| August 22, 2002 | Thursday | Jamadi-us-Saani 12,1423 |
To send a letter to the Editor
Click here
Road to Middle East peace
Inflation rate dubious
Qisas and Diyat laws
Adjustment of fuel prices
Kashmiris and polls
Parking fee and staff’s behaviour
Legislators and ministers
Remembering war heroes
Saddam should step down
News At Ten
Nomination paper requirements
Cricket: good strategy needed
YOUR editorial ‘Greater storage capacity’ (Aug 17) points out very appropriately the social, environmental and political issues as well as seismic hazards associated with large water reservoirs on the Indus river.
It seems impossible to build a large new reservoir without achieving a consensus among all four provinces. Therefore, it is desirable to look for new storage sites acceptable to all provinces and, at the same time, ensure an efficient and sustainable operation of
the existing storage and irrigation system, particularly the operation of the Tarbela reservoir.
The Tarbela reservoir is rapidly losing its storage capacity due to our inability to flush out the sediments from it as envisaged under the original operating rule which required the reservoir to be lowered, every year, to 1,300 feet by May 20 and to be held there until June 20, before being allowed to rise to 1,550 feet.
This rule was meant to create the required condition for flushing out the sediments from the reservoir through Tunnels Nos. 3 and 4. Since 1990, the rule for flushing out the sediments has been abandoned because of the following two apprehensions.
One, the removal of very large quantity of sediments from the reservoir, through the tunnels, would erode the turbines and other appurtenances installed in the tunnels, necessitating a very large expenditure on subsequent maintenance and repairs.
Two, if the sediments were allowed to accumulate in the dead storage near the dam, the possible forward slumping and movement of the sediments delta might block the intake.
In the present circumstances, there are insurmountable difficulties in achieving a consensus in building large dams.
Therefore, our first priority should be the conservation of the existing storage capacity at all costs. We should find viable techniques to operate the Tarbela reservoir according to the original operational rules.
M AKRAM KHAN
Lahore
THE voices of sanity calling for a strategy of cooperative rather than competitive security in the Mideast are more relevant today than ever before.
Zero-sum security games in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have clearly failed. They have led to a new cycle of violence characterized by Palestinian suicide bombings and Israeli reoccupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
How can we bridge the current gulf in Mideast security? Adopting a cooperative security strategy will bring about greater benefits to all the stake-holders. Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Abdullah’s peace proposal of March 2002 has provided a useful framework. It has been endorsed by the Arab League, supported by the international community, and remained unopposed by the United States and Israel.
The proposal calls for a normalization of relations between Israel and the Arab states if and when Israel withdraws to its 1967 borders. That is, in essence, a restatement of UN Resolution 242, which guided the Oslo peace process and was restated as US policy by Secretary of State Powell in October 2001. The sweetener is the notion of “normalization” that goes beyond the 242’s requirements for a simple recognition of Israel by the Arab states.
The proposal clearly suggests an opening of the rich Arab markets to Israeli consumer goods, technological know-how and investment. If we apply the logic of this peace proposal to the entire Mideast region, it could produce the following ideal scenario:
An immediate ceasefire between the Israelis and Palestinians of all factions.
A United Nations Mideast Peace Conference, including all of the stake-holders (the P5, Israel, all of the Arab states, Iran, Turkey, and Afghanistan).
A simultaneous declaration of non-aggression by all the stake-holders, reiterating the UN Charter’s prohibition of use of violence in the settlement of international disputes, recognition of the national sovereignty of all states, and the principle of non-interference.
Mutual recognition of the state of Israel by all the Arab states and of the Palestinian state by Israel. Settlement of boundaries between the two states on the basis of UN Resolution 242.
Creation of an Association of Mideast Nations (AMN), including Israel, the Arab states, Iran, Afghanistan, and Turkey aimed at promoting regional trade, investment and cooperation.
Creation of a Regional Centre for Dialogue and Cooperation (RCDC) and a Regional Court for continuing confidence-building and juridical settlement of disputes. Creation of a UN authority to govern Al-Quds/ Jerusalem as the capitals of Israel and Palestine. Alternatively, Jerusalem could be divided into two parts to serve as the capitals of the two states.
PROF MAJID TEHRANIAN
Honolulu, Hawaii
FOR the last two years, the finance minister has been maintaining that the inflation rate in Pakistan stands at 2.6 per cent. Disputing his claim, consumers, businessmen and newspapers put it at above 14 per cent. This difference is too large to be ignored not only by the government and the people but also by the international donors.
As the rate of inflation forms one of the basic factors for a country in planning its annual budget and strategy for future development, it is essential that it should be determined correctly by a credible and impartial authority. It is, therefore, in the national interest that the President should constitute an independent commission consisting of those representing the government, the consumers, industrialists and agriculturists besides the heads of the Economics Departments of the Karachi and Punjab universities.
