| September 22, 2005 | Thursday | Sha'aban 17, 1426 |
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President’s remarks
Jinnah and the Zionist state
Need for dialogue
Herbal medicines
Overtures to Israel
Deep sea fishing policy
O-level schools
‘Wizard of ID’
Gaza synagogues
Kalabagh dam
Digging
No FIR so far
ONE is saddened at the anaemic response of member-states to Mr Kofi Annan’s herculean endeavour to present proposals seeking a consensus to revamp the world body to meet 21st-century challenges. How effective the UN is must remain the function of the will to support “collectivism” by member-states in managing world affairs, in the rapidly changing geo-political and geo-economic scene around us. In this context, the Big Five and its expanded manifestation, the G8, cannot escape bearing the burden of this heavy responsibility with good grace.
Indeed the world would have been a better and happier place had the Big Five realized their responsibilities under the fundamental imperative supporting the operative structure of the organization, namely, unanimity amongst them to ensure security, and promote the economic and social well-being of humanity.
Sixty years on the UN has become a ponderous monolith; inefficient largely because of its bigness, spawning and nurturing the lumbering features of stagnant bureaucracies. This can be speedily overcome through an “organizational development” — I am using the term esoterically — exercise, a field in which a lot of fruitful, scholastic and practical research has been done by eminent persons like Richard Beckhard and Wendy Pritchard.
The Security Council may or may not need expansion. That is irrelevant. Relevance resides in the practice of “unanimity” amongst the affluent G8, notably the present veto-wielding Big Five. One radical way of doing so is to hold a veto effective only if all the Big Five support it failing which the “simple majority” rule will apply.
The creation of a peace building commission to help countries in transition between war and peace is welcome. So is the strengthening of the Human Rights Commission to be re-designated as the Human Rights Council. Here again a lot of responsibility will devolve on the North to provide all the necessary guidance and assistance in sincerity and good grace so that such countries, through good governance, can expeditiously stand on their own feet. The Human Rights Council could well take a few leaves out of the European experience in this sphere.
The future well-being of this planet unquestionably rests in Democratic, collective action and not in the outmoded “lone ranger” approach. This does not abjure mechanisms reflecting the physical and economic capability of a member-state to contribute to the collective effort.
The menace of terrorism, as affirmed, requires urgent and purposeful addressing. Removal of the root causes remains of signal importance. The world is still short of a definition of what constitutes terrorism. Perhaps a non-professional’s attempt could help:
“Any threat or act of violence, coercion, harassment or intimidation, verbal, physical, overt or covert, engaged in or abetted by, any individual, group or state, against innocent non-combatant civilians, groups or populations, anywhere in the world, shall constitute an act of terrorism. Provided that, prima facie, such threat or act violates the purposes, principles and procedures embedded in the UN Charter, the Declaration of Human Rights, relevant attendant UN and other mutually agreed conventions and instruments, and canons and norms of international and recognized civil laws.”
M.J.AS’AD
Karachi
AS an international student studying in New York I was invited to the president’s address in New York by the Pakistan embassy. I heard the president speak and answer questions regarding the issue of atrocities against women in Pakistan.
There are a couple of things I would like to bring to the attention of our human rights activists. First the president they oppose so much has given the media considerable freedom. The reason such things are being increasingly reported is because of this freedom.
The second thing is that I have not seen any other individual in power before Musharraf who came face to face with the public and tried to answer their questions. These activists never had an opportunity to raise their complaints before the previous leaders of Pakistan. And when we finally have someone who gives them this privilege they misuse it instead of engaging in constructive criticism. If these rights activists are so concerned, then why do they not travel to Pakistan and try to work with the government and try to root out this evil from our society?
Pakistan is a nation in transition and as the president pointed out in his address in New York, there is not one thing that Pakistan has not earned a bad reputation in. We should work together in improving it rather than completely destroying it by exploiting it in foreign countries. I am afraid these activists clearly do not think Pakistan as their home.
UMAIR ZAEEM
New York, US
ACCORDING to the president, quoting some people, women in Pakistan get themselves raped to become millionaires. He should not be making such remarks at all. One can only imagine the damage these will have caused to Pakistan’s image, something that the government seems so bent on improving. Instead of protecting women who are oppressed, such remarks only encourage the perpetrators of oppressive and cruel acts.
Does the president mean that Mukhtaran Mai deliberately went to the panchayat and told them to pass the sentence against her, so that she could be raped, and then become rich eventually?
ASHFAK AHMED
Karachi
THERE is simply no justification for the president of Pakistan to make remarks based on little or no facts. As an ardent supporter of the president I am simply flabbergasted by the insensitivity of what he has said.
