Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Sehbai on Kayani: Can’t Live…with or without you

It seems Mr Sehbai is not clear in his own mind about the role he wants the Army to play. He blames Gen Kayani for sitting on the sidelines and letting the country slide into the current mess. Yet he blames 10 years of Army rule which incidentally except for first three years of Musharraf was actually run by politicians allied with Musharraf ,for a bad legacy for the current rulers. He calls Gen Kayani a Gorbachev for letting Pakistan reach this failed state situation but at the same time is against Army intervention. It seems he is constrained by the oft repeated slogan of Democracy is our future irrespective of the results that we are reaping. I think Gen Kayani has done well to clarify so many doubts sown about the Army actions/ inactions spread by our media. By talking directly to the media and clarifying the Army role in the last 5 years,he has briefed them about the true state of affairs. Hopefully this should at least reduce the unjustified criticism and doubts about the Army,s role and specially his own role as Chief . Let this election bring up some fresh and well meaning leadership for if that does not happen,we should have a fresh look at our systems specially our brand of parliamentary democracy which has failed again and again in providing good Government to the country. Gen Kayani has brought some truths to the notice of our opinion makers. Let it not be said by any one that he/ she did not know these things. Now it is upto our media to educate our public on all major issues facing the country.

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Propaganda: the (blatant) Indian way

Indian media can be called many things - free, vibrant, opinionated – but if there is one thing it cannot be called is subtle. The Indian media has had a long history of bias, Pakistan-bashing and a general lack of uniformity on national issues.

When the gang rape story broke in December, there was an intense media debate in India about the consequences of the tragedy on the country. The Indian Express advocated reform and called for a safe environment in the country on its Op-Ed pages. The Hindu, on the other hand, took off on a different tangent and discussed the need for death penalty and castration for rapists. The Times of India chose to remain on the fences, calling for “long term solutions.” The Asian Age focused on the political fall-out of the gang rape. Navbharat Times, on the other hand, filled its Op-Ed pages with a debate on the oppressed classes of the Indian society and raised an entirely existential question. Nai Dunya, went off in a completely different direction, and called for an end to protests since laws could not be “made over night.”

Monday, February 25, 2013

The Civilized West!

Denmark is involved in a shameful practice. The sea is stained in red and currently it’s not because of the climate effects of nature.

It’s because of the cruelty that the human beings (civilised human) kill hundreds of the famous and intelligent Calderon dolphins.

Friday, February 22, 2013

Standing strong with our Hazara brothers

Stop Killing Hazara

Quetta was still recovering from the heart wrenching January attacks when it suffered another tragedy last week. A Sunni militant organization, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, planned a horrific bomb blast which left at least 80 people dead and more than 200 people injured. Their targets were the Hazaras.

Sectarian violence against the Hazara community goes backs to the late 1970s and even today they continue to be victims of terrorism. Its people live in perpetual fear; staying in their homes would make them the target of bomb attacks and venturing out in the world means they can be taken hostage, dragged out of buses and shot dead.

The questions behind indiscriminate droning

How successful has the US drone program been? Even without the use of statistics, one could argue that victories with the drones have been very limited. They did not do...

How successful has the US drone program been? Even without the use of statistics, one could argue that victories with the drones have been very limited. They did not do much to help the United States in their post-war agendas in Iraq and Afghanistan. Iraq is far from a pro-US democracy – it is in the grip of increasingly polarized conflict and the country, it seems, is leaning much closer to Iran than it is to the United States. Similarly, no stable democracy exists in Afghanistan, nor have the Taliban been exterminated. This just goes to prove, as Stephen Walt put it, technological wizardry does not always translate into strategic success.

Having said that, one can understand why the United States does tend to continue to defend its drone policy. For them, it seems to work. The American generals are happy, and the American citizens feel safe knowing they have a remote-controlled technology that can wipe out dozens of people who may be a threat to them or to their principles. Perfectly understandable.

