The real news

Every day, most of us watch a plethora of TV shows and read multiple news stories or posts over social media, discussing the current political situation and how it is unfolding. The chaos we are experiencing and the uncertainty that comes with it is something like reading a suspense novel and waiting for it to reach the end. We still do not know what will transpire, and if Imran Khan will really be removed as prime minister, or if the dissident PTI members who are being spoken about more and more openly will determine his fate.

But amidst all the political hype, which is the focus of the news on every medium for reasons that we understand well, there is the real news – which goes mainly unreported and virtually unheard of. On Wednesday a man was killed inside a marriage hall by a mob, allegedly for picking pockets. People continued to eat as the body lay there. A few days ago, we heard the story of a young man who killed himself because his business had been burnt to the ground in Lahore, as the result of a fire at a plaza in the city. We could only wonder what he went through and what safety net exists for people like him.

We have heard of the suicide of at least three female students in Sindh, apparently because they were being harassed and threatened in various ways. It seems there has been some attempt to carry out a cover-up. But the details are unclear and this simply means that those at the helm care nothing about the lives of these young women who should by now have been serving their communities as medical professionals. There is also other news that comes sporadically of children fighting off starvation at hospitals, notably charitable ones, and of people who in some cases try to save them. But in a state that calls itself a ‘new Pakistan’ why should children be reaching this situation and why should families be so desperate for any kind of aid that can prevent their death.

There are also other multiple stories. From time to time, we hear of train wrecks that could have been avoided. We hear of road accidents, which should have been avoided by the right rules being followed and the right training given to drivers. We hear of police brutality by a force that is badly equipped, under-trained, and receives very little support from authorities who recently backed a group that has killed four policemen rather than act against them for their violence against civilian security personnel. We have heard of parents removing children from school simply because they are too impoverished to keep them in the school system any longer. This then is not the new start we would have hoped to give Pakistan.

We also need to look at the rate of violence taking place among younger groups in society, notably those aged between 17 and 30. In many cases it is this age group that is responsible for such brutal violence as the lynching of Priyantha Kumara. There are too many such stories that keep coming forward as do cases of ‘honour’ killings of young women and even small girls.

Something has gone very wrong with our society and it goes beyond the political chaos we have created at the higher levels. The damage goes far deeper into the soil of a country, which into the 1970s was considered relatively peaceful and relatively civilised. Yet we now have murders over the purchase of petty items in households or over the theft of the same items on the streets. This is a problem that needs to be discussed as frequently as the political protests we see everywhere. Yes, the vote of confidence is definitely important. We can understand why it captures the popular imagination and why so many people are talking about it. But we need to look beyond politics and into the dead and dark lives people live in homes across the country. Nothing has happened that would change their lives or make them even a slight bit better. For these people, something needs to be done and it needs to be done quickly.

Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi is quite correct when he talks of incompetence and inept governance. Certainly, rather than the Sehat Card, it would have been far better spending money on improving the quality of government hospitals used by the poorest of the poor so they can receive quality treatment there at all times and in all cases. The Ehsaas programme is too limited to meet the needs of people who are desperately hungry, and desperately poor. We are unwilling to face this reality and see it only when we visit areas where hunger stares the visitors in the face from the eyes of small children. These are all important stories. The stories of farmers who cannot find enough pesticides to grow crops are important too. So are the stories of persons who cannot find lifesaving medicines necessary to save lives. The reason these problems are occurring and what toll they are taking on people is something we need to take note of.

It is here that the media becomes responsible. Elsewhere in the world, the media is chiefly responsible for writing about people and their condition. Here we see too little of that and our focus is on the political mayhem which seems never to end. This has been the case year after year and decade after decade. Right now, we have once again reentered the 1990s with the constant cycle of changing governments in one undemocratic manner after the other.

We need to learn the truth about our nation so we can focus on the problems that truly need to be solved, ranging from providing a decent education to every child ensuring households, no matter whether they are in Sindh, Balochistan, Punjab or Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, have a decent meal on the table at least once a day if not three times a day. Instead, we hear of children who come to school having eaten nothing at all for breakfast, and go home to a meagre meal of roti, perhaps with a few pickles or simply chilies. This is a shocking state of affairs. The fact that we are so willing to absorb it simply shows the kind of people we have become. Compassion and humanity have begun to vanish from our streets. Yes, there are plenty of people who try to give what they can. But giving is not the answer. While charity is always useful, in the times of crisis, it is not a long-term solution to problems. Longer-term policies and solutions have to be discovered so that people can live better lives. For this to happen, we must hear the stories of those who cannot do so at this time.

The writer is a freelance columnist and former newspaper editor.

She can be reached at: kamilahyat@hotmail.com