| January 22, 2006 | Sunday | Zilhaj 21, 1426 |
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‘Truth behind Cindy Sheehan’
‘Call out the fire brigade’
Checking air pollution
KPT fountain
‘Religion is a collective matter’
Al Jazeera channel
Academic year
Kalabagh Dam controversy
PIA & Sindhi biryani
OF ALL people, the sufis are best known for understanding the nature of love and its importance and for spreading it to all human beings regardless of their religion. That is why the mausoleums of spiritual masters such as Khwaja Moeenuddin Chishti, Baba Bulleh Shah and Abdul Latif Bhitai are still visited centuries later by men and women of many faiths.
Pakistan due to its large number of mystics, past and present, is known as the land of the Sufis. Unfortunately, in this abode of those apostles of love and peace, some politicians, intellectuals, writers and religious groups have been spreading hatred, notably against Punjab, based on ethnic, sectarian or provincial considerations.
A Middle Eastern sufi saint had explained in his beautiful book, Love is the Wine, that the devil is capable of having all the human emotions except love. The implication was that those who can’t love others or, worse still, spread hatred are in the clutches of that enemy of mankind.
For instance, ANP chief Asfandyar Wali Khan recently said that Kalabagh was in fact a plan by Punjab to control waters of the Indus river. Further, that Punjab had sold its water to India under the Indus Waters Treaty and was bent on depriving the NWFP and Sindh of their water (Dawn, Dec 18, 2005).
This is preposterous and very mischievous. Mr Khan would remember that the treaty was signed during the rule of Field Marshal Ayub Khan, who belonged to the NWFP and, like the other military dictators that followed him, used to take all the important decisions himself. Why would he have allowed Punjab to hurt the interests of his own province or of Sindh?
The ANP leader would also surely know that the the people of the NWFP have a presence in the military higher than their percentage of the national population. This is not unexpected because our Pathan brethren are known to be physically strong and have a martial tradition, However, he never acknowledges this fact, like Mr Altaf Hussain, who also keeps criticizing Punjab and the “Punjabi army,” although the Punjabis, too, have a martial tradition.
In recent weeks the MQM chief has repeatedly complained that, contrary to the reaction seen in Kohlu, no action was taken against the people of Rawalpindi and Attock after the attacks on the president and the prime minister (Dawn, Dec 28). Even a teenager would be able to reason that unlike Kohlu or a Balochistan in general, there was no insurgency in these cities, hence there was no need for such widespread action.
However Mr Hussain has not advocated a military offensive in Karachi where the corps commander was attacked, which was a very serious matter because it is his party’s biggest stronghold and also because he knows in his heart the unreasonableness of his argument.
Even Ms Benazir Bhutto appears to have forgotten that the Punjabis had voted her into power twice, which, along with their adoption of Urdu at home, shows their lack of bias.
One fair-minded correspondent, Mr Imran Jamali, writing from Balochistan on Jan 16, had quoted figures to show that after 1999 Punjab had sacrificed most for his province. Anyway, President Musharraf should form a truth and justice commission consisting of Supreme Court judges to probe allegations and redress any injustices done to any of the provinces, after which nobody should be left with any reason to spread hatred and hurt anybody, including himself.
F. SHAIKH
Karachi
IN his letter, “Truth behind Cindy Sheehan” (Jan 15), a rejoinder to mine of Jan 10, Col (retd) George L. Singleton has contended that Ms Cindy Sheehan’s opposition to America’s war in Iraq, following her soldier son’s death over there, has resulted from her ultraliberal Democratic agenda.
While it is entirely possible that the trauma of losing her son may actually have changed the lady’s views but, even otherwise, she is not alone in her aversion to the war. The former veteran CBS television anchor Walter Cronkite, who used to be known as “the most trusted man in America”, has also been speaking out against the Iraq invasion and has again said that US should quit the country (Dawn, Jan 17).
Mr Cronkite is famous for his 1968 conclusion that the Vietnam war was unwinnable, which had influenced American public opinion. Then-president Lyndon B. Johnson had reportedly remarked after that, “if I’ve lost Cronkite, I’ve lost Middle America.”
Another American parent, Mr Paul E. Schroeder, wrote in a very touching Washington Post article, after the death of his son Edward Schroeder II in Iraq, that the US soldiers were dying in vain over there. He further said: “President Bush says those who criticize staying the course are not honouring the dead. That is twisted logic: honour the fallen by killing another 2,000 (US) troops in a broken policy” Dawn, Jan 6).
By now, most Americans no longer support Mr Bush’s Iraq policy. Many politicians, former military generals, senior diplomats and Vietnam War veterans have openly expressed their dissent, Indeed, most of the world’s people are opposed to that operation. An American writer had said many years ago that the more painful it is to speak the truth, the greater is the need to do so.
The sooner Americans acknowledge the reality about Iraq the greater will be their own security and the more it will serve the cause of global peace and US-Islamic relations. As far as Pakistanis are concerned, their overwhelming majority neither supports the killing of innocent persons, be they Muslims or Americans, nor do they favour Washington’s invasion of Iraq.
