By Toki Blah
The good citizens of Meghalaya, appear to have been hit by a mental tsunami of sorts. People seem perplexed and confused as to what is actually happening to and around them. It all began when plums, peaches and guavas started ripening with severe worm infestations. A geek with a perverted cyber imagination blamed in on the mobile towers. The hypothesis went viral and everyone without further ado took it as gospel truth, A sinister flaw in our collective thinking process. Why bother to disagree when life can be so much easier by simply flowing along with the crowd? People who question generally get singled out and ridiculed. It’s risky to be different so why take a chance? So in our state the herd mentality prevails and is encouraged to prevail.
The fact that the High Court ruling on the Rangbah Shnong has actually presented the state with a golden opportunity to revamp its traditional grass-root institutions has been generally lost sight of and ignored. Few indeed are interested in such an exercise. Instead the focus has been on an individual, the Rangbah Shnong. The cry about onslaught on tradition and culture has then taken centre stage. Most don’t even know, nor care to know, the merits or demerits of this public outcry. It’s enough that someone has raised the alarm, the herd mentality automatically takes over, and everyone contributes to the general uproar.. Today there is this persistent demand for the VAB. What if there is a better option than the VAB? Common sense tells us its dangerous to put all our eggs in one basket. Saviours of the Jaitbynriew however have a big problem with such good sense. For them the voice of the mob (U Paidbhur) is the voice of God and if God has called for the VAB then there can be no other alternative. Period!
Side by side there is this indistinct understanding of ‘tradition’ which needs clarification. Is it about dress, food habits, language, social interactions (in joy and in sorrow especially at marriages and deaths)? Is tradition about land tenure systems, our indigenous relationship with our land, the environment, our faith, religion and other clan beliefs? Question is, does this generation of Khasis and Garos still retain and practice the traditions (ki riti ki dustur) our ancestors held and practiced 200 years ago when the British (read – modernity) found us? If not; if old customs and practices have changed; if now both men and women wear pants; if the old have yielded way to modern practices that serve our 21st century needs better, then by what right do the self appointed champions of tradition insist that tradition is inviolable and sacrosanct? Why should a herd mentality that shuns questioning prevail over something nobody is sure about!
By this same argument the present insistence by some that there should be no attempt to tinker with traditional governance (ki riti synshar khadar u barim ba jah) makes no sense. What we claim to be traditional governance was contemporary governance for our ancestors. This we have to accept. They cultivated governance systems to meet the administrative needs of their times. Today this generation of 21st century Khasis and Garos have different administrative needs calling for matching systems to meet such needs. This is common sense as it makes sense. To insist on outmoded tradition to deliver on 21st century services is nonsense, as it makes no sense. The definition of Tradition therefore should not be limited only to what can be seen or to tangible, physical aspects of indigenous practices but more to the value systems that determine our indigenous world view; the principles that bond us socially and the thought process and philosophy that pilot our actions. Tradition actually is the wisdom behind the act and not the act itself !
Citizens of this great nation have the Constitution to protect their rights and privileges and the 6th Schedule and its Autonomous District Councils to give succour at preserving tradition and culture of its indigenous NE people. Unfortunately it has not panned out that way. Michael Syiem, a prominent social activist of the state has recently filed a PIL in the High Court seeking judicial pronouncement on the continued relevance or otherwise of the Autonomous District Councils (ADCs). It’s a PIL long overdue. There is general consensus that the ADCs of Meghalaya have failed to deliver. The principal charge however against the ADCs of Meghalaya is that in the 68 long years of their existence; they have miserably failed to anticipate, visualise, plan and prepare the indigenous constituencies under their charge for the changes that were expected to occur. The ADCs have instead been obscurant in their demeanour, preventing people from appreciating and acknowledging change. Now that these changes have caught up with us, we flap about like headless chicken. “The fault Dear Brutus is not in our stars, but in ourselves”. How Meghalayanly true!
A non tribal officer of the Meghalaya cadre but one who apparently understands us better than we understand ourselves has this charitable comment to make about the present goings-on. “Bah, you are looking at a society under transition. This churning process is to be expected. The trick is not to challenge or confront change but to manage it”. Trouble is there are those who project change as something dangerous and unsafe. People panic and into this confused mass of frightened humanity, the opportunist (in the form of an individual, party or organisation) steps in as a saviour! This has been the socio-political pattern in Meghalaya for the last 47 years since statehood. With all apologies to self professed saviours of the Jaitbynriew, if you have failed to rescue the Jaitbynriew in the last 47 years, little hope you will ever do it in the next 100! You failed because the indigenous communities of Meghalaya don’t need to be saved. Simple as that! We are a robust and healthy society. Nothing wrong with us except that we have yet to learn the art and the courage to question. So if you really want to save the Jaitbynriew, start a campaign to teach people how to question and not to simply swallow what is thrown at them !
As the devious simplicity of the situation sinks into our consciousness, a paradox of sorts also strikes the mind! 74% of Meghalaya’s population is Christian who obviously are familiar and closely acquainted with the image and profile of a Good Shepherd. A Good Shepherd basically leads the flock; protects them from harm and takes care of their welfare and interest. He plans and visualises the best pastures for his flock. But most important he anticipates their future requirements. A Good Shepherd is a leader. With such a background one would have thought that a majority of the electorate and the good people of Meghalaya would have easily wised up as to who are wolves and who are shepherds. Sadly we have yet to learn that wolves too can masquerade as Good Shepherds!
Crux of the matter is a leadership crisis in a society that shies away from openly debating the issue. We need to question those who come to save us. Save us from what? No one has ever cared to elaborate the specific details. Need to question those who wish to take us back to the past. Why the past, why not into the future? Today the urgent need to legally empower the Dorbar Shnong to perform as per the demands of the 21st century can no longer be delayed. Politicians will continue to quibble over who has the constitutional authority to legislate on such empowerment. It’s an infantile and childish exercise that should excite no one but the mentally deficient. What is needed is for the public to come out and question the motives of those who stand in the way of good governance. We have before us this golden opportunity to introduce good village governance that might never come our way again. The times call for forward looking leadership. Why are we stalling it? Time therefore for saviours to take a sabbatical. It would be criminal if Meghalaya were to once again allow itself to be hijacked by backward looking saviours just because of our inability to identify forward looking leaders. Time to encourage leaders to step forward with visions for the future!