January 7, 2011

From Munni to Mumtaz

I was asked to write about my take on Salman Taseer's murder.
At this point, I've decided that anything is possible. The state of anarchy that humans have reached, anything can happen. And nothing shocks me anymore.

For those who don't know, Salman Taseer was an avid critic of Pakistan's blasphemy laws, and he thought Asia Bibi should be pardoned for blaspheming about the Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). He was killed by his own guard Mumtaz Qadri in the name of Allah, for advocating a blasphemer. I could go on about how this whole issue was fabricated to be about blashphemy and minority rights when in fact it was a property feud, but I won't because the fact of the matter is that whatever happened, happened because of what was believed by the public (Mumtaz Qadri) and what was brought to light by the media, NOT what really happened and whether it really even happened at all or not.

In one sentence: What happened to Salman Taseer was wrong. Period. It's human life and it was taken away by someone other than Allah. This is haram.
All those arguments about killing people in the name of God, well, as fellow blogger and friend Mehreen Kasana said, "God does not need human protection." And God sure as hell does not want you to take someone's life because that is not what Islam preaches. How many times do we have to whip out the Hadith saying whoever kills a man has killed all of humanity.

I'm not going to go into details, because there are several other bloggers out there who do a much better job than me to provide you with all the evidence.

All I have to say is this: Mumtaz Qadri was not a hero, and Salman Taseer was no hero either. Salman Taseer was corrupt like all other politicians, and Mumtaz Qadri was a bigot like all uneducated, brainwashed humans. But Salman Taseer did not deserve to die like that, just like Aafia Siddiqui did not deserve to be treated that way, or the hundreds of other innocent civillians who didn't deserve to die in drone attacks.
None of these humans deserved to die. Human life is not cheap, and it is NOT so worthless that we kill it because of our xenophobic tendencies.

Salman Taseer might have been wrong to advocate Aasia Bibi's pardoning in a state that is run on Sharia Law, but that is precisely what Pakistan is not: run on Shariah Law. We don't follow Shariah Law in any of our courts, we fight for democracy but whip Shariah out when it comes to blasphemy. Why don't we follow Shariah for all those years of murders, for robbery, for theft? And what appalls me are the large number of people belonging to s0-called globalized, civilized population who advocate this downright ridiculous 'cause and are celebrating this murder as 'Aashiq-e-Rasul'. It's like one minute they were out there singing along to Munni and comparing her with Sheila Ki Jawani, and all of a sudden this is about protecting Islam and fighting against blashphemy.

As for Aasia Bibi, how do we really know for sure whether she committed blasphemy or not? Do we have evidence? And this is precisely where Qadri is wrong; to have killed without even knowing really for sure, without concrete evidence. To have killed at all.

I don't support Salman Taseer, no. I don't support any of the involved parties. Where was justice when it came to Aafia Siddiqui? Why didn't Taseer sit next to her and address the media? Why didn't Mr. Lion-of-Punjab be all fierce and heroic when Aafia Siddiqui was kept in a male prison? But I am against him being killed for voicing what he believed in. I will start believing in blasphemy laws when Pakistan starts applying them. Islam is not a pick and choose religion and I'm SICK of this twisted interpretation of a religion that spread a revolution solely through love, unity and good character. When the disbelievers cursed the prophet, not once did he curse them back, but kept showing mercy and love. He did not go around killing every single disbeliever who blasphemed. He corrected them through dialogue, through rationality and character.

Boycotting social media websites and internet, protesting around the city, suicide bombing, killing blasphemers and murdering their advocates is NOT in support of Islam. It will not implement Shariah in Pakistan, if that's what you really even what. People seriously need to remove their brains from their buttholes and understand what the beautiful religion of Islam preaches.

STOP shattering the image of Islam and Pakistan. This is not who we are. This is not who we were and this is NOT what we were taught.

8 comments:

Bushra Ali said...

I can't believe someone on this freaking planet had the sense to write that.
I second your every word, and join in your prayers for a day when our nation would gain back the one thing it's kept locked up in its closets- IT'S BRAINS!

Anonymous said...

"We don't follow Shariah Law in any of our courts, we fight for democracy but whip Shariah out when it comes to blasphemy"

If someone smokes coccaine, do you say might as well smoke tobacco?

If Shariah isn't properly implemented on other things, shall everything be left out?

Shariah isn't an action potential with a one-or-none implementation. If applied, well and good.

As for prosecution of Aasia Bibi - I thought the Supreme court passed the sentence. What, so now you don't trust the judgement of the supreme court either. Whose judgement do you judge then?

I don't condone Salman's murder nor do I condemn it.

The Renegade Gypsy said...

In what things IS Shariah implemented? Which aspect? Practically, nothing. Not when it comes to robbery, not when it comes to rape, not when it comes to interest.

Shariah NEEDS to be implemented one-or-none. No wonder our government is full of hypocritical pigs who whip Shariah out whenever they find it convenient.

Yes I don't trust the Supreme Court. And I will continue mistrusting them until they prove themselves worthy enough. Wasn't it a lawyer whose maid was abused to death? Do you really expect me to trust such lawyers who don't care about human life themselves?

I don't think so.

Anonymous said...

It would make sense if Shariah was revealed as one or none. But firstly, it was revealed in stages and implemented slowly and gradually. Nothing happens overnight. It took the messenger of Allah SAW 13 years to establish a civilised code of living in the city of Madinah. By Allah it would take us longer. He did not wake up one morning and said from today we will follow the laws of Islam, they were revealed and people followed.

