A call for passive resistance

January 18, 2010 at 6:47 am (Patriotic feelings)

This post was in response to this video in youtube…. RD Tuna: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLkUPCci2QA&feature=player_embedded

We are the customers that keep businesses operating;  we are the market, manufacturers work hard to supply. When we want more, we create the demand that businesses have to satisfy- businesses exist because of customers (you and I). Once the company has established itself, we the customers keep them operating with our money when we buy their products

And for so long now, we have been made to feel that we are helpless customers, dependent on what is on sale. But the truth is we are more than just customers. We are actually POWERFUL decision makers. We have the money that businesses need to continue their operations. We can decide where to spend our hard earned money. We can choose who to give our hard earned money to. Having the power to decide, would you give your money to a business that is mistreating our fellow country men? Would you support a business that is destroying our natural and pristine environment? Would you give your money to a company that does not reinvest in our country? Will you give your money to a foreign company that ships our kina out of the country? The truth we have to know is………WE, THE CONSUMERS HAVE THE POWER TO DECIDE ON WHO GETS OUR HARD EARNED KINA.

Ghandi did and he called it passive resistance. He pulled it off without inciting violence. Ghandi influenced India to boycot British products causing Britain to lose the Indian market leading to profit loss for companies who had market niches in India. India gained independence peacefully  through acts of passive resistance and boycotts.

It was done, it can be done.  We can collectively make the decision to use passive resistance and boycotts to show our displeasure by deciding to boycott products from corrupt companies. The good thing about this is that, corrupt politicians do not have the power to stop a boycott. Corrupt policemen with guns have no power to stop a boycott.

Boycotting is an individual decision and very powerful when done collectively. There is no need for protest marches, it does not give rise to violence and does not require the audience of our locally elected leaders. There is not need to loot shops then get in trouble with the law. We can all decide to boycott products and certain traders and make them go out of business. We cannot stop business for RD tuna, but we can boycott RD tuna products and eventually cause them to go bankrupt, we can also lobby companies to boycott RD products.

Boycotting is a personal decision made when you go shopping and consciously decide on what product you will spend your hard earned money on. It is a very powerful protest avenue – only very effective if  everybody gets involved and the momentum is sustained over a long period.

In turn, invest your money in PNG companies and products. These local companies are here to stay. Your kina invested in local companies will come around …maybe to your hauskrai contributions… or maybe as a sponsorship for the local soccer club your kid plays in or  as offerings to the church you go to  or Christmas visit to the hospital where a relative is admitted in..We have to consciously support companies that support local initiatives.

Now is the time to live our lives consciously. Be wise and make decisions that have a lasting impact for the good of the wider community in PNG.

Cheers and God Bless PNG