Thatcher’s legacy

She was one of the most controversial British prime ministers in living history.

She transformed politics as the first woman PM, courageously fighting her way to the top in a male-oriented political world.

For some she orchestrated the start of economic boom and influenced the end of the Cold War. For others she was the cause of the failing banks, as well as the diminishing number of British manual jobs in the 1980s.

Whatever your view of Margaret Thatcher, mention of The Iron Lady gets everyone talking.

Thatcher’s reign

I was born in Thatcherite Britain where privatisation of public services had been introduced to lessen the burden on the state, but also allowed corporate enterprise to set prices unchallenged by competitors, leading to (largely) monopolised services.

I remember my dad complimenting Maggie’s tenacity and robust nature. For British Indians she mirrored some of their views on dependency culture and promoting entrepreneurial spirit. She helped many families, like mine, afford to buy their home and seek financial support to establish a business.

But she also introduced free markets, which I doubt she realised would influence the crash of British banks in years to come. She introduced the poll tax, which was received with widespread outrage. Despite volatile protests against the end of the British coalmining industry, The Iron Lady stood her ground. Was it really democratic to resist opposition from such a large minority of the population?

From a female perspective, she was inspirational for working mums and ambitious women, and a breath of fresh air to see a confident lady in a male dominated Cabinet. She dared to implement what other politicians were too afraid to even mention. Her assertive approach helped to put Britain back on the map, secured relations with America and got the economy moving. And let’s face it, she was pretty glamourous too!

What goes up must come down

Like most people in power, Thatcher’s ego got the better of her. When your people are demanding change (both the electorate and her colleagues) it’s time to step down with grace while you’re still standing. But being the stubborn, resilient woman she was, Thatcher refused to budge.

And the consequence? She was backstabbed by her own Cabinet. She was forced to resign after 11 ½ years in power, leaving a divided Britain – a largely positive outlook from the wealthy, and disgust from the less affluent communities.

No matter what your opinion of Thatcher, I think it’s impressive that nearly everyone has an opinion of her. There are not many people in living history who spark such a mixed reaction. Surely this is testament to how influential or radical she was.

I can’t help but admire her strength and tenacity, but also con4demn her out-of-touch nature with the common man – despite being a commoner herself!

RIP Maggie

Why is my marriage such a concern for the world?

Why are others more concerned about my marriage than me?

Is it genuine concern or snooping? Is there underlying bitchiness or jealousy involved?

Maybe people find my freedom a threat…

My mum is the only person who I can genuinely believe is concerned but even that concern is triggered by worry of what others will think.

Why is my expiry date for marriage determined by society?

At a time when divorce rates are at an all time high, shouldn’t these so-called concerned samaritans be grateful I’m single and happy and not married and depressed, or divorced?

Will my achievements in education, career, family, friends, independence ever get recognition? Or is an Asian woman’s achievement dictated by how soon she got married, what her husband does, how many children she has – God forbid she only has daughters!

When the hell will everyone tear away from these social demands to live and let live a little?!

Ironically, all my married friends do is moan about their in-laws, those with a baby moan about finance or lack of social life, those in a relationship moan about issues with their partner.

Thank you God for sparing me that bull****!

On a practical level, I agree settling down earlier makes sense to start a family with potentially fewer biological problems. And I’d rather be a young mum than one whose old enough to be my child’s gran. But why should I settle for just anyone because my biological clock is ticking? Imagine how screwed up my child would be if my marriage was a farce!

And then I’m accused of being fussy. Well I’m sorry if the only guys who approach me are non-Indian. And the marriage proposals I get are guys who boast themselves on Facebook with pictures of them paralytic, find me too intimidating because I have a brain or they’re still attached to their mummies by the umbilical cord.

People find it shocking when I give just two requirements for my life partner. So please tell me, how does that make me fussy exactly..? No really, tell me – how on Earth does it make me fussy that I have preferences on what the man who I plan to spend the rest of my life with, live out my dreams with and start a family with, will be like?

I’ve got a feeling this rant will go on a while so its best I declare it: rant over!

Should Britain apologise for the Raj?

Last week, David Cameron was in India on a diplomatic trip to strengthen business ties with Britain’s former colony. During his trip it became apparent to me just how desperately the UK was looking to please India. Ironic?

Cameron went out of his way to explicitly say no Indian would be refused a study visa in Britain. Bending the rules for Indian investment in our universities? Hardly surprising when Indians are the second highest number of foreign students here.

