Response to rebellion

This week's Economist (Feb 18) runs a very critical piece about conditions in Manipur ("State of concern"). The article cites that hundreds of insurgents are killed in that tiny state (pop in 2001: 23 lakh) every year, claims that police and paramilitary personnel are being awarded gallantry medals for conducting extra-judical killings and worries that a quarter of the population is unemployed.

All these are extremely serious and troubling allegations, especially when they are published in a magazine as reputable as The Economist. India has of course long held to the principle that no part of the union will be allowed to secede, come what may. While an olive branch is always held out to rebels who renounce violence and agree to refrain from demanding independence, and plenty of concessions are held out as rewards to them, the Indian state has never flinched from employing whatever force was necessary to subdue any rebellion. Despite the inevitable abuses that will occur in any counter-insurgency campaign, I think that India has always displayed systemic sensitivity towards addressing any genuine grievances of the local populace (obviously, since they are citizens). Even in the Kashmir valley, after the egregious blunder of the rigged 1987 state election, despite the complicating factor of the extensive involvement of foreign intruders; the late 90s and the present decade have seen locals being successfully encouraged to participate in the democratic process, human rights violations being addressed and prosecuted more and more and a semblance of normality returning.

This article claims that this is not the case in Manipur. The government is happy to let the security forces rule the state with an iron grip, while the economy stagnates and ordinary citizens suffer, it says. I don't know what to make of it. Indian newspapers don't cover Manipur (or much of the rest of the northeast, for that matter) in detail, so I can't verify the accuracy of the broader picture the article has painted. But Manipur is not under President's Rule atleast, and as far as I know, the government was popularly elected with a decent turnout of voters.              

Art for a Layperson

I went to a western classical music concert yesterday (the showpiece being Tchaikovsky's 6th Symphony). I have zero knowledge of classical music; in fact, I have zero knowledge about any form of music. Couldn't even tell which sound emanates from which instrument. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the performances by the 75-80 person strong orchestra, further reinforcing my view that good art can be appreciated even by the uninitiated (knowledge can enhance the appreciation, of course).