Lost I

It has been a while I don't write except on projects' notebooks.
Death was, till May this year 2010 in Margão, India, the longer conscious inner insurmountable obstacle of my life. I lost my father when I was 17 years old and with his death my life dream died too but it took me 15 years to buried it and to be able to dream me again.
Last 10 years I lived in India where I dig deep, planted five beans like Jack and started to climb. Higher and higher I´m climbing, not reached the top so far nor the strange road that seems to lead to the magic hen, or maybe yes. India has given me friends and people that have reached my core in unimaginable ways.
A couple of hours ago I came to know that the girlfriend of a very special (Indian) man (to me) died at the age of 27. Their friends created a Facebook profile called "Remember (...)" X.
Death crossed my path in a different way today.

Amitav Ghosh at Goa Writers' meeting

(from left to right in the floor: Fatima Gracias, Vivek Menezes, Xavier Cota, Sucheta Potnis, Cecil Pinto, Damodar Mauzo, Alito Siqueira, Patricia Alvares,  Neeta Deshpande, Melinda Powel, Sachin Chatte; at the back seated: Amitav Ghosh, Himanshu Burte, Mafalda Mimoso)

Here is a picture of Amitav Ghosh at my studio in Panjim where were held most of Goa Writers meetings. I am the last one on the right side (blond short hair). I do miss GOA!

"Ghosh was also lavish in his praise of the Goa writer’s group which meets in Panjim regularly. “The discussions I’ve been to are some of the most interesting and informed discussions on literature anywhere in the world,” he said."

More at : Goa such a literary place: Amitav Ghosh http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/goa-such-a-literary-place-amitav-ghosh_10064719.html#ixzz0l6XTl92h

Artistic Freedom and Self-Restraint in India by Fakeer

"As for self-restraint being exercised by artists, in India the shoe is very much on the other foot – it is the self-proclaimed defenders of religion and community feelings, rather than artists, who need to exercise self-restraint."
http://fakeer.wordpress.com/2010/01/08/artistic-freedom-and-self-restraint/

Onde defecam as mulheres? - Cronica

Sentada na areia, o sol afagando as costas, o mar lavando os olhos.
Pequenos barcos de pesca salpicam o horizonte e os coqueiros quase beijam o mar.
Uma brisa suave acaricia o corpo saudoso de areia e de sal.
Caranguejos espreitam. Um corvo atravessa o ceu.
Ha um cardume no mar e passaros e homens a caca.
Um grupo de cinco mulheres e um homem aproxima-se da beira-mar. Duas delas sao jovens a quem a idade nao obriga ainda a usar sari. Maos em oracao desenham no ar tres circulos sobre o homem e sobre as outras quatro perfiladas mulheres. Entre as maos esconde-se uma oferenda que e lancada ao mar. As mulheres atiram um pouco de agua sobre as cabecas e o grupo recolhe a terra tao rapidamente como chegou.
Um pescador tenta a sorte sem barco nem cana. Agua pela cintura arremessa a rede ao mar e recuando espera trazer para terra o peixe que fugiu as outras redes. Outra e outra vez se repentem os passos hoje inglorios.
A brisa suave traz consigo um cheiro fetido de outros tempos. A vida aqui e feita de horas de hoje e de praticas de outrora. Os barcos a motor arrastam as redes em frente ao homem que sozinho maneja a rede na praia. Lavatorios de madre-perola e chuveiros reluzentes habitam as casas que os homens, que de cocoras salpicam a praia, desconhecem.
Uma pequena cova feita com o pe, levanta-se o dhoti ou o longui, olha-se o mar e solta-se o desperdicio. Uns passos mais ate ao mar e as ondas fazem o resto do trabalho.
Ritual matutino, vai e vem masculino que diminui a medida que a manha avanca e o dia aquece.
Onde defecam as mulheres?
Marari Beach, Kerala, India

Corruption and Democracy in India and elsewhere

The text that follows was written by a friend, an Indian civil servant. For those you are closer to India his thoughts will be easier to understand, but all who think about politics, democracy and corruption will be, for sure, able to relate with what he wrote. It starts off as a reaction to a video campaign against corruption that was launched in India but goes deeper and wider. Hope you like it as i did.

"While I liked the brilliance of the message conveyed by the ad by Alok Mittal, I wonder what the "target audience" would be? It will be seen by the masses and the masses would nod and agree. We will spit on the politicians and call them snakes or dung, as we like. But alas! It will not be seen by the ones who are going to select party candidates for elections. Even if they see this film, they won't get influenced.

To think of it, apart from appreciating this great ad at an intellectual / artistic level, how many of us would be giving the whole question a serious thought and try to find out the root cause of the whole problem? Even if we do, how many will be willing to do anything? Because it would require sacrifices - giving up jobs, education - even normal family life. At least I won't be willing to pay that cost. And I don't know any friend who will be, or whose family would allow that.

The reason why this or any such ads won't change the way candidature is decided?

Because a "politician" in any democracy doesn't drop from an alien star. He or she is always from amongst us and represents the true median value of the constituency. No matter how distasteful that thought, it is the truth.

When any "high command" sits to discuss the list of possible candidates for any seat, they have dozens of lobbies influencing them. These lobbies consist of influential people from the constituency under consideration. These are "grass-root" level influencers - the guys who connect with the common man / woman, take out processions, campaign, talk to people, fund campaigns, create ads, slogans, logos, banners - threaten, cajole, brain-wash, entice, convince the masses. They are the real mouthpieces of the "aam adami" who cannot be ignored.

