Dear Editor,
On a recent episode of Al Jazeera’s ‘Empire: Hollywood and the War Machine,‘ which examined the relationship between Hollywood and the USA’s military-industrial complex, Academy-Award winning filmmaker Oliver Stone said some amazing things.
Oliver Stone: ‘Power is power; it comes from the barrel of a gun. The establishing principle of society is war; a society cannot exist without its ability to make war.’ These statements are as incredible as they are shocking and wrong-sided. Where is the world heading when war is on the pedestal instead of peace? The consequences of holding misguided beliefs are often tragic, not only for others, but for the aggressor also. Blaise Pascal, seventeenth century mathematician and philosopher, said: “All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.”
Peace is as much of a habit as is war. Humanity chooses to cultivate one or the other. The challenge facing humanity is as usual one of ignorance: that the aggressors do not know of the other option – peace. They do not know how it feels inside the body. They do not know the feeling of tranquillity of mind. They do not know how to sit quietly in a room by themselves.
If one is acquainted with peace of mind and heart and body, one becomes incapable of fighting or waging war. One then deploys the weapon of intelligence.
A famous Indian Emperor Ashoka waged numerous wars on the battlefield, and in his very last war in Kalinga, he was devastated as he looked around at the destruction that he had caused. The legend goes that while surveying the thousands of dead bodies around him, he saw a monk walk by. And the equanimity and tranquillity and dignity that emanated from the monk, in stark contrast to the bitterness of the suffering in Ashoka’s heart, inspired a major transformation in him the likes of which the world rarely witnesses. What is that mysterious quality of a humble monk that inspired a brutal king’s transformation into a legendary peace crusader?
Armed with the wealth of the world’s spiritual, religious and cultural traditions and wisdom, why do we now have disturbances yet again in our country – NOC? It is because ignorance and ill will rule over us. With the situation in Linden calming down, lo and behold, more confrontations break out in another part of the country. Those instigating it know no peace in their hearts and minds.
Violence is not acceptable in Guyanese society. Neither is agitation by violence acceptable in Guyanese society. How we stand up matters. Once again, we cannot fight for peace. It’s an oxymoron. No one who ‘fights’ for peace or their rights can be trusted; for immoral means can never assure moral ends. The use of violent tactics hurts people. Hurting people is never an option.
The political elite has effectively hijacked the country from its citizens. Politicians accomplish their real goals behind the scenes. Life goes on. Citizens escape scattered to all neighbouring countries. Others learn to live with instability, never finding tranquillity and peace in their own backyards. This situation is abnormal. It does not happen in any of our neighbouring countries. It does not happen in Barbados, Trinidad or St Lucia. The only reason that these conditions continue to propagate themselves in Guyana is due to a lack of
political will to rise above differences to solve problems. There is never a commitment to truth, but a continued commitment to exploit differences.
While the PNC remains stuck in no-man’s land, buried by its burden of immorality, the PPP has really elevated itself. We have clearly transcended racism under the PPP. What we have witnessed is the emergence of professional politicians; the purchase of allegiance. People are selling themselves. The higher the contract price, the lesser the morality, the lesser the individual conviction, the greater the depravity and the greed, the better the charlatan performance.
Situations like the one at NOC must not recur in this country. Children must not experience these lows, directly or indirectly. As long as there is a standoff between PPP and PNC, there will never be any truth forthcoming. No one will ever know the truth about any situation, no matter how many inquiries are demanded. We have to import truth into our country via truth consultants. This is the role of international observers and consultants – to tell us who is lying and who is being truthful. Is there no room for decency and honesty in Guyanese politics? Is violence and loss of life fun and games to our politicians? This clearly is the case. While conflict is beneficial to politicians, it is not serving the needs of the people of Guyana.
Open conflict has to end. This is what peace means: the absence of conflict. This transformation in the country is not going to happen without a radical change in the political landscape.
We have reached another all-time low in the country, where the political elite are morally and spiritually bankrupt without the capacity for leadership or for problem solving. Both the major opposition and the government are, at different times, ambassadors of violence against the people of this country. We now know twice over that power corrupts and that absolute power corrupts absolutely. I am welcoming the new brand of leadership guided by ethical principles with respect for wisdom and for self and other.
As we move forward, for all the pain, we cannot harbour hatred, animosity or resentment in our hearts, for this destabilizes us and poisons our intentions. Why should the wrong actions of others poison our minds and hearts? No, we must remain at ease, a peace of mind earned on a basis of ethical conduct. Our challenge is to navigate intelligently. Our intention is not to unseat politicians and parliamentarians and install ourselves, but to uplift every citizen and guest and
build the entire nation. This is not an easy task, but with every day, the contrast between what we want and what we have becomes clearer, and with every conflict, our abilities to problem solve are enhanced and the source of problems become more apparent.
Let us envisage a gentle future of peace, prosperity and productivity. If we dream it, think it, want it, work for it, with patience and confidence in our own good human nature, it will emerge.
Yours faithfully,
Sandra Khan
