cutting labels

so we sit
and throw our tantrums
crying like spoiled children;
stupidly
noisily
impolitely
screaming
screaming
for justice.

while the mai-baap* government
plods steadily on
grand as a sunset
and inevitable
as death.

My sister and I can't have been very old when we started cutting the labels off our jeans. While it may seem like teenage defiance, I have graduated to cutting (visible) labels off my shirts, and recently, a new pair of shoes. We liked the quality of the denim, but damned if we were going to wear someone else's name on our butts. In the years since I left Shillong, I have been mistaken for South American, Malaysian, Indonesian, and more recently Samoan, Tongan, Fijian and South African. In the light of the recent actions of the Indian government with relation to the Bhopal Gas tragedy and the fiasco of the court passing judgement, the war on tribal land for bauxite and coal, and now the repulsive Civil Nuclear Liability Bill...I am almost glad I do not wear my Indian identity on my face.

Bhopal is the classic story of corporate cost-cutting gone wrong, though it has only really gone wrong for the people who were and are being affected by the terrible gas leaks of 2-3 December, 1984. Warren Anderson is free to enjoy his millions, safe in the knowledge that neither the Indian nor the american governments have the balls to go after him. And with Dow Chemicals taking over the assets (but *not the responsibilities) of Union Carbide the shareholders were taken care of too. I, for one, would have been stunned if the courts had actually made anything more than a token effort at justice, seeing how the CBI has been trying to get poor Anderson off the hook for years, and how it was the Indian Government that let the bastard leave the country in the first place, after they had arrested him for manslaughter.

And then comes the Civil Nuclear Liability Bill. As if it were not enough to demonstrate that large American Corporations would have no real trouble from our police or judiciary, the government (by the people, of the people, for the people) has decided that this might as well be made law. The insurability of an American Corporation, you see, is SO much more important than putting in realistic controls to make sure they are not over-burdened with financial claims should the equipment screw up. Capitalist exploitation at its beautiful best, the profits without the responsibility.

I have little understanding of politics, much less of economics. However it doesn't take a degree in biology to realise you are being raped; by the same government (by the people, of the people, for the people) that is supposed to protect you. I wish the stranglehold of corporates and national governments over our lives was as easily removed as the labels from our clothes. But here we stand, in the curious position of a person sold into slavery, not knowing whom to hate more- the bastards that sold you, or the bastards that bought.

NB: Cut a label...sign the petition against this bill.

*mai-baap=father-mother, a role many see the government as playing, particulary in the imperialistic scheme of things.

did you know that horses can't vomit?

This is not a land of mysteries. Like most places in the world, this was discovered before Columbus set his grubby feet on what is now called America. Kupe was the first here, they say. Then came Abel Tasman and Cap’n Cook. And now every blessed inch is freely available to view and critique on Google Maps. But inside, what about inside? Has Google mapped that too?

For most of this year, I have been cleaning shit. Yes the S word. Faeces. First it was horse shit, then human. Explain? What is there to explain? I was at the RDA, then at a special school. Doesn’t that explain it all? But listen. I don’t want to talk about shit, I want to talk about travelling. I want to talk about discovery and fear and flying. The knot in the stomach, the bile in the mouth, the insane spinning of the skies. Have you ever jumped off a cliff?

This began, as all journeys seem to, with the jumping off a cliff, a quitting of jobs, a trusting of fate to the winds. And what a journey this has been. Did you know that horses can’t vomit? Not that I’m complaining, mind you. Or that just like the rest of us, the disabled need care, not pity? That there are at least 22 Pa sites in what is now called Hamilton? That the koru of the Punga tree is also known as bush asparagus. That pine needles can substitute for straw when laying down strawberry beds. That you can be poor and happy. That normal is just what you usually do. That op-shops don’t sell just second hand clothes, but a chance to get away from the waste and pollution of half arsed consumerism. That riding a horse could be as good as riding a motorbike. That people who give freely of their time and money and energy need not be on the Left. Or rich. Or even young. That a funny song can make a point better than an angry poem. That the Japanese government is yet to acknowledge the ‘comfort women’ from World War 2. And that if you wrestle lions in your sleep, you probably can beat most things when awake. Did you? I sure didn’t.

