Them and Us

[stingingnettle]

The problem with opening your eyes is you have to see; the consequences of this can be pleasant or unpleasant. Distasteful sights bring us dangerously close to our hypocrisy; for example, consider the demolition of I-11 slum in Islamabad - hundreds of destitute families lost the only security they had in their lives, roofs over their heads. The highly polarised arguments that ensued left us all with opinions; justified or otherwise. There were those who spoke of rule of law and insisted that the habitants of the slum were occupying the land illegally. Others, moved by the terrible scenes of women, children and old people being dragged out of their homes; perhaps a grim reminder of what Palestinians have to endure at the hands of Israel.

I see both sides of the argument but I also saw, like many of my compatriots, the elephant dancing right in front of our eyes. The elephant was CDA, an organisation with unparalleled reputation for corruption in Islamabad when it comes to land affairs, enforcing the evictions and demolition. The dramatic bulldozing, shelling and high-handed arrests kept us from seeing the other gigantic eyesore; there are many very rich and influential people in Pakistan who live their lives well and truly above all the laws of the land but there is nothing we can or are willing to do about it. Apologies if you felt blinded by the sudden glare of hypocrisy.

My sympathies, I admit, are with the slum dwellers but I can see why they were so 'rudely forced'; poverty is not just a handicap in Pakistan but it is also an invitation to all those with money to dig their spurs into the flesh of the poor. Destitution, ignorance and disempowerment have created two simple classes in Pakistan, Us and Them; an elegant and neat classification that allows us to accept our lot with or without dignity. To explain what I mean, let me narrate an incident that most of us can relate to; I once stood by a roadside in Rawalpindi waiting for a VIP to go by. I got talking to a man who looked hungry, thirsty and stressed; I asked him what he felt about having to wait so long to cross the road; his response opened my eyes like a splash of cold water on hot Summer's day. He said, 'What can we do, we are poor people and these people (gesturing towards the direction from which the VIP was expected) are 'بڑے لوگ ' (approximate translation: rich, powerful and well-connected people), we are powerless.'

Thanks to this stranger's response, I crossed a very big and busy mental road with my eyes open; and I did not like it. The first thing we pick up from his response is the acknowledgement that there exists 'them' and 'us' with a great big ocean between the two. The second striking thing about his response was his use of 'us' and 'we'; he was not speaking as an individual but as a group or a class. The last thing was the sheer futility of even trying to do anything about it because somehow 'بڑے لوگ' and their charmed lives are truly insulated and protected from scrutiny. I felt that for him, there was clearly a permanent roadblock between them and us and that was the life he was fated to live.

In Pakistan, the 'them' and 'us' classification is everywhere; socially, economically, politically and even in religion. The classification is so persistent and sinister that it has successfully subdued the only fact that has the power to counteract it; our humanity. If Nawaz Sharif, Zardari or Bilawal thought of all citizens as humans, the classification would break down and with it a loss of all the privileges and power that it affords. Nawaz Sharif and Qaim Ali Shah visit people drowning in floods with the pomp and glitz of rock stars; class distinction reinforces and sticks best when people are vulnerable. Then of course come the promises, the handouts of food and small sums of money; media goes into feverish delirium and flood victims drown in gratitude having nearly drowned in raging waters.

Ever wondered about the size of the new Bilawal House or Raiwind Palace? I wonder what is with the grandeur? Why build a mausoleum for the inglorious dead of Bhutto family? The answer is quite simple; size matters when it comes to them and us; it is important to keep things huge, opulent and Pharoahic if you are going to keep rest of the population where it is. It is not possible to justify nepotism unless you first make the general populace believe that rules are different for those with money, power and relentless greed. When people accept this basic notion; the rest of the journey from Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto to Bilawal Zardari (or is it Bilwal Bhutto) is very easy indeed.

