Staff Reporters
DIMAPUR, JANUARY 31
Non violence movement through dialogue remained the cornerstone of policy, said social activist Dr. Jill Carr- Harris while speaking on the topic ‘Economic Empowerment and justice to the marginalized’ at the ongoing 2nd National Peace Convention in Dimapur.
Giving her observation on Nagaland situation, Dr. Jill Carr- Harris said, although the state seems to be working towards reconciliation, Nagas should learn from the Colombian experience where insurgents who killed thousands of people realised the importance of non-violence movement.
Dr. Jill Carr- Harris also said a good moral frame is needed in order to practice non violence.
Impressed by the active role taken by Naga youths in peace building, Dr. Jill Carr- Harris said the Naga youths can have the opportunity to do something historic for the state and the nation through non-violence.
Dr. Jill Carr- Harris then said people living with ‘lessons from life’ play a important role. She then said the National Peace Convention 2016 has a huge role to play only if all can join together for peace.
Also speaking on the occasion, Dr. Lanunungsang said, “It is not the time to talk about peace and non violence but time to act”. Dismayed by the prevailing situation, Dr Lanu said the people have been talking about peace and solution for sometimes now but they are not able to realize it till today.
He was speaking on the ‘relevance of Mahatma Gandhi in the socio-political scenario of India’.
Citing India as a ‘religion loving nation’, Dr Lanu said the country is under ‘religious threat’. According to Dr Lanu, everyone claims his religion is the best while ignoring that every religion teaches to love one another.
He then said the philosophy of the Gandhian movement of non-violence depends on how one implements it.
“If a man gains the whole world but loses the soul, then he ends up with nothing”, said Dr. Lanunungsang. On the occasion, activist K K Sema also spoke on various issues faced by the Naga society.Meanwhile, according to Dr. Paul B. Mesquita, an educationist from the University of Rhode Island, USA, poverty, militarism, racial and social discrimination are social evils which need to be addressed. He was speaking on the topic, “Peace building in international perspective”.
Emphasizing on the ideologies of legendary civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr., Dr.Paul pointed out that among the three social evils, militarism is an evil force which poses as a threat to a nation that is striving to achieve peace. He opined that a nation to achieve peace a department of peace is important “but we have only a military department today which only helps in destruction”.
Alluding to Martin Luther King’s vision for America and the present situation of the country, Dr.Paul said America is a new country which is still experimenting with the issues addressed 100 years back. Police still have stereotype mindset against the black community—they consider the blacks to be a threat of the society. Citing examples of attack on unarmed black citizens by the police, he addressed that though America has great freedom and vision “the country is not there yet”.
Addressing the issue of the blacks, Dr.Paul articulated that the United States as a country is mobilizing the youths to change the society and this has led the youths to start “the black lives matter”, a movement in the country which addresses the issue of black citizens.
Also speaking on the topic, “Peace and conflict resolution in the context of North East India,” peace activist Niketu Iralu cited the issues of the Bodos in Assam and how the All Bodo Students Union (ABSU) addresses it through non-violence means. Niketu said the political climate is changing in Bodoland today. He then underlined that the “history of non-violence has been and is the most powerful means.”
Meanwhile, two journalists also spoke on the role of the media in “building peace”.The issue was discussed here at the ongoing 2nd National Peace Convention, with Monalisa Changkija and Dr Akum Longchari, respective editors of Nagaland Page and Morung Express, as panelists.
According to Akum Longchari, “in human history” the media’s impact on escalation of violence has always found wider recognition than its impact on peace building. Citing instances of the Rwanda genocide and the Holocaust, he reminded how vicious propaganda spread through the radio and print media had incited such violence.
Underscoring that the “power of the media” could, and should be, employed to “reduce violence”, he said that this particular role of the media “has not been adequately addressed.” One of the reasons behind this, he said, was because the media is limited by time and space.
“Another challenge is (the question of) what really sells (as news)? What do the people really want to read?” he shared, while stating that the challenge before the media is to “rehumanize” news. This becomes all the more difficult when the “powers-that-be” sees the media as a mere extension of the status quo, he added.
Within that context of rush for what constitutes as breaking news and interplay of power politics, he shared, the media must aim to cultivate critical consciousness and nurture values. “How can we deflate rumors and propaganda which are at the heart of all conflict situations?”
Any shift in paradigm cannot be achieved in isolation, Longchari pointed out. “It also requires the readers to walk hand-in-hand with the media, because the media doesn’t exist in a vacuum.”
Monalisa Changkija also echoed similar sentiments and pointed out that the whole affair is a two-way street. She underscored that the principle of peace building is intrinsic to the very existence of the fourth estate. “That it is not happening today is very tragic.”
The media today only talks of violent conflict, she said. “We haven’t even begun to talk about cultural violence, economic violence or other forms of violence that have existed for centuries.”
Monalisa however said that the media is also a product of the society that it exists in. “The people has every right to be critical of the media but they must also see how it is a reflection of the society.
“These days it is all about circulation rather than the content of the news. Because the people want everything brighter or colored, so it all comes down to survival,” she said.
The “chairman” of the discussion, Dr Jacob Kani, the chief editor of Youth Action, in his remark noted that the tendency of the media houses to pursue their “own agenda” has resulted in the “casualty of peace.”
