Dear Hazarika:
Thanks for your response. I was hoping to see some answers to the questions
I raised in my last mail. But I won't rub it in any more. I am sure you
would have shared them, if you had any. Can we close that chapter then by
agreeing that the charges and insinuations you levelled against me were of
no substance?
But your note brought on a bunch of additional questions. leaving me
perplexed once again. Like the last time, I gave you an opportunity to
explain WHY you thought UAONA ought not to exist. But your eloquent reply
in silence was not exactly unexpected. Having known you all these years as
the easy going, friendly person you are, totally averse to community
politicking; I wonder what has driven you to get so enmeshed in it now. The
only explanation seems to be that you are bearing someone else's cross. But
enough about motives.
At 1:05 PM -0500 9/15/03, Mano Hazarika wrote:
>Mahanta:
>First, I wished there was one organization. Second. I would like to see
>joint conventions continued in future that was started successfully in
>Houston in 1999. I have heard from many people that they like these joint
>conventions and see it continued. (A further step was taken in Saint Louis
>where representative from both ASA and AANA laid down the grown works for
>future convention site selection. I have strong faith that the executives of
>these organizations can work together to provide leadership. They can work
>out to publish one directory in future like in 1999 convention in Houston
>jointly by ASA and AANA and investigate if feasible to do other projects
>together to reduce cost.
*** These are good thoughts no doubt. Not of any great importance here, but
what does :
>Also, start other efforts - for example, nomination
>of Kedar Bhuyan to AFNA's board of directors to serve 2000-2002 term).
mean?
What has Kedar Bhuyan or AFNA have to do with AANA's reluctance and ASA's
desire to merge forming a single social/cultural organization? AFNA has
declared itself ,quite clearly and categorically, as a completely separate
and independent entity, like UAONA. Do you know something we don't?
>Even after 5 successful joint conventions, UAONA still exists. Mahanta:
>since you are one of the persons involved in the creation of UAONA, for the
>benefit of the community, can you please explain why UAONA still exists? Do
>you like to share some of your success/frustration/wisdom?
*** First, allow me to correct a misconception here. I was not only NOT
there at the creation of UAONA, I was not even in the continent when it
happened. I did however join its efforts when I was invited to, later. And
I support it now.
You preface the remarks above by ">Even after 5 successful joint
conventions, UAONA still exists", implying that since that has happend,
UAONA ought not to exist any more.
Obviously you are referring to a promise *I* made to some AANA members-
perhaps including you, to support disbanding of UAONA, when ASA and AANA
can come together to hold joint conventions.
But that promise of mine has to be viewed in the context of issues and
events that followed.
At the inception and several years thereafter, UAONA , a charitable entity,
just like AFNA, was attempting to bring the feuding AANA and ASA together
to form a single entity. But instead of helping unify, UAONA created a
firestorm of protests among AANA partisans. Those of us who were promoting
UAONA were called names, using choice epithets, the works :-). You will
remember the punishment AANA decided to mete out to the upstarts of UAONA ,
who have all been long time AANA members, by and large, by REFUSING to
RECOGNIZE UAONA. The punishment
still lingers, if you have not noticed.
That broke our hearts :-).
But levity aside, that was a bit of a sad commentary. However *I*
understand AANA's reaction at the time. Because there were claims,
counterclaims, insinuations and what not--that UAONA would destroy AANA.
AANA reacted with the same kind of fury when AFNA was created as well. I
remember quite well the canvassing from Texas on why AFNA ought NOT to be
supported. That AFNA too was an attempt to dilute AANA's effort to unite
the Assamese community under ITS banner. The pleas from the AFNA
founding-fathers that it was a charitable entity, not meant to compete with
AANA, went either un-understood or disbelieved.
I am not making these up, as you well know.
********************************************************************************
AANA's reactions against UAONA's formation was in EXACTLY the same vein as
above.
Knowing that, and realizing ( after a few years into UAONA's existence)
that UNIFICATION was not to be in the foreseeable future, WE in UAONA began
to work towards a lesser, seemingly more achievable goal, of holding joint
conventions as the first step.
In my endless arguments with many of you who would at least talk to me, I
was reminded time annd again, both as demands as well as friendly advice,
that UAONA's existence has been a PROBLEM in getting to holding joint
conventions.
