As whatever I posted in Malayalam disappeared, here are few points that I shared during my talk in Kozhikodu yesterday ( 8 August , 2016)
1) When we study history of ideas and history of the world, there are junctures where there is a paradigm shift in terms of ideas, institutions and power-networks. A large chunk of ideas, institutional framework and national and international political discourse that are operational now emerged during the five years from 1945 to 1950. The institutionalization of ideas of 'development' and 'human rights' emerged during this phase. Decolonization emerged during this phase. The United Nations and Buttonwood institutions too emerged during the phase. It is during this phase the international development finance, non-governmental organisations etc emerged. While this has undergone significant changes in terms of policy and broad political framework at the national and international arenas during the 1977 to 82, the broad political institutional framework survived. The international political framework and dynamics changed significantly from 1989 to 1992, signifying the fall of soviet union and the ascent of neo-liberal market ideology.
2) The institutional and ideological framework that operated in the post-second world war is beginning to undergo a change now. While it is a difficult to predict exactly the nature of this change, it is more or less clear that by 2025 there will be significant paradigm shift or reconfiguration of the present ideas and institutional framework. Brettonwood institutions will become increasingly redundant. A significant number of UN agencies will be forced to merge or dissolved in the years to come. If UN itself doesn't go through significant reorganization, the institution will become increasingly redundant.
3) Most of the ideas, ideological framework and analytical models that emerged in the second half of 19th century were applied in practice in the last century. The ideas of 'dialectical materialism', 'adult franchise', democratic social contract etc were used or adapted in practice in 20th century across the world, particularly as many countries got out of colonial yoke in the post-second world war era. However, we are getting in to a phase where the very same ideas that inspired few generations have become increasingly saturated within the context of institutionalized power-politics to control through multiple form of legitimation and collective consensus. On the one hand the old knowledge-analytical and ideological framework are getting brittle and decadent and on the other hand we are yet to come up new set of ideas or practical knowledge framework that will help to address the issues and challenges of 21st century. Hence, we are moving in to a phase of political, social and economic multi-dimensional ambivalence in this world.
That is precisely why those who used to swear by dialectical materialism and proletariat revolution are increasingly drawing from spiritual gurus/ leaders such as Sri Narayana Guru or Fracisis Mar Papa. That is why Marxist analysis is increasingly redundant even among parties that was formed in his name. That is why the very same economic advisers get endorsed by all political parties who are supposed to be of the two ends of political spectrum. This predicament of ideological and institutional ambivalence is happening across the world in multiple formats.
At such a juncture of new modes of 'elite driven' power politics, there are not even not many efforts reconfiguration of erstwhile political knowledge framework that provided the legitimacy to rule making use of the 'nation-state' power-matrix.
3) Markets encroached from bed room to board room and from political ideologies to institutional framework. Hence, electoral process itself moved from the legitimacy of an ideological public argument to advertisement based electoral campaigns to 'sell' a set of promises of 'development', 'growth' and 'good governance' in exchange of votes.
The poll surveys and media began to negotiate electoral choices, slogans, candidates and the chances of winning and losing. Ideological framework became a veneer of old habits and rhetoric as the predominant fight was to capture power at any cost. This also resulted in the new nexus between economic elites, political party elites and media elites.
As the media became hyper marketised and corporate, their institutional framework get 'owned' by corporate elites, political elites and religious elites. Journalism as a profession of public sphere activism ceased and it became a vocation of 'professionals' and 'workers' simply bought, sold and controlled by the market-media nexus.
As a result the media 'men/women' became parasites of political and economic elites of a given country. At best they could become 'power-brokers' and 'fixers' or 'sooth Sayers' of power-matrix as most of them lost their sense of autonomy and agency as 'discourse' makers in the public sphere. Politics got reduced to 'media=shows' and 'rhetorical superficial superfluousness' in TV studios and electoral campaigns are now advertising campaigns in an electoral consumer market.
