| April 3, 2006 | Monday | Rabi-ul-Awwal 4, 1427 |
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Solution for Balochistan
‘Cartoons: a positive approach’
Choosing the right oil
Afghan convert
Stoppages of Thar Express
HEC powers
Gwadar a scam?
China-Pakistan relations
Developing democracy
VIP movement
THIS has reference to the mystic note “A train to Karachi” in (Dawn Magazine, March 12) and the column “Chopping and changing” (March 19) and news item (March 20).
The old residents of Karachi seem to be helpless to prevent removal of every trace of their memory of the peaceful, tolerant and safe city it was before independence. There was never once a communal riot or discord. The only use of the British army was at the funeral of Ghazi Abdul Qayum Shaheed in Lyari.
Three letters, one from me, on this subject appeared in Dawn about two decades ago. There were only two murder cases in the first few years of Sindh Chief Court. The only major traffic accident was when a man alighting from a tram-car was run over by another from the opposite direction near Said Manzil. Immediately all tram-cars were modified permitting entry and exit from one side only.
Sunday’s column informs that Karachi’s oldest government Richmond Crawford Veterinary Hospital on M.A. Jinnah Road is soon to disappear. The service book of my grandfather, Khan Bahadur Dr S.G. Haji, has entries that he was “veterinary officer” at this hospital from May 4, 1892 to May 15, 1912. He retired as deputy superintendent, Veterinary Department of Sinds, Balochistan and Rajputana on Aug 3, 1922 and died in London on Dec 7, 1924. The service book of my father, Dr C.S.G. Haji, has entries that he was “Acting In charge” in this hospital on May 14, 1912 and “veterinary surgeon” on Feb 1, 1924 when he was promoted as “veterinary inspector”.
Thus my two generations served in this hospital from May 4, 1892 to Feb 1, 1924. Except for my ‘taya’ and father, all other children of my grandfather and my father’s children before me were all born in the surgeon’s bungalow attached to the hospital which was dismantled to build the office of the Karachi District Local Board and which, in turn, was taken over by Radio Pakistan on independence.
On promotion my father had to vacate the surgeon’s bungalow, with the result I was born in a bungalow on Barns Street (Jamila Street). Soon we shifted to Haji Chandu building adjacent to Said Manzil because it had electricity and saved us the daily chore of kerosene table-lamps in every room. A gas lamp at the rear corner of the YWCA lighted the street. If lighting with flame at the end of a long pole at sunset was a ceremony to remember, Ram Chander (Chandu) of the mystic notes of March 12 is more fortunate as he was not a witness like me to the slow agonizing death of the era of truth.
Dear Quaid, you were born and brought up in this city and imbibed its spirit in full. Pir Illahi Bux invited you to make it the capital of the nation created through your struggle. We buried you on a small hill near our home in Garden East, where we had shifted in the 1940s, and not in the community’s graveyard at the end of the road and across the Lyari river. Half of the graveyard with its dead is now the Lyari Expressway about which I have already written to the English daily which claims to be founded by you. I left the city to serve both the wings of your creation. My service was cut-short when I was declared “dead wood” by Gen Zia, a quarter century ago, and I returned to the city to live in the shadow of your Mazar, yet I have not visited it even once up to now. I have passed your earthly age and hope to meet you soon when I will tell you the reason which should be known only to the two of us.
H.A. HAJI
Karachi
THE prime minister has announced the provision of 30,000 jobs to the people of Balochistan. The government is already spending Rs. 141 billion on mega projects in the province, in addition to the Rs. 2.8 billion given to district governments for infrastructure development. The people of Balochistan have reacted very positively to such developments. The solution to the Balochistan issue is possible through negotiations only. The basis for which should be a Parliamentary committee report that offers plausible recommendations for the province.
Tasneema Shanwari
D. I. Khan
BALOCHISTAN is once again in the midst of choas and unrest. Bomb blasts, rocket firing and the killing of innocent civilians have become the order the day. In clash between the feudal lords and the military, the general population is suffering the most.
It is a known fact that Balochistan is the most under-developed and neglected province of Pakistan. Poverty and unemployment are rampant, corruption is widespread and the educational institutions are in a deplorable condition. The tribal elders as well as the government are responsible for the backwardness of Balochistan.
Whenever the situation gets out of control, the government comes up with lucrative aid packages and mega development projects to suture the wounds of the Baloch people. The same is the case with present the government. What this neglected province needs instead is the consistent and sincere attention of the central government to solve its problems. Military force is not the solution, rather it has become a part of the problem.
MUJEEB-UR-REHMAN BALOCH
Islamabad
THE military operation in Balochistan is in full swing. The aggressive use of force by paramilitary forces against its own citizens is condemnable. Contempt for human rights has resulted in barbarous acts which outrage the conscience of the Pakistani people.
So far many people have been killed, while many others have been wounded and or arrested by law enforcement agencies. We must look for a political solution to the issue, while military action should be the last option. We have not learnt a lesson from losing a part of our country, now known as Bangladesh.
