Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Can I compare India and European Union (EU) ?
Few months back, the news came...
The Dutch rejected EU, then the French.
And then, the comments flowing in...
One of the common comment was:
The Dutch and French should learn something from the world's two great and diverse democracies (India and the Unites States of America). They should accept to live in a changing world and expand borders.
Let's leave US aside as I won't speak much about that.
Since I'm from India, it would be best for me to compare my nation with the condition Dutch and French are facing.
As we all know, INDIA is a country with multiple States, each having their own local language as the mothertongue of that State. India is one of the most populated country and with around 24 states and more than those many languages, it is really diverse!
Still, can we really compare the state of Dutch and French with the current state of Indian people ?
I guess no...
We in India were brought up from our childhood as sons and daughters belonging to our proud motherland, India. Students from Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, everywhere else - all read about Gandhi, Nehru, India's freedom struggle right from the arrival of British, 1847 unprising and India's independence. These values of mutual brotherhood against fellow states were imbibed in us right from our school days. So, a Maharashtrian will study along with a Gujarati, Punjabi, Kannadiga and so on...
Hence the question of consider someone else from some other state as an outsider really does not arise (There are few issues here. Few people do consider others as outsiders but their number is not bothering).
Now, picture this...
We in India are being told that we would have to form a Asian Union (AU) which would include China, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and so on... That is the true way of comparing the EU against the AU. How many in India would accept that ? Will the Chinese and Pakistanis accept that? I believe, that gives a healthy comparison instead of just comparing EU against diverse democracy like India and then blaming the French and Dutch for non-compliance. That's too harsh on the Dutch and French.
If EU wants to succeed, it can take a leaf out of our book and start teaching common history of Europe and mutual respect right from school level (Don't know if they are doing that already. From the EU results it looks like they are not). That is the best place to eradicate hatred and instill moral values. No one is asking them to do away with local history. We learnt our local histories in schools as well, and we are definitely proud of being our own identities like Maharashtrian, Marwari and so on along with being an Indian. But we also know to respect other fellow state members and that would not have been possible if we were not taught that at school level.
Manish.
The Dutch rejected EU, then the French.
And then, the comments flowing in...
One of the common comment was:
The Dutch and French should learn something from the world's two great and diverse democracies (India and the Unites States of America). They should accept to live in a changing world and expand borders.
Let's leave US aside as I won't speak much about that.
Since I'm from India, it would be best for me to compare my nation with the condition Dutch and French are facing.
As we all know, INDIA is a country with multiple States, each having their own local language as the mothertongue of that State. India is one of the most populated country and with around 24 states and more than those many languages, it is really diverse!
Still, can we really compare the state of Dutch and French with the current state of Indian people ?
I guess no...
We in India were brought up from our childhood as sons and daughters belonging to our proud motherland, India. Students from Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, everywhere else - all read about Gandhi, Nehru, India's freedom struggle right from the arrival of British, 1847 unprising and India's independence. These values of mutual brotherhood against fellow states were imbibed in us right from our school days. So, a Maharashtrian will study along with a Gujarati, Punjabi, Kannadiga and so on...
Hence the question of consider someone else from some other state as an outsider really does not arise (There are few issues here. Few people do consider others as outsiders but their number is not bothering).
Now, picture this...
We in India are being told that we would have to form a Asian Union (AU) which would include China, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and so on... That is the true way of comparing the EU against the AU. How many in India would accept that ? Will the Chinese and Pakistanis accept that? I believe, that gives a healthy comparison instead of just comparing EU against diverse democracy like India and then blaming the French and Dutch for non-compliance. That's too harsh on the Dutch and French.
If EU wants to succeed, it can take a leaf out of our book and start teaching common history of Europe and mutual respect right from school level (Don't know if they are doing that already. From the EU results it looks like they are not). That is the best place to eradicate hatred and instill moral values. No one is asking them to do away with local history. We learnt our local histories in schools as well, and we are definitely proud of being our own identities like Maharashtrian, Marwari and so on along with being an Indian. But we also know to respect other fellow state members and that would not have been possible if we were not taught that at school level.
Manish.