You might wonder, how does MQM fit into this scheme? Quite elegantly, I think. Altaf Hussain claims that he derives his secondary and tertiary leadership from lower and middle class population of Karachi; that bit I think is true. Altaf's philosophy of love is under pinned by those who give orders and those who carry them out; a neat and murderous class distinction. The so called middle class leadership in MQM are made to think they are part of a special class; their job is to keep reminding the ordinary supporters of MQM that they can be the special ones provided they offer certain services for the the cause without asking any questions. Altaf does not like people around him to have ideas hence the ongoing murder investigation in London.

Imran Khan holds much promise for millions of Pakistanis but it is evident that he too is at risk of ending up with a two-class PTI. He said yesterday that he was returning to the people to learn about their problems and aspiration; if he meant this then there is hope for everyone. IK made a serious mistake by expressing so much trust in Nasir ul Mulk and his commission; the fact is judiciary in Pakistan is run by a class who very existence depends on keeping rest of the population alive in the hope but deprived of justice. When did you last hear a judge being sent to jail for corruption? Is that because there is no corruption within the judiciary? Now, that made you laugh, did it not?

So there you have it, Shia-Sunni, military-civilian, Pakistanis-rest of the world, pious-non pious, asleep-awake and them-us; it is quite simply the way have have been, the way we are and they way we are likely to be - unless of course we ask, whilst waiting at a road block, why do I have to pause my live for a VIP? When the first Pakistani chooses to disregard a VIP route order and crosses the road, I suspect it will be the proverbial first drop of rain. Soon enough, others will find the courage to actively believe that it may be us and them but I am not without dignity and power - and it certainly is not my fate to put up with them.

I look forward to the day when Bilawal will attend a passport office like an ordinary citizen, without the pleasure of a hundred cars, road blocks and the entire passport office staff at his disposal. We are humans first and only then we are, us and them. We must learn to respect, cherish and defend our human dignity; this is the only way to write a new fate for ourselves that does not involve waiting for 'them' by a roadside.

[Shimatoree]

Sting

It has always been this way !

I do not know if it is possible for me to add anything tot what you have written but I shall try and pour some GHOST pepper sauce or the new Trinidad moruga scorpion sauce-( Hottest in the world)-.

Let me first start by thawing a few stones at the latest Champion of Justice for the poor people of Pakistan-Imran Khan.
It is said that CHARITY begins at home. So the great Khan started by marrying a poor divorced mother of 3 and provided her with food and a roof to sleep under at his SPARTAN Bani Gala tent made of goat hair!

For me to complain about thew likes of Zardari-( his name means one who has ZAR- that is Gold)- and the not so sharif family of Nawaz and Shahbaz is to PISS into the Wind- it ain't join no where.
Dito Diesel
Dito Asfandyar
Dito Altaf Hussain.

When you write about Mr. Bilawal , the son of a thief.....you are wasting INK and paper or your efforts. That fellow is ZERO and will be ZERO no matter the crowd of sycophants around him.

But when you mention this great divide between them and US or US and Them, well all I am going to say is that THEM have accepted THEIR LOT in this life. For things to change- if that were even possible, THEM would have to assert their rights by grabbing the THROATS of the RICH.
They have not done that.
Are they going to do that.......in MIRZA GHALIB's UTOPIA.......that will happen.

In my world where no UTOPIA exists.......that sort of a reaction from the poor is LIGHT years away.

Why you ask ?

Let me pour some more of the hot sauce.

In one word the answer is RELIGION.
The entire social-cultural milieu in which our people exist consists of a PROMISE that the LIFE in the NEXT world-( if there is one)- will be better for the poor if they would only continue to LICK the soles of the RICH in THIS world. 5 times a day THAT is what they are taught by the Mullah who uses his own LEGITIMACY ordained by God Almighty and his 140,000 prophets.
Have you ever gone to the Ashoora gatherings where people beat their chests and backs with knives in order to under go the sufferings of those that died at Karbala. If you have-( I am sure you have)- you have not failed to notice that the large majority of those that do that are also THEM-( poor and downtrodden).

