Tag: Editorial

Manipur’s cup of woe has never been empty. While it is unlikely any place in the world has not had their shares of misfortunes, Manipur’s chain of tragedies never seems to end. Not only this, it does not seem it will end any time soon too either. It is difficult to imagine what those who lose loved ones to unnatural death must have gone through, and must be going through, and it is suffocating to imagine that these losses are unlikely be the last. But first, this invocation cannot but recall the nine youth whose bodies still lay in the ill-equipped Churachandpur District Hospital mortuary. We have no desire to comment or be judgmental of the politics that led to this tragedy, but all the same wish the near and dear ones of the nine the strength to live through what must certainly be an endless nightmare. This beleaguered land has lost so many, to pandemics such as AIDS, and to its myriad enduring soul-tearing conflicts. Often, sitting alone in solemn contemplation of Manipur’s long list of tragedies, it is difficult not to be visited by the haunting lines of Irish poet, William Butler Yeats, hanging desperately on to hope in a time of overwhelming despair and sorrow, “O When May it Suffice”.

Manipur today has far too many things to mourn, overshadowing its occasions for celebration. There is not a day that passes without somebody or the other getting killed violently, either in fratricidal killings or else in the protracted war between government forces and insurgent fighters waging a liberation war. If the tumultuous winds of rebellion fostered by certain ruptures in the smooth flow of history had not swept them away, many generations of men and women probably would be still living amongst us and become eminent respectable citizens, as eminent and respectable as many who occupy the top strata of the society today. But this was never to be. Come to think of it, the storm of this war having spanned over many decades, practically all of us would have known many of them, some brilliant peers who may have won fame and fortune, others merely ordinary nondescript acquaintances in the neighbourhood, suddenly transformed into heroes and martyrs by the winds of the times.

Yeats’s song is of such a sense of void he felt remembering the “martyrs” of his native Ireland who he had known in person, and could have been still with him had it not been for those “martyr moments”. In his celebrated Easter 1916, he looks back to that year when government troops swooped down on the brewing Irish Republican Army rebellion in Dublin, and executed many of the movement’s pioneers. “A terrible beauty is born” he exclaims in the poem, recalling the combine of horror, awe and disbelief he had felt at the time. Ordinary men and women, in ordinary professions, whom “I have met them at the close of day, /Coming with vivid faces, /From counter or desk among grey, /Eighteenth-century houses.” Familiar acquaintances on the streets whom “I have passed with a nod of the head, /Or polite meaningless words, /Or have lingered awhile and said, /Polite meaningless words”. In that September of 1916 everything transformed all of a sudden “All changed, changed utterly: /A terrible beauty is born.” There were also those he envied and did not like very much. “He had done most bitter wrong, /To some who are near my heart, /Yet I number him in the song; /He, too, has resigned his part, /In the casual comedy; /He, too, has been changed in his turn, /Transformed utterly: /A terrible beauty is born.” Yeats also sensed the tragedy that all the spiralling and increasingly senseless violence can bring, and this foreknowledge made his soul burn: “Too long a sacrifice, /Can make a stone of the heart. /O when may it suffice? /That is Heaven’s part, our part, /To murmur name upon name, /As a mother names her child, /When sleep at last has come, /On limbs that had run wild. /What is it but nightfall? /No, no, not night but death; /Was it needless death after all?”

Nearly a century after Yeats went through his soul scorching self-questioning, many of us in Manipur are still left to go through similar soul searches and ask, “O when may it suffice?” wishing to remind those around us that “too long a sacrifice, can make a stone of the heart.” The tears of sorrow that swell can blur vision as we watch the world move on – even our own government contract chasing, easy unearned money loving, little world – unmindful of all the sacrifices and martyrdoms. The haunting forbidden question that shapes up within often is: “Was it needless death after all?”

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/o-when-may-it-suffice/

The Congress government led by Okram Ibobi suffered a jolt today, but perhaps it is not as bad as many have made it out to be. It may also not be any indication of a BJP wave either, as many more are most enthusiastic to call it. One or two basic facts will explain this. The two seats, that of Thongju and Thangmeiband, were not held by the Congress even before they became vacant on account of the disqualification of their representatives under the Anti-Defection Law, therefore in terms of numbers, the Congress lost nothing. On the other hand, in terms of morale, they lost miserably because it was not any other party but its arch rivals, the BJP, which won. The seats went to the Trinamool Congress in the last Assembly election, and though no longer with the party, it was again the same MLAs who won the seats today. The two victorious MLAs, Thongam Biswajit Singh and Khumukcham Joykishan retained the Thongju and Thangmeiband respectively. The fact is, the two had, after disqualification as Trinamool MLAs joined the BJP and were re-elected on the party’s ticket. Again, in Manipur’s politics, it is well known that personality and individual resources of candidates matter as much as, if not more than, party clouts, therefore, today’s electoral result may well also be interpreted as the victory of the candidates rather than the BJP. They won three years ago as Trinamool candidates and they have won as BJP candidates this time again. It remains to be seen if they can hold on to their respective constituencies a year and a half later in 2017, when the term of the current Assembly expires.

This is to say, to attribute today’s victories to any major change in voters’ party preference could prove to be illusory. All the same it is perfectly justified for the BJP to feel elated that it has at last opened accounts in the state Assembly, and for the Congress to be worried that despite being the party in power, it could not garner these two seats in the contest by secret ballot. What could have worked in favour of the BJP this time is that generally in small and cash strapped Northeast states like Manipur, the voters feel safer to be on the side of the party in power at the Centre. BJP being the party in power at the Centre, voters may have decided voting the party in Manipur may be an option for future security, but this to some extent only. For it is everybody’s knowledge that votes in Manipur are also actually bought with hard cash, and candidates end up spending stupendous amounts at every election. This perhaps explains how the profile of political leadership in the state has transformed so radically in the past three or four decades. Two generation ago, politics was dominated by former school teachers who earned the respect of the societies by their dedicated service to community. Most of the political leaders of the 1970s and 1980s hence were actually referred to as Oja (teacher)for this reason. Retired bureaucrats then began walking into the political arena, having seen the administration from the inside, and probably having realised to their utter dismay that it was the politicians not the bureaucrats who held the actual reins of state power. Most ended up toothless in their comfortable retirement postings.

