| August 15, 2008 | Friday | Sha'aban 12, 1429 |
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A storm that blew over
Inflation and government intervention
Overcoming shortage of food
Education in Pakistan
Animals’ cause
Rewarding achievements
Safety of Afia’s children
Oil price relief needed
President, please go
Flour sachet
A Sindhi
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
THE increased activities of Taliban in Karachi recently are no surprise. This is also not only the case in Karachi.
The phenomenon gained prominence and got patronage during the Zia regime and has been gaining strength ever since in almost all parts of the country in the garb of Mujahideen, patronised then by the state, the US and Saudi Arabia against the Russian occupation of Afghanistan.
As a result, thousands of madressahs preaching hate have sprung up and are capitalising on making easy money, mobilising and inciting the ignorant and impressionable youth to take recourse to extremism and self-destruction in the garb of religious teachings. If it is such a pious act, why isn’t any mullah embracing this ‘shahadat’ himself?
Taliban extremists and the assorted ‘lashkars’ actually follow the same philosophy, i.e. ‘the end justifies the means’, based on the ill-founded belief of their fanatic and misguided leaders.
Many Lal Masjids have cropped up in all parts of Pakistan, besides Karachi, that are preaching violence and extremism. These are but huge dumps of arms, ammunition and explosives.
It is strange if these have escaped the commoners’ sight. Why can’t these changes be noticed by the government/agencies and why, in the first place, were they allotted/allowed to encroach upon vast lands to gain strength? Why has no action been taken so far?
The case of Islamabad’s Lal Masjid was very strange that the Masjid management itself encroached upon government land and carried out unauthorised construction of Jamia Hafsa, becoming a state within the state by doing unlawful things like the abduction of ladies, police personnel and Chinese, issuing warnings to CD shops, unlawfully occupying the children’s library, etc.
The whole media and the opposition then, including politicians, made a lot of hue and cry for not taking any action against the occupants of this mosque. Why was the mosque allowed to stockpile such huge arms and ammunition and why was no action taken against them?
When action was finally taken against the perpetrators of these crimes, the media and the opposition leaders all took a U-turn and started condemning the government and justifying all such acts previously condemned by themselves.
The existence of a large number of Lal Masjids in the country should be an eye-opener, though a delayed one. It sounds very convincing that the Taliban by design have made strong, well-fortified, heavily armed fortresses in the name of mosques to gradually start asserting their brand of religion and ultimately through a well-coordinated plan to try and take over the whole country on a code word issued from their central command as asserted by Mulla Omar.
I can foresee the streets of cities stained with the blood of innocent people by these Taliban.
The government needs to muster courage to confiscate these arms and take due measures to ensure that these mosques and madressahs stopped teaching extremism or else are closed immediately.
In view of this threat to peace, people would be justified in asking the government to issue arms to them for their self-defence.
M. A. KHAN
Atlanta, USA
THIS is apropos of Kuldip Nayar’s article, ‘A storm that blew over’ (Aug 8) in which he mourns the bloodbath that occurred during the late 1940s.
I’m a young man of 24 years and belong to Chakwal, the birthplace of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Our Indian neighbours visit my district regularly as the oldest worship place, the Kattass Raj, is situated here.
Perhaps this is why I am unable to bring myself to detesting Indians as I meet them regularly and my love for the Indian people and desire to visit India increases.
However, when I read The Emergence of Pakistan by the late prime minister Chaudhri Muhammad Ali, my heart aches.
He writes: “The 1946 massacre of Muslims in Bihar was the first organised effort at extermination of opponents over a wide area, but even that orgy of destruction had no long-term end in view and quickly exhausted itself.
“The Punjab massacres planned by the Sikhs were not only on a far larger scale, they differed in kind from all previous civil disorders”.
Further he says they had a defined political objective and to gain it, uncontrolled violence and terror were used. This plan was executed at that time when the administration in East and West Punjab were in their nascent state. According to the writer, “The secret deal between Mountbatten and the Congress for advancing the date for the transfer of power from June 1, 1948 to August 15, 1947 was deliberately intended by the Congress to deny Pakistan time to organise its administration and to establish itself on a sound basis”.
