The myths about Pakistan

"60 years. That is all it took for it to crumble down." said one of my relatives in reference to Pakistan.

That statement was a result of 60 years of wrong thinking, thinking that has got us into trouble when we least needed it. I believe that one of the core issues that tickles us when it comes to our identity of being Indian is that most of us cannot live with the fact that British India was divided into two states of India and Pakistan and not the idealistic undivided India as many had hoped for back then. That hope sadly still percolates in our national psyche till this day when four generations have passed since 1947.

Indians as a mass in general are still not ready to accept that Pakistan was carved out of its former north western parts during independence. The problem with this attitude is that it gets us into trouble a lot of times as such a way of thinking influences our actions as a nation when we deal with Pakistan.

Some things that have been widely circulated in the public (though not through official channels) which give us a glimpse to this national psyche are that

ISSUE No. 1 - Pakistan was created because Hindus and Muslims cannot live together due to their cultural differences which are diametrically opposite.

My View - Though I do acknowledge that Hindus and Muslims do follow very different lifestyles and sometimes have views on issues that are in fact genuinely opposite (examples include killing of cows and pork) its not as if Hindus and Muslims didnt live side by side before. Before the days of tyrannical British Empire Hindus and Muslims used to live side by side, go to each others homes, celebrate each others festivals with equal pomp, fight wars side by side and die side by side for the same cause. It is no secret to any educated Indian or Pakistani that the British used our foolishness to exploit to raise swords against each other to the extent that all the bonds we shared were heaviliy damaged in the run up to independence which resulted into partition.

I don't blame the British for using their minds against us. I blame our own people for not using theirs.

ISSUE No. 2 - Muslims would not be allowed to have an equal voice among a numerically larger Hindu population in a democratic India.

My View - Absolute hogwash. India has been known the world over for the great efforts it has made to uplift the socially and economically weaker sections of the society. The Indian constitution has special provisions for these weaker sections of the society like caste based reservations, reservations for tribals etc. There is no reason why such provisions could not have been architectured to encompass Indian Muslims which at the time and even today are a socially and economically weaker than the Hindu community in general.

As for as elections go, history is witness to the fact that Mohammad Ali Jinnah (the father of the Pakistan movement) was given an option of reserving 33% of all Parliamentary seats for Muslims if he chose to drop the movement and live in an undivided India. He rejected the proposal. Now tell me how in the world can Muslims not be heard if they had guaranteed 33% seats? I still dont have the answer to that one.

ISSUE No. 3 - Pakistan has no natural resources to talk of so they are as good as a bankrupt country. The areas that consist of Pakistan had nothing in them when Pakistan was created and there is nothing now which can salvage it.

My View - First of all, let me clarify that this is wishful thinking in the mind of Indians who wish deep down inside that Pakistan will eventually re-unite with itself.

Grow up people. Just because you never read about the positives of Pakistan does not make it a bad place.
Pakistan is one of the world's largest producers and suppliers of the following according to the 2005 Food and Agriculture Organization of The United Nations and FAOSTAT given here with ranking:

Chickpea (2nd)
Mango (3th)
Apricot (4th)
Cotton (4th)
Sugarcane (4th)
Milk (5th)
Onion (5th)
Date Palm (6th)
Tangerines, mandarin orange, clementine (8th)
Rice (8th)
Wheat (9th)
Oranges (10th)

Pakistan ranks fifth in the Muslim world and twentieth worldwide in farm output. It is the world's fifth largest milk producer.

The Baluchistan province of Pakistan is estimated to have one of the world's largest untapped natural gas reserves.

I think that should be enough to deal with this issue.

ISSUE No. 4 - The only thing holding Pakistan together is its hatred for India.

My View - This one has some truth to it. But not the way most people think of it. While there is widespread anger against India in Pakistan due to obvious issues (like Kashmir) there are other problems that hold it together. One is Islam. Islam is what was the basis for the Pakistan movement that led to its creation. The second issue is the same as is in India. Development. Uplifting the poor so that they too can live in a decent manner. The only thing that makes many people in India and not to mention Pakistan that India is a huge threat is the Pakistan Army. To make sure that their importance and power remain unchallenged and that no civilian leader is ever able to boss them (like in India where the PM is the boss and not the Army chief). The corrupt, powerless, and inept civilian leadership only bolster this sentiment leading to a permanent status quo of undeclared hostilities between the two nations.

I urge all the people of India and Pakistan to understand one thing. We have only made each other lose something or the other in the last 62 years thanks to our leaders. But there are many things that we can gain from each other. Just think of the trade that the two of us can do with each other. Think of the geo-strategic and geo-political advantage of a peaceful subcontinent against a communist and militarized China. Think of the weak Al-Qaeda and Taliban that will be a direct result of Indo-Pak peace. Think of the tourism income that can be generated between the two of us. Think of the benefits of cultural exchange between our two nations.

If we just understand our use to each other rather than our bickering over petty issues there will no longer be a need of an undivided India. The love that we can generate will make crossing the border only a formality just like the formality of entering Germany from France or the US to Canada.

Just think.....

Mitul Choksi
22 May 2009, 9:55 PM Indian Standard Time