Pakistan Supreme Court Theme song, here. Watch it before they take it down!
I am trying very, very hard not to be snarky about this.
I can just see how it happened. Some well-connected Aitchison or KSG kid with arm-chair liberal sensibilities, an OK singing voice proposes, shares the idea with his mamoo on the Supreme Court. Next thing you know, they make a recording that weekend, and on Tuesday the song is on the Supreme Court website.
”The voyage is tough
And the weather is rough.
The founder declares his vizhuuuuuuuuuuuuun
Of democracy, faith, tolerance, and compashuuuuuuuuuuuuun
His dream the state shall not
Belong to any religiuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun,
Creed or caste,
Creed or caaaaaaaaaaaaaaste…
Justice for aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaalll”
Inspiring stuff. Not. Which is why I guess the Musharraf peeps kept the song in the Supreme Court website even after scrubbing the site clean.
The thing is that getting democracy and the rule of law to be established requires large segments of the political and economic elites to be willing to undertake to make some tough sacrifice of comfort and privilege. For the last 8 years, Pakistani elites have been largely unwilling to sacrifice too much, and thus, democracy, even though it’s been the ostensible aim of the Musharraf government, has continuously been delayed. When I hear or read of LUMS students protesting, I feel something is different in the air this time around. I do not know how deep the sentiments run, and how coherent they are for something long term to come out of this. My gut tells me to not expect too much from South Asian elites. My heart hopes otherwise.
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November 8, 2007 at 9:03 am
DhakaShohor
I think that song just justified the forced resignation of SC judges somewhere in my head. My God, that was terrible!
Elaborate on the connection between elites and rule of law and democracy. How would you square that assertion with the sentiment that “rights are not granted from above but won from below”?
November 9, 2007 at 11:32 am
fugstar
Theres always going to be taste and naffness issues in other peoples struggles. reminds us actually who we are and who we are not.
My favourite piece of class and ideologically imprinted activism so far are directions from a lums student (or similar) that included very chemically accurate directions to mitigate the effects of teargas and instructions to girl protesters to wear shalwar kameez.
“I can just see how it happened. Some well-connected Aitchison or KSG kid with arm-chair liberal sensibilities, an OK singing voice proposes, shares the idea with his mamoo on the Supreme Court.”
its KGS, and yup i reckon thats how it happened. i can’t access the cheesy music im afraid, but its not likely to be hyder husain, dylan, gill scott heron labbi siffre or whoever. Its derivative by design like most web stuff. I tend not to expect interesting cultural fruit from technocratic types.
I remember preparing a song for a palestine demo, rewording ‘The Isralites’ such stuff shouldnt take itself too seriously.
Duas that they sort out their problems internally.
November 10, 2007 at 8:30 pm
addafication
Easy enough to square, AsifY bhai. The elites often find it easier to stand in the way of rights and fight for their privileges being taken away from them. The problem for Bangladesh, in my estimation, is not so much that the people “don’t get it” about the rule of law.
The Daughter of the East owns an estate that, in her own admission, takes a day to drive through.
I am, by no stretch of the imagination, a socialist. And I don’t have a problem with wealth. But what I do have a problem with is the setting up and subverting of the rules of the game so that walls are built around wealth and privilege to replicate themselves, no matter what the social cost.
Fugstar bhai: Absolutely right about KGS.
- Saif
November 13, 2007 at 12:32 pm
fugstar
Priviledge and wealth do replicate themselves, through education, media and consumption and what not. In third world and the Muslim thirdworld this cost is the development of national institutions and the widening of gaps in values.
ok so you’re not a socialist, but how does one bridge or negotiate that said gap. the wealthy will always consume the more globaly elitening forms of education and activism. Then they’ll come home and subject the people to it.