Violence as a way of life
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: September 29 2015 -

There are observers and political theorists who have argued that all civilizational orders had been built on the foundation of violence and fear in one form or the other.

While this understanding cannot be refuted through an ideal conception of the modern Nation State propagating peace, one cannot help but ponder over the question - how violence has influenced the citizens of the post colonial States around the world.

When violence becomes a way of life, it influences not only politics but also the everyday life of the common men and women.

Moreover, the problem of militarism goes beyond the visibility or invisibility of the violence.

For a region like the Northeast known for its armed violent political movements since the dawn of post colonial history, violence percolates down not only in the psyche of the people but also even the cultural realm through sequential internalizations.

The prolonged and continued violence in the region has impacted the social, political and everyday life.

The largely visible trend has been reflected in the culture of impunity exhibited by violence supposedly imposed on the people by the State based on the imperative of maintaining the edifice of a Nation State in the making.

Sections of the citizenry respond to such trends in an even more violent way making cycle of violence complete.

Over a period of time, the trends already set into motion have limited the practice of ideal democracy both at the institutional and societal levels.

The phenomena of armed conflict have made State response resort to naturalizing exceptions to the maximum thus making the aberration become the norm.

To understand the issue of militarism at least in a State like Manipur, one has scratch deeper into the the making of the Indian Nation State.

The growth of militarism spreading over democratic spheres tells a lot more about the nature of State violence rather than response of the people.

This is why there is still a need to explore ways and methods to end the internalized and naturalized notion of violence.

The process of exploration could pave the way for initiating political processes where democracy as a set of principles and practices are respected and adhered to.

There is only one way to consolidate democracy now and that is to overcome the triumph of militarism.