Last week the society was jolted in more ways than one. After 56 years of independence we came to the realisation that many of us are indeed ignorant about the beliefs and culture of many other citizens. In many respects, the whole “sari skit” episode and its aftermath revealed degrees of ignorance at the highest levels of government which were blamed on a faulty education system.|
When people complained that they felt disrespected, it was portrayed as seeking to promote divisiveness and regarded as foolishness. Why? Well, we got our answer in the realm of ignorance. For all these years the Hindu community has been misunderstood purely because they have a different value system and beliefs from others in the society can now be understood today because it has been ignorance lurking as the culprit that that has divided our society all along.
The fact that there are people in this society who have a different sociology and anthropology should not be any surprise to anyone. The fact that that ignorance has led to their core beliefs and values being ridiculed on the altar of being different so “they” are the problem was all unravelled in a skit at a family day under the premise of undressing a woman to prove a point about political hegemony.
Never mind that undressing the woman was an act of violence in its own right, the apology ended up being confined to the religious and ethnic domain and the broader gender sensitivity was ignored as well as the portrayal of certain men in animal costumes was not addressed.
One little piece of “fun” has, fortunately, turned into a major learning moment for our society. We have struggled to find a “one-size-fits-all” theory to put ethnic, religious, and other differences to bed so that “all ah we could be one”. The skit showed that there is still a deep-seated desire to advance the cause of political hegemony over and above the cause of political unity. The reality is that we are all one national family with different beliefs, values, and traditions however, the problem is acceptance of diversity on an equal plane across the board.
The Indian members of the Government were taunted about being asked what they thought of the skit. Really? No one ever heard from them during the movement of the controversy from foolishness to ignorance. What was significant was that there was no post-Cabinet media briefing two Thursdays ago. Why? Were there divisions in the discussions around the table?
In addressing the ignorance of the story of Draupadi in The Mahabharata there was a learning moment. Those who enacted the “sari skit” found a way to express their political hegemony by completely undressing the woman at the centre of their attention to reveal the rise of the PNM over the UNC in the Tabaquite constituency.
That was the fake version. Because the real story of Draupadi is that when she was being undressed she prayed to Lord Krishna to protect her modesty and the unravelling of her sari never ended and she won in the end.
The deeper psychological issue being exposed here is that when “fun” skits are being researched for presentation at a political family day event, there should be greater sensitivity to what is being intended. It is true that this is politics and anything goes. Sometimes, that approach causes setbacks from what was intended, like in this instance.
A division arose in the executive of the PNM constituency group in Tabaquite. The chairman and the vice chairman had different perspectives on the event based on reporting by Gail Alexander in the Guardian on Saturday, August 18, at page A6. The chairman was not inclined to apologise at that stage and the vice chairman apologised in his personal capacity.
It was clear that there was growing division in the ranks of the party and later that night came the apology from the Prime Minister himself. So where are we now? There is a realisation that ignorance was the culprit on the religious front. The stereotyping of the Afro-male and the violence against women angles remain unanswered perhaps waiting for another day when they can be addressed.
It is now time to celebrate independence. Hopefully, the shortcomings in our education system identified by the Prime Minister will be addressed through curriculum review.