Two-Muslim Theory: Part 2

... continued from previous posting ...

Changing the Narrative

Nawabzada Liaqat Ali Khan was was born in 1895 to a Muslim aristocrat family whose jagir started at the eastern edge of Punjab (now Haryana) and stretched into Uttar Pradesh. His family had cordial relations with the British. His grandfather extended support to the British during the hard times of 1857 and his father earned many titles and honours.

Liaqat Ali went to Aligarh and then to Oxford. On his return from London in 1923, he joined Muslim League. He contested his first elections in 1926 on a seat reserved for Muslims in the UP Assembly (Muzaffarnagar constituency) and comfortably won. He grew into an eloquent parliamentarian, pleading mostly for the causes of Muslim landlords who were a minority in that province.

He became one of the most important members of the Muslim League's vanguard. Nawabzada is, in fact, credited to have convinced a dejected and disappointed Muhammad Ali Jinnah to end his 'self-imposed exile' in London and lead the movement for a separate homeland for Muslims. Liaqat Ali Khan was made the General Secretary of the Muslim League in 1936.

The party's parliamentary committee did not award him the ticket for the 1936 elections for his home constituency which he valued highly. Despite holding a high office in the Muslim League, he contested as an independent from his home constituency and faced criticism of fellow party men.

He contested the 1946 elections for the Central Legislative Assembly on the Muslim seat of Meerut in Uttar Pradesh. Following this victory, Liaqat Ali won a place in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan and at independence was made the first Prime Minister with the additional charge of Foreign Affairs and Commonwealth Relations and Defense. He remained the longest serving prime minister until Yousuf Raza Gilani exceeded him by a few weeks recently.

Prime Minister Liaqat Ali is accredited with a number of ground breaking contributions. He decided to ally with the US in the Cold War divide; quashed a coup attempt by communists; promoted General Ayub to the highest rank and fought a war with India over Kashmir to name just a select few. His government ruled on ad hoc basis under temporary laws as it could not formulate and build a consensus on a constitution for the country.

Reasons were simple. They could not dig out a monarchy to rule the country nor could they install a Caliph. The constitution had to be based on democracy. But the problem was that Meerut was now in India. The most powerful Prime Minister serving for one of the longest periods in the history of Pakistan had no constituency in the country to contest elections from. A committed democrat and an active parliamentarian, he  knew well that he and his political class had no, or at best a very shaky, future under a democracy. In contrast, Bacha Khan's was a completely secure political position. It was impossible to democratically uproot him from his constituency. He had voters, volunteers and diehard loyalists.

The ad hoc powers were thus used to change the rules of the game. Six months after the death of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Prime Minister Liaqat Ali Khan moved the Objective Resolution in the Constituent Assembly that introduced Islam as the raison d'être of the new country. Religion was pitched against linguistic and cultural identity and faith was made to rival political interests. Those loving their culture, defending their language and demanding their democratic and political rights on these grounds became heretics conspiring against the last citadel of Islam in the Subcontinent. Ideological boundaries of the country became more important than the limits of electoral constituencies and principles of democracy were contrasted to injunctions of Islam as defined by a selected ulema.

Bacha Khan who enjoyed a hard earned and unflinching popular support in a vast constituency went down in official gazettes as an anti-Pakistan traitor. Red Shirts were hounded and hunted. Politicians were jailed and elections were rigged.

By declaring the entire country as one constituency and setting ones perceived Islamic credentials as the only qualification, Liaqat Ali Khan tried to create a constituency for his class – the politically insecure Muslim elite that had migrated from the Muslim minority provinces of India. But ironically, they could not sustain their hold on this constituency for long. Within a decade they were outdone by the Army in the game they had pioneered. They were declared incapable of defending the citadel of Islam. The army took over the 'responsibility' of keeping the country united in the name of Islam and secure from the conspirators who had strong democratic constituencies in the country.

The army did not feel the need to redraft the national narrative that was scripted in those initial years. It was found to be in perfect harmony with the Army's own scheme to block or cripple democracy and sustain its direct or indirect rule for decades to come. The narrative persists with all its detail and corollaries and insists on its refusal to recognise Bacha Khan as a great national hero.

Two-Muslim Theory: Part 1

Article originally by Tahir Mehdi appeared in the Dawn. Presented here in an adapted format. 

