| November 10, 2001 | Saturday | Shaba’an 23, 1422 |
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Schools for Afghan children
Compulsions and emotionalism
Permanent UN seat
Cost of power generation
Hasty decision?
ADBP’s scheme
Pakistani ads on Indian TV
Loan write-off
Only promises
Need for a peaceful solution
PIA fares
Nobel Prize: political considerations
IT IS the fifth week of US bombing on the war-ravaged Afghanistan. According to the Taliban, the US destroyed all their bases within the first three days of the blitzkrieg. They say that the US is now targeting the innocent population of Afghanistan. Footage showing bodies of Afghan children, women and men are splashed every day on the international media. Newspapers are filled with pictures of destroyed houses, with Afghans struggling to sift through the rubble to find the remains of their loved ones. Even hospitals and mosques have been bombed to “smoke out” Osama bin Laden and his followers.
And the US and its allies have invented a bizarre word to conceal their irresponsible acts of hitting civilian areas: they call it “collateral damage”. In other words, this means that the killing of people during war is unintentional but acceptable. When the former US secretary of state, Madeleine Albright, was asked about the death of half a million Iraqi children due to US sanctions, she said, “I think this a very hard choice, but the price — we think the price is worth it.”
The American people have always been kept in the dark about the unjust policies of their government. Today they ask why they are so hated. The answer is simple: because of the blind support of the US to Israel against the Palestinians, condoning the state terrorism that Israel has unleashed in Palestine. Ariel Sharon had been held responsible by an Israeli tribunal for the massacre of three thousands of people in Sabra and Shatila camps. Today he’s the prime minister of Israel. And he has the full backing of the US. The double standards do not end in Palestine. The biased policy of the US towards the issues of Kashmir and Chechnya, its support for the dictatorial regimes in Muslim countries and other states, and the stationing of its troops in Saudi Arabia are some of the causes.
If the US and the western countries think that they can eliminate terrorism by killing Osama and overthrowing the Taliban regime, they are badly mistaken. No one in his sane mind can justify the terrorist attacks in New York. It was horrendous. But it’s strange that the men who carried out these attacks did not make any demands. That showed that they were really desperate. And terrorism is born out of despair, anger and frustration. It can only be eliminated by finding its causes and then fixing them. But it seems that the US is not at all interested in doing that. Why? Because its own hands are dirty.
Therefore, the bombings should be stopped immediately. Being half Afghan, I know that the Afghans will never accept a puppet regime. Although many Afghans are against the oppressive regime of the Taliban and their brand of Islam, they will defend their motherland till the last drop of their blood. And it won’t be long when Muslims of every country will join them in their fight against the “infidels”.
The most rational act by the US would be to set up an international tribunal comprising Islamic scholars from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and any other Muslim country, as well as judges of the International Court of justice to try Osama in the light of evidence that would be presented by the US. I am sure that everyone, including the Taliban and Osama, will agree to this proposal. And it will also save many innocent lives from getting lost.
KHURRAM MUSTIKHAN
Karachi
THE write-up by Intikhab Mir from Peshawar (Nov 4) about two Afghan children being educated in a Peshawar school after their flight from Afghanistan in the wake of the American bombardment and after losing their near and dear ones shows us the shape any rehabilitation programme for Afghanistan should take.
Modern education for the Afghan children present in the refugee camps in Pakistan should be an essential part of any rehabilitation programme for Afghanistan. As shown by the correspondent, Afghan children are a ray of hope for their country because, when they go back home, they will be able to rebuild Afghanistan as a modern enlightened society for which modern scientific knowledge would not be taboo.
Otherwise, they would fall into the hands of bigoted mullahs, who will turn them into a fresh crop of the Taliban.
LATIF QURESHI
Lahore
THIS is with reference to the article ‘Compulsions and Emotionalism’ by Shahid Amin (Nov 3). I would like to raise certain points regarding the article.
First, Mr Amin has argued that the US action against Afghanistan is being supported by almost all the Islamic countries. I think that a distinction must be made between the government and the people. Most Islamic countries do not have representative leadership and that is why, despite their governments’ support to the US, the people are against the US.
Secondly, Mr Amin has put forward the claim that the US is not alone in this war as Russia and China are supporting it. This could be true in the case of Russia for very obvious reasons but the Chinese government has showed reservations from the very beginning and that is the reason why the US avoided a Security Council resolution. Again, President Bush had to convince the Chinese leadership personally in this regard.
Thirdly, it has been said that the US has supported the cause of Muslims in Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan during the Soviet occupation and above all, in the ‘liberation’ of Kuwait. One should remember that US intervention in the Balkans came after thousands of Muslims were massacred and there was a hue and cry from the world community. It should also be kept in mind that US intervention led to the trifurcation of Bosnia.
