Here are my understanding of the two persons lesser understood in Pakistan.
A handful of people in Pakistan found ideologies worth
living and dying for. Tahira Mazhar Ali was one of the few. To her
Marxism refused to die amidst the mist of Times . In a society where the word
IDEOLOGY is still considered a text book coinage, Mohtarma Tahira Sahiba lived
with her own ideologue.
I am greatly impressed by the candid writings of Mr
Tariq Ali - her prodigal son, yet I wonder why great ideologies are always
cultivated in the backyards of wealthy LANDLORDS, so frequently scorned and
abused? The reason is obvious anyone coming up from middle class is safely labeled a terrorist.
While Mr Lee is celebrated in the most established democracies, we have reasons to ask why we need dictators to in the East and Democrats in the West to Praise? In Pakistan all the dictators had ruled with US support leading Pakistan to poverty and extremism. Pervez Musharraf often equated himself as a Lee alternative in Pakistan.
The fall of the British Empires saw the rise of
Authoritarianism. No dictator has ever been celebrated so much that even the
most democratic nations found it so convenient to
declare Lee Kuan Yew's authoritarian rule 'a humble price for prosperity'. A
time for Singapore
to celebrate though, I found him the man who became an excuse for scores of
dictators in the Third World Countries. My request to the people of Singapore,
"Before u pay tribute to your leader, please remember the misfortune of
the developing nations that suffered at the hands of dictators inspired by Mr
Lee Kuan Yew". Rest in Peace!
