| November 14, 2001 | Wednesday | Shaba’an 27, 1422 |
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Haj policy
Loss to the economy
Osama’s interpretation of Shariat
Fighting in Ramazan
Unchecked encroachments
Relations with India
Capitalizing on Osama scare
Influx of Afghan DPs
Cable TV in DHA
Islamic dates
Rising crime in Jacobabad district
CNIC: position explained
THIS refers to Kuldip Nayar’s article “The tragedy of Afghanistan” (Nov 3), wherein facts have been distorted.
To set the record straight, the events that took place since 1970 are given hereunder in chronological order:
Sardar Muhammad Daoud took over power in Kabul in a bloodless coup d’etat in 1973. Mr Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto visited Afghanistan on the invitation of President Daoud from June 7 to June 10, 1976, (not in the beginning of the 70’s as mentioned by the writer). No agreement / pact, neither secret nor open, was signed during that visit.
Mr Bhutto was ousted from power on July 5, 1977 by Gen Zia-ul-Haq. Gen Zia visited Afghanistan from Oct 10 to Oct 11, 1977. President Daoud visited Pakistan on the invitation of Gen Zia-ul-Haq from March 5 to March 8, 1978. At that time, Bhutto was not in power. What President Daoud said to Gen Zia on the eve of his departure from Pakistan while shaking hands with him is noteworthy: “This is the hand of a Pathan promising to establish friendly relations with Pakistan on a firm and durable basis. In the past 30 years, we had taken a stance on an issue. Give me a little time to mould public opinion in my country to effect a change. I intend to convene the Afghan Loya Jirga to take a decision to normalize relations with Pakistan.”
There was no question of Pakhtoon state because at the time of partition of British India, Durand Line was declared an international border between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The writer of the article has mentioned that Hafizullah took over power after one month of Sardar Daoud’s visit to Lahore. As a matter of fact it was not Hafizullah Amin who took over power in April 1978 but it was Noor Muhammad Taraki who took over power in a coup d’etat in which Sardar Daoud and his family were assassinated.
Mr Kuldip Nayyar talks about of a secret pact to Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, the then Indian foreign minister, by Mr Hafizullah Amin during the former’s visit to Kabul in September 1978. This was the time when Mr Noor Muhammad Taraki was holding power in Afghanistan. Taraki remained in power from April 1978 to September 1979, Hafizullah Amin took the power in September 1979 by assassinating Taraki.
During the last 22 years, India had no role to play in Afghanistan. During the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan, India had been supporting the Soviet Union whereas all the notable leaders of the present Northern Alliance had taken refuge in Pakistan. Professor Rabbani, Gulbadin Hikmat Yaar, Ahmed Shah Masood, Sibghatullah Mujadadi and Syaf were operating from Afghanistan against the puppet regime in Kabul. Pakistan had been fully supporting them.
After the withdrawal of Soviet forces, due to infighting among the different Mujahidin groups, no stable government could be formed in Kabul. Because of the lawlessness and excesses of local commanders of different groups emerged the Taliban movement. The people of Afghanistan, in the hope of peace, tranquillity and stability, backed the Taliban movement. The Taliban militia occupied most of the area of Afghanistan without fighting and brought peace to their controlled area.
MUHAMMAD SALEEM CHAUDHRY
Quetta
ACCORDING to the government’s Haj policy, a pilgrim is required to take prior permission in case he does not want to utilize the accommodation arranged by the Haj authorities. But it is very difficult to follow the prescribed procedure and complete the formalities, particularly while a person is staying in Pakistan.
It is suggested that a Haj pilgrim may be allowed to get his own accommodation by submitting an affidavit to the Haj Directorate in Pakistan stating that he will produce hotel receipt or any other documentary evidence of rental premises when he arrives there. For the sake of clarification, an official can verify the evidence from the owner of the hotel or any other source as the case may be.
I hope that the concerned authorities will take necessary action to reduce the difficulties of the Haj pilgrims.
HUMAYUN SHAHZADA
Karachi
ACCORDING to a report, (Dawn Nov 2) the IMF spokesman Tom Dawson told a news briefing in Washington that the Fund hoped to wrap up negotiations on a new poverty reduction loan for Pakistan soon. The size of the loan is expected to be $2 billion with the support from the World Bank and other countries.
Earlier this week, the US State Department said it would support a $2 billion IMF loan for Pakistan. The agency (Reuters) circulating the news added that Pakistan’s need for help had increased recently as the US war on terrorism had dampened economic prospects for the entire region.
And even otherwise, isn’t the US and the coalition against terrorism morally bound to make up the loss of about $ 2 to 3 billion Pakistan is suffering because of the coalition’s campaign in Afghanistan in which the latter is giving its full cooperation?
LATIF QURESHI
Lahore
ONE has to agree with some of the views expressed by Osama Bin Laden in his interview on Nov 7, particularly on the West’s attitude and policy towards Muslims of Palestine, Chechnya, Kashmir and Iraq. However, the interview betrays a major faultline in his understanding of Islam.