And now, 10 months later, it is almost time to go discover another place. While I am a huge fan of Pearly and Cédric’s epic cycle trip through south Asia, I cannot shake the feeling that they went too fast. While Tasman’s name for this land has stuck, it is Kupe’s and Cook’s tradition that I am interested in- they stayed put for a while. And as we prepare to move again, I must remind myself. To stay put. For a while.

But it all starts with jumping off a cliff.

sharnarthi

to my shame, it took a student film called sharnarthi for me to be aware of events that occured almost in my backyard. made by rituraj sapkota as part of an honours programme, sharnarthi deals with the issue of ethnic nepali bhutanese refugees in nepal, and then in aotearoa new zealand. bhutan is georaphically close to north east india, and i knew many people from that lovely country as a student. pity it has taken so long to hear about this!

the film, like watani habibi i wrote about earlier, struck me as remarkably lacking in anger, at least on the surface. there was a lot of laughter, situational as well as on-screen. i tend to be an angry person, and this tone of gentility first irritated (where were the protest slogans, dammit!) and then charmed me.

the primary question the filmmaker seemed to be asking is one i can relate to very well: where am i from? even though the refugees are ethnic nepali, they consider themselves bhutanese, and taught the children the bhutanese national anthem. some of them, like rituraj, moved to india, and as refugees recognised by the UN are being resettled in other countries including the US, canada, australia and aotearoa new zealand. as a geographically mixed-up person myself, i have some empathy for the questions of identity this raises. where does one belong? what does one call home? as one of those interviewed in the film says, he considers himself a bhutanese nepali, but does not have citizenship in either bhutan or nepal. what he does have in permanent residency in aotearoa new zealand, and as any migrant will attest, that is no less fraught. this was underscored by the comments of another interviewee, who pointed out that once a humanitarian solution (relocation to a third country) had been reached the world would no longer care about a political/ideal solution (return to bhutan).

i loved that the information pamphlet that went with the screening had a few questions the film-maker wanted the audience to respond to in the discussion time. here are my responses.

Q: Does the film bring out the problems and challenges faced by the Bhutanese Refugee community during and after their stay in the camps?

A: it does, if the primary challenges are those of identity and an ability to settle down to a 'normal' life. possibly the UNHCR and aid agencies are looking after the more 'material' needs.

Q: Does the film clarify the historical circumstances which rendered these people refugees?

A: no, it does not. in the discussion that followed the screening though, rituraj mentioned that looking into the causes and history of the displacement was not his intention. (then why have this question here?)

Q: Do you think the film works for a global audience, both eastern and western?

A: as a person in the audience pointed out, some of the english spoken on the film may have been helped by subtitles. as rituraj responded, though, it seemed a little rude to 'correct' the english when subtitling the interviews.

Q: Do you think the film works for the people of the community and presents their case?

A: i asked rituraj what he, as representative of his community, would have us do. he responded that his own response was to make the film, and that he would leave viewers to their own responses and actions. while i respect and appreciate this position, it highlights the fact that the film does not present a 'çase'. not that i am sure it should!

Q: Does the filmmaker treat, portray and represent the subjects of the film ethically?

A: i think so. it was pointed out by someone in the audience that most of those interviewed were men/boys, and rituraj admitted he felt more comfortable talking with men. while there were sexual attacks on women during the events leading up to the exile, he did not know how to discuss it, and deliberately left it alone. while the film may have gained perspective from the filmmaker's willingness to push himself out of a comfort zone, i can empathise with the ethics of keeping to areas he felt able to deal with.

and that brings me to my complaint against the film - a lack of depth. i felt that many of the interviewees hadn't managed to go beyond the immediate facination of being on camera. i don't know if this was due to techniques in shooting or editing, or even if it is unfair criticism. please remember, i am more opinionated git than film critic!

during the discussion, rituraj mentioned that the indian media largely ignored this issue of the bhutanese refugees, and that in south east asia, if the indian media ignored something, it pretty much got ignored internationally. if this is true, it increases our responsibility as bloggers to talk about things that cannot afford to be ignored. rituraj has suggested that he may try and turn this into a longer production, and i would be glad to watch that when it is done.

I sometimes think the tragedy of north east India is not so much that we are under developed, or that India cynically exploits/ignores us, or that we are caught in the crossfire between Indian armies and the rebels- it is that our own leaders are so willing to sell us out. This has been a consistent trend across party lines, with sucessive governments, it just doesn’t change. Just when one was getting used to the horror that the government of Manipur and Ibobi Singh (with complicity from the ‘opposition’) is inflicting on the sate, now comes the news that the Meghalaya government led my D.D. Lapang is pushing for the UCIL to mine uranium in the West Khasi Hills.

