Pakistan Press on Confronting Islamophobia and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar: New Age Islam's Selection, 6 November 2020
By New Age Islam Edit
Desk
6 November
2020
• Confronting Islamophobia With Dialogue
By Ikram Sehgal
• Gulbuddin Hekmatyar In Pakistan
By Muhammad Asif Noor
• Pakistan And The Rights Agenda
By Asif Durrani
• Breach Of Official Secrets Act
By S M Hali
• The Empathy Files
By Muna Khan
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Confronting Islamophobia With Dialogue
By Ikram Sehgal
November 6,
2020
On his way
home from work on a Friday afternoon in a quiet suburban town north-west of
Paris an attacker, later identified as an 18-year-old of Chechen origin, who
came to France as a refugee, cornered Samuel Paty, a middle-school history and
civics teacher on the street, and stabbed him repeatedly. Witnesses say the
killer shouted, “AllahuAkhbar.” “I
have executed one of the dogs from hell who dared to put Muhammad down,” he
wrote in a message briefly posted on Twitter, with a photo showing Paty’s
severed head. Within minutes, the police tracked down the killer and shot him
dead.
Felt deeply
by Muslims for whom any depicting of the Prophet of Islam (PBUH), nothing to
say about making fun of him, is a sacrilege hurting their feelings it is being
assiduously fanned by radical clerics. The real mystery is how come a
middle-school history and civics teacher, supposedly a learned man in a
‘civilized’ and ‘enlightened’ country like France who over the years has known
and taught Muslim students, could not comprehend that making fun of Islam and
its revered personalities will create trouble. With a university education
specializing in history, one can only dread what must have been the content of
that education. How come the educated and civilized Europeans who have been
allowing and even pushing denigration of Islam and the Prophet (PBUH) for
decades cannot learn their lessons? Starting from 1988 when Salman Rushdie
published his ‘Satanic Verses’ it is known that these sensibilities exist. And
that in a country where freedom of religion is a basic principle of government?
The problem
that has existed not only for the last thirty years but much longer is that
maligning of Islam and Islamic personalities is legitimated by the “freedom of
speech or expression”. Any idiot has the constitutional right to say aloud and
propagate whatever comes to his or her stupid mind. In Europe one can make fun
about Christ and Mary and God because in a secular society their existence is
doubted at best and denied at most so making fun doesn’t hurt. The statement by
the Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavistois very revealing, “I don’t
understand anything anymore: when we make fun of black people we call it
racism; and when we mock Jews we call it anti-Semitism; and when we mock women
we call it sexism; and when we mock Muslims we call it freedom of speech”
Meaning the
fear of Islam Islamophobia is an age-old disease in Europe and the West. Europe
had traumatic experiences with Islam and Muslims starting from the Crusades and
all through till Muslim rule in Spain knocked at the doors of France in the 8th
century and later when Ottoman rule threatened European countries in the 14th
to the 16th century. To stem the Muslim tide influential church reformers like
the German Martin Luther took up the arguments of the crusaders saying that
Muslims were uncivilized savages and that Islam was teaching them to kill,
brutalize women declaring them to be God’s punishment for not properly
following the Christian dogma. He created the fear of Islam among Christians so
that they would remain under church influence.
Globalization
-one form of which is colonialism – has swept millions of Muslims into Europe
and the US in search of jobs and refuge. Europe and the West was unprepared for
it then and is unprepared to deal with the problem of Islam and Muslims today.
France is only one example. Given the fact that violence does not solve
problems but only creates more violence means that we have to find another way.
That way can only be peaceful. Pakistan’s Parliament has passed a resolution to
boycott French goods. Boycotting French goods is not a good idea, boycotts and
sanctions have never worked. What happened to the Danish boycott a couple of
years ago? Danish butter and cheese are in the market and find their buyers.
And after all, what French good do we use? May be our Armed Forces could avoid
buying sophisticated weapons and submarines, what good will this do for the
common Muslim?
What
happened in France was wrong, the beheading was brutal and despicable, in the
circumstances the reaction of the French President was emotional but it was
also wrong
Pakistan’s
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday wrote a letter to the leaders of the
Muslim states, asking them to make collective efforts to confront the growing trend
of Islamophobia. That might help but only in the long run. Muslim solidarity
has its difficulties. What everyone of us can do is study the history of
Islamophobia and be ready to bring forward sensible arguments against it. We
have to reason with them on their own turf, confronting them with their own
weaknesses and misunderstandings. Compromises can only happen through dialogue.