Before long, as election became progressively expensive because of the culture of vote purchases, the profile changed once again, bringing government contractors with their loads of filthy money, earned through organised looting of public exchequer, in collaboration with those in power. Indeed, it would be difficult today to find a legislator with no contractor background. This money culture must end for Manipur to begin spawning a fresh crop of political leadership, more imaginative and committed to public welfare. Only a change in public attitude to elections, where each vote comes to be considered as priceless, therefore not purchasable, would be able to bring about this change. In the meantime, our congratulations go out to today’s winners, however so the victory is interpreted by our vocal experts on TV as well as newspapers. We also pray that both the ruling Congress and the opposition BJP will strive to bring back the commitment of the politics of the days of the Ojas back to Manipur once again.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/after-the-euphoria-2/

The Congress government led by Okram Ibobi suffered a jolt today, but perhaps it is not as bad as many have made it out to be. It may also not be any indication of a BJP wave either, as many more are most enthusiastic to call it. One or two basic facts will explain this. The two seats, that of Thongju and Thangmeiband, were not held by the Congress even before they became vacant on account of the disqualification of their representatives under the Anti-Defection Law, therefore in terms of numbers, the Congress lost nothing. On the other hand, in terms of morale, they lost miserably because it was not any other party but its arch rivals, the BJP, which won. The seats went to the Trinamool Congress in the last Assembly election, and though no longer with the party, it was again the same MLAs who won the seats today. The two victorious MLAs, Thongam Biswajit Singh and Khumukcham Joykishan retained the Thongju and Thangmeiband respectively. The fact is, the two had, after disqualification as Trinamool MLAs joined the BJP and were re-elected on the party’s ticket. Again, in Manipur’s politics, it is well known that personality and individual resources of candidates matter as much as, if not more than, party clouts, therefore, today’s electoral result may well also be interpreted as the victory of the candidates rather than the BJP. They won three years ago as Trinamool candidates and they have won as BJP candidates this time again. It remains to be seen if they can hold on to their respective constituencies a year and a half later in 2017, when the term of the current Assembly expires.

This is to say, to attribute today’s victories to any major change in voters’ party preference could prove to be illusory. All the same it is perfectly justified for the BJP to feel elated that it has at last opened accounts in the state Assembly, and for the Congress to be worried that despite being the party in power, it could not garner these two seats in the contest by secret ballot. What could have worked in favour of the BJP this time is that generally in small and cash strapped Northeast states like Manipur, the voters feel safer to be on the side of the party in power at the Centre. BJP being the party in power at the Centre, voters may have decided voting the party in Manipur may be an option for future security, but this to some extent only. For it is everybody’s knowledge that votes in Manipur are also actually bought with hard cash, and candidates end up spending stupendous amounts at every election. This perhaps explains how the profile of political leadership in the state has transformed so radically in the past three or four decades. Two generation ago, politics was dominated by former school teachers who earned the respect of the societies by their dedicated service to community. Most of the political leaders of the 1970s and 1980s hence were actually referred to as Oja (teacher)for this reason. Retired bureaucrats then began walking into the political arena, having seen the administration from the inside, and probably having realised to their utter dismay that it was the politicians not the bureaucrats who held the actual reins of state power. Most ended up toothless in their comfortable retirement postings.

Before long, as election became progressively expensive because of the culture of vote purchases, the profile changed once again, bringing government contractors with their loads of filthy money, earned through organised looting of public exchequer, in collaboration with those in power. Indeed, it would be difficult today to find a legislator with no contractor background. This money culture must end for Manipur to begin spawning a fresh crop of political leadership, more imaginative and committed to public welfare. Only a change in public attitude to elections, where each vote comes to be considered as priceless, therefore not purchasable, would be able to bring about this change. In the meantime, our congratulations go out to today’s winners, however so the victory is interpreted by our vocal experts on TV as well as newspapers. We also pray that both the ruling Congress and the opposition BJP will strive to bring back the commitment of the politics of the days of the Ojas back to Manipur once again.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/after-the-euphoria/

The current crisis over the demand for the implementation of the Inner Line Permit System, among others, has brought to the fore once again the dilemma of who is a leader. It has also yet again brought out the familiar fissures within the Manipur society. The situation did not have to take any ugly turn for this fissure to become visible. The widely differing levels of concerns for the implementation of the ILPS in the hill districts and the valley is evidence enough. No point in any blame-game, for as they say, this is the way the ball bounces, at least just as yet. It would be futile to pretend things are any other way. The effort in the future should then be to bridge this gap, and the quest have to be for a midway house where the divergent interests can meet, and indeed democracy is the perfect mechanism for deciding where this meeting point should be. The biggest lesson for the valley should be, it is time for it to abandon its horrid presumption of being the natural agency for setting the state’s political agenda, or to imagine it holds proprietorial guardianship over the state’s interests. It must take courage to admit to itself that its concerns and aspirations do not have to be shared by all the regions of the state, and that many of its concerns do not spill out too far from the valley. If any issue must be considered as the state’s interest, it must be by consensus of all sections of the population of the entire state. While democracy is undoubtedly a value, it is its structure which guarantees this value. So let everybody take care to stick by this structure.

The word consensus and consent however must come with some important qualifications. The agitation over the ILPS issue has brought this out to the fore too. Why is it that college and university students seldom are seen in these protest rallies, and in their places are school children in uniform? The explanation probably is that the former have independent minds of their own which will not be easily surrendered to any and every calls by those who presume themselves as leaders. This will be quite unlike school children, who can be flocked out of their schools and paraded without difficulty by the “leaders”. There was a discussion evoked on various internet discussion forums over a column which appeared in a newspaper recently, as to the legitimacy or otherwise of grading leadership quality by the praxis they are able to generate. On such a scale it was also implied that V.I. Lenin was greater than Jurgen Habermas. Curiously, the debates seem to apply in this situation as well. To use Habermas’ own formulation, the “lifeworld” of school children and that of university students would be markedly different, therefore the nature of the “public space” associated with them would also be very different. Consequently, the challenges before “leaders” to put their theories into practice (praxis), would be radically different, depending on the nature of the different “lifeworld” they are left to deal with. Lenin led a revolution amongst poor and largely illiterate industrial blue collar workers, just as Mao Tse Tung led his revolution amongst poor, illiterate peasants. Habermas’ “lifeworld” on the other hand is made up of extremely affluent, very well educated, very rich, bankers, academics, technocrats etc, of a very industrialised Western country. He cannot, under the circumstance be expected to lead the kind of revolutions Lenin or Mao led. But Habermas’ interventions on behalf of Greece in the present crisis the country is in, saying in effect that nationhood of a country should be decided by the citizens of a country and not by the diktats of bankers and technocrats from another country, was revolutionary. The praxis he generates cannot thus be by any standard dismissed as slight. Leading school children and leading university students are two different ball games altogether. We wish our revolutions were of the latter category, but alas this has seldom been.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/who-leaders-lead/

