Clash of Cultures
Whether humanity will survive to live in peace will depend on whether a clash of cultures (barbarism) or a coexistence of cultures prevails
By Dr R Neerunjun Gopee
About three weeks ago I was talking to a former classmate of mine at RCC who went to study and finally settled in Leeds, UK. He had sold his old house and bought another one which was being renovated. Meanwhile he was putting up in a cottage in an estate known as Harewood House, and described to me how beautiful and peaceful it was, with a Himalayan Garden and a Buddhist stupa where meditation sessions were held. We reminisced about my visits to Leeds and his place from Wakefield in the 1970s, where I was then in training at the hospital there.
“we too in Mauritius, after going through some politically motivated antagonisms and hiccups that periodically still surface because of some hotheads – but are promptly quelled – have come to accept our cultural differences as an enriching diversity (vide culinary habits, language, cultural festivals elevated to national status, etc.,) and have, even if unwittingly rather than by design, settled into a mode of coexistence which well-nigh approximates the Singaporean model, the undefinable mauricianisme which we feel in our bones, and which had better remain so!…”
About a week after our conversation, in contrast, there was rioting and arson in another locality in Leeds, Harehills where more recent immigrants have been housed. Police clashed violently with the rioters, a bus was set on fire right in the middle of the road. Some days ago, there was another violent incident at Manchester airport involving immigrants and police. The latest incident is the death of three children, all girls, at a concert in Southport, in a knife attack by a 17-year-old immigrant. Nine other people were injured including two adults, and five are in a critical condition in hospital. Read More… Become a Subscriber
Mauritius Times ePaper Friday 2 August 2024
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