| July 18, 2002 | Thursday | Jamadi-ul-Awwal 7, 1423 |
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A five-day week
International propaganda
Expanding NSC by two members
Accelerating pace of privatization
Kashmir and Nehru’s pledge
India’s nuclear arsenal
Closure of Frere Hall garden
Our chosen guardians
PTV’s axe has fallen
Diplomatic enclave
Overseas Pakistanis
Transparent entrance test
Taxing old cars
Demand and supply of IT graduates
THESE days, a lot of discussion is going on about the religious or moral endorsement for carrying out suicide bombing attacks, like those in Israel and in Indian held Kashmir. This confusion started after the comments made by the Minister for Religious Affairs, Dr Mehmood Ghazi, in which he supported suicide bombing attacks by Palestinian and Kashmiri youth against Israel and India respectively.
What I believe is that these people are not living in normal times. The situation is desperate in both Palestine and Kashmir. Innocent people are being brutally tortured and murdered while their women are being raped by the occupation forces. And the victims don’t have the weapons to defend themselves or to retaliate.
The only weapon they have against the tyrants is their own lives. They are killing themselves to kill the enemy. I am sure that if they had any alternatives, they would definitely have used those and refrained from suicide bombings because sacrificing one’s life is not an easy task.
I agree that Islam does not allow suicide. But what else can these helpless people do? Anyone would cross all limits to avenge the killing of a dear child or the rape of a sister or daughter? Isn’t it that what these people are doing?
There was a similar situation in this part of the world during the post-independence massacres. Don’t we remember that many of our sisters and daughters had committed suicide to save their honour from Hindus and Sikhs?
Also, what our people forget is the episode during the Indo-Pakistan war of 1965, in which our valiant soldiers had to stop the enemy’s tanks from entering Pakistani territory. Without proper anti-tank weapons, the only way out was what they adopted: they tied bombs to their bodies and threw themselves in the path of the enemy tanks. They died, but they destroyed the tanks. Wasn’t that suicide too? But today we call them martyrs and praise their bravery. Who draws that line that differentiates between those martyrs of 1965 and suicide bombers of Palestine and Kashmir?
Desperate times need desperate measures — often beyond any logic.
MOHAMMAD SHAHZAD SHEIKH
Peshawar
AFTER the successful introduction of advancing Pakistani clocks by an hour, it is time to introduce the two-day weekly holidays to match the international standards in toto.
The new clock timings saving the daylight and the precious national power resource has been enforced successfully. The next step should now be the enforcement of the other worldwide power saving practice, the five-day week.
For obvious reasons, this step would get a warm welcome from office-goers, particularly those in the private sector who have to follow the nine-five working hours and sit extra two to three hours late to finish up the heavy load of work, and have only Sunday as their day off.
By the introduction of five-day week, both the public and private sectors can make savings on account of less usage of electricity, office vehicles and air conditioners. Besides that, the office-goers would feel a bit relieved and may recharge their energy by taking part in recreational activities during the longer weekend.
I would like to mention here that the five-day week is being successfully followed at least at two public sector organizations i.e. the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission and the National Agriculture Research Council, besides a large number of multi-national companies.
There is a feeling that a five-day week will not work in our environment and that was why a similar decision taken earlier had to be reversed. But I feel that though there is no flaw in the system, perhaps it cannot succeed in a half-cooked strategy. Therefore, I suggest the introduction of a five-day week on all levels and in all sectors including educational institutions. We can have a full day even on Friday with an hour’s break for Juma prayers.
DR ZEBA ABBAS
Lahore
I HAVE seen and read a lot of criticism of the military government both at home and by the international community. The international community is not aware of the conditions in Pakistan. It does not understand the circumstances that Pakistan is in, but the people of Pakistan do, and yet they are loud in criticizing the military government. They are simply towing the international community’s line.
Just imagine where we would have been if the military government were not there. Any so-called democratically elected government would surely have supported the US war on terror as they would have had no other option but the opposition parties would have formed alliances with religious extremist — the mullahs and militant organizations — to overthrow the government and they might have succeeded.
An extremist and fundamentalist government would then have taken over which would have never been acceptable to the international community and we would have become a target of the coalition against terrorism.
The militants and extremists would have launched a jihad against the government for supporting the Americans. Pakistan would have become a direct target of acts of terrorism. I know that acts of terrorism have occurred even under the military government but they have been very few.
