This is not my Quaid’s Pakistan

[Solomon2]

This is not my Quaid’s Pakistan
By Juggun Kazim
Published: January 5, 2014

The writer is an actor, an anchor and a model. She is currently the host of “Morning with Juggun” on PTV Home and can be reached via twitter @JuggunKazim

“You are free; you are free to go to your temples. You are free to go to your mosques or to any other places of worship in this State of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion, caste or creed — that has nothing to do with the business of the State.”

— Muhammad Ali Jinnah

A few weeks ago, while I was visiting a friend, I went into her kitchen to pick up a plate. As I reached out to pick up one lying next to the sink, her cook grabbed it from my hand. When I asked him what was wrong with the plate, he said it was used by the Christian maid. When I asked why she needed a separate plate, he said none of the staff — plus the begum sahib of the house — wanted to share plates, glasses or even cutlery with her.

Recently, I wished my viewers “Merry Christmas” on my morning show. Within minutes, there were comments on the show’s Facebook page saying that wishing Merry Christmas is blasphemous and that it makes me a non-Muslim. Apparently, I should not even say the words “Merry Christmas”. Instead, if I ‘insist’ on saying something to the Christians of Pakistan, I should only say “Happy Christmas”. That makes no sense to me. All my life, I’ve been wished ‘Eid Mubarak’ by Christians, Hindus and Jews alike.

My make-up artist and stylist, Irfan, asked me if I would help him register for his Matric. When I asked him how come he hadn’t finished his education, he told me he had dropped out. When he was in seventh grade, the school changed his last name (along with that of all the other Christian students) in the school records to Masih. From then on, the other kids in the school started to make fun of him and even hit him. The teachers also started treating him differently and some children were told by their parents that they could no longer talk to him or play with him. Finally, when he couldn’t take the abuse anymore, he just dropped out of school.

Many years ago, I worked in a television series in Canada. I still remember one line I delivered: “We South Asians are an interesting people. When we can’t find anyone else to discriminate against, we start discriminating against each other.”

Every year we remember the words of Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah about how the citizens of Pakistan are free to go to their temples and their churches. And every time I see religious injustice happen in Pakistan, I repeat it to myself, feeling ashamed and enraged.

This is not my Quaid’s Pakistan. This is not the dream Allama Iqbal had. I know we are all better than this as human beings and as Pakistanis.

So far as I know, Pakistan was built to give the Muslims of India a separate homeland where they would be free to practise their religion without fear. It was not built so that the majority community could discriminate against minorities.

Why can’t we live and let live? Is it so difficult to let others live their lives with the same dignity and respect we expect for ourselves?

Why can’t we just accept that everyone is different even within one religious framework and that it’s okey to be different?

The bigger point to note here is that prejudice against Christians and Hindus is but one visible facet of our increasingly intolerant society. Once you accept that people have the right to freedom of religion, it applies to everyone — Christians, Hindus, Jews and even other Muslims. Let’s hope that we remember that in 2014.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 6th, 2014.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.

 

[Kompromat]

The article is balanced and thought provoking.

 

[SarthakGanguly]

A very "feel good article". Utopian. When you establish a state based on religion - expect the river to run its natural course.

This is not my Quaid’s Pakistan
By Juggun Kazim
Published: January 5, 2014

The writer is an actor, an anchor and a model. She is currently the host of “Morning with Juggun” on PTV Home and can be reached via twitter @JuggunKazim

“You are free; you are free to go to your temples. You are free to go to your mosques or to any other places of worship in this State of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion, caste or creed — that has nothing to do with the business of the State.”

— Muhammad Ali Jinnah
A few weeks ago, while I was visiting a friend, I went into her kitchen to pick up a plate. As I reached out to pick up one lying next to the sink, her cook grabbed it from my hand. When I asked him what was wrong with the plate, he said it was used by the Christian maid. When I asked why she needed a separate plate, he said none of the staff — plus the begum sahib of the house — wanted to share plates, glasses or even cutlery with her.

Recently, I wished my viewers “Merry Christmas” on my morning show. Within minutes, there were comments on the show’s Facebook page saying that wishing Merry Christmas is blasphemous and that it makes me a non-Muslim. Apparently, I should not even say the words “Merry Christmas”. Instead, if I ‘insist’ on saying something to the Christians of Pakistan, I should only say “Happy Christmas”. That makes no sense to me. All my life, I’ve been wished ‘Eid Mubarak’ by Christians, Hindus and Jews alike.

