THE FUTURE OF PAKISTAN?

If the youth of Pakistan is the future of Pakistan, then the future doesn’t look very promising to me. Let’s analyse the people on whom Pakistan’s future depends, shall we?

I think we can safely place the age range of the youth as 18 to 30 years. Maybe we should even lower it to 25, hence considering the students of Pakistan.

At every gathering I attend, some uncle or the other is always ranting on about how the youth needs to mobilise, how they need to take active part in politics, how they need to do this, do that, and on and on.

Enter uncle’s son. Baggy jeans twice the size of his legs, pants nearly falling to the floor with beta dear barely managing to cling on to them, sunglasses in the darkest of rooms, bling the calibre of a rich bride’s dowry. I am left marvelling at the potential chaos my country could be thrown into should young people like him snatch the wheel of our political fleet, God forbid. Beta dear then swaggers over to the sofa and plops down with his Guitar Hero and strums away on some rowdy, heavy metal beat. Actually, he might not be so bad a military strategist. Noise pollution like that would send any terrorist running back to where he came from.

But it would be unfair to point all fingers at this poor young man only. People like him exist all over the country. Whether I’m at school, or university or a wedding or even a religious event, I am struck by the irony of the future of Pakistan and its holders.

How are these strong young men expected to pick up a gun against enemies, if their idea of picking up girls is blowing smoke rings into their faces during final exams? Not that I condone picking up girls, mind you, but it is the principle of things that bothers me. How are these young men and women supposed to lead the nation in international affairs if they blindly follow anyone who can incite their emotions enough? They were so easily manipulated into contributing sweat and tears to the Lawyer’s Movement but where is the youth now that the CJ has been restored and injustice continues unabated?

How, and this is the thing that bothers me most, will Pakistani youths help attain salvation, gain independence from American aid, work up the country’s economy, bring peace to its Northern areas, educate the lower class and bridge the gap between rich and poor if most of them spend all day on Facebook taking quizzes designed by pre-teens with too much time on their hands? Are these 20 something year olds really getting all excited about the initials of the person they will marry, the Bollywood actress they resemble most and the number of times they will fall in love??

Do they really have the gall to project deep philosophies as their Facebook statuses and think they can save the world from the comfort of their bedroom? Do they think its encouraging hearing them discuss Brangelina and Ash Rai as if they are personal friends whose love life is a matter of concern for humanity?

How in the world do you expect me to believe that they can conserve their own sense of reality, let alone a whole nation?

Us Pakistanis, even us young ones who aren’t supposed to be senile yet, have big opinions on everything. Yet, no knowledge about the opinion at hand. We have only one problem but this problem is the trunk of the tree that has come to symbolise our country’s tragedy. Our problem is that we are not free-thinking individuals, despite how many of us brag about our liberal atheistic beliefs or fake British accents. Our free-thinking is defined by whatever Western media gives us the green-light to believe. We talk about New York rave parties as if we have been born and raised Yankees and as if New York is the universal yardstick for progress and enlightenment.

And it’s funny and sad but we always end up adopting negative Western notions but we never learn how to be polite, hard working and civic like they are. So we kind of deserve everything we are getting. God is just. We haven’t proven that we deserve anything better yet. And if the youth and future of Pakistan continue their immature, sometimes baffling, antics, we might never come around to deserving it.

Romesa Khalid
July 7th 2009

First published on July 7th 2009, on www.pak1stanfirst.com

THE ROLE OF PAKISTAN IN UNITING AND LEADING THE MUSLIM UMMAH

It is an irrefutable fact that Pakistan and Islam can never be isolated from each other. One was created for the protection and promotion of the other. The British tactic was always to instil territorial nationalism in the Muslim world and thus drive them apart. Allama Muhammad Iqbal, the great twentieth century Muslim poet-philosopher, confronted this attempt with his enlightened Islamic philosophy which emphasised how important it was for Muslims to unite and revert to the teachings of Islam which came with “legal concepts”, “civic significance”, and “religious ideals” that could not be separated from a social order. According to his Two-Nation Theory, Pakistan was the only way by which these ideals could be realised. Thus, it was essentially on the basis of Islamic philosophy and as a hallmark of Islam that Pakistan came into being.

President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto revived Iqbals’ notion of an Islamic Common wealth of Nations in the shape of the Islamic summit in Lahore where Muslim world leaders gathered and established an agenda of “determination of Muslim statesmen to promote solidarity among Muslim countries, to respect each other’s independence and territorial integrity, to refrain from interference in each other’s internal affairs and to resolve their differences through peaceful means in a fraternal spirit”.

38 states participated. Resolutions calling for the vacation of occupied Arab territories by Israel, restitution of the rights of the Palestinians, and promoting and safeguarding the political and economic rights of Muslim and third world countries were adopted. It helped in the reconciliation of Pakistan and Bangladesh and proved its potential as a promoter of great peace and stability. Muslims leaders in the conference also deliberated on trade relations. Bhutto said, “It is not spiritual but economic strength we have lacked so far…Muslim countries are so placed as to be able to play a most constructive and rewarding role for co-operation among themselves…their economies are such that they are able to supplement one another’s development effort.”

The summit proved that Pakistan was a genuine “Muslim ideological state” that was not restricted by geography, caste, colour or creed. It could potentially function as the uniting force between all Muslim countries because of the strong communal and spiritual bonds they share.

