The Express Tribune Magazine - January 15

JANUARY 15-21 2012

The Future of Pakistan Dr Stephen Cohen, one of the world’s foremost experts on Pakistan, talks about his predictions for the future of the country

JANUARY 15-21 2012

Cover Story 18 The Future of Pakistan Stephen P Cohen, one of the world’s foremost experts on Pakistan, talks about India, the army and Islamic parties

Feature 26 Talkin’ about a Revolution Is a Pakistani Spring on the cards?

36 United in Sorrow Muharram rituals highlight Pakistan’s rich traditions of interfaith harmony

18 Comment 34 Ready, Willing and Able Only when we let go of our fatalistic thinking, can we change our lives

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Regulars 6 People & Parties: Out and about with Pakistan’s beautiful people 38 Reviews: What’s new in films 40 Ten Things I Hate About: Indian Soaps

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Magazine Editor: Zarrar Khuhro, Senior Sub-Editor: Batool Zehra, Sub-Editors: Ameer Hamza and Dilaira Mondegarian.

Creative Team: Amna Iqbal, Jamal Khurshid, Essa Malik, Anam Haleem, Tariq W Alvi, S Asif Ali, Sukayna Sadik.

Publisher: Bilal A Lakhani. Executive Editor: Muhammad Ziauddin. Editor: Kamal Siddiqi.

For feedback and submissions: magazine@tribune.com.pk

PEOPLE & PARTIES

Amna Kardar Khadija and Ubaid

Noor and Faria

Insignia launch their MM Alam Store in Lahore

Asma

Ahmed and Anum Jalal and Natasha

Haleemah

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Mehek and Alina

Aliha and Asma

Mehak and Maha Amna and Saira

PHOTOS COURTESY J & S

Fatima and Farooq

Nabiha

Saim and Babloo

Maha, Maida, Aiman and Hanna

Hira

Atif and Noman

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JANUARY 15-21 2012

PEOPLE & PARTIES

Saim Ali exhibits his latest collection in Dubai

Mona Mariam Mehwish Afzal

Rekha Singhal and Saim Ali

Naushaba Khan and Mehnaz

10 JANUARY 15-21 2012

Tahira Hassan and Ayesha Perrara

Shaista Qureshi and Omar Mansoor

PHOTOS COURTESY SAVVY PR

Zarine Mazhar and Ayesha Butt

JANUARY 15-21 2012

PEOPLE & PARTIES

Saba launches La Chantal at the Designers in Karachi

PHOTOS COURTESY SAVVY PR AND EVENTS

Asim Jofa, Saba and Gul

Talha and Sadia Nawabi

Nazish, Nabiha, Fawad and a guest

Zeba, Amir and Yousaf Bashir

12

Salwa and Bisma JANUARY 15-21 2012

Laiba, Aleena and Murtaza

Ayesha Omar

Afshan, Saneeya and Irfan

JANUARY 15-21 2012

PEOPLE & PARTIES

Haider and Zona ayan

a and M Mahnoor, Alm

Wafa and Sahar

Sophiya Khan and Babloo

Uzma

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Fia and Qasim JANUARY 15-21 2012

Natasha and Bilal Mukhtar

Gul and Naveed

PHOTOS COURTESY BILAL MUKHTAR EVENTS & PR

Cafe Acacia launches at Marvel Hotel in Lahore

JANUARY 15-21 2012

PEOPLE & PARTIES

Tony and Bindya

Sarah

Sabina Pasha and Bilal

Bilal, Waqas and Tanveeer

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Amina Saeed

Hamza Tarar

Danyal, Sadia, Farhad and Lubna

Amna Ilyas and Xille

JANUARY 15-21 2012

COVER STORY

The Futu e

BY MALIK SIRAJ AKBAR

f Pakistan

Dr Stephen P Cohen, a Senior Fellow at the Washington DC-based think tank the Brookings Institution, is considered as the ‘dean of the Pakistan experts’. He is known as one of the world’s most trusted authorities on the Pakistani military and its relationship with the civilian governments.

Author of Pakistan Army and the Idea of Pakistan, Dr Cohen recent-

ly edited a new book called The Future of Pakistan. The 325-page book focuses on a number of challenges Pakistan currently faces. Here

are excerpts from a conversation with Dr Cohen about the predictions the book makes about Pakistan’s future.

Some of the best experts on Pakistan contribute to your book The Future of Pakistan. Why did you choose this title?

The book does not look at yesterday or today, but the day after tomor-

row by examining the factors and variables which will influence the future of Pakistan. I became more concerned after publishing

my 2004 book, The Idea of Pakistan, as many of its more pessimistic judgments were coming true. So, I invited some of the best scholars on the subject to share their ideas. All of them expressed con-

cern about the existing situation. Most seemed to agree, however, that Pakistan would not experience major transformation in the next five to seven years. We did not try to look beyond that.

In my chapter, I paid special attention to the decline of the Pak-

istani state. The more I looked, the more pessimistic I became.

You say you did not want to offend your Pakistani friends while writing this book but you also insist that a hurtful truth is better than a pleasant lie. What are these hurtful truths about

18 JANUARY 15-21 2012

Pakistan that you think need to be told now?

One was that General Pervez Musharraf fooled himself and he fooled everyone else. He lacked toughness, he tried to please everyone. He was not capable of leading Pakistan’s liberal transformation, although he personally held a liberal vision of the future. Some Pakistanis and many Americans thought that

Musharraf was the last hope for Pakistan. I disagree, there are a

lot of good Pakistanis around, both in the military and outside of it. However,the army can’t govern the country effectively but it

won’t let others govern it either. This is the governance dilemma.