There is an uncanny familiarity the media fraternity in Manipur would be sensing in the predicament their colleagues in Nagaland are facing today. Following a circular from the Inspector General, Assam Rifles addressed to five of the most prominent editors of newspapers in the state, reminding them that the faction of the NSCN led by S.S. Khaplang had been banned by the Government of India vide an order dated September 28, and that carrying statements of the organisation can attract penalty under the provisions of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. The immediate provocation for the reminder seems to be three articles published on October 17, 18 and 21, in which “you have published articles issued by MIP of NSCN (K) threatening senior law makers of the Nagaland Government and encouraging collection of funds by representative of NSCN (K).” The Assam Rifles circular also said “the intention of declaring the NSCN(K) an Unlawful Association under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967 is to curb and prevent fresh recruitments, violent, terrorist & secessionist activities, collection of funds, etc.” The patronising presumption that the Nagaland editors would not be in the know of all this, is itself an insult.

As expected, the Nagaland editors responded with a polite but firm reply that they were never partisan to any party in the prolonged conflict situation in the state and that at no point did they cross the limits of the freedom of speech and expression guaranteed to the media by the Indian constitution. They also reminded the Assam Rifles that by publishing news of any given militant organisation, they were not abetting or assisting putative crimes the organisation may commit, but only informing the public of the reality of the political environment they all live in, however oppressive this portrayal may be, and this was done as per the mandate given to any news organisation. They also claimed that it was honest portrayal of the situation such as this, which actually shaped the strong public opinion in Nagaland opposing unwarranted “taxation” by various underground organisations. To press home their opposition to the Assam Rifles intrusion into their affairs and casting aspersion on their integrity as law abiding citizens, they also left their editorial spaces blank. What else is there for those of us in Manipur to say than that our solidarity goes out unreservedly to our colleagues in our neighbouring state.

We have not seen the three articles published by these newspapers, which according to the Assam Rifles amounted to threats issued to “senior law makers of the Nagaland Government and encouraging collection of funds by representative of the NSCN(K)”, therefore it would not be fair for us to be judgmental. However going by our own experience, the Manipur media can well imagine how thin and dangerous the line the Nagaland editors would be walking on. The moot question is, how do we as free media handle press releases from increasingly faction ridden underground organisations which often amount to threats issued to individuals to surrender before them, or else are veiled monetary demands made under the shadow of the gun on individuals and business establishments. Especially in a conflict situation deeply embedded in the social fabric itself, and with seemingly no conclusion likely for a long while, if at all, this is a difficult question to negotiate. On several occasions, the Manipur media too have had to resort to not just blank editorials but go off the stands for days to send out the message that the media should be allowed to exercise its own judgments on what is news and what is not without anybody, the government or its challengers, breathing down its neck. The resolution that the journalist fraternity here have adopted is to drop all press releases from any party which amount to threats to individuals or else are disguised extortion demands. It goes without saying this has not always been an easy resolution to keep.

We empathise with what the Nagaland media is going through today. We are also proud that their decision too has been similar to those of the Manipur media in similar situation – leave us alone in the discharge of our duties. We know what we are doing and we know the law. We also know what must be done in abnormal situations such as that we live in, and if you do not understand this, you do not know the place, and therefore cannot be the arbitrator.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/nagaland-media-hits-back/

It is time for the human rights debate in Manipur, where the endless string of mayhem for the past many decades has disoriented the people of the finer points of rights and entitlements, is given a fresh approach. The clash between draconian laws and brutal counter laws, decrees and diktats, has desensitized their finer appreciations of the beauty of even the much hyped idea of freedom. Today, if an ordinary man on the street were to be posed the question as to what he thinks freedom is, the answer in all likelihood would be the rote, superficial, textbook or else indoctrinated definition of it. If he or she understands or believes more than just what it is being advocated to mean, the answer is likely to be a studied silence. A silence induced by fear, whichever side of the fence the belief leans towards amidst the intense conflict over the issue in the place. But an honest answer to the question is important. For one thing, on it will hinge the solution to many of our problems. For another, many other questions of import will necessarily have to be derivatives of it. As for instance, linked to it would be our understandings of rights, justice and a sense of a benign republican polity.

When things get complicated, it is always helpful to refer to the thumb-rule that says begin from the basic. A good way of doing this is as Economics Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen says in his book `Development As Freedom`, to consider the term `unfreedoms` rather than the more ethereal `freedom`. What are the conditions in our individual as well as community life that shackle and weigh down our ability to exercise our freedom of thought, belief and action? Poverty, unemployment, deprivation of political voice, inadequate empowerment to participate and formulate policies that govern our lives, depletion of a sense of purpose in life, shrinking of hope of acquiring the skills and abilities to enhance one`™s own quality of life? What are the `unfreedoms` that are coming in the way of our sense of a more comprehensive `freedom`? We will not presume to know the answer but all we can say is that these are material for honest and intense introspection for all of us at this juncture of our history. This is also the only way we can separate the illusory from the substantial, so vital in our situation.

