Pakistan as a nation has always been confused about its identity , whether we are a Islamic state representing a true colour of Islam or whether we are a modern secular progressive state. Every leader since inception of Pakistan faced the difficulty of aligning to a side that was representing the true identity of a state. It was confusing whether Jinnah wanted to see Pakistan as a Islamic State or a secular, in-fact probably even he was confused about that as he was asked on one occasion and his reply was ‘we will see when we get there’.
However identity has been used and switched time to time for the gains and requirements of time. Pakistan has witnessed a secular leftist era of Ayub then switching to socialist Bhutto and later extreme right during Zia era. And the vicious cycle keeps on repeating and we as a society remain confused about our national identity.
Recently a new debate regarding construction of a mandaar in Islamabad has refreshed decades old confusion of our society, which is, what is our national identity? People are seen aligning in favour of or against construction of the mandaar, representing secular Pakistan for everyone on one hand and an Islamic Pakistan for Muslims on the other hand. However the question is not which side to align , the question is what are we as a state , what is our national identity? In order to develop a common national identity, it needs to be a progressive process , which needs to be incorporated in our educational curriculum and we as a society needs to be groomed. In a nut shell, Pakistan as a society wants to modernise and enjoy the outcomes of new technologies and modernity and the same time wants to hold back to its culture and values. We are not a progressive society rather regressive society , which is that we are not open to change and new ideas and this is reflected in our decisions and mindset as a society. To conclude, Pakistan as a society is to remain confused whether to align to leftistan or rightistan.
Rohail Baseer
Peshawar