Introducing Bacha Khan

When someone says 'Muslims of Indo-Pak subcontinent' with reference to history, does this refer to one unanimous, monolithic block of people with no shades and diversity? The reality is divergent political interests and ambitions of Muslims throughout the subcontinents history before and beyond the period that ended on this day 65 years ago. A reintroduction to these groups and how the new state of Pakistan responded to their political aspirations might help us understand where we stand now.

Pre-partition Muslims can be classified in many ways beyond sectarian differences within Islam. The followers of one sect are not a completely homologous group either, as they may differ on other counts like economic class, cast, language, culture etc. These attributes have an impact on way people behave and act in spheres of economy, politics, culture and even faith. It's only natural to consider that all these factors make one what he or she is. Instead of labouring over an academically-sound definition of each, this post offers an example of one person from two of these two groups.

Abdul Ghaffar Khan was born in 1890 to rural middle-class Pakhtun parents of Utmanzai, a small town in the present day district of Charssadda. At the age of 20 he opened a school in his village. He had woken up to the fact that his people have no future if they don't educate themselves and their children. The tall, young man proved to be a zealous missionary. He would walk for miles from one village to the other with his simple message – educate yourself and abstain from violence. He was a devout Muslim, a five-timer namazi parhaizgar and would draw heavily from Islamic history and the Prophet's sayings to rally fellow Pakhtuns. People joined him in droves. 

His appeal matured into charisma and in his 30s, he founded a social reform movement named Khudai Khidmatgar (Servants of God). By now he was named Badshah Khan or Bacha Khan. The movemen gave its volunteers a uniform that was red and organised them on the pattern of a militia that was, in his words, armed "with the weapon of the Prophet – that is, patience and righteousness. No power on earth can stand against it." It was only Bacha Khan who could unarm Pakhtuns who otherwise were considered quarrelsome and trigger-happy.

The Red Shirts, as the volunteers of the movement were known as, were against the British rule and demanded self government. For the British, the then province of NWFP had great strategic importance. It was a so-called buffer against the Afghan government that was not friendly with the Raj and also against the Russians whom the British dreaded as their rivals.

The Bolshevik revolution of Russia in 1917 was emerging as a huge challenge for Imperialism. It had a natural affinity with the nations oppressed by the British. The Russian revolution was colored red. The sight of a Red Shirt in the Peshawar valley gave the British a fright. At Qisa Khani Bazar in 1930, the frenzied British forces fired directly at a protest rally of unarmed Khudai Khidmatgars killing many hundreds. The movement and its committed cadre did not budge. They stood fast. Many estimate that at its peak there were as many as a hundred thousand Red Shirts.

When the British adopted a cautious policy of sharing power with local political forces and initiated limited franchise elections, the group allied with Indian National Congress. It contested successive elections, won majority and formed governments in the province. As the British hated them, they would conspire against the Red Shirts and jailed Bacha Khan frequently and for long periods but could not undo the politicisation of the Pakhtun middle class that he had initiated.

Pakhtun felt comfortable with Congress and that didn't bear out of some personal friendship between the top leaders. Congress accommodated politics of budding smaller sub-national groups, offered them space for growth and opportunity to integrate with others without giving much consideration to religion. On the other hand, Bacha Khan did not owe his 'fearlessness' vis a vis Hindus to Pakhtun chivalric traditions, instead he had earned this confidence through successive electoral victories. He had a large constituency where Muslims were in majority. There were Hindus too but Pakhtuns did not see Hindus as threat to their religion or politics.

Despite its vociferous campaign Muslim League could not ignite fears of Hindu domination in the support base of Bacha Khan. His comrades won the land mark elections of 1946 with a thumping majority. He opposed the Partition on the basis of religion, but it happened. His democratically elected government was dismissed 8 days after the independence, on 22 August, 1947 when Muhammad Ali Jinnah was the Governor General and Liaqat Ali Khan was the Prime Minister.

read more in the next posting

The Tragedy of Malala

In this climate of agendas, I admit to some confusion about what I am being told and it is never always absolutely clear what is the truth; and what is blatant propaganda. Over the years, and particularly since I began this blog I have been offered many loose ends and have read way too many conflicting accounts to be sure all the time. This makes the events surrounding Malala Yousafzai's shooting all the more tragic. Primarily I pray for her speedy recovery and condemn the bigotry that led to her shooting. May Allah bring peace and justice to all those caught up in the ongoing war and the acts of terror in the Pakistan-Afghanistan belt. May people be afforded the right to go about their business according to their faith and conciousness free from the threat coercion or attack. Ameen. 

