| October 16, 2001 | Tuesday | Rajab 28, 1422 |
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Altaf for a just system
Eliminating terrorism
Vehicle hijacking
Job advertisements
Motorway police
Dropping bombs & bread
Rise in petrol prices
The bane of feudalism
Deep ingratitude
Nobel prize for literature
Bitter experience
Contingency plans for Karachi
Naipaul demonizes Islam in his writings, of course, without any basis. His books, ‘Beyond Belief’ and ‘Among the Believers’, are outright anti-Muslim. He is on record to have expressed his joy on the destruction of the Babri Mosque.
ONE should learn from one’s mistakes but the United States hasn’t done so and is facing a very difficult situation.
How did all this happen? Around 1979, the United States was a great ally of the Shah of Iran. The Shah was an oppressive ruler. The United States looked the other way the people of Iran became hostile towards the United States. The revolution of 1979-1980 was the turning point. Then, the United States backed another oppressive ruler, Saddam Hussain to fight against Iran. The Soviet Union occupied Afghanistan. The CIA began to train Afghan freedom-fighters against the Russian invaders.
The United States was fighting two wars, one against Iran and the other against Russia, without using its troops, but using Iraqis and Afghans to do the fighting for it. Both these wars lasted about 10 years. Millions of Muslims were killed and there were 2 million Afghan refugees.
At this point, the United States made a very big mistake. Once the Mujahedeen were victorious against the Soviet Union, they were left with nothing but their land. A land where landmines were as common as the dust, which filled the air. When they asked for help, the United States refused.
Now comes Osma bin Laden. He was trained in Afghanistan by the CIA, and was provided all the necessary means to eliminate the enemy of the time, which was Russia. Now back home, he told the Government of Saudi Arabia not to allow the United States to enter Saudi Arabia. He told them that he and his freedom-fighters from Afghanistan will take care of Saddam Hussain.
Nonetheless, as we all know, the United States entered the Middle East to remove a problem, which was created by it and now Saddam Hussain and the Afghan freedom-fighters became terrorists according to the West.
The United States gave the impression that it was helping the rest of the Middle East, but truly it was there for its own interest because of oil.
Now ten years later, over 1 million Iraqi children have died due to the aggressive sanctions, which were meant for Saddam Hussain, but are borne by the people.
ANAF DURRANI
USA
THIS is with reference to the column by Ardeshir Cowasjee entitled “The terrorists within” (Sept 30).
Mr Altaf Hussain is a liberal and against religious fanaticism and feudalism. His democratic thinking is greatly disliked by the supporters of the feudal-cum-military oligarchy and the religious fundamentalists. He is also against the military’s intermittent and direct interventions and its indirect rule through “manipulated” democracy and election riggings to install its “most favourite regimes” resulting in the virtual bankruptcy of Pakistan, economically, socially, politically and morally. He has stood against this system with steadfastness.
He is not only pointing towards and dealing with the symptoms but also trying to remove the root-cause of the malaise that has crept into Pakistan and left its people deprived of their basic fundamental rights, including the right to education, health care, employment and justice.
The autocratic states, powerful oligarchies of the world establish “military courts” and “special terrorists courts” to victimize the opposition, political or otherwise. These “courts” have never been hailed by the democratic world; therefore, anyone terming them credible renders himself or herself incredulous and supporter of the non-democratic and fanatical forces.
The most important aspect of the maintenance of files at the headquarters of the CIA and MI6 in respect of Mr Hussain is that the severe pressures by the Benazir, Nawaz Sharif and the military governments on Britain to extradite Mr Altaf Hussain back to Pakistan failed. The plethora of documents and evidence provided to the British authorities against Mr Hussain must have naturally proved concocted and fabricated and so the British authorities finally rejected the claims of the Pakistan government and granted him British nationality, exonerating him from all the allegations.
A realization is now dawning on the British and the Americans, in the aftermath of religious fanaticism in Pakistan, that there is a need to democratize and re-structure Pakistan. The “middle class” would prove to be a greater ally in the “new” Pakistan than the allies of the “old” Pakistan.
Once the “democratic order” in the “new Pakistan” is established, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission will be set up which would investigate and deal with corruption, amassing and acquisition of wealth and properties through illegal means by politicians, businessmen, bureaucrats, military and civil officials and journalists - even of those who claim owning twenty-five per cent of the land and properties of Karachi.
MOHAMMAD ANWAR
Chief Organiser, MQM U.K. and Europe
London
HAD the US and its allies shown statesmanship and allowed the rule of law to prevail by demanding the UN to act, instead of the unilateral bombing of an already bombed-out Afghanistan, they would have earned the respect of the moderates and the silent majority. Unfortunately bombs and biscuits do not mix and jargon phrases do not help the dead and the dying.
