Imsenperong
History is a constant reminder of our present world. It is not only a few facts of the past but it tell the realities of the people in the past. It is not even a history of the rise of empires but it is also the stories of the fall of empires. The main player in the empire building and its collapse are not actually the kings and the queens, but the people who builds and rebuilds. The kings and queens are in the hands of the people. I am not talking about democracy as understood today where a few elected representatives run the so called sarkar-government and execute everything against the will of the people in the name of democracy. Rather it is exactly a kind of kleptocarcy-a sarkar of thieves clothed in democratic clothing. This is not the kind of democracy that is in the hands of the people. But a revolution powered by people’s power before whom the power of bullet becomes useless.
The present people’s uprising in our state is not a new trend in history. It was and will be, provided that sarkar continues to neglect the people’s aspiration. As long as sarkar overlook the people’s will, people’s movement is the only option. The past is a clear reminder - the 1848 European Revolutions, often called as “Spring of Nations”, or “Year of Revolution” or “Springtime of the Peoples” whatever name it may be, it talks about people’s movement against regimes that keeps people in the periphery in the sarkar agenda. Often the economic imbalance resulting to unemployment of the masses and when the poor stomach is deprived by corruption or by the hands of the regime, a revolution is imminent and this is not only a single problem but sum of all social problems though it has an explosion point. It is the result of an outburst of the people’s anger against imprisonment of people’s rights through unjustified action.
To learn from the history, the books on people’s revolutions in the recent past are lying in our shelf. Some are yet to finish for the lessons to be learned. The Iranian Revolution of 1979- “The Islamic Revolution” or “1979 Revolution” as it is named, are hissing in our ears about the overthrow of monarchy by the people who experience economic crises. On the other hand the regime or the sarkar is seen by the people as oppressive, brutal, corrupt, and extravagant.
The Philippine Revolution of 1986 or popularly known as “The People Power Revolution” or “Yellow Revolution” lies in the same line with any other revolution, the vocabulary may be different whether the word is Monarchy or President or Regime it talks about a history of people’s agitation against repressive regime of decades rule or suppression of people through extravagant life style of the sarkar. Though the barrel sounds of the sarkar become louder than the people’s voice, the message is loud and clear. Graceful exits are rare in people’s revolutions, sarkar powers do not come simply and easily rather it comes only with the people’s power. However, people’s power does not simply dance over the music of cronies of the regime who are too rich, while the people are getting poorer. The music of the regime and the dance of the people should go hand and hand. However it is observed that it did not. People can determine for themselves that it is neither by monetary power nor by fraud means of the regime which hold together a sarkar.
The causes of all the people’s movement may differ from person to person, from perspective to perspective but the crux of the problem is always related to denial of opportunities, failure to provide humanly life and deaf ear to the people’s voice.
What is needed to turn a million people’s grumbling discontent into a crowd on the streets is a spark to electrify them. The present ‘unprecedented’ people’s movement of demonstrations and protests in our state speaks in volume about the people’s power to the state player. The protests may spark from a single and negligible one such as protest of teacher for salary or women reservation. However it is only the cap of the ice-berg that immersed in the ocean of social corruption. A chain of unrest is going on in the state as peoples lose their fear of oppressive, autocratic ruler and take to the street demanding fair play in economic opportunity.
The present Naga social climate is going through a rough weather as it can be termed as “day of rage”.
It is observed that, years of unbalance rule of law, growing economic inequality and rampant corruption as the main factor behind the people’s uprising. Most of the protesters are youth who are educated and unemployed. These young people are in dilemma as the sarkar do not invest much in job creation due to corruption in enormous scale. These young people age below 30 makes greater percentage in the state’s population chart, these young people are lost in their own land due to the failure of the Sarkar to provide employment, offer education and skill-sets matching job. This group of population is termed even by International Labour Organization as “lost generation”. They do not want to lose themselves in their own land as a stranger, they want a future- future that makes them a true citizen. But they are angry over massive corruption- the thief of people’s treasury. The protesters’ deep hurt in this situation is about the hopeless future and lack of dignity. The logic of the present people’s movement is about inequality and corruption in all social level. There is massive corruption and people find themselves unemployed so they have no future. This is the reason the land of festivals is now becoming a land of upheavals.
The special feature in the present people’s movement is not in a barrel that produces bullets and blood but the collective people’s voice against the state tyranny. Mahatma Gandhi’s idea of non-violence has a greater share though not in its fullness. In fact Gene Sharp- “The Politics of Nonviolent Action” found out one hundred ninety eight methods of non-violence on the study of Gandhi’s theory. To give a justified answer to these two social ingredients - violent and non- violent revolution is not a simple task and even I do not wish to cook that recipe but interestingly in every people protest the voice of people is loud and clear, and that do not simply die down unless the regime criminate anti-people affairs. While all these people’s upraising penetrate to our kitchen even our study table is not spared, do we need to do a guess work by opening our Naga political text book at least for cursory reading? The answer is probably neutral because we have century old British political professor in our political science class who has been teaching ins and outs on the topic ‘divide and rule’. However, with endless tsunami of corruption in all sarkar affairs do we need a social and political earthquake? Is it possible in a democratic state? Or does it happen only in a kleptocartic state? If it is legal (of course not) to robe and use extravagantly the people’s resources by a few who runs the sarkar than it becomes justified for the masses to revolt against the denial of their rights. Once it is said by people’s supporter that to trickledown revolution, the answer lies not in the excesses of capitalism or communism. But it could well spring from people’s movement. Is it not a wake up call when sarkar is cornered by people’s protest, failure in dialogue with people’s group? The present situation is very grim at a time when people’s representatives so called MINISTER who runs the Sarkar are in the black market to sale the people’s stomach to build their personal empire.
No wonder these few, who run the sarkar, act like sarkar, talk like sarkar, eat like sarkar. But the masses of people are not blind and by the time the people get sick of this, the sarkar will sink in the ocean of people’s power never to rise again. Revolution can be taken place in any levels, any degree and any forms as long as sarkar blurs the people’s future by corruption and creating economic disparity and unemployment. And it can take place anywhere and to any person who plays as sarkar. An individual home may turn to another “city tower event” (Dimapur) no matter even if you could convert it into “church colony” through mercenaries. No matter whether non-violent or violent protest, it is the voice of the people’s power. By then your court yard will turn into another public Square and even if you turn it to a “church pulpit” people will not be worried for that. And finally your friend will be your adversary and they will freeze you. What do you expect to profit from corruption? Venom with special blend of food flavor, I guess.
