Time for India & China to Set Agenda
America is now focused on the health care debate, state of the economy, Christmas season shopping, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and Tiger Woods. None of this has any relevance to the developing world particularly those countries in Asia that are continuing to see impressive economic growth even as many Western countries are struggling to cope with job losses and contracting economies. The West will counter by saying that the issues that they are trying to tackle also have an impact on the rest of the world. But this statement is only partly true.
America like many developed countries has news cycles that focuses on a few stories and then keeps repeating these stories again and again. Unfortunately for the rest of the world American media companies are also some of the largest media outlets in the world with a few exceptions like BBC and News Corporation. So the news Americans watch is also recycled all over the world by media outlets that are either directly or indirectly (like CNN-IBN) owned by these US based corporations.
The average television viewer in India today is not only aware of the major news events happening in the West but also minor events like the Tiger Woods affair, security breach at the White House or what the Royal family is up to in Britain. But this is one-way communication. An average American television viewer on the other has no idea of the major news events in countries like Canada, Mexico, Britain or France let alone India or China. This is because Americans want their media to cover local events in detail rather than focus on international issues (this is sad considering America is a superpower but it is true).
There is no problem with getting information about other countries, cultures and their people as long we put it in the correct context. Information after all is power (you know them but they do not know you). But it is important for us to understand that information is also influence and a way to set the table and the agenda. If you look at the issues that are at the center of attention internationally you will notice that almost all of them are tabled by the Western nations and reflect their concerns. This includes the war on terror, Iranian and North Koran nuclear threat, Islamic militancy in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and Climate change.
Let us look at the war on terror. Countries like India have been victims of terrorism sponsored by other state and non state actors like Pakistan, Al Qaeda and Lashkar-e-Toiba for a very long time. Over 70,000 Indian citizens including military personnel have been killed by terrorists in Kashmir alone since 1988 (it is interesting to note that the militancy began as the Soviet Union was withdrawing from Afghanistan. The victorious but newly unemployed militants shifted their focus from fighting the Soviet Union to fighting the Indians in Kashmir. Pressure from India and the United States has slowed down the militancy and there are indications that these Jihadists are now focusing on causing trouble in Muslim dominated areas in China).
But does this mean that India should join hands with the United States and other Western nations in fighting the so-called “war on terror”? The war on terror is not winnable by force. It requires a change in ideology of some in the Muslim world who see progress and every other non-Muslim as an enemy. This militant ideology mainly resides in societies that are being repressed and lacks transparency and accountability. America’s old friend Saudi Arabia provides the finances for these extreme belief systems to thrive while its strategic partner, Pakistan provides the foot soldiers. This monster was created by America and its allies to counter Soviet influence in Middle East and South Asia. Unfortunately America now has the ownership for finding a solution to this issue.
It is time for countries like India and China to start prioritizing their concerns and issues ahead of the issues facing the West. Issues like poverty alleviation, access to clean drinking water to people and providing electricity to all areas (20% of human beings still live without electricity), HIV/AIDS are not just issues facing poor countries but global issues as well. All Western nations are also tightening their immigration and visa policies as they feel the pressure from the increasingly affluent and mobile populations from the developing nations (the immigration policies of both the United States and the European Union are plain racist as it favors immigration from richer or predominantly white countries at the same time discouraging immigration from poorer non-white nations). These are some of the causes worthy of discussions at a global level.
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- China Blocks India from Updating UNSCR 1267
- India and China: Contest or Friendship of the Century?
- Labor Day Lessons For India And China
- Brazil, China & India Missing From Haiti
Category: News & Government
Let us please understand one fact clearly.
America does exactly what is good for America and can justify any action.
One of the reasons is because countries like India do not want to take on the ownership of anything.