Baba

4th September, 2009: I was attending a seminar hosted by Amina Masood, chairperson Defence of Human Rights, struggling for the release of the Missing Persons phenomena that has evolved in Pakistan post 9/11, 2001. As I heard different national and international speakers speaking, my attention was caught by a little boy of about four standing on a chair in front of me. He was holding a picture.

I asked about the boy. I got to know that his father is among the missing persons; the child has never seen his father and neither has the father seen the child. The picture that he was holding up was that of his Baba.

It was a shock and a realization.

My husband and I have been living separate for about two-and-a-half years. It is not an issue of divorce, separation or even problems with each other. My husband and I have an excellent relationship. It is just that my husband’s job got transferred to Lahore and I continued my studies in Islamabad.

As the separate living began to take its toll, my son and I used to sit in front of Allah SWT and pray, pray hard to Allah SWT that Baba gets a transfer back to Islamabad, or may be a new job in Islamabad. Till that a time, we were making-do with weekend visits.

Once, his Baba mistakenly left behind his sweatshirt. My babysitter told me that he found his Baba’s sweatshirt lying on the mattress and began caressing it lovingly, saying ‘Baba…’.

In another visit, as he saw his Baba packing up, he hurriedly brought out his shoes and began pushing his feet inside them, muttering ‘I will go with you Baba…’ (He had yet not learnt to put on his shoes).

Yet another time, as Baba explained to him that he was going to ‘office’ and that he was too young to accompany him, he measured himself from head to toe and said ‘Look Baba, I am big now. I can go with you…’.

When I used to take him to the park, I tried to play Mama and Baba both, but it was getting difficult for me to be sporty and upbeat all the time especially with another child on the way and me myself feeling the depression of the absence of my husband.

So we began to pray. I would make my son sit in front of me on the Ja’e Namaz and together we would hold our hands up to Allah SWT, praying for a reunion of the family, praying for Baba to return to us.

Yet, I would secretly implore Allah SWT…’O’ Allah, do not You see these little hands praying unto You? O’ Allah, do not You feel Mercy for this little child? O’ Allah, You are Al-Qadir, Powerful over Everything, cannot You bring back Baba to us?’

Allah SWT replied me by the standing up of that four-year-old, who stood up holding his missing Baba’s picture at the seminar of Amina Masood.

Do not we see the families of Missing Persons knocking door-to-door since several years? Do not we feel mercy for the plight of these Missing Persons and their families? Cannot we, a nation who brought back the CJ to his office, do anything, anything at all for the issue of Missing Persons?

Cannot we attend their protest calls to strengthen their cause? Cannot we write to the authorities registering our concern for their plight? Cannot we financially help the ridden families whose bread-winners have been snatched away? For details, please visit www.dhrpk.org and www.musawemeen.blogspot.com.

The dilemma of my child and I is only as much of a decision where I decide to give up my studies and shift to Lahore with my husband. What about the dilemma of the families of Missing Persons? Which flight should they book to instantly reach their loved-ones? Which flight should the four-year-old take to reach his Baba today?