The notorious 'Silent Majority'

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"President Musharraf calls it Pakistan's silent majority...for the common man, staying silent is a part of life."

The so-called 'Silent Majority' of Pakistan proved its point last week that it wishes to remain silent in all circumstances whatsoever. The Solidarity Day celebrations comprised only of bused-in school children and government officials and a few curious passerby's. These were rather enforced demonstrations not depicting public opinion but merely whose incharge here in Islamabad. Some NGOs and political parties also joined in for anything that had to be gained by siding with the allmighty government, reflecting just how 'political' our decisions can be even in matters of national concern.

People on the streets, when inquired about their reactions to what the government is doing in response to US demands, instantly lit up, sentiments are running high in general public as they are apprehensive about attacks on a neighbouring muslim country, but that is where it ends. 'They may make long conversations in tea bars, energetic speeches in mosques but no one really bothers more than that', 'nor can we do anything more',says Shahab, a local shopkeeper. Ahmed, a businessman adds,'we already have millions of afghans here in pakistan, few more wont make any difference.'

But they do make a difference. The 2 million already in Pakistan live below poverty line and amount to huge social problems including armed robbery and killings. The Pakistani government is limiting the influx to the border areas this time saying, 'we wont allow refugees anywhere near our big cities.' The UNHCR is having hard time since the areas designated as sites for refugee camps are in the middle of nowhere and pose numerous logistic problems for the agencies. Preliminary shelters are already in place, however, the fate of afghan refugees remains bleak as ever since the ailing pakistan economy is already having a tough time supporting its own 150 million people.

Uncertain times are ahead of us, It remains to be seen what the future brings; war or peace, but one thing is certain, however good or bad it'll be, Pakistanis have the power to absorb it all and go on with their lives as nothing ever happened. The silent majority will remain to be silent, the unworthy minority will remain in power, and the worst of us shall continue to project an image of a hardline fundamentalist society to the outside world. Kashif, a student shrugs, 'who cares anyway, as long as they dont shut the KFC down perhaps!'