not support Prashant Bhushan’s statement.”
Bhushan’s comments, made on NDTV’s ‘We The People’ show, which, in a matter of happy coincidence happens to be the Constitutional term for Aam Aadmi, was simply this: wishes of the people of Kashmir be taken into account while determining whether the Army was needed for internal security or not. Unreasonably, and with shattering common sense, Bhushan had argued that if the Armed Forces deployed within Kashmir (as opposed to the border areas) were meant to protect the general Kashmiri population, might it not be a good idea to ask that population whether they wanted the protection or not. Continue reading National Interest and the Aam Aadmi: Abhijit Dutta
On A Prayer and a Petition: Babu Gogineni
This is a guest post by BABU GOGINENI
“What exactly happened, and what gave you the strength to fight your case, Mr. Salve?” I asked. “Your job as an English teacher was at risk, and your own colleagues shunned you. You are from the Dalit community, and you live in Maharashtra state where militant religion has frequently silenced dissenters – how could you hold out for 7 years?” Continue reading On A Prayer and a Petition: Babu Gogineni
Open Letter to Markanday Katju, Chairperson, Press Council of India: Non-Publication of news on Workers March To Parliament
STATEMENT BY SOME MEMBERS OF CATALYST STUDY CIRCLE
It is with dismay we, readers from Tamil Nadu, of esteemed English Daily Newspapers (print version) like The Hindu, The Times of India, New Indian Express, Deccan Chronicle etc., want to bring to your notice the lack of coverage of a news item. We have come to know through social networking sites that about 2 Lakh workers ‘March to Parliament’ by 11 central trade unions took place on 12.12.13 (Video by Malavika Vyawahare– Labour Rally and Post by Venkat – Two Lakh Workers March to Parliament and March For a Minimum Living Wage – Post by Srinivasan Ramani). This has not been given any coverage on 13.12.13 in Tamil Nadu at least in Chennai based print version Edition.
To read the complete letter and endorse it click here.
Why I prefer the company of homophobic people: Anonymous
Guest post by ANONYMOUS
It may be a strange thing for a gay man to say, but I welcome the Supreme Court judgement re-criminalising the sexual acts I feel naturally inclined to engage in.
As someone who chooses to admit to his sexuality only before other gay men, and that too very selectively, you could call me closeted. Which means that I don’t feel as unfortunate as the ‘out’ lot which feels as though Indian law is asking it to go back into the closet.
I personally welcome the Supreme Court judgement because it will drill some sense of reality into my straight liberal friends who keep pestering, taunting, hinting, trying to make me say, ‘I am gay’. They will realise that there’s enough homophobia out there, enough of it for the Indian Supreme Court, considered a liberal institution, to re-criminalise ‘unnatural sex’. That gives me some semblance of an excuse, or so I hope, to remain closeted. Continue reading Why I prefer the company of homophobic people: Anonymous
Corporate Sabotage and AAP’s Chavez Moment
Even as the new AAP government was preparing to take oath of office, the news came of an unprecedented hike in the price of CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) – a hike of Rs 5.15 per kg. In principle, there is nothing wrong with a price-hike that is supposedly necessitated by the need to reduce supplies to metropolitan centres in order to ensure a more equitable distribution to other towns. However, knowing the way the Congress Party functions, the timing of this hike gives rise to legitimate suspicion that the intention is mala fide. At the very least, the decision could have waited till the new government assumed office and some consultation with the new government was carried out. This move shows up the nature of what can be expected from Congress and its ‘outside support’ to the new government.
Expectedly, auto-rickshaw drivers have started making noises about going on strike if fares are not commensurately hiked. If auto fares are raised, it hits the middle class, and if they are not, it alienates the auto-drivers.This clearly throws any new government into a quandary. Continue reading Corporate Sabotage and AAP’s Chavez Moment
Sex and the courtroom
A politician is exposed using State surveillance to allegedly woo his love interest. An editor tells a reporter his daughter’s age that the easiest way for her to keep her job would be to have sex with him. A godman and his son are both arrested for sexual assault and rape. A riot in Muzaffarnagar over false rumours of inter-religious ‘eve teasing’ left 48 dead and 15,000 homeless. The debate on rape, consent, gender relations sparked by December 16, 2012 continued throughout 2013. And by the end of it the Indian Supreme Court decided that the Indian Constitution’s letter and spirit were not being violated by criminalising consenting adults for having sex, in case the sex happened to be anything other than peno-vaginal.
