Pakistan’s first Oriental award…
I certainly did not intend to write an Op-ed on the matter when I shared a friend’s Facebook status on Sharmeen Obaid’s Oscar win on the documentary ‘Saving Face’, addressing the deeply troubling subject of acid attacks on women in Pakistan.
Amongst all the front-page news and glamour and ‘raised Pakistan’s name around the world’ that was being screamed across media channels, Facebook and Twitter (from what I hear), a radical Marxist-feminist friend of mine who goes by the name Heer Heer had rather innocently asked: “Ironic that Pakistan is celebrating its first Oscar for the movie the subject of which can put any nation to shame.”
Re-shared on my wall, ‘likes’ and comments began to float it. A debate began between ‘cynics’ and ‘patriots.’ The argument, simplistically, from the patriots was, ‘A Pakistani won an Oscar, we must celebrate.’ When the question of, ‘but does the subject deserve celebration was asked?’ The answer was, ‘but we must celebrate the recognition of Sharmeen’s bravery in telling such an important tale.’
First, the original comment was not about the content of the documentary, but the unreflected screening of Sharmeen’s Oscar winning speech, again and again. Second, it was being projected that the politics of who the documentary had spoken to, and its internal ‘politics of representation,’ were beyond questioning.
The laurels for Saving Face were independent of the questions of: who was giving the award? How was the subject depicted?
In absence of the asking of these questions, a commentator like myself felt vindicated in saying, it is either sheer ignorance or sheer laziness that allows our elite classes to receive laurels from the West without engaging in seminal work in the study of Orientalism and neo-Orientalism. The question being asked was based on the understanding that accepting the award meant reifying ‘Empire’s discourse on gender’.
This is, of course, not to deny the reality of the crime of throwing acid on women in Pakistan. Only a week ago, acid was thrown at four women in Faisalabad. The question to ask is one of the fundamental questions asked by postcolonial feminists – Gayatri Spivak to name one: what is the value of a feminist value reified by white men (Oscar judiciary) to a brown woman (Sharmeen and the acid attack victims represented)?
The Oscars, if it be remembered, are greatly contested within the Unites States. Over 70 percent of the voting academy are white males. When Halle Berry became the first black woman to receive an Oscar for ‘Best female actor,’ questions were asked by the American black community over why the first black woman to receive an Oscar had to film an explicit sex scene in order to secure the award. It is a similar question that can be asked in this context: why does the first Pakistani documentary to receive an Oscar have to present brutality against women?
Again, one is not critiquing the importance of the documentary itself here, but asking why, indeed, we are either celebrating the entire matter or are expected to be doing so.
In terms of the debate on Facebook, another friend had shared a tweet from the Oscar winning lady from June 2011 where she said, “Employees of #KESC on strike I have zero sympathy for you – you facilitate kunda connection, slow meters etc,” which he used to legitimately ask: “she received an award from a bunch of white men for her sympathy for acid attack survivors but fails to recognise that unions are a basic democratic right?” The earlier friend shared an interview of her from 2004, where she said, “Pakistan is not ready for democracy yet.”
This raises the point again: that Pakistan’s liberals suffer from selective consciousness. This is not to take away from the important step that the acid attack documentary indeed is – but rather a plea that we allow our understanding of social contradictions to expand. Sharmeen’s work in the Citizens Archive Pakistan is work I appreciate in its ability to offer nuanced histories and focus on speaking to local audiences.
The larger point is that the Oscar to ‘Saving Face’ is not located outside politics. And a celebration of it is a celebration of the particular politics that the award is about.
“Acid attacks brought Pakistan recognition. A toast is due,” as crude as it sounds, is what those celebrating are saying. The real celebration will come when PTV decides to air the documentary and Radio Pakistan decides to run its voice over.
The writer is a member of staff, a researcher at LUMS and a member of the Workers’ Party Pakistan. He blogs at voiceamidstsilence.blogspot.com and can be reached at [email protected]
Raised an important point….one should think over it.
