Cost of enforced modesty
Pervez Hoodbhoy Published June 19, 2021
The writer is an Islamabad-based physicist and writer.
IMPLEMENTATION of the PTI’s Single National Curriculum has started in Islamabad’s schools and for students the human body is to become a dark mystery, darker than ever before. Religious scholars appointed as members of the SNC Committee are supervising the content of schoolbooks in all subjects including science. In the name of Islamic morality they have warned textbook publishers not to print any diagram or sketch in biology textbooks that show human figures “sans clothes”.
For the teaching of biology this surpasses existing de facto prohibitions on teaching evolution, the foundational principle of biological sciences. Illustrations are crucial to explain the digestive system (with both entrance and exit points) and human reproduction, as well as the mammary gland. Diagrams, sketches and human skeletal forms cannot be draped. Excluding these from schoolbooks reduces the teaching of biology to a farce.
Inhibitions about the human body, of course, have been around for much longer than SNC. It’s just that henceforth there will be still more. I have looked at a few biology textbooks published in past years by the Punjab and Sindh Textbook Boards and could not find meaningful accounts of mammalian organs and processes needed to sustain life on earth.
In one book from 1996 I did find a diagrammatised rabbit. But with essential parts fuzzed out, it is difficult to figure out whether it was male or female or the equipment that rabbits need to reproduce themselves. That someone should think an un-fuzzed diagram of this little animal would titillate students or stimulate promiscuous behaviour stumps me.
When enforced, clerical interpretations of modesty — translated as sharm-o-haya — cause people to suffer grievously. For example, ex-senator Maulana Gul Naseeb Khan, former provincial secretary of the MMA, roundly condemned diagnostic devices that can look inside women’s bodies because, “We think that men could derive sexual pleasure from women’s bodies while conducting ECG or ultrasound”. Claiming that women would lure men under the pretext of medical procedures, the maulana’s party banned ECG and ultrasound for women by male technicians and doctors when in power in KP. Trained females, however, were not to be found.
By inviting mullahs to regulate biology textbooks the PTI government has put Pakistan in reverse gear.
While sharm-o-haya applies to all, females bear the brunt. Culturally, ‘breast’ is a taboo word and so breast cancer cannot easily be called ‘breast cancer’. This makes early detection hugely difficult and accounts for Pakistan’s rate of breast cancer being the highest in South Asia. Most women feel embarrassed in coming forward; only when the pain becomes unbearable and when the cancer metastasizes does a woman finally confide in someone. By that time it is too late. Ovaries? Thousands of Pakistani women die yearly of ovarian and cervical cancer but ‘ovaries’ and ‘cervix’ are words too delicate to ever mention.
With such deep social inhibitions, should women become doctors? This appears an odd question. Presently, about 70 per cent of medical students in Pakistan are female. Our brightest girls get sent to medical college by their parents but mostly to become trophy brides who never practise their profession. Nevertheless, this begs the question: can females become real doctors with their restricted medical knowledge? Would they ever be permitted to study the whole body, including the male anatomy? Or are women doctors only to treat sore throats or become midwives?
Over time the clerically supervised PTI school curriculum will magnify body-related taboos. Even today no one in government dares talk openly about population planning or contraceptives except with bated breath and only after looking over their shoulder. Although Pakistan produces as many people as the state of Israel every two years, yet it abolished the ministry for population planning long ago. It was replaced with some obscure, non-functioning organisation in each province.
Called the Population Welfare Department, the replacement was named to suit our ‘cultural sensitivities’. The name implicitly suggests welfare for Pakistanis is possible irrespective of how many of us there are. PWD websites have fancy graphics but no content because ways to limit conception would violate sharm-o-haya. How the human species propagates appears to be a dark national secret that must be kept under wraps. Presumably, the morals of Pakistani society will be wrecked if we discover how babies are made. Somehow it’s okay to breed like rabbits but not okay to know how rabbits breed.
Denying basic anatomical knowledge keeps minds clean, say our clerics. This could not be more false. Unsated curiosity and sexual repression drove internet pornographic traffic from Pakistan so high that PTA finally blocked porn sites. Until November 2011 internet cafes were principal porn dispensers and these promptly collapsed after the ban, ruining their owners. One hears, however, that paths to proscribed materials have simply shifted elsewhere. Who knows?
Sharm-o-haya makes protecting children from sexual predators much more difficult. Sometime ago, the PTI minister for human rights, Dr Shireen Mazari, declared at the launch of the Child Protection Campaign that ‘Pakistan was ranked as the country with the largest numbers of child pornography viewers’. She suggested that campaigns should be launched at the school level to sensitise students to the menace.
Mazari is, of course, very correct. Her proposal would work far better at protecting children than having child killers and rapists swing from lamp posts, a popular demand. But such educational campaigns require making children aware of basic biological facts so that they can tell between proper and improper behaviour. How can that possibly square with Imran Khan’s and Shafqat Mehmood’s clerically supervised SNC?
The guardians of sharm-o-haya find undraped diagrams shameful. Yet, to protect their own kind, they suppress every scandal that might implicate them. Earlier this week, unchallengeable video evidence emerged of a mufti’s sexual wrongdoing with a madressah lad. While he was stripped of his madressah teaching post after investigation, no cleric suggested Sharia punishment and all religious parties stayed mum.