Part of me cannot escape noticing the ring of political and media exploitation surrounding Malala's life, or even the fact that the girls who were shot with her, Kainaat and Shazia, are all but forgotten. There is no doubt that these are remarkable individuals and I keep them all in my prayers. Out of the tragedy, I wish to see these girls strong in their resolve - to acquire the education that has been the cause of the controversy in Swat and to be part of that change that will allow them as Pashtun women to be the social equals that men and women in Bacha Khan's vision were meant to be.

This is an important parallel. Bacha Khan recognised the crucial need for education amongst the Pashtuns - for both men and women and Malala would embody that. She bravely stood up to intimidation when girls' schooling was banned in Swat and in doing so adopted a very political position. I offer this with a little caution however. To be political is one thing; to be caught up in someone else's politics is something else. Since the fall of the Taliban in Swat, Malala has been courted by the Pakistani and the world media with their varying views  - all wishing to push their own messages through her.

Note this quote from BBC World TV documentary about her made two years ago. She is twelve years old at the time.

Malala: “I want to ba a doctor but my father told me you have to be a politician. But I don’t like politics.”
Father: “My daughter can be better than a doctor.”

Malala's desire for an education was genuine and highly commendable; but she was thrust into the firing line by an ambitious father and an ambitious documentary maker apparently unconcerned by her direct statement that she was being manipulated against her will.

Having been shot, Malala has now been airlifted and is receiving world class treatment in Birmingham, England. I hope that she recovers and in the long term goes on to a happy and fulfilled life as a doctor. For most children caught in the 'War on Terror', however, the story is very different. The truth is that Malala is not getting this treatment because that is what is done for children attacked in Afghanistan and Pakistan. She is getting this treatment because she became, and remains, an exploited propaganda symbol. If people really cared about Pashtun children, Malala would not be a public figure in the way that she now is. Pashtun children would not have to 'fight' for their right to education and nor would they be filmed fighting for their lives in hospitals.  

Read this view for more thoughts on this story. 

Link: Swat Educational Society

Two-Nation Theory II

... continued from previous posting ... 

Despite its vociferous campaign Muslim League could not ignite fears of Hindu domination in the support base of Bacha Khan. His comrades won the land mark elections of 1946 with a thumping majority. He opposed the Partition on the basis of religion, but it happened. His democratically elected government was dismissed 8 days after the independence, on 22 August, 1947 when Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah was the Governor General and Liaqat Ali Khan was the Prime Minister.

Nawabzada Liaqat Ali Khan was five-years younger to Bacha Khan. He was born in 1895 to a Muslim aristocrat family whose jagir starting at the eastern edge of Punjab (now Haryana) stretched into Uttar Pradesh. His family had cordial relations with the British. Some say the family gained fortunes and earned intimacy with the Raj, when his grandfather extended support to the British during the hard times of 1857. His father earned many a titles and honors too.

Liaqat Ali went to Aligarh and then to Oxford. On his return from London in 1923, he joined Muslim League. He contested his first elections in 1926 on a seat reserved for Muslims in the UP Assembly (Muzaffarnagar constituency) and comfortably won. He grew into an eloquent parliamentarian, pleading mostly for the causes of Muslim landlords who were a minority in that province.

He became one of the most important members of the Muslim League’s vanguard. Nawabzada is, in fact, credited to have convinced a dejected and disappointed Muhammad Ali Jinnah to end his ‘self-imposed exile’ in London and lead the movement for a separate homeland for Muslims. Liaqat Ali Khan was made the General Secretary of the Muslim League in 1936.

The party’s parliamentary committee did not award him the ticket for the 1936 elections for his home constituency which he valued highly. Despite holding a high office in the Muslim League, he contested as an independent from his home constituency and faced criticism of fellow party men.

He contested the 1946 elections for the Central Legislative Assembly on the Muslim seat of Meerut that is situated in Uttar Pradesh. Following this victory, Nawabzada won a place in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan and at independence was made the first Prime Minister with the additional charge of Foreign Affairs and Commonwealth Relations and Defense. He remained the longest serving prime minister in the history of Pakistan till Yousuf Raza Gilani exceeded him by a few weeks recently.

