Baacha Khan Trust Educational Foundation

BKTEF organizes 25th monthly study circle for Baacha Khan Fellows

The Baacha Khan Trust Educational Foundation (BKTEF) held 25th monthly study circle at the BKTEF head office on September 1, 2018. The study circle was attended by almost 50 participants belonging to different districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa including Peshawar, Mardan, Swat, Charsaada, Shangla, Hangu, Dir, Waziristan, Khyber Agency, Mohmand agency and Tank. The text for discussion was “Maulvi Fazal Mahmood Maghfi” written by Fazl Zaman Shalman.

One of the participants in the study circle, Tariq Pukhtunyaar, maintained that history had been distorted since times immemorial. Unwritten history was always forgotten by the coming generations. Also, history varied from place to place and was written based on the geographical and social conditions of that region. He said that this particular book was related to 20th century when Pashtuns struggled for freedom. He said that a number of personalities had been mentioned in the book while Maulvi Fazal Mahmood’s personality had special focus by the writer. The writings of Makhfi, and more particular his poetry was aimed at uniting the Pashtuns. Furthermore, he was a great advocate of Freedom and Democracy. So much was he celebrated among Pashtun leaders that his poetry was chosen as preface of Baacha Khan’s book “My life and struggles.”

Mehran Wazir shed light on the past, present and future of the national movement. He said that political movements emerged when nations and groups of people collectively felt their political will and resources compromised and exploited. There were two forms of political movements-progressive alternative to status quo and reactionary political movements. Mehran Wazir maintained that there existed a number of hurdles in the way of having successful national movements. The social, political, religious and national questions, that people confront, needed to be resolved. He said that there was a need to have systematic activities in movements in order to highlight national identity.

The participants had an open discussion on why they would like to associate themselves to a particular movement. Most of them maintained that they needed a common platform where their identity was recognized and respected. They said that they needed a movement which could safeguard them from the threats they faced as a nation, as class, as a group, as an ethnicity or as a race. Some were of the view that connecting one’s self to the national movement was mandatory in order to counter the hurdles faced by the Pashtuns in the current circumstances. Language and culture was another reason why some of the participants saw it crucial to associate themselves with the national movement.

The discussion was concluded by Dr.Khadim Hussain on the note that a human being could never survive individually and without experiences. The aesthetic consciousness of a human being differentiated him from other beings owing to which systematic societies and systematic institutions were created. Geography and language too had a role in the consciousness of humans which eventually aimed at the survival and happiness of humans. He said that today’s man was in need of financial stability and collective consciousness which was only possible if he was able to have decision making power and had control over his resources.

Dr. Khadim Hussain further pointed out that there were a number of internal threats to collective consciousness including the end of social justice, patriarchy, loss of history by the newer generations and control of the institutions of knowledge throuhg hegemony. Therefore, he said that national movements were mandatory so that economic security and identity of a nation could be secured. It was also essential for such movements to have the necessary skills, tools and clarity of narrative to send across its message to the common people. The organized use of social media could prove to be a powerful tool in that regard. He asserted that the cause of a national movement could never go irrelevant.

The next study circle was decided to be held on October 6, 2018. Text decided for the coming study circle was ‘Pakistanizing Pashtun’ written by Taimur-ur-Rahman.