And it’s not as if the resistance has any real solutions either. When the Khasi Students Union, currently the only group really fighting this, got timber felling banned, they had no alternatives to offer for people who eked a living out of the industry. A similar story here- people are selling their land to the UCIL (happily the government cannot grab it) because at least they get ‘something’ from it. So there are your choices- you live and die in extreme poverty or live and die with uranium mining. There, that’s democracy. And while the KSU stand makes sense, they have no alternatives to offer. The same story played out across- In Assam, Hiteshwar Saikia’s ‘Surrendered ULFA’ cause(d) as much terror (more?) as the ULFA, only they have government backing. Ex rebels Zoramthanga and the MNF have done little for Mizoram, and were routed in the last elections.

One can hardly ignore these things even- while it is sordid politics (as Cabir put it), real people are suffering. And how does one ignore that?

in search of another perspective

One of the things I have been thinking about a lot, lately, is about Colonialism and indigenous cultures. This is not to attack and aportion blame, but to get a better understanding of the presumptions we (I) make, and where possible, to challenge them. Nor is this an attempt to suggest that the West/North is evil and the East/South is good- I think all cultures can learn from each other, and none have all the answers. With the caveats out of the way, look at these two examples.

1) 1) The Zo tribes (spread across Mizoram, Manipur, Assam and Myanmar) were head hunters- they would bring back the heads of their enemies as trophies. My grandfather’s ancestral village is called Samlukhai, quite literally ‘[place of] head hanging by hair’. We seem to have been taught to be ashamed of this part of our history, and most people speak of this time as ‘dark ages’ of a sort. Reuben, a filmmaker/songwriter friend, recently pointed out to me that the issue with head hunting was not so much the taking of the head, as the fact that one had to kill the person the head belonged to! The problem, he said, was the killing. While we no longer take heads, we still kill in war, though no longer with the chem (machete/dao). Killing has become a sophisticated business now. And is it any more acceptable because we do not take heads? Shouldn’t our shame be the killing, and not the head taking?

2) A large part of New Zealand European art between the 1860s and the 1970s has been of landscape. This is a beautiful country, and on the surface it seems reasonable that artists would devote so much energy to capturing it. Apparently though there was a bit of an agenda here- the landscapes were empty. This served the purpose of the New Zealand Company who wanted to attract European settlers here, conveniently leaving the Maori tribes out of the pictures to deliberately give the impression of a vast empty land that was just waiting for the settlers to come and take over. By leaving the Maori out of the paintings, they glossed over the fact that this land belonged to someone- the tribes! A predecessor of the modern tourist brouchere, I guess.

The connection? In both cases, it has been a dominant Western/Colonial perspective that was generally accepted as ‘fact’, even to the extent where, as in the case of the Zo tribes, we beleive the lies we have been told about ourselves! Happily for the Maori, they have managed to hold on to many of the things they find important, increasingly challenging the Euro-centric worldview with appeals to their own.

This is what I am asking: what will happen to my worldview if i take off the red spectacles I have always (unconsciously, sometimes) seen the world through, and try green spectacles instead? What will happen if I deliberately look at the world through 'tribal' value systems (if such exist)? Will I come to a very different understanding of the world? Will it be any better?

I'd be very glad for company, whether you are a tribal or not. Care to join me?

you know how they say "let your little light shine"? i'm increasingly convinced that that's all well and good for reaching some degree of personal satisfaction (or irritating smugness, whichever way you want to say it) but quite pointless if change is the goal. earth hour is coming up, and honestly, the point of the exercise is BECAUSE so many cities all over the world are participating. of course it could be argued that this hardly dents the overall energy use. but the point is about mass movements.

so if you're gonna let your little light shine, go ahead; if you want change, geta blow torch.

buddha?

there's a certain arrogance, a certain naivety in thinking that one can change the world, a certain pig headed stubbornness in continuing to try. sometimes i think the buddha had a point. you can never change the world around you, you can only transcend it. the examined life is a little over rated-it only causes pain and confusion. leave the world to itself-it has figured its own way out before. before i came along with my story book idealism and hope. leave it all.

