Public meetings to bridge divides : Tackling the seeds of divide
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: October 27 2015 -
More such meetings are needed. More people to people contact.
Just hope that this initiative goes beyond such public meetings and percolate down to the daily contacts between people belonging to different communities.
Perhaps this is also the right time for everyone to acknowledge that somewhere down the line the seeds of divide have been sown and it makes no sense to point the finger of accusation at anyone.
The people themselves are responsible for the present state in which Manipur finds itself in.
Heartening to note that amid the all round lack of confidence amongst the people, some efforts are being made to instil a sense of trust amongst the people.
The public meeting held at Machi Block in Chandel district on October 25 is one such example.
Meetings on similar line were also held at other places on the same date and it is encouraging to note that such efforts have been taken up.
It however remains to be seen how far this will go to affect the daily contact and communication amongst the people.
This is all that more so given the sharp divide that one sees, especially after the State Assembly passed the three Bills, which have been dubbed ‘anti-tribal’ by the hill people, especially in Churachandpur district.
Nine people have already died in Churachandpur and already the demand for a separate administration for the tribals has been raised.
All the more reason why efforts should be made to instil a sense of confidence amongst the people.
This is also the time for the people, the common people to seriously think and question why situation has come to such a pass.
Why is it that demands have been raised along communal lines ?
Is this a reflection of the ground reality ?
Uncomfortable it might be, but the best way to deal with the matter is to honestly raise some questions and then accordingly try to answer them.
As stated many times in this column, it would be in the fitness of things for everyone to come to the point that not everything is right between the different communities in the State.
Acknowledge this fact but come to the realisation that things cannot be allowed to continue like this, for the fact stands that the future of all the people are inextricably interwoven.
The series of meeting underway to come to an understanding between the different communities should be seen in this light.
It absolutely makes no sense for the people to view each other with suspicion and in the process build walls around themselves.
The need of the hour is to reach out, introspect and acknowledge where things went wrong.
Makes no sense in pointing fingers at each other for the future of the people is common. Time to look to the future and right the wrongs of the past.
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