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When a young member of the New Zealand parliament made a Haka at her inauguration in November 2024, she became a global sensation. Known as Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, the MP for Hauraki Waikato of New Zealand has been in the spotlight ever since. She was instrumental in making a feisty stand against the repressive policies of the New Zealand’s conservative coalition government who had been steadily reversing the rights of the indigenous Maoris, the first nation of New Zealand. This article is aimed at making awareness of what has been going on in the land of the Kiwis concerning its first nations.

Neocolism is far from a myth. It has always been underway in every part of the globe despite the strong resistance, push back and backlash. After 200 years, one could see a classic example of a despicable act against New-Zealand’s first nation, namely the Marois by two populist parties who are part of the rightwing governing coalition.

Marois are an ancient civilisation that dominated the Polyensian regions for thousands of years. They are a warrior nation that inhabited tens of many tiny Islands across the Pacific. It was the Maroir’s that discovered and settled in Aotearoa, what was later called as New Zealand by its European settlers. Those first nation people settled in  the two Islands hundreds of years before the many European colonial  conquerors landed in that region. 

In 1840 the Maori elders signed a Historic agreement with the British crown known as the Treaty of Waitangi. As it is common for many documents of Colonial rule, this treaty of peace and friendship  too had two distinctly different interpretations.The Maorian  version clearly stipulated that their sovereignty was well preserved. The Maori text says that “ Rangtira” have “Tinrorangatiratanga” which translate to absolute authority of the Maoris over their lands,resources, homes and Taonga or treasured possessions.However the English version had a slight hiccup. According to that version the “ Rangtira” ceded to her Majesty the Queen of England of all rights, power and sovereignty. What else one could expect from a colonial power who would stop at nothing in looting a land that never belonged to them in the first place.

Maroian’s rights were to be protected as agreed but there is hardly any corner of the world where Colonists have ever respected their commitments to the wellbeing of the locals. Their lands were either confiscated or forcefully acquired which led to the infamous New Zealand wars where thousands of Maoris were subjected to inhumane atrocities, death and displacement. As is the case of every first nation in the world, Maorians became strangers in their own lands. Despite the Treaty of Waitangi, Marois ended up being in the bottom of every socio-economic indicator. Not only becoming the group with the least economic opportunity and access to education, health but also as the community with lowest life expectancy. Among the nations of the global north, New Zealand has one of the highest incarceration rates. Guess who accounts for 52% of that ! Despite being just 17 % of the population, it is the Maoris that overwhelmingly dominate the prison population. That percentage is an indication of the socio-economic inequality in New Zealand society where Maoris are stuck in a vicious cycle.

Against this backdrop a huge protest movement erupted during the 1970s known as hīkoi, which put the spotlight on their struggle. After decades of a long fought battle, the consequential governments adopted a number of progressive policies in support of their cause. 

• The establishment of the Waitangi Tribunal in 1975
• The return of some Māori land
• The Māori language becoming an official language in New Zealand in 1987
• Establishment of the Māori Health Authority – Te Aka Whai Ora
• National ban of smoking 

With the defeat of the Labour government the Maorians rights  became a bone of contention in the New Zealand political arena and reached a peak towards last year. Two nationalistic, rightwing populist parties were up in arms against those very rights. Namely, New Zealand First, commonly abbreviated to NZ First or NZF founded and led by Winston Peters and ACT New Zealand, also known as the ACT Party or simply ACT, led by David Seymour. Both ACT and NZ First have been two political forces determined in undermining the rights of New Zealand’s  historically repressed group. Both men ride the wave of populism fueled by nationalism, an unfortunate  social product of our time. The duo made a stand against the special status given to the Marois by the crown.They claim that those special status were divisive and discriminatory against the majority. The government consequently revoked some of the most important  rights the Maoris won through a long fought battle. 

• Repeal of Oranga Tamariki Act section 7AA that will have a huge impact on children under state protection
• De Establishing of the Māori Health Authority which will deteriorate what is already terrible condition in Maori Health 
• Lifting the National smoking ban that could be catastrophic to the Maoris health
• Revoking the usage of Maori language as a national language is discriminatory at all accounts

Just reading through those revisions, one could feel how far the current government under the influence of Nationalistic coalition parties were willing to go. As a matter of fact it was  not just to undermine the progress the New Zealand society has made in national reconciliation but also in pushing the first nations down to the bottom of social hierarchy.The populists did not want to stop just there. Their final goal was to introduce another dangerous bill that would have turned New Zealand’s delicate social fabric in tatters. Their bill known as “Treaty Principles Bill” was aimed at redefining ‘The Treaty of Waitangi’. Sugar coated with the statement  “ Equal rights for all confirming in law that all New Zealanders have equal rights, as promised by the Treaty of Waitangi”, the bill was to rewrite history destroying what was left for the Maoris. That interpretation was supposed to take away the special protection and acknowledgment of Maori’s right to land. If passed it would have opened the doors for a consistent, systematic neocolonial exploitation adventure by the  greedy corporations.

These racially charged policies would have torn New Zealand’s tolerant social fabric for good.

But the world did not fail the Maoris in New Zealand. Tens and thousands marched across New Zealand against the bill and there was an outpouring of global solidarity with the Maoris. If the nationalists were successful that would have set precedent  to an unprecedented wave of assaults across the globe against the indigenous populations and their rights in every corner of the world. The democratic world came together and took a stand against New Zealand’s right wing conservative government backed by the two racist populists parties and did everything at their capacities to stop this madness from taking place. Finally on the 11th of April 2025, the Maoris Haka was finally heard and respected. 

As citizens of the world it is time we all  make a Global Haka against the despicable anti democratic, neocolonist  agendas creeping under our societies in the guise of democracy.  Once they are done with the first nations and marginalized groups, that success would be repeated a few foils higher in all those lands that were once safe heavens for the colonists. 

About the Writer

With a master’s in International relations, Dhanuka’s expertise is in Geopolitics and Geoeconomics, among other things. In addition to being the Executive Editor of The Asian Reviews magazine, he works as a guest writer in the Chicago-based Armenian Mirror-Spectator on Caucuses-related geopolitical issues and contributes as a columnist and a guest speaker to the Indian-based Force Security magazine.

He was a grassroots Politician, a political campaign Director, and a council member of a local government body in a small town in rural Sri Lanka. Before entering active politics, he led his foundation in supporting youth and the underprivileged. Currently, he consults youth groups on political activism and general political trends.

He is a poet, blogger, and an enthusiastic climate and social activist who strongly believes in making a better world for future generations. A patriotic Sri Lankan who is a father of a loving daughter.

In a disturbing case that has shaken Kerala’s conscience, a nine-year-old girl from Pallassana in Palakkad lost her right forearm due to alleged medical negligence. What began as a simple fracture ended in an unthinkable tragedy—a young child maimed for life because a system meant to heal instead turned careless, complacent, and cruelly indifferent.

This is not an isolated incident. It reflects a deeper rot within sections of Kerala’s public healthcare machinery, one that seems to repeatedly fail the very citizens it swore to protect. The latest tragedy demands not just sympathy but swift, uncompromising justice—and this time, accountability must not be buried under bureaucratic whitewash.

The Horrific Sequence of Negligence

The nine-year-old’s story reads like a nightmare of neglect. The child fractured her arm while playing and was taken to the Palakkad District Hospital. Doctors, after conducting an X-ray, identified two fractures and sent her home after applying a plaster cast. When the girl cried out in unbearable pain and her fingers began to discolor, her distressed mother returned to the hospital seeking help. Instead of investigating further, doctors reportedly dismissed the concerns as “normal pain” and sent the child away again.

By the time the parents rushed her to Kozhikode Medical College, it was too late. Doctors there informed the family that amputation was the only option left—the blood supply to the limb had been completely cut off due to improper treatment and delayed intervention. A harmless childhood injury had been allowed to spiral into a life-altering catastrophe.

