Our own worst enemy
Shireen M Mazari
Wednesday,June 27,2007
In all my years of studying or travelling abroad, I had always felt proud to identify myself as a Pakistani whenever asked where I was from — especially in Europe, since in the US, beyond the main Eastern cities, people are not very well versed in world geography so one lived in dread of having to explain the geography of South Asia after identifying oneself as a Pakistani. That is why I have been upset by the fact that on this trip abroad, with my children, I have not had that same sense of pride when identifying where I was from, although neither have I hesitated to state my identity. But I do know why I have a sinking feeling now everytime I am asked where I come from. The vision of enlightenment and hope that was Jinnah’s Pakistan has all but vanished as we have put ourselves on a self-destruct course despite our country’s beauty, natural wealth and the potential it promised. We have allowed the corrupt and the extremists to destroy what was our innate compassion and tolerance. Worse still, we have gone back in time and undermined whatever was built up in the early years of our independence — be it in terms of quality (as opposed to the present trend of the numbers game) education, industrialisation or agriculture. Just look at the state of PIA which in earlier decades helped set up Singapore Airlines, Alia (Royal Jordanian), Emirates and so on. Look where these enterprises are and look where PIA is. It has to be truly distressing for any Pakistani to watch this steady decline in national institutions, and regardless of who has been in power the rot has continued. And this is just one instance of the national malaise that is sending our best and our brightest out despite the hurdles they face post-9/11.
Even as people, we have become increasingly intolerant of the diversity, which was our richness and our strength, and sought to harass minorities and impose a uniformity of caste and sect that was never there to begin with. We have no qualms about killing and cheating each other; and intolerance and disrespect for “the other” is rampant today as the human dignity deficit increases within the country.
So there we were in the idyllic setting of Capri, when the only English-language Channel, CNN, suddenly reported the kidnapping of Chinese by the Lal Masjid law-breaking extremists followed by their subsequent release. It was truly humiliating to find our state allowing this bunch of law-breaking bullies to continue in their challenges to the writ of the state and threatening vigilantism. Clearly, their intent was to destroy relationship with our one true ally China, which has seen its citizens murdered and now this kidnapping incident. How long will China and its civil society tolerate such harassment of its citizens by its so-called “all-weather” friend? And who gains? Not us Pakistanis. Perhaps the US, which would like to see distance created between us and the Chinese, but surely the Lal Masjid law-breakers cannot be in an unholy alliance with the US?
In any event, at the end of the day it is the state that must take responsibility for the acts of its citizens and certainly in the case of the Lal Masjid, the continuing tolerance for these lawbreakers is totally inexplicable. What will it take for the state to deal with this dangerous challenge to its writ right in the heart of the country? Ironically, the leaders of the Lal Masjid come from the same Mazari area where the Nazim of Rojhan Sharqi recently beat up a Hindu doctor who refused to give a false medical certificate. Again no action was taken against this thug nazim.
In fact, it has been equally distressing for one’s Muslim identity to witness the increasing savagery with which we are killing each other and allowing our enemies to fulfil their agendas of destroying Muslim states to redraw boundaries in the rising tide of neo-imperialism emanating from the US and its European allies. As if the cruelty and killings inflicted on the Palestinians by Israel was not enough suffering, the Palestinians have turned on each other with some becoming surrogates for Israel and the US despite bitter historic experience. The US’s democracy agenda came to a standstill with the victory of Hamas and they have been squeezing the Palestinians since then, along with Israel and Europe, to punish the Palestinians for supporting Hamas! It is indeed tragic to see Fatah officials now succumbing to US-Israeli designs and taking on their own people, all for the sake of holding on to power. How easily have they forgotten that they lost their people’s support in the first place because they had lost credibility? Unfortunately, some Muslim states have also decided to play the US game and try to bolster Fatah by inviting them to a conference while isolating Hamas. How different is this effort on the part of some Arab states from the effort by Saudi Arabia earlier to try and seek understanding between Fatah and Hamas. So now that Fatah has taken on Hamas, the Israelis have released the Palestinian funds they were holding illegally. After decades of struggle, is this what the Palestinian struggle is being reduced to — destroying each other so that Israel can finally ensure the safety of its occupation of Palestinian lands?
Beyond Palestine, we have Lebanon in the throes of internal war once again with the US pumping in arms lest there be any let up in the bloodletting. As for Iraq, the US invasion may have rid the Iraqis of dictator Saddam, but the bloodletting that has followed has destroyed this nation. Where all the sectarian killings may eventually lead is hard to imagine, but in the process some of the hallmarks of Muslim history may well be destroyed along with the people of Iraq.
Closer to us we have Afghanistan and the continued killing of civilians in what is cruelly termed “collateral damage”. Finally Mr. Karzai has woken up to the reality that he has to protect his own citizens from the gung-ho free-wheeling approach of NATO forces towards Afghans — especially Pashtuns who may or may not actually be Taliban, and it is difficult for anyone to distinguish between the two.
As if all these intra-Muslim killings were not enough, we have efforts by the US to destabilise Iran — except that so far they have been unsuccessful, not for want of trying though given how in their desperation they have even sought the help of the terrorist group Jundullah.
No wonder then that Muslims are easy prey for the non-Muslim world. We have undermined our credibility by allowing space for the extremists in our midst and we have allowed outside powers the space to aid and abet our internal polarisations because of the rising tide of intolerance for any dissent from within and the increasing deficit of human dignity. The elites of the Muslim World, by and large, may fall over backwards accommodating “the other” from outside, but there is little tolerance for “the other” from within. That is our tragedy today — be it Pakistan or the Muslim World at large. We are our own worst enemy.
The writer is director general of the Institute of Strategic Studies in Islamabad. Email:
smnews80@hotmail.com
http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=62150