Wednesday, February 7, 2007

Editorial

Our attention has been drawn towards the news items pouring in our offices from various district head quarters in the eastern Terai revealing that media men too have become the target of the agitators. In the process several media men representing different media houses have either been brutally beaten or at best tortured to the extent that reminds of the horror of the by gone era that has now become already defunct.

This means that the media men were neither compatible to the state nor to the agitators at any time. If this is so then what comes to conclusion is that the media men will continue to be taken to task both by the state or for that matter the agitators under one pretext or the other. This is too dangerous a situation that demands unprecedented unity among the now battered accord amongst the journalists who appear more interested in maintaining this divide on political lines than going the other way.

The fact is that the Nepalese journalists today were a divided lot thus rendering the strength to an all time low than what it used to be not so in the distant past. We fail to understand as to why this has been happening? We also have so far failed to comprehend as to why our colleagues have opted to become like a political animal which should neither be of their interest nor the ethics so demands of them.

We at best were a creature whose sole objective is and should be to guarantee the flow of information to the lay men and that’s all. We are not in this profession to play political games. Nor are we here to advocate this or that politics should dawn in the country. This is, in our opinion, not our business. Let the Politicians and the leaders of this country decide which mode of politics will fit into our scheme of things. At best what we can suggest the state or for that matter the establishment that whatever regime is adopted, that must be in the larger interest of the people. By people we mean all the population whether they belong to Terai or reside in the inaccessible mountains. At best we can forward our recommendations which is non-political in nature and content on how to steer the country so that no one is left in the cold as it used to be in the past which is why the present agitation.

We have of late been following certain write ups in the contemporary Nepali media that possess some amount of hatred against the people that have been agitating since three weeks or so pushing their political demands. These write ups when analyzed brings to the fore that the feeling some media men or for that matter media houses possess for the Terai people in general and their agitation in particular are not only full of negative overtones but also possess connotations that are dangerous which if allowed to continue then that might be the beginning of the disintegration process of the so far united country as a solid rock.

This is also a very dangerous trend that we must not repeat in the future. Let the agitators push their demands. As a matter of fact the Nepali media must understand that Terai has some issues and problems that it wants to get sorted out at the earliest. So far the agitators in the Terai, our brothers and sisters, have not demanded any thing that should be alarming to any one. However, if they do so then it would an entirely different case. Since they have not done so and thus it would be premature to come to a conclusion that the agitators have ulterior motives behind their protests.

Coming back to the role of the media, we in this sector must understand the gravity of the situation that it has obtained in the Terai today, and flow information in such a manner that does in no way hurt their sentiments. Concurrently we must tell the agitators in no uncertain terms that their demands must remain a political one and they can in no way exceed the limits that endanger our cordial ties that have been the hallmarks of Madhesi-Pahade unity.

Summing up, we also would like to say few words to our friends in the media sector. Don’t advocate politics. Don’t prescribe your personal political prescriptions. Do your duty as is demanded of you. Let the political men in the country decide the destiny of our country. It is their job.

Now a few words to the agitators as well. Don’t treat the media men as enemies. Understand that they are your real friends who have been disseminating your grievances to the other parts of the country and more so is forcing the state to listen to your genuine demands. Take them as good friends. Beating media men would boomerang some day. What would happen if the entire media men of the country boycott your news? If you continue to misbehave the media men they might opt to go for this unimaginable decision.

We both should cooperate with each other so that a sort of understanding is made in between the two which will allow the free flow of information and the government would in that case be forced to listen to your grievances even in a much more enhanced way.

We express our deep anguish over the manner a few of our colleagues been treated by the agitators recently in the Terai.