Pakistan’s geopolitical position also contributes immensely to its importance as a leading Muslim state. We are surrounded by some key state actors in the Muslim world like Iran and Afghanistan and have an influential relationship with Saudi Arabia. Now that we are caught in the War on Terror our ulemas should take the opportunity to distinguish between true Islamic principles and extremist brands by which they are now being abused. Ruet-i-Hilal Committee chairman Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman stated that those “fighting in the name of Sharia must first abide by Islamic rules”. Such clerical statements should be made public internationally in order to explain to the Muslim world that the offensive against the TTP is justified because they are fighting with unIslamic means. That is the only way we can make the international Muslim community realise who the aggressors really are so they can stand united with us against this conspiring Anglo-American bloc.

It is high time for Pakistan to host another Islamic Summit, the most crucial one in history, despite our internal situation. We must revert back to the timeless principles of unity and progress that Iqbal emphasised. If we can do so internationally, we will be successful in uniting and leading the Muslim ummah. Pakistan is a means of positive change in the Muslim world, not an end. General Hamid Gul said that Pakistan is an unfinished revolution.

The time is now for its completion.

First published at www.risethemag.com on June 28th, 2009.

YEH CUP YAHIN AYAA

This World Cup win for Pakistan could not have been better or come at a better time. The excitement on the faces of our players and people alike was priceless, unmistakeable and very much needed. Lord’s cricket stadium became a sea of green emblems. The total elation spoke exactly how much more valuable this success is for us than for any other team.

Like I said, we have been under immense pressure for the past two years especially. Pressure and strife. But today was our day, even the Sri Lankans knew it far before Mohammed Aamir took that crucial wicket and got the ball rolling in our court. Our day and our moment.

The streets of Pakistan and UK alike were flooded by ecstatic Pakistanis who had forgotten everything but the image of their well-loved team members performing a victory lap with the much desired trophy. No electricity, no money, just sheer happiness and a sense of pride.

A young man e-mailed me about the semi-final win and said “at least this is one front we have conquered’. I told him we will conquer all fronts one step at a time. We will. All we needed was one psychological boost and Allah provided us with this one. Younis Khan had said there was a lot of fighting in Pakistan, and they would be very happy of if they won this cup. Congrats, Younis all our prayers have been answered. You go now and bask in this moment and continue to represent the Islamic republic of Pakistan as well as you do now. Treat your ‘boys’. They are all our heroes.

I guess it’s official; cricket runs in our blood. Today we learned that it also gets our blood running.

THEATRE TEHRAN: ACT II

I guess Pakistanis can temporarily breathe a sigh of relief as their name is taken off the headlines for a while. But an issue that is just as relevant is taking our place in the spotlight, instead; Iranian Elections 2009.

Ever since the Islamic Revolution, Iran has been an enemy. And a threat to American power politics. And here was this one chance where the Americans thought they could witness the change that would pave the way for them. But it didn’t. And that made them mad. Imagine how different their demeanour would have been should the election results have been otherwise.

In my personal opinion, Mousavi is the perfect excuse for a harmless reformist who could do a lot for the US government. He wants to create private TV networks, terminate the ‘Moral Police’, reduce the costs of the Iranian nuclear program while maintaining “what he sees as Iran’s right”. He has chosen green (the supposed colour of Islam) as his official campaign colour. His supporters swarm the streets shouting phrases like “Green Change” or “Vote for Change.” Sound familiar?

I find it boring and predictable that power media outlets in the US are raising a hue and cry over the results of the elections. A company backed by BBC and ABC themselves conducted a poll and had to admit that Ahmedinejad was leading by a margin of 2:1. Then why is this coming as such a shock? And why are re-elections the way to go?

They are not happy with a simple re-count because they are afraid of the truth. A re-election would give the CIA (Yes, I said CIA) a chance to get back in there and rig elections for their own purposes. Now this is only my view but I base it on the following information.

In 2007 there were reports of a secret or “black” CIA operation approved by President Bush himself. (Remember that when it comes to America, covert operations and foreign relations go hand in hand). This operation was to use Iranian immigrants as tools to communication with opposition parties back home and “bypass” censorship. Almost 20 years ago, the CIA’s whole spy network in Iran was exposed and around 50 Iranian citizens working for them were ‘taken care of’ including members of the Iranian military. A dozen locals were jailed or executed.

Former pentagon advisor Richard Perle testified to this setback and stated “ [the] terrible setback that we suffered in Iran a few years ago when in a display of unbelievable, careless management, we put pressure on agents operating in Iran to report with greater frequency and didn't provide improved communications".

Well, they have come a long way from writing on the backs of envelopes with invisible ink to recruiting expat Iranians like Roxana Sabri. And yet, this will still not stop the operation from proceeding. The policy of open secrets is what this New World Order functions on. It might even give it an advantage since most Americans have a soft spot for the “poor young woman abused by the Iranian regime image”.

Whatever Obama or his admin says, they are very much interested in the outcome of the elections and would very much like to interfere with it if they could. The fact that they can’t has lead to such avid support for Mausavi who represents, to them, one step forward to breaking down Ahmediejad’s Iran. One step forward to another puppet who they can buy or rent as they have done with our leaders for the longest time now.

And now we know why it is so important to have private TV networks in Iran; so they can send their own people to do the propaganda for them. America will do anything to get their hands on Iran; it is such a vital piece of the puzzle when it comes to the securing of Israel and the creation of the “new Middle East”. They are just dying to get in but since that is one place where the CIA is not allowed, they are recruiting foreign bred spies to do whatever they can. The efforts are not very successful and that is great.

Iran represents the success of defiance as so eloquently put by Gen. Hamid Gul. If this model is broken down, it will be a blow to the many Muslim countries around the world (including ours) that are in such dire need of this model.