Lessons from Constitutional History

`preserving culture....if punjabi culture is , Basant, Arif Lohar and Bhangray then... i dont see any one intrested in preserving it........`

I`ve learned that there are people such as Nawaid who even whilst living in Pakistan don`t realise what is going on right under their nose. Basant is celebrated in West Punjab with a fervour that increases each and every year...so much so that today even major corporations in Pakistan is clamouring to get their banners on the most prominent roofs in Lahore. Seems that even Eid is a quieter affair.

I draw your attention to a few pieces of of just two of many similar articles written on Basant this year.
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From all accounts, Basant this year was utter fun in Pakistan. Lahore looked quite spectacular. The weather was divine and there was a tangible feeling of goodwill across the city. Several Pakistani writers have gone to great lengths to pay tributes to Basant. Mir Jamilur Rahman, for instance, writes, ``The idea that the people should have pleasure has always been shocking to the clergy. Mullahs put forward a number of arguments to dissuade the common people from kite flying. It was said that it is a Hindu festival, many lose lives and many others are injured celebrating it, it causes wasteful expenditure and is thus irreligious, and so on. However, the Lahoris rejected all these sanctimonious sermons and celebrated Basant with a zest that was never witnessed before``.

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The Festival of Basant (Sanskrit for Spring) was celebrated with great enthusiasm and fervour across Punjab and the rest of Pakistan in early February. Lahore formed the centre of celebrations with the entire city coming out to celebrate this joyous occasion. Basant is a popular and ancient festival and kite flying is an important activity associated with Basant. Contests in which kite fliers try to snap the kite of the rival high above, began overnight with search-lights chasing the kites.

Every success was celebrated with the Bhangra dance and beating of dhols, followed by a feast. Automatic weapons used to be fired also on the occasion but the military Government banned the terrifying practice two years ago.

Thousands of outsiders joined the Zindadilan-e-Lahore (fun-lovers of Lahore) in celebrating the festival which Islamic zealots had been campaigning to be banned as an un-Islamic activity. However the Islamists’ argument that it is a Hindu-Sikh festival impressed neither the Lahore High Court, which rejected such a plea last week, nor the Lahoris who go on celebrating Basant on a grander scale each year
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I suggest you pay Lahore a visit this year at Basant, fly a kite, and try not to get trodden on in the rush of the partiers celebrating who are obviously doing so because they are not interested in preserving this festival, punjabi music, bhangra and let me add Punjabi literature.

***Its interesting to note that in recent years Basant has been celebrated with 10 times the zeal of that in East Punjab,India. I know where I`m headed this years Basant.

nawaid #36

>ok let see what we hav learned...

>preserving culture....if punjabi culture is , Basant, Arif Lohar and >Bhangray then... i dont see any one intrested in preserving it........

You havent learned anything. I hope Punjaban has.

.>>>>>Now you are taught that Urdu is essential for Islam and Pakistan<<<<<

i never been told any thing like that,,,may b in Punjab and u ppl believed that?, if thats the case then ........

>>>Even after losing more than half the country you have not learnt any lesson<<<<<<

ok let see what we hav learned...Bengali had to be national language of the country and Mr Jinnah who was a dictator and couldnt even speak URDU was in love with Nazir Akbar Abadi made the mistake .and i also leran ,if we dont have 2004 as Punabi year then soon we will be loosing Punjab as well or Punjab will loose other parts of country.......

preserving culture....if punjabi culture is , Basant, Arif Lohar and Bhangray then... i dont see any one intrested in preserving it........

shibil

I agree.

>Are you saying that preserving mother tongue and unique ancestral >culture is distracting and divisive political act and learning Urdu is not?

no, thats not what i said at all. if you re-read the post the first point i stressed was the importance of preserving unique languages and cultures. that the minority urdu language was forced into being the national language in a multi-linguistic state was absurd.

what i wanted to equally emphasise was the second point; that in india, pakistan and bangladesh, the most important language still remains english because it is the institutional language. access to courts and justice remains the preserve of elites who can communicate in english. even the supreme charters of these nations, ie their constitutions, which are meant to define us in terms of national character and aspirations, is in english. even employability in these countries often depends upon mastery of this language.

therefore, it is english which has been the biggest tool of social exclusion and marginalisation. but there is no comparable outcry at this state of affairs. hence, i meant to say that certain langauges seem to be more equal than others and it is this status quo is never challenged. what remains is divisive and manipulative politics and politicians using charged slogans and jingoisms for their own strategic gains, and the price in human misery which they extract.

Ref Pardesi #21

[Harimau, you are mixing up timeline to justify your argument with Punjaban]

Am I? Or, are you deliberately ignoring the truth to paint a one-sided picture? Let us see.

