By Obadiah Lamshwa Lamare
It becomes necessary for people to think out loud, especially when there seems to be a dearth of thoughts guiding actions. The month of March saw banners well painted and expressive waved on the streets of Shillong. The marching banners claimed to represent the youth of the North East. Last month we saw another rally, containing the same elements, but in a much focused and delimited form, and we are all too familiar with what followed this march. The rally succeeded in lighting the evening streets of Shillong as well as scaring the wits out of citizens. There is an unsaid agreement that it represented fear, hatred and misdirected anger. It expressed the narrowing scope for anything common, for anything symbiotic, for anything well founded and akin to that sense of fraternity that is read in books. Some say we should lose the habit of holding on to grudges and that we should just leave all these things behind. This sounds like a nice suggestion, and we should work towards it, provided lessons have been learnt and the tarnished image of the Khasi society has been restored. In spite of the many commendable responses and condemnations from different corners of the state and outside on the violent events that happened, there has been no counter movement with progressive aspirations or any show of citizen solidarity that has worked to gain back the face lost to a movement that went awry and that scarred the face of the Khasi community in the eyes of the world.
It may seem as if things are settling down but the fact is that intentions have also been made clear. We have been made aware of the intentions of the Movement, which revolve around the issue of identity preservation and to a certain extent, economic security of the ‘tribal’ population. However, things do not stop there, for the Movement was just part of a greater scheme of things. What were manifested were the undercurrents that shape the political and social inclinations in our state, represented by a section of the Khasi elite which claims to represent the Khasi community and which relies greatly on such themes to strive. If one is to make an objective observation of what transpires here, one will classify the politics in our state as mere Politics of Identity, shrouded by parochial economic concerns, a case of xenophobia. These inclinations are therefore nothing more than parochialism and exclusivism professed.
Had we lived in a dimension where bewildered fancies come true, where reactionary movements were always successful, what would have been the consequences for human society? What would have happened to our society here in Meghalaya if these forces had their way? One thing we can surely say is that insecurity will reign supreme. Non tribal citizens will be the most deplorable lot, but not only them. Khasi women will find themselves in a situation where they will have to shoulder the entire responsibility of showcasing the Khasi traditional attire and where they should be ready to shed away their rights and personal liberties. Dissidents and democrats will find themselves silenced. There will not be any intelligent opposition for there will be nothing intelligent or tolerant. Might will rule and reason will be scared mute. Without resorting much to the manner of doomsday fiction writing we can imagine how insane and unsafe things will be; and experience shows that if change does not occur in our attitudes, our thinking and our sensitivities, fiction will become reality.
Without giving too much credit to post modern thinking, if we attempt to deconstruct the motives behind the deeds and ideals of the reactionary sections of society, taking the infamous movement as an example, we will find that there is little that represents the community at large. The Letter to the Editor, titled “Time for the KSU to introspect” (S.T 11th May 2013) had to a great extent discussed how the members of the Khasi community outside the state reacted and felt about the disorderly and violent episode in our state. It should also be noted that no regard was shown for the thousands of young Khasi girls and boys outside the state, preparing themselves for earning a livelihood. One of the closest examples of this is Tezpur, which is home to many girls from this state studying nursing. The internet has played a hand in exposing the rude and brutish side of our community and this should be reminder enough that we no longer live in isolation; that we do not live outside the larger world. Brutish sentiments in the guise of enthusiastic pursuit of common welfare have been shattered as most parochial and exclusivist to the extent of not even including the concerns of members of the community they claim to represent.
Let us also not forget, that it is the foot soldiers that bear the consequences of the generals’ orders. In our case, young members have to suffer for the brutish ideals and policies of their leaders. In the past we have seen them fast, beaten up and harassed by the ‘have seen so’ police and many wasting their lives away. Young people who should actually be harbingers of progressive ideals and humanitarian passions are infused with parochial, exclusivist ideas, continually instructed to hate the ‘other’ and continually drunk with reactionary and communal fervour. Families also bear the brunt of the careless and reckless policies and values that plague youngsters heavily. They do so not only by paying bail but also by seeing their ward’s future slipping away, witnessing bigoted ideals corrupting and incapacitating their young from interacting in a world with fading borders.
We are no longer far from the engines that run the world. We can never dream to live an island existence. The forces of globalisation are integrating ones, and their impact is gradually being felt here also. The fact that we are being sustained by a Capitalist state also means that the defects and illogical workings of a Capitalist system will not neglect us for long. The market oriented policies of Delhi adversely impact common people and that is being done without prejudice, for the policies affect all. Protective discrimination makes for a deficient shield. These policies have created great gaps among the population of our state, with great income and economic disparities that testify of the endemic inequitable nature of the system. However, there are no movements that seek to address these issues and the reason for this is the fact that we are too divided. By adhering or supporting sectarian ventures we are contributing to a disunited front and to the postponement of solutions. As a result, a ‘People’s Movement’ is negated and human voices are silenced.
Our proud nationalistic leaders may claim to be working for a brighter future; questioning their claims and intentions will do anything but hurt us. Some even claim to aspire for high goals of prosperity and democracy, but they forget that it is not security, it is not development, it is not liberty and it is not democracy if it is parochial and exclusivist; it is not worthwhile as long as others have to live in fear and insecurity. Therefore, let us trot circumspectly, with gentle steps, moving forward together.
[Obadiah Lamshwa Lamare is a research scholar of the Department of Political Science, NEHU]