What stood out in Cameron’s trip for me was his paying homage to Jallianwala Bhag in the Punjab. He is the first serving British PM to visit the site where almost a century ago British troops opened fire, unprovoked, on thousands of peaceful demonstrators, who were predominately Sikh. Brigadier General Reginald Dyer, who instructed this barbaric act, died a hero.

Cameron acknowledged what happened in 1919 and said it was “shameful”.

Many critics have attacked this as a pitiful reaction and insist he should’ve apologised. Although Cameron says he won’t apologise for something that occurred decades before he was born.

For arguments sake, say he did apologise for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Where will the apologies end? There is no denying the British Raj helped India by developing infrastructure, inspiring a constitution and making English one of the most spoken languages in the country. But the list of torture, pain and injustice committed by the Raj is endless. Not to mention looting the country of her wealth and jewels. Many even argue the Brits imposed a divided India, hence the partition, after which a once united population became segregated. In modern India, the Raj is commonly described as instigating “divide and rule”.

And if the apologies begin then why stop there? What about the rest of the Commonwealth where Britain spread dictatorship (former British Empire pictured right)?

If Cameron were to apologise for everything that happened during British occupancy of the Commonwealth, he would have no time to run the country!

If an apology is needed I think it’s apt it comes from the Queen. Not only was she head of state during the British Empire, her family benefited from looting the colonies!

Realistically, how far back should Britain, or any other country, go to apologise to every nation it has wronged?

In ancient times, the Greeks and Turks fought fiercely. Ties between the neighbours are no better in the twenty first century. Should they apologise for what happened thousands of years ago?

As much as it upsets me when I think about what happened during the Raj, I find consolation in Cameron’s acknowledgement that it was “shameful”. His small step to visit Jallianwala Bhag has been a leap of pride for all those who were affected.

Snow glorious snow!

It was wishful thinking to expect a white Christmas but better late than never! The snow is upon us!

Snow is by far my favourite weather. Despite the sub-zero temperatures, it creates a warm wistful feel, spreading a blanket of beautiful white over (an otherwise) grim city. Schools are closed, sledges are out, there is something else to celebrate after the festive season!

But after the novelty wears off, there is the undeniable ugly side to snow – black ice, skidding, traffic and the lasting effect: potholes!

If only we were all back in school, without a worry about getting to work on time or stressing when stuck in the traffic. If only we could just sit back and appreciate the beauty around us, which is a luxury because we only get it for a couple of weeks a year.

I mean how can you not enjoy this:

And my absolute pride and joy – the Indian bride snow lady!

So enjoy the snow for the short time we have it. Thinking like a kid will help no doubt!

Will Indian rape victims ever get justice?

The New Year in India was marked with tragic news that a 23-year-old medicine student had lost the battle to live after a horrific gang rape in Delhi. The case has shaken the country with campaigners demanding stringent anti-rape laws. But why has it taken this particular case for India to wake up and highlight the atrocities against women?

The girl has not been named. However, it is apparent that she is an upper caste, Hindu, middle-class girl. She is one of countless women who are raped in Delhi every 14 hours, according to official figures. That’s two women a day who are violated and stripped of their dignity. So in India’s capital alone, around 700 women are raped every year. I doubt this figure accounts for girls too. The statistic makes my stomach churn, especially as I travel around the city freely when I visit!

There are around 93,000 rape cases pending in India. Take this figure with a pinch of salt. The country’s population is 1.2billion so pending cases would be expected to be higher than, for example, the UK, which has a significantly smaller population. But it makes me wonder how many victims live a life of misery, shame and pain without their case ever getting heard.

Countless women in India, especially in poorer states where women are generally less educated and patriarchal values are prominent (they should be seen and not heard, their existence revolves around family life), are violated. Many of these will never report the rape – maybe because they are ashamed of the implications or afraid of the repercussions. For some the means of support won’t be available. For others, a court date could be pending for years or even decades,

So when should they expect justice?

In the recent case of the Delhi gang rape victim; she was raped on 16 December, died at the weekend and today, five men were charged with kidnap, rape and murder. They would have been charged earlier if they could find legal representation. But because lawyers refused to take their case, the government had to allocate legal representation to them.

It’s encouraging to see that the case is moving forward relatively quick. But would this be the case if there wasn’t widespread public outrage? And would there be widespread outcry over the case if she wasn’t from a middle class, Hindu background?

There are no official statistics detailing the backgrounds of rape victims. But given the relatively poor treatment of women in some parts of India, their faith, class and background could significantly impact if and when they would be considered to receive justice.

