“Oxford
v Cambridge, Town v Gown”
By Sir Oxon
Casting aside
their age-old rivalries, Oxford and Cambridge, and
the Town and the Gown united - momentarily! - for
a meeting commemorating he anniversary of the word
“Pakistan” held in Cambridge on February
13. The Cambridge Pakistan Movement, a new force
in the city, successfully brought together different
people and groups to concentrate on a range of issues,
such as, international relations and government
policies, and the arts, crafts and history of Pakistan.
Professor Haroon Ahmed, Master of Corpus Christi
College, welcomed everyone to the number one city
in the world, while Professor Iftikhar H. Malik,
former Quaid-i-Azam Fellow at Oxford, who now lives
in that super city, thrilled all with an amazing
performance of “Islam and Politics: Foes or
Friends”.
Former Oxford man, M. Athar Tahir, the Pakistani
poet, writer and senior civil servant, was delighted
to have invaded Cambridge to talk about “The
Arts in Pakistan”, while Cambridge-based historian
Dr MAJ Beg was happy to welcome everyone to the
greatest city in the universe! M Niaz Butt from
the High Commission for Pakistan in dreary London
attempted to explain General Musharaf’s exciting
message of “enlightened moderation”.
For the first time in Cambridge, the local community
organization and the university groups -- the Pakistan
Cultural Association, the Cambridge University Pakistan
Society, and the Cambridge University Kashmir Society
- all shared the same platform. The Pakistani and
the Bangladeshi societies were also brought together.
University student Mohammed Ali Azeem explained
the Cambridge Pakistan Movement as an organization
that aimed “to stimulate discussion on Pakistan,
as well as to bring Pakistanis together under an
umbrella to promote cooperation and unity”.
Commenting on the meeting, he said, “It is
clear that many issues need to be discussed regarding
Pakistan, and that there are many people willing
to discuss them. As long as this remains the case,
we can always hope and expect a better Pakistan”.
Echoing this, Saad Siddiqui, the President of the
Cambridge University Kashmir Society (www.cuks.org),
said that “dialogue is the way forward”
and hoped greater co-operation would lead to positive
results in the future. “With its emphasis
on history as well as the future, the meeting was
certainly a step forward in appreciating Pakistan,”
he said.
Mudasser Chowdhury, President of the Cambridge University
Bangladesh Society (www.banglasoc.com) had this
to say, “It may seem extraordinary to have
someone from the Bangladesh Society at a function
commemorating the anniversary of the word Pakistan,
coined in January 1933 by Choudhary Rahmat Ali .
Not so. Rahmat Ali had the foresight to recognize
the problems faced by Muslim majority provinces
in pre-partition India and who wished: to have a
high degree of autonomy, to be endowed with their
own destiny and to create the right conditions for
an enduring regional Islamic fraternity. The existence
of Bangladesh today [Rahmat Ali’s ‘Bangistan’]
is a partial fulfillment of the true aspirations
of the Muslims of Bengal.”
Dr MAJ Beg, who also originates from the Bangladesh
area, introduced the Qur’anic text used by
Rahmat Ali in his Pakistan Declaration, Now or Never.
The verse from Surah al-Ra’d, means “Allah
does not change (the condition of) a people until
they change themselves” (13:11).
Furthermore, Dr Beg said, “It goes to the
credit of Rahmat Ali that he not only invented the
word ‘Pakistan’ but also launched a
political movement in Cambridge to create public
opinion in support of Pakistan.” The organizers
of the event proved that Oxford and Cambridge CAN
unite, that the Town and Gown CAN also get-together,
that Pakistan and Bangladesh CAN move ahead like
members of a family, and that, together with India,
there CAN be greater peace and co-operation in the
region.
