Guest Blog by Zeeshan Khan (@ZeeshChohan)
Perhaps there was no better time to pen this down. With the rising tensions between India and Pakistan lately, the ‘online’ soldiers from both sides have grabbed their keyboards to administer the proceedings between both countries. As the DSL connections became more and more common, there emerged a whole new generation of political supporters. The generation for who the internet revolved around MIRC, msn etc was slowly but gradually politicized. Even at a time when ORKUT was creating a buzz in the online community of Pakistan, no one ever thought that this online space will once become a battleground for future political zealots. But then, they choose sides. Skip to 2015 and no one would have in their wildest imaginations thought that many political parties would have dedicated social media cells managing their online presence. Whether it’s good or bad, is a completely different debate? Just for the sake of argument, greater participation in the political process ensures a more vibrant political canvas. And yes politics is actually about influencing your thought process in some way, so it’s kind of fair too. Having said that, there is still something immensely wrong with this ‘participatory’ element in Pakistan?
During a recent online surfing marathon I came across this line in an article, the line goes like
“Developing your own honest, genuine political beliefs. Not because you want to sound smart at parties, but because as you get older, you’re starting to become less naive and more concerned about important issues that your country faces.”