As a rambler I hesitated to take on the subject of Terror for my blog. Then I see that the editor of Guru Magazine (Bangkok Post) has written to Santa asking for many things for Christmas and eighth on the wish list is for a definition of the word 'terrorism'. While he has written this in a lighter vein, I am still relieved that I am not the only one who is confused.
There is so much written about the Mumbai Terror that I still keep getting fws. on the subject. I admired the one written by Payoshi Roy, Class XI, Bishop Cottons Girls School, Bangalore and forwarded it to others. (I know most of you abhor Fws.) Her purpose: 'We are here to figure out what exactly is wrong with us, because it is evident that there is something horribly amiss in this country and it's people'.
She is very clear about our faults. 'Discrimination is sadly practiced in every nook and corner of our country. We think it's insignificant, we think that it's just the way people are. It is discrimination when the age-old story of Hindu parents refusing to marry their daughter into a Muslim family repeats itself. It is discrimination when parents of Muslim children refuse to sing Hindu bhajans. It is discrimination when Christians refuse to participate in Hindu and Muslim festivals. All of this is discrimination. And every form of terrorism and extremism finds it's roots in this kind of discrimination, which is practiced in each and every one of our homes. That is why we need to look at our homes and our thinking before we cry out in rage and protest against the government and security forces'.
She has made some dire predictions: In another 60 years we'll have Bihari terrorists attacking Maharashtra and Maharashtrian terrorist retaliating. Next we'll have border security squadrons for our state borders.
And she is very clear about the reason for our sorry state: You want to know what the problem with India is? We're cowards. We don't think as a single nation and we can't stand up for what's right. Pretty hard stuff coming from a Kid. (Sorry I called her a boy when I sent out her article and got a lot of flak for that!). She also adds: 'We have enough and more to say about Manmohan Singh and Advani and every other useless politician and rightly so. But the fact is that in all honesty we couldn't care less. The best of us don't vote, don't contest in elections and don't even help out N.G.O.s When we can't do anything for our country how dare we, I repeat, how dare we expect anyone else to do anything.We can go on talking about stepping up security, straightening out our coast guards and eradicating terrorism. But the problem lies not in our security system but in us. It lies in our madrassas, in our temples, in our schools in our homes and in our minds. And until we realize our role, until we open our eyes to this truth, not a thing will change.
Finally her clarion call warmed my heart and many others who reacted to her article, she says: 'Everyone talks about this new India, a shining progressive and young India. Well it's time for Young, New and Shining India to prove herself. Stand up and prove your worth. This so- called liberal and progressive thinking generation needs to root out those weeds that grow in the oldest corners our gardens. We need to start thinking and start talking. Talking to ourselves and to others. We need to start doing. This has to be a national youth movement. We have to make it the beginning of a revolution. Every historic movement starts like this. Vague, uncertain and hesitant but moving towards a common calling motivated by the same inspiration and dream. This is our chance.'
All power to her and those who think like her and act. She is fervent in her appeal. 'Well we've bled. Now it's time to get our freedom. Freedom from our own mindsets. Freedom from shackles we've placed on ourselves.'
Many were impressed with her passion, clarity of thinking and ability to connect. There were some who did not agree with her reaction to those who wanted action against Pakistan. She thought they were mad! Some wanted retribution for all the indignities Hindus have suffered throughout our history. (I was surprised to read that we did not think of ourselves as Hindus, it was others who gave us this title! http://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/h_meaning.asp)
While my heart warmed to her, the reality may be different. There are speculations that India would attack. Times of India, on 19 Dec 2008, quotes Global intelligence service Stratfor, 'It explained that India knew strikes in Pakistan would not eliminate the terrorist threat, "but that would not be the aim of any such operation". It added, "Instead, India has to communicate firmly that it will no longer tolerate attacks from Pakistan-based militants — whether they are rogue or approved by the state. Failure to do so risks emboldening the Islamists and their enablers, as well as a domestic political backlash. The Indian government could not live with either of those outcomes.'"
