In a unique show of solidarity, ALL radio stations in Mumbai played the song "Maa Tujhe Salam", sung by AR Rehman, at 8 p.m. on December 3, 2008 on their respective wavelengths! Now ain't that something? Good to see that they let go of their constant endeavor to hog the limelight and take such a step -- I hope our news channels too take note of this and do something similar.
In another more widely covered act the same day, thousands of citizens took to the street across the metros in India to demand action against the terrorists and to express solidarity with the victims of this attack. Read more on this here.
I just can't help being sceptical of such ACTS - taking out demonstrations has the means to catch attention but I believe to elicit some sort of action from our thick-skinned politicians, it's going to take something more than this! By now, our netas have tackled the aftermath of so many terrorist attacks that such "peaceful" demonstrations will not more than scratch the surface! History shows that we are pretty tolerant and lack muscle -- from the Bombay bomb blasts in 1993 to the bomb blasts in the Mumbai local trains and the attack on the Parliament (not to mention several other instances of similar horrendous terrorist strikes, quite a few in 2008) we have been happy enough simply to put a bold, tough stance early on only to soften our "tough" stance as time goes by. We have been waving our "List of 20 most wanted terrorists" in front of Pakistan for several years -- yet have we done anything beyond mere demonstration to show that we are serious about what we want. I think not.
What will it take to wake up the Government and get them to swing into action -- actions that will not let terrorism rear its ugly head again and again? How many more lives need to be sacrificed for us to see some justice being done, our security being enhanced, our lives being securd? For how long do we carry on like this? It's good that Mumbai and along with it, the rest of India, has an indignant streak, a get-on-with-life spirit -- else how will we survive and continue our struggle in the city of dreams, the city that never sleeps, with a sword hanging perpetually over our heads?
Preaching about what is wrong with our system is a thing taken for granted these days -- heck, I do it, you do it, the news channels do it all the time, with or without any due reasons. Now what can we do to show that this time, yes THIS TIME, we mean action! Action that is not only immediate but also long-term -- while we are used to live under the lengthening shadow of fear and insecurity, let us make an effort to ensure that the next generation does not need to put up with the atrocities like we did.
Thinking of what the radio stations did made me think of what more could we do. A possible idea doing the rounds in my head is this: Could our newspapers join hands and launch a major campaign directed against terrorism? Times of India has in the past taken the lead and launched campaigns like "Lead India" (2007) and "Teach India" (2008) initiatives. Now can the newspapers come together, join hands and announce a war on terrorism? They say that a pen is mightier than a sword -- time to put the old proverb to test, what say India??
Even as I'm writing this piece, I've received a mail from Network 18 announcing the launch of a platform "to express our frustration and helplessness". Check the site here. I'm withholding my comments on this new endeavor for the time being.
No comments:
Post a Comment