[It’s government’s responsibility to maintain law and order. If Bhindrawale was responsible for innocent Hindus being pulled out of buses and killing them, the federal government had right to send army in Punjab and suppress the movement. Still there was no need to go inside the temple. If you recently followed events in Israel, the Israelis did not go inside the Christian holy place when Palestinians were holed up inside. I guess, Jews cared about Christian world’s feelings. Sikhs are only 1.5% in number, so Indira could afford to screw them at will.]

Bhindranwale was given several months of time to get out of the Golden Temple. He used the time to stockpile food and water, bring in sandbags to fortify his positions, and finally took innocent pilgrims hostage. Looking back today, you could even say that like the Russians did at the theater in Moscow, India should have used some incapacitating gas against Bhindranwale. It is all a question of what weapons one has on hand and what the opponent`s stand is. The Palestinians were in a mood not to fight and that is why they gave up in less than a week. The Khalistanis were in no mood to give up and that is why they didn`t come out even after several months. So don`t compare the two situations.

[On the other hand, when innocent Sikhs were burned alive by thousands in New Delhi and many other cities what did the army and federal government did to stop the carnage? Rajiv was in New Delhi and so was the whole democratic apparatus. Did any inquiry take place immediately afterwards to make sure that these incidents do not take place? Looks like there was no need to. His mother’s life was equal to thousands of “unemployed and unemployable (your words)” residents of New Delhi.]

You have no monopoly on outrage at the indjustice heaped on the Sikhs in the aftermath of Indira Gandhi`s assassination. If you go back and read my earliest posts, I have always held that people who orchestrated the Delhi riots should be hanged in public.

[Oh, but Indira and Rajiv were only part of that immoral and corrupt Nehru-Gandhi dynasty and a rotten party known as Congress-I, but rest of us Indians are highly ethical and moral. Right? How come then Rajiv got most parliament seats just after a month or so after the Sikh massacres? How come there are chowks and airports named after Rajiv and Indira while there is no state level memorial in New Delhi for 1984 innocent victims that could serve as a reminder to future governments in New Delhi that for God sake have some shame and maintain law and order at least in your capital?]

The real problem is that the Sikhs took out their anger on Indira Gandhi. If you guys had half a brain -- yeah, take that as an ethnic slur; I am not going to apologize for it -- you would have finished off Rajiv Gandhi, his kids and Varun Gandhi (Sanjay Gandhi`s son). After all, Indira had at the most another 10 years of life left and wiping out her descendants would have broken her spirit. Instead, the task of finishing off Rajiv Gandhi was carried out by the only clear-thinking terrorist group in South Asia, namely, the LTTE. Once again, Madrasis rule!

By the way, Congress and Rajiv Gandhi still didn`t get anywhere in the elections in Tamil Nadu. So, don`t lump me with the illiterates you guys breed in Bimaru.

[Harimau, admit that despite all the Vedas, Purans, Geetas and 5000 year civilization bull crap, our people in the sub-continent are capable of equally heinous crimes, given an appropriate opportunity and weaker opponent, as we accuse Arabs of all the time on this board. Sikhs need no proof of that.]

Are you telling me the Sikhs are NOT a martial race, a Sikh is NOT worth ten Hindus?

[PS: Indira Gandhi was not the first one to use same faith commander in-charge for an operation that can be perceived as operation against that faith. Akbar raped Rajputs through Man Singh and Aurangzeb used minor Hindu rulers to go after Guru Gobind Singh. British did it all the time against us. Get it? Sell that snake oil somewhere else.]

I am not the one selling any snake oil. The fact is that 98% of the Sikhs know exactly what kind of thugs Bhindranwale and his followers were and were glad to be rid of him.

How come we don`t have any continuing terrorism in Punjab if all you Sikhs think that the Government of India screwed you royally?

Ref Waheeduzz #22

[As a child raised in East Pakistan, I was taught to put Jinnah on a pedestal. Like other children of my generation, I learnt to blindly adore him. Later I learnt about the actual constitutionalist Jinnah.]

Don`t tell Yasser Latif Hamdani!

[Jinnah harshly rebuked those opposing imposition of an alien language and culture in his Radio Address before his departure from East Pakistan on March 28, 1948. He characterized them as the ``opponents`` of Pakistan. He said that the supporters of Bengali as a state language are nothing but the ``paid agents`` of foreign countries. Aimed at castigating those who had the guts to demand Bengali to be one of the State languages of Pakistan, an imbecile Jinnah labeled the champions of Bengali language as ``communists,`` ``enemies of Pakistan,`` ``breakers of integrity of Pakistan,`` ``defeated and frustrated hate-mongers,`` ``champions of provincialism,`` `` breakers of peace and tranquility,`` ``political assassins and political opportunists,`` ``traitors,`` `` inhabitants of fools` paradise,`` and ``self-serving, fifth columnists`` , etc.]