Quoting a report by Ian Morrison, correspondent of The Times, London, from Jalandhar on Aug 24, 1947, Mr Ali writes: “More horrible than anything we saw during the war is the universal comments of experienced officers, British and Indian, on the present slaughter in East Punjab. The Sikhs are clearing East Punjab of Muslims, butchering hundreds daily, forcing thousands to sleep westward, burning Muslim villages and homesteads, even in their frenzy burning their own. This violence has been organised from highest level of Sikh leadership and it is being done systematically, sector by sector”.
When Muslims, who were subjected to cruelties of the Sikhs, reached Lahore and narrated their woes, there was a strong reaction among the Muslims of West Punjab and, as a result, the Sikhs and Hindus became their prime target.
As a result, millions of people from the both sides had to leave their dear homeland, their kith and kin, and could take nothing with them but bitter memories, memories that still torment columnist Kuldip Nayar.
Now the governments of the two states should take steps to come closer, the foremost step being the abolition of the visa system between the two countries.
NABEEL ANWAR
Dhakku, Chakwal
THIS is with reference to Farhana Mowjee’s letter, ‘Inflation and government intervention’ (Aug 12) wherein she has held that the government’s decision of raising the minimum wage to Rs6,000 is one of the major causes of inflation.
While reasoning out against this decision, she has compared the minimum wages of neighbouring countries such as India (per day Rs116) and Bangladesh (Rs1,800 per month) as against Pakistan Rs230 per day (taking 26 days of a month).
She has, however, failed to realise that local wages are fixed not on the basis of wages of neighbouring countries but on the basis of prices of commodities and utilities obtained in the country. More so wages have increased here because of high cost of living; one major factor of which was uncontrolled market forces, unleashed due to departing administrations’ unscrupulous economic polices.
The duty of a modern state is not only to regulate monetary and fiscal policies but being the custodian of society has to look after the well-being of the masses, especially the oppressed class.
Ms Mowjee should know that a worker who is drawing Rs6,000 per month has many mouths to feed which in these days of skyrocketing inflation has become a most complicated task.
Can she visualise as to how a minimum-paid worker at Rs230 per day (her working) could feed his family when flour is sold at Rs30 per kg, pulses at Rs120 per kg, rice at Rs100 per kg and oil Rs160 per kg.
What’s more that expenditure such as electric, gas, water charges, transportation, education and health for the family would definitely have made his life unbearable.
Strangely for calculating per day wages instead of 30, she has considered 26 days of a month meaning thereby that the ‘month’ of a worker is of fewer days.
Moreover, while comparing the minimum wages of neighbouring countries, it is also necessary that the price index of consumer goods of those courtiers should be taken into consideration. As per reports, the prices of consumer goods in India are not only cheaper but are also stable unlike in Pakistan.
Thus intervention of the government at such a crucial moment to increase the wages cannot be held unjustified even if it aggravates inflation.
I agree that a qualified and well-educated worker is much in demand, here as well as abroad.
However, given the ground realities even the minimum wage of Rs6,000, which makes Rs200 per day, is too meagre an amount for even a single person to service in these days, what to talk of a family.
RAFIQUE AHMED SIDDIQUI
Via email
THE world is getting signals from scientists of facing food shortage in the near future. Food production, as well as food protection, is, therefore, required to be given top priority, especially by developing and under-developed economies, not only to feed their teeming millions of the people and animals, but also to help neighbouring countries, as and when faced with food shortage.
We have to bring a diversification in our eating habits. Wheat is the staple diet of even the poor in rural areas who have to switch over to coarse foodgrains to ease wheat demand.
The cropping pattern of all foods should be reviewed to adjust with global changes that are being felt in the climate of a country.
Breeding work of the new varieties in food, fruit, and vegetable crops should be reviewed and evolution of high-yield varieties should be accelerated to increase production.
Incentives ought to be given to growers of coarse grains like pearl millet, sorghum, and corn, which are short-duration crops and require less water to grow.
Soyabean and potatoes can also be used to make flour, which can be used after mixing with wheat to reduce pressure on cereals.
Wheat could be skipped once or twice a fortnight and coarse grains should be taken by healthy persons to save wheat consumption.
Among pulses, gram which is used as a pulse can be ground as ‘basan’ and mixed with wheat flour to make loaves.
‘Basan parathas’ are already the favourite of most of us in urban areas.
Control of insect pests and diseases should be made more effective in the fields and food stores.
Losses in transportation of foodgrains should be minimised. Corn and soyabeans, which are used for oil, should also be popularised in our daily menu.
