niaz
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For the benefit of those members that donot read Pak Newspapers. I quote below an article published in the Daily News of today. I don't agree with some of what this says, however, the article does raise some very poignant questions.
The state of Pakistani society
By Kamran Ezdi
The strength of a society and prospects of its long-term survival depend on the thinking ability of its citizens. An open society comprises individuals who have the ability to make up their own minds when presented with a range of diverse opinion. An open society is by nature tolerant, accommodating and even encouraging different ideas and thoughts. And most importantly, an open society encourages self-criticism, discussing its weaknesses and faults publicly and frankly, unencumbered by notions such as 'national honour' and 'patriotism'. The resulting debate, discussion and questioning that take place in such a society protect it against being misled and manipulated.
Closed societies discourage critical and unorthodox thinking. Questions about sensitive topics are frowned upon. Parents, elders and teachers train children to grow up to be conformist individuals who will follow the established norms without questioning them. This results in a homogeneous society that is unable to think and debate issues and is extremely vulnerable to manipulation and control. Societies in almost all Muslim countries, especially Pakistan, fall in this latter category.
The state-sponsored falsification and distortion of history in the Pakistani education system has created a situation where most educated Pakistanis are ignorant of basic world history. Historical events of great importance such as the Enlightenment, the Industrial Revolution and the consequent rise and dominance of European civilisation, and even the two World Wars, are unknown to most educated Pakistanis. The average educated Pakistani's knowledge of history is limited to the glorification of several mutually unrelated and obscure events taken from wars involving Arab conquests. By this mechanism of propagating half-truths and outright lies, the Pakistani state and its related vested-interest groups have kept Pakistanis ignorant and brainwashed. When people don't know, they don't question.
Nothing stirs Pakistani passions more than the plight, real or imagined, of fellow Muslims around the world. Conspiracy theories involving CIA-Mossad-RAW-MI6 find greater acceptance in Pakistan than anywhere else in the world. But this zeal for various Islamic and Arab causes comes with a high degree of hypocrisy, bordering on the absurd. A large number of Pakistanis, perhaps a majority, believe that the 11 September attacks on the United States were a Zionist conspiracy to malign Islam. "No Muslim can ever kill innocent people" is the most commonly heard refrain. Yet, the same people who deny any Muslim involvement in the WTC attacks are also the most vocal in defending the perpetrators of the attacks, admiring them as great Muslim heroes. The logical inconsistency in these two positions does not bother them at all.
While Pakistanis cry themselves hoarse over the treatment of Muslims by non-Muslims, Muslim-on-Muslim violence elicits a deafening silence. The little matter of the killing and rape of hundreds of thousands of black Muslims in Darfur at the hands of Arabic-speaking Muslims from northern Sudan, for instance, gets far less attention in the Pakistani press (if it gets any attention at all) compared to the much weightier matter of the rude behaviour of immigration officials towards Muslim passengers at American airports. The debate about a few Muslim women in Europe who insist on wearing the "niqab" to their workplaces evokes far stronger passions than the killing of thousands of Bengali Muslims by soldiers of the Pakistan Army ever did. And while it is fashionable to talk about the equal treatment of Jews under "the Caliphate" (which Caliphate, where, when, most people making this claim do not know), the harsh and extremely hypocritical restrictions on the practise of any religion other than one particular and rigid interpretation of Sunni Islam in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is conveniently ignored. Muslim tolerance of one thousand years ago is trumpeted; Muslim intolerance of today is either hushed up or justified by absurd arguments.
And then there is Iraq. The clinching argument these days in any discussion about any matter, local, national or international, revolves around the current mess in Iraq. Whether one is discussing the high metaphysics of Rumi's poetry or the prospects of the Chichawatni kabaddi team in the next inter-district championships, at some stage one is confronted with the argument, "Yes, but see what the American crusaders are doing in Iraq!" The harsh reality of the wanton killing of Muslims by fellow Muslims is initially avoided; when pressed on this point, it is the Americans who are held responsible. America's Iraq misadventure now competes with the ubiquitous Zionist lobby and the invisible foreign hand for a position at the top of the list of Pakistanis' favourite scapegoats.
There is now no doubt, even in the minds of some of its most fervent supporters that America's invasion of Iraq, based on blatant lies, was wrong and illegal. Millions of people in Europe and even America protested against it peacefully. London, Rome and Barcelona registered over a million protestors each. The total number of anti-war marchers in the western world was estimated at about six million. The most prominently displayed message, on banners, placards and T-shirts was, "Not in my name".
