What they teach in history books in Pakistan is very insightful.
A famous Pakistani historian says that the distorted facts and the fictitious history that is being taught in Pakistani schools is responsible for breeding hatred among the young.
Dr Mubarak Ali, a historian and editor of the magazine, Tareekh, told the audience at the Peshawar Press Club on Wednesday that the language used history and textbooks was provocative. He referred to the words conspiracies, intrigues, treachery, prejudices, enmity with Muslims, collusion, Hindu mentality and political tactics being frequently used that gave an impression that Hindus could not be friends with Muslims.
He said that the Hindu enmity was frequently mentioned in the history books.
Delivering a lecture on What should be the Pakistan studies, Dr Ali noted that history had no connection with religion and culture and that secularism was indispensable for democracy.
He said the Pakistani history had been distorted and that it was the need of hour that students be enlightened regarding the history of culture, archaeology and popular movements of different regions of Pakistan. He said folk stories and literature were an important part of history and these should be brought into the limelight.
He said the authors of the history books had not been professional with the result that the students were unaware of the true history of Pakistan.
Dr Ali refuted the frequent claim that the Muslims of the sub-continent blamed the British and Hindus for their backwardness. If we go through the real history, we find that Muslims were not as oppressed as they have been painted in the history books, he said. [Distorted history is breeding hatred]
And at the same time Communists in India are trying their best to re-write history so that some horrible incidents can be erased.
