we have underdeveloped in most essential respects
KARACHI: This refers to Amin Jan Naim’s column titled “Larger dimensions” which was published on June 19th. Overall, it is an excellent article that lays emphasis on the right type of education at appropriate levels, which is what makes a nation.
However, Mr Naim’s claim “We have come a long way in Pakistan’s short history despite being beset by three decades of military rule, and despite a terribly hostile neighbourhood” seems rather misplaced, and by a large margin. The claim hardly seems maintainable in the circumstances where he himself talks of children dying of thirst and hunger in Tharparkar district. And it is not only in Tharparkar in Pakistan where the children — and even adults — are dying of hunger, whereas a large proportion of children is suffering from stunted growth, both mental and physical, due to insufficient food intake.
Our neighbour China could genuinely claim to “have come a long way” but definitely not us. Over time, we have underdeveloped in most essential respects. Starting as a nation of moderate people, we have now turned into an unruly crowd of narrow-minded, intolerant lot devoid of social conscience with merit playing no part in most fields.
Sarah Hashmi
Published in The Express Tribune, June 24th, 2017.
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