Already Myanmar’s government is one of the most brutal in the world, and in recent months it has become even more repressive.
A blogger, Nay Phone Latt, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. A prominent comedian, Zarganar, was sentenced to 59 years. A former student leader, Min Ko Naing, a survivor of years of torture and solitary confinement, has received terms of 65 years so far and faces additional sentences that may reach a total of 150 years.
We blame our political history for what goes wrong in India today - reservations, minority appeasement, corruption, Kashmir and what not. But isn't it noteworthy that we have a reasonably stable democratic political establishment compared to our immediate neighbors in the subcontinent? It is no less than a miracle of fate that has escaped our notice. I need hardly mention the state of Pakistan and its military history; Nepal is a fledgling republic with a history of Maoist terror and palace intrigue, parts of Sri Lanka are still reeling with civil war in its north and Bangladesh has just recovered from a inhuman period of military emergency.
A possible danger of a military coup in India would hardly occur to any of us even in the wildest of our imaginations. Unlike Myanmar or Bangladesh our military has been "mostly" loyal to respecting constitutional civil liberties (quotes to highlight Kashmir and the eastern states as outliers to this simplification). And unlike Pakistan, the Indian military has been quite faithful to the central governmental directives and non-intrusive in state policies.
It's difficult to imagine what the situation might be in countries like Myanmar, for even journalistic reporting of facts is scarce. One feels the same moral outrage against the Indian government for not speaking out against atrocities meted out by the military government as one feels against the US for its complicity with Israel against Palestinians. It's a country where over 3000 political prisoners are suffering injustice including the country's only Nobel Laureate who has been under house arrest for nearly eleven years. The military outlawed her lawful right to assume prime-ministership of the country in spite of winning an 80% vote in the general elections around 1990.
India has her own troubles to deal with at the moment. As I remember reading the words of an author (can't recollect the source)- India is an "unnatural nation" and an "unlikely democracy". My idealism might fade away soon enough as I gradually age. But will there be a time when we have governments and leaders who speak unequivocally against such crimes in our neighborhood (after having set our own house in order to begin with) calling a spade a spade? Or will future political and economic power (wishful thinking) make us indifferent or worse, embrace the American ways of unlawful intervention for propagation of self-interests under a sanctimonious guile? Only time will tell.
But one thing is certain - we can change our political friends and enemies, but not our geographical neighbours
3 comments:
IMO, one thing that prevents India from falling in an abyss is the lethargy which in turn arises from the huge size and diversity. All other subcontinental nations are problematic and geographically small.
I was talking to some people today, and I wondered; what does it feel to be like a citizen of an unstable state? Maybe we are one, it's just sixty years and we have plenty of problems! There are many nations which existed for 50-100 years (czeks, poles etc.) before dissolving into chaos. Maybe we are part of one of those things!
As far as India is concerned, your guess is as good as mine :-). One cannot rule out the possibility of future cessations (especially in the eastern states) but I don't think we'll collapse as a nation.
We will not flourish anytime soon, or collapse but just continue to limp and stagger sluggishly. That's my vote :P
P.S: Living in an unstable state is unimaginable from our POV, isn't it? Any comment or speculation would run the risk of sounding naive. The doings of Sri Ram Sene and Raj Thackeray seem like mosquito bites when compared to the stuff that's happening to civilians in these countries
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