Only with reason and logic, facts will overcome fiction.
Samuel
Huntington’s ‘Clash of Civilizations’ is the thesis that people’s cultural and
religious identities will be the primary source of conflict in the post-Cold
War world and that wars would be fought not between countries, but between
cultures in the post-cold-war era. With this idea he closely follows the German
historian Oswald Spengler’s theory that rejects the Eurocentric view of
history, especially the division of history into the linear
“ancient-medieval-modern” rubrics that suggest that all humanity would have to
pass along the same path prescribed by the West sooner or later. According to
Spengler, the Western world is ending and we are witnessing the last season.
Spengler asserts that a characteristic of this last phase of downfall is that
democracy is simply the political weapon of money, and the media are the means
through which money operates a democratic political system. Huntington himself
voiced that he was not advocating the desirability of conflicts between
civilizations. He forgot, though, to add that his scenario should be used to
balance out and avoid such a development.
One of the
reservations even among Muslims against the creation of Pakistan was that while
the Muslim majority Provinces would get their independence from Hindu rule,
many more Muslims than in the constituent units making Pakistan would remain in
India. In a sense their continued safety and comfort has stayed our hand in
dealing with Hindu extremism in the language they understand – and have
understood for over a 1000 years. The way the Hindu radical BJP extremists are
dealing with Muslims in India (who make up 16% of the population) is really
testing our patience. It also underscoreswhy the creation of Pakistan was being
insisted upon by the Quaid as a must. In the same manner we have to be
sensitive to the fact that there are many millions of Muslims living in Europe
and USA. Do we want to condemn them to isolation and ostracism by shunning
dialogue and indulging in confrontation that could lead to further violence?
What
happened in France was wrong, the beheading was brutal and despicable, in the
circumstances the reaction of the French President was emotional but it was
also wrong. However we must engage France (and the French President) in
dialogue, not get engaged in overlapping emotions that could lead to more
violence. Over the years France has been a good friend, not adhering to
draconian arms sanctions against us when they could easily have done so and
were under constant pressure to do so. While we must strongly condemn any
blasphemy, particularly targeting our beloved Prophet (PBUH), we must
immediately engage in dialogue to avoid confrontation. The politics of dialogue
and not the politics of boycott is the answer.
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Ikram Sehgal is a defence and security analyst
https://dailytimes.com.pk/685775/confronting-islamophobia-with-dialogue/
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Gulbuddin Hekmatyar in Pakistan
By Muhammad Asif Noor
November 6,
2020
Former
Afghan prime minister and leader of Hezb-e-Islami Afghanistan, Gulbuddin
Hekmatyar
Photograph:
OMAR SOBHANI
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Gulbuddin
Hekmatyar returned back to tumultuous Kabul after a three-day visit to Pakistan
meeting with high officials including President, Prime Minister and Foreign
Minister in Islamabad. While he lands back to Kabul, at least 12 people
including children were killed after Afghan Military airstrike targeting
Taliban fighters hit a religious school in the northeastern province of Takhar.
This was a deadly error and investigation are on the way to investigate the
cause of such deadly attack. Gulbuddin Hekmatyar offered to broker the deal
with Taliban especially during the time when crucial intra Afghan dialogue is
ongoing in the country. After meeting the officials here in Pakistan,
Hekmatyar, who has a history of political bargaining and opportunist’s tactics
in the power game within Afghan quagmire, has deep discussion with all the top
brass. While talking at a local think tank event, Hekmatyar made a statement
that all the foreign forces must leave Afghanistan and there should be an
independent and powerful unbiased Afghan government to hold the Centre in
Kabul. He was in Islamabad after the visit of another important political
leader Dr. Abdullah Abdullah who is currently heading the Afghan Reconciliation
Commission providing assistance in the peace process.At the regional level,
Hekmatyar push his party’s trust on Pakistan and China as important regional
players and the ones having strong and common coordinated position on
Afghanistan. He once said that peace in Afghanistan is not only in the interest
of Pakistan but also that of China as well. Twice Prime Minister of Afghanistan
said that India is supporting the local militias to as spoilers of the peace
process. Having a key eye at the national and regional level political
struggles, Hekmatyar has an important presence in the entire solution of the Afghan
conflict.
