Issues and concerns of youth

Dr.Athiqul H Laskar

Environment Of all the planets known to science and mankind, the most beautiful is the earth, we comfortably live on. The earth was created with perfect ecological balance. The primitive man did no harm to destroy the environment. There is a long distance from the primitive man’s era to the modern era of the twenty first century. When man became more civilized, he began to exploit nature. Exploitation in due course took the form of destruction to a great extent. Injuries inflicted by series of wars are scars on the earth. The earth is being damaged by man. Ozon layer is dangerously damaged. Water bodies are widely polluted. Disposal of nuclear waste is posing threat to health of human beings and the whole nature. Environmental protection is a subject of top priority of international organizations now.
While looking at the emerging world and the issues and concerns wrapping it, one can not be very optimistic and should not be pessimistic. Pessimism is a crime. Looking at the gloomy side of things is necessary for evaluation. But skipping the sunny side makes the onlooker a pessimist or negative character. Let us look at things with possible neutrality and least partiality.
Poverty:
The biggest concern of our times is gross poverty in certain parts of the world Namibia is a glaring example. Countries with lot of natural resources are not able to utilize it for the well being of the people. Cruel and Corrupt rulers who go after amassing wealth and enjoying comforts create hell for the people. The rulers and their families prosper. No means of living, no earnings, nothing to eat, falling health and no health care measures are visible signs of the miseries. Poverty and diseases have claimed millions of lives. Infants become skeletal and succumb to death for want of food and nutrition. Parents can not even bury the bodies of their offspring due to lack of energy to stand up. When things become the worst, the rest of the world know about it and send food supplies, medicines, doctors etc. to the suffering people. U.N. aids and aids from the developed countries helped to tide over such situations by minimizing the death toll. The same situation repeats with no durable solution for that. Bad governance, wrong policies, incorrigible and graft oriented fiscal system etc. are the stones which construct foundation for such unfortunate predicament of the people who do not enjoy even the natural rights animals have in their habitat - forests.
Peace under threats:
Threat to peace is an issue annoying all subjects, rulers, world leaders and international organizations. Palestine is a bleeding wound on the global body. Mind set of the majority of Palestinians does not favour war. When they are being repeatedly harassed, they will retort. Israel has the most intelligent people. One can not but wonder why they do not love peace. The Jews had suffered a lot in the hands of Hilter and Russians. They were wandering with out a land of their own. When they settled in the new Israel, they forgot their unfortunate past and lost empathy and sympathy which are the noblest qualities human beings have. The need of the hour is not truce and it is certainly peace. Who will make peace?

Unexpected developments:
Scandinavia consists of Norway, Sweden and Denmark which are considered to be welfare states. With vast national resources and less population, Scandinavia is free of major problems. Politicians/public men are answerable before Ombudsman and for that reason corruption is not at all a topic to discuss. In the midst of such a serene atmosphere, a Danish news paper published a cartoon to defame Prophet Mohammed. It was cruel. Islam is the religion of peace. Born in the desert, Islam suffered so much to survive. The prophet had to fight wars lead by his own clan-quereshis. The prophet exhorted his followers to be good human beings. There are a lot of peace loving people among Muslims. Surprisingly, a large section does not follow the preaching of the prophet or contents of holy Quran. Modern civilization was not widely acceptable to Arabs/Muslims. Turkey was the only country which kept in pace with Europe. Turkey became ultra modern and less religious. They have problems created by that. Bare materialism solves no psychological problems or issues related to sentiments.
Iraq is in grief after the fall of Saddam Hussein. Was he a tyrant? Answers are different from different points of view. He was a strong ruler but failed to make an amicable settlement among different sects of Muslims in his country. Kurdhs were always aggrieved and they did not conceal their hostility towards Saddam. Clan rivalry was a major threat to his regime. Democratic principles were not followed as Saddam was a ruler in uniform. Saddam will always be remembered as a ruler of strength and esteem. The serious flaw of his administration was war against Kuwait. It was not indeed war. It was callous trespass into the territory of Kuwait to usurp valuable wealth of Kuwait. Iraq became poor after protracted war with Iran. Kuwait was rich and the war was an impulsive misdeed or mishap. Due to that Kuwait was in ruins for some time. This particular political situation invited the pressure and presence of U.S. military in the Middle East. U.S. has no policy of going back from such places even if the turmoil ends. War against Kuwait paved a path for U.S. to unlawfully enter Iraq and gradually fight a war to topple Saddam’s Government and installs a pro U.S. Government. The story narrated on possession of nuclear weapons by Iraq was only to scare the world and mobilize support against Iraq. Fall of Saddam has not solved the problem of Iraq. Iraq has no peace. People live in fear. Thousands of people die in Bomb blast daily. The media report only a part of it. Iraq is unstable. Saddam was hanged in his own soil by a foreign power or their native agents. How cruel?
