| November 8, 2001 | Thursday | Shaba’an 21, 1422 |
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Compulsions and emotionalism
Aircraft-carrier operations
Conscription of young boys
Haj expenses
Baqai varsity: clarification
Wapda clarification
NOCs for doctors
Sharing the refugee burden
Visas for Pakistanis
Ban on the use of loudspeakers
Preparing the ground for use of biological weapons
Stop the bombing
Lyari Expressway project
IN an article appearing in the NYT of Oct 29, it was stated that a United States elite undercover unit controlled by the Pentagon has been activated. The unit with the mission to destroy nuclear facilities and conduct covert operations across the globe assists CIA in realization of its mission(s).
The American team is cited to be getting help from Israel’s special-operations unit 262, a deep-penetration detachment that has been involved in worldwide assassinations, theft of foreign sensitive documents, including signals-intelligence materials, and the neutralization of foreign nuclear weaponry. The report further indicates that members of the Israeli unit arrived in the United States a few days after Sept 11 and are training with American special forces at undisclosed locations.
Meanwhile, the Indians are also understood to be actively engaged in training their special forces for a preemptive operation against Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal. It may not be wrong thus to conclude that the stage is being set for a collective blitzkrieg kind of operation against our nuclear stockpiles.
Despite reassurances by Islamabad that its nuclear facilities and associated infrastructure is in secure hands, the West led by the US continues to cast doubts about the safety of our stockpiles, at least on the face of it. During a recent briefing by the Defence Department at the Pentagon a large gathering raised these fears.
However for such an operation to be successful two elements are essential, one the rapidity of the strike and two, concurrent action at all locations. Failure of one means failure of the entire operation.
It appears that lack of precise intelligence information about the location and quantity of Pakistan’s nuclear stock has made the job of CIA, RAW, Mosad and other hostile secret agencies complicated if not difficult. This could be one reason for the operation to be on the hold.
The country is passing through a very serious crisis. With civilian casualties mounting in Afghanistan and the US declaration to continue operations during the approaching month of Ramazan, the domestic situation is likely to become increasingly tense. India, meanwhile, has got an opportunity of the kind it had been looking for after 1971. With the old hardliner Fernandes back in the saddle as Defence Minister, Islamabad can expect some violent reaction along LoC in the days ahead. Short of an all-out war, New Delhi would certainly try to increase our predicament.
The question that needs to be pondered is: to what extent are we prepared for such an eventuality much less for a nuclear war?
One only hopes that the government’s claim about the ‘foolproof’ security of our nuclear assets is not overstated.
COMMANDER (R) MUHAMMAD AZAM KHAN
Lahore
MR SHAHID M. Amin in his column (Nov 3) on the current global crisis and, more particularly in the context of Pakistan, has rightly observed that “it is time to look at matters in true perspective and in a mature manner”. Sound advice but, please practice what you preach!
Mr Amin while trying to defend the US foreign policy vis-a-vis the Muslims, writes that “America had helped the Afghan Mujahideen against the Soviets”. Wrong.
The Americans through the CIA mobilized Muslims from all over the world (and led by OBL) to achieve its own objective of fighting the “evil empire”.
Thus, it would be more appropriate to state that they (the US government) ‘used’ the Mujahideen to achieve their strategic objective and, then left the “founding fathers” high and dry.
Mr Amin, goes on further to state that “It (US) secured the liberation of Kuwait from Iraqi occupation”.
Wrong again. The US, first lured Iraq through its ambassador to Kuwait and staged the fantastic drama of the Gulf War and ended up occupying, both Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
The fact is that “oil” is more valuable to the US than the millions of children who have died and continue to die in Iraq due to lack of medicines, thanks to the US economic sanctions. Please correct me if I am wrong, I don’t have any hang ups.
Finally, a short comment. Whenever a leader or a columnist uses a qualifier “supreme” with “national interest”, I get worried. I am quite happy and comfortable with anybody promoting and protecting, plain and simple “national interest”.
NAZIM HAJI
Karachi
THE mass media is currently occupied with a regular display of aircraft taking off and landing on aircraft-carriers as part of their operations against Afghanistan. However, most people would not be able to correctly appreciate the massive power that USN carriers in the Arabian Sea are able to project against Afghanistan.
As a midshipman under training with the Royal Navy, I had the opportunity to serve onboard the British Light Fleet carrier HMS Theseus for twenty months. During that period it successively acted as the training carrier, the trials ship for induction of jet aircraft at sea, as an operational carrier for exercises with the Fleet and finally served as part of the United Nations Force in Korea during 1950/1951.
