On May 24 of this year, the Dow Medical College (Karachi) Graduate Association of North America (DOGANA) held a function in Philadelphia honoring the “Women of Dow”. My sister Azra is a Dow alumna and was presented with an award for “Distinguished Services in the Field of Research and Clinical Medicine” and was also invited to be the Keynote Speaker at the ceremony. She has kindly allowed me to publish some of her powerful remarks from that occasion here today. —S. Abbas Raza

by Azra Raza

A moment comes, which comes seldom in one’s life, when staying silent and uncritical is tantamount to suicide. That moment for us is here, now. Today, instead of telling a few light hearted stories of our innocent days at Dow, with jokes and poetry, I want to take the road less traveled by, and speak about the painful truth piercing at the heart of every one of us. Today, you have bestowed upon me a fantastic award and I am humbled by this, but frankly, at the same time, I feel greatly saddened to be lauded for my achievements while inside I feel like an imposter, a phony, a fraud. How can we be celebrating knowing full well that while we are congratulating each other and carrying home awards, our fellow doctors in Pakistan are being forced to carry guns with their stethoscopes? With these very achievements, if I was to be in Karachi today, I would be in danger of receiving a barrage of bullets from a Ghazi’s AK47 who could gun me down in broad daylight in a public function and walk off without being apprehended. Why? Because I am not just a doctor. I am a Shia doctor.

There. Now I have said it and committed the crime of voicing the unspeakable. I know, I know. We are not supposed to criticize anything while we are standing on foreign soil because this will further weaken the Umma and play right into the hands of the foreigners with vested interests. How long are we going to hide behind such cowardly, delusional shields? How long are we going to continue to bury our heads in the sand and distract ourselves through award ceremonies while our beloved country is being slashed and burned? Where is the outrage? What are we afraid of?

Yay kis azaab say khaif mera qabeela hay
Kay khoon mal kay bhi chahroun ka rang peela hay
Yay kaisay zehr ki baarish hui hay abkay baras
Kay meray saaray gulaboun ka rang Neela hay

(What calamity is my tribe so afraid of
That despite the blood splattered on their faces, they remain pale
What poison has rained from the sky this year
That even my roses have turned blue?)

My friends, genocides do not start with guns and gas chambers. They start with words. Words of hate directed at groups which dehumanize them to such an extent that any and all cruelties are justified. My friends, today, there is a similar poisonous atmosphere being created in Pakistan. It is not just the Shia doctors being slaughtered mercilessly. There is a country-wide invasion by the lethal disease of intolerance and religious persecution. The terrorists are killing minorities and targeting outspoken members of the community. Need I name Malala Yusufzai, Raza Rumi, Hamid Mir? Therefore, it is inaccurate and dishonest to present this as some sort of a sectarian issue. This is the systematic murder of targeted individuals by a small murderous group. But the state whose job it is to protect the people is complicit through its inaction. How many more doctors and lawyers, women and children have to be gunned down without a single individual being apprehended for these barbaric crimes? There is no controversy about who is responsible for these killings. The perpetrators proclaim it proudly from the rooftops. What level of genocide is needed for us to wake up to reality, six million? When are we going to realize that we are ALL guilty of being Neros playing the fiddle while Pakistan burns?

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