Kerio Wetsah
COMMUNICATION has the power to bring people together as well as divide. What has happened in the past is all because of communication and what happens in the near future also depends on it. Today, our culture, social and religious life are influenced and moulded by communication. Communication technologies are directly and indirectly controlling the world today. Good communication works toward liberation and build connectedness. Communication is not just a socio-religious needs but an organizational and political need as well. Therefore, the right model of communication ought to be address to the people of Nagaland today.
Nagaland was divided by Indians 50 years ago. Instead of coming together, we have allowed ourselves to be disintegrated along the tribal, regional and lingual lines. Nothing can be worse than a nation, a state or a people in a constant process of organizational division. All these has happened because of inequality, and lack of right information and transparency in communication. For successful communication to happen, we always need to understand and respect others thinking and culture in the midst of diversities. When a particular Tribe/Group is consider superior problem arises. We cannot communicate with people whom we considered as inferior. Therefore, we should always respect each other equally irrespective of tribes, church denomination, political parties, and nationalist group.
It is high time now for the Nagas to wake up from the slumber of corruption, differences and misunderstanding. Peace is said to be indivisible, so is freedom, so is prosperity now, and so also is disaster in this one world that can no longer be split into isolated fragments. The past is over and it is the future that beckons to us now. The end to which various nationalist groups fight for is the same goal for all. They just use different names for it, like the six blind men touching an elephant and depending on the parts they touched, name it as- a snake, a sword, a fan, a wall, a pillar, and a rope. The quest in each instance is the same, only the answer differs. Thus, along their different paths the various nationalist groups should lead the nation towards peace and identical summit. Despite, great differences, right Communication will allow nationalist groups to be more complementary rather than contradictory.
Human are created to be in relationship with God, human beings and with the entire creations. Jesus Christ came to give liberty to the people and His own communication was the act of self humanity. Jesus taught us how to love our enemies and to forgive those who persecute us. We wait every year to celebrate Christmas. Yet when we plan our celebrations, we tend to forget many souls who serve us unfailingly. We gather around the Christmas tree with friends and family. But we forget to invite those who are ‘alone’ in this world. Take this festive season as an opportunity to forgive whom you have not been able to forgive for long and invite them to your house. Let us retrospect on our past and make an obligation to ourselves before God that we will all resolve to peace and become an agent of love to the world.
There is no time for petty and destructive criticism, no time for ill-will or blaming others. We have to build the noble mansion of free Nagaland where all her people will live in peace and equality. We cannot deny the fact that there will be lots of obstacles and problems in upholding this task. However, if we stand together united than impossible will be our shadow. Without new visions and dreams you will be travelling in the same road. As 2014 come may we all aim to be a communicator who affirms justice and peace.
