Revolutionary Evolution

[stingingnettle]

Evolution is a slow process; it can take millions of years but my question is, how long does political evolution take? I would suggest it does not take more than a few decades so I wonder how much has our political mindset and thinking changed over the the last 69 years in Pakistan? Between evolution and revolution, there are a hundred shades of change - some perceptible and some not so perceptible. To me, there are three components of political change; rulers, the public and the system. When you want to do something new and daring, it is wise to turn back the pages of history to see if something similar has been done before. It turns out, there is nothing unique about political evolution; some good, some bad and some atrocious.

There are many people I admire from Pakistan's pre-independence history; Jinnah and Iqbal make it to my top ten list with flying colours; my reason for doing so has something to do with how their thinking evolved over a fraction of their lifetime and the result was quite revolutionary; Pakistan - an independent country described by Jinnah as a place where;

“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.”

Pakistan was created, at least in Jinnah's mind, when his political thinking had evolved sufficiently and his ideas about what was possible and not possible had changed. In his own words;

"Any idea of a United India could never have worked and in my judgement it would have led us to terrific disaster."

The question whether the creation of India and Pakistan has turned out to be a 'terrific disaster' or not is a different discussion but the point I am trying to make is about the evolution of his thinking processes and the thoughts that consequently resulted from it. It would be fair to say Jinnah was in pursuit of peace and well-being for all who were to one day call themselves Pakistanis, irrespective of religion, caste or creed. British rulers of India vacillated between hostility and ambivalence in their dealings Jinnah and his ideas but a large number Muslims living in India got on board with his mission because they saw him as trustworthy, intelligent and extremely hardworking.

Iqbal's journey began with Shikwa (complaint) and Jawab-Sikhwa (response to complaint) and over the years his thinking evolved after going through Asrar-e-Khudi (secrets of self or secrets of self realisation) and through various trials and tribulations, through battles with self, with politicians, with thinkers and with mullahs - to eventually arrive at the pinnacle of actionable clarity in 1930 when he made his famous Allahabad address in which he said much but I quote a brief sentence from it;

"A community which is inspired by feelings of ill-will towards other communities is low and ignoble. I entertain the highest respect for the customs, laws, religious and social institutions of other communities."

Once again, like Jinnah, we see Iqbal - a highly educated, writer, poet, thinker and dissenter - learning political and social lessons over decades and then coming to logical conclusions about the way forward for Indian Muslims. People loved Iqbal, hated Iqbal and many did not understand Iqbal but one thing is clear, they respected his sincerity, integrity and his wisdom as a scholar. In 1930, British India had sufficient systemic viscosity to make progress towards a 'two nation' solution very difficult indeed but over time such resistance diluted as Britain diverted its attention towards what was going on in Germany.

Jinnah and Iqbal both came to realise they wanted a country where everyone had the freedom to pursue their dreams and prosper. They envisaged a country where people will not be shackled by their religion or social class. They wanted a place where hard work, honesty, education and merit mattered for all. To achieve this we, the post 1947 generations had to learn lessons, evolve and become better leaders and followers.

So I return to the Pakistan of today and to my original question; how much has our mindset and thinking changed over the last 69 years? Jinnah and Iqbal were no corrupt factories-owning businessmen 'leaders' motivated by the lure of money, power and fame; they were in it for service to people who wanted change. Ruling Pakistan over the last few decades has been a families' game of musical throne interspersed with periods of military takeovers. At the risk of making my compatriots sick; today the likes of Nawaz Sharif, Yousuf Raza Gillani, Raja Ashraf and Asif Ali Zardari have blighted our lives as so-called democratic rulers of Pakistan! As if extremely serious allegations of corruption, tax evasion and conflict of interest against them were not enough, Sharif and Zardari are now on the verge of passing Pakistan's throne to their incompetent and undeserving offsprings through shameless acts of nepotism and cronyism. Today our system has made it possible for Maryam Safdar, Hamza Shahbaz and Bilawal Zardari to delude themselves into thinking they are leadership material. The likes of Achakzai, Fazl ul Haq, Khursheed Shah and Asfand Yar Wali are constantly declaring their undying love and support for a system that mainstreams throne-inheritance as a democratic process.

