The Terrorland Report
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| Late Jamal Khan – The Last Mir of Hunza |
THE media is full of ignorant, half-literate and lazy people who misuse
words while writing or reporting. They often don’t care how sensitive their job
is as a ‘word’ can make or break carriers of people. Some terms are very
sensitive and people take them very seriously.
Hunza is a famous valley in
Gilgit-Baltistan region. Most of the people
there are very angry whenever the media uses the terms:
Mir of Hunza or
Rani of Hunza.
“It seems as someone has fired a bullet into my heart,” says Fida Ali, whose
grandfather had lost his life while working for the ruler of the erstwhile
princely state Hunza. The despot ruler was known as ‘Mir of Hunza.’
“Like others, my grandfather was also forced to take a government luggage to
the far-flung Shimshal village,” he said, “on the way, while crossing a river,
my grandfather lost his life and my father became an orphan at the tender age
of ten. I know how difficult it was for my father to live without a father and
sole male in a family of five. When the state was abolished, it was the happiest
day in the life of my father. But now when someone uses the word ‘Mir’ it hits
hard people like me.”
According to Rehman, a member of The Terrorland
Team, someone from the former ruling family of Hunza, had commented in the
cyberspace: “most of the people hates me b’coz i’m toooooo good!!!!”
Rehman commented: Why people hate you, a shy-friend
has sent this link from a newspaper:
Not ‘Mir of Hunza’
|
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Late Shams-un-Nahar,
The Last Rani of Hunza
|
I would like to draw attention to a term, ‘Mir of
Hunza’, which is often misused in the Pakistani media.
‘Mir’ is a Persian word, which means leader of a group
or tribe. In the tribal societies of the Indian subcontinent, many people used
this word with their names to denote their position as leader of a tribe or
group.
The rulers of Hunza used the word ‘Mir’ with their
names during their 950 years of despotic rule. The ruler of Hunza was known as
‘Mir of Hunza’ until 1974, when the state was abolished and formally became
part of the Northern Areas of Pakistan.
Mir Muhammad Jamal Khan (1912-76) was the last Mir of
Hunza. Thus the title ‘Mir of Hunza’ is no more a legal title in Pakistan
because Hunza is no more a separate state. It is a part of the sovereign state
of Pakistan.
Thus, anybody who uses this title can be charged, under the constitution, with
treason and inciting mutiny. The sentences for both of these crimes is capital
punishment.
Thus, many people find it shocking that some of our
media still uses this term. The people of Hunza fought for many years to
convince the Pakistani government to abolish the so-called state. I, therefore,
hope that Pakistan’s
media will be respectful of the sentiments of the majority of people from
Gilgit and Baltistan, and especially those from Hunza.
Rehman then asked: “According to Daily Times, when
there is no more any “Mir” it means there is no “Rani”
either… and when you claim to be a “Rani” they people of Hunza may
“hate” you…?”
There was no answer. However, a lady from the region says that if members of the former ruling family just be normal citizens of Pakistan without any tribal pride, then no one will hate them. “Instead of faking things, be yourselves, and get respect.”
–
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