The mother’s anguished statement says it all: “Had the doctors at district hospital examined her properly when we went the second day complaining of severe pain, my daughter’s arm could have been saved.”

A Disturbing Pattern of Negligence

Sadly, this case is far from isolated. Across Kerala, a series of recent disturbing medical negligence incidents expose systemic loopholes and a shocking lack of accountability, often leaving patients to suffer permanent damage or death.

In Alappuzha Medical College Hospital, a 58-year-old woman had two toes amputated without her or her family’s consent during surgery for a diabetic foot infection. The patient was shocked to learn about the amputation only the following day, prompting complaints and an expert committee probe. Authorities denied negligence, citing severe infection and poor circulation as the cause.

In another tragic instance, an elderly woman succumbed to rabies despite treatment, after a chain of inadequate medical care exposed fatal gaps in timely intervention.

At Thiruvananthapuram’s General Hospital, a surgical guide wire was left inside a woman’s chest for more than two years following thyroid surgery, only discovered after she developed serious complications. The surgeon later admitted the mistake, but the patient continues to suffer long-term health effects.

Similarly, in Kozhikode Medical College, a surgical instrument was left inside a woman’s abdomen after a C-section in 2017. The error remained undetected until 2022, sparking protests and fierce demands for justice.

These cases, together with the harrowing loss of a young girl’s arm in Palakkad, reveal a pattern of repeated avoidable medical harm inflicted on vulnerable patients who depend on the public health system for care.

The Hollow Comfort of “Expert Committees”

What faith can the public have when the recurring response to such incidents is the formation of “expert committees”—often composed of members from the same system being accused? Experience suggests these committees frequently shield the medical establishment rather than serve victims’ interests.

Kerala’s people deserve more than placatory reports written to absolve negligence. The judiciary must intervene decisively to ensure an independent, transparent, and judicially monitored investigation comprising external medical, legal, and human rights experts. Only this can restore public trust and deliver real justice.

A Call for National and International Intervention

The loss of a child’s limb to preventable medical negligence is a grave violation of human and children’s rights. India’s National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) must urgently intervene, enforcing accountability and ensuring victim rehabilitation. International child rights organizations and medical ethics watchdogs should also spotlight these failings.

No child should suffer lifelong disability from a treatable injury due to a system’s incompetence. No parent should endure such cruel helplessness. These failures demand global attention and action.

Time for the Judiciary to Act

Justice delayed in such cases is justice denied—and worse, justice mocked. The Kerala High Court must take suo motu cognizance, demand compensation, and establish strict judicial oversight over investigations. All responsible parties—doctors, administrators, and oversight bodies—must face criminal and professional consequences.

Healthcare negligence cannot be brushed aside behind white coats and procedural excuses. Behind every incident lies immeasurable human pain. A child will grow up without an arm, a woman lost toes without consent, others live with foreign objects inside them—all scars of a broken system.

The judiciary must act where the medical establishment has failed, ensuring these tragedies ignite systemic reform rather than fading into forgetfulness. Only then can Kerala reclaim its moral standing in public healthcare.

“The negligence to be established must be culpable or gross and not merely based upon an error of judgment. A medical practitioner is not liable simply because a treatment did not succeed or because there was a difference in medical opinion. The doctor must exercise the degree of skill and care that is reasonably expected of a competent professional in that field. Even death or an unfavorable outcome cannot be considered medical negligence per se unless there is proof that the medical treatment fell below accepted standards or involved gross carelessness.”
— Supreme Court of India

This legal distinction, while important for protecting genuine medical judgment, has often become a loophole by which doctors escape accountability in clear cases of medical negligence, leaving victims and their families without justice or adequate redress.

The future that now lies ahead for this little girl is daunting and filled with challenges far beyond her years. The loss of a limb in childhood brings not just physical limitations, but also deep psychological wounds—she may struggle with anxiety, depression, lowered self-esteem, and social isolation as she copes with a dramatically altered body image and the many barriers to independence her disability will bring. Daily activities that once seemed effortless will require constant adaptation, and her journey through school, friendships, and even play will inevitably be marked by both emotional and practical hurdles.

What support system will be put in place for her rehabilitation—physical, psychological, and social? Will she have access to quality prosthetics, counseling, and educational accommodation? Who will address the trauma inflicted on her young mind, and how will her family be supported through their own anguish and sense of loss? Will society take responsibility beyond financial compensation to ensure she’s not merely a statistic in another report, but a child whose full potential is fiercely protected?

Above all, will this tragedy serve as the catalyst for systemic reforms and true accountability—or will the suffering of this little girl, like so many before her, simply fade from public memory with nothing learned and nothing changed?

In the winter of a second inauguration, a singular figure returned to the centre of global gravity. The formalities were observed; the oath was taken; the bells rang. Yet what followed – a flaring of executive will, a string of sweeping decrees and a rhetoric that treated international institutions as rivals rather than partners – has bent the arc of many fragile systems toward strife. This essay maps that deformation: the institutional ruptures, the market shocks, the human dislocations, and the political contagion that, together, make a crisis of a world once committed to shared rules.

A Presidency That Reordered the Rules of the Game

Presidencies leave marks in law and habit; some reform, some conserve, some corrode. The second-term project in plain view has been to reassert unilateral prerogative – to treat multilateral agreements as optional, to convert executive instruments into blunt policy tools, and to make the language of emergency routine policy. Within days of inauguration, a series of executive orders signalled an administrative intention to withdraw from long-standing multilateral commitments and to recalibrate the United States’ posture toward the institutions meant to manage transnational problems. The consequences of those gestures are not merely symbolic: treaties and agreements are coordination devices. When a principal signatory withdraws, the governance lattice weakens and the incentives for collective action fray.

At the United Nations General Assembly, the rhetorical form of that recalibration was plain and theatrical: a combative address that publicly contested the legitimacy of certain global efforts and that framed climate action and migration as instruments of deception or erosion of national sovereignty. The speech was widely reported and widely criticized; its tone underscored a preference for unilateral denunciation over quiet coalition-building.

Trade as Shock: The “Liberation Day” Doctrine and Global Markets

Policy can bend markets overnight. In April 2025, an administration-declared national emergency was used to authorise a broad, reciprocal tariff regime – the so-called “Liberation Day” measures – that placed duties across a swath of imports and invited retaliatory counters. The executive architecture used civil emergency authorities to install industrial policy by decree. That choice produced a fast, measurable result: global markets reeled in immediate response, with equities plunging and investors rushing to safe havens as the scale and unpredictability of trade barriers became clear. International institutions and multilaterally negotiated trade norms, long stabilisers of postwar commerce, found themselves under acute stress as supply chains were rerouted, costs rose, and trust in predictable rules diminished.

The macroeconomic effect was not merely charted as daily volatility; major multilateral agencies and market strategists warned of recessionary spillovers. Commodity prices, currency relationships and manufacturing footprints adjusted; countries that depended on preferential access or integrated supply lines – especially smaller exporters – faced outsized disruption, and global growth forecasts were revised downward in consequence. Where tariffs were pitched as a recipe for national rebirth, the proximate result was fragmentation: businesses and states recalibrated around contingency rather than cooperation.

The Legal and Institutional Turn Against Rights

Domestic measures carry outward effects. Under the second-term policy sweep, immigration enforcement was hardened sharply: asylum restrictions tightened, detention capacity expanded, and administrative architectures were mobilised to accelerate removals. Rights organisations warned that the administration’s legal instruments and enforcement priorities risked institutionalising forms of mass detention and deportation that set new precedents for due-process truncation. Courts have been drawn into that churn—some rulings expanded executive latitude, others delayed implementation – but the aggregate effect was to normalise more coercive migration management. The human consequence has been rapid: communities thrown into legal precarity, families under strain, and noncitizens facing expedited removal regimes.

