| September 17, 2005 | Saturday | Sha'aban 12, 1426 |
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‘Spy drone’ or toy plane?
Local system flaws
Sarabjit Singh
Denso Hall
Sonia Naz case
Traffic management
Tax evasion
Rates of profit
Qazi’s statements
Musharraf’s remarks
Rain and roads
‘HEC affairs’
Negative attitude
Should Rs 40 billion be spent on a resort for the rich in the fragile Patriata Hills in northern Pakistan Must public figures, duped by technical consultants, whose past projects have caused many environmental disasters, be allowed to ruin a 150-200 year old forest in a country which is already depleted of such natural resources
The Patriata forest, a reserve and protected forest, is where the New Murree Project is planned to be situated. Without an environmental impact assessment, a mandatory requirement, the Punjab government has set up office in the area and has already started work there. Opponents of the project fear that the forest, a harvester of monsoon winds and source of many other benefits, could be replaced by several 5-star hotels, 850 luxury homes, a golf course and entertainment facilities for 60,000 daily visitors. All these intrusions are supposed to not affect the ecology of the forest, that is, if NESPAK, the project consultants, are to be believed.
Against the Goliath of irresponsible development have stood a handful of independent environmental activists and journalists. The plea of these Davids has been that such a fragile zone if ruined cannot be repaired or replaced. That growing more trees cannot possibly replace mature ones that take over a century to mature, and that the purity of naturally filtered water for a vast population provided by this forest makes its destruction criminal.
In endless articles and many TV programmes most issues have been highlighted by this group. Their findings have been supported by the National Assembly’s environmental committee and IUCN, the World Conservation Union, an international environmental organization of which Pakistan is a member.
On 14 September the chief justice of the Supreme Court took notice of one such article published in your newspaper. The plea for sense was finally heard and the court has taken independent suo motu notice of the proposed project. The court has ordered the chief secretary, Punjab, to submit a report on the issue within 10 days. During the debate that follows the country and the court will learn the other side of the story too.
One would hope that the court, emboldened by its own action, will begin to emulate the stand against environmental degradation that its sister court in India has taken. Much can be achieved through such suo motu notices in areas where bureaucrats and governments have failed. Many will will wish it well in its activist role of protecting the environment.
Q. ISA DAUDPOTA
Islamabad
I have seen the photograph in the newspapers of the alleged spy drone captured by the army in North Waziristan. The fact of the matter is that this so-called ‘spy drone’ is nothing but a battery powered remote controlled (R/C) toy plane, exactly of the kind of which I’m also a proud owner.
I have all the respect for our troops including the corps commander, Peshawar, who spoke to journalists of the operation where this ‘drone’ was netted. In his press conference, the corps commander described the plane as ‘sophisticated’ and that it was being used for surveillance by the militants and that it also had the capability to carry missiles.
The toy plane is known among flying plane enthusiasts as the “winged dragon” and cost me around Rs3,000. It has a range of 1,500 feet and flies for only 15 minutes. I find it hard to believe that this R/C plane which is actually for beginners and novice R/C buffs like me can carry missiles, let alone carry a wireless camera.
Yes I agree that R/C planes can be used for terrorist purposes but those planes are for the professional R/C fliers which are bigger in size, powered by fuel, cost more, have a longer flying range and can stay in the air for hours. But to say this so-called toy plane is a surveilance drone is not exactly correct.
The said plane is available at all major toy shops in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi.
ALI MUJTABA
Lahore
I have been flying remote controlled planes for the past 25 years. The yellow plane shown in a picture taken of material caught from militants in North Waziristan and described by the Peshawar corps commander as a ‘spy drone’ is actually a remote- controlled plane that anyone can buy from a toy shop.
It is powered by electricity and has a range of no more than a quarter of a mile. Even by the standards of such toy planes the one shown in the picture was not all a very sophisticated model. It has barely enough power to carry the payload of the battery and electric motor it comes with. In addition it is made of foam and hence it is difficult to attach anything else to it. And even if one did, the plane would become unstable and most likely not fly. Hence, it highly unlikely that the little yellow plane shown in the picture carried in various newspapers including Dawn could have been a ‘spy drone’. Perhaps the army should check the facts before making such tall claims in public.
FARAS KHAN
San Juan, PR, US
THE Musharraf regime has changed much during the last six years. It has functioned soundly in many fields, but omissions are of a fundamental nature. All the reforms and economic prosperity may be swept away in the presence of these fundamental errors. One of the achievements of the Musharraf regime is the devolution of power. Up to the union council level, things are right. But flaws begin thereafter.
The system begins to get corrupted when candidates for tehsil and district nizam try to purchase the votes of councillors and UC nazims, and loses its credibility when any person on the basis of his wealth and relationship can become a candidate for tehsil and district nazim.
This flaw can be corrected if all the councillors of union councils of a tehsil constitute a tehsil council, which can act as an electoral college for the tehsil nazim.