Secondly, Muhammad SAW did not ascribe for us an 'Islamic' way of life and an 'unIslamic' way of life. he did not choose to do something and say that is the "Islamic" way of doing things. You can choose it if you want. Whatever he prescribed for us IS the only 'right' thing. If there is any other way, it is not the right way regardless of whatever label is given to it.

If the laws of Islam are implemented, good. Don't condemn it. If they aren't, bad - condemn that. If someone doesn't pray you don't ask them "might as well not fast", you ask them to pray.

If men with beards backbite, you don't stop keeping a beard, you ask bearded men to stop backbiting.

The other thing I would like to say is IF the court of a country prosecutes someone of a crime, in the sight of Allah, can you overrule that? Your case about a lawyer - well I don't know about you but I know doctors commit suicide. Stop going to them. Barbers with bad hair, stop getting hair cut. Dentists with smelly mouths, stop brushing. Since when did one lawyer = authenticity of Supreme Court?

If this very same Supreme Court was to say that it does not find Asia Bibi guilty of blasphemy, the statement uttering from mouth would be "how can someone say that she blasphemed when the Supreme Court has said she hasn't". Think about it - you would too. It seems like our support for organisations, individuals, governments, courts is not really based on the truth/false (since we being young and not educated enough to decide between the two specifically on the basis of the Quran and the Sunnah); but rather on what values are settled in our heart - regardless of whatever they might be.

"Not when it comes to robbery, not when it comes to rape, not when it comes to interest." So is the solution to stop Shariah on blasphemy or to implement it on robbery, rape and interest? Is it not the right of Allah SWT that everything is judged according to his rule. Wouldn't we be taken this Divine Right away by doing otherwise for anything at all?

The Renegade Gypsy said...

All the points you mentioned, every single one of them, I agree with them. I really do.

I am not condemning the implementation of Shariah. I am for Shariah in Pakistan. But not a hypocritical Shariah law because I KNOW that our leaders would warp it to something that will ultimately fund their ulterior motives. The leaders during Prophet S.A. were honest, they cared about the people and they had character. Can you honestly say the same for our leaders? Can Pakistan run on Shariah law with the leaders that we have? No. It cannot.

Going to a dentist or a barber to get your hair cut is not even a valid argument here. It looks very good in theory, but practically, it makes no sense. Deciding someone's future is way different than deciding what hairstyle to get.

Tell me, would it not anger you if tomorrow, Allah forbid and may He keep her in His protection always, your sister gets raped and her attacker gets away with a sentence in jail when clearly that's not the Islamic punishment, while a robber gets his hand cut. Would it not anger you? What would you do then?

Also, I did think bout your question. And the immediate answer that popped it in my head was NO. I do not think I would accept it. I would be critical of that statement too.

I am against the woman. If she has blasphemed, then she will have to account for what she did. But I do not think a man has the RIGHT to kill not even her, but someone who voiced his opinion REGARDING her. He does not. When was it Islamic to kill someone for a disagreement? Qadri killing Taseer was unacceptable.

when you think of it, it's not even about Shariah. Because Islam does not advocate murder. And Islam does not equals to anarchy. Islam does not allow men to take the law in their hands.

Anonymous said...

Would you rather have the politicians of today (corrupt, hypocritical etc) run the country upon Shariah or would you rather have them run it on their man made laws? - Does the implementation of it depend on whose implementing it. If its bad people then no you don't do it, if its good people then yes you do it. Wouldn't it make more sense when you would rather implement it when its bad people so they're eventually fixed.

Would the problems of the current 'politicians' be corrected by some weird methods etc or would you rather correct them using Shariah.

IF the punishment for blasphemy IS capital punishment, then the society does have the right to take her right. It then becomes one of those things for which Allah has commanded you to take life.

Supporting that which is against the right of Allah puts you into the same category. I'm not saying whether he did that or not because I don't know. I don't know what context he said whatever he said.

I think with many thinks we're on the same court. The difference is that you are certain he did not support blasphemy, a blaphemer or oppose the blasphemy law. Whereas I don't know so it depends on what he did.

Anonymous said...

1. What I meant earlier was that if ONE Barber is bad doesn't mean the whole hair cutting industry is bad. This was in response to your point that one lawyer abused his/her maid hence the authenticity of Supreme court is none.

2. Let's remember that the penal code is a only a sub section of Shariah. It is a shame that mention of Shariah almost always recalls "cutting hands, flogging, beheading" whereas these things are not even the crux of the Islamic Law. When I saw American law, what do you think of? Only the electric chair and the lethal injection? - and no, this isn't a comment directly for you, its a general impression amongst our whole community.

The Renegade Gypsy said...

Again, I'm compeletely with you on everything you just said.

But I'm not certain he didn't do it. That's my whole point. WE DON'T KNOW! We don't know what he or she said or did, therefore to kill someone without really knowing, without evidence, that is not Islam.

And to answer your questions, yes I would rather have man-made laws susceptible to mistakes rather than having corrupt politicians pick-and-choose Shariah to their use and destroy the image of the beautiful rligion that Islam is.

Ofcourse Islam is much more than that, and you are right in saying that our whole society has just one impression. IF we were to follow Shariah, we'd be on the highway to a utopian society. But the reason we tend to focus on capital punishment, atleast here in this discussion, is because of the nature of the topic, ofcourse.