NASEEM and SALEEM BALOCH
Karachi
IT is dismaying how Ms Rabia Shakoor not only failed to understand my straightforward message herself but simultaneously insulted the intelligence of the editor of Dawn by implicitly imputing the same to him as well (March 22).
The Quranic verse had been cited by me to disprove Mr Kunwar Idrees’s erroneous contention that (i) under the Shariah, capital punishment was only applicable to those committing murder, and (ii) that it was only for God to forgive or punish those blaspheming the Holy Prophet (peace be upon).
I did not specify crucifixion or any other retribution while clearly stating that I am not a religious scholar and it was for the experts to identify the applicable punishment for blasphemy, and (b) stressing that it is not for individuals to take the law into their own hands by ordering the execution of the persons responsible but the courts of law must decide.
If, despite this sincerity of purpose and explicitness, Ms Shakoor either failed to comprehend the letter or chose to be intellectually dishonest, the problem is obviously hers. Nevertheless, it is disturbing that the lady selected crucifixion out of four possible punishments, including banishment from the land, prescribed by the Holy Quran and declared that is what I wanted the offenders to undergo. If Allah does specify certain penalties for those transgressing against Him or His Prophet, it is not for the humans to change that.
Regrettably, she has bent her energies in slandering this correspondent and his “friends” by calling them “extremists” — although it is totally contrary to the truth. Besides, she also attempted to stifle the democratic right of people to express themselves in a lawful and decent way by urging Dawn not to publish their letters. Some western and other leader have been using a similar tactic by first labelling those Muslims who are fighting for their freedom and other rights as militants/extremists/terrorists and then employing sanctions or military action.
Furthermore, the letter writer did not apply the same standards to those real bigots in the West who have been heaping gross insults on our Prophet and religion, nor did she show any anguish over their actions.
ZAKIR AHMAD
Karachi
THIS has reference to Prof (Dr) Rashida Ali’s write-up ‘Choosing the right oil’ (Dawn, Health Advertiser, March 12). The writer has projected corn oil as having the ‘most health benefits’.
Fat-fatty acid nutrition is a highly complex discipline that can have both positive and negative impact on health. Omega-6, also known as n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid, is a component of common edible oils concentration of which varies from oil to oil.
Several published research papers have implicated high intake of Omega-6 or n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid in DNA damage, breast, colon and prostate cancers. Also, high intake of n-6 fatty acid has been shown to promote inflammation, increase oxidative modification of bad LDL cholesterol, lower good HDL cholesterol and increase risk of blood clotting.
These adverse properties are established risk factors for coronary heart disease/heart attack. In the larger interest of public health, ‘open’ statements, unsupported by scientific and medical facts must, therefore, should be made with extreme caution.
Reference: Bartsch H, Nair J, Owen RW. Dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids and cancers of the breast and colorectum: emerging evidence for their role as risk modifiers [PubMed] and (2) Khor GL. Dietary fat quality: a nutritional epidemiologist’s view. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2004 Aug;13(Suppl):S22. [PubMed]
NUTRITIONIST
Karachi
FOUR years after the invasion of Afghanistan by the US and its allies, it seems that the Afghanistan is right back to where it was under the Taliban.
This is most evident in the case of Abdul Rahman, who claims to have converted to Christianity after being in contact with aid workers in Pakistan. Coalition troops and western leaders were in an uproar and for a while it seemed that the Americans have failed in their efforts to bring democracy, tolerance and moderation to Afghanistan.
The case proves that tolerance, respect and secular ideals are impossible to enforce under the guise of an invasion. Narrow-mindedness and religious dogma cannot be undone with military might. Improving socio-economic conditions and educating people is the way forward.
HUSSAIN KAKAL
Toronto, Canada
I MUST congratulate the railways ministry that in spite of enormous hurdles in its way, not the least the objections of intelligence agencies, it succeeded in re-opening the Khokrapar-Munabao rail link with India. However, the service needs to be streamlined on more than one front. For example:
a) Thar Express does not stop at any station between Mirpurkhas and the Indian border. This is strange.
b) First, the area through which this track passes is one of the most backward, one of the most cut-off and the most poverty-stricken part of Pakistan. Even Khokrapar town is not connected by road with the rest of the country. In the pre-1965 period, Khokrapar was connected with the rest of the country only by this rail track. Since the suspension of the train service in September 1965, people of Khokrapar were cut off from the rest of the country.
Khokrapar is an island in the midst of the desert. The nearest road point is at Chor which is about 30 miles from Khokrapar. Since September 1965, the people of Khokrapar have been forced to use camels to travel up to Chor. These people were looking forward to the resumption of the rail service in the hope that their 41-year-old ordeal will come to an end and they will be connected with the rest of the country with rail. In this they are disappointed.
c) Second, the rural economy will not benefit from this rail service until the train stops on at least three stations between Mirpurkhas and the border.
d) Third, without the train stopping on the wayside stations, the railways must run on this route in deficit and may therefore have to be discontinued. It is thus essential for economical running of this service that the train must stop on wayside stations, at least until separate shuttle service is introduced between Murpurkhas and Khokrapar.
