Adil Najam
Eid approaches. This not not a time to be depressed. But these are depressing times. Eid deserves an upbeat message and positive pictures. Soon, we promise, we will have these for you. But today, I cannot get this picture out of my head.
This picture, taken by Emilio Morenatti of the Associated Press, haunts me. As it should. Taken yesterday (Sunday) in Islamabad, the caption reads: “A Pakistani boy waits to get a ration of donated food before Iftar, the time to break their fast, during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan.”
Usually, we want our readers to comment on our posts. Today, I don’t care if you do or do not. What can you say? What can I say? What can any one of us say as we look at the expression on this child’s face. I do not care if you comment on this, but please do THINK about it. Maybe, as you think, you shoudl also listen to the “yeh bacha kis ka bacha hai” whcih we had first posted here.
For those of us who have lived long in Islamabad, this is one more reminder that this, too, is Islamabad!
if some one wants to help this child how should he do it
Sorry, I posted the previous one in the wrong thread and it looks inappropriate here. But seriously, as long as politics is about personalities and not about this boy, then he will continue to be neglected. The elections should have been about him but they were not.
tamam jialon ko PPP kee janib say jashn-e-Zardari mubarik
Your picture and video are worth at least a thousand words, if not more. I have written extensively about the worsening plight of our poor since the “restoration of democracy” in Pakistan. It is important now for the “civil society” and the rest of us to put our energies into “lighting candles rather than cursing darkness”. Let’s not buy into any political sloganeering (a la roti, kapra aur makan) or rely on government’s help for the poor. Let me invite you to read my post on this subject: http://www.riazhaq.com/2008/09/light-candle-dont-c urse-darkness-in.html
Perhaps vaguely related to this topic: Jang’s Irshad Ahmad Haqqani once wrote that Pakistanis, per capita and/or per-income level–sorry, I have forgotten–are some of the most generous people when it comes to donation. I remember he said Rs. 70 billion and that article was at least 5 years ago.
Pakistan is a very poor country. Journalist Ayaz Amir, probably rightly, says that Pakistan is NOT blessed with ‘rich resources’, contrary to usual boasting of Pakistanis of ‘strategic location’ and ‘natural resources’. And yet, ‘pound for pound’, Pakistan is perhaps better off than the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
That was my little attempt to cheer up and say ‘Happy Eid’. I have been sad lately: After the Marriot explosion–Pakistan’s 9/11 to me–what is more depressing is that EVEN that catestrophy was painted by some right-wing media personnel as a sort of justifiable attempt to target the ‘evil Americans’.