LITR 5831 Colonial-Postcolonial
Literature
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Susanne Allen
India since 1947: Is Democracy Working
While I was
exploring my modernization progress loop theory, I stumbled onto another legacy
of colonialism I was astounded to
learn about the relationship between culture and violence in postcolonial South
Asia. My focus is on India. My presumption was that in a civilized democracy
such as India that modernization was desirable.
The system of modernization is that of complexity, but I found that
complexity does not equal human progress. There are still the problems of how
western thinking affects a postcolonial county which now has the responsibility
of implementing the western idea of democracy. India, in particular, was mostly
an agrarian society that is now thrust into becoming a modern one. This process
is complex, but it basically means that more material possessions and more
technology are a necessary and preferred way of life. The process of
modernization uses the mechanisms of neocolonialism to transform the
underdeveloped country (Shcueller as qtd. by Susie Allen).
This process is one that is practiced
often, but what are the effects of modernization on South Asia.
The polities of South Asia are undergoing different stages of democratization
and the entire region is not passing through the same stage, and this phenomenon
is causing major cultural unrest because of religious and economic disparities
(Sharma 284).
If we are
to believe that rhetoric, then, South Asia is set up as a model democratic
post-colonial society, but, in Kashmir, it is reported to have the second
highest concentration of terrorist attacks in South Asia just behind Iraq.
Much of the violence is ethic and gender related violence that is a nasty
remnant of the Partition of 1947 (Daiya 101). Journalist Sumit Ganguly
theorizes, “Religious
violence and cultural parochialism are on the rise. Much of these forces seem to
be fueled by the global economic downturn, which is bringing out the worst
political tactics. In such a turbulent economic climate, scapegoating ethnic and
religious minorities may well prove to be irresistible for those seeking to
divert attention from serious questions of unemployment and growing economic
disparities” (1).
When the colonial first nations left the second nations they believed that
democracy and modernization would go hand-in-hand just as it had for the West,
but this has not been the case. Kumar says, “In the West, democracy entered
after capitalist economic transformation reached a fruition point and the
society became fairly wealthy. The industrial working force was much larger,
than that of the agricultural sector. Comparatively, Indian democracy at the
outset, encountered an agrarian society with a much smaller industrial sector
and an adjunct poverty. So, democratic politics primarily became a tool for
advancing the cause of promoting the grant of subsidies for agriculture, rather
than contemplating upon building a thriving industrial-capitalist economy”
(280). The ancient caste system in South Asia endures and stands as a road-block
to building a modern democratic society (Sharma 285).
Establishment of lasting peace, a conducive security environment and imparting
permanence
to political stability in a democratizing region is a serious challenge (Kaila
134). Kumar and Sharma lament, “The task gets compounded, if the processes of
modernization which is inextricably linked with democratization are contested by
fractious forces. This has been an apparent phenomenon in South Asia as the
post-colonial history of the region has been heavily loaded with an immensely
combustive scenario of conflicts” (abstract). The countries of South Asia are
undergoing the process of democratization and to a considerable extent;
democratization and peace are inversely related to each other. Democratizing
societies tend to be fiercely unstable places because numerous groups are
entangled in mutual contestations, largely in pursuance of acquiring greater
spaces for exerting their influence upon the society. Hence, violence in their
region of location becomes a quotidian phenomenon (Kumar 275). India has a
firmer grasp on democracy that its neighbors to the north, but even in India
there are political-religious groups such as the
Hindu majoritarianism that pose a threat to the progress of a democratic
nation-state (Yelin 90).
Now that I have a firm
grasp on the meaning of the terms colonialism, neocolonialism, modernization,
global economy, capitalism, and globalization, I can see that
there is an outer progressive loop of In South Asia the manifestations of this
phenomenon are diverse and are expressed in the ethno-political conflicts,
communal tensions, terrorism, regional and linguistic chauvinism, that persist
despite the polities of the region being engaged in processes of modernization
and democratization of
globalization can begin
(Kumar 2011). Nations
begin to allow economic investments, transplanted workers, and eventually the
economy is given primacy over political systems (Obadiah 1). In other word,
economic imperialism is achieved and a new form of colonialism is realized in
the form of modernization. However, it is imperative that
socio-cultural transformation take place because it is an urgent imperative for
modernization which can
lead to a more stable form of democracy.
The plan
for democracy was super-imposed by the outgoing colonial administration in
collusion with the dominant groups of the local societies. Colonialism thus
brought in with it institutional forms of modern Europe and hence inflicted a
capitalist model of State upon the postcolonial territories that were not really
ready to begin the process (Sanjeev 278). It is difficult to move an entire
nation’s cultural heritage from one place to another without stopping progress
and impeding the process of democracy. The Partition was a major roadblock for
democratic progress.
Works Cited
Daiya, Kavita. “Violent
Belongings: Partition, Gender, and National Culture in Postcolonial India.”
Philadelphia: Temple UP, 2008. Print.
Ganguly,
Sumit. “Religious Wars.” World News,
http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2009/03/02/religious-wars.html March
2, 2009. Web.
Obadina, Tunde. “African
Economic Analysis.”
http://www.afbis.com/analysis/neo-colonialism.html 2000. Accessed Oct. 11,
2011. Web.
Kalia, Ravi. "Modernism, Modernization And Post‐Colonial India: A Reflective Essay." Planning Perspectives 21.2 (2006): 133-156. Academic Search Complete. Web. 15 Nov. (2011) Print.
Kumar, Sanjeev H. M., and Preeti Sharma. "Crises Of Modernity: The Problems Of Democratization And Peace In South Asia." International Journal Of Interdisciplinary Social Sciences 5.5 (2010): 275-285. Academic Search Complete. Web. 15 Nov. 2011. Print.
Sarte,
Jean-Paul. Colonialism and Neocolonialism.
Routledge, London, England. (1964). Print.
Schueller,
Malini. “Decononizing Global Theories Today.”
Zinterventions,
The International
Journal of Postcolonial Studies.
Vol. 11 Issue 2, p 235-254., (2009) Print.
Yelin, Louise. "Postcolonial Criticism In The Era Of Globalization." Studies In The Novel 34.1 (2002): 90. Academic Search Complete. Web. 15 Nov. 2011.
