All Pakistani Resources Diverted to Punjab
Unfortunately, Pakistanis are one nation which refuses to learn from history. We have a tendency of viewing everything in the context of religion, therefore even the good deeds of non-Muslim nations are brushed aside as sinful. For example the European countries, learning from their history, separated the religion from the affairs of estate. This was the time when the Church, in connivance with the monarchy, exploited the religious sentiments of the masses to help the monarchy in usurping the rights of common citizens and in maintaining their iron grip over the estate.
The civilized and technological advanced Europe we see today, is the result of eliminating the role of religious establishment from the matters of estate.
On the other hand, we in Pakistan, continue to let the religious leaders and religious-political parties to dictate the policies of estate. Generations after generation these religious leaders have played havoc with the country's progress and have ensured that their own vested interests are served. This handful group of people has thrived on anti-India and anti-all religions sentiments.
This is why whenever there is an attempt to improve the ties with India, these religious parties swing in to action to oppose such moves. Their objective is not the betterment of our country, for if that had been the case they would have whole-heartedly supported such moves as the huge funds spent on reinforcing our eastern borders could be easily diverted towards development projects. The main objective of these religious parties is to ensure the continuation of billion of rupees in donations which they collect in the name of anti-India slogans.
Interestingly these religious contractors are not the only ones who consider it their responsibility to dictate our foreign policy. There are some journalists and anchorpersons who too are always trying to keep the war hysteria alive.
This nexus of religious establishment and journalists is visible these days in a Show of Dunya News where the anchorperson Kamran Shahid along with some religious leaders, is seen indulging in useless and at times pointless arguments with Indian Journalists and intelligentsia. I don't have any problem with the nature of the program but what sends my blood boiling is that both Kamran Shahid and his panellists, keep blaming the Indians for the fall of Dhaka in 1971.
It is sad to note despite losing one half of the country, our so called opinion makers have not learned the lesson from history. Blaming India is easy but the fact of the matter is that we ourselves are responsible for what happened in 1971.
The separation of East Pakistan was in the making for a long time, the continued neglect, denial of rights and uneven distribution of resources had nurtured the sense of deprivation which finally culminated in the demand for separation from East Pakistan.
Sadly, instead of learning lessons from our history and mistakes, we blame India for the creation of Bangladesh. The religious establishment which has always strengthened the hands of landlords and politicians, had termed the people of East Pakistan as anti-Islam, they had formed their own death squads which indulged in merciless and brutal killing of Bengalis.
Things are not much different today, journalists like Kamran Shahid use religious leaders to endorse the view that Pakistan's politicians and religious leaders were innocent and it was actually India which had caused the separation of East Pakistan.
These journalists are turning a blind eye to the sense of deprivation prevailing among the people of smaller provinces. All resources are being diverted to Punjab and in some cases the funds allocated for projects of other provinces are being diverted towards Punjab, to be precise in Lahore. The atrocities being committed in Karachi are completely being ignored, while the rights of Baloch people are also being denied.
Things are again moving towards the 1971 direction. The failure to learn lessons from history has brought the country to the point where there are separatist movements in Sindh and Balochistan, while other parts of the country are also heading in the same direction.
We must address the issues and must ensure equal distribution of resources to prevent a tragedy like 1971, whereas there is a strong need to keep the religion out of politics also.
May Allah bless Pakistan. fall of east pakistan www.pakpositive.com