Lt General Bhopinder Singh (Retd)
India is constitutionally and institutionally, liberal and democratic – often, this is at variance with the basic instincts that emanate from a wounded civilization. Home to varied ethnicities, races, regions and complex caste systems – societal faultliness like racism, misogyny, bigotry etc. are irrefutable complexes that exist sub-consciously and flare up unwantedly.Our founding fathers had the vision and humility to accept the reality of inherent diversities, thereby, pedestalling the lofty ‘unity in diversity’ as an emotive lodestar. Thus, the architects of the Indian Constitution, insisted on an extraordinary spirit of national synthesis by way of the unambiguous language of the Article 14 of the constitution, which is all about the ‘Right to Equality’, where, ‘The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protectionof the laws within the territory of India’. Even more specifically, Article 15 (1) states, ‘The State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them’ – clearly the import of language was only for Indian citizens, but the definitive national spirit,instinct and outlook was sought to be defined.
Unsurprisingly, our national heroes always stood up against racism – Mahatma Gandhi againstthe ingrained racism against the ‘untouchables’, Nehru against the political racism via, ‘Non-Aligned Movement’, Ambedkar sowed the constitutional protection laws, while Tagore castigated the duplicity and hypocrisy of European imperialism in Africa, via literature and poetry – all, stood up against racism in one form or the other. It is in this backdrop that the recent murder of a Congolese national in the national capital has re-triggered debate on the existence of the virulent strain of racism. The uncomfortable questions challenged our officially declared status and sensibilities, personally and politically – ironically, fora nation that is usually at the vanguard of the fight against global racism.
Africa has had a unique place in our historical narrative and evolution as a nation – we share the empathetic burden of a colonial past and subjugation. It is the land from where Malik Amber, an African Siddhi slavebecame the popular Prime Minsiter of Ahmadnagar Sultanate, where Gandhi came into his spiritual-political own, from where Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah and Egypt’s Gamal Nasser jointly conceived NAM with Nehru, a land where Nelson Mandela and Jomo Kenyata got inspired by India’s “non-violence”, as a political tool. Therefore with such a rich tapestry of joint struggles and dreams, the broken ‘Indian dream’ for the African expatriates is a harsh reality that needs to be recognized, albeit, sensitively and in a nuanced manner.
Racism in India exists per se – it is not something that we need to live in denial of. With ourfrequent cases of discrimination of the ‘others’, it plays out for each minority profile in the land of majority. An Indian from the North East gets castigated as a ‘Chinky’ on the streets of Delhi, whereas a North Indian is addressed as a ‘Mayang’ (‘outsider’) in Imphal, caste panchayats routinely dole out shameful verdicts against the ‘others’ while the tribals and the religious minorities have their own trysts with the inequities of the past and present. Our xenophobia is unrestricted geographically, Indians are racist against Indians. But importantly, racism in any form is to be shamed and penalised by the statutes of the constitution and the law of the land. So, in that sense, India has made its choice of societal direction and preference, clear -therefore, we need to craft and present our reaction to the recent allegations of ‘Afro-phobia’ contextually, and not jingoistically.
The External Affairs Minister, MrsSushmaSwaraj did well to give a sense of urgency, purpose and importance to the incident with a decisive tone, “I have spoken to Shri Raj NathSinghji and Lt. Governor Delhi regarding the attack on African nationals in South Delhi yesterday. They assured me that the culprits will be arrested soon and sensitization campaign will be launched in areas where African nationals reside”. However, this was in sharp contrast to the line of competitive racism by the irrepresible Cultural Minister, Mahesh Sharma’s, “even Africa is not safe” – an unnecessary and inelegant affront that vitiates a healing moment. The fact that this incident follows an earlier note verbale from the Tanzanian High Commission on the beating and stripping of a student in Bengaluru, in Feb this year and earlier still, the infamous midnight raid at KhirkiExtentionby the-then, Law Minister of Delhi Somnath Bharti, mobbing two Nigerian and two Ugandan women is reflective of the backdrop to the joint concern and position of ‘Afro-phobia’ taken by Group of African Heads of Missions. Thankfully, the mature statement by the Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar that the safety and security of the African community was an”article of faith” is the kind of governmental assurance that is needed at the moment, and not an unnecessarily playing down of an issue, competitive racism or outright denial. The police have swung into action and made arrests – a speedy trial and conviction to establish a racist angle or a purely a situational angle would aid build credibility of governmental action and sincerity.
Importantly, India has had a checkered history in Congo – the ONUC (Organisation des Nations Unies au Congo)operations in 1960-64 saw the gallant participation of two Indian infantry brigades and six Canberra bombers of the Indian Air Force. 39 Indian soldiers died, including Captain G. S. Salaria, who was posthumously awarded the Param Vir Chakra. Even today, MONUSCO (United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo) has the Indian contingent – the single largest contributor to the UN peace keeping mission in Congo. Such historical precedent and historical links led the acting High Commissioner of South Africa, Malose William Mogale to conclude, “It’s racist attacks. But it is not government policy”and further, “We have firm belief in the capacity of Indian government to deal with these incidents”, thus putting balm on frayed nerves and tempers.
Even diplomatically India has ‘invested’ in Africa by hosting the ‘Africa Summit’, amongst many other initiatives – a key recognition of the 54 seats in the UN General Assembly that could hold the key to India’s global ambitions of a permanent seat in UN’s Security Council. While the governmental outreach, historical ties and diplomatic positions have been aligned to further the obvious Indo-African equation, the people-to-people connect has been missing and the complex societal moorings and intrigues in both the multiple African and Indian societies often gives way to ultra-regressive and racist tendencies (in the 70’s, the Ugandan dictator Idi Amin Dada had similarly expelled the Indian community) that mar the inherent potential of the economies, people and the emerging aspirations of both the lands – sadly and often, the historical victims of racism, unfortunately, end up victimizing each other, as indeed amongst themselves. In such situations, we must accept our reality of the demons of racism, boldly, and assert corrective action with utmost sensitivity – our constitutional morality and future of the two lands, insists that we do so.
The author is former Lt Governor of Andaman and Nicobar & Puducherry
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