The US role in the Afghan war of the 80s needs no explanation as the Mujahideen were fighting the Red bear there and the US had sought to avenge the humiliation they had suffered in Vietnam. As for the ‘liberation’ of Kuwait, any one who takes the slightest interest in world affairs, knows that the US participation in Gulf war was to ensure the safe supply of crude oil to the western world and one must not forget the $80 million deposited by the Emir of Kuwait in the USA for its ‘support’.
Fourthly, Mr Amin has said that the notion that Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan were rich in natural resources is only a myth. This could be anything but the truth as everybody knows that both these Central Asian countries have huge deposits of natural gas and oil and there were talks of an oil pipeline from Turkmenistan to Pakistan via Afghanistan. So there are ample reasons for the US to stay in the region for a long time to come.
SAADUDDIN
Karachi
PAKISTAN has proved its worth and strategic importance to the world. After the Sept 11 event, Pakistan is playing a pivotal role in the war against terrorism.
As the world has realized Pakistan’s importance, this country should try its best to maintain this position. We should not be misled by the baseless propaganda of our enemies regarding Pakistan’s future. Keeping in view our present position, we should be fully convinced that we can live as a free, prosperous and dignified nation and help promote world peace.
Moreover, Pakistan’s position is further enhanced by the fact that it is the only Muslim country which is a member of the nuclear club. So the Islamic countries along with Pakistan’s other friends and well wishers should convince the international community that Pakistan rightly deserves a permanent seat in the UN Security Council. A permanent seat for Pakistan will be in the interest of world peace.
M.H. PERVAZE
Karachi
OVER Rs 5,000 million are being wasted annually by WAPDA on imported furnace oil for producing electricity at a higher consumption /kwh as compared to the IPPs. This fact has been published in Energy Year Book and is about 20 paisa/kwh higher than the IPPs.
The operation staff at site is working very hard to keep the units running, to avoid breakdowns and loadshedding but they are not cost - oriented. WAPDA is responsible for transmission of electricity to the consumers.
The power stations, monthly form-E is sent to the WAPDA headquarters with many cooked up figures in a manner which looks good on paper considering that the headquarters staff does not bother them with difficult queries.The WAPDA management responsible at the headquarters is also not discharging its duty properly to avoid this huge loss of public money.
The IPPs have introduced good management system at Kot Addu and now KAPCO is a commercially viable unit on the generation side.
WAPDA should introduce an overall good management system on the generation side. A technical audit system must be introduced at all levels in power stations, implemented rigidly and each piece of equipment should be optimized to achieve excellence in operation, maintenance and allied services in order to reduce the generation cost. Incentive schemes should be introduced instead of a fixed generation allowance to encourage competition among various power stations.
ENGR JAFAR CHOHAN
Lahore
SINCE the September 11 incident, Mr Ayaz Amir has constantly tried in his weekly columns to bring the point across that President General Pervez Musharraf decided too soon (within a day) to join the coalition against the Taliban.
If the decision is correct then General Pervez Musharraf is more prudent in that he saw the feasibility of the decision much earlier. Mr Ayaz Amir should now leave this topic and “lay off”.
JAMEEL HUSSAIN
Karachi
THE Agricultural Development Bank of Pakistan had announced a scheme remitting interest on old loans, the last date of availing which was June 30,2001. However, most cultivators could not take advantage of this facility because the government failed to pay the declared price of wheat fixed by it for that year’s crop.
Since most farmers want to repay government dues as soon as they can, it will be in the best interest of all concerned if the ADBP extends the above-mentioned scheme up to June 30, 2002.
The government is requested to order the agricultural bank to make things easy for the farmers by accepting this suggestion.
MOHAMMAD AKRAM PITAFI
Muzaffargarh
WHEN TV sets are tuned to catch international channels for news, one hears ads of Pakistani firms being telecast by Indian TV channels continuously. This hurts the feelings of patriotic Pakistani citizens who wonder why these firms have chosen the Indian electronic media for publicity of their products when these media have exceeded all limits in their hostility towards Pakistan, particularly after the events of September 11.
If Pakistani commercial concerns are under the impression that ads on Indian electronic media are going to increase the sale of their products, they are totally mistaken. It has always remained a debatable point whether it is the publicity or the inherent good quality of the product which is really responsible for the promotion of sales.
In fact, publicity on the Indian media is producing a negative image of these Pakistani firms, as many Pakistanis, according to my information, are seriously considering boycotting these products. They also raise the question that these Pakistani firms have no right to spend the huge amounts earned by them from Pakistani customers on promoting the hostile Indian electronic media. It is also to be noted that not a single Indian firm uses the Pakistani media for the publicity of its products.
It is time for these Pakistani firms to stop forthwith their advertising campaigns through the Indian media.