Pakistan is stuck between being an outright military dictatorship and a stable democracy. Neither are likely, and an even less likely

The army can’t govern the country effectively but it won’t let others govern it either. This is the governance dilemma. Pakistan is stuck between being an outright military dictatorship and a stable democracy.

Is Pakistan on the verge of collapse?

No, it is not going to collapse. The military will ensure that the

state will not collapse. It is not a country in need of critical support for its survival but it may yet happen some day, especially if the economy collapses.

Pakistan has to make a breakthrough and become a South

Asian country. It should join India in a number of cooperative

ventures while protecting its sovereignty against foreign interests and intrusions.

The Indians tend to be bullying when it comes to their neigh-

bours, but Pakistanis are capable of defending their interests.

Many Indians are ready for a change now. India sees itself as a major rising Asian state and Pakistan is a drag on it.

Yet, because of nuclearisation India can’t conceive of finishing

off Pakistan. The only realistic option for India is cooperation.

The Indians tend to be bullying when it comes to their neighbours, but Pakistanis are capable of defending their interests. Many Indians are ready for a change now. India sees itself as a major rising Asian state and Pakistan is a drag on it. future would be a radical transformation and the rise of Islamists or a breakaway movement led by the Baloch or other separatist groups. We did not see this coming soon, yet with the obvious

breakdown of law and order, the decline of the economy, as well as a dysfunctional civilian-military relationship — change seems to be in the wind — but few of us can be precise about what that change will be. Pakistan is muddling through, but change and transformation are coming, I just don’t know when or how.

Weakness in governance, education, and the absence of land

reform made Pakistan a victim of contemporary globalisation. It doesn’t make much that anyone wants to buy, and it is cut off

from its natural regional trading partners. Yet, the negative aspects of Islamist globalisation have hit Pakistan hard. Some of the weirdest ideas in the Islamic world have found rich soil in

Pakistan, and the country is regarded as an epicentre of terror-

ism. Pakistan, which was once held up as the most moderate of the Islamic states, seems to be embracing extremists and their dysfunctional violent ideas.

JANUARY 15-21 2012

COVER STORY Islamabad’s decision to grant India the most favoured nation

The Pakistanis, particularly the military, have a hard time

(MFN) status offers an opportunity to both countries; will it lead

looking around for role models. Turkey, Indonesia or Malaysia

cannot live with each other and they cannot live without each

political role model for you is India which is also a diverse South

to a peace process? I don’t know, but their dilemma is that they

other. They need to cooperate along several dimensions, there is no military solution for the problems each has with the other.

Why do you call Pakistan a major foreign policy headache for the United States?

In the book I quote an American who said we assumed that with

all our aid and alliances we believed that Pakistan would emerge

may not be the perfect role models for Pakistan. Perhaps the best Asian state, but now with a stable political order and growing

economic power. In India, the military has a legitimate role but still remains under the government’s control.

It is the responsibility of the Pakistani civilian government to

find a legitimate role for the Pakistani army, and the army must help in that search, the present arrangement is not working.

as an independent democratic state. However, it turned out that

You say you don’t know where Pakistan is heading to but once it gets there you will explain why it was inevitable.

has emerged as that kind of country.

I quoted a former US ambassador to the Soviet Union who said, “I

India, which did not get our military assistance and partnership,

It is the responsibility of the Pakistani civilian government to find a legitimate role for the Pakistani army, and the army must help in that search, the present arrangement is not working.

don’t know what is going to happen to the Soviet Union but when it does happen I will tell you exactly why it was inevitable.” So,

looking ahead at Pakistan’s future, we don’t know what is going

to happen to Pakistan but we know something alarming is happening to it. Pakistan will remain, but its identity is changing.

As for America’s mixed role in Pakistan, there were two ar-

eas where we should have been more accommodating. First, we should have recognised Pakistan as a nuclear power after it tested

its weapons in 1998 — as we did with the Indians. This would have legitimised the Pakistani nuclear programme and reduced

the paranoia that the Americans were trying to deprive them of their nuclear capability; it might also have contributed to more responsible Pakistani nuclear policy, right now it is the fastest

growing nuclear weapons state in the world — and one with a bad record of transferring nuclear technology in the past. Second, the US should have provided trade opportunities, instead

of only military aid, to Pakistan after 9/11. There was a serious Pakistani interest in increasing trade, not just receiving military aid; the US did not respond to this.

How can Pakistan get out of what you call the burden of its history and narrative of victimhood?

First, economic trade between Pakistan and the rest of South

Asia should be encouraged. It should hook up with India, one of the fastest growing economies in the world, as well as continue its ties with China. The Iran-Pakistan-Indian pipeline is a good

idea and I am baffled why the Americans have always opposed it. Yes, it will help the Iranians, but the pipeline will also help

the Afghans, the Indians and the Pakistanis. In my math, three positives outweigh one negative.

Second, Pakistani governments have been cowardly in dealing

with those who oppose modernity and try to push the country back to the seventh century. Perhaps the cowardice comes from the fact that the state uses some of these groups for its own strategic purposes, a fatal and self-defeating miscalculation.

20 JANUARY 15-21 2012

The Iran-Pakistan-Indian pipeline is a good idea and I am baffled why the Americans have always opposed it.