Let us go to Mirza Ghalib's UTOPIA if it ever came to pass---the Mullah would be the one who would tell the poor to go and SNATCH their rights from the rich. This did take place once upon a time in Iran but then just like Altaf Hussain--the Mullahs discovered the addiction and intoxication of Money.

The problem with OPENING your eyes to see is that in ORDER TO SEE you also need a functioning BRAIN.
And genetics determines that.
So if you are breeding COWARDS to COWARDS.....you are unlikely to get a LION or a TIGER.

What took place in I-11 in Islamabad recently is abhorrent and inhuman....but the people were powerless and the Great champion of the Pushtoons Imran Khan did not come and help. He did not even utter one word in all his news conferences. Maybe he did but THAT was also for political consumption.

We certainly should BITCH about the many Bilawal Houses and the Raiwind palace but INTELLECTUAL honesty demands that we also mention the great estate of the great Khan in Bani Gala in the very same breath.

Your quote

" He said yesterday that he was returning to the people to learn about their problems and aspiration; "IK

This is 2015 and pretty soon it will be 2016.
In 2011 the Great Khan had said the same thing.
In 2012 he had said the same thing
In 2013 he had said the same thing and he reacted the same in 2014.

I must add that the Great Khan is a SLOW learner.

You do not need to go to the PEOPLE to learn THAT.
If you have a sensitive heart.....you KNOW it already.

If Mirza Ghalib's UTOPIA did exist.....
.IK would be living in one of the SHACKS in I-11 with the people, eating the watery soup with stale dried bread, drinking filthy water with E. Coli and Leptospirosis and the virus of hepatitis, sleeping on the hard dirt floor with scorpions running around and flies and mosquitoes biting his white skin.

But then where would.. he find the 15 million tons of powder and make up/ lip stick for Mrs. Reham Khan

To speak of Hazrat Umar which he does often and of Sher Shah Suri is easy.............but let him try to be like them just for one day.

My diatribes are aimed at the Great Khan because he WAS this one great HOPE that we HAD imagined- I have not given up hope YET but as more time passes I am becoming more of a doubting Thomas.

When the APS attack had taken place.......I for one had expected Imran to FIRE Perevez Khattack or dismiss his PTI govt in KPK.
He did not.
Instead he found excuses to exonerate himself and his govt.

I rest my case.

[Mirza Ghalib]

Great you came back swinging, the both of you, SN. Shim. And, but for chance, I might have missed both of you, since I hadn't expected either of you to write in the section you chose. So firstly, my immense gratitude must be given expression and now to the pith of the matter: frustration breeds impatience. In Mirza Ghalib's UTOPIA (how well put that was, Shim. You intended irony and stumbled upon the truth), the first rule of the game is patience, patience and more patience. The second rule is: there's NO CHOICE. It's either IK (or someone else from within PTI) or it's no one. Our present nascent monarchies will be consolidated and advanced until Pakistan ceases to exist as a geographical entity. Even if General Raheel Sharif takes over like some of his predessors, it will make little difference. We'll be headed towards disaster. He's a great soldier. And we do have an Army we can be proud of. But he'll be unable to run to the country just like his predecessor Musharraf. The masses in Pakistan, religiously mauled, economically pounded to fine powder, genetically deficient, etc. still seem to have some principles strangely enough.

And so, in defence of IK, let me say: He has proved himself in our eyes. He has turned round KPK within 2 years along with his dozy CM Pervaiz Khattak. And if others do not wish to acknowledge what he's achieved, that's upto them. We have a jewel of a police force under IG Nasir Durrani. And once again: the APS tragedy was none of our doing. It was under Army control and they failed to live up to their responsibilities. Everything else that has also changed there I'll skip for the moment. And retain just a final example: The Local Bodies Election which was part of IK's promises to us. Well, that has been achieved now. Stumblingly, to be sure. But that is how things are done in our wounded homeland. Shim, Peshawar is your City. But we, too, know a few people there, sturdy Pukhtoon who love IK, but who'd rather slit their own throats than let IK get away with deceiving them. He hasn't so far. And God willing he never will.

