This is not Saturday night at a club in New York, London or Paris. It is the secret side of Pakistan, a Muslim nation often described in the West as a land of bearded, Islamic hardmen and repressed, veiled women.
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People dance to the beat of the house music at Centrifuge, a
Pakistani underground rave party at a farmhouse on the
outskirts of Pakistan's Capital, Islamabad early July 15, 2012.
Credit: REUTERS |
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Pakistan
was created out of Muslim-majority areas in colonial India 65 years
ago, and for decades portrayed itself as a progressive Islamic nation.
Starting in the 1980s, however, it has been drifting towards a more
conservative interpretation of Islam that has reshaped the political
landscape, fuelled militancy and cowed champions of tolerance into
silence.
But the country remains home to a large wealthy and Westernised elite that, in private, lives very differently.
Every
weekend, fashion designers, photographers, medical students and
businessmen gather at dozens of parties in Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore
to push social boundaries in discreet surroundings that would horrify,
and enrage, advocates of the stricter brand of Islam.
"This
is just epic," said Numair Shahzada, bobbing his head to the beat at a
party in a farmhouse outside Islamabad as fitness instructors
moonlighting as bouncers looked on. "The light and smoke show is
phenomenal."
Young men and women mix freely, dancing, talking or drinking. Some curl up together in quiet areas.
Although
alcohol is prohibited in the country, many have brought their own
liquor. Whisky is carried in paper bags and vodka is disguised in water
bottles arranged along the dance floor.
The
party-goers form only a tiny minority of the country's 180 million
people, but overall, Pakistan is not repressive. Women can drive, are
enrolled in universities and have played prominent roles in politics.
Unmarried men and women can interact without risking the wrath of
religious police.
People from its most populous province, Punjab, are renowned for their exuberance.
But a conservative form of Islam is chipping away at the tolerance.
A
few hours' drive from Islamabad's party circuit, parts of remote tribal
regions have fallen under the sway of hardline Taliban militants, who
dream of toppling the U.S.-backed government and creating a society
where revellers would face flogging, or worse.
"Men
and women who dance together are damned by God. Whenever we see such
displays of vulgarity we will definitely make them a target," said a
senior Taliban commander.
News reports have said a tribal council in a village near the Afghanistan
border ordered four women killed earlier this year for clapping and
singing as men danced at a wedding. The Supreme Court has ordered an
investigation, but there have been no further details.
CREEPING CONSERVATISM
While
the vast majority of Pakistanis abhor the Taliban's violence, there are
many who share their belief that Islam should be Pakistan's guiding
force. Religious parties, which do poorly at the polls but exert
considerable sway over public debate, believe Islam should govern all
spheres of life.
"It's so messed up," said Myra, a 23-year-old Pakistani who has dyed her hair reddish-brown.
"You see the servants and the drivers at the parties watching you and you wonder what kind of a person they think you are."
To
avoid prying eyes, the kind of alcohol-fuelled blow-outs enjoyed by
Myra and her friends are held in lonely farm-houses in the outskirts of
Islamabad and other cities, or in affluent neighbourhoods behind high
walls. Organisers charge on average a $60 entry fee, an amount most
Pakistanis earn in a month.
Rafia, petite with long, black hair and wearing tight jeans and a low-cut black blouse, is a regular on the party scene.
She
frowns on women who carry secret cell phones unmonitored by their
parents and wear revealing outfits under conservative dress that come
off before getting on the dance floor.
"You can either be God-fearing or you can party," she said, taking a drag on a marijuana joint at a recent rave.
"I don't pray regularly and I usually stick to my fast. But at the end of the day, I don't say I am a very religious person."
Not everyone agrees.
Bina
Sultan, 40, an attractive fashion designer, showcases nude paintings
and topless male models in shows. She also wears a silver pendant
engraved with a verse from the Koran.
"People
think I am shameless but I am actually very religious," she said at her
studio, peppering her sentences with "jaani", Urdu for darling, while
chain smoking.
"My faith is very strong. But everything I do is between my God and me."
LONELY LIBERALS
Conservatism
began sweeping through Pakistan during the military dictatorship of
General Mohammad Zia ul-Haq in the 1980s under a drive to Islamize the
state.
Zia's policies are widely blamed for a creeping culture of intolerance that has further isolated liberals.
In
an incident that traumatised the elite, the governor of Punjab
province, Salman Taseer, was assassinated by his own bodyguard last year
for opposing harsh anti-blasphemy laws.
The
reaction was almost more shocking to liberals than the murder itself.
Clerics organised huge rallies to praise the killer. Even lawyers, once
at the vanguard of Pakistan's democracy movement, showered him with rose
petals.
In the growing climate of fear, the space for liberal voices is shrinking.
Pakistani
rapper Adil Omar, who attends weekend parties, pokes fun of the Taliban
and rising conservatism in his songs. But he never goes too far.
"A
lot of people seem to be torn and seem to have an identity crisis,"
said Omar, who wears the traditional flowing shirt and baggy trousers.
His elaborate forearm tattoo featuring a semi-naked woman and a unicorn
has drawn fire on his Facebook page from some fans who see it as an
offence to Islam.
"I am careful not
to give any opinions regarding religion on the record," he said,
adding: "I don't want some crazy person chopping off my head."
(Ref: Reuters)
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