Prem Chand Pakistani...this is how we treat our dead non-Muslim brothers in Pakistan.

[awan4ever]

http://pakistaniat.com/2010/08/01/prem-chand-coffin-kafir/

 

[awan4ever]

mongst the 152 who died in last Wednesday’s tragic crash of Air Blue flight were six members of the Youth Parliament. All death in this tragedy were sad. The death of these talented youth with aspirations of building a better Pakistan was no exception. Maybe it was tragedy compounded. But the story of one of them is sadder even than the others – and because of what happened to him after he died! This is the story of Prem Chand, a bright young social worker from Sanghar (Sindh), one of the members of Youth Parliament, and one of those who died on the ill-fated AirBlue flight 202. His death – like the death of everyone on that flight – was a matter of national tragedy; the treatment of his dead body a matter of national disgrace.
According to news reports in The News and The Express Tribune young Prem Chand’s coffin was marked “Kafir” – a word that literally means ‘infidel’ or ‘non-believer’ but is mostly used as a serious slur in Pakistan. Literally labeling someone’s coffin as “Kafir” and not even giving them the respect to list their religion by its proper name, is a shameful and disgusting way to disrespect the last remains of anyone. All the more so the last remains of a patriotic Pakistani who was on that plane solely to represent Pakistan and to seek to be a better Pakistani – he was on his way to the ‘session’ of the Youth Parliament!
According to The News:

The members of Youth parliament [on the day following the crash] protested against the marking of the coffin of one of their colleague Prem Chand as ‘Kafir.’ “It was shocking. He could have been marked as Hindu or non-Muslim, but using the word ‘Kafir’ is the worst example of intolerance,” said MYP Muneeb Afzal.
​

The Express Tribune writes:

Ehsan Naveed Irfan is a member of the youth parliament and he is the one who identified Prem Chand’s body. He told me that his coffin was marked as “Kafir” first with black and then outlined with red to make it more prominent. He told me that he and his friends removed it with a marker and wrote “We love you – from the youth parliament” instead.
​

A friend of Prem Chand made this comment on Syed Ali Abbas Zaidi’s blog:

I am Muneeb Afzal, a Member of Youth parliament of Pakistan and a Colleague and Friend of Late Prem Chand. An extremely hard-working person he was a symbol of tolerance. My last communication with him was on night before the Air Crash, he gave his greetings to me on occasion of 15th of Shabaan.
At PIMS fortunately another friend of ours was there when Prem’s Cousin Nanik Das came to search for his body, he quickly hid the tag ‘kafir’ by putting marker lines on it, so that Prem’s family which is already suffering from great grief does not have to bear more hurt. Although later at a memorial session where media was present I criticized the inhumanity and intolerance of those who did this shameful act. I felt this was my duty to my late friend Prem Chand that I make it clear to the world that we condemn this act of intolerance and narrow mindedness. But a lot of my other colleagues have since objected to my speaking out, believing that my saying this and this news spreading in media would add to hurt of Prem’s family, and in a way they are right too. I would like you all to also keep this in mind as well…
​

This was probably not an official act or some state sponsored standard procedure. It is much more likely that this was an act of some sick minded individual. But it is still important for the authorities to investigate and punish those responsible, and set an example for future. Intolerance must not be tolerated. To tolerate it, or justify it, is to accept it. The authorities need to take responsibility for this incident and why it happened at all; no matter who did it. After all, it is the state of Pakistan – and we as a society – which creates the conditions in which the persecution of minorities thrives at various levels, directly and indirectly; and that is what gives individuals license to go even further – including such shameful acts.

 

[sarbakaf]

ok what difference did it make if his coffin was marked kafir ?
what if his coffin was marked non muslim what would that mean ?
did any body enjoy his death or didnt every body felt same pain for him too

stupid reporters always try to create a mess of nothing

 

[awan4ever]

ok what difference did it make if his coffin was marked kafir ?
what if his coffin was marked non muslim what would that mean ?
did any body enjoy his death or didnt every body felt same pain for him too

stupid reporters always try to create a mess of nothing

It is not the word but the connotation of the word. In England if you call a Pakistani a Paki, you can goto jail for racist behavior but we Pakistanis use the term as a short form and it doesnt mean anything to us. The word 'kafir' is equivalent of 'musla' in India. How do you think Indian Muslims feel when they are called Muslas by the Indian 'Kafirs'?

