| October 5, 2002 | Saturday | Rajab 27, 1423 |
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Jinnah’s viceregal role
Kashmir key to good ties
Open Haj scheme
Revisiting the Partition
It’s democracy, perhaps...
Appendix surgery
Extradition to US
Foreign banks
Free media?
Currency notes
Discrimination
Karachi University
Labour policy and agriculture sector
IN the letter headlined, ‘Gender-based violence’ (Sept 26), Norwegian scribe Fjaerestad maintains that, “for years, women in Pakistan have been denied the enjoyment of a whole range of rights — civil, political, economic and social. The deprivation of these rights makes women more vulnerable to yet further abuse and ill-treatment.” From the Amnesty report, the author cites some instances of women getting murdered and falling victims of honour-killings and acid attacks.
Not long ago, nursing a burning desire for a male issue, a labourer shot dead his three minor daughters in Thokhar Niaz Baig, Lahore. This news brings to mind similar gory tales prevalent particularly in India.
Suzanne Goldenburg gave a horrifying account of killing female children in southern India where among the poor families an average husband earns only Rs3,000 a year. The girls are considered additional drain on the already impoverished families when it comes to bringing them up and provide for the dowry.
Financial problems, irrespective of gender determination, fuel infanticide in Hungary as well. Psychologist Judit Cseres of the Hungarian National Police, who for many years worked at the Hungarian Child and Youth Protection Agency, reported nearly 200 infanticide cases from the 1980s through early 1990s. It is all linked to financial insecurity. About a quarter of Hungary’s 2.5 million children are classified by state officials as ‘endangered’, primarily because of impoverished living conditions.
On November 16, 1999, more than 5,000 school students marched in New Delhi to demand a ban on female foeticide and sex-selection tests, in a bid to arrest alarming sex ratio anomalies. The Indian Medical Association and non-government organizations, supported by Unicef, held a large public rally to highlight the foeticide issue.
Medical officials say that growing female foeticide is leading to a disturbing gender imbalance in the Indian population. Although the national ratio stands at 927 females per 1,000 males, in certain states it is as low as 800:1,000. In one district of Haryana, the ratio is now down to 600:1,000.
PROF DR P. NASIR
Gujart
THIS refers to M. Zafar’ letter, ‘More on Jinnah’s viceregal role’ (Sept 29). He seems to be under some misconception when he says while referring to Quaid-i-Azam M. A. Jinnah’s exercise of viceregal power vis-a-vis his prime minister: “Of course the action was in accordance with the Government of India Act 1935 adopted as the Constitution of Pakistan as an interim measure.”
In this connection, his attention is invited to the Provision C to Section 8(2) of the Indian Independence Act 1947 which says: “So much of the said provision as requires the Governor General or any Governor to act in his discretion or exercise in his individual judgement as respect any matter shall cease to have effect from the appointed day.”
It is clear that the above provision of the Indian Independence Act totally dispensed with the discretionary power of the governor-general of Pakistan and placed him on a par with the governor-generals of other dominions of the Commonwealth. So the governor-general of Pakistan was constitutionally bound to act on the advice of the prime minister.
R. R. ALVI
Lahore
THIS refers to Kuldip Nayar’s article (Sept 21). Failing to fulfil his pledge of a plebiscite in Kashmir, Nehru had hurt the Indian image badly. He tried to annex Kashmir by force, forgetting that there would be stiff resistance. The result has been a ‘no-war, no-peace’ situation between India and Pakistan. He could not foresee that the common masses would be unable to better their lives because of his policy on Kashmir.
What Kashmir is to India today, Algeria was to France. As General de Gualle became the President of France, the statesmanship and foresight in him made him overrule the generals as well as his cabinet and grant independence to Algeria, because he felt it immoral to rule over a colony against the wishes of the people.
If Nehru had the vision of de Gaulle, he would not have gone after Kashmir just because his ancestors were Kashmiris.
It is never too late to set things right. In this regard I would refer to Nayar’s remarks that instead of replying to Musharraf’s speech in the UN, Vajpayee should have ordered the “withdrawal of forces from the border and the resumption of the bus and rail services to help people-to-people contact.”
The core issue of Kashmir must be solved so that both India and Pakistan could live as good neighbours.
JALAL AHMED
Karachi
A SIZABLE number of pilgrims belonging to the middle income group have opted to perform Haj on “Open Haj Scheme”. This was partly due to the fact that they could not afford the expenses for regular or sponsorship schemes of 35-40 days duration and have, instead, taken the opportunity of visiting the holy land for a smaller period of 15 to 20 days.
For such intending pilgrims, it has been shocking to learn through press reports that the air fare for “Open Haj Scheme” has been raised to Rs 13000 per person. This is very unfair. It may be pointed out that some of our neighbouring countries offer a concessional fare to pilgrims.
It is requested that the concerned authorities should look into the matter and ensure that the same fare is charged from those availing the “Open Haj Scheme” as by those going on regular or sponsorship schemes.