More urgently, a similar introspective approach is also called for to refresh our understanding of the `human rights` question. The question as to what is `just` and what is `right`, may be relatively easy to answer from the legal standpoint but not so when it is considered as a moral query. This is a very old doubt of humankind and has appeared in literature and philosophy through the ages, and quite interestingly, in this debate, there have always been a grudging admiration for those who have presented dissenting views to the accepted and dominant reasoning. In John Milton`™s `Paradise Lost`, Milton himself seems at times to tacitly empathise with Satan`™s reason for rebelling against what Satan described as God`™s dictatorship, however benevolent. In the Hindu scripture of Bhagavad Gita too, there are many who see Arjuna`™s initial opposition to Krishna`™s sermon that nothing ultimately matters except doing duty to God even if this means bloodshed. Among these who see the human predicament in Arjuna`™s dilemma, is again Amartya Sen in his `The Artumentative Indian`. While duty to God is important, shouldn`™t a consideration of the consequences of this duty be any less important, Sen ponders.

Closer at home, Ratan Thiyam seems also to agree with Arjuna. In his `Kurukshetragi Pirang` (Tears of Kurukshetra) which considers what might have happened after the Mahabharat War, against the backdrop of wails of war widows and orphans, the director poses the same question that Arjuna posed Krishna. This victory of the good over evil can be pyrrhic and even cynical. One is also reminded of Max Weber`™s notion of the `State` as the sole wielder of `legitimate violence` in the larger interest of the citizenry. The non state players in our conflict situation also presume this right to legitimate violence, aspiring as they do to be States. In the Weberian sense then, the two are very much the different sides of the same coin. The point is, this `legitimate violence` has increasingly been the cause rather than deterrent of violence against the citizens. Can `legitimate violence` then still be morally legitimate?

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/rights-and-wrongs/

From 2010 to 2015, every year from November 21 to November 30. Five years down the line and the interesting question is how closely has the Manipur Sangai Festival been able to go with the brow antlered deer, the Sangai, after which it is named ? How much has this festival been able to ingrain the importance of preserving wildlife amongst the local population ? A significant question this is, for remember it was only a few years back that some eating joints at the festival venue were found selling and serving the meat of wildlife. Again how successful has the annual Sangai Festival been able to hardsell Manipur as a tourist destination to people from other parts of the country or even foreign countries ? From the annual tourist festival to the Sangai Festival, surely some progress must have been made and this can be gauged from the fact that the Ambassadors of Norway and China, the High Commissioner of Bangladesh, Councillor Ministers of Indonesia and Japan have confirmed their participation at the festival. Moreover there is also the possibility that the Golden Myanmar flight may transport tourists from abroad. Moreover it is also significant to note that Prime Minister Narendra Modi made it a point to be present on the closing day of the festival last year. It however still remains to be seen how much the Sangai Festival will be able to hardsell Manipur to the outside world. An important question this is, for the fact stands that in the past a visit to the festival venue always meant meeting acquaintances, forget about witnessing tourists who come here to have a glimpse of the festival.

The State Government seems to be putting its best foot forward to have everything ready for the festival this year. Sanjenthong is today ready before the festival and despite the threat issued by an armed outfit, everyone must be hoping that there is no repeat of 2011 when a rickshaw driver was blown apart just near the festival venue. That the Government is also serious about regulating vehicular movements can be gauged from the traffic regulations issued by the Directorate of Transport as well as the Transport Sub-Committee of the Traffic Police. Positive steps no doubt, but it should also seep into the consciousness of the political leaders that in most cases, it is their movements which hamper the smooth flow of traffic. Makes absolutely no sense to expect everyone to give them the right of way whenever any of these leaders, who come under the VIP tag, decide to visit the festival venue. In a few days time from now, the Sangai Festival will start and it is also important for the public to come to the point that in as much as the Government has a responsibility to make the festival a success, the people too are responsible in their own way. The people of Manipur will have to don the role of hosts from November 21 to November 30 and perhaps this is the opportune moment for everyone to showcase Manipur in the best manner possible.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/showcasing-manipur-via-sangai-fest-from-november-21-to-30/

Annual Sangai Festival from November 21 to November 30. This is the constant. Another disturbing development is the growing trust deficit amongst the three major communities of Manipur-the Meiteis, the Nagas and the Kukis. This has also become a sort of a constant in the life of everyone here. The three Bills passed by the State Assembly on August 31 this year undoubtedly provided the spark for the inert ‘hostility’ amongst the different communities to come to the fore. A violent one at that and which has already claimed the lives of nine people in Churachandpur district. Checking the influx of outsiders or non-local people into the State of Manipur is undoubtedly the driving force behind the intense movement that was witnessed in the valley area of Manipur for months, even leading to the death of a young student in police action. On the other hand the cut off base year of 1951 to identify the indigenous people of Manipur is another reason for the huge uproar in Churachandpur district and the yet to be cremated/buried nine mortal remains is the proof of the intensity of the protest. Apart from this there is also the heated debate on whether the three Bills passed by the State Assembly were money Bills or not and why the Hill Areas Committee was by passed. Each side obviously seem to have their own side of the story to tell, but has anyone really thought about Manipur as a whole ? Looking at the reality, it should be obvious that no one has looked beyond the immediate interest of the community to which he or she belongs to. So there are Meiteis, Nagas, Kukis, Meitei Pangals and others here but no Manipuris.

Not the first time that The Sangai Express is commenting on this and this will not be the last either, if one goes by the ground reality. This is where the Meiteis, by being the major community need to seriously question themselves why the idea of a Manipuri has refused to cut into the consciousness of the Nagas and the Kukis ? For starters one may well ask how many students from the Naga and Kuki communities are actually members of the Manipuri students bodies in different parts of India ? Just to cite an example, how many Naga and Kuki students are members of the Manipur Students’ Association, Delhi ? The same question may also be raised with regard to student organisations in other cities, such as Chennai, Chandigarh, Bangalore, Kolkata, Mumbai etc. The reality is grim and ugly, if one may add. But has this reality really helped anyone ? None. This is where the people need to come together, shed pre-conceived notions and find common interests which would be beneficial to everyone. For this to happen, the reality has to be accepted first. There may be genuine reasons for any grievances but reading everything along the line of community divide is not the answer. The people do have a responsibility in making the place a better place for the youngsters to inherit once they come of age. How to build up trust may just be what the doctors would prescribe to deal with the ailment afflicting Manipur now.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/divide-becoming-sort-of-a-constant-growing-trust-deficit/

Researchers from Norfolk-based University of East Anglia (UEA) has recently rated the people of India as one of the least honest and kept the country in a category of the dishonest along with China, Japan and South Korea. The key finding of the research suggested that people’s honesty varies significantly between countries. However, Asian countries were not significantly more dishonest than others in the quiz, where Japan had the lowest level of dishonesty, said the research. What is even more interesting about the news is the way dishonesty has been measured using a novel methodology. The research conducted using a coin flip test among 1,500 participants from 15 countries found out that the four least honest countries were found to be China, Japan, South Korea and India.