Gulbuddin
Hekmatyar was one of the front line warriors against the former Soviet Union
and US troops in Afghanistan. After signing a peace deal with the Afghanistan
government in 2016 he became an active political icon in Afghanistan political
sphere. Afghanistan is a multi-linguistic, multi ‘cultural & multi-ethnic
country, the role of a religious party in their past experience has given a
broader space to people like Hekmatyar. Afghanistan peace process is in a
critical phase where all major power’s, regional, and non- regional actors want
to maximize their own influence in Afghanistan. Historical linkage with the
past government of Pakistan Hekmatyar himself is trying to find a safe room in
future Afghan politics. In this visit, Hekmatyar said that there should be an
independent government in Afghanistan especially with the strong presence to
have stakes in the next and upcoming Afghan government and set up. The ideas
that Hekmatyar has shared with the Pakistani government about independent
government and his own motivation to be and have stakes in the upcoming
government set up is still a question to be answered by the stakeholders. These
visits from Afghan political leaders to Pakistan are in continuation of their
own desires to have their place in the next government set up and political
bargaining within the Afghan peace process. This is the second-highest Afghan
dignitary visit to Pakistan in the last few weeks.
Afghanistan
peace process is in crucial phase and requires wisdom and patience at the same
time especially from those who are brokering the power sharing relations
amongst the Afghan stakeholders
Pakistan is
an important stakeholder in the Afghanistan with not only sharing the border
regions with the country but also hosting the largest Afghan refugees in the
region. According to the UNHCR report, as a result of the in the Afghan peace
process, with shared political, cultural, religious linkage with Afghanistan
both countries officials, Taliban fighters knew that without Pakistani
diplomatic support Afghanistan will not be able to get out of internal
instability. Hekmatyar visit is also important for the lingering political
turmoil in Afghanistan after complete US withdrawal. Gulbuddin Hekmatyar has a
similar stance against the Kabul government, Hezb-e-Islami leader considers
them as a puppet regime installed by the occupiers of Afghanistan.
Power-sharing and legitimacy in Afghanistan will be the most notable reason for
another possible Civil war in Afghanistan. Any align government in Afghanistan
either from Pakistan, China, Russia, India, or the US will hamper the
long-lasting peace goals in Afghanistan. This is high time for all the
stakeholders in Afghanistan to find common political settlement of Afghanistan.
Hekmatyar political wisdom is more favorable towards Pakistan. For factions
like Hekmatyar Pakistan would be the best option in making peace in Afghanistan
rather than another regional player. Gulbuddin and his faction, like many
others including Taliban, believe that the key to Afghan’s imbroglio is
complete and comprehensive withdrawal of Foreign troops for Afghan soil. To
him, the people of Afghanistan are rational arbiters to decide the future
political and security discourse of Afghanistan. Variety of external and internal
actors, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar striving hard to make its political presence with
the help of their well-wishers. For him, Pakistan is the reliable partner in
this regard to get support for the political struggle in Afghanistan. However,
it all depends that how the government and stakeholders view Hekmatyar and his
ideas and expectations in this entire milieu.
Here we
need also to closely evaluate the role that China is playing in creating
headways in the peace, not only in the region but also in Afghanistan as well.
After the advent of the Belt and Road Initiative, China has actively promoted
and supported the cause of peace, reconciliation and convergence in the region
that is its neighborhood. It is important for China and also for the region to
have sustainable development and shared prosperity. For this matter, we have a
regional alliance of SCO where there is an active Afghan Contact Group made in
order to resolve the issues through the regional peace processes. As a friend
and neighbor of Afghanistan, China respect the will of the people of
Afghanistan and how they view development. China is also supporting
Pakistan-Afghanistan relations to develop mutual trust and improve the bond.