E. U. KHAN
Karachi
THIS refers to Dr Iftikhar H. Malik’s article, ‘Need for revisiting the Partition’ (Sept 28). I fully endorse his views that Pakistani social scientists, not just historians, need to review the partition in creative and original ways.
Unfortunately, most of the historical or political work produced on Pakistan tends to be directly in keeping with the established orthodoxies, such as glorifying the role of the ulema in the freedom struggle, when it is a known fact that the entire leadership of the Pakistan Movement was secular, making a Westernzied mullah out of Jinnah when he firmly stood for a secular Pakistan where religion would be in the personal domain and not a basis for managing state affairs, and demeaning the role of such figures as Abul Kalam Azad, G. M. Syed and Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan.
In this respect, I would like to mention one outstanding contribution which Dr Malik has surprisingly left out in his article, Jinnah, Pakistan and Islamic identity: the Search for Saladin (1997) by Akbar S. Ahmed, which places Mohammad Ali Jinnah in a true and unbiased perspective. Needless to say, we need such histories about people like the above-mentioned, not mere potted ‘popular’ biographies or diatribes subscribing to this or that ideology.
RAZA NAEEM
Leeds, UK
THIS is with reference to Mahir Ali’s article, ‘It’s democracy, perhaps, but not as we know it’ (Oct 2).
Is there any democracy, as Mr Mahir Ali knows it, anywhere in the world, including the USA and the UK? Read the daily Mirror of London (Oct 2), wherein the British prime minister has been reported as saying that he knows he is not liked but he does not care. Tony Blair does not care for the opinion of the British public. Then, is that democracy?
RAJA ALI EHSAN
Birmingham, UK
Why this barrage against the armed forces, always? They are honest soldiers, patriotic to the last drop of their blood. Democracy is not their subject, agreed. But what sort of democracy is known to our respected intellectuals?
Is it only Western democracy that is normal for them? Islam also puts forward a concept of democracy but it is different from that of the Western style. Moreover, are we concerned only about the ‘forms’ and ‘rituals’ of democracy or do we have anything to do with the ‘essence’ of a democratic society?
It has become a fashion among our intellectuals to degrade our leaders, particularly those from the military, and brand them as agents of a foreign power. When they do this, they only convey to those powers how intellectually bankrupt we are.
MUNIR A. VARRAICH
Angered, Sweden
THIS is with reference to the letter, ‘Appendix surgery’ by Dr Tariq Mahmood (Oct 1), in which the importance of ultrasound was stressed before appendix surgery and patients were advised to take up an ultrasound investigation in such cases.
Here, I would like to quote a reference from the American journal, Radiology, (vol 215, Pp 337-348). An article, ‘Appendicitis at the Millennium’, written by some very renowned and respected authors, states: “In experienced hands, US has reported sensitivities of 75-80 per cent, specificities of 86 per cent, accuracies of 87 per cent, positive predictive values of 91-94 per cent, and negative predictive values of 89-97 per cent for the diagnosis of acute appendicitis. The inexperienced sonologist, working with poor equipment and/or technique, will not provide the excellent results possible with this modality.”
The article further states: “Helical CT has reported sensitivities of 90-100 per cent, specificities of 91-99 per cent, accuracies of 94-98 per cent, positive predictive values of 92-98 per cent, and negative predictive values of 95-100 per cent for the diagnosis of acute appendicitis. These results are comparable to those achieved by experienced investigators who have used thin-section, conventional, contrast material-enhanced CT and are superior to recently reported clinical accuracy.”
This and a number of other references that I can quote clearly state that a helical CT is much more helpful in diagnosing appendicitis and its complications, as compared to ultrasound and colour doppler . Also, a good colour doppler costs about Rs1,500 while a contrast CT is done in Rs1,000 only.
DR ASIM SHAUKAT
Mayo Hospital,
Lahore
I write this letter with reference to a news item, ‘Extradition of rapist to US’ (Oct 2).
I urge upon all the concerned government authorities in this country to consider whether this person would get a fair trial in the US when there exists in that country an unprecedented hysteria, paranoia and prejudice against the Muslims and Pakistanis. A large number of Muslims are already confined in American prisons without any charge sheet or trial.
Pakistan should act like a sovereign country and protect the rights of its citizens. There is no extradition treaty between the US and Pakistan and we are under no legal obligation to hand over a Pakistani citizen to the US.
AAMIR LATEEF
Islamabad
ONE of the important functions of the State Bank is to keep an eye on all banks, local or foreign, to monitor how they manage their business and behave with their clients. It seems that certain foreign banks are free to do whatever they like and charge from their clients amounts which are not justified.
A certain foreign bank penalizes the account holders if any one maintains a balance smaller than an arbitrarily fixed minimum balance. For a simple statement of account, they would charge Rs1,000. If the client has a locker in that bank and his balance becomes lower than the limit fixed by the bank, the fee of the locker is doubled.
No bank has the authority to withdraw any amount from the account of a client without his approval, yet this bank has closed thousands of accounts by withdrawing money from the clients’ accounts and keeping it in the form of pay orders, without any intimation to the concerned party.