Just imagine what would have happened under a civilian government. No civilian government could have ordered a crackdown on the militants. Only the army could do it and for heaven’s sake, let us stop believing in the international community propaganda that the ISI and the army are aligned with the militants and terrorists. It may have been true before but certainly not now.
UMAIR ALI
Lahore
THE proposed National Security Council will have the president, the prime minister, chief ministers of all the four provinces and services chiefs as members.
No doubt, checks and balances for good governance can be maintained effectively through the proposed National Security Council, but in my opinion for more effective and foolproof system of checks and balances two more persons may be included in the proposed council. They are the Chief Justice of Pakistan and the chairman of the senate.
Article 186 of the Constitution provides advisory jurisdiction to the Supreme Court but it is directly proportional to the consideration and desire of the President to obtain opinion from the Supreme Court on any question of law which he considers of public importance. Being a permanent member of the council, the Chief Justice would be of immense help.
Many a time, the senate has been made redundant due to the attitude of the political party in power, with the result that law-making has suffered. Hence, to create smooth working relationships between the prime minister, the president, and the chairman of the senate, it is necessary to include the chairman of the senate in the National Security Council.
KAZI ABDUL HAMEED SIDDIQUI
Karachi
PRIVATIZATION promotes enterprise. But in several countries, including Pakistan, the pace of privatization is much slower.
What is needed in this context is:
Stronger stock market — built-in privileges as to counselling and financial assistance within certain parameters (for certain period) for the companies subject to privatization.
Investors’ confidence in stock market. Stable stake prices for a leverage period as the case may be.
Public faith for a consistent pursuance of listed and non-listed companies — extensive representations campaign (at times media) to the outlined segments on a regular basis.
Giving up control and reducing owning of stakes in the companies to yield optimum benefits — to visualize/ monitor the likely progressive expertise applied making a vision for the times to come.
From cement to energy sector, getting onto privatization makes structural changes and improvements inevitable — strictly in terms of making it an obligation for the government to deregulate its part in a participative way.
Equity participation through privatization is a vital but confident way of attracting investment. In case of utility/ multi-utility companies terms and conditions are the clue.
ASHFAQ AHMED
Karachi
REGARDING the issue of Kashmir, I must ask that if the pledge made by Nehru for a plebiscite in the state stands valid even today, then why is India not honouring it? Why is India keeping more than 700,000 soldiers in the valley?
I ask the Indian government that with so much poverty in the country, why is it keeping such a huge force in the small state of J&K? Hasn’t it got other problems that need more attention. Forty per cent of its population lives below the poverty line and still India is ordering aircraft-carriers and expensive war-machines.
If India has such a large number of soldier in J&K, then why don’t its own forces stop infiltration and seal the borders?
Why is India not allowing foreign observers and journalists into the territory? It has been seen that when some journalists are allowed into the state, they are searched by the Indian agencies twice or even thrice daily. Is this democracy and press freedom?
The fact is that India is doing everything to divert the world’s attention from the explosive issue of Kashmir.
S. ALI AHAD
Karachi
WITH the appointment of an extremist as the deputy prime minister of India, people all over the world have started worrying about India’s nuclear arsenal.
Fundamentalism is on the rise in India and its government is heavily under the pressure of Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad activists. Under these circumstance, how can one believe that India’s nuclear facilities are in safe hands and would not be used irresponsibly?
Extremists all over the world are the same, whether they are in Pakistan or in India.
SHAKIR LAKHANI
Karachi
SINCE the bomb blast near the American Consulate, Frere Hall has been closed to the public. This closure has badly hit the regularly visiting senior citizens and the book-worms who used to go to the garden every Sunday for the book-mela. Those who used to visit the Liaquat Library and the Sadeqain Gallery, housed within the Frere Hall building, have also been affected.
Senior citizens and cardiac patients from the adjoining residential areas used to visit this beautiful and tranquil place for their morning and evening walks. They now have no place to go for fresh air as there exists no other garden in the vicinity.
I request the authorities concerned to re-open the garden.
RAHIM CHUNDRIGAR
Karachi
THE other day the governor of Punjab made a surprise visit to a police station in Sheikhupura and found that 11 persons had been detained illegally in a lock up.
This is not the first instance where the governor himself discovered injustice being done to the people. But I want to ask why the governor has to do this every time? Why can’t the senior police officers check the police stations falling within their jurisdiction?
Action should be taken against the senior officers under whose area this police station is located, where the governor found illegally detained persons. It is only in this manner that the senior police officers can be made to feel their responsibilities.
