You’ve raised a mighty question Umair!
I’ve been quarreling about it with my sister.
Where I come from, Pakistan, the picture is like ten jigsaws jumbled up together and dumped on the floor. Where do you begin to fit the pieces?
In 1947 it came into being as a SECULAR state. But mainly Muslim. Within a decade and a half, it had been hijacked by extremists who now hold sway.
We went from a liberal easy going approach to religion to a hardened intolerant state.
‘Democracy’ limped along for a bit, still a smattering of forward thinking intellectuals huddle in fear of their lives.
Journalists who speak out are eliminated. As in assassinated.
Now my quarrel is this - the burden of guilt sits squarely on shoulders of elites. We abdicated our responsibility towards building a solid equitable, sustainable state to a vague body of flotsam and jetsam. It’s peculiar— Pakistani elite regarded ‘politicians’ as lowly functionaries, servants who run a household. We fiddled while Pakistan burned.
Since the hold of feudal lords was never broken, unlike India, they jumped into the fray. Large bureaucracy trained by Brits as sidekicks, along with a massive army are now governing bodies.
Extremists of course are pandered to. Army plays a huge role.
In fact, generals strut around maddened with power and greed.
So, what IS democracy? Just a word in my part of the world. Sure, we vote. Massive rigging. Open season on raking in millions. Elite still regards politicians as low class! Which they are in the sense of enlightenment.
We sit in our fancy living rooms and moan about mullahs and price of cooking oil and madrassahs and sneer at out third rate dynastic approach to governance, all the while army sneaked in and called the shots.
Masses starve. Attribute it to God’s will.
Human capital flight. Swiss accounts.
Elites have stockpiles of real estate and cash to party on. London, Paris, DC dubai, you name it.
Sounds like fun but it’s beyond tragic.
Solutions welcomed!