Saudi Arabia and the GCC countries used to be the world’s most stoutly conservative countries while Pakistan was counted among the more open, relaxed ones. This has changed. Presently, Pakistan is not just in reverse gear, it is hell-bent upon moving backward as fast as possible. The kind of mixed-up, confused and ignorant generations PTI’s curriculum changes will produce in times ahead is absolutely terrifying.
The writer is an Islamabad-based physicist and author.
Published in Dawn, June 19th, 2021
https://www.dawn.com/news/1630231/cost- ... ed-modesty
Influence of Mullahs in Muslim Countries
Lahore police register FIR against Mufti Azizur Rehman for sexually assaulting student
Imran Gabol Published June 17, 2021
Lahore police have registered a case against JUI-F's Mufti Azizur Rehman. — DawnNews TV screenshot
Lahore police have registered a case against Mufti Azizur Rehman after a harrowing video clip showing the cleric allegedly sexually assaulting one of his students was widely shared on social media, it emerged on Thursday.
The case has been registered at the North Cantt police station on the complaint of S* under Section 377 (unnatural offences) and Section 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Pakistan Penal Code.
According to the first information report (FIR) registered on June 17, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, the victim said that he got admission to the Jamia Manzoorul Islamia in 2013.
He said that during the exams, Mufti Rehman had accused him and another student of cheating by getting someone else to sit for the exams. "Over this, I was also banned from giving exams at the Wafaqul Madaris for three years," he said in the complaint.
He said that he pleaded to Mufti Rehman, but the latter was unmoved. But Mufti Rehman said that he might be able to think of something if I engaged in sexual activities and "make him happy", the victim said, adding that he had no choice but to be subjected to sexual assault.
"Mufti Rehman claimed that the ban would be removed and that he would also pass me in the exams. But despite a passage of three years, during which I was assaulted every Friday, he did nothing and started to blackmail me more," S* said.
The victim said he complained to the madrassah's administration but they refused to believe him as Mufti Rehman was an "elder and a pious man" and instead accused him of giving a false statement.
S* said this was when he began recording the abuse and showed it to Wafaqul Madaris al Arabia nazim. "After this Mufti Rehman started threatening me with dire consequences as well as my life," he said.
He said because of audio and video recordings, the administration of the Jamia Manzoorul Islamia removed Mufti Rehman which angered the cleric. He added that he was now being threatened by Mufti Rehman and his sons and asked for action to be taken against them.
The disturbing video, which surfaced a couple of days ago, stirred up a storm on social media as citizens called for action to be taken against the JUI-F leader.
Meanwhile, Mufti Rehman — in a video message that was circulating on social media — claimed his innocence and said that the boy in the video had drugged him due to which he was not in his senses.
He said that if he was "in his senses" how could the boy have made a video using a mobile phone without him knowing. He said that this was a conspiracy to have him removed from the madrassah.
On June 3, the Jamia Manzoorul Islamia had removed Mufti Rehman. The directives, issued by Muhtasim Asadullah Farooq, said that some people from the neighbourhood had visited the madrassah and showed the video of the alleged sexual assault to the administration and to Mufti Rehman's son and asked the latter to leave.
"On the basis of their complaint, and after consulting with the administration, you have been relieved of your duties, " the letter issued by the seminary to Mufti Rehman said.
Meanwhile, Punjab Child Protection and Welfare Bureau (CPWB) Chairperson Sara Ahmed took notice of the video and contacted the victim and his parents, the CPWB said in a statement.
Ahmed termed the abuse as "extremely saddening" and assured that the victim and his family would be provided justice and complete legal cooperation.
Name withheld to protect identity
https://www.dawn.com/news/1629853/lahor ... ng-student
Imran Gabol Published June 17, 2021
Lahore police have registered a case against JUI-F's Mufti Azizur Rehman. — DawnNews TV screenshot
Lahore police have registered a case against Mufti Azizur Rehman after a harrowing video clip showing the cleric allegedly sexually assaulting one of his students was widely shared on social media, it emerged on Thursday.
The case has been registered at the North Cantt police station on the complaint of S* under Section 377 (unnatural offences) and Section 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Pakistan Penal Code.
According to the first information report (FIR) registered on June 17, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, the victim said that he got admission to the Jamia Manzoorul Islamia in 2013.
He said that during the exams, Mufti Rehman had accused him and another student of cheating by getting someone else to sit for the exams. "Over this, I was also banned from giving exams at the Wafaqul Madaris for three years," he said in the complaint.
He said that he pleaded to Mufti Rehman, but the latter was unmoved. But Mufti Rehman said that he might be able to think of something if I engaged in sexual activities and "make him happy", the victim said, adding that he had no choice but to be subjected to sexual assault.
"Mufti Rehman claimed that the ban would be removed and that he would also pass me in the exams. But despite a passage of three years, during which I was assaulted every Friday, he did nothing and started to blackmail me more," S* said.
The victim said he complained to the madrassah's administration but they refused to believe him as Mufti Rehman was an "elder and a pious man" and instead accused him of giving a false statement.
S* said this was when he began recording the abuse and showed it to Wafaqul Madaris al Arabia nazim. "After this Mufti Rehman started threatening me with dire consequences as well as my life," he said.
