| June 29, 2002 | Saturday | Rabi-us-Sani 17, 1423 |
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EU policy on immigration
Compulsory education programme
Extremists -- Hindu, Muslim
Democracy and literacy
Apathy towards kidney patients
Nepra charges
Laws of repossession
Monthly budget
The killer dust
Of tasteless melons
India acting smart
Al Qaeda bogey?
Kashmir solution: a suggestion
THIS is with regard to the recent police action against the Afghan refugees at Rawalpindi and Islamabad. About a month ago, some unknown assailants attacked a police party at Dhok Saidan, Rawalpindi, in which two policemen died and one was injured. The injured policemen stated that the assailants looked like Afghan refugees.
Thereafter, the Rawalpindi and Islamabad police launched a campaign against the Afghan refugees, who were asked by the police to produce a passport with a valid Pakistani visa, if they could not do so they would be arrested. Almost none of the refugees in Pakistan have a valid Pakistani Visa, therefore almost every Afghan in Rawalpindi and Islamabad area was arrested. Also the police did not accept any other document like Refugees Card (shanakhti pass), Camp Documents, Ration Card or UNHCR documents as valid and those refugees in possession of such valid documents were also arrested. This is all the more ironic as at present the Pakistan government is not issuing any visa to Afghan nationals.
In the first four days alone 2,000 refugees were arrested in Rawalpindi. Of these about 1,200 were sent to the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, the remaining were released by the police after taking bribes.
The Rawalpindi and Islamabad police also raided the houses of Afghan refugees and in addition to arresting the refugees they also took away all their belongings. The police have also arrested a large number of Afghan refugee children (under the age of 15 years) for not having valid documents. Children are not required by law to possess or carry valid documents of any kind.
The police have also detained a number of Afghan refugee women on charges of having no valid documents, most of whom have not been sent to any prison.
At present there are between 3,000 to 4,000 innocent Afghan refugees detained at the Adiala Jail. Their conditions is particularly bad. More than a hundred detainees are confined in barracks that generally house only 60 inmates. The Afghan refugees are given substandard food and in lesser quantity as compared to the Pakistani inmates. Most importantly, in violation of all laws, everyday from 6:00 am to 2:00 pm all the Afghan detainees are put to forced labour. Under the law only convicts awarded rigorous imprisonment can be put to labour, no one else.
When the Afghan refugees first arrived in Pakistan, the government agreed to treat all of them as refugees. Only the head of the family was issued a Shanakhti Pass and only those living at the camps were given Camp Documents.
Now that the end of the Afghan crisis is in sight and all Afghans are looking forward to return to their homeland with dignity and pride and have nothing but goodwill for their Pakistani hosts, it is very unfortunate that campaigns like these are allowed against innocent Afghan refugees.
In the interest of friendly relations between the people of Pakistan and Afghanistan, it is requested of the President of Pakistan to take immediate action against this injustice.
HEDY SUSSMANN
Australia
LEADERS of the European Union have begun to shape their strategies to combat illegal immigration into their countries. The recently concluded EU summit in Seville, Spain, adopted a joint strategy to fight illegal immigration and stem the flow of clandestine migrants which has climbed to an alarming half a million a year.
The European leaders agreed on a set of proposals to enhance border security and coordinate divergent policies on visas and granting of political asylums to refugees. But they diluted a tough proposal by Britain, Italy and Spain to slap economic sanctions on countries not willing to take back their citizens or who participate in organized smuggling of immigrants.
At the same time, the European leaders warned countries which refuse to collaborate with the Union on this issue that they will find it difficult to forge “closer relations” with the bloc.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi had come to the meeting determined to take a tough line against illegal immigration but failed in their effort to link aid sanctions with immigration after France and Sweden rejected reprisals against poor labour-exporting nations.
French President Jacques Chirac advocated incentives instead of sanctions in fighting illegal immigration. “We can only resolve this problem through dialogue and cooperation,” he said. The summit was, however, able to develop consensus on pooling resources for border enforcements and harmonizing immigration policies in the battle against illegal immigration. The plan that emerged will lay the foundation for a common border police outfit and a trans European anti-smuggling task force.
But the summit leaders were keen to avoid the “Fortress Europe” image that has been surrounding their confabulations. As the Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, who is also the current EU President, said: “The debate about Fortress Europe is absurd.”
SHAHAB AHMAD KHAN
Karachi
THIS has reference to the Dawn editorial (June 24). You have given your readers to understand that theoretically the new literacy plan, together with the government’s compulsory primary education programme when carried out under the regular system, could go a long way in pushing Pakistan high up on the literacy charts.