Iran is another country facing problems. International fora should objectively consider problems giving due weightage to issues involved. Attempts to incriminate Iran and deny the sovereignty vested in the people of Iran will not be welcome by peace loving people all over the world. When Iranians say that they have a right to be independent, who can object to it? Even if there are objections, it should be based on true state of affairs and with a motive to maintain peace. No one has right to force decisions on Iran. Iranians traditionally are good people. Problems began when islamic clergy began to decide rulers and issue fathwas. That period has ended. War with Iraq for nine years is a nightmare even today for the people in both the countries. How much of wealth was destroyed by the war? How many men died in the war? How many war widows had to be maintained by the state. Iraq and Iran could not heal all wounds of that old war, even in the twenty first century. All these give a message on the need for peace, durable peace. Iran’s ambition to be a nuclear power has to be in conformity with the principles and norms approved by international organizations.
Gorbachev’s rule ended with the disintegration of Soviet Union. Hard and fast rules with no consideration of human feelings can not solve problems. Chechnia is the best example before the world. Chechnians are being tortured fighting a war against them by Russians. But they refuse to yield and dare to fight. War has a bad odor. It spreads fast. It reaches places far away from the battle field and disturbs the sleep of innocent people who have nothing to do with the war. Chechnya disturbs the minds of all peace lovers.
Tibet for a long time is not a state of free identity. It is according to China, a Chinese territory and the Tibetans are traitors to their mother land. Who will come to the rescue of Tibetans? The problems faced by a section of Chinese who embraced Islam continue to be unsolved. When feelings run high, stubborn approaches fail to yield results. The Chinese are very clever, industrious and successful. But they lack soft skills for developing friendly relations with different sections of their own people. Tibetans are living in a state of exile scattered all over the world. A small section of Tibetans is living in different parts of India also. Tibet is representing the nagging pain of a helpless community. Dalai Lama is their spiritual leader and ruler in spite of attempts to unseat him even in exile.
Srilankan leaders are under the impression that they could exterminate LTTE. LTTE chose its end with atrocities committed with out second thoughts. Tamilians living in Jaffna and other parts are not enjoying human rights rather they are denied human rights. They are in distress. Third degree methods of Army, Para Military forces and Police have not spared even wage earners among Tamilians. LTTE was formed to fight injustice towards Tamilians living in Srilanka for generations. Tamilians live in Srilanka or the old Ceylon for nearly two centuries. Tamilians have played an important role in building up modern Sri Lanka. Tamilians never got adequate representation in the Parliament or Local bodies. Linguistic discrimination made them angry as well. Tamilian are very fond and proud of their mother tongue, Tamil. Tamilians are from Tamil Nadu, India. Mother tongue of Sreelankans, Sinhalese has its roots in Sanskrit, the language of civilization and great source of knowledge. It can be certainly inferred that Sreelankans had remote relations with India linguistically literally and culturally. No one bothered to find areas for agreement and harmony. Each group competed to find areas of difference and points for promoting hatred. Sreelankan Administration is not successful in settling ethnic issues and solving the human rights problems faced by Srilankan Tamilians.
Refugees from Srilanka living in Indian Camps narrate stories which would shear hearts of listeners. Insurgency, if relapsed, can take dangerous dimensions. No regime can boast of destroying all enemies or disarming all opponents. Rise of fighters against injustice occurs as a decision of history. It is a recurring affair any where, any time. Tamilians of Sreelanka are deserving humanitarian consideration and fair deal. Economy of Sreelanka is greatly in debt to these people. It is easy to precipitate things when sagacity is absent. To sort out problems and find lasting solution, wisdom and will to compromise are essential. Let us hope that wisdom will prevail up on Sreelankan leaders and they will put an end to the sufferings of aggrieved Tamilians of Sreelanka.
Bangladesh was created with great sacrifice of Indian Forces. Indian army fought with the Mukthi Bahini (Liberation Army) of Bangladesh to defeat Pak Army. Surrender of Pak Army was instrumental for the rise of Bangladesh. The family of Mujibur Rahiman, father of Bangladesh acknowledges the role of India in winning the war and creating their free nation. But majority of the people are not willing to accept this fact.
Hostility towards India is promoted by negligible groups who have vested interests. Flaws in the intelligence administration are giving room for terrorists to enter Bangladesh in disguise. In spite of lot of foreign aids, Bangladesh has not achieved the progress it should have achieved. Bangladesh has border with India on three sides. Poverty stricken people from Bangladesh cross the border and find a domicile in India illegally. It is not easy to identify all such trespassers because they speak Bengali in the same accent as people of West Bengal in India speak.