He said because of audio and video recordings, the administration of the Jamia Manzoorul Islamia removed Mufti Rehman which angered the cleric. He added that he was now being threatened by Mufti Rehman and his sons and asked for action to be taken against them.
The disturbing video, which surfaced a couple of days ago, stirred up a storm on social media as citizens called for action to be taken against the JUI-F leader.
Meanwhile, Mufti Rehman — in a video message that was circulating on social media — claimed his innocence and said that the boy in the video had drugged him due to which he was not in his senses.
He said that if he was "in his senses" how could the boy have made a video using a mobile phone without him knowing. He said that this was a conspiracy to have him removed from the madrassah.
On June 3, the Jamia Manzoorul Islamia had removed Mufti Rehman. The directives, issued by Muhtasim Asadullah Farooq, said that some people from the neighbourhood had visited the madrassah and showed the video of the alleged sexual assault to the administration and to Mufti Rehman's son and asked the latter to leave.
"On the basis of their complaint, and after consulting with the administration, you have been relieved of your duties, " the letter issued by the seminary to Mufti Rehman said.
Meanwhile, Punjab Child Protection and Welfare Bureau (CPWB) Chairperson Sara Ahmed took notice of the video and contacted the victim and his parents, the CPWB said in a statement.
Ahmed termed the abuse as "extremely saddening" and assured that the victim and his family would be provided justice and complete legal cooperation.
Name withheld to protect identity
https://www.dawn.com/news/1629853/lahor ... ng-student
Silent victims
Editorial Published June 20, 2021 - Updated about 19 hours
THE deafening silence of political authorities, including leaders from the religious right, on the Mufti Azizur Rehman case, demonstrates yet again the low priority that is accorded in this country to justice and human rights and dignity.
The fact that a septuagenarian cleric, suspected of sexually molesting a madressah student, is on the run with his whole family and that not a single word of condemnation has been uttered by Maulana Fazlur Rehman who heads the political party to which the alleged abuser reportedly belongs, is simply appalling. What is also beyond comprehension is that the administration at the madressah where the mufti taught thought it best to dismiss him, telling him to pick up his belongings and leave, instead of handing him over to the law. Did his political affiliation play a part in this?
Read: Journalists, activists question silence from religious parties after FIR against Lahore cleric
There are all too many examples of madressah students who have been sexually assaulted or beaten within an inch of their lives. The state seems to have turned a blind eye to these cases and many others like them. For instance, the perpetrators of the Kasur child pornography ring still remain at large, and the real criminals behind the Balochistan University scandal remain unscathed by the law.
Meanwhile, the cries for help are getting louder. According to the latest report by NGO Sahil, at least eight children were abused every day last year, an increase of 4pc from the previous year — but these have just been the reported cases, with social and cultural taboos, or the fear of reprisal, preventing victims or their families from coming forward and reporting a range of abuse — from rape, pornography to sodomy, etc. Besides there is little public awareness of child protection laws and the families of the young victims are reluctant to turn to the police that itself is a product of the same cultural milieu, and not trained to treat such cases with the seriousness and professionalism they merit. The state must wake up.
Published in Dawn, June 20th, 2021
Editorial Published June 20, 2021 - Updated about 19 hours
THE deafening silence of political authorities, including leaders from the religious right, on the Mufti Azizur Rehman case, demonstrates yet again the low priority that is accorded in this country to justice and human rights and dignity.
The fact that a septuagenarian cleric, suspected of sexually molesting a madressah student, is on the run with his whole family and that not a single word of condemnation has been uttered by Maulana Fazlur Rehman who heads the political party to which the alleged abuser reportedly belongs, is simply appalling. What is also beyond comprehension is that the administration at the madressah where the mufti taught thought it best to dismiss him, telling him to pick up his belongings and leave, instead of handing him over to the law. Did his political affiliation play a part in this?
Read: Journalists, activists question silence from religious parties after FIR against Lahore cleric
There are all too many examples of madressah students who have been sexually assaulted or beaten within an inch of their lives. The state seems to have turned a blind eye to these cases and many others like them. For instance, the perpetrators of the Kasur child pornography ring still remain at large, and the real criminals behind the Balochistan University scandal remain unscathed by the law.
Meanwhile, the cries for help are getting louder. According to the latest report by NGO Sahil, at least eight children were abused every day last year, an increase of 4pc from the previous year — but these have just been the reported cases, with social and cultural taboos, or the fear of reprisal, preventing victims or their families from coming forward and reporting a range of abuse — from rape, pornography to sodomy, etc. Besides there is little public awareness of child protection laws and the families of the young victims are reluctant to turn to the police that itself is a product of the same cultural milieu, and not trained to treat such cases with the seriousness and professionalism they merit. The state must wake up.
Published in Dawn, June 20th, 2021
Re: Influence of Mullahs in Muslim Countries
‘Not afraid anymore’: Clashes as Iran protests enter fourth week
AFP Published October 8, 2022 Updated about 8 hours ago 0
Iran’s riot police forces stand in a street in Tehran, Iran, October 3. — Reuters
Schoolgirls chanted slogans, workers went on strike and street clashes erupted across Iran on Saturday, as protests over the death of Mahsa Amini entered the fourth week in defiance of a bloody crackdown.