Over the years, the American government, the UN, the ‘silent majority’ of the prosperous and developed nations and even the Muslim Ummah, through their complacency, have ignored the sufferings of the millions of innocent Muslims and other victims of ethnic violence. Through no fault of theirs, these displaced citizens of the world have been forgotten and have become helpless pawns in a deadly political chess game. They die due to starvation and disease or rot in refugee camps.
President Bush, Premier Tony Blair, the G7 countries and the UN must declare a crusade to remove these refugee camps, where poverty, illiteracy, unemployment and frustration reign supreme. And it is where an army of disgruntled and angry youth, willing to kill and be killed, have been born. And it is in this cesspool where men like Bin Laden recruit their “followers”. America and its allies will not make any progress in fighting terrorism until they begin to appreciate the reasons why terrorists target US interests and address the root causes, not the symptoms.
Unless these refugee camps are eliminated and a just economic order established, the world will never get rid of terrorists and their camps. For every terrorist killed or camp destroyed, another 10 terrorists will be born and the cycle of terror will continue to haunt us in the air, the seas, the streets and in our daily lives.
A.H. MAKER
The Helpline Trust,
Karachi
THE regularity with which the news of vehicle hijacking (vehicle thefts included) is flashed by the newspapers on their city pages every day, and the indifference of the police and the administration towards this crime, makes one wonder how deep is the involvement of the law-enforcers themselves in the car-jacking racket.
Looking at the figures, this week some 50 vehicle-snatching cases were reported in just six days. On one Saturday, car-jackers and motorcycle lifters took away 23 vehicles. All this indicates an increase in this kind of crime which has made people panicky.
If you are driving a new car or motorcycle, you not merely stand a chance of being surprised by a gunman wanting to grab your vehicle but you are also within a hair’s breadth of being shot dead.
I learn that monitoring cells have been created by the Army Headquarters to oversee and improve the working of various government departments. I do not know if they have any for the monitoring of the performance of the police department in Karachi.
I request that the concerned authorities should give the necessary attention to this rising menace which has become a serious threat to the life and property of the law-abiding citizens of Karachi.
QAZI NAZIM NAEEM
Hyderabad
I would like to draw the attention of officers of the various national and multinational organizations who invite applications for job openings in their organizations.
In some of their advertisements it is indicated that only those candidates should apply who have obtained their degrees from the institutes listed in the ads. This is discrimination against candidates holding MBA degrees from other institutes.
It is true that a large number of institutes and universities teaching business administration have sprung up over the years in the private sector. It is also true that the standard of education in all of them is not the same.
Yet, it would not be fair to deprive those a chance to appear for interview who have not obtained their degrees from the few reputable institutions.
A better institution might give a better grooming but real talent is a gift from God. It is quite possible that a student with natural talent might not have been able to enrol himself at one of the reputed but expensive institutions because of financial constraints. Such students are often able to make up the deficiency in teaching by their own natural gifts.
So, I would request the concerned authorities to review their criteria so that every MBA gets an opportunity to apply and be interviewed.
TIRATH S. HARWANI
Kaloi, Tharparkar
ON Monday, Oct 8, at 1730 hours, I crossed the toll booth of the Lahore end of the motorway and assumed that the speed limit had ended. While cruising at 140 km per hour, I was stopped by the motorway police about 15 km from the toll booth.
The policeman was extremely polite. After realizing that it was an inadvertent mistake, he allowed me to proceed without imposing any fine.
This is the first time in my life that I have found the police so helpful.
However, there is a need for more prominent road signs about speed limits to be posted after the toll booth, to prevent such mistakes by the drivers.
A. AYUB
Lahore
THERE has been a radical change in the ethics of war in the past 60 years. From the Nazi gas chambers, where civilians were herded for mass extermination, to the selective destruction of military targets in Iraq in the Gulf war 10 years ago, the suffering of the innocents was greatly reduced.
In this month’s attack on Afghanistan, further ‘progress’ has been made as the attackers are also providing food items to the civilian population. Nearly a billion dollars has been committed by the United Nations, the US and other countries to alleviate the suffering of the Afghan people.
While airfields and other selected targets are being bombed, food provisions are also being dropped for the affected population, by the raiders. And it is also being transported overland to Afghanistan together with medicines, blankets and tents.
The human sufferings in Afghanistan might be reduced to some extent by this action but what about the innocent lives being lost?
KHURRAM MUZAFFAR
Rawalpindi
A couple of days ago the managing director of a leading petroleum company gave out the ex-refinery cost of petrol and the breakdown of various surcharges and taxes. The details were shocking to learn.
The ex-refinery price for petrol was Rs 13.38 per litre. The other surcharges and taxes are: excise duty of Rs 0.88, petroleum development levy Rs 11.40, Inland freight Rs 0.90, dealer margin Rs 0.97, distributor margin Rs 0.70 and sales tax Rs 4.23.
At every stage there is a beneficiary, and the end loser is the consumer who has to pay more than double of the ex-refinery price.
