Im Malala

When Pride Becomes Prejudice!

 Before I proceedon this emotional minefield of social discussion that seems to pinch a veryacute sensitive nerve of the Pakistani society and its inhabitants, I wouldlike to clarify something that this is by no means a hateful accord that’s apublished proof of my inferiority complex or perhaps sense of underachievement. It’s a very normative explanation of why I think Malala isn’tcontributing towards being the pride of Pakistan but rather a root for westernprejudice for her fellow Pakistani nationals around the globe. My beginning ofhearing Malala’s name ever goes back a few months  when I called my mother from California,which I did everyday at the time so she kept me in sync with Pakistani news.She told me about a little girl who had been shot in the head for wanting topromote education in the tribal Swat. The world, including me had never heardof this little angel and being a human being and of course a fellow Pakistani,my heart went out to her alongwith many prayers. Fast forward a long treatmentand a longer healing process, Malala emerged not only triumphant in herrecovery, but also triumphant in earning the love of millions of hearts acrossthe globe. In the recent months as the current affairs unfolded in front of myeyes, I noticed her growing presence so much so that every other day she wasmaking news somewhere with someone rather important. From talk show appearancesto magazine covers, Malala was equivalent of a celebrated socialite without theparty image but rather a catchy slogan that says “She wants every girl in theworld to have the right to go to school”.  Being educated in United States and livingalmost more than half of my life there, I am very well aware of the fact thatwesterners have a bit of a skewed vision about someone who comes from the partof the world where I originally belong to. Western History proves that the westand us (devout Muslims) have rather an innate number of irreconcilabledifferences that span out farther than one can comprehend . Yes education, food,survival and a mere piece of clothing to cover your body and living a simpleday to day life is a global standard sought among every nation, but what makesus different than the Global North is the values and deep cultural roots thatgive us sense of nationalism beyond words. Now you might wonder where am Igoing with all of this than please stay tuned to see the light by the end ofthe tunnel.

          Anyone whois settled like myself in the west knows that its nothing but a capitalist webthat can either swallow you alive, or can turn you into a crutch so thatanother sum of dollars and pounds can rack up and no one gets hurt. I willdiscuss two things about my perception of Malala which isn’t as prestigious innature as it might be for some of you. Although I respect everyone’s right ofthought and expression of opinions, I certainly don’t have to agree with them.This last statement was meant for the Malala supporters. The first thing I havenoticed since she had attained the status of an international celebrity, thatthere is something not quite genuine about the way she speaks. It seems a bittad calculated, rehearsed and rather spoon fed. Although I am aware of the factthat she is possibly a bright little girl but her recent public speaking, in myeyes at least, have lost that innocence we first saw when she was bed ridden inLondon trying to recover a horrible nightmare. Now let me shed a light onWestern Media and their merciful welcome to Malala. The media in westernsociety is no one’s best friend. If it earns them money and ratings, they willsell your soul and you wont know it’s gone! Malala is fortunate in this regardsince she comes from a country that is notorious in having a reputation ofbeing male dominated and femme nazi in nature. My personal experiences had beena barrage of offensive questions thrown at me by my American or Western friendsthat made me feel like I was a criminal being tried in the court of law. Justbecause I am male, they asked me if I believed in treating women like fencedproperty and robbing them of their basic human rights. I sometimes had to pullout my family portraits and show them that I have a mother who is masters inurdu literature, sibling who is getting educated, doesn’t have to wear a burqaagainst her will and actually have blond highlights in her otherwise dark hair.That was my way to pave a bit of a positive thought in her brains about some ofthe misconceptions that every woman in Pakistan is a battered soul ready to flyfree.

                NowMalala is a perfect target for the Western media and the non-state actors topromote their love for protection of human rights and to also promote Pakistanas an evil country where little girls are killed if they say they want to go toschool. Now most of you might argue that well they know that it happened inSwat by Talibans but I must remind you that the people in the west don’tassociate their opinions with a city but rather with a country on the whole. Mysecond argument comes from the fact that in the recent weeks, I saw two newswhere GilgitBaltistan produced two young girls who are professional Skiers andhave made it to the world Olympics. A day before that I saw our PM putting onWings on two young brave woman fighter pilots passing out at the PAF academy Risalpur,standing straight and proud next to their male fellow pilots. Where the hell isChristiana Amanpour and other media moguls to interview them? Where is Timemagazine and why are efforts not being made to put these amazing PAKISTANIwoman on their front cover? Why hasn’t there been a diplomatic favor arrangedto give these woman a chance to meet the Queen and the Obamas and above all whyare they not being promoted with a book deal and numerous talk showinvitations? Well if you are a thoughtful learned individual of this society,then you should be able to answer this question yourself.

                  There is nothing wrong with little Malala earning a few bucks and buyinga grand home in Birmingham. There is nothing wrong with her being the star ofthe eyes of the Queen and the state guest for the Obamas. There is nothingwrong with her to appear on the UN and deliver a speech! But there isEVERYTHING WRONG with her being on a pedestal and running the show that seems abit too close to her own personal agenda which is just in nature, but comes ata huge cost of completely ruining the already cracked image of Pakistan and itsreputation in treating woman as second grade citizens of the society. What sheis doing is creating yet another group of Westerners who will walk up to anyPakistani and say “Oh wow so you are from that country where they kill littlegirls for wanting to go to school….Shame on you!” . I want to produce massesthat walk up to me and say “Wow, you are from amazing Pakistan where woman arefree to join the military or make a career as a professional Olympian…Good foryou!” That’s the Pakistan I belong to.  Iam proud to say that the Pakistan I know and I promote is not the one that “Kills little girls who want to go to school” but rather it’s a Pakistan thathas more woman scholars enrolled in a university than their male counterparts.We have woman so strong that can tackle a multi ton metal machine filled withcombustible fuel at 36,000 feet as well as the ones that can fly over the icyslopes gracefully enough to make it to the world Olympics. I am from Pakistanwhere we have doctors, lawyers, scientists, strategists and scholars that arewoman and who have and will keep on paving a positive image of Pakistani womanacross the globe. I am from Pakistan where great women like Benazir Bhutto andShirin Mazari have emerged. I am from Pakistan where woman have the right to goto school, college, university, medical school, Pakistan Military academy aswell as PAF Academy. Malala can march to her own beat all she wants but in myopinion her being put on a pedestal is nothing but another clever move onbehalf of global forces that want to see a weak Pakistan even Weaker.