As the country commemorates the Resolution Day today, it is important to reflect on the ideals that were envisioned in 1940 against today's contemporary realties. On this day, the foundation for a homeland for Muslims was laid aiming to safeguard the religious freedom and rights. However juxtaposed these past aspirations with today's scenario reveal a complex picture of challenges, unmet expectations and some achievements too.
The Lahore resolution advocates for a state where its citizens could live in peace and harmony, free form oppression and discrimination. It envisioned a nation where social justice and economic development would prevail. In reality, we are a nation divided in classes and being treated as per the social class. While the country has made strides in many fields, ethnic tensions and political instability has eaten away Pakistan like termites.
Socio-economic challenges such as health disparities, illiteracy and poverty continue to plague us that impede our journey towards prosperity. Globally, Pakistan has, one of the highest out of school children i.e.28 million as they are deprived of their basic right to education.
The resolution highly emphasized on equality, justice and democracy, envisioning the government accountable to citizens. In reality, the system has become a victim of governance issues and democratic struggles. Our democratic journey is being marred by governance inefficiencies, political corruption and military interventions. Pakistan continuous to struggle with lack of transparency, rule of law, and accountability.
Another expectation was religious freedom and tolerance. Religious freedom and protection of minority were the core of Lahore resolution, ensuring the existence of pluralistic society where all religious could co exist. Since when we became a blood thirsty nation of our fellow brothers belonging to a different sects? While the constitution does guarantee religious freedom, it just echoes in the parliaments. We have beenstruggling with persecution of minorities, secretarian violence and most important, blasphemy laws stiffeling freedom of expression and dissent.
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan mentions human rights violations that include gender based violence, honour killings and forced conversions that calls for complete societal transformation and comprehensive legal reforms. To support the claim, UNODC in their report published in July 2023 highlighted that around 27% of Pakistani women face domestic violence. It is also reported that around 1000 girls belonging to different religions have been forcibly converted to Islam.
Lahore resolution was a promise of peace and regional stability. The resolution envisioned the country to be a responsible member of international community in a bid to foster regional stability and promote coexistence with neighbours.
In reality, geostrategic location of Pakistan has pushed it into the vortex of geopolitical rivalries and regional conflicts that led to tensions with countries like Iran, Afghanistan and India. Disputes over territories like Kashmir and nuclear proliferation concerns have maintained a cycle of mistrust and hostility, hampering efforts to resolve long outstanding conflicts through dialogue. Divergent interests and Historical grievances never allowed us to resolve our outstanding disputes.
Economic development was placed as a priority. It promised equal distribution of opportunities and resources to lay a robust economic framework. However, the reality portrays a rather nuanced picture. While we have enjoyed periods of development and prosperity, challenges such as unemployment and inequality persist, rather strengthening their roots.
As per the world bank report, the recent growth rates are alarming and are below the level needed to address growing needs of the nation. What do we see, a massive brain drain that we don’tsee stopping anytime soon.we will give this credit to inefficientsystem andcorruption which undermine efforts to promote entrepreneurship, foreign investment and innovation. No wonder Pakistan is ranked as one of the most corrupt countries by Corruption Perception Index.
We have enough literature on CPEC' s potential, what it can do for us and how it can cause economic growth. However, since theinception of this program we have been listening to concerns related to sovereignty, transparency and debt sustainability that highlights the need for consultation and greater accountability.
We have always been vulnerable to external shocks, so much so that now we feel the shock but absorb the pain. Issues like natural disasters, pandemics set us back 10 years. Covid-19 exposed the fragile state of our health care system and our over reliance on external aids and remittances which further exacerbated our socio economic disparities.
Policymakers and civil society are responsible for critically evaluating progress towards all the ideals articulated in 1940 and must chart a course towards equitable, more inclusive and prosperous future which requires efforts to address structural hurdles to development including social injustice, corruption and inequality while leveraging human capital and rich cultural heritage to overcome the challenges. Investments in social protection, health and education must be prioritised in order to ensure that no individual is left behind.
This day for us is the poignant reminder of sacrifices, collective endeavours and aspirations that have shaped our destiny and identity. By realizing the gap between the vision and reality and embracing the sense of solidarity and purpose, we can embark on a journey towards a more inclusive and brighter future.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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