Every year brings new episodes with it, certainly, both good and bad. That people terming every outgoing year good or bad is nothing new. As a matter of fact, no day, month and year are not in itself the way how we term it. It is we who make it either good or otherwise. Now that the 2021 is arriving at its end and shall become part of the past, let’s review what the world saw in it.
As people of Pakistan for the last seven decades has been hearing from succeeding governments that their predecessors have spoiled everything and that they have put things on the wrong track. Sardonically, if the year 2021 had a mouth to talk, it would blame the year 2020 which welcomed it in a mess, introduced it with COVID-19 and many more problems that had turned the world upside down. First week of the 2021 shocked the entire world in general and America, the world’s policeman, in particular when the Pro-Trump mob, protesting his election loss, stormed the Capitol in an unprecedented attack that left many dead.
America herself, which is known for unjustified interventions with a view to bringing democracy to states around the world, had to lay the blame at its door for what was witnessed there on January 06. The very next month, February, did not go well with Myanmar formerly known as Burma. The military junta ousted an elected government and seized the power which brought about strong protests.
Ever since hundreds of people, reportedly, had to lose their precious lives in what could be termed as an ugly episode to say the least. All these triggered United Nations and other world powers to impose sanctions on junta. May 1 was another important day on which the US was supposed to exit from Afghanistan, under the February 29 deal signed in Doha between US and Afghan-Taliban, what did not come to pass. Given that the following weeks and months were marked as crucial for global politics. America exit Afghanistan in September ending a 20-year long war.
Afghanistan was left in the lurch and right in the mid of August the Afghan-Taliban took power of the Kabul with facing zero resistance. This marked as another important event of 2021. Situations have deteriorated in Afghanistan. The UN Food Program estimates that nearly half of Afghan population is facing acute food insecurity. Not alone this, there are disturbing reports that some people are forced to their children so that they can get something to eat.
With these ilk man-made problems, there have been some good efforts this year too. For example: COP 26. In November, the UN Climate Change Conference COP26 was held in Glasgow.
As many as 120 world leaders and over 40,000 registered participants, including 22,274 party delegates, 14,124 observers and 3,886 media representatives participated in it. The outcome of COP26 was the Glasgow Climate Pact. Let’s leave this here and jump straight to December. The month of December for the rest of world may be of any kind but for Pakistan over the past few years, it has brought some tragic incidents inviting world’s attention. For instance on December 3rd, enraged workers of a garment factory in Sialkot tortured their Sri Lankan general manager to death over allegations of blasphemy and set his body on fire. This made tickers in both national and international media prompting condemnation from government officials and human rights bodies both at home and abroad. Fortunately unlike other national issues, people from all school of thoughts abhorred the mob-lynching proving to be on one-page. Undoubtedly, the ghastly murder of Priyantha Kumara Diyavadan earned Islamabad a bad name in international capitals.
But, to its credit, Pakistan on December 19 hosted a Saudi-initiated 17th Session of the Emergency Meeting of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers. The agenda of the meeting in question remained the growing crisis of Afghanistan and the risks that people of Afghanistan are bearing the brunt of. Islamabad received widespread appreciation.
The year 2021 is arriving at its end and the 2022 is only few days away. It is hoped that the incoming year bring no episode of violence. Again it is to mention that a year itself is not good or evil rather it is man who makes it so. Will the international community engage with the interim government in Afghanistan? Will the world get on one-page to fight climate change? What will be the fate of COVID-19 and its new variant Omicron? Let’s rest these questions to 2022 to answer them in appropriate time.
The writer is a freelance columnist.