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Downpour of apathy
Building a new Sri Lanka |
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iCon
Fears of revolt in Pak Army
Screen test
While no one would deny that something needs to be done to root out corruption, the methodology adopted by the Civil Society team for doing it is questionable. To voice aspirations of the common man
is one thing. But to ask that every rule, every system in place should be bent or broken is another
Govt was oblivious of public anger for too long
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Downpour of apathy
The
flood-hit in Punjab have been left to fend for themselves. Barring some half-hearted rescue efforts here and there, the administration is virtually missing from the scene. The Punjab government has doubled the flood relief amount to Rs 10 crore but the process of loss assessment and making the cash available will take time. What those marooned need is immediate rescue, shelter, food, clean drinking water, fodder and medical help. Punjab has a large number of gurdwaras where the flood victims, including children and the aged, could have been shifted. With the SGPC elections on, representatives of the Sikh “sangat” have by and large failed to reach out to their brethren in distress. Villagers have shifted to roads or other nearby places for safety. A far-sighted, helpful and sympathetic administration would have set up well in advance temporary shelters, used panchayat or school buildings to accommodate the affected families, which face dislocation whenever the monsoon is “normal”. It is not a natural calamity that has suddenly struck the villagers. They are victims of sudden water releases from the Pong Dam and the Bhakra Dam. While it may be imperative to release waters to save the dams, the situation can be handled better if advance warnings are given so that villagers in the flood-prone areas move to safer places in time along with their belongings and save agricultural machinery and equipment from damage. Punjab is known for community work in times of a crisis or a calamity. There are examples of villagers building protective bundhs to protect their villages from the menacing flood waters. But the government cannot abdicate its responsibility. It has allowed encroachments to come up on river beds at various places which hinder the natural flow of water. The rivers and canals have not been cleared or repaired for long. It is surprising that in a state faced with a declining water table little effort has been made to encourage rainwater harvesting. Successive governments have paid little attention to efficient water management.
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Building a new Sri Lanka
The
withdrawal of the state of emergency by Sri Lanka reflects the new confidence that the island nation has gained. The emergency laws, which have been in force for over three decades in some form, are no longer needed. As President Mahinda Rajapaksa announced in the Sri Lankan Parliament on Thursday, the country could now “conduct its affairs through its normal laws and in a democratic manner”. Interestingly, before taking the decision to do away with the emergency, President Rajapaksa took a stroll in a park in Colombo without the area getting sanitised. He himself drove down in his personal car to have a feel of the changed security scenario. This and his intelligence agencies’ reports must have convinced him that it was now time to end the siege mentality. Sri Lanka tasted emergency rule first in 1971 when Marxists tried to overthrow the government of the day. The emergency laws were withdrawn in 1977 but reimposed in 1983 when the LTTE emerged as an extra-constitutional force capable of derailing the system. The Sri Lankan Army had a tough time handling the LTTE, which at one time appeared to be not far from achieving its objective of having an independent state for the Tamils of the country. However, in 2009 the LTTE became a part of history. It suffered a crushing defeat — unthinkable some time ago — at the hands of the Sri Lankan Army. The return of peace is helping the economy to grow at a faster pace. An economy which had been damaged considerably because of the LTTE’s activities now hopes to record a growth rate of 8 per cent during the current fiscal year. The lifting of the emergency laws will help Sri Lanka to develop at a faster pace. But the main reason why the emergency has been lifted is the growing international criticism of the government for human rights violations in the Tamil-dominated areas because of the draconian laws remaining in force. The economic condition of the people in these areas is woeful. The Rajapaksa government has been accused of following a discriminator policy, which must be abandoned immediately. A democratic Sri Lanka must not discriminate against its own people owing to the ethnic factor.
