A little over two years ago, a street vendor in Tunisia named Mohamed Bouazizi protested against the municipal official and her aides who seized his wares, in the only way he could in a land that was being ruled by an autocrat for 23 years- he set himself on fire. The wave of protests that it sparked off lead to what has been dubbed as the 'Arab Spring'. In spite of the fact that it has not been fully successful in establishing democracies and answerable governments in the region, that single incident sparked off a series of protests and were met with heavy
government force injuring and killing many- to be expected in an area
filled with dictators who had been ruling these nations with an iron
first for decades.
No one in their right minds would consider these protests as only about demanding a 'judicial inquiry' into the death of Mohamed Bouazizi or about punishing those responsible for his death. These protests were about justice for the entire society, Bouazizi became a symbol for the entire nation and especially for the youth who were struggling in Tunisia under the autocratic regime of Abidine Ben Ali. The protests were about freedom, against tyranny and the heavy hand of the state that could not be tolerated any more.
Last week, India too witnessed protests that were compared to the 'Tahrir Square' protests in Egypt. These protests held near the President's residence and close to the buildings of various Ministries and also the Parliament building demanded justice for not just one person, but for all women. Just like the protests in the Arab world, it was about changing the status quo and not just about one incident. It was not about capturing the criminals who assaulted a woman, but about justice for all our sisters, mothers, wives and daughters. The government failed to realise these truths and reacted in a manner that suggested it was out of touch with the people.
What was the need of a judicial enquiry when the police had already apprehended all the suspects? Why did the government not make any movement for two days and treat it as just a law and order problem when there is a fundamental right to protest? Why could not the President or the Prime Minister defuse the situation by making a clear and bold statement as soon as possible rather than the emotionless statement and banal appeals for calm that it released only two days after the protests? In fact, it beats common sense that at a time when the nation was united in outrage against a heinous crime (quite unlike previous protests which were against corruption in the government), the government did not seize the opportunity to stand with the people and understand their anger.
Even now,attempts are on in certain sections of the media to project that policemen were attacked killed by a violent mob. The protests were highly peaceful with only a few incidents of vandalism and stone-throwing, but most of these too were instigated by police lathi charges and teargas firing. Anyone questioning the protests, their intentions and political motivation has got a highly perverted moral compass since they were only asking for justice and not for resignation or arrest of any political figure. But just like in an autocracy, we have a government out of touch with the people that saw their genuine grievance as just a law and order threat which had to be quashed. Hence the teargas firing, lathi charges and closing down of metro stations. What we saw was the heavy hand of a state repressing an honest, sincere and people driven protest and the protests turned violent only because of the government's refusal to leave their ivory towers and engage with the people.
If the government was sincere and smart, it would have realised crowds that do not have a political affiliation and created by spontaneous outpouring of public sentiment, do not have a well-defined set of rules, demands and a clear leader. They protest not just about one specific incident, but about the horrors plaguing our country. The best way to deal with it, or rather face the situation is to actually listen to the people and understand what they are trying to say. Then come out and make a statement, not read out from a prepared script, that says I understand you, your grievances and we will work together to solve this issue and then putting those words into practice. But to do this, the government must be able to understand the people, not stay away from them while going to them only once in five years. I do not think we have such a government of the people, by the people and for the people, the government response to these protests prove just that.
No one in their right minds would consider these protests as only about demanding a 'judicial inquiry' into the death of Mohamed Bouazizi or about punishing those responsible for his death. These protests were about justice for the entire society, Bouazizi became a symbol for the entire nation and especially for the youth who were struggling in Tunisia under the autocratic regime of Abidine Ben Ali. The protests were about freedom, against tyranny and the heavy hand of the state that could not be tolerated any more.
Last week, India too witnessed protests that were compared to the 'Tahrir Square' protests in Egypt. These protests held near the President's residence and close to the buildings of various Ministries and also the Parliament building demanded justice for not just one person, but for all women. Just like the protests in the Arab world, it was about changing the status quo and not just about one incident. It was not about capturing the criminals who assaulted a woman, but about justice for all our sisters, mothers, wives and daughters. The government failed to realise these truths and reacted in a manner that suggested it was out of touch with the people.
What was the need of a judicial enquiry when the police had already apprehended all the suspects? Why did the government not make any movement for two days and treat it as just a law and order problem when there is a fundamental right to protest? Why could not the President or the Prime Minister defuse the situation by making a clear and bold statement as soon as possible rather than the emotionless statement and banal appeals for calm that it released only two days after the protests? In fact, it beats common sense that at a time when the nation was united in outrage against a heinous crime (quite unlike previous protests which were against corruption in the government), the government did not seize the opportunity to stand with the people and understand their anger.
Even now,attempts are on in certain sections of the media to project that policemen were attacked killed by a violent mob. The protests were highly peaceful with only a few incidents of vandalism and stone-throwing, but most of these too were instigated by police lathi charges and teargas firing. Anyone questioning the protests, their intentions and political motivation has got a highly perverted moral compass since they were only asking for justice and not for resignation or arrest of any political figure. But just like in an autocracy, we have a government out of touch with the people that saw their genuine grievance as just a law and order threat which had to be quashed. Hence the teargas firing, lathi charges and closing down of metro stations. What we saw was the heavy hand of a state repressing an honest, sincere and people driven protest and the protests turned violent only because of the government's refusal to leave their ivory towers and engage with the people.
If the government was sincere and smart, it would have realised crowds that do not have a political affiliation and created by spontaneous outpouring of public sentiment, do not have a well-defined set of rules, demands and a clear leader. They protest not just about one specific incident, but about the horrors plaguing our country. The best way to deal with it, or rather face the situation is to actually listen to the people and understand what they are trying to say. Then come out and make a statement, not read out from a prepared script, that says I understand you, your grievances and we will work together to solve this issue and then putting those words into practice. But to do this, the government must be able to understand the people, not stay away from them while going to them only once in five years. I do not think we have such a government of the people, by the people and for the people, the government response to these protests prove just that.
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