Losing the battle for Pakistan

A few days ago, the progressive-leaning parliamentarian Shabaz Bhatti was shot down in cold blood for advocating a moderated stance against a draconian law in Pakistan. The changing societal dynamics comes in the backdrop of a struggling democratic government, which is failing to assert itself for Pakistan’s survival.

It was almost a month ago when I wrote a report for the Express Tribune about the Christian community yearning for a ‘more tolerant’ Lahore. After exploring various pockets of the society, it was sad to see that the community had become insolent and rather afraid to even interact with general population.

If one spoke to historians regarding the character of Lahore say not sixty but thirty years ago, one would have found a completely different social structure in Lahore. Though Islam had rapidly become a majority entity, communal activities were not exclusive rather they were inclusive.

The story of Pakistan’s road down the conception of Islamic state has only hardened differences between various communities to the point Pakistanis cannot be considered Pakistanis without obeying to a certain brands of Islam.

For years, the army and the ISI have provided safe havens for militant groups as part of a greater plan to maintain a strategic and military presence in Kashmir and Afghanistan. It is clear with the confirmed death of Colonel Imam, the so-called father of the Taliban that the dynamics of these relationships have changed over time. Increasingly these militant groups have become rouge thus functioning beyond the scope of the state.

As result, more evidence has shown a break from the typically assumed idea that the Pakistani Taliban and militant groups in some way defer to the Afghan Taliban. It is becoming clearer that an early US and NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan will not necessarily mean a decrease in terror or militancy in Pakistan. Despite this, there is rampant confusion amongst politicians and policy makers regarding Pakistan’s role in the global ‘war against terror’.

Previously in an article for the Daily Times, I wrote, “Going back to the time of the Romans, barbarians were used in the army as a strategic advantage. To combat the possibility of disruption in public life, these barbarians would be kept on the outskirts and were not allowed to enter Rome with arms. When the barbarians were integrated into Rome, some problems occurred. The barbarians were then given federate status, which placed them above Roman law by not having to pay taxes or give up their arms. These federate troops fought under their own command and were not subject to the Roman Army’s training. Fed with clothes, weapons and shelter, the barbarians left Rome susceptible to an internal attack. This by many is seen as one of the reasons for the decline of Rome.”

Through the path chosen, Pakistan became one of the first countries alongside Saudi Arabia to declare a Muslim a non-Muslim in 1974. In these ideological wars, it was seen that the rigid ideologies did not stop just at being an extreme idea rather it was put forth as a political alternative. For this reason, religion namely Islam is now predicated by sectarian strife, augmented debates and counter claims.

KK Aziz in his book Pakistani Historian explained the situation as, “ The Deobandi, the Barelwis, the Hadithists, the Quranists, the Muqallad, the Ghair-Muqqallad, the Sunni, the Shia, the liberal, the conservative, the modern, the traditionalist, the radical, the reactionary, the Hanafi, the eclectic, the Iqbalites, the Maududiite, the Parwaizite – each has his own version of Islam which he is determined to push down the throat of everyone else. Few read the Quran; all are eager to comment upon it.”

The unfortunate aspect is that the political establishment, which for years has been paralysed through the years of dictatorships, has been unable to effectually develop the independence to deal with militancy and terror. Instead of finding the political will or developing policies to challenge their existence, the major mainstream parties have turned a blind eye to the issue thus allowing for the growth of hyper-intolerance in the society.

As the society plunges into this vacuous abyss of intolerance, one is seeing a country that struggles to reconcile between the basic concepts of ethics and law. People are now willing to take the law into their own hands as form of emergency ethics which in no way can be substituted for justice.

Looking back at the last week, had this been the Pakistan that Jinnah founded then Shabhaz Bhatti may well have been a prime minister. He would have been garlanded with rose petals and seen as national pride. For now though Bhatti joins the growing number of martyr’s of who have given their lives for a tolerant and progressive Pakistan, a concept that is slowly disappearing.

The Author is a journalist who blogs at tigerali.wordpress.com and tweets under the username Sherakhan46.                                             .