One of the things that always strikes me when I travel abroad is how systematic and process driven everything is. The frustrating side of it is when you try to ask someone to bend the rules even a trifle, you are usually greeted with an incomprehending shrug almost implying that you are from Mars or something equally outlandish! Maybe you have wondered (as I have) about who makes these systems. Surely they are smarter and more flexible than the sheep who follow them! Asimov wrote a wonderful story on this theme called 'Education' where the idea was that a truly creative person WILL create. At the expense of great personal difficulty and even social ostracism. And then he will be the REAL leader. The one who creates systems, not follows them. Many years ago I wrote a poem about a similar thought. My memory fails me as to the exact words but it went something like this:
The leaves fall down,
Slowly floating down to the ground.
If two thousand two hundred and twenty two
Could sacrifice themselves
Could one alone be different?
This difference, this inner vision, this innate conviction. That is what makes for true leadership!
Debu Bhatnagar - Observer, Analyst, Sceptic, Alternate View.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Friday, August 19, 2011
Anna Hazare
What is this phenomenon called Anna Hazare? Why does his 'movement' attract so many people? What will be the possible outcome of this struggle?
First and foremost. People are sick of corruption. They are sick of misgovernance. They are sick of politicians, policemen and other aspects of the 'State' that governs us. And they do not know what to do about it.
Who is Anna Hazare? He evokes the symbolism of the Mahatma by the way he dresses. His poor diction makes him endearing and his age makes him an object of respect. His followers - Kejriwal, Bhushan and Bedi are shrewd tacticians who have succesfully used Anna's image for driving towards their own objectives.
Indians love democracy but they hate politicians. In other words, many of us feel that the 'Structure' of democratic institutions - parliamentary democracy, judicial institutions etc do not work. It's not that we want a dictatorship. We want a catharsis, a cleansing of the body politic. A reform of the way that Democracy works in India.
Anna offers hope for that. Corruption is an emotionally charged issue with which Anna and his team seeks to drive a stake through the heart of the corrupt edifice that democracy has become in India.
Make no mistake. Anna and his team have a larger agenda - Reform of India's moribund democratic institutions is what they are driving at. Corruption is only the first of the issues that will come up in the succeeding months.
First and foremost. People are sick of corruption. They are sick of misgovernance. They are sick of politicians, policemen and other aspects of the 'State' that governs us. And they do not know what to do about it.
Who is Anna Hazare? He evokes the symbolism of the Mahatma by the way he dresses. His poor diction makes him endearing and his age makes him an object of respect. His followers - Kejriwal, Bhushan and Bedi are shrewd tacticians who have succesfully used Anna's image for driving towards their own objectives.
Indians love democracy but they hate politicians. In other words, many of us feel that the 'Structure' of democratic institutions - parliamentary democracy, judicial institutions etc do not work. It's not that we want a dictatorship. We want a catharsis, a cleansing of the body politic. A reform of the way that Democracy works in India.
Anna offers hope for that. Corruption is an emotionally charged issue with which Anna and his team seeks to drive a stake through the heart of the corrupt edifice that democracy has become in India.
Make no mistake. Anna and his team have a larger agenda - Reform of India's moribund democratic institutions is what they are driving at. Corruption is only the first of the issues that will come up in the succeeding months.
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