Indifference is a slow poison for nations that takes them to a path of self-destruction. But slow death has always been painful. An indifferent nation is one that is in danger of losing its freedoms. Can we proudly declare ours a free nation?
The story is as old as the country itself. And so far the whole storyline offers nothing but tragedies. No wonder if Christina Lamb had observed in early 90s that Pakistan was a country searching for the nation?
When efforts were afoot to undermine the ideology of Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah even during his lifetime, we kept silence. Generally believed a conspiracy-theory, the people say the founder died for not getting timely medical care.
When first (though not elected) Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan was killed, we were unmoved. The motives behind his killing are not yet known, though the murderer had been killed on the spot.
We were even unmoved when the first Martial Law was imposed in 1958. Nonetheless, the known son of General Ayub Khan still insists it was Iskander Mirza not his father who imposed the Martial Law.
We hardly made any effort to protect the Quaid's principles of supremacy of the democracy and civilian rule, when the second Martial Law was imposed in 1969.
The country was dismembered in 1971, but we just licked our wounds. A commission was formed to probe the causes of Dhaka Fall, but its findings were never officially released. General Yahya Khan was held responsible for the break-up, but his son Ali Yahya now swears the innocence of his father.
At the time first popularly-elected prime minister faced undemocratic and unconstitutional ouster under another Martial Law, in 1977, we offered no resistance. Unfortunately, our indifference cost us much more as Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was – what many people believe – judicially murdered.
We kept on believing the Ziaul Haq's falsehood about holding elections within months. He took eights years to hold the general elections which he publicly promised to hold within three months on time of imposing the Martial Law.
While the whole decade of 90s was mutilated with premature dissolutions of four democratic governments, we perhaps took it as 'Will of God.' Each time the dissolution was accepted in the so-called larger national interest.
We kept a blind eye on General Pervez Musharraf's ambitions to cling to power. He promised to remove the uniform in December 2003, but withdrew from his words for one reason or another.
Many efforts against the injustices were quashed. But the momentum to launch a national movement to get rid of all such problems once and for all could never be built for multiple reasons.
An engaged citizenry would not permit the centres of power to overstep. Since we were indifferent that happened time and again. There were even forces that wanted an indifferent citizenry so that they could act without the encumbrance of being responsive to the people.
It is important to understand that the rich fabric of a democratic society is composed of the institutions, which ironically were never allowed to function properly in Pakistan. The indifference can make the task easier for those who keep these institutions as fragile as they suit their designs. In our case such people enjoyed smooth sailing most of the time.
Formation of the King's Party, exile of Sharif brothers, wave of extremism, a series of suicide bombings, shortage and skyrocketing prices of kitchen items – the list is too long where the Pakistanis behaved like ostriches.
The last-year judicial crisis was something wherein several members of the civil society came out of their homes to support which was not just the lawyers' struggle. But even that faded out thanks to the time-tested tricks of the establishment.
And the brutal murder of Benazir Bhutto! The immediate public outcry was much expected on that national tragedy – possibly greatest after the dismemberment of Pakistan. The indifference of many turned into disenchantment. The active participants of the rallies and patient listeners to the local politicians are now staying away from the public meetings. The deteriorated law and order situation and threat of suicide bombing has scared them away from the political process.
The election campaign which was going on with much fanfare seems to have halted. A few other factors like chilling cold and the holy month of Muharram have also made some contribution to slow the electoral process. After Naudero the most sombre place is, perhaps, Liaquat Bagh where the gruesome murder of Ms Bhutto took place. Even her political rival Sheikh Rashid Ahmed – known for his Awami style politics – is keeping a low profile these days.
Ms Bhutto's son affirmed in his first media interaction after losing his mother that democracy was the best revenge. Revenge: not against a particular person or group but revenge against those who are acting against humanity, nationhood, religion and democracy. But will it be possible to take the vengeance without bleeding out the poison.
A sage advises that a different world cannot be built by indifferent people. The statesmen and thinkers left countless examples to shake the passive minds of the people.
Nobel laureate and great American activist, Martin Luther King says: "If we do not act, we shall surely be dragged down the long, dark, shameful corridors of time reserved for those who possess power without compassion, might without morality and strength without sight."
Irish Statesman and Philosopher Edmund Burke comes up with a rather general but comprehensive statement saying all that is necessary for evil to succeed is that good men do nothing.
Great playwriter George Bernard Shaw terms indifference as the essence of inhumanity.
But one wonders if the words written or uttered years ago are enough to inject the antidote.
