I read with mixed feelings the announcement of the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, that August 14 should be remembered as the “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day”. The Home Ministry was very quick to issue a notification to this effect.

I don’t wish to delve into the political compulsions that made the Prime Minister make such an announcement. Being a mediator by vocation, I was wondering how such a statement can be viewed from a conflict resolution perspective. But before that, let me give the Prime Minister the benefit of the doubt. Maybe his intention was to tell the people that “Look, it is important to stay united in order to avoid the horrors of the Partition.” The question is – if that was the intention, could it have been reframed in a better way?

Reframing conflict

Mediation is all about peace-making. In mediation, a mediator plays the role of a facilitator who helps parties in conflict to move from the past and focus on the future. The past would have been a time of great difficulty, turmoil, emotional trauma and pain. This leads the people in conflict to hate each other, to indulge in toxic communication and behaviour, to damage each other, to blame each other for all the mishaps and to generally think of the other as a monster or an ogre from the Grimm Fairy Tales. When they sit before the mediator, the atmosphere is usually one of tension, anger and other intense emotions. The mediator has a tough task to diffuse the tense situation and to get the parties to move from the past and focus on the future. The mediator uses the technique of reframing to change the terms of reference between the parties. Where, for instance, one party says that the other party is “lying” about something, the mediator would say, “Well, you have a different recollection of what happened.”

The technique of reframing is used effectively by the mediator to do what William Ury and Roger Fisher talk about in their seminal masterpiece “Getting to Yes”, viz.

(1) Separate the people from the problem and
(2) focus on their interests and not their positions.

For example, if one party says, “My partner is unscrupulous. He thinks nothing about misleading the customers and keeps making false representations about the product. He cares nothing about how this will affect the goodwill of our firm. I am tired of his crooked methods,” the mediator would reframe this as, “What I hear you saying is that, the reputation and goodwill of the firm is important and you wish to preserve that.” In one stroke, the mediator has shifted the focus of the parties to a future need to have honesty and transparency with the customers – an interest that is common to both.

In effect, what the mediator does through the technique of reframing is to draw the parties from their past unpleasant experiences, help them to understand what is good for them for their future and get them to work towards that goal. All that is toxic, negative and painful is reframed to something that is purposeful, positive and future-oriented. People in conflict tend to be entrenched in the past. They are unable to move beyond all the pain, anguish and suffering they have been through. Sometimes this pain and suffering is real and sometimes it is either exaggerated or, maybe, even imagined. But remaining in that state can be harmful. It creates a lot of toxicity, vitiates the environment and drives people to do things that may be potentially harmful for themselves and for others. The past is a lesson for the present and the future. It is not something you dwell on, wallow in, feel sorry for yourself, generate hatred towards others and make the present and the future worse for everyone.

Is conflict bad?

Most people think conflict is bad. When you say “conflict” it brings to mind strife, struggle, fighting, killing, war. But actually, conflict is not bad. What is bad is not managing it and resolving it. Allowing conflict to spiral out of control is bad. It is worse to perpetuate conflict and to keep reliving it. Conflict can have a positive effect as a harbinger of change. But for conflict, many important changes in the world would not have come about – emancipation of slaves, women’s rights, workers’ rights, freedom from colonial rule and so on. The world would be a victim of inertia described in Newton’s first law as “an object remaining in its state of rest or uniform motion unless acted upon by an external force.” Conflict is that external force that brings about change, provided it is managed and resolved peacefully. If not, it can cause tremendous damage or even total annihilation.

If we agree that conflict is not all bad but needs to be managed and resolved peacefully, then it is important to (a) not remain entrenched in the past but focus on the future and (b) work towards identifying, understanding and reaching common interests and goals. Nelson Mandela recognised this when he refused to succumb to the demand for the trial of the apartheid regime and opted for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission instead. Mahatma Gandhi chose the path of non-violence to secure freedom from British colonial rule, firmly refuting the belief that large struggles have to be violent. Great leaders and thinkers have always advocated the path of reconciliation and peace-making rather than revenge and recrimination. A great statesman is like a mediator. She plays the role of servant-leadership, helping people to navigate through their conflicts, find common grounds and work together to solve the problems of the present and to ensure a better future.