Some letters have appeared in the press questioning the wisdom of establishing a new station at the border in utter wilderness when all the infra-structure is alreadily available at Khokrapar for immigration and customs checks and only required to be repaired and refurbished.
If Khokrapar served satisfactorily for customs and immigration checks until September 1965, why it cannot do so now. It is time that wasting further public funds in building this station was stopped forthwith and the Khokrapar station was rehabilitated for this purpose. History has not yet forgiven Muhammad Tughlaq for a similar folly but Devgiri was nevertheless a town but here our modern Muhammad Tughlaqs are attempting to build a town in the wilderness of the desert.
Understandably, the railway administration has not been able to justify its mistake to date, which shows it is without any reason for building a new railway station. The customs and immigration staff is also suffering untold hardships at this so-called zero point. This station, so close to the border as it will be, will also be a security risk. I wonder why no lesson was learnt from the folly of establishing Wagah as the customs and immigration station in place of Lahore.
KAMALUDDIN
Karachi
THIS is with reference to a news report entitled “Blacklisted institutes very much there” (March 29). In the report it has been stated that a number of unlawful educational institutions are still working in the Punjab province and the HEC has not taken any action against them.
This is to clarify that the Higher Education Commission does not have the legal authority to close down illegal institutions, which are listed with the provincial governments. The provincial governments were informed two year ago, and it is now the responsibility of the relevant administration departments of the provincial governments to take action against such institutions.
Recently, the governor of Balochistan gave Preston University, Quetta a four months grace period to improve its standards as per minimum criteria. It is expected that the other provincial governments will take the same initiative in the near future. The administration of the federal capital has taken action against three unlawful institutions and closed them down.
It was also stated in the news report that the Punjab government is planning to establish a higher education authority to monitor the performance of the public and private sector institutions. Under the law, only the Higher Education Commission is legally empowered to carry out various functions related to quality assurance and accreditation etc. These functions cannot be transferred to provincial committees.
Dr RASHID MATEEN
Higher Education Commission
Islamabad
SOME years ago the government of Pakistan aggressively campaigned to attract as many overseas Pakistanis as it could to invest in different parts and industries throughout Pakistan, especially Gwadar. Promises were made to protect all investors big or small.
Unfortunately my father is one of these investors. After working for over 25 years, he had the opportunity to invest his hard-earned money anywhere. Being a patriot and with confidence in President Musharraf, my father decided to invest in Pakistan. He purchased land in Gwadar hoping to make a little return to help his family, friends and the community.
Regrettably, the land has been taken away without his knowledge and permission to build an army cantonment. After running from door-to-door and many sleepless nights, my father is still waiting for someone to help him. The government should resolve this issue or it will lose credibility with overseas Pakistani investors.
SARWAR KHAN
Houston, USA
THERE is no denying the fact that as China emerges as a superpower, strategic relations between Pakistan and China have become very important. Even the US is unable to overlook China’s increasing influence in global politics.
It’s a very positive development that Pakistan and China have agreed to open a bus service, as well as allow trucks to carry goods between the two countries. This will give China easy access to the sea-trade route to the energy-rich Middle East.
Pakistan has already had a Chinese language institute at National University of Modern Languages in Islamabad which is the first insitiute of its sort in the world. There is also need for a Chinese research institute which will help to increase bilateral understanding, and strengthen diplomatic and trade relations.
Mushahid Hussein Sayed, the secretary-general of the Pakistan Muslim League, and Wang Zhaoguo, the chairman of China’s National People’s Congress, have agreed to take more steps to strengthen the Pakistan-China strategic partnership.
MARVI KHORO
Hyderabad
THIS refers to the letter by Prof. (Dr.) Khalid Hassan Mahmood entitled “Developing democracy” (March 31). The professor has listed, what in his opinion are, the key dates when democracy was “derailed” in Pakistan. However, he has overlooked the biggest scam pulled on the people of Pakistan during 1970-1971.
By the norms of democracy, the party which wins the most seats in the National Assembly is declared the winner and hence gets the opportunity to form the government. The Awami League led by Shaikh Mujeeb won 161 out of the 313 seats, an obvious majority. But Mr. Bhutto ignored this and led the country into a bloody civil war which ultimately led to its dismemberment.
RIZWAN RAHEEL
New Jersey, USA
AS much as I admire the president for taking charge and leading the country through one crisis after another, I do not understand why traffic in Karachi has to come to a standstill when his entourage passes through. Have they never heard of helicopters?
Karachiites have enough problems already. They do not need any more inflicted on them. I hope that next time the president comes for a visit he will use a helicopter. I am sure the army can spare him one. Fountain dweller
Karachi
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