There has been a recent article in India Times that caught my attention. It is on the spreading of the #MeToo movement into India and how it has been appropriated in the Indian context. Specifically, the article touches upon a discussion involving publicly sharing the names of alleged sexual harassers in academia. While it receives some support it also has invited critical voices from renowned feminists in India.
What do you think about social media’s ability to, on the one hand, provide transparency while also providing a platform for potentially unfiltered vigilantism?
Jacob Drake
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-38168917
article: Who will help Myanmar’s Rohingya?
10 January 2017
Currently, a Bangladesh is taking in (most likely unwillingy) tens of thousands of Rohingya minorities from Myanmar, as they flee what the U.N. officials have labeled textbook ethnic cleansing. According to this article, the Rohingya are an ethnic muslim minority descendant from Arabic Traders, and have been long denied citizenship by Myanmar’s government, who claims they are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. Reports of security forces raping and pillaging Rohingya communities continue to leak out, although the Myanmar government fiercely denies any wrongdoing.
This debacle is a prime example of the internet acting as a liberating force. In the past, there would have been little to no coverage of this issue, and the Rohingya people would have been entirely without a voice. Now, thanks to the global dimension of I.C.T.’s, everyone is hearing about this. The U.N. seems to have enough info that they have begun throwing around words like “ethnic cleansing”, NGO’s are beginning to take notice. Without the digital realm, the Rohingya people are easily silenced, and perhaps would go the way of the Rwanda genocide victims. Unfortunately, they are still in a serious pickle, as the government of Bangladesh is not much more friendly to religious minorities than that of Myanmar.
Which begs the question: if the U.N. is aware of these issues which have been ongoing for decades, only to suddenly worsen now, who will act, how, and when? A number of south east Asian governments have condemned the violence, including the prime minister of Malaysia according to this article, so who will swing first? What is the solution, does it involve mass relocation of the Rohingya peoples?
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/01/63-million-women-missing-india-180130110405032.html
“63 Million women ‘missing’ across India”
30 Jan 2017
Nearly 2 million Indian women are reported missing each year according to a recent survey by the Indian government. Indian society has been suppressing women since ancient times. Indian parents are having children until ‘the number of sons desired’ is reached. The girls are neglected and “nearly 63 million women are “missing” from India’s population due to foeticide, disease, neglect, or inadequate nutrition”. Despite Modi’s implementation of a ‘Save the Girls’ initiative in 2015, the gender inequality still exists.
The way India should address this issue using digital media is to assess this issue is simply getting it out to the public and showing that it is a real issue. Once Western nations hear about this problem, it will draw more attention. How is it possible for this many women to go missing? Is there a bigger problem at hand? Is this an issue in other Hindu/South Asian nations? It is interesting that Indira Ghandi, a woman, has once led the country, but India looks down on women in such a poor light.
News Article: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/muslims-being-harassed-in-india-jk-deputy-grand-mufti/articleshow/62714453.cms
30 January, 2018
For this blog entry I read an article titled: “Muslims being harassed in India: J&K Deputy Grand Mufti”. It discusses the alleged harassment of Muslims throughout India, particularly under pretenses of Cow Vigilantism perpetrated by Hindu extremists and general political biases by the Indian Government. What I found interesting about this news article is that it is a report coming from the destabilized region of Jammu and Kashmir, a region claimed by both Indian and Pakistani governments that contains a large Muslim population, who arguably support the Pakistani government over that of India. This cleric who wrote in the article noted that Muslims in India should vie for a break away from the Indian state, forming a new Muslim state. While these antics might be somewhat justified and the Muslim community may be unjustly targeted, their is no way they will be allowed to break away from the Indian state. For one, it would destroy the need for India to have minority groups within their democratic state, and Pakistan already perpetrates civil unrest in the north continuously creating a climate of uncertainty in the J&K region and creating more cause for suspicion on the Muslim minority groups in India as a whole.
Help Received: Article used to provide information.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1385506
“Manipulating Pakistani Minds” Published in Dawn, Pakistan. January 27th, 2018. The author prefers to remain unnamed, however he or she teaches physics in Lahore and Islamabad.
Eighteen months ago a lawyer-activist Asma Jehangir filed a petition in the Supreme Court wherein she challenged the state’s media behavior on multiple counts. The petition identifies three major power related industries in the government: the information of ministry, privately owned media (overseen by Pemra) and ISPR (Inter-Services Public Relations). In Article 19A of the Constitution, it asserts the public’s right to authentic and unbiased information, which it has not be getting. The petition has so far gone on without a hearing.
In the race to shape the public’s mind, the military is also a solid contender. Mobile transmitter broadcasts have lead to violent murders throughout the country. Gang wars have been started after inflammatory, local newspapers stoked the fires. While PTV has often been criticized for uncritically carrying the state’s narrative, most Pakistani private TV channels only thinly mask the agenda of their owners or sponsors. Sympathy to murders and terrorists is abundant and the broadcasts of lies, rumor, and idiocy are selling fast. Journalism has visibly reduced and degraded national cultural quality.
