Not all movements lead to social betterment
Ram Puniyani | Sunday, January 1, 2012
Comments | DNA
All over the world and in India as well, 2011 witnessed uprisings to protest against injustice. In the Arab world, it was against tyrannical dictatorial regimes. In the US and many other European countries where ‘Occupy Wall Street’ has had a major resonance, the people are protesting against the socio-economic disparities which have been the outcome of the present system of economic oligarchy.
In India, the year gone by was a very significant one as people rose to protest against multiple issues. The usurpation of peasants’ land for so-called development has been a major issue and it manifested itself through agitations like the one against POSCO, in Orissa. The other movements, such as the ones seen in Koodankulam and Jaitapur, combined a concern for ecological preservation and protest against nuclear hazards. Currently, a large number of Indians are being alienated from their lands.
Their protests have been significant but under-projected. Similarly, Irom Sharmila’s long-standing fast for repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act brings to our notice the atrocities committed by the Indian army in places like the North-east and Kashmir.
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The protest that seemed to have caught the national imagination was the one led by Anna Hazare. Here, a combination of several factors played their roles and made it spread far and wide.
Notably, the IT-MBA generation and some other sections constituted the core support base. There was also a parallel movement against black money led by Baba Ramdev. Anna Hazare’s main agenda was to get Parliament to pass the Jan Lok Bill drafted by his team, but he made it appear as if his movement alone was against corruption and that all those who did not support his version of the bill were supporting corruption. And his movement has been supported by various elements, including gurus like Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.
If we look at the bigger picture in India today, the vast majority are victims of economic injustices, social inequalities, and political marginalisation. While Anna’s campaign talks about corruption as the major cause of peoples’ suffering, at the same time it underplays the deeper issues which result in corruption.
All social movements have a complex dynamic. While people do genuinely aspire to bring real issues to the fore, many movements remain trapped at the symptomatic level and end up bypassing the real issues. The Anna movement is a case in point. While Team Anna has brought to our attention one issue, it has undermined many other issues, and tried to denigrate the parliamentary system.
The Arab uprisings are trying to bring in democracy and a parliamentary system, but the Anna movement is creating a parallel oligarchy, presenting Anna himself as being above the parliament.
While one feels that mass movements help bring about change, not all social upsurges lead to social betterment. One recalls the Ram Temple movement, which unleashed a new era of violence and marginalisation of minorities in the country. It is worth noting that the Dalits and minorities have kept aloof from the Anna movement, as they probably felt it may trample upon their deeper concerns.
But while the Anna movement has been made most visible by the media, the ones around POSCO, Jaitapur and Koondakulam have been underplayed. The issues involved in these protests are very crucial to the marginalised sections of our population. What happens to them affect the life of our society in a deeper sense.
At any rate, all these mobilisations are signs of a robust democracy and despite vested interests trying to deflect the movement in an authoritarian direction, the core issues remain. But these movements have to base themselves on democratic principles and be inclusive in their approach.
All the various protests in India should impinge on our consciousness, and conscience, but unfortunately, only one of these, the Anna movement, has been given primacy. We need to give due importance to other protests also, for they deserve our attention and support even more.
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