Terrorism... Again: Old threats, alternative solutions

By Edit Schlaffer

Terrorism just got a new haunting image, a Muslim man with bloody hands stands in the streets of London holding a meat cleaver that he used to butcher a Royal infantry soldier only moments earlier. This fateful incident connects two young men from very different walks of life. The attacker Michael Adebolajo, apologized to the women nearby for the gruesome sight, declaring that women in their lands "have to see the same" and explaining that "The only reason we have done this is because Muslims are dying by British soldiers every day."

At this point we should take a step back to reflect on whether we are in danger of stumbling into the stereotyping trap. Some will be quick to judge, that the two perpetrators actually represent the people in the far lands that one of them was referring to.
In the course of my recent work in the most volatile regions affected by terrorism, I had the enlightening experience of listening to the voices of fathers and mothers of suicide bombers who had lost everything that was dear to them; their children and their dignity. Yet instead of calling for revenge, they express an entirely different sentiment: "You may not use our country as an excuse to spread terror, death, fear, and bloodshed." This message undermines and discredits the typical narratives spread by recruiters, who refer particularly to Palestine as a source of grievance and justification for engaging in violent extremism.

The Palestinian mothers whom I met want to get this message out to the Western youth: "This is our fight, not yours." We have to respect this idea, for they are front-runners and are taking high risks within their society. Indeed, Nabila, a mother from Ramallah, told me that when she heard the news of her son's martyrdom, she fell to her knees and praised God. Soon after she reassessed he initial reaction: "What am I doing? I am thanking God, but instead I should be asking for his forgiveness." So she stood up and demanded for the women around her to stop their celebratory cheering. Even while this shocked her husband, she bravely faced the assembled group and challenged the local male culture of bravery. Reflecting on the aftermath she says, "We are still where we are, but just without him. He was my eldest, my strength and my protection." Now she wakes up every night, begging him in her thoughts: "Please come home, just one more time, my darling."

When I learned about the drama that unfolded on that London street, another mother came to mind: Ingrid Loyau-Kennett, a scout leader and former teacher. She engaged one perpetrator in a very personal way, asking him what he wants, managing to calm him down. Maybe this was a rare moment, when someone asked him to spell out his fragmented thoughts. This is a remarkable approach that starkly contrasts the "hard power" methods that are more commonly used. Such new "soft power" applications could act as the basis of an effective alternative in counter terrorism strategy.

The consequences of this assault immediately affected the delicate community cohesion, so that Muslim citizens again feel under attack and threatened. Shelina Zahra Janmohamed, a London-based blogger, voiced her sense of personal unease when leaving her home after the Woolwich attacks: "I felt scared, fearful of how I was perceived and what people would be thinking. I'm worried for my safety, for the security of my family."
Western anti-Muslim sentiment needs to be balanced by Muslims voicing their determination to confront the Islamist threat and expose the abuses of Islam by a small minority of extremists.

These voices are indeed widespread, even within Pakistan, a country closely associated with terrorism. I was very impressed by a group of women from the SWAT Valley -- a hotbed of extremism -- all of whom have a son or husband who was forcibly recruited by the Taliban or arrested by the army for Taliban involvement. Yet what do we actually know about these people and their stories? In some cases the villagers had witnessed symbolic public executions in front of their houses to scare those who wanted to resist joining the militant forces. The village women, recognizing how "Jihad" brought violence and misery to their families, are keen to voice their opposition, even in light of the well-known potential, brutal consequences. Madeeha, one of my interview partners, insists: 'If the recruiters come back and the men in our village cannot stop hem, then we women will join forces against them.'

Aisha Al-Wafi is the mother of Zacarius Moussaoui, who was the only person ever to be tried in a US court for being involved in the 9/11 attacks. In a conversation with me, Al-Wafi passionately exclaimed, "Strangers come and give orders to my son not to respect me? What's that about?... The extremists -- I hate them, because they don't love Islam, because The Prophet says, 'your mother, your mother, your mother'... And the extremists say, 'don't listen to your mother?' That's Islam? No, that's not Islam." She is calling out for tolerance and respect for others: "We (Muslims) need to respect, so that we'll be respected."

Talking about community cohesion makes me contemplate the countless missed bridge-building opportunities that could have materialized on a global level. A workshop with a group of women, family members of victims of the 9/11 attacks, showed me that more than ten years following the attacks there was still a need to come to terms with the aftermath of the attacks. The most remarkable feature of this meeting was the complete absence of hatred or desire for revenge towards Muslims at home or abroad. These women do not fuel any toxic anti-Islam rhetoric. Rather they highlight the commonalities between themselves and families living in regions of the world within which terrorism constitutes a daily and very real threat. These women of the Tuesday's Children group set an admirable example, and sent out a joint declaration that they refuse to hate.

