We live in a democracy, not the hate camp. Why a politician –Jo Cox - who practised good democracy should be shot dead is always beyond me. Hatred is owned by everyone, but love is not. Hatred is common, but love is not. Hatred is natural, but love is what you have to work at. Compassion is easy to talk without borders, but own preservation has borders. Both generate hatreds by camping against each other as absolutes! It reminds us that we cannot submit to hate.
Trump’s rhetoric is a product of democracy. So was Hitler’s. Democracy has also shown us an appetite for poisoning Socrates. Truth has the same ability to send Galileos to gallows. Therefore, hate is nothing new. Bent truths are also nothing new, but when they are in our time, we cannot deal with them just as our predecessors. As long as a state like Russia cannot apologise for any corruption as in doping scandals, and hooligan gangs like Ultra fed by it, the human race will always have hate bending on murders. So long as Muslims do not correct Muslims, the hate will continue. Kindness never had violence as its face. Hate has a powerful violent face and it will always appeal to the large disenfranchised population as an action pumped by power and authority invoking basic animal instincts in humans. Albeit, a systematic removal of any rationale and compassion to create absolutes and equipping them with guns or violence as an ultimate purpose, like Hitler did or Al Qaeda (meaning absolute law) and others do, will always create human robots of violence demonstrating a cruel immunisation to love, just as in computer games of gore. Thus, hate also appeals to those who have developed apathy, which is much more in abundance in our time due to the advanced technology, which introduces Kafka’s outsider or Dostoyevsky’s Raskolnikov to the new generation through social media, hence young ones from a good background also take up arms as they do drugs. For them, it is also about feeling high. They say there is nothing to do for them. There is boredom to fill. They even say the life needs a purpose even if it is violence! They will even quote Gita to say that having a purpose is better than not having one at all. A philosophy of karma! They see wars as a glory. Wars may be the conflicts of purposes, but they instil an array of hatreds in the coming generations. There are no jihads of love against murderers of Islam within Islam, on the scales of a sea of guns. Therefore, the hatred we see around us will continue for a long time to thrive until a new God’s messenger is invented by humans. Thugs will always hijack love, destroy it, and justify it after their acts of inhuman acts as God’s commandment. It doesn’t matter which religion is a culprit. But thank god there are some who light up our skies with the light of humanity. They can be even politicians like Jo. I have written in Asian Voice before when politicians are demonised, even recently when David Cameron was attacked twisting the finds of Panama Papers. Modi is a prime example. They are humans and flawed as us, but as long as the greater good is done and legality of the day is observed, they must be respected. They give a lot to give us our democracy, so we must also learn to respect their sacrifices. Start from there not from where you have become a judge and jury to condemn them as crooks.
Therefore, my message to all is to express it through the ballot papers, not guns and knives. Socrates took poison in spite of having been offered an alternative, for he wanted to enshrine the human destiny in the democracy with non-violence at its heart. He believed in votes, good or bad.
David Cameron, if he is wise, even if he loses the referendum, though I believe he will win, should call and organise a conference of national unity at the Exchequer immediately after the vote. He should declare it now rather than leave it for after the vote. He will be amazed and find out how people come together. For hatred is not the democracy. His revenge statements aren’t a democracy and I don’t think for a second, he really meant them. He has succeeded in delivering a divided nation; he must raise after 23rd June, whatever the result, to deliver love and one nation. He must accept that the other side’s view is equally important in a democracy, and as a leader who has pledged to leave at a fixed time, and has nothing to lose; he must deliver us one nation. That will be his legacy. That is what Jo Cox would have wanted.
Hence, let me flip a coin a little and tell you about the message of hope that is happening at the House of Lords on 22nd June against the talk of hatred.
Rising above oneself and giving a little of yourself away is the way of humanity. I will do so for the diaspora poetry and literature. At my and Lord Parekh’s invitation to make a difference and bring some change in the fortunes of our diaspora poets and writers through real action, we will deliver results and actions. Love exists. Care exists. It has not happened overnight. Love never happens overnight. Hatred is easy.