Why do you argue that the Pakistani military has neither run the country effectively nor allowed others to run it?

Well, because they are not trained to be economists or how to run businesses although the military manages a lot of businesses

once they retire. They are not trained to be politicians. Being a politician is a difficult skill to acquire. People cannot be ordered

about, especially Pakistanis. As a politician, you have to find common interests by working with people who dislike each other; Pakistan needs to develop a true political class.

In Pakistan, the military has identified enemies among its

fellow-citizens. If you demonise your own people, you are in

deep trouble. I mean you can’t treat the Bengalis or the Baloch,

ern, and then discovering whether they succeed or fail. I’d also

enemies. That’s the route to catastrophe, as we have seen both

a particular fan of his, but let him get elected and assume the

or other ethnic or religious minorities the way you treat foreign

in Pakistan and other countries that have given up on pluralism

like to see somebody like Imran Khan get elected — not that I am burden and responsibilities of governance, and be held account-

and tolerance and headed down the road to self-destruction.

able. Let him succeed or fail on these terms.

tician but failed because he could not address two deeper prob-

told him that while the obviously corrupt and extremist political

tigers, they all dealt with land reforms early and invested heav-

tions and let the democratic process move forward. He responded

Of Pakistan’s military leaders, Ayub Khan tried to act as a poli-

lems, education and land reforms. If you look at the East Asian

ily in education at all levels. Even China has done this, albeit through totalitarian coercion, which would not work in pluralistic Pakistan.

How much influence will Islam and the army continue to exercise on the future of Pakistan?

I like the idea of seeing Islamic parties getting a chance to gov-

I had a conversation with Musharraf right after his coup and

leaders had to be held accountable, that he should also hold elec-

to the effect that he was going to fix the system once and for all.

I knew then he was in deep trouble. In a normal state you have

to allow people to fail. They must run for office, get elected and then fail on their own terms. It should be left to the people of Pakistan to decide who they elect to rule them. In the long run,

they will make the right decision, but the courts, the press, and,

I like the idea of seeing Islamic parties getting a chance to govern, and then discovering whether they succeed or fail. I’d also like to see somebody like Imran Khan get elected 21 JANUARY 15-21 2012

COVER STORY

If India can normalise with Pakistan in one way or the other, then Pakistan can devote its resources and energy to becoming a more attractive and respected country. rarely, even the military, will be around to prevent disaster. Failure should be seen as helping to perfect the system, not a sign

of a bad system. The cure for bad democracy is more and better

democracy, not an incompetent military regime, which only

barrier while supporting internal transformation. I don’t know

mentality seems to be that having won an election, the victor can

defeating policies in any case, but I support the latter kind of

breeds resentment as it covers up its failures. In Pakistan the

persecute his or political rivals. I’d prefer a moderate competent military regime to this kind of pseudo democracy.

policy. America’s goal should be a normal Pakistan.

How is failure in Afghanistan going to affect Pakistan?

What should or can be done to immediately bring Pakistan into what you call a ‘normal state category’?

If the Taliban come back to power or if they play a significant role

The long-term key to normalising Pakistan is India. The fear of

Pakistan. We may yet see how the government of Pakistan re-

India can normalise with Pakistan in one way or the other, then

in the future dispensation, there will be a major blowback on sponds to the Taliban mindset which says that ‘we [Taliban] have defeated one superpower, the United States, in Afghanistan and

now we will take control of Pakistan and then India.’ This is a

India drives the Pakistan army and the army drives Pakistan. If Pakistan can devote its resources and energy to becoming a more attractive and respected country.

revolutionary movement that has to be contained and stopped, not provided with safe-haven and political support. Staying

What are the warning signs and revolutionary options for Pakistan?

away from Bonn was a strategic gaffe that put Pakistan on the opposite side of virtually the entire world.

An interesting part of the book is where I compare Pakistan with

a number of other states. Pakistan is unlikely to follow the Irani-

What are some of the future scenarios and options you discuss in the book about Pakistan?

Some American experts are talking about containing Pakistan.

This is premature language, but if Pakistan pursues policies which are hostile to American interests in Afghanistan and if

they support terrorism then we might move to a policy of con-

tainment . This would have two dimensions: erecting a military

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about containing Pakistan militarily, it seems to be pursing self-

Staying away from Bonn was a strategic gaffe that put Pakistan on the opposite side of virtually the entire world.

JANUARY 15-21 2012

an model of a clergy-led revolution because the army in Pakistan is stronger than its counterpart was in Iran. The negative case

for Pakistan would be that of Tsarist Russia where the country was destabilised by World War I, the army fell apart and Russia’s

ruling nobility had no credibility, and revolutionary groups filled

Can China become an alternative strategic partner of Pakistan to replace the US? If the Chinese could teach Pakistan how to become an economic power, that would be great. Yet, the Chinese are not going to teach Pakistan how to become a democracy. Given Pakistan’s

complexity and social diversity, democracy is a good system for it because it allows most people to have a say in the affairs of the

state. You can’t run Pakistan from the centre. The army has tried that many times but has failed. After every military takeover, they

called back the civilians within three years. On the political front, China is not a role model for Pakistan.

Out of nukes, huge population and geostrategic location, what worries the world the most about an unstable Pakistan?