If it's gentically we've gone wrong, there's nothing we can do about it now, is there? As for religion, that's like our genes: we're slaves to both. We must learn to progress in spite of these initial handicaps. Would we be better off if we were atheists, I wonder. Somehow I doubt it. IK's wife is irrelevant to the whole story as is Bani Gala. Whatever happened in Islamabad was a horror scenario with no justification whatsoever. We'll pay for it someday, that is for certain. And not one powerful person in Pakistan stood up for the rights of the disenfranchised. In the name of justice, their eventual punishment is certain.

One word more: The JC and its schenanigans. The doctrine of necessity in all its brutal callousness was all it was about. And finally: revolution, guillotine-time? No one should exclude our going down this road finally. My Utopia is made out of many things. Bloodshed from one end of the country to the other is one of them. No doubt, IK knows it as well. He will not countenance it, that is for sure. But someday he too might be overwhelmed by the forces of change in action.

[Shimatoree]

Patience MY FOOT.

You say IK has proved himself in YOUR eyes.
All I can say is that YOU must be Colour Blind-all you can see is what YOU wish to see.
OBJECTIVITY be DAMNED.
Intellectual Honesty be DAMNED.

I shall leave it at that.

[Mirza Ghalib]

Indeed we shall leave it at that, Shim. Insults do not amount to arguments, do they? Anyway, hope the Pakistan you are dreaming of and mine both come to fruition at the appointed time. And that it will satisfy SN's dearest wishes as well. Until then, we'll simply curb our emotions and struggle on.

[Shimatoree]

Mg

you need to understand that NO INSULT is Implied or otherwise. The mountain of frustration and the sense of betrayal that I am beginning to feel is just too big right now.
All hopes at this time for me are mere illusions.
All my fears have come to be true.
Plus the contract negotiations with the hospital have been tough but I am at least done with that.

Now all I have to deal with is MY PERCEPTION of IK's stupidity-( apparent to me anyway)- in all the things that he has done and seems to be doing. I am afraid what sort of decisions he would take if he in fact ends up being the top dog.
I can tell you one thing, his popularity is going down amongst those that came to him thinking of him as their great saviour.

And " Hell has no FURY as a SPURNED Populace " -( my paraphrasing).

Or perhaps it is FATE as you often say..........maybe Fate is taking IK where Fate wants to take him....But I would like to not hold Fate as the culprit but the man from whom we are and have expected so much.

The Wretched of the Earth will remain Wretched. Thats all.

[Mirza Ghalib]

Shim, not to worry. I have too much respect for you, too much understanding for the positions you adopt to feel offended or in any other way ill treated. The frustration you feel, we often share. But as you were kind enough to point out: the belief in fate having the last word in every human venture does make life easier for some of us.

I accept your sense of IK's innate "stupidity" in much of what he undertakes. But as one of the greats of the World Cup winning Team, Ramiz Raja, once pointed out: IK is also blessed by innate good luck, by which he meant when the man is absolutely teetering on the verge of disaster, that good luck kicks in and the day is saved. That's what allowed Pakistan to win the World Cup. That's what happened when he fell in 2013 and returned to us hale and hearty after 6 months spent in hospital, etc.

Perhaps IK's popularity is going down. Strangely enough so is that of all the other political parties. The awful paedophilia scandal which has just broken out in Kasur is a blow to PMLN's popularity isn't it? Apart from all the other corruption scandals they are aready involved in. Perhaps we'll all end up voting for the ex-CJ's political party in the making by the time the next elections come around. Or then the army will take over. Democratic Martial Law, as Faisal Reza Abidi has been calling it for quite sometime now. Or then you'll be proved right and a technocratic government will be the gift offered by the army to the masses.

Are you planning to return to Pakistan in coming days?

So, Friend, good nerves is a must. And as someone I know well keeps repeating to me when I'm down (3/4s of the time), whatever happens next will be for the betterment of the people of Pakistan.

[Shimatoree]

Mg

To Amman, Jordan in November and either before or after to Pakistan, More later