A struggle for sanity

For years, the advent of the first of May would raise the spirits of a somewhat wider group of friends in Karachi. On that day, we would be invited by Anis Haroon and Dr Haroon Ahmed for a get together at their residence.

This celebration of May Day naturally underlined a political and social stance. And the joy and camaraderie it inspired had its own separate pleasure. For a brief interval, we felt like being in liberated territory.

The rhythm of life has recently changed. There was the pandemic, and Dr Haroon has been unwell. Even otherwise, the times now are out of joint and opportunities for like-minded friends to rejoice in the company of one another in a meaningful way are becoming scarce.

So, there are reasons why I think of that annual event. There have also been other occasions to meet and exchange views with friends on the prevailing state of affairs. At times, it would become a regular and a little structured exercise. This is how we would recharge our emotional and intellectual batteries.

Anis and Dr Haroon make what they call a power couple. Both are committed social activists and one measure of the role Anis has played is that she is a former chairperson of the National Commission on the Status of Women. It is this combination that made their May Day celebrations so lively and memorable.

An additional excuse for me to awaken these memories is a function that is being held today (Sunday) at the Arts Council, Karachi. The Pakistan Association for Mental Health is commemorating World Mental Health Day 2022 and on this occasion, a life-time achievement award is to be presented to Dr S Haroon Ahmed.

There will be some intimations of the May Day feast at Dr Haroon’s place because the programme includes the poetry of Faiz Ahmed Faiz by Khalid Ahmed and Sheema Kermani. There is a list of distinguished speakers who will share their reminiscences of Dr Haroon, who is being recognized for his services for mental health and the profession of psychiatry in Pakistan.

As a leading psychiatrist of Pakistan, Dr Haroon has devoted his life to raising awareness about mental health and dealing with the stigma that is attached to it at the popular level. But more than a psychiatrist, he is what can be described as a public intellectual, verily an endangered species in our society. Hence, I need to bring together many different strands of thought.

There is, of course, a personal dimension. I recall those dark days of Zia’s rule when we, a group of friends, would meet casually at dinners, though our deliberations would be quite sombre. Eventually, Dr Badar Siddiqui took it upon himself to give these meetings a kind of form and character. That arrangement ended when he shifted to Germany, though there is a mandatory reunion, for old times’ sake, when he visits Pakistan.

I should desist from strolling down the memory lane. There must be many other such groups in this and other cities. However, the impression I get is that there is not a strong momentum for the growth of progressive and liberal movements at the political or cultural plane. The focus should now be on younger age groups. One knows about some initiatives in this regard, but the overall scene arouses a sense of dread.

In his professional undertakings, Dr Haroon has clinically surveyed the mental health situation in Pakistan. Today, we must take note of the fact that the mental health crisis of Pakistan is becoming severe. The unprecedented floods and economic difficulties of the people are likely to have increased the incidence of anxiety and depression.

Yes, the problem of mental health is universal and much attention is being paid to it in the wake of the pandemic. Our handicap is that we are woefully short of psychiatrists and other relevant medical facilities. Dr Haroon has himself said that 37 per cent of the people in Pakistan may be suffering from one or the other mental, emotional or psycho-somatic problems. Your personal interactions would give you some idea of how rampant anxiety and depression are.

One report published this week, quoting the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, said that after New York, Karachi is the city with the most drug consumption in the world. Pakistan has 6.7 million drug users, of which two million are addicts.

Not being an expert, I can only make some cursory observations. But beyond the standard issues that relate to mental health, there is this air of madness in our political environment. Even a loudmouth like Shaikh Rasheed has confessed to being utterly depressed and thinking of doing something drastic, be it against his own self. And there are many more who have also lost it.

For that matter, Pakistan as such needs therapy. One problem is that there is no informed public debate on these matters. What we have to put up with in the mainstream or social media tends to enhance our feelings of anxiety and rage. We are not able to get any insight into our own emotional needs and understand our shortcomings.

Is there any hope in the ordinary people’s spirited response to the threat of terrorist violence that we saw in Swat on Tuesday? On Monday, there was firing on a school van. The driver was killed and two schoolchildren were hurt. This was another sign of the return of the Taliban in that region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The protest rallies for peace have demonstrated the will of the people to stand up to the forces of terror. Will the rulers interpret this message correctly?

Peace, like sanity, has to be cultivated in the minds of the people. That brings me back to the role that public intellectuals have to play to promote democratic and progressive values. Unfortunately, Pakistan is not in a state of health or maturity to be able to heed the voice of reason.

The writer is a senior journalist. He can be reached at: ghazi_salahuddin@hotmail.com