THE Higher Education Commission arranged the Pakistan National Youth Conference at Jinnah Convention Centre, Islamabad, on January 24, 2024. The main aim of the event was the interaction of COAS General Syed Asim Munir with the students of leading universities in the country for national integration. I had the privilege of attending the historical event. I got the feeling that the Army Chief is a proud Pakistani, his belief in Islamic ideology is very firm, and he was very successful in transcending a national vision in the youth at Jinnah Convention Centre. During his address, he engrossed students in his speech by asking them questions, and he was very logical while responding to the issues raised by the youth in the question-and-answer session. General Asim Munir quoted the verses of the Quran, the poetry of Allama Iqbal, and facts and figures to invoke hope in the youth and he suggested the students read the book “21 Lessons for the 21st Century,” written by Yuval Noah Harari. He emphasized a lot in the first lesson of the book, disillusionment through data science and information technology, and he suggested to the students that conducting research to find actual reality is a challenge for them in the post-truth digital era.
According to the Army Chief, Muslims created a separate homeland because Islam and Hinduism represented distinct cultures and civilizations, and Pakistan was established to uphold Islamic ideology. Therefore, our adoption of the values of western civilization is also against the idea of Pakistan. Islam is a very refined religion, as it surpassed all divine religions, and Muslim civilization dominated the world for centuries. We do not need to borrow the concept of human rights from western civilization; Islam empowered women, and it introduced animal rights in a superior scheme. The western model is the celebration of specific parents’ days, but it produces children who are arrogant toward their parents in the name of freedom of expression. COAS quoted the Quran, chapter 17, verse 23, to establish that Islam demands total surrender to the parents: “Do good to parents. If any one of them or both of them reach old age, do not say to them “uff,” do not scold them, address them with respectful words, and submit yourself before them in humility out of compassion.”
General Syed Asim Munir restored the pride of youth in the glorious Islamic heritage, but he also narrated many couplets from Iqbal’s poem “Tuloo-e-Islam,” in which the thinker of Pakistan discussed the rise and fall of Islamic civilization. The Army Chief narrated several striking similarities between Maddina Tayyiba and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to inculcate the sanctity of the motherland in the hearts of the students as a great divine blessing. However, he also challenged the conscious of the youth by invoking the famous verse of the Quran: “So, O mankind and Jinn, which of the bounties of your Lord will you deny?” He urged the youth to appreciate the mineral wealth of Pakistan and to come out of any inferiority complex. The Army Chief reminded the youth that Pakistan was once on the rise, South Korea followed its development plans, PIA was a role model airline, and foreign dignitaries felt pride in visiting the country. He assured the students that they are the guardians of the future of this nation, and self-confidence is an asset in this regard.
COAS’s major concern was the negative role of social media in stoking hopelessness in youth. He said that Islam instructs us to confirm the veracity of news (Quran, chapter 49, verse 6: “O you who believe, if a sinful person brings you a report, verify its correctness, lest you should harm a people out of ignorance, and then become remorseful for what you did.” Social media is a tool for spreading lies, fake news, disinformation, misinformation, and propaganda for vested interests. He suggested a cautious approach for social media contents, as these forums give options for copying, sharing, and forwarding, but a research button is missing for nefarious designs.
COAS General Syed Asim Munir did not discuss contemporary political issues in his speech, but they surfaced in the question-and-answer session. On a query regarding political stability, he said that he had watched politicians very closely when he was DG MI and DG ISI. They desire to prolong their stay in power by hook and crook, while others want to grab power by dishonest means. He urged youth to use voting as a sacred trust in the upcoming elections to elect honest leadership. On the question of Pakistan’s image in the world, the Army Chief said every individual should achieve excellence in character to create a positive image of Pakistan. This response reminded me of the statement, “Pakistan will soon be blessed with a leader for nation-building,” by famed spiritual scholar Syed Sarfraz Ahmed Shah, who was also a guest speaker at the conference.
—The writer is MPhil, IR from Quaid-i-Azam University, writers on the issues of violent extremism and militancy.
