A Case for Moderation

Beginnings

As my plane landed at Jinnah airport I could not help but succumb to the excitement of being back in Pakistan; my place of birth and my country. Admittedly I had spent the majority of my life abroad in Saudi Arabia, the United States and the United Kingdom; now, however, things were different I for one was older, had a firmer understanding of politics and was open to debate and discussion about religion as well as politics. I was eager to see how people’s attitudes and perceptions had evolved over the years. I was anxious to see if pessimism was still entrenched as part of the Pakistani psyche. The people had good reasons to be pessimistic they had battled years of corruption, violence and political unrest. Nevertheless they also had reasons to be positive.

I had been following Pakistani politics and state affairs with great interest for the last 7 years and here was a country which over the last 5 years under the leadership of General Musharraf, had embarked on a system of reforms. Analysts show that Pakistan has a growing economy, with positive forecasts for all major economic indicators. The stock market is soaring, and was once labelled as the strongest in the world (New York Times in 2002). Education reforms are finally taking place, with primary education being made compulsory and free. Corruption and crime are at an all time low. Government reforms also include restoration of democracy at state and local levels as well as making inroads into the emancipation of women and freedom of the press. Pakistan was recently given the title of major non-NATO ally and with its close co-operation on America’s war on terror, it has seen many sanctions lifted, debts cancelled, and better trade relations. Pakistan is no longer considered just a third world country; it is a nuclear power and has grown to be respected in the West as an emerging influence in the region. I was excited as to what changes I would experience, and expected a more united Pakistan; striving towards a better future.

My excitement quickly dissipated after a five minute ride in a taxi listening to the driver’s complaints. Disgruntled people ranting on about a governments failures is not uncommon in any part of the world; I would have been happy to dismiss it as sheer frustration; but now something had changed. The old complaints of corruption and violence had been replaced by antipathy against the government’s policies, especially its close relationship with the United States. Now, the poor, and the rich, the educated and illiterate are all united in their criticism. A new blanket of conspiracy theories and pessimism has engulfed the country and is turning it into a very self-deluded and extreme place. So I ask are these criticisms valid? Are they productive? Why are there so many conspiracy theories that foster paranoia? This is what I hope to answer and understand in this article.

Conspiracy Theories Anyone?

For a country with such a large international influence the American people remain bizarrely introverted, discussion over things overtly political or containing the words international or foreign will be met with umm’s and ah’s; very few are interested in the news if it is bereft of scandal. Nevertheless those few who show an interest receive news that is remarkably subjective and rather one sided. In Britain open debate is possible and the media remain fairly objective, however this is mired by the need for political correctness. In Saudi Arabia you do not have debates beyond religion. And in Pakistan you have conspiracy theories.

It appears to be that the Pakistanis and Muslims in general are the only intellectuals left in the world. They watch the news, disregard the facts and come up with their own version of what really happened. AIDS was a disease born by the white men to kill off the black men, George Bush orchestrated the twin tower attacks, Saddam was an American agent and was never in Iraq and of course Osama Bin Laden is part of the CIA. This used to be quite amusing, but the new wave of bigotry and extremism that is has caused is down right scary.

It seems Pakistanis have yielded to the same anger and frustrations that plague Syria, and Iran; places which remain so embittered by the past that they cannot make a clean break. I was, as many Muslims are taught, to take the middle path of two extremes and that is the idea I put forward.

The United States of Self Interest.

The twenty first century is faced with a new form of colonialism; it is more overt and commonly comes in the guise of a military base. The sheer capacity of the American military machine affords it a remarkable position in the world; it retains the role of being the world’s policemen and protectors. Inevitably there are cases in which this authority has been used subversively. To point out the flaws of American foreign policy would require more time and certainly fill many more pages than I am willing to dedicate the time to. However most remarkable is the fact that America portrays itself as the bastion of democracy, clearly this image has been tarnished and or put into disrepute by the 2000 presidential elections of which African Presidents such as Mugabe would be proud to use as a template as to how to force a result. We were faced with the inconceivable fact that the man who lost the vote by half a million people obtained the most powerful office in the world. We see no supranational force garnering in order to invade the country forcing a regime change to abolish a radical right wing belligerent leader; on the contrary George Bush may in fact be in contention for a second year.

