Daily Times

Almost 70 years have passed since Pakistan came into existence. The generation that saw Pakistan’s birth coupled with traumas of partition is now in its final years. For the current generation, the only way to understand the context of how Pakistan came into being is a set of history books which presents history in an oversimplified manner without taking into consideration the multiple dimensions of partition which weighed quite heavily on the social fabric of society which had existed for centuries in the subcontinent.

The current representation of history in Pakistan’s academia about Pakistan’s independence is wrapped in ideological straitjackets and tries to impress upon its readers that partition was all about ideological differences. It does not talk about in detail about how politics of that time enveloped in ideologies influenced the common man when all of a sudden he had to experience the partition of his country. It does not talk about how people in India who, in the face of the volatile political atmosphere, though, were living in harmony had to involuntarily migrate when all of a sudden partition was announced and it became difficult for them to live among those with whom they had spent their lives for a long time.

The current generation, unfortunately, because of the textbooks’ indoctrination, thinks that people living in the state across the border in India are Pakistan’s mortal enemies and to put it in other words, is on the same page if India is perceived as the foremost enemy of Pakistan. A significant chunk of Pakistani politics revolves around India bashing on and off during the year and somehow this thing can be linked to the bases we have contextualised in our respective historical discourses.

This indoctrination of considering India as an “other” through texts is not only in Pakistan but India has also reciprocated this approach in more nuanced ways and has been presenting Pakistan before its citizens’ lot as an ‘other’ in more sophisticated ways. Caught up in the domestic politics and regional politics, the common people are hardly able to understand how their minds have been indoctrinated in manipulative ways by the two states and don’t know how they are being shepherded by a particular lot in each state for their vested interests.

There is a need to redefine history. In order to do that, The Harvard South Asia Institute has initiated a project entitled “Oral Stories Project: Looking Back, Informing Future” in collaboration with LUMS in Lahore. The project is aimed at creating “an archive of accessible stories, and providing sets of ongoing analysis of the division of 1947 British India. The project hopes to contribute to the scholarship around the events that led to the largest involuntary migration in history. In addition, it will inform scholarship about, and policies related to, other such societal schisms, subsequent to that time, and those today.”

This weekend, I got a chance to attend an orientation on how to be part of the project at Books and Beans Café in Lahore. Just to let the readers know, this is an unpaid internship. Those participating in the project have been entitled as ‘Partition Ambassador’ (PA). As part of the project, PA has to interview those people who have experienced partition and then has to submit those interviews in written form with SAI.

The people who have lived through partition have a lot of stories which need to be brought into the spotlight and through which a new discourse can be developed which will shake the status quo

After signing up for the project which is totally free, PA will be trained for how to conduct interviews through an online training of almost three hours and will be awarded a certificate of appreciation and Human Subjects Research Ethics Training certificate after he/she submits his assignment. The project is aimed at enriching the discourse of partition with stories of common man and indirectly is focused on making understand the local lot in both states that in the face of political differences they have a lot in common. The stories submitted in the project, according to those who are at the helm in the project, will be later on used as a primary research tool in research with respect to partition.

Partition needs to be redefined. By saying this, I don’t mean that I am against the existence of any state. It’s not like that. But since now Pakistan and India both have major roles in world politics for different reasons, both need to be at peace with each other and that can only come when a mutual and sincere effort will be made to define history without hatred. The people who have lived through partition have a lot of stories which need to be brought into the spotlight and through which a new discourse can be developed which will shake the status quo.

To all the students across Pakistan and India, I would suggest to be a part of the project and help the coming generation understand the history of Pakistan and India’s birth through common man stories. Contribution towards this project is not a meaningless chase. It’s an investment in future. It will not only make the history inclusive by accommodating all those unheard voices who lived migration and partition but will also influence the present and the future of both states with respect to each other and with reference to the world at large.

For all those who are interested to be part of the project, following are some of the links through which they can get in touch with the ones who are running the project.

The writer is an MPhil scholar studying International Relations at Department of Political Science in University of the Punjab, Lahore. He can be reached at uinam39@gmail.com

Published in Daily Times, December20^th 2017.