November 12: Hyderabad: Empowering India – Making Democracy Meaningful

November 12: Hyderabad: Empowering India – Making Democracy Meaningful

I wish to invite you to the launch of www.EmpoweringIndia.org in Hyderabad on 12th of November from 11 AM to 5 PM at the Centre for Economic and Social Studies Conference Hall at Begumpet, Hyderabad.

www.EmpoweringIndia.org is an initiative of the Liberty Institute based in Delhi. The site contains information about candidates who have contested state and national level elections between 2004 until the present, and information about constituencies. This information has been standardized and uploaded on the site in a manner which allows you to compare data about candidates and constituencies over time and across elections. We are in the process of uploading information about the questions asked by MPs in the Parliament, details of the policy discussions that they have been part of, their attendance records and other information which will help in coming up with parameters for measuring the performance of the elected representatives.

Our objective in creating www.EmpoweringIndia.org is to reach information about candidates and constituencies to the voters so that voters can use this information in deciding who to cast their vote for at the time of the elections. After the elections, they could use this information to hold their elected representatives accountable.

We are keen to engage with individuals and groups for disseminating the data hosted on our site. We hope to discuss the same and other issues in our launch event at Hyderabad.
With warm regards,

Ch. Narendra,
Local Representative, Mobile No : 98495 69050

Liberty Institute

In partnership with the

Friedrich Naumann Stiftung – für die Freiheit

Cordially invites you for the launch of its new initiative

Empowering India

Making democracy meaningful

www.EmpoweringIndia.org

A unique website on candidates and constituencies

Sri J M Lyngdoh

Former Chief Election Commissioner of India

Date: 12 November 2008

Time: 11 am

Venue: Conference Hall, Centre for Economic & Social Studies (CESS), Begumpet, Hyderabad. Tel. 2340 2789, 2341 6780

Tentative Programme:

11 am to 12 noon: Release of Empowering India web site

Launch of Empowering India: Shri J M Lyngdoh, former Chief Election Commissioner of India

Guest of Honour: Dr I V Subba Rao, I.A.S., Chief Electoral Officer, Andhra Pradesh,

Introducing Empowering India: Sri Barun Mitra, Director, Liberty Institute

12 noon To 1 pm: Panel discussion on “Making Democracy Meaningful”

President: Prof C V Raghavulu, Former VC, Acharya Nagarjuna, University

Panelists:

Sri Yanamala Ramakrishnudu, Former Speaker, Telugu Desam Party,

Dr N Jayaprakash Narayana, President, Lok Satta Party.

Dr N Tulasi Reddy, Ex MP, AP Cognress spokesperson

1 to 2 pm: Lunch

2 to 4.30 pm: Workshop on Empowering India

President: Sri Y Lakshman Reddy, President, Jana Chaitanya Vedika.

Guest of honour: Sri C Arjuna Rao, IAS (Rtd), Former Chief Secretary, Andhra Pradesh

Detailed demonstration of Empowering India: Sri Barun Mitra, Liberty Institute

Feedback and Discussion with potential partners

4.30 to 5 pm: Tea and Coffee

RSVP:

Ch. Narendra,

Mobile : 98495 69050

Empowering India: An introduction

Active citizenship is central to democratic governance. While freedom to vote is fundamental, on average only about half of those eligible actually cast their vote. However, freedom to vote also includes the freedom to exercise the right not to vote. Empowering India seeks to empower the citizens with information, encourages them to cherish their political freedom, and urges them to exercise their democratic rights meaningfully. Towards that goal, Empowering India web site has information about elections and affidavits filed by candidates during state assembly and parliament election. We are also working to include information about constituencies, and performance indicators of legislators.

Making Democracy Meaningful

Empowering India is an initiative of Liberty Institute, an independent, non-profit, public policy research and awareness organisation based in New Delhi. We believe politics is not only a necessary function in an open and democratic society, but must also be seen as a noble profession. Empowering India was born in an attempt to understand when and how good policies make good politics. Our key objectives are the following:

Encourage voters to make informed choice during elections;
Promote transparency and accountability;
Stimulate good governance;
Monitor performance of elected representatives;
Improve understanding of the democratic processes;
Nurture a dialogue between citizens and political activists;
Foster a rational discourse on public policy issues.

Empowering India was initiated with the support of

Friedrich Naumann Stiftung – für die Freiheit

www.southasia.fnst.org

FNF is the foundation for liberal politics. It was founded in 1958 by, amongst others, Theodor Heuss, the first German Federal President after World War II. The Foundation currently works in some sixty different countries around the world to promote ideas on liberty and strategies for freedom. Our instruments are civic education, political consultancy and political dialogue.

Liberty Institute

Julian L. Simon Centre

C-4/8, Sahyadri

Plot 5, Sector 12, Dwarka

New Delhi 110078

Email: <EmpoweringIndiaMail@gmail.com>

Telefax: +91-11-28031309