Even in cities like Karachi, there is no system of preparing computerized statement of accounts. In spite of orders of the SBP to the contrary, soiled and torn currency notes are being issued to the customers. Depositing the utility bills is always an ordeal.
The State Bank of Pakistan, now an independent authority, should streamline the working of not only the local, but also the foreign banks.
S. M. A. RIZVI
Karachi
ON Sept 28, at about 7pm, I watched a news report on the CNN about one of the hot topics of the day, the anti-war rally in London. The CNN representative, reporting live from Hyde Park, informed the viewers that the turnout of about 20,000 people, as estimated by the police, was a bit ‘disappointing’ from the organizers’ point of view as they had expected millions.
Immediately after that I switched over to BBC World whose representative, also reporting live from the same spot, stated that people’s participation was ‘quite impressive’! He also interviewed one of the organizers who said that it was a big event.
One of the world’s biggest media called an event ‘disappointing’ while another, equally big, thought it to be ‘quite impressive’. Doesn’t it show that the American TV channel was trying to protect from damage the stand of the US government?
S. A. SAYEF HUSSAIN
Islamabad
SHOPKEEPERS and even some banks refuse to accept currency notes that are soiled or mutilated, or have the picture of the Quaid on them disfigured. Besides this, some banks also refuse to oblige you if you ask for currency notes of smaller denominations on the pretext that they have not received it from the State Bank of Pakistan.
On the contrary, any number of new and smaller denomination notes can be had from the currency dealers in Boultan Market, Karachi, on payment of a small discount. Where from such currency dealers get their supplies?
Would the State Bank of Pakistan look into the matter?
M. SHAFIQUE AHMED
Karachi
Due to some recent incidents of terrorism in the city, most of the Karachi hotels have raised the level of their security measures. While sitting in the lobby of a hotel, I saw a local citizen, dressed up nicely and looking respectable, walking in with his baggage. He was promptly stopped by the security personnel for baggage screening. Only a few minutes later, a foreigner also walked in with his baggage but he was warmly welcomed by the hotel staff.
Doesn’t it mean that in this country, even the most respectable local citizen is not as respectable as an ordinary foreigner with a white skin?
AKBAR KHAN
Karachi
AS the oldest teacher in the University of Karachi, may I share my ideas with you and your readers?
A university functions through its faculties. The first dimension of the university is indeed the teachers. The students who receive light from the teachers form the second dimension. The teachers’ first function is to teach. It is, therefore, desirable that at the University of Karachi the teachers should resume all their teaching obligations. It is equally essential that the teachers should be enabled to perform their duty with dignity.
The third dimension of the university is the administration. It is the function of the administration to make sure that teachers perform their duty with the full measure of the teachers’ dignity.
All the three dimensions should join together to bring back the university to its normal functioning. Just a few months ago, there was a statement in Dawn, that Karachi University is the largest and the best university in Pakistan. We can regain this position by combined efforts and by all the dimensions of the university working in harmony. It is certainly an objective to attain which we should all combine to put in our best efforts.
PROF RIAZUL ISLAM
Karachi
THIS refers to your recent editorial on the new labour policy as announced under the labour ordinance. It has been claimed that the policy has been prepared with the consensus of employers, employees and the concerned government ministry. In general, the policy meets the global requirement but has some shortcomings which have been left unaddressed.
The major one is the agriculture industry. After a long debate on the subject, the agriculture sector, too, was included in the list of industry and was to be covered under the said ordinance.
The government, for the purpose, had sought advice of International Labour Organization, beside the representatives of big (agricultural) land-owners, tillers and the government.
The government representative would now perform the role of ‘facilitator’ and not the ‘controlling party’.
At the final stage of policy approval, a few bigwigs of the present government forced the exclusion of agriculture from the ambit of the ordinance. This proves that landed aristocracy, too, has its supporters among the top echelon of the military establishment.
We know that Europe became industrial power only after the complete elimination of feudalism and its replacement by ‘corporate agriculture farming’ which was graded as industry.
The new ordinance was aimed at protecting the interests of the farm workers who, besides their monthly wages/package, could have some share in the annual profit/bonus from what the concerned agricultural company (industry) would have earned.
We are hearing loud voices of ‘poverty alleviation’ but the question is, can such a programme make any headway without covering the country’s more than 50 per cent labour force engaged in farming?
The agriculture sector is controlled by a few feudal lords who have no sympathy with the poor peasant. The peasant community earns hardly two square meals a day. Healthcare, shelter, education, public utilities and other rights cannot be thought of in most cases.
People pinned great hopes on some military rulers but, regretfully, they failed to root out feudal aristocracy. The present military government is also trying to smash, somehow, the shackles of Waderacracy from this ‘Land of Pures’. Unfortunately, it appears that feudals have managed to influence the other associates of the military ruler as had happened in the past.
The only option left for the unfortunate tillers is to pray to Almighty Allah.
S. M. ZAKERYA KAZMI
Karachi
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