It is under those circumstances that *I* promised to work for disbanding of
UAONA when joint conventions become a fact.
********************************************************************************
Of course YOU and others whose cross you might be bearing now, know it well.
It hardly needed a treatise on Assam Net to explain. But many don't.
*** In the meantime UAONA embarked on the new approach of attempting to
bring about
JOINT conventions and quietly decided to adopt a LOW PROFILE about its own
existence, We STOPPED attempting to recruit new members, or otherwise be on
AANA's face :-). UAONA now began to look for CONSTRUCTIVE and ACTIVE
avenues for charitable/educational activities. That was about 1997.
In 97 UAONA members supported the AANA convention held in Chicago,
materially and morally,
hoping to generate support for a JOINT C in 98. That attempt bombed, as you
would remember.
So in '98, UAONA members attempted to organize a JC --the ASsam
Get-Together in St. Louis. It was an extremely successful event, drawing
wide support from the non-aligned community as well as ASA. If UAONA had
any pretensions about being a competitor to AANA or ASA, that would have
been the venue to beat its drums.
We were very disappointed that AANA did not respond. However it was not
unexpected. Anyway, nowhere in that event did UAONA make itself visible.
None, nada, zero, zit!
But UAONA did send out a powerful signal, that it could get things done. We
thank you all from Houston for not missing it :-).
It was UAONA's first major contribution by creating an impetus to you
Houstonian's JC in '99.
********************************************************************************
UAONA has since kept a low profile in the community, although partisans on
both sides tried
to bring it up to the forefront, not for the community's greater interests,
but as a ploy to re-ignite partisan passions.
You may or may not know this, but your question is a just another play of
that game.
I know exactly WHO the people are I could expect that question from till my
dying day.
That is why *I* am perplexed to see it coming from YOU.
********************************************************************************
So, WHY should UAONA continue to exist?
*** Because, it is an IRS chartered charitable entity, and as such has
played a constructive role in promoting our community's interests both in
the USA as well as in Assam. We have funneled thousands of dollars over the
years for charitable causes. Assam Folk Music Preservation fund to Tezpur U
in Bhupen Hazarika's name was one, Assam Flod Relief was another, Snehalaya
Shelter for Homeless Boys at Guwahati was one too. There have been a number
of other efforts, the names of which elude me now. But I will be pleased
to share those at a later time.
*** In addition to that UAONA members were among the strongest supporters,
MATERIALLY and MORALLY, on YOUR Houston JOINT C in 99 and later the Y2K at
Cherry Hills. I don't think I would be wrongb to assert that UAONA members
were the LARGEST per-capita donors for the Houston JC.
Can you verify that for us?
I am not going to characterize it as biting the hand that feeds, but sure
comes close.
*** Considering UAONA's activities, it is NO DIFFERENT from AFNA, is it?
I don't recall you or other AANA partisans clamoring for AFNA's disbanding
these
days. What happened? Why can't you accept UAONA as another constructive TOOL
who SEEKS no RECOGNITION, does not demand to be placed on a pedestal as an
icon,
but is quite at ease with doing what is right, out of the lime-light, in
the background.
Is it un-nerving Hazarika ? Creating a bad precedent perhaps :-)?
********************************************************************************
I know what you are about to ask again:
What happened to your promise Mahanta?
*** Well here is the juicy part Hazarika. A funny thing happened on the way to
the Coliseum as the Roman said:
In spite of the resilience and survival of the JCs of recent years,
some of our friends continue to find it to be an abomination and
efforts at reverting back to the days of 'seperate-but-equal' have not
abated. Nor have the passions for worshipping the organizational
icons faded.
UAONA members are not exactly tone deaf you know?
So, recognizing reality, UAONA members, having discussed 'disbanding'
several times, deferred a decision to a, future, more conducive
time. Everyone felt, UAONA the TOOL , could suddenly become essential
to the community again. Just for contingencies like the one YOU
spoke of the other day:
>The damage is probably done already. It will be hard to repair this
>damage. I feel pity to myself that I proposed the joint convention for AANA
>to extend the invitation to ASA in 1999 with out which there would have
>been continued 2 conventions. May be that was better. Then we did not have
>to go through this anguish.
