By Prachi Gupta
The eminent liberal scholar, Francis Fukoyama
wrote his popular article “The End Of History” celebrating the triumph of
liberalism throughout the world calling it an ideal situation, in 1992. But
that ceases to be the case with demonstrations in and around Europe gaining momentum
and garnering support from people and leaders alike. Popularly known as “the
Occupy Wall Street Protests”, these protests began in late September 2011 in
New York City and made their way to countries in Europe and parts of Asia. The
movement has been largely peaceful and non- violent and has witnessed people
from middle and lower middle class sections raising their voices against the
unjust and unequal capitalistic growth pattern.
The indulgence of western liberal democracies in corruption amongst
government officials, corporate groups and the media has caused a huge uproar.
The influence of lobbyists, and environmental degradation caused by
unrestricted capitalistic exploitation has led to mass unemployment, inflation
and consequent poverty and unequal growth pattern. Taking inspiration from the
“Arab spring”, protesters have called for the occupation of Wall Street and
demonstrations around government institutions. The significant slogan of the
movement, “We are the 99%” signifies the biased development where only 1% of
the population is benefitted by the nexus between the government, corporates
and lobbyists.
The major cries among the protestors
such as ‘No, we will not pay for your crisis’ and ‘I care about you’ invoke the
values and ethics that underlie the structure of a democracy. Policies like
privatizing education and social security, deregulation, slashing public
services coupled with the unfettered greed of the corporate groups has completely
neglected the circumstances the workers and unemployed middle class people. Down
on the streets, people are adamant for a long lasting protest, with their tents
fixed in open parks and churches. Protesters have been largely targeting global
summits such as the World Trade Organization, the International
Monetary Fund, and the G8 summits that only last for a week and are
inconclusive and transient.
Prominent leaders, such as American President Barack Obama,
have shown faith and support for the protest calling it a reflection of the
frustration amongst people. Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh has
said that it signifies a warning about the governance. Others who do not see a
bright corollary to this movement believe that it is ‘silly’ to protest against
capitalism and that it will end as peacefully as it started.
However, with the movement turning global and consolidating
support, the probability of fruitful results is expected. Whatever may be the
course of this on-going movement, it has certainly put a big question mark over
the viability and implications of biased policy making. There is a requirement
for effective mechanisms to look into corruption. Laws and policies proving an
equitable distribution of wealth among the masses such as taxation on luxuries
and not basics, expansion of government subsidies and employment programmes,
and reducing the involvement of lobbyists in policy mediation are the need of
the hour. This ‘End of History’, with these movements and protests, apparently doesn’t
seem to be a smooth one.
