What Bengal thinks today

Antara Dev Senis Editor of The Little Magazine, an independent publication devoted to essays, literature and criticism on social concerns and issues neglected by mainstream media (www.littlemag.com). Sen has earlier worked as a senior editor with The Hindustan Times and The Indian Express, among other assignments. She can be contacted at sen@littlemag.com

Now West Bengal has gone and stopped the Tibetan’s protest rally in Kolkata. It was all set — Tibetan activists had gathered in the city from all over India, the agenda was ready, the programme fixed, the songs of protest chosen, the means of mourning the Tibetan martyrs in Lhasa planned. Then, at the last moment, the night before the protest and prayer meeting, they had to cancel it all. Because the West Bengal government had withdrawn its permission for the three-day protest gathering.

Apparently, this was because the CPI(M)-led state government was trying to stay in line with the Central Government’s China policy — not because of the deep emotional ties the CPI(M) has with China. Whatever the reason, it is terrible news for those of us who are still proud of West Bengal and all it stands for. For those of us who have been horrified by Nandigram, but still have hopes of climbing out of the pit of shame into the bright open society that is always alive with new ideas, and shows that it cares.

Stifling dissent does not go with the Kolkata I know. It has always been a city of protests — it didn’t stop even the most irrational protests when decades of hartals and strikes were systematically closing down all our industries in the state. Our ways of protest have often been harrowing. Bandhs bring life to a standstill, or milling masses marching doggedly for hours clog up the already cramped streets, even causing death and despair as the roads to hospitals are blocked by marchers.

We protest against everything. At the moment, there are several protest demonstrations in Kolkata against price rise and inflation. Earlier, there were protests against Nandigram and police atrocities. There were also protests against the Book Fair being held in Park Circus, an already crowded area, on grounds of environmental pollution and unmanageable traffic jams. Kolkata, living up to its image as an intellectual city, hosts the world’s largest book fair, attracting between 10 and 20 lakh visitors.

Last year, apart from the spectacular Nandigram protests, there were ration riots and fervent protests about Rizwanur Rehman’s death, Taslima Nasreen’s writing as well as her ouster from Kolkata. There were admirable demonstrations protesting the Burmese junta’s crackdown on democracy activists in Burma. And of course there were scores of protests by activists of the Trinamool Congress and SUCI on a startling variety of local grouses.

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Kolkata is the natural habitat of protest. And it isn’t always non-violent protest. There are clashes between opposing political groups, and respected leaders have been seen chasing each other around with sticks and rods. The ruling party and its allies very often take to the streets to protest against something or the other. They even made a huge fuss in front of the American Embassy during George Bush’s visit in 2006 — shouting slogans, burning effigies of Bush and Manmohan Singh. That was okay, and not embarrassing for our own government. But protesting against China’s human rights violations in Tibet would be embarrassing. Sure. Whatever.

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So Kolkata backtracked on the Tibetan demonstration. Even though it was to be a peaceful protest, with songs, prayers and mourning for the over 150 protestors killed in Lhasa by the Chinese police, and a hunger strike. Apparently, it was ‘political pressure’ on the police that made them cancel the event.

Ever since China has been pressuring us to do with Tibetan protestors what it does with any protestor in China, we have been behaving strangely. India has been dithering, clamping down on peaceful protestors and urging activists not to embarrass China, our most feared neighbour.

And now, West Bengal’s Left Front government has stopped this planned, peaceful protest at the last minute. When only a couple of weeks ago it had allowed a peaceful candlelight vigil for Tibet. On 9th April, students and activists from the Free Tibet movement, Tibetan Solidarity Committee and members of Tibet’s Dharamshala-based Government in Exile were told of this administrative change of heart only after they had gathered in Kolkata for the demonstration the next day. Not to be squashed altogether, the activists decided to meet inside the Mahabodhi Temple instead.

I grew up in Kolkata, hearing slogans like ‘China’s Chairman, our Chairman!’ So the CPI(M)’s stand on Tibet today — that it is an internal matter of China, and they will not comment on its human rights violations — doesn’t come as a surprise. But even during the Tiananmen Square massacre, the Left government — then led by Jyoti Basu who had refrained from condemning China’s violence against peaceful protestors — had allowed furious dissent and demonstrations in Kolkata.

We are the world’s largest democracy. We cannot allow the silencing of dissent. If we go that way, we would lose the edge we have over autocratic countries like China. Our nation is founded on values that respect democratic freedoms. We must not allow any attack on that foundation. The right to dissent is a basic democratic right.

New industries, shiny malls and magnificent flyovers alone cannot make Bengal proud. Resurgent Bengal can only stand tall if it stands for the values enshrined in our hearts and in our Constitution, the values that great thinkers of Bengal have consistently upheld and the masses have willingly followed. Whatever the reason for the cancelling of the Tibetan demonstration this week, we must register our protest as democratic citizens. For Tibet’s fight is for freedom — not necessarily for independence. If we value freedoms, it is our fight as well. Including the fight for freedom of expression.

The views expressed in the article are the author’s and not of Sify.com

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