I was talking to Jogesh, my niece Lakshmi's husband about the Mumbai Terror. Their apartment building is just behind the Taj Hotel. They were on a holiday and missed all the action! Anyway I asked him whether he had read my fw. written by Roy, a school girl. He said not yet and then asked me if I had the read article on the same subject by A. Roy in outlook.
So now there were two Roys viewing our predicament and voicing their opinions. While one is an young idealist the other is a seasoned campaigner. It is important to read this long article and all the comments to obtain a perspective. http://www.outlookindia.com/full.asp?fodname=20081222&fname=ARoy+%28F%29&sid=1
Here are some excerpts: "On one side (let's call it Side A) are those who see terrorism, especially 'Islamist' terrorism, as a hateful, insane scourge that spins on its own axis, in its own orbit and has nothing to do with the world around it, nothing to do with history, geography or economics. Therefore, Side A says, to try and place it in a political context, or even try to understand it, amounts to justifying it and is a crime in itself.
Side B believes that though nothing can ever excuse or justify terrorism, it exists in a particular time, place and political context, and to refuse to see that will only aggravate the problem and put more and more people in harm's way. Which is a crime in itself.
The only way to contain (it would be naive to say end) terrorism is to look at the monster in the mirror. We're standing at a fork in the road. One sign says 'Justice', the other 'Civil War'. There's no third sign and there's no going back. Choose."
Quite dramatic, but that is how our Goddess of Issues probably thinks is the way to get attention. She is right and we Indians really believe this is the only way.
I have also a link in contrast to my rambler blog for 'Arunabha FOCUS '. He is also an young idealist. At the same time, he has also the ability to be a part of that group of Indians who could craft a way out for India. He has the credentials and I am sure in time he will have the opportunity.
I should also mention Jogesh's comment also an idealist: 'What can you expect with millions (of youth) unemployed in both countries?' I think I agree with him. It has been our failure. Both with the largely democratic(?) India and the mostly dictator run country of Pakistan.
It is how you view statistics on our exploded population. We have around 300 million who are all alright! That is nearly equal to the population of India at the time of our Independence. On the other hand we have double that number who barely subsist and I read that we have around 300 million who are in total poverty.
I can continue in this train of thought, but I suppose it is not right to spoil your Christmas and hopefully a happy new year! God bless India and our Neighbours as well!
It had a nice authentic Chinese decor and was practically empty. We selected a spot over looking the colorfully lit lake. The whole place was active, with music and people strolling in a relaxed manner. A place to chill out as the young ones say.
The menu was on rectangular wooden pieces strung together, very artistic. Anyway as Mala looked at the menu she said 'My god this is expensive'. Finally she chose a pot of herbal tea. While it was not an elaborate ceremony, the hostess was gentle and courteous. The tea was excellent. I asked her if we could buy the menu scroll as memento; we could at 2000 Baht! The most expensive tea listed was around 9000 Baht! Wonder what it was made of or more interestingly, its claims to what it could do!
The final day
A visit to 'The summer palace, the largest Imperial Garden in the world':
I left home around 9.30 and Mala suggested that if I could I should also try and see the Botanical gardens. Anyway it could not be managed as we got stuck in a traffic with no one in sight for regulating it. It took us an hour just to cover about a km. I became cautious and decided to shorten my visit so as to get back in time for our evening flight. This meant that I could cover only a portion of this huge palace grounds. A pity as I missed some wonderful spots.
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| I could have spent the whole day taking pictures of the delightful old people |
I climbed what probably was an unofficial path to take this picture, it was not paved, but others were doing it. Coming down I needed to find a firm footing plus a hand support. This side trip meant I lost some time. Part of the sightseeing game!
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| The distant Pagoda remained distant. I could not get there! |
This place was magical. A young man was playing on the flute, the right music for the place and I thought heaven on earth. They called it the 'The garden of harmonius interests'.
There was no traffic on the way home as we reached in about 40 minutes as against the 2 hours we needed to reach there! Good in a way as I reached home and took off my shoes, Mala came in and said that Tara had just called and we could go and get her. The school visit was nice. True to Beijing tradition ISB where Mala and Bharat teach and Tara had her workshop was big and modern!