The research however points out that the difference between Asian and other countries in the coin flip may be explained by cultural views specific to this type of test, such as
attitudes to gambling, rather than differences in honesty as such. The findings also suggest honesty is less important to a country’s current economic growth than during earlier periods in history. The research team examined whether people from different countries were more or less honest and how this related to a country’s economic development. For research made the participants take part in an online survey involving two incentivised experiments designed to measure honest behaviour. The participants were first asked to flip a coin and state whether it landed on “heads” or “tails”. They knew if they reported that it landed on heads, they would be rewarded with money. If the proportion reporting heads was more than 50 percent in a given country, this indicated that people were being dishonest.  The same participants were then asked to complete a quiz where they were again rewarded financially if they answered all questions correctly. Data from the tests was compared to estimate whether people from particular countries were more likely to tell the truth. The countries studied understudy were chosen to provide a mix of regions, levels of development and levels of social trust. Estimated dishonesty in the coin flip ranged from 3.4% in Britain to 70% in China. In the quiz, respondents in Japan were the most honest, followed by Britain while those in Turkey were the least truthful. It was found that people were more pessimistic about the honesty of people in their own country than of people in other countries. The research found out that the honesty of countries was related to the countries’ economic growth too.

While one can argue on whether or not the methodology adopted could truly explain or rather measure the level of dishonesty, the research at least points out significant qualitative connotation already made known by earlier studies. Hope, the research would be an eye opener for those who swear by transparency.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/measuring-dishonesty/

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Development of North-Eastern Region (DoNER) Dr Jitendra Singh while addressing the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry” (FICCI) women wing in Guwahati had invited women entrepreneurs from across the country to invest in the region and take a lead in developing an industrial hub not only for India but also for the countries across the eastern borders. One is not sure under what compelling circumstances, Dr Jitendra had invited the women.

However, the “Swayam” initiative of FICCI women wing in Guwahati could be lauded from differing perspectives. Appreciating the initiative, the minister said “Swayam” has  already resulted in successful engagement of women from all sections, in big and small self-employed vocations and hoped its arrival in Guwahati will open a new chapter in the growth of Northeast and at the same time also open new vistas of opportunity, not only for women alone but for the entire population of the eight Northeastern States. On the occasion, he also stated that a number of new initiatives have been undertaken by the Government of India to promote business, industry and consequential job avenues in the region. He however cited the organic farming mission and the expansion of healthcare entrepreneurship in the region indirectly suggesting that leading women entrepreneurs could partake in developing such sectors in the Northeast.Moreover, Dr Jitendra Singh also referred to the “Act East” policy as an opportunity to do business with the countries across the eastern borders. He pointed out the imperative to generate original growth products proximal to the eastern borders within Northeast so that they get takers across the borders. While one is not sure of the exact nature of the roles that the women entrepreneurs from across the country would play in developing a region like the Northeast of India, the Government of India is well aware of the traditional roles played by the women of the region in all spheres of life, particularly trade and commerce. Though the women in the region have been traditionally endowed with the skills of handling domestic and immediate traditional economy, there is a need to conduct an impassionate assessment of what contributions they could possibly make in bringing about modern economic change in the region.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/ne-women-and-entrepreneurship/

Poverty can be extremely depressing. It can dehumanize, depriving self-esteem as well as human dignity from those caught in its trap. If not for the support of the joint family institution, still very much a tradition in the Manipur, the number of absolutely poor, with absolutely no income source at all, would have become visible in very many ways. Seven lakh and more unemployed youth, (as is what the registers in the state’s employment exchange shows), out of a population of 28 lakhs, would have been simply socially explosive and devastating if not for this generously elastic shock absorber. Indirectly, we may already be witnessing the strain on the society in the rise of delinquency, drugs abuse, petty street crimes and even organized extortion gangs although there probably are other factors as well for these deviant behavioural shifts. More often than not, it is the poor who are more generous and humane than the rich. Only when hopes for a redemptive mechanism become lost, or when the conditions for poverty begins to be seen as a result of unjust administration, or when the disparity between the rich and poor become unfairly stark, attitudes begin to harden for the worse. No wonder than that most religions eulogize the state of material poverty, for it is assumed poverty in the external world is an indicator of the richness of one’s soul. No other religion says this more explicitly than Christianity, when Christ in what is today considered one of the greatest and most poetic passages in the Bible, tells his disciples during the Beatitude (in the Sermon on the Mount), that blessed are the poor for they will inherit the kingdom of heaven. Gautam Buddha too renounced the material world and through his self-embraced poverty, attained enlightenment. There are so many other messiahs, from all regions of the world, who followed this same path.

But the poverty that religion envisioned is more a metaphor of a spirituality to which material conditions make little difference. It probably referred to a life free of avarice and greed, and all other transgressions into human understanding of ethical behaviours, which are generally associated with the way to material wealth. This poverty cannot however be the same, agonizing, life-sapping impoverishment that the modern world knows and sees on its urban streets. For this is a poverty that crushes not just the physical world of those it burdens but also their spiritual landscape with its sheer weight, and more importantly, hopelessness. It is more a curse than a blessing. And this is the kind of poverty that is taking shape in our society today. We cannot see a bigger challenge before any government, our state government in particular, than to arrest the slow but sure onslaught of this poverty.