What we see here is fascinating: new female approaches that challenge the mainstream scenario, namely Jihadists' claim that they are acting with the support of Muslim communities. Ultimately, we all have to find a way to live together, and we need therefore to be actively engaged in making the ambitious project of peaceful co-existence work. We have to realize that there are alternatives and powerful new players: women, co-shaping the security arena.

New details on Malala's case, giving an insight into Pakistan's lose Taliban policies

While Malala Yousufzai’s condition is stabilizing, details on the attack last week are slowly emerging. According to Reuters, one of the two gunmen involved in the shooting has been identified by his first name. Attaullah, a young man, was arrested in 2009 during the Pakistani military campaign that pushed the Taliban out of the Swat Valley. Due to a lack of evidence of connections to terrorist groups, he was released after only three months. However, a senior security official is refuting this statement, indicating that authorities reputedly did gather enough evidence to arrest Attaullah when they raided his house in the Swat Valley. According to officials, Attaullah organized the attack on Malala on orders of one of the Taliban's most feared commanders, Maulana Fazlullah, who operated from Afghanistan after the 2009 military raid before returning the Pakistan this past June. Critics say Pakistan's low conviction rate of militants, even high-profile individuals who carried out major attacks, is one reason why extremism has spread in the South Asian nation. Public fury over the shooting has increased pressure on the Pakistani military to mount a major offensive against the Taliban, which has close allegiances to Al Qaeda and a host of other militant groups. The Taliban, fighting to topple the government and impose a radical theocracy, have blown up hundreds of girls’ schools in recent years in Swat and other areas to further their opposition to the education of women.


- Lea von Martius

Remembering Bali

By Lea von Martius

 
The terrible images of the October 12^th,  2002 Bali bombings are imprinted on the collective memory of the world: burnt-out buildings, dead bodies piling up on the streets, and the wan face of Umar Patek. Not only do they bear witness to one of the most devastating terrorist attacks in recent history, which took place just one year after 9/11, but represent the rapid expansion of global terrorism. 202 people from 23 different countries lost their lives in the attacks, including Indonesian, Australian, and British nationals. This morning, on the 10^th anniversary of the Bali bombings, a commemoration ceremony was held in Kuta, the southern Balinese town where the attacks happened. Both family members of victims and survivors who barely escaped the horrors themselves attended the event. Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, whose country mourned the most deaths after the attacks, was also present to show her support for the ones left behind. Anggie Dewirini, the SAVE Indonesia representative, attended the ceremony this morning:



Placing flowers in a reflecting pool at the ceremony commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Kuta bombings

“This morning, on my way to the event, there were police everywhere. When I arrived, I was amazed at how many people were there—family members of victims, survivors, NGO representatives, journalists, security guards, and politicians. The choir that sang touched the hearts of everyone there—I felt like they were singing to each one of us individually. I felt so much empathy with the family members of the victims there that I am among them now. It was as if I too had lost a loved one. I found myself crying as I put flowers in the small reflection pool. I held one of the victims, and my heart went out to her. I can’t even describe how it felt to see all the faces and photographs of the victims on the memorial wall.” Her words reflect the devastation that still holds family members firmly in its grasp even ten years later.

Family members of victims walk past the boards with photos of all the victims

It is easy to forget that that Bali, an extremely popular tourist destination, belongs to Indonesia, the world’s most populous Islamic nation. Although the island is geographically far removed from the Middle East, Al Qaida and a number of jihadist splinter groups who have strongholds there have recently begun exerting influence in Indonesia, which has traditionally been recognized as a very moderate Muslim country. The end of the Suharto autocracy has created a political vacuum which extremist groups are strategically filling with their ideologies of hate and vengeance.

The commemoration ceremony’s messages of peace and progress come in the wake of terrifying news from Pakistan—the attack on Malala Yousafzai last Tuesday. The 14 year old girl, known internationally as an advocate for the rights of children and women in her country and who, at the age of eleven, was awarded the national Peace Prize by the Pakistani government, was shot by Pakistani Taliban. While she is struggling for her life in the hospital, her courage and commitment set an example for individuals around the world to challenge extremist rhetoric and stand up for their rights. Malala, a young girl, almost a child, managed to unsettle the powerful Taliban and draw the attention of the global media to their tactics. Even more importantly, the attack has led to dissension within the ranks of the Taliban: terrorist leaders worldwide have condemned the attack as "barbaric" (source: www.spiegel.de).

