"Is this Pakistan?", "I hate this country", "Is this Islam?"
These along with many I don't want to repeat are the responses on facebook statuses and blogs from many people to the very tragic incident of Sialkot, when they share that video on their profiles/blogs. As tragic as this shameful, disgraceful and inhuman event was, our sensitivity towards it has been shameful too. We all are no doubt heartbroken and many in our country are literally traumatized by those graphic images of brutality on two innocent children of our country. Now I have to ask all those who shared the video on their pages, blogs YouTube channels; would they have wanted this video to go viral like this had it been of their brothers? Is this not disrespectful to the dead? Is this vulgarity and humiliation fair to the two poor brothers? Their families? What everyone appears to be doing is taking their chance to release their frustration and it is all coming out towards the country. Before I continue I beg everyone to remove those videos from their pages, blogs and channels in respect.
The way I see it, the victims of this brutality were Pakistanis, the victims were Muslims, but like always confusion and poor or ill-education does its duty and Pakistan and Muslims are blamed again. The way I see it, two Muslim Pakistanis, who make the greatest majority of Pakistan, were tortured to death in acts by the savages under the shelter of corrupt, blind in power 'servicemen' and their buyers, who would only stand to be very few against the better if compared in numbers. These two were just kids, Mughees was a Hafiz-e-Quran. So, balance yourself. The whole country is outraged along with me and you, so should we really blame Pakistan? Which I take synonymous to Pakistanis!
Even though the wave of such rage is vital for a louder cry for change, where did our accountability go? Should we not take accountability; if by just driving our rage towards the wrong way we are spreading sickness?
Now we spread them to do what we do best. Spectate and gossip! Makes us not better than those spectators who stood their when all this cruelty on two sons of our nation was taking place. They could have been your brothers or friends.
And all those who are feeling hatred towards the whole country, their example is like of a teenager in a dysfunctional family who sees how in his friends' homes everything is all 'normal'; he only has one thing to say whenever he finds something ridiculously annoying and displeasing to him, "I hate this home". Well then grow up! Because grown ups take responsibility and take care of affairs themselves; not just, well should I use the word, 'bitch' about it? This is what I have to say to my dear brethren. Not everyone can just run away, you, the people you love, your families, your friends, all have to live here and share it with the rest of us, then why don't we all just grow up and make this dysfunctional family work? Or has just complaining ever worked for anyone?
I know it would never be directly anyone of our's intention that such a tragic and inhuman incident would happen anywhere in the world, let alone in our own country; yet it happened, and it happens more often than our sympathies towards humanity would like to except. And with much pain I write these lines that with our current attitude tragedies like these are most likely to repeat. What about all those events which have not been documented? How many of us are aware of the secret torture houses of some jageerdars and political psychos? Each one of us in the country are responsible for it! Why is it our fault? Because we let corruption cultivate in our society by using the corrupt ways for our own purposes whenever they work for us. If anyone can say they did not, are either not recalling it without bias or maybe are true exception; as every phenomenon has, but the later is highly unlikely. Everyone who ever broke a signal, slipped under a challan by showing a card of 'influential' people, slipped into a long waiting-line because they knew the officer, supported violent (even in thoughts) actions out of political and ethnic favoritism and prejudices, paid any official to get anything done, at all; taken a few extra Rs for something when they could, jumped into a concert, maybe? Every time we did anything just because WE COULD; we cultivated the roots of these psychopaths. A few small crimes are not small when hundreds of millions of people are committing them! Now why do you think, they were able to execute such inexpressibly cruel atrocity? If you haven't guessed; they did it because they could! You can not go wrong and expect to stay that way without consequences. We, as Muslims have been given our code of conduct and moral values. If God has forbidden us from some actions, big or small, you just continue with them feeling clever; it will bite you back! And does it not hurt! The "Chalta hai" culture has evolved corruption into a monster so big that people have started to lose all hope.
When Pakistan was created it had many enemies; instead of building it what we chose to do is, relax. We never completed the necessary completion of our revolution which called for determination and years of hard work! Subsequently it was hijacked; such a thing is always inviting claims. We don't need a new one; we just need to complete our revolution and let the sacrifices of those our heroes, not be wasted. I understand there are people who have never thought about the sacrifices because our information systems are failing to remind us of its severe reality.
All those who are blaming the Islamic Republic of Pakistan for this, I have a news for them, Islam is ashamed of you; Pakistan is ashamed of you! I recall the words of Ahmed Deedat "spineless Muslims!, spineless people!"; "sick with inferiority complex". How dare we make a spectacle of such inhumanity? Hasn't everyone seen it already? Doesn't everyone know the story? Hasn't everyone seen his share of repetitions? Are we helping the victims by humiliating them like this? Spreading awareness is one thing and disrespecting human lives in useless vulgarity is another. Many Pakistanis don't even consider trauma and depression to be sicknesses, it seems.
Blaming is easy, take responsibility; do we ever dare to think twice before letting hatred, frustration and depression enter our minds when we are watching these channels who make money so immorally and without any accountability? Do we not think that why the whole nation starts to feel the exact same thing about an incident at the same time while there could be other possibilities; not opposite, but at least, little different? Are we aware there are sciences involved in the brainwashing through the media? Should we trust those channels who are making hundreds of thousands of Rs a minute? Why do they release and repeat vulgarly such hate provoking videos? Remember flogging of the Swat girl video? Remember the Wukala Tehreek? Has it bettered the justice system or did we fool ourselves into choosing someone they wanted us to choose? Remember Lal Masjid, how media was only showing stubbornly one-sided story? Remember Ajmal Kasab's report about his hometown only later to be proven false? Why did they fail to report in the news that the USA has budgeted $50 million to spend on the Pakistani media this year? Who is watching over these things they feed us? I do not mean to say you have to object and challenge all these things just for the heck of it, but what is your original thought about it? Do you have one, honestly? Does it not insult you that you can be so easily manipulated to think anything that they would want you to? Please, keep these questions in your mind before just losing to emotions. I do appreciate the media for taking the issue to the limelight but there were more subtle ways. Sadly, they were committing the same crime again i.e. not being accountable!
Take heed in these words, "If you can accept losing, you can't win." (Vince Lombardi)
Every time you will say you have no hope, it is just stating that you would rather watch these things happen to others. Do not lose hope my brothers, stand united, we all should be happy to see that at least the legal process has started against these evil men. And honestly, I don't really know if justice would be served. But, at least it is a step away from evil and closer to justice.
One can only pity the weak-minded who are so easily turned against their own home with such disgust in only an hour without taking account of the complete picture. One question that raises out here is that if the media is powerful enough to make the whole country stand up together against something, why are they always telling us how divided we really are when a tool to unite is in their very hands?
Remember Allah's words from the Quran:
"Do not despair of the mercy of Allah."
Keep the hope alive for if you won't stand someone hopeful will. Make sure that able someone has the hope.
Please pray for peace for the souls of the deceased; and patience for their family and friends.
Love and Peace
A Pakistani
(Who refuses to loose hope; still!)