Recently after the signing of the peace deal between Afghan Taliban and US in
February this year, however China is skeptical about US brokered deals as China
believes that these deals will eventually lead to further instability. Chinese
President Xi Jinping’s modern Silk Road project of BRI and China-Pakistan
Economic Corridor (CPEC) that has all the potential to expand in Afghanistan as
a concept of shared future and destiny. As a result of the US presence in
Afghanistan, the involvement of China is not that visible however there has
been always a desire to support Afghanistan in the peace building. Even then,
Chinese companies have won bidding procedures in Afghanistan to work on the
natural resources of the country and help in economic development. China has
also offered political good offices to Taliban in 2019 and invited them to talk
and resolve disputes for peaceful coexistence and lasting prosperity.
Afghanistan
peace process is in crucial phase and requires wisdom and patience at the same
time especially from those who are brokering the power sharing relations amongst
the Afghan stakeholders. Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and others need to carefully
understand that Afghanistan will remain unstable unless and until people of the
country will not place their national interests above their self-interests. For
lasting peace and stability of the country, afghan people need to take the
destiny in their own hands.
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Muhammad Asif Noor is Director, Institute of
Peace and Diplomatic Studies Disclaimer: The views expressed in this opinion
piece, does not necessarily reflect the positon of the Institute
https://dailytimes.com.pk/685772/hekmatyar-in-pakistan/
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Pakistan And The Rights Agenda
By Asif Durrani
November 6,
2020
A few weeks
ago, Pakistani diplomacy, known traditionally for punching above its weight,
landed another historic win when Pakistan was elected to a fifth, three-year
term at the UN Human Rights Council.
Building
upon its earlier tally of 151 votes in 2017, Pakistan received 169 endorsements
at the UN General Assembly in a contested election that saw five Asian States
vying for four slots at the Council. Nearly 90 percent of the General Assembly
membership elected Pakistan to remain at the Council, an endorsement of
Pakistan’s sound credentials in promoting universal human rights considered
sine qua non for an equitable and just world order.
Historically,
Pakistan has been in the forefront of human rights issues, much before the UN
Human Rights Council came into being. Although not much talked about,
Pakistan’s high profile in multilateral diplomacy has always been acknowledged
– a host of landmark international conventions were signed with Pakistan’s
active participation or with Pakistan’s lead for their adoption.
First,
Pakistani delegate Begum Shaista Ikramullah pushed through Article 16, for the
equal rights of women and men, to marry and found a family during the
negotiation phase of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights back in 1948,
which became Article 16 of the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Second, Pakistan co-initiated the 1990
World Summit on Children which led to the landmark Convention on the Rights of
the Child. Third, Pakistan was a founding member of the Human Rights Council
and remained an active participant in its predecessor, the Commission for Human
Rights.
Fourth,
Pakistan played a seminal role in ending colonization and securing liberties
and rights, including the right to self-determination for peoples under
subjugation. Many countries of Africa still remember the staunch support
provided by Pakistan to their causes for independence within the halls of the
UN as well as at other fora. Pakistan’s delegation at the UN has historically
been considered a voice for the voiceless.
Within the
Council, Pakistan’s conciliatory role has been appreciated by the West and the
Islamic World on the one hand, and the developing and developed world on the
other. A consensual approach adopted by Pakistan has more often accrued
positive, win-win outcomes from a discourse often characterized by abrasive
confrontations, Us-vs-Them and blame-and-shame mindsets, and political
point-scoring.
One
manifestation of our bridge-building diplomacy is the consensus Pakistan
secures in the HRC on the EU’s resolution on freedom of religion and belief and
the OIC’s resolution on combating intolerance and discrimination on the basis
of religion or belief. Pakistan has steered the work of the HRC to focus on
eliminating inequalities within and among states for realization of human
rights, and the role of states in responding to pandemics and their
socioeconomic consequences in the context of advancing human rights. At a time
of growing disparities within and among countries and regions, rising
xenophobia and intolerance, and uncertainties stemming from unprecedented
health and economic shocks, these strands constitute important pillars of the
emerging human rights discourse.
Despite
fierce opposition from India, it is due to Pakistan’s advocacy through the HRC
and its affiliated mechanisms that there is greater awareness of and sensitization
to the egregious humanitarian situation in Occupied Jammu & Kashmir. It is
in part due to Pakistan’s efforts that these modern-day avatars of fascism are
squarely and visibly on the radar of human rights campaigners, and countries
with different cultural backdrops and societal mores are more attuned to the
adverse impact of hate speech and disinformation.
