| September 16, 2005 | Friday | Sha'aban 11, 1426 |
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Apartment associations
Threat to biodiversity & farming
Effect of meat imports
‘Successful’ strike
New Murree project
Domicile certificates
‘Heritage at stake’
Iraqi women’s rights
Checks on drug firms
Muslim League
Power for farmers
Campaign in the West
Rigging and EC
The Ashes series
MR K. M. Chima’s letter (Sept. 9) effectively articulates the decay of the Muslim intellect by stating the facts that led to the filing of a public interest petition in India’s Supreme Court seeking the dissolution of Shariat courts in that country.
Banning these so-called Shariat courts in India may be a very big service to Islam that the Indian Supreme Court could do because they only serve to perpetuate injustice.
The position taken by the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board and the Darul Uloom of Deoband have negated the Islamic concept of egalitarianism and social justice.
The reason for the rapid spread of Islam in its earlier days was the modernism of its message in that it was far ahead of the religious and cultural practices of that time. It prospered not because of its rigidity in maintaining the status quo but because of its broad principles of equality and social justice.
As for Pakistan, instead of preventing Mukhtaran Mai from travelling overseas and making a mockery of its enlightened moderation policy, the government could have used the tragedy to launch a global movement against rape which has been unequivocally condemned in Islam.
The misrepresentation and misunderstanding of Islamic laws has invited hatred against Muslims in many countries. The general perception about Islam being a backward religion promotes the view that it also breeds terrorism and that it subjugates women. This perception is based on the misguided teachings of the clergy. Unfortunately, not enough is being done to correct these false perceptions.
Muslims must rediscover their religion through a thorough understanding of the Holy Quran and continue to interpret its message in the light of scientific discoveries, and for this one does not need the clergy. Many of us may be surprised to find that most Islamic values and principles are practised in the West. The western system evolved through trial and error and continues to accept new ideas.
The Muslim clergy tends to ignore the positives of western societies and only highlights the negatives to prevent people from asking probing questions. A reconciliation of western (and secular) practices and Islamic principles is required. Any laws contrary to Islamic principles must be rejected but progressive laws that are consistent with Islam must be retained.
ARIF HUMAYUN
Vancouver, WA, US
KARACHI is dotted with various high-rise buildings and nearly half of its population lives in apartments.
The routine maintenance of flats differs from that of independent houses and bungalows. People living in flat complexes collectively maintain services against monthly contributions ranging from Rs400 to Rs1,500, depending on the amenities and size of the complex. An elected “welfare association” of residents has to be registered under the Societies Act XXI of 1860 with the office of the registrar, welfare services, Sindh.
However, there are various problems which welfare associations face from flat residents and the latter from associations.
While some residents make delayed payments of the service charges, some do not pay at all for months and years, shifting the burden on to those who pay regularly. Some residents do not display a civic sense and throw out garbage from their windows and balconies or spit around or let water overflow.
Some residents ignore payment of their individual sewerage and water tax bills and still get undue water out of the bulk supply from the KWSB through common water tanks of a complex. The associations are not empowered to take action in such cases and can only rely on appeals to the residents.
Some associations misuse funds contributed by residents, do not maintain proper accounts, ignore annual auditing and do not furnish a monthly statement of accounts at the end of every month to all residents.
Residents do not get proper services against contribution. Due to non-payment by some flat owners, other residents have to bear increases in maintenance charges.
There are no checks and balances exercised by the authorities concerned. A quarterly inspection by officials will help to provide succour to apartment dwellers.
THAKUR NASEER SHEIKH GABBAR
Karachi
I APPRECIATE the article on “Threat to biodiversity and farming” by Dr Abdul Jabbar, Dr Zia-ud-Din Sindhu and Dr Zafar Iqbal (Economics and Business Review Weekly, Sept 5). Biodiversity in plants and animals is dwindling due mainly to deforestation in the southern hemisphere.
The natural resources of the South are being exploited by the Gene-poor and technology-rich countries of the North. It is clear that there is considerable interdependence between developed countries (gene-poor and technology-rich) and developing countries (gene-rich and technology-poor). The purchase of plants from Kaghan (Pakistan) for Rs6,000 a kilo for extracting active ingredients (phytochemicals) for preparing herbal medicine by foreign pharmaceutical companies through local intermediaries is unethical. Biodiversity thus is a good case for North-South cooperation. The North should come forward to impart knowledge, training and skills to increase the value of the raw resources of the South.
In order to meet the increasing food needs of the ever increasing population in the South, particularly in South Asia, there is a need for conservation of plant genetic resources, soil, water and pest management. The gene resources of wild relatives of crop plants provide a gene pool from which new crop cultivars could be head by the traditional plant breeding method or by the transfer of useful genes biotechnologically in our crop plants for farming.