KHALID CHAUDHRY
Karachi
THIS has reference to Mr Ardeshir Cowasjee’s column “Call out the fire brigade” (Jan 8). It is important to clear the misconception that the PLAB examination is only for Pakistani medical graduates. This GMC examination is for all medical graduates, including from India, Bangladesh and all countries other than the EC countries.
Despite the examination, the GMC still gives exemption from PLAB to Pakistani doctors, depending on their training and qualification from the CPSP. I have personally sponsored more than 20 Pakistani medical graduates with MCPS or FCPS in anaesthesia who got exemption from PLAB and are working in the UK and Ireland.
It is important to realize that we are producing medical graduates and post-graduates taught and trained by part-time faculty members in public and private medical colleges. It is the duty of the government to provide enough funds to have full-time medical colleges with full-time faculty members who have full-time dedication to their job.
The new PMDC secretary, after the sacking of the previous secretary and the intervention of NAB, is trying his best to improve medical education and training in Pakistan with the help of council members. It is the federal ministry of health and the vested interest groups in public and private medical colleges who are trying to have a toothless PMDC without rules and regulation. It is regrettable that Mr Cowasjee failed to identify these vested interest groups.
It is also to be noted that graduates from the Dow Medical College, the King Edward Medical College and other medical colleges are still passing all UK and US examinations with flying colours and it is unfair to say that we don’t have educated doctors. It is regrettable that they do not come back because of the absence of a system based on merit, honesty and competence.
I am more worried about the training and transfer of technology for our doctors working and looking after patients in Pakistan.
PROF S. TIPU SULTAN
Ex-principal, Dow Medical College,
Karachi
I APPRECIATE the interest shown by the new nazim of Karachi in cleaning the city’s environment and his statement that the fitness examination service for vehicles will soon be privatized.
The fact is that air pollution in the city has reached alarming levels and its impact is evident on public health. Hospitals and clinics are reporting increased cases of asthma, cancer, lead poisoning, respiratory illnesses and chest diseases. Both poor and rich are victims. I don’t think that privatization of the vehicle fitness certification service will improve the situation a great deal.
The authorities should do the following to check rising pollution: Ban two-stroke rickshaws and motorcycles, which use high oil quantities with fuel (petrol) and emit thick grey smoke; discourage older model diesel buses and trucks; ban open burning of trash; and shift car workshops and smoke-emitting factories out of the city.
There are some very commendable success stories in South Asia where one can see great improvement in the air quality in cities like New Delhi and Dhaka after they converted their public transport vehicles, including rickshaws, to CNG.
According to a World Bank study, CNG-run rickshaws have reduced medical costs by 25 per cent in Dhaka alone. All kinds of technical and financial solutions are available to remodel our transport system into one that is friendly to the environment, but what this requires is political will and commitment.
TANVEER ARIF
Society for Conservation and Protection of Environment
Karachi
THIS is with reference to the attempt by the senior PRO (Jan 20) of the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) to take up the cudgels on behalf of her masters regarding the huge wastage of public funds on the construction of the KPT fountain. The PRO has given numerous reasons for the amount spent on the fountain and tried to explain why the funds allocated for it could not have been put to better use for other civic projects. However, she has not provided any justification whatsoever as to why it was necessary to build the fountain in the first place.
It would have been better if the PRO had used the opportunity of writing in the press to advise on the benefit(s) that the KPT had in mind (one assumes that benefits were considered) for the public when they decided to “invest” the astronomical sum of Rs225 million on building the fountain.
TARIQ RAZA
Jubail, Saudi Arabia
THIS is with reference to S. Qadri’s letter “Religion is a collective matter” (Jan 20) where he referred to Irfan Hussain’s column “Gender discrimination” (Dec 17) and quoted his statement: “And if a woman does indeed transgress, surely that is a matter between her and her Maker, and not one to be adjudicated by a family member or a mullah.” Mr Qadri then gives some examples of transgression to prove the point that secularism is a western concept and should not be adhered to.
He argues that if a young woman dresses provocatively in public, she is bound to attract unnecessary attention or, worse still, excite the passions of men who may be passing by. “This is likely to invite ogling, uncalled-for remarks or even the risk of molestation. A young man who is unable to control his passions may not be able to target her but could trap a young child to satisfy his lust, as is happening increasingly in these times.”
I am afraid that the above example makes no sense. How can Mr Qadri possibly link the rape of a minor girl with a girl who is “provocatively” dressed in public? There have been thousands of reported rape cases of minor girls in rural areas of Pakistan and where one cannot find women provocatively dressed while working in the fields or walking down the street. How can Mr Qadri explain the uncalled remarks by men on women who are wearing burqas? The reason for sexual harassment of women is the absence of rule of law and of the existence of draconian laws such as the Hudood Ordinance which favour rapists and which would not have been promulgated had we been living in a progressive set-up.
If men are not able to control their passions then the solution lies not in making women stay indoors but to punish such men by giving them exemplary punishments. The reason why men in our country do not behave appropriately in presence of women is because of their lack of interaction with them. It is a common observation that men who have studied in co-education institutions are less likely to ogle or pass uncalled for remarks against women than men who have not studied in such institutions.
