July the fifth

On July 5, 1977 Pakistan plunged into its darkest era of its history. A democratically elected government was overthrown by a dictator. The Pakistani nation thus became hostage to those who mutilated society to unrecognisable levels. Anyone who lived in the pre-Zia era cannot recognise the Pakistan of today. At the behest of foreign selfish imperialists, Zia destroyed the very fabric of Pakistani society. The concept of Pakistani nationhood got first uprooted and then replanted, watered with extremism & fertilised with concocted ideology. The plant grew up and now it’s a tree, bearing the fruits of killings, intolerance, drugs, illegal arms and so forth. It is an irony that the generation that never played any role in destroying Pakistani society is now paying price with their blood to extinguish the fire lit by Gen Zia and his cohorts.

The distortion was so complete that after so many years the confusion about the creation of Pakistan is widespread. Younger Pakistanis of today are not sure what makes a Pakistani. Our so-called custodians of faith are more worried about beating women instead of widespread corruption, rising cost of living, unemployment, and the state’s failure to deliver essentials. The day that changed it all was July 5, 1977.

Malik Atif Mahmood Majoka

Melbourne

Australia