Silence of the Lambs

Silence of the Lambs

Martin Niemoller(1892-1984) was a prominent Protestant pastor who emerged as an outspoken public foe of Adolf Hitler and spent the last seven years of Nazi rule in concentration camps.

Niemöller is perhaps best remembered for the quotation: 

First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out--

Because I was not a Socialist. 

Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out-- 

Because I was not a Trade Unionist. 

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out-- 

Because I was not a Jew. 

Then they came for me--and there was no one left to speak for me. 

Germany of the 1930s was in the vicious grip of the Nazi thugs who believed in the theory of the master race as enunciated by the high priest of Nazism Adolf Hitler. They had a fanatic belief in their cause and were prepared to die for their belief. This fanaticism based on a false premise of racial superiority culminated in the Second World War resulting in the death of forty million people all over the world. 

Pakistan today is in the vicious grip of the dark evil and sinister forces of religious fanaticism bigotry and extremism. These satanic forces are far more cruel and rabidly obscurantist than the fanatical hordes of the Nazi philosophy. The country is being squeezed from all sides. Forces of bigotry and fanaticism are on the march and slowly but surely are gaining ground with the passage of time. Civil society, intellectuals, media persons and even the top political leadership are al l spectators or even partners and collaborators in this insidious conspiracy to establish a fanatic religious dictatorship in this country. 

Just a few days ago a Pakistani doctor by the name of Dr. Mahdi Ali was shot dead in tbe presence of his wife and two kids in a graveyard in Rabwah. His crime? He was an Ahmedi visiting his hometown from the USA. Hitler was not the only one who believed in the theory of the master race! Our own home grown monsters believe that they are on a divine mission to eliminate all non-Muslims from this land and establish the rule of their brand of Sharia nobody spoke out at this barbaric murder of an innocent citizen.

About 50,000 innocent Pakistani Muslims have been sacrificed at the altar of religious fanaticism. Almost 7000 brave Pakistani boys have embraced shahadat at the hands of the so called champions of Islam. Casualties suffered by the armed forces are more than the total casualties in the two wars with India, did anybody speak out NO! The supremo of the biggest religious party had the audacity to declare that Hakimullah Mehsud is a shaheed but the soldiers of Pakistan have a question mark on their death nobody spoke out! Three general officers of the army have been brutally gunned down in broad daylight for the sin of doing their duty. 

Who can forget the brutal and ferocious attacks on the GHQ, Mehran base, Kamra airbase, the massacre of innocent army men in the attack on the parade lane mosque in Rawalpindi, the ambush of the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore, the devastation at the Marriot hotel in Islamabad nobody spoke out! The cowardly and brutal attack on Malala Yusufzai in Swat and the charge of blasphemy on a poor ten years old Christian girl called Ramsha Masih. The brutal and vicious attacks on Christian colonies in n Gojra and Shantinagar Not a whimper from the civil society.

Ist Jan 2010, A suicide bomber detonated an explosives loaded vehicle in Laki Marwat killing over 100 people. 28th May 2010 attack on an Ahmedi place of Worship in Lahore over 100 people lost their lives not a whimper from our civil society. The murder of Faisal Shezad, Wali Babur and the very recent shooting of Hamid Mir nobody spoke out. The murder of Salman Taseer and the brutal killing of Federal Minister Shahbaz Bhatti in Islamabad, the senseless murder of Rashad Rehman in Multan, their crime? They dared to challenge the fanatical monsters hell bent on destroying this society again nobody spoke out.

Civil society, lawyers, media persons and our intellectuals are up in arms for many causes in this country. We have seen the country wide movement for the restoration of the chief justice. There have been struggles against various military dictators and their unjust rule but so far nobody has spoken out against this religious terror that is eating away the very foundations of our country. The mushroom growth of Deeni Madaris goes unchecked and unregulated. Most of these places are stoking the raging fires sectarianism and terror. Militant organizations hell bent on creating havoc is prospering. Lashkars and Sipahs are increasing by leaps and bounds does anybody care? Nobody speaks out. Our own National assembly had the nerve to give away Swat to the brutal gang of Sufi Mohammed and his blood thirsty son in law, the present Ameer of the TTP. Again Silence! Silence of the lambs about to be taken to be slaughtered!

Silence of our intellectuals’ civil society and media persons is uncanny and unnerving!

With apologies to Martin Neimoller let me remind them:

First they came for the Non-Muslims and I did not speak out because I was not a non-Muslim

Then they came for the Shias and I did not speak out because I was not a Shia

Then they came for the Ahmedis and I did not speak out because I was not an Ahmedi

Then they came for the journalists and I did not speak out because I was not a journalist

Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for me!

(For ME read the state of Pakistan)

One of My Favorite Article 

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