I hope that Adrianna’s family will let her now rest in peace

Dear Editor,
Events of the past couple of weeks has forced us to examine who we are as a nation of peoples, and that examination – a forensic one of sorts – has shown that we are hateful, vicious, lawless, and generally indecent human beings. There is kindness and goodness among us for sure, but that hate and violence can so quickly and easily overtake and consume must force us to take stock and ask if any progress has been made since we gained our independence.
To my Hindu brothers and sisters, I offer my deepest sympathy for the destruction of the murtis at the Tuschen mandir, and for the ignorant bleatings of Baby Skello, who seeks to profit from the tragedy of a child’s drowning. As someone brought up in the Muslim faith, I have a great and abiding appreciation for the Hindu belief: that we are all parts of God, that everything on earth is a piece of God. As such, to abuse and violate another would be to commit violence against God Himself, or Herself, as in the form of Mother Laksmi.
I have been reading and listening to the varied and various news, points-of-view, reports and letters written about Adrianna Younge’s tragic death. There was police incompetence – a tragedy of its own that we live with daily – which fuelled a rage that was quickly hijacked by base political leaders who have shown time and again how quickly they can respond to an opportunity to whip up their supporters to a frenzy of hate and violence against their perceived enemies in order to score cheap political points.
But none of this happened in a vacuum. I have been writing for decades about the government sponsored “celebration” called Mashramani, where vulgarity abounds, women are defiled by the lyrics of what passes for music, and where lawlessness is the law of the day. When a government funds and encourages such behaviour as being national in aspect, it will, of course, pervade every facet of society. In this context, Baby Skello’s “music” would be perfectly acceptable and the statement from the Minister of Culture, Hon. Charles Ramson, denouncing it rings hollow.
If the findings of three expert pathologists can be summarily rejected, do we have a society where science and scientific knowledge are not understood? Or is it that any distrust of Government authorities can so easily be used by base politicians to favour and fuel a conspiracy that would involve Government convincing highly respected experts to provide false reports? Either way – the lack of understanding or political opportunism – only compounds the tragedy, as we have seen.
As a citizen, I fear that given the vileness of a section of our political leadership, who accept no responsibility for causing harm and destruction, we have not yet reached the bottom of the pit.
As a mother and grandmother, I hope that Adrianna’s family will let her now rest in peace.

Sincerely,
Ryhaan Shah