Daily Times

In this article, I will explore the phenomenon of Intolerance in Pakistan through the lens of Karl Popper’s famous paradox of intolerance. Intolerance in our society is increasing gradually whether it be religious, political, or social.

This article intends to go extensively into Pakistan’s complicated issue of intolerance, analyzing its religious, political, and social components and putting light on the terrible loss of lives as a result of this prevalent problem. Karl Popper, a notable philosopher, established the paradox of intolerance in his seminal book, “The Open Society and Its Enemies,” a complex notion that analyzes the boundaries of tolerance in keeping a free and open society. Simply put, the paradox of intolerance indicates that if a society is completely accepting of all values, views and beliefs with no boundaries, it may become subject to being taken over by intolerant individuals or ideologies. To summarize, the paradox says that if a society tolerates the intolerant it will lose all its tolerance.

First and foremost, religious intolerance has become a very complex problem in our society. There have been several instances of brutal murders of innocent people under the garb of blasphemy. Mashaal Khan, a brilliant young student whose life was cut short in a university campus lynching, is one important example. In addition to Mashaal Khan’s case, there have been numerous other cases of blasphemy-related violence in Pakistan, including the infamous assassination of Punjab Governor Salman Taseer. Moreover, Nigar Alam, a local religious leader in KPK, who was killed over a speech that the crowd deemed blasphemous.

Not to mention, those religious scholars who advocate for a peaceful interpretation are discriminated against, silenced and ultimately they have to leave this country because of the threats. One prime example is of a reasonable muslim scholar, Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, who questioned certain aspects of Islamic laws, including blasphemy laws.”The blasphemy laws have no justification in Islam. These ulema (council of clerics) are just telling lies to the people,” said Ghamidi in an interview. And consequently he started getting threats and ended up leaving Pakistan for his own safety.

On the other hand, the religious speakers who have asked for violence under the name of religion are roaming freely in the country. Such as Mufti Hanif Qureshi, whose speech aggravated Mumtaz Hussain Qadri and he ultimately killed Salman Taseer. Another example, of late Khadim Hussain Rizvi and his blatant speeches for violence against religious minorities. It has also been noted that since Khadim Rizvi’s speeches the attacks on Ahmedis have increased. Moreover, when a group of students of LUMS visited Rabwah, Khadim Rizvi threatened and issued a warning to LUMS.

Second, Pakistan’s past is littered with examples of political intolerance, when lust for power has led to the persecution and even killing of political leaders. Figures like Liaqat Ali Khan, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, Mujeeb Ur Rehman, Benazir Bhutto, and Nawaz Sharif have all been ousted from office or slain by political rivals. The sad death of Pakistan’s first democratically elected Prime Minister, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, for example, demonstrates how political intolerance may lead to power usurpation and the deterioration of democratic norms. Similarly, the 2007 murder of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto demonstrated the perils of political violence and the threats that politicians who dared to confront the existing status quo.

Following Imran Khan’s election, there has been an alarming increase in uncivilized political rhetoric. During political debates, supporters on both sides use harsh rhetoric and aggressiveness. But it must be noted that Imran Khan himself used this foul language and calling names in his own speeches to malign his opponents and asked his followers to do the same.

Last but not least, women in Pakistan face traumatic encounters as a result of deep-seated societal intolerance. The country remains one of the worst locations in the world for women, with honor murders, domestic abuse, and discrimination against those who campaign for their rights. In Pakistan, for example, women organize the yearly Aurat March to demand their rights and oppose patriarchal traditions. Despite the march’s peaceful and inclusive tone, participants are frequently subjected to criticism, online abuse, and even threats from conservative forces who see it as a violation of cultural and religious norms, such as from the Jamiat Ulema e Islam Fazl (JUIF) followers.

To conclude, Pakistan’s fight with intolerance highlights the importance of Karl Popper’s paradox of intolerance. I think it is quite evident from the examples provided in the previous paragraphs that if the intolerant people would be given permission to uphold the speeches under the garb of free speech they would wipe out the tolerance from the society. But there is a crucial yet important question: how come we have reached this stage of intolerance in our society, especially religio-political intolerance. What are the reasons for it? To answer this question we would have to go back in the history of the subcontinent. One of the most influential muslim scholars of the 20th century, Maulana Abul Ala Maududi, his ideology of political Islam flourished in the minds of masses and on the other hand Maulana Abu Al Kalam Azad’s secular philosophy of Islam did not become popular among Pakistani muslims.

In addition, Maulana Maudodi’s student Maulana Wahid ud deen Khan criticized his teacher’s thought and said that Maulana Maudodi was seeing Islam through the lens of politics only. Furthermore, Dr Israr, a religious scholar,  was influenced by Maulana Maudodi’s interpretation. His opponent, Javed Ahmed Ghamdi, could not inculcate his doctrine to the public successfully and was out played by Dr Israr. Not to mention, global powers, such as America, have also supported these political interpretations of Islam, especially during the Afghan War. In a nutshell, the nexus of religion and politics paves way for intolerance and American Imperialism has promoted this to a great extent. As a result, intolerance has prevailed and it has destroyed the fabric of society. So, only by working together will Pakistan be able to overcome the paradox of intolerance and emerge as a more compassionate and understanding society, building an atmosphere in which tolerance thrives and extremism recedes.