The Andhra Pradesh government’s ban on demonstrations around the Hyderabad International Conference Centre should ensure any clashes between protestors and police are kept well out of sight of delegates this year, as India seeks to showcase its democratic inclusivity.
Still, security chief Vijay Kumar isn’t taking any chances: the 3,000 police deployed to protect the conference are likely to outnumber its participants. Bomb disposal squads, dog teams and riot police armed with tear gas are all lined up to step in should any demonstrators stray from their approved route around the centre of Hyderabad, about a half-hour drive from the meeting itself.
Trade unions and NGOs have both criticized the wall of steel around the venue while vowing they will follow police guidelines and limit protests to vocal but peaceful marches through the city centre.
The local police have a strong track record of keeping major events trouble-free. In the past four months a similar police presence has been employed three times, preventing disturbances during president George Bush’s stopover, a visit of the Indian National Congress and an assembly of emigres, Kumar claims.
“We’re fully prepared for any eventuality,” he pledged, noting that intelligence reports give no grounds for expecting any serious disturbances, despite the local population’s strong anti-establishment traditions.
The People’s Forum against the ADB, a loose grouping of NGOs, is today holding an open meeting in Hyderabad to air complaints about ADB governance and lending practices. The group’s leaders refused to invite bank staff on the grounds that they won’t engage with “unelected bureaucrats from an unaccountable institution.” Nor, however, will the group seek to hassle delegations or interrupt daily life in Hyderabad, according to spokesman Benny Kuruvilla.
“It should cause far less disruption than the arrangements they’re making for the ADB meeting itself,” Kuruvilla said, predicting as many as 7,000 demonstrators will peacefully follow a planned route through Hyderabad tomorrow morning.
As for the ADB, officials stress they are pleased that a record number of NGOs – almost 150 - have signed up to participate in this year’s meeting. “It’s arguably the most liberal and most open of the MDBs,” said Bart Edes, the head of ADB’s NGO centre.
However, not all ADB staffers are so sanguine. Speaking before the meeting, a senior ADB official had warned that the bank was expecting heavy and militant protests to “bash the ADB and the World Bank”.