Khaleda Zia - the 14th most powerful woman in the world!

By Mohammad Asghar



Hurray! Begum Khaleda Zia, the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, stood 14th among the 100 most powerful women of the world. This is true, because the Forbes Magazine of the United States has said so! What a great honor for the nation of Bengalis!

We Bengalis should distribute sweetmeats among friends; feed as many indigents as is possible and also organize mass prayers to thank Allah for the Kindness He has shown to us through the good offices of the Forbes Magazine of the United States.

Begum Khaleda should visit the Holy Shrine of Mecca and perform Umra immediately. She would get more “sowab” if she carries out the pilgrimage in the company of her cabinet colleagues. Allah’s mercy on her and her nation would triple should she be kind enough to take all the members of her family to perform the sacred rites of Umra along with her.

Ever since the news broke, I have been trying to find out the modality the magazine must have adopted for evaluating each of the 100 ladies before assigning them their ranks. But despite making my best efforts, I failed to find a reliable source that could have satisfied my natural curiosity.

In frustration, I contacted a friend from Bangladesh and wanted to know from him as to what were the probable qualifications based on which the Forbes Magazine has said that Begum Khaleda was the 14th most powerful woman of the world. I also wanted to know from him if her power has any relevance to the affairs of the world, and that, if her powerful position is being harnessed by other world leaders for the purpose of solving their nations’ problems.

My good friend listened to me patiently, and then promised to come back to me with his answers within a few hours’ time. Being an honest man, he kept his promise and called me back shortly. Here is what he has told me in response to my questions:

Khaleda Zia is one of the world’s most honorable women. She was born to a highly respected Muslim family of Dinajpur on August 15, 1945.  It is said that her auspicious birth had not only proved to be a boon for her parents; her arrival on earth is also believed to have changed the life of all the people of the town as well.

Seeing that their newborn daughter was blessed by Allah with the beauty of a houri and the intellect of a prophet, her parents named her Begum Khaleda, instead of Khaleda Begum. The word “Begum” is a title that can be given only to a great lady, who commands respect. It also means a wife, or the mistress of the house. Her parents were absolutely right in giving her the title of Begum: She remained a Begum during the lifetime of her ‘Shaheed’ husband; she still remains a Begum for the Bengali people, numbering over 140 million, many among whom not only admire her greatly for her benevolence, a good number of them are also prepared to lay down their lives with a view to ensuring her safety and security. Only Allah knows what would have happened to her, if her farsighted parents had not named her Begum Khaleda!

Because her sacred birth had changed the life of the people of Dinajpur, they always believed that she was their savior. Seized by a great sense of respect, they observe her birthday every year with great reverence. Its importance is surpassed only by the birthday festivities of Gen. Zia, her illustrious and martyred husband. But it is not going to remain as such for long, for Begum Khaleda Zia is on her way to earning for herself a coveted position soon that would not only eclipse all the glories that her husband had earned by laying down his life for the sake of his nation; it is also likely to overshadow the achievements of Mahatma Gandhi.

A precocious girl, Begum Khaleda completed her matriculation just in 15 years’ time in 1960. When she was about to create a storm in the campus of Surendranath College of Dinajpur, her parents got her married the same year to Capt. Zia in order to protect her from the lascivious gazes of the town’s youths. After marriage, she continued with her studies with the said college for long five years, until 1965 (see her official biography at http://search.com.bd/banglapedia/Content/HT/Z_0014.HTM), without ever caring to obtain a degree from the college.

Begum Khaleda did not obtain a degree from the college, despite remaining a student for five years, because, being a real prodigy, she knew very well that degrees played no roles in mankind’s life. It is your intellect that makes you successful and not your degrees, and Begum Khaleda Zia has proved this point to us beyond any doubt.

Undoubtedly, many young people of Bangladesh are now emulating Begum Khaleda in their lives; like her, they, too, are studying for years in colleges and universities, without obtaining degrees. This, they believe, is good for the country. The less degrees you obtain, the better chances you have not to get employed. The less people are employed the better it is for the country. After all, Bangladesh is a “Sonardesh.” All of its people do not need to exert themselves for earning a living. Is it not what the people of a Sonardesh (a country loaded with gold) are supposed to do?

My friend paused. Mistaking his pause for conclusion of his discourse, I asked him: But how does what you have said make Begum Khaleda Zia one of the most powerful women of the world?

My friend thundered: Asghor! Now I understand why people like Mr. Musfique Prodhan and others question your identity.  You have disappointed me with your stupid question.     

(Click here http://vinnomot.com/Ryad/JagedIslamDog/PradhanAsghar.htm to read his article).

You not only misspell your last name (Asghar, instead of Asghor), you are also a stupid of fist order. You are also ignorant of what has been happening around you. Do you not know what Begum Khaleda Zia is today?

Meekly, I said: No! I do not know what you are hinting at? My friend thundered once again: She is the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, you fool! She has at least four Barristers of law, trained in England, at her disposal to serve her whims and caprices. Does it not make her a very powerful woman? He asked me.

It does, I said in a low tone. But how does her ability to employ the Barristers make her one of the most powerful women of the world? I asked him in a muted voice.

My friend, somewhat cooled down, disclosed: Colin Powell, said to be one of the most respected diplomats of the world, says that Bangladesh is a moderate Muslim country. Chacha {uncle} Thomas (American Ambassador to Bangladesh) says that Jamait-e-Islami is a peace-loving political party. Don’t you know why these two luminaries are giving a clean bill of health to Bangladesh on the issue of Islamic activities that have been taking place in it for quite some time?

Made dumbfounded by his deep knowledge of modern events, I said: No. I do not know.

Taking a deep sigh, my friend confided: It is the worldwide status Begum Khaleda Zia enjoys that makes other world leaders say all the good things about Bangladesh. They know that Bangladeshi Muslim extremists have tried to kill the United Kingdom’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh. They know that the Sunni extremists have been trying to destroy the mosques of the Qadianis. They know they tried to kill Sk. Hasina, the leader of opposition, by throwing bombs in her public meetings. They also know that most of the Bangladeshi Muslims support Osama Bin Laden, yet they have never been able to collect their wits and confront her with these truths. Do you know why?

It is Begum Khaleda Zia’s power, continued my friend. The world leaders know that they cannot afford to upset her by being straightforward, lest it destroys their relationship with her. Even Collin Powell and Donald Rumsfield had to collect their tails between their legs and run away from Dhaka, when the Begum had told them at their face that she was not going to send her troops to Iraq in order to help the Americans out of their quagmire. Is there any other leader in the world, who could be as brave as the Begum is?

Do not her ‘uncompromising’ principles make her one of the most powerful leaders of the world? My friend asked me.

Timidly, I said, yes it does. Before he put down the phone, I could sense a large smile occupying his full visage. Perhaps, he was telling to himself: There is no dearth of asses in the world; look for one, and you would find thousands. This stupid Asghor is one of them!

August 21, 2004

Mohammad Asghar writes from USA. 

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