International Day for the Eradication of Poverty – October 17
By Qundeel Aymen
Poverty is a scarcity of possessions in general term. If we read between the lines, poverty is actually absolute poverty. It is an open violation of basic human needs. It is a cyclic process that is engulfing fundamental rights and subsequent generations are also suffering. Many developing countries are facing the music of poverty.
It is enough to blame the poor for their own asperity. Are they solely responsible for their miserable plight? Invoke yourself and the answer will be No. The intricate web of illiteracy, financial bailout, natural calamities, over population, epidemic, inflation and unemployment are the root causes of it. Sometimes exploitation, by force or influence occurs that is the first in the catalog of the catastrophe. For the poor, God appears in the loaf of bread.
At this stage, we will have to be asked, the answers to such uncomfortable questions and solve it. We are not doomed to live with complications, complexities and contradictions. With heavy heart and great magnitude of grief, it is going to be jotted down consequences of poverty.
Sometimes, globalization seems to be a clutch. Silently, it delineates colonialism. To attract the poor investment, the developing countries entered the spiral race to see who can provide cheaper resources. It leads to lower standards. Suppose, a huge amount of fresh and healthy vegetables and fruits are exported but the rotten vegetables and fruits with little weevils are destiny of that country which is producing them. Is it not ironical? The ultimate benefit of globalization goes to the developed countries. Does the slogan of globalization useful?
The financial bailout is one of the greatest hurdles in the way of progress. The conditional loans are swallowing the very integrity of the economy. Meanwhile, inflation and unemployment add fuel to fire. Owing to poor strategies, the poor are being marginalized. One day, they will kick off from the main stream of life. The death is waiting beneath the poverty line. This discrimination agitates social cohesion that increases crime and violation, and a civil war is waged.
Being an educated person, it is a dubious honor if our family member or our next-door neighbor cannot read and write. Children are the shining jewels in the crown of civilization. When the jewels are rusted, what would be the worth of crown? All the developed countries invest in children to shape up the nation, but in the developing countries, they are bearing the brunt of poverty.
Now, some solutions are going to be illustrated. If every person teaches at least two children with full attention and free of cost, the clouds of ignorance will be vanished. The rain of knowledge will be showered equally and the drops themselves irrigate the barren land. If every person makes his own garden and exchange goods and services with better quality, the malnutrition will be ended in smoke. Ultimately, we have to go back to the organic food. Why not we start a journey now? If the government chalks out poor friendly strategies to cope with the unemployment and inflation, the poverty will be no more chasing. If every doctor checks up to two patients and every pharmacist gives medicine to them free of cost, the ferocious burden of poverty will be lessened from the shoulders of developing countries. The sophistication must be the disguise decadence. Usually women are hankering after new trendy designer dresses even the poor ladies are not immune to it. If they all appear in dress code like Abaya and Hijab, the prejudice between elite and lower class will be shunned. In this way the women are treated like a woman. The core recipe to wipe out poverty is correspondence with policy and practice. Islam is the code of life. It hears the voice of the poor. The Zakat system is the best solution. Zakat regulates the circulation of money. Money is blood and religion is the pumping organ. If the blood accumulates in some body parts, it will burst the very structure. The morass of poverty is not stagnant. It does not only help the needy, but also purifies the wealth of the rich. Both the public and private sector will have to work together with falling into personal grudges. The employment of country resources will halt the regression in one way or another. On humanitarian grounds, a philanthropy atmosphere should be established. It will defend both social and moral values.
To cap-up the discussion, it is enough to say;
Born a poor is not cursed, but die a poor is a curse.
Qundeel Aymen is a Freelance writer based in Riyadh. She can be reached at: dil.aymen@gmail.com