Prime Minister Liaqat Ali is accredited with a number of ground breaking contributions. He decided to ally with the US in the Cold War divide; quashed a coup attempt by communists; promoted General Ayub to the highest rank and fought a war with India over Kashmir to name just a select few. His government ruled on ad hoc basis under temporary laws as it could not formulate and build a consensus on a constitution for the country.

Reasons were simple. They could not dig out a monarchy to rule the country nor could they install a Caliph. The constitution has to be based on democracy. But the problem was that Meerut was now in India. The most powerful Prime Minister serving for one of the longest periods in the history of Pakistan had no constituency in the country to contest elections from. A committed democrat and an active parliamentarian, he  knew well that he and his political class had no, or at best a very shaky, future under a democracy. In contrast, Bacha Khan’s was a completely secure political position. It was impossible to democratically uproot him from his constituency. He had voters, volunteers and diehard loyalists.

The ad hoc powers were thus used to change the rules of the game.

Six months after the death of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Prime Minister Liaqat Ali Khan moved the Objective Resolution in the Constituent Assembly that introduced Islam as the raison d’être of the new country. Religion was pitched against ones linguistic and cultural identity and faith was made to rival political interests. Those loving their culture, defending their language and demanding their democratic and political rights on these bases became heretics conspiring against the last citadel of Islam in the Subcontinent. Ideological boundaries of the country became more important than the limits of electoral constituencies and principles of democracy were contrasted to injunctions of Islam as defined by the select ulema.

Bacha Khan who enjoyed a hard earned and unflinching popular support in a vast constituency went down in our official gazettes as an anti-Pakistan traitor. Red Shirts were hounded and hunted. Politicians were jailed and elections were rigged.

By declaring the entire country as one constituency and setting ones perceived Islamic credentials as the only qualification, Liaqat Ali Khan tried to create a constituency for his class – the politically insecure Muslim elite that had migrated from the Muslim minority provinces of India. But ironically, they could not sustain their hold on this constituency for long. Within a decade they were outdone by the Army in the game they had pioneered. They were declared incapable of defending the citadel of Islam. The army took over the ‘responsibility’ of keeping the country united in the name of Islam and secure from the conspirators who had strong democratic constituencies in the country.

The army did not feel the need to redraft the national narrative that was scripted in those initial years. It was found to be in perfect harmony with the Army’s own scheme to block or cripple democracy and sustain its direct or indirect rule for decades to come. The narrative persists with all its detail and corollaries and insists on its refusal to recognise Bacha Khan as a great national hero.

Two-Nation Theory I

This write up is taken from an article in the Dawn newspaper by Tehir Mehdi. It challenges the Two-Nation Theory that is cited as the raison d'être of Pakistan. Interestingly it makes the point that despite Bacha Khan remaining a pious Muslim he did not harbour the antagonisms that fuelled partition. For this reason and the cultural closeness to Afghanistan, the Khudai Khidmatgars were viewed as having not accepted the Two Nation theory. Bacha Khan and Pashtoons of the Khudai Khidmatgars were systematically jailed under charges of treason and their contributions to the Free India movement were written out of the texts of Pakistan history.

When someone says ‘Muslims of Indo-Pak subcontinent’ with reference to our history, does this refer to one unanimous, monolithic block of people with no shades and diversity? I think it’s a big folly to ignore how divergent the political interests and ambitions of Muslims were in the period that ended on this day 65 years ago. A reintroduction to these groups and how the new state of Pakistan responded to their political aspirations might help us understand where we stand now.

Pre-partition Muslims can be classified in many ways. For now I would put them into two larger groups and instead of laboring over an academically-sound definition of each, I will demonstrate my point by offering example of one person from each of these two groups.

Abdul Ghaffar Khan was born in 1890 to rural middle-class Pakhtun parents of Utmanzai, a small town in the present day district of Charssadda. At the age of 20 he opened a school in his village. He had woken up to the fact that his people have no future if they don’t educate themselves and their children. The tall, young man proved to be a zealous missionary. He would walk for miles from one village to the other with his simple message – educate yourself and abstain from violence. He was a devout Muslim, a five-timer namazi parhaizgar and would draw heavily from Islamic history and the Prophet’s sayings to rally fellow Pakhtuns. People joined him in droves. His arcane appeal matured into charisma, some would even give him a halo.