India 2013 is like a pubescent 13 year old realising there’s something about the body that the mind needs to grapple with. There’s something about power, pleasure, social mores, class, law and so on, that comes together in the body and negotiates its way through bodily desire. There’s a sexual churning out there, and it’s not as titillating as the annual sex surveys news magazines do, nor is it as literary and profound as the language an incarcerated editor wields. Continue reading Sex and the courtroom
Cultures of Servitude and the Khobragade-Richard Issue: Nissim Mannathukkaren
Guest Post by Nissim Mannathukkaren
When the great lord passes the wise peasant bows deeply and silently farts. (Ethiopian proverb)
When progressive politics finds itself in agreement with Arnab Goswami, then it is time for the alarm bells to ring. What has been unfolding over the last week has been nothing but spectacular: a wronged and humiliated ‘Third World’ nation (finally) standing up to the imperialist Satan over the Devyani Khobragade episode. A story supposedly fit for lore. But in reality it would have been comical only if it did not have serious consequences.
What is comical is a nation whose elites and middle classes are perfectly in sync with the American worldview (India is among the top America-loving nations in the world) and think that America is the epitome of democracy (a survey from a couple of years ago showed that Indians, more than any other people in the world, think that the United States is a multilateral rather than a unilateral actor), whose students and youth dream the American dream (the largest number of foreign students in America are from India), whose rulers salivate at the prospect of an eternal soiree with the American establishment (after all, the Indo-American strategic partnership has been called the ‘defining alliance of the 21st century’) have suddenly woken up to the rude reality that maybe the Americans do not think about us in the same way! Hence our petulant reactions – like a spurned lover. Continue reading Cultures of Servitude and the Khobragade-Richard Issue: Nissim Mannathukkaren
Aam Aadmi, Khaas Politics: Satya Sagar
Guest Post by SATYA SAGAR
From time to time in the history of every nation there emerges a maverick force that collapses the existing system by taking its logic to the extremes. Arvind Kejriwal and his Aam Aadmi Party are precisely that, a ‘wild card’ in Indian politics, threatening to turn it upside down in ways no one could have imagined before.
Ever since they were born out of the throes of Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption movement, a couple of years ago, everyone has tried to slot the AAP in the regular political categories of right, left and center. Some have dubbed the Aam Aadmi Party as the ‘new Congress’ and others as the ‘B Team’ of the BJP. Supporters of the party have hailed its leader Arvind Kejriwal as a ‘modern day Gandhi’ while one opponent has intriguingly called his party ‘right wing Maoists’! Continue reading Aam Aadmi, Khaas Politics: Satya Sagar
An Appeal to the media regarding the ongoing vilification of Khursheed Anwar and his organisation:Institute For Social Democracy
A statement by The institute for Social Democracy
पिछले सोलह दिसंबर से मीडिया के छोटे और ग़ैर ज़िम्मेदार हिस्से द्वारा प्रचारित प्रसारित की गयी एक रिपोर्ट ने खुर्शीद अनवर (पूर्व निदेशक, ISD ) को आत्म हत्या करने पर मजबूर कर दिया।
हम ISD कि ओर से मीडिया द्वारा फैलाए जा रहे इन भ्रामक और ग़लत तथ्यों का विरोध करते हैं. हम ज़ोर दे कर कहना चाहते हैं कि
- यह कहना कि ‘सम्बन्ध आपसी सहमति से बनाये गए थे’ बिना किन्ही तथ्यों के आधार पर प्रचारित किया जा रहा है. हमारा यह मानना है कि खुर्शीद अनवर द्वारा लिखे गए जिस कथित नोट का ज़िक्र किया जा रहा है वह है ही नहीं।
- १२ सितम्बर को खुर्शीद अनवर ने कोई पार्टी नहीं दी थी, उनके घर पर आने का प्रस्ताव स्वयं इला जोशी व मयंक सक्सेना के द्वारा दिया था जिसे खुर्शीद ने स्वीकार किया था. इन दो लोगों के अलावा बाकी लोगों के आने के बारे मे उन्हें कोई पूर्व सूचना नहीं थी.