Anger flared after the 22-year-old Iranian Kurd’s death on September 16, three days after she was arrested in Tehran by the notorious morality police for an alleged breach of the Islamic republic’s strict dress code for women.
Iran said on Friday an investigation found Amini had died of a longstanding illness rather than “blows” to the head, despite her family reportedly saying she had previously been healthy.
But the protests continued on Saturday even as ultra-conservative President Ebrahim Raisi posed for a group photograph with students at Tehran’s all-female Al Zahra University to mark the new academic year.
Young women on the same campus were seen shouting “death to the oppressor”, said the Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights (IHR).
In Amini’s hometown Saqez, in the western province of Kurdistan, schoolgirls were heard chanting “woman, life, freedom” and seen marching down a street swinging headscarves over their heads, in videos the Hengaw rights group said were recorded on Saturday.
In another video it shared, a group of girls could be heard chanting the same phrase — the catchcry of the protests — as they entered a school in Sanandaj, the capital of Kurdistan province.
Gruesome videos were widely shared on Twitter of a man who appeared to have been killed while sitting at the wheel of his car in Sanandaj, where shots had been heard in other footage.
Despite internet restrictions designed to impede gatherings and prevent images of the crackdown from getting out, protesters have adopted new tactics to get their message across.
“We are not afraid anymore. We will fight,” said a large banner placed on an overpass of the Modares highway that cuts through central Tehran, according to online images verified by AFP.
‘Widespread strikes’
In another video, a man is seen altering the wording of a large government billboard on the same highway from “The police are the servants of the people” to “The police are the murderers of the people”.
Hengaw, a Norway-based Kurdish rights group, said “widespread strikes” were taking place in Saqez, Sanandaj and Divandarreh, in Kurdistan province, as well as Mahabad in West Azerbaijan province.
The 1500tasvir social media channel said there were protests in the southern city of Shiraz, while the London-based Iran Wire news website said students also skipped class to demonstrate in Isfahan and Tabriz.
A verified video was shared by 1500tasvir of a demonstration in Karaj, west of Tehran, as well as a large roadside gathering in the southern city of Kerman.
AFP was unable to immediately verify other footage from 1500tasvir, which monitors violations in the Islamic republic.
IHR says at least 92 protesters have been killed in the crackdown, which has fuelled tensions between Iran and the West, especially its arch-enemy the United States.
Raisi — who in July called for the mobilisation of all state institutions to enforce hijab rules — appealed for unity.
“Despite all the efforts of ill-wishers, the strong and hardworking people of Islamic Iran will overcome the problems ahead with unity and cohesion,” he was quoted as saying Saturday on the presidency’s website.
Arbitrary detentions
Iran has repeatedly accused outside forces of stirring up the protests, and last week announced that nine foreign nationals — including from France, Germany, Italy, Poland and the Netherlands — had been arrested.
On Friday, the French government advised its nationals visiting Iran to “leave the country as soon as possible”, citing the risk of arbitrary detention.
The Dutch government advised its citizens to avoid travelling to Iran or to leave when they can do so safely.
“In many towns in the country there may be demonstrations which can turn violent,” it said.
“The police sometimes act harshly … Iranian authorities can also arbitrarily detain people with a foreign nationality.”
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a British-Iranian charity worker who was held in Tehran for six years until her release in March, called on the UK government to act over Iran’s rights abuses.
“I want the [UK government] to observe what is happening, not to turn a blind eye. I want them to protect us. We cannot be indifferent about what is happening in Iran,” she told Sky News.
“And if we talk about protecting the rights of our citizens, we have to do something about it. And I think we have to hold Iran accountable. “
https://www.dawn.com/news/1714104/not-a ... ourth-week
AFP Published October 8, 2022 Updated about 8 hours ago 0
Iran’s riot police forces stand in a street in Tehran, Iran, October 3. — Reuters
Schoolgirls chanted slogans, workers went on strike and street clashes erupted across Iran on Saturday, as protests over the death of Mahsa Amini entered the fourth week in defiance of a bloody crackdown.
Anger flared after the 22-year-old Iranian Kurd’s death on September 16, three days after she was arrested in Tehran by the notorious morality police for an alleged breach of the Islamic republic’s strict dress code for women.
Iran said on Friday an investigation found Amini had died of a longstanding illness rather than “blows” to the head, despite her family reportedly saying she had previously been healthy.
But the protests continued on Saturday even as ultra-conservative President Ebrahim Raisi posed for a group photograph with students at Tehran’s all-female Al Zahra University to mark the new academic year.
Young women on the same campus were seen shouting “death to the oppressor”, said the Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights (IHR).
In Amini’s hometown Saqez, in the western province of Kurdistan, schoolgirls were heard chanting “woman, life, freedom” and seen marching down a street swinging headscarves over their heads, in videos the Hengaw rights group said were recorded on Saturday.
In another video it shared, a group of girls could be heard chanting the same phrase — the catchcry of the protests — as they entered a school in Sanandaj, the capital of Kurdistan province.
Gruesome videos were widely shared on Twitter of a man who appeared to have been killed while sitting at the wheel of his car in Sanandaj, where shots had been heard in other footage.
Despite internet restrictions designed to impede gatherings and prevent images of the crackdown from getting out, protesters have adopted new tactics to get their message across.