In his 30s, he founded a social reform movement named Khudai Khidmatgar (Servants of God). By now he was named Badshah Khan or Bacha Khan. The movement, like many others of that era, gave its volunteers a uniform that was red and organised them on the pattern of a militia that was, in his words, armed “with the weapon of the Prophet – that is, patience and righteousness. No power on earth can stand against it.” It was only Bacha Khan who could unarm Pakhtuns who otherwise were considered quarrelsome and trigger-happy.

The Red Shirts, as the volunteers of the movement were known as, were against the British rule and demanded self government. For the British, the then province of NWFP had great strategic importance. It was a so-called buffer against the Afghan government that was not friendly with the Raj and also against the Russians whom the British dreaded as their rivals.

The Bolshevik revolution of Russia in 1917 was emerging as a huge challenge for Imperialism. It had a natural affinity with the nations oppressed by the British. The Russian revolution was colored red. The sight of a Red Shirt in the Peshawar valley gave the British a fright. At Qisa Khani Bazar in 1930, the frenzied British forces fired directly at a protest rally of unarmed Khudai Khidmatgars killing many hundreds. The movement and its committed cadre did not budge. They stood fast. Many estimate that at its peak there were as many as a hundred thousand Red Shirts.

When the British adopted a cautious policy of sharing power with local political forces and initiated limited franchise elections, the group allied with Indian National Congress. It contested successive elections, won majority and formed governments in the province. As the British hated them, they would conspire against the Red Shirts and jailed Bacha Khan frequently and for long periods but could not undo the politicisation of the Pakhtun middle class that he had initiated.

Pakhtun Muslims felt comfortable with Congress and that didn’t bear out of some personal friendship between the top leaders. Congress accommodated politics of budding smaller sub-national groups, offered them space for growth and opportunity to integrate with others without giving much consideration to religion. On the other hand, Bacha Khan did not owe his ‘fearlessness’ vis a vis Hindus to Pakhtun chivalric traditions, instead he had earned this confidence through successive electoral victories. He had a large constituency where Muslims were in majority. There were Hindus too but Pakhtun Muslims did not see Pakhtun Hindus as threat to their religion or politics.

... continued in the next post ...

A Conversation Between Two Great Men

When I reflect on the continuing turmoil that surrounds the lands of my people, I think of how far we have strayed from Bacha Khan's vision. I take comfort, however, in these words here - the possibility - the hope and the belief of who we are. Here's an excerpt of a conversation between Mahatma Gandhi and Bacha Khan, two incredibly great men:

BACHA KHAN: Gandhiji, you have been preaching non violence in India for a long time now, but I started teaching the Pathans non-violence only a short time ago. Yet, in comparison, the Pathans seem to have grasped the idea of non-violence much quicker and much better than the Indians. Just think how much violence there was in India during the war in 1942. Yet in the North West Province, in spite of all the cruelty and the oppression the British inflicted upon them, not one Pathan resorted to violence, though they too possess the instruments of violence. How do you explain that?

GANDHIJI: Non-violence is not for cowards. It is for the brave and the courageous. And the Pathans are more brave and courageous than the Hindus. That is the reason why the Pathans were able to remain non-violent.

Read more.

د اجمل خټک فیصله

Ajmal Khattak's Decision

Ajmal Khattak (September 1925 - February 2010) was an activist, poet, politician and close friend of Khan Abdul Wali Khan. In his youth, Ajmal Khattak was influenced by Bacha Khan's philosophy of non-violence and social work. This led him to join the Khudai Khidmatgar and later the National Awami Party. His recent death leaves a gap in moden Pashtoon political and literary thought. May Ajmal Khattak Baba rest in Allah's peace.

The poem here فیصله Faisala (Decision) is one of many works from the compilation دغیرت چغه Da Ghairat Chagha (The Cry of Valour).

Tor_Khan تور خان

فیصله

نه په ثواب نه په ګناه یمه بس
Na pa sawaab, na pa guna yama, bas
Not for blessing, not for sin am I, just
نه په ژړا نه په خندا یمه بس
Na pa jara, na pa khanda yama, bas
Not for sorrow, not for joy am I, just
اول خوستا په مخ کې هیڅ نه یمه
Awal khu sta pa makhki hiss na yama
Firstly, before you am I nothing
اوکه څه یمه نود ستا یمه بس
Aw ka sa yama no da sta yama, bas
And if I am anything, then I am yours, just.