DR M. JALALUDDIN
Adjunct Professor of Agriculture,
University of Karachi
IN order to reduce prices of basic commodities the government has reduced customs duty and withholding tax to zero per cent for import of meat, livestock, onions, garlic and tomatoes.
As a consequence, about 1,01,000 tons of beef are being imported from India every week. Importers of meat from India are of the view that Indian meat is cheaper and thus imports would reduce the price of locally available meat. To substantiate this, the importers have been quoted in newspapers as saying that local meat is being sold at Rs 130 per kg while the imported meat is being sold at Rs 95 per kg.
However, for now, the arrival of imported meat has not really affected the price of local meat. The fact is that whatever meat is being imported is being purchased by commercial establishments in the big cities such as hotels and big restaurants. The result is that ordinary citizens for whom the imports were probably meant to provide some kind of relief are not benefitting. I would also like to point out that India seems to be interested only in exporting beef to Pakistan. Orders for mutton and other meat varities have not been entertained, presumably due to higher profit margins on beef exports.
In addition to this, livestock is also being imported from India, especially goats. Here the issue is of ensuring that we do not import disease which could end up infecting our domestic stock of animals.
DR BASHIR MAHMOOD BHATTI
Rawalpindi
THIS with reference to last week’s nationwide strike. I am a student of Karachi University where thousands of students study. The strike was so ‘successful’ that we had no classes that day, mainly because there were very few students present.
The ‘successful’ strike wasted the day for those like me who did somehow manage to reach the university. We are students and will eventually cover what we missed that day but think of those who earn their wages on a daily basis.
Because of the strike, a person who sets up a biryani stall every day inside the university was not able to earn anything. Obviously, for him it would be impossible to cover the loss for that day. And there must have been thousands, maybe millions, of people all over the country eking out a daily wage existence who suffered because of that strike.
Whatever the reasons for calling such strikes, the fact is that ordinary citizens end up suffering most. What is our fault if the government does something wrong?
Many of us already have a tough life shaped in large part by failure of various government policies, and the opposition’s penchant for calling strikes only adds to the problem.
TEHREEM MAHMOOD
Karachi
IT is heartening to note that some politicians do at least have the time and the courage to speak out openly on issues that concern ordinary Pakistanis. I am referring specifically to Imran Khan’s press conference in Islamabad as reported in your newspaper on Sept. 14 when along with two MNAs from Islamabad — the MMA’s Hanif Abbasi and the PPP’s Nayyar Bukhari — he said that the Punjab government’s proposal to build a tourist resort called New Murree in the heart of the protected Patriata forest would have disastrous consequences for the area.
Quite a lot has been written in the English-language press of late on this issue, but it seems that the Punjab government is bent on pushing this very controversial project despite opposition from even the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on the Environment and from the MPA and former nazim of the area. The issue is important and needs to be debated by those who sit in the National Assembly and the Senate (both are in session these days) and have a conscience.
EHSAN KHAN
Islamabad
FOR admission to certain educational institutions there is a requirement that the applicant should provide his or her domicile certificate with the application. This is quite a hassle to procure.
One has to first spend a lot of time and energy in going to the city courts for obtaining different forms and then depositing a fee of Rs 200 in the National Bank. Then comes the attestation stage where one has to seek an oath commissioner or a Grade-17 government officer. After completing all these formalities, one has to visit the domicile/registration office with this bundle of papers where the clerks check the papers and the original documents.
The clerk has his own ways of handling the applicant on a person-to-person basis and can make life hell for the applicant if he so wishes. The officer who had to sign the certificate is normally absent from his office which means that the clerk then asks the applicant to come again. In this the convenience of the applicant is never taken into account and chances are that even on the later date the certificate might not be ready — because the officer who has to sign it probably still was too busy to do this small thing.
Now that there are computerized NICs where one’s permanent address is listed, what is the need for a domicile certificate? The government should abolish the requirment of applicants to universities and colleges being made to furnish a domicile certificate. This would save ordinary Pakistanis from a lot of hardship.
MUHAMMAD AZHAR KHWAJA
Lahore
MR IRFAN Husain has done a great service to Muslims by revealing the plan to demolish the 1400-year-old home of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) through his column of Sept 3.
The proposal envisages the destruction of the house to make way for building high-rise hotels, etc. This is very disturbing news for Muslims who hold all things related to the Holy Prophet as dear.
The likely excuse the Saudi authorities will provide is that such reverence could amount to worship. It must be noted that historical sites related to the Holy Prophet’s life and mission, including the Masjid-i-Nabvi, or the caves of Hira and Saur are also considered very important by Muslims who visit them while on pilgrimage.
