Last week, I wrote in my article entitled ‘Under the same Roof’ about the many things we human beings have in common, either we are royal or commoner, as we would say in my home country Norway, or, rich or poor, well-educated or not so well educated, and so on. And we might even add that the religion we have is no longer something we should emphasize. However, it is a fact that in Norway, Christianity still has a special place, yet, also with major modernisation and change within the religious associations in the recent couple of generations. For example resulting in half of the twelve bishops being women, and the trend is that soon the majority of the all the twelve hundred pastors will also be women. There was quite some resistance to the change but now it is hardly any issue at all. Since 2012, the Protestant Luther Church of Norway is no longer a state church, and today, the second large religion outside Christianity is Islam, including several hundred thousand members, followed in number by Catholic Christians, and other smaller religions. A sizeable number are members of the non-religious Humanist-Ethical Society, and in our time, many are what we can call ‘culturally Christian’, meaning they are not active members in any congregation but attend major religious events occasionally.
Ch Shujaat meets Ijaz-ul-Haq In Pakistan, Islam plays a central role in people’s everyday life, and most men attend ‘namaz’ or ‘salah’ prayers five times a day. Christians, Hindus and others attend their religious ceremonies, but none of them are held as frequently as the Muslim prayers. In all religions, prayers are key elements of faith. In Islam, it is considered essential along with giving ‘zakat’ to charity. The Bible gives similar emphasis of worshiping God and doing to others what we want others to do unto us, as Jesus/Isa’s advised (Luke 6:31and Matthew 7:12), commonly referred to as the ‘Golden Rule’.
Now then, it wasn’t my intention in today’s article to go deeply into theology, but I wanted to stress that behind and above politics, there is religion, too. Yet, considering the election time and the establishment of a new government in Pakistan, and the many other countries in the world that hold elections this year (maybe up to half of all countries), it is a fact that we include religion and values when considering secular politics. In Muslim countries, religion is seen as part of secular rule. But also in other countries, even in today’s secular Europe and America, Christianity still plays a role, less for dogma and doctrine, but certainly for values.
Three die, 18 injured as passenger wagon plunges into ravine in Hajeera A friend who read my article last week told me that she didn’t like it very much, saying that I had not been concrete enough but rather philosophical and general. She was right, but then I had written the article like that on purpose because I wanted to say that even if we disagree on party politics and other issues of the day, there are still broader issues to consider beyond politics. True everything is politics, but politics is not everything, as the title of today’s article reads.
When Gro Harlem Brundtland (b. 1939)) was PM three times in Norway in the 1980s and 1990s, many people were quite intrigued by the fact that her husband Arne Olav Brundtland (b. 1936) was a member of the Conservative Party while she was in the Labour Party. He even stood as a candidate for parliament, but without success. In those days, married couples usually voted for the same party, and that was usually the party which the husband supported, since people usually thought a man would know more about politics than his wife. Eventually, the PM and her wife became members of the same political party, notably the wife’s party. Recently, Gro Harlem Brundtland also revealed that she quite admired her major political opponent in her time, Kåre Willoch (1928-2021), who was a PM for some time, too. We all thought they disliked each other, but she said that was not the case and she had great respect for his precise analyses and knowledge, even when they disagreed.
FTO decided Rs17,742.16m refund claims in 2023 I would like to underline at the current time of general elections and negotiations for creating a cabinet in Pakistan, that politics is certainly important. Yet, there are at the same time more issues that unite than that divide people. Those in power should also consider the opinions of the minorities. However, that does not mean that we should expect the opposition to accept the majority outright in all cases. The opposition has an essential parliamentary role in keeping an eye on the party or parties in power. Perhaps I should add, though, that for the sake of stability and good democratic behaviour, the majority should be given a chance to rule, preferably throughout the parliamentary term they have been elected for, which, however, has not yet become common in Pakistan. Serious and honest politics is important, but not politicking for the sake of it.
We should realize that the general elections are the top of the iceberg, certainly mandatory in democracies, but we should still realize that there are many other important political and administrative activities at national, provincial and district levels, which also include the civil and military services, the judiciary, the private sector, civil society, and more, even informal aspects and the way we live and contribute in everyday life. The role of the superstructure of a society, where religion has a special prominence, is essential, but general values are also important, our ways of thinking, our history, lessons from other peoples and countries, and so on, shaping our daily life and future aspirations and hopes.
2nd polio drive of 2024 to start on Feb 26: DC Although politics is important; it is everything, as the title of my articles says, but at the same time adding that everything is not politics. After the general elections, we ordinary people should take a break and let the leaders at the top in political parties and in other key places, including the media, do their work. The rest of us should observe and keep our interest up, express our opinions in polite and constructive ways and realize, too, that maybe what we think and believe will not be implemented immediately, or at all, but we still keep working for it. As ordinary people, we should also focus on improving things where we are, in our communities and settings.
Finally today, I would like to underline that politics at the top in political parties, the parliament and government, and at lower levels, should not be too hard and uncompromising – which seems to be the case in many. It should be pleasant, even fun to take part in important political work. For youth to spend time and energy on politics in future, it must be made more attractive than it often is today so that democracy can improve and flourish. In the West, with numbers from the Varieties of Democracies Institute in Gothenburg, Sweden, figures show a major decline in membership in political parties in recent decades. That is worrying for the future, and it can give room for populist and other less democratic groups. I hope that we will see a revival and renewal of social and political parties in old and young democracies. It is up to us all to realize that, especially the youth, who will also include modern communication technologies and new ways of working, locally and internationally.
KKKUK starts MPhil programme
Atle Hetland
The writer is a senior Norwegian social scientist with experience from university, diplomacy and development aid. He can be reached at atlehetland@yahoo.com
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