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LI,JasonVat-Sen Labor

FARRELLY, Elizabeth Independent

LAXMANALAL,Rohan AnimalJusticeParty

BUCKLEY, Courtney

TheGreens

SAKR,Bridget Liberal

Kashmiri Pandit Exodus

On the anniversaryof the Kashmir exodus in January 1990, Sydney's VIJAY HANDOO shared a personal account of the events leading up to her family's flight by night that year

AkhilJhingranwrote: Itissosadwhat happenedtothePunditsintheir homeland Kashmir.Hardlyeverany criticism from theWestern media. Hatsoff tothe present-daygovernmentto takesome boldstepsand restoretheirpride andcreateanenvironment fortheirreturn.JaiHind

YashShaTai wrote:Thisisveryimportant,aswhathashappenedto this communityisrarelyeverpublished.The KashmiriPanditgenocidehasbeen neglectedand wipedfromhistory.Themediashouldreinstate the factsof this genocideandcallit for whatit was

"WHY IS IT OKAY TO BEND THE RULES?"

Or is it really, okay? Where does the buck stop? A note by reader PREETHI MALCOLM of Melbourne

Like many other times during the pandemic, I recently found myself wondering abouthumannatureand the strange, rebellious streak of rule breakers. Ilookedinward at our communityand noticed that weonly tend to do theright thingsout offearof being caught bythelaw, especially when thehard-earnedplastic notes that we so lovingly and carefully save for our futuregenerationsare taken awayin the nameof "penalties."

I remember reading somewhere that integrity meant doing the right thing even when no one was watching, and thatstruck a chord with me. But who decides what's right and what's wrong?Whenit comes to the pandemic, it's not about playing the roleof "moral police".I feel peopleshould instead apply some mindfulness and another factor that is becomingsuch ararity these days: common sense.

Walking out of the cinemas recentlyafter watching thefilm '83, I listened to this nearby family of uncles andgrandparents tell theirkids all about cricket andpassion, but neverheard a mention ofpicking up theempty Cokebottlesorpopcorn packetsthattheyleft on the seats. It washeart breaking. Isit because thereis no penalty for such actionsor just thelack of mindfulness?

Similarly, afather encouraging his teenager with alearner'slicense to exceed the speed limit because there werenospeed cameras, or parents tweaking their kids' drivinghoursin therace to get a P-Platebefore their friends' children what are we really teachinghere?

Even faking declarations at Customs to bring in some spices may sound trivial but take a moment to consider the long-term repercussions and the lessons weare giving the next generation- that it isok to lie.

In my mind, it's like telling friends you'reona diet but eatingjunk food when no oneis watching. Who are we really fooling here?

COVID or COVID-free, it's probably time to make mindfulness a part of our daily life.