I usually think Nadir Hassan’s columns are great, but this one not so much. A woman raising awareness for womens’ issues does not mean she’s pandering to west and just telling them what they want to hear about Pakistan without having to get into the gritty mess of things they share the blame for. Also, she has launched a campaign to help acid attack victims, so she is doing something about it, not just getting a “pat on the back.” After being betrayed by a would-be Mother Teresa, this community of women deserve to be acknowledged and helped.
Just because she didn’t make a documentary on drone attacks doesn’t mean the subject she chose is not something she feels passionately about. Being attacked and having your face literally melted off is kinda a big deal. And this “pandering to the west” sentiment is really starting to get old. I’ve been accused of that as well, for saying not all women cover their hair because of religion and that sometimes culture also plays a part in their decision. What I hardly considered an opinion (just a mild observation) was misconstrued by someone who thought the whole point of this blog is to get more Amreeki fans. Saying anything people outside of Pakistan also happen to agree with can (apparently) make you someone who just says things to get white people to like you, not because you actually think that way. So no, I don’t agree with the argument posed by a few people that Sharmeen picked acid victims as the subject of her documentary because it was an easy way to get recognition from “the goras”.
If I had my face melted off by some asshole because I didn’t want to marry him and found out that had happened to hundreds of other girls and that all the perpetrators were walking free, I’d want someone to help me. And if that someone was ignored by people in her own country, who are bored with the issue because they’re too used to hearing about it in the papers every other day and the recognition she got came from outside, I’d still be grateful. At least someone gives a hoot, wherever they are.
If people in Pakistan actually did care and it didn’t take an Oscar win just to get us talking about it, the expansive new Burn Unit at Jinnah Hospital Lahore would be functional by now, two years after being inaugurated. If enough of us at home cared, maybe we wouldn’t need foreign help or recognition. But for now, we’ll have to take what we can get, at least for the sake of those who need it most.