I noticed that we were passing a hutong, portions of it were fenced off with sheets and workers were busy breaking up the place. I had also observed as we were driving on the main thoroughfares, long stretches of new and painted compound walls. The surprise was what was inside the well made compound walls. They were old type of structures and the alleys were very narrow. Anyway there are no pictures as I was running behind Charlie who was walking at a brisk pace. We had to walk a little to the spot where Charlie had parked his car, a brand new Peugeot. We thought as Tara was busy at the workshop, we could drive around the olympic complex in the evening, so that we could say that we had seen the 'Bird's Nest'. I did take these two pictures as 'Dhristi Bhottu' for the amazing city! (A way to make people less jealous by deliberately keep some ugly parts)
The stadium was closed. However, it was a pleasant walk around the complex though a little nippy!
We also claim that we speak better English and that our quality of products and services are much better and so on. In fact, we spoke with pride that Chinese even visited Bangalore to learn about our IT industry. It seems somehow we have missed the bus!
My first China exposure was the movie 'Dr. Kotnis ki amar kahani' I saw as a kid. I do remember we were sad but felt good and proud that an Indian had gone to help in their need. I learnt that it was Pandit Nehru who acted upon a request by Mao Tse Tung to send them doctors. It is interesting to read the full story at this site.
Beijing is a clean city, full of open spaces old and new. We did not see any beggars. I did see a few women collecting recycle bottles and cans from the trash. They did not look destitute, were very small in stature and thin but were chirpy and reminded me of sparrows. They wore uniforms, surely part of the Summer Palace staff and the busy week end meant some extra income for them. Another woman while looking for bottles, took time off to read the newspaper that was in the trash bin.
I wondered 'where are the poor!' There were no slums or abject poverty seen. Tara said 'They don't allow them into Beijing. People need permits to live in Beijing'. Is it the perpetuation of the 'Forbidden city' concept, with only the borders becoming much larger?
I did not see any police around. I even wished they were there when we were stuck in traffic! I was looking for signs of the officialdom. There was no sign of them. I have seen more of them at Lalbaugh in our own Bangalore, driving cars and scooters, even honking and forcing walkers in the park out of their way. Probably it was a no-officials-day in Beijing.
People looked relaxed and reasonably happy. It was a pleasure to see the older people. They were special. Their demeanour probably defines the place better than anything else. All of them looked content. The Chinese way of taking care of their old is well known. I could have filled my blog with pictures of these old people as I marvelled at their composure.
Has life changed for the better for people stuck in the villages? RecentlyI saw a documentary 'Up the Yangtze' wherein I saw people forced to give up their homes as the water rose with the dam. I remember one businessman crying as he spoke about how officials had driven them out of their homes. But his final comment was 'I suppose it is ok we suffered, as it is for the common good of our people'.
I think it is this spirit that is driving the Chinese and the liberalisation that is propelling the country much ahead of India. It started around thirty years ago and the gap, I concede after my brief visit to Beijing, is increasing.
I asked Charlie, my only contact, about what he felt about his country. He obviously was very proud of his country and especially so after the Olympics. He said ' We were poor and not very strong, now we are not afraid of anyone'!
But, I was not successful in drawing him into a discussion on politics or the party. Finally, I asked him whether he wanted to be as powerful as the members of the party. He said 'Yes I would like to, but I do not know how!'
He was surely not cut out to be one such. This became more obvious when I saw on TV the premier addressing the Chinese parliament . The parliament was huge and very very orderly and again very impressive in its size! The members were all serious and grim faced. I do not think Charlie could act grim even if he wanted to.
On our return flight a person who was obviously an official occupied a seat ahead of us on the plane. The way he spoke to the Airhostess, while not loud, declared his superior status and the face of the Hostess was a study as she dealt with him. I guess she would have been happy to throw the water on his face instead of giving it to him politely!
Yes, I saw a few bicycles in the center of the city and there were special lanes for bicycles all over except the ring roads!
