Our Correspondent
KOHIMA, FEBRUARY 27
The 7th phase of the discourse ‘Morung: Heart of listening’ with the theme ‘Rethinking of a new Angami identity’ was held today at Angami Students’ Union office Kohima with Dr Visier Sanyü Meyasetsu as the resource person.
Initiated by a local initiative called the PathFinders, the year-long project which started in September 2015 in collaboration with Angami Students’ Union (ASU) is aimed to provide a space for dialogue and debate among young leaders and to provide a positive outlook and approach towards the culture of students’ welfare with constructive and knowledge bank through various creative medium.
Pointing out on the weaknesses and threats that the Angami community faces today, Dr Visier noted that although Angamis were the pioneers in many fields, due to many factors the community is losing headway.
While asserting that Angamis have a very narrow and mean ideology which often gives emphasis on exclusivism and pluralism, Dr Visier said, the perpetration of exclusivism needs to break and pave way for reinvention of the community.
‘When the philosophy and ideology of a nation is wrong, everything goes wrong. When the foundation and roots are born from a narrow ideology, a people cannot progress’ added Dr Visier.
He also strongly stated that the most dangerous thing is to believe the mythology that becomes real, and warned the dangers of Angami fanaticism. In this regard, he has asked the participants to break out of the narrowness, adding that there needs to be a paradigm shift and re-invention of our philosophy.
To bring about the idea of paradigm shift, Dr. Sanyü opened the space for the participants to discuss on the strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the community.
The participants were divided into four groups each focusing on one of the mentioned topics. The strength of the community as put forward by the participants were the topography, natural resources, and geographic significance of the community, the sense of belongingness, the advantage of being the Capital city which also brings commercial advantage, high sense of equality and respect for women and putting the interests of the nation first from its own interest. On the other hand, the weaknesses of the community, according to a group of participants included complacency, hostility and judgmental attitude of the Angamis.
One major drawback of the community, as pointed out by the participants is the lack of frankness or the “Kethera” attitude where people fail to speak the truth due to fear of hurting the person’s sentiment.
Some of the threats pointed by another group participants were the economic threat where lands are recklessly alienated, domination of business structure by outsiders, social threat due to lack of guidance, failure to mobilize the strength of the young and the biggest threat is the parochial interest of putting the clan and community first before the interest of the whole nation.
‘We can reinvent our foundation by getting the right motto, the right philosophy and the right ideology. We are all meant to be big enough to have the wisdom to make others better and bigger than us’ added Dr. Visier Sanyü.
Also speaking in the programme, Medo Yhokha, President Angami Youth Organisation (AYO) maintained that in order to re-invent the philosophy of the people, the community must go back to trace one’s roots and correct the mistakes created. He advocated that the present generation both young and old must be the catalyst for change, keeping in mind the interest and welfare of the next generation.