The irony remains that America does not hesitate to use force or invasion of a sovereign state in order to bring about what they deem to be democracy. The rouse that these things are done in order to protect the vested interests of that particular state are an offence to intelligent people. This particular piece of policy is mired by the stigma that it portrays its aims to be selfless acts protecting liberties and freedoms of the world. American isolationism is hardly a new concept; it seems implausible that the nation would do things based on merit without there being a direct economic, political or social consequence to themselves. Nevertheless the irony is that in so doing they are amassing an antipathy against themselves at an alarmingly rapid rate. It is hypocrisy to fault a regime of being brutal and unlawful when you go about forcing your will over other people, whom as far fetched as it sounds were not particularly unhappy with the situation as it was. Deposing an established government does not empower the people it weakens their resolve to demand change themselves. Be it the rights of black people in South Africa or the independence of the Czech Republic these changes are appreciated because, like US democracy, they were naturally established; admittedly at times through attrition, by the indigenous people. In the same way we do not teach people murder is bad by killing someone, or performing a rape to show it is morally wrong, invasion is a form of colonialism, the difference being it comes under the slogan ‘liberation’ it is none the less wrong. If the west were truly concerned with the state of the world in a selfless manor then the ethnic cleansing of Sudan would be halted and yet it continues while we stand at a distance and ‘condemn’ the acts. With no political, social, or economic gain, Sudan would be a financial black hole, one we would all be wary to get involved in. Those are the realities of international intervention, the old status quo of leave it till we can no longer ignore it.

Alas, however, I must catch myself as principally in the world of international politics your powers of persuasion are in proportion to the size of ones army or the sanctions one can impose. Though it may not appear ideal, America plays an important role in the way the world operates. I now can say with a clear conscious that my first task as a politician is to look after the interests of my own people. If a system of reciprocal favours is in place by which helping out a sovereign state would mean reaping the rewards for my own, then I will more than likely pursue that course of action. It would be easy to point out gross miscalculations in US policy at times, two names spring to mind: Saddam Hussein and Pinochet, or perhaps the CIA training of the Taliban, the supporting of Iraqi invasion of Iran, the Iran/Contra affair the list goes on. We must however not disassociate these things from my reasoning of reciprocal favours, as misguided as they may seem in hindsight; at the time they bore benefits to the US.

It is vital that we establish certain political truths, international politics is introverted, and no nation puts another’s interests at heart before their own. Therefore a lot of the anger one feels towards America is factually justified on the surface; but is blind to the self preservation, of which forms the basis of all politics. We can make the world a scapegoat but first ask yourself what Pakistan can do for Pakistan and our answers will come from within, not born from pessimism and despair but hope. In order to move forward we have to start looking within. We have to make a clean start and stop blaming others for the mistakes we make, the paradox is to learn from the past and not live in it.

Balancing the Equation (The case of Iraq)

The war on Iraq has been proved to have been one waged on misdirection and deceit; ironically the strongest condemnation of the invasion has come from within the US and particularly the UK. There is a strong reason for the world to condemn these actions as illegal, that is because they are. There is also a strong reason for the antipathy that The Muslim world has towards America; or then again is there? Hindsight is a strong tool that is why history has so much to teach, it was not only the west that believed that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction, Egypt and Jordon two Muslim countries were just as adamant in denouncing the Iraqi threat.

