Land of stifled, not dead, ideas
Zia Haider Rahman sounded like latter day Nirad Chaudhury with his disparaging remarks on Bangladesh. His iconic predecessor the author of “The Continent of Circe” was brutally dismissive of India. He termed India as a land of swine, not the cradle of civilization. Haider's premise is scarcely different. He termed ours as a land of dead ideas (Ref. The Daily Star dt. December 4, 2014). Is this valid? Absolutely not. We have capable intellectuals and international award winning novelists, jurists, film makers and scientists. Our microcredit idea burst on global focus, borrowed and emulated by all. Yet it's not the whole story. General situation is not that cozy.
Fertile lands don't alone yield bumper crop. Without nurturing fertile brains too fail to sprout ideas. For the mind to be creative ambience for freedom of thought and democracy has no alternative. In a society that is hostile to differing and diverse views, condition for creativity is not only not feasible but risky too. Who can experiment with new ideas to be politically profiled and perished? The essence of life is in the ability to think. Man is a thinking reed. In thinking does he exist and enjoys superior status to other animals. 'Cogito ergo sum' I think that's why I exist. If we fail in this vital area we are nonexistent. Idea denies us. Physical survival and intellectual existence are not the same. In a condition of disenfranchisement anyone is enslaved to the will of a tyrant. Is he allowed to experiment with new idea that does not conform to the pattern prescribed by the press and publication acts in a non functional democracy? Are we any different?
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