According to his interpretation of Shariat, “Muslims should not live in the land of the infidel for long”. This edict is not there in the Holy Quran nor in the Hadith. It was formulated much later when conquering Muslim armies were advancing in many directions, and it suited some Ulema to divide the world in two parts, Darul Islam and Darul Harb. This faulty doctrine when questioned led to further absurdities including the one mentioned by bin Laden.
Bin Laden’s overall view is dim and questionable. Does he recommend a mass migration of Muslims from lands where they are in a minority to Islamic countries? Does he realize that his understanding of Islam, if accepted, would push 1.6 million Muslims out of Latin America, 5 million from North America, 24 million from Europe, 50 million from China, and 120 million from India?
Mr Laden’s proposal would create a bipolar world based on religion. He is unwittingly echoing the theory of Clash of Civilizations. This clash, in this form and time, would push Muslims 200 years back in history.
Most Muslims, in any case, would not agree with bin Laden’s view. Just ask any Muslim family settled in the US or UK. A few months ago, when a Muslim cleric was given an extradition order in the UK, he dug in, refused to leave and appealed to a high court to come to his help.
Let’s not forget that the Holy Prophet (PBUH) lived among infidels for 10 years in Makkah and did not opt to migrate but was forced by the opponents to leave. On arrival at Madina, one of his first major acts was to propose and implement Meethaqe Medina, whereby the emigrating Muslims, the Helpers and the Jews decided to form a confederation to live together in the city state.
It is also on record that the first emigration of Muslims to the kingdom of Neges, who at the time was not a Muslim, was at the suggestion and approval of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him).
Bin Laden’s interpretation of Shariat is faulty. His admirers would do well to exercise caution in putting too much faith in his understanding of Islam.
AHMAD KHALID
Kalas, Gujrat District
US Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld has stated that Muslims had fought wars in the holy month of Ramazan in their time, and he has it as a justification for the United States to continue its attacks on Afghanistan in the coming Ramazan.
Mr Rumsfeld should know that the battles fought in Islam’s formative period were in defence of the faith and those in Ramazan were forced upon the Muslims.
Fighting a war in those days was entirely different from what it is today: indiscriminate killing and maiming of civilian population and non-combatants with weapons of mass destruction like bombs, missiles, rockets, artillery, etc — to mention but a few. Battles of yore were fought at the chosen battlefields with the battle lines clearly drawn. Women, children and old people were neither killed nor injured. Even the farms, fields, orchards were spared the ravages of war.
Now what is happening in Afghanistan is that the world’s only superpower is wagging a war with bombs and missiles with the avowed purpose of flushing out the Taliban forces and the elusive Osama and also targeting his Al-Qaeda network.
But only the poor, hapless already devastated people of Afghanistan have borne the brunt of the hellish bombing and strafing and have suffered immensely.
SYED AMANULLAH
Karachi
ENCROACHMENTS on Lahore roads are a common sight.
The best example is the area right under the Sherpao Bridge Bazaar which starts from the Cantonment railway crossing. The road is completely blocked by dealers in building material and steel bar sellers apart from the parking of donkey carts and carts. Automobile workshops which have mushroomed by greasing the palms of the LDA and MCL staff are a pathetic sight. No one in government has bothered to consider the environmental effect of this area on Gulberg and the Cantonment. Unauthorized factories are also playing havoc with public life.
Has any one from any government department some time to pay attention to the area?
DR ABDUL MATIN HASHMI
Lahore
AS an Indian I write to fully endorse and support the view of Mr Tahir Mirza in his article “Worries of a frontline state” (Nov 8).
It is “wrong for both India and Pakistan to so abjectly seek to curry favour with America.... It would be tragic if the trend towards one-upmanship vis-a-vis the US and the present crisis was permitted to stall the process of detente that was set in motion in Agra. Both countries should decide to be friends without the help of outside vested interests.”
There is no other way for our two countries to live in dignity (which we seem to be fast losing) and to solve our own problems.
I hope Mr Mirza would find more and more support for his views in both the countries.
K.R. VENUGOPAL,
Former Secretary to the Prime Minister of India,
Seattle, USA
“NEPAL’s only international airport went on high alert after receiving threats that Osama bin Laden’s network was planning to fly hijacked airliners into targets in New Delhi” (Dawn, Nov 10).
The fact that this incident occurred at a time when the Indian PM was due to address the UN General Assembly and meet President Bush, and that the threat (not “threats”) originated from an Indian city remote from Kathmandu or New Delhi, makes it look very suspect.
Those who carried out similar attacks in the US on Sept 11 were totally successful in keeping it secret from all the American security agencies,
so it appears next to impos-sible that someone sitting in Chennai could have smelled the plot.
Besides, the terrorists would have a far greater motivation to take out some higher-valued targets in the US, Britain, Pakistan or Russia etc., rather than in India.
Apparently, somebody wanted to provide Mr Vajpayee with an opportunity to cry “wolf” at a very appropriate time in order to attract American and other nations’ sympathies. It seems to be just one more link in the chain of events starting with the bombing of the parliament in Srinagar that had curiously coincided with Gen Colin Powell’s visit to India and reflects India’s crude attempts to seek world attention by capitalizing on the scare created by Osama.
