KARACHI: “The essence of Communism is in the uniting of workers of the world,” said Abid Hassan Minto, president of the Awami Workers Party (AWP), at the launch of his book Apni Jung Rahe Gi at the Arts Council of Pakistan on Friday.

“Around the time when restrictions were imposed on Leftist parties here, all of the country’s trade unions, including the peasants’ associations, were associated with them. The peasants would be sidelined by the landlords at the time of harvest. They demanded change. It was our effort that resulted in the International Kisan (Peasant) Conference in the early ‘70s in Toba Tek Singh.

“Our party members moved in the rural areas to mingle with the peasants in order to spread awareness among them and invite them to the conference. The Tenancy Act came about as a result of that first Kisan Conference, which was also attended by such intellectuals as Faiz Ahmed Faiz. Its impact could be felt when the next government of Mr Bhutto came into power and the much-needed land reforms came about, followed by the second land reforms of 1977.

“So our history is not really what you see in history textbooks. There is more to it than pictures and glorious stories of conquerors and generals. It is the stories of the common people and their struggles. And these struggles were brought about by gaining the ability to think and to question. That’s what the communist parties did. And that’s what they are still doing to help the country prosper,” Mr Minto said while stressing that Leftists were not against religion, as was often assumed about them, they just thought that religion was a personal matter and not something to be flaunted.

“To reach out to the majority of people in Pakistan, Jinnah gave up his three-piece suits and two-tone shoes to adopt the ajkan and cap. But his speech of August 11 carried his original thinking that the state has nothing to do with religion,” he said.

Talking about the ground realities that the people of this country are not even aware of, he said that “our issues are not whether Imran Khan is getting married for a third or fourth time, neither do they have anything to do with banners which carry messages such as ‘don’t go’ and ‘please come’. “Such things are highlighted to bring forth non-issues so the real issues remain hidden. Issues are the issues of the common man. You need to resolve the issues of the common people in order to help your country prosper,” Mr Minto said.

Speaking on the occasion, scholar Dr Jaffar Ahmed said that perhaps the Leftist parties couldn’t do much after being banned earlier but they had raised awareness of several aspects of life among many here. “Most here see Leftists as irrelevant but it is good that comrades pen their experiences. Doing so they are leaving treasure troves for us on the basis of which we can look forward towards a better future while gaining a better understanding of the past through their reflections,” he said.

“Minto’s book tells us about the true character of this state and the role of radical parties in the 21st century and how progress like the IT revolution affects us,” he said.

Dr Riaz Shaikh of the Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology (Szabist) said that the book gave hope that the Left’s war was still on. “Minto writes about the international social movement, Pakistan’s history in light of various political parties and also about globalisation, which are the three most important points in his book,” he said.

“He has looked back into history to tell how communism fared through the years, what is the link between feudalism and democracy in Pakistan, how the lack of industrialisation here hurts democracy, aspects involving all people here, the character of the ruling classes, electoral reforms and how they can change the ruling classes. He has also discussed the good and bad aspects of globalisation,” he said.

Yousuf Masti Khan of the Awami Workers Party appreciated the book’s depth of knowledge and how the author’s style of writing forced one to think.

Poet Muslim Shamim, Advocate Javed Kazi and Advocate Akhtar Hussain of the Awami Workers Party also spoke.

Published in Dawn, July 16th, 2016