If we move towards the root cause of the flood then it can be easily understood that it is nothing else but Global Warming that have caused melting of glaciers at a faster rate. Not only this but heavy monsoon rains added much to the disastrous effect of the flood.

Rescue operations are being conducted by Pakistan Army, NGO’s and United nations but the destruction caused by flood is something which may take years to put things back to their places again.

By Aimal

Did you know…?

“NWFP – North-West Frontier Province – was actually born on 9th of November, 1901, whilst a Chief Commissioner reigned over the province; the then Chief Commissioner was actually the C.E (chief executive) of NWFP.”

Stated above is a fact that can be confirmed in authentic history books relevant to the subject. This is a fact that not even the most literate populace of Pakistan knows about. This is that fact which makes the name change of the province, in my humble opinion, a debacle that has been wasting the time, energy, resources, and much needed capital of a country whose economy is spiraling down the drain with each passing day. Don’t trust each and every fact and figure that this PPP-led government tells you.  In the words of the famous stand-up comedian considered to be many as the god-father of comedy; Robin Williams once said in on of his live acts while mocking the end of the eight year reign of Bush Jr. on US:

“… they say that the economy is essentially sound because people are considering buying things. [C'mon!!] That’s like saying Fat people are healthy because they MIGHT exercise! …”

All of that was Robin’s satirical way of telling us how Bush handled matters related to economy and other pressing issues of his time, right before Obama came and the economy took an upturn. Imagine – Pakistanis – that the same is very true for what the former rulers did to this country, or so say many of his so-called intellectuals, current-affairs analyzers, and critics of Pakistani politics. Though the latter part – the part where Obama jumps in and saves the day for US – is just the opposite for Pakistan. The PPP-led government has so far done little to be signified against its loss of control over the economy of Pakistan.

The recent name-changing process that took place in Pakistan has a history behind it that many do not know or care about. It is primarily about the Pakhtuns having (and not having!) a sense of self-consciousness and national integrity. To bring it all into one article for the know-how of the general populace would be a matter of writing a thesis about the topic from scratch. But what I can add to the topic is that Pakhtoons are known to be a brave and gallant nation. Now saying that, being brave and gallant has its cons. It isn’t being brave when you kill your own brothers from the same ancestry that you belong to just for the cause of up keeping the honor and name of your family/tribe!

The Pakhtoons are a brave nation with a mindset that and ambition that kept at bay even the most powerful armies of the world during different times in history (read: The Mughal and the British Empire). This bravery has caused a kind of genetic malfunction in that part of brain where a sense of affection and love for your country’s soil develops. The concept of being patriot is something very different from the mainstream idea, but I won’t go into the details of that.

The sad part about all this brave and chivalrous mindset of the Pakhtuns is the fact that they have disregarded the true notion of adhering to their mother soil. The fact that Pakhtuns want to stick to a concept of patriotism that starts with being hospitable and ends with defending your home territory is just half of the picture that this nation fails to understand. What the need of the time is that there has to be created a sense of awareness and self-being.

Questions! Who are the Pakhtoons really? What does the word “Pakhtunistan” actually represent? And why is it so important for us to have a different name for the land where the majority of the world’s Pakhtun population lives in? These questions are in the minds of a handful few that have a satisfactory level of literacy and a mind capable of bearing wisdom once the stomach is filled. The remaining majority of Pakhtuns is the one which has been living off in poverty in the under-developed villages where education is something regarded as being satanic in nature, and children are taught the ways of religion while the parents stay happy at the thought of their child being versed in reading the Holy Book as the goal of their education. This majority has in fact developed its so-called backward thinking due to the past bloodshed and continuous attacks from various Empires on the Pakhtun territory during various times in history. The wars, even when won, leave lasting impressions that last for generations.; the effects of which are clearly visible in today’s Pakhtun populace.