Parallel to immigration actions were measures that compressed civic space: press access has been constrained by novel credentialing rules and aggressive legal strategies; watchdogs documented lawsuits and regulatory pressure aimed at critical media outlets and international broadcasters. The effect – documented by press-freedom organisations—was not only to chill reporting inside the United States, but to model a posture that foreign leaders could emulate when seeking to silence dissent.

Foreign Policy of Flux: Escalation, Bargains and the Limits of Bilateralism

Foreign policy under the second-term mantle did not adhere neatly to one predictable script. In some theatres, the administration shifted toward transactional bilateral bargaining; in others, rhetoric escalated into public rebuke. On Ukraine, for instance, a series of messaging shifts—toggling between pressure for concessions and commitments of limited support – complicated allied calculations and exposed fissures in coalition strategy. In the Middle East, the administration’s effort to reassert U.S. influence produced a mix of diplomatic initiatives and unpredictable posture changes that, in several instances, intensified the operational difficulties faced by humanitarian organisations and multilateral mediators. The pattern is familiar: when a global anchor behaves unpredictably, regional actors hedge; hedging often begets escalation, not calm.

Climate, the Commons, and a Retreat from Collective Stewardship

Perhaps the most consequential arena for future generations is the global commons. The administration’s executive dismantling of prior climate commitments – coupled with public denunciations of climate science and clean-energy policy – has had a chilling effect on cooperative mitigation. Formal notification of withdrawal from the Paris framework began a process that, until it ran its course, removed a central driver of international emissions planning and finance. The diplomatic signal was immediate: partners recalibrated their investments and their strategies for cooperation in a world where the second-largest historic emitter signalled withdrawal. The scientific timeline for emissions reductions is narrow; institutions and markets do not easily recover the lost time when primary actors renounce coordinated obligations.

Democratic Erosion and the Contagion of Authoritarian Tactics

The architecture of liberal democracy relies on norms, not just legal texts. Erosion occurs when norms fray—when checks are weakened, when dissent is delegitimised, when instruments of state are normalised for partisan ends. Scholars and institutions following democratic health have charted worrying signals: centralisation of power, pressures on independent agencies, litigation and administrative strategies that constrain opposition, and a public language that blurs civic dissent with disloyalty. Comparative analysts emphasise the contagion effect: when powerful democracies employ authoritarian-adjacent tools, less-resilient polities may import the methods as expedient precedents. In short, democratic backsliding at scale is not a self-contained national problem; it is a transmissible political virus.

The Human Ledger: Pain Measured in Persons, Not Percentages

It is easy to speak in indices and day-traders’ losses; the ledger of human suffering is different. Children separated from caregivers, workers who lose livelihoods when supply chains rupture, journalists whose access is removed, patients whose care is tightened by funding shifts – all of these are discrete, lived harms. The abstraction “global instability” becomes concrete in the life of a factory town in Lesotho losing preferential access, in a refugee camp whose aid flows are interrupted, and in a newsroom that faces closure after legal pressure. Human-rights reports, civil-society briefs, and on-the-ground journalism together record a cascade of hardship that follows from the convergence of the policies described above.

How a Single Center of Power Becomes a Global Vector

Why does one leader’s policy set radiate beyond borders? Three mechanisms explain the vector of harm:

1. Structural leverage. The United States retains outsized weight in finance, trade, security and norm formation; when Washington shifts, global equilibria move.
2. Normative signalling. Public repudiation of cooperative norms lowers political costs for copycats in weaker democracies.
3. Operational spillovers. Domestic policies (immigration enforcement, regulatory rollback) and foreign posture (aid cuts, bilateral bargaining) produce cross-border externalities that exacerbate humanitarian and security risks.

Taken together, these channels transform national policy choices into global dynamics.

The Moral Geography of Risk

If we accept that actions have reach, then the moral geography of governance becomes unavoidably planetary. Choices made at the centre – about trade, about obligations to refugees, about whether to honour or abandon climate commitments – have differential but cumulative effects upon the poorest and the most exposed. That asymmetry is the core of the claim that a single leader can be a threat to “entire humanity”: not in the literal sense of unilateral omnipotence, but in the sense that concentrated power, deployed without regard for shared institutions, can multiply vulnerability across the planet.

This is not an argument of inevitability; it is an argument of exposure. Systems that depend on cooperation are fragile to coordinated withdrawal. Where the inclination is to use emergency powers, to bypass deliberative channels, and to treat negotiation as weakness, the system’s ability to self-correct shrinks. The moral question then is whether those with capacity will heal the stitches before the fabric tears further.

The Opportunity of Rebellion

There is a literary cadence that fits this moment: the country that once prided itself on underwriting global commons now plays at its undoing; a leader’s voice, carried on the air, becomes a signal flare that warns allies and invigorates adversaries. The practical consequences are stark and measurable – market shocks, diplomatic recalibration, human-rights reversals, and a loosening of democratic norms. The moral consequences are slower, insidious, and perhaps more costly: the erosion of trust, the shrinkage of civic imagination, the normalisation of fear as policy currency.

More than a challenge, this moment has become an opportunity for the world to break free from the iron fist of the United States, which for decades has silently ruled through its dominance of finance, security, and diplomacy. The turbulence unleashed by Trump has stripped away illusions and revealed the fragility of over dependence on a single power. Now is the time for nations to reimagine their futures – to cultivate self-reliance, strengthen regional partnerships, and build new frameworks of cooperation rooted not in fear or coercion, but in mutual respect and trust. The crisis thus bears within it the seed of reform, a chance to reshape global order into one that truly belongs to all humanity.

I was listening one evening to a casual exchange between my wife and my elder daughter. It began like any other story, a recollection of days gone by, a fragment from memory stitched together with laughter and warmth. My wife narrated, in striking detail, an incident from my daughter’s childhood: the first visit to a salon, the nervous tears, the attempt to soothe her with ice cream, and the tender patience with which the moment was handled. Yet as I listened, I realised that the scene was not hers to tell. It was mine. It was I who had held my little one close in that salon, I who had watched her resist the unfamiliar scissors, and I who had pacified her with the promise of sweetness. The memory was carved into me, but it had been gently repainted, as if my presence had been replaced by another hand upon the canvas.

At first, I thought it was a slip, a harmless substitution. But the more I listened, the more I noticed such retellings, the subtle shifting of roles, the small additions, the borrowed details. Not malicious, not intended to harm, yet something in them disturbed me. They were stories transfigured by what many call “white lies.” Later, I discovered the same pattern in a close friend and colleague: a habit of narrating with embellishments, of slipping in fictions, perhaps to make me happy, perhaps to make herself feel significant. It took me years to unravel the pattern. When I did, I found myself not merely confused but wounded. For to realise that someone with whom you share the deepest intimacy has built their fabric of closeness upon threads of untruth is profoundly unsettling.

This personal experience opens a larger question: Why do people lie? And why, even when lies are small and seemingly harmless, do they leave behind a sense of betrayal?

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The Roots of Deception

Psychologists have long studied lying, uncovering its layers with scientific patience. At its simplest, lying is the deliberate distortion of truth, an intentional act of saying something one knows to be false. Yet the motivations are complex. Researchers outline several psychological drivers:

1. Self-Protection: The most common lies are born of fear. A child denies breaking a vase, an adult conceals a mistake at work, both are attempts to escape punishment or blame. The instinct to lie here is bound to survival.

2. Self-Enhancement: Another root is the desire to appear greater than one is. People inflate achievements, alter details of their past, or exaggerate stories to earn admiration. In these cases, lies are an instrument of pride.

3. Altruism or “White Lies”: Sometimes lies are spoken with the intention of sparing another’s feelings. A friend says you look well even when you are visibly unwell, or a parent invents a comforting story to soothe a child. These are framed as kindness, yet their ethical standing remains debatable.

4. Habitual Compulsion: For some, lying becomes second nature. Psychologists describe this as pseudologia fantastica, where lying is almost compulsive, blending imagination and reality until even the liar struggles to separate them.

