| December 27, 2006 | Wednesday | Zilhaj 05, 1427 |
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Not so fair and lovely
Iraq Study Group
Prospects for tourism
Positive criticism
Eliminating corruption
Jinnah and some liberals
The Quaid’s Pakistan
Visa for Pakistanis
Pot and kettle
Post office closing
Steroids and personal grudges
Recipe for disaster
Readers are requested to restrict their comments to a maximum of 400 words. We reserve the right to edit letters for reasons of clarity and space. Letters, including those by e-mail, should carry the complete postal address of the sender. The views expressed in these columns do not necessarily reflect the views of the newspaper.—Editor
THIS is with reference to M.J. Akbar’s article on Indian Muslims (“Shrinking jobs for Muslims”, Dec 21). Since Mr Akbar has called it a hoax perpetuated by the upper castes on Muslims in India, please permit me to espouse the views of a true minority in India: the Brahmins. We don’t own land, we are not wealthy business men, and we don’t command any power in terms of political patronage.
We form such a tiny minority of the population that we don’t even count in vote bank politics. So forget any entitlements from the Government. Add to that, a successful and relentless campaign of vilification against us has been carried out mostly by ‘enlightened’ Brahmins ‘educated’ by Christian missionaries and thus the stage was set for a total suppression of Brahmins.
Yet many Brahmins are successful in life. Though there must be hundreds of thousands of utterly poor Brahmins in India we don’t hear of them. But those that are well-off are supposed to feel enormous guilt. These Brahmins are not wealthy; at best they live a decent life. By and large, they are a hard-working bunch who doesn’t take to the streets and demand entitlements. You can be cynical and say that’s because they are too small in numbers, or you can say that maybe there is something there for other so-called minorities to learn from Brahmins.
In all these stories you hear of ‘upper castes’ who go and beat up Dalits (or Muslims), everybody assumes it must be Brahmins because they are the ‘upper-most’ caste, right? Wrong. It is usually wealthy landowners who are nothing close to being Brahmin, either spiritually or by caste. Does Mr Akbar know that in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu over 70 per cent of seats in higher education are reserved for all sorts of people — Muslims and Christians included — anyone but a Brahmin, even if the Brahmin is in dire straits economically. So did the Brahmin kids sit around complaining in anguish? No, they just studied harder and harder.
Look at the top 10 per cent of seats awarded in medicine and engineering in India, and you will see why so many Brahmins seem to be in the US in important positions! The enormous competition for the few merit seats in India is the reason why college grads in the USA know that it is far harder to get into an IIM or IIT by merit, than it is to get into MIT or Harvard Business School.
Of course, there will be readers who will go to great lengths to curse me and all Brahmins, quoting ‘historic’ anecdotes most of which are unverifiable. So be it. We know what the truth is and all the rhetoric in the world will not change it. What will protect any minority - or majority for that matter - is hard work, sincerity in thought and actions, being realistic, and adapting to change without compromising moral values.
M.J. Akbar would be well advised to ask Muslims to emulate these qualities rather than sit around hoping for divine intervention - or political handouts.
B.K. VASAN
Chicago, USA
WHAT Arundhati Roy once so eloquently noted about her country could easily be said about ours too: we live in several centuries at the same time; somehow we manage to progress and regress simultaneously. On one hand we have a rampant consumerism flourishing in marble-floored shopping malls where you can buy almost anything your heart desires.
From the latest CD player to a sophisticated automobile it’s all there to make you feel at par with the citizens of the most affluent countries of the globe. The digital revolution has brought an array of satellite television channels to our homes.
A casual channel surfing on your cable TV would give you a plethora of talk shows (unfortunately they are the easiest and cheapest to produce) discussing almost every issue under the sun. On any given day, you can choose to witness a technological revolution by watching how the next generation spaceship being built on an informative channel, let yourself be enlightened by seeing Amartya Sen waxing eloquent on globalisation, or be inspired by Anna-Lou Leibovitz describing the art of the modern photography.
