| February 10, 2003 | Monday | Zul Hijjah 8,1423 |
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Gas woes: a security risk
Need for overhead bridge
Free education in Punjab
Quaid’s birthplace
TB: a public health challenge
Wasteful expenditure on marriages
Irregularity at Sindh BoR
Kashmir Day: another viewpoint
Bush versus Saddam Hussein
Former Principal,
Sindh Madressah,
PRESIDENT Musharraf’s visit to Moscow reaffirmed Pakistan’s desire to establish strong ties with Russia. The visit had its own importance subject to many expediencies of strategic, geo-economic and geo-political concerns.
This rendezvous between the two heads of state was phenomenal after a 30-year interlude of suspension of relations between the two countries. Two weeks later, Indian Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha is due in Moscow. Further developments will show how far the president’s visit was fruitful in melting the ice and pivotal in making a heraldry of mutual trust and friendly relations between Moscow and Islamabad
Napoleon’s saying that it is the geography of a country that determines its foreign policy has become a universal truth. A foreign policy which deviates from its geo-politics cannot have strong moorings. From the very beginning the pendulum of our foreign policy swang towards Washington, thereby sidelining Moscow. Subsequently, Pakistan’s entry into Cento and Seato in 1954 and 1958 endorsed our leaning towards the US.
The war of 1971 and its aftermath changed the pattern of our mindset. It was the time when we reorganized the frontiers of our foreign policy and discovered the need to build our ties with Russia.
In 1979, after Russian intervention in Afghanistan, we once again re-established our ties with the US. Since the withdrawal of Russia in 1989 from Afghanistan, none of our governments felt the need to restore the links with Moscow. On the other hand, India‘s astute diplomacy enjoyed the benefit of an atmosphere of healthy and strong relations with Russia and good bilateralism with the US.
In the post-9/11 world, Pakistan’s strong affirmation in espousing the Washington’s cause of war against terrorism again brought Islamabad and Washington together to the extent that it was being thought that the two were enjoying a honeymoon. But the equations of the relations between the two countries have been highly unequal in the context of America’s enlisting Pakistan on INS registration while exempting the Indians, the statements of the US ambassadors both in India and Pakistan on infiltration across the LoC, Washington’s allegation that Pakistan privately helped North Korea in its nuke quest and the US posture of war against Iraq.
President Musharraf’s visit to Moscow in such a backdrop was highly significant.
S. Q. AFZAL RIZVI
Karachi
THIS refers to recent reports in your paper about the “tribal clashes” between the Mazari and Bugti tribes, and the resulting suspension of gas supply to Punjab and some other parts of the country. I think this is not just a case of simple tribalism or the surviving vestiges of feudalism as most reporters and commentators seem to imply.
If we look at the history of Pakistan since 1947: the central government has treated Balochistan no better than a petrol and gas station wherefrom they can get cheap, reliable supplies of gas and oil. The royalties realized from these supplies are distributed among the local sardars to continue an efficient spoils system which has remained uninterrupted since the times of the British rule.
That is why, despite being the wealthiest province in terms of resources, the Baloch people remain mired in poverty and vicious control of their tribal sardars. This was not always that way. We remember what happened when Zulfikar Ali Bhutto dismissed Ataullah Mengal’s democratically elected government in 1973. That government wanted to serve the interests of the Baloch and take them out of obscurantism and traditionalism. Denied democracy, the Baloch people went to the mountains and involved Bhutto in a sophisticated guerilla war which ultimately cost him his government and his life.
Since then, no government in Balochistan has been really responsive to its people’s needs. The demands of democracy require that a portion of these royalties be used for the development of Balochistan and its people. For that to happen, the backward sardari system needs to be abolished because it is these very sardars who appropriate the so-called royalties and development funds, leaving nothing for the people.
The government is making a blunder by treating this incident as a mere tribal issue. The tribes have fought throughout history on petty issues of ownership and votes. The current issue is political and involves the control of Balochistan’s resources by a selfish government. It has its roots in pre-partition history when the Baloch people were not even consulted on their accession to Pakistan.
I hope the government will stop treating this issue as a law and order problem like the Bhutto government did, and will redress the grievances of the Baloch people, instead of making them dependent on opportunist tribal leaders.
RAZA NAEEM
Lahore
WHILE the Karachiites appreciate the much-needed construction of an overhead bridge at the Shah Faisal Colony railway crossing which will solve the problem of traffic jams, we, the residents of the adjoining areas of the Malir 15 railway crossing, hope that the city government will build another overhead bridge at this crossing.
Over the years the emergence of many new housing schemes in the surrounding areas, the traffic flow of all kinds of vehicles from Port Qasim and Steel Mill, and the haphazard stoppage of mini-buses have made the lives of the area people miserable.
It is surprising that no government authorities paid any attention to the infrastructure of this area before planning to construct Steel Mill and then Port Qasim. Such large projects mean all types of vehicles will be running on this route. It is agonizing to watch at peak hours the chaos this particular area witnesses every day.