This commission should first examine the present formula followed by the government and judge economic suitability or otherwise of the country for monitoring the real inflation rate. The commission should modify the formula if necessary. It should also determine the actual rate of inflation. The commission should submit and make public its report every three months.
Till the publication of the commission’s report, the finance minister should not declare his dubious conclusions.
S.M.F. HASAN
Lahore
IN his article ‘A cruel country’ (Aug 3) Mr Irfan Hussain has aptly related the rise in murder cases to the introduction of Qisas and Diyat Laws by Gen Ziaul Haq in the early eighties.
It reminds me of a historical incident. When President Zia introduced Islamic laws in February 1979, he deliberately withheld the laws of Qisas and Diyat, as Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, a convict in the murder case of Ahmad Raza Kasuri’s father, was still alive.
Gen Zia did not want ZAB to benefit from the laws of Qisas and Diyat. Malik Ghulam Jilani, a veteran politician and a visionary, moved the Lahore High Court seeking pardon for ZAB under the Islamic laws of Qisas and Diyat and offered as much money as Mr Kasuri’s family wanted. But the Lahore High Court turned down his request as these ‘laws’ had not been by then introduced by Gen Zia.
This incident shows Gen Zia’s ‘sincerity’ to his much trumpeted Islamic system.
Coming to the main theme of the article, these laws have been totally misused by our people. Previously, under British laws, murder cases were treated as state cases and nobody could think of deriving any monetary gain out of them. But now the situation has totally reversed.
Quite often, we read a man killed by someone and the bereaved receiving Qisas and in return pardoning the killer(s) may himself by involved in a murder conspiracy.
Therefore, it is suggested that the present liberal government under the able guidance of President Pervez Musharraf should revert to the old system of the state owning the murder cases, to check the ever-increasing killings in our country.
HAFEEZ AKHTAR
Lahore
THE policy of fortnightly price adjustment of petroleum products introduced by our finance minister over the past few months has been playing havoc with the people of Pakistan, adding to persistent uncertainties in price structure of the commodities in the country.
All these unending enhancements of rates and prices have led to adverse impact on hapless consumers already suffering from ever-rising cost of living.
The increase in fuel prices has now touched the unbearable limits. The cost of transport has also become unmanageable for the low income group. The commuters have now to pay 100 per cent more than what they used to pay a year ago.
The increase of 10 paisa on Aug 15 on petrol is really ridiculous which could have been painlessly absorbed by the 55 per cent tax component levied on this item.
K.M. SHARIFF
Karachi
IT is time the Kashmiris started playing the Indians at their own game. The Indians want to hold an election, fine. Participate in it and form a government of your own liking.
If the Indians rig the election, cry foul. Conduct surveys and polls before the election and publish the results. Conduct exit polls at every polling booth to point out any discrepancies that arise.
Participating in the polls does not mean that it replaces the plebiscite. It would be a means to an end.
Boycotting the elections will achieve nothing but the status quo. The Indian government will pass it off as it has done before, putting the onus on the ‘militants’ and through them on Pakistan.
Pakistan can help the people of Kashmir by seeking international support for the grant of self-determination right to Kashmiris.
MUEED PEERBHOY
Kingston, Canada
I WANT to draw the attention of Karachi’s city government to the racket of charged parking in general and the practice on Beaumont Road in particular.
This road is located in an office/commercial area and the ‘customers’ of the parking contractor are mainly from the educated class.
In the first place, the city government has never notified the rates of parking in different areas. Taking advantage of this, the contractors fix their own rates as fees.
The contractor of Beaumont Road charges Rs25 per day (and Rs625 per month) which is not a reasonable rate for a salaried class person who is already overburdened with a number of heavy taxes.
People who park their vehicles outside their offices are not picnickers and they should not be subjected to this heavy expenditure only for the sake of generally a little amount they would be paid as salary. Simply, most of them could not afford the exorbitant parking fee. And what they get in return? Not even a single road all over the city to be called an excellent one.
Secondly, the staff of the contractors deal with their ‘customers’ rudely and often misbehave with them. The lowest-paid employees of the contractors have been evidently ill-mannered and illiterate.
I request the authorities in Karachi to fix reasonable and uniform rates for parking and ensure that the contractors’ staff do not indulge in over-charging and misbehaviour with the people. The government should also issue some sort of document pertaining to the charges as well as the identity of the authorized contractor.
FAISAL SHAHZAD ABBASI
Karachi
THE biggest flaw in our system of governance has not been identified and dealt with. The elected representatives i.e. Senators/ MNAs/ MPAs become executives/ministers and start playing havoc with the country. This creates a great imbalance in the main components of the system of governance.
The legislators, who are unfortunately, in many cases, lacking sufficient appropriate grooming, education and training, also become ministers. It seems that the primary purpose of being elected is to become a minister. The absence of proper checks and balances leads to widespread corruption and breakdown of the administration.
We have suffered very heavily as a result. This must stop if we are to survive and make progress. The demands of the modern world are that experts in their respective fields should be ministers.