Anggie Dewirini adds: “I hope that the terrorists and extremists can see that all humans around the world have the same rights, especially the right to live our lives in peace. Let us see that we are one family—we don’t want to hate each other, we want to be at peace. Let us hold hands, and not see differences as a barrier to peace.”

Malala Yosufzai: A Ray of Hope for Pakistan, by Arshi Hashmi

The courageous young girl Malala Yosufzai* is the ray of hope for most Pakistanis, especially girls. She not only stood up against Talibanization, but through her writings and speech convinced other girls that they can also dream of education and freedom of expression without any fear. It is so unfortunate that the Taliban attacked her while she was on her way back home from School. They confirmed her identification and then shot at her, which shows that it was clearly a targeted attack. Soon after the attack, Taliban issued a statement and sent it to the media saying that Malala "provoked" the people against the Taliban, which is why she is targeted. The attackers were successful in targeting her, but they had perhaps not realized that their act would create huge resentment and protest in the country. TV channels, newspapers, and the highest authorities, including the chief of army staff Gen Kiyani, visited her at the hospital condemning the attack. Major political parties, both conservative and liberal, held huge prayers for her recovery. School, colleges and universities all had a moment of silence and prayers for her. The more Taliban wanted to create fear in the society, the more people have come up against the act. In Swat,where the attack occurred , common people who were interviewed by private TV channels spoke against the attack. Pakistanis are sad , they are ashamed of not having protected the girl who is confident, full of hope and action for change. This is an important moment, if we as a nation let this pass without any stern action against the Taliban then nobody will ever be able to stand against violent extremism and terrorism in the name of God. Let's hope that the society will continue to speak up against this insanity and break the culture of silence that has been benefiting the extremists. 

*Malala Yosufzai is a 14-year-old women's rights and counter terrorism activist from the Swat Valley who advocated for access to education for girls in the region. Malala's writings have been featured on the BBC and she was the focus on a New York Times documentary; in 2010, Malala was awarded Pakistan's first National Peace Prize.

On October 9, 2012, Taliban shooters boarded the bus carrying her home for school, asked for her by name, and then shot her in the neck and head. She survived the shooting and is currently recovering in a hospital.

Violence is not the Answer to the Childish Attempt Against the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

By Arshi Saleem Hashmi, SAVE’s Chapter Leader in Pakistan

Arshi Saleem Hashmi

The childish attempt by a film maker to humiliate the sanctity of an Abrahamic religion should be condemned. Like many attempts in the past where some people in their own capacity tried to ridicule Islam and particularly the last prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was reflection of their own narrow thinking. This film does not amount to what majority of the people belonging to different faiths in the west think; this particular film is a brain child of an ignorant who tried to capitalize the anti-Muslim feelings.  It is important to understand that just like the obscurantists who do not respect other religions are not the representative of the Muslim all over the world, these people, who have been trying to ridicule the foundation of Muslim faith, are not the representative of the tolerant tradition of the western societies. One of the basic tenets of our religion Islam is to respect all the religions especially Abrahamic religions. It is not widely known in the west that a Muslim is supposed to respect and believe in all the prophets and the books that were sent from the God.  Majority of the Muslim believe in tolerance and understanding. Having said that, any insult to the prophet Muhammad would not be accepted by any Muslim, the extremists might have reacted violently which is wrong, but it did hurt even those who do not considered themselves as strictly practicing Muslims. It is more about faith being targeted then about extremist narrative of present day Islamists. 

Protesters in Tahrir Square carry a poster of Osama Bin Laden, (c) Reuters

In Pakistan, religio-political parties protested against the film, Jamat-e-Islami, Jamaatu Dawa and other groups protested in different cities in Pakistan. The government of Pakistan denounced this and issued a statement against the film. The local provincial assemblies also discussed and issued statements condemning the film. Compared to Libya and other Arab countries, protests here were nonviolent mostly though they did try to reach to US Embassy in Islamabad but due to tight security they were controlled.  The instant reaction in the Arab world was due to the obvious reasons that when it comes to Islamist jihadists, action against them is justified but when attempts to humiliate the most sacred personality of Islam; it is categorized as freedom of expression. 

In Pakistan, the film has generated interesting debates and TV channels are showing many programs where the discourse is whether the hate speech in Muslim countries target or ridicule the sacred personalities of other faiths or they focus more on the policies and politics of the western countries who happened to be belonging to Christian faith.  So the dichotomy here is Muslim antagonism is due to the policies of the West particularly the US while the views that have expressed in film is focused on the most sacred Personality in Islam. A positive sign in Pakistan mainstream media is to initiate debate on this issue and majority of the people though emotionally hurt, are listening to these discussions. Any violent expression would still be a minority act just like the making of the film is a minority expression in the US.  The gist of the debate is that western freedom of expression is not universal and should not be considered as a universal definition. The point is also being raised that despite all the hate speech and violent expressions against western policies, no attempts has ever been done to make a film on ridiculing Jesus Christ (PBUH) or Moses (PBUH, the West should also consider the way freedom of expression is defined in Muslim traditions.