As is the practice, the authorities concerned act when some fatal accident happens at some place. The Landhi bridge is an example of such an attitude. We hope President Gen Pervez Musharraf will order the construction of this badly-needed bridge.
The other nuisance the residents of Gulshan-i-Rafi, Gulistan-i-Rafi and the adjoining societies face is the unauthorized presence of reti-bajri trucks which have over the years destroyed roads.
A bypass road can be constructed to help divert the oncoming traffic to the localities situated at the right side of the railway track.
We hope the authorities will give due consideration to our above-mentioned problems, enabling us to lead a peaceful life.
ENGR NOOR NABI
Karachi
AFTER a long time Punjab has, in some way, succeeded in getting such a chief minister as seems to believe in deeds rather than words. During the initial phase of his chief ministership, he selected those issues which really matter with the poor.
The chief minister has recently announced many laudable vital decisions. Two of them directly relate with the most precious segment of society, i.e. our youth; free education up to matric level and a ban on juvenile smoking. Both the decisions reflect the pragmatic, constructive, innovative and qualitative approach of the chief minister about this unique force.
It is historical veracity that only those nations have proudly travelled from the nadir to zenith whose top priority was or is only education, because education is the only power which could make you a superpower in reality. Obviously, best education required sound mind and health. So the chief minister’s decision to ban juvenile smoking is the first step towards the right direction.
MASHHOOD AKHTAR
Lahore
THIS is with reference to a discussion going on in these columns about the birthplace of the Quaid-i-Azam. There is no denying the fact that the place of birth of “Muhamedali Jinnabhoy” mentioned in the record of Sindh Madressah, for all the three times of his admission and readmission to Sindh Madressah, has been mentioned as “Karachi”.
His own statements to this effect are also on record. But, many of the proponents of the Karachi birthplace theory ignore the fact that Thatta, including ‘Jhirk’, was also within the jurisdictional limits of the Karachi district in those days. The question is that of interpretation: whether ‘Karachi’ be interpreted as its municipal limits or its district jurisdiction.
Being Mr Jinnah’s biographer, I was also intrigued by this controversy. There are a few facts which should not be blurred in the fury of any heated debate.
First, Karachi owes its pre-eminence to the opening of the Suez Canal in the later part of the 19th century. This made Karachi the nearest port of the subcontinent to Europe, some two hundred nautical miles nearer than Bombay. Before Suez Canal, Karachi was devoid of much commercial importance that may attract any ambitious man like Jinnah’s father.
Secondly, before the Karachi phenomenon, Jhirk was the busiest river port and centre of commercial activity in Sindh. It also served as the headquarters of “Indus Flotilla”, the most modern navigational system of those days. It was because of the commercial importance of the town that Aga Khan constructed his palace over there. Another testimony to the importance of Jhirk is that one of the oldest British era schools in Sindh, 15 years older than Karachi’s Sindh Madressah, was also established in Jhirk, which is still functioning there.
Thirdly, it is also an established fact that Jinnah’s father acquired a house in Jhirk, adjacent to the palace of Aga Khan. The plot is still there among the remains of once magnificent British colonial buildings of Jhirk.
Fourthly, we come across an unfortunate fact that there is no record available of Jinnah’s primary education, which he must have received in order to be eligible for his admission to a secondary school. The school in Jhirk, established in 1870, has always claimed that Mr Jinnah was enrolled there.
MUHAMMED ALI SHAIKH
Karachi
TUBERCULOSIS continues to kill approximately two million people worldwide annually. However, once known as the most dreaded disease, TB is no more considered a death warrant or a social stigma to the affected person.
Effective preventive and curative strategies are now available. DOTS (directly-observed treatment, short-course) is a comprehensive strategy which primary health services around the world are using to detect and cure TB patients. Developing countries will have to put in more efforts to benefit from this and related strategies.
According to National Tuberculosis Control Programme, Pakistan ranks eighth amongst the high TB burden countries in the world and first in the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, to which Pakistan enjoys its affiliation. Every year, 250,000 new cases and 60,000 deaths due to TB occur in the country. One more startling fact is that 75 per cent of the TB patients are in 15-59 years, an economically productive age group.
It has also been reported that poor adherence to treatment regimens by physicians and patients aggravate the situation and lead to multi-drug resistance against TB, making it extremely difficult and expensive to cure it.
One opportunity to get our acts together will be provided next month when WHO celebrates the World TB Day on March 24. This year the theme is ‘People With TB’. The theme stresses the need to address the people with TB by involving them as advocates for global TB control. The slogan is: ‘DOTS cured me — it will cure you, too’.
I am sure people who matter, specially medical professional bodies and non-governmental organizations which have interest in the public health, will rise to the occasion. Creating awareness about TB and its control will be a great service to the people of Pakistan.
Dr PARVEZ NAYANI
Karachi
IN early 1997 the federal government enforced the Wasteful Expenditure on Marriage Ordinance, imposing a ban on serving any kind of food during marriage functions.