Past experience tells us that whatever is regarded as the key to the problem theoretically always falters when put into practice. The high sounding ideas lose ground because of the ground realities. I am prepared to lay a wager that the new attempts are sure to fail as the previous ones because of lack of understanding of the actual problem.
The heart of the problem is that of hunger, because people who have large families to support employ child labour. So long as we allow the population explosion to continue unchecked, all government schemes will fail and result in waste of money along with increased illiteracy.
K.A. WAHID BUTT
Lahore
THE West has taken a malicious line about our nuclear assets. They say extremist Muslims having sympathy with Al Qaeda and the Taliban will destabilize the government and take over nuclear installations.
These days it is considered convenient to link any matter with Al Qaeda and Taliban so as to call for and facilitate American intervention.
The so-called extremist Muslims have never toppled any government much less a military one. Moreover, they have publicly announced that they will not create any difficulty for the government and the armed forces and that they will stand by them for the defence of the motherland.
However, the extremist RSS-trained Hindus are in power in India and in control of its nuclear assets.
Why is the west not worried about the misuse of the Indian nuclear assets?
KHWAJA MUHAMMADBASHIR BUTT
Bahawalnagar
THIS is with reference to S.A. Hairat’s letter (June 19) on the qualification for MNAs. The writer observed that in Pakistan we cannot bring in true democracy like that of the UK, Canada and Japan until we achieve 80 per cent literacy. This is really a tall order. Even in India the literacy level has not crossed the 50 per cent mark. In fact, high literacy rate is directly dependent on democracy alone.
During all the civilian rules in Pakistan, we have always had sham democracies, thanks to the colonial pattern incorporated in the constitution. These sham democracies have been responsible for thousands of ghost schools, colossal wastages and plunderings in every sphere of national life.
If we look at the world history we’ll see that increase in literacy rate followed the establishment of democracy and not the other way round.
For example in England rise in literacy rate occurred after the undemocratic era came to an end. It was due to the democratic pressures of public opinion that for the first time in England a Universal Education Act was passed by the parliament in 1870. This led to manifold rise in literacy level under the supervision of the grassroots democratic institutions of local governments.
In Pakistan if we truly empower the local government institutions right from the union councils to district governments, we’ll see a dramatic rise in the literacy rate. If England, USA, Japan and other democratic countries had waited for a very high literacy rate as a precondition for the establishment of democratic institutions, they would still be governed through the 17th century Cromwellian ordinances.
Incidentally in Pakistan, we have preserved the ugly system of legislation through ordinances, which cannot be tolerated in any democratic country. It is high time the educated Pakistanis acquainted themselves with the democratic norms; and in turn they should inform and inspire the masses with the spirit of freedom and democracy. This will automatically lead to good governance and higher literacy.
FEROZ SHAH GILANI
Karachi
A NATIONAL Dialysis Treatment Scheme was started by the Nawaz Sharif government under which 15 to 20 kidney patients from far flung areas were treated free of cost at City Hospital Malir.
As the scheme has been shelved by the present government and the government hospitals are unable to cope with the rising number of such patients, a good many of them have died for want of dialysis.
I appeal to the concerned authorities to revive the scheme so that the lives of poor people could be saved.
SURGEON MASOOD ALI
Malir
THIS refers to a news item in Dawn (June 25) that Nepra has decided to include a ‘small percentage’ for its own costs into the electricity tariff to be charged to the consumers.
If the report is correct, it is quite alarming. For one thing, Nepra is a price regulatory body, and this creates a situation of blatant conflict of interest. For another, Nepra should have more or less a fixed operating cost.
What will it do with a windfall in case of an increase in tariff and, hence, in its ‘income’? On the other hand, in the case of reduction in the tariff, a case admittedly unlikely and unheard of, how does Nepra propose to manage if its ‘share’ in the tariff falls below its actual costs?
Regardless of these situations, the proposed arrangement is bound to increase mismanagement and inefficiency, and impair accountability and transparency in the operations of the authority. The cost, as always, will be borne by those who pay their bills regularly and honestly.
A CONCERNED CITIZEN
Islamabad
THIS is with reference to the letter by Mr Adnan (June 19), ‘Leasing a car’. He has described an incident involving a leasing company. When he showed his interest in liquidating his car lease before maturity, the leasing company took the leased car from him forcibly and sold it at a nominal price.
He stated that the leasing company fixed the ‘nominal price’ at Rs75,000 less than the market rate and, as a result, he lost his down payment and that he was helpless as the car was repossessed by the leasing company.
In view of my long association with the banking and leasing industry, I would like to comment on the issue. Mr Adnan has not made it clear whether he defaulted on the lease rentals or not. This is the core issue which will determine who is right and who is wrong.