Majority of Pakistanis believe in respect for all the Prophets in Abrahamic religions and they do not support violence but just like anti-Islam  minority views in the US and the West, minority views in the Muslim world will continue to react violently as they would interpret it as an attempt approved by the US in order to provoke extremism. The life of our holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is the great example where in his lifetime he ignored harshest critics who tried to humiliate him, ridiculed his message and tried to hurt him physically. We should learn from our beloved prophet, we can raise voice against this act, we can protest with the US officially. Violence is not what Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) taught us. 

Blasphemy Law and Its Abuse in Pakistan

Arshi Saleem Hashmi

 By Arshi Saleem Hashmi

 Human rights organizations have urged Pakistan to reform its blasphemy laws and protect a young Christian girl who was arrested for allegedly burning pages from the Holy Quran.

10 year old Rimsha, who is reported to have Down’s syndrome, was taken into custody in a suburb of Islamabad last Thursday after angry Muslims protesters demanded she be punished. 

Pakistan’s strict anti-blasphemy law has rendered desecrating the Holy Quran illegal and potentially punishable by death.

 

Arshi Saleem Hashmi, SAVE’s Chapter Leader in Pakistan, comments on this recent case:


Respect for our holy book and beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and all the Prophets before him does not need endorsement through violent extremism. On the contrary, love for our Prophet must be expressed by love for all human beings and all living things.

This is sadly not the case in today’s Pakistan. To appease the growing religious political groups during the 1980s, Gen. Zia-ul-Haq issued an ordinance according to which any person accused of doing or saying any derogatory thing against the Prophet (PBUH) and the holy book would be punished. Now who in his or her senses would do anything to disrespect the holy book or the Prophet, no Muslim and certainly no non-Muslim in a country where Muslims are not only the majority but religious conservatives are very much empowered and politically protected!

Still, we have few exploiters of our peaceful religion who think that they are the real guardians of our faith. In this case, a local cleric from the mosque found a good opportunity to “justify” his position as a religious leader and tried to exploit the people by saying that if they didn’t oppose the Christian girl who was accused of burning the holy Quran, their prayers would be wasted.

Using God’s name to harm God’s creatures has become these so-called religious leaders’ business, and unfortunately, they find supporters who blindly follow the half-baked truth preached by Mullahs who are not even properly educated on Islam.

More than anything it is the state that is supposed to take action instead of tolerating such irrational behavior. Sadly, the Christians in Islamabad’s slums are mainly sweepers and house maids. The girl accused of blasphemy was most probably sorting out the trash and might have found the burned pages which are a common scene in local “Muslim” localities where people disregard loose pages or very old copies of the holy book.

In this particular case, the accused was holding a “Noorani Qaida” which is a basic copy of the easy introductory book for children to learn the Arabic words and their pronunciation. Usually, even Muslim children read the book and sell it to dealers or paper collectors from different areas when they are finished reading it. But of course, all this is ignored when it happens in Muslim localities.

Respect can only be achieved through tolerance; it cannot be forced through punishment and most importantly, it must not be selective against vulnerable minorities. The present blasphemy law has become an instrument in the hands of extremist groups and religious orthodox leaders to settle scores with others. Respect for our holy book and the Prophet (PBUH) is indeed in our heart and that should continue to be there, but a review of man-made laws that do not respect basic human rights is the need of the hour.

What Do We Know About Pakistan?

Edit Schlaffer, Founder and
Executive Director of WWB/SAVE

By Edit Schlaffer

Although Pakistan has become a household name in the West, what do we actually know about the country? Military strategists as well as political and social analysts all agree that there is a steady, dangerous downward spiral at every level of society. Pakistan is considered a safe haven for Taliban insurgents, and the country's nuclear capabilities are great cause for concern. Corruption is prevalent; rule of law is the exception and lack of electricity the norm. The majority of the country goes without power for close to 20 hours a day. And "without power" is an apt metaphor for the political system - there is no people's power. The military rules with an iron fist, and violent extremists terrorize vast parts of the country including the capital. 

Last week I traveled to Pakistan and witnessed firsthand its security 
challenges. Equally alarming is the growing intolerance of America and the West. 