The nuclear weapons are probably under responsible control. If

If the Chinese could teach Pakistan how to become an economic power, that would be great. Yet, the Chinese are not going to teach Pakistan how to become a democracy. the gap. There are also other bad examples like the Balkans or Yu-

goslavia, or interwar Japan, where the military pursued fatally

Pakistan breaks down or some separatist movements succeed, as happened in 1971, then we’ll begin to worry about the nuclear

weapons. Pakistan, like North Korea, is “too nuclear to fail,” that is, no one wants to see a real nuclear weapons state disintegrate.

Also Pakistan, like North Korea, uses its nuclear asset and its

political fragility as a means to extract concessions from other countries. We’ve contributed to this begging-bowl syndrome, for years. The US should provide aid to Pakistan but link it to more

concrete reforms in education, administration, and democratisation. Otherwise we are wasting our time and money. I don’t like the term ‘trust deficit’; trust will grow when there are clear

— and public — links between our respective obligations over time. a

Malik Siraj Akbar is a freelance journalist based in Washington DC.

self-destructive policies vis-a-vis the West and China.

Never in history have we seen a country so big with so many

nuclear weapons in this kind of trouble. When the Chinese went through their cultural revolution, they did not have nuclear

weapons. Hence, people were not much afraid of China. When

the Soviet Union disintegrated and became Russia, they knew they wanted to become Europeans. Pakistanis should now decide

to become South Asians by becoming once again a part of South Asia.

Pakistan, like North Korea, is “too nuclear to fail,” that is, no one wants to see a real nuclear weapons state disintegrate.

25 JANUARY 15-21 2012

FEATURE

talkin’ bout a revolution

Is a Pakistani Spring on the cards?

Analysts contemplate the possibility of radical political change

26

BY NIMRA KHAN

JANUARY 15-21 2012

The word of the day is Revolution, and it’s amazing how the same word can mean so many things to so many people.

Talk to the Jamaat-e-Islami and you’ll hear loud calls for an Islamic revolution. Ask Altaf Hussain and he’ll opt for something closer to

the French variety. The PPP’s revolution never quite made it beyond the ‘roti, kapra aur makaan’ stage, while the PML-N’s version is really not much more than a counter-revolution. By which I mean a revolution for the sole purpose of countering the much — heralded Imran Khan tsunami.

As for Imran Khan, he claims that Pakistan is more ripe for a revolution than

either Tunisia or Egypt, saying that “never in our history have we had such levels of corruption and such bad governance.” The comparison with the poster

countries of the Arab Spring is inevitable, as the toppling of the Arab ancien regimes was perhaps the single most important event of the past year — leaving many in Pakistan watching the dominoes fall feel a mixture of hope and

envy. But spring never came our way, let alone an Indian summer. Instead we continue to languish in the winter of our discontent.

Surely the factors that have historically caused revolutions throughout his-

tory also exist in Pakistan? Corruption is now part of our daily lives and culture.

Inflation and unemployment are rising consistently, while the gap between the rich and the poor grows ever wider. General unrest due to the lack of electricity, gas and even a necessity as basic as food spills out into the streets with

increasing regularity and the underprivileged majority suffers, while the rich manage to wade through their lives unaffected. But somehow, the leaky ship

of state sails on, and the voice of the people is only briefly heard in news bul-

letins in between the breaking news. Somehow, the revolution never comes.

Why?

For one thing, we do not have a common enemy to rise up against, which

appeared to be the case in the Middle Eastern and African countries. “Unlike

Egypt or even Tunisia, there is a lot of fragmentation in Pakistan, both political and religious, and the situation is too polarised,” explains political analyst

Hasan Askari. “The possibility of a nationwide uprising that involves all sections of the population — all political, ideological and ethnic groups — is very limited.”

Another reason is that freedom of expression was stifled in those countries

to the extent that even a small crack led to the bursting of the dam. In Pak-

istan, by contrast, the media is relatively free. A multitude of private news channels are filled with the voices of the general public expressing their dis-

enchantment with the government, condemning the politicians, and crying over the sad state of their lives. Thus a safety valve is created, allowing popular discontent to find an outlet. But despite its shrillness and conceits, expecting

the media to act as a harbinger of revolution is unrealistic. “The owners [of TV

channels] are usually the policymakers, thus the objectives of the free press are

27 JANUARY 15-21 2012

FEATURE

“The possibility of a nationwide uprising that involves all sections of the population — all political, ideological and ethnic groups — is very limited.”

mocracy is not simply due to the failings of the civilians. Laying blame at the doorstep of the military establishment, he argues that “the civilian government is still not fully in charge; factors

like foreign and security policy doled out by unelected foreign bodies with vested interest control the workings of the country.”

On some level, it seems that we understand these factors and thus never come out on the streets en masse.

Author and journalist Masud Mufti argues that this is because

stifled to mere profit making which in turn affects the standard

“the army hijacks the situation in favour of perpetuating its own

The result is that, instead of helping people unite towards a

manipulates the agitation of the common man for its own ad-

of journalism,” claims historian Dr Mehdi Hasan.

revolutionary cause, the ‘activism’ of electronic journalism has only created uncertainty and fear whilst demoralising and confusing people. “Instead of informing them about the realities, it has gestated speculations, rumours and desires,” says Mehdi.

He also points to a factor other than the lack of cohesion and a

common enemy: the fact that Pakistan’s dysfunctional political system, believe it or not, has a built-in safety valve: democracy.

“There were no real political parties in either Egypt or Tuni-

sia, whereas in Pakistan, political parties, both before and after Partition, have been working towards democratic and constitutional change,” he says.

rule, direct or indirect.” According to him, the army typically

vantage, which is why the promised change never comes about.