The perception about leasing companies as reflected in the letter is not correct due to the following reasons:
1. No leasing company would repossess the car without default of lease rentals or breach of the terms and conditions of the lease and without proper written notice to the defaulting lessee.
2. In case the leasing company repossesses the car from the defaulting lessee, it first gives a written notice to the latter to settle the account and complete the remaining lease period.
3. If the lessee fails, the leasing company invites bids through advertisement in the press and then also offers the defaulting lessee to match the highest bid received.
I think this is a fair practice by the leasing companies. If the writer did not default on the lease rentals, he has a legal and moral right to claim the loss, if the above procedure was not adopted by the leasing company.
Otherwise, he should appreciate the leasing company, as it repossessed the car itself that saved the re-possession charges legally payable by the defaulting lessee if the car were to be taken over by an outside agency.
TARIQ MASOOD
Lahore
THE government must have gone to great lengths to come up with a budget for the country. So, it won’t be great trouble for the finance minister to make a monthly budget for a family of six whose income is Rs3,000 per month. It would really be a great help to millions in Pakistan. After all what is a government for if not to help people.
ABDUL HAFEEZ
Gujranwala
THE city government seems uninterested in the rise of asthma cases in the city. This is evident from the development work under progress in various parts of the city.
Roads are filled with dust as the government has not made it compulsory for the contractors to carpet the roads after laying water or sewerage lines. The result is that the dust from these development works has become a killer for asthma patients.
The environment protection agency along with the health department should take notice of such negligence on the part of the city government.
SHAHID H. QADRI
Karachi
THIS refers to Dr Jamil Khan’s response (June 10) to my query as to why the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council had not developed quality seeds for growing ‘shartia’ sweet melons as one finds in the Mid-East and the West.
The learned Dr Khan attributes the tasteless melons to “prolonged drought conditions in the country and depletion of organic matter in the fields”. What logic! The size, shape, appearance and inner hue of our cut melons are mouth-watering. Why didn’t the drought affect these attributes of the fruit? Secondly, I did not talk of melons being tasteless this season only. But that melons have ever been invariably tasteless since before PARC was born.
Further, according to him: “Rain water is the tonic for (melons) but as a result of drought, they have been deprived of this natural source which contains a number of minerals required for the growth of plants and fruits.”
I may inform Dr Khan that during my UN assignments, I lived in Iraq and Egypt. One may not find a speck of cloud there over clear blue skies from April to late September. Yet they grow ‘shartia’ sweet melons without a drop of rainwater.
What indeed is surprising is that the worthy director of PARC did not talk at all of the quality of seeds used by our farmers as if it did not affect the taste of the fruit. Why? Does he want the people to believe that PARC research did develop a quality seed used in the country but adverse factors counted by him did not permit it to produce sweet melons?
B.A. MALIK
Lahore
“KASHMIR is a part of India because its ruler acceded to us; Junagadh is a part of India because the majority of its population is Hindu,” so say the Indians.
Isn’t it the same as saying heads I win, tails you lose?
ASHFAQUE NAQVI
Lahore
‘AL QAEDA’ is the buzzword these days throughout the world. It must really be a big organization. In spite of the fact that the US has taken over all its records, it has so far failed to let the world know the names of its office bearers, board of directors, etc.
The US should do so now, as it is the one initiating all the news about Al Qaeda, whereas nobody has yet claimed to be an Al Qaeda man.
Z.A. KAZMI
Karachi
PREPARATIONS are under way for yet another election to be staged in Indian-held Kashmir in a few months time. Omar Abdullah, India’s Minister of State for External Affairs, has been made president of the National Conference in IHK at a recently-held party convention. He is well-known for his hawkish approach to the Kashmir problem.
All is being woven for Omar Abdullah to be the next chief minister of IHK.
It’s ironic, and intriguing at the same time, that India has categorically announced that any international observer that may want to come in to monitor the elections, would not have official capacity.
This means that the observers who will be allowed in to monitor the elections will be of India’s choice and such a policy will inevitably end up in sham elections.
So, in the given circumstances, specially viz-a-viz the upcoming elections in IHK, Pakistan should take steps that would expose Indian injustice and highhandedness in Kashmir. Some of the steps are:
Pakistan should notify the United Nations that it is unilaterally ready to hold a plebiscite in Azad Kashmir in a certain timeframe giving the Kashmiris the choice whether to join Pakistan or India or to remain independent.
The proposed plebiscite should be allowed to be openly and officially monitored by observers from United Nations, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and represen-tatives from important countries.
Then, Pakistan must ask the world community to urge India to follow suit and give an opportunity to the Kashmiris in IHK to determine their course according to their wishes so that the miseries of Kashmiris could come to an end once and for all.
ENGR SHAUKAT ALI
Dhahran, Saudi Arabia
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