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    Book Review: Lost to The World: A Memoir of Faith, Family, and Five Years in Terrorist Captivity by Shahbaz Taseer. London, UK: Transworld 2022

    Written by: Ayesha Amir
    Posted on: October 20, 2023 | | 中文

    Book cover and the author

    Shahbaz Taseer’s memoir of captivity is a stunning tale of bravery and conviction. He was kidnapped by militants in the August of 2011, and found his way back home in March of 2016, almost four and half years later.

    This memoir is an emotional read and a page turner. Lost to the World is a statement that staying alive and finding humanity in the most difficult of circumstances, is perhaps life’s many lessons.

    Shahbaz Taseer shines through this book as an individual in his own right. He skillfully premises his tale on first telling the history of his family. Being the son of Salman Taseer, a Pakistani businessman as well as the former Governor of Punjab, who sadly was also assassinated in 2011 (a few months before Shahbaz’s kidnapping), Shahbaz Taseer explores the vessels of his own life’s privileges that stem from belonging to a Pakistani political elite family.

    A group picture of the Taseer family

    In his book, Taseer weaves the web of different stages of his life in captivity, where he adopted different personas: from “Shabby T”, “Ahmad”, “Yusuf Britannia” to finally “Shahbaz Taseer”. We see a truly transformative journey of pain, resilience, faith, love and longing.

    Gripping, right from the start, Taseer throws in the bait for readers by describing his detained circumstances. He then pauses the tale to take us through his early life. It begins with the history of his father (who remains as a constant motif of resilience and love throughout the book), his social and political career, his mother, his grandmothers, and how Taseer found a loving home in the shape of his two siblings and prominent parents. In the heart-rending tale of Salman Taseer’s murder that follows in the book, we are set on the path of a series of shocking events to come. In a thrilling narrative, Taseer uses the method of delving into the past to hold the reader's attention. It feels like the reader is experiencing and living through everything with Taseer himself. The sensations of sound, smell, touch and sight convey a sense of immediacy to the reader.

    Shahbaz Taseer after being released by the captives

    Through the use of analogies to explain his own circumstances, Taseer stays true to his thought process without filtering out any so called “negative” depictions. We see an honest spill of emotion and self-reflection, where Taseer accepts his place of privilege, ponders over how it was all upended in mere moments, and actively engages with his transformative journey: the dark moments of doubts, hesitations and crushing isolation.

    Shahbaz Taseer's first photo after being back in home after five years

    The book details the conversations and torture at the hands of Taseer’s captives. The main antagonist of the story (and Taseer’s life in those few years), Muhammad Ali, who held the fate of Taseer’s life in his hands for those several years, comes to play a central role not only in Taseer’s misery, but also in the ways in which he was able to access kindness. This is because it was Muhammad Ali’s sweet and innocent children, studious mother-in-law and kind brother-in-law, who kept Taseer’s life from falling apart completely. In an amusing and cynical tone of writing, Taseer takes the readers along with him in surmising over how all of what was happening seemed carved out of a fiction novel or a movie. It is the truth rendered to every incident that adds to its highly shocking element. We go with him from each safe-house to safe-house, town to war-torn town, to see how life in tribal and remote areas looked like for its people.

    Young Shahbaz Taseer

    The most notable aspect in understanding the context of this book, however, comes from Taseer’s ability to interlace his own life with what was at play in the social and political milieu of Pakistan and Afghanistan. By explaining the history of terrorist groups, their internal workings and turmoil, we come to see the context of his kidnapping more clearly.

    Central figures in the story remain Taseer’s incredible mother and father. The vision of his late father helps him pull through this challenging period, as well as the active battle his widowed mother fought to bring her son home, remain primary examples of love and faith in his family. Amidst all the pain, Taseer finds his connection with God, the spiritual experience of which he shares in this book. He also alludes to many pop-culture references, the highlight of which remains his miraculous connection with the football club Manchester United. Almost comically so, in the middle of ludicrously dangerous circumstances, Taseer forms an unusual bond with one of his captors over football, one of the many instances of friendly encounters that the book recounts.

    Young Shahbaz Taseer with his mother

    In this riveting and adrenaline-inducing memoir, readers will find both a heart-wrenching yet a heartwarming tale of courage in the face of adversity. The book also serves as an excellent commentary on the politics of terrorist groups during the period of Taseer’s capture. It is a chronicle of strength drawn from the love of one’s family and friends amidst difficult times.


    As the new year begins, let us also start anew. I’m delighted to extend, on behalf of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and in my own name, new year’s greeting and sincere wishes to YOULIN magazine’s staff and readers.

    Only in hard times can courage and perseverance be manifested. Only with courage can we live to the fullest. 2020 was an extraordinary year. Confronted by the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Pakistan supported each other and took on the challenge in solidarity. The ironclad China-Pakistan friendship grew stronger as time went by. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor projects advanced steadily in difficult times, become a standard-bearer project of the Belt and Road Initiative in balancing pandemic prevention and project achievement. The handling capacity of the Gwadar Port has continued to rise and Afghanistan transit trade through the port has officially been launched. The Karakoram Highway Phase II upgrade project is fully open to traffic. The Lahore Orange Line project has been put into operation. The construction of Matiari-Lahore HVDC project was fully completed. A batch of green and clean energy projects, such as the Kohala and Azad Pattan hydropower plants have been substantially promoted. Development agreement for the Rashakai SEZ has been signed. The China-Pakistan Community of Shared Future has become closer and closer.

    Reviewing the past and looking to the future, we are confident to write a brilliant new chapter. The year 2021 is the 100th birthday of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. The 100-year journey of CPC surges forward with great momentum and China-Pakistan relationship has flourished in the past 70 years. Standing at a new historic point, China is willing to work together with Pakistan to further implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, connect the CPEC cooperation with the vision of the “Naya Pakistan”, promote the long-term development of the China-Pakistan All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership with love, dedication and commitment. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan said, “We are going through fire. The sunshine has yet to come.” Yes, Pakistan’s best days are ahead, China will stand with Pakistan firmly all the way.

    YOULIN magazine is dedicated to promoting cultural exchanges between China and Pakistan and is a window for Pakistani friends to learn about China, especially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It is hoped that with the joint efforts of China and Pakistan, YOULIN can listen more to the voices of readers in China and Pakistan, better play its role as a bridge to promote more effectively people-to-people bond.

    Last but not least, I would like to wish all the staff and readers of YOULIN a warm and prosper year in 2021.

    Nong Rong Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
    The People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
    January 2021









    Video message by Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed on Black Day of Indian Occupation of Kashmir



    Video message by Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed on Black Day of Indian Occupation of Kashmir, 27 October 1947, when Indian military troops forcibly occupied Kashmir illegally, claiming a fraudulent ‘Instrument of Accession’ which never existed as documented by eminent British historian Alastair Lamb! Kashmir & Palestine are examples of illegal occupation & continued Resistance to Repression! There are so many commonalities in Kashmir & Palestine: both under brutal military occupation of foreign powers, both are facing an indigenous, popular, spontaneous & widespread Resistance & Uprising, both are in violation of UN Resolutions which haven’t been implemented, both are witnessing an attempted change in the demographic balance, both are facing the use of rape as a weapon of war, both are testimony to double-standards & hypocrisy of Western powers on human rights & fundamental rights, and both conflicts have an element of racism and Islamophobia, while enduring peace, security and stability will remain elusive in both regions, South Asia & Middle East, until these issues are resolved in accordance with popular aspirations.