- हम स्पष्ट करना चाहते हैं कि बूँद टीम का ISD से औपचारिक या अनौपचारिक किसी भी प्रकार का कोई सम्बन्ध नहीं रहा है. ISD ने बूँद को कभी किसी भी प्रकार की आर्थिक मदद नहीं दी. Continue reading An Appeal to the media regarding the ongoing vilification of Khursheed Anwar and his organisation:Institute For Social Democracy
खुर्शीद अनवर की आत्महत्या और कुछ सवाल
आखिर खुर्शीद अनवर ने ज़िंदगी से बाहर छलांग लगा ली.यह असमय निधन नहीं था. यह कोई बहादुरी नहीं थी. और न बुजदिली. क्या यह एक फैसला था या फैसले का अभाव? अखबार इसे बलात्कार के आरोपी एक एन.जी.ओ. प्रमुख की आत्महत्या कह रहे हैं. क्या उन्होंने आत्महत्या इसलिए कर ली कि उनपर लगे आरोप सही थे और उनके पास कोई बचाव नहीं था? या इसलिए कि ये आरोप बिलकुल गलत थे और वे इनके निरंतर सार्वजनिक प्रचार से बेहद अपमानित महसूस कर रहे थे? Continue reading खुर्शीद अनवर की आत्महत्या और कुछ सवाल
Dear Supreme Court: Inder Salim
Guest Post by INDER SALIM
Dear Supreme Court,
I am personally glad that your recent verdict on Article 377 has sparked a debate on the nature of “SEX “in India.
No Going Back: Siddharth Narrain
No Going Back
The Supreme Court’s decision in Suresh Kumar Kaushal v Naz Foundation has re-criminalized millions of LGBT persons, putting their lives at risk and subjecting them to the threat of violence, harassment and arrest. Despite this loss in court, we should not see this as a defeat. It is not a defeat because the mood of the country has changed, rising up in anger against prejudice masquerading as law. The public backlash against this decision has caught even LGBT activists by surprise. It is not a defeat because finally voices from the political establishment of this country have come out in support of LGBT rights. The top leadership of the Congress party, Cabinet Ministers, and spokespersons across the political spectrum have spoken out against the judgment. The BJP’s official stance supporting 377 appears out of step with reality, and there is a section of the party that does not support this view.
It is not a defeat because parents of LGBT persons have rallied around their children in this hour of crisis. It is not a defeat because friends, colleagues, students, teachers, and classmates have been shaken up by the injustice of this moment. The outrage and anger, the public show of solidarity and small gestures of support, has been overwhelming. The 377 judgment is not a defeat because commentators across the political spectrum have criticised the logic of the judgment. It is not a defeat because the legal community including the Advocate General of this country has questioned the rationale of this decision. Described as a judgment devoid of humanity and compassion, the Supreme Court’s decision has prompted many comparisons – A.D.M. Jabalpur, A.K. Gopalan, Mathura, Gian Kaur, Dred Scott, Plessy, and Bowers. It is not a defeat because this judgment has spawned a new generation of activism.
The Supreme Court’s decision has emboldened the human rights movement in this country, brought together diverse groups on a common platform. The Delhi High Court’s 2009 judgment affirmed the constitutional rights of millions of Indian citizens. The Supreme Court verdict has reversed this, but it can never erase that moment of freedom from our past. The mood of this country has changed. Public discourse has changed. People have changed. The law must change. There is no going back.
In cities across the world, people are mobilizing protests against the judgment. Join the Global Day of Rage on Sunday, 15th December.
Justice will prevail
Sometimes one needs to write pieces while breaking down into tears. That is the only way we can stay true to the fact that words are not enough to express our anguish and our disbelief but also our strength.
It isn’t surprising. In the land where the struggles of Soni Sori and Irom Sharmila not only continue but often go unnoticed, a regressive Supreme Court Judgment which sets the bar low for legality, constitutionality, justice and social morality isn’t out of the ordinary- all in a days work for some.
I spent the week articulating my loving critique of our movement. I thought we were past the idiosyncrasy of fighting an archaic law- one among the many scars of colonialism- being repeated with gusto by whom we can safely call the loony-right wing who claimed to represent all kinds of Gods and worse- many people. We all thought we could move on to fight the many fights that would give us the opportunity to fully shine bright in our creativity and vibrance. But here we are again- having to scream out loud the bare necessities of human existence to voices that have long forgotten the act of listening. Continue reading Justice will prevail
KAFILA - COLLECTIVE EXPLORATIONS SINCE 2006 