Thursday, February 21, 2013

The boy who cried wolf

The announcement for the annulment of assemblies on March 16th was a wakeup call for political parties all across Pakistan. The clock is ticking and the time to make changes, stir up electoral issues and leave a lasting impression on voters in now here. It is thus quite remarkable how projects like the Metro Bus in Punjab, the promise of target operation against religious extremists in Quetta and MQM’s concern for Karachi’s insecurity transpired at this momentous time.

Withdrawal of murder cases of Lyari’s criminal gang members’ specifically those belonging to the Peoples Aman Committee and the failed implementation of Sindh Peoples Local Government Ordinance (SPLGO) in Karachi were the last straw for MQM. In a televised briefing on February 16th, Dr. Farooq Sattar, MQM Coordination Committee Deputy Convener, officially terminated MQM’s alliance with PPP at both the federal and provincial level. He accused PPP of delaying the process of justice by harboring criminals identified as absconders by the courts. MQM had expressed its reservations a few days earlier too but PPP representatives either denied the withdrawal order for or gave reassurances of reconciliation efforts.

My freedom fighter, your terrorist

afza-guru_hafiz-saeed

One man’s freedom fighter is another man’s terrorist. Afzal Guru remains one such example, who was hanged on 9 February 2013, convicted for attacking the Indian Parliament in 2002. Guru’s hanging has caused some disturbance in the civil and social order. The Muslim minority of India that enjoys a majority in the Kashmir Valley sparked out in protest of the hanging. Three youngsters have died in these protests and Yasin Malik (chief of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front), a charismatic leader, went on a hunger strike in Islamabad, urging Indian Civil Society to speak out against the inhumane treatment of Guru. But one rotten apple threatens the stock, and for the Indian government Malik poses a threat. He leads the Muslims of Jammu and Kashmir in changing lines of citizenry. What government can tolerate that?

The right to self determination of Kashmiris is theoretically undeniable, yet so little has been done to materialize it. We can go back to 1947 when the United Nations never held the much awaited plebiscite, and the Muslim majority of Kashmir, who had voted for Pakistan, was forcefully occupied by the Indian Army. What started as a nascent freedom struggle in 1947 has progressively intensified with the simultaneous deployment of Dogra guards, provincial armed constabulary, Air force squadrons and Army brigades (with a strength of 9 divisions in the Valley alone). With such policing tactics being established on the Indian government’s orders, it is highly doubtful that the Muslims of Kashmir can ever integrate as normal citizens in wholehearted Mother India.

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Sikh Genocide in India And Beyond

If you want to see what happened to Buddhism, just check out what has been happening to Sikhism. Legally Sikhs do not exist in India but are just Hindus. Sikhs refused to sign the Indian constitution due to that. Sikhs were declared a criminal tribe as soon as the British left. In the 80s and 90s, hundreds of thousands of Sikhs were slaughtered, mainly the Amritdharis.

So it became very scary to be a Sikh.

Then all this preaching by people like the RSS started, to declare Sikhism a part of Hinduism. They don’t just go preach, they also commission art showing the Sikh Gurus to be Hindu gods basically and have written all sorts of books to distort Sikh history.

Sheikh Waqas speech against “sipah sahaba”Mullahs

An extremely powerful speech by a Pakistani Politician against religious extremists and hypocrites pretending to be saviors of Islam and Pakistan.

Show solidarity with your Shia brothers and sisters

solidarity-with-shia-brothers

I request/urge/recommend/plead/ask you to show solidarity with your Shia brothers and sisters. Please take similar photos of yourself and remind these oppressors that we stand as ONE … that they are not eliminating Shias…but merely increasing their strength.

I’m not concerned about the Government that sees nothing…I’m not concered with the Media that says nothing…and I’m not concerned about the Judiciary that hears nothing…I am concerned with the Soul that feels nothing. I am ashamed not that my Pakistani brother pulled the trigger… I am ashamed that my life goes on…

Friday, February 15, 2013

PAKISTAN HAS NO ENEMIES

As of now Pakistan has no enemies. Even those who hate us and want to do us in are not really our enemies. Take India for example---basking in the glow of its many achievements it is gloating as Pakistan stews in its own juices. All it has to do is wait for juicy morsels to be thrown up by Pakistanis themselves so that it can tweak them and splash them all over the world. The recent plethora of whistle blowers is manna from heaven for the Indian media, establishment and politicians so these whistle blowers are encouraged to spew out more and more poison against their own country and they are falling for it in pursuit of their own warped ambitions.

