Two weeks after independence, communal violence, particularly in East Punjab, dominated the headlines, with the Quaid-i-Azam having to make a fervent appeal for peace. In other major developments between Aug 25 and 31, 1947, Madar-i-Millat Ms Fatima Jinnah reiterated the need for women’s literacy, Pakistan opened its first embassy in Washington DC, while different solutions to the Palestine question were discussed in the United Nations.
In the Aug 25 issue, the headline of the main story on page one quoted the Quaid urging his countrymen to “Preserve peace for [the] sake of Pakistan’.”
“Those who think they can undo Pakistan are sadly mistaken,” Mr Jinnah observed. He was referring to communal violence in East Punjab. “I have been watching with increasing grief and concern the orgies of violence in the Eastern Punjab which have taken … a heavy toll on Muslim lives.”
In fact, in the Aug 27 issue, the lead story, describing the situation as a “continued holocaust in the East Punjab,” said that the violence in that Indian state had resulted in over a quarter million refugees. “Ferozepur, Hoshiarpur, Jullundur, Gurdaspur, Ludhiana and Ambala are still hotbeds of massacre and other brutalities,” the report added grimly.
The Quaid reminded his countrymen to be wary and prevent communal disturbances in Pakistan: “It is of the utmost importance that Pakistan should be kept absolutely free from disorder. …”
Mr Jinnah had good reason to be worried, for in the weeks after independence, Lahore and other parts of Punjab had witnessed communal killings, while in the Aug 25 edition, a report mentioned that Sardar Abdur Rab Nishtar, the Communication Minister, had to be dispatched to Balochistan to quell disturbances there. Unlike the present, the violence at the time was of a religious nature.
“The situation is absolutely normal”, Sardar Nishtar claimed after a visit to Quetta. “I toured the area that was burnt and also Hindu and Sikh areas. I also went to the refugee camps and inspected arrangements for their accommodation and rations. … I feel that now by the grace of God, the situation is absolutely normal. …”
Women’s literacy drive
Also in the Aug 25 edition, Ms Fatima Jinnah hinted at the launch of a literacy drive for women. “Education,” the Quaid’s sister said, “was the pre-requisite for the advancement of any nation … at the earliest opportunity a big drive will be launched to stamp out illiteracy from amongst the women of Pakistan. …”
These were of course progressive, noble thoughts. Some estimates indicate female literacy was under 10 per cent in Pakistan at the time of Independence, while being virtually zero in rural parts of the country. It would be wrong to say no progress has been made, as today female literacy stands at around 54pc. But have we done enough?
Unfortunately, successive rulers failed to replicate the zeal Pakistan’s founders had for spreading literacy, even though several ‘education emergencies’ have been declared. The results of officialdom’s neglect over the decades? At least 25-26 million children of school age remain out of school today, while tens of millions of adult Pakistanis cannot read or write. One wonders what the founders of this nation would make of these abysmal figures.
Good morning America
The relationship between Pakistan and the United States has been a tumultuous one, with the former once being considered Uncle Sam’s ‘most allied ally’ in this region, helping fight an American anti-Soviet ‘jihad’ in Afghanistan, and experiencing numerous other ups and downs.
That relationship, as documented in Dawn’s Aug 26 issue, in a sense formally began on Aug 25, 1947, when the Pakistan Embassy opened its temporary quarters in Washington DC. “The Pakistan Embassy opened for normal business at the temporary headquarters at the Choreham Hotel today with Charge d’Affaires, Mr M.O. Baig declaring: “We are truly operating.”
Our man in DC was scouting for a permanent embassy site in “overcrowded Washington” while observing that “My country is beginning from scratch in its relations with foreign countries. Therefore, there are various basic agreements that will have to be negotiated. …”
Of course, the Pakistani mission in DC would later move to other buildings, but this long, complicated relationship began from a temporary abode in a Washington hotel.
Palestine solution
The Palestine question has remained unresolved for nearly eight decades, and at the time of Pakistan’s birth — Israel had not yet come into existence and the British were in charge of Mandatory Palestine — several solutions were being debated in the UN.
According to a report in the Aug 28 edition, several proposals were discussed at the UNO (as it was then known) Special Committee Meeting in Geneva. According to one plan, the federal solution would result in the creation of six “cantons” in Palestine, “three Jewish and three Arab, having a Central Government on lines similar to that of Switzerland.”
The other idea was for semi-independent Jewish and Arab states. Of course, none of these ideas would come to fruition, and the following year (1948) would witness the acceleration of the Nakba and the creation of Israel. As for the people of Palestine, they still await justice, and the right to live as free human beings on their own land.
With the advantage of hindsight, one has the opportunity to study the historical cycles in a nation’s life. Thanks to this newspaper’s unique, extensive archive of back issues, one can examine the major political, economic and social trends that have shaped Pakistan and the world over the last seven decades and counting. Cliched as it may sound, history repeats itself, and we — as a state and as a polity — largely refuse to learn from it.
Through this platform, we will look back at the ‘big’ stories that made it to the front pages of Dawn, as well as significant developments tucked away in the inside pages, from the birth of Pakistan onwards, and try to put them in perspective. We will study the critical issues of the week, starting from Aug 14, 1947 and examine the major themes and issues that made it to the paper.