Honouring Abdus Salam

It may be long overdue but the honouring of Pakistan’s first Nobel laureate is no less welcome for all that. PM Nawaz Sharif has ordered the renaming of the National Centre for Physics at Quaid-e-Azam University to ‘Professor Abdus Salam Centre for Physics’. Rarely has an honour been more richly deserved. Directives have been issued to the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training to create a formal summary to be sent to President Mamnoon Hussain for approval. Further, the PM has announced that there are to be five grant-aided scholarships for Pakistani PhD students of physics, this to be run through the Higher Education Commission at international universities.

This is an outstanding decision by the PM and he is to be commended for it. For far too long what may best be described as reactionary elements have been able to dominate ideological space. They have brought to the fore intolerance and bigotry and aggravated sectarian schisms. They have failed to support legislation that is supportive of women, indeed quite the reverse and they have fought at every juncture anything that might be of benefit to minorities. Course correction in the prevailing environment, bringing the ship of state head to wind again as a tolerant and inclusive place for all its citizens whatever their sectarian affiliation, is a mighty challenge. With this move — which is going to ignite the ire of those reactionary elements referenced above — the state is signalling that it is going to take back the space that has been ceded to them.

A move such as this is a line drawn in the sand, as there are few figures likely to bring incoming fire for the PM and the government, because Dr Abdus Salam is a member of a minority religious group, an Ahmedi, a group that is peaceable and has suffered dreadfully over the years. Truly great people are rarely honoured in their lifetimes in Pakistan, and Abdus Salam was a credit to his country all his working life. With this honour a wrong has been truly righted.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 7^th, 2016.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.