After ten days in Islamabad, I can't say I've seen a lot of Pakistan, but I can say I know a lot more about this country than I used to. And that I want to go back there! The Fulbright conference itself was three days long, at the Quaid-e-Azam University in Islamabad. There were seven of us visiting Fulbrighters (from India and Nepal), then a number of Pakistani Fulbright Alums, and 230 young Pakistani Fulbrighters bound for US Masters degree programs in the fall.
The conference included a lot of presentations by Fulbright Alums and current scholars, including one by me= the first time I have ever talked about my "research" in India! We also sang some American and Pakistani songs--a highly enjoyable method of cultural exchange. The Pakistani songs were much better and I still can't get the lyrics out of my head...
"Jaan Jaan Pakistan... Dil Dil Pakistan..." During the conference tea and lunch breaks and evening dinners, I got to meet many of these interesting and intelligent soon-to-be Fulbrighters.
After the conference finished, I stayed on in Islamabad for another week. Islamabad is a remarkably well planned city with wide tree-lined streets, sprawling villas (property prices are steep here!!), purple flowers, and mountain views everywhere you go. The city itself was built only in the 1960s, so it's still relatively clean, uncrowded, and well-kept (thus, QUITE unlike Delhi...). Due to "security issues," we visiting scholars didn't have the freedom to go places on our own, but the Fulbright staff was great about taking us around. One day we went to Taxila, an archaeological site outside of Islamabad. Taxila was an ancient city on the Silk Road, and because of its presence on this great trading route, various civilizations passed through it over time, including that of Alexander the Great and numerous ancient Buddhist Kingdoms. Consequently, the remaining monuments-- temples, monasteries, stupas-- show a great mix of Greek and Buddhist influences. Carved into the side of one stupa were serene Buddhas next to Atlases struggling with the weight of the world on their shoulders.
When I was not sight seeing and taking advantage of the shopping opportunities, I met with professionals working in the field of disability. I got some great insight into the unique situation in Pakistan, and into the differences of disability in the Indian and in the Pakistani context. Pakistan has seen more awareness in the field of disability rights than has India, for two main reasons. The first is that Pakistan's general Zia-Ul-Haq of the 1970s had a hearing impaired daughter. For this reason, Zia was commited to the cause of disabilities himself, wrote a proposal on increasing the integration of the disabled into society, and raised general awareness. Unfortunately, the awareness that Zia generated has had little outcome, due to Pakistan's greater problems of vast illiteracy, regional tensions, political instability, and burgeoning population. The second reason affecting mobilization on disabilities in Pakistan is the recent earthquake, which inflicted injury and disability on thousands. The government has started, consequently, to devote more resources to the area of disability, and foreign NGOs have sent money and aid in this direction. Hopefully this new initiative will last, even as the social, psychological, and economic impact of the earthquake fades.
Throughout my meetings with professionals and in the course of conversation with Fulbright Pakistan staff and the future Pakistani Fulbright Scholars, I gained a much greater understanding of this country and was able to think about the misconceptions that many Americans, including myself, have toward Pakistan. The country's absence of democracy, that concerns many liberal-minded Americans, is hardly an issue of concern, in light of the much greater problems-- 50% illiteracy rate, failing power supply in rural areas, dangerous extremist groups. In fact, one of the boons of Musharraf's military rule is that he can actually keep some of these extremists in control. Musharraf may be a dictator, but he has done much good in the way of stabilizing the country and building infrastructure.
Pakistan currently sees a great problem with the rise of Taliban-associated groups and fundamentalist mullahs who speak out against the West, India, liberal education, the rights of women. After spending ten days in Islamabad, however, it became so painfully clear to me that it is a tiny tiny percentage of the population that share such extremist views. The majority of the people who enroll in the mullah-sponsored madrassas (Islamic schools) and in Taliban training camps are the poor, the hungry, the totally illiterate. Without access to the radio, to newspapers, to books, they are easily vulnerable to the religious leaders who speak to them about the dangers of the West and its threat to Islam, and offer them food and shelter in exchange for sending their children to the madrassas. It seems to me that the "fundamentalist, war-like brand of Islam" that the Western media decries is not even Islam at all-- it's a fiction that power-hungry religious leaders have invented as a method of seducing the vulnerable segments of the country, and no educated Pakistani citizen would agree with any of it.
One way that Pakistan could help redress this situation, or one way in which foreign governments and NGOs could help Pakistan to help redress this situation, would be to help find another solution for the poor and the illiterate. A solution that involves access to food and education through something other than a madrassa, a solution that offers them an option other than religious fundamentalism.
So, I've been back from Pakistan for two days now and it feels good to be "home" The only problem is the WEATHER- Delhi is heating up like a furnace! I'm glad my family moved to the South seven years ago or I would never survive.
