Over the past half a century or so, a peculiar societal group has emerged in Pakistan. They’re what I will call in this article the ‘half-liberals’ of Pakistan. Honestly, I am too young to know where the precise beginnings of this group lie, but retrospectively, I think the large-scale dissemination of knowledge and cultural trends of the West into other corners of the world that followed the mainstreaming of television, and more recently the internet and the social media, must have something to do with it.
This ‘half-liberal’ segment and Imran Khan have something that has brought them together. A bond that given Imran’s recent wavering might be about to undergo a change. I will expound on this more later, but first let me give you a more detailed introduction to the half-liberals of Pakistan.
Most of these individuals have been brought up in middle to upper-middle class households. They go to ‘English-Medium’ schools, watch Netflix and love their pizzas and burgers. They also love social media – so much so – that one can find amongst them some of the most ferocious keyboard warriors the world has ever seen. They can be found on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. They also like travelling and their favourite travel destination seems to be Dubai – which perhaps is only apt given the superficial and conflicting sense of values that they themselves embody. In a society where they are firmly out of place at large, they find solace in their delusions of being ‘Westernised’ through wearing baggy jeans, supporting MK bags and watching pirated copies of Game of Thrones.
Given all this, one might be forgiven for presuming that this societal group is the one that will change the fabric of Pakistani society in the future. After all they look up to western values, right? But wait, there is a catch! Despite all their mimicry of Western pop culture – this group is fundamentally conflicted. They love the innovations of the West, yet gawk at the thought of having a free society where one is supposed to rebel intellectually, explore one’s sexuality or fully challenge the norms of the society. They like being westernised, but with a pinch of salt.
None of his initial supporters would feel comfortable if they saw Imran Khan putting on a turban and rubbing shoulders with the Maulvis that half-liberals fear so much
Now let’s come to Imran Khan. It is the aforementioned iPhone carrying segment of society where he has had his staunchest supporters; and it is they who are largely responsible for propelling him to the status he enjoys today. One fact that contributed significantly to this is that this class and their ancestors have historically monopolised the centres of power, media and press in Pakistan. This without a doubt, has helped Imran; but once he had to win elections – he must have been confronted by the age-old problem of democracy. That is, despite being the manufacturers of mass media rhetoric, this group only constitutes a small minority of Pakistan’s population.
It was when Imran Khan attempted to connect with the majority of the population, and thus expressed a changed outlook on certain matters that he began differing from the half-liberals. In doing so, did he alienate the very group that transformed him into a political force in the first place? None of his initial supporters would feel comfortable if they saw Imran Khan putting on a turban and rubbing shoulders with the maulvis that half liberals fear so much. Having said that, many believe that Imran Khan has only built a façade of religiosity for political gain, and that deep down inside, he remains the London playboy he always was.
To be fair, Imran has come a long way from his days in Britain. He is more astute now and has developed a political acumen of tremendous influence. He also seems to be willing to do whatever is required of him politically.
This is in itself is no issue. But what concerns the half-liberals, the mullahs and other sections of Pakistani society is where his true beliefs actually lie. More importantly, there is also concern about whether he even has a plan for when he becomes the Prime Minister (PM). Imran’s opponents have on countless occasions criticised his lack of a plan for Pakistan. However, I believe he does have something in mind. I remember watching one of his interviews back in the day when he commented on how “all societies go through processes of evolution” and that it would be naïve to expect that the values he espoused in Britain can be replicated in contemporary Pakistan. These are wise words and carry deep historical and philosophical insights.
In his mind, Imran knows what he is doing. I think his views have not changed much since his days in London. He is still the same Khan we half-liberals so dearly admire. Having said that, time is catching up with Imran – he isn’t getting any younger and he himself has recognised the need for ‘electables’ who carry vestiges of the same past he wanted to change in the first place. Imran may become the PM and manage not to alienate his favourite ‘half-liberal’ class. But when the alpha is no more, who will stop other wolves in the pack from going into a frenzy?
The writer is Graduate Student at Cornell University in the US, he can be reached at [email protected]
Published in Daily Times, June 30th 2018.