Habib Jalib
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Habib Jalib (Urdu: حبیب جالب) (born 1928 - died March 12, 1993) was one of the renowned Pakistani Urdu poets of 20th Century.
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[edit] His Life Style
He was a free spirit and "pro-poor". He never compromised his ideology for anything. As a result, he did not attach himself to any special interest group and remained poor for his entire life. He expressed his beliefs openly and paid heavily for them. While other so-called progressive leaders lived luxurious life from the money they made, Habib Jalib spend most of his life in Jail and the rest on streets.
[edit] His Accounts of Imprisonments
[edit] Ayub Khan's Martial Law
He was first imprisoned during martial law of Ayub Khan due to his leftist views on the pro-capitalist government. He wrote his legendary poem "Dastoor" those days.
[edit] Bhutto's People's Government
In 1972 when the so-called Peoples Government of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto came, many of his colleagues were able to hit fortunes. He, on the other hand, kept his integrity and stuck to ideology. As a result, he was imprisoned again alongwith other leftist thinkers like Mukhtar Rana, Mairaj Muhammed Khan, and Faiz Ahmed Faiz.
[edit] General Zia's Military Rule
In 1977 when General Zia came in power, he released all political prisoners. Habib Jalib could not bear the trauma that he was imprisoned by a peoples government and released by a pro-American military dictator. When asked for his feeling for General Zia after his freedom he said,
Sar sar ko saba
zulmat ko Zia
banday ko khuda
kya likhnaa
(How can I refer to poisonous gas as morning breeze
how can I refer to midnight darkness as dawn break
and how can I refer to man as god)
He join the democracy movement and was imprisoned again.
[edit] Benazir's Democratic Government
In 1988 General Zia died in air crash and general elections were held. Benazir Bhutto came into power and release Habib Jalib. Fortunes were distributed to those who supported the government and those whose support government excepted. Not Habib Jalib. When asked if he felt any change after democracy, he said,
" Haal ab tak wahi hain ghareeboan kay
Din phiray hain faqat waziroan kay
maqrooz hai dase ka her Bilawal
paoon nangay hain Benazeeroan kay
(The status of the poor is still the same
the days of the ministers have indeed changed
every Bilawal of the country is under debt
while Benazirs of the country walk without shoes
"
Habib Jalib was again imprisoned. Benazir lost power in 1990 to Nawaz Sharif but came back in 1993. Habib Jalib that year.
[edit] His Politcal Career
He was a progressive thinker and politician in the National Awami Party, who supported the restoration of democracy during the period of Military Rule in Pakistan and had been imprisoned for his views.
One of the most popular Awami (people’s) Poet, known for the melody in his ghazals and the loud voice of dissent against despotism and the established order in Pakistan. He was always at the forefront of the struggle for democracy.
His poetry can be divided into two parts; the first comprises ghazals composed during the period when Jalib has chosen to keep a somewhat low profile. The pitch of his protest became gradually louder in his ghazals and nazams, but the melody remained untouched.
He bravely challenged the first martial law of Ayub Khan. He wrote his famous poem “Dastoor” which even today stands as a landmark in the history of Pakistan’s political struggle and became a glowing symbol of protest literature.
That was a turning point for Habib Jalib, who then took up political activism also; a role he tried to fulfill till the end. He did not affiliate himself with any party, preferring to be freelance. He was an active participant of the trade union struggle and the rallies for democracy. He also emerged as a champion of women rights, leading protest marches by women against discriminatory laws.
[edit] Poetry
Jalib’s poetry reflected his vision and approach to life. He never deviated from his chosen path. His love for humankind, his sympathy for the underdog and his passion for the fellow-beings were reflected in his verses. What is quite significant and somewhat rare in a poet who is also charged with political ideology is his capacity to suppress his anger against the injustices and tyrannies that he witnesses in life.
Jalib himself remained a victim of a cruel social order. He was imprisoned for some time after being wrongly implicated in various crimes.
With no regular source of income he had a rootless existence but he never considered compromising with his tormentors and coming to terms with established order. And yet Jalib’s poetry only reflects his anguish. It is not an expression of his anger or frustration. At times it is pensive, couched in sarcasm but his typical soft melodious tone is always there.
Jalib was a product of the progressive movement in the sub-continent but later he became a movement all by himself.