The partition is itself a lesson for us: that if you perpetuate hatred, distrust and animosity between communities, it leads to cataclysmic consequences in which both sides suffer. What is needed is to foster understanding, trust, love and harmony. What is important is to be liberated from the past and not to repeat it.

Can we positively reframe “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day”?

“Partition Horrors Remembrance Day” is replete with the imagery of the brutality and savagery that accompanied the partition of India. It does nothing to help the people to move on. It can only perpetuate hatred, animosity and distrust. Does it augur well for the nation? Certainly not! Where we should be focusing on education, health and progress, we would be thinking of revenge and recrimination. Could the Prime Minister have reframed “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day” and, in the true spirit of statesmanship, designated August 14th as a “Partition Forgiveness and Reconciliation Day”? It is not too late. He can do it even now. Will it show weakness? No. On the contrary, it will show the strength and spiritual power of our hoary culture that has helped us to endure two centuries of foreign rule and yet remain true to our core values of compassion and inclusiveness. It is time that our leaders graduate from being politicians to becoming statesmen. As Yuval Noah Harari puts it, “Historians study the past not in order to repeat it, but in order to be liberated from it.”

*The author is a Chennai-based advocate, mediator and digital dispute resolution specialist.

Related:

PM Narendra Modi names August 14 “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day”

The post Can we positively reframe “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day”? appeared first on SabrangIndia.

On the eve of India’s 75th Independence Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that August 14 will henceforth be observed as “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day”. 

The PM made this major announcement in the quietest of ways, with a post on his twitter handle. “Partition’s pains can never be forgotten. Millions of our sisters and brothers were displaced and many lost their lives due to mindless hate and violence. In memory of the struggles and sacrifices of our people, 14th August will be observed as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day,” he tweeted in Hindi and english adding “may the #PartitionHorrorsRemembranceDay keeps reminding us of the need to remove the poison of social divisions, disharmony and further strengthen the spirit of oneness, social harmony and human empowerment.”

देश के बंटवारे के दर्द को कभी भुलाया नहीं जा सकता। नफरत और हिंसा की वजह से हमारे लाखों बहनों और भाइयों को विस्थापित होना पड़ा और अपनी जान तक गंवानी पड़ी। उन लोगों के संघर्ष और बलिदान की याद में 14 अगस्त को ‘विभाजन विभीषिका स्मृति दिवस’ के तौर पर मनाने का निर्णय लिया गया है।

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 14, 2021

Official notification of Govt declaring 14th August as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day

Govt says this will remind the present and future generations of Indians of the pain and suffering faced by the people of India during the partition pic.twitter.com/O70gQCjoZp

— Aman Sharma (@AmanKayamHai_) August 14, 2021

Many ministers, including Home Minister echoed the PM and said the Partition Horrors Remembrance Day will “strengthen peace, love & unity by eliminating discrimination and malice from the society.”

देश के विभाजन का घाव व अपनों को खोने के दुःख को शब्दों में वर्णित नहीं किया जा सकता।

मुझे विश्वास है कि #PartitionHorrorsRemembranceDay समाज से भेदभाव व द्वेष की दुर्भावना को खत्म कर शांति, प्रेम व एकता को बल देगा।

— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) August 14, 2021

As expected the Prime Minister’s sudden tweet went viral within minutes and set off a debate on what the need was to name August 14 as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day. India’s neighbour Pakistan celebrates August 14 as its Independence Day. 

There is always an attempt of cordiality between the two nations, on this day. In fact Pak Rangers and India’s Border Security Force (BSF) guards exchange sweets at Attari-Wagah border on this day to mark Pakistan’s Independence Day. The BSF commandant Jasbir Singh told the media that, “We will also gift sweets to them tomorrow”, as a part of the celebrations of India’s 75th Independence Day on Sunday, August 15. This year too, the occasion was reported widely on both Indian and Pakistan media. It is often dubbed “sweet diplomacy” and is a tradition carried out by the BSF that guards the massive India-Pakistan International Border.