Swat Woman
Copyright Women without Borders

Our partner in Islamabad arranged for a group of seven women from the Swat valley - formerly the touristic hope of the country, the so-called "Switzerland" of Pakistan before the Taliban established a stronghold in the area - to travel to Islamabad so that I could speak with them personally and privately. The women, all illiterate housewives with multiple children, told me how they reacted when Fazlullah, locally known as the "Radio Mullah," first arrived in Swat 10 years ago. Fazlullah strategically recognized the power women can wield over their families and communities in the region and was the first to address women directly and call for their support "to fight for their faith and country" through radio sermons. 
In the Swat Valley, an extremely impoverished region, a woman's 
most valuable belongings are her wedding jewelry, which also ensures her status in the community. Women must be married to gain legitimacy within the society. After hearing Fazlullah's fiery addresses, the women of Swat donated their gold wedding bands and necklaces to support his cause, resulting in over two kilograms of gold to finance his jihad. Some even encouraged their sons and husbands to join his group, to supposedly pay their tribute to Islam and Fazlullah's struggle. 

Soon, however, the women realized that Fazlullah only brought violence and misery. Family members who refused to join or publicly disagreed with his ideologies and methods were symbolically and brutally murdered in the street as a bloody warning to others. 

Even in the face of such gruesome threats, the women of Swat are now determined to defeat Fazlullah and the death and destruction he represents. Halda, one of my interview partners, insists: "If Fazlullah comes to our area again and the men fail to stop him, then we women will take up the fight against him." 

It is ironic that it was a Talib who first recognized the potential and power of women in the Swat Valley and to directly and explicitly call on them to support a cause. He tried to use them. But the women soon saw through him when they recognized how his "jihad" was negatively impacting their families, and they demystified the dangers of his ideologies and consequent actions. 

It is now high time for policy makers and strategists to tap into the incredible power of women around the world and to connect with civil society as the primary driver in daily life. 

Ahmed Rashid, the acclaimed expert on Pakistani affairs and the Taliban, entitled his last book "Pakistan on the Brink," with a very interesting subtitle - "The Future of Afghanistan, Pakistan and the West." Our futures are interconnected. Radicalization in distant areas such as the Swat Valley will certainly have global consequences and affect the safety and security of our world. 

These women, who were willing to share their stories with me, are on a mission. They all brought with them pictures of their missing husbands or sons. Their men were generally lured into the terrorist network, and when they tried to escape they were imprisoned by the military. Now they are missing, either dead or in an unknown military prison, and the women are struggling to find even the smallest indication of their whereabouts. In an extremely volatile region, they are looking for certainty. 

Children of Swat Valley
Copyright Women without Borders

The women were accompanied by male guardians on their trip to Islamabad. One was 17 years old and a former Talib; he had been recruited at the age of 12. He has been able to escape the grip of Fazlullah's forces, and his dream is now to study - to learn something and to become somebody, but it will be difficult. He is now solely responsible for feeding, clothing and protecting his female family members, as his older brother and father disappeared - captured either by the military or the Taliban shortly after he returned home. 

Another guardian is an old man, frail with a long beard. When he talks about his five sons who have all disappeared, he starts crying. Showing such emotion is very unusual for a man in his cultural context. He apologizes and says, "I am crying my eyes out. Soon I will be blind. Can blind people cry?" He has accompanied three of his five daughters-in-law to Islamabad, for whom he is the only source of support now. 
The women brought along six young children between them - of course, how could I forget that this could happen? We rush to the market to get a few toys - cars for the boys and princess crowns for the girls, anticipating that this would not be the moment to challenge gender stereotypes. The women were pleased. One woman said to me, "My daughter will wear this on her wedding day." The girl is nine years-old.

This article was originally posted on the Womenetics website on 24 July 2012.

Remember: Farida Afridi, Women's Rights Advocate Murdered in Rural Pakistan

Farida Afridi. Photo Credit: Christine Crowstaff, PCDN

Women Without Borders joins the Peace & Collaborative Development Network (PCDN), Members of the Alliance for Ending Violence Against Women and Girls (EVAWG) and organizations around the world in condeming the brutal murder of Farida Afridi, a visionary women's rights activist in Pakistan and the co-founder of SAWERA (Society for Appraisal & Women Empowerment in Rural Areas), with her sister Noorzia. News channels report that Farida was shot dead by militants this Friday, July 6th on her way to work. Farida was 25, and an impassioned voice for women -- leading dialogues on peace and security, trainings on conflict resolution, and conversations with local elders on women's rights under Islam -- all unheard of in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the mountainous region less than 50 miles from the turbulent border with Afghanistan.

SAWERA is an independent, women-run NGO, and a Safeworld Field Partner in Pakistan, providing women in rural Pakistan with support and community training around issues of security, empowerment and conflict resolution. Farida's sister and co-founder, Noorzia, continues to head the organization.