Let us scrutinize Iraq or more importantly how it came to be in this situation. Saddam was a shrewd political manipulator whom played an important role in the advancement of Iraq and was equally the spearhead of its downfall. The old adage that power corrupts holds no greater bearing in the case of Saddam. Once in power any autocracies main objective is to retain it. The events occurring in neighbouring Iran where the Ayatollah Khomeini had attained power through religious fanaticism was something Saddam, would not let depose him; and thus oppressed it from the onset.

It is common knowledge that the US supported Saddam’s war against Iran, just as it is they provided the weapons and training for the Taliban to fight the Russians, however let us remember that: Pakistan supported the Taliban, Iran supported the Hezbollah, Italians supported the Nazis and the government of Gujarat supported the Hindu riots. Reciprocity I again emphasise is one of the corner stones of international politics. This of course is an extreme cynicism and seems to contradict my chastising of pessimism; however this is the reality of international politics and sovereign advancement. The Muslim world must accept this, it’s a tough neighbourhood and one has to play the game or risk getting left behind. Stop the feeble and petulant complaining. Saddam endured seven years of sanctions; in the process he inadvertently joined the rest of the world in the slaughter of millions of children. The end result is that Saddam made the decision to invade Kuwait; he made the decision to murder five thousand innocent Kurds. As Muslims we come together to condemn the actions of the west as attacks on our people, where were our voices when Saddam invaded Kuwait, a war we all abhorred as much as the West. Where was our condemnation when he slaughtered the innocent Kurds? They were muffled by our own reluctance. We can blame the west as much as we want and there are grounds for some of the blame, but there are also ways around that. The Arab and Muslim world is vast it can amass as a united and extremely influential region. However look at us, Sunni killing Shia; the west need not do anything at all the catalyst of Muslim destruction will come from within. We have suffered not because of the influence of the West but because we choose to limit ourselves, and suffer the worst torment at the hands of our own people.

Tipping the Balance (the case of Palestine)

This region offers perhaps the greatest conundrum facing stability in the Middle East. Again we revert to history to recount the tale of how the dilemma came into being. The Palestinians seeking refuge from the now archaic and declining Ottoman Empire assisted the British and the French in their conquest of the empire and in the end were betrayed by the two allies signing the Balfour agreement with the Jews. Since then the Palestinian people remain a pawn in a political mine field they have been subjugated to the Israeli military machine and become a forgotten cause for the wider world at large. Though they have suffered grave injustices not just to the Israeli’s they have been the victims of thoughtless land repatriation by the international world who appear to act over guilt from the Second World War. They have been disregarded and at times blatantly ignored on the road to peace talks by the USA. Their people are used as cheap labour by the Israeli state while appearing as third rate citizens. Yes there have been great misfortunes loaded onto the shoulders of the Palestinian people.

Regardless of these issues I ask the question when have the Arab nations come together and looked for an effective solution to the problem in Palestine. When have the Arab world helped the Palestinian cause with the exception of 1948, 1967 and a short oil embargo in the 70’s? The Jordanians, as do the Israelis use Palestinian workers as cheap labour to help develop their countries. What have the Palestinian’s Arab brothers ever done for them? Random aid has not helped, they have allowed the Palestinians to live in refugee camps, for as long as the problem is there, they have the support of their people in this one cause. Whenever there is discontent in the Arab countries, the Palestinian card is used, furthering the cycle of hatred. Has there been any constructive leadership or solutions? No. All we hear is the rhetoric, and a statement once a year from the useless Arab League. Palestinians in other Arab countries are treated as 3rd class citizens and are often refused work and other opportunities.

What solutions do we proclaim besides violence and terror? The Palestinian people resolve to suicide bombings; strapping a bomb to ones chest and blowing up a building and killing a few innocent people may feel like a victory to some, but all it does is alienate moderate voices and more importantly the rest of the world. We claim to live in terror and yet resolve to the same tactics that we condemn which leaves both Israeli’s and Palestinians living in perpetual fear.

