The Freedom of Empathy

Re: # 14
``Its only when we start respecting ourselves, as a nation and as individuals, that we`ll gain respect from all the rest! ... yet, this lil freedom we have... must be cherished, nourished and taken care of... before we`re deprived of this too! ``
I couldn`t have said it better, Haseeb. The fact that we are not perfect does not mean that we should start dis-respecting what we DO have. Its our attitudes and the ways in which the masses think which must be positive in order for us to move towards the utopia that Pakistan can so easily be. That will in turn make the world realize that we are not what they think we are. There should always be pride in our hearts for who we are and where we have come from...
Pathetique, thanks for the kind words!

Re: # 13 Yes... agreed... ``freedom here means the freedom of thoughts, freedom of liberation, freedom to live n let others live,,,,,,, but in accordance to the limits prescribed and stated by the society religion of the state, culture``

But do WE really have that much freedom? Or rather, do we really give ourselves that much freedom? The harsh reality is that we (Us and our society) have defined self-made limits for oursleves, self made standards for ourselves, self made customs to follow and presumed notions to act upon. and what more, nobody is willing to change the system, or make it even if he/she is willing, can`t really breakfree from the system. We have chained ourselves and our minds, in the names of Religion, Culture, Rituals and Ethics.

Ofcourse, there is no doubt that what this land has given is priceless, and this freedom we have is precious, but its about time we start respecting this land and this freedom, and shun away the differences amongst ourselves. Terrorism, Extremism, Fanaticism... all this are ways of closing in on us... and here we are either flying kites in the spring and falling over the roofs, fighting over building dams or mocking eachother over the local body elections!...
A bomb blasts in London... Fingers point almost reflexively at Pakistanis... Muslims... An explosion in Egypt... oh, there are always Pakistanis to blame!....
Patience, Tolerance for one another, Unity, Direction... where this all can be found? Freedom... aaahh... such a charming word.... but what freedom we`re talking about?
... Its only when we start respecting ourselves, as a nation and as individuals, that we`ll gain respect from all the rest! ... yet, this lil freedom we have... must be cherished, nourished and taken care of... before we`re deprived of this too!

P.S. Nice one umair!

i wud like to add that freedom here means the freedom of thoughts, freedom of liberation, freedom to live n let others live,,,,,,, but in accordance to the limits prescribed and stated by the society religion of the state, culture.
no wonder the rights of the minorities shud be safeguarded as well but they have to suffer the impact of the surroundings ( all over the world)
wht i mean to say is tht the preception tht the mullahs(misunderstood as exteremist n terrorist) are a dominant factors to suppress this freedom in pakistan is totally incorrect. altough i accept the fact tht some are practicing such acts but then again every country has gud n bad ppl.
secondly the misconception tht islam breeds terrorist in the name of jihad is also very untrue. islam truly is a religon of peace n justice as a little study can prove tht.(dont want to go in tht detail)
Being to many countries in the world n observing their culture i believe pakistan to be just among them who claim to be free, n let there people practice freedom.

n lastly this article shud be read in its totality without a biased mind, they way u get the true morale of the article.

i wud like to add that freedom here means the freedom of thoughts, freedom of liberation, freedom to live n let others live,,,,,,, but in accordance to the limits prescribed and stated by the society religion of the state, culture.
no wonder the rights of the minorities shud be safeguarded as well but they have to suffer the impact of the surroundings ( all over the world)
wht i mean to say is tht the preception tht the mullahs(misunderstood as exteremist n terrorist) are a dominant factors to suppress this freedom in pakistan is totally incorrect. altough i accept the fact tht some are practicing such acts but then again every country has gud n bad ppl.
secondly the misconception tht islam breeds terrorist in the name of jihad is also very untrue. islam truly is a religon of peace n justice as a little study can prove tht.(dont want to go in tht detail)
Being to many countries in the world n observing their culture i believe pakistan to be just among them who claim to be free, n let there people practice freedom.

n lastly this article shud be read in its totality without a biased mind, they way u get the true morale of the article.