“We are not afraid anymore. We will fight,” said a large banner placed on an overpass of the Modares highway that cuts through central Tehran, according to online images verified by AFP.
‘Widespread strikes’
In another video, a man is seen altering the wording of a large government billboard on the same highway from “The police are the servants of the people” to “The police are the murderers of the people”.
Hengaw, a Norway-based Kurdish rights group, said “widespread strikes” were taking place in Saqez, Sanandaj and Divandarreh, in Kurdistan province, as well as Mahabad in West Azerbaijan province.
The 1500tasvir social media channel said there were protests in the southern city of Shiraz, while the London-based Iran Wire news website said students also skipped class to demonstrate in Isfahan and Tabriz.
A verified video was shared by 1500tasvir of a demonstration in Karaj, west of Tehran, as well as a large roadside gathering in the southern city of Kerman.
AFP was unable to immediately verify other footage from 1500tasvir, which monitors violations in the Islamic republic.
IHR says at least 92 protesters have been killed in the crackdown, which has fuelled tensions between Iran and the West, especially its arch-enemy the United States.
Raisi — who in July called for the mobilisation of all state institutions to enforce hijab rules — appealed for unity.
“Despite all the efforts of ill-wishers, the strong and hardworking people of Islamic Iran will overcome the problems ahead with unity and cohesion,” he was quoted as saying Saturday on the presidency’s website.
Arbitrary detentions
Iran has repeatedly accused outside forces of stirring up the protests, and last week announced that nine foreign nationals — including from France, Germany, Italy, Poland and the Netherlands — had been arrested.
On Friday, the French government advised its nationals visiting Iran to “leave the country as soon as possible”, citing the risk of arbitrary detention.
The Dutch government advised its citizens to avoid travelling to Iran or to leave when they can do so safely.
“In many towns in the country there may be demonstrations which can turn violent,” it said.
“The police sometimes act harshly … Iranian authorities can also arbitrarily detain people with a foreign nationality.”
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a British-Iranian charity worker who was held in Tehran for six years until her release in March, called on the UK government to act over Iran’s rights abuses.
“I want the [UK government] to observe what is happening, not to turn a blind eye. I want them to protect us. We cannot be indifferent about what is happening in Iran,” she told Sky News.
“And if we talk about protecting the rights of our citizens, we have to do something about it. And I think we have to hold Iran accountable. “
https://www.dawn.com/news/1714104/not-a ... ourth-week
Re: Influence of Mullahs in Muslim Countries
Muslims aren’t this way elsewhere
Pervez Hoodbhoy Published April 22, 2023
The writer is an Islamabad-based physicist and writer.
IF even the Chinese are not safe here in Pakistan, who is?
Because of CPEC and Pakistan’s national interest, the Chinese are the most privileged and protected of all foreigners. Multiple layers of police and specially created army units keep them from harm’s way. Also, they are advised to keep a low profile and minimise contacts with locals, whether in Islamabad or Karachi or anywhere in Balochistan.
But, as this week’s events showed, even these precautions could not protect the Chinese from maddened, religiously charged mobs.
Work at the Dasu hydropower project stopped after a supervisor objected to long prayer breaks taken by workers. For the locals, this was blasphemy. Whisked away by helicopter to a lockup in Abbottabad, this man was luckier than Priyantha Kumara, the Sri Lankan manager of a Sialkot factory. Also accused of blasphemy, he was tortured to death and his corpse burnt by his workers.
Afghanistan excluded, such mediaeval age horrors are unknown in other Muslim-majority countries. Nor is blasphemy busting a national preoccupation elsewhere. Apart from dedicated mountaineers, who in his right mind would want to vacation in a country where the population is ready to burst into flames at the slightest provocation?
Elsewhere, tourists of all nationalities and religions are eagerly solicited and welcomed. The souks of Morocco and Egypt bustle with Americans, Europeans, Russians and Israelis, while Indonesia and Malaysia are popular destinations for Australians. Although UAE is formally under Sharia law, its relaxed social mores encourage people from everywhere to enjoy Dubai’s wonders.
Raging lynch mobs are common in Pakistan but unusual in other Muslim countries.
Pakistan is different. Scarcely any foreigner — white, Chinese or African — is visible on the streets or in the bazaars. Enrolment of foreign students in our universities is near zero. Major airports in Pakistan, constructed at enormous cost, are economically unsustainable for want of traffic. They have barely a handful of international flights daily with most passengers being Pakistani workers or expats.
Adding to the general perception of Pakistan as a dangerous place, earlier this week, Sweden announced indefinite closure of its embassy. Not far from it is Denmark’s embassy, car-bombed in 2008. Two other European embassies are said to have also quietly shut down or restricted their operations. Even in normal times, diplomats in Islamabad stay largely within the Red Zone, making only an occasional foray for vacations up north.
We are exceptional in other ways too. Lest memories fade, let’s recall that not only did Osama bin Laden find shelter in Pakistan, he was also hugely popular. According to the 2006 Pew Global Survey, the percentage of Pakistanis who saw bin Laden as a world leader grew from 45 per cent in 2003 to 51pc in 2005. In contrast, an identical questionnaire in Morocco, Turkey, and Lebanon showed his popularity dropping by 20 points.