WACAR RIZVI
Gaithersburg, MD, USA
RIGHT now, Pakistan needs to do things to improve its image overseas but such comments certainly do not help. Even if the president was quoting someone else, as he says he was, such remarks are not appropriate coming from the president of a country.
ZOHRA SHAH
Karachi
RAPE, unfortunately, is a universal phenomenon. There are no statistics available, but even if there were, due to rape’s “tip of the iceberg” nature it would be difficult to compare its occurrence in Pakistan with that in any other country. My intuition makes me fear it is much more common in Pakistan than in the West.
A rape victim in the West would get psycho-social support, physical care, rehabilitation, help from the community, the freedom to remain anonymous and, perhaps most importantly, a thorough investigation from the police. In Pakistan one cannot even dream of these. And when the president of the country makes such remarks, they make an already bad situation worse.
Instead of realizing the need to fight such crimes, and to enhance the ability of the police and the courts to catch and punish rapists, our leaders make a mockery of everything. And after doing so, they then refuse to accept the mistake. I wonder why the government of Pakistan doesn’t sue the Washington Post if indeed the president has been misquoted.
DR ARMAGHAN BUTT
Bordesley Green, UK
THIS refers to Mr Mohammad Osman H. Khan’s letter (Sept 18) on the above subject. I reproduce hereunder an extract of Mr Jinnah’s presidential address delivered extempore at the annual session of the All-India Muslim League held at Patna, on Dec 26-29, 1938. On Palestine, he said:
“Among the immediate issues we have to grapple with, which may come up before the subjects committee, is the question of Palestine. I know how deeply Muslim feelings have been stirred over the issue of Palestine.
“I know Muslims will not shirk from any sacrifice if required to help the Arabs who are engaged in the fight for their national freedom. You know the Arabs have been treated shamelessly. Men, who are fighting for the freedom of their country, have been described as gangsters and subjected to all forms of repression.
“For defending their homelands they are being put down at the point of the bayonet and with the help of martial laws. But no nation, no people who are worth living as nation, can achieve anything great without making great sacrifices which the Arabs of Palestine are making.
“All our sympathies are with those valiant martyrs who are fighting the battle of freedom against usurpers. They are being subjected to monstrous injustices which are being proppped up by British imperialism with the ulterior motive of placating international Jewry, which commands the money bags. That question we will have to consider.”
HAJI ESSA KATCHI
Karachi
MANY long years ago, in a conversation between Mr Jinnah and the British author Beverley Nichols, the economic and defence consequences of partition were discussed.
Nichols: The first is economic. Are the Mulsims likely to be richer or poorer under Pakistan?
Jinnah: I’ll ask you a question for a change. Supposing you were asked which you would prefer: a rich England under Germany or a poor England free, what would your answer be?
Nichols: It’s hardly necessary to say.
Jinnah: Quite. Well, doesn’t that make your question look a little shoddy?
The West, as of today, after unilateralism, need not fear Asia or seek to repress its rise. The need of the new age is for a dialogue with give and take where the interests of both sides are preserved. Through such a dialogue Huntington’s catastrophe can still be stopped and a democratic and free Pakistan, in the image of the Quaid-i-Azam, can emerge and act as a legitimate bridge between the East and the West, between a rising Asia and the developed world, between Islam and Christianity, Zionism and Confuciusm.
M. ZAMAN MALIK
Abbottabad
HERBAL medicines have been in use in this part of the world since times immemorial. These medicines have been considered to be without adverse effects on health and pose no side-effects.
Surfing the web, I am amazed to read that a Pakistan herbal medicine well known as a blood purifier has been banned in Europe, especially the UK and also in Canada. There are warnings against use of this product which, according to them, contains metal substances and poses long-term risks to one’s health. These websites warn against the use of this product and simultaneously request that if anyone has any idea as to which drug store is selling it, they should immediately report to the agencies named on the websites.
I would like to raise this issue here for general awareness of the public at large requesting simultaneously the health authorities and the manufacturers to clarify the position.
AIJAZ A. MAHESAR
Karachi
NOT enough attention has been paid to all the ramifications of the recent overtures towards Israel. The latter is doing its best, after the destruction of Iraq, to first isolate and then eliminate Iran as a possible military threat to its aims and objectives in the area. Why make it easier for it, knowing full well that Pakistan will be next on the list?
The Iranians are not helping either by cosying up to India. It is time for the leaders in both Pakistan and Iran to open their history books and remind themselves how the rivalry between Iran and Turkey had blind-sighted them to the real threat that almost destroyed the two countries in the 19th century and left them tottering at the mercy of the West. These are critically dangerous times and the need for the two countries to stand by each other has never been greater.
K. HUSSAIN ZIA
Mississauga, Canada
THE government must pay attention to the fishing sector.