Cayenne, Pakistan is not perfect. We have had a varied history with respect to military and civillian government. I will not debate which is better; but the point that I have been trying to make is that given what we have is not perfect, given what we have is not the COMPLETE definition of freedom, given all that.... that does not mean that we should become cynical and forget why we got Pakistan and what people went through to get it. It does not mean that we should stop caring for others, or stop hoping that one day we may obtain the freedom of thought and mind that so many people desire. It is still our country, and even though its not perfect, I`m still proud to be a Pakistani, and to be a muslim. It has given me an identity... it has given me a place to live my life. Im known by this country all over the world. Here, we are allowed to live our way of life... agreed there are elements that would like to control us.. and you can quote examples of these all day long, but to move towards the utopia that we so wanted Pakistan to be, does not mean lambasting who we are or what we represent. We are Pakistanis.. and it is upto us to be emancipated enough to understand if people want to live in a different way, or worship a differnet `God`. If we want this to happen, it will happen.

The purpose of this article was not to debate how free pakistan really is, or is democracy better than what we have. The purpose was to try to understand that the Pakistan we have is precious, and where we take it is upto us. The purpose was to appreciate what Pakistan was meant to be and to try to care for people who crave escape from oppression the world over.

I would also like to add, Cayenne, non muslims here can consume alcohol. Even some `muslims` are `social drinkers` and unfortunately the latter is rather common.

So to answer your final question, I appreciate the Pakistan that was given to us, and I want to be part of the generation that would make our forefathers proud of who we are as Pakistanis. It may be a long and arduous road, but we can definitely get there.

Umair....Answer me honestly and this question is posed to you with relative to pakistan alone?.

Are you really free in Pakistan?.Can you openly challenge the constitutionality of the prevailing system of govt. in a court of law?.Can you openly drink alcohol in a designated area such as a bar, as a lifestyle choice?.Can you criticize your President in public?.Can you worship the `God` of your choice without let or hindrance?.Do you have choice, and do you exercise that choice in determining whom would conduct the day-to-day affairs of your country?.Are you REALLY free to take the freedom you cherish when you want and to BE free, as you want to be?.

Please don`t bring up any other country(India included) in your response, should you be kind to do so.

Sincerely,

Cayenne

Chowk is the WRONG place to talk about freedom of expression. This site mimics Paki society in controlling viewpoints, repressing dissent, and erasing differing opinions.
Salim

Re: #6:I`m glad some one managed to see the article the way it was intended too. There is no doubt in this era we may not be able to truly feel what happened before partition, but we need to appreciate what we have. We need to take pakistan towards an era of emancipation and freedom. Its upto us to prove to the world, and to the cynics (both here and abroad) that we are proud of our country, of our religion, of our culture and heritage.

Simon_Templar, you are abslutely right, our elders have been telling us about all that happened, and it will be us who will be telling the generations of tomorrow about their identities as Pakistanis. The suffering around us is a constant reminder of how things may have turned out... and we should care enough to help however we can.

Nice to see such earnest josh O`jazba for God and country on Chowk FP. How
the heck did this article, get past the Chowk censor board ?.

For me Umair, it`s my elders who`ve been a consistent and balanced source
of such reminders. They grew up under Colonial tyranny. They lived in a time
when signs like ``No Dogs And Indian Allowed`` were meant for them. These
might`ve sounded like fairy tales to me, but for the daily coverage of Muslim
oppression and mass murder --from Iraq to Kashmir, by occupation forces.
You have to be some sort of a sociopath to remain unmoved by their sufferring.

