The bombs have taken control of our lives and this as far as the impunity game goes, playing with the psyche, playing with the monotony of our peace of mind. As each bomb explodes or is detected, reason gives way to fear which conjures up hatred even in the mildest of humans. It is a very few who could assess anything in a balanced and calm manner but that would become indifference in the eyes of the others. As Arundhati Roy states in her essay ‘The Algebra of Infinite Justice’ on the world’s reaction to the 9/11, it cannot be called indifference but augury. ‘An absence of surprise’ but then she goes on to talk about ‘what goes around eventually comes around’ which is also true in the Sri Lankan case. The never ending vicious circle of violence and bloodshed. How do we deal with this fear psychosis? Can we deal with it when it has seeped into our very breath?
The Daily News in an article (June 4, 2008) titled ‘Declining Prabhakaran and the rising Tamil Diaspora’ authored by H.L.D Mahindapala, disgustedly states the ‘ingenuity’ behind the plan of the latest bomb attack in Dehiwala, that the bomb was hurled at the train in Dehiwela after the ‘Tamils’ had got off in Wellawatte. How can anyone get away with such logic? Are we that naive to think that Tamils only live in Wellawatte? What about the Tamils that live beyond? And can we for a minute think that the Tigers would spare the Tamils and pick and choose their targets especially when targeting civilians? The so called ‘liberation’ Tigers ‘the sole representatives’ of the Tamils who kill their own kind for an ‘Eelam’, which if won will only contain the graves of the people it supposedly strived to let live. From Nimalrajan to many others and Keith Noyahr today, we are appalled at the lack of respect for the lives of many who have braved to report the truth but as with all institutions and services that are supposedly for the people, the sad lack of ethics, professionalism and progressive thoughts are in a state of decomposition with little hope of regeneration. Even though, in this article the journalist attempts at highlighting interesting issues especially the phenomenon of Diaspora nationalism and emergence of voices of dissent, this one statement is enough to throw it completely out of balance. To me it is as an insight into the callousness of the journalist’s thoughts and beliefs and as Roy also states ‘the era of manufacturing consent has given way to the era of manufacturing news. Soon media newsrooms will drop the pretence, and start hiring theatre directors instead of journalists’.
The situation in Sri Lanka today is beyond clearly demarcated lines, there is no way to point out the perpetrator void of any doubt, there is no tangibility in evidence. So as we wade through these smudged out lines it is undoubtedly essential that we maintain a balance in thought, words and action. Today there is state terror as well as non-state terror and all actors carefully fit in a jigsaw puzzle of raw and unharnessed impunity. This is an era where wars have become intra-state and are fought for political goals in order to consolidate power based on ethnic homogeneity and where the forms of mobilisation are no longer patriotism, but fear, corruption, religion and the media (Diaspora and Conflict: Locality, Long-Distance Nationalism, And Delocalisation of Conflict Dynamics, Jolle Demmers). Sri Lanka is a glowing example of this situation. Today, press sensationalism is partly responsible for harnessing the support for war, especially amongst the Sinhalese populous. The lack of professionalism and political bias further aggravate this situation making it really a sordid affair. The press has the responsibility of informing the masses of the facts, which in turn should help them decide whether a war is justified.
But what is the solution to this mess we helped create? Can we further aggravate it with insensitive journalism and the lack of positive and proactive public opinion? Can civil society become institutions dictated by log frames and donor reporting and turn a blind eye towards public activism? Sri Lanka is ready for another people’s rights movement and it is up to the media as well as the civil society to help conceive and give birth to it.
Image courtesy: Jana Werner, ©2005 Endeavors magazine.
No comments:
Post a Comment