Last evening, a group of us went together to Asia Society in New York City to hear Imran Khan the Prime Minister of Pakistan. As we drove past the Pakistan Mission to UN, I told my friend Nuzzo how I used to walk there to meet my Dad after classes at Hunter College (I actually said Hunter Mountain by mistake, which reminded me of how my aunt answered a question at her citizenship application about the first leader of the US and she said George Washington Bridge!) We went through extremely tight security and even had to check in our handbags, and people who had come from work had to check their briefcases. We felt good about the security, and I for one was patient and appreciative of this level of security. Imran Khan entered from the back of the stage and walked to the podium, and we all locked our eyes on his striking handsome presence, while security men in both aisles kept their eyes glued on us the whole time. I remembered how I had met him at a private meeting many years ago when he met with the NJ chapter of the American Muslim Alliance- how far had we come from those days, and what fortune that we finally have a leader who can fix the Pakistan that we ex-pats love to criticize at every dinner party.
As he started to speak, we hung on every word, even if we had heard it before, looking for hope and inspiration and assurance, and we got it. Here was a man of principles who was not afraid to speak truth to power. He was sincere and committed to justice for all. His compassion for the poor and the oppressed moved me, and his criticism of the existing power structure was magnificent almost prophet like! Little did we know that his speech the very next day at the UN General Assembly would be even more electrifying and passionate.
He talked about 4 key points, each of which is so dear to us all, and all the time, he was not afraid to “name the elephant in the room” (meaning speaking the unmentionable).
- Climate Change
Pakistan is one of the top ten countries in the world that is hit hardest by climate change, and as the Himalayan glaciers melt away, the source of water for the Subcontinent is in danger, which would impact a billion and a half people. He said it is urgent that we act as one human race to avoid catastrophe.
- Islamophobia
Since 9/11, the West and US particularly has used to term “Islamic terrorism” to justify wars, drone attacks on Muslim majority countries, and spread hate and violence against Muslims where they are a minority. He pointed out that extremists are in all religions, and this false yet deliberate propaganda is creating a hostile world with even more hate and violence. “Anyone that thinks war is a solution needs to have his head examined” he said, and I just loved him for that statement. “How is it that a woman can take all her clothes off and it is okay, but a woman who chooses to cover her hair is attacked?” he asked. “What do you think 1.8 B Muslims feel about all this islamophobia?” he asked. As a spokesperson for this issue, I was so relieved that he brought it up to this global forum.
- Stolen Wealth
One of my favorite topics has been how the elite of the developing world have been lining their pockets instead of helping the struggling country. To his credit he pointed out how the West has clamped down on drug money, terrorism financing, but chooses to turn a blind eye of wealth being stolen from poor countries to be deposited in the West. It is shameful and I am glad he talked about it, although I also wonder how the developing countries cannot stop this? He pleaded with the rich countries to help the developing countries to develop a global system of accountability, otherwise “you will have to build up walls everywhere to keep out the economic refugees”, which is already happening. What I loved is that he engaged in full systems thinking- looking at problems in their whole context, looking at cause and effect over the long term, something that seems to be conspicuously lacking in the Western thinking.
- Kashmir
And as he talked about the most important topic of the day the human rights crisis in Kashmir, I just adored his passion and his examples. He shared how he had tried to create dialogue with India’s government, but was rebutted at every step. 100,000 Kashmiris have died in their freedom struggle, and now with the lock-down going into 53 days, it is a pressure cooker situation. 8M people are under military curfew by 900,000 Indian troops – locked up like animals he said- who can do as they please while the communications have been totally shut down- how criminal, how inhuman, how detestable. Why aren’t moderate Indians marching against this horrendous crime I wonder? He shared how Modi is a lifetime member of RSS, a racist organization that was formed in 1925 and inspired by Hitler and Mussolini; the RSS believes that Hindus are a superior Aryan race, like Hitler’s Germany believed. They wear brown shirts as the fascists did in those days, and they attack all minorities with impunity. They have taken away citizenship overnight of 2M Muslims in Assam, who are now stateless, as Bangladesh cannot take them in. Modi oversaw the massacre of 2,000 Muslims in Gujarat where police aided the attackers, and was denied entry into US for that reason in the 90’s. “If I am a Kashmiri man, and women are being raped around me in their homes, what am I to do?” he asked. When you put people against the wall, what do you expect to happen? Life is not worth living, and then extremist take the only action they know to do. When you are denied basic human rights don’t expect the victim to remain human. This message is so important because it is ignored and never even asked in the West. He also rightly criticized Muslim leaders for their lack of action and collaboration to solve all these big issues.
As I left the session, I walked with a bittersweet emotion. I know that the UN and the West will not act to protect Kashmiris, which makes me very sad and bitter. Even the thousands that marched next day on Friday were not covered by our media- shame on them. But I also felt a sweet emotion that as Muslims we are reminded that God will test us, and this is one hell of a long examination. When will it be over I wonder? In the meantime, I thank God that we finally have a leader who is courageous enough to speak truth to power.
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