We add our statement to the many international voices demanding accountability for this brutal murder, and send our most heartfelt condolences -- from the Women Without Borders/SAVE network to Farida's family, loved ones, and community. Her courageous and all too short life will be remembered -- and serve as a candle to light the fire of even greater efforts for women's empowerment in the face of security and safety threats worldwide.

SAVE Sister Archana Kapoor's work highlighted in recent Indepenent article: Radio for Change!

Change is in the airwaves in rural India

A traditional Muslim farming community is turning to the local radio station for advice on everything from sowing crops to health

The work of Archana Kapoor, SAVE Sister and long-standing Women without Borders representative in India, is highlighted in this recent article by The Independent. Archana is a visionary leader, peace builder, and film maker, dedicated to working for real and sustainable change with grassroots women in India, and on the global scale. She is a true woman without borders.


By Andrew Buncombe.
Originally published in The Independent, Friday, 27 April, 2012.

Beside a clump of sugarcane, brown and brittle, Mohamed Arif slipped out his electronic recorder and gently raised it towards the crouching farmer. What had gone wrong, he asked.

It was bad, said the farmer, his head wrapped in a white turban. Two years ago they had grown sugar cane and had decent results, but this year there had not been enough water. This time they could cut the cane only for animal fodder.

Mr Arif asked some more questions and then dropped the recorder back into his pocket. A couple of days later, edited with comments from local agricultural officials, the interview would make a bulletin for his radio station, Radio Mewat, and his interviewee, 61-year-old Mormal Khan, would almost certainly be among those tuning in to listen.

“Every day we listen to the evening programmes. We get a lot of information about what to sow and how to sow,” said the farmer. “I have a radio but we have no television. There is not a single television in the whole village.”

His wife, Jowri, said she liked to listen to the music and songs played by the station. She added: “When we are at home, I put it on. They talk about everything.”

There are more than 120 community radio stations operating across India. But over the last four years Radio Mewat has steadily built a reputation for helping one of the country’s most vulnerable groups, the Mewati, or Meo. A traditional Muslim farming community, the Mewati have long suffered cultural and economic discrimination. Today, although most of the community of more than 1m lives less than two hours from Delhi, in terms of job opportunities and access to health care and education, it is among India’s most marginalised.

“They demand change, but they have their own demands,” said Archana Kapoor, an activist and film-maker who has worked in Mewat for more than a decade and who established the radio station. “We have to help bring change, the way they want it.”

Before joining Radio Mewat, Mr Arif, who has three children, was employed as a freelance crime reporter for a newspaper in the town of Faridabad. It was hard work and often dangerous; once he was stabbed by someone he had upset. Now, regularly recognised by his listeners, he has become something of a celebrity.

“I was in fear for my life because I was always dealing with criminals. Now I am more relaxed, it’s a different atmosphere. It’s about learning as you go and sharing information,” he said.

Like the other members of the station, Mr Arif, 27, is himself Mewati and understands the challenges facing the community. They are simple things. Among the biggest are the absence of education, literacy and access to basic information. “Many families are ignorant about government schemes relating to developments in agriculture. Radio Mewat is the medium for distributing that information,” he said.

The station, which relies on government advertising for its revenues and has increased its programming from two hours a day to ten, has worked hard to gain acceptance among the conservative community, often suspicious of change. Ms Kapoor has held regular meetings with local leaders and while it does not permit religious broadcasts, a Muslim clergy member, Maulana Shaukat Ali, comes to the studio every week to record and broadcast Urdu lessons.

Asked about the reservations some members of the community have expressed about the potential ills of radio and television, Mr Ali said: “As long as you show the good things, then you can use any medium. If you are trying to promote bad things, then no medium is good.”

If the station’s agriculture beat is among its most important, then that of the health reporter is equally so. Its health reporter is also called Mohammed Arif. (The station’s staff differentiate between the two by using nicknames). Mr Arif, 23, is married with a child and joined the station from college.

“This is a rural area. Tuberculosis and nutrition are among some of the most important issues,” he said, seated at the yellow-painted building in the town of Nuh, from which the station broadcasts. “Earlier there was a big problem with childbirth, but since more attention has been given to rural health that has improved.”

One of his biggest personal tests was researching and then broadcasting programmes on safe sex. At first, he felt awkward discussing such a traditionally taboo subject, but now he is at ease. Most recently, he visited a village and discovered the government’s women’s health worker was not informing local women of their rights and denying them free lunchtime meals. “I informed the [village head]. He said he had not been aware of this. He called the woman and said ‘what you have been doing is wrong’,” said Mr Arif.