*** That is the BAD news. The good news is that *I* would contuinue to support
AFNA's pres. Krishanu K's efforts to re-build itself as a charitable entity
for
the WHOLE community, not merely as an AANA tool. As you probably are aware,
it is a work in progress. And I am watching as well as others.
*** I hope I made it clear Hazarika. And I like to thinkI did it forthrighly,
without evading , with the COURAGE of MY convictions. Now if everyone did
the same,
we won't have all the back-stabbing, speaking behind the back, slow-burning
and other
outlets for our less noble traits would have become necessary, would they?
Also, FYI, *I* am only the secretary for UAONA. What I explained is *MY*
account.
My colleagues in UAONA may or may not agree. I have NOT held a meeting with
them,
real or virtual, to respond to your question, even though I would have like
to.
Also this has not been pre-approved by anyone. I have just been too busy
lately.
********************************************************************************
A couple of other points:
>I do share the philosophy of unification. But, do you want to achieve this
>by hurting some people? Do we not need goodwill from all?
*** Again you are demonstrasting some serious confusion Hazarika. WHY
should anyone be HURT by UNIFICATION talk or action ? Is the org, like a
house of cards, that it will crumble to dust, hurting its occupants, if it
merged with others?
Crummy philosophy here is what I see.
Not that it matters to me. I am quite comfortable with a number of
organizations,
as long as they can work together for the common good, and not indulge in
battles for supremacy to the detriment of all.
Question is how doy you reconcile your dichotomy? Can you really have it
both ways?
Declare it a good thing and yet hurtful to the good folks , both in the
same breath?
>This is taking time and will
>take more time. This net is full of intelligent people. This is an appeal to
>the netters and community not to force the unification, let it come
>naturally.
*** I am philosophically challenged Hazarika. So I will passs on your
concluding
statement.
Take care.
m
>
>I have respect to your talent, intelligent and also dedication to AssamNet.
>I was out of town this weekend to attend a meeting. I am sorry for the delay
>in replying to you.
>
>Since you were connected with the past unification efforts, I presumed you
>knew what was the result of the past efforts. For the benefit of the
>netters, I want to give a very brief history of unification efforts in the
>past. An effort was made in 90's by forming an IC (integration committee)
>consisting of representatives from both ASA and AANA. Among others, Rajen
>Barua, Satyen Das and Ashwini Choudhury were members of this committee. The
>committee sent out a questionnaire to Assamese residents in North America by
>mail and got their responses on the unification issue. Subsequently, there
>was a meeting in 1991 in Philadelphia where both ASA and AANA (AANA was
>going to have their convention in 1991 in Washington, but changed the venue
>to come to Philadelphia for this) members attended, but it ended almost in a
>fistfight. Otherwise that would have been the first successful joint
>convention instead of the one in Houston in 1999. And that gave birth to
>another organization called UAONA.
>
>Even after 5 successful joint conventions, UAONA still exists. Mahanta:
>since you are one of the persons involved in the creation of UAONA, for the
>benefit of the community, can you please explain why UAONA still exists? Do
>you like to share some of your success/frustration/wisdom?
>
>Now, another poll is active for unification. I am worried that it could end
>up adding another organization much like UAONA . I am also worried that
>this may impact the next joint convention. People come to convention to have
>fun. Mahanta: My anticipation was for you to help diffuse the situation by
>sharing your wisdom much like Rajen Barua from your past experience for
>unification. I also presumed, Ramgopal Sarangapani, who was strong proponent
>of plebiscite, was aware of the problems encountered in Philadelphia as
>Rajen Barua was trying to share his wisdom through the Assamnet as reply to
>Ramgopal. The other note on unification I sent was meant for Ramgopal and
>not to Mala; Mala was supposed to be in cc, but I messed up by putting her
>in as to also along with Ramgopal.
>
>I do share the philosophy of unification. But, do you want to achieve this
>by hurting some people? Do we not need goodwill from all? My opinion, the
>first priority is to continue these joint conventions and bring an
>atmosphere to respect and to trust each other. This is taking time and will
>take more time. This net is full of intelligent people. This is an appeal to
>the netters and community not to force the unification, let it come
>naturally.
>
>Mano Hazarika
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