All praises to Allah who is the king and owner of dominion, the perfection and giver of peace, the all and oft forgiving, the ultimate healer.
The ongoing trauma that is complete unjust brings me here. From past few weeks I’ve seen many negative posts being circulated regarding people of Red Zones. They are being separated as if they’re untouchables or whatsoever they may call it. But in my language it’s called “Naïve” and “Indecent”. These zones have been created for ease but people are discriminating their own kinds on this basis. There have been enough taboos like caste, creed, colour and now this. Instead making boundaries, we should stand against this storm. We should give them courage and support that they’re not different and that we stand together. If people are this much concerned about their own health and safety, they should lock themselves down in their own houses rather keeping their eye balls on most suffering creatures of society, the heroes who breathe in the succumbing environ. A few miles away there’s a village Ugjan, which is one of Red Zones and also my second home, where my sisters live. They’ve been sending me such irrelevant and embarrassing things being posted on Facebook and stuff. It was written in one of the posts, “Don’t let them leave their houses.” And in other they say, “Please hide my name. There are some people who often visit our place from Ugjan. Please take our concern to higher authorities.” Sir, if you’re just on your cause and you’re really into it, why you need to hide your name rather you can be a Hero. If you’re right on your way and it’s not immoral why to do it in hypocrisy. Is this for publicity or anything that I don’t know? We take these things in a funny way, how unfaithful we’re. Instead of helping out brothers and sisters in trouble we not only separate them but also harass them by one or the other means. They’re of same race, they are not devils and we’re not angels. We learn from a number of hadiths that someone who dies from a plague (ṭāʿūn) will receive the reward of a martyr. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Whoever dies from a plague is a martyr” and “Whoever remains in a plague-ridden land patiently and hopeful of reward, knowing that only what Allah decrees will reach him, will get the reward of a martyr.” When our religion has given reward to most affected people who are we to decide fate? Being humans and doing inhumane things, under the banner of mankind doing unkind activities is not worthy of a human being. I’m so sorry, it’s so embarrassing on behalf of a community, that’s all broken, a society that’s divided into patches of apathy. This society is treating Red Zone people as outcast and if anyone is seen outside their zone, they’re being treated as traitors. Before doing anything think about it. If it’s hurting people then you’ve to pay for it. Red zoned people aren’t diseased anyway (May Allah protect them and all). They are the ones who stand in front of the tempest. They are living martyrs. Respect for the sake of humanity and brotherhood, lessons of which are from our every religion and culture.
Folks are to be kept aware about it. Epidemics are relentless. They don’t effect one but whole. Today they are suffering tomorrow can be ours. These little things prevailing among us are to be take care off. It may seem easy to taunt people but sometimes, in fact most of the times, they prove fatal. These nasty things may cause severe depression which has been a silent killer so far. While depression cannot directly kill you the way an illness like cancer or tuberculosis might, it can have certain effects that increase a person’s risk of death. It might seem trivial but it is not. In this state of Coronavirus, let’s not kill people. Do good to everyone. Let’s unite and root out these filthy taboos from of our society.
May Allah heal every one. May He protect each one of us. May we be forgiven.
Arbeena Altaf Bhat is pursuing MBBS in SUMS, Iran.