Neither the United Nations nor the sanctimonious West has covered itself with glory by showcasing their pusillanimous inaction in the face of the Taliban's operations aimed at destroying not just statues, but an invaluable part of the world's cultural heritage. Religious fundamentalism almost always militates against the development of the finer aspects of human civilisation, though religions have contributed to the enrichment of philosophy, art, literature, and crucially, human sensibility. Even Marx acknowledged this when he wrote that religion was the heart of of a heartless world and the sigh of the oppressed. Fundamentalism has always sought to deny the legitimacy of the corporeal form, by valorising the sphere of the spiritual. By doing so, it rejects the celebration of the material world, central to human existence. In India, the Bhakti movement made a humanist statement which traditional, caste-bound Hindu society had to come to terms with. Much later, in Latin America the "Liberation Theology" of the Catholic Church espoused the cause of individuality for the exploited peasants. That is the essence of religion - empathy in the search of a more equitable world.
It is intolerable that religion should be invoked to engage in the Taliban's brand of vandalism. Destruction of statues goes hand in hand with arbitrary social sanctions - injunctions that deny women their fundamental human rights, for instance. Talibanic Afghanistan is a travesty of humanity.
Unfortunately, it is now a Frankenstein which its sponsors cannot control anymore. The Taliban have brushed aside Pakistan's appeal to spare the priceless monuments it has vowed to destroy. The rest of the Islamic world has either ignored this act of barbarism or failed to dent the Taliban's resolve. Given the fact that the Western world, especially the US, has played not an inconsiderable role in the rise of the Taliban, the world has the right to expect that today's sole superpower will take immediate steps to subdue the Taliban's latest initiative. The US has shown great resolve in its attempt to have Osama bin Laden extradited. The UN has imposed sanctions against Afghanistan for sheltering him. But in a case where narrow national interest is not involved, the West has shamefully disengaged itself from what is a civilisational responsibility. It is time that the UN undertook a mission to restrain the Taliban. Since its sanctions have not worked to restrain them, it will have to think in terms ofpressurising their principal patron - Pakistan. More pro-active measures including punitive attention should be considered if that does not work. It is intolerable that the whole world stands and watches as a militia of lunatic bigots stamps on everything that human civilisation stands for.
This editorial from The Pioneer has been edited for space
Copyright © 2001 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