Pakistan
has always advocated a balanced approach between rights and responsibilities,
as enshrined in international human rights law. Contemporary challenges with
regard to the right to freedom of expression in the form of hate speech,
incitement to violence and propagation of fascist ideologies, underscore the
need to strike such a balance. Another vital linkage highlighted frequently by
Pakistan is one between human rights and human development. Ultimately,
promotion and protection of all human rights is contingent upon inclusive and
sustainable development. Pakistan’s balanced perspectives stand in sharp
contrast to the ongoing dialectic within the UN system that creates an
artificial and uncalled for divide between human rights and human needs.
At the
national level, Pakistan is advancing human rights through fresh and more
strident legislation for protecting society’s most vulnerable, strengthening
institutional frameworks, and shoring up reporting and monitoring mechanisms.
Currently, the HRC considers Pakistan as one of the most progressive countries
with regard to legislation on the rights of transgender people.
While
facing impediments stemming from the country’s peculiar geopolitical
circumstances and developmental challenges, Pakistan has neither shied away
from engaging international human rights mechanisms proactively and
constructively, nor from candidly admitting to gaps, and responding to
constructive criticisms in areas that warrant attention. At the core of
Pakistan’s efforts at both the international and national planes, is the
fundamental Pakistani ethos of an unconditional, all-embracing compassion for
humanity. This core value stems from both Pakistan’s ideology grounded in its
Islamic moorings as well as societal norms and practices that predate the
advent of Islam.
This key
conviction animates governmental action in terms of the strong assent on social
welfare and looking after the poor and vulnerable, and the resultant
prioritization of welfare programmes. It is also evident in the visceral
support of the Pakistani civil society to those in distress, whenever a
disaster strikes, be it feeding the hungry and dispossessed during the Covid-19
pandemic or rescuing the victims of the earthquake of 2005 and floods of 2011.
At a time
when many of the developed countries have closed their doors to refugees and
migrants, Pakistan continues to host around three million Afghans, now for more
than four decades. From Polish and Bosnian to Rohingya refugees, Pakistan has
always been a place of shelter for those escaping persecution.
As Pakistan
resumes work at the HRC for another term, an expansive agenda on an array of
long-standing and emerging human rights issues awaits in Geneva. Besides the
need to continue to draw international attention to various dimensions of human
rights violations in Occupied Kashmir, the linkage between corruption; its
abetment through safe havens; undermining of the right to development and
reversal of illicit financial flows has to be more clearly drawn.
Climate
change is now leading to climate disasters. It is impacting both human security
and human life, with all its attendant rights and liberties. Pakistan’s billion
and ten billion tree tsunami projects and advocacy for climate action have set
the ground for a more result oriented and proactive response to climate change
including at the HRC.
With the
world becoming increasingly reliant on digital technologies; big data driving
advances in economies and businesses; and privacy issues coming to the fore, it
is imperative that a globally accepted framework outlining cyber rights and
responsibilities is put in place. Changing drivers and contexts of
trans-national migration flows must take into account the evolving
multi-dimensional nature of the problem. Given the pandemic situation, Pakistan
must lead the charge in highlighting mental health rights as well as rights of
caregivers. Rights of hitherto neglected and marginalized segments of society,
notably those with disabilities and transgender persons must now be more
effectively spotlighted.
Finally, in
a toxic environment of hate and blame, and rising xenophobia, racism and
Islamophobia, it is imperative that Pakistan further bolsters its role of a
country promoting understanding and bridging differences. With its rich history
of eclectic influences, Pakistan is better positioned than most to fulfil this
role.
---
Asif Durrani is a former ambassador.
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/739577-pakistan-and-the-rights-agenda
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Breach Of Official Secrets Act
By S M Hali
November 6, 2020
Official
Secrets Act, 1923 is Pakistan’s Anti Espionage Act and was enacted to
consolidate and amend the laws relating to official secrets in Pakistan. It
stipulates that if a person uses the information in his possession for the
benefit of any foreign power or in any other manner prejudicial to the safety
of the State, shall on prosecution for the offence is liable to be punished
with imprisonment for a term which may extend to fourteen years.