The second example which Mr Qadri cites against secularism is that of motorists not following the traffic rules and making their own rules resulting in accidents and chaos. This example also does not carry any weight since supporters of secularism do not advocate a complete absence of laws but rather elimination of those that curb the freedom of an individual even when no one else’s rights are violated.
One other example given by the correspondent is that of the use of intoxicants, which cannot remain a matter between a man and his Maker. He then gives examples of people committing crime under the influence of alcohol. Perhaps he is unaware that there are laws which exist in secular countries against excessive use of alcohol. A person is not allowed to drive a car under the influence of alcohol. If a person commits a crime under the influence of alcohol, he cannot take up the defence than he was not in his senses. I do not think that any secular person could possibly defend individual rights to consume excessive amounts of alcohol because doing so could lead to a situation when the rights of another person may be violated.
People need to realize that secularism does not mean that people should stop following their religion but merely that the views of an individual about his religion should not be imposed on another individual. A person has an inherent right to do whatever he chooses as long as he does not violate the right of another individual. The reason why religion should not be the business of the state is that it results in exploitation of religion for political purposes as witnessed in our country under leaders such as Gen Zia.
ANIL KHAN LUNI
Lahore
HARDLY a week goes by without Al Jazeera being quoted on CNN or BBC. Until early 2005 one could watch Al Jazeera in Pakistan and then suddenly it went off the air. Being a regular viewer of the channel, I called several cable operators asking them the reason for the channel not being aired and was told that they had instructions from “above” not to include it in their list of channels.
This infringement on the right of the citizens to watch the channels of their choice becomes all the more acute when one takes into consideration the kind of other channels being aired in Pakistan.
There are scores of Indian channels (temporarily closed) that show vulgar programmes. There are the CNN, the BBC and Fox who have programmes and news that are clearly biased. They also, by and large, all toe the same line and seldom show us the ‘other side’ of the story.
Al Jazeera is a network built from scratch with sources of information that are different than those used by western channels. In addition, it has opened up hitherto taboo subjects for public debate and these include the lack of democracy in Muslim countries.
I would like to ask Pemra why the Pakistani public, which is able to watch so many other biased news channels, not allowed to see Al Jazeera?
IMTIAZ PIRACHA
Karachi
HERE there is another experiment. The policy makers have decided to begin the academic year from September. I don’t know how they have decided this. This will not work, especially in Punjab. They have decided to conduct exams in May, June, July, which is not practical because of the heat and then the setting in of the rainy season.
Punjab does not mean just Lahore, Gujranwala and Sialkot. Punjab spreads for beyond these urban centres. I have personally visited so many government schools. Either there is no electricity or no fans. And rooms become like a an oven in the summer months. If memory supports me the summer vacation last year begin on May 24 as the heat was unbearable. Then how is it possible to hold exams in those months?
The schools are still in confusion as to when they should hold their internal exams and when to start new classes. If this policy continues, the current academic year would extend to 14 months.
ABDUL QAYYUM
Sialkot
The Kalabagh dam was planned at its proposed site but Ayub Khan, who belonged to the NWFP, chose to build the Tarbela dam. The problem is that while the KBD’s water reservoir will be spread over the areas of both Punjab and the NWFP, its base and structure will be in Punjab. Had it been otherwise, there would have been no objection to it, but who can change the geography of the area? International experts and even local engineers have declared it to be most feasible, durable, beneficial and economical for the country. World financial donors have offered loans and assistance.
Some groundwork and preliminaries were also started but then the work on the project was delayed because of opposition to it.
The NAP leadership led the opposition more on political than sound technical grounds. The height of the dam was considerably reduced to allay fears about submersion of Nowshera. These apprehensions are also technically misplaced.
The people of Hazara (NWFP) and Azad Kashmir did not grudge or grumble over their lands being submerged by the Tarbela and Mangla Dams for the greater good of the country and their own benefit.
The Indus passes through the Northern Areas, the NWFP and Punjab before going into Sindh. So the river belongs to all of Pakistan. River Kabul does not belong to Kabul alone nor does the Jhelum belong to Jhelum alone, and so on. Only some big waderas and exploiters are opposing Kalabagh despite technical, administrative and constitutional guarantees and the project’s benefits for Sindh. No sensible Pakistani can ever think of harming Sindh in any way because harm to one part of the body is harmful for the whole body.
KHWAJA MUHAMMAD BASHIR BUTT
Rawalpindi
REFERENCE the letter “PIA & Sindhi biryani” by a “Frequent Flyer” (Jan 17), PIA’s book of Pakistani recipes was printed many years ago, and really did make an error of omission by not including the recipe for Sindhi biryani in the contents. The error is regretted.
However, a new and more updated book is being published and “Frequent Flyer” is welcome to give his/her name and address to receive the book by mail.
CAPT HASSAN JAFFERY
General Manager Public Affairs & Communication PIA,
Karachi
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