then again...

mautam

i called mark a few days ago, and asked what was happening about the mautam (famine caused by an increase of rat population, linked to the 48-50 year life cycle of the bamboo) in mizoram. he said it was the best thing that happened to politicians in 48 years. the corruption in mizoram being what it is, one worries how this year is going to be. while i cannot find statistics to support that accusation, there is a very strong perception in mizoram that officials are corrupt. this is a small society, and people tend to know each other quite well, and lifestyles are easily visible to others. there is an article on the govt of mizoram's information and public relations department's website that seems to take this corruption for granted!

an action aid report says that the mamit and lawngtlai districts are the worst affected so far. sinlung has a rather grim report on the sutuation, dated april 1st. mizosoft talks of a rs. 7.37 crore loss to farmers. in mizoram, that is a lot. and the situation can only get worse with the rains. while there are reports of the government releasing funds for aid, i wonder how much will reach the people who need it the most.

shantanu has written a rather good piece called 'silent tragedies we ignore' on mutiny. the last mautam that happened, btw, was the one that led to mizoram's declaring independence from india. and the indian government, who could not be bothered to send food, found it quite necessary to send the airforce and the army, giving mizoram the dubious distinction of being the only state in india to have been bombed by its own government.

this time round, however, it does not look like mainland india is the one screwing the people over, it is our own people. fathers, mothers, uncles, aunties, cousins. all ready to make a quick buck out of other's suffering. maybe there will be another revolution, another attempt at freedom. but this time round, who do we fight against? who do we declare freedom from?

IIM-A study praising Lalu’s Railway turnaround was paid for by Lalu’s Ministry

old news, but interesting! thanks to cutting the chai for this!

Responding to an RTI application filed by The Sunday Express, Ministry reveals: For 26-page report on ‘turnaround,’ IIM-A was paid Rs 4 lakh plus research expenses plus overheads; author was hosted by Railways across the country. It was IIM-A which rolled out the red carpet for Lalu after which Harvard, MIT came knocking

click here for full story

“India to set up National Rehabilitation Commission"

article on iGovernment

1) "...to minimize displacement of people and to promote non-displacing or least-displacing alternatives...only the minimum necessary area of land commensurate with the purpose of the project should be taken, and the use of agricultural land for non-agricultural purposes should be kept to the minimum...and irrigated land use should be kept to the minimum for such purposes...

none of the 'minimum' in this article has been quantified. who defines the minimum?

2) in my experience as a trainer, i know that adults are damned hard to teach new things. it even takes a good bit of drilling to get people to say 'sorry'. the government, however, seems quite confident that a few weeks (maybe, it isn't quantified either) training will successfully turn a farmer into what, a jhakkas tailor? a smart security guard? an expert auto driver? (no, that has not been quantified either)

3) "...preference to groups or cooperatives of the affected persons in the allotment of contracts and other economic opportunities in or around the project site..."

how many "affected persons" will have the skill to handle the 'economic opportunities" around the "project site"? for instance, how many of the displaced marginal farmers in singur would know how to operate the tata plant canteen? and even if they were 'preffered', how does one check the quality of their work? and do they get sacked if they don't perform?

there are aspects of this policy (on paper) that i like, though.

1) "The benefits under the new Policy shall be available to all affected persons and families whose land, property or livelihood is adversely affected by land acquisition or by involuntary displacement of a permanent nature due to any other reason, including natural calamities."

and

2) "Besides, the policy talks about housing benefits including houses to the landless affected families in both rural and urban areas."

...and the joke goes on...

singur bloody singur

ROFL. this really cracks me up. the calcutta high court has dismissed all 11 petitions against singur and the tata's car plant. the communists, of course, have applauded the systematic state led destruction of people's rights by a rich bastard corporation.

but the best part is this: "in a statement, chief minister buddhadeb...described the verdict as one that would...also help in efforts to raise the living standards of the people of singur and adjoining areas. alternative means of livelihood for those whose land had been acquired would be explored" (the hindu, jan 19, 2008)

"...WOULD BE EXPLORED"??? they have decided what they want to do with the land, ratan tata has been hailed as the goddamn messiah of middle class india, and the are going to "EXPLORE" what they are going to do with the displaced???

