Adil Najam
Ordinarily, I might have just posted this photograph below as a comment on yesterday’s post on Diwali celebrations in Karachi (also here). But please, just look at the people in this photograph; its way too interesting to be relegated to a comments section.
The occasion is a Diwali celebration at the Islamabad Headquarters of the Pakistan Muslim League, standing (and clapping) extreme left is Syed Mushahid Hussain, Secretary General of the Pakistan Muslim League, next to him is Ijaz ul Haq (Minister of Religious Affairs, and son of Gen. Zia ul Haq), fourth from left is Tariq Azim, State Minister for Information.
The Daily Times (31 October, 2006) provides more details of the event:
Members of the Hindu community from across the country participated in the event where they performed their religious rituals and traditional dances in candlelight to mark the event… A number of office bearers of the party and ministers, including PML Secretary General Mushahid Hussain Syed, Minister for Religious Affairs Ijaz-ul-Haq, State Minister for Information Tariq Azim, Minister for Minorities Affairs Mushtaq Victor and members of the National Assembly (MNAs) Bindara, Donia Aziz, Akram Masih Gill and others were present on the occasion. Officials of the Indian High Commission also participated in the event.
Hussain said that Quaid-e-Azam had envisioned a Pakistan where all the religious minorities enjoyed equal rights. He underlined the importance of inter-faith harmony for the greater prosperity of the nation and announced that the PML would also celebrate the birthday of Baba Gurunanak next week. He said that the minorities played a vital role in building any nation. He said that the present government was allocating high importance to giving all minorities’ equal. Hindus are playing a leading role in country’s economic development and the present government will leave no stone unturned to ensure their safety and well being, he added.
This is, of course, a political gesture – some might even say a gimmick. But if so, let us have more such gestures and gimmicks. They will, in time, hopefully help change our perceptions and treatment of religious minorities in Pakistan.
Nagraj, I hope the purpose of such steps is not to change how the world looks at Pakistan, but at how we Pakistanis ourselves look at Pakistan and the various communities that make up its citizens.
The article on Diwali is the perfect example of what the world does not know about Pakistan. I think, Pakistan media should increasingly portray this secular image, which will help people turn their minds a full 360 degrees when they talk of Pakistan especially in India. That includes me.
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“Funny thing about the picture is that Mr. Ijaz ul Haq seems like doing some kind of ‘pooja’ while in fact I think he is just clapping…lol”
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If pooja would help save his job, Ijazul Haq would have no qualms in doing it five times a day plus more. Anyway, I am not against this gesture by these Qs even if we know it’s a political gimmick.
I agree with Yahya’s second comment. One photo-op – even if it is a good start – does not make a society of “peace, tolerance and diversity”
Dear Yahya, if I might please disagree on this one. It is probably a political stunt as the post says. But better to have stunts like this than the ones in the opposite direction of burning and breaking things. I don’t think anyone is pressuring the govt to do this, they are probably doing it for a better image. I say, good. Lets do it for the wrong reasons as long as it is the right thing.
On women’s right, I know, that the real pressure is not coming from outside (unfortuntaly too little is), it is coming from Pakistani activists who have faced great hardships to put that pressure. So let us not undermine their efforts by taking the easy route of the ‘faaran hand’. But even if it was, would you rather that we keep doing the wrong thing?