Niemöller India Poem

One nation under Sun :: Niemöller India Poem

Jun 9 2006 2:41PM comments rss:
One Nation Under sun - Niemöller's India poem

Mike Ghouse

The following poem is a preamble to the Pledge of Allegiance to India. Martin Niemöller wrote a poem around WWII about how fascism takes roots, and if we don't recognize and check it, neither the staunch supporters nor the opposers will be spared at the end. (the original poem is also attached)

Here is the Indianized version of Martin Niemöller's poem.

They came first for the Muslims,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Muslim.

Then they came for the Christians,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Christian.

Then they came for Sikhs,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Sikh.

Then they came for Hindus,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Hindu.

Then the came for ________ (fill in your religion)
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a _________.

Then they came for women,
and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a woman.

Then they came for dowry,
And I didn’t speak up because I didn’t have a daughter.

Then they came for Lingayats,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Lingayat.

Then they came for Shaivites,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Shaivite.

Then they came for Dalits,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Dalit.

Then they came for Ahmadiyya,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Ahmadiyya.

Then they came for __________ (fill in your uniqueness)
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a _________.

Then they came for South Indians,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a South Indian.

Then they came for ______ Indians, (fill whatever state you want)
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't _______ Indian.

Then they came for men who wore Dhoti in certain style,
and I didn't speak because I didn't wear my Dhoti in that Style.

Then they came for me,
and by that time no one was left to speak up.

The whole world is one family - Vasudeva Kutumbam, so is our Hindu Heritage,
and then Killing one human is like killing the whole humanity, says the Qur'aan.
I wish the extremists in Hinduism and Islam follow their own creed.

It is never too late, we can start now. In the interest of one India, one nation under the sky with liberty and justice for all. Myself and my friends (from all faiths) have pledged to this, and hope every Indian feels the same and over a period of time, we can starting feeling and acting as one nation.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO INDIA

1. I pledge that I will treat India as one nation with liberty and justice for all.
2. I pledge that I will honor and treat every Indian with "full" dignity.
3. I pledge that I will respect every Indian’s right to follow what they believe.
4. I pledge that I will not even contemplate imposing my views on others.
5. I pledge that I will oppose any idea that treats any Indian less than me.
6. I pledge that I will preserve and respect every inch of Indian property.
7. I pledge that I will protect and value every human being

I propose that the parliament introduce a bill to include this pledge prior to Indian National Anthem. If we can recite this on every occassion, we can internalize these values.

And let every political, cultural and religious organization in India register with the Home Ministry, state their purpose, list their assets for public scrutiny, list the membership roster to be updated annually. Let this information be public. Include a modified version of the above 7 items into Indian Penal Code, and make it in to the law to punish the violators of the law.

Mike Ghouse
www.MikeGhouse.net
www.FoundationforPluralism.com
www.WorldMuslimCongress.com
____________________________________________________
German Pastor Martin Niemöller was a supporter of the Nazis in their earliest days. By 1934 he recognized that a sinister power was growing and he began to express his dismay. There were not enough voices like his early enough. By 1939 he was imprisoned. He survived the Sachsenhausen concentration camp outide Berlin where 100,000 people died or were murdered in violent “medical: experiments. He survived the Dachau concentration camp near Munich where camp records list 30,000 people exterminated in death chambers and thousands more dead from ill treatment. In 1946, following the end of the war, he wrote:
They came first for the Communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.
Then they came for me,
and by that time no one was left to speak up.