Apparently,
our politicians are unaware of the implications of the breach of this act or
the gravity of disclosing state secrets. Military officers are expected to take
an oath when they are commissioned as well as sign the official secrets act.
Civilians too are bona fide citizens of the state and while in office and even
when out of it, either as bureaucrats or parliamentarians, are expected to
protect classified information, they may receive through briefings or exposure
to documents. The advertent or even inadvertent disclosure of such information
can be detrimental to the interests of the state.
Economic
measures, which range from devaluation of the national currency, double digit
inflation, disappearance of essential food items from the markets and later
making them available at cutthroat prices are adopted by the enemy to create
discontent
Pakistan is
facing multiple threats, which imperil its very existence. There are various reasons
why the detractors of Pakistan would like to destabilize it and decapitated it
in the process. It is the only Islamic state in the world, which is equipped
with nuclear weapons. Despite several attempts to defang Pakistan’s nuclear
arsenal, its strategic assets remain intact. There are different reports which
disclose that some world powers actually conducted surgical strikes to take out
Pakistan’s nuclear programme, when it was still in the nascent stage. They
failed and Pakistan managed to disperse its nuclear assets, far from the prying
eyes of would be assailants. Some international forces carried out wargames to
study the possibility of acquiring Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal by brute force.
They came to the conclusion that in the face of Pakistan’s robust nuclear
command authority, it would not be possible.
The
strategic location of Pakistan combined with its alliance with China and
participation in President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative along with its
flagship project the China Pakistan Economic Corridor and the development of
the deep sea port of Gwadar, have all made Pakistan a candidate for
destabilization, fragmentation and breakup by its enemies.
Resultantly,
macabre forces have been unleashed in the shape of separatist elements, terror
mongers and agent provocateurs to wreak havoc. In all the heinous plots hatched
against Pakistan, India plays a major role as it would gain tremendously with
Pakistan’s fragmentation and annihilation.
Faced with
the possibility of a nuclear holocaust if a full scale invasion of Pakistan
takes place, India would prefer to use hybrid war instead. This fifth
generation war has various elements and tools and is military strategy, which
employs political warfare and blends conventional warfare, irregular warfare,
and cyberwarfare with other influencing methods, such as propaganda, fake news,
coercive diplomacy and foreign electoral intervention. By combining kinetic
operations with subversive efforts, the aggressor intends to avoid attribution
or retribution. Hybrid warfare can be used to describe the flexible and complex
dynamics of the battlespace requiring a highly adaptable and resilient
response.
In modern
times, the enemy seeks to discredit the adversary’s ruling dispensation as well
as its armed forces by spreading rumours. Economic measures, which range from
devaluation of the national currency, double digit inflation, disappearance of
essential food items from the markets and later making them available at
cutthroat prices are adopted by the enemy to create discontent. Placement of
factotums in the seat of government to do the bidding of the adversary or
feeding taglines to the political opponents to create mayhem and chaos is a
common factor.
The mention
of the Pakistan Official Secrets Act in the opening paragraph was essential to
emphasize that information can be leaked to the media, which pertains to
sensitive data. Unsuspecting or at times willing politicians who have the
capacity to be manipulated by the enemy for bribes or blackmail are launched to
disclose sensational information infringing on the breach of the Official
Secrets Act, which can embarrass the sitting government but more importantly,
shatter the morale of the people.
Fifth
Generation Warfare next entails protest rallies, strikes and demonstrations,
which erode the peace and harmony as well as the credibility of the government
if the demonstrations turn ugly and the government cracks down with brute
force. Sometimes ethnic or racial conflicts are orchestrated so that
destabilization is achieved.
Some
members of the political opposition, who have chosen to denigrate the law
enforcing agencies, the armed forces and intelligence institutions, twisting
facts, even going to the extent of nullifying victories gained in combat and
demeaning the sacrifices of the martyrs are actually facilitating Pakistan’s
detractors. If such politicians chose to disclose selected titbits from
classified briefings, twisting facts and at times telling blatant lies, they
are committing a breach of the Official Secrets Act and can be tried in a court
of law.