On the other hand Pakistanis, who happen to be among the prickliest people on earth in matters concerning their 'image' are also the most passive in speaking out against the terrible things done in the name of Islam. The 'immorality' of the 'decadent' west and the 'evils' of western society weigh on the consciences of educated Pakistanis far more than the dreadful things taking place in their own society. "What the terrorists are doing is not true Islam", is frequently heard. Fine, but has anyone ever bothered to come out and denounce the violence committed in the name of Islam? Has there ever been a peaceful demonstration of ordinary citizens against the frequent killings of innocent worshippers, Muslim and non-Muslim? Have educated Pakistanis ever taken to the streets to denounce the hijacking of their religion by a vocal, violent minority? It is no use blaming the 'Zionist controlled' western media for presenting a 'distorted' picture of Islam when the only people doing the talking and shouting are fierce-looking, chest-thumping, weapons-wielding clerics.
Pakistan's elite is having a great time in its isolated little world of soft car loans, exorbitant real estate deals, posh restaurants, semi-literate clerics masquerading as scholars on television, ostentatious "milad" and "dars" gatherings for bored, rich housewives, lavish weekend parties at farmhouses and junk Bollywood movies. The opening of a new outlet of some American fast food restaurant or the introduction of a glitzy new model of a mobile phone, or even a simple sporting event such as a marathon, is proudly presented as evidence of 'progress'. The complete irrelevance of libraries, books, the arts, science, mathematics, philosophy and literature to contemporary Pakistani society is not even noticed, much less commented upon. To quote the national poet:
Jahaan-e-taaza ki afkaar-e-taaza say hai namood;
Keh sang o khisht say hotay nahin jahaan payda
(New realms are created by brave new ideas; bricks and mortar do not new worlds make)
Unless educated Pakistanis, on a personal and individual level, start thinking critically and rationally and unless they muster the honesty and moral courage to speak out against evil, irrespective of who commits it, Pakistani society will continue its freefall into the abyss of the Dark Ages.
The writer is a former DMG officer and is currently studying towards a PhD in electrical engineering/applied physics in German. Email: [email protected]
http://thenews.jang.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=46731
The state of Pakistani society
By Kamran Ezdi
The strength of a society and prospects of its long-term survival depend on the thinking ability of its citizens. An open society comprises individuals who have the ability to make up their own minds when presented with a range of diverse opinion. An open society is by nature tolerant, accommodating and even encouraging different ideas and thoughts. And most importantly, an open society encourages self-criticism, discussing its weaknesses and faults publicly and frankly, unencumbered by notions such as 'national honour' and 'patriotism'. The resulting debate, discussion and questioning that take place in such a society protect it against being misled and manipulated.
Closed societies discourage critical and unorthodox thinking. Questions about sensitive topics are frowned upon. Parents, elders and teachers train children to grow up to be conformist individuals who will follow the established norms without questioning them. This results in a homogeneous society that is unable to think and debate issues and is extremely vulnerable to manipulation and control. Societies in almost all Muslim countries, especially Pakistan, fall in this latter category.
The state-sponsored falsification and distortion of history in the Pakistani education system has created a situation where most educated Pakistanis are ignorant of basic world history. Historical events of great importance such as the Enlightenment, the Industrial Revolution and the consequent rise and dominance of European civilisation, and even the two World Wars, are unknown to most educated Pakistanis. The average educated Pakistani's knowledge of history is limited to the glorification of several mutually unrelated and obscure events taken from wars involving Arab conquests. By this mechanism of propagating half-truths and outright lies, the Pakistani state and its related vested-interest groups have kept Pakistanis ignorant and brainwashed. When people don't know, they don't question.
Nothing stirs Pakistani passions more than the plight, real or imagined, of fellow Muslims around the world. Conspiracy theories involving CIA-Mossad-RAW-MI6 find greater acceptance in Pakistan than anywhere else in the world. But this zeal for various Islamic and Arab causes comes with a high degree of hypocrisy, bordering on the absurd. A large number of Pakistanis, perhaps a majority, believe that the 11 September attacks on the United States were a Zionist conspiracy to malign Islam. "No Muslim can ever kill innocent people" is the most commonly heard refrain. Yet, the same people who deny any Muslim involvement in the WTC attacks are also the most vocal in defending the perpetrators of the attacks, admiring them as great Muslim heroes. The logical inconsistency in these two positions does not bother them at all.