To appreciate the capabilities of aircraft-carriers, it may be mentioned that the Theseus had a record of over 1,600 accident-free deck landings in peacetime operations and of over 1,200 during operations off Korea. While operating under the United Nations, the average daily rate of air-sorties was two and a half per aircraft while the record was for over seventy operational sorties in a single day.
Considering that currently three United States Navy carriers are present in the Arabian Sea, each carrying over seventy aircraft, with perhaps over two pilots for each aircraft, the capabilities of United States sea-based air power against Afghanistan are immense.
With approximately two hundred aircraft available in the force, each putting out two operational sorties a day carrying an average of 4,000 lbs. of ordnance, the three carriers can drop approximately 8,000 tons of precision ordnance on their targets daily.
IQBAL F. QUADIR
Karachi
THE BBC World TV is showing an American ally in the Afghanistan war — the Northern Alliance— conscripting innocent tender-aged boys to fight against the Taliban, after having failed to persuade the American forces to face the enemy in a ground battle.
This is an eye opener. While the WTO and the US insist that child labour may be eliminated from the developing countries if they want to become members of the WTO, the Americans themselves are arming mere boys to fight in a war.
Where are the champions of the human value system and the human rights?
ALI ASHRAF KHAN
Karachi
THE government invited Haj applications for the current year during the month of September and total expenses per person amounting to Rs 105,612, were collected. Pilgrims are expected to leave during the month of January, 2002, when they will be paid a certain amount towards personal and incidental expenses while in the holy land.
The amount charged from each intending pilgrim was based on an exchange rate of Pak Rs 67 per dollar. The current rate is around Rs 61.25. As is evident, the amount already charged is in excess of what the actual amount is likely to be.
In view of the above, it is requested that the relevant authorities take this aspect into consideration and adjust the amount charged according to the prevalent dollar rate.
Since the present government is striving to extend full support to Haj pilgrims, it would be in the fitness of things if this financial issue is resolved in favour of the intending Hajis.
HUMAYUN SHAHZADA
Karachi
THIS is with reference to the news item titled, “Team for unauthorized cricket events formed” (Nov 2).
The news item has created some misunderstanding regarding the inclusion of test and first-class cricketers in the Baqai Dolphins cricket team. I would like to clarify the situation:
Baqai Foundation has offered free education to those Pakistani international and first-class cricketers who have qualified for its Dolphins cricket team. Prominent cricketers like Hasan Raza, Faisal Iqbal, Shadab Kabir, Danish Kaneria, Saeed bin Nasir and Farhan Adil, who have represented Pakistan at test or international level or perfomed remarkably well in domestic cricket, have been admitted to the academic year 2002 classes in their respective fields of choice in the Baqai University.
Presently, the Baqai Dolphins are preparing for the Ramazan invitation tournament. In the future, when the team management feels its caliber at par with the national level, it will apply for affiliation with the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA).
I would like to further clarify here that, so far, Baqai Dolphins cricket team is not affiliated with the KCCA and, therefore, it is not a department, and any cricketer representing any other institution in domestic cricket can play for Baqai Dolphins without a breach of the PCB code.
NAWAB ALAM,
Manager Baqai Dolphins
Karachi
THIS refers to the editorial “Unfair and ill-advised” (Nov 5).
Wapda’s power wing has been restructured into eight distribution companies, three generation companies and a national transmission and despatch company.
Any revision in tariff can be allowed by National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) and no utility entity (DISCO) would be in a position to arbitrarily raise its tariff.
The losses in the system assessed as 42 percent in 1998 by the present management of Wapda on assuming responsibilities have already been brought down to 25.7 percent in the financial year 2000 - 01 by taking effective corrective measures including checking of power theft to a great extent. NTDC and DISCOs are making efforts to further reduce the losses to 23.6 percent as per the target set for the current financial year.
Under the philosophy behind the restructuring and corporatization of the power wing, the licensed DISCOs are likely to ensure strengthening the new culture of better service to consumers and bringing down the losses to permissible limits.
MALIEHA AFTAB
PRO, Wapda
Lahore
THE President of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf, and other concerned authorities dealing with the services of the Health Department are requested to heed the grievance of jobless doctors and those doctors who are employees of the Government of Sindh.
After the Saudi government, on the advice of President Musharraf, had agreed to employ Pakistani doctors, the Government of Sindh is not issuing “No Objection Certificate” to them for going to Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi authorities have completed the process and have even granted visas to the doctors selected, but the Overseas Employees Foundation is keeping with itself the passports and visas of the doctors, saying that they have been restrained by the Sindh Health Department from handing over these documents to their owners as NOCs are not being issued to them as a matter of government policy.
It is worthwhile to note that more than 10,000 doctors in Sindh are not getting jobs for want of vacancies. On the other hand, our friendly relations with Saudi Arabia are likely to be affected by this senseless policy of the government.
