Plato, the totalitarian, out of passion and prejudice hushed Democritus to strangulate the spirit of progress, evolution and above all democracy. Ali abbas Jalalpuri must have been working with darbar in Jalalpur if he had paid heed to the advice of Nawab Mehr Ali but he is now a more celebrated figure than any other descendents of Syed Ghulam Haider Shah. People visiting for the spiritual elevation are still ignorant of the intellectual side of Darbar Sharif. Progressive and evolutionary spirits are always rebuffed by the authority but ultimately originality supersedes dogmatism.

On road to evolution, we in Pakistan have seen many versions of proponents of liberalism. Empiricist liberals who contributed toward the society to the fake and pseudo-liberals who are fond of unfashionable errors then unfashionable truths. And now we see some fanatic liberals. However, nothing saddened me more but being hushed on twitter by a noted champion of human rights in Pakistan. Where were his principles of live and let live, tolerance, moderation, mutual forbearance, freedom of speech etc? This isn’t new in the confrontation amongst liberals here in Pakistan.

Still have I borne it with a patient shrug,

For sufferance is the badge of all our tribe.

As Russell puts it, ‘….the genuine liberal (Undogmatic and democratic) doesn’t say this is true, he says, ‘I am inclined to think that under present circumstances this opinion is probably the best’. Self professed liberals are blaming the Others (activists of persecuted and target killed communities) of being fanatics because according to them probably all liberals are equal (fighting the status quo) but some liberals are better than the others. Fanatic To them is the one who is feelingly alive to the sufferings of fellow-creatures with excessive enthusiasm and intense uncritical devotion as dictionary defines. Fanatic to them are those who never called for assassination of a minister or who never preferred violent protests.

These Liberals, as those well known on Twitter except few, are as intellectually fashionable as Lady Amberley. I am also assured by my observation that most of them are not really sentimental about rights of humans or animals or at all shocked by the prettiest of all assertions of women’s rights but look upon politics and intellect as a fierce race and so dreadfully afraid of not being sufficiently advanced or intellectual.

They all are flattering their self esteems, adopting any pleasant way available to feel ‘Grand’, yearning to be noticed, getting mentions in the press and are earning official or other favors by subordinating their opinions to the general opinion.

On this web site (LUBP), they get perturbed by non-mainstream discourses, critical posts, treat such voices as extremism and seem worried for it not giving ‘due’ importance to them. Something is being said and done for persecuted groups on this web site unlike the apathy of silent witnesses in various other web sites and blogs of Pakistan. Liberals aren’t licensed to reprobate the people working here for being extremists neither the people here should drag the ‘noted liberals’ too far.

The purpose of the freedom of speech being granted to us at the cost of anonymity demands serious work like the one about database of Shia genocide and getting noticed what otherwise goes unnoticed. We aren’t here to correct and condemn few individuals and all of them out there aren’t being paid to anathematize us. We have to conquer our fears because they are going beyond what evidence warrants.

What are the genuine liberals up to? Probably they have two options in their minds.

1. This confrontation is leading to neutrality

2. Confrontation shall scare out the sanity and tolerance.

And things the way they are going shows that second option is materializing.

In the end, may I say to the ‘noted liberals’ (or pseudo-liberals) who haven’t once but repeatedly interrupted with their interjections the cause to which the website LUBP is dedicated, i.e., human rights and advocacy. Liberalism and liberals in their course to evolution don’t encourage bans, rebuffing and contempt . Let’s be civilized liberals.

About the author: Zainab Binte Ali loves reading, writing and observing. She is currently pursuing PhD in politics and International relations. Is a humanist, feminist and environmentalist. Twitter: @ZainabBinte_Ali

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