Inspiration, Action and Introspection
Posted on 13. Apr, 2011 by Leela Raina in India
There is a power that strong words possess.
Words backed by passion.
Words backed by reason.
Words backed by causes.
People who use powerful words to convey their passion, move everyone they encounter and force them to join in their endeavour. One such voice is that of Anna Hazare, a veteran activist and Padma Shri Awardee whose campaign for anti-corruption has brought the country together like never before.
The world is changing and everyone is challenging the status quo.
But most of all common people are getting involved
They are tweeting
They are Facebooking and
They are mobilising for actions to change the status quo for the better.
The People
Along with fellow crusaders, Anna Hazare has drafted an anti-corruption bill — the Jan Lok Pal Bill — to create a law that banishes corrupt politicians and practices — from the top to way down — from public life. And as would be expected, the bill is full of teeth, distinct from the one drafted by the Government. So there is stiff Governmental opposition. Notes Arvind Kejriwal, one of the core activists for the Lok Pal bill, “This is definitely a bigger war than the one for the implementation of the RTI Act. This bill, however, can make them go to jail, will punish them for being corrupt. So obviously, there is a lot of resistance.”
Along with these traditional tools of staging a protest, the movement is also using social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to drum up public support. See www.indiafightscorruption.org to know in detail what the bill proposes and how toothless is the Government’s version. “Technology has surely helped us spread the word, particularly to the young lot,” he admits. Even Avaaz saw thousands sign the petition.
For centuries people have been bearing the brunt of corruption in India. After a point, acting against it was not an option for people, joining the dirty practice was. We, however, have failed to progress beyond thinking what we can do, what we should do, to make it true.
Anna Hazare
Anna has played his cards very intelligently. He had clearly expressed his point that, he won’t share the dais with any politician, so that, this whole movement doesn’t get politicized. And the kind of support he is getting today is only because of this stand of his.
The Cause.
He is advocating the Lok Pal Bill, that will form an autonomous authority making politicians (ministers), bureaucrats (IAS/IPS) accountable for their deeds. He is asking that the government comes forward to guarantee that this bill will be passed, a bill that has been delayed since 1972.Delaying justice to our nation for over 40years. He also demands that they make a joint committee to DRAFT the LOK PAL BILL. 50% government participation and 50% public participation.
If this bill is passed, a LokPal will be appointed at the centre. He will have an autonomous charge. In each and every state, the appointed Lokayukta will do its job to bring all alleged parties to trial in cases of corruption within 1 year. Within a maximum 2 year time frame, the guilty parties will be punished. Justice will truly be done!
I was struck by the similarities. The cause for better, clean governance; for a broader mandate; for effective action - is the same. The UN negotiations on climate change must deliver. Words have to be converted into actions. And the fight for a better cleaner, more comprehensive agenda was won at the Bangkok talks.
Moved by his words, I thought to myself, there has to be something I could do here at the UN climate talks which could be symbolic of the power of youth to make their voice heard. I wanted to do much more than just a blog.
Inspiration
The Chair of negotiations on the future of the Kyoto Protocal (the strongest legal agreement on climate we have), asked civil society for input on how to help Kyoto move forward. Fueled by the sense of Anna’s radicalism, I put on my thinking hat and brainstormed on possible solutions that could help. I jumped in, along with a group of young passionate youth and together drafted an intervention. While all my friends were at Jantar Matar showing support and signing the AVAAZ petition, I delivered the intervention at the stocktaking plenary on the closing day of the Bangkok Conference. This was my little contribution, in my own little Leela way.
Action
Anna is getting support from all corners of the country. People from all walks of life, whether they are saints, retired judges, social activists, bloggers, actors, other intelligentsia, and regular public are shouting their support for the new age mahatma. One of my friends says he is Mahatma Gandhi 2.0. Indeed, his personality is clean like Mahatma Gandhi, his cause is a noble one, he is getting support from everyone, and he is using the same method of protest that Gandhi used during India’s freedom struggle against British Raj.
His words moved me. His cause moved me , but more than that it moved me that he never gave up on his fight. BUT……..
Moving Beyond
Its always important to INTROSPECT. In order to see whether you’re being effective in contributing you need to measure your impact at each level.
Tweeting, facebooking and blogging is no longer enough, if you are a part of a corrupt system and encourage it, then no Anna Hazare can help. You need to take it to another level. The last thing you need to do is to politicize it, which is unfortunately happening now.
Anna Hazare gave voice to the frustrations felt by civil society regarding rampant corruption being either shoved under the carpet or completely forgotten. People came together in street corners, at crowded train stations, and universities in support of Anna Hazare; standing by him and demanding action. This proved that we are capable of striving for a common goal. It shows that the youth can stand up when it counts and this means that we will stand up for other causes as well. This is our starting point, to think much beyond Anna Hazare, to not get phased and not lose the momentum. This is the time for us to show concern for issues of poverty, environment and governance, issues that are central to our Future. Issues that will empower us and continue to empower generations to follow.
Everyone can contribute, by just being proactive in things they do in normal life. Challenge the MCDs or your local government office, or just be a responsible consumer.
It takes a man to initiate a movement but, it takes a nation to make it a reality! As someone on twitter said ,“This is the second freedom struggle of india, this is OUR freedom struggle”
Negotiator Tracker - Leela Raina
Leela is a young climate activist with an undergraduate degree in Economics. She has pioneered youth involvement, awareness and movements across India through her work with the Indian Youth Climate Network. A policy enthusiast, Leela loves to research and get to the bottom of the problem to resolve it. She is currently the South Asian Focal Point for IYCN and believes in the capacity of the south asian youth to usher in and lead the way towards sustainable economic growth.... read more»
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