Even a successful revolution, Mufti argues, would only lead to a situation of complete anarchy, resulting in civil war. “Ultimately, our fate would be in the hands of yet another martial law,

rather than a revolution moving us towards a truly democratic beginning.”

Whatever the reasons, and whoever we choose to blame, the

fact remains that thus far we have only seen false dawns, and that the winds of change that have blown across our political landscape have petered out too soon.

Mufti points to the 1968-69 revolts in Pakistan as an example

But by and large, democracy has thus far failed to deliver the

of an unfulfilled revolution. He actively participated in the riots

focal points for our collective rage, the entrenched political class

ety. Recounting the burning hope in the masses, who had all

goods, and while we may have no Qaddafi or Mubarak serving as and mafias do certainly serve as our personal targets.

To Raza Rumi, the editor of The Friday Times, the failure of de-

28 JANUARY 15-21 2012

in Lyallpur and recalls how the movement had electrified socireached their pinnacle of frustration due to the regime of Ayub

Khan, he says Yahya Khan was welcomed with open arms as

Pakistan was desperate for a change.

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s subsequent electoral victory brought

along with it another wave of exuberance, but hope soon start-

whether we will rebound into yet another cycle of disappointment and despair.

According to Dr Mehdi, “All the successful movements in Paki-

ed fading as even Bhutto and his Peoples Party did little to help

stan have been so due to the sacrifices of the people, but the fol-

tion but by temperament he was a feudal,” says Mufti.

ductive change afterwards.”

those it promised to serve. “Bhutto was a modern man by educa-

In an article published in Newsweek, former foreign minister,

lowing governments are ineffective in bringing about any proIndeed, despite the efforts for real change and freedom, and

Yaqub Khan says, “Feudalism is inimical to democracy. Let’s

the heroic events of the past months, so far none of the revolu-

champion of democracy‚ but he acted autocratically and this

Tunisia, where dictators were ousted, the ruling classes are mak-

recall the reign of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. The man said he was a

showed he was a true feudal. You must understand that feudal-

ism is not merely the fact that someone has large landholdings; it is a state of mind.”

Skip a few decades, and the 2007 lawyers’ movement that

helped in the restoration of Iftikhar Chaudhry, followed by the

ousting of former president Pervez Musharraf, was seen as a big win for democracy. The same glimmer of hope that shone

in the eyes of the people in 1968 could be seen once again. But what ensued afterwards? Asif Zardari became president and

tions in North Africa have secured a certain victory. In Egypt and

ing desperate attempts to hang on to their wealth and power. In Pakistan, Mufti feels that even though a revolution in Pakistan is

inevitable, right now there is no direction in the country. “Revolution is just being used as a slogan rather than a programme,”

he says. Even though the need and desire for change has reached insurmountable heights, the notion of a revolution is merely being glorified rather than used as a tool for bringing about actual change.

So perhaps it is now time that we stopped dreaming about

we saw one of the most ineffectual governments in all of Paki-

revolution and instead focused on evolution. Until and unless we

lawyers’ movement itself degenerated into farce, with many of

achieved as our history teaches us not to count on heroes who

stan’s history muddling from crisis to crisis. Meanwhile the

its leading lights and foot soldiers displaying the same autocratic behaviour they had fought against when Musharraf was in power.

take it upon ourselves to bring about a change, nothing can be hold out false hopes. Unless the people of the country unite

against sectarianism, fundamentalism, corruption and all the other maladies plaguing us, the future of Pakistan will always

It’s no surprise then that many are sceptical about the hopes

strucseem bleak. Unless we build a strong foundation, a solid struc

Imran Khan. The question is whether this predicted tsunami

without leaning on demagogues, bayonets and utopian visions,

people have pinned to the new rising political ‘hero’ of Pakistan, will wash the nation clean of corruption and other diseases or

ture cannot be built atop. And if we can succeed in doing so, then we will have achieved the greatest revolution of all.a

25 29 JANUARY 15-21 2012

COMMENT

ready, willing and able

Only when we let go of our fatalistic thinking, can we change our lives

BY FAHAD FARUQUI

When the New Year approaches, most of us prepare to rattle off a laundry list of things that we plan to change in our lives in the coming year. We may want to lose weight, find a better job, or devote more time to studying to get accepted into a top university, and so on.

About a month or two into the year, many of us will abandon these resolutions and simply blame it on unavoidable circum-

stances or “fate.” If God wanted something to happen in our lives then it would, right?

I began pondering the question of free will when I was in el-

ementary school. I used to wonder if I would get the grade that

I was predestined to have regardless of whether I had studied or not. The local mullah who taught me the Holy Qu’ran at the

time said: “You don’t even have the power to lift a pencil without God’s will.” His fatalistic teachings in mind, life seemed to

be like a television drama where I needed only to wait for a fixed plot to unfold.

That was not the ideal lesson to receive as an impressionable

youngster because it can lead one to wonder how meaningful

human action is and to what degree we should make an effort to actualise our dreams. If the circumstances of my life are writ-

ten in stone, God has left me no choice than to align my desires

with what He has decreed for me. From this vantage point, I have little incentive to put in the effort to pursue my goals.

If our lives are completely scripted, a letter for a dream job or

ILLUSTRATION: S.JAMAL.K

a loan to start a business should magically arrive on our doorsteps, and surely, it’s only befitting to expect a serendipitous

meeting with your true love. Just say “insh’Allah” (God willing) and the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle of one’s life will fall in place.