Charlie our dependable friend appeared right on time to drop us off at the airport. Sadly we forgot to take a picture with him! While we will never forget Charlie and his smile, it would have been nice to have his picture on my blog.
As we stepped into the new terminal 3 of the airport, the terminal is shaped like the character 人 which means people, we were in awe. It was the largest and the most modern and artistic airport we have seen so far. The feeling of space was unbelievable for an enclosed structure. The chinese really love creating space in their public places. It can be seen in the ancient palaces and parks, also in the new Olympic complex. The pictures of the airport are from the web. Courtesy, Steve Zhang, Wikipedia.
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| Arrival Level |
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| Departure area |
We also claimed that we spoke better English and that our quality of products and services were much better and so on. In fact, we spoke with pride that Chinese even visited Bangalore to learn about our IT industry. We were very confident that we would catch up with the Chinese.
The race is apparently timeless between the In and the C, the only two Billionaires in population. (There is so much written about this phenomenon and there are legions who are better informed than I am.)
However, my first China exposure was the movie 'Dr. Kotnis ki amar kahani' I saw as a kid. I do remember we were sad but felt good and proud that an Indian had gone to help in their need. I learnt that it was Pandit Nehru who acted upon a request by Mao Tse Tung to send them doctors. It is interesting to read the full story at this site.
I will go back to my impressions of the city. Beijing is a clean city, full of open spaces old and new. We did not see any beggars. I did see a few women collecting recycle bottles and cans from the trash. They did not look destitute, were very small in stature and thin but were chirpy and reminded me of sparrows. They wore uniforms, surely part of the Summer Palace staff and the busy week end meant some extra income for them. Another woman while looking for bottles, took time off to read the newspaper that was in the trash bin.
I asked Tara 'where are the poor!' There were no slums or abject poverty we see in India. Tara said 'They don't allow them into Beijing. People need permits to live in Beijing'. Is it the perpetuation of the 'Forbidden city' concept, with only the borders becoming much larger?
I did not see any police around. I even wished they were there when we were stuck in traffic! I was looking for signs of the officialdom. I missed them here, I have seen more of them at Lalbaugh in our own Bangalore, driving cars and scooters, even honking and forcing walkers in the park out of their way. Probably it was a special no-officials day in Beijing.
People looked relaxed and reasonably happy. It was a pleasure to see the older people. They were special. Their demeanour probably defines the place better than anything else. All of them looked content. The Chinese way of taking care of their old is well known. I could have filled my blog with pictures of these old people as I marvelled at their composure.
Has life changed for the better for people stuck in the villages? I saw recently the documentary 'Up the Yangtze' wherein I saw people forced to give up their homes as the water rose with the dam. I remember one businessman crying as he spoke about how officials had driven them out of their homes. But his final comment was 'I suppose it is ok we suffered, as it is for the common good of our people'.
I think it is this spirit that is driving the Chinese and the liberalisation that is propelling the country much ahead of India. It started around thirty years ago and the gap, I concede after my brief visit to Beijing, is increasing.
I thought I would also probe Charlie, my only contact, about what he felt about his country. He obviously was very proud of his country and especially so after the Olympics. He said ' We were poor and not very strong, now we are not afraid of anyone'!
But, I was not successful in drawing him into a discussion on politics or the party. Finally, I asked him whether he wanted to be as powerful as the members of the party. He said 'Yes I would like to, but I do not know how!'
It was obvious he was not cut out to be one such. This became more obvious when we saw on TV at the airport, the premier addressing the Chinese parliament. The parliament looked huge and very very orderly and again very impressive in its size! The members were all serious and grim faced. I do not think Charlie could act grim even if he wanted to.
On our return flight I did come across a person who was obviously an official. While I had no direct interaction with him, I could observe him as he was just ahead of us on the plane. The way he spoke to the Airhostess, while not loud, declared his superior status and the face of the Hostess was a study as she dealt with him. I guess she would have been happy to throw the water on his face instead of giving it to him politely!
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