A society fragmented

Whenever class differences increase in a society, they result in social and political disintegration which the lead to fraying of the social fabric. In the past, many societies have faced such a crisis when class conflict became a threat for the existence of a society. Those societies that took some steps to minimise or end this conflict were saved from chaos and disorder but those that failed to resolve the situation faced delegation which led to extinction.
To elaborate, we can take the example of ancient Greece. Solon, the famed Athenian lawmaker, found society facing a class conflict which disturbed peace and order. The aristocracy, intoxicated by its wealth, power, and privileges treated the lower classes contemptuously. If a peasant failed to pay the loan of a landlord, he seized his land and enslaved him and his family. In some cases, they were sold as slaves in the markets. As slaves, they could be shifted to other countries. It resulted in the break up of families and extreme misery for the common people. The result of this policy was that there was anger and bitterness among peasants and common people against the aristocracy which disrupted social harmony and peace of the society.
Solon, realising the consequences of the policy, introduced important laws to resolve it. First, he prohibited the enslavement and subsequent sale of Athenian citizens. Secondly, he restored much of the seized land to peasants. These two important laws changed the structure of society in definitive ways. They, on one hand, established the principle of freedom, and on the other hand, provided security to the impoverished peasants. Although aristocrats protested about losing their power and privilege but he resisted their pressure determinately and successfully implemented these laws.
Moreover, he ordained by law that every citizen of Athens was to be a member of a general assembly which would take decisions regarding important political and social matters. This empowered the common people. They acquired a respectable and dignified place in the society. The result of this policy was that every Athenian citizen was ready to defend his country at the time of crisis because they were not just defending merely a city but were also protecting their own rights and status. When the Persians invaded Greece with a strong army, these Athenians fought against them and defeated them in the battlefields. Their nationalism emerged from below and not from above. There was no professional army but every citizen was obliged to serve in the army at the time of invasion.
This is lesson of history, that if people are treated well and on the basis of equality, they are ready to defend their country from internal and external threats. If they are abandoned by the ruling classes and contemptuously treated, they have no interest in protecting the properties and privileges of the aristocracy.
When we study and analyse the history of Pakistan, we find that since 1947, the gap between rich and poor has been increasing. In the early period, there was a time when people from different classes used to live in the same mohalla or locality, their children used to study in the same government schools, colleges and universities, they used to go the same government hospitals for treatment etc. However, gradually, the situation has changed drastically. A rich class emerged that accumulated wealth by illegal means. They are corrupt bureaucrats, businessmen, smugglers, and army officials who, by violating the legal framework of the society, distinguish themselves as the privileged class. They have separated themselves from the common people by being ensconced in their cordoned off separate residential areas, and by establishing their own schools, colleges, and universities. Those who are super rich go abroad for treatment, education, and entertainment.
In the rural areas, peasants are at the mercy of their landlords who are free to keep them in private jails or punish them for any ‘disobedience’ by violating all laws. The Hindu peasant tribes such as Bhil, Koli, and Megawar are treated as outcasts. In an age of democracy, they have no rights and are marginalised as communities. Same is the case in other parts of the country where gypsies and wandering tribes are not included in the mainstream and live on the fringes of society.
In the case of religious minorities, political and social rights are denied to them. They are treated as secondary citizens. They are discriminated against and are not eligible to be appointed to high posts.
In such a fragmented society, appeal for unity looks like a joke. The only weapon which is used by the ruling classes is to appeal to nationalist emotions. National songs are broadcasted by television and radio channels to create national sentiments among people. This is nationalism from above, not from below. That’s why, it is hollow in its appeal. People are approached to sacrifice for the country without realising that how could the illiterate, sick and downgraded wretched of the earth, who have no energy, no power, and no consciousness come forward to rescue the ruling classes in the time of crisis.
The rich and powerful classes have alienated the common people. They have abandoned them to their fate and left them in a state of poverty and misery.
History tells us that in such a situation, rich and privilege classes lose all sympathies of the people. Their only interest is how to survive in an economic crisis, how to save their lives from epidemics and pestilence. Why should they sacrifice to save and protect indifferent rulers and their wealth?
As class differences are increasing in our society, people are becoming more embittered by each passing day. Finding no alternative, these people either resort to crimes or take refuge in extremism and fundamentalism. We can’t allow this crisis of inegalitarianism to play havoc with our societal structure.

The writer is one of the pioneers of
alternate history in the country.