What makes Pakistan so unique and different from other Muslim countries? To this end, I will make three observations.
First, those who run Pakistan have long assumed that religion alone can stick together Pakistan’s various regions. Maximum amounts of this epoxy must therefore be injected everywhere possible, particularly in education. Although the breakup of 1971 proved plentifully that the glue wasn’t strong enough, they chose to draw exactly the opposite conclusion. To quote Gen Ziaul Haq (1981), “Take the Judaism out of Israel and it will fall like a house of cards. Take religion out of Pakistan and make it a secular state, it would collapse.”
Elsewhere, one does not see such nervousness. Turkey? Egypt? Iran? Indonesia? Morocco? Being historically formed nation states, they are comfortable with Islam and do not have existential worries. Their national narratives are free from apocalyptic scenarios of disintegration and destruction.
Second, starting in the 1980s, Pakistan’s generals and clerics became symbiotically linked via the Kashmir jihad. Their so-called military-mullah alliance (MMA) created madressahs that became jihad factories. These eventually spun out of control. The 2007 Lal Masjid insurrection turned Islamabad into a war zone, leaving hundreds dead. It showed how impotent the state had become when confronted by the forces it had nurtured.
That impotence is glaringly evident today as well. Even in heavily policed Islamabad, it is estimated that two out of three mosques and madressahs are built on encroached land. Civic authorities stand helpless before this anarchy, unable to demolish hastily constructed structures. Government attempts to have the same prayer time for all mosques in Islamabad also foundered. Madressah reform is dead in the water. Instead, now that the Single National Curriculum is being implemented, regular schools have been turned into madressahs.
Compare this helplessness with Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran, or elsewhere. These states tightly regulate where mosques can be built. Even the design and architecture — pleasing aesthetics being mandatory — is specified. More importantly, they spell out what can be said or not said during Friday sermons. This limits hate speech. Hence, there are no lynch mobs and no Mashal Khans or Priyantha Kumaras.
Third, the purist fantasy of a theological state (specifically those of Ziaul Haq’s Nizam-i-Mustafa or Imran Khan’s Riyasat-i-Madina) is very much alive in Pakistan. Why demagogues can profitably use such slogans is easy to see. In a country that is deeply unequal, corrupt and plagued by huge class asymmetry, people yearn for an unblemished past when everything was perfect.
But note! The leaders of autocratic and authoritarian countries like Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco, or Turkey are not peddling hype of some imagined past. Instead, Prince Mohammed bin Salman has vowed to transform the hardline kingdom of Saudi Arabia into an open society that empowers citizens and lures investors. While Recep Erdogan may privately ache for restoration of the caliphate abolished by Ataturk in 1924, only 8pc of his supporters want this.
For stability and prosperity, Pakistan will have to shed its illusions and become a normal country. This means that its diverse peoples must be held together consensually through shared needs and interdependence, not through some ideological diktat. The hyper religiosity promoted through state institutions and the toxic education in our schools is not getting us admiration anywhere. Instead, it is producing a wild, uncontrollable population. Even our friends now fear us.
The writer is an Islamabad-based physicist and writer.
Published in Dawn, April 22nd, 2023
https://www.dawn.com/news/1748962/musli ... -elsewhere
Pervez Hoodbhoy Published April 22, 2023
The writer is an Islamabad-based physicist and writer.
IF even the Chinese are not safe here in Pakistan, who is?
Because of CPEC and Pakistan’s national interest, the Chinese are the most privileged and protected of all foreigners. Multiple layers of police and specially created army units keep them from harm’s way. Also, they are advised to keep a low profile and minimise contacts with locals, whether in Islamabad or Karachi or anywhere in Balochistan.
But, as this week’s events showed, even these precautions could not protect the Chinese from maddened, religiously charged mobs.
Work at the Dasu hydropower project stopped after a supervisor objected to long prayer breaks taken by workers. For the locals, this was blasphemy. Whisked away by helicopter to a lockup in Abbottabad, this man was luckier than Priyantha Kumara, the Sri Lankan manager of a Sialkot factory. Also accused of blasphemy, he was tortured to death and his corpse burnt by his workers.
Afghanistan excluded, such mediaeval age horrors are unknown in other Muslim-majority countries. Nor is blasphemy busting a national preoccupation elsewhere. Apart from dedicated mountaineers, who in his right mind would want to vacation in a country where the population is ready to burst into flames at the slightest provocation?
Elsewhere, tourists of all nationalities and religions are eagerly solicited and welcomed. The souks of Morocco and Egypt bustle with Americans, Europeans, Russians and Israelis, while Indonesia and Malaysia are popular destinations for Australians. Although UAE is formally under Sharia law, its relaxed social mores encourage people from everywhere to enjoy Dubai’s wonders.
Raging lynch mobs are common in Pakistan but unusual in other Muslim countries.
Pakistan is different. Scarcely any foreigner — white, Chinese or African — is visible on the streets or in the bazaars. Enrolment of foreign students in our universities is near zero. Major airports in Pakistan, constructed at enormous cost, are economically unsustainable for want of traffic. They have barely a handful of international flights daily with most passengers being Pakistani workers or expats.