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iCon
Apple
Computers is today one of the most influential companies in the world, and when Steve Jobs quit as the CEO of Apple, his place in the hall of fame had already been carved out in golden letters with his business and technical accomplishments. He will always be associated with the products that bear his stamp, the Mac computer, iPod, iPhone, and iPad. He helped Apple and its shareholders earn billions of dollars. Only recently, briefly, Apple had more money than the US government. Steven P. Jobs, who back-packed through India in search of spirituality during his early years, his friend Stephen Wozniak and, later, Armas Clifford Markkula Jr, worked in the 1970s to produce the first Apple computer. The Macintosh computer became the first successful computer to use the graphical user interface and Apple introduced many innovations that later became industry standard. However, on the management front, by 1985, Jobs found himself without a job at Apple. He was ousted in a boardroom battle and went to start another company called NeXT. Jobs’ second coming as the CEO of Apple in 1977 saw the flowering of his vision matching with the technological advances that had taken place in the meantime. He revolutionised how we interact with computers, listen to music and use mobile phones. He set new standards of technological innovation and aesthetics, and sold them hard, creating millions of consumers and earning billions for his company. The iPad fulfilled a need that users didn’t even know existed. Jobs really saw what personal computing means and what it should be. Innovation, smart designing, timing and above all, a commitment of making computers and allied devices easy to use, all these contributed to crafting a success story that has made Jobs a cultural icon. How Apple fares without Jobs is where the real test of his legacy will lie. He has a good successor and has built a good team. Thus, this too seems to be one test that Jobs will pull through with flying colours.
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Everything is sweetened by risk. — Alexander Smith
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Fears of revolt in Pak Army
Cricketer-turned-politician
Imran Khan’s fears of revolt in the Pakistan Army are not unfounded. Indeed, many in the Pakistan Army are increasingly viewing the war against terror as America’s war which Pakistan is forced to fight. There is also a growing feeling that the US is lording over Pakistan and treating it as a client state. The Pakistan Army is a disciplined force and its soldiers have a long history of acting in accordance with the orders of senior army commanders. Various coups, insurgencies and national emergencies have not rocked the cohesion and discipline in the army. Now because of the variety of factors, loyalty and discipline in the army are being severely tested, and fears of a mutiny in officers’ rank are mounting. In Pakistan, till now, says Prof Anatol Lieven, “(Pakistan — A Hard Country)”, there has not been a military coup from below. Every coup has been carried out by serving army chiefs backed by a solid majority of senior officers. Officers and soldiers of the army are keenly aware of the fact that it is unity and discipline in the army that has held the country together. Along with discipline and loyalty, fear of India is drummed into the mind of every Pakistani soldier from the day he joins the army. Thus, apart from the unforeseen consequences of a mutiny in the army, the fear that it will provide an opportunity to India to crush Pakistan appears credible and is widely believed by every Pakistani soldier. The Pakistan Army’s history shows that in the past commanding officers were westernised and secular in their outlook. Stephen Cohen in his book, “Pakistan’s Army”, has identified three generations of army officers. The first was the British generation when the Pakistan army was set up. They came mostly from loyal westernised families and did not hold strong religious views. After World War II, when Britain was not in a position to provide the type of aid which the young Pakistan Army needed, Pakistan turned to the US and this spawned an American generation of officers who were secular in attitude and un-Islamic in outlook. But the tide turned after Pakistan’s humiliating defeat in the Bangladesh war. And the American generation was replaced by the Zia generation. General Zia wanted to build up a devout and puritanical army and with that end in view allowed religious groups like the Tablighi Jamaat to hold classes and give discourses in the army units. Zia himself attended the convocation of the group — the first army chief to do so. The new generations of officers hailing from middle classes are generally hostile to Western ideas and receptive to Islamic teachings. In a sense, younger officers reflect the larger society and are becoming more Islamic and anti-West. Many of them are imbued with anti-Western, particularly anti-American, sentiments. Shuza Nawaz, a well-known expert on Pakistan’s army speaks of the emergence of a “different breed of officers” children of the lower middle class akin to General Zia’s own background who chose the service because of its economic and social advantages rather than military traditions. Now the American raid in Abbottabad and the killing of Osama bin Laden has caused within the army a deep sense of anger and humiliation. In a way, it was a projection of American power and a clear message to