When pilgrims offer prayers at the Muqaam-i- Ibrahim [the stone used by Prophet Abraham (peace be upon him), to build the Kaaba], or kiss the Hajr-i-Aswad (the black heavenly stone), that doesn’t amount to worshipping before a stone.
This should convince the Saudi religious authorities that the argument about worship of places is ill-founded. King Abdullah should order protection of the house and its surroundings from the hands of the property developers in deference to the wishes of the world’s Muslims.
KHALID CHAUDHRY
Karachi
THIS refers to Najamuddin Sheikh’s article of August 31 on Iraq’s constitution and women’s rights. As opposed to Mr Sheikh’s view, Islam is “a” and not “the” major source of legislation in the draft constitution.
Women are allowed to either opt for civil law or for clergy-interpreted Sharia in civil matters. The draft also says that women and men are equal in the eyes of the law. Women’s participation in public life is highly encouraged as is also obvious from their representation in the elected parliament.
The record about women’s rights enshrined in Iraq’s draft constitution may, therefore, be set right.
DR MAHNAZ FATIMA
Karachi
THE pharmaceutical industry in Pakistan is growing rapidly. However, there are matters that need to be addressed. One, what is the criterion for establishing a factory that makes medicines? Are there any standards and if so, are they being followed? Two, do the pharmaceutical firms have the required trained staff needed to make medicines?
Three, who checks the quality of the medicines produced locally and who checks the quality of the raw materials used by them? Four, what is the auditing procedure or requirement for industry? Five, it is public knowledge that the market is filled with counterfeit medicines. Have any such counterfeiters ever been caught by the government and if so how many and what was the end result?
LAEEQ ASAD
Lahore
NEXT year will mark 100 years of the Muslim League. The Pakistan Muslim League, which has been divided into many factions, is not what its founders had dreamt of, and neither will the present “Muslim League” benefit us in anyway.
However, the present government should still arrange some sort of an event — not musical shows — which would highlight the sacrifices rendered by the great founders of this 100-year-old political party, and also work for the unity of all its branches, which have caused many problems for this country.
RAAID MASOOD
Lahore
A PACKAGE announced recently by the Punjab chief minister for providing electricity to farmers on concessional rates is welcome. The rise in the price of diesel has affected farmers because they have no say in the prices that they can charge for their produce — which are normally set by the government. This is not the case with the manufacturing sector where businesses can at least pass on the higher fuel cost to consumers in the form of higher prices.
TAHIR MEHMOOD MALIK
Multan
THIS is with reference to M.J. Akbar’s piece ‘Oil prices & the Iraq war’ (Dawn, Sept. 9) for which the author and the newspaper both deserve praise.
Mr Akbar has set the perspective straight with regard to the current mindless and unwarranted vilification campaign in the West against the ethos which Islam promotes. He has forcefully driven home the point that a few trees should not be confused for a forest and that the rantings of a few deluded persons should not be taken to be teachings of a great religion. The West takes pride in promoting dispassionate research in history and has a long-standing tradition of rationality. It is high time these values took charge of the minds of western scholars and opinion makers and were inculcated in the behaviour of the general public in the West.
There is a minor caveat, however. If the article was given a different heading it might have attracted more readers.
KHALID IDREES
Islamabad
ACCORDING to press reports, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain has brushed aside the claims of opposition parties that the local body elections were rigged by the government. He said the opposition parties had always alleged rigging. “We also did the same when we lost the polls”.
This statement made by the head of a ruling party is more shocking than it is candid and honest.
Elections in Pakistan will continue to be rigged, engineered or doctored unless we have an autonomous and independent election commission. A powerful election commission, duly set up in consultation with all political parties, will ensure free and fair elections and no political party will ever doubt the results. In the absence of an election commission every election will give rise to allegations and counter-allegations. Sometimes a situation can turn critical as happened in the aftermath of the elections of 1977.
At that time after a prolonged movement martial law was imposed which not only lasted for 11 years but also resulted in the hanging of a prime minister. Had the polls in 1977 been held under a unanimously agreed election commission, no question of any rigging would have arisen.
The PML-Q will do a great service to this country if after consultations with all parties it makes the election commission thoroughly independent.
RAFAT MAHMOOD ANSARI
Islamabad
I am an avid reader of the weekly column written by Zaheer Abbas. I was looking forward to reading his views on the ongoing Ashes series.
Sadly, Zaheer Abbas has covered very little of the scintillating contest in his columns. He has chosen to discuss topics of little interest to readers during the past three weeks. An expert in cricket such as himself should have shared his knowledge and experience with cricket lovers.
Perhaps he would like to discuss the Ashes now that they are over.
SYED MOHAMMED SALMAN
Karachi
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