Are you Anna?

The recent Lokpal issue-led revolution by Anna Hazare has been a great victory for India. It has shown the world that voice of the people can be expressed in a peaceful nonviolent way to have an impact of historic proportions. For anyone who was not present to witness the pre-independence struggle of India, this was a great way to get a glimpse of what India went through to get independence from the British. In the age of sophisticated military and terrorist warfare comprising of unmanned drones, chemical, biological and nuclear weapons, it is great to know that the Gandhian principle of non-violence is still as effective as ever.

There are widespread celebrations across the world about the success of this revolution. Social media is abuzz with media, celebrities and the people congratulating the common man on the victory against corruption. I feel this is well deserved and appropriate. But this is also a time to reflect and see what this really means for all of us when the emotional energy fades away. I believe this victory should be treated as a first successful step in a long journey that never ends.

It takes two to tango. People have conveniently ignored the fact that the other side of corruption is us - the very people who are fighting against corruption. While the person receiving a favor or a bribe is always portrayed as the villain, let's take a brief moment to look at the other side of that trade. In many cases, going the easy route is usually a matter of convenience and is not perceived as corruption. Rationalizing by saying that the bribe receiver is forcing us to do it is no longer an honest argument in the post-Lokpal era. In a country like India the infrastructure, systems and affordability are equally responsible for the state of corruption.

Are you Anna? Here are some questions I want you to answer before you answer this question. Do you declare all your assets and sources of income to the income tax department? What do you declare to the customs official while returning from your trip abroad? What do you choose to do if you have to take leave from work to stand in line at a government office to get a license or a document? Do you offer to pay cash instead of cheque to get a discount at your shop? Are you a consumer of illegal software, music and movies? What will you do when your own son or daughter can get a life changing education if you take just one difficult decision? What will you do when you have a sick child needing urgent attention waiting in line for a hospital bed? There are countless such questions and the answers are not easy. It will take time for us to get there and the only way we can get there is acknowledging our role in the transformation process.

So let me ask again - Are you Anna? I think a more appropriate phrase to use is "I want to be Anna" and not "I am Anna". All I can say is, saying you are Anna and being Anna are two completely different things. That shouldn't come as a surprise to us because otherwise we would have seen at least a dozen Mahatma Gandhijis in 100 years. I don't want us to beat ourselves because of our shortcomings. Aspiring to follow a higher standard itself can bring about revolutionary changes even if we fall short at the fringes. But it would be foolish for us to declare victory saying it is all someone else's fault and we have solved the problem.

Micro-racism

Around the globe the western world is often criticized for racism. Some part of it is history. It is a tough legacy to overcome. It is a slow process and needs a lot of policy and social changes to eliminate and still there will continue to be pockets of traditional racism in the social fabric.

What is alarming is the failure to notice the micro-racism around the world. This is the attitude of exclusion and discrimination amongst narrower segments of the society. I have found the most appalling examples of this behaviour in India. You can call it protectionism or remnants of the caste system but it is just another flavor of racism and I call it micro-racism.

Attempts in Bangalore to ban non-Kannada movies; places of worship have been destroyed causing riots in the whole country; fanatical bias toward Tamil language in Tamil Nadu; Preferential treatment given to local people purely based on their last names, which in India reveals a whole lot about your origins. These are all examples of micro-racism. I say this not because I don't believe in keeping the local culture and traditional alive, but because of the chosen means to the end. Take for example the Tamil language. I personally find it one of the most poetic languages I have known, very much like the Urdu language. But it still doesn't justify forcing it on people.

The recent incidents in Maharashtra is an example of an age old political agenda of treating people from other states as outsiders. Believe it or not these are the same people who are reaping the benefits of their own children and grand-children bringing in the riches from immigrating to other countries.

Destroying the present and future to make up for the past is not right. I am a fervent supporter of local economies and keeping age old traditions and culture alive. But banning new change to keep old culture alive is not the right approach. Often the policy decisions made by government and religious organizations are based on emotions and not based on well thought through rational frameworks. I am surprised to see that having a good education alone doesn't equip us to leave emotions out of policy making.

I believe that the cause of micro-racism is that the local culture and people feel threatened and usually have an inferiority complex against the alternative. The philosophy of forcing ideas and culture on people is always easier than promoting it through free will. But it is not the best approach to nurture local culture.

Bringing out interest in local culture in innovative and interesting ways is the best way to keep them alive. The new generation has a crucial role to play in discovering the past and keeping it alive for generations to come through free will. You have to create a framework for people to discover and enjoy the treasures in the diversity of India.