The National Anthem and the Retired Chief Justice
Ras H. Siddiqui 

   In his letter in the ‘Link published on September 29, Mr. Ahmad German of Sacramento has accused many people of lack of patriotism towards Pakistan by their not standing up during the recitation of the national anthem at a program held to interact with Retired Chief Justice Sajjad Ali Shah. He even went so far as to point out that I would not be doing justice to my job as a reporter if I did not point this out in my report to the Link (also published in the same issue).

As a general rule I try to ignore such print and had not read the letter until I received it in a couple of e-mails too. I admire Mr. German’s patriotism and fervor, but in reacting so quickly and leaving a meeting during which he would (had he stayed) learned a bit more about how he could help Pakistan during this time of difficulty, he did not exhibit much usefulness towards either our country of origin or the local community.

He unfortunately did not take into consideration the fact that he was inside the main prayer hall of a mosque in which only the word of God is supreme. The Pakistani community in Sacramento takes much pride in its attachment to their faith and most of them, including their guest Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, did not consider it appropriate to respond beyond a seated appreciation of the National Anthem because it was inside the house of God.

Maybe before firing off irate letters to Pakistan Link maligning others if Mr. German could have posed a question to Dr. Muzammil Siddiqui about whether it is appropriate to show such respect to the National Anthem inside a mosque and get an answer printed in the Link, it would be of help to us all. Those of us who are sometimes not sure whether to clap or show other appreciation inside the prayer room of mosques could use the guidance.

If Mr. Ahmad German wants to work for Pakistan, he has several options and will find many people to team up with in Northern California. If he wants to have meetings and fundraisers for Pakistan, he is welcome to proceed and can count on my help. But I am not in the habit of listening to a couple of lines from critics who have yet to show me any community service work beyond their criticism. If I did, I wouldn’t be doing justice to this high-paying job that I have been performing for the Pakistani community for the past decade. To report questionable criticism, the easiest and cheapest way of not doing anything and by not encouraging others who are far from perfect but at least are trying, is not my ambition in life.

So if Mr. German has a problem with any individuals at the meeting, particularly with Retired Chief Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, he can state that clearly in his letters. But in this case, judging from the place that this meeting was taking place, his criticism is unwarranted. If people thought it was appropriate, we would ALL have been standing up and singing the National Anthem. But since we were inside the main prayer hall of the mosque, it was not an easy decision.