We must look and see how many a battle has been won without senseless killing, a classic case in point would be Mahatma Gandhi and how he tamed the mighty British Empire. He highlighted the plight of his people and used the media to his advantage. He is a show of how pragmatic dialogue, if believed in, can offer a tangible solution. What the Palestinians and most of the Arab world lacks is good leadership. If we automatically assume that the Jews rule the world and that there will never be a solution, then hey, lets all just go blow ourselves up! Good idea! But we have never been able to come up with practical solutions. There is no renowned literature by Muslims on the Palestinian cause being published in the West, because most of what they write is not appealing, but extremist. The only literature you will find is those written by White Christians, or even liberal Jews deeply disturbed by the ongoings. Let’s take another statistic. In America, 40% of people condemn the Israeli occupation. In Britain it is 80%. In France, Italy, Germany and the Netherlands the no. is over 85%. But we have not been able to sell our case, and we have alienated our allies because of the lack of leadership and the growing extremists. Instead we have not been able to sell our case, and we have alienated our allies because of the lack of leadership and the growing affiliation to extremists. Let me take the opportunity to state this if we are going to blame America, Britain, Israel for the problems in the region we must add our own names to this list as we hold an equal share of the blame.

Correcting the Balance (the case of Afghanistan)

It is a common held belief that you must support your Muslim brother. I agree with this sentiment to a degree; however we must also be able to distinguish between right and wrong. We must not support people due to the virtue of them merely being Muslim. I use an analogy of a family to support my case; a family should be united. However, if the father is in jail, the mother is a prostitute, the son a drug dealer, the sister (the exception) is a hard working student, how would one expect a family like this to be united? Nevertheless the family is tied together by the fact that they share the same religion, thus there is common ground for the hope of unity and reconciliation. The Muslim world is like that family, and until we can sort our governments and our people are working towards progression, together, we can never be united. So then the question begs to be asked was the invasion of Afghanistan right or wrong? We question what affords America the right to invade another country at a whim I offer the following as an explanation.

The Taliban believe in a total Islamic state, a sixth century vision of the Arab world. Under the Taliban books, music and television were outlawed and schools disappeared. How does one expect society to evolve and adapt when stunted in all other forms of expression and free thought. In the Year of 2003, Greece had more books translated into Greek then all the Arab countries combined had books translated to Arabic. Walk into an Arab bookshop and all you see are religious books. Did not the Prophet say to seek education? Sixth and seventh century Muslims were successful not only because they were pious, but also because they were tolerant and had a hunger to learn and advance. The Muslim world is now a far cry from the ancient world where people from the rest of the world flocked to Arab states to learn the mathematics, astronomy and medicine.

Leaving behind our ideals of a medieval grandeur we have to acknowledge that the Taliban were a retrogressive and brutal regime that kept their people oppressed. Since the Taliban came into power there has been an influx of over eight million refugees from Afghanistan in the last six years. There number of refugees has decreased since the invasion. Speaking to Muslims from Afghanistan in Hyde Park’s speakers corner in London, I spoke to many Afghanis who had escaped the Taliban’s reign and often they broke down crying at the though of the state of their country.

Alas the invasion was not done in order to free the people however let us be under no illusions to the fact that the Afghanistan was harbouring terrorists. These were known criminals who had committed violent crimes not only against the West but were wanted in other Arab states as well. The attacks on the embassies in Africa in the mid to late 1990’s and the attack on the USS Cole went widely unpunished. The world did not even have to search for the culprits they took ownership of the bombings themselves. September the eleventh was the step to far. The Taliban had created a blood lust one that would not go away without reprisals. Extremists are to blame for the invasion. The US military presence in the region has always been a sore in the Middle East; the irony is that the actions of the Taliban bought their nemesis to their doorstep and have increased the US presence in the region.

