From“Nude_Durga”to“Maa_Durga”,TorontoStar Aologizes

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--- IndiaCause <indiacause wrote: >

"IndiaCause" <indiacause

> "vrinparker"

> <vrinparker

> Subject:

>

From_“Nude_Durga”_to_“Maa_Durga”,_Toronto_Star_apologizes

> Mon, 1 Dec 2003 19:12:20 -0600

>

> Newsletter at: http://www.IndiaCause.com

> ----------------------------

>

> From “Nude Durga” to “Maa Durga”, Toronto Star

> issues unconditional apology.

>

> At last ‘The Toronto Star’, Canada's leading daily

> newspaper, has issued an unconditional apology to

> the Indian community along with a dignified image of

> Godess Durga (which they termed as “Maa Durga”). The

> apology was published on November 15th, in the same

> “Religion” section where the initial “Nude Durga”

> was published on October 04th.

>

> Following is the sequence of events that let to this

> “Unconditional Apology” (that Toronto Star refused

> to issue initially.)

>

> Oct 04: Toronto Star (TS) published image of an

> unfinished ‘NUDE’ Goddess Durga on the auspicious

> day of Durga Puja. This picture prominently appeared

> on 1/3 of the printed page and was made bigger than

> the article itself. TS selected and published this

> "NUDE" picture by ignoring many "Dressed & Decent

> Durga" pictures available on Reuters that time.

>

> Oct 07: IndiaCause communicated with the TS

> Management, Attorney General of Canada, Human Rights

> Commission and other leading Canadian agencies,

> objecting this presentation of Godess Durga.

>

> Oct 10: After failing to receive any response from

> the TS Management (and other agencies) IndiaCause

> launched an online protect. The protest web-page

> received about 9,000 hits on the first day. Toronto

> Star received about 1000 to 2000 protest emails in

> first few hours of this campaign.

>

> Oct 10: Few hours after the campaign started, TS

> replied: "We're sorry if this representation of the

> goddess offended some readers……”

>

> Oct 11: TS published a report: "We're sorry if this

> representation of the goddess offended some readers.

> It was unintentional"……

>

> Oct 12: IndiaCause DID NOT accept this “half-hearted

> explanation”,…. The action continued.

>

> Oct 18: Indian community in Toronto arranged a major

> demonstration outside Toronto Star building. TS

> reported about this demonstration, but still refused

> to apologize.

>

> Nov 01: A second and the bigger demonstration took

> place before the TS building. Community

> representatives had meeting with TS publisher John

> Honderich.

>

> Nov 15: The Toronto Star published an unconditional

> apology along with an appropriate Durga image. This

> apology was published in the same section where the

> initial nude Durga image was published.

>

> The apology reads:

> "On Oct.4, the Star published a photo of an

> unfinished depiction of the Hindu goddess Maa Durga.

> Members of Toronto's Hindu community took great

> exception to this goddess being presented in an

> undignified manner. The above picture shows the

> goddess in an appropriate manner. The Star regrets

> that publication of the original photo has caused

> anguish and apologizes to the Hindu community."

> ------------

>

> IndiaCause is hoping that the international media

> agencies will take a serious note of this issue.

>

> The details of this successful campaign and the

> related images are available at:

> http://www.IndiaCause.com

>

>

>

>

> ------ End of message -------

>

> Join this India movement at:

> http://www.indiacause.com/IC_JML.htm

>

> Thank you.

> Mahendra Joshi

> http://www.IndiaCause.com

> Representation of Indians in North America and

> across the world

> ___________________

>

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