5. Power and Manipulation: Lies can also be tools of control. Politicians, con artists, or abusers use deception to shape the perceptions of others and maintain dominance.

In each of these lies, whether small or large, intentional or casual, there is a psychological gain. One secures protection, admiration, ease, or power. But each lie also costs something profound: trust.

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The Fragile Fabric of Trust

Trust is the unseen thread that binds human relationships. It is not built in a single moment but layered through countless exchanges where truth is shared. The moment a lie is uncovered, that thread frays. The wound it inflicts is not only the falsehood itself but the collapse of certainty.

A spouse who lies about something small leaves behind a lingering doubt. If she could alter one story, could she not alter another? A friend who repeatedly hides truth, even for one’s supposed benefit, creates a sense of instability. Do I truly know this person at all? Psychologists note that betrayal trauma often arises not from the scale of the lie but from the identity of the liar. When lies come from strangers, they irritate. When they come from those closest, they devastate.

The pain of lies lies not merely in deception of others but in self-deception. A person who lies frequently begins to weave falsehood into the fabric of their identity. Over time, they live a life that is half-constructed, half-invented. What begins as a strategy to protect or please ultimately erodes authenticity, leaving a hollow sense of self.

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The Psychology of the “White Lie”

Defenders of lying often appeal to the concept of the “white lie.” They argue that small untruths can smooth the edges of human interaction. Is it not kinder to praise a poor performance than to wound with blunt honesty? Is it not more compassionate to hide one’s disappointment than to expose another to pain?

Psychology, however, offers a sterner view. Studies reveal that recipients of “white lies,” when they eventually discover the truth, often feel more betrayed than if they had been told the harsh fact at once. Furthermore, habitual white liars often underestimate how easily their deceptions are detected. Even without confrontation, the body knows: tone, expression, and gesture betray insincerity, leaving behind unease.

The question, then, is not whether lies can sometimes soothe, for they can, but whether they ever truly serve. A comfort purchased at the price of reality is fragile comfort.

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The Trauma of Discovering Lies

My own confrontation with lies in intimate relationships was not a dramatic revelation but a slow dawning. The trauma was not in the individual falsehoods but in the pattern, in the recognition that the ground beneath me had been less solid than I thought. Many who experience betrayal describe this same sensation, as though the map of one’s life suddenly shifts, familiar territories marked as false.

Psychologically, this creates cognitive dissonance: the painful clash between the image of the person one loves and the reality uncovered. Such dissonance can lead to anxiety, depression, or even a complete rupture of relationship. What is most striking is that the liar may have lied for trivial reasons, without malice. Yet the wound inflicted is grave.

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Why We Must Resist Lying

The ancient dictum “सत्यं वद, प्रियम् वद, मा न ब्रूयात् अप्रियम्” — speak the truth, speak what is pleasant, and do not speak what is unpleasant — captures the fine balance between honesty and compassion that Indian philosophy so deeply values. Truth is upheld as the highest virtue, yet the sages remind us that truth must be tempered with sensitivity. One must not hurl truth like a weapon that wounds, nor disguise falsehood in the name of kindness. At times, silence or a gentle rephrasing may be wiser than a blunt declaration that inflicts needless suffering, an approach we might today call diplomacy. Yet this is never a sanction for lying, for falsehood erodes the integrity of the speaker and weakens the sacred fabric of trust. Instead, this teaching calls us to let truth flow with tenderness, so that it preserves its purity while also nurturing harmony in human relationships.

In the end, the psychology of lying shows us less about deception and more about truth: how essential it is for the flourishing of the human spirit. To lie is to betray not only another but oneself. Every falsehood, however small, chips away at integrity, corrodes trust, and leaves the soul fragmented.

There is a haunting passage I once wrote, and it has returned to me with renewed force:

I would pardon a person who kills me by stabbing, but if you are planning to tell me a lie, you better kill me. 

This is not exaggeration. A lie is not a deception of another alone, but a betrayal of one’s own self. A wound from a knife scars the body; a wound from a lie scars the very ground on which human connection stands. To lie is to forsake truth, and without truth, there can be no authentic love, no enduring friendship, no society that does not rot from within.

‘A little more persistence, a little more effort, and what seemed hopeless failure may turn to glorious success.’ ~ Elbert Hubbard

Desmond Tutu, a Bishop from South Africa, says accurately: ‘Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.’ Unlike Faith that is built on things not seen, Hope is built on Faith. Without Faith there is no Hope. Based on Faith in a promise grows Hope to see the fulfillment of the promise one day. Faith is built on past experience and a well established Truth, while Hope looks into the future with confidence rooted in unshakable Faith. ‘…Hope involves optimism, motivation and strategy.’ It is essential in life to keep our environment optimistic. Be it home, workplace or classroom, an optimistic ambience is a prerequisite to harmonious and fruitful progress. Hopeful optimism breathes like fresh air through rooms and living quarters. To create such an environment a certain strategy is needed: While giving feedback of any sort or while communicating, if language is carefully chosen and positive expressions used, the result is marvelous. If children are involved, a realistic and hopeful example of daily living will impress them for life. Let the children know that life consists of all sorts of events. How we face them, how we deal with them and how we grow out of them, defines those events as either good or bad. Hope and optimism possess the power to turn a bad event into a good memory. It’s good to remind oneself when passing through a difficulty that the current situation is temporary and at the end of the tunnel the sun beckons with a warm smile to hope for better times. Reminding friends or family members of former achievements once thought impossible to reach, can render fresh hope for future achievements though they might be even tougher than previous ones. 

In absence of hope there is despair, misery, hopelessness and depression. Raymond Williams, a Welsh academic and novelist, said, “To be truly radical is to make hope possible rather than despair convincing.” It doesn’t cost anyone anything to boost themselves and those around them with a little extra hope to dispel despair. In the face of steadfast hope and optimism despair and depression pack off and flee, as they can’t stand in front of Hope built on Faith, their arguments not being backed by steadfast Truth. Thus their slippery assertions will dissolve into thin air. But give doubt and despair an ear – just part of an ear – and their pessimistic arguments will pierce your heart asunder, threatening your very existence and survival. Therefore awareness is essential to discern the voices all around. Are they hopeful, edifying and elevating or are they breathing negativity resulting in death? Despair is like a dark prison cell. All around only thick gray mouldy walls. Nothing to motivate or to encourage: Nothing but despair everywhere. Unless one possesses the key called Hope, there’s no way to escape from the prison cell called Despair! Hope fits exactly into the keyhole of the heavy lock. Maybe the lock is already rusty due to a lengthy overstay at the prison cell Despair. Some oil of courage needs to be applied and the key will turn around to snap this hefty lock. Aching joints need to be flexed; a deep breath taken to clear a foggy mind. Summoning the last speck of inner determination, the prisoner of Despair needs to heave up his weighty body and take the step of Faith combined with Hope into the sunlight of another new morning of freedom from Despair and Depression. Let me quote Bernard Williams here who was an English philosopher and author who was knighted in 1999: “There was never a night or a problem that could defeat sunrise or hope.” 

There’s no need to hope for something that is already received. Why would someone have to hope for something that is already achieved? To hope without evidence of a solution needs courage and faith in the Supreme. Hope works through patience while being joyful in hoping. Anxious anticipation is not hopeful expectation. A hopeful outlook triggers positive vibrations that in the course of waiting keeps an individual on a sure track to inherit the result of steadfast Hope. In springtime a farmer tills the land and sows his seed full of hope, looking forward in good hope to receive the wages of his tireless labour in the form of a plentiful harvest in autumn. He needs to dare to throw out his seed. It’s connected with risk. Yet every year come Spring, we watch the farmers sowing their precious seed, prayerfully hoping for a blessed harvest.

The ultimate goal though of souls on the earthly plane is liberation from the cycle of birth and death. This liberation is beyond the freedom attained through Hope from the prison cell called Despair. Liberation includes a realisation of reality and transcending the limitations of the physical plane where one needs to surrender attachment to desire, even including hope. Hope associated with despair ultimately fosters resilience involving expectation and desire. However liberation from hope through acceptance for whatever is as the will of the Supreme, can lead to true bliss. 