What a stupid article. A case of having too much time on your hand I guess. If the world starts thinking like that then no body will like movies like American history X or The Godfather or anything that'll put a "nation to shame" as you put it. It's supposed to open your eyes that's the point of the movie. The oscar is not only because of the topic selected but because of a lot of other things; like music sound camera angles. It's all of that which earned the oscar. The time is to congratulate the artist on producing a masterpiece unless you want the already depressed nation not to be happy about something. The oscar will make a few people take this documentary seriously and maybe do something about those attacks. Anyways please take your green card and leave as soon as possible as we don't need cynics here. We need people who see problems identify them and strive for solutions; not the people who just want to go against "the flow" to appear "t3h sh!t" or the "in crowd".
I agree… if you cannot solve the problem, don't be part of the problem. by highlighting this issue; some awareness is built and people are more aware of this bitter reality in our soceity. so we need to highlight the ugly parts of our society and try to find its solution…
good dost
Citizen archives is located in politics too…. CAP oral history project only include stories of partition of two % muhajirs…indigenous people are with out history obviously
Hashim,
1. I agree with you on the point that the content of 'Saving Face' itself is indeed a reason for us to ask ourselves the question: 'What if the need to make this documentary hadn't risen in the first place?!' But would this rather not be more of an idealistic viewpoint; and in my opinion, the fact that is more so, being or should be a reason for celebration is not 'the acid attacks being a cause for recognition for Pakistan' (after all, achieving status of a new nuclear power was also one) but rather that a Pakistani director won the Oscar which is the first time for Pakistan, irrespective of who won it or for what. I'm sure Sharmeen's view must not be pre-acid attacks in the documentary either.
2. The fact about the acid-attack content of 'Saving Face' horrifies me as well, and the lack of literacy, humane elements and false (symbolically impotent) male pride severely bothers me too.
But you tell me, if we only write in English over here about it, where not even up to 95% and less of our local population read our concerns let alone do something about it (given their inherent apathy in addition), isn't it a better bet that a Pakistani lady has highlighted the crucial social matter in a more widely understood art form (especially more so in our country)?!
Apart from this, another appropriate and viable form that comes to my mind, especially for journalists like us, is maybe to make a good feature story in our local language Urdu and to screen it at as many places with the average local audience as possible, if the matter has to be practically addressed and done something about!!
*First paragraph, 2nd-last line: 'pro-acid attacks'
And by the way, I personally would prefer to find and implement practical ways to eradicate or at least reduce such social issues. The above is not intended to oppose anyone or to take sides with anyone else, but just my own set of opinions!
Bitter Naked Truths should be spoken out loud and clear. Attempts to belittle them and a hidden desire to ignore them should be unacceptable under any norms of life.
good article,
Anyways, the Oscar has been won, all I am wondering is how would it stop the acid attacks? I am seriously not following up on the co-relation of this documentary, would it make sweet ngo funds to flow in the country or would it have some real effects (sarcasm).
I would go further and say that the documentary serves no one except the Pakistani elite would get more funds to get their kitty tea parties running.
Spot on! Watch Oscar's choice for the best movie last year, the Hurt Locker, to know what a rich men's sham it is.
True that! Well written.
Muhammad Imran that is what he s trying to say that this issue needs attention not celebrations that we have this sucking sad issue here in Pakistan
um i guess no one noticed the selfless doctor who is fixing the victims faces.and being a role model who is also a major part of the documentary?
jealous much?
Come on..its about celebrating the fixes some people are making about this wildness its not about celebrating the wildness.. Its about celebrating the efforts and the admiration these efforts succeeded to gather!
And it ll be better to put on, as news, the global facts or what people think of an issue as whole..rather than narating you own comments or better to be said as preceptions
a documentary celebrating pakistans philanthropic initiatives. why are we having problems with that again? Hating is easy, you just need to change the lens you view things from.
