Dream for a Nation
Emergence of Pakistan
The 14th of August is the most memorable day for me this year, like usual, not because it’s my college holiday or I’ve reached 150+ subscribers, but because this day has a particular bearing on my country.
78 years ago, under the leadership of Mohammad Ali Jinnah, Pakistan gained independence, not handed over in a plate of rice—it was purchased with the blood of a million souls and the displacement of 15 million people- one of the major mass migrations ever.
Imagine trains full of dead bodies and blood, but the spirit of those migrants—indomitable.
Get Elsewhere Echo’s stories in your inbox
Join Medium for free to get updates from this writer.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
“No one counted the dead. If we did, we would have gone mad.”
~ Relief worker, Punjab refugee camps
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
“When the train reached the platform, we knew no one had survived. There were only bodies… and the flies.”
~Station master’s testimony, Punjab, 1947
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
“We would rather kill our daughters with our own hands than see them in the enemy’s arms. That day, many fathers became executioners.”
~ Partition survivor, Rawalpindi district
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
But the relentless efforts of the leaders, the fierce determination of the populace, and the unity of the nation crafted a country that we now call Pakistan.
But it’s not only about my beloved homeland; it’s about everyone’s.
Our ancestors had made tremendous sacrifices for the country that we inhabit, but what have we contributed to it so far? What was the purpose of its creation? And is it the same now?