India needs to wake-up against rape – the worst crime against the female race. Not only does the criminal justice system need to be revised to ensure speedy court proceedings but the sentence needs to be harsh enough to act as a deterrent. Ironically, rape is considered shameful for the victim. She is often accused of dressing or acting in a certain way to encourage the rape! How ludicrous!

Whatever a woman decides to wear or do MUST NOT affect her basic human rights – to be free from violation! It disgusts me to hear some people were saying the Delhi gang rape victim “deserved” what she got because she was out late at night – so curfews should be imposed on women?! It was suggested that women should be banned from wearing certain items of clothing to prevent provocative dressing – by this argument; all women who dress provocatively would be at risk of rape and all those who dress modestly would not be at risk. We all know that’s complete nonsense.

What about the perpetrators?! The hounds who strip a woman of her dignity, respect, honour, free will and basic right? That too in a country where the victim is considered “impure” whereas the perpetrator is not labelled with any such name! A woman’s potential to marry, to live in the same area or community, her name in the family and society are all tarnished because of the selfish and heinous crime committed by a repulsive man for his momentary pleasure.

The thought angers me so much I wish the sentence for rape would be to castrate the perpetrator!

If you’re wealthy in India; you’re powerful. So if you’re a rich criminal, there’s a good chance you could buy your way out of anything. Corruption is one of the biggest evils of India. The justice system needs to acknowledge such numerous inequalities to reflect India as a true democracy

India: rise against rape.

Should the ‘hoax’ Aussie presenters be vilified?

Mel Greig and Michael Christian from Sydney station 2Day FM

What started as a hoax for entertainment, ended as a tragedy. But the question is: did the hoax cause ‘suicide’ or are we just looking to blame someone?

If you haven’t figured it out already, I’m referring to the alleged suicide of Jacintha Saldanha; a nurse who answered a hoax call from Aussie radio presenters trying to snoop information about the Duchess of Cambridge in hospital. Jacintha didn’t answer their questions. She simply transferred the call through to another member of hospital staff who gave confidential information about the duchess to someone who was posing as the queen over the phone.

Prank calls have been a source of radio and even TV entertainment for decades. High profile cases like that of Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand pranking Andrew Sachs caused public outrage. It called into question the careers of two renowned celebs.

However, in the case of the Aussie presenters; did they do wrong? Almost on a weekly basis I’ve heard presenters make hoax calls either to celebrities or the public, and they have been very entertaining to listen to. Admittedly, they haven’t been of the nature of this particular hoax. But then it’s not often you get people desperate for information of the future heir to the British monarchy.

It’s early days so no one can say why Jacintha committed suicide. Was she under pressure from work for passing this call through to her colleague? Was she being mistreated or worried about losing her job? Maybe she had issues in her personal life. We simply don’t know at this stage.

What shocks me is the fact that the Aussie presenters are being put under scrutiny and possibly have lost hope of a career in broadcast. Yet the person who divulged private and confidential information about the duchess’ stay in hospital, is nameless and not even mentioned in news reports!

The hospital also has some answering to do. Don’t they have protocols in place to deal with calls from alleged family members, regardless of how high status the person claims to be? Shouldn’t Jacintha and the nurse who divulged information, be trained on such matters? Why hasn’t the hospital done so much as visit Jacintha’s grief stricken family rather than convey their condolences over the phone?

The fact that medical information about the duchess; the wife of the future King of Britain, was disclosed is one issue. But it implies that if calls like this are frequently answered in the same manner then surely random people must call about patients all the time and be given private information.

It’s such a shame that joyful news of William and Kate’s pregnancy has been eclipsed by this tragedy. It’s possible the baby will be a reminder of Jacintha’s suicide. But more than anything I feel for the family who has lost a wife, a mother, a daughter and sister. My thoughts go out to them.

Where do you draw the line between office banter and personal talk?

We spend more time with colleagues than our families. No surprise then that so many relationships kindle in the workplace!

Naturally if you spend so long with certain people, you will be inclined to share your personal life (all be it limited) with them.

But when talking to colleagues, and often your seniors – where do you draw the line when “opening up” about your personal life?

Some people will refrain from giving much away at all. Yet they’ll be more than happy to hear all the weird and wonderful gossip about their peers’ lives. Others need little encouragement to flaunt their extra-work activities (and such news is not always welcome!)

How does it make you feel when you hear a colleague talking about their children, the in-laws, maybe even their sex life? Does it make you feel uncomfortable? Are you eager to know as long as you’re not expected to divulge? Or couldn’t you care less?

Sometimes we give away more than we mean to when we open up at work. It could even come back to haunt you! It’s probably worth remembering before you down those drinks at the Christmas party!