-----
S M Hali is a retired Group Captain of PAF. He
is a columnist, analyst and TV talk show host
https://dailytimes.com.pk/685773/breach-of-official-secrets-act/
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The Empathy Files
By Muna Khan
06 Nov 2020
WHEN I
first began working in journalism, I would help compile the ‘Death File’ pages
at Newsline. It was 1995; violence was a part of Karachi’s fabric; we had to
scour a few newspapers to look for that information. Every day I would count
the bodies shot, tortured to death, found in sacks, killed in disputes,
extra-judicial killings, road accidents, etc which were spread over roughly
four pages. We did this for record purposes; to advocate for the dead, to
remind the authorities it was happening on their watch but I thought the
compilation itself was grunt work.
As I
progressed in my career, this indirect exposure to violence became an invisible
tattoo on the mind. When I heard about a violent incident in the city in the
late 1990s, early 2000s my immediate thought was how it would impact my route
home, or to work, to social gatherings etc. I did not think how violence
impacted the community because I guess I thought (resigned myself to think?)
such things were always happening to someone else.
When I look
back at the particularly gruesome times, I believe I reacted this way — by
which I mean no reaction — as a coping mechanism. Or I was, like all
Karachiites, resilient — the ubiquitous adjective to describe us. I also see
how that non-reaction impacted the journalism I was doing. I had sympathy but
no empathy in covering the communities the violence was impacting the most.
Empathy, ie putting yourself in someone else’s shoes, enables journalists to be
better listeners which allows them to tell better stories which are
representative of the city, country etc. This kind of journalism also fosters
trust between the media and its consumers.
At present,
the political polarisation around the world is clear but perhaps what’s not so
clear is how strongly associated that polarisation is with less trust in
journalists. This is according to a poll by Gallup in December 2019 which
studied the degree with which the public trusts journalists across 144
countries. “As political division grows, the news media and journalists willingly
or unwillingly become participants in the political fray. Reporting on
contentious topics and attempts to hold powerful interests accountable can lead
to accusations of media bias,” they wrote.
There are
many players who don’t want stories to be told.
How did we
get here?
Here’s what
we journalists/editors ultimately ended up doing by not reporting on vulnerable
communities. We blacked them out, relegating their issues to talking heads or
‘experts’ on op-ed pages, or fancy data sets — X per cent below poverty line or
X per cent killed in drone attacks and so forth. And here’s how it’s played
out: today, we have to think about how to publish a story on the anti-Shia
rallies under the enormous constraints of what can and can’t be said, because
over the years, we did not adequately tell the story about how the
discrimination impacted Shias. Ask yourselves how/what you’ve read about them
outside news of their deaths, or the realm of op-eds or male anchors shouting
on TV screens. (Kudos to the young journalists publishing blogs/vlogs on what
it’s like to be Shia in Pakistan.)
Some issues
in journalism are black and white, but increasingly, the world is grey and
empathy can help reflect the complexities of the issue. Letting vulnerable
communities tell their stories so that audiences can better understand where
they’re coming from can make a powerful impact. Admittedly, it is harder to get
these stories told — there are economic pressures, news cycles to follow, news
managers to please, owners to butter up, etc. And, there are simply too many
players now who don’t want stories to be told.
News
organisations are catering to meet the needs of the folks who can afford to buy
papers, cable licences etc, leaving the less affluent to get their
informational needs elsewhere. The less affluent have all been abandoned by
news organisations and the affluent only hear about the less affluent when
something happens to this group. There’s no ‘Death File’, well because there’s
no Newsline but the commitment to hold the powerful accountable has also waned.
Can empathy
be a valuable tool in the newsroom? Research suggests so. According to
psychologists Melanie C. Green and Timothy C. Brock in The Role of
Transportation in the Persuasiveness of Public Narratives “the more transported
you feel, the more likely you’ll be to change your opinions and beliefs about
the real world”.
The lesson
for editors across platforms is to ask how to bring the underrepresented back
to the fold (no pun intended), not because they’re potential customers — they
aren’t — but because it is anti-democratic not to cover them. Underrepresented
communities deserve better from journalists; they are not just an audience;
they are people with issues that mirror realities in this country. To ignore
them is to ignore those realities. And that is not the role journalists should
ever sign up for.
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Muna Khan teaches journalism at IBA in Karachi.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1588896/the-empathy-files
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