Pakistan was part of British India. Religion had no great relevance in British India. People from Calcutta to Peshawar and Kashmir to Kanyakumari lived under the oppressive colony rule of Britain; Religion had least importance in social affairs except the freedom to follow any religion. When freedom was on the threshold of India, Muslim leaders from the Sind region wanted a separate Muslim state. Against the will of Mahatma Gandhi, India was divided into India and Pakistan. Territories with vast majority of Muslim population formed the new state of Pakistan. Urdu speaking West Pakistan and Bengali speaking East Pakistan continued in disharmony till separation of East Pakistan and formation of Bangladesh.
Pakistan is in dispute with India on the issue of Kashmir. Recurring wars divided Kashmir into three parts, Jammu Kashmir in India, Pak occupied Kashmir and Azad Kashmir. The issue is not resolved. Pakistan’s logic is not true to facts. They feel that Kashmir has Muslim majority and therefore it should be part of Pakistan. History of the last century denies it. It is true that Kashmir has Muslim majority. It had a Hindu King till independence. The King did no harm to Kashmir and Muslims lived a peaceful life there. State of Hyderabad had Hindu majority. The state had a Muslim King called ‘Nizam’. There was no harm to Hindus. There are many other examples also. This is history and India has the largest Muslim population in the world. Pakistan encouraged terrorism and harboured terrorists. The commons of Pakistan have no peace. The internal situation is always tense. Bombs can blast any time and any where. Any one can be its victim. Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhuto died in a bomb blast or sabotage. Pakistan and India spent a huge part of the revenue for war or defense. If there was no war or threats, both the countries would have progressed tremendously. India has a democratic government. Pakistan government is, I am afraid, subordinate to its armed forces. How far is peace from India and Pakistan? Maoists are gaining strength in the Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh. It has disturbed the internal security of India. Maoists are functioning as outlaws. But the issues raised by them in respect of the needs of the have nots leading poor lives in the tribal areas and remote villages are very relevant. Forces or weapons can not solve their problems. Maoists can not be easily subdued by the man hunt operations of Police or Army.
Afghanistan is another example for the cold war between big powers. Afghanistan had a government supported and patronized by Russians. With its fall, clergy lead Taliban came to the helm of affairs. Defeat of Taliban brought in a new social atmosphere and Government. But Taliban would not accept the democratic government of Afghanistan. According to Taliban, Afghan government is a puppet government with U.S. behind the curtain. With out the presence of U.S. forces in Afghan, Taliban would have made it more bloody. Taliban claim to be fundamental Muslims who resists compromise with any kind of religious revisionism. Prophet Mohammed loved peace for the well being of his people and followers. He fought war when it was forced upon him. He never attacked any one. He only lead defence operations. He could have retreated. He knew that if he retreated, he would retreat to the sea shore and drown in Arabian Sea. That is why he had to fight. He was not a conqueror. He was a holy prophet deserving all reverence and honour. Let us hope that the life and messages of the prophet will throw light into the minds of people who are bent up on breaking peace.
Australia was a peaceful country. Now there are attacks against Indian Students by young Australians. Seats in Australian Universities are not filled by Australians. Only the elite among Australians are interested in education. Others are jealous to students from other countries who study and do part time work for financial support to meet the cost. Indians with the backing of their educational and professional background get good jobs and salary. This fact can not be digested by Australians in the lower strata. They wage war against foreign students especially Indians considering them to be enemies.
In Myanmar, peace is alien. Democratic forces continue to fail there. Any one who does not subscribe to the views of the regime has to stay home under house arrest or stay in a Prison. Things do not change notably well.
Thailand was doing well producing and exporting good rice and marketing Tourism. Of late, we are hearing the frightening sounds of gun fire and seeing blood stains in places including Bangkok. Peace is so much endangered and serenity becomes a dream.
Racism has not ended at all. Blacks suffer discrimination for traditional reasons and reasons of cultural gap. Obama’s elevation to the White House is a land mark in the social and political history. Even then the blacks are many years behind the whites in all walks of life. In African Countries also, the rich leads and the common black is far behind in the social race. In the U.S also majority of blacks are not a class with ambitions in life. They create a world of their own with all kinds of illegal and criminal tendencies.
North Korea and South Korea have started their fights again. A ship of South Korea was destroyed by a submarine of North Korea. U.S has promised its support to South Korea as usual. Asia has now more pockets of unrest than ever in the past.
Global Economic Crisis
Recession is the latest global concern. Economic crisis did not occur all of a sudden. Bad policies and executive idiocy lead big Corporations to grave yard. It started more than ten years back. The sudden fall of Enron Corporation was incredible. A company considered to be strong and wealthy with huge income collapsed to the surprise of the Corporate world. It was a warning to other corporations and banks. It appears that no one learned any lesson from the fall of Enron.