This perception is flawed in my view, because while God

may give us the puzzle pieces, we must use the intellect and strength He has granted us to put the pieces together.

Understanding the degree of a human being’s free will has

34 JANUARY 15-21 2012

“If the Hour (end of the world) were to arrive while you were just about to plant a seed into the ground, you should go ahead and plant it.” been debated since the time of the last prophet. According to

Islamic scholar Abdallah Adhami, the companions of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) often asked, “f-ma’l ‘amal,” meaning “what is the point of doing work?” or “what good are deeds?”

The importance of human action as a prerequisite for suc-

cess in any intended pursuit is emphasised many times in the

Quran and Hadith. Citing an axiomatic prophetic principle,

Indeed, why would God have created Adam and allowed Satan

to freely lead men astray until eternity — unless he was picked

to play the part of an antagonist? If humans were to live on predestined commands, then who is doomed to hell or who is raised to heaven would be purely arbitrary.

In essence, the fact that God has foreknowledge of our deci-

sions does not negate the fact that we as humans have the free will to make those decisions.

Rumi scholar Kabir Helminski pointed to the importance of

developing will, the capacity to choose consciously in the moment, to our spiritual path. “It is what makes us human more

than anything else,” he wrote. “The highest development of spirituality is the development of will — in the end we will of-

fer that will to God. In a sense that is the end of will, but really it is the end to all the obstacles and resistances from the nafs [ego] that block true will.”

Mr. Helminski’s thoughtful response reminded me of the

8th century Sufi ascetic Rabi’a al Adawiyya, who was seen in

Imam Adhami described how the ummah (community) of the

the streets of Basra carrying a lit torch in one hand and a bucket

the Hour (end of the world) were to arrive while you were just

and extinguish the flames of hell so that people would devote

last prophet should be “dynamic and committed to action”: “If about to plant a seed into the ground, you should go ahead and plant it.”

God does not desire us to sit around and wait for our lives to

happen. We learn that it is only through our effort to change our internal disposition that we can change our circumstanc-

es. “God will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.” (Quran 13:11)

This gives a renewed meaning to “insh’Allah” that, in es-

sence, counters overdependence on predestination. We have

of water in the other. She said she wanted to set fire to paradise themselves to God for God’s sake. Resigned to God’s will, she

was neither motivated by the desire for eternal bliss in heaven

nor the fear of hellfire, and through this metaphorical act, she

hoped that the people of Basra would transcend materialism and turn to reality.

All of the prophets, from Adam to Mohammad, may God be

pleased with them, worked hard to spread the message and remained patient through many trials and tribulations.

Ultimately, the chance that we would be able to realise our

the ability to pursue our goals and make decisions, but God has

dreams — whether it is success in exams, job, or even a rela-

and intellect.

next to nil.

prior knowledge of the choices we will make using our free will Still, while rejecting the idea of Jabr (complete predestina-

tionship — without putting in our heart and soul into them is Similarly, as much as I would have loved to see this article

tion), I was left grappling to understand where I belong in the

write itself, it didn’t.

a lecturer of Islamic Studies at Cambridge University, described

failures. In attaining our dreams and turning our New Year’s

plain how our free will operates. “Our acts already exist (for

fort rather than blindly holding ‘fate’ responsible for our failure

continuum between free will and predestination. Tim Winter, the orthodox Muslim doctrine of ‘acquisition’, or kasb, to ex-

God, time has no reality), but we can acquire them through the moral dimension of the ruh (human consciousness).”

So we aren’t controlled by a “joystick” placed aside the Di-

vine Throne in the seventh heaven and, rather, human agency is needed to realise predetermined outcomes.

In the end, we are responsible for our actions, successes and

resolutions into reality, we should put forward our utmost efto do so.

Wishing you all a productive New Year! a

Fahad Faruqui is a writer and educator. You can email him at fahad@caa. columbia.edu or connect with him on Twitter @fahadfaruqui

35 JANUARY 15-21 2012

FEATURE

united in sorro Suicide bombings and sectarian conflict may make the headlines, but Muharram rituals highlight Pakistan’s rich traditions of interfaith harmony

BY OWAIS JAFRI

As the Muharram procession surges through the narrow streets and winding lanes of the walled city of Multan, there is a palpable tension in the air. The south of Punjab is a hotbed of sec-

leum in Karbala, Iraq. The origin of the custom

Sunnat wal Jamaat (formerly Sipah-e-Sahaba)

called the tazia.” While many agree that tazias

tarian strife, where organisations like the Ahle

and its militant offshoot Lashkar-e-Jhangvi

operate freely, fanning the flames of sectarian hatred and in particular directing their ire at

the Shia minority. Yet, every year, thousands

participate in mourning processions for the martyrs of Karbala. “Imam Hussain’s sacrifice at Karbala is a lesson we will remember for all

of eternity,” says religious scholar Allama Fazal Abbas.

And these mourners are not just Shias — it

The Shi’a of India, states that “the custom of carrying these models of Hussain’s tomb is said to date from the time of Timur Lane, who brought

such a miniature tomb back from Karbala, later originated in India, the story of Timur introducing the tazia to South Asia is thought to be

highly questionable. The most likely reason for

the development of this tradition is that, due to

the distance of India from Karbala, pilgrimage was beyond the means of most people, and minLater, Tazias of monumental proportions were made in Multan, Chiniot and Jhang.