Pakistan to align itself with America or face the consequences. Drone attacks on militants within Pakistan have also been causing an acute sense of unease in the army ranks. It is said that using anti-American anger without getting burned by it has become a fine art with Pakistan. What is worrying the military leadership now is the sense of anger within the army is accompanied by a feeling of humiliation. Unilateral nature of some of the US decisions and action has added fuel to the fire. There is also growing criticism of Pakistan Army Chief Gen Ashfaque Kayani within the country and in the army barracks. His close links with the Obama administration have not gone down well with the army. The overwhelming opinion in the army is that Americans pose a danger to Pakistan’s national security, and it is time the military leadership drew a red line. The terrorist attack on PNS, Meheran, a naval airbase, in Karachi, has further exposed the army and the ISI to public criticism for sheer incompetence. Deflection of public criticism by blaming India or America is no longer working. Along with anti-American anger there is also sympathy for Al-Qaeda. It is not precisely known how far anti-American officers are wedded to radical Islam or if anti-Americanism reflects outright sympathy for the Talibani elements in the army. The situation in Pakistan is difficult and grim. It is rocked by ethnic clashes, jihadi terrorism and general lawlessness. It has become a dysfunctional state; its economy is in a mess and the legal system has broken down. Its politicians are derided as clowns. The army, though supreme, with its badly tarnished image, is sunk in gloom. The Pakistan Army is no longer as it was loyal and professional as it was before. A number of army personnel are members of the Jamaat-e-Islami. Some military and intelligence officers have been involved in assassination attempts against Gen Pervez Musharraf (retd). There is desertion and surrender of soldiers before militants, and there is a growing feeling among sections of the Pakistan Army that they are fighting against their own countrymen at the behest of the US. A division among officers on ideological lines is thus neither unlikely nor impossible. Such a division would hasten the fragmentation of the army. The split is likely to stem from the differences among the officers with secular or Islamic leanings. A strong army has so far held together Pakistan, but if it gets divided on fundamental issues like the identity and the purpose of Pakistan, or relations with major outside powers like the US, and disaffected officers join the radicals to gain access to Pakistan’s rapidly expanding nuclear arsenal, it will indeed be a dangerous
scenario. The writer, a former Director, National Police Academy, is a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Social Sciences,
New Delhi.
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Screen test I
was a student at the London University in the mid-sixties. Those were the days of ‘Hippies’ and flower power. Sending money from India was a problem and as a student the Reserve Bank allowed 600 pounds (about Rs 12,000 at that time). This had to cover tuition, board, lodging, travel and entertainment. I shared a flat off Kensington High Street, with an English artist (Bill Holmes) and a plumber (David Cole). Guess who was the richest? Yes, Dave the plumber. He treated us to pints of beer every weekend, at the Devonshire Arms, our local pub. I, in turn, used to make aloo curry with onions and tomatoes which we devoured with brown bread and achaar. To make ends meet I did odd jobs. Like delivering mail in freezing December early mornings when there was a Christmas rush at the post office. Most students did this to earn 30 pounds for 10 days’ work. I also worked as a loo cleaner at Ronny Scots Jazz Club in Soho. Horrible work, but I did get paid to listen to some amazing jazz. One Friday evening when we were at the Devonshire Arms, Dave was at the bar replenishing our drinks. He got into an animated conversation with a guy at the bar — a pot-bellied fellow (PBF). Bill and I were wondering why he was taking so long when he came back with PBF in tow. Apparently PBF was a film maker and was keen that I, a young turbaned lad, act in his next film. He had made films with all nationalities but never had a Sardar in the lead. He promised me 50 pounds for a four-hour shoot. A lot of money, equivalent to one month’s allowance. I asked for the script, he said just come to this address in Earls Court on Monday and we would take it from there. Never having acted before, I was reluctant. But Bill and Dave persuaded me to go for it. So I arrive at the appointed hour and enter this basement flat. The set was a bedroom, with a huge double bed. I am ushered into a corner for my makeup. This guy asks me to remove my shirt and proceeds to ‘paint’ a cobra tattoo on each arm. I ask who the co-stars are. No response. A few minutes later this gorgeous blonde walks in draped in a towel. She proceeds to the bed, and the director says to me: “Right, take your clothes off and sit next to her on the bed.” I am set to run away from this, but then thinking of 50 pounds I say to myself “what the hell”. So there I am in the clothes I was born in, with turban on head and go and sit next to my co-star. “Lights, Camera, Action,” says PBF. Nothing happens. He again screams “Action” — nothing! Minutes later I am heading towards the Devonshire Arms to drown my sorrows in a pint of beer. I had failed the screen
test!
