A Secular Pakistan

The trend to blame religion for the problems of Pakistan is becoming more and more common among the people of this country. Some Pakistanis now believe that being an ‘Islamic Republic’ is the biggest problem of Pakistan. The country can’t prosper and can’t get rid of its problems unless it gets rid of Islam. To a certain extent these thoughts are somewhat justified. Every Pakistani knows how many people have lost their lives and their loved ones in the violence that comes from religious extremist groups, besides people observe that the western nations, most of whom are far more developed than their country, are secular. They have limited religion to the places of worship, and are now enjoying the fruit of secularism. And the countries where religion is still predominant are quite underdeveloped. These observations force some of the people of Pakistan to think that they should strive for an Islam free Pakistan, and then they might be able to develop their country.

But is Islam really predominant in the Pakistani society? Is the state really being run by the religion?

If analyzed with an open and objective mind, the answer would be ‘No’. Islam is not predominant in the Pakistani society. Apparently it’s a very bold statement, but let’s see what Islam tells Muslims to do, and what is being done in the Pakistani society.

Is it Islam that tells people to make money through corruption? Does Islam tell its followers to kill women in the name of honor? Does it tell Muslims to indiscriminately kill innocent people, women and even children? Does it tell the people to deprive the followers of other religions of their liberties? Does it tell the people not to educate themselves?

All the answers are ‘No’. Islam strictly prohibits corruption. It teaches its followers to respect women instead of killing them in the name of honor. It has specific rules for Jihad, and a Muslim isn’t allowed to kill a woman or a child in any case. It prohibits the killing of unarmed people. It offers total religious freedom for non-Muslims. It obliges every Muslim to get educated.

When the people of Pakistan aren’t even following any of the major teachings of Islam, how can they blame it for their problems? Going to the mosque for prayers and fasting in the month of Ramadan is not ‘Islam’. Islam is a way of life, and the life of almost every Pakistani is against what Islam teaches. Following Islam isn’t creating any problems for the people of Pakistan, but not following is.

Islam strictly obliges its followers to get educated. But the literacy rate in Pakistan is less than 60%. Had the government been run according to Islam, its first priority would have been education, but on the contrary, education is being given the least attention by the government of Pakistan. Islam has a strong system of Zakat that manages the flow of money in the society so that the wealth doesn’t accumulate in the hands of some people. But despite the existence of a department for Zakat, rarely any poor person receives financial assistance from the government. Islam tells the rulers to live their life like the poorest person lives in their territory, but the government officials of Pakistan live like kings, as if the state reserves were their personal property.

Some people say that Islam is to be blamed for the problems of Pakistan, because one of the major problems that the Pakistanis face is religious extremism, and that of course comes from religion. Had there been no religion, there would have been no religious extremism, and half of the problems of the Pakistani society wouldn’t have existed. But as a matter of fact, the problem is not religious extremism, the problem is extremism. Had there been no religion, there could have been political extremism, ethno-national extremism, and even economic extremism, and Pakistanis are prone to all of them. So, if religion is removed, extremism would still exist. People can kill each other for political differences, they can kill each other for ethnic differences. The situation of Karachi is the best example of political and ethnic extremism. Some say it is a common observation that religion turns people to violence. But that is only a media perception. Edhi is less violent than Dalai Lama and more religious than Osama. So, the problem isn’t the religion itself, the problem is with the people who don’t have respect for each other’s opinion, who turn to violence instead of tolerance, and who misinterpret religion. This trend in the Pakistani society needs to be changed, not the religion or ethnicities. Whether Pakistan becomes an Islamic state, or a secular one, the situation won’t change, until the mentality of the Pakistani population doesn’t change.

The roots of extremism in the Pakistani society have already been discussed; the most apparent of them being Poverty, Illiteracy and Unemployment, and Islam isn’t an obstacle to the solution of these problems. Rather it necessitates education for everyone, and thus higher literacy rate. It tends to circulate the wealth in the society in order to remove poverty. It obliges the government to provide the people with as much job opportunities as they need. So, the fact is that Islam is not the problem. The problem is extremism, and that is caused by illiteracy, poverty and unemployment. The people who want Islam to be expelled or limited should think again. They are wasting their energies for a cause that won’t improve the condition of the Pakistani society. They should instead focus on the real problems that are causing many more problems. Secularism itself is not a flawless ideology; it has problems of its own. There is no guarantee that it won't fail. It would be better if Pakistanis try to solve their problems using the ideology that is the foundation of their existence, instead of pursuing a totally different ideology.