Likewise, all councillors of union councils in a district constitute a district assembly, an electoral college for the district nazim. Only elected UC nazims should be eligible to be candidates for tehsil and district nizam. Election for tehsil and district nazims should be held immediately after the establishment of union councils so that candidates for tehsil and district nizam do not get time for trading of votes. The candidates should be allowed to deliver just one speech before their respective electoral colleges in which they might outline their programmes.
The government should establish a legal committee or commission to prepare recommendations to exclude the drawbacks in the local system within a limited time. The recommendations can be a part of the Constitution once they are agreed upon.
Many persons are in parliament though they were rejected in Election 2002. They have come into parliament either as senators or as a result of nomination on women’s special seats. Is this a democracy?
M. RIZWAN ASGHAR RIZVI
Faisalabad
I agree with Mr Mir Usman Ali’s view (Sept. 14) that President Musharraf should consider the present political situation before deciding Sarabjit Singh’s case. The accused has already spent 15 long years in Pakistani jails. Much water has flown down the rivers Ganges and Indus since this man allegedly committed heinous acts in Pakistan. It would be a good gesture on the part of Pakistan to hand over Sarabjit to India.
SUKUMAR SHIDORE
Pune, India.
This is in reference to the letter by Mir Usman Ali regarding the clemency appeal for convicted Indian Sarabjit Singh. I couldn’t agree more with him. Based on the fact that the police system in the subcontinent is not exactly known for its efficiency and honesty, we need to make sure a fair procss was gone through in this case.
The Indian government also needs to come out and present proof that Sarabjit Singh was in no way associated with any Indian intelligence agency. After all, no one wants to see an innocent man die. Let’s hope that cool heads prevail, and this case is decided on facts.
Sarabjit Singh has been convicted of killing innocent civilians in bombings in Pakistan. Why is India then pressuring Pakistan to release him Since the courts have tried him and found him guilty it would be fair to call him a criminal and a spy. There should be no clemency for such people.
SARMAD ELAHI
Lahore
MR MAX Denso in the late 19th century realized that there should be a place for citizens for the improvement of their minds and thus founded a large hall with a splendid lecture room in the heart of Karachi, named Denso Hall. Today 125 years down the road, this centre does not exist. However, the junction of M.A. Jinnah Road, Marriot and Altaf Hussain Road is still popularly known as Denso Hall.
At this junction today stands a fountain, which apparently has never worked in the water-starved city. Instead, it has become a rendezvous for drug addicts and a dump yard for fruit juice vendors (who also encroach on footpaths) apart from being a traffic obstruction.
Can we draw the attention of the city district government in general and Saddar Town in particular to consider removing this rather useless structure? With one stone you will kill three birds. Get rid of the drug addicts, cleanse the area of garbage and improve traffic mobility
BASIT ALAVI
Karachi
The problems being faced by Sonia Naz seem to be never ending. Being raped is bad in itself and it can take years for a victim to get over the trauma and the shock, if it happens. Her whole life has been destroyed not least by the report that her husband — for whom she had to endure all that she has gone through — has divorced her, presumably under pressure from his parents.
Knowing that he was responsible for the suffering of his wife, and knowing that she will need his support more than ever in her struggle to get justice, he has chosen a very easy way out by leaving her to preserve his so-called honour.
I don’t know much about Islamic laws regarding such matters but I am human and I do have a heart and I want to ask readers whether what Ms Naz’s husband has done to her can be justified on any account By this act has he not violated the honour of Sonia and his sacred nikah Also, is this wound inflicted on Ms Naz by her husband any less hurtful than that inflicted by those who allegedly raped her Why is a woman’s fate decided by their husbands, their in-laws, panchayats, jirgas, mullahs and so on in our society
While following his parents’ orders why does an obedient son in our society forget that his wife also has some rights As always seems to happen, the rapists will roam around free while Sonia will have to suffer — even the FIR has yet to be registered in her case. Her husband may well marry another girl, start a new family and live happily ever after. But Sonia Naz will suffer.
Our society, with its narrow minds and conservatism, will never let this rape victim lead a normal life.
SHEHNAZ GILLANI
Karachi
The sad truth is that society in general tends to judge the rape victim, not the rapists. It is the victim who has to hide her face in shame, not the criminals.
And there many who believe that rape is something that should be kept locked in the closet. A rape victim has to take on the police and the judicial system and has to fight powerful vested interests to get justice. And this means risking being abandoned by family and friends.
This is precisely what has happened in Sonia Naz’s case whose husband has reportedly divorced her. She has courageously come forward and is trying to fight against those who allegedly raped her as she tried to seek her husband’s police from illegal detention. She sacrificed her honour, her life and her happiness for him and what did he do He has divorced her, saying that he “could not live with a woman about whom newspapers have been publishing stories for the last two weeks”.