M. SAEEDULLAH
Karachi
RESCHEDULING of Pakistan’s loans is no answer to the economic predicament of the country. The Western nations are praising President Pervez Musharraf for the courageous but unpopular domestic decision to side with them against Afghanistan. President Musharraf has shown the same courage by asking the Western nations and Japan to write off the loans to bring the country out of its morass of indebtedness.
A.A. KHAN
Lahore
GENERAL Musharraf seems to be rather disappointed that the aid promised by the West has not materialized and he is now obliged to cut back on the development programmes in order to meet the increased expenditures resulting from the war in Afghanistan ( Nov 4).
Did our erudite and politically savvy president not know that promises are just that and no more in the world of international relations? Looking at it from the Western perspective, the best guarantee they can have to keep Pakistan in line is to increase her dependence on the West.
Promises cost them nothing and, if the General insists, they will only present him with a fresh set of demands that he must fulfil. It is a vicious bind, not so much for him as for the entire nation.
K. HUSSAN ZIA
Sialkot
THE front page picture (Oct 30) shows a medley of people volunteering themselves to cross into Afghanistan to join the Taliban fight against the US attacks on their war-torn country. Most of the people appear to be in their 60s, 70s, and 80s, but their hearts are glowing to defend their homeland, against a war imposed on them under one or the other pretext. With home-made guns, and a resolute will, they are determined to fight a superpower equipped with the most modern weapons. The end result of such a fight is obvious, yet the day and night pounding has not been able to crush their will to fight.
It is now time that further pounding is stopped to save further up-rooting of the civilians from their homes. Negotiations should be intensified for a peaceful solution as the holy month of Ramazan is getting closer.
Mr Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General, who has been recently awarded Nobel Prize for peace, should see that UN peace-keeping forces come to Afghanistan to stop the senseless killing of the civilians. Moreover, let them not test the Muslim coalition partners against terrorism during the holy month of Ramazan, lest it sparks a ‘crusade’ and the coalition cracks.
M. SHAFIQUE AHMED
Karachi
I WOULD like to draw the attention of the government towards the unfair policy of the Pakistan International Airlines. They are charging the same fare for Boeing and Fokker flights on the Lahore-Multan route.
The flight experience that one gets, is quite different in the two cases. As such, one expects a downward revision of the fare for the Fokker flight. The government should take immediate notice of this and ask the PIA to do the needful.
ALI SALEEM
Lahore
THIS IS with reference to Khalid Hasan’s column, ‘No, no Naipaul’( Nov 5).
According to the Time magazine (Oct 22), the judges had probably ‘lost their wits, along with their taste, in pursuit of political correctness’. Saner elements in Canada too are critical of this award to a person who loathes Asian and African culture, but is a worshipper of material advancement made in the West. Islam is a special target for Naipaul.
All those who raise an eyebrow may also look at the pre-emptive declaration of the chief of the Nobel Academy, Mr Engdhal, that Naipaul might be seen as a political winner, and that “I don’t think we will have violent protests from the Islamic countries.”
This is not for the first time that the Nobel Academy has not been able to distance itself from political considerations. Those who are the dissenters of the regimes and ideologies that are distasteful to the West, turn out to be the darlings of the Academy. For instance, we find that when the cold war was at full steam with the Soviet Union, Leonodovich Pasternak and Alexander Isaevich Solzhenitsyn were awarded the Literature prize in 1958 and 1970, respectively.
Pasternek’s drama, Dr Zhivago was based on the love affair of a victim of Russian Revolution. Solzhenitsyn had suffered detention and exile for many years for his dissent with the system. After the dismemberment of the Soviet Union it was the turn of China to get its communism denounced. The writings of Gao Xingjian, a native of China (now a French citizen), were termed ‘pernicious’, by the Chinese authorities. He was accused of spreading ‘intellectual pollution’, and after 1989 his works were banned, and Gao was declared persona non grata. In the year 2000 he was awarded this prestigious award.
Naipaul is lucky that at this juncture when the Award has been made, a war is being waged by the world against terrorism because of September 11 attack on ‘civilization, freedom and opulence’. The brain-washing power of the Western media and the rhetoric of the administration has distracted the world’s attention from focusing on their own political inequities perpetrated on the Middle East as the root cause of terrorism. By giving various turns and twists, the religion of Islam has been very subtly brought to the fore as the real culprit.
So, at this time, when Islam and its followers are being depicted as the villains, who could have been a better candidate for Nobel Prize for Literature than Naipaul? I may here quote the American writer, Gertrude Stein: ‘Remarks are not literature.’ Naipaul seems to have earned Nobel Prize not for his literary works but for his remarks about Islam and its followers.
OSMAN SHER
Toronto, Canada
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