There cannot be any miracle solution to remove the factors in an economy that leads to impoverishment of a population. It will have to be by a multi-pronged, long term, well thought out strategy that the problem is tackled. It cannot also be the government alone that is given the responsibility to fight this battle. The people and the government will have to make this a common battlefront. However, for the people to feel empowered to join the battle, the government’s initiatives are vital. Poverty is terrible, but it would not have been so terrible if hope remained alive that given the will, this condition can be overcome, if not in one generation, then in the next. The way many Eastern and South East Asian countries, including South Korea, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and many more came out of the poverty trap much worse than our own should be an example as well as inspiration for us. That is to say that parents living below the poverty line must still be given the confidence that they have the means to equip their children to compete legitimately for the best life the system can offer, dependent solely on their individual diligence, industry and aptitude. The most important thing that the government can and must do, is for it to lift the standard and discipline of its moribund education system. The elixir to re-instill hope even in the poorest is the sense that they can still empower their children with the appropriate knowledge and skills demanded by the modern world regardless of their poverty. Let the government education system work and even if miracles do not drop from heaven, they can be manufactured here on earth.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/hope-is-the-key/

A two part, op-ed article in The Telegraph, by Pratap Bhanu Mehta after a routine India-China cooperation summit in Beijing about a decade ago, contained some very absorbing argument on the sources of legitimacy for different forms of governments. We recall these articles again in the wake of the changes that have come to China and India in the span of the decade that has gone by. At about the time, the differences in economic advances between the two countries were not so stark. Today they are. The comparison between the two countries then, in this regard, was loaded with lessons. These lessons can very well be for Manipur too and hence this invitation for further reflection. Since The Telegraph is widely circulated in Manipur, most probably would have already read the original article. One of the chief contentions is that the governments of China and India by necessity draw their legitimacy differently and from different sources. Being a democracy, India puts a premium on representation. There is beauty in this but it nevertheless dilutes the question of accountability. It ensures participation of all different sections of the people in the governance process but this itself becomes the primary end justice, leaving the question of performance, the other vital functions of any government, as secondary. Consider this. The official answer to the charge that the Northeast occupies only a peripheral space in the Indian national consciousness and that this is evidence of its neglect, is that every one of the Northeastern states is represented in all the institutions of the Indian state, administrative as well as legislative, hence the question of neglect, or injustice, at least at the institutional level, does not arise. The fact that the Northeast still remains backward does not seem to be considered a factor in assessing the legitimacy of the government system. It is as if representation is all there is about justice.

In another arena, this logic has in recent times acquired a new hue in the continued growth of the demand for positive discrimination. The point again is, ensuring representation may be a necessary condition for the larger understanding of justice, but the questions remain – is it sufficient condition? On the smaller canvas of Manipur too, and we are sure all other states as well, the source of government legitimacy is drawn from similar logics and are invariably beset with the same flaws. Take the case of the hill-valley divide. Here too, as all of us know, the fierce contest for representation is at the crux of politics and is indeed treated as the only legitimate route to systemic as well as social justice. Every community wants as much handle in the government as possible and the equilibrium thus struck between the numerous pulls and pressures from these demands is what is believed would constitute a stable government. However, after this equilibrium is reached, the other important considerations of accountability and performance are somewhat pushed into the background and never discussed.

Again, here too, as in the case of the larger canvas of the Indian Union, the counter argument against discrimination charges by any community or region, is the proportion of representation. That the hills and valley districts have therefore seen representation in the democratic government somewhat in proportion to population, though today there are demands from Naga constituencies to reassess this proportion. They claim some constituencies in Naga districts are as large as 30,000 electorate while those in some others in the southern hills are only a few thousands only. The valley districts average between 15000 and 20,000, and are thus somewhere in between. Purely from a consideration of the logic of representation as justice, maybe there is much to this demand. However, must not government legitimacy also take into account performance? Question like why the hill districts lagged behind in development should then be made the onus for state leaders to answer credibly, regardless of whether she or he is from the hills or the valley. This latter question is where the China allusion comes in. In China, according to Mehta’s insightful observations, the challenges of legitimacy before the government are quite different. It leaders are nominated hence the only way they can win this legitimacy is through performance and accountability. Since they are nominated, they can also be removed by the appointing authority, unlike the elected leaders in India who often hide behind the claim of enjoying the “people’s mandate”. Because of this, the nature of their motivation and drive are radically different. This onerous expectation has even led China in recent times to treat Capitalism and Communism not as ideologies, but as instruments of development, to be administered in measured doses as per the developmental needs of the society. In our situation, this quest for legitimacy would be somewhat similar to that of a President’s Rule scenario when a nominated Governor runs the civil administration. He too must have to seek his legitimacy through performance and accountability alone. No state can know this better than Manipur. The Chinese system too has its flaws, but we have no doubt many will agree that there are lessons in it that can benefit our own outlook to what should constitute good governance.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/discourse-on-legitimacy/

The intriguing nature of identity continues to fascinate scholars and politicians alike even to this day. Endless reams of newsprint spent on the subject as well as endless series of scholarships on it haven’t been able to bring about a conclusive answer to what must be one of the most vexing problems of the modern world. If it were not so, there would be no need and reason why new thoughts and books on the subject still has a huge market. Identity still matters, and sometimes for what are seemingly unintelligible reasons. What then are the deciding factors of identity? Is it language, race, ethnicity, religion, geography, culture? While all of them are constituents, none or any permutation and combination or them, seem to be sufficient explanation for the phenomenon of identity. Yesterday quite a few of the deliberations at the memorial function of the 18 young men and women who lost their lives in the June 18, 2001 uprising to save Manipur’s territorial integrity were revealing in this regard. Some leaders of the many smaller tribes in the state especially were emphatic about identity being a matter of choice, asserting they would in the present juncture neither want to be identified with the Nagas or the Kukis or any other generic group classifications, and instead remain as themselves independently. We also know how many others in the past have, by the same principle, chosen to belong to any one of these generic groupings, and these choices have today come to stay. The point however remains that at one point in time, identity was a rather volitional choice than destiny.