Let us see. ``Enemies of India``, ``Breakers of integrity of India``, ``defeated and frustrated hate-mongers``, ``champions of provincialism``, ``breakers of peace and tranquility``, ``political assassins and political opportunists``, ``traitors``, ``inhabitants of fool`s paradise``, ``self-serving fifth-columnists``. Hey, that describes Jinnah and the Muslim League to a T.

ali_l #30

>All this talk about Punjabi culture and sh$t. It is not going anywhere.

Exactly my point.


nawaid #29

>the only reason i figure out of Urdu`s quick spreading in west paksitan >that Urdu itself a combination of many languages and has very few >words of its own.......

Urdu is one of North Indian languages. In 1947 it didnt contain words of any of Pakistan`s own languages.

>uor example of Chineese in Canada has no relevence and its way out.

rather you are afraid of acknowledging that other nations don`t let alien languages be imposed on them.


>use in Pakistan movement

There you go. Ultimately you blurt out history as taught to you and taught to us when we were colonized by West Pakistani imperialists. Bengalis played a vanguard role in Pakistan movement. They didn`t need Urdu. Sindhis, Balochis, Gujaratis, Pushtoons didn`t need Urdu. Now you are taught that Urdu is essential for Islam and Pakistan. Even after losing more than half the country you have not learnt any lesson. No matter what languages you speak at home, you will ultimately destroy your languages for an alien ``Islamic` language.

That is what I was telling Punjaban who has developed a romatic vision of Pakistani Punjabis from interactions with some friends. There can not be any serious commitment to Punjabi in Pakistan.

Year 2003 is the Year of Urdu in Pakistan. Can there be a Year of Punjabi in Pakistan?

All this talk about Punjabi culture and sh$t. It is not going anywhere. You can find these lowlifes everywhere .. drinking lassi, belching and knocking down people to grab their money.

28# means u prefer any other language over Urdu? .........but we still didnt figure out y dictator thoguht Urdu is the best as national language.......i didnt mean to argue u,,,,,i just want to understand y..Urdu had choosen by the dictator...... u might think punjabi is easy to learn but the only reason i figure out of Urdu`s quick spreading in west paksitan that Urdu itself a combination of many languages and has very few words of its own.......and Urdu`s component based on regional langauges......uor example of Chineese in Canada has no relevence and its way out. u cant deny that Urdu was not an important language of the region and didnt use in whole Pakistan movement alongwith english.
i beleive English as national language would be a good idea and we should look into now or after few years.................i guess thats the language dictator could speak.......

#27 Urdu was made the state language because it was easier to learn than Bengali, Punjabi, Gujarati, Sindhi, Balochi, Pushtoo? How was that established? For me learning Bengali is easiest, learning Pujabi next easiest. Any research conducted between 1930 and 1947 to establish Urdu the easiest to learn for everybody? Who was this `stupid sitting at the top slot` in 1947?

>and if we had 2 languages in majority Punjabi and Bengali .....what >language u think would be the national language in place of alien Urdu.?

Although some Chinese live in Canada, French and English speaking Canada does not make Chinese its state language. If ``at least their intention was fair`` then English or even Esperanto would have been made the national language to disadvantage everyone equally.

In bilingual countries local language are given equal status. In multilingual countries the majority language is made the state language and protection is given to regional languages. In dictatorships what the dictator says becomes the law.

>i dont understand what religion has to do with it and which seminar >Urdu has been promoted as religious language?

I understand that a number of conferences have taken place in Lahore on the issue of Punjabi language - Punjaban.

>>>> a language spoken by 4% of the population was imposed on Pakistanis in order to dupe them in the name of religion. Urdu was promoted in East and West Pakistan entirely on religious grounds. Punjabi and other West Pakistani languages will never rise because West Pakistanis ultimately swallowed this poison.<<<<<<<

Waheeduz,,,why west paksitani swallowed Urdu so easily....may b that was easy to swallow? ...........may b some stupids stinig at the top slot of policy making thought its better to go with the language which is easy to learn and excel in all parts of the country, rather then ask Punjabi guy to sallow difficult language like Bengali or Bengalis to sallow Punjabi......at least their intention was fair.

and if we had 2 languages in majority Punjabi and Bengali .....what language u think would be the national language in place of alien Urdu.?

>>>>>Seminars and political speeches in West Pakistan will not change the situation that now common Punjabi, Sindhi, Gujarati children learn Urdu and are told to identifty that as their main religious culture! <<<<<

i dont understand what religion has to do with it and which seminar Urdu has been promoted as religious language?

shibil

>our more parochial concerns and conceits over preserving regional >languages is little more than a distracting and divisive political acts.

Are you saying that preserving mother tongue and unique ancestral culture is distracting and divisive political act and learning Urdu is not?

