Wear it, don’t throw it

In a civilised society, the practice of hurling shoes at politicians should not be adopted as a method to protest. The recent incident in which a man hurled his shoe at former prime minister Nawaz Sharif at a religious gathering in Lahore should be condemned. Saner elements of society will never support such an act meant to degrade a politician or a political worker in public.

The episode not only reflects the intolerant and extremist nature of society, but also distorts the image of our country both at the national and international levels. Similarly, an unidentified man threw ink at Khawaja Asif when he was addressing a gathering in Sialkot. Whether or not there is any organised force behind these two consecutive incidents, it is evident that the incidents demonstrate that a few people in our country lack civility.

Guldar Khan Wazir

Loralai

*****

This refers to the letter ‘Ink and soles’ (March 13) by Zahid Ali Khan. People use different form of protests to grab the attention of large numbers of people. Many people do not hide away from showing their disdain towards the political leadership. Can anyone imagine such an incident happening with Quaid-i-Azam?

The point is that the genuine leadership is missing in the country. Several state institutions have failed to address the problems of the people and have become an arena for the rich and powerful. The political leadership in the country has to mend its ways on an urgent basis to gain the trust of the people.

Arif Majeed

Karachi

*****

The current rise of an unethical culture that encourages people to throw shoes or ink at political figures as a means of protest poses many dangers. The dignity and respect of politicians is at stake.

Those who have carried out such condemnable attacks should realise that such tactics cannot be used to record protest.

Shakeel Ahmad Khan

Rawalpindi