 

[gazoomartian]

mongst the 152 who died in last Wednesdays tragic crash of Air Blue flight were six members of the Youth Parliament. All death in this tragedy were sad. The death of these talented youth with aspirations of building a better Pakistan was no exception. Maybe it was tragedy compounded. But the story of one of them is sadder even than the others and because of what happened to him after he died! This is the story of Prem Chand, a bright young social worker from Sanghar (Sindh), one of the members of Youth Parliament, and one of those who died on the ill-fated AirBlue flight 202. His death like the death of everyone on that flight was a matter of national tragedy; the treatment of his dead body a matter of national disgrace.
According to news reports in The News and The Express Tribune young Prem Chands coffin was marked Kafir a word that literally means infidel or non-believer but is mostly used as a serious slur in Pakistan. Literally labeling someones coffin as Kafir and not even giving them the respect to list their religion by its proper name, is a shameful and disgusting way to disrespect the last remains of anyone. All the more so the last remains of a patriotic Pakistani who was on that plane solely to represent Pakistan and to seek to be a better Pakistani he was on his way to the session of the Youth Parliament!
According to The News:

The members of Youth parliament [on the day following the crash] protested against the marking of the coffin of one of their colleague Prem Chand as Kafir. It was shocking. He could have been marked as Hindu or non-Muslim, but using the word Kafir is the worst example of intolerance, said MYP Muneeb Afzal.
​

The Express Tribune writes:

Ehsan Naveed Irfan is a member of the youth parliament and he is the one who identified Prem Chands body. He told me that his coffin was marked as Kafir first with black and then outlined with red to make it more prominent. He told me that he and his friends removed it with a marker and wrote We love you from the youth parliament instead.
​

A friend of Prem Chand made this comment on Syed Ali Abbas Zaidis blog:

I am Muneeb Afzal, a Member of Youth parliament of Pakistan and a Colleague and Friend of Late Prem Chand. An extremely hard-working person he was a symbol of tolerance. My last communication with him was on night before the Air Crash, he gave his greetings to me on occasion of 15th of Shabaan.
At PIMS fortunately another friend of ours was there when Prems Cousin Nanik Das came to search for his body, he quickly hid the tag kafir by putting marker lines on it, so that Prems family which is already suffering from great grief does not have to bear more hurt. Although later at a memorial session where media was present I criticized the inhumanity and intolerance of those who did this shameful act. I felt this was my duty to my late friend Prem Chand that I make it clear to the world that we condemn this act of intolerance and narrow mindedness. But a lot of my other colleagues have since objected to my speaking out, believing that my saying this and this news spreading in media would add to hurt of Prems family, and in a way they are right too. I would like you all to also keep this in mind as well
​

This was probably not an official act or some state sponsored standard procedure. It is much more likely that this was an act of some sick minded individual. But it is still important for the authorities to investigate and punish those responsible, and set an example for future. Intolerance must not be tolerated. To tolerate it, or justify it, is to accept it. The authorities need to take responsibility for this incident and why it happened at all; no matter who did it. After all, it is the state of Pakistan and we as a society which creates the conditions in which the persecution of minorities thrives at various levels, directly and indirectly; and that is what gives individuals license to go even further including such shameful acts.

first of all, I really dont fully believe in ExpressTribune. In general media thrives on sensationalisation by balooning the facts. They pick up a one-liner and add spices to it to make it sound like a worldly dangerous alien or so. They have to do this to sell their news in today's hihly competitive media market.

This is the reason I am against fully freedom media. Free media is actually an invention of Jews for, it gives them an upper hand in propaganda in their favor and allows them to control. A fully free media is a disaster in an Islamic society. We are all already seeing its effect. uryaniat, fohashi, lies, propaganda, gheebat, false news reporting, all are on today paki TV's.