The article offers a seeming solution to this issue of corruption in the media: by the “creation of libel and defamation laws being vigorously enforced by the courts. Disclosure of financial information, respect for truth and evidence, and adherence to basic journalistic ethics must be insisted upon.” I feel as though this is not nearly enough to stop corruption in any regime and it seems too simple to actually work. Things must change on a much larger scale in order for a stable media setting to be established.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1388140/religious-parties-assemble-in-mardan-to-demand-release-of-men-convicted-in-mashal-khan-murder-case
Religious parties assemble in Mardan to demand release of men convicted in Mashal Khan murder case” Published in Dawn, Pakistan. 8 February 2018. Sirajuudin.
This article explains the aftermath that has occurred after the fatal situation involving a local student and a mob of angry Pakistani men. Mashal Khan was lynched after hensupposedly falsely committed blasphemy. Multiple religious groups have joined together and are planning to assemble on Friday (February 9th) after prayer to protest the conviction of the 31 men charged for murdering Khan. 26 of the 31 men were acquitted from their charges, and they will be in attendance of the protest and address the religiously charged mass. These men are being referred to as “heroes” and claim that Sahl did indeed commit blasphemy, thus justifying their actions. One of the leaders of the religious protestors, Shujaul Mulk, says that the 31 men were beaten and forced to confess guilt after being arrested. Mulk also says he is looking to take this case to the Supreme Court to get the other men acquitted. The crowds have been chanting in vengeance, against the murdered student, because he supposedly was speaking against “Katm-i-Nabuwwat”, which is Islamic law pertaining to Muhammad’s legitimacy as the last prophet.
When first glancing at this article, the key words in the title make me expect to read about a student being fatally suppressed by some type of conservative extremists, invoking a public outcry for swift hammer of justice to be thrown at the convicted murderers. However, I come to find that the crux of the dilemma is not found at the murderous actions of the 31 men, but rather the possible dissent student. There is clearly a cultural difference to realize here, which is difficult to fully read into with an article like this. The tie between law and religion is not similar to what we have in the United States, and the lack of sympathy for the invocative student is likely due to the fear that writers would have in supporting him or defending his speech or questioning of the Quran. If the author were to do so, they’d likely find the same demise as Khan. One of the acquitted men even said that anyone else who commits this same type of blasphemy will “meet the same end as Mashal.” I wonder here why the people seem to think that the judicial system is fabricating the details the arrest of the men and accounts of Khan. It seems like there is a strange legal-religious disconnect, while the case that the religious leaders are making seems to imply a strong religious-political connection. Does the government have incentive to protect a young citizen who is going against their nation’s religious doctrine? Does the verbal blasphemy of Mashal legally warrant ordinary citizens to take matters into their own hands and execute him?
Koranda-Blog on Bogging in Indian blogger: Harsh Agrawal. 1. This blog is intriguing as it delves into the personal life of the blogger, self-describing himself as an introvert, his passion is bringing people out of their shell, into the realm of public speaking and blogging via social media. Being a younger man, he seems energetic in his word use, and motivates the millenial generation to further utilize social media and blogging to voice their opinions, issues at hand and opening up despite what reservations they might have.
2. While his blog seems sincere, I wonder if there is not an ulterior motive behind his calling on young people to utilize blogging and social media. He is very wealthy from blogging, teaches classes on it, and is a prolific user of social media. It very well could be that he is using his talents in blogging to wrap a younger generation into his money-making scheme, not out of good will (like he implies) but to further establish his flourishing blog based corporation.
3. Link to the blog: https://denharsh.com/from-an-introvert-to-a-public-speaker/
Help Received: Instructions on writing about the blog provided in the syllabus. I used google to find the most popular Indian bloggers and followed that information provided to arrive at Harsh’s blog.
Signed by electronic submission.
Tweet #1: https://twitter.com/rashtrapatibhvn/status/987681096686030849 “While modern technology expands our knowledge of the universe, it is our ancient wisdom that helps us to reconcile our very existence with today’s inventions and discoveries. That is why 21st century India is a synthesis of both the Upanishads and the Internet #PresidentKovind”.
This tweet by the President of India Ram Nath Kovind describes the need to push forward in technological innovation within India, while remaining grounded in the wisdom and traditions taught and learned from historical contexts.
I find this tweet interesting because it resonates with potentially multiple different demographics of people, some of your more conservative, traditional types will gravitate to the second portion of the tweet, referencing the necessity to hold fast to your roots and stay grounded in your tradition as a culture. The first portion is in reference to innovative technology advances, which will resonate more with the younger, more ambitious generation who view modernization as a method in which the international community will accept India as an economic equal.
Help Received: I used google to help find a relevant tweet to post about. Signed by electronic submission
Tweet 2: “Indian companies have been encouraged by economic policies of Zambia. They are keen to create new ventures in partnership with the Zambian people and local communities. The Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement will give a boost to our economic engagement #PresidentKovind”
https://twitter.com/rashtrapatibhvn/status/984159996970749952
1. This tweet describes the trade agreements between India and Zambia, and how it is creating more confidence in Indian Companies as to the economic wellbeing of India and the initiatives being taken by the President.
2. Does the President of India intend to make his tweets sound like the United States Presidents? How important is India’s ties to Zambia in their national economy? What goods and services do Indian companies provide that would be critical to Zambian economic trade agreements?
Help Received: I used google to help find a relevant tweet to talk about on the blog. Signed by electronic submission