The War on Islam

I had an interesting encounter with someone the other day, which came to the place I was staying and got in a yelling match with me. In Pakistan you don’t win debates by the points you make, the victor is the one with the loudest voice. Since I couldn’t compete in decibel level, I was resigned to the fact that I could not argue with this madman, it was chillingly amusing, yet deeply disturbing. The man threw facts around, which were factually correct, but were of no help to his argument. He was obviously very intelligent and undoubtedly articulate. It was the manner of his speech that troubled me. The yelling, and cursing at the West is common place. When I asked him politely why he brings up historical facts going back more than 500 years, and what he proposes we do about it, he gave me a blank look. I urged him to give me an answer at which point he became violent, calling me a nincompoop and accusing me of being naïve, and to wake up to the war against Islam. The man told me that the whole West, the Jews and Christians are united to destroy you because you say the Kalma, the Muslim declaration that there is only one God. Here is a man who doesn’t even pray, has never lived abroad, but he knows it all.

My friends, there is no war on Islam. Those who have lived in the West know that especially in Europe you no longer have Christian countries. They are largely secular with few interests in religious causes. In fact, more often than not it is the Churches and other religious establishments that call for moderation, e.g. the Iraq war was condemned by not only the Vatican but by the Church of England and other religious bodies. . Even today church groups provide a great amount of aid and assistance to many Muslim countries. America on the other hand is largely populated with evangelical Christians who consider it their divine obligation to convert other faiths into Christianity. They are not only active in the Muslim world, but in India, China and many other Buddhist countries. If they want to preach Christianity, let them do so. Are we so insecure in our faith that we disallow debate and expression of other religions? There is no obligation to convert there are no guns being pointed to our heads. On the streets of London and America you often see groups doing dawaa, trying to convert Christians to Islam, so we as Muslims can do so but are hypocritical that we do not afford the Christians the same opportunity in our lands.

As far as the larger picture is concerned, America does not seek to convert us or destroy us. Muslims in America have more freedom for religious knowledge. They are provided with centres and have far greater chances for debate than they do in their home countries. This is diametrically opposed to many Muslim countries, which shamefully subjugates different faiths. We should look at ourselves first before we question others. It is in Muslim countries where foreigners are killed for being Christian or Jewish. It is in Muslim countries where you hear medieval slogans of converting non-believers to our faith either by the sword or the bomb. It is this sort of close minded bigotry which exists in Muslim countries which have made the fairly open minded public in the West quite hesitant and unsure of what to believe about Muslims.

The American-Pakistan Alliance not all bad

In Pakistan we have many great minds but very few results this is not because of any relationship with America but due to our own faults. Change is not something that merely happens over night on its own we have to want change to achieve it. America was a corrupt and lawless country for over 150 years before it started to emerge in the early 1880’s. It has had its battles with corruption, crime, slavery, and civil rights. But it has progressed, and its progress did not depend on a single individual, but on its people. Those who migrated to the country and were full of optimism that tomorrow would bring a better day. They worked hard, and gave their children the education they never had, and in so doing the country has thrived. It’s a simple concept and we have it in us, just look at the success of the Pakistani people abroad. When we see the current government, there are changes and there is progress, free education, better infrastructure, a crack down on drugs and crime as well as all economic factors looking positive.

We have the option to turn against our own government and the Americans and alienate ourselves from the world as have Iran, Cuba; and remain as a country that had a lot of wasted potential. We can resign to the anti-American sentiment shared by these other countries by focusing on the issues aforementioned in this essay or find pragmatic solutions to our problems. As I pointed out earlier we can either isolate ourselves or we can move on with the times. Our religion and identity are not under threat nor are we.


