"Wheels of Hope"

by Roshan Abraham   |   08.25.2004, Issue

Wireless access makes its way to the villages of South Asia, as this CNN article reports. A deceptively poetic scene is drawn--in which a computer is brought into the village on a rickshaw "designed like temple carriages that bear Hindu deities during festivals." The seeming blur of ancient culture and modernity returns at the end of the article, which reads:

"In Bithoor, which is mired in tradition and poverty, Sharma's parents plan to take her out of school in about three years, so she can be trained in domestic chores and married by 18.

But a brush with computers has made Sharma look beyond cooking and washing."



"I want to work and make a name for myself. I want to see the world," she said, adding that she hopes to get a job in the city and then travel more widely."

In the states, South Asia's economy is seen as one of self-imposed ignorance, marred by primitive cultures and undeveloped societal norms. Even Guchuran Das paints this picture of his homeland in India Unbound- - a country unable to live off of its wealth of natural resources, intelligence and rich culture because it "skipped" modernity-held back by years of socialist thinkers and economic models that derided free markets and monetary gain for spiritual, religious and traditional values.

When and if wireless culture internet and VO IP provide cheap or free internet access to South Asia, there will be no mindblowing epiphanies or women waking up to the nature of their body. Information won't transform India into another "Asian tiger"-when and if India's economic models and relationships with other nations allows it to overcome poverty, it could very feasibly co-exist with traditional values, similar to Japan.

Regardless, the movement of wireless access out of urban hotspots like Bangalore and into impoverished villages is much more interesting than the infestation of call centers or the fear of Western hegemony. If nothing else, this might allow India to speak for itself, to develop its own telepresence in lieu of a physical one. For now will have to settle for a substitute presence, as condescending Western journalists call the shots from the sidelines.

Here's hoping the little girl in this article gets an editorial gig at CNN someday.