In his recent interviews Father Jean Maurice Labour, Vicar General of the Catholic Church in Mauritius, has correctly identified the main ills of our society, this inefficient and degenerate regime and the pressing issues that have continuously been raised by bloggers and analysts- the drift towards increasingly corrupt, unaccountable and totalitarian forms of government.
While most of the socio-cultural organisations chose to go down the road of complacency/rodeur boutes/chatwaing and bury their head in the sand , the Catholic Church has dared to raise its voice against the mafia in power, against the hollowing of our institutions by graft, cronyism and mismanagement, against the discrimination, the lack of meritocracy and also highlighting the mushrooming of drug trafficking and drug abuse all over the island, the occasional outbursts of racism and the country’s moral descent .
On the latter , “la sociéte en déclin”, Father Labour points to the fact that “ Tant que nous restons dans un rapport de force culturel, nous n'évoluerons pas.On est dans une société de surconsommation. Il faut voir le nombre de voitures qui se vendent à Maurice. …….. Les gens peuvent vendre leur prochain. Il y a une corruption généralisée dans la droque. Ce rest pas ce gouvernement qui est corrompu, c'est le tout le système qui l’est…..D'autre part, il y a une crise de la transmission des valeurs dans la famille."
Il est pessimiste concernant la société mauricienne. Is he acknowledging that the socio-cultural/religious organisations are failing in their mission ? Yes , they are failing , as displayed by our social decay, the decline of decorum, the stress, the violence, the substance abuse and the mucky morality in the country.
Have a look at the lives of the majority of our young people who are marred by frustration ! Stressed, over-worked and undervalued. The values of our parents’ generation — work hard, study, save, invest, live within your means — have given way to shortcuts to become wealthy and successful. What could have been done to prepare them for the individualistic consumer society with its all-pervasive materialism ? A more modern and holistic education system !
The socio-cultural/religious organisations should have been on the forefront for a radical change of our education system . No, they opted for the status quo or for some marginal changes without putting at risk the whole system, which suited them especially the privileges and the benefits that were attached to it. They did call for higher investment in human resources and the need to address the inefficiencies and widespread inequities in learning opportunities and outcomes in the primary and secondary education levels via a more cooperative education approach that raises the average from the bottom rungs such that it has an impact on the overall result. But the country needed more than that -a complete overhaul of the education system . That was not forthcoming -Father Labour is so direct about it “ the socio-cultural/religious organisations remained in their cocoons of “rapport de force culturel”- in other words, fighting for “nou bann".
And they continued to rely on their religious authority and their traditional religious orthodox ways -the over-reliance on the reading of scriptures, and other such routines and rituals which they thought were still the appropriate tools to tackle our modern societies that make individualism the highest virtue and solidarity a quaint artefact, and where our youth has become the jittery, overworked, frustrated, tired children of globalisation .
They should have joined hands to overhaul our old-fashioned education system -which do not prepare our youth for life’s challenges- for a holistic approach to education- one that teaches our children from their infancy the values and traditions , our history, our role models for their all-round development , one that promotes a balanced development of mind and body in harmony with the spirit which is the key to the enrichment of human personality and an outcome of value–based education and in the ultimate analysis help humanity to transcend to a higher level of consciousness.
Such a wholesome education makes a difference to the lives of children, inculcating values and traditions for their all-round development, nurturing children to get back in touch with our value system and develop into better human beings. They provide a family atmosphere to children. In a loving atmosphere and in playful manner, they share the wealth of experience from their lives , from our history, from our role models along with outlined sessions- development of character and personality, inculcation of good values, daily practice of the techniques for a healthy body and mind, practical uses of home remedies, games, creative expression for a sharp mind and free spirit and appreciation of diverse cultures and traditions.
Our cultural /religious organisations should have fought for such a remodelling of the education system bridging the gap between formal education and family and society’s based values-education and which has all the potential for achieving a better society. Such a genuinely reformed education system- not one that that churns super rats for a rat race instead of nurturing excellence and creativity- enhances our ability to perceive things better, increases awareness and nourish in built virtues. “L’Education passe avant l’Instruction: Elle fonde l’Homme”
Father Labour acknowledged that “ Malgré ce que fait l'Église pour les pauvres, ce n'est pas son role de lutter contre la pauvreté. C'est à la société et à l'État de le faire. “
If the State has underperformed , what about “la societé” which includes the private sector ? Have they performed?
Holding our politicians to account for failing to build a dignified and inclusive society should be the concern of all socio-cultural groups as well as the people of all faiths. But by focusing only on the state on a specific political agenda, you may end up being accused of not being different from other practitioners of identity politics who are just as closed-minded or exclusionary as those they claim are oppressing or marginalising their group.
And what about the source of our inequity , the lack of economic opportunities and access to our physical and social assets, is it not our flawed economic system.?
The political elite is at the beck and call of the economic elite and helps to reinforce the status quo. And the powerful religious institutions have no problem in accommodating with such an unfair system and in conjugating with the political elite to promote their narrow identity politics -a religion-based identity , that damages our social fabric and thwarts the efforts at national integration. What about that , Father?
What about our model of development, the lopsided structure of the Mauritian economy with its corporate behemoths having extensive control over key assets of the country and financial resources amid widening inequality?
What about a private sector that continuously lobbies for the short term policy of rupee depreciation and the import of foreign labour rather than investing massively in enhancing productivity and skills development that will go a long way in moving the country into the next phase of its developmental effort and transforming the economy ? Dear Father, can it be a fair system when large corporate profits are being reaped as a result of a depreciating currency which is killing others ?
What about a private sector that privatises profits and socialise losses and once they have recovered with the help of our money , they are eagerly investing abroad while we are having to come to terms with unemployment and underemployment under conditions of runway inflation ?
We should not satisfy ourselves with limiting our demand for social justice in very narrow terms, satisfying ourselves with the few crumbs left by the economic elite for a subservient political elite, without re-examining the use of our resources in relation to the country’s needs, including social and community needs, the natural environment and the impact of property development on our environment. Indeed, our quest should be, above all, a call for a new economic paradigm that will dramatically change the socio-economic fibre of Mauritius, and especially one that will attend to the interest of "the many, not the few"..
We can start by some of the measures recommended by Sameer Sharma in today's Le Defi Quotidien:"Nous devons augmenter les impôts, en particulier ceux des riches, sous la forme d'une taxe sur la valeur foncière. Autre mesure serait de réformer complètement la Competition Commission et le gouvernement doit agir en tant qu'arbitre équitable et neutre en créant un environnement propice au développement de marchés libres et en supprimant les barrières locales à l'entrée qui protègent les conglomérats. Ces derniers, dans de nombreux cas et dans de multiples secteurs, comme le soulignent de nombreux rapports de la Banque mondiale, agissent comme de véritables oligopoles à Maurice. “
That would seem more of a balanced criticism to meet our expectations of an economic tide that would lift all boats for a more inclusive and sustainable economy.