Adding to the general perception of Pakistan as a dangerous place, earlier this week, Sweden announced indefinite closure of its embassy. Not far from it is Denmark’s embassy, car-bombed in 2008. Two other European embassies are said to have also quietly shut down or restricted their operations. Even in normal times, diplomats in Islamabad stay largely within the Red Zone, making only an occasional foray for vacations up north.
We are exceptional in other ways too. Lest memories fade, let’s recall that not only did Osama bin Laden find shelter in Pakistan, he was also hugely popular. According to the 2006 Pew Global Survey, the percentage of Pakistanis who saw bin Laden as a world leader grew from 45 per cent in 2003 to 51pc in 2005. In contrast, an identical questionnaire in Morocco, Turkey, and Lebanon showed his popularity dropping by 20 points.
What makes Pakistan so unique and different from other Muslim countries? To this end, I will make three observations.
First, those who run Pakistan have long assumed that religion alone can stick together Pakistan’s various regions. Maximum amounts of this epoxy must therefore be injected everywhere possible, particularly in education. Although the breakup of 1971 proved plentifully that the glue wasn’t strong enough, they chose to draw exactly the opposite conclusion. To quote Gen Ziaul Haq (1981), “Take the Judaism out of Israel and it will fall like a house of cards. Take religion out of Pakistan and make it a secular state, it would collapse.”
Elsewhere, one does not see such nervousness. Turkey? Egypt? Iran? Indonesia? Morocco? Being historically formed nation states, they are comfortable with Islam and do not have existential worries. Their national narratives are free from apocalyptic scenarios of disintegration and destruction.
Second, starting in the 1980s, Pakistan’s generals and clerics became symbiotically linked via the Kashmir jihad. Their so-called military-mullah alliance (MMA) created madressahs that became jihad factories. These eventually spun out of control. The 2007 Lal Masjid insurrection turned Islamabad into a war zone, leaving hundreds dead. It showed how impotent the state had become when confronted by the forces it had nurtured.
That impotence is glaringly evident today as well. Even in heavily policed Islamabad, it is estimated that two out of three mosques and madressahs are built on encroached land. Civic authorities stand helpless before this anarchy, unable to demolish hastily constructed structures. Government attempts to have the same prayer time for all mosques in Islamabad also foundered. Madressah reform is dead in the water. Instead, now that the Single National Curriculum is being implemented, regular schools have been turned into madressahs.
Compare this helplessness with Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran, or elsewhere. These states tightly regulate where mosques can be built. Even the design and architecture — pleasing aesthetics being mandatory — is specified. More importantly, they spell out what can be said or not said during Friday sermons. This limits hate speech. Hence, there are no lynch mobs and no Mashal Khans or Priyantha Kumaras.
Third, the purist fantasy of a theological state (specifically those of Ziaul Haq’s Nizam-i-Mustafa or Imran Khan’s Riyasat-i-Madina) is very much alive in Pakistan. Why demagogues can profitably use such slogans is easy to see. In a country that is deeply unequal, corrupt and plagued by huge class asymmetry, people yearn for an unblemished past when everything was perfect.
But note! The leaders of autocratic and authoritarian countries like Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco, or Turkey are not peddling hype of some imagined past. Instead, Prince Mohammed bin Salman has vowed to transform the hardline kingdom of Saudi Arabia into an open society that empowers citizens and lures investors. While Recep Erdogan may privately ache for restoration of the caliphate abolished by Ataturk in 1924, only 8pc of his supporters want this.
For stability and prosperity, Pakistan will have to shed its illusions and become a normal country. This means that its diverse peoples must be held together consensually through shared needs and interdependence, not through some ideological diktat. The hyper religiosity promoted through state institutions and the toxic education in our schools is not getting us admiration anywhere. Instead, it is producing a wild, uncontrollable population. Even our friends now fear us.
The writer is an Islamabad-based physicist and writer.
Published in Dawn, April 22nd, 2023
https://www.dawn.com/news/1748962/musli ... -elsewhere
Re: Influence of Mullahs in Muslim Countries
Drama outside Lal Masjid brings back painful memories
Kalbe Ali Published June 22, 2023 Updated 12 minutes
Seminary students beat up a policewoman during their protest on Jinnah Avenue in Islamabad on Wednesday.
ISLAMABAD: Lal Masjid’s Maulana Abdul Aziz dodged arrest on Wednesday after his guards put up resistance to the police party when he came out of the mosque after leading Zuhr prayers despite a ban on him from the authorities.
Soon after, female students of Jamia Hafsa blocked several roads, including Jinnah Avenue and the bridge near Kulsoom Plaza, to protest against the attempted arrest of the cleric.
However, confusion and lack of clarity persisted over the entire episode as statements and versions from both the police and Lal Masjid failed to answer several questions.
Situated at the centre of the capital city, Lal Masjid came to prominence when the then military ruler Gen Pervez Musharraf carried out a full-fledged military operation in July 2007.
Talking to Dawn, a senior official of the capital administration acknowledged that a team of Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) had gone to Lal Masjid to talk to the Maulana and ask him to present himself for clearing certain queries.
Maulana Abdul Aziz evades arrest
Among the queries was his re-emergence as khateeb (prayer leader) in Lal Masjid despite the fact that he had retired and was replaced and attempts to take control over the adjoining plot of the former children library as well as other matters.