The ban on wedding meals was challenged in the Supreme Court which, while disposing of the petition filed by one of the members of a marriage halls’ association, gave a ruling that the provinces should independently legislate to stop wasteful expenditure on marriages.
The newly-elected legislators of the Punjab Assembly have now recommended that one-dish meal, without any sweet dish, may be offered by the host only to a maximum number of 300 guests. The Punjab chief minister’s special assistant gave the definition of one dish and suggested that the host should either offer bread and curry or rice and curry in all marriage-related functions. The families of the groom and the bride will be required to inform the district Nazim about their marriage functions.
However, if the number of guests in such a function exceeds 300, the host should only serve soft drinks or soup, and the serving of a single dish will amount to a violation of the law and the violators will be fined from Rs100,000 to Rs300,000. District coordination officers will have the power to implement the law.
The Punjab cabinet has also recommended that lightning be allowed only in the houses where marriage ceremonies will take place, and not on the streets and roads leading to such houses. The cabinet has also recommended a ban on the exhibition of dowry and marriage functions at public parks.
I hope the legislators of Sindh, Balochistan and the NWFP will also make similar laws.
SYED A. MATEEN
Karachi
WITH the assumption that all power of attorneys are executed in lieu of sale transactions, the stamp wing of the Sindh Board of Revenue under a suo motu action has illegally detained thousands of sale deeds, executed through attorney, only to extort more revenue and make their ACRs good at the cost and suffering of the public.
People at the revenue office are seen inquiring about their documents which were registered months back but have not been delivered yet to them in spite of the payment of an urgent fee.
The department pressuring people into fulfilling its illogical requirements. Ironically, no such demand has been made in writing by the department.
Would the revenue secretary or any other official concerned intervene to stop this irregularity and provide relief to the public?
WASIM RIZVI
Karachi
SO, we observed Kashmir Day on Feb 5 and expressed solidarity with our Kashmiri brothers and sisters.
We decided to waste millions and millions of man-hours to express solidarity with the people of Indian-held Kashmir. Could we not have utilized those many million man-hours to do something actually useful for the Kashmiris? Could we not have used those man-hours to do something useful for the 150 million odd people who are bona fide citizens of Pakistan?
Would our rulers and politicians be willing to hold a referendum on Kashmir? Let’s go to the polls and put the following question to the people of Pakistan:
Would you rather be able to feed your children, give them proper education and some form of half-way decent health care, assure them a life free from murders and robberies and abductions and rapes, rid them of bigoted mullahs who preach blood letting of fellow human beings as a stairway to heaven, or would you rather have a free Kashmir?
The key motivation in staying up nights worrying about our Kashmiri brethren is that we want to improve their quality of life (life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, as our current best friends would put it). And bring it parallel to what? The slums in F-7? Or the ones on the banks of Nullah Leh? Which ones?
Of course, I could be totally wrong here. I haven’t been around either the F-7 slums, or the ones in Pindi. They might have already vanished.
I would appreciate if my comments are taken in the right spirit. The British did a horrible wrong when they divided Kashmir the way they did. A terrible injustice has been done, and it should be corrected. My only question is, are we even willing to take stock of where we are?
SAAD M. WARAICH
Islamabad
PRESIDENT Bush is determined to devastate Iraqi cities and towns, thereby killing and crippling a hundred thousand people or so because Saddam Hussein possesses chemical and biological weapons which constitute a threat to the Americans.
Does this action justify killing men, women and children who are not at fault or responsible for their leader who is, no doubt, a tyrant? Saddam Hussein is the person who unleashed a war against Iran and Kuwait for which the Iraqi people paid a heavy price in the form of human miseries and sufferings. He is the person who let loose a reign of terror against his own people who are in perpetual fear and insecurity.
How can Americans, who value human life, endorse the action of their leader to invade a country allegedly having weapons of mass destruction? No evidence has yet come on the surface as it is evident from Mr Blix’s report, submitted to the UN.
Perhaps, their concept of the value of human life is confined to Americans and Europeans, and it is not applicable outside their territories. They are naive and have no compassion if the killing involves innocent Arabs, Asians or Africans.
One fails to understand how a small nation like Iraq can be a threat to the security of America, which is capable of destroying such a nation within a few hours. The reason is that America discriminates and decides which nation should have weapons of mass destruction. For instance, the US itself possesses unlimited stocks of weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons.
Similarly, Britain, Israel, China, Russia and India have such weapons and such nations enjoy immunity from attack. But the US cannot tolerate Iraq or Iran, Libya or North Korea having or acquiring weapons of mass destruction. These countries are likely to be American targets one after another.
It is now certain that the US wants to control the resources of Africa and Asia. Both Britain and America are bent on attacking Iraq, irrespective of UN disapproval. Their unilateral action will cripple the UN, which was set up by their predecessors to prevent unilateral action by any power to unleash war on any nation.
It is a tragedy that in the 21st century, we are witnessing a revival of imperial power to take control of the resources of the poor of Asia and Africa. A massive assault on Iraq by missiles and rockets would reaffirm the adage that might is right.
A. S. PINGAR
Karachi
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