Rumour Has it: Humanism Pak--istani Style

Nilofer Qazi
April 2012

Saroop Ijaz’s recent article on why speak on the Ahmadies   has been nagging at my conscious, Anatol Lieven’s talk on his book ‘Pakistan a Hard Country’ was also revealing. Saroop appealed to Pakistanis’ ethical values, and questioned how we discriminate or condone violence when we know rationally it is wrong to discriminate  any Pakistani citizen on the basis of faith.  Does one really require a text, or sayings of historical honoured men to comprehend what is wrong and what isn’t? Discrimination in Islam or any other law is unacceptable, you do not require a mujtahid  or a lecture in human rights to understand this. Silence and fear of reprisals cannot justify selective ‘causes’ by those of us who want Pakistan to be a modern rational Just society. The banning of Shezan a Pakistani  iconic company by third class retrograde minded member(s) of the Punjab bar association  is another case in point. A bar association! A platform whose raison d’être is to protect the citizens of this country from injustice! Who cares who owns Shezan,  are they not Pakistani? Before banning Shezan I wonder if these retrogrades thought about their families who have enjoyed Shezan all these decades.  

Anatol also suggests Pakistani ethics or cultural ethos has ‘accepted’ a moral order which justifies and accepts levels of immorality and corruption which many in the West would fail to understand. He diplomatically suggests the system of ‘kinship’ has its own rationality and  has some distributor effect but  ‘not for all’ as in modern states. Do we really believe some human being are worthy of value and other are not? Clearly some in Pakistan do. And those of us in government and outside of government have to assert loudly this is not  the case. If we don’t it is!

What struck me was Anatol’s observation that murders and killings in one part of Karachi rarely affect the behavior of folks in other parts, and certainly does not become a national issue, nor result in government accountability. This ‘uncaring’ or ‘level of acceptable violence’ is a reflection of the, lack of  humanity in our society and polity.

How have we arrived at this juncture? It would be easy to believe that poverty, and perhaps radical brainwashing in our systems of (lack of) education has resulted in this immoral unethical world we’ve come to accept. BUT, we all know the world we live in does not support this silly observation, the ‘educated’  and not so poor are perhaps the most inhuman and immoral . Where has this lack of ethics emerged from or culminated into? The definition of Ethics means the moral principles held by a person or a group’s behavior. If the ‘group’  our society  accepts’ murder, corruption, discrimination then that is our ethics and morality however we justify it . The argument that  the ‘disempowered’ the poor and the progressives remain silent out of fear is also a reflection of our culture and ethical values.

Another  case in point is the recent consensus that seems to have emerged inside Pakistan and in the power capitals, ‘let’s talk to the Taliban’ . This strategy is also a reflection of a value system bereft of principles and human regard. The murdering thugs once the scourges  of modern civilization are now possible allies or solutions for a new independent Afghanistan and peace ‘insurers of Pakistan’?  Memory is short, what are the values that the Taliban will abide by and impose on the people of Afghanistan and also export to their neighbours? It is convenient for the Americans and it’s allay to exist from Afghanistan now, as any illegal occupying force should, but this does not hide their failed promises to ‘rebuild Afghanistan into a modern state’ with the billions if not trillions spent. The current negotiations and compromises are being justified as a win win scenario, the Afghans want us out, the Pakistanis want us out and we want out. TRUE. But at what cost? What values does this reflect?

Looking closer at home, Baluchistan is 40% of ‘ the land of the pure’, its minuscule population is disproportionately poor, disconnected from US and yet, instead of looking at the quality of life of 17 million citizens our society and political mind set continues to justify and accepts the state of affairs in Baluchistan.  A society which justifies oppression and is uncaring of its citizens on grounds of ‘politics’, is not a polity for the people by the people.

It is important both for Pakistanis and certainly those in the west with more power, to reflect on the ethical values they purport and what policies they pursue in light of those standards.  Real politick again is hardly a justification is it? Governments and societies must be accountable if we want to live in a world  which believes life and liberty are universal values. These universal principles may sound idealistic and banal but it is time for those of us of faith or not to shape our actions accordingly.

Just look at Aung San Suu Kyi of Burma.

Until a new moral ethical movement emerges, which does not accept the current framework (s) of engagement- no amount of new political parties or leaders will change the reality of Pakistan.  As Muslims and non Muslims let’s begin with being honest-with ourselves.