However, the official was not clear how Maulana Abdul Aziz reached Jamia Hafsa in G-7 and why the CTD teams could not stop him.
Meanwhile, on his part, Maulana Abdul Aziz floated his video statement on social media, in which he explained how some official vehicles came to arrest him as soon as he left Lal Masjid after leading Zuhr prayers.
“Two CTD vehicles chased me and stopped my car and then several personnel came out and tried to arrest me; they fired at us, which led to a fight. I got injured; you can see my car but my gun failed to fire,” Maulana Aziz said, adding that four to five CTD personnel got hold of him and pinned him down.
“I was injured but with the help of divine strength I got hold of the gun of one of the personnel and started firing. In the meantime, a large number of people gathered, which gave me an opportunity to escape,” Maulana said.
He said despite being injured, he was able to reach Jamia Hafsa.
A footage showed his car parked on Kulsoom Plaza bridge on 7th Avenue with bullet holes on the windscreen.
Following the incident, fiery speeches were made by Umme Hasaan, wife of Maulana Abdul Aziz.
Later in a video message, Umme Hasaan said the Maulana fired several rounds at the CTD team and there was crossfire. He was pinned down by the CTD officials after his AK-47 ran out of bullets. However, he was able to break free and with the help of the area people, reached Jamia Hafsa in G-7.
In her video message, she even sought help from the proscribed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), asking them not to stay quiet.
On the other hand, Jamia Hafsa students blocked roads, including Jinnah Avenue, and staged protests. Senior officials of Islamabad police made several attempts to talk them out of their protests.
During the protest, the seminary students also beat female constables with sticks. However, by evening all roads were cleared.
The police did not arrest any protester, but lodged FIRs late Wednesday night against three guards of Maulana Abdul Aziz who had been arrested by the CTD.
Talking to Dawn, a senior official of the capital police said all shots fired at the Maulana’s car were fired from inside by the occupant of the vehicle.
Published in Dawn, June 22nd, 2023
https://www.dawn.com/news/1761047/drama ... l-memories
Kalbe Ali Published June 22, 2023 Updated 12 minutes
Seminary students beat up a policewoman during their protest on Jinnah Avenue in Islamabad on Wednesday.
ISLAMABAD: Lal Masjid’s Maulana Abdul Aziz dodged arrest on Wednesday after his guards put up resistance to the police party when he came out of the mosque after leading Zuhr prayers despite a ban on him from the authorities.
Soon after, female students of Jamia Hafsa blocked several roads, including Jinnah Avenue and the bridge near Kulsoom Plaza, to protest against the attempted arrest of the cleric.
However, confusion and lack of clarity persisted over the entire episode as statements and versions from both the police and Lal Masjid failed to answer several questions.
Situated at the centre of the capital city, Lal Masjid came to prominence when the then military ruler Gen Pervez Musharraf carried out a full-fledged military operation in July 2007.
Talking to Dawn, a senior official of the capital administration acknowledged that a team of Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) had gone to Lal Masjid to talk to the Maulana and ask him to present himself for clearing certain queries.
Maulana Abdul Aziz evades arrest
Among the queries was his re-emergence as khateeb (prayer leader) in Lal Masjid despite the fact that he had retired and was replaced and attempts to take control over the adjoining plot of the former children library as well as other matters.
However, the official was not clear how Maulana Abdul Aziz reached Jamia Hafsa in G-7 and why the CTD teams could not stop him.
Meanwhile, on his part, Maulana Abdul Aziz floated his video statement on social media, in which he explained how some official vehicles came to arrest him as soon as he left Lal Masjid after leading Zuhr prayers.
“Two CTD vehicles chased me and stopped my car and then several personnel came out and tried to arrest me; they fired at us, which led to a fight. I got injured; you can see my car but my gun failed to fire,” Maulana Aziz said, adding that four to five CTD personnel got hold of him and pinned him down.
“I was injured but with the help of divine strength I got hold of the gun of one of the personnel and started firing. In the meantime, a large number of people gathered, which gave me an opportunity to escape,” Maulana said.
He said despite being injured, he was able to reach Jamia Hafsa.
A footage showed his car parked on Kulsoom Plaza bridge on 7th Avenue with bullet holes on the windscreen.
Following the incident, fiery speeches were made by Umme Hasaan, wife of Maulana Abdul Aziz.
Later in a video message, Umme Hasaan said the Maulana fired several rounds at the CTD team and there was crossfire. He was pinned down by the CTD officials after his AK-47 ran out of bullets. However, he was able to break free and with the help of the area people, reached Jamia Hafsa in G-7.
In her video message, she even sought help from the proscribed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), asking them not to stay quiet.
On the other hand, Jamia Hafsa students blocked roads, including Jinnah Avenue, and staged protests. Senior officials of Islamabad police made several attempts to talk them out of their protests.
During the protest, the seminary students also beat female constables with sticks. However, by evening all roads were cleared.
The police did not arrest any protester, but lodged FIRs late Wednesday night against three guards of Maulana Abdul Aziz who had been arrested by the CTD.
Talking to Dawn, a senior official of the capital police said all shots fired at the Maulana’s car were fired from inside by the occupant of the vehicle.
Published in Dawn, June 22nd, 2023
https://www.dawn.com/news/1761047/drama ... l-memories