About Johanna D.S. Chittranjan (Johanna Devadayavu)

Poet | Philanthropist | Co-Founder of Laharinagar

Johanna D.S. Chittranjan, known in literary and spiritual circles as Johanna Devadayavu, is a revered poet and humanitarian of Swiss origin who has lived in South India for over forty years. A woman of gentle strength and profound introspection, she has dedicated her life to cultivating love, peace, and spiritual awareness through poetry and compassionate action. Together with her late husband, Lawrie Devadayavu, she co-founded Laharinagar, a serene spiritual retreat nestled in the verdant landscape of South India. More than a sanctuary, Laharinagar is a living embodiment of their shared vision—where harmony with nature, meditative silence, and human connection converge. It continues to inspire seekers, poets, and pilgrims from around the world. Johanna’s poetry is a quiet revolution—her voice emerges from a soul attuned to the rhythms of the earth and the divine heartbeat of humanity. Her work is marked by simplicity, emotional depth, and luminous imagery drawn from her lived experiences. In her verses, she embodies multiple facets of human existence: the devoted wife, nurturing mother, reflective grandmother, diasporic soul, nature lover, and spiritual pilgrim.

Her published works include:

• Flight of a Turtledove – A lyrical celebration of inner peace, nature’s wisdom, and the healing essence of love.

• Hope Beyond Perplexity – Poetic reflections that offer solace and insight amid life’s confusions.

• The Call of the Turtledove for Universal Peace: Meditations on Love Divine – A contemplative volume echoing the spiritual call for harmony and compassion.

• Turtledove of Sundered Skies – A deeply personal and poetic tribute to her late husband, suffused with devotion and remembrance.

Through these works, Johanna offers readers a pathway back to what is essential—stillness, sincerity, and soul. Her pantheistic sensibilities and unwavering faith in the goodness of life flow naturally into her poetry, which serves as both sanctuary and guide for the weary and the awakened alike. A quiet force of benevolence, Johanna Devadayavu continues to inspire through her written word and her lived presence. Her journey is one of transcendence through tenderness, and in every flight of the turtledove, one hears the echo of her heart—soft, unwavering, and eternally serene.

‘Faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen.’ ~ Author unknown

If faith is the substance of things hoped for, it means the things mentioned here are not within our reach. In the physical sense, anything having substance is something real. If I have a fruit in my hand, why would I have to believe that I have a fruit in my hand? I already have it in my hand. It is real; I can smell it and taste it. I don’t need faith for something I hold in my hand. But I need faith for something I can’t see, can’t fathom, can’t describe, or explain. We need faith to attain the true, eternal things we can’t see with our physical eyes. For this, faith is the substance, says the quote. And it goes on to say: ‘…and the evidence of things not seen.’ Faith, then, is the substance as well as the evidence: ‘…the substance and the evidence of things not seen.’ Things we can see are not permanent. They are a shadow of the things not seen. They teach us about the things we don’t see. The things we don’t see are eternal. That’s where the true substance is. If there is a father who loves his children on the physical plane, there is an eternal Father in the realm we can’t perceive with our physical senses: The Father of all!

We need faith for tomorrow. Who holds our destiny? Who holds our hand to teach us to walk, step by step? Who is the breath of life we freely breathe? We need faith for our very breath, each new moment. Realizing our frailty and our vulnerability, we need faith in someone stronger than us humans. We need faith in our Father—our Creator. We need faith in His love, in His support and sustenance, in His care and protection, in His guidance and providence. How sad would a father feel if suddenly his little girl went and embraced a donkey, saying, ‘O daddy! daddy! You are my daddy!’ He would feel devastated, thinking something was wrong with his daughter. In the same way, our true Father looks forward to His children acknowledging His presence by faith and trust in Him.

Small children have faith in their parents. Once a father set his three sons on a wall. He asked each one of them to jump, promising he would catch them. The eldest one said: “O father, how can I know you will catch me? I won’t jump.” The second one said: “father, you simply say that you’ll catch me; what if you drop me?” The third one just jumped before the father was even ready to catch him. The father had to go out of his way to get hold of him. The youngest son had an innocent and strong faith in the father’s power to catch him without fail—and he jumped, giving it not even a second thought.

A father once promised his son a bicycle if he passed his examination. The son studied eagerly, looking forward to getting his bicycle. He passed the examination. Having full faith in the father’s promise, on the way home, he went straight to the bicycle shop and ordered a bicycle of his choice. Coming home, he exclaimed to the father, “father, I have passed my exams. Let’s go to the bicycle shop and bring my bicycle home!” The father replied in surprise: “What, sonny? What bicycle?” “But father, you promised me a bicycle if I passed my exams. I have passed and have ordered a bicycle! Let’s go and get it, father!” proclaimed the son enthusiastically. The father had to go to the shop with his son and get him the bicycle he had ordered in good faith in the father’s promise. The son’s faith in the father made him fulfill his promise. The son visualized his dream and acted upon it with full faith. Faith in the Heavenly Father works against human logic, against the five senses of our physical being, against all odds, and against all the evil forces of darkness that often try to bring us low into realms of doubt and despair. Therefore, we need to heed the voice of love within our hearts to keep up the good faith, that we may walk step by step on the way sketched out for us.

If, on the contrary, we open our carnal mind to doubt the Father’s power to sustain and protect us, we end up in confusion, anxiety, powerlessness, low self-esteem, and even impaired well-being. Doubt can trigger an overwhelmed mind, void of clear thought and sound judgment. Doubt can lead to constant uncertainty and nerve-racking overthinking, resulting in stress and fatigue. Doubt might paralyze our vision, rendering us blindfolded in search of a ray of light to guide us, when all we would have to do was to just remove the covering from our eyes. However, doubt, applied wisely at a healthy level, can protect people from overconfidence. Understanding the negative consequences of an excess of doubt can help individuals safely navigate between a healthy level of critical questioning and detrimental doubting. We can learn to doubt the doubt, to vibrate higher, and thus rise beyond the downward spiral of deadly doubt.

Let us, then, have faith in the veracity of the One who gave us the holy scriptures for our guide. Through infinite means, God reaches out to us, His beloved children. If we quietly listen to our heart, we can hear His assuring voice: “I am right there with you, to support and protect you! You never walk alone. I am with you always. Have faith in me. I will make it come to pass. All things happening to you are for your good; I have called you according to my purpose. Learn your lessons and emerge stronger out of every new challenge! Today you may face a storm, but tomorrow there’ll be a rainbow in the sky. Walk on through fire or ice: Walk on in faith—if need be, I will carry you through! No mountain is too tall for me to climb and cross over; no canyon too deep for me to stoop down and lift you up. I know how frail you are, how much you can bear, and I will not test you beyond your capacity. Therefore, hold on in faith and be strong!”

The entire universe, in all its splendor, is an expression of our Creator, our Father, who, though magnificent in grandeur and power, takes time to tend to our every need, even on this physical, earthly plane. Where, then, is our problem in having full faith in Him who is mindful of His entire creation? Simple faith could be described as follows: Every evening, before going to sleep, we set our alarm clock in good faith that we will wake up the next morning. What is the guarantee that we will wake up in the morning? There’s absolutely no guarantee. Yet, we go to sleep without a further thought, believing that we will hear the alarm in the morning to be getting up. That can be termed as simple faith. A bird sings its lonely morning tune in the dark pre-dawn wee hours of the day. It has faith that the sun will rise at the correct time. How does it know? It has faith. Faith stands strong and unperturbed in the face of calamity and challenge. Faith is a strong foundation and the rock on which we can ever find refuge. Unwavering faith is a Divine gift that God gives freely to those who trust in Him. Through such faith in the Divine Father, we can overcome and triumph in any situation.