Until the 2002 deep sea fishing policy, bottom trawling and surface fishing were limited to beyond 35 miles. Then President Musharraf, exercising great wisdom, directed the policymakers to create Zone II for bottom trawling beyond 12 miles for which I had been waging a struggle for the last two decades.
Unfortunately, the policymakers then established a Korangi Fisheries Harbour Development Cess fund and introduced a so-called bidding system, which was never part of the original policy. Under the policy, it was clearly stipulated that whenever a trawler would discharge its fish catch at the Korangi fish harbour, it would have to pay 40 dollars per metric ton. This was justified and reasonable.
Again, in the 1995 deep sea fishing policy, it was envisaged that as many as three trawlers for bottom trawling and tuna long liners for surface fishing would be given licences according to the experience of a company. But only one trawler to a company was allowed. As a result, people having no experience established as many as 10 companies to grab licences. This was all a result of the bidding system.
In 2002, licences were given to 20 companies for 20 trawlers. But only seven out of these 20 are operating in our fishing ground, and the operating costs have gone up because of higher fuel prices and crew wages. This forced the foreign companies to leave.
Now out of the seven operating in our fishing ground, four trawlers belong to a semi-government Chinese company, which in fact wants to develop our sea wealth. Another five trawlers of this same company are standing idle at Korangi fish harbour owing to increased taxes and the bidding amount. They are suffering losses.
It should be noted that Pakistani fishermen only do bottom trawling in coastal area, including gill netting. It is beyond their capacity to do surface fishing.
I request the president and the prime minister to do away with the bidding system and abolish unnecessary taxes. Kindly allow surface fishing beyond 12 miles, i.e. beyond Zone II, and licences should be allowed only to genuine companies. As a founder of this industry, I hope my observations will be taken into account.
MURAD BEY
Karachi
MANY schools all over Karachi have registered themselves with the Cambridge International Examinations system to run O levels, but it is sad to see that these schools are providing low quality education. Moreover, there are inexperienced teachers who are not exactly familiar with the O-level syllabuses’ patterns. I think there should be an institution which should have authority over the registered schools which should set standards for both teachers and students.
Secondly, over the past few years it has become a trend to set up educational institutions in every lane and street. These schools are run in bungalows which lack proper facilities for students. They have “registered and recognized” written on their boards, which is often not true. It is my request to parents that they should send their children to educational institutions which are registered and provide quality education.
MUHAMMAD RAHAT HUSSAIN
Karachi
THIS is with reference to the comic strip “The Wizard of ID” published in Dawn on September 7. I would like to state that it shows the true nature of our society where people want to become rich overnight by involving themselves in all kinds of shady rackets. One such example is what has been happening at the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) for the past several years.
The KSE is in the control of a few people who have been depriving thousands of small investors of their hard-earned money.
Not only are these unscrupulous people roaming freely they appear on TV channels portraying themselves to be experts on finance.
ALI MUHAMMAD
Karachi
ISRAELI settlers have finally vacated the Gaza Strip they had occupied since 1967. Before the evacuation, settler homes were promptly demolished by the Israeli authorities, except the synagogues which were meant to stand as symbols of the occupation.
The Israeli authorities have said that the structures have no religious value since scrolls and other religious objects have been taken away by the rabbis. They have told the Palestinians to use these structures as libraries, etc.
If the Israelis were kind enough to leave these buildings untouched, why was it necessary to demolish the settlers’ homes since these could also have been used by the Palestinians?
There appears to be an unfinished agenda suggested by Jewish think tanks in pursuance of their goal of a greater Israel.
RAFI ADAMJEE
Karachi
THE details regarding fears and facts about the Kalabagh dam have been discussed so many times that they are no longer of much interest for engineers or the public. The Bhasha dam, if constructed now, may easily take 15 to 20 years to complete compared with five years for Kalabagh.
It is possible that Kashmir may be declared an independent country under UN supervision so that there would be free access to it. In that eventuality, building a dam at Bhasha may not be feasible. The government should choose a dam at Kalabagh and do so immediately.
Capt (retd) SYED KHALID SAJJAD
Islamabad
THIS is to draw the attention of the Karachi city government that while allowing digging of roads/side roads for laying telephone cables, etc., it should ensure that the levelling of the ground is done immediately the work is over.
This will facilitate easy movement of traffic as well as of pedestrians.
Two months back digging was carried out on the service road along with the main Hyderi Road, North Nazimabad. After the laying of the cable was over, the road was not properly filled and later when there was rain, the improperly filled-up area caved in.
I hope the relevant department will instruct its contractors to execute its work properly.
SARFARAZ ZIA ANSARI
Karachi
THIS is with reference to the news item “Sonia moves SC to get FIR registered” (Sept. 15). It is a disgrace that our clerics and political leaders have kept quiet on this issue so far.
MOHAMMAD A MIRZA
Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia
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