Mujeeb Jaihoon’s hard-hitting poem on the society’s willful blindness to injustice—where vanity thrives, but the cries of the oppressed go unheard.
Commuters and pedestrians
Put up hours in congestion.
“Let’s build parks and gardens,
Spacious footpaths, precious flowers.”
The poor are hungry and jobless,
Empty stomachs, emptier wallets.
“We need more devotional festivals
And rot in riots, wrought in Divine ecstasy.”
Raped, razed, and gas-chambered,
Humanity hangs crucified on the Z-cross:
“Displace, dispossess the natives,
Since, the scenic spot is all we need.”
The reigning ostriches continue
To bury their heads in the sand,
Blinded by their rose-colored glasses,
They slumber in cowardly indifference.
Feb 11 2025 | Shaban 12, 1446
Words which touches the heart deeply
As a lawyer in Uzbekistan, I’ve seen how society often turns a blind eye to issues of justice and fairness. Jaihoon’s use of powerful imagery is a stark reminder of how indifference allows suffering to continue unchecked. The poem’s structure is both rhythmic and blunt, keeping the urgency of the message alive throughout. The metaphor of “ostriches” burying their heads really hit home for me—it perfectly captures the societal tendency to avoid unconventional and uncomfortable truths. This poem is a strong call to face the things we would rather ignore, especially when they are so important.