Management as a separate discipline was introduced after Peter Drucker. Before Peter Drucker also there were mentors of management. The conventional business man followed a very simple formula in business. Any business should earn more than it spends or spend less than it earns. If money is borrowed for business, it should be employed in such a way that there is sufficient returns to repay the loan and maintain the business with profit. This was a natural theory developed from the experience of businessmen of the sixteenth century. There were no text books available then to study techniques of management. Banks and big companies collapsed in U.S. The collapse can be attributed to sheer mismanagement. There is a principle that the net worth of a company can be calculated exactly only at its closure or collapse. A running company can create bad impression. Such impressions will not last. When the company is unable to pay dividents to the share holders, it means that it is the beginning of its end. Most of the companies which collapsed had a large staff structure with fat salary. It can be seen that no one assessed the income expenditure ratio. In zero based budgeting every expenditure should have a corresponding benefit. If there was no benefit, how did those companies incurred expenditure? The recession which began to show its teeth and nails in U.S, suddenly spread to other countries also. Thousands of people lost jobs. New opportunities were rare. People who lost jobs had to subsist with social security money paid an account of unemployment. There are countries like India where there is no system of paying social security money.
Gulf countries were forced to reduce workers and cut wages. All these created discomfort and alarm to workers and executives in the Gulf region. Any downward trend in the gulf region will reflect in India especially Kerala. Thousands of people from Kerala work in the gulf countries. Recession cuts jobs and wages. It leads to reduce confidence of work force and their dependents. The world is slowly recovering from the clutches of recession.
Injustice social, political and cultural invites resistance from the affected groups. Insurgency is a product of oppressive state measures and unbearable sufferings. Atrocities of the state open war fronts against it. Fair deal to all section of the society is an accepted principle of fair governance. The difference between capitalism and socialism has become negligibly thin. Capitalism cannot move with anti-labor policies and unending war with the working class. Similarly, socialism can not create a flat society with no difference in the life style of various groups. Life style is not dependant on income alone. Culture is the foundation on which life style is built.’
The greatest threat to mankind at present is terrorism. Difference in names or labels does not make terrorists superior or inferior. Terrorism is plaguing the global society. A large section of terrorist groups claim to be “jihadis”. Killing innocent people can not be called jihad. It is called massacre in the unkindest form. Cold blooded callous men’s fraternity for destruction and killing can not be any holy act. The so called jihadis are unholy sinners who do not get pardon. Attack on the world Trade Centre was indeed an invasion on the ego and esteem of U.S. U.S. is the only country with the strictest visa regulations. X ray of Chest, Neck, and Head are taken for close scrutiny to prevent impersonation by all means. Visa papers go through bottle necks for long period. There was no such lengthy procedures for student visas. Rich men or well funded persons could make holes in the iron curtain of U.S. by managing entry into U.S. in disguise. U.S. is more cautious now and has widened the net of intelligence direct or indirect in forms one can not easily imagine. Turning the World Trade Centre into Zero Ground was one of the cruellest acts the world has ever seen. Intelligence failure was the major cause. U.S. was always probing what happens in other countries. They saw developments in distant places and did not see what was happening around their feet, under their eyes. U.S. had a wild confidence that U.S. was not vulnerable and under perfect protection against any threat or fear. Failure in intelligence, failure in screening students of flying clubs, failure in airport security, failure in standards of Air Traffic Control etc. individually and jointly defeated the calculation of U.S. Enemies were inside the ship for long time. The Captain or his Adjutants never knew this. They knew the fact only after the ship sank to the sea bed.
Attack on the Indian Parliament Building and Mumbai, the industrial and economic hub of India, happened in the recent past. Terrorists are well founded, well funded and trained to work as suicide invaders with no fear for life. U.S. Embassies and Consulates all over the world are under threat. Allies of U.S. are also facing threats and risks. How to alleviate threats and fight terrorism is a big question before the world.
Somalian pirates are hijacking ships for ransom It is shameful that the big powers with powerful army, air force and navy are not able to check this. Are their Satellites blind? Disposal of nuclear waste is a boiling issue. Nuclear waste and solid waste from developed countries are shipped into poor countries. That does not solve the problem. Contamination has high speed. It can spread in seconds and reach distant destinations in minutes. It is necessary to find fair scientific ways to dispose nuclear waste.
The global community should gain strength to stand united to resolve the issues of poverty, hunger, diseases, covert fights, terrorism and threats posed by nuclear reactors/weapons. What is done here is only cataloguing issues and concerns. It should be debated widely with mass participation. The winners of losers are the people who are inhabitants of this beautiful plant “the earth”. Let us dream of a world with out terror and war. At present we are breaking the home we live in and cutting the branch we sit on. Let us hope that every one holds a branch of olive above his head and fly pigeons of peace to mark the opening a new era with less issues and serious concerns.