Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Ideology of #Pakistan in Four Quotations

"Democracy is not just a new thing we are learning," said Jinnah Saahab to American journalist Margaret Bourke-White, "[o]ur Islamic ideas have been based on democracy and social justice since the thirteenth century."

"... we have proved it to the world more than once. We established Pakistan because of our passion for what we call the Islamic way of life. This is no narrow sectarian, or medieval, or theocratic or intolerant conception. It means no more and no less than this: that we believe in God and atheistic doctrines cannot flourish amongst us. That we believe in the equality of men and the equality of civic rights and opportunities for all, irrespective of their religious belief. That we believe in social justice, ... that we believe in democracy, not as a political creed; but as a part of our religious faith ... the way of life that we have chosen for ourselves, [is] not a new concoction, but one that is based on a body of belief and tradition that have been handed down to us by our forefathers"
—Liaquat Ali Khan, First Prime Minister of Pakistan, gave a speech to the Commonwealth Club of California on May 16, 1950. See, for example, http://archive.org/stream/pakistantheheart027153mbp/pakistantheheart027153mbp_djvu.txt

Maududi on Jinnah & Co.:

“It is worth mentioning that not a single political leader from Muslim League or any resolution from the party have ever clarified that their ultimate goal is to create Islamic type of Government in Pakistan. Rather what they have said and repeated is that they want to establish a democracy with equal rights for the minorities”
—Maududi, Musalman aur Jadeed Siasi Kashmakash; Published in 1941; Volume 3; page 130 via http://abdulmajeedabid.blogspot.com/2012/04/secular-dilemma.html?showComment=1335378510930#c5306260525138779089
"You have to stand guard over the development and maintenance of democracy, social justice and the equality of manhood in your own native soil."
—Jinnah - February, 1948

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