|
 At
the Foreign Correspondents Club in New Delhi, a
diplomat was heard asking a correspondent: "Are you an
Indian or a Pakistani?" The surprised correspondent
answered the question with a counter- question:
"What if I were a Pakistani?" The African diplomat
frankly said: "If you are a Pakistani, I would answer
your questions now. If you are an Indian, I shall tackle your
questions later." The baffled correspondent could not resist
the temptation of inquiring what was the difference in the
African diplomat's mind and perception about an Indian and a
Pakistani. He found that the Pakistanis were in the habit of
asking "frontal questions" and that Indians were in the habit
of giving "frontal advice" on everything under the sun, to
everyone, everywhere, in season and out of it. What course the
conversation took further, was not overheard. But that set the
overhearer, an Indian, thinking. The question that arose was:
Do we suffer from advising mania? Do we poke our noses into
everything that does not concern us? Do we make enemies faster
than friends? Is it true that when we need a friend, we look
around hard and find none?
I
find that we are carving out a better understanding and
relationship with the U.S.A., for example. But will that
relationship last? For, some of our ministers and politicians
have already started giving advice to the U.S.A. We must
realise that we keep babbling advice when we should keep our
mouths shut and remain dumb when we must speak out. Just
think, friends, think. |
