The writer is a freelance columnist and former newspaper editor.
We all know social media now has tremendous power. The short video of an old man – whose name is still uncertain – found begging on the Karachi streets by actor Ahsan Khan who then filmed his story and uploaded it, has now done its rounds through the country.
Of course, there is nothing unusual about old people on the streets. There are plenty of them. What made this case unusual was the ability of the man, aged about 56 and in the ragged clothes of a beggar, to speak fluent English and rattle out the most snazzy terms as he told a story of an accident which killed his family, a fraud by his brothers and of his consequent homeless state.
For now, we can assume all this is true. Further investigation into the precise details would be useful. Where, for example, was the man educated? He says he is from Lahore, but what school did he attend and when? Clearly, that school did a good job. Is there no other family member available? The man, we are told, is now being looked after by an old friend called Mary. He has been offered a job by an IT firm, but there is still some question over whether he is mentally and physically well enough to take it up.
The responsibility for a deeper look at the story lies with the media. Ahsan Khan, who has also posted other videos of social relevance, has done his part, and done it well. But the many other questions that arise from this need to be asked, and answered. People across the nation, including leading social activists, and of course the television channels latched onto the story primarily because the old beggar was able to speak fluent English.
Of course, this is an oddity in a nation where language defines class, but even so we should be asking whether people who are in as desperate a situation but are not able to converse in the alien language of our colonial masters deserve to be neglected and ignored. They need jobs too.
The issue goes into the whole matter of language and the hierarchal structure on which it has been built. We place a huge priority on English, the language that stands at the highest end of the pyramid. ‘English language’ schools are in huge demand everywhere. But do we ever think that perhaps children would learn better if they were taught in a language that their teachers could speak fluently and confidently and which they could understand without strain or resort to rote? These are questions which have been asked before, but we have not been able to come up with any solutions.
As a result, people everywhere struggle to find a way to improve their English language skills. In terms of earning jobs and making their way up the social ladder, this ability in our country seems to matter more than competence, honesty or ability of any other kind. The same is not true of, say, Japan – but then there are many complexities to our language story and the manner in which the structure based on it was shaped.
The admittedly gripping story of the old man, who possesses both poise and style, draws attention to this. Yes, he as an individual does need help. It is excellent news that the social media video which quickly went viral has helped him obtain this protection. But at the same time, similar videos, in fact some put out by the same popular actor, about the fate of daily labourers and their condition on days when they are unable to find work seems to have moved no one. Is it because these men do not speak English? Would a labourer who suddenly broke into English find himself being made job offers by top firms?
We need to think a little deeper about our own priorities. We have become very confused and extremely biased. Immediate judgements are made on the basis of the manner in which a person speaks a certain language, which language he speaks and with which degree of fluency. This really should not matter at all – but we all know that it does.
There should be some effort on to change this reality. The reason why people do not always speak the King’s English, with the correct accent and nuance is simply because they are not taught well at most schools, except perhaps for a few of the most elite institutions attended by those who already have, for the most part, vast access to the English language at home – through TV, through movies, through books and the language spoken by their families.
Without any element of upward mobility, we have really turned language into a kind of trap, a means to hold people in a stratification of class at the point where they stand on the basis of what and how they speak, and not allow them to move up beyond this. The process has occurred over many years. We need to think about whether we can actually turn it back or if we need instead to work on improving the delivery of English language learning in our country. Right now, this has become a means of exploitation.
Language centres offering spoken and written English classes for adults are often run by persons barely literate in the language they claim to teach. If we decide, as part of our education policy, that the promotion of English is essential as a means to align ourselves with the world, then we need to redo the way we teach it at schools.
We need skilled teachers, adept at teaching English as a foreign language and for this of course a full-fledged programme has to come into play. Even at the more high-end schools right now, there are often teachers who lack competence in the language, and of course people suffer even as their parents pay fees for that much coveted education in English.
Class stereotypes are based on language. There seems to be a sort of tacit understanding that the upper class will in fact be comfortable only in English. Sadly, this is often true and this raises further questions about the quality of our Urdu language teaching at various schools. The regional languages, notably Punjabi – the language of the majority in the country – have long undergone systematic neglect. Even those who speak Punjabi often prefer not to do so. We have a highly complex situation on our hands. The story of the old man, begging in DHA Phase 2 in Karachi reveals this. We were shocked because a man who spoke English, and should then be housed in a comfortable accommodation and driving off to a decent job, instead held a begging bowl. The manner in which we look at such people was suddenly altered. It created a storm. Yes, the story of the old man was tragic; for natural reasons, it was also dramatic and instantly drew attention.
But the stories of other individuals too deserve to be highlighted, regardless of what language they speak, so that we can find a way to free ourselves of the language barriers we have constructed and the manner in which they mould our society.
Email: kamilahyathotmail.com