Protests, Strategy and Pablo Escobar

 

I loved Narcos, the story about the life of Pablo Escobar on Netflix.

Escobar unleashed a lot of violence wanting the Colombian government to bend to his will.

But they did not budge.

Till one day someone told him that you need to hit them (The government MP’s) where it hurts.

And that is exactly what he did.

He started kidnapping and harming the children and the grandchildren of those who were in power.

Suddenly the entire government was putty in his hands.

They were so afraid that they let him build his own luxury prison, in a location chosen by him, guarded by his own thugs.

The government forces could not come within a couple of kilometers of this so-called prison.

It was more like a party palace surrounded by high-security fencing and guard posts.

That is the power of hitting someone where it hurts.

And I see similar thinking in play in the current Go Home Gota protests we see in Sri Lanka.

For instance, people protesting outside GR’s son's house. Even though it was short-lived. There is a fine of 10,000 Dollars for doing this kind of thing in Los Angeles.

Then there was the letter to NRs wife. A letter that made my blood curdle as it was written with so much venom and anger.

I also saw a call for all the black magicians to come together to create the mother of all spell casting ceremonies. A virtual wood stock of spells, curses, and all things evil. I am not sure if it was real or a joke.

If it was real, then they would have definitely taken note of it.

Because we have all seen the red threads adorning the wrists of politicians on all sides.

Plus all the little paraphernalia of charms and gadgets which they carry for good luck and protection.

However, the best piece of strategy I saw had nothing to do with Escobar.

It was to do with Rory Sutherland who said that the complete opposite of a good idea is not necessarily a bad idea, and can turn out to be a great one. This was with reference to the fact that the only beverage which successfully competed with coke during the past decade, was not another cola but Red Bull.

Anyway, this happened during a protest at the Peradeniya campus. The police had set up barricades. They were expecting the students to push against the barricades. Instead of pushing, they pulled. Running away with the barricades. Much to the surprise and the anguish of the police.

I for one am delighted to see so much instinctual strategy in play at ground level. Even though this is just the beginning and there is much more to come.