The Illusion Of Liberty Poem by DR ABRAR UMAR

The Illusion of Liberty
Dr. Abrar Umar
It is the fear of being caught.
No one speaks the truth.
We tremble before our own protectors—
guards who shield us but ravage us,
their hands reaching where they were never invited.
Schoolgirls, university women, housewives—
all bound by the same invisible chains of dread.
Every 14th August, we celebrate a slavery
wrapped in the illusion of freedom,
a gilded cage we call our own.
We exist, yet we don't.
The polished version of us has been mangled
by those who thrive on our ruin.
They leave, and their children leave.
We stay, and so do ours.
They plunder and preserve.
We are robbed and crumble in silence.
Four generations of despair weigh heavy.
We grope for foreign aid
and scrape for the courage within,
chasing the phantom of true liberty.
If my friend is slain, he's a martyr.
If another dies, he's branded a terrorist.
And sometimes, the roles switch without warning.
We fight for wealth,
we fight for despair,
dragging gods into the flames
to make hell our home.
Let me sleep.
Let me breathe.