#Pakistan Ranger’s Wing Commander Hassan presents sweets to #Indian Border Security Force (BSF) commandant Jasbir Singh during a ceremony to celebrate Pakistan’s 75th Independence Day at the India-Pakistan Wagah border post. pic.twitter.com/eapsB1ZAPx

— Shiraz Hassan (@ShirazHassan) August 14, 2021

Journalists also shared images of sweets also being exchanged by Indian and Pakistan Army troops stationed at the LoC Mendhar-Hotspring.

Annual rituals of irony. Indian & Pakistan Army troops at LoC Mendhar-Hotspring exchanging sweets today on the occasion of Pakistan’s Independence Day. pic.twitter.com/klzZEYZQly

— Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) August 14, 2021

The sharp divide on social media was clear, while many who are fans of the PM agreed with his given title to August 14, there was an equal number who believed this was not a gesture that indicated peace and could in fact be most divisive. Some said it was politically motivated and reminded the PM that he himself has often greeted the people of Pakistan on their national days including their Independence Day.

The divisive duplicity exposed !

Congratulate Pakistan on 22nd March, the day Muslim League (22/3/1940) passed the “Partition Resolution”;

Congratulate Pak on every 14th August;

BUT…
Start diversionary politics at home.

P.S- Pl read PM’s Letter & Tweet ? pic.twitter.com/qW2DIWotAT

— Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) August 14, 2021

‘Partition Horrors Remembrance Day’
This is vile! It is not about remembering people who lost families to the partition, this is done to opening wounds and create communal hatred.

— T M Krishna (@tmkrishna) August 14, 2021

Was Aug 14, 1947 ‘Partition day’? 

As recalled in an article on Hindustan Times, Lord Mountbatten, India’s last Viceroy, released a plan on the country’s Independence from the British on June 3, 1947. This was the Mountbatten Plan, which “announced that India would be splitting into two nations after its independence — India and Pakistan. The division came into effect on August 15, 1947.” The plan “included the principles of partition and gave autonomy and sovereignty to both India and Pakistan. It also gave the nations the right to form their own constitution.” 

On August 14, 2021, the government’s press statement on PIB added the reasoning as it were to naming the day. It stated: “Independence Day, which is celebrated on 15th August every year, is a joyous and proud occasion for any nation; however, with the sweetness of freedom came also the trauma of partition. The birth of the newly independent Indian nation was accompanied by violent pangs of partition that left permanent scars on millions of Indians. The partition caused amongst the largest migrations in human history affecting about 20 million people. Millions of families had to abandon their ancestral villages/towns/cities and were forced to find a new life as refugees. While at the stroke of midnight of 14th-15th August, 2021, the entire nation will be celebrating the 75th Independence Day, the pain and violence of partition has remained deeply etched in the nation’s memory. While the country has moved on, to become the largest democracy and the third-largest economy of the world, the pain of partition suffered by the nation can never be forgotten. While celebrating our Independence, a grateful nation also salutes those sons and daughters of our beloved motherland who had to sacrifice their lives in the frenzy of violence.” 

Wall of shipping containers at Red Fort, high alert in Delhi

The national capital of Delhi, all roads leading to Red Fort where the PM will unfurl the National Flag on Independence Day are now covered under a security blanket. It is for the first time that a wall of shipping containers has been placed at the entrance of the Red Fort ahead of the Independence Day celebrations on August 15. The Delhi Police told the media that this has been done for security reasons. At the Red Fort the security arrangements include deployment of “NSG snipers, elite SWAT commandos, kite catchers, canine units and sharpshooters on high-rise buildings,” reported The Mint adding that “anti-drone systems have also been installed at the Red Fort in view of the recent terror attack at IAF station in Jammu airport.” 

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The post PM Narendra Modi names August 14 “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day” appeared first on SabrangIndia.