Although it may seem that I am veering away from the topic at hand, but having a history lesson that might explain the current mindset of this nation should be helpful for some. Many don’t even know about the background of the name-changing process that took place in 2010 for the North-Western province of Pakistan. Taking you back to the very initial introductory quote for this article, the name North-West Frontier Province was actually a name given to this land by the British Empire. Even at that moment, it wasn’t the Pakhtuns who chose a name for themselves. That name took over a century to be changed to what it is right now; Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The irony is that even the new name hasn’t been chosen by the Pakhtuns. With Punjab’s 3/4th majority vote required to fulfill the voting criteria and passing the resolution in the Senate and the parliament of Pakistan, it is an ironic laughter that will be written down in the history books as the North-Western province gets to change its name to something that hasn’t been decided by its own majority vote. I mean, if Punjab and the rest of the provinces wouldn’t vote in favor of the resolution, we’d still be stuck with the 1901 name (and I wouldn’t have been writing this article at the moment!).

To summarize it all up, Pakhtuns have never had a chance to realize that what they really need is not a new name for their home-land. What is needed for them is to realize; the sense of belongingness to the nation as one; the idea that Pakhtuns can stand for their rights while the corrupt as well as selfless bureaucracy comes and goes like money in the hands of a beggar; the notion that they, too, have the right to utilize the resources that are rightfully theirs; the need to replace the feeling of extreme Pakhtun-wali in the minds of Pakhtoons with a softer, more open approach towards eminent issues at hand such as education and standing up for what should rightfully be theirs.

I hereby humbly request the Pakhtuns to stop fighting for names and wake up. Wake up, to open your eyes to the fact that there are conspiracies going on and around us that have been conspired by the most skillful of conspirators. Open your minds to the idea that there needs to be a sense of positive political awareness among the nation. And open the doors of your heart to the rest of the Pakistanis. I would like to conclude it all with some food for thought. Specifically for the Pakhtun readers out there on the web, and in the world, that might notice all of this. I’ll quote my father (who is a sea of knowledge – and an engineer) here:

“What is more important? Pakhto (Pashto) or Pakhtun?”

Pakhtunkhwa, Pashtoonkhwa, or Pakhtoonkhwa means The Land of the Pashtoons. This name was used for the area where Pashtoons were dominant before the creation and forming of modern day Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The earliest available historical proof is Akhund Darweza’s (d. 1638) Makhzanul Islam (written between 1603 and 1612). A verse in this book reads: “Pakhtunkhwa pa misal shpa wa, dai deewa wo pa andher ke” (Translation: Pakhtunkhwa was like a night and he [Pir Baba Syed Ali Termezi] was like a candle).

Similarly, the often-quoted two lines of a poem by Ahmad Shah Abdali (1723-1773), the Founding Father of Afghan state, clearly mention Pakhtunkhwa as the land of the Pashtoons or Pakhtuns. Here are the lines:

Da Dehli takht herawoma che rayad kram
Zama da khpale Pakhtunkhwa da ghro saroona

(Translation: I forget my Dehli throne when I recall the mountain peaks of my own Pakhtunkhwa).

After him Pashto poets and writers have frequently used this name for the area which was later named as North Western Frontier Province by the Britons after they occupied and separated it from Afghanistan dividing the Pashtoons into four divisions.

Besides Pashtoons, there are many non-Pashtoons who have mentioned this name in their writings. A book by French orientalist James Darmesteter (March 28, 1849-October 10, 1894) has the title, “Da Pakhtunkhwa Bagh w Bahar”, a selection of Pashto poems with a valuable essay on this Afghan language.

So the Pashtoons are entitled historically, morally and constitutionally to have their own and original name for their province. The other province of Pakistan have the names that match to their people like: Punjab is the land of the Punjabis, Sindh is the land of the Sindhis, Baluchistan is the land of Baluchis and the Pakhtunkhwa should be the name of the land of the Pashtoons.

Pashtoons were deprived of this name by Britons who, after occupying Hindustan, named it as N.W.F.P. while Baluchistan remained as British Baluchistan.

Some important information

It is expected that the government will change the province’s name to Pakhtunkhwa before the end of this year. Its’ capital is Peshawar, official language is Pashto, Area is 74521 km, population is 19,343, 000, and have 24 districts.