And what is the end result of all this? The alleged rapists will either get mild punishment or, as happens in most cases, go scot-free, while the victim bears her scars all her life. Now, who is responsible for her? The media, her husband, the police or the judiciary? If ever Sonia Naz gets justice, there is no guarantee that she will ever be able to pick up the threads of her life again. Our courts need to be more proactive to come out and protect the rights of rape victims.
UMER MUMTAZ
Rawalpindi
This is with reference to the news item “Sonia moves SC to get FIR registered” (Sept. 15). It is a disgrace that the leaders of the country seem not to be willing to use their authority to at least ensure that the police register an FIR in her case.
ANIL KHAN LUNI
Lahore
I KNOW the traffic police in Karachi are not exactly the favourites of the public, not least because they never seem to be around when there is a traffic jam on the road. Or when they frantically arrive on the scene only to stop traffic for a long time so that some VIP can pass through.
But credit needs to be given where due. I live in Defence and frequently use the Clifton/Boating Basin-Mai Kolachi route to travel to Bath Island and sometimes I.I. Chundrigar Road. The main junction of the Boating Basin road (known as Khayaban-i-Sadi) with Clifton’s main road (known as Khayaban-i-Jami) and the end of the Mai Kolachi Expressway is currently undergoing major digging and construction.
The traffic situation remains quite grim there, especially during the evening rush hour, and I have to say that the traffic police posted there have done a commendable job of managing the thousands of vehicles that seem to travel in this area every few minutes. LALARUKH EJAZ
Karachi
THIS is with reference to the views of CBR Chairman Abdullah Yousuf as reported in your newspaper on Sept. 9. The CBR chief has urged the business community in Pakistan to cooperate in the government’s efforts to achieve its tax collection targets and in expanding the tax base.
In this regard, may I humbly suggest that in addition to exhorting the business community to do its best, could the chairman also ensure that the black sheep in the CBR who facilitate and encourage tax evasion in the first place are weeded out and punished? If the CBR staff were honest, we wouldn’t have so many people evading taxes.
FAROOQ AHMED SHAIKH
Shikarpur
THE government has recently revised rates of profit for deposits in national savings schemes, increasing the monthly payment to pensioners from Rs840 to Rs920 for every Rs100,000.
But this is applicable only to fresh investment. This puts old pensioners at a disadvantage.
An employee who retired three to four years ago and got his pension encashed partially — to the extent of Rs100,000 — to invest in the pension account will get Rs840 whereas an employee retiring now will get Rs120,000 against encashment of his pension. If he invests in this scheme, he will get Rs1,104 (Rs120,000 multiplied by Rs920), i.e., 31.42 per cent more.
AMIR AHMAD
Karachi
THE MMA’s Qazi Hussain Ahmed has declared on various occasions that his party will not contest elections under a military regime. But the MMA did just that in October 2002. Not only that, the MMA also voted for the 17th Amendment which allowed the president to keep his chief of army post.
As of today, the MMA’s legislators sit in parliament, elected through a process which its leaders vowed they would never be a part of.
ALYA ALVI
Rawalpindi
I am writing in reference to President Musharraf’s comments in New York where he stated that “a lot of people say if you want to go abroad and get a visa for Canada or citizenship and be a millionaire, get yourself raped.”
That is an extraordinarily callous thing for a head of state to say. Perhaps the president is not aware that a woman is “getting herself raped” every three hours in Pakistan, and that the vast majority of them never receive justice. Of course rape is a global phenomenon, but what separates nations and governments is their response to the problem.
With the kind of insensitivity shown by Pakistan’s leaders, there is little hope for any real change in the plight of Pakistani rape victims.
SHOUROV BHATTACHARYA
Sydney, Australia
I WOULD like to highlight what happened to Karachi’s Defence Housing Authority during the recent rain. The roads were as usual inundated, this time though more with sewerage water than rain water. One could not distinguish between a road and a footpath.
Also, I find it difficult to understand how electric wires, which we frequently hear are being changed, can still find a reason to break in the rain. I was astonished to find a whole electric pole lying on the main road near the Sunset Boulevard, and a few KESC men struggling to pick it up. Whether this will happen the next time it rains only time will tell.
ADIL SHAFI AFZAL
Karachi
THIS refers to the letter by Mr M. A. Raoof (Sept 3).
To put the record straight, I wish to point out that Dr A.Q. Khan, in many public speeches that appeared in newspapers, had said his team of scientists was ready to launch an advanced cyclotron in the country for research in advanced materials, medicine and agriculture, without any foreign support, a project similar to one India is commissioning.
I suggest to the HEC that instead of opting for the obsolete Van de Graaf generator, we should go for the cyclotron proposed by Dr A.Q. Khan. In this regard, it is not too late if the KRL team is requested to do so.
PROF (DR) SAADIA
University of Karachi
I CAN’T agree more with Mr Salik’s observation about Ardeshir Cowasjee’s negative attitude towards his countrymen. In fact, I would like to add Irfan Hussain to this category.
AZFAR SAEED
Karachi
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