FAIZA BASHIR
Lahore
WHEN the current affairs programme News Night was launched on PTV, we all had our apprehensions of it turning out to be something like Ru Baru of the Zia era. To our pleasant surprise, it did not. The credit for this goes in no small part to the anchor person, Talat Hussain.
Somehow he wiggled his way through whatever censors that were in place, and fomented crisp and candid debates over a wide range of national and international issues. It may also be safely asserted that some of the best and the most thought provoking comments were contributed, not by his guests, but by the anchor person himself. His programme served as a medium for national catharsis for many eventful months of our national history.
But the axe that was always hanging there in mid air, has finally fallen. His absence has taken the journalistic sting out of the programme.
Would anyone care to explain the reason for firing a person doing his job as well as he did?
NUSRAT BOKHARI
Islamabad
A NUMBER of Dawn readers have suggested the relocation of the American Consulate in Karachi. I agree with them. But instead of creating a diplomatic enclave, why not have a diplomatic island for our paranoid allies in the ‘war against terror’?
Consulates of the US, the UK and of any other country desirous of being more secure can be located in an island off Karachi coast, with the 7th fleet guarding them. The Pakistan navy can run a ferry service for anyone wanting to visit these consulates, of course, after a complete body search.
DR JAMAL NASIR MEMON
Karachi
NADRA has ignored overseas Pakistanis who do not know how to obtain application forms for submission to the respective embassies.
We Pakistanis, residing in Saudi Arabia, appeal to Nadra to look into this matter and arrange facilities for us to obtain ID cards abroad.
Q. NADRI
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
THE entrance test for government medical institutions of Sindh is expected to be held in October, 2002.
In view of the lost credibility of the Institute of Business Administration, which was shattered last year, the health ministry of Sindh should take some more precautionary measures to ensure transparency. I would like to make some suggestions in this regard:
Students should be provided answer scripts with a carbon sheet. At the end of the test, only carbon copy of the answer scripts be given along with the Master Key of the test to the candidates, so that they can assess themselves on the spot.
This would eliminate the chances of manipulation by those conducting the test.
In my opinion, the NED University’s testing process can be taken as the model.
KHALID AHMED SMOOMRO
Larkana
IN 2001, the Lahore High Court ruled in the writ petition filed by advocate MD Tahir — to whom all owners of old vehicles must be thankful — to the effect that such owners of old cars registered in the province 10 to 20 years ago would not be liable to pay income tax, professional tax, etc., when paying the annual road tax.
It is a matter of regret that although a period of 10 months has passed, the post offices have not received any instructions from the high-ups for not realizing the income tax and professional tax from the owners of old cars while receiving the token tax.
The postal authorities are requested to do the needful at the earliest so that owners of old cars may be able to pay road tax by the due date, which is July 31.
M. AMIN MIRZA
Lahore
A STUDENT of economics knows that all labour markets, IT being one of them, operate according to the principle of demand and supply; an increase in demand for labour leads to higher wages and greater supply of labour.
However, labour supply cannot adjust instantaneously, it takes time for people to acquire skills required to meet the demand. The wages remain high until the excess demand is not met by an increase in supply. The supply only adjusts after a certain lag. This lag is usually the time required to acquire the skills for joining the labour force, in case of IT this might be four years.
But after four years, the demand conditions might change. This will lead to excess supply of labour force in the market and reduction in the wages below their equilibrium level. So the adjustment process takes what is called the ‘cob web’ adjustment. This means that while deciding about careers people react to demand signals, which might not be there when they finish their education and actually join the labour force. Hence, there is a built-in bias in labour marker mechanism, which leads people to respond to signals, which might not actually exist.
In the context of IT, this implies that all those young students who choose to take IT as a career today must be responding to the high wages and employment opportunities that were available to IT graduates a few years ago due to greater demand. These students will spend thousands of rupees for education as well as precious years of their time in private or public sector universities only to find themselves without jobs.
Even computer graduates from universities like LUMS and GIK are having difficulties in getting jobs as well as admissions abroad. Many students are switching their major midway. By giving subsidies to IT institutes, the government is further strengthening the false signals. The army of IT graduates which will join the labour force after three to four years will find no employment opportunities and this will cause further frustration and unrest among the people.
The IT revolution has become a thing of the past. Even graduates from top US computer and IT schools are having difficulties in getting jobs and changing careers.
MOHAMMAD ALI FARID KHAWAJA
Lahore
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