Hats off to the Sons of Soil!

Youm-e-Shuhada is a day to remember the brave and courageous souls which departed for us. It’s a day to acknowledge the sacrifices of those soldiers who defended their country at their best and offered their lives for this cause. Soldiers, whose primary objective always remain to defend their land with passion and belief. They are the symbol of sacrifice and nation pride. On 30th of April, Forces and Nation address this day in respect to those soldiers, who laid their lives for protecting their motherland. Speakers and writers come forward to pay tribute to these national heroes. Here one should not forget the sizeable number of dear and near ones of the martyrs who suffers from immense mentally trauma after loosing their loved ones.

Focus of Pakistan Army always remained on governing and serving Pakistan. Nation salutes these martyrs because we feel proud to have such fighting tigers, who always step forward to fight with enemies. We owe a debt to these great souls, who served the nation well, who hugged death for the good of Pakistan. They will be always in the heart of this nation. These are our heroes. They instigate sense of security and hope. They are the mark of our self-esteem. They put their lives on a line to make us safe.

Our Army is the largest military branch in the country. It has the status of being powerful, experienced, and professional army. Pakistan Army with an active force of 619,000 personnel and 528,000 personnel in reserve makes Pakistan a seventh largest military force in the world. Pakistan Army jawaans are serving this land since 1947. The main responsibilities of the army are to protect the borders, security of administrative areas, and defending the national interests of Pakistan. They have been involved in four wars. But beside these responsibilities Pakistan Army played an important role in war on terrorism. A large number of soldiers are deployed on different places for the military operation against militants. The lives given by hundreds of young officers and soldiers of the Pakistan Army in fighting militant outfits during Operation Rah-e-Rast and Rah-e-Nijaat should be acknowledged globally. Approximately around 2,400 personnel lost their lives and another 6,500 were wounded in 2009-2010. In comparison, US/NATO forces in the region combined had a casualty figure of approximately 1,600. This just goes to show that the price paid by the Pakistani nation in pursuit of elimination of terrorist elements has been very high. The Operation of Bajaur is a great success story by security forces. Over 1600 militants were killed in the operation including some important commanders and foreigners while 86 security forces personnel also embraced shahadat for restoring peace in this area. In addition to its role on the War on Terror, Pakistan Army is also responsible of contributing towards the United Nations peacekeeping efforts. Pakistan Army recently grabbed the title of being the largest active force in the peacekeeping efforts by the United Nations. Many soldiers embrace shahadat in these peacekeeping missions. We honor all these martyrs who offered their last breath to protect our nation day and night from the terrorists and other anti-Pakistani national interests. It is also the time to give tribute to the soldiers of Siachen. They deserve immense admiration as they are silently sacrificing their today for ours tomorrow since last twenty-eight years. We daily talk about the fatalities of drones’ attacks and bomb battering, we promenade against Nato supply but before this incident we never spoke about the martyrs and affectees of Siachen. These 139 soldiers ensured the safety and security of Pakistan’s borders; they are the redeemer of Pakistan’s honor and dignity. These are our real heroes, the silent saviors of this land.

People will always love their soldiers who are fighting this war on frontline and this reality will not change. It doesn’t matter how the world injected hatred in them. The martyrs of Pakistan Army need to acknowledged and respected for many years to come. They have sacrificed the most precious thing for our safety. The nations, who do not acknowledge their true heroes, live a purposeless life. We salute our Army for having such soldiers who can risk everything for the safety of this country and its people.

In short, Pakistan Armed Forces role in establishing the peace and saving motherland will certainly be remember as tremendous character of future Pakistan History. Pakistan has played a brilliant role in the war against terrorism while its sacrifices and services are hard to be undermined. The role of Pakistan Army deserves to be acclaimed nationally and internationally, it has always played a significance role in countering militancy and extremism. People always love these warriors who fight for their country instead of politicians who run their country, because we will always find Jinnah’s photo in a meeting of military officials and our national flag in our hands while in a battle field. Conversely as politicians are concern, we will always see their own party leader’s photos in their meetings and their party flags in their public gathering. Our soldiers are our heroes to inspire, they are more than celebrities. They achieve something which our young admirers can relate.

Salute to these martyrs who when surrounded by enemy, with bullets and rockets hurling past their ears are asked by their commanders that “This is the moment we were made for, this is the day we were trained for, this is the day our mothers fed us for and this is the moment our fathers prayed for glory! I cannot force you to embrace death, which seems inevitable in this situation, so I beg for your advice. We all have to die, if somehow He wishes to give us some more time, we might end up dying on beds, but we all used to shout back in our training days – Live like Ali, Die like Hussein. So do you want to live like Hazrat Ali Sher-e-Khuda and die like Hazrat Imam Hussein?” The soldiers without any slightest of utters stood up, say “Nayar-e-Haidri ” – ” Ya Ali ” amongst the sound of bullets and pointed their guns towards enemies. Even after watching their jawaans wounded and martyred they never retrieve and always move forward in the rain of bullets without any fear. Hats off to these brave sons of soil, who in the valleys of fire, in the thunder of bombs, they just do not stop. Knowing that they are surrounded by death, knowing that they could leave their wives widows and children orphans, They just keep on moving because something is pumping in their hearts and flowing through their veins known as honor, devotion and motivation, ‘Death over surrender’- ‘Death before Disgrace’. All these martyrs were sons, brothers, husbands and fathers, but foremost they were soldiers and proudly upheld the obligation to global cause and national ideology for peace above and beyond personal responsibilities and relationships.

We salute their courage. It is obvious that their spirits are very high. Their sacrifice of for this nation will never be forgotten by the people of Pakistan. Despite of all the negativity and issues in Pakistan, these brave men give us hope and give us inspiration that if these sons of soil are ready to die for their motherland then no doubt we have an army of 16 crore willing to die for the Green Flag! 

Maimuna Ashraf