"Crisis of poverty of thought" by Aziz Ali Dad

The following article  “Crisis of poverty of thought”  by Aziz Ali Dad, source “View Point, July 22, 2011”.

 

In Pakistan our souls have been constantly fed on the emotions through the medium of poetry. It has permeated so much in our psyche that we view the order of things through the spectacles of emotions Over reliance on poetic medium has become an integral part of our thinking processes as our perception of history and other events is informed by it 

“What does a philosopher demand of himself first and last? To overcome his time in himself, to become ‘timeless’.-- Friedrich Nietzsche

Historically, Indo-Gangetic region proved to be a fertile ground for the genre of poetry. Great mystics, preachers, reformers and founders of religion in India expressed their ideas in poetry. Even where sacred texts are written in prose, poetry became an efficacious medium to disseminate religious teachings and injunctions to the masses. The genre of poetry reached its zenith during the Mughal period as we see eminent poet cum “thinkers” indulging in mushahiras in the courts of the Mughal kings, princes and patricians. Dominance of poetry during the period of decline signify deeper crisis in the society. Poetry’s dominance over intellectual and cultural life of subcontinent resulted in poverty in the realm of philosophy.

Though there are some thinkers who can be treated as philosophers in loose term, their number is miniscule in terms of influence on overall thinking paradigm of south Asia as compared to poets. During the colonial period we witnessed emergence of individuals who started to engage philosophically with existential issues and intellectual challenges of the time. They represented their intellectual insights through the medium of prose. Despite their periodic forays into philosophy in prose, poetry still remained a dominant medium of the intelligentsia. Even Allama Iqbal resorted to poetry for the propagation of his ideas. This situation compels us to raise question about relationship between poetry and poverty of philosophy/thought.

In the 1960 Marshal McLuhan wrote a crisp but illuminating book ‘Medium is the Message’. The main argument of his book is that medium not only determines our message but also changes our way of thinking by bringing about changes in the way we perceive the world. Although, he brings examples from mediums introduced by technology, we can extend his argument to the genres employed in literature and different disciplines to convey the message.

 

For more details: http://www.viewpointonline.net/crisis-of-poverty-of-thought.html

 

What’s happening in Balochistan? by Salman Abid

Source: The News International
Date: July 10, 2011

The province will remain another world unless we treat it as our very own

By Salman Abid

How can the Balochistan issue be resolved? The answer to this question is difficult because democratic forces seem to have little decision-making powers in the province. The undemocratic forces wield major power in the region and, at the moment, no political solution seems near in the future. The political government took some positive steps but the results are not that good. The trust deficit between the state and the Baloch has widened.

The trust deficit is not only between the political forces and federal government, including military institutions, but also between local intelligentsia - human rights activist, academics, media personnel, and poet, etc - and the deprived communities.

The federal government announced a few packages for Balochistan, including the National Finance commission (NFC) award. But the issues and concerns of the Baloch people, critics believe, cannot be resolved by offering different packages given without consulting different stakeholders in the province.

For example, the missing people is an issue of the Baloch people that remains unresolved. The majority of Balochistan's political parties and workers, including human rights groups, blame the security agencies for the whole situation. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has also issued a fact-finding mission report on the province titled, Balochistan - Blinkered slide into chaos". It has given a list of missing people and those that were killed in the province on the basis of different reasons.

For example, the report says 140 bodies of missing persons were found in Balochistan during July 2010 to May 2011. 143 people were missing till May 29, 2011, 18 people were targeted in 2011 and 5 people were killed in 2011.

The serious cause of concern is that not only political workers but human rights activists, poet, professors, students, lawyers', social workers, and journalists are also missing or have been found dead. The province's nationalist parties give even higher numbers of missing people.

The political government, state agencies, and security forces are accountable to highlight and present the true picture of Balochistan before the nation. Are the government and security agencies doing their utmost to find out missing people? If the security agencies have complaints against certain people they should be brought before the court.

Actually, we should admit that the people of Balochistan, especially the marginalised groups, have been facing serious social, political and economic disparities in the region due to lack of attention from the government. The basic infrastructure of institutions in the province is very poor, especially in education, health, and transportation sectors besides concerns about natural resources' control. Balochistan people also have serious reservations on the issue of governance.

The people of Balochistan believe decisions about the province are being taken in Islamabad and GHQ. The provincial political government is powerless and has no right to take any political decision for the local people. A majority of the elected people admit the failure of resolving issues due to inadequate administrative and political powers.

For more details: http://www.jang.com.pk/thenews/jul2011-weekly/nos-10-07-2011/pol1.htm#4