The great strength of the American President is that he has the best technocrats as his ministers.
In the presidential form of government, the members of the legislature, senators or congressmen are not allowed to become ministers. Nor can they hold any civil/public office. We must impose this restriction. If they want to become ministers then they will have to quit the legislature.
This one amendment alone will tremendously improve our governance. This is a must for our future prosperity.
SYED AMJAD MUKHTAR SHAH
Karachi
Aug 20, 2002, marked the 31st anniversary of Rashid Minhas Shaheed, the youngest recipient of the highest military award, Nishan-i-Haider.
The nation must remember that he had achieved this height of glory at the age of just 20 years.
It would have been very appropriate if the PTV authorities had re-telecast on that day the long play based on his life and achievements.
I feel that the plays from the Nishan-i-Haider Series, based on the lives of the recipients of this award, should be telecast during the months of August and September to revive the memories of our war heroes.
HARIS MASOOD ZUBERI
Karachi
THE United States is set to attack Iraq at the instigation of Israel, the strong Israeli lobby in the US and the conservative Christian groups. It is only a matter of time that the Bush administration will execute its plan.
The Muslim world is not in a position to defend or help Iraq though it regards the planned US attack as highhandedness.
The best strategy at this point of time for the Muslim world is to convince Saddam Hussain to quit only to avoid the US attack which may destroy his country and unleash miseries for the people.
ABDUL AZIZ
San Francisco, USA
THE PTV launched a much publicized campaign to find out whether the people wanted Khabarnama to be telecast at 9pm or 10pm. The majority voted for 9pm.
It then gave huge publicity to the ‘News At Ten’. The news readers who had been shifted to non-prime news time were brought back to Khabarnama, reducing the appearances of four excellent women news readers.
Now a fresh salvo has been fired — no sports or weather with Khabarnama. Get it at News At Ten. Don’t the people at the PTV know that the vast majority of Pakistanis do not have cable or dish antennas? They cannot access News At Ten..
Would these fellows wake up and put back sports and the weather with Khabarnama? They can have an updated version at 10pm.
SHAHID NAZIR
Lahore
THE Election Commission has directed all candidates for the October elections to submit to the respective Returning Officer a ‘no-dues certificate’, issued by the concerned authority, along with their nomination papers.
In Sindh, 90 per cent of the big landowners usually do not pay land revenue and submit assessment. Many of them have remained assembly members and enjoy influence to get revenue officers of their choice posted in their areas.
The CEC is, therefore, requested to ensure verification by a competent authority of the no-dues certificates pertaining to the land revenue assessment as per VF-viii and Roznamcha (FF-IX).
Another option may be that the certificate should be issued by the EDOs (Revenue) who should verify the genuineness of the papers to be submitted by the candidates.
MIR MOHAMMED SOLANGI
Nawabshah
SRI Lanka bat first and make only 242 runs. South Africa bat first and make only 196. The Pakistan team should at least have realized by now the advantage of bowling first in a one-dayer to put their superior bowling strength to best advantage.
Their failure in chasing such modest totals points to ‘very bad strategy’ or ‘lack of it’. By trying to score fast early on and thereby losing wickets, the team comes under unnecessary pressure in the last overs.
Instead, by scoring steadily even at a low run rate, the modest scores of the opposing teams could easily be chased in the last 15 or so overs provided sufficient wickets are in hand.
It is only when chasing a high score that a do-or-die strategy is justified, including sending in Afridi. Unfortunately even the experts give confusing advice to the team. Ramiz Raja remarked after South Africa had been bundled out for 196: “Although Pakistan are not good at chasing runs, a good start should see them home.”
The bogey of ‘not-good-at-chasing’ is entirely because of lack of proper strategy and he should have been advising the team on a proper strategy rather than repeating this hackneyed phrase. His use of the term ‘good start’ could mean a fast-start or a steady start, he should have been more specific, because the former could spell disaster as it did, whereas the latter would have brought in sweet victory on both occasions.
I am writing this after the matches have been lost, in the hope that someone, somewhere, will read this and the team will not go to the coming World Cup still wearing blinkers.
KHURSHID ANWER
Lahore
THE Pakistan Cricket Board gives a lot of perks and privileges, prizes and bonuses, to the cricketers who do well against other teams. But when they prove themselves to be duds, shouldn’t they be chastized, and penalized? The least the PCB can do is to refuse their match earnings because of what they have done in Tangiers.
They couldn’t make 242 to win against Sri Lanka and a paltry 197 to beat South Africa. They seem to be resting on their laurels which, I am sure, they are wearing in the wrong place.
They are just enjoying with their wives and children without paying heed to their professional duties.
ASHFAQUE NAQVI
Lahore
You can also send letters to the Editor
Just send your message to the following address:
Make sure you include your full name, postal address, e-mail address, and in the case of Pakistan your day-time telephone number.