The governor and the chief secretary of Sindh may kindly look into this matter urgently so that a precious opportunity for jobs and for earning foreign exchange is not lost.
DR EJAZ AHMAD KALHORO
Nowshero Feroze
AS a result of the on-going US air strikes, thousands of Afghan citizens are fleeing their country and most of them are heading towards Pakistan.
The US and the UN are pressing Pakistan very hard to open its borders for these refugees. But, already saturated with refugees, Pakistan is fully justified in refusing to accept more of them.
A better solution of this problem is for all countries who have joined the US-led coalition against ‘terrorism’ to accept 50,000 refugees each and arrange their transportation to Europe and the US.
After all, why should Pakistan suffer every time whether the war be against communism, as it was during 1979-88, or against terrorism, as it is now.
MAHBOOB IHSAN
Islamabad
AFTER September 11 attacks on the US, the whole scenario has changed around the world. Pakistanis have been the most affected.
Many countries are not giving visas to Pakistanis. Even UAE, which is a Muslim country, is also not issuing visit visas.
It is worth mentioning that no Pakistani was involved in the attacks on WTC but we are being victimized.
The government must take this issue seriously and try to pursue the matter specially in Muslim countries, so that visa restrictions are lifted.
AFTAB AHMED
Hyderabad
THE government has banned the use of loudspeakers in mosques except for Aazan and Khutba-i-Juma.
It has also been decided to proceed against religious parties, which might be inciting public unrest, under the sedition law.
Indeed this is a positive step which should have been taken a long time back. It will also help in curbing the menace of sectarian killings.
For greater effectiveness, the use of loudspeakers outside the mosques, as in public gatherings, should be allowed only after ascertaining that it will not be used for spreading sectarian hatred and violence.
SYED A. MATEEN
Karachi
AMERICA has started a campaign aiming at showing itself as a victim of biological warfare by persistent projections of the so-called anthrax scare through the global media.
However, there are certain aspects which raise doubts about the identity and the real intention of those who might be behind this anthrax scare.
For example, these supposed ‘terrorists’ are sending only 2/3 letters per day for more than two weeks now.
Any sensible terrorist would send thousands of letters / parcels from different cities within two to three days to kill thousands and create a real scare.
Anthrax is not contagious. The anthrax powder causes harm only if inhaled or applied to a cut or wound. Since no one smells the envelope or the letter and, definitely, does not commit the folly of applying it to a cut, if he has one, no purpose is achieved by sending the powder.
Any terrorist who really means business, would use chemicals which cause contagious diseases to extend the harm done, to a larger population.
It appears that the much publicized anthrax scare has been created simply to prepare the ground for using deadly biological weapons against the Talibans to “smoke them out of their rat holes” as President Bush had remarked sometime back.
RAFIQ M. MEMON
Hyderabad
THE US-led terror bombing of Afghanistan has been going on for a month now and it must be brought to a halt immediately. Enough is enough.
Americans must become conscious of the fact that there is a whole world outside the borders of the United States.
They must begin to find the root causes of terrorism.
JAMIL D. DADABHOY
Karachi
THIS refers to the article (Oct 29) on the Lyari Expressway project. The contents of the article are not based on facts.
I have been technically involved with this project for the last many years and have undertaken extensive research and studies on the subject and based on which I have data and information which can lead to correct judgment.
First of all it must be clearly understood that Lyari Expressway and Circular Railway projects are two separate projects having no link with each other. The Lyari Expressway project is designed to cater for the cargo-related traffic from port to upcountry, while the Circular railway is to take care of the commuter traffic and has nothing to do with cargo traffic.
Lyari Expressway is then wrongly compared with Northern Bypass. The Northern Bypass project will only be made possible if the more than Rs 10 billion city development project is undertaken and will again not help in cargo transportation out of the city. Lyari Expressway is one project which will give multi-dimensional benefits to the city. This cost-effective project will lead the heavy traffic in and out of the city port within the short time of 30 minutes while compared to this the traffic through the Northern Bypass will take a number of hours. The cost of Lyari Expressway project is again three time less than that of the Northern Bypass project.
Furthermore, there will be other substantial benefits. The riverbed which is suffering from inflow of sewage and garbage dumping will be restored to its original shape which will provide fresh air and improved environment instead of the pollution in the area.
The alignment of riverbed and also of the expressway will tremendously reduce the hold of anti-social groups. The drug barons along with terrorist groups take shelter in this riverbed. The land mafia is also active and has grabbed the land for commercial benefit. Sensible persons would always like to see these activities get eliminated. Lyari Expressway project, once completed, will eliminate all these social evils and benefit not just the area but in fact the whole city.
MUHAMMAD FAIZ KIDWAI
Karachi
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