London Declaration

We, the Ambedkarites, Buddhists, Ravidassies, Valmikies, Christians and other Dalits of United Kingdom and around the world gathered here for an International Conference on Dalit Human Rights unanimously declare that:

  1. We strongly condemn the continuous Human Rights violations against Dalits in all parts of India and ask Indian Government to take immediate steps to:
  1. Stop all Human Rights violations
  2. Punish guilty to the fullest extent of the law
  3. Give satisfactory reparations to the victims
  4. Implement
    1. the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989
    2. the Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on the Country Report India (CERD/C/304/Add.13, 17th September 1996,
    3. the concluding Observations of the Committee on Human Rights (Civil and Political Rights) ( CCPR/C/79/Add.81,4 August 1997), and
    4. the Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child. (CRC/C/15/Add.115, 23 Feb. 2000)
  1. Start a continuing campaign to educate the Indian population on Human Rights in line with the Constitution of India and with Universal Human Rights instruments, aimed at eliminating the institutionalized thinking of the high-caste and low-caste mentality (as per CERD Report, para 31, (CERD/C/304/Add.13, 17 Sept,1996)

  2. Start free and compulsory education for all children up to age of 14 as per article 45 of the Constitution (as recommended in UN document no. (CRC/C/15/ADD 15, 23 Feb, 2000), para 57, 58 and 59 )

  1. Provide economic rehabilitation of all landless Dalit laborers in villages, so that they will be no more dependent on dominant caste landlords for their survival, through vocational training, job opportunity and micro economic projects within 3 years.
  2. Provide 22.5% reservation to Scheduled Castes / Tribes for jobs in private sector as most of the jobs are being created in private sector.
  3. Dissolve the Constitution Review Committee as it is unconstitutional. The Amendment mechanism should be used in all future needs as it has been done in the past.
  4. J) Provide adequate resources and to take all necessary steps to strengthen the capacity and effectiveness of National Commission for Scheduled Castes / Tribes.
  1. World Bank and other International Financial Institutions should attach conditionality clause, to their aid and loans to India, for improving the Human Rights of Dalits. This should be monitored by UN body and evaluated on a regular basis.

Irene Beckett

(Chairman)VOD International