Tazias tend to cross sectarian and even reli-

gious boundaries, with Hindus and Sikhs hav-

of religious syncretism and interfaith harmony of

religious saints. A mixture of all the cultures,

the subcontinent. Before Partition, Sunnis and

Hindus used to take part in great numbers in Muharram processions and the kahars — volunteers who carry the tazia — were mostly of the Hindu

faith. Post-Partition, these religious rituals are embraced by both the sects and during the proces-

sion one is hard pressed to differentiate between Shia and Sunni devotees. Similarly, across the

border, the Hindu community is still deeply involved in the Muharram traditions.

At the heart of these processions, which are

taken out on the 10th of Muharram, is the Tazia, a replica of Hazrat Imam Hussain’s (RA) mausoJANUARY 15-21 2012

The Tazia of the Ustad, now and in the 1950s

iature models of the shrine gained prominence.

seems that suicide bombings and growing ex-

tremism have done little to dent the rich tradition

36

of the Tazia is shrouded in legend. Hollister, in

ing their own tazias honouring their respective beliefs and faiths of the subcontinent, they are

a great unifying factor. “The Tazia is the tribute that unites people. All these processions

and gatherings are nothing compared to the sacrifice of Imam Hussain since, without him, Islam would never have been able to flourish,”

says Muzaen Chawan, the president of the Taazia Processions Licence Holder Association Multan division. Standing outside the mausoleum

of Shah Shamas Tabraiz in Multan, Om Hari, a

Hindu by faith, is a living example of this tradition. “Imam Hussain is a blessing for me,” he

says with as much fervour as those around him.

The Tazia of the Shagird

row

“The world needs more leaders like him.”

Behind these Tazias are the detailed and often amusing stories

of those who made them. Two of the oldest Tazias in the subcon-

tinent are the Tazia of the Ustad and the Shagird in Multan. The Tazia of the Ustad is a remarkable 27-foot structure with seven

storeys, made completely out of Sagwan (teak) wood. Ustad Mundo Khan and his 23 companions built the Tazia painstak-

ingly by hand, starting work in 1812 and finally finishing in 1825.

What the Ustad did not know was that Salman Ali, who worked alongside him by day, was making his own Tazia in the wee hours of the night. The Tazia of the Shagird, completed in 1854,

was 32-foot high, and much to Ustad Mundo Khan’s dismay, easily upstaged the Tazia of the Ustad.

The Tazia of the Shagird was reportedly burnt by fundamental-

ists in 1944 but was repaired with the funding of the local tribes,

especially the Gardezis of Afghanistan. Now, every year in Muharram, both the Tazias are put back together, with the Tazia of

“No matter what sect they belong to, people honour the ultimate sacrifice of Imam Hussain and his companions.”

the Ustad at the head of the procession, while the Tazia of the Shagird is at the back, symbolising the student’s respect for his teacher. It takes around 150 people to carry the Ustad’s Tazia and 200 to carry the Shagird’s.

In Pakistan, apart from a few exceptions, most Tazia makers

are Sunni. The first official licence for the Muharram processions

was given by the British government to the Tazia of the Ustad in 1860, allowing the bearer to organise and lead religious processions. These licences are issued by local authorities and inherited

by the next custodian of the Tazia. There are a total of 433 official

licence holders, 107 of which are more than 100 years old. Con-

trary to what one might expect, 313 of these licenses are owned

by Sunnis. The current licence holder of the Tazia of the Shagird (Student) is Muhammad Ramzan, a Sunni, who inherited it in his fifth generation.

Altaf Hussain, who holds the licence holder to the Tazia of the

Ustad, and is a Sunni, says, “No matter what sect they belong to,

people honour the ultimate sacrifice of Imam Hussain and his

companions. It’s a lesson for all humanity. My tribute and homage is nothing compared to their sacrifice.”

This rich tradition of sectarian harmony and religious syn-

cretism has stood its ground despite the wave of radicalism that south Punjab has been experiencing. Another popular Taziq in Multan, the Tazia of Laal Shah is visited by not only Shias and

Sunnis, but also Hindus and Sikhs in the first ten days of Muharram. “We want to portray the real image of Islam,” says Hassan Mashadi, the current custodian of the Tazia of Laal Shah.

“Solidarity, faith, peace and love for mankind — this is the mes-

<<Auto-Folding Tazia Makhdoom Syed Asif Raza Shamsi has created the world’s first hydraulic auto-fold tazia.

Controlled by remote control, the tazia automatically folds so it can be stored, removing the need to dismantle it after Muhrarram. Shamsi, who is an electrical engineer by trade, created the welding and lift system at his home>>

sage of Imam Hussain and of Islam.” z

37 JANUARY 15-21 2012

REVIEW

chased by aliens

BY NOMAN ANSARI

The Darkest Hour is about two American youngsters who find themselves in the middle of an alien attack in Moscow. Software engineer Ben (Max Minghella) and his friend, Sean (Emile Hirsch), fly to Moscow in order to pitch their latest online venture to investors. However, when they arrive there, they learn that their colleague Skyler (Joel Kinnaman) has brazenly stolen their idea and created a similar website.

They go to a nightclub to drown their sorrows where they meet Natalie (Olivia Thirlby) and Anne (Rachael Taylor). Incidentally, Skyler is also at the same night club. Suddenly strange blobs of light appear and immediately start vapourising any man, woman or dog that gets too close. The quintet of characters hide out in the nightclub kitchen (aliens have the technology for intergalactic travel and invisible shields but are apparently weak if they encounter the mighty doorknob), surviving on canned food until finally venturing out into the abandoned streets. They discover that Moscow is a ghost town and they seem to be the only survivors.