On the other hand, there are shows as well as advertisements that have opted to completely ignore the ethical and intellectual progress men have made in the recent past. Take for example the advertisements of numerous so-called skin care (read skin lightening) products available in the market today. These products are sold on the promise to make the young girls look fair and lovely thus improving their prospects to find a lucrative career, as well as the future husband of their dreams.
These ads as well as the longer infomercials are highly offensive as they portray the darker skin tone as some sort of a curse, or at least a serious shortcoming. They commercials are sexiest, shallow, discriminatory, and stereotypical. The manufacturers are using a social stigma to sell their products, which, many would argue, is an unfair trade practice.
It’s time that civil society as well as the government authorities ask the advertisers of these products to change their tone and spare the impressionable minds of the young girls and women of Pakistan.
FARHAT TAHSEEN
Karachi
NOW that all the hoo-haa about the 79 recommendations toiled by the Iraq Study Group (ISG) - even though no one in that elite group really ‘studied’ Iraq - is dying out, it should be pointed out that apparently nobody noticed the omission of two important recommendations.
The 80th should have read something like this: In all futuristic ill-planned, myopically-conceived and hastily-executed invasions, the power-to-be must study (and never undermine) the historical and cultural enigma of a foreign sovereign nation that will come under, but ridiculously foil, the brunt of our military might. A thirty-year old failed military expedition should have taught us this.
So too the 81st recommendation could have read: The indelible lessons of the military defeat in North Vietnam and the Vietcong in 1975 ingrained in the public and political will that overseas military entanglements should be avoided at all cost at all times, should henceforth be included in the elementary school curriculum across the land.
Never mind what the political pundits are saying or not saying about the quagmire in Iraq. The way the rest of the world has come to view this conflict, has all the tell-tale signs of the American and British debauchery carefully co-crafted to bolster the empowerment of the state of Israel in the Middle East — no matter what. And now that the chickens have come home to roost in his very own backyard as a result of long-inflicted injustice in seemingly faraway ‘land of no consequence’, the sudden urgency in Blair’s plea for a cleavage in the Palestine-Israel impasse has reached a new pitch.
This is nothing but a reflection of the fact that, in the throes of his political death, he is begging for the atonement of England’s own wrongdoing when his predecessors wrote and ratified Balfour Declaration sixty years ago. President Bush wouldn’t even dream of such a thing; for him there is a cure for his insomnia.
ABDUL MALIK AMIR
Saudi Arabia
THIS refers to your editorial (Dec 21) regarding the development of tourism in Pakistan. You have analysed in some detail the reasons that have discouraged tourists from visiting your country. Obviously when you refer to tourists you have in mind only the western ones. This used to be the common thinking in the East. But may I remind you that things have changed.
The new tourists are now coming from India and China. According to a report published in a US paper last month, 6.2 million Indian tourists visited Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand apart from Europe and the US. Most of them would be happy to visit Pakistan which is right next door. You may also be interested in knowing that New Zealand recently opened a tourist office in Bombay to attract Indian tourists, as have Malaysia and Singapore.
In the case of Pakistan no special effort is required. Both for emotional and religious reasons a large number of Indians would like to visit Pakistan. You have reported Dr Manmohan Singh’s very warm and positive response to President Musharraf’s peace proposals. With the easing of visa system in both the countries and permission to tour operators especially from Indian Punjab to organise tours to Nankana Sahib, you will have a million Indian visitors next year. What is required is the genuine will to make the tourist year meaningful.
J.N. BHAT
New Zealand
I AGREE with Saad Khan’s comment (letter, Dec 19) and would like to add that it is not only our national carrier which is victim of unhygienic conditions, our national character also suffers from it whether it be an uneducated poor person or an educated one of the elites.
