For Dj,‘some animals are more equal than others’
THE firing of DJ Pauline Sangham reminds me of George Orwell writing “some animals are more equal than others”.
Sangham said she was like a lamb going to the slaughter, which contextualises her unfortunate situation. She was also previously dismissed for a mix-up with show dates and later reinstated.
It seems Lotus FM has finally got rid of her – perhaps to introduce new voices to its line-up.
The general rule of thumb is to keep away from religious posts on social media, especially if you are in the limelight. Sangham may have broken this code in comments that she felt elicited a response.
Dabbling in religious debate is counter-productive and achieves nothing. At some point one is bound to get emotional and make a statement that may seem correct to you but highly offensive and inflammatory to someone else.
Once the send button is pressed, the consequences can be dire.
Sangham had to pay the ultimate price for what seemed an intellectual debate on a blog. She was threatened with fatwas. As a single mother with two children and a sole provider.
The question that needs to be answered is: If Sangham was of a different race, for example, an African, would the same punitive measures have been meted out?
There have been outrageous dehumanising statements made by officials of the legislature who only got away with a slap on the wrist and, in some cases, the utterances disappeared; hence the statement “some animals are more equal than others”.
Sangham has publicly apologised acknowledging the decree that she is human and prone to mistakes.
As a society, we have lost our humanity and are unable to forgive.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission was based on admitting your mistakes and saying sorry to the nation. Have we become so hard and insensitive as a nation that all our battles must be fought with threats and through the courts? Why must we always go for the jugular?
What has happened to simple processes of dispute resolution such as meetings, fact-finding or even arbitration where affected parties got together to articulate their concerns?
If there was constructive engagement with the objective of resolving this issue, she might have been given a warning for what some consider denigratory remarks and would have been able to continue to support her family.
Warning: beware of what you say or post in the public space. VIJAY SURUJPAL
Phoenix