And since the oil marketing companies have been authorised to make fortnightly adjustments in the prices of petrol and allied products, the increases have been much more than the reductions.
AZAM SULTAN AHMED
Karachi
READING the column “50 years ago today” (Aug 30), one can see how little has changed in Pakistan during the last 50 years.
The column recollects the provincial revenue minister of East Pakistan, Mr Tafazzul Ali, announcing on August 29, 1951, in Dhaka “that Zamindari will be completely wiped out in East Pakistan in 10 years time”. Notices were soon served to two of the biggest Zamindars in the province. One of them was the Nawab of Dhaka who was closely related to the then Governor General of Pakistan, Khwaja Nazimuddin.
He was strong and honest enough to take this step in his own province. But the feudals in West Pakistan did not allow him to carry out the same reform in any other province of Pakistan. This is why feudalism remains entrenched in our society.
S. BABAR
Karachi
THIS is with reference to the recent rhetoric by the Jammu and Kashmir chief minister, Farooq Abdullah, urging the Indian government to declare war on Pakistan. His son, Omar Abdullah, the Indian Minister of state for foreign affairs, has also issued a statement demanding action against Islamabad.
That reminds me that the late Sheikh Abdullah, father and grandfather of the above mentioned ministers, had at one time, when he was in great distress, called upon High Commissioner Agha Hilali, at London, several times.
Sheikh Abdullah was then advised to go back to Kashmir to carry on the freedom struggle against Indian occupation instead of living in exile abroad. His son, who was studying in London, was given financial assistance by the government of Pakistan for completing his higher education in the United Kingdom. I, as personal assistant to the High Commissioner, used to give him a cheque every month till I was transferred to Washington D.C.
That was how Pakistan has helped Sheikh Abdullah’s family.
ALHAJ MIRAJ H. SIDDIQI
Springfield VA, US
BY awarding the Nobel prize for literature to V.S Naipaul, the academy has made an utterly wrong choice.
Let me quote the assessment of this man by a noted intellectual of our time, Dr Eqbal Ahmad:
“V.S. Naipaul is a man haunted by imagined and created ghosts. None of his ghosts are actually real. They haunt him in very unexpected ways.”
The awarding of this prestigious prize to such a person at a time when the western world is already suffering from misgivings about Muslims and Islam, raises doubts about the real intentions of those making this decision. Their prejudice against Muslims and their faith is no more hidden behind a veil.
MOHAMMAD SHAMIM MOZAFFAR
Kuwait
LIKE any other ordinary citizen, I have to go to the bank quite often. Recently, I had my third experience of nearly getting robbed of the cash that I had taken out of my account in a bank.
Incidents in which persons withdrawing large amounts of money from their bank accounts were robbed soon after their stepping out of the bank, have increased recently.
Who can be involved in this? Of course, the ‘prime suspect’ are the bank employees. My advice to all innocent people is that to be careful when you go to banks.
SABA SALEEMI
Karachi
THE district officer, while discussing the fire fighting facilities, reportedly said that the city government has nineteen fire stations spread all over Karachi, 40 fire tenders, the lone snorkel, a rescue van and 1100 manpower (Oct 10).
In addition, there may be some in-house fire fighting facilities developed by various agencies and industries. The question is, are these facilities adequate for Karachi having a population of over 12 million people? There appears an urgent need to augment the equipment as well as the trained manpower for the job.
The city government, suffering resource constraints at present, may not be able to allocate enough funds for the purpose. Due to the prevailing situation, perhaps other agencies, the GoP and the Sindh government may have to come to the rescue of the city government. Measures such as the following may be considered to upgrade the capability for fire fighting:
1. Federal agencies, other corporations and industries may augment their own in-house fire fighting facilities including manpower. This may require purchase of new fire tenders and other related equipment as well as extensive training of the manpower assigned to the job. Volunteers for fire fighting may as well be listed and provided training. Also, they must agree on procedures with the city government fire brigade for collective response on immediate basis to effectively meet the fire or related emergencies.
2. The GoP and the Sindh government may approach friendly countries for grant of assistance to procure fire tenders and other equipment for the immediate needs of the city government. The city government may also be asked to allocate larger resources for the purpose commensurate with the requirements of the Karachi city. The GoP may waive customs duties and other related taxes on import of fire tenders and other equipment.
3. Training of manpower for fire fighting is as important as the acquisition of the hardware. The GoP and the Sindh government may provide financial assistance for hiring additional manpower as well as the listing of volunteer fire fighters. Extensive training of both groups will be required.
4. Prevention is better than the cure. The government and the city authorities may educate the people, particularly owners of commercial buildings, hotels, etc. to take all requisite precautions for safety from fire and similar other hazards.
Physical inspection of these premises may be carried out to determine the risk factor to life and property, the findings discussed with the respective managements and remedial actions taken within the specified time frame.
MUHAMMAD BASHIR CHAUDHRY
Karachi
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