Pakistan
Manifest Destiny
by
Atif F Qureshi
“The world, but not self, thou canst see;
How long in thy ignorance wilt thou sit?
With thy ancient flame let the night be lit;
The hand of Moses is sleeved in thee!
Set forth thy foot from the circling skies;
Greater and older than these thou art;
Fearest thou death in thy deathless heart?
Death’s but a prey that before thee lies!
Life, once given thee, none can take; ‘
Tis for lack of faith men faint and die;
Learn to be sculptor, even as I,
And haply anew thy self-hood make!”
Allama Iqbal
“In keeping silent about evil, in burying it so deep within us that no sign of it appears on the surface, we are implanting it, and it will rise up a thousand-fold in the future. When we neither punish nor reproach evildoers... we are ripping the foundations of justice from beneath new generations.”
Alexander Solzehnitsyn
Introduction
Pakistan’s arrival onto the world stage was nothing short of miraculous, a nation bursting into life through the sheer force of divine providence. Foreseen in the vision of Allama Iqbal and created with the perspiration of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the new nation was the fulfilment of a manifest destiny - arising to defend the Ummah in her darkest hour. But in the critical moments after independence, Pakistan was in difficult territory. A land of subsistence farmers and struggling immigrants, the nation’s position was precarious and her long term prospects were uncertain.
Yet even through those early days, even after the spilt blood, the lost wealth, and the broken ties, there was a sense of enormous anticipation. The Pakistani people were energised, aspiring and free, daring to strike out into a bright future no longer burdened by world war, religious insecurity or the shame of subservience to foreign masters.
But the optimism soon turned to ashes. The great tragedy of the Pakistani saga is the sense of frustration carried in the hearts of its people today. The people of Pakistan love their nation immensely, but they so richly deserve the Pakistan that should have been. Instead, betrayed by fate, they now witness a "terra incognita"- an unrecognizable land.
Pakistan was once only an inspired vision. In 1947, through great sacrifice, a miraculous new nation was born. With its people energized and free, it seemed there was no height Pakistan would not scale. Now, many decades later, as we look back on years of strife, division and poverty cultivated by generations of misguided leaders, we find ourselves wondering how this glorious inheritance became so spoiled.
Atif F Qureshi examines the causes of the calamity, in particular the explanation that trumps all others - the import of Western political, legal and economic systems. Detailing why these methods are wholly unworkable for an independent Muslim nation, he examines how Western concepts such as socialism and English Civil Law have led to crises ranging from economic stagnation to terrorist insurgencies. Yet the decline is not irreversible. Qureshi outlines policies that by returning to core Islamic values will revive, rejuvenate and revitalise this beautiful nation. From defence and the environment to education and banking, every aspect of national planning is explored. He shows how in spite of all the travails, Pakistan is well-placed for a glorious future. After all, a manifest destiny awaits…
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