Author: Mrs Zaman, Islamabad
Publication: Nation.com.pk
Date: October 28, 2005
URL: http://www.nation.com.pk/daily/oct-2005/28/letters6.php
My daughter is starting her Cambridge O levels this year. She came home yesterday with her new books and the title of her Urdu book "Stories from Pakistan" caught my eye. I decided to take a look at stories that claimed to be representative of Pakistan.
Every story shocked and disturbed me. The stories are all of a pattern; they contain inappropriate references to sex and violence and present a depressing picture of a country stuck in the dark ages. For your edification I will summarize one story which I found to be typical. A 13 year old girl is given in marriage to an old man in exchange for some money. The girl innocently accepts her fate, unaware of what marriage entails. She is happy to get new clothes and jewellery but that night the people in the village hear her screaming.
Later, she goes back to her mother's house and falls in love with a villager her own age (here the author explains how her sexuality, which was suppressed by the brutal beatings, is aroused). Her brother finds out about her affair and kills her with an axe (she tries to protect herself with her hands, but the axe severs four fingers and her neck). Then there is a mortuary scene described with cut up arms and legs. Gory images are graphically described as when we are given a vivid description of how she is murdered. The descriptions of the girl's rape and later sexual awakening are totally inappropriate for the age group the collection is intended for. The stories in this collection all lead to some unpleasant conclusions:
1. Pakistan is a dreadful place where heinous
crimes are part of the daily routine.
2. Fathers and brothers are not to be trusted; they only care about you in
as far as you are a commodity that can be sold or bartered.
3. All poor people are helpless and exploited
4. The general public is dishonest, and honesty does not pay. The characters
that cheat prosper.
Are these the values we wish to teach our children?