Pakistanis are blessed with a freedom, that can only be fully appreciated
when you leave it`s soil. And those parasites who were suckled and sustained
by this land and then later, chose to leave it and now, sit outside and mock it...
only reveal their lowly character.

what is sad about the feedback on this article is that it so clearly reflects how narrow minded and presumptious people have become. This article revels in the sheer beauty of being liberated and appreciating a freedom we far from deserve. How that relates to Mullahs being synonymous with Islam (which for the record is an atrocious concept) totally escapes me. Its amazing how paradoxical one can be while talking about their minds being free. Perhaps for once the people of this country( or those who have an avid interest in it) should actually give a thought about what contribution is due towards this country rather than trying to criticise people who consider even just the thought a worthwhile utilization of their time. i think the entire point was to free ur mind.

Well for one thing this wasn`t intended to be this controversial.
CheGuevara, I don`t think in 1947 the Indian were thinking about secularism. The muslims were oppressed, thats why the Quaid who had always been in favour of hindu-muslim unity rejected the idea later on. I would also like you to remember the Lahore riots, and the train massacres. 1947 was not a time for secularism.
I have not said that the `hindoos` are horrible, its not the people that decide what the govt does. Even though there are extremist elements in all cultures. All I have been trying to say is that we have been given Pakistan, and it will be all that we make of it. It may not be a `bastion of democracy and freedom` yet, but thats where the people come in.
Secondly, Pakistan WAS meant to embody freedom of thought(As does islam) along with being a muslim nation.

Netizen, if you recall your islamic history, after the conquest of Makkah, the muslims lived in harmony with both the jews and the christians wherever they could. (Those of them who were not hell bent on waging wars.) Perhaps we could call that an example of cultural harmony?

The whole point is that we are Pakistanis, and Pakistan is what we have been given. Where we go is upto us, weather we become extremists or `secular`, its what we, the people will decide by our actions.

Re: # 2

``Islam, if you know what it is, is about celebrating the differences between cultures and living in harmony. ``

Can you please quote some Quranic verses where Mohd talks about cultural harmony?

I wonder whether he came in touch or was even aware of all the cultures of the world at that time or those which came in future.

``As Pakistanis, we should know better than most others what freedom entails. We are lucky enough to possess what is ours and ours alone.``

hahahahaha thats a good one man :)

``They did it because they longed for an escape from oppression and control. ``

Yeah what a terrible oppression of having to live with those horrible hindoos, with their corrupt oppressive idea`s like secularism. Good thing we live in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan that bastion of democracy and freedom.

#2
``Secondly, if you think that me and the `mindless cohorts` on this site can not talk about the freedom of mind that islam and our country embodies blah blah blah``

Once again I gotta hand it to you dude. Who can possibly argue with that logic.

First of all, you dont have any right to pigeon hole pakistanis within your own limited span of thinking. I`ve talked about freedom of body, AND of thought. But then perhaps your preset mind was too busy pigeon holing all and sundry to allow you to really get the gist of what I was saying.
We rcvd freedom as a gift from our forefathers, and it was both in mind and in body. Islam, if you know what it is, is about celebrating the differences between cultures and living in harmony.
Secondly, if you think that me and the `mindless cohorts` on this site can not talk about the freedom of mind that islam and our country embodies, then why dont you illuminate us?
Its high time that we should realize where we are and where we are heading. Just screaming about freedom of thought and not knowing what that entails is just ridiculous.

Freedom of the body may be valued – but what counts, REALLY counts – is the freedom of thought – and YOU ain’t got it! Why don’t cowardly culprits like you talk about freedom from that vice-grip of religion that Pakistanis at large received as a birthday gift! Oh, no! That type of imprisonment is something to be cherished and SPREAD around – no borders accepted!

My respect for the uneducated Mullahs keeps going up as I discover more and more the hypocrisy of the closet Mullahs – which is absolutely fascinating – every bit a Mullah, only the guts are lacking!

NOBODY except your mindless cohorts on this site will chant this hackneyed and clueless tune – and such cohorts will NEVER change their tune – because they have no idea how to! You see, their MINDS are not free – and not likely to be anytime soon!