We read numerous complaints in this section from residents of many localities about the unhygienic conditions they live in. It is high time that people stop complaining and start acting. If people in western countries can pick up their pets’ droppings while taking them for walks on the streets or parks, our people should be able to dispose of their trash properly. Cleanliness starts from our homes and in most Pakistani homes the filthiest rooms are bathrooms and kitchens.
What a contradictory life we live; we keep the places that we use for cleaning ourselves and feeding ourselves the filthiest in our houses. Our religion compels us to take care of and respect the land we live upon, how many of us can say that they make an honest effort to do that.
FAISAL SIDDIQUI
Edmonton, Canada
THIS refers to Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz’s speech at a function organised by the National Accountability Bureau to mark the third International Anti-corruption Day (Dec 10). He identified the causes of corruption and went on to detail that the government had evolved multilateral framework to curb the menace of corruption and spelt out several essential ingredients of the strategy.
The speech was well delivered for public consumption. The facts are quite different. It is a fact that corruption starts at the top. Below are some examples of institutionalised corruption and corrupt practices:
a. Look at the size of cabinet the PM is heading -– 70 + minister advisers (some of them known loan defaulters, turncoats, etc) with massive perks and privileges (the Quaid-i-Azam had six ministers).
b. Frequent foreign trips by the president, PM and ministers with planeload of camp followers, free loaders, etc, involving huge expenses.
c. Ghost schools, ghost teachers and ghost doctors flourishing, of which ghosts are not the beneficiaries but the feudal lords/zamindars and bureaucrats in collusion are the real beneficiaries. Thus, education funds are embezzled.
d. Bonded labour camps, private jails and private armies exist. Feudal lords have enslaved the poor people in their areas. Funds for poverty elimination and benefits of economic turn-around do not reach the poor but are pocketed by the vested interests.
e. Several mafias have emerged. Industrialists have formed the cartels and selling products at their prices/terms and conditions. The sugar price scam is an example. The government is unable to control retail mafia who are fleecing customers.
f. Banks are writing off loans worth billions of rupees of rich influential persons/industrialists. This is amounts to loot and plunder.
These high-profile corrupt people are known to government but due to political expediency the government needs them to stay in power.
Mere rhetoric by high-ups cannot end corruption. A political will of a truly democratic government could only end corruption.
ABDUL SAMAD KHAN
Karachi
I AM deeply hurt at the attitude of some leading liberals of Pakistan towards Jinnah. Take for example Tariq Ali. He condemns the partition of British India and praises Nehru while not saying a single word about Jinnah who was in many ways more liberal than Nehru. He refuses to criticise Nehru for sabotaging the Cabinet Mission Plan that would have kept India united.
Then there is Eqbal Ahmed who also eulogises Gandhi. In a documentary he made for BBC shortly before his death, Ahmed presented Gandhi in a very positive way as a symbol of love while keeping mum about Jinnah. These two are not the only ones. Other liberals too publicly show their affections towards Gandhi and Nehru, forgetting that they only wanted to replace the ruling class and not bring any real grassroots social change.
The Congress Party represented the industrialist/capitalist elites of India among which there were hardly any Muslims. Pakistan, on other hand, is described by these liberals as a product of drawing room politics by feudals. They forget that Iqbal and Jinnah were both belonged to the middle class.
OSAMA MUSTAFA
Islamabad
I’M writing in response to Shamshad Ahmad’s article “The Quaid’s unrealised vision” (Dec 25) As a young man who did not grow up in the country of his birth, I feel quite disillusioned about the future of Pakistan at this time. Mr Ahmad’s article reiterated what my parents have told me about the Quaid-i-Azam and Pakistan and I can’t help but feel that people continue to flee the country out of despair.
Those without the necessary resources to leave are at the mercy of corrupt politicians and a feudal system that should have been abolished long ago. That leaves Pakistanis like me who observe critically from a distance, but have no real solutions or frame of reference to draw from. So who will be left to realise the Quaid’s Pakistan?