Benedict Anderson, in his influential 1983 book “Imagined Communities” has more examples of this paradoxical idea of “choosing or else assigning identity”. The question of the Mulattos, the Caucasian European settlers in Latin America, mostly Spanish and Portuguese, who immediately lost not just their citizenships of their mother countries once they settled in the South American colonies, but also their primary Spanish or Portuguese identities is one such. Although speaking the languages of their mother countries, belonging to the same race and espousing the same cultures, they were presumed to have acquired a separate identity, and the distinctions came to be rigorously and sometimes brutally maintained. Similarly, it would be worthwhile noting that the war of independence that Americans fought was against their own forefathers. There was yet another reference in a different context to the phenomenon in yesterday’s deliberations by a Meitei Pangal. In 1947, when India was partitioned, some Bihari Muslims opted to migrate to the then East Pakistan, believing idealistically they were choosing to be part of a Muslim nation. They soon found out they had walked into what was primarily a Bengali nation. When the Bangladesh war of independence commenced in 1971, they ended up siding with Pakistan. Today these Bihari Muslims, numbering about 10,000, are an issue for international human rights organisations like the Amnesty International to tackle, having been deprived of even Bangladesh citizenship, although bona fide residents of the country since the time of its birth. We in the northeast also know of how a conflict between religious and linguistic identities at the time of the Indian partitition lead to the unfair situation of the Sylhet and Manmesing with a huge Hindu population ending up as a part of East Pakistan.

The point again is, there is nothing intrinsic about identity. It is a matter of choice. Let us then stop all these cock and bull stories of “time immemorial” affiliations and blood brotherhood as the basis of identity. If a genetic mapping of the peoples in the region were to be done, we are sure a lot of the identity myths would be blown apart. Let the separateness of identities remain, but if everybody was open enough, these separateness should be no cause for any fundamental conflicts of interests, as many are making it seem to be. “Identity as a choice”, also offers hope. It means, we can evolve rational choices rather than the blind, impulsive ones adhered to by most. Once the issue is put up on the rational, discursive space, meaningful discourses and negotiations can begin. The postulate of layered identities by Amartya Sen in “Identity and Violence: Illusion of Destiny” says as much. One can be a Meitei, a Manipuri, a northeasterner, an Indian, an Asian etc, in widening concentric sets, without any one of these components coming into conflict with each other.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/identity-not-intrinsic-2/

The acrimony created in the electioneering for the two forthcoming bye elections to the Thongju and Thangmeiband Assembly constituencies, left vacant by the disqualification of the their Trinamool Congress MLAs under the Anti Defection Law is unseemly and unfortunately. Perhaps it would be wrong to say this round of electioneering has been uniquely given to below the belt deliveries, for indeed such styles of negative campaigning has become a hallmark of a number of grossly immature politicians of the state, and sadly in this category would belong many who can claim to be veterans in the vocation. In the current scenario, the exchanges between the BJP and the Congress, each literally alleging the other of scheming to disintegrate Manipur, is in particularly devoid of taste or logic. It is everybody`™s knowledge that no political party in Manipur, except those ideologically bound to seek such a disintegration, and have very sectarian and ethnic exclusive support bases, such as the Naga People`™s Front, NFP, would hold such a view. No broad-based party with voters across the ethnic spectrum of the state can afford to think of embracing such a stance and win elections. The Congress and the BJP would belong to this latter category, and even if the fallouts of some of their policies have in the past caused public apprehensions, it would be extremely unfair and foolish to say these have been deliberate. They simply cannot afford to take on such a political posture and hope to remain as a major party capable of staking claim to form the government when electoral fortune smiles.

Our advice to these politicians is to grow up and act mature, first and foremost. They should get back to the serious business of politics and not regress to the infantile game of digging up each other`™s petty pasts in the hope of gaining political mileage. It is a game in which both lose. They should not take the electorate to be stupid, for they know what it is that has caused the society the most damage. Any opinion poll will confirm that the culture of corruption and loyalty switching these contractor turned politicians have brought in has been most damaging to the society, and are still the biggest threat to the state`™s moral integrity than any other agent. The harm these campaigns do by themselves in the long run is immeasurable too, for the bitter aftertastes do not wash away easily. They linger on to damage inter-community relationships, cause unwarranted mutual suspicions, create hostile fault-lines etc. It is often said, a culture of liberalism should be a precondition of a healthy democratic polity, for in an illiberal set up, democracy can divide rather than unite. The manner in which Eastern European countries, such as the former Yugoslavia crumbled upon the introduction of democracy, right before the eyes of the world is evidence enough. Democratic contests devoid of the air of liberalism can be bitter unnecessarily, and split the society into factions. Although it is unlikely this theory was current in Manipur anytime, intuitively the past generations have understood this divisive character of democracy. In school and college elections therefore, their advice to the youth was always to avoid elections and to try and evolve consensus office bearers to the extent possible. They foresaw that in environments still raw and immature, the divisions that election and electioneering cause will linger on long after the election and harm relations among the students. It is to everybody`™s dismay that this school boyish immaturity still prevails in Manipur`™s brand of politics and supposedly experienced veterans in the field.

It is however not just during electioneering that this immaturity shows up in Manipur`™s politics. Recall the manner in which an honourable MLA took it upon himself to assert on the floor of the Assembly that there were no Nagas in Manipur. Recall also how he had to swallow his words the next day when he had to issue a formal apology and a lame excuse that he meant there were no Nagaland Nagas in Manipur. For his information, there are Angamis in Manipur according to census records. What these politicians do not realise in the one-up-manship political games is the damage they do to the everyday relationship between the people on the ground. There are also activist opportunists inimical to the interest of the state, quoting these irresponsible statements to claim they represent the general sentiment of the people by and large. The harm that such plebeian political leadership have been doing to the social fabric of the place is immense. The best remedy at this moment is for these leaders to try growing out of their schoolboy mind sets.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/irresponsible-politics/

The acrimony created in the electioneering for the two forthcoming bye elections to the Thongju and Thangmeiband Assembly constituencies, left vacant by the disqualification of the their Trinamool Congress MLAs under the Anti Defection Law is unseemly and unfortunately. Perhaps it would be wrong to say this round of electioneering has been uniquely given to below the belt deliveries, for indeed such styles of negative campaigning has become a hallmark of a number of grossly immature politicians of the state, and sadly in this category would belong many who can claim to be veterans in the vocation. In the current scenario, the exchanges between the BJP and the Congress, each literally alleging the other of scheming to disintegrate Manipur, is in particularly devoid of taste or logic. It is everybody`™s knowledge that no political party in Manipur, except those ideologically bound to seek such a disintegration, and have very sectarian and ethnic exclusive support bases, such as the Naga People`™s Front, NFP, would hold such a view. No broad-based party with voters across the ethnic spectrum of the state can afford to think of embracing such a stance and win elections. The Congress and the BJP would belong to this latter category, and even if the fallouts of some of their policies have in the past caused public apprehensions, it would be extremely unfair and foolish to say these have been deliberate. They simply cannot afford to take on such a political posture and hope to remain as a major party capable of staking claim to form the government when electoral fortune smiles.