My govt would vigorously scrutinize media. Will never keep them w/o leash and let them be controlled by Jews. I would only allow them limited freedom

coming back to young lad Prem. The word 'kafir' does sound a harsh word to be used in this context. But before we object or criticize, we must also provide an alternative. I can think of these choices:

1. non-Muslim
2. Hindu (or other)
3. Christian
4. Jew
5 Qadiani
etc.

Even if the writer wrote one of the above, the corrupt and hungry for publicity media would still find a way to publicize everything wrong out of that. It's also possible the person wrote that to protect the religion of young Prem because we do not want any namaz-e-janaza mistakenly done for him, which in turn we would be accused of religious desecration.

In my opinion, it should said 'non Muslim Pakistani'

 

[hans]

Pakstani Flag

Hello,

Does any one remember our Pakistani Flag, the White portion?
It represent what...?

It represent Non Muslim.... NON MUSLIM.

 

[awan4ever]

This is the reason I am against fully freedom media. Free media is actually an invention of Jews for, it gives them an upper hand in propaganda in their favor and allows them to control. A fully free media is a disaster in an Islamic society. We are all already seeing its effect. uryaniat, fohashi, lies, propaganda, gheebat, false news reporting, all are on today paki TV's.

This is a very myopic view. An Islamic society cannot be fully Islamic unless everyone is free to view their opinions and similarly report on news. I wonder why we become so defensive on such news items as if we live in a perfect Islamic society where such a thing is impossible. We have burnt down whole Christian villages for Gods sakes and you think it is impossible for someone to write 'kafir' on a coffin?
Whoever wrote it is probably a)an ignorant, semi-literate buffoon or b)an over zealous jihadi fanatic which is basically an advanced form of (a).

My govt would vigorously scrutinize media. Will never keep them w/o leash and let them be controlled by Jews. I would only allow them limited freedom

The Jewish media is actually a controlled media not a free media and you are actually proposing a similar thing but this time only to suit your own world view. So you are not doing anything better than them. Neither is promoting a free media.
Instead of putting a leash on the media you should aim to have judicial checks so that the media doesnt say anything mis-leading for fear of being persecuted in free courts.

 

[QADIANITRUTH]

My obsrvation is that the one who marked the cofin as "KAFIR" is probbaly not a very literate person. It does not represent our collective approach ( I hope). Not that I am defdending the action as word KAFIR is kind a slur in our society, the person chose to write KAFIR instead of HINDU... which probabaly is a bigger slur in our society.

Having said, someone administering the indentification of the dead should have acted. But again, one had to choose between KAFIR and HINDU... and they opted for KAFIR. Being HINDU is not a slur but for the one who wrote KAFIR, that was.

I hope we should take things in their right prespective than jumping the emotional bandwagon...

 

[gazoomartian]

Hello,

Does any one remember our Pakistani Flag, the White portion?
It represent what...?

It represent Non Muslim.... NON MUSLIM.

It does NOT. It represents peace, meaning we are peaceful people. White is a symbol of peace

 

[awan4ever]

My obsrvation is that the one who marked the cofin as "KAFIR" is probbaly not a very literate person. It does not represent our collective approach ( I hope). Not that I am defdending the action as word KAFIR is kind a slur in our society, the person chose to write KAFIR instead of HINDU... which probabaly is a bigger slur in our society.

Having said, someone administering the indentification of the dead should have acted. But again, one had to choose between KAFIR and HINDU... and they opted for KAFIR. Being HINDU is not a slur but for the one who wrote KAFIR, that was.

I hope we should take things in their right prespective than jumping the emotional bandwagon...

Urdu mein 'ghair-muslim' likhna kafi hota for identification purposes. ye koi itni bari science nahi hay.

 

[Firefly]

Guyz here is what i think the reason behind anyone wrote KAFIR on the coffin.

It was written so that people may not offer Islamic funeral prayer for that person and he should be treated as his religion teaches them. end of story period.