i used to think the communists cared about people. i used to think the tata's were built on some sort of ethical bedrock. i used to think the 'rule of law' made sense. now i realise it just depends on the money. all of it is for sale or rent-it just depends on the 'investment'. the law is a whore, and i could go to jail for saying that.

happy birthday

raise your pirate flag-SING happy birthday!

http://www.unhappybirthday.com/

saare jahan se (k)accha

i've always hated people who compare one place to another, especially dissing the place they are in. especially when comparing that place to a firang location.

however, after seeing public transport that WORKS, dammit, and streets where a pedestrian does not feel like a bottom trawler...

ah well.

brave new india?

sometimes i wish i were richer. could afford more. like a fancy education from a really good arts school...

i tell my trainees how things are so much better. how we no longer have to wait to get a mobike, telephone connection, job...

and then i see an article. that talks of how the number of hungry people in the country are increasing. and how this number grows, just as the sensex does. and how it does not make the news the way the sensex does.

and i wonder. is it really that important that i get a telephone connection fast? are "naxalites" really the 'bad' guys? what part do i play in ensuring the continued poverty of millions? can i make a difference? do i dare?

http://www.thehindu.com/2007/10/26/stories/2007102653981200.htm

cheers!

actually enjoyed that last 20-20 match. both teams played well (i think) and the whole thing had that on the edge feel i normally associate with world cup football finals. hell yeah, i even cheered for the indian team (regardless of the fact that 1. i've never particularly liked cricket, and 2. i sent out a rather 'logical' SMS on why we should support pakistan). was a good game.

even better? i was expecting headlines this morning on how the indian players showed 'disrespect' to the indian flag by first pouring champagne all over it and then by not knowing which side was up. (i'm still not sure myself). no news, however, of any protests of that sort breaking out. hope this wave continues-cricket actually manages to turn interesting, the indian team actually manages to win something that matters, and the indian flag (and players) can get a drink once in a while!

cheers!

responsibility

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2007/06/responsibility.html

just read this link from saurabh's blog. though it is meant more for marketers/sales/advertisers kinda thing, its got me thinking. am i, as an artist/musician/poet taking responsibility for what i do? would i put my name on it?

sobering thought.

sheesh!

...and 2nd August feels like a lifetime ago. moved to hyderabad in september, and have effectively been offline ever since. hard times, for a while, with the despair of neither having a job nor any creative breakthoughs. the shiny black helmet is chipped and cracked now, and the straps grimy with dust and sweat, and khuang dum badly misses ahmed bhai. my poetry did not make the grade at yet another contest, and the first string on my guitar finally broke.

now that i think of it, however, the clearest, largest and most beautiful image that comes to mind is that of deepthi, who has refused to let me make love to my self-pity, who has refused to let my soul, heart or body starve, who has been a friend like i never would have dared ask for.

memories of deepthi's choclate will never again be vague.

to write or not to write?

ok. that has to be the worst title this side of sekspiar (watch me lapse into the assamese, kids!) the problem with a cliche-it says eXACTly what you want to say.

just finished looking around the blog world again, and guess what. half the world blogs. most of them blog poetry. most of the good poetry bloggers do things (for a living) other than write poetry. which is making that expensive (very very) and self indulgent (very very) degree in creative writing look like the kinda thing paris hilton should do.

but i can't stop writing, can i. i could break more bottles, i guess. argh.

whom should i fear?

whom should i fear?
the virus,
or the spam i get from people who would protect me?

crime,
or the harrassment from the people who would protect me?

resistance

i have been talking for quite a while about resistance for the sake of resistance. just like india needed an opening up of the economy, the older free economies seem to be getting out of control. point being-if one gets stuck with a particular ideology (in this case capitalism vs. socialism) it hardly serves the purpose, as both systems (like ALL systems) are capable of easily turning into despotic ones. i know circles where drinking (alcohol) is taboo, and others where non-drinkers are looked down on. both sides are silly.

point being. i've been thinking about piracy, and how it is the most popular and most accessible form of resistance to the "big corporations". i walked into a levi's store the other day, and saw a pair of jeans i liked. the price tag? rs. 9500 something. with that money, i could go back to shillong and buy 9 pairs of the same damn thing (travel included). yep. pirated. with ANY label you want. and the same quality.

thing is, thats buying into the same damn dream, no? whether i wear original or fake levi's, i am promoting levi's, and feeding the lie. so. look for quality jeans, just avoid the brands.

damn thing is...easier said than done!