Punjaban, a language spoken by 4% of the population was imposed on Pakistanis in order to dupe them in the name of religion. Urdu was promoted in East and West Pakistan entirely on religious grounds. Punjabi and other West Pakistani languages will never rise because West Pakistanis ultimately swallowed this poison. Now new Pakistani generations grow up too ashamed internally of their languages to seriously learn them. They learn the cultural superiority of Urdu over their own languages. In schools they are taught English and Urdu. Even in Bengal West Pakistanis tried the same trick but Bengalis didn`t give in. For Bengalis preserving our language and culture isn`t only a distraction. Division was caused by the advocates of Urdu. Seminars and political speeches in West Pakistan will not change the situation that now common Punjabi, Sindhi, Gujarati children learn Urdu and are told to identifty that as their main religious culture!

>Most of my Pak friends, inside and outside of Pak, speak Punjabi at >home and with friends, even though they say Urdu when asked what >their langauge is. I think the apparent win on behalf of the `urdu >crusader`s you speak of is somewhat superficial, and like a house of >
>cards.

Your friends dont even acknowledge Punjabi as their language. How many of them seriously teach the language and its literature to their children? Very few because an average Pakistani has been fully sold on an alien language. Electioneering in Punjabi and some conferences by a few elites in lahore wont return the language its status.

>It appears that Pakistani leadership has tried to assert the claim that >Punjabi is the langauge of the kafirs, I fail to see how they convince >people that urdu is somehow closer to the language of Islam.

Your failing to be convinced isnt the issue.

>Inshallah, perhaps the rumblings of an awakening have begun

These rumblings have been going on since the British left.

the bengalis werent the only ones who resisted jinnah`s call for a ``linga franca``. there were riots and protests in sindh as well. over the years, violent and violently suppressed language riots have claimed the live of thousands of sindhis and even balochis. of course, the point that the so called constitutionalist jinnah refused the voice of the (bengali) majority on the issue of national language (which, i think, was demanding the recognition of bangla as a national language as well) is a good one.

it must also be borne in mind that the language riots had as much to do with underlying schemes of doing away with a federation in favour of ``one unit`` which would have, some assert, sealed punjabi dominance of pakistan through over-representation in the two institutions which run the country; the bureacracy and the military.

despite the `dominance` of urdu, the vast majority of peoples in pakistan still retain their actual mother tongues. the issue of language is of course given pertinence for 2 main reasons: 1) the preservation of the most important vessel of unique cultual identity and reprsentation; and 2) social exclusion or marginalisation of peoples who cant converse in the dominant language. sadly, all over the sub-continent, even bangladesh, it is the english language which is truly dominant institutionally, as the language of law and policy. the constitution of the peoples republic of bangladesh is also in english, like its pakistani and indian counterparts. the supreme charter of these countries in a langage alien to most of its residents! english is thus the ultimate tool of social exclusion in these societies and our more parochial concerns and conceits over preserving regional languages is little more than a distracting and divisive political acts.

Pardesi Sat sri akal!

Waheeduzz, Its seems that a number of West Punjabi`s are beginning to awaken to the loss of their mother tongue`s, sindhi`s balochi`s and I understand that a number of conferences have taken place in Lahore on the issue of Punjabi language.

Apparently, even during the recent elections, Punjabi slogans seemed all the rage, Quaid Muslim League used the of Ibrar ul Haq song ``AA jaa be jaa sycle te.`` Most advertisements against Nawaz Sharif were headed in Punjabi like ``Bale ve khoraakaaN teryaaN`` Major newspapers carried an advertisement of Nawaz Sharis, ``asaaN sher nooN votaaN pawaaN ge, asaaN sher te mohraaN lawaaaN ge, asaaN vichchRyaa yaar manaawaaN ge.`` A banner hung in the Liaqat Bagh during the Nawaz Leaque public meeting and the banner carried a verse: ``Bhukhe mar gaey, meN te tooN, luT ke khaa giyaa GHQ``. Seems that the reason the language was used by those seeking power was that this language spoke boldly to the masses. The PPP meeting in the Liaqat Baagh was also very distinct in this regard when public demanded that Ch. Aitzaaz Ahsan should speak in Punjabi.

Most of my Pak friends, inside and outside of Pak, speak Punjabi at home and with friends, even though they say Urdu when asked what their langauge is. I think the apparent win on behalf of the `urdu crusader`s you speak of is somewhat superficial, and like a house of cards.

It appears that Pakistani leadership has tried to assert the claim that Punjabi is the langauge of the kafirs, I fail to see how they convince people that urdu is somehow closer to the language of Islam.

Inshallah, perhaps the rumblings of an awakening have begun and Pakistani`s will reclaim their lost heritage, and be confident in their cultural identities as well as their religious one.