اجمل خټک

Hope and Remembrance - Bacha Khan

Yesterday, I spoke of despair. Today I shall speak of remembrance, and with it, hope. In fact, I started 2010 with a message of hope. As much as I believe in peace, I believe in hope. If you take away hope from people, then what is the reason for them to go on?

On this day, in 1988, Bacha Khan, Leader, Philosopher, Activist and Soldier of Peace died. Bacha Khan's words, whilst sometimes reflected the difficulties of the moment, offer a vision of peace and hope. His message, is one that I have repeatedly come back to on these pages. There is another way, and that is the way to peace, freedom and hope.

نن پښتون تە ټـوپک نە ،
د قلم ضرورت دى
باچا خان
Nan, Pukhtoon ta topak na, da qalam zaroorat de.
"Today Pashtoons do not need guns. They need pens."
Bacha Khan

Tor_Khan تور خان

Pashtunistan Square

I despair sometimes.

Yesterday's bloodshed in Kabul's Chahr Rahe Pashtunistan [Pashtunistan Square] is an absolute example of our sorry state. A tragic waste of young life (and another blight on the name of the Pashtoons).

From the Wall Street Journal:

"We locked our shops and rushed outside. As we were running down, the armed men ran up the stairs to take positions on the top floor," said Mohammad Farooq, a 29-year-old shopkeeper. "Some vendors claimed to have seen these attackers, Pashto-speaking men in their 20s, visiting the center's top floor the previous day."

A thought from Bacha Khan: "O Pathans! Your house has fallen into ruin. Arise and rebuild it and remember to what race you belong."

I have one great desire ...

Bacha Khan

Peshawar, NWFP has been in the news for several weeks as it burns in the face of a continual onslaught of violent attacks. This is just one such story. Who is responsible? The militants? Covert government agencies? External or internal? To be honest, it matters less, when people are in fear - when stepping out to go about your daily business becomes a matter of taking the greatest of risks.

Here, I share an e-book from Google Books, Non-Violent Soldier of Islam by Eknath Easwaran on Bacha Khan's majestic struggle for justice. This is my candle for peace for all people affected by violence.

Tor_Khan تور خان

Poppies: Love and Peace

The poppy is a curious symbol of war and peace, sleep, death, remembrance and love. It is also, without doubt, connected in our minds with our opium production, recreation and ruin. As we lead up to Armistice Day, today, my interpretation is mostly positive.

The poppy has been used in classical poetry - John Alexander McCrae's poem, In Flanders Fields, is perhaps amongst the best known war poems.

The poppy theme appears in a poem by Ghani Khan, celebrated artist, Pashto poet, and son of Bacha Khan. It appears here, in its English version.

A Poppy Flower
by Ghani Khan

In a desert, once, on a hunt did I find,
With a radiant smile, a flower so fair;
Sadly, I approached and sighed, “Ah! Of my kind
Are you too – a hapless flower from a beloved’s hair.
Frail fingers wouldn’t take you to a soft face so close,
Nor would you be kissed by lips delicate and rose.”
With a silent smile the flower replied, “Don’t lose heart!
This desert I wouldn’t give up for the gardens of Iran,
A solitary I am here while legions are there,
Amidst this cursed soil I stand apart.
In this gray desert, a flamboyant flame of divine light am I,
Beauty’s silent song, a miracle from the sky.
In your garden, there are thousands of flowers like me –
A nameless droplet in a nameless sea.
You too, in your desert, don’t feel forlorn,
To behold you at last shall come a sore

Tor_Khan تور خان

د خداى په امان

Da Khudai Pa Amaan - د خداى په امان

One of the blogs that I follow will come to a close (for now I hope this is a temporary close). Mariam Jaan has been a writer of poems about the Pashtoon people and finishes with a book, Sorrows and Tears (that can be accessed by clicking the hyperlink or by going here).

Mariam Jaan has picked up a following in online Pashtoon forums - here is a glimpse of her poetry, a fitting poem on Bacha Khan. The poem is the property of Mariam Jaan. It's place here is completely in good faith.

"Just a Dream"
by Mariam Jaan

What would Bacha say if he were still alive today?
I'm sure his heart would be filled with dismay.

For our miserable state we have only ourselves to blame,
After all these years we Pashtuns are still the same.

Instead of taking care of each other and finally uniting,
We ignore our poor Pashtuns and keep on fighting.

