Dawn is the most prestigious newspaper in the Pakistani print media. One of its aptly included sections is ‘Letters To The Editor’. This Monday, there was a certain piece in the said section, which was titled: ‘Stray Animals’. The letter was a brief take on how stray animals are inimical to human beings, and how human beings should deal with the issue in a kind manner, so as not to hurt the innocent, voiceless strays.
The writer of the letter, Aliza Arifeen, began with the following postulate : ‘These animals pose a serious threat to public health and safety.’
This statement is packed with a peculiar rationality, one that we cannot deny is veracious in its being. Though, it may hurt the sentiments of those readers who have an unconditional affinity for the voiceless – people like me who understand the fact that the strays are akin to that particular set of subaltern who cannot and will not ever be able to speak.
We later see a shift in her tone and lexicon when she portrays that she cares not solely about humans, but about the voiceless as well. She asserts: ‘As a citizen who cares about the welfare of both the humans and animals…’ This shift makes animal lovers heave a sigh of relief. The article is a very terse one, thus the gloom filled impact of the former point might be an ephemeral one. Although, it will still prick one’s heart upon reflecting how that statement of hers isn’t entirely wrong.
It wouldn’t be a claim of mendacity if one says ‘Strays can be dangerous for humans.’ That statement is sufficiently strong to make an animal lover cry, owing to the following facts :
- It cannot be denied.
- The animals cannot help it. They pose a threat when faced with threat, and not many humans understand that
- Humans barely do anything about it.
- Allegedly, shelters, after making a name for themselves, start misusing the funding that they get.
My response to the letter, and to Aliza’s insight is one filled with positivity and hope. I hope Aliza’s suggestion creates a positive impact. I hope the government does something for the innocent strays. I hope shelters create safe havens for these subaltern babies. I hope we humans can deal with the voiceless in a manner brimming with mercy.
I hope that we never stop hoping for the ones who cannot hope for themselves.
Comments (9)
Muhammad Atifsays:
July 20, 2023 at 8:07 amcoolest message in this regard because of mentioning the care of those strays too.
Fatima Alisays:
July 20, 2023 at 10:48 amJust trying my best to be as humane as I can be :’)
Thank you for the comment! Let’s keep it going xD
Duaa e Mustafasays:
July 20, 2023 at 8:30 amwhat was your focus while writing this response basically what compelled you to write this response ?
Fatima Alisays:
July 20, 2023 at 11:06 amThank you for the question Dua.
The factors that compelled me to write this response are as follows :
1- I wanted to dissect Aliza’s diction and opinion on ‘Strays’ and the ways in which we can ease their pain. (The reason of this is that this particular topic is very close to my heart, so its mostly a sentimental reason).
2- I wanted to put forward the point that animals are dangerous only if humans are dangerous or reckless when it comes to taking care of them.
3- I love the way Aliza has framed her opinion, barring the fact that she has mentioned the subaltern i.e. animals in this case, only after mentioning humans. Humans enjoy the liberty of voicing their opinion and deciding their actions, and animals do not have that liberty. Hence, we should focus more on the voiceless in this scenario, and only after that should the topic of the ‘voiced ones’ arise.
Jiya Khansays:
July 20, 2023 at 11:35 amIn the first portion as she mentioned she says “Stray animals are a threat to human life”..what I observe is that human life is a threat to these voiceless beings. Keeping aside all the diseases …A dog for example would never react if it doesn’t feel any threat coming his way ….we see that our kids playing in the streets would always run after these dogs teasing them, hurting them with stones in a result of which they react ..and that would definitely cause disease..
The other portion is then a bit sigh of relief but the authorities could hardly work upon the idea given and if they do so…we will still see stray animals because all the finances “in the name of stray animals” would be there in their banks rather than actually using it for the voiceless.
Jiya Khansays:
July 20, 2023 at 11:44 amIn the first portion as she mentioned that “stray animals are a threat to human life”..what I observe is that human life is a threat to these voiceless beings. Keeping aside all the diseases …A dog for example would never react if it doesn’t feel any threat coming his way ….we see that our kids playing in the streets would always run after these dogs teasing them, hurting them with stones in a result of which they react ..and that would cause disease..
The other portion is then a bit sigh of relief but the authorities could hardly work upon the idea given and if they do so…we will still see stray animals because all the finances “in the name of stray animals” would be there in their banks rather than using it for the voiceless. And the other thing is they are not capable of doing anything regarding this issue or else they would never like to have this kind of miserable life.
Fatima Alisays:
July 21, 2023 at 6:51 amI totally agree with you Jiya. We should work more on being humane towards the voiceless first. If we’re good to those who cannot speak, we’ll automatically be good to those who can :’)
Let’s work on making this world more melioristic :’)
Jiya Khansays:
July 21, 2023 at 7:17 amI hope so.. wish we could create a better world for them
Duaa Mustafasays:
July 20, 2023 at 4:08 pmthank you so much Fatima for answering my question.
point no# 2 and 3 are so right, couldn’t agree more.