Adil Najam
My posts over the last few days have all been designed to build up to this (here, here and here).
Irrespective of whether Abdul Sattar Edhi is a Pakistani or not, irrespective of how much most Pakistanis hold his selfless zeal in reverence - and irrespective also of all the ways in which a few have tried to malign him - I believe that Abdul Sattar Edhi deserves a Nobel Peace Prize. I need your help in putting together a nominations package.
I do not wish to make this a nationalistic thing. He would not like that. For me it is a humanistic thing. As he has made clear again and again, humanism and humanitarianism is more important than everything else; certainly it is bigger than nationalism.
Here is a man who has dedicated his whole life to serving the most marginalized and the most wretched in society. The destitutes, the mentally ill, corpses left by the roadside, children abandoned at his doorsteps, women kicked out by their families. When there is no one to go to, there is always Edhi Sahib to go to.
As importantly, he has done this - in his words - ‘wholesale’. He has single handedly built - literally by begging - a social services structure at a national scale. Bigger than what governments have. He has never taken a ruppee as salary himself. He lives in a two room apartment that most middle class Pakistanis would not call home and he oversees the largest ambulance network in the world, now with airplanes and helicopters, a multi-million dollar enterprise of relief, of goodwill, and of humanitarianism. If he does not deserve the Nobel Award, I do not know who does.
As I had mentioned in the last post, the Edhi Foundation is collecting signatures on a petition that he be given the Nobel Award. I like other bloggers (here, here, and here) would urge you to sign that petition and join the thousands others who already have.
But I think we can do a little more. Here is how.
I checked out the website of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee and looked at their nominations procedure. It is not clear whether they accept petitions or not, but it turns out that they do have categories of individuals who can make nominations (which are due by February 1). One of those categories is “university professors of social science, history, philosophy, law and theology.” I am not sure if I have much standing with them, but I fit into that category, and therefore I believe I have the ability to formally send in a nomination, and I plan to write in a nomination letter over the next few days.
What I would like to do, then, is to ask you all to write your own testimonials to why Abdul Sattar Edhi deserves a Nobel Award in the comments section. We want to gather as many testimonials/comments as possible.
Personal stories and examples of how he touches people’s lives and meets the ideals of the Nobel Peace Prize are especially useful.
So let me please request you for your help. If you agree with me that Abdul Sattar Edhi deserves a Nobel Peace Prize:
- Please leave a testimonial in the comments section saying that he deserved the award why you believe that Abdul Sattar Edhi deserves a Nobel Peace Prize.
- Please email this post to your friends and ask them to do the same.
- If you are a blogger, please spread the word on your blogs and to your readers and ask those who agree with my proposition to leave a testimonial.
And to meet the deadline we need to do all of this in the next few days. I have no pretensions that a letter from one professor will do the trick. But since I have this ability, I want to at least give it a shot. At least we would be able to say, we tried.
What do you say, folks?
He must be awarded for his humanitarian helps for which he is always ready.
Yes, A. Sattar Edhi deserves for his excellence performance and sacrify for the humanity.
I strongly recomend Mr. Abdul Sattar Edhi for Nobel prize.
I fully endorse what Adil Najam has said about Maulana Abdul Sattar Edhi, and why he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize.
What needs to be added is that Edhi Sahib’s help reaches far beyond Pakistan; the Edhi Foundation has been sending help for disasters in other parts of the world as well, regardless of religion, culture, race or nationality.
I have met Edhi Sahib a number of times and my students have worked with him as volunteers. He is a modern-day saint and an inspiration for the whole world, like Gandhiji or Mother Teresa.
I salute & admire “Abdul Sattar Edhi” sahab more than other living human being in this world.He has selflessly done the kind of hard work which everyone should follow,but its so ad that such kind of dedicated,sincere & honest social workers are counted on fingers.
The respect he has earned in the hearts of Pakistanis is shown with the fact that people donate zakat & other donations without a slight feeling of doubt,when it comes to “Edhi Welfare Centers” as compared to others!
He really deserves more than a mere “Nobel Prize” & perhaps that is the love & respect in the hearts of thousands of Pakistanis.
You are right. The question is not wether Maulana Edhi deserves Nobel’s peace prize, but rather, does the peace prize deserve the esteemed Maulana? The Nobel commitee will not be bestowing an honour to him, in fact he will be bestowing an honour to them by accepting it!………World never give a nobel’s Award to a right deserving person this is also a plitical musical game….Proud Be a Muslim.we are
I have all the praise and appreciation for Abdus Sattar Edhi.
He is a living “saint” of this bleak era when world has gone materialistic. Edhi does not collect “hide” to peel “hide” of his rivals.”"
I still remember while I used to be a “crime reporter” of APP, Lahore (Now Special Correspondent) “Khuday Line”, and used to visit city hospitals and morgue at night, how certain anti-Edhi elements having hefty description with “shining long beards”holding KK rifles, launched massive crackdown on Edhi Ambulance service which was in fact snatching prey from their mouth.
I still remember my tragic end which I met after filing the story
when I was deprived of my “second hand” rather “three time”
stolen Vespa Scooter and threatened of dire consequences, if I dared to file pro-Edhi stories.
Without any reservation, I would not only vote in favour of Edhi for awarding him the Nobel Prize, but I would also appeal the United Nations to depute him as Ambassador at large for peace.
There should be some different between Ms.Faryal Gohar and Edhi. Former lives in the hearts of “Elite” while later lives in the hearts of oppressed and depressed.
Last but not the least, it is adviseable that opinion in this connection should also be sought from Qazi Hussain Ahmed, the chief of Jamat Isami Pakistan who has great say in his party if not in the Parliament.
God Bless Pakistan and God save Pakistan from “devils”, amen
Mussarat Hussain,
Washington D.C.,
USA.