OBAID KHAWAJA
Iowa, USA
LAST month, a friend holding dual UK and Pakistani nationality was advised by her travel agent in London to check with the Pakistan High Commission as she may need a visa to visit Pakistan. The Pakistan High Commission in London confirmed this and told her that she should get a Pakistan Origin Card if she did not wish to go through the hassle of applying for a visa each time. With a Pakistani passport, a visa for Pakistan was mandatory if she held a UK passport as well.
The lady’s brother, who has dual Pakistani and US nationality, asked the Pakistan embassy in Washington and was told the same thing. He spent almost US$1000 to fly to Washington from Boston and get the visa since he was short of time.
On the other hand, everyone else I know holding dual Pakistani and any other nationality have travelled to Pakistan on their Pakistani passport with no problem and no need for a visa. Are our diplomatic missions misinformed, are our immigration officials at the airport unaware, or is this just a money-making stunt by embassy officials? Could someone clarify?
MARIAM HALAI
Karachi
THE recent remarks by the MQM chieftain denouncing the MMA’s politics of strikes and civil disruptions seem like a case of the pot calling the kettle black. People do not have such short memories. One undocumented fact of history is that thousands of people fled Karachi during the MQM’s reign from 1986 to 1996.
The unhallowed arts of strikes, coercion and torture cells were perfected during that time. It was only after Naseerullah Babar’s excellent (and unheralded) operation that normalcy returned to the streets of Karachi. Karachi owes a lot to him. Sadly, Gen Musharraf appears to be gifting the city back to the MQM.
KHWAJA SHAMAAS
Lahore
IT is a matter of great concern for the residents of Tando Soomro, Tando Allahyar, that the more than 50 year old post office is being closed.
The reason for this is best know to postmaster of Tando Allahyar. Depriving the people of the area of this service of is indeed a great injustice. I appeal to the authorities to ask the postmaster of Tando Allahyar not to make such an unfortunate decision.
ANSAR NIZAMANI
Tando Allahyar
IT is sad to know that Pakistan’s two top bowlers will not be able to play in the 2007 World Cup. I think the panel’s reaction is little too harsh. Both bowlers should have given benefit of the doubt based on the fact that they were injured recently and in order to get fit they might have taken some medications which contained steroids. But as there are no strict regulations in Pakistan, the panel cannot simply blame the players. It is the responsibility of PCB as well, not to just make the players aware of the dangers of drug use but also provide proper teaching and training to them.
The way Intiqab Alam has approached this issue it seems more like punishment based on personal grudges than on steroids only. What does a positive drug test have to do with character assassination of Shoaib?
His personal life was not the reason he was banned for two years. It was his unsupervised motivation to perform for the country, which went south. Shoaib’s bad boy attitude might have caused him his career, but still I respect him for the little glory he has brought by playing for Pakistan.
His personal life is nobody’s business and I hope that the PCB management will reconsider their decision and allow both players to play cricket for my country.
MUHAMMAD A. MIRZA
New York, USA
ACCORDING to a news item the government is seriously thinking of having two holidays in a week in a desperate drive to solve the energy crisis. This will be a recipe for disaster. If those who decide such things spent more time among the public, they would know that we already have another weekly holiday beside Sunday, which happens to be Friday. When this day is not being used for strikes by the clerics, the masses work as if they’re being used as slave labour. Most shopkeepers think it’s a heinous sin to start work before the Friday prayers.
Rather than have another weekly holiday, the government should make it mandatory for shops to open at nine instead of eleven and to close at eight. Marriage lawns should be compelled to switch their lights off at eleven. Those government officers and corporate executives who are allowed to use a certain number of litres of petrol and units of electricity free every month should be made to pay for these facilities.
In government departments, long before the office staff arrives, the peons switch on the lights, fans and airconditioners, and these are not switched off when the rooms are empty. This criminal waste of energy should be made a cognizable offence.
SHAKIR LAKHANI
Karachi
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