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While no one would deny that something needs to be done to root out corruption, the methodology adopted by the Civil Society team for doing it is questionable. To voice aspirations of the common man
is one thing. But to ask that every rule, every system in place should be bent or broken is another The
Anna Hazare movement - I am reluctant to call it the Civil Society Movement, for civil society is much larger than this - is a remarkable phenomenon. The stir is slickly timed and finely orchestrated, and the pulling in of so many disparate elements into its vortex is, purely in 'marketing' terms, an achievement in itself. What one is witnessing day after day on the television is in some ways energizing: such a sense of commitment, such crowds, such enthusiasm. And all seemingly Gandhian; at least without any signs of violence, so far. Conflicting voices
There can be little doubt that on the part of the government - the other party, so to speak - the stir has not been handled well. There have been conflicting voices, too many heavy-handed statements, too much of incremental 'giving in' or 'yielding of ground', too little preparation for meeting the challenges posed by the scale of the movement and for gauging the mood of the nation. The Opposition is also not covering itself with glory: there is lack of clarity in its views; the impression is gaining ground that they are in it simply for gaining points; there is greater interest on their part in enjoying the present discomfiture of the government rather than in giving cogent thought to the long-term implications of a movement such as this. At the other end, for the common people, this is all a great spectacle, a perfect opportunity for venting their anger and their frustration. How many among the agitators or the sympathisers, however, truly understand what the intricacies of the issues involved are? The ambit of the Lokpal or the Jan Lokpal bill, the reservations about keeping some offices or institutions out and the virtual impossibility of implementing some of the ambitious provisions will always remain a question. A panacea is what everyone is looking for and hoping to get. But there is no panacea. All around, there is a welter of confusion.
In search of a panacea
From all this, however, one thing is emerging with clarity. Whatever the merits of the agitation, in the manner in which it is shaping it is questioning the very fabric of our Constitution, for that document and Parliament, which is so fundamental an institution of our democratic system, are being truly challenged. While no one would deny that something, something even drastic, needs to be done as far as rooting out corruption from our public, and private lives goes, the point is whether the methodology being adopted by the Civil Society team for doing it is right. To try and raise the level of our conscience and to voice the aspirations of the common man is one thing. But to ask that every rule, every system in place, should be bent or broken is another. What is the government being told, not asked, to do? Withdraw your bill and substitute it with the Bill that the 'Team' has cobbled together; this must be done by the end of this month; bypass the Standing Committee of Parliament; pass the Bill - not present or debate, but to pass it as it is - before the present session of Parliament runs out. And so on. These are diktats, not recommendations or prescriptions. And to agree to them, as has been pointed out in clear and cogent terms, is to subvert the processes established by our Constitution. There is need, therefore, to pull back a bit, I believe. And to reflect about long-term implications. In the energy that has been released by Anna Hazare's stir, especially among youth, there are great signs of hope. But that energy needs to be channelled, watchfully and constructively. Poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz once sang beautifully of the 'crop of hope' - yeh fasl ummeedon ki humdum - but then hinted darkly that it could also wither away as quickly as it grew: 'ghaarat jaayegi' were his words. Before that happens, there is need to nurture that crop with care and to help it turn into a harvest of gold. Perhaps Anna himself will think of ways of doing it, for he does have the ear of the young, it seems.
