Celebrating our independence

Pakistan’s independence day celebrations today must be a powerful reminder of the multiple adversities surrounding the country’s birth, overcome in time by the resilience of its people.

Born ahead of the migration of millions of Muslims from India to Pakistan, the tumultuous circumstances surrounding the country’s creation triggered much scepticism over its future.

Still, the founding fathers of Pakistan left behind enormous treasures that many had inherited over several generations, only to head towards a new country that they had never seen before. In brief, theirs was an immensely brave trip towards the unknown, having sacrificed most of their worldly belongings to embrace a new idea.

Notwithstanding the cynicism at the time of the country’s birth, the idea of Pakistan has stayed the course despite some of the worst challenges witnessed over time. Today, the powerful spirit of Pakistan’s existence owes much to its people who lived through turbulent times, only to successfully beat powerful odds.

In this background, as Pakistan celebrates the country’s 77 years of existence, it is the determination of its ordinary people that promises to hold it together and take Pakistan from strength to strength.

In one of the many bold examples of Pakistan’s enduring spirit, this week’s independence day celebrations in Islamabad by the Lahore based ‘Hum Mashal e Rah’ (we are the guiding light) foundation, said much about the key players who have driven the country’s difficult but enduring journey.

Set up just seven years ago by three women, including those with children in need of special care, the foundation’s mission remains devoted to serving individuals classified as differently abled. They include the visually and hearing impaired, those born without the ability to speak and those suffering from ailments such as down’s syndrome, autism, ataxia and dyslexia.

As the founders of ‘Hum Mashal e Rah’ foundation gathered in the Pakistani capital to widen their work to Islamabad, a group of schoolgoing students set up a stall in the popular Kohsar market to raise funds for those in need.

Known as ‘Project Khidmat’ on Instagram, their mission is simply one – to raise funds for helping the homeless and children in orphanages.

And last but not the least, the recent celebrations surrounding the victory of athlete Arshad Nadeem at the Paris Olympics, yet again show cased another icon in Pakistan’s journey.

Hailing from Mian Channu in southern Punjab, Nadeem walked the way without much patronage. His success was the consequence of sheer hard work backed by the support from his coach that eventually elevated him to global fame.

Together, these events around Pakistan’s 77th independence day were just some of the many examples of the spirit that drives the country’s enduring resilience. While Pakistan’s ruling elite over time have run up colossal debt from local and foreign sources, ordinary Pakistanis have come together to fill the gap in ways that often do not appear either on the national or the global radar screen.

It is hardly surprising that almost two decades after Pakistan’s worst earthquake of 2005, memories of the outpouring of popular support for its victims live on, in a powerful reminder of the Pakistani spirit. Within hours of that tragedy, Pakistanis came out to join the rush of motorists heading towards Azad Kashmir with the singular purpose of helping the victims.

And the fast soaring crowds continued to build up on the roads of northern Pakistan, notwithstanding the multiple bottlenecks that plagued the route. While numerous families in Kashmir and parts of Pakistan’s northern areas mourned the loss of their close family members among the more than 70,000 casualties, the popular drive came together with an unprecedented determination to support those who survived.

The two sharp contrasts following that earthquake said it all. While roads in northern cities such as Muzaffarabad were littered with scores of corpses, there was no shortage of voluntary movements across Pakistan. Together, Pakistanis eventually picked up the pieces from that terrible ordeal to move on.

If Pakistan’s past and present are a mirror to its future, the country is indeed here to stay. But the future will be driven by the resilience of Pakistanis rather than those who lead it in Islamabad. For Pakistan’s leaders across the board, it is essential to read the most vital writing on the wall: they must learn to trust the people who have always risen to the need of the time whenever their country has faced distress.

The writer is an Islamabad-based journalist who writes on political and economic affairs. He can be reached at: farhanbokhari@gmail.com