Pakistan: Debunking Popular Cultural Stereotypes

Probably one of the most interesting topics for international students at Concord University is the culture in their home countries. Some countries are not known to most Americans, and international students try hard to change this unfortunate situation. Other countries might be unfairly represented in media, which makes representatives of these countries put effort into explaining how things really are.

    Participants of the Global UGRAD program in Pakistan  - Sarmad Hassan (who was mistakenly left out from the previous article about the program), Danish A. Khattak and Fawad Ahmed, who came to Concord for a semester as exchange students, see spreading awareness of Pakistani culture as one of their main goals. To achieve it, they also have to deal with a pre-existing image of Pakistan in American media, which Sarmad, Fawad and Danish find quite biased. They name several of the most common stereotypes about Pakistan which are not only unfair, but are sometimes harmful to further development of the country. Some of these beliefs are that Pakistan is a war zone with constant terrorism activities, and that the country is extremely undeveloped and has high gender insensitivity. 

    “Not everyone in Pakistan is a terrorist,” says Sarmad, “I am surprised that people even think like that. There are some unwanted forces that have entered our country without our permission and our government and military is taking steps to fight them to the best of their abilities.” For example, he says that there was a successful military operation Zarb-e-Azab which was conducted in many northern areas of Pakistan to suppress terrorism in those regions. Fawad says that, “In reality Pakistan is more of a peaceful country, with exception of tribal areas who have got some governance issues. But in recent times, tribal areas are also cleared.”

    Danish points out that “The media highlights only the negative images of Pakistan but no one knows that we are a peaceful and hospitable nation with a lot of tourism sites, like the world’s largest deep sea port and the second highest peak of the world: K-2 located in the Karakoram mountain range.” Additionally, the exchange students say that all Pakistani people are kind and known for their hospitality. Sarmad says, “Islam is a religion of peace and we totally believe in that. It would be a mistake to associate the country with wars and terrorism.”

    It is also a false belief that Pakistan is extremely undeveloped, as it is often represented in media. Sarmad shares that during his stay in the United States, many people asked him if Pakistan has any fast food restaurants or if people have access to the internet. “Of course we have all kinds of fast food restaurants ranging from McDonalds, KFC, Burger King, Pizza hut, Dominos etc. Just name any,” says Sarmad, “Similarly, Pakistan is quickly catching up on the adoption of technology. More than half of the population in Pakistan uses cell phones.” Sarmad believes that Pakistan is indeed passing through a crisis situation but its economy is experiencing an annual GDP growth rate of almost four percent. He adds that, despite the common belief that Pakistan’s economy is mainly based not on oil, it is actually rooted in the agriculture, cotton and textile industries. Almost 10% of United States’ clothing imports are covered by Pakistan.

    The image of Pakistan as a place with a high gender insensitivity is also biased. The famous activist for female education Malala Yousafzai, who was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman in 2012 is originally from Pakistan. In 2014, she became the youngest Nobel Peace Prize winner. In her bestselling book, “I am Malala,” she wrote about the struggle female students had to overcome to attend schools. However, the image of Pakistan shared in the book is gone. Fawad says, “Pakistanis love Malala for her stand during 2007 operations against terrorists in her region. But the picture she shows about Pakistan was in 2007, and if you visit the same region again, it’s one of the most peaceful areas of Pakistan now.” Sarmad mentions that many Americans assume that Pakistani girls are forced to wear burqas or hijabs (variations of garments for Muslim women to cover their head or the whole body) and have no access to education. “I would say that there is a big difference between being conservative and being an extremist and there is nothing wrong in being conservative,” says Sarmad, “Women in Pakistan do have a sense of free will and many prefer to wear modern clothes such as jeans and other fancy tops. Also, they are pursuing higher education in multiple fields. Giving an example, for this one semester Global Undergraduate exchange program for year 2016-2017, almost two thirds of selected applicants are female.”

    To increase awareness of Pakistani culture Fawad, Sarmad and Danish are planning to give presentations about their country. Fawad says that “It will include cultural highlights, traditional dance, games and Pakistani domestic cuisine.” Sarmad says that he uses every chance to share knowledge about Pakistani culture.  “I take initiatives and talk to people. I think the best way to promote the culture is to just discuss it and that is what I normally do,” says Sarmad. The Global UGRAD program in Pakistan sends almost two hundred ambassadors to the U.S. to increase awareness about Pakistani culture. “This contributes directly to mutual understanding between the two nations and helps to reduce animosity and weaken the stereotypes on both end,” Sarmad believes.