____________________________________________________________________________________________

About Johanna D.S. Chittranjan (Johanna Devadayavu)

Poet | Philanthropist | Co-Founder of Laharinagar

Johanna D.S. Chittranjan, known in literary and spiritual circles as Johanna Devadayavu, is a revered poet and humanitarian of Swiss origin who has lived in South India for over forty years. A woman of gentle strength and profound introspection, she has dedicated her life to cultivating love, peace, and spiritual awareness through poetry and compassionate action. Together with her late husband, Lawrie Devadayavu, she co-founded Laharinagar, a serene spiritual retreat nestled in the verdant landscape of South India. More than a sanctuary, Laharinagar is a living embodiment of their shared vision—where harmony with nature, meditative silence, and human connection converge. It continues to inspire seekers, poets, and pilgrims from around the world. Johanna’s poetry is a quiet revolution—her voice emerges from a soul attuned to the rhythms of the earth and the divine heartbeat of humanity. Her work is marked by simplicity, emotional depth, and luminous imagery drawn from her lived experiences. In her verses, she embodies multiple facets of human existence: the devoted wife, nurturing mother, reflective grandmother, diasporic soul, nature lover, and spiritual pilgrim.

Her published works include:

• Flight of a Turtledove – A lyrical celebration of inner peace, nature’s wisdom, and the healing essence of love.

• Hope Beyond Perplexity – Poetic reflections that offer solace and insight amid life’s confusions.

• The Call of the Turtledove for Universal Peace: Meditations on Love Divine – A contemplative volume echoing the spiritual call for harmony and compassion.

• Turtledove of Sundered Skies – A deeply personal and poetic tribute to her late husband, suffused with devotion and remembrance.

Through these works, Johanna offers readers a pathway back to what is essential—stillness, sincerity, and soul. Her pantheistic sensibilities and unwavering faith in the goodness of life flow naturally into her poetry, which serves as both sanctuary and guide for the weary and the awakened alike. A quiet force of benevolence, Johanna Devadayavu continues to inspire through her written word and her lived presence. Her journey is one of transcendence through tenderness, and in every flight of the turtledove, one hears the echo of her heart—soft, unwavering, and eternally serene.

A soul is departed from the living earth. Where to, no one really knows. As her body warmth climbs down and reaches zero, her memories, once treasured souvenirs too, start to leave her surroundings. An auction of a dead person’s belongings by her loved ones is just a regular activity in modern day culture. Thousands of years back, those belongings were buried along with the departed. In the cosmopolitan world we live in, it does not make sense and the way the world has evolved does not support that idea any longer. For once there is no space and secondly it doesn’t make sense to destroy what is reusable in a world that is scared of resources. Besides, who has the money to build a Giza or a Taj Mahal?What could be reused should be reused and what could be sold should be sold. There is no ethical conundrum of that.

Well, of course there are exceptions and exceptional situations. If you were a world leader, a persona who was responsible for changing the course of humanity, the world would guard and preserve everything that belongs to you. Perhaps even your T-shirt. Or perhaps if you were an equal of Lenin, they might even preserve your dead body. If you were a larger than life person, your legacy perdures your after life on earth.Tutankhamun wouldn’t have thought of becoming a global sensation 3300 years after his departure, probably. But such could be life on earth.

Personal property of a deceased is called fittings or chattels. Although distributing them among family or selling that brings no legal challenge, the sentimental value could be quite a disturbing occurrence. Such auctions are a sad reminder of a constant echo we try hard to ignore, a truth that disturbs peace and gives birth to sentiments not necessarily happy. The stark reminder of the emptiness of our life! As children, lovers, partners, husbands, wives, parents, grandparents, friends, work colleagues humans play multiple roles throughout their lives. They take pictures, purchase furniture, buy souvenirs, gather treasures, collect things of interest. All of those possessions make who a person is. A carpet collector, a vass collector, a paintings collector or what not. Even in the poorest of the houses, they will preserve a picture of the family. Each of those items means something to the owner who is gone on a journey to the unknown. Each of them completes who one is. But as one lies dead in a far away cemetery alone, or burnt and scattered as ash, their loved ones rips the world they built for years. One buy one they sell what made a person, shred their possession like removing bricks of a house. From the favorite reclining  chairs, to the rich book collection to one’s utilities. At the end perhaps the house one lived in would also be sold. After a while there is absolutely nothing that will remain of who one once was. There can not be billions of Tutankhamuns in an overpopulated world where people die by hunger.

A minimalist thus would be the real winner in a life’s journey when one thinks of this truth. A minimalist would live with the means to live but not necessarily to possess the possessions purchased out of greed. But even while knowing a hard truth people would not choose to follow the path of  minimalism.Minimalist or not, you will be met with the maker one day. So what difference does it really make? When what’s on the other side is not known, why worry about suppressing your cravings. Why not enjoy the materialistic riches and appease your soul’s greed ? Who gave those words a bad name ? If religions were meant to guide humanity for a simple life, why do all the religious establishments remain so rich, painted in gold, draped in gems and showered in wealth ? Something is broken in that system or humanity supports a fraud because it has been the tradition.

When humanity was organising into a civilization, they had to think of what and how the order would look like. First to be born were the leaders. Those selfless, strong men fought with their muscles against the wild beasts competing for dominance  like their human counterparts. It was a savage battle for control,food, land,  populating and becoming the alpha beings of the earth. Often it was the animals who won with their might, sharp teeth, piercing nails, lightning speed, strongest senses from smell to sight. Humans were the prey. The battles for water holes, battles for an innocent impala favoured the wild beasts as they were gifted with extraordinary savagery. Then one day it all changed. A human whose name we could never know discovered the single most important discovery of our entire civilisation. Fire !!! Fire and ignition of it made our history what it is and us who we are.

Predating the fire or just after the discovery of fire, there were no organised religions. Perhaps one worshiped the forest which gave them food and shelter or the rain which helped them cultivate their grain or the sun that made life blossom. Who created the organised religion and for what reason could only be defined looking at how the current world functions. Who would need the protection of divinity, cover of the holy, blessings of the almighty and the endorsement of the high priests the most ? Not a human dying from starvation or a war that he had no part to play with ;not a poor voter who has been taken on ride after ride by every government ; not a  migrant dying in the high seas.

Maybe it is the very leaders who lead humanity that really need the organised religions to organise the society and tame their thoughts to suit their tunes. Looking at Tutankhamun and an auction of the chattels of an ordinary dead human of our time, all one could conclude is that life has always favoured the rich and mighty. They would live gloriously while they are alive and even after their deaths. While those Toms, Dicks and Harrys will see their chattels sold, lands distributed, names forgotten before the dawn of another year, it will only be a Tutankhamun who will emerge from a hidden cave, sunken palace and be placed in a Royal museum with their wealth intact.

About the Writer

With a master’s in International relations, Dhanuka’s expertise is in Geopolitics and Geoeconomics, among other things. In addition to being the Executive Editor of The Asian Reviews magazine, he works as a guest writer in the Chicago-based Armenian Mirror-Spectator on Caucuses-related geopolitical issues and contributes as a columnist and a guest speaker to the Indian-based Force Security magazine.

He was a grassroots Politician, a political campaign Director, and a council member of a local government body in a small town in rural Sri Lanka. Before entering active politics, he led his foundation in supporting youth and the underprivileged. Currently, he consults youth groups on political activism and general political trends.

He is a poet, blogger, and an enthusiastic climate and social activist who strongly believes in making a better world for future generations. A patriotic Sri Lankan who is a father of a loving daughter.

 

India, a nation of over 1.4 billion people, has made remarkable strides in economic growth and technological advancement. Yet, its average life expectancy, approximately 70 years as of recent estimates, lags significantly behind many developed nations, where citizens often live 13–15 years longer. While India possesses a robust network of medical facilities, the lower life expectancy is not primarily due to a lack of hospitals but rather systemic issues, including corruption, inadequate governance, environmental degradation, and poor-quality food supply chains. This article critically examines these factors, highlighting how they undermine the value of human life and questioning why citizens must bear the cost of such systemic failures.