My make-up artist and stylist, Irfan, asked me if I would help him register for his Matric. When I asked him how come he hadn’t finished his education, he told me he had dropped out. When he was in seventh grade, the school changed his last name (along with that of all the other Christian students) in the school records to Masih. From then on, the other kids in the school started to make fun of him and even hit him. The teachers also started treating him differently and some children were told by their parents that they could no longer talk to him or play with him. Finally, when he couldn’t take the abuse anymore, he just dropped out of school.

Many years ago, I worked in a television series in Canada. I still remember one line I delivered: “We South Asians are an interesting people. When we can’t find anyone else to discriminate against, we start discriminating against each other.”

Every year we remember the words of Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah about how the citizens of Pakistan are free to go to their temples and their churches. And every time I see religious injustice happen in Pakistan, I repeat it to myself, feeling ashamed and enraged.

This is not my Quaid’s Pakistan. This is not the dream Allama Iqbal had. I know we are all better than this as human beings and as Pakistanis.

So far as I know, Pakistan was built to give the Muslims of India a separate homeland where they would be free to practise their religion without fear. It was not built so that the majority community could discriminate against minorities.

Why can’t we live and let live? Is it so difficult to let others live their lives with the same dignity and respect we expect for ourselves?

Why can’t we just accept that everyone is different even within one religious framework and that it’s okey to be different?

The bigger point to note here is that prejudice against Christians and Hindus is but one visible facet of our increasingly intolerant society. Once you accept that people have the right to freedom of religion, it applies to everyone — Christians, Hindus, Jews and even other Muslims. Let’s hope that we remember that in 2014.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 6th, 2014.
Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.

 

[INDIC]

A very "feel good article". Utopian. When you establish a state based on religion - expect the river to run its natural course.

Jinnah's most trusted man Liaquat Ali Khan brought Objective Resolution in 1949 which never said Pakistan will be a secular state. Its really difficult to believe Jinnah had ever wanted a secular Pakistan otherwise his close aides would have done so.

 

[SarthakGanguly]

Jinnah's most trusted man Liaquat Ali Khan brought Objective Resolution in 1949 which never said Pakistan will be a secular state. Its really difficult to believe Jinnah had ever wanted a secular Pakistan otherwise his close aides would have done so.

He never cared much what would happen to Pakistan in the future. He was never serious about anything - he was no statesman. In front of the British public he was a secular, in front of the ulema as a religious hardliner and so on... Even when the entire country(by country I mean United India) was in flames, he was sipping wine in Shimla and Bombay.He was a very successful opportunist and a brilliant lawyer. But that was what he was. But Jinnah was no Islamist either.

 

[Zarvan]

This is not my Quaid’s Pakistan
By Juggun Kazim
Published: January 5, 2014

The writer is an actor, an anchor and a model. She is currently the host of “Morning with Juggun” on PTV Home and can be reached via twitter @JuggunKazim

“You are free; you are free to go to your temples. You are free to go to your mosques or to any other places of worship in this State of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion, caste or creed — that has nothing to do with the business of the State.”

— Muhammad Ali Jinnah
A few weeks ago, while I was visiting a friend, I went into her kitchen to pick up a plate. As I reached out to pick up one lying next to the sink, her cook grabbed it from my hand. When I asked him what was wrong with the plate, he said it was used by the Christian maid. When I asked why she needed a separate plate, he said none of the staff — plus the begum sahib of the house — wanted to share plates, glasses or even cutlery with her.

Recently, I wished my viewers “Merry Christmas” on my morning show. Within minutes, there were comments on the show’s Facebook page saying that wishing Merry Christmas is blasphemous and that it makes me a non-Muslim. Apparently, I should not even say the words “Merry Christmas”. Instead, if I ‘insist’ on saying something to the Christians of Pakistan, I should only say “Happy Christmas”. That makes no sense to me. All my life, I’ve been wished ‘Eid Mubarak’ by Christians, Hindus and Jews alike.

My make-up artist and stylist, Irfan, asked me if I would help him register for his Matric. When I asked him how come he hadn’t finished his education, he told me he had dropped out. When he was in seventh grade, the school changed his last name (along with that of all the other Christian students) in the school records to Masih. From then on, the other kids in the school started to make fun of him and even hit him. The teachers also started treating him differently and some children were told by their parents that they could no longer talk to him or play with him. Finally, when he couldn’t take the abuse anymore, he just dropped out of school.

