InstepComment
Internet sensation Qandeel Baloch murdered by her brother in Multan.
Where does one begin from?If condemnation is the appropriate response then isn’t it condemnable thatwe, as a nation, still have to tell a large part of our population that taking up arms against women, minorities and the marginalised isunacceptable under anycircumstances. If there is something to condemn, it is not Qandeel Baloch’smurder – that is a crime and no amount of supposed duresscan mitigatethewrong-fullness of the act. If there is something to condemn is our national discourse and our inability take social terrorists to task.
Baloch was no saint, noshining beacon of humanity but she wasabright, bold, intelligent woman whose light was snuffed outdue to our smallmindedness. You could stand on any end of the spectrum, whether it was judgemental, supportive or simply disinterested in her shenanigans butat no point should your stance on how Baloch chose to live her short lifefind footing to justify violence against her. If her voyeuristic ways were antagonisingit was because she revealed the inherent hypocrisy in our society.
The internet sensation understood the inherent dichotomy in her following; they would dog her every move while still maintain a moral high ground. This is a meme Baloch has used as a banner on her Facebook page.
As a country we obsessively followed her; the huge number of likes amassed on her Facebook page are testament to our double standards. We wanted the updates, we wanted thetitillation, the free entertainmentbut we also chose to view all the content she put and snicker behind our screens.The number of views on each of her videosandtheensuingcomments paint a picture ofaconflicted society.
What was it about her that made her such a divisive figure?She wasn’t the only one who resorted to extreme tactics for attention. Take a look at ournational television during Ramazan and you’ll probably find moreantics that were simply enactedfor shock value.Men, women, reporters and game show hostsare given a national platform and can pull any manner of stuntsand not have theircredibility or reputation tarnished beyond a few memes on the liberal echo chamber that is the Pakistani internet.
These ‘entertainers’ areoffered primetime slots and are applauded–istelling of the arbitrary value we ascribeto different individuals depending on their gender and social standing.
Intrepid, irreverent and self confident to the core, Baloch probably rankled a lot of people because of how comfortable she was in her own skin.
It couldn’t just have been that for some Baloch’s actions were vulgar oropposing our religious values; it had more to do with the fact that she refused to play by the rules. Balochwouldn’t allow anything to bring her down or cloister her in; not her family background, not her past marriageor our vitriol filled rhetoric. She was going to live life on her terms and there is nothing that threatens us more than a person, slash, a woman who refuses to conform.
Our national narrative has been hijackedby supposedcustodians of religion who seem to be entirely untouched by the spirit of Islam. We have effectively and collectively helped silenceany alternative or progressive discourse in the countrybecauseany opposing narrative will draw attention to the shoddy, intolerantmindset peddled by those in power and positions of authority. Qandeel Baloch’s death is a loss, not because she was a great artist but simply because she dared to stand up and defy our norms.And our norms certainly are unsettling.