Systemic Corruption and Governance Failures

Corruption within India’s political and bureaucratic systems is a significant contributor to the nation’s public health challenges. Public funds allocated for healthcare, infrastructure, and environmental management are frequently misappropriated or siphoned off, resulting in underfunded public hospitals, inadequate sanitation systems, and lax regulatory enforcement. For instance, while India has a vast network of medical facilities, many public hospitals are understaffed, lack essential equipment, or are plagued by mismanagement. This forces citizens to rely on private healthcare, which is often unaffordable for the average person.

Moreover, regulatory bodies tasked with ensuring food safety, environmental standards, and public health are often compromised by political interference or bribery. This allows substandard practices to persist, from the sale of contaminated food to unchecked industrial pollution. The failure of politicians to prioritize transparent and accountable governance directly impacts the quality of life, contributing to preventable diseases and premature mortality.

Environmental Degradation and Pollution

India’s environmental crisis is a critical factor in its lower life expectancy. Air pollution, particularly in urban centers like Delhi, ranks among the worst globally, with particulate matter (PM2.5) levels frequently exceeding safe limits. According to the World Health Organization, air pollution is linked to respiratory diseases, cardiovascular conditions, and reduced life expectancy. Water contamination, driven by untreated industrial waste and inadequate sewage systems, further exacerbates public health risks, leading to diseases such as cholera, typhoid, and hepatitis.

Despite environmental regulations, enforcement is weak due to political and corporate collusion. Politicians often prioritize short-term economic gains over long-term sustainability, allowing industries to operate with minimal oversight. This systemic neglect of environmental standards disproportionately affects marginalized communities, who lack the resources to mitigate exposure to pollutants, further entrenching health inequities.

Poor-Quality Food Supply Chains

The quality of food available in Indian markets is another pressing concern. Adulteration, contamination, and the use of harmful additives are widespread due to lax regulation and enforcement. For example, milk, a staple in many Indian diets, is frequently diluted with water or mixed with harmful substances like urea or detergents. Similarly, vegetables and grains are often treated with toxic pesticides or stored in unsanitary conditions, posing long-term health risks such as cancer, kidney damage, and gastrointestinal disorders.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is tasked with ensuring food safety, but its effectiveness is hampered by underfunding, corruption, and political pressures. The average citizen, particularly those from lower-income groups, has little access to high-quality, uncontaminated food, leading to chronic health issues that shorten life expectancy.

Societal and Cultural Factors

Beyond systemic issues, societal attitudes and policy failures exacerbate the problem. Malnutrition, particularly among children and women, remains a significant challenge, with India ranking poorly on global hunger indices. While food security programs exist, their implementation is often marred by inefficiencies and corruption, leaving millions without adequate nutrition. Additionally, lifestyle diseases such as diabetes and hypertension are rising due to increasing consumption of processed foods, which are often cheaper and more accessible than healthier alternatives.

The lack of public awareness campaigns and preventive healthcare initiatives reflects a broader political indifference to citizen welfare. Instead of investing in education about healthy diets or pollution mitigation, resources are often diverted to populist schemes that prioritize political gains over long-term public health outcomes.

The Human Cost and Ethical Implications

The premature loss of 13–15 years of life expectancy is not merely a statistic but a profound societal tragedy. It represents lost potential, unfulfilled aspirations, and unnecessary suffering for millions of Indians. The systemic failures outlined above—corruption, environmental neglect, and inadequate food safety—reflect a governance model that undervalues human life. Citizens are forced to bear the consequences of decisions made by a political class that often prioritizes power and profit over public welfare.

Why should individuals suffer such a significant reduction in their lifespan simply because of their birthplace? This question demands a reevaluation of India’s priorities. A nation that aspires to global leadership cannot afford to neglect the health and well-being of its people. Addressing these challenges requires not only policy reforms but also a cultural shift toward accountability, transparency, and a genuine commitment to human dignity.

India’s lower life expectancy is a complex issue rooted in systemic corruption, environmental degradation, and poor food quality, rather than a lack of medical facilities. While the country has the potential to address these challenges, doing so requires political will, robust governance, and a commitment to prioritizing citizen welfare over short-term gains. Until these systemic failures are addressed, the average Indian will continue to face a diminished lifespan, a cost that no citizen should have to bear simply for being born in India. Concerted efforts to combat corruption, enforce environmental and food safety regulations, and invest in public health are essential to ensuring that every Indian can live a longer, healthier life.

The Global Academy for Transformative Education (GATE) is a distinguished autonomous educational wing of the Writers Capital International Foundation, committed to leading transformative and holistic educational reform on a global scale. Represented by its powerful acronym, GATE symbolizes a gateway to innovation, opportunity, and academic excellence, uniting a network of International Centres under a unified vision of redefining education for a diverse, interconnected world. Under the leadership of Prof. Preeth Padmanabhan Nambiar, President of GATE, the academy aspires to become one of the most reputed groups of institutions, fostering unparalleled learning, interdisciplinary collaboration, and global impact.

GATE serves as the central framework for the Foundation’s educational initiatives, currently including the International Centre for Foreign Languages and Literature, led by Prof. Nambiar, and programs such as INSPIRE (Innovative Strategies for Progressive Instruction and Educational Reform). With plans to establish additional International Centres in fields such as science, technology, medicine, and humanities, GATE is strategically positioned to achieve global preeminence. Designed for deliberate, authentic growth, it upholds a secular, inclusive identity, ensuring universal accessibility and the potential to evolve into a world-renowned university-like entity.

Mission and Vision

GATE’s mission is to empower educators, students, and communities worldwide through transformative educational practices that integrate holistic development, innovation, and global perspectives. By promoting student-centered pedagogies, interdisciplinary research, and equitable learning environments, GATE aims to set new standards for educational excellence. Its vision is to establish itself as a preeminent global institution, recognized as one of the most reputed groups of educational centers, driving systemic reform and preparing learners to address the challenges of a dynamic world.

The holistic principles envisioned by Prof. Preeth Padmanabhan Nambiar guide GATE’s philosophy, emphasizing the integration of intellectual, emotional, and social dimensions of learning. These principles ensure education is inclusive, culturally responsive, and empowering, fostering well-rounded individuals equipped for global citizenship. Through initiatives like INSPIRE, GATE translates this vision into practical strategies, equipping educators with innovative tools to transform classrooms worldwide.

Key Objectives

1. Drive Educational Reform: Develop and disseminate innovative, holistic teaching methodologies that prioritize critical thinking, creativity, and global awareness.
2. Establish a Prestigious Network: Create a constellation of International Centres in fields such as science, technology, medicine, and humanities, each contributing to GATE’s reputation as a global leader.
3. Promote Global Collaboration: Build a worldwide network of educators, researchers, and institutions to share knowledge and advance interdisciplinary innovation.
4. Ensure Universal Inclusivity: Design secular, inclusive programs that transcend cultural and regional boundaries, welcoming diverse learners and educators.
5. Achieve Global Repute: Position GATE as one of the most respected educational groups, with a scalable framework that supports future university status while maintaining authenticity.

Leadership and Structure

GATE is led by Prof. Preeth Padmanabhan Nambiar, President, who provides strategic vision and oversight, ensuring alignment with the Writers Capital International Foundation’s mission. As the top authority, the President guides the development of GATE’s network of International Centres, each managed by a dedicated Director responsible for operational leadership and program execution. This hierarchical structure fosters cohesion while allowing each center to innovate within its field, contributing to GATE’s collective prestige.

