THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: On Wednesday, the state capital witnessed a cultural resistance against Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). A group of prominent literary and social figures of the state came in front of the secretariat, protesting against the plight of Alan Shuhaib and Thwaha Fazal who were arrested under UAPA in Kozhikode a few months ago.
Samkutty Mathew and Arun P V, two students of Fine Arts College, drew the portraits of Alan and Thwaha at the protest venue while Savithri Rajeevan made a drawing with the theme ‘freedom’.
Writer P Zacharia who delivered the inaugural speech said, “An unbelievable thing happened to two young boys in the state. There is vested interests in the issue without doubt. In recent years, no such attack on the youth has happened. A draconian law like UAPA was slapped on them without any proof. I am also scared now. I too have a few books about Mao. I also bought the Red Book from China which they sell to tourists. I won’t be surprised if I am arrested for keeping the Communist Manifesto by the current CPM government.”
B R P Bhaskar who addressed the crowd said, “No other youths in the state should be hunted like Alan and Thwaha. I hope our efforts send the message. This cultural resistance became a necessity because of the same. The CPM, the largest surviving left party, should understand that they should not become the party of a traitor.”
Ramesh Chennithala, leader of opposition, also attended the meeting and said that the different political ideologies should not stop anyone from raising their voice for Alan and Thwaha. This is a human rights issue that never should have stopped anyone, he said.
Film director Aashiq Abu who attended the protest said, “In the past, many such draconian laws were used against the common man and were later withdrawn due to the people’s protest. The plight of Alan and Thwaha can never be accepted by people who believe in humanity and democracy. I hope this collective can lead the way in making a strong demand to release Alan and Thwaha.” Senior IUML leader M K Muneer, director Joy Mathew, J Devika, Rose Mary, B Rajeevan and N Madhavan Kutty also took part in the protest.