In looking at the fear and the pessimism that characterises Karachi today, it is pertinent to keep in mind that it is almost twenty five years now that the Sindh capital has been experiencing bloodshed, and trauma, political restlessness and instability - to say the least. Arguably what happened before 1986, (if that is a year that we keep in mind) is unquestionably linked to what has happened unexpectedly.
There is an obvious, historical link between then and now. What is happening today in Pakistan, or in Sindh, or in Karachi is all part of a larger [picture]. A stage set by justice, greed, loot and opportunism, to say the least. A scenario where ethics and morality have played almost a minimal if non-existent role, in real terms-in this Islamic Republic.
I have been thinking along these difficult lines, and contemplating what possibly lies ahead, like other Karachiites, I presume, keeping in mind what happened last week. Not just the city's target killings, but also the Chehlum bomb blasts have shocked not just Karachi but also the rest of the country for the pattern of terrorism that is reflected in the blast outside the Jinnah Post-Graduate Medical Centre (JPMC).Obviously, when one mentions the Chehlum blast, one keeps in mind the Ashura blast that occurred in Karachi on 28th December 2009, and that too has left behind many questions, desperately seeking answers. Who is doing all this damage, and why can they not be caught, punished? The public wants to know, and wants credible, convincing answers.
Like Pakistani society, Karachi too is seeking answers to whatever has been happening for quite some time - in which loss of innocent life and the destruction of private and public property has shattered the confidence of a people beginning to feel deeply insecure in all walks of life. The targeting of the large hospital on Friday (Chehlum) in conjunction with the Nursery (Sharea Faisal) blast reflects the direction that the troubles of this society are taking. Where are we headed, citizens wonder, in their very visible anxiety.
Whether they are caused by the terrorism, that we are fighting, or whether they are caused by the traditional hidden hands, or the vested interests that are playing their invisible power game, or whether it can be attributed to the United States and its plans for this region, or better still if it is India that is behind the evil plots that surface periodically.
Pakistanis speculate in uncertainty, but in fear. And Karachiites after hearing the angry speeches in the Sindh Assembly last week by two important Sindh Ministers (Home Minister Dr Zulfiqar Mirza and Local Bodies Minister Agha Siraj Durrani), followed by the walkout by the MQM, and the tensions between the MQM and the ANP all convey that uneasy times will unfold in the days ahead.
Even in the days when there were no private TV channels and there was only the state-owned and poorly managed PTV and the National Press Trust carrying on their lack of credibility practices the public could sense and perceive, and even know what was happening. The people may have been helpless, but they knew what the rulers were doing. Now, fortunately there is a strong presence of private TV channels and a generally candid courageous print media, which bring home not just breaking news, but also behind the scene manipulations or whatever, as a result of which Pakistani society is that much more aware.
And I dare ask that much more fearful, especially when it comes to Karachi? I must quote the Spanish novelist, dramatist, poet Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616) who said that "fear has many eyes and see things underground". If that is true the people of Karachi have possibly seen what is not being said - they possibly know the names of who is behind all that is ruining their lives, and seeks to destroy a city that has been built steadily over the last sixty years. Not built enough as far as the poor and the impoverished go, but that is another sorrow for another day. Today, I am trying to focus on last week alone. And some obvious reflections is that I can manage.
It is necessary to state here that in trying to understand the reality of what is happening in Karachi and elsewhere in the country the role of the private television channels is indispensable. The live speeches of the two Sindh ministers mentioned above are an example. Those two speeches said it all really, as have done many of the political participants in some candid courageous TV Talk shows, making Karachiites imagine what kind of city this could turn into. Disturbing talk of the threat of a Swat like scenario emerging in Karachi, if the right steps are not taken is something that has been heard only a few days ago. That once upon a time city of lights, becomes a city of dreadful darkness? Let that not happen. Pray, but also do something about it.
For not just what is happening in the country, especially in a restless Islamabad affects Sindh, but new and old fault lines of the province, particularly those of its capital Karachi are also imminent danger zones. The battle for the city has deeper implications, meaning and consequence and these people are coming to comprehend. The local bodies elections are due within the next four months(?) and that is something that could unfold more challenges and more anxiety.
Repeated target killings of innocent ordinary people and bomb blasts, all of which remain mysterious from start to finish, with no outcome of accountability, and a sustained absence of credibility when it comes to official claims and contentions and explanations. Official alibis, bureaucratic promises and ministerial press conferences are often so stereotyped in their text and tone that they have become amusing and ludicrous. Yet their relevance is understandable? The form must be preserved. The content remains hollow.
Not just on that Ashura 2009 (1431 AH) December evening bomb blasts, looting and arson and on Chehlum 2010 (1431 AH) bomb blasts - but even when I heard the two Sindh ministers speak out I felt scared from within, I must confess.I remembered those lines from American poet Carl Sandburg (1878-1967) who said that "In these times you have to be an optimist to open your eyes when you awake in the morning".
Perhaps it is my nostalgia of having seen better days in this very Karachi, that still makes me hold on to my optimism. A poet once said that "dreams have secret strength" and they will not die so soon, (paraphrased) and so it makes me ask whether memories also lend secret strength - that does not make a man yield easily, and hold onto hope.
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