Current and planned International Centres include:

• International Centre for Foreign Languages and Literature: Directed by Prof. Nambiar, this center advances linguistic diversity, literary scholarship, and cross-cultural dialogue through research, publications, and educational programs, serving as a cornerstone of GATE’s interdisciplinary mission.
• INSPIRE (Innovative Strategies for Progressive Instruction and Educational Reform): A flagship program launched on May 22, 2025, at KNC Innovative Global School, Mysuru, INSPIRE empowers educators with holistic, student-centered strategies. The inaugural session, attended by Principal Joseph Frank and Chairman Dr. K.N. Chandrasekhar, featured workshops on phonetic training, lesson planning, and social-emotional learning, exemplifying GATE’s commitment to practical reform.
• Planned International Centres: GATE envisions establishing centers in key fields, including:
  • International Centre for Science and Innovation: Advancing research and education in physics, biology, and environmental sciences.
  • International Centre for Technology and Artificial Intelligence: Promoting ethical digital learning and transformative technologies.
  • International Centre for Medicine and Public Health: Fostering medical education and global health solutions.
  • International Centre for Humanities and Social Sciences: Exploring cultural, historical, and societal perspectives to enrich holistic education.

GATE’s organizational framework is designed for flexibility and scalability, enabling the integration of new centers under the President’s leadership. Directors report to the Director – General of Operations (DGO) who reports to the President, ensuring strategic alignment while fostering innovation within each center. Governed by the Writers Capital International Foundation, GATE leverages the Foundation’s global resources to enhance its impact and reputation.

Commitment to Holistic Education

GATE’s educational philosophy is grounded in the holistic principles envisioned by Prof. Preeth Padmanabhan Nambiar, which advocate for a balanced approach to learning that nurtures intellectual growth, emotional resilience, and social responsibility. These principles are operationalized through:

• Personalized Learning: Tailoring education to individual learner needs, ensuring inclusivity and engagement.
• Cultural and Global Relevance: Adapting pedagogies to diverse contexts, fostering cross-cultural understanding.
• Interdisciplinary Synergy: Encouraging collaboration across fields to address complex global challenges.
• Educator Empowerment: Equipping teachers with innovative tools and training, as demonstrated by INSPIRE’s focus on transformative practices.

This holistic approach ensures GATE’s programs elevate academic standards while cultivating ethical, empathetic leaders prepared for global impact.

Global, Secular, and Prestigious Identity

GATE is steadfastly committed to a secular, universally accessible identity, free from cultural, religious, or regional affiliations. Its name, devoid of specific connotations, reflects its role as a neutral platform for global education. By drawing participants from diverse backgrounds and fostering international partnerships, GATE ensures its programs resonate worldwide. The ambition to become one of the most reputed groups of institutions is driven by strategic leadership under Prof. Nambiar, a relentless pursuit of excellence, and a commitment to inclusive, transformative education.

Scalability and Path to Global Repute

GATE is engineered for sustainable, organic growth, balancing ambition with authenticity. Its current structure as an autonomous wing allows it to innovate and refine educational models, building a foundation for lasting prestige. Strategies to achieve global repute include:

• Developing World-Class Centres: Establishing International Centres in science, technology, medicine, and humanities, each led by a Director and contributing to GATE’s reputation for innovation and excellence.
• Forging Strategic Partnerships: Collaborating with leading universities, research institutions, and global organizations to enhance credibility and reach.
• Promoting Thought Leadership: Publishing research, hosting conferences (e.g., leveraging the Foundation’s Global Nexus Series), and contributing to global educational discourse.
• Scaling Toward University Status: Positioning GATE as a precursor to a future Global University for Transformative Education, with a phased approach that prioritizes quality and authenticity.

This scalability ensures GATE remains agile, innovative, and globally competitive, poised to redefine educational standards.

Synergy with Writers Capital International Foundation

GATE amplifies the Foundation’s mission to advance creativity, knowledge, and societal progress, complementing its programs in arts, literature, humanitarian projects, and the Global Nexus Series. By integrating education into the Foundation’s portfolio, GATE creates synergies with initiatives like the Nexus Review Journal and publishing efforts, leveraging the Foundation’s global network to enhance its impact and reputation. Prof. Nambiar’s dual leadership of GATE and key Foundation initiatives ensures strategic alignment and maximizes impact.

The Global Academy for Transformative Education (GATE), under the visionary leadership of Prof. Preeth Padmanabhan Nambiar, President, stands as a transformative force in global education. By uniting a prestigious network of International Centres—starting with the International Centre for Foreign Languages and Literature and expanding into science, technology, medicine, and beyond—GATE is dedicated to becoming one of the most reputed groups of institutions. With its holistic, inclusive, and innovative approach, GATE opens gateways to learning that empower communities, transcend boundaries, and shape a future of global progress, all while advancing the Writers Capital International Foundation’s commitment to a better world.

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Zunny Bracho’s Muerte por Justicia is a soul-wrenching odyssey that traverses the fragile boundary between trauma and transformation, victimhood and vengeance, madness and morality. In this piercing psychological thriller, the author dares to illuminate the darkest corridors of the human psyche—those shaped by childhood abuse, emotional abandonment, and a society that often fails its most innocent members.

NARRATIVE OVERVIEW

Set against the backdrop of luxury, power, and emotional neglect, Muerte por Justicia tells the story of Edward Robinson Jr., the son of a billionaire hotel magnate who is too consumed by his empire to notice the abyss forming in his child’s life. Raised in opulence yet starved of affection, Edward is left in the care of abusive tutors whose heinous acts trigger a cascade of psychological distortions.

As Edward grows, the trauma of his past mutates into a chilling persona. His brilliance becomes a weapon. His silence, a mask. His vengeance, a ritual. What unfolds is not merely the making of a serial killer, but the unraveling of a man sculpted by torment and sculptor of his own twisted sense of justice.

THEMATIC DEPTH

1. Child Abuse and Its Consequences
The novel is a searing indictment of the systemic failure to protect vulnerable children. Through Edward’s descent, Bracho demonstrates how early trauma can forge monsters, not by choice, but by sheer survival.

2. Justice and Moral Ambiguity
The title itself—Death for Justice—is a provocative meditation on vigilante morality. Edward does not kill indiscriminately; he hunts predators cloaked in respectability—teachers, coaches, mentors. He is both executioner and echo of his own violated innocence.

3. The Duality of the Human Psyche
Edward’s character is painted in chiaroscuro: part genius, part ghost, part victim, part villain. The author masterfully evokes sympathy for a murderer whose crimes, while unforgivable, are born from unspeakable cruelty.

4. Law vs. Conscience
The pursuit led by FBI agent Carl Miller is as much a legal chase as a spiritual confrontation. Miller’s eventual discovery of his own connection to Edward adds an existential weight to the investigation, challenging our perceptions of fate, family, and the burden of knowing.

LITERARY STYLE

Bracho’s prose is raw and immersive, infused with poetic cadence and cinematic clarity. The narrative voice balances empathy and tension, leading the reader through scenes of graphic realism, emotional devastation, and moments of eerie calm.

Dialogues are taut with intensity, especially in the courtroom sequences, where justice is not merely served but interrogated. The flashbacks are haunting and serve as emotional anchors, creating a timeline where every past wound bleeds into present violence.

AESTHETIC AND PHILOSOPHICAL POWER

Muerte por Justicia transcends the confines of conventional crime fiction. It is a philosophical inquiry dressed in thriller form—a lamentation for lost childhoods and a warning against the monsters society breeds in silence. The climactic moments, especially the final trial, are heavy with moral weight: How do we judge a killer who was once a helpless child begging for mercy?

And in that last scene—where Edward faces his execution—Bracho offers not resolution, but reflection. A mirror is held up to society: what justice do we claim when we ignore the roots of evil?

FINAL EVALUATION

Zunny Bracho has authored more than a novel; she has rendered a literary requiem for all forgotten children, a piercing critique of institutional apathy, and an unflinching portrait of a man shaped by horror and driven by a tragic sense of righteousness.

Muerte por Justicia is a brutal, brilliant, and unforgettable masterpiece—a must-read for those who seek literature that dares to challenge the conscience, elevate the soul, and disturb the silence.