Well written Hashim, I don't know if it's me being cynical but every and any appreciation/encouragement from the West raises questions in my mind. Had this been a documentary about say Drone attack victims it would have gone unnoticed. Such small things make a difference. Sharmeen has done a great job though. And issues need to be highlighted. and this bias will always exist. Something we can only come to terms with. This isn't something to be blindly celebrated, but it should serve as a wake-up call.
in order to eradicate all the issues discussed in the movie, raising awareness about the issue, on an international and national level is necessary. and that is exactly what she did. she took a step forward, and i believe that she deserved the oscar. she has motivated me, and im sure other individuals, to take a step forward and play a small part in making pakistan a better place. its easy to sit back and criticize her work. at least she is doing something about the situation, even if it is just raising awareness, which btw is the first vital step. move off the computer and go make a difference, and however small it is, it all accumulates to a significant amount of change.
There are many more other important and lingering topic that needed to be highlighted ! Such as for example the continued illegal Drone strikes courtesy CIA,killing hundreds of innocent children in Pakistan and 5 more Muslim countries ? or the cruel injustice dished out to Aafia Siddqui and many other innocent men,women and children inhumanly,physically detained ,abused and killed in Afghanistan and Iraq under the USA Justice system and their army,respectively !
criticizing is easy you dumb ass attention seeker sucker of a journalist.. look at the outcome, the attention paid to this issue, hopefully something better will come out of it.
To those who think Oscar for "Saving Face" was bad for Pakistan's image– about the image abroad, I care a hoot, when the masses WITHIN are scarily apathetic towards their own countrymen being either killed, slapped or robbed in daylight unless it is one's personal kin.
then he should study a bit more, there is change coming, Ms Chinoy has started already a movement. His headline and summary wreak of f*ed up criticism.
oh dear these movements have ripped Pakistan already
other movements are started by opportunists money-making idiots like this attention seeking bunghole.
haha!
diametrically opposed*
Some comments have still *completely missed the point*.
The issue is NOT about the documentary highlighting our problems and encouraging our philanthropy, the issue is (a) WHERE it's been aired (an avenue that is absolutely not in our best interests) and (b) our own attitude towards these serious issues – which is reflected in how we're celebrating it.
Let's face it, a lot of us would not be as "proud" of her work if it hadn't won an Oscar – it's really this "Oscar" that made all the difference, not her philanthropy. Acid attacks are a very old story in Pakistan, and many people have been working to help these cases – I'm surprised so many of us appear to have just discovered it. But for those of whom it took an Oscar to learn about this problem, great, let's hope we all now search out Pakistan's homes for acid victims and offer free legal and medical services to them as well as regular sessions and campaigns on re-educating the men on women's rights and values.
whole of a new perspective which very less people thought about but it must have be the primary one. great job man
Actually if this thing would have occured in America…i mean 'acid attacks on women'….American governement would have taken strictest of strictest measures to curb it…and the implementation would have been carried out even more strictly…Americans are doing the same against forced marriages and traditional crimes against women in Islam…which is unfortunately opposed by the liberal of the liberal or leftist of the leftist Muslim…it is real tragedy…
Eastern cultures are more brutal than Western. The west parties and is all about sex, sex, sex, while the east beats you into submission.
Both east and west have good and EVIL. Lots of evil. Great article. Most of us in America hate Hollywood. They are the main reason why our society is so screwed up….well, that and our corrupt politicians.
Thank you Hashim at least you have the guts to speak the truth; we are not a nation if we cannot think 🙂 Spoke like a true Lumnite 😉
Raised a very important point….
I am glad that the Oscar brought recognition to Ms Chinoys very important contribution in highlighting the shameful way women are treated. The philanthropic role of others is lauded. I do however agree with the author and believe that an important point has been made by the author. In the frenzy to applaud the "Oscar" award the real issue of recognising crimes against women and how we deal with the victims and culprits is being missed by many, especially the publicity seeking media and political types. The point of making the documentary was most certainly NOT an award but was meant as a service to humanity.
On the occasion of International Women Day, my Poem: Acid Attacks dedicated to Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy "SAVING FACE" a stunning achievement done by her. My poem depicts the voice of women survivors of acid attacks, who are facing countless difficulties in all walks of life.
URL Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPHejARz-r4
They You should say don't give Nobel Award to EDHI b/c he take the death bodies who are not being taken by any one or he is giving life to those whom their legally or illegally parents through in garbage box…Grow up people Grow !
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