LESSONS FROM MASS UPRISING – By N.S.Venkataraman
The recent mass uprising in Nepal which was preceded by mass uprising in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Indonesia is certainly a matter of concern. These four are developing countries and some observers seem to conclude that socio economic issues largely caused by widespread corruption and mis governance , have caused mass uprising However, the present ongoing mass uprising in a well developed country France makes one wonder whether socio economic issues and corruption could be the sole reason for the mass uprising.
However, there are also various reasons attributed for such uprisings in different countries. In the case of Sri Lanka, it was said that shortage of food items and economic crisis was the reason. In the case of Bangladesh, it was said that dictatorial attitude of the leader of the government was the reason. . In the case of Indonesia , it was said that the anger due to the perks given to the politicians was the cause In the case of Nepal, the decision of the government to ban social media posts is said to be the reason for the uprising . In France, it is said that the government’s plans to cut the budget provision for salaries and other austerity measures is said to be the reason.
Uniform pattern of protest :
What is particularly noteworthy is that there appear to be a uniform pattern in such mass uprisings, which are invariably marked by street protests, storming the government buildings and parliament , forceful entry into the residence of ministers and occupying them for sometime and even setting fire to ministerial residences. Serious damages to public building and historical monuments also have taken place , as agitated mob indulge in arson and looting. Finally, the mob violence result in the leader of the government and some ministers resigning fearing physical assault and a few of them even fleeing from the country.
Government’s response :
The governments respond to such mass uprisings by attempting to brutally put them down, opening firing on the agitators resulting in deaths and injuries to several people. In the violent conditions , forces engaging the mob also suffer with a few of them losing their lives and many of them getting injured.
Such response from the government cause more anger and increase the intensity of the mass uprising.
Who are the street protestors ?
In many developing countries ,there are bound to be social and economic issues faced by the people, particularly with the youth population getting restive over their aspirations not being met and fulfilled by the government Such youth population generally do not understand the complexities of the issues and assume that the inefficiency and nepotism of the government and its leaders are the only cause for their problems that impact their personal life.
The mind and thought process of such frustrated youth population are fertile ground for those who seek to create unrest in the society and cause mass uprising. Hate campaign against the government and leaders are steadily and succinctly carried out over a period of time highlighting various negative developments. Influenced by the subtle campaign of such “ leadership” , section of youth population indulge themselves in protest march and violence to “settle score” with the government. .
What end result ?:
As the street protests and demonstrations go on due to some provocations or under some pretext, the protestors expand their demand to broader grievances over corruption, nepotism, and economic stagnation.
What is glaring is that such mass uprising last only for a few days and then sort of peace gradually return with the leaders of the government succumbing to the mob pressure and running away from the job. This pave way for the “leadership” instigating the people to protest, to facilitate someone who have been critic of the erstwhile government, to assume power . The “leadership” stays behind and try to remain conspicuous by absence during the protest period , but come out in open to assume leadership of the government later on.
,However, the basic grievances , raised during the protest remain largely unresolved and with only some cosmetic reforms. The issues largely remain .
Challenges facing political researchers :
Certainly, the political researchers and discerning observers now have a challenging task of identifying the basic underlying factors that lead to such mass uprisings. There is bound to be considerable thought process on the subject in the coming period, particularly since such mass uprising takes place all of a sudden without any visible prior signals , with the government being caught by surprise and remaining unprepared to tackle such adverse developments.
Disconnect of government :
One obvious reason for the unrest is that in the case of such uprisings, there is a disconnect between the leaders of the government and the mass of people to some extent and with the government not being clearly aware about the pulse of the common man and intensity of their anger and frustration.
Certainly, such mass uprisings cannot happen all of a sudden ,without some sort of “leadership”.
Failure of intelligence :
Intelligence network of the government should be efficient and committed enough to forewarn the government about such developments . It should ask the government to take stock of the situation and attend to the grievances of the people without loss of time.
Obviously, such mass uprisings happening without prior signals and all of a sudden indicate that the intelligence network of the government has been inefficient , apart from the careless attitude of the government.and the administrators .
What other possible causes ?:
The vital question is as to whether the above stated reasons are the only cause for the mass uprising or other additional factors also exist.
In the geo political scenario, there is suspicion frequently expressed in the print and visual media that the uprisings may be instigated by other countries who have vested interest and who want to get trade and other strategic advantages by getting stranglehold over the impacted country. Such scenario are often described in the media as the dubious activity of “deep state” in the overseas countries , seeking to interfere in the affairs of other countries.
As there are inevitably some people with hunger for power and who are not part of the government, it becomes easy for the “deep state” to use them to achieve their ends.
Is it really mass uprising ?
It should be noted that in overall population of the country, only a small fraction of the population largely consisting of youth indulge in such protests, Even among the youth, not all the youth population participate but only a small section of population. However, a few thousand protestors are enough to fill the streets and cause havoc.
What strategy to avoid such mass uprisings ?
It appears that the methodology and tactics of creating mass uprisings as a way of destabilising the government has been nearly fine tuned . Such mass uprisings are likely to take place more frequently in future , in the event of governments not reading the writing on the wall.
Such mass uprising is often termed as exhibition of what is called as “ people’s power “ and hailed by some of those who believe in promoting revolution to change the world order forcefully, to achieve what they think to be appropriate governance.
Such mass uprising is not a healthy sign.
The only way of preventing such mass uprising is that those in charge of the governance should understand that it would be a calculated risk , if the government would not earnestly take measures to promote equanimity in society and ensure the overall welfare of the people. The governance should not only be fair but also appear to be fair in the eyes of the people.
In the coming years, the dictators , monarchs and military leadership governing the country with vice like grip are bound to be confronted with “people’s power.
