Understanding Pakistan 4/29/08

           "Pakistan is not in the middle east." Five minutes into the International Forum lecture on Pakistan and already I had learned something new. It's amazing what happens when people take time to learn. And learn I did, thanks to Mahan Mirza, PHD candidate and faculty member CSU Chico’s religious studies department.

        According to Mirza, who is a brilliant and captivating lecturer, Pakistan is part of South Asia. As many know who followed Gandhi’s efforts, Pakistan is a relatively new nation that once used to be part of a united Indian area. Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who formerly was an activist for a United India, was a prime mover in the formation of the two separate nations.

         As history has progressed, this area has remained a hotbed. Stationed between India, Iran, Afghanistan, and China, it is safe to say that Pakistan is in a very hostile area. The area is literally a pot ready to boil over if conditions go awry.

            Pakistan itself has also gained quite the reputation of being a hostile nation. “The most dangerous nation isn’t Iraq-it’s Pakistan,” read Mirza with a sarcastic yet booming voice. This was followed by an image of Newsweek with the exact phrase Mirza had just announced. Obviously, many Pakistanis are not happy with this sentiment, because there is a great deal of interesting and exiting attractions in the nation.

            The north, for example, resembles Switzerland in some ways (Slopes, skiing) and also has heavy Chinese influence in it’s architecture. I had no idea of this dichotomy within Pakistan.

         Also, according to Mirza, Pakistan has a much greater deal of autonomy for women than is commonly thought. Air force pilots, models, athletes, and politicians are just some of the examples of women in Pakistan.

            Mirza was also astute in pointing out the great irony of the separation of India and Pakistan. For countless centuries, the two had lived together as one people. There was no need for a separation of the two, yet for some reason it became necessity in the 1940’s. It’s interesting how some thinkers in one decade could refute hundreds of years of existence.

            Also contrary to popular belief, Pakistan doesn’t want to harbor terrorists. Unfortunately Pakistan wants to talk things over, and no one else does. It’s interesting how people on our side of the coin view this as illogical and ill thought-too me rushing in and shooting seems like the illogical process. This is especially important considering Pakistan’s location in the world (who wants to live in a war zone?)

 The unfortunate truth is that Pakistan is going to have a very big part in the world’s future whether it likes it or not.  One things for sure, having a greater knowledge of it’s people and their culture is not going to hurt. People like Mahan Mirza are integral to this process.