Auroville Village Action Trust

31 May 2008

 

To the Editor

 

We have seen an article and a documentary on Auroville aired by you (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/7417864.stm)

 

We, Ambu Siromani and A Gerald Moris, have been working as social workers and program coordinators in the Auroville Village Action Trust (AVAT) for the past 20 years. Our main job is to stimulate activities and development in villages around Auroville mostly through self-help groups. So we can honestly say that we have a fairly good knowledge of what is going on in our area.

 

We were shocked to hear insinuations in your program as if there were large-scale children abuses by Aurovilians. We can testify that there is no such a thing, and that on the contrary Aurovilian authorities have taken swift action on the very few occasions when such misconduct came to light.

 

We should also add that Auroville has created and is managing many schools for the villages, which definitely benefit the local population a great deal. To slander those institutions, as your documentary tried to do, is in effect to harm these villagers and their children.

 

Therefore we request you to stop airing this programme and to remove it from your website with immediate effect.

Regards,

Ambu Siromani A. Gerald Moris

 

I hereby certify that Mrs Ambu Siromani and Mr A. Gerald Moris, Indian citizens residing at Puducherry, have been working as social workers and program coordinators in Auroville Village Action Trust since 1988. AVAT is working in more than 50 villages around Auroville.

 

Alain Bernard

Trustee, AVAT ( Auroville Village Action Trust)