In a Brahmin dominated constituency, no one will give ticket to a non-Brahmin educationist / saint / social worker. Because they know the janta would rather vote for a Brahmin criminal than a dalit saint. Reason? The majority vote bank would have several "holds" on a Brahmin than they would on a dalit. The candidate would be someone's son, nephew, brother, cousin, relative, friend ... The dalit would be an outsider. The same is true of religious, ethnic, social faultiness. After getting him elected, it would be far easier to get "work" out of someone from ones own community/social strata / religion / group than from someone from another.

In elite South Mumbai constituency, the voters from Pedder Road or Malabar Hill wouldn't want a "slumdog" to represent them. They would want a suave, "cultured", seemingly smart person. They would prefer sons of ministers, actors, etc. even if there are criminal charges against those candidates. In Dharavi, they won't want a builder from Nariman Point. From Shivaji Park or Dadar they won't want a Bihari and in Patna they won't want a Marathi Manush. That's the way it is.

Yet, a Kashmiri Brahmin (Indira Gandhi) had won a resounding victory in Chikamagalur, Karnataka while a Manglorean (George Fernandes) has long been representing Muzaffarpur in Bihar. Because the locals accepted them.

No high command can ignore the majority stakeholders' interests / inclinations / preferences. Wherever they do - their candidate loses. Not because of ancient things like "booth capturing" or "bogus votes" (these things don't happen now, except in rarest of rare circumstances - thanks to the might of ECI) but because of people's resounding mandate against the "wrong" choice in giving tickets.

Then again comes the question of who is a "criminal"? It is said one man's terrorist is another man's hero. If we look at the North East, so many of their leaders had been "militants" in their youth. They had charges of murder, arson, loot on them. In Jharkhand - several tribal leaders who fought the "system" and non-tribals to create the state have criminal charges against them. But didn't Shahid Bhagat Singh hang for "treason"? Is every Naxal a "criminal"? When we take away someone’s livelihood, self-respect, home and he takes to violence, he becomes a criminal. But aren't we also equal criminals?

Then we have candidates who have amassed disproportionate assets. Maybe we consider them worse kind of criminals - thieves who steal from the nation. But if you ask any economic investigative agency in India, there are hundreds and thousands of normal people - doctors, educationists, businessmen, journalists, lawyers, painters, movie stars ... who have all been caught trying to evade taxes, cheating not a few people but the entire nation. Do we boycott a film star who has been raided? Or a doctor who has been penalised for wilful evasion? Or stop buying a product of a company which has broken laws?

No.

Just as every software entrepreneur is not Raju, every Army officer is not Lt. Col Shrikant Purohit (Malegaon case), every broker is not Harshad Mehta, every cricket player is not into match fixing, every businessman is not Moninder Pandher (Nithari serial murders), so also every politician is not evil. Because a politician is not a different specie.

We tend to project our internal flaws, distortions and lump it on politicians because it is so much more convenient for our own conscience. How many of us can claim NEVER to have violated any law / statute, used influence, contacts, done "PR", taken favours or given favours, got carried away by self interest, been greedy or covetous, secretly lusted after someone, or given "bribes"? And we all know that by the Indian "law" giving and taking bribe are both "crimes". But how easily we hide behind the phrase, "But what else could I do? If I didn't pay the bribe, my work wouldn't have been done - I would have faced so much hardship." True.

It is the same reasoning businessmen would give for "funding" political parties. "Otherwise our business would have suffered." - Read it as "Otherwise we wouldn't be able to make as much money from our businesses."

That is why Gandhi said only the true brave can insist on truth or on non-violence. Only those who were capable and willing of taking a personal hit - of making great sacrifices. How many of us are thus?

Christ said, "Let him who is without sin, throw the first stone" and silenced a crazed crowd.

So, if we care for this great democracy of India - our motherland - we must look inside our own souls and throw out our worms. The "system" would get cleaned itself. The "system" is nothing but the sum total of individuals.

But a poor man will first worry about his food and shelter - only after that would he worry about hygiene. Similarly, till India reaches a certain level of economic development, our mass ethics will never be clean and consequently our mass based politicians - our "representatives" - will never be clean. Non mass based politicians like Manmohan Singh are already clean.

We can all do small things like telling our children what is right, that there is merit in honesty, that the country matters, that ethics matter. We can confess to the "wrongs" we have done and warn our children against it. We can start with avoiding small temptations to do small wrongs. Only this will eventually bring a change.

No its not a glamorous way of bringing change nor a quick one. But eventually only that will succeed.

I am reminded of Barak Obama's speech: ""Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change we seek."

The question each one of us should ask ourselves is, "Am I the leader my country should follow?" In my case, my soul answers, "NO!" And most people consider me a "decent" fellow. The problem is there are thousands of people who, when they ask this question get the answer from within: "YES! YOU ARE THE PERFECT LEADER FOR INDIA." And most of them are not half as "decent" as me.

But they are the ones who step out on the crease and bat for you and me. While I - and countless other armchair idealists like me - are happy to sit in the stands and clap or boo as the occasion demands.

Just as the Buddha wasn't the last great leader in India, or Ashoka, or Akbar, or Gandhi, so also I am sure there will be another one.

I remain hopeful, like Iqbal who wrote the immortal lines:

Unaan-o-Misr-o-Roma Sab Mit Gaye Jahaan Se
Ab Tak Magar Hai Baaqi Naam-o-Nishaan Hamaara

Kuchh Baat Hai Ke Hasti Mit-ti Nahin Hamaari
Sadion Raha Hai Dushman Daur-e-Zamaan Hamaara

[ Greece, Egypt And Rome Have Vanished Out Of Sight
But Our Name Lives On In Spite Of Time And Tide

Something Must Be There To Keep Our Name Alive
Though The World For Centuries Has Been To Us Hostile]

Please get your Election id card and vote. That is the most powerful weapon we have.

Jai Hind (and not Jai Ho).

Cheers!"