The movie suffers from a lot of inconsistencies which really don’t make any sense whatsoever. For example, while hunting for a map

nothing to write ‘holme’ about

BY AMMARA KHAN

A Game of Shadows, the much anticipated sequel of Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes, promises fast-paced action, witty dialogues and good acting – but nothing more. It is the end of the 19th century and Europe is a picture of chaos. Multiple bombings and riots have erupted across the continent, the world is edging towards a major war, and the only person who can help end this destruction is Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr), with the help of his friend Dr Watson (Jude Law), of course.

Professor James Moriarty (Jared Harris) is secretly conspiring to trigger a world war that would create demand for the massive amount of arms and weapons he has been manufacturing. Sadly, his character sounds intriguing only in theory and we don’t really see the full extent of his skills in action. Unlike Sherlock Holmes (2009), in which Mark Strong made an extraordinary antagonist as Lord Blackwood, Game of Shadows has a rather unimpressive and humdrum performance by Jared Harris.

Meanwhile, Watson is set to wed the beautiful Mary Morston (Kelly Reilly) to the displeasure of Holmes. Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams) appears fleetingly at the beginning of the movie but she is 38 reduced to a feeble character whose only purpose in the plot is to JANUARY 15-21 2012

in an abandoned cop car, the intrepid heroes Sean and Ben discover that it is possible to avoid detection from the alien blobs by hiding under a car.

This piece of vital information is conveniently forgotten as the characters spend the rest of the movie screaming and running away instead of hiding under the numerous cars that have been abandoned on the streets. I frequently found myself cheering for the alien invaders, than the obtuse human characters I was supposed to be empathising with, who took far less than an hour to initiate a deadening darkness in my head.

Towards the end of the film, the human survivors switch gears, transforming from screaming victims to road warriors but even then the movie fails to be coherent as in one instance where Sean decides to risk the lives of more than a dozen survivors in a bid to rescue Natalie. If these characters are the best humanity has to offer, then we are all doomed.

show the suppressed emotional side of Holmes. This is disappointing because hers was the only strong female character in the last movie. Noomi Rapace plays Madam Simza Heron, a gypsy fortune teller who helps Holmes in the hope that he would find her brother, but though she has a lot of screen time, she is not given much scope for acting. The introduction of Sherlock Holmes’s brother Mycroft Holmes (Stephen Fry) offers a relief from the non-stop action and Fry delivers some good scenes.

Having seen the last movie, I was not expecting a faithful reproduction of Arthur Conan Doyle’s brilliant works, and sure enough, the Holmes we see in A Game of Shadows is more like a Victorian Bond than an eccentric person of supreme intelligence.

This might be no bad thing in itself if there were a substantial plot line, but here we see only a trail of bombings and assassinations with occasional albeit hilarious dialogue. If you’re a devoted fan of the original, you will be disappointed. But if you’re looking for an entertaining detective thriller, this movie will work for you. a

THE HATER

10 things I hate about

1 2 3 4 5

…indian soaps

They are endless: Climaxes for these soaps do not exist.

One of the characters in a Star Plus soap was shown to have lived through four generations. The director still

planned to keep her alive had she not died a real-life death.

BY SANA IQBAL

6 7 8 9 10

The crazy math of money: Rich folk can lose their mon-

ey if they screw up one deal out of the millions they conduct every day. They are shunted to a small house

if one of their 50 factories catches fire. Meanwhile, the women may not have beds to sleep in, but they have gold jewellery that they can wear even as they do the dusting and sweeping.

There’s no such thing as certain death. Now, as far as

I know, when you’re dead, you’re dead. But in Indian soaps a character can die and return as many times as the director wills it.

Once a character is killed off, they may return to the

show with a completely new face. Even the height, eye colour, and voice are different. Under some circum-

stances, the said character returns having suffered memory loss. This character thus remembers nothing except the latest fashion trends, of course.

Endless affairs: In every soap, there must be at least

one extra-marital affair, and every extra-marital af-

fair has to produce an illegitimate child. I would have

thought that science had progressed enough to take care of that. But it seems that in the world of Indian

soaps, the plastic surgeons are much more advanced than the gynaecologists.

Absurdly large families: I am always amazed at how

so many people can be accommodated in one house.

What is even more surprising is how easily room is made for any added member. Do all middle-class Indians live in palaces?

40 JANUARY 15-21 2012

The universal utility of the set: the living room seen in the first soap becomes a restaurant, and 30 minutes later it turns into an office. The same building keeps changing into a club, a bar and even a five-star hotel.

Drum rolls: Whether someone dies or a supposed-tobe-dead person returns (only to attend his/her spouse’s

wedding, of course), your eardrums are sure to be pierced. These ear shattering notes follow arguments, slaps, and shocking moments in general.

Non-existent door locks: You live in a huge mansion

and you do not have locks on your bedroom door? Some nosy aunty from the family can easily peek into your

bedroom when you are getting naughty with your husband’s sister’s husband’s cousin. Surely, a disaster waiting to happen.

The age math. It is beyond me how the son can look older than his mother and younger than his wife. Maybe in the next season, they will all unveil themselves as the Cullens. Now that would be cool, wouldn’t it? a