Intolerance
– A Conflict Within in wider perspective
“ The great problem in this world is
intolerance . Everyone is intolerant of
each other “ --- Princess Diana
Provoking Unrests – India land of Buddha
Freedom of expression will continue to remain
under siege unless all groups accept that people can have different opinions
and beliefs in a free country.
Soli Sorabjee
rightly pointed - “Our tradition
teaches tolerance; our philosophy preaches tolerance; our Constitution
practises tolerance; let us not dilute it.” These stirring sentiments were
expressed by Justice Chinnappa Reddy in a Supreme Court judgment pronounced in
August 1986 which invalidated expulsion from school of students belonging to
Jehova’s Witness faith. Regrettably, over the years, tolerance has been
replaced by the rising menace of intolerance which strikes at various fields of
human endeavour and creativity: writings, music, drama, paintings and
movies.Intolerance stems from an invincible assumption of the infallibility of
one’s beliefs and a dogmatic conviction about their rightness. An intolerant
society cannot tolerate expression of ideas and views which challenge its
current doctrines and conventional wisdom. Consequently, unconventional and
heterodox thoughts and views have to be suppressed. That is the prime
motivation for censorship. “ ( Source – Hindu )
Why not Ban the Political nautanki in
Parliament and Outside , which has little to do with the common minimum
programme for the people of India
Our Constitution prescribes certain
fundamental duties to be performed by citizens (Article 51-A). One duty of
paramount importance which should be performed is the duty to practise
tolerance. Otherwise democracy, a basic feature of our Constitution, will be
under siege and the cherished right to freedom of expression will be held
hostage by an intolerant mindless mob.
In society, many people tend to reject those
who are different. It is a human trait that
we all have. Regardless of ones social, economic, or ethnic background there
has been a time in all our lives where we have judged a thought by its cover without at least reading the
synopsis on the back. Intolerance is not something to be proud of, yet everyone
handles its affect on their life and other peoples lives differently. Some
strive to rid themselves of this trait, while others simply accept it as part
of their personality and fail to make any attempt at removing
it. Intolerance comes in many different forms and does not see anyone as
being exempt from its wrath.
As William Ury stated, "Tolerance is not
just agreeing with one another or remaining indifferent in the face of
injustice, but rather showing respect for the essential humanity in every
person." Tolerance may seem an impossible
exercise in certain situations - being tolerant nonetheless remains key to
easing hostile tensions between groups and to helping communities move past
intractable conflict. That is because tolerance is integral to different groups
relating to one another in a respectful and understanding way. In cases where
communities have been deeply entrenched in violent conflict, being tolerant
helps the affected groups endure the pain of the past and resolve their
differences. In situations where conditions are economically depressed and
politically charged, groups and individuals may find it hard to tolerate those
that are different from them or have caused them harm. In such cases,
discrimination, dehumanization, repression, and violence may occur. Fighting
intolerance requires an Individual awareness.
We seem to have become increasingly intolerant
as a society. Now I fully understand that there are any number of situations
and behaviours out there that should not be tolerated. There is a great distinction between tolerating something and
being intolerant. Merriam-Webster tells us that to tolerate something means
that you are willing to allow something or to put up with something. However,
the same dictionary tells us that intolerance means "unwilling to grant
equal freedom of expression." Whether
it is the increasingly vitriolic set of interchanges between politicians or the
kinds of spiteful comments , seems as though we have come to accept
vilification as a form of discourse. If
the criticisms were accompanied by some kind of creative solution, things might
be different. However, criticism and cynicism seem to have become surrogates
for actual involvement.
It is assumed that the feeling of evil is more
widespread than the feeling of good. That is why intolerance as an attitude appears
to be even more common than tolerance. Intolerance
constitute centuries-old problems of human existence. We have been disturbed by
them over and over again. This is connected with man's constant longing for the
paradise lost which is unattainable because of human's ill .
In matter of sexuality , Women are treated
differently because of their attire - women's clothing is more likely to be
identified with a religion or particular culture, whereas men, who do not
usually wear culture-specific clothing, can "blend" more into society. This can have repercussions for them
at home as their families may disapprove of changes in their dress or outlook.
The pressure for women to dress in western clothing is reinforced by the fact
that women in cultural dress are "invisible" .
Religious intolerance has cropped up to such an extent where a mob rushed into someone’s house and raids his kitchen to
ascertain what he is consuming. Based upon rumours, a misguided and outrageous
mob guided by fringe ends up claiming a human life. They have violated the
principles laid down by the Mahatma. Why wouldn’t had the great soul not been
shocked if he was alive to see this day?
Secularism is altogether a different and
fundamental and independent phenomenon, but states use it to bring equality and
justice in their region. It defines the relationship between the state and the
religion. It has different meaning in different regions. In India Nigeria Syria Afghanistan Egypt
We were taught distorted history . Books are
banned . Book bans is a serious issue to be considered . We are now living in an era of unprecedented access
to reading material. We must keep in mind that even if the motivation to ban or
challenge a book is well intentioned, the outcome is detrimental. Censorship
denies our freedom as individuals to choose and think for ourselves. Young
people especially deserve our trust. Reading literature that challenges them
and encourages them to think about others and their own place in the world does
no harm and can only spur them to become better students and better persons.
Danger does not arise from viewpoints other than our own; the danger lies in
allowing others to decide for us and our communities which reading materials
are appropriate.
Under the Nazis, certain artists were not just
banned and censored but sent to concentration camps; many died there. Artist
like MF Hussian faced the demons too. Fundoos hated the free approach of him ,
they wanted Hussian to be more sensible and less offensive to them and equally
offensive to other sects . Now he is gone. But we have his art. Satanic verses
is banned authored by Salman Rusdie. I found nothing in the novel which was
even remotely insulting to Islam. It was a very funny novel and a brilliant
piece of literature. Ayatollah declared a "fatwa" on Salman Rushdie
for "blasphemy". The truth was the Iranian Revolution was battered
after the failed Iraq War, and the Islamic Govt of Iran needed a scapegoat to
distract attention & "rally the faithful".The shocking,
disgusting way in which Islamic fanatics shot a 14 year old Malala because she
wanted girls to get an education and the tragic way in which thousands of
innocent men, women, children are bombed, killed, maimed every day
in some "jihad" attack or the other in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria,
Iraq, Libya, Nigeria, Sudan and many other states. This is what deserves
outrage. Not books, movies, paintings, music, sculptures. This is sheer hypocrisy.
while there is no outrage against the Taliban, Hezbollah, Hamas and other
terrorist organizations, the so called hindutva outfits who murder innocent
people and they are protected by Article 19 of the UN Human Rights charter .
Finally , God gave this immense
responsibility to be creators, and some realize it and some don't. Those
realized are blessed ones and we let them lead us to the path of spirituality
which they have already realized. In any religion, when somebody is raised to
divine level, we are acknowledging the fact that they attained self-realization
and we let them lead us to spirituality. And as long as we can benefit from
their knowledge, they have served their purpose in life. I am not saying that
one religion is superior than the other, the point is that the essence is the
same in everything and every one of them refers to the same one and only God,
but in different ways/paths and we should appreciate it. We have to realize
that the end goal of all the religions is the same. Serve our fellow men and
Service to mankind is Service to God. ॐ असतो मा सद्गमय ,तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय ।मृत्योर्मा अमृतं गमय ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥
Siddhartha Shankar Mishra
The author is a Lawyer and work on Human Rights and Legal Awareness
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