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Govt was oblivious of public anger for too long It
is said that when a pigeon sees a cat, it simply closes its eyes instead of flying off. Since the cat is not visible to it with eyes closed, it feels smug that the danger has receded. The government did something quite similar in the face of the rising public revulsion over the omnipresent corruption and ignored it for too long. It thought that the voices of protests were just storms in teacups which could be easily ignored, or, better still, suppressed through tried and tested strong-arm tactics. That is why it came to the stage where it had to eat crow on the Anna Hazare issue. Drunk on power, its leading lights ensconced in bungalows in Lutyen's Delhi never realised that Anna was only a symbol of the public anger. If it would silence his voice, somebody else would take his place. Worse than unleashing the police might against him was the vilification campaign. Manish Tiwari's fulmination that he was corrupt from head to toe was the ideal oil to the fire. The aggression proved counter-productive and helped broaden the protests, which otherwise might have been far less severe. Had the government been upright, this might have passed off as "firmness". But at the hands of the mega scam-tainted UPA government, it was only seen as haughtiness, which proved to be its undoing. 'Empire strikes back'
Ironically, there is a pattern to this "Empire Strikes Back" syndrome. All sort of enquiries are started against those who dare to say that the government is corrupt. Ramdev was a saint till he protested. Even Lalit Modi was fine till he blew the whistle on minister Shashi Tharoor in the IPL imbroglio. The message that went out loud and clear was that if anyone dared to protest against corruption in the government, he himself would be hauled over coals. If Anna Hazare's fast was blackmail, so was this tit for tat, and helped in adding indignation to public anger. The government made another tactical error. What was revulsion towards the politicians in general was allowed to be focused on the government alone by keeping away the opposition parties from the preliminary negotiations with Team Anna on the Bill. No party can claim to be squeaking clean but the ill-thought-out policy of the government gave them a chance to strike a holier-than-thou attitude. Not only that, it brought almost the entire Opposition together. The more the government shouted that the campaign was an opposition conspiracy, the more isolated it found itself. Even now, it is not too late to realise that corruption by a government functionary is the fountain-head of all corruption. When a minister takes his 10 per cent (if not more), he is giving an open general licence to the contractor to use substandard material. When a bureaucrat takes money on the sly for appointments and postings, he is making all his subordinates employ unfair means. The public is in a cleft-stick and one has to shell out money even to get what is one's right. While the common man who is forced to pay a tidy sum to get his revenue record or driving licence or ration card in time is given sermons that he should be honest, hardly anything is done to those who demand and accept this bribe. Ironically, he is told that he is equally culpable. That is adding insult to injury. Scratching the surface
When a man has to pay bribes even to get his due, he is encouraged to curry special favours from government functionaries by offering illegal gratification. A few cases of action against corrupt officials are cited as the shining examples of a clean-up drive. Given the size of the country and the extent of corruption, these do not even constitute the scratching of the surface. In any case, even the action against men like Kalmadi and Raja came about after nationwide hue and cry. In governance, what matters most is public perception. Ministers must not only be honest but also perceived to be so. Right now, quite the opposite is true. So many politicians have gone from rags to riches in such a short time that the entire class stands discredited in the public eye. The situation has deteriorated to such an extent that Mr Manmohan Singh's legendary honesty is being seen as no more than a mask behind which various ministers are looting the country. This image can be salvaged only through genuine action on the ground, not by unleashing legal eagles on the likes of Anna Hazare. The Jan Lokpal Bill may have many flaws. Perhaps it is not the answer to the problem of corruption in the country. Anna Hazare's fast may amount to "blackmail". But what cannot be lost sight of is that it came after a never-ending cycle of scams, scandals and corruption. The government should have seized the initiative with an even more potent Bill of its own, and made Team Anna redundant in the process. Instead, it came up with a hopelessly diluted "Jokepal Bill" and ended up smearing its own face with the accusation that it was going all out to protect the wrong-doers. The UPA should consider itself lucky that the protests are being spearheaded by Gandhian crusaders. If it continues to sideline them, there is a very real danger of the movement passing into the hands of the people who have no respect for non-violent means. That is a possibility which every right-thinking person should be frightened of.
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The cause is laudable: undoubtedly corruption in public life is a looming issue and there is a growing feeling - ably articulated by Anna himself - of there being lack of justice for the common man. The question, however, is: where is it all headed? How will it end? What would have been achieved at the end of it? If the 'demands' of the Anna Team - not so civilly raised, one would have to add, certainly not without a touch of arrogance at times - are met and a victory for the civil society is declared, would it be a pyrrhic victory where one would have to sit down afterwards and compute with care and sorrow the losses suffered?