The downright apathy of at least 99 percent of the Pakistani nation is nauseating in the extreme and becomes more so with each and every passing day. The only time those who profess to be against something as blatantly murderous as drone attacks for instance, have the guts to stand up and be counted is in the complete privacy of their own homes and in the drawing rooms of friends - but never ever out there in public where it matters. It is left to the affected tribal families, countless of whom have lost family members, including small children and babies, to unwarranted drone attacks, to wail their heartrending grief and question why this ‘brotherly’ nation turns its collective back - electing to close its eyes to the truth of what is, even America recently admitted this, a full-fledged war against those who are totally unable to fight back. It is, in truth of fact, selective genocide of our tribal people who, like it or not and many do not, are full-fledged members of this increasingly godforsaken country. I am not going to play the ‘names and numbers’ game here as very few, if any, will actively pay attention, so it would be a complete waste of space. But what I will say is shame, shame, shame on you all and that if this criminal violence spreads, as well it may, then closing your eyes, especially when your own children are killed or maimed, will not make it go away and it will damn well serve you right!Some brave people have, admittedly, stood up, marched and waved banners in public and, for their humanitarian attempts, achieved little if anything at all towards putting an end to the murderous onslaught unleashed by America with, it is horrific to say, the support of our very own sick government that, despite outbursts of sabre-rattling, has, in real terms, done absolutely nothing to bring an end to a totally one-sided war, which should not be and would not be if the nation had even a single ounce of guts. Their bravery falling flat due to lack of numbers.Let the electricity disappear or the gas supply be ‘interrupted’ and the ‘good’ citizens will surge out into the streets in their thousands, as they are doing right now, venting their anger on public and private property irrespective of who it happens to belong too. They will do this for the simple reason that loadshedding affects them personally. Therefore, they view their collective selves as victims of a corrupt government and a system riddled with abuse - much of the abuse is carried out by the very same people, who go out ‘there’ demonstrating the unfairness of it all, but this, for now, is besides the point - the inescapable thing is that the whole damn lot are hypocrites in the extreme. No, I am not being overly harsh and am actually being politely lenient; otherwise, this column would never get printed!The painful fact is that this, ‘the land of the pure’, long since changed its colours and became that despicable thing, ‘the land of the hypocrites’, in which self-serving selfishness is the hard and fast rule, rather than the rare exception. Yes, some of you will surely be angry with me for writing such words and yes, it was difficult, painful even, for me to do so, but the bare-faced truth is often much harder to swallow than bare-faced lies. Yet it is still the truth no matter how bitter the taste and, quite frankly, I no longer care what public reaction may be as it is way past time for truth to be told.Double standards, double ideals, double vision and double morals are the law in this, ‘the land of the hypocrites’: a land rapidly becoming a dangerous place for anyone who dares to tell the truth let alone stand up for human decency and, in such an atmosphere of putrid falsity, expecting, nay even going so far as to plead for their ‘fellow countrymen and women’ to publicly cry ‘foul’ when yet more innocent men, women and children are killed or maimed by the American drones is, shocking to say, a tribal waste of time. Therefore, when your turn comes, do not dare to look north for salvation.The writer is author of The Gun Tree: One Woman’s War (Oxford University Press, 2001) and lives in Bhurban.Email: zahrahnasir@hotmail.com

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