Many years ago, I worked in a television series in Canada. I still remember one line I delivered: “We South Asians are an interesting people. When we can’t find anyone else to discriminate against, we start discriminating against each other.”

Every year we remember the words of Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah about how the citizens of Pakistan are free to go to their temples and their churches. And every time I see religious injustice happen in Pakistan, I repeat it to myself, feeling ashamed and enraged.

This is not my Quaid’s Pakistan. This is not the dream Allama Iqbal had. I know we are all better than this as human beings and as Pakistanis.

So far as I know, Pakistan was built to give the Muslims of India a separate homeland where they would be free to practise their religion without fear. It was not built so that the majority community could discriminate against minorities.

Why can’t we live and let live? Is it so difficult to let others live their lives with the same dignity and respect we expect for ourselves?

Why can’t we just accept that everyone is different even within one religious framework and that it’s okey to be different?

The bigger point to note here is that prejudice against Christians and Hindus is but one visible facet of our increasingly intolerant society. Once you accept that people have the right to freedom of religion, it applies to everyone — Christians, Hindus, Jews and even other Muslims. Let’s hope that we remember that in 2014.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 6th, 2014.
Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.

Another lie told once again these so called dumbos should show gutts and publish all the speeches which Mr Jinah gave after 11th August till his death

 

[Contrarian]

The article is balanced and thought provoking.

You found my post inaccurate? I presume which is why it was removed?

 

[SarthakGanguly]

Another lie told once again these so called dumbos should show gutts and publish all the speeches which Mr Jinah gave after 11th August till his death

True - all those who are crying foul over the 'wrong path' taken by Pakistani administrators should understand that they have actually done no 'wrong'. The path chosen was bound to culminate into what is today. This is not a mistake.

 

[Zarvan]

 

[SarthakGanguly]

There is a contradiction in the statement - "foundations of democracy on true Islamic values and principles"
1) Democracy has an intrinsic right to question the narrative because it is the mandate of man. Islamic mandate is one from 'God'.
2) true - Does this mean there is a false Islamic value and principle.

The second statement is very typical of Jinnah's double faced nature that comes naturally to a brilliant lawyer. Though not a firebrand speech, it is clear how his own lifestyle was so at odds with the ideals he seemed to espouse.

 

[Zarvan]

 

[SarthakGanguly]

The Independence day speech is ignored very often. He made it clear that the state of Pakistan would follow an Islamic Supremacist approach. If someone has a problem with that he/she should not find fault with the man who said it - but the ideology that drove him. Thanks @Zarvan

 

[INDIC]

Another lie told once again these so called dumbos should show gutts and publish all the speeches which Mr Jinah gave after 11th August till his death

What is written there.

 

[DESERT FIGHTER]

He never cared much what would happen to Pakistan in the future. He was never serious about anything - he was no statesman. In front of the British public he was a secular, in front of the ulema as a religious hardliner and so on... Even when the entire country(by country I mean United India) was in flames, he was sipping wine in Shimla and Bombay.He was a very successful opportunist and a brilliant lawyer. But that was what he was. But Jinnah was no Islamist either.

Stop your nonsense n your defamation campaign against Quaid e Azam he was a secular man who wanted a homeland for his people n worked tirelessly to achieve tht .. And read his first speech in the National Assembly.. Another thing when a mullah stood up to recite the Holy Quran he told him to sit down coz it was not a mosque..

unfortunately he died in 48.. Without caring for himself he had devoted his life for the nation .. Read abt it..


It was the future statesmen like Bhutto who started messing with the constitution.to appease the mullah n the @@@@ like sis who screwed the country.

 

[Zarvan]

Stop your nonsense n your defamation campaign against Quaid e Azam he was a secular man who wanted a homeland for his people n worked tirelessly to achieve tht .. And read his first speech in the National Assembly.. Another thing when a mullah stood up to recite the Holy Quran he told him to sit down coz it was not a mosque..

unfortunately he died in 48.. Without caring for himself he had devoted his life for the nation .. Read abt it..


It was the future statesmen like Bhutto who started messing with the constitution.to appease the mullah n the @@@@ like sis who screwed the country.

Mr Quaid never wanted that Mr secondly what matter is what ALLAH and his PROPHET SAW said and wanted not what Jinah wanted and thirdly read all his speeches after 11th August before his death that will make it clear to you that he never wanted a secular Pakistan and you can also read his speeches before 11th August