Admiration for Adolf Hitler should be morally unthinkable anywhere. Yet in parts of Pakistan, his name still surfaces in conversations with a strange tone of respect. The reaction can be startling for Europeans who encounter it. The German journalist Hasnain Kazim described precisely this experience in a widely discussed essay in Der Spiegel, where he wrote about repeatedly hearing Pakistanis speak of Hitler as if he were a bold or admirable historical figure.
The encounters he describes are uncomfortable in their casualness. In one instance, a barber styling his hair remarks approvingly that he resembles Hitler. Taxi drivers and acquaintances bring up Hitler in conversation with Germans, assuming it will be taken as a compliment rather than an insult. The tone is not always ideological. Often it is simply admiration for what they imagine to be a powerful leader who stood up to Western powers.