Supporting our country

As the people of this nation we can choose to focus on the things that have not changed and remain pessimistic or focus on things that have improved. We must either classify General Musharraf as a visionary or an impotent leader; I personally think he is a visionary and question most people deeply on the performance of the government, and they will admit there has been vast improvements. The Government needs to encourage people participation in other things besides government. Institutions like lobby groups, and think tanks help country progress. Keeping the people informed will cut down the conspiracy theorists who feed off the lack of information and widespread paranoia. This is the greatest threat to our country, as these conspiracy theories fuel resentment, ignorance and ultimately extremism. The government cannot win the fight alone and needs to involve the people, especially those who are educated and successful. It is the educated middle class of people who need to take the fight to the conspiracy theorists. Instead of listening to this rhetoric like tamed birds, we need to get a dialogue going with the knowledge that we have and will attain. It is only by doing this that we can overcome the minority voices that spread discontent.

Fighting the extremists

The extremist views are not only destructive to the world at large but they are the largest instability to peace within our own boarders. Terrorist cells and extreme groups flourish only in the plethora of hostility and despair. If we look back at Palestine we see a nation born on anger the youth know nothing more than hating those that they are from birth taught to despise. They remain a people limited in knowledge by those they are subordinate to; and angry over issues that they barely comprehend. And yet they give their lives up to a cause they support by an accident of birth.

As for the extremists they love to mix religion and politics. They claim to be enlightened; but they are blinded by hate and rage. These are not the type of religious people we should aspire to be. The Quran argues for tolerance, and while there should not be a total separation of church and state, there should be limits. While we should follow the laws and punishments set in the Quran, we should also exercise judgement; we have developed since the original texts were written and thus I question the aversion to still decapitate people, chop off hands, and stone to adulterers to death. Should the state dictate my prayers and my relationship with God? Extremist clerics are held in awe and feared by the average Muslim because of their physical appearance and pretence of almost divine knowledge. They suppress minds by preventing people from questioning God because they claim asking questions will bring about serious reprisals. The Quran is a book for all of us, all mankind, and the biggest problem we have in Pakistan is that we choose to adhere to other people’s interpretation of the text. Instead we go to madras’s and have the teachers tell us what to think and how the Quran should apply to our lives. How many of you reading this actually know what they are saying when they utter their prayers? Why not?

The Quran, my friends, is a beautiful book and it is the only reason I believe in God, and it is the reason why Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. Read it, enjoy it, and see how tolerant and loving your God is, and see what he is not. He is not a God of Extremism, who dictates your every move, He is loving and just. As for the Hadeeth, let us be a little wary. Many would label me as a follower of the devil just for saying that, it is clearly not the case. The Hadeeth is not the Quran. The Hadeeth are traditions passed by generation to generation and were only written 250 years after the Prophet passed away. Seventy percent of the Hadeeth that Saheeh Bukhari collected, he disregarded and utilised the few that he felt were reliable. The Hadeeth often paint an intolerant picture, which is diametrically opposed to those you see in the Quran - the word of God. I do not advocate not reading the Hadeeth; on the contrary I support it. So read the hadeeth and if it makes sense, as your gut and heart that God has made will tell you, then follow it, otherwise be wary.

Let us progress and not live in the past as do extremists. Let us take the fight to them, isolate them. Let us debate OUR book OUR religion with them; and not merely rely on them, or anyone for that matter. Let us discourage pessimism and encourage progression.

A Case for Moderation

My friends, we are victims of history, but we are not the only ones that have suffered through imperialism. Our dislike of American imperialism and foreign policy should not affect our support for our fairly successful government. As citizens it is our duty to make a better life for ourselves and for our families. Those who are able should seek to share knowledge and contribute to society by writing, speaking, debating, lobbying and simply encouraging. Each one – Teach one.

In the process of our own growth, we should not cease to arm ourselves with knowledge of the goods and bads of this world. As we grow, we will encounter the extremists and pessimists and all they are is a stumbling block on our path to unity and success. So let’s neutralise this cancer, and move on and build a better Pakistan for all of us. Inshallah.

The entire point of this essay is to encourage productive debate and dialogue, as this is the cornerstone of a healthy society. I hope you will have the courage to do so.

Gibranbham@yahoo.com
Eric_hodges@hotmail.com