Better way to do things
This was a very sad incident (“Girl hangs herself after school stops her from writing exam over non-payment of fees”, Gulf News, February 3). Instead of humiliating the child in front of her peers, the authorities could have in a decent and better way to approach her parents. Sadly, incidents such as these never seems to cease. When educationalists forget the fact that students are the most important part of the schooling system, such shameful incidents stem up. Sadly, young people these days, don’t think twice before ending their own lives when met with atrocities as these. There was a time where such discussions could be carried out among family members or friends, thus finding a solution. Most nuclear families of today have taken away the opportunity to mingle with kith and kin leaving people, especially the youngsters, to deal with their own problems. They in turn take decisions quickly as they find comfort in them. The society needs to think deeply into such situations and come out with solutions.
From Ms Agniyah Shaikh
UAE
Too much terrorism, too many lives lost
It has become imperative to have a kind of commitment on the part of today’s generation in tackling the increasing militancy, antihuman atrocities, refugee crisis, civilian conflicts, killing and abusing women and children (“Taliban active in 70% of Afghanistan, BBC study finds”, Gulf News, February 1). When large number of precious lives perish in seconds, such instances emphasise the importance of life and what can be done to stop the unending horrors. Afghanistan’s capital had recently witnessed another ambush, killing more than a hundred people, and these numbers keep appearing again and again, and has become a disturbing trend. Unfortunately, the concern continues to remain, as the arrests and legal proceedings never stop recurrence of similar incidents. The repetition of such incidents echoes pathetic situations among the youth, especially the school-going children, who have been either witnessing or listening to such horrific news almost every day. They will certainly be shocked in their minds. The leaders and those responsible must have better strategies to rectify such man-made atrocities.
From Mr Ramachandran Nair
Oman
Censorship is not all bad
India enshrines freedom of speech as one of its principal values in its constitution and prescribes it as a fundamental right for all its citizens, and this is in practice quite true, but only to a certain extent (“Swara Bhasker’s ‘Padmaavat’ post causes Twitter storm”, Gulf News, January 31). While the Indian media does enjoy great freedom of expression, there is still heavy censorship when it comes to perceived anti-nationalist dissemination of information. The pertinent question here is whether it is right for a country that stands on the sturdy pillars of transparency and democracy to curb freedom of speech of its citizens in any way? Many people are of the opinion that it is in fact justified on the country’s part to restrict access to what might be perceived as anti-nationalist media, especially in a country that is riddled with secessionist movements and communal disputes. There is a lot of controversy over films and books like the film Padmaavat or the book The Red Sari, because of their inaccurate appropriation of Indian history and society. In countries like India where an internal demand for autonomy places a threat to the unity of the country, censorship to a certain extent becomes essential to ensuring internal peace. Developing countries rightly prioritise economic and societal development and this will become nearly impossible to achieve if the country is torn with civil turmoil. This is why censorship to a certain degree is justified, just as long as it allows space for the citizens to express their opinions and mobilise the public in a peaceful manner.
From Ms Paakhi Bhatnagar
Dubai
Time to buckle up
It is a real blow for the South African cricket team that their previous match winner, cricketer AB de Villiers, will miss the first three One Day (OD) matches against our Indian cricket team. Incidentally, it is good news that Rohit Sharma, who failed to create any impact in the two Tests he played, is keen to show his strength in the one day series. Anyway, if we take into account the ratio of his success to his failures, after failing in four innings, he is bound to succeed in the first match against South Africa and retain his place for the next four matches. Let us wait and watch how he tackles the South African team’s pace in the wickets.
From Ms Kavitha Srikanth
India
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