Fading Anna

On this moldy wall, someone's expressed support of Anna Hazare is slowly fading away.
It made me wonder what is left of his campaign that made such noise last month.

He's still out there making speeches and other demands. But there's much less noise about it.

In looking for current news about Hazare, I found an article about another anti-corruption hunger-striker and noted that they published the strategy. It emphasized what is annoying to me about the "hunger strike unto death": No one is serious about dying.
“If you go on a hunger strike till death it has to be a very specific issue,” Ahsan said. “The objective is very laudable, but you are not going to achieve it in the 45 to 50 days that you can survive on a hunger strike.”
I'm not convinced that much gets done through hunger strike.

I'm still waiting to see what impact Anna has.
Wondering if he soon fades away with the graffiti.

Someone who makes a lot of sense about the roots of corruption is Vishal Mangalwadi.
Here is some of what he had to say about it:

"[There is] no regard for personal dignity and no respect for honest hard work. Merit is irrelevant in the culture of corruption, only appeasement matters.”

"He [Anna Hazare] is indeed following our great men and the gods that our sages created. They crafted our myths and legends – our folk literature – in their self-interest."

"In order to eradicate corruption, we need a different Messiah: one who would not extract his ‘pound of flesh’ but sacrifice himself for our salvation. We need a Savior who is a shepherd, who would redefine our cultural idea of leadership as servanthood."

It is possible to get rid of corrupt officials and jail corrupt ministers, but the challenge is to change a culture.

We are with you

After twelve days of fasting, the protesting is over.
Now there is no marching or slogan shouting. The main rally grounds are deserted.
Who won?
Supposedly Anna Hazare and his followers.
What did he win?
That remains to be seen.

Anna, called by some a "recently minted saint", proposed a bill for the parliament on anti-corruption and then took up a hunger fast.
The support for him was quick, loud and surprising.
To be Indian was to support Anna, "We are with you!" shouted people in trains, buses, parks, and at rallies throughout the city.

The protests reached my neighborhood also. Most of the marchers were middle aged, but there were also the young.

The hunger strike is over. So now what?

It takes more than words and a pledge to not give/take bribes.
It takes more than popularity to make a policy change that alters a nation.
It takes more than following the methods of Gandhi to demonstrate character.
It takes more than promises for true change.


Candles, flag waving and slogan shouting may be good at gaining attention--but it doesn't get to the root of the problem.

I'm not convinced that twelve days of not eating and becoming really popular are what cause people to value integrity.
I think a change of a much bigger nature is needed--a deep change of heart and of national character and values.

What was really won?
That remains to be seen.

Juxtaposition

This is an interesting picture.
Ah juxtaposition.

Prostester upon protester, and a giant advertisement.

Hanes: Comfort you can feel. Royal Concept.

The words do not match.
What comfort? This is a picture from the center of Kashmir with the feel of dissatisfaction, not comfort.
Royal concept. Is that what freedom is?

There are a lot of images coming out of Kashmir these days. Some of them very disturbing. Others heart rending.

And there are some angry people there who might be confused about the object of their anger. The rocks being thrown come closer to home than I would wish.

A part of my heart will always belong to you, Kashmir, but can we please stay focused on what it is you really want?

Unrest

I have been considering the word "unrest".

It all started because I read this article about the government leaders in Delhi scheduled to meet regarding the situation in Kashmir. It mentions the "three-month-long unrest".

So, in contrast I took the word "rest" and equated it to "sleep"--because that's the kind of rest I like best--and then thought: Kashmir hasn't slept in three months.

What if I hadn't slept in three months?
I would be hurting.
I would be frustrated.
I would not be thinking clearly.
I would be angry.
I would be stretched far beyond my limits.

It was supposed to be a holiday this weekend. It's Eid. The end of Ramadan fasting. There should be lots of eating and celebrating and visiting friends and relatives.
Instead everything is shut down, and the protests continue.
And violence.
If you burn the electricity office--I think to myself--then you can't pay bills, etc., your power will be shut off, and then where will you be?
What kind of Eid celebration is that?

Listen up, World: Kashmir is begging you to pay attention.

Stone throwing

The protesting in Kashmir continues and the rest of the world hears very little about it. But for them, it is ALL there is to talk about.

The article this picture comes from says that women have come out to join the protesting and that their sentiments are: why shouldn't I throw stones?
Why?
Because those rocks come from the walls that built your city? Literally and figuratively.

But I understand that an unheard voice needs to find a way to be heard. And Kashmir has been unheard for years.
That makes people angry. That makes people yell and throw stones.
I watch video like that below, with footage put to the song Stones in My Hand, and I do not know what the answer is.

Summer disease

The political unrest in Kashmir is like an infectious disease that flares up every summer.
I read this article in the Times of India and I thought about how it seems better for winter and cold weather to remain in Kashmir, for as soon as warmer weather comes, so does the protesting.
2008 was a bad summer. June and August, especially, were full of unrest. Curfews and strikes and angry people with rocks in their hands wherever you went. But when I watch this video, it seems to me that the young men with rocks are bolder than they used to be.
When violence escalates the way it has, there is rarely a right or wrong side anymore.
These are not "innocent" youths pictured here.
I think it must be a lonely job to work for the CRPF.
I think it must be awful to have lost a son to a bullet fired into a protesting crowd.
Living in Delhi means I have to go looking for news about what happens in Kashmir. People here go on as if nothing is happening. I do the same.
But I do remember the enforced stay-at-home days, the tires burning in the roads, the school boys who attack cars.
I may not live there anymore, but peace in the Valley of Kashmir is still something I long to see.

Nanis are protesting

A nani (nah-nee) is a grandma. This one seems very excited about something. I don't actually know what she's saying, though. It could be that she's telling everyone to go home and stop protesting. That would be nice--I hope they would listen to her. But probably not.

Today they are taking a break from the strikes. People are permitted to go out, shop, just get out of the house for a while. I wonder if this taste of "normalcy" is enough to quell the desire to renew protesting Friday.

Unrest continues

I can't get back to my house. After my trip to Thailand, I'm stuck in the capital city until things become more calm.

The city is under a 24 hour curfew. If I were to arrive at the airport, I'd be stuck there for who-knows-how-long. If I were to get to my house, there'd be no way to go out and get food or other supplies. Or to go out to teach, though it's near by.

I'm better off where I am for now, though I'm kind of done with living out of a suitcase.

More protesting

The protesting that ended last month has started up again; this time more intensely. The issues are causing divisions along Hindu and Muslim lines. A very volatile situation.
In many cases, the police are unable to quell the escalating demonstrations, and sometimes they are even throwing rocks back at the protesters.

There must be more to protest

Yesterday was a "quiet" day for protesting. The news is that the government is conceding to the wishes of the people, so while the roads and businesses were still all closed, no one was throwing stones in my neighborhood anymore.
There was still a demonstration of women marchers that went by. The story is that a local street sweeper was beaten because he wouldn't clean an area that wasn't his responsibility when he was told to. The man sustained head injuries and died a couple days later. The women were protesting because the wealthy, educated man who beat him was not arrested.
What were they saying as they marched by? "Allah hu akhbar", God is great.
He is.
Greater than all the turmoil and suffering left in the world to protest.

Angry people

Today there is a lot of noise and yelling. Several processions have gone by the house chanting, "Allah hu akhbar!", "We remember!" and "Freedom!" I have been staying in my house.
This video isn't very good, it's shot through the screen, but it will at least give you an idea of how the anger sounds.