Consider Afghanistan. It can talk publicly about a strategic relationship and need not be an enemy. It encourages the Pakistanis who have joined hands with others to kill other Pakistanis not just in the western border areas but deep in the heart of Pakistan. Now and then they inspire the misguided Pakistanis who think they are struggling for their rights and freedom by killing their brethren who may be of a different sect or by blowing up the people who are their saviors and by damaging precious assets of the State. There are many who then take on the task of stoking the fires and exploiting the vulnerabilities that emerge. It helps that Pakistanis raise their own voices to condemn their own law enforcers.

Friday, February 8, 2013

Who will provide affirmative action in India?

Who will provide affirmative action in India

Consumed with weapon purchases, maritime capabilities and external threats from China and Pakistan, India has it seems neglected to peek at the state of affairs within its own boundaries. In the past few months, multiple incidents infringing the right of freedom of speech have occurred which has prompted writer Salman Rushdie to smear India with his “cultural emergency” allegation. 

Although Rushdie’s credibility is uncertain and his agenda equally debatable, his accusation rings of the truth.  India’s cultural intellect, its writers, poets, film makers and artists are being censured if their opinion and expression does not conform to the mainstream perceptions of India. Recently, a Tamil film called Vishwaroopam was condemned by Muslim religious groups in Tamil Nadu since it projected Muslims in a negative light. The government decided to ban the release of the film claiming that they lacked sufficient police forces to monitor all cinema houses for riots. Vishwaroopam’s producer, Kamal Haasan was so disillusioned that he threatened to leave India for a secular state abroad. Eventually, he agreed to cut some scenes from the film. 

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Tacstrat Analysis: Procrastination over the Pipeline

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Conceived by a Pakistani civil engineer in the 1950s, and brought on the table between the concerned parties in 1995, the Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline project has remained on the forefront, and brushed aside with an unbecoming ease. The pipeline that aims to connect Iran’s biggest gas field in South Pars with neighboring Pakistan and India has become a matter of global interest. Pakistan’s energy crisis and Iran’s economic boycott, owing to the Khomeini regime’s adamancy with respect to their nuclear program, make the pipeline a win-win bargain for the two. Yet, with Pakistan’s instability, and an inability to pick a side, the pipeline, as we enter 2013, remains a far fetched thought. Despite recent positive angle, and signing of contracts on 4 February 2012 between the two governments, we realize this is not the first time Pakistan has come so close and withdrawn.

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Integrating Kashmir

Kashmir Solidarity Day

Being celebrated since 1990, Kashmir Day reminds people all over the world about the violence in a disputed segment of India and Pakistan which has claimed and continues to claim thousands of lives. Atrocities and violence from both sides have resulted in the loss of lives of approximately 93,714 Kashmiris in the last 20 years. Children have lost their parents and siblings to target killings, rape and inhumane laws imposed by the Indian government in Kashmir. The place that was once quoted by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan to be “Heaven on earth” is today the most militarized area in the world with a 1:17 soldier to civilian ratio. Ill will, mistrust and conspiracies have complicated the relationship between Pakistan and India. Both point fingers at each other. But how far is Pakistan really concerned with the issue of Kashmir?

Who speaks for the Baloch of DG Khan?

Who speaks for the Baloch of DG Khan

As our government mulls over the questionable fate of the Seraiki province, protests have erupted all over the country with calls for all kinds of provinces – provinces based on ethnicities, provinces based on “administrative grounds”, provinces based on linguistic differences. So while there are calls to permanently damage Pakistan’s already-frayed map, here are two scents on a concern Maula Fazalur Rehman raised at the meeting where the commission came up with recommendations for the new province.

A brief history of Dera Ghazi Khan is in order. The city goes back as far as 1476 when Baloch chieftain Nawab Ghazi Khan Mirani declared independence from the Langah Dynasty of Multan. Along with two other deras (encampments) – Dera Ismail Khan and Dera Fateh Khan – Derajat was born.