While Pakistanis cry themselves hoarse over the treatment of Muslims by non-Muslims, Muslim-on-Muslim violence elicits a deafening silence. The little matter of the killing and rape of hundreds of thousands of black Muslims in Darfur at the hands of Arabic-speaking Muslims from northern Sudan, for instance, gets far less attention in the Pakistani press (if it gets any attention at all) compared to the much weightier matter of the rude behaviour of immigration officials towards Muslim passengers at American airports. The debate about a few Muslim women in Europe who insist on wearing the "niqab" to their workplaces evokes far stronger passions than the killing of thousands of Bengali Muslims by soldiers of the Pakistan Army ever did. And while it is fashionable to talk about the equal treatment of Jews under "the Caliphate" (which Caliphate, where, when, most people making this claim do not know), the harsh and extremely hypocritical restrictions on the practise of any religion other than one particular and rigid interpretation of Sunni Islam in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is conveniently ignored. Muslim tolerance of one thousand years ago is trumpeted; Muslim intolerance of today is either hushed up or justified by absurd arguments.
And then there is Iraq. The clinching argument these days in any discussion about any matter, local, national or international, revolves around the current mess in Iraq. Whether one is discussing the high metaphysics of Rumi's poetry or the prospects of the Chichawatni kabaddi team in the next inter-district championships, at some stage one is confronted with the argument, "Yes, but see what the American crusaders are doing in Iraq!" The harsh reality of the wanton killing of Muslims by fellow Muslims is initially avoided; when pressed on this point, it is the Americans who are held responsible. America's Iraq misadventure now competes with the ubiquitous Zionist lobby and the invisible foreign hand for a position at the top of the list of Pakistanis' favourite scapegoats.
There is now no doubt, even in the minds of some of its most fervent supporters that America's invasion of Iraq, based on blatant lies, was wrong and illegal. Millions of people in Europe and even America protested against it peacefully. London, Rome and Barcelona registered over a million protestors each. The total number of anti-war marchers in the western world was estimated at about six million. The most prominently displayed message, on banners, placards and T-shirts was, "Not in my name".
On the other hand Pakistanis, who happen to be among the prickliest people on earth in matters concerning their 'image' are also the most passive in speaking out against the terrible things done in the name of Islam. The 'immorality' of the 'decadent' west and the 'evils' of western society weigh on the consciences of educated Pakistanis far more than the dreadful things taking place in their own society. "What the terrorists are doing is not true Islam", is frequently heard. Fine, but has anyone ever bothered to come out and denounce the violence committed in the name of Islam? Has there ever been a peaceful demonstration of ordinary citizens against the frequent killings of innocent worshippers, Muslim and non-Muslim? Have educated Pakistanis ever taken to the streets to denounce the hijacking of their religion by a vocal, violent minority? It is no use blaming the 'Zionist controlled' western media for presenting a 'distorted' picture of Islam when the only people doing the talking and shouting are fierce-looking, chest-thumping, weapons-wielding clerics.
Pakistan's elite is having a great time in its isolated little world of soft car loans, exorbitant real estate deals, posh restaurants, semi-literate clerics masquerading as scholars on television, ostentatious "milad" and "dars" gatherings for bored, rich housewives, lavish weekend parties at farmhouses and junk Bollywood movies. The opening of a new outlet of some American fast food restaurant or the introduction of a glitzy new model of a mobile phone, or even a simple sporting event such as a marathon, is proudly presented as evidence of 'progress'. The complete irrelevance of libraries, books, the arts, science, mathematics, philosophy and literature to contemporary Pakistani society is not even noticed, much less commented upon. To quote the national poet:
Jahaan-e-taaza ki afkaar-e-taaza say hai namood;
Keh sang o khisht say hotay nahin jahaan payda
(New realms are created by brave new ideas; bricks and mortar do not new worlds make)
Unless educated Pakistanis, on a personal and individual level, start thinking critically and rationally and unless they muster the honesty and moral courage to speak out against evil, irrespective of who commits it, Pakistani society will continue its freefall into the abyss of the Dark Ages.
The writer is a former DMG officer and is currently studying towards a PhD in electrical engineering/applied physics in German. Email: [email protected]
http://thenews.jang.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=46731