Such great things Pashtuns could have achieved as a team,
But it seems to me that will always remain just a dream.

For our sake, I hope and pray to God all mighty that I am wrong.
Nothing will make me happier than seeing us united and strong.

Mariam Jaan,

Where-ever you are, if you visit this blog, please feel free to drop a comment. If you decide that I should edit this posting, I will happily oblige. In the meantime, thank you very much for your wonderful poems. You are an inspiration.

Da Khudai Pa Amaan - د خداى په امان - With God's Peace

Tor_Khan تور خان

... Fighting ... for Peace ...

Q & A with Teri McLuhan

In the Q&A that went with the screening of The Frontier Gandhi: Badshah Khan, a Torch for Peace, the question I asked Teri McLuhan, (producer of the film), was, "Is there any revivalist non-violent movement amongst the Pashtoons today?"

She said that a new generation of Pashtoon peace was essential, "We've tried everything else". I managed to talk in person after the sreening in a more relaxed atmosphere - she came across as a strong believer in peace and a supporter of the Pashtoon people. She was hopeful - the Khudai Khidmatgars were active - and there were educated professionals amongst the Pashtoons who supported peace.

The film, she explained, was 21 years in the making and that she had travelled across India, Pakistan and Afghanistan to make this happen. This had been a life's passion and that presently she needs to get financiers to produce the DVD. The message of Bacha Khan, is perhaps, too important to not be heard. She also said something that stuck in my mind. Standing behind the microphone, addressing the attendees in the theatre, she said that she didn't really believe in coincidence (basically having a belief that things happen because they are meant to).

Anyway, it seems that the my recent reading on Adventure Learning & Peace, the Nobel Prize going to Obama and the film that she has made come together at the same time and are all connected by a common theme of peace. I guess I am meant to be thinking about these things at this time.

I mentioned my MA programme and she said that she would visit this blog, so with this I extend my invitation with a personal هر کله راشه.

Her production company, is appropriately enough, is named 'Peace On Earth'.

Badshah Khan: A Torch for Peace

Yesterday evening, I saw the film The Frontier Gandhi: Badshah Khan, A Torch for Peace, which played at the Marina Mall as part of the Middle East Film Festival, Abu Dhabi 2009. The film is an amazing documentary on the life of the Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, a towering giant of heart and stature who was, is and will always remain a Pashtoon King of Peace, known as Badshah/Bacha Khan. He was a key figure in the Free India movement and this of course, invited the wrath of the British, even towards his peaceful cause.

As a Pashtoon, Bacha Khan showed the people that he loved a very different way - he challenged the opinion that Pashtoons could only be known for the gun and as a result could only remain backward. Bacha Khan was a good friend of Mahatma Gandhi and, like Gandhi, managed to mobilise the masses to resist injustice through peace. His movement of Khudai Khidmatgars (Allah's helpers) were taught to stand on their feet and bring about a positive change in themselves and their society through peace and social work. In the film, his daughter talks about his 'love for the poor people'.

Peace: Long live the King

His peace movement invited trouble and for a third of his time on earth, Bacha Khan was prisoner of conscience - in 1962 he was named by Amnesty International as Prisoner of the Year - overall for every three days of his life, he spent one day in British or Pakistani jails, often in solitary confinement. He continually challenged the validity of the British laid-down borders and later found sanctuary in Afghanistan - a natural home for the Pashtoons, travelling extensively and asking to be buried in Jalalabad when he was dying. When Bacha Khan's family said it would be difficult to arrange visas to cross the border, his reply to his family was "One day all this will be one".

Kabir Stori - کبیر ستوری

I share a poem هر انسان مين دی* by Dr Kabir Stori (ډاکټر کبیر ستوری) Pashto scholar and psychologist, born in Khas Kunar, Afghanistan in 1942. Kabir Stori, a follower of Bacha Khan's non-violent philososphy of national unity spent his adult years teaching in Germany. He died in 2006 and was laid to rest in his native Kunar. His list of writings include research papers on psychology and his Pashto literary works are modern classics, that have inspired many contemporary Pashto artists.
هر انسان مين دی* = everyone loves

که زما ستوری په قبر چيرته راغلي
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په پښتو راته دعا کړه پري مين يم
If you come to Stori’s grave sometime,
Pray for me in Pashto, because I am a lover of Pashto

Tor_Khan تور خان