The National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) has slammed Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allowing journalists, political commentators, researchers and artists to be jailed and harassed.
This week, a Fox News report indicated that an editor of an online Indian publication was allegedly arrested by the Indian authorities for his critical stance against Modi’s administration.
It was reported that NewsClick founder and editor Prabir Purkayastha and human resources chief Amit Chakravarty were arrested late on Tuesday.
Their arrests were preceded by the arrests and detainment of journalists associated with the site, who after being detained had their digital devices seized during extensive raids that were part of an investigation into whether the news outlet had received funds from China.
In a statement on Friday, Numsa spokesperson Phakamile Hlubi-Majola said the union had added its voice in condemning the attacks led by the “fascist Indian government of Narendra Modi”.
Numsa reported that at least 50 people, including journalists, commentators, researchers, comedians and activists, had been harassed by members of the New Delhi police, who raided dozens of homes on Tuesday as part of an attack on press freedom in that country.
Hlubi-Majola said Numsa stood in solidarity with journalists and those being attacked, jailed and harassed by the Indian administration.
“Numsa stands in solidarity with NewsClick and with all the workers there, who have suffered from the raids led by the backward, reactionary Modi government,” she said.
She added that Numsa was in support of the statement issued by the International Peoples’ Assembly (IPA) on the raid, which stated that the raid was triggered by an article published in the right-wing “New York Times”, which suggested, without evidence, that NewsClick was part of a global operation aimed at promoting the interests of the Chinese government in India.
“Numsa puts the blame of the raids squarely on the shoulders of the ‘New York Times’ for peddling propaganda, without facts, and now, their actions have led to journalists being attacked by a brutal, fascist police state,” Hlubi-Majola said.