 

[Aijazahmed]

It does NOT. It represents peace, meaning we are peaceful people. White is a symbol of peace

No sir, you are wrong, it represents Minorities. Please don't distort the fact.

The official flag of Pakistan is divided into two unequal halves of white and green color.
The green part of the national flag of Pakistan consists of one white crescent with a white star above it. The current Pakistani flag was effective from August 14, 1947 the day of its independence. In Urdu the Pakistan Flag is known as 'Sabz Hilali Parcham'. The non Muslim population of the country is signified by the white part of the flag and the green part stands for Islam. The moon and the star signify progress and knowledge respectively. The blend of green and white in the national flag of Pakistan is a sign of peace and affluence.
http://www.mapsofworld.com/flags/pakistan-flag.html

Thanks

 

[atensari]

NO Body Cares, Thousand of Muslims are buried like animals. Has Youth Parliament to say anything about it.

 

[bons]

Kafir ko kafir kehnay main koi harj nahi. Agar kafir ko non muslim kahen gay to kia uss ka martaba uncha ho jaye ga?
Khwamkhwa non issues ko uchaalnay ki koi zaroorat nahi hay.

 

[awan4ever]

NO Body Cares, Thousand of Muslims are buried like animals. Has Youth Parliament to say anything about it.

Nice reply...very relevant and to the point.

 

[armani]

If one person has written word " kafir" on his coffin , how does it make it " WE treat non muslims badly". It was just one person's mistake. It is unappropriate to blame the whole nation for it. This is indeed awful reporting. Couldn't they mention the tears shed down by the whole nation for everyone including Prem Chand rather than blaming the whole nation for one person's mistake.
Any educated person would have written " Hindu or Non Muslim" and I think these were the better words to choose from.

 

[awan4ever]

If one person has written word " kafir" on his coffin , how does it make it " WE treat non muslims badly". It was just one person's mistake. It is unappropriate to blame the whole nation for it. This is indeed awful reporting. Couldn't they mention the tears shed down by the whole nation for everyone including Prem Chand rather than blaming the whole nation for one person's mistake.
Any educated person would have written " Hindu or Non Muslim" and I think these were the better words to choose from.

Yes it does not be taken as a collective slur on the entire nation but if you reflect on the mentality that persists. You should string all the anti-minority incidents in our country together and then look at if and you will see that we look at them as mere 'kafirs' who do not deserve to be treated humanely. I dont remember any minority targeting incident ever being persecuted by the law and any one being properly punished.

Words are a reflection of what we are, they are not just words.

 

[armani]

Yes it does not be taken as a collective slur on the entire nation.
Thank You. This is what I wanted to say about this particular incident and the reporting.

 

[kashnex]

Honestly speaking I am totally disgusted after reading this. The name of the person could be written on his coffin other than writing what is has been reported as "Kafir" or one in this thread has proposed Non-Muslim like hans mentioned. Come on guys, show some respect to the deceased no matter if he wasn't a Muslim but remember that he was a Human and indeed a Pakistani.

I understand that Islam give us highly moral attributes to respect for all including for those who are non-believers. Remember all people those who died in this fatal accident are martyrs (as we usually call this), so he was one of them. So if you don't think that the deserved to be written as Muslim (as he wasn't) bu a due respect should have been given to him which could be done by explicitly writing his name "Prem Chand" on his Coffin.

Well this is my impartial point of view.I would be seeking your opinion too if I am wrong.

 

[khan125]

http://pakistaniat.com/2010/08/01/prem-chand-coffin-kafir/

isey kehtey hain chaey ki piyali me toofan barpa krna(clap)(clap)(clap)

kafir ka talluk kisi racism se kasey jore rahey ho tum.
more specific word would have been hindu.
everyone knows hindus are mushriqs.and kafirs.

this is islamic term ye kisi insan ne nhi kahee allah ka inkar krney valey ko kafir kehtey hain.kia aap quran k mukabley me koiee naee terminology lana chahtey ho