What about the people who are ruled by such 'leaders' with the help of such a system? Had our thinking evolved and had we learnt lessons from history, I would not be writing this article today. Yes, the system and methods of governance in Pakistan are corrupt and ineffective but what are the people waiting for? Are we any closer to the kind of Pakistan envisaged by Jinnah and Iqbal? I would suggest no, we are nowhere near it. My contention is our political thinking and mindset is stunted at best and putrefied at worst. What kind of people are we to fall victim to the same lies over and over again? Pakistan's laws and Constitution are stuff of fairy tales that we like telling our children in schools - at least to those who manage to go to school. According to one estimate 25 million Pakistani children are deprived of their Constitutional right to primary and secondary education and yet Nawaz and Zardari want us to save 'Democracy!' Nawaz Sharif and his courtiers can only sell us lies we are prepared to tolerate - and therein lies our true dilemma; do we continue to live off sugary dreams or wake up to the harsh trinity of our woes; corrupt rulers, a compromised system and us.

It is not in the interest of Sharif and Zardari to change the system that serves their families so well; the Royal courtiers that sit in our National Assembly will not rock the boat that brings them such privileges, money and power. This leaves us with - us, I guess! We can either wait for a slow biological change in our thinking or we can take the bull by the horns and say enough is enough. The bad news is there is no messiah on his or her way to rescue us, the good news is we can change both the system and our rulers if we stop being part of this circus of political exploitation and social injustice. How do we do that? Well, I guess we will have to go through some revolutionary evolution in our political thinking and mindset. This means we will need to take responsibility for our past, present and future and stop leaving it to God. So good luck to all - God knows we will need it.

[Shimatoree]

Sting

There are today PIGS who live in this world.

In the West they are being used as MEAT making machines which convert anything edible for them in Hog Confinement operations.

To expect that these PIGS will somehow become Einstein in the next Million years through Evolution WITHOUT...Any change in the Hog Confinement.............well it might be an imaginative illusion.

And pray tell me who will Liberate these Piggies

You might say that the metaphor of Pigs and Hog Confinement does not apply to Pakistan ?

But it does too.

More later

[stingingnettle]

Shimatoree sahib, my feeling is we are indulging in a spot of self-deception by thinking there is some kind of messianic leader who can liberate us; there ain't no such thing. If we continue to live like the dodo bird, we die out lie the dodo bird.

My suggestion is that it is no longer a question of leadership or the system but the fact that we, the people are part of the problem. It is for us to do something because there will be no more Jinnah or Iqbal as far as I can tell.

People must understand that our past, present and future cannot be blamed on any body except us. Our past mirrors our present; the future depends on how much responsibility we are prepared to take for our screw ups.

[Mirza Ghalib]

Much as I marvel at the verve and vitality in both yourpieces, Dear Stingingnettle, Dear Shim, I find a hint of unfairness in your attitudes as well. A vast proportion of our population is made up of total illiterates, living in grinding poverty and totally under the yoke of a malignant regime. Do we expect them to rise and save the nation? That is simply daydreaming.

We must make the most of what we have in hand: split the middle class in two which has already been achieved, thank you God. Soon we'll be able to assess the street power PTI commands. And we'll take if from there.

Also, never lose sight of the fact that the ace in the pack is held by Tahir-u-Quadri and PAT. That one will trump over any card NS & Co may place on the table.

A little more patience and the darkness will be finally lifted and Pak will bathe in the sunshine of revival.

[Shimatoree]

Mg

Your Quote.." the ace in the pack is held by Tahir-u-Quadri and PAT. " end of quote

The key is to PLAY the GAME............not the CARDS that you hold as TUQ has been holding the same cards last 2 times also and I might quote a friend of mine who said and I quote....

" the elephant will FART and blow the whole thing down..........but when the time came...this same elephant did not not even pass a PIP SQUEEK ! "

I have always been suspicious of men wearing strange HATS and so I am not too impressed with TUQ and his ZOMBIES.

I shall repeat the word that always comes to mind when I hear of TUQ......BOGUS !

[Mirza Ghalib]

Shim Dear "bogus" is exactly the word that comes to mind in connection with Dr Tahir-ul-Quadri. His trump cards, however, are undeniable. The FIR against the Sharif Brothers which the COAS managed to file for him and then the Baqir Najvi Report which someday must become public property. It took but one FIR to undo Zulfiqar Bhutto. History might repeat itself. And if it doesn't then we'll have to find other means to topple over this dynasty in the making. Whatever, recourse to street protest is always a good sign in my eyes. The people must be the final arbiters of the fate and future of Pakistan.

[Musician]

When was the FIR filed? How long does it take for FIR to be investigated.

Justice delayed is justice denied.

[Mirza Ghalib]

2-3 years ago, alas. And the man who promised us justice in this matter, General Raheel Sharif, is also on his way out without having given his initial promise any more thought. This is the usual pattern of events in Pakistan. Promises made, not kept, shrugged off as though they had never been given.

Something wrong with our hearts, minds and memories in our beloved Pakistan.