KHALID CHAUDHRY
Karachi
THE US-led bombing on Afghanistan is causing a large influx of Afghan refugees into Pakistan, especially in Sindh.
That will create more economic problems, new social controversies and demographic disorder in the province.
Sindh is already facing a serious problem of millions of illegal immigrants, most of whom are involved in the drugs and arms trafficking.
I appeal to President Gen Musharraf and the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) to put an end to the stream of refugees into Pakistan forthwith.
BK SAHITO
Hyderabad
ONLY one cable company has been allowed to operate in the Defence Society for reasons best known to the DHA only. The quality of transmission of this company can be best described as pathetic. It is also the most expensive in terms of its monthly and connection charges.
Will the DHA kindly allow other cable companies, too, to operate in Defence Society? This would not only decrease the cost of connection but would also allow residents to utilize the computer cable system, which smaller cable companies have been running all over Karachi.
DR JAMAL NASIR MEMON
Karachi
AT any given time, you ask a student an Islamic date (or month), and in 90 per cent cases you will be disappointed by the answer. This is because the government has done virtually nothing in creating awareness in this respect.
This can be done through the PTV.
PTV newscasters and anchor persons can announce the dates before starting their programmes.
The commencement of a new month should always be announced in the Khabar-nama.
AMEER HAMZA
Karachi
THOUGH there has been a heavy deployment of security personnel recently to guard the American troopers in Jacobabad, there exist no proper security arrangements for the original inhabitants of the district.
Cross-border raids of dacoits from Balochistan, especially from Dera Bugti, have made life miserable for the people of this area.
These dacoits murder, kidnap, rape and loot in the areas bordering Balochistan.
This situation has existed since the days of Nawaz Sharif and Benazir.
But we expected an improvement under the present military government.
Regrettably, these expecta-tions have remained unfulfilled.
We appeal to the government to take up an effective operation against the dacoits.
We also appeal to the Balochistan government and Nawab Akbar Bugti to use their resources and influence to check these criminals.
We also request the President to take immediate necessary action.
FAYAZ AHMED
Kashmore
THIS refers to Mr A.B.S. Jafri’s article (Oct 26) about computerized national identity card and the National Database and Registration Authority.
Nadra is in the process of creating a sophisticated database management system at the national level. The citizen database will act as the very first input to our national data warehouse. The accumulative advantages of documentation and availability of updated data are enormous and cannot be overemphasized. Authentic, electronically verifiable and verified particulars of citizens would be utilized to combat corruption, thus helping to ease daily routine activities of the citizen and would ensure integrity of our documents. It will also act as decision support system for effective prospective planning in all social and economic sectors.
The Government of Pakistan adopted a registration system and issuance of national identity cards back in 1973. Photograph, thumb impression, addresses, etc are a requirement for assuance of N.I. card. The National Database and Registration Authority has not deviated from the established rules, regulation and practices. Similarly, old application forms were priced at Rs 3/-per form. There is no deviation in this regard from the previous rate. These forms are available at all registration offices, special counters and with Nadra representative throughout the country.
To assist the citizen in filling of the form, the concept of Nadra representative has been introduced. These registered and licensed agents are performing this task under detailed directions already provided to them.
Questions asked from column No.14 to column No. 27 in the computerized national identity card application forms have been included for data collection purely to save costs on data collection. It may also be noted that various details asked in the form do not pertain to any specific information but are just indicators for gathering of accurate statistical data for prospective planning for future. If a citizen does not have any information about any particular question or all of the questions (possibility of which may be very rare) he/she is free to indicate this on the form.
It is important to note that the photograph on the new computerized national identity card is not being pasted. It is scanned and printed electronically. Coloured photograph is required for better reproduction; still it is optional and an applicant can use a black and white photograph.
The National Database and Registration Authority is mandated to collect various statistics. The religious status of the applicant has the sole purpose of creation/upgradation of the database. Moreover the religion column is not placed there as a basis for accepting rejecting the application. This is in no way an invasion of privacy and the applicants may leave the column blank.
Attestation is a legal requirement. To help citizens, all elected representatives are authorized to attest CNIC application forms of their respective areas. This in addition to people already authorized including lumberdars in the villages, officers of federal and provincial governments in grade 16 and above, commissioned officers of the armed forces and civil armed forces, officers of levy in grade 16 and above, officers of autonomous and semi- autonomous bodies and local bodies of the status corresponding to officers in grade 16 and above, officers of nationalized banks and government corporations, nominated retired civil and armed forces officers and other person officer who may be authorized in this behalf by the federal government.
Due to the delay in issuance of new computerized national identity cards, the cut off date of 31 December 2001 for the change of registration system from manual to computerized in accordance with Nadra Ordinance 2000 will be extended. A new date is being worked out and will be announced shortly.
JEHANZEB AZIZ
Marketing & Media, Nadra,
Islamabad
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