Lastly, there should be strict vigil on hoarders and smugglers who, for a little benefit, engage themselves in unethical practices.
Strict action is needed to be taken against them to curb hoarding of grains or wheat flour or their smuggling to neighbouring countries.
Moreover, seafood could also be profitably exploited.
M. SHAFIQUE AHMED
Karachi
I SUPPORT Urooj Jafri’s letter (Aug 12) regarding the state of education in Pakistan. Governments have come and gone and made high claims on improvement of education but with no results shown.
Education can only be improved by educationists who must realise the need for a change, then come together and start a mass movement to reform the existing education system.
When I suggested that a change was needed, a professor at Karachi University said: “Our students do well abroad and return with PhDs, so nothing can be wrong with our education”.
If such is the logic at that level, not much can be expected. Some of these professors continue to teach MSc classes from their 30-year-old sheets of class notes and think they are imparting advanced education.
Science has changed a lot in 30 years and although our syllabi have been modified, we have not had any external body review of it.
MSc students are being asked to copy notes from the board and learn them to pass examinations set on those notes by the same teachers.
What happened to a common examination for all universities within a province or even in the whole country?
Why is every university allowed to set its own examination papers?
How can we ensure that an MSc degree in a subject like physics from various universities in Pakistan means the same depth of knowledge?
The changes need to take place simultaneously in this matter: giving a common examination paper to candidates from all universities within a province, requiring the paper-setters to make new examination questions (banning questions from previous 10 years’ papers), providing continuous professional development training opportunities for teachers at all levels.
Although the Higher Education Commission has hired many experienced professionals from abroad to create research interest, improving the base level of teachers needs special attention. Opportunities related to their subject specialties must be arranged over summer or winter breaks and made mandatory.
DR TAHIRA ARSHED
Karachi
I JOIN Dr Nanditha Krishna (letter, Aug 8) in applauding your paper in giving some space to Ardeshir Cowasjee’s column (Aug 3) on animal concerns. Mr Cowasjee’s article is very encouraging and plays an important part in raising animal awareness in a society which has treated animals so poorly for centuries.
To the positivism expressed by him, I would like to add that for the last two years the Pakistani media has received recognition at the Genesis awards at Beverly Hills, California, for raising animal rights awareness in the mainstream. Genesis awards are the most prestigious awards given to the media by the Hollywood office of the Humane Society of the United States for bringing animal issue on the spotlight.
http://www.hsus.org/about_us/offices_and_affiliates/hsus_hollywood_office/the_genesis_awards/22nd-genesis-awards/
I have every hope that your paper will help animals by continuing to publish animal rights-related material and join ranks with other Pakistani media in their pursuit.
SYED RIZVI
USA
ALL educational boards of Punjab have declared matriculation results simultaneously. Brilliant students won unmatched laurels and earned a name for their alma maters.
The good news in this regard is that the chief minister announced a fabulous sum of Rs5,000,000 for a position holder hailing from a destitute family and also announced Rs200,000 each for all the position holders of Punjab.
Further, Rs100,000 was awarded to the teacher of each position holder.
This proactive step on the part of the chief minister is a very commendable measure to encourage and promote education in the beleaguered country. The principal of Khanpur Central Public School, which bagged first and second positions in the Bahawalpur BISE, highly appreciated the step of the chief minister.
In contrast to the gesture shown by the chief minister was the indifferent attitude of two ministers, according to a report. It said that recently, on the eve of a declamation contest, the ministers of education and Baitul Ma’al presided over an event. Although the education minister was greatly impressed by the level of English speeches, as he adjudged it at par with that of the Government College, Lahore, he didn’t announce even a petty cash award for the winners. It is advisable that the chief minister should now award a grant for its library, laboratory, etc.
Another overarching issue is of our neglected town like Rahimyar Khan — neglected in the sense that the political leadership at the helm of affairs of the tehsil municipal authority(TMA) has failed to develop the city. The citizens of Rahimyar Khan benifit from the existence of Allama Iqbal Library, which is well-furnished, houses latest stock of books, and has a full-time librarian.
Unlike the library, our town has a so-called library housed in a store-like building behind the TMA office. It has old and outdated books where no student of state-of-art disciplines like medical, engineering, management, accountancy and information technology likes to visit.
The librarian, a man-of-letters, laments on the sad state of affairs of the library. I request the good offices of the chief minister to order the establishment of a good library in the centre of the town.