Confirming the notion that every individual has a story to tell given the chance, one of the station’s most popular programmes is “Gaon Gaon Ki Baat”, which consists of a profile of a different village. Given that the Mewati community is spread over 1,200 villages there is no shortage of potential subjects.

Many of the problems facing the Mewati people date from the early part of the 20th Century when the area became the focus of “reconversion” efforts by conservative Hindus. Mewatis, while identifying themselves as Muslims, shared many deities and religious holidays with Hindus. A Muslim revivalist movement, the Tablighi Jamaat was formed in Mewat in 1926 by Muhammad Ilyas al-Kandhlawi to strengthen and protect the faith.

Perhaps partly because of that, the people of Mewat suffered badly during Partition in 1947. The social scientist Shail Mayaram has written that at least 30,000 Meos were killed in one district alone. More than half the population fled to the newly-created Pakistan. The number would have been higher but for the entreaties of community leader Yasin Khan and the personal intervention of Mahatma Gandhi, who visited Mewat.

“There has been long-term marginalisation that has been happening for the last four or five centuries,” said Ms Mayaram, of the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, in Delhi. “Now, land acquisition is an issue. They are losing control of their land. They do not know it is slipping out of their hands.”

The Meo have traditionally had an oral history. All of the reporters at Radio Mewat said they learned nothing about their culture at school and instead knew only from listening to the stories of traditional musicians, or mirasis. Growing up, they would sit together in the village squares and listen to cassettes of songs and stories.  Now, those songs and musicians are also featured on the Radio Mewat broadcasts.

Sajid Hussain is the station’s reporter on financial inclusion schemes. He has worked there for eight years. He too grew up listening to stories about his community but never learning about them at school. He said he was glad to be involved in a project that is finally helping his community. “All the literate people went to Pakistan, a part of our history went with them to Pakistan,” he said. “There was a vacuum.”

Muslims, not Arabs - By Arshi Saleem Hashmi

Since the 1970s, many factors have combined to make Pakistan a fertile ground for the Wahhabi creed exported by Saudi Arabia. How might the next generation of Pakistanis change this? By Arshi Saleem Hashmi (Published in the Friday Times, Pakistan's weekly Independent Newspaper)

SAVE Sister Arshi Saleem Hashmi

C. G. Jung beautifully describes the synthesizing Indo-Persian culture that historically shaped Muslim identity in the subcontinent in these words:
"The Taj symbolized an incredible flowering of the "delicate secret of the rose gardens of Shiraz and the silent patios of Arabian palaces... in the rich Indian earth"

- (Civilization in Transition, the Collective Works of C.G.Jung Vol. 10. P. 519-520)

The confusion over the Arabist shift with the Islamization process has led to the monolithic world view derived from Islamic orthodoxy and has become the guiding principle for many radical young minds in Pakistan. In Pakistan, our dilemma has been that domestic and international politics as well as societal issues are articulated in a purely religious idiom. Such Islamic indoctrination emphasizes that political and social developments are shaped primarily by the conflict-based interaction between Islam and other religions, especially Hinduism, Judaism and Christianity. Instead of emphasizing the notion of Pakistan as a nation state based on cultural and religious pluralism, ideas like Islamic universalism, militancy and "Islam versus the rest" are highlighted by radical religious groups which have affected the psyche of the whole nation.

The Zia regime linked Arabism with Islam, not realizing or deliberately ignoring the fact that Islam is a religion, while "Arabism" is more of a cultural notion. "Islamization" of the society through "Arabization" was considered the right policy by the regime at that time. To ensure that the next generation of young Pakistanis was full of Islamic zeal and "well informed" of their glorious past, education was made the first casualty of this experiment.

Though the secular leadership of the Pakistan Movement emphasized the Muslim community, it never intended to create a theocratic Sunni state. The early death of Mohammad Ali Jinnah left the question of Islam's role in society unresolved. Pakistani leaders have frequently used religion to define state ideology. Historian Ayesha Jalal argues that this has led to Islam actually becoming a "divisive force in so far as it is being utilized by the state to deny people's rights or even to deny diversity."

Pakistan's constant socio-political upheavals have led to disillusionment among the masses. The youth is unable to see a promising future, and hence tries to attain solace in religion; and that is where radical religious organizations exploit them. It is historically true that a strong sense of grievance has reinforced Islam's role as a medium for asserting identity by its followers.

During the Cold War, while the state was defining religion for us, educational institutions under the guideline provided by the authorities were endorsing a false perception that Islam was spread through the sword (waging Jihad against infidels). Further, public opinion was made to reflect the idea that Arabism and Islam are complementary and mutually reinforcing. In their drive towards homogeneity and authenticity of Islam, Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries and the recipients of their money (non-Arab Islamic societies) equally emphasized 'Arabization' as the norm, the pure and ideal form of Islam to be followed by Muslims.