4) The saturation of ideas and ideologies of hope and the increasing cynicism that crept within the political party framework, pushed my young people in search of other options and ideas, either at the market place or in terms of new forms of security in the 'old identity' matrices.
While the political ideologies of hope and optimism driven and inspired a generation of leaders in the post-second world war era, there are not many ideas or ideological framework that inspire a generation of young people to embrace them and make them in to public or political argument to evolve in to societal or political leadership. This is happening in different parts of the world, in different modes. All these also create a predicament of new ambivalence
5) As the society and politics get absorbed in the market framework, there are new insecurities among young people. Many people are worried about a well-paying job, as the new mode self- worth is not based on the depth of your ideas or knowledge, but the skill set that can fetch maximum amount of money in the 'job-market'.
Once you get the job, there is new pressure on 'target' and performance 'indicators' and one is always worried about losing a job at any point in time. And one can't afford to lose the job as the entire life gets organisied in the form of 'EMI'( equal monthly installment) for all technology gadgets, car, health-care, housing, student loan etc. This new insecurity and the lack of politics of hope push a large number of young people to new spirituality and tend to get in to accentuated sense of religious identity or practices in different parts of the world.
7) The increasing sense of economic and social insecurity and the alienation based on religion, identity, colure and creed give peculiar situation of internalized fear
. Real or perceived social, economic and political inequality create a social and political environment for reactive politics. In the absence of ides of hope in the society or politics, a significant number of people turn to their religious, caste and racial identity as a 'fall-back' option. This intern also create new 'skepticism' of the 'other' and this 'new othering' create a sense of social paranoia with political consequences. This created a change in attitude to migrant workers and immigrant communities in many parts of the world. This is evident not only in Brexit but also in the rise of anti-immigrants politics in Europe.
8) It is the beginning of the end of European and then American dominance in the world. However, there will be more flex and ambivalence in the power-politics of the world in the next few years. Formations like BRICS etc are short-term economic-political configurations.
9) A mix of new insecurities and multiple form of alienation among migrant communities and new forms of social, political and economic insecurities crate environment of 'socio-political' mistrust and consequent violence in the society.
10) The increasing instances of dispersed violence and terrorists acts have multiple reasons. While religious identity and 'spiritual' liberation through killing the 'other' and killing oneself have become a trend, it is important to understand it is not only in the name of Islam. The killing of around 87 people by Anders Beverick in Oslo few years ago, or the different forms of shoot outs in colleges and schools of the USA etc are symptoms of new paranoia and alienation among young people.
11. While the rhetoric of democracy have become universal, the real practice of democracy have become increasingly limited. Elections are often used as 'legitimising' mechanism to adopt a more authoritarian regime of elites. The elite capture of the state through the so-called 'democratic electoral process' pose the single largest challenge to democracy.
12.The devolution of power-to the local governance institutions gave more space for citizens to interface with the government. However, it also create two classes/kinds of political leaders. Most of those who work at the community or grassroots level can only 'dream' of power at the local government institutions of one or other kind. However, the real policy making positions of power or members of parliament etc go to handpicked candidates with macro-power network in the market, media or political elites.
13.This has also hollowed political parties within as those who work at the grassroots level have less sense of 'agency' or ownership of political decisions or policy choices. This also led to a new sense of depoliticisation within political parties across the world.
14.There is a need to think fresh and need to consider ideas and ideological options to understand and address the challenges of 21st century. Ideas and political framework that emerged in 19th century in the post-enlightenment Europe may not be capable enough to address the causes and consequences of the predicament of multiple dislocations and ambivalence in the political institutions and framework.
While the pace of this multiple dislocations and ambivalence could be different in different historical social and cultural context, the fact of the matter is that most of the political ideas that emerged in the 19th century are getting brittle, fading away or simply redundant. Hence, new intellectual searches, theoretical paradigms, new social contract and political praxis will have to evolve in the world and in India/