Still another vital issue pertains to the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Bahawalpur, where in the recently-held matriculation examinations at least one question paper was leaked prior to the scheduled time and date of the paper.
How it happened is a matter of concern. It should be investigated into, the responsibility be fixed and those responsible be brought to justice. And those with unclean hands should quit.
PARVEZ IQBAL ANJUM
Member, Pakistan Writers’ Guild Khanpur
THIS is with reference to the HRCP’s press release, ‘HRCP seeks justice for Dr Aafia’ (Aug 13). I was a bit relieved to read that finally someone has shown concern about the fate of the missing children of Dr Aafia.
Although the national and international media, NGOs and the family of Dr Aafia are focused on the issue of Dr Aafia, surprisingly there was no mention of her children.
The government should immediately inform the nation about the well-being of the missing children. Despite the fact that Pakistan is party to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, serious violations of child rights are taking place in the so called ‘war on terror’ and the state has failed to protect children from the harmful consequences of the ‘war on terror’.
ARSHAD MAHMOOD
Mardan
(II)
AFTER remaining for five years in prison Dr Afia Siddiqui, a Pakistani scientist, has now been charged by US authorities with attempting to kill FBI agents and other US personnel last month in Afghanistan while in US custody. This shows how absurd and ridiculous the US war on terror is.
I demand that the government must take steps for her quick and safe return to her country. It is cases like these ‘forced disappearances’, killing innocent people during military operations, abrogating the Constitution, sacking the judges, selling profitable Pakistani assets like the Steel Mill at throwaway prices by the Musharraf regime that he should be impeached so that no ruler in future will dare to hand over innocent Pakistanis to foreign governments without first producing them in a Pakistani court.
YAWAR KAZMI
Karachi
(III)
More than the impeachment of the president, restoration of the judges, release of Dr A. Q. Khan, etc, I consider the release of the three children of Dr Siddiqui as the most important issue that we are facing.
The government should use all resources at its command to seek their release on top priority. The next important issue is the release of their mother, Dr Afia Siddiqui.
The Human Rights Watch and other organisations should approach the International Court of Justice in this case.
A. QAYUM KHAN
Karachi
WHY are oil prices soaring? No cogent reason has been put forward by any authority. Consumption has been argued to have increased in the last six or so months. Who is swallowing up the oil? Has production decreased? No. Has oil guzzling increased? No.
The answer is very simple: the cartel. Syndicates are skilfully manipulating the price, putting the non-oil-producing countries into a fix which have no choice but to ‘do or die’. People at the helm of the affairs are no less than Don Quixote’s. The following measures are suggested to alleviate the predicament of the hard-working people of my country:
a. Diesel/petrol/gas prices should be reduced by 50 per cent for all vehicles from 1300cc and under to include public service transport and motorcycles. The majority of our lower middle class uses this means of transportation.
b. All privately-owned vehicles from 1300cc to 1800cc should be given 25 per cent subsidy in oil price.
c. All 1801cc plus vehicles should be charged full as our affluent, high-profile lords can afford oil prices without feeling the pinch.
A majority demand their right to survive.
PERVEZ HASAN
Lahore
THIS is apropos of your editorials, ‘Musharraf: fate sealed’ (Aug 7) and ‘Impeachment decision’ (Aug 8). All I would like to say is: Mr Musharraf, please go.
Instead of prolonging the agony of the nation, it is about time all the institutions of the state learned to mind their own businesses and contained themselves in their areas of jurisdiction.
Mr President, you have always claimed that ‘Pakistan First’. You have had your fair share of ruling this country for almost a decade.
Obviously, you have blundered in your travels with effect from Oct 12, 1999. Analyse your actions and draw your won conclusions.
I am sure you will have the courage to accept your mistakes and walk away with dignity. Of course, it will require guts which you are not short of. However, a word of caution: for once take a decision as a leader and don’t get misguided by selfish advice.
NAZIM F. HAJI
Karachi
WITH the increase in flour prices, the poor can now only afford to eat once a day. The least our government can do to help them out is to introduce flour sachets for only one loaf, thus reducing their misery of buying an unaffordable flour bag.
DR IRFAN ZAFAR
Islamabad
This refers to the article ‘Who is a Sindhi?’ by Bina Shah (Aug 13).
Most importantly, a Sindhi is one who subjectively considers himself to be a Sindhi.
GUL METLO
London
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