Special: Politics ain’t cool

Thiruvananthapuram: DYFI state secretary M Swaraj’s stance that increasing apoliticism is the bane of youth and CPM state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan’s riposte, blaming him for the youth organization’s failure to make an impact, are issues not easy to find answers to nor easy to solve.

Every individual and organisation is subsumed by the ebb and flow of current events and trends.

Swaraj raises a formulation based on trends in the post-Soviet Union period. It is no secret that the youth are fast losing faith in the political system and distancing themselves from organizations cutting across political ideologies.

The 12th state conference of DYFI in Alappuzha in May 2013 admitted that about 2 lakh members had dropped out over three years.

The situation in other youth organisations is no different.

Most agitations undertaken by youth organisations, which have been reduced to more or less appendages of parent political parties, end up being shows in front of TV cameras and their shelf life lasts as the duration of prime time news hour debates.

Swaraj, who came under attack from the party boss for stating the obvious, believes that the outlook of youth had undergone a drastic change.

“Organising the youth in the age of globalization is a challenging task. Apoliticism, careerism and the influence of caste and communal organisations are coming in the way of rallying the youth on a secular democratic platform”, he said, adding that the influence of social media was also on the rise.

But Lefties who thought people active on social media network were incapable of organising mass movements and were content posting status reports have been proved wrong.

Social media was utilised effectively during the Arab Spring. The thousands that thronged the streets of Delhi to protest against gang rape, without a call from youth outfits, showed that the youth were not only concerned but were ready to fight.

The major criticism faced by youth organisations is that they behave like feeder organisations of political parties, hamstrung by priorities of political bosses.

Major stakes of political parties in various sectors sap youth organizations. Mafias controlling sand mining, liquor and real estate thrive at the expense of the youth’s inability to rein them in through sustained political campaigns.

The youth dare not go far in such campaigns because they are soon pitted against their own leaders, who have well-entrenched interests to protect. Parent parties are more concerned about vote bank politics than grassroots issues.

Growing corruption and the shameless defence of the corrupt by parent parties have been a turnoff for the youth.

The field is left open for lumpen elements to infiltrate mainstream rallies as seen during anti-Kasturirangan agitation recently. If youth had played a key role in revolutionizing society, they have also filled terror ranks.

‘It’s still there, but in a different way’

Prof Suja Susan George, Professor of Malayalam at St Mary’s College, Manarcadu, Kottayam, and State secretary of Purogamana Kala Sahitya Sangham

“Comrades, I believe you have converged here to show your dissent at the current system and you all must be hoping to transform it”: December 12, 1928 India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru spoke thus, presiding over a Youth Conference.

Is politics among the youth changing?

Are the youth growing increasingly apolitical? Over the last five years, world has undergone a sea change in terms of strikes and movements.

In US, Africa, Arab nations and India, it was the youth who led majority of agitations from the front. It was alleged that strikes waned and the masses dispersed, the goals unmet.

We should realize politics has changed and so has the nature of political organizations/institutions the world over. If it was the organized labour or entrenched bureaucracy that took to the streets on collective bargain all these years, it is the society belonging to different strata that is showing up now.

Tribal people, women, the landless and those affected by onslaughts on the environment, seldom in the forefront, now shed inhibitions.

When you compare the fearless agitator, who stood statue-like, with hands in his pockets, at Tahrir Square, and the young Jazeera, who has been on a sit-in with children by her side in New Delhi, the difference is stark; a throng and an individual.

When a group of youth converged to fight for Kerala’s free software movement, it was considered a valiant fight as they came out of air-conditioned cubicles spurning creature comforts.

When they raised the slogan of ‘My language for my computer’, it was seen as a moniker for liberation struggle in the cyber world.

Strikes by nursing communities in Kerala, New Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai, the movement by the youth against the Delhi rape and the agitation endosulfan were all led by the gen next.

When there was an outcry that the marriageable age should be lowered to 16 years, youth belonging to both sexes raised their voices against the clergy.

The youth are political!

Next: Violence, corruption, religion bane of politics

Violence, corruption, religion bane of politics

Harness social media
DYFI state secretary M Swaraj, who came under attack from CPM State secretary Pinarayi Vijayan, reiterated his stand: “Youth power has played a key role in important events in our history. They have been in the forefront of revolutions, changing social systems, overthrowing autocratic rulers. But they also filled the ranks of terror outfits’’.

He said growing apoliticism was the offshoot of globalization and engendered capitalist forces to keep the youth away from democratic movements.

“We are facing serious challenges in the present situation. We are modernizing the organization to attract the new generation,’’ he said, adding that DYFI activists were being trained to use social media effectively to engage modern youth.

According to him major issues faced by youth include unemployment (37. 9 lakh registered unemployed), apoliticism, rampant careerism, alcoholism, lawlessness, influence of communal and terror outfits and lack of social commitment.

I and You bonding

Muslim Youth League state president P M Sadiquali says DYFI bears the brunt of apoliticism because of their outdated ideology. 

“Pinarayi Vijayan’s assessment of DYFI said it all. DYFI slogans no longer attracted the youth ,’’ he said.

“We are not banking on big slogans. We have formed Ideal Youth Corps,  a core group under which IY (I and You) volunteers are being created at panchayat-level to work on three principles: self-employment, social commitment and creative movement,’’ he said.

Sadiquali claimed that during the last two years MYL membership grew by 2.5 lakh cadre to touch 8 lakh.

Padayatra kicks off  on Dec 10

Youth Congress president Dean Kuriakose holds political parties responsible for the growing alienation of youth.

There is a vast difference in what political parties preach and practice.

Violence indulged in by organizations like DYFI pushed youth away from political activities. But what is alarming is that the vacuum left by the political organizations is being filled by antisocial and lumpen elements.

This was witnessed during the recent anti-Kasturirangan agitation.

Major political parties failed to take a firm position leaving the field open to religious and community organizations and the result was disastrous with unruly mobs unleashing violence all over the place. 

The absence of constructive political organizations can pave the way for anarchy.

“We are launching a padayatra from Kasargod to Thiruvananthapuram from December 10 to mobilize youth and bring them into mainstream,’’ Dean Kuriakose.

Sleaze dispels youth

BJP spokesperson V. V. Rajesh feels “new kids on the block” have an aversion to politics due to the rise in corruption seen in the politics.

This is why when social activist Anna Hazare raised the demand for Jan Lok Pal, transparency in governance and strict punishment for corrupt officials and politicians, people joined him in lakhs.

But Rajesh feels the youth are not against politicians, but they are registering their dissent, given the way political parties function.

“When BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi visited Thiruvananthapuram recently, flex boards and banners were put up by unknown people. On enquiry we found that these were installed by a section of educated youth.

But it’s a reality that youth are shying away from ideologies of CPIM. No other political party faces a situation like the CPM, which finds its youth base shrinking”, said Rajesh to DC.