The protesting detainees are yet to feel that ownership in Australia. Hence they need to be encouraged to look after themselves to stay within that limit of valuable pain. Even ‘fasting’ to ‘show’ others is violence to oneself. Gandhi also fasted but Gandhi was well within his earned limits.
by Gaja Lakshmi Paramasivam
Dear Mr. Chris Bowen, MP
Minister for Immigration & Citizenship
As you would be aware, when we are in Police custody, we are asked the question as to whether we have suicidal thoughts? My responses were always ‘no’ whilst in custody. Once when I was in custody after being sentenced by Magistrate Pat O’Shane to a year’s imprisonment for Peaceful Assembly – I said to one of the Officers – that I had thought about suicide previously. The Officer quickly changed the way he asked me the question and later privately he asked me ‘why did you say ‘yes’ to that question about suicide?’ I was very appreciative of the ‘protective’ feelings that the Officer demonstrated towards me. The Officer went on to share his appreciation of a Lecturer of Indian origin at the Medical Faculty of the University of NSW, who was greatly admired by his daughter – a student of the University. I appreciated very much the feeling that the Officer was driven by. I concluded that Higher Education was important to him and hence anyone who contributed to his family’s investment in Higher Education was valuable to him.
Public records regarding the charges against me would confirm that none of the Police Officers nor the Security Officers of the University of NSW considered me to be a ‘security’ risk. The psychologist who examined me during the period my case was being heard by Magistrate Pat O’Shane wrote ‘Mrs. Paramasivam is mentally ill and although she has made a nuisance of herself I do not believe that she would harm either herself or others in particular members of the university.’
As per my own assessment of myself now and then – I have been benefiting the University of NSW through the pain I accepted and by remaining within my earned limits – I am appreciative of the benefits that I am deriving now from that pain back then – even though I did not know it back then. Only non-violent pain could result in such positive outcomes.
Each one of us has the duty to ourselves as well as to our families, communities and society – to take care of ourselves to the best of our abilities under given circumstances. Experiencing pain is positive to the extent we believe and/or know that we could derive value from that environment for ourselves and/or for the group that we feel a part of. It is our duty as human beings to reject any pain beyond that limit. Once we become the environment – we derive the value ourselves. That’s ownership. Until then we need to be ‘given’ by the higher investors. Once we feel ownership – it is more easy for us to draw the line between valuable pain and violence. Realizing Love/Truth helps us derive in various forms as per our costs or less. We are then family. Until then we are mere relations.
The protesting detainees are yet to feel that ownership in Australia. Hence they need to be encouraged to look after themselves to stay within that limit of valuable pain. Even ‘fasting’ to ‘show’ others is violence to oneself. Gandhi also fasted but Gandhi was well within his earned limits. Gandhi sacrificed his earned benefits for the freedom of the society he felt a part of. Hence his fasting was a small indicator of the huge benefits he had earned but not drawn. Gandhi’s type of fasting is a signal for followers to be disciplined.
With fasting as a tool of protest – it is difficult to know whether one is being self sacrificial or violent to oneself. The more we fast to ‘show’ the less our investment in the issue over which we are fasting. Usually, those who have already invested positively in the issue – would add positive value through fasting. If there were such detainees – they are actually empowering their groups as Gandhi did. Others are being violent.
As for ‘sewing of lips’ – to me they are acts of violence and if left unchecked, would be harmful to the person as well as society. I urge you to take measures to reduce the eligibility of such applicants for permanent stay in Australia. Like with health, we need to look after ourselves for the younger generation to learn positively from us.
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