Our advice to these politicians is to grow up and act mature, first and foremost. They should get back to the serious business of politics and not regress to the infantile game of digging up each other`™s petty pasts in the hope of gaining political mileage. It is a game in which both lose. They should not take the electorate to be stupid, for they know what it is that has caused the society the most damage. Any opinion poll will confirm that the culture of corruption and loyalty switching these contractor turned politicians have brought in has been most damaging to the society, and are still the biggest threat to the state`™s moral integrity than any other agent. The harm these campaigns do by themselves in the long run is immeasurable too, for the bitter aftertastes do not wash away easily. They linger on to damage inter-community relationships, cause unwarranted mutual suspicions, create hostile fault-lines etc. It is often said, a culture of liberalism should be a precondition of a healthy democratic polity, for in an illiberal set up, democracy can divide rather than unite. The manner in which Eastern European countries, such as the former Yugoslavia crumbled upon the introduction of democracy, right before the eyes of the world is evidence enough. Democratic contests devoid of the air of liberalism can be bitter unnecessarily, and split the society into factions. Although it is unlikely this theory was current in Manipur anytime, intuitively the past generations have understood this divisive character of democracy. In school and college elections therefore, their advice to the youth was always to avoid elections and to try and evolve consensus office bearers to the extent possible. They foresaw that in environments still raw and immature, the divisions that election and electioneering cause will linger on long after the election and harm relations among the students. It is to everybody`™s dismay that this school boyish immaturity still prevails in Manipur`™s brand of politics and supposedly experienced veterans in the field.

It is however not just during electioneering that this immaturity shows up in Manipur`™s politics. Recall the manner in which an honourable MLA took it upon himself to assert on the floor of the Assembly that there were no Nagas in Manipur. Recall also how he had to swallow his words the next day when he had to issue a formal apology and a lame excuse that he meant there were no Nagaland Nagas in Manipur. For his information, there are Angamis in Manipur according to census records. What these politicians do not realise in the one-up-manship political games is the damage they do to the everyday relationship between the people on the ground. There are also activist opportunists inimical to the interest of the state, quoting these irresponsible statements to claim they represent the general sentiment of the people by and large. The harm that such plebeian political leadership have been doing to the social fabric of the place is immense. The best remedy at this moment is for these leaders to try growing out of their schoolboy mind sets.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/irresponsible-politics/

On October 15, the Myanmar government signed the much talked about Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement, NCA, with eight of its many rebelling ethnic nationalities who have been waging war against the Union of Myanmar ever since the country became independent of the British in 1948. India too was invited to be an official witness to the historic event, along with the UN, EU, and two other neighbours of the country, China and Thailand. Although many are sceptical if this peace overture will work, especially because a number of the most powerful ethnic rebel organisations, including the Wa, Kachin and Kokang have stayed away from it, there can be no doubt the development is momentous. S.S. Kaplang`™s Naga army, though on a truce with the Myanmar government, was not invited to the event, ostensibly on account of objections raised by India reportedly informing the Myanmar government it would not be a witness to a deal in which a group hostile to it was party. Other than Khaplang`™s NSCN, it is interesting, and indeed did not go unnoticed by international observers, that the other three ethnic armies which stayed away, are all immediate neighbour of China. Indeed, the Kokang are ethnic Chinese and the Wa, once the backbone of the powerful Burmese Communist Party, too are today more or less Chinese surrogates. It may be recalled there had been reports even as Myanmar was still under the military junta and the country had no mobile telephony or internet networks worth the name, the Wa territory in the north, quite outside the Myanmar junta`™s control, were already under cover of the most advanced Chinese airwaves.

There were other criticisms of the event too. As many wellknown observers have noted at the time, this peace deal virtually amounted to placing the cart before the horse or horses in this case. Under normal circumstances, the approach should have been for some kind of a peace negotiation to have preceded the deal. That is, after a certain degree of consensus has been reached on core issues and a roadmap to the ultimate goal becomes somewhat visible, a peace deal of the kind should have then followed. In the October 15 agreement the order was just the reverse. You make a deal first without knowing how or what the roadmap should be. The only two fundamental things that those who put their signatures on the deal document were, all agree not to seek to break up the Union of Burma and that the final truce will seek to build a constructive federal relationship between the states and the Union. These are very broad terms, but as they say, the devil is in the details, and although this is a big step, it can still hardly be said a final resolution is in Myanmar`™s sight just as yet. Whatever the hitches, we do hope the nation gets to resolve its insurrection problem once and for all in the near future, guaranteeing peace and justice for all ethnic groups inhabiting the country.

There are parallels between what Myanmar has achieved so far towards resolution of its internal problems and how India is doing this in the Northeast. In particular the recent `Framework Agreement` between the Government of India and the NSCN(IM) comes up for comparison. The same question of putting the cart before the horse had been posed in this case too, for it is apparent now that the `Framework Agreement`, apart from agreeing to agree on a final resolution, has no details. Here too, as many insightful critics have observed, the devil will be in the details, and already this prediction is proving to be prophetic. Nobody knows what has been agreed upon or if there has been any agreement at all, making everybody suspicious of what may have transpired. All we can say at this point is, we hope something works out to the benefit of all stake holders, and the alternate nightmarish scenario of one peace agreement setting off thousand other mutinies does not come true. There is another point of comparison, and this time in the approaches Myanmar and India have taken, and here Myanmar scored. It invited every stake holder to the negotiating table though not all responded positively. The Myanmar government therefore gained the moral high ground somewhat for it can now tell those who did not respond that they were not excluded and indeed they were still invited to join. In India, the approach was different. The government sought out the one with the biggest guns and ignored the rest, probably hoping that silencing the biggest guns will lead to the ultimate silencing of all guns. As to how problematic this can get is already beginning to be sensed in both Nagaland and Manipur in particular, but also Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/myanmar-peace-approach/