The struggle between good and evil — the two conflicting aspects of human nature — in both their obvious and subtle forms, is as old as humankind. Evil, by its very nature and through its potential personifications — whether in the form of ideas, individuals or practices in just societies — is named, shamed and consistently fought against. Goodness, in contrast, is celebrated and cherished. That is, virtues such as honesty, truth and integrity are actively practiced, while vices are largely condemned. However, in unjust societies — draped in the cloak of justice, piety and integrity — evil predominantly manifests as hydra-headed corruption, each head spawning more tentacles to feed on the blood and haunt the spirit of the people. Yet, it remains the most rewarded and revered.
In such societies, evil acts and practices — the parasitic feast for a handful of ruling elites and utterly detrimental to the public and the country — continue unchallenged as long as their plunder remains secure. Occasionally, the dissenters, steeped in sin, nevertheless bring the truth of this plunder — already out in the open — to light, either as a bargaining chip, a threat to its architects, or a warning against any potential change in the share of the spoils, for they rarely revolt for the benefit of the people or against the very plunder that feeds their insatiable greed.
Although the occasional revelation of long-suppressed, incriminating truths by those who benefit from them may seem revolutionary to the aggrieved or signal a reawakening of a buried conscience, it rarely achieves more than hastening exploitation under revised terms or aligning with rebranded justifications. For over seventy-five years, Pakistan has endured all this, often in the name of national security, strategic culture, patriotism, democracy and religion. Tragically, repeated injustices inflicted on the people have gone unpunished, while stolen public assets were transferred across borders and locked away in safety.
In a society that submits to and embraces evil, truth, justice, empathy and humanity are suffocated, reduced to mere shadows of their potential. Haven’t you seen how those embodying what Carl Jung calls Shadow Selves — politicians, journalists, media houses, judges, corporate elites and flatterers, both today and in the past — initially present themselves as bearers of an awakened conscience or as mavericks, only to opportunistically shift allegiances or seize power for the sake of shielding their sins, securing their sustenance, or gaining greater rewards? Thus, the same beneficiaries, their offspring or other plunderers are recycled as guardians of public assets and lives.
Indeed, Khawaja Asif’s recent statement, as a member of the incumbent government, claiming that over half of the properties owned by Pakistan’s bureaucrats in Portugal were purchased with plundered public wealth, that they plan to settle there permanently, and that they enjoy lavish post-retirement lifestyles funded by billions in public funds, is neither new nor surprising, as such claims have been made before and these practices are widely known. Nor does his statement offer any benefit to the people or the country.
The untouchable and unspeakable devour the lion’s share, while their carefully encultured and installed elite — politicians, the entirety of traditional journalists, ‘honourable’ judges, corporate elites, feudal lords, tribal warlords, human and women’s rights defenders, clergy and civil society activists — loot the leftovers with their patrons’ blessings. This leaves only agonies and scraps for the poor, the marginalised, the students, the labourers, the aggrieved, the honest, the intellectuals, and those with integrity.
Still, it is those born and buried in the motherland (the aggrieved victims of the system, rather than the fleeing aggressors) whose unconditional love for their country is called into question, unless they, however reluctantly, realign their allegiance with the fallacious narratives of ruling elite — the ultimate aggressors.