It is interesting that initially, the Sunni Bralevi groups were encouraged against progressive, liberal parties in order to create the "Islamic character" of the nation that was "lost "due to Bhutto's social democracy. But as they say, no one can survive without money for long, and neither did these groups.

The government needed money, and Saudi Arabia provided wealth with only one caveat: to encourage Wahhabi ideology in the Pakistan/Afghanistan region. One reason for this was to "serve" the religion whereas the other was purely geo-political, as Saudi Arabia wanted to have its influence in the region to counter Shiite Iran. The Arabi versus Ajami war was fought on our grounds. The US administration was satisfied as the Soviets were contained through Saudi Arabia without the need of a single US soldier on ground.

Historically, Wahhabism had never taken root in the region because it prohibited a lot of practices that were common to South Asian life. Wahhabism was largely confined to the Arabian Peninsula until the 1960s, when the Saudi monarchy gave refuge to radical members of the Muslim Brotherhood fleeing persecution in Nasser's Egypt. The isolated Wahhabi creed of the Saudi religious establishment and the Salafi jihadist teachings of Sayyid Qutb, who denounced secular Arab rulers as unbelievers and legitimate targets of holy war (jihad), were coordinated and co-opted. Thus it was the synthesis of Wahhabi social and cultural conservatism, and Qutbist political radicalism, that produced the militant variety of Wahhabist political Islam that eventually produced al-Qaeda.

During the 1970s, Wahhabi clerics encouraged the spread of their ideology into Saudi universities and mosques, because it was seen as a barrier to the threat of cultural Westernization and the spread of the corruption that accompanied the 1970s oil boom. The diversion that the royal family seized upon was the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Wahhabism gained considerable influence in the Muslim world following a tripling in the price of oil in the mid-1970s.

The new Islamic identity was then the steady process of transformation from a secular, inclusive and an adaptive form of Islam to a more textual, ritualistic and exclusive one guided by exogenous forces, as ideas, practices and finances flowed in from the Arab world. The transformation brought about conflicts - not only within Islam with regard to its correct interpretation and desirable way of life, but also among Muslims and other countries.

Pakistan continued to grapple with the question of its identity - whether to be a secular democratic country for Muslims and other religious minorities or an Islamic state. Even now most Pakistanis remain vague about their faith. To most, Islam is intermixed with folk practices and Sufism.

Moderate non-Arab Muslims all over the world and Pakistanis in particular need to work towards reinventing a true synthesis of culture and religion rather than being influenced by Arabization to prove their true Islamic credentials. De-Arabization can help Pakistan ease relations with its immediate South and Central Asian neighbors with whom relations have been severely affected due to the deliberate association with Saudi Arabia.

Interestingly, the more Pakistan tries to associate itself with the Arab world, the more it is reminded of its non-Arab credentials and its South Asian roots. The crisis in Pakistan has exposed the Arab lack of empathy vis-a-vis violent conflicts, natural disasters and health issues. Pakistan's position as a non-Arab, non Middle Eastern country that is not connected with Arab politics and culture is very clear among the Arabs. As columnist Rafia Zakaria has written: "This point, emphasized repeatedly in the coverage of Obama's speech by Al Jazeera, Al Arabiyya and other networks, should be worthy of note to Pakistanis. Not only did several Arab anchors refuse to acknowledge the refugee crisis and civil war in Pakistan as a pressing issue facing the Muslim world, they quite indifferently discarded it as something inconsequential to the Arab world."

Despite this attitude, Pakistani political-religious parties as well as radical militant groups are all praise for the "Brother Arab" countries, whose only display of brotherly attitude is showering these organizations and political parties with millions of dollars of zakat money. This should be enough to remind the so-called "Arabist" proponents that for Arabs, South Asian Muslims are just another underdeveloped community, which needs to be purified by an Arabist shift in their culture.

The long-term solution to the problem of identity would require massive changes in the fundamental agents of socialization of Pakistan's polity. Pakistan at present faces the challenge of reinventing itself both at the state level as well as the societal level. More so, it needs to adopt a top-down approach to reform and reconstruct the conceptual and ideological orientation to undo the state's enforcement of a particular sect of Islam.

If society appears indifferent about the nature of religiosity, it is not because people want it that way, but because there is a great deal of confusion that can only be removed if the state starts to patronize a pluralist society. This can be done through reforming of education syllabi, media programs and free intellectual discourse on religion and culture in the Pakistani context.

The key question is this: how far will the new generation differ from the one that was lost to orthodoxy and militancy?

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