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September 7, 2003
In brief
THE fall of Dhaka, in 1971, was a tragedy that left a scar on the politics of this country. Many wounds have healed but some continue to fester.
Dr Moonis Ahmar’s monograph on Pakistan-Bangladesh relations is a significant study. The five-part well-researched paper rightly points out important areas in bilateral relations that were severely damaged when the debacle took place. With the help of facts, figures and statistical data, it indicates areas where improvement has taken place and in which the two countries are now making progress.
This monograph lays special emphasis on the post-1971 period and focuses on economics, cultural and political cooperation (not to mention conflicts) and strategies for meaningful ties between the two countries.
Dr Moonis Ahmar in his introduction touches upon some sensitive points that he later on discusses at length. Despite the fact that efforts are being made to smoothen Pakistan-Bangladesh ties, the bitterness of the cataclysmic events of 1971 still lingers on.
Yet, President Pervez Musharraf’s visit to Bangladesh has been dubbed as positive in the paper, especially on two counts. First, institutional measures were taken during the visit to enhance Pakistan-Bangladesh cooperation. Secondly, Pakistan allowed duty free access to Bangladesh jute and tea for its markets.
It is hoped that in future the ties between the two former wings of Pakistan will improve further but to achieve that, as Dr Ahmar writes, “there must exist determination and good intention on the part of the policy-makers of the two countries”. — Peerzada Salman
Pakistan and Bangladesh: From Conflict to Cooperation
By Moonis Ahmar
Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies, 1/46 Elephant Road, Dhaka-1000. Tel: 880-9347585
Email: habib@biiss.org Website:
http://www.biiss.org
59pp. Price not listed
CEREBRAL Palsy (CP) is a neurological disorder resulting from brain damage before, during, or after birth. It affects that part of the brain that controls the muscles. CP is generally characterized by involuntary jerky movements, poor sense of balance, speech impairment, or spastic muscles. The effects may vary from mild to severe.
The condition is barely noticeable in some people, while in others the person may be unable to speak, may not have use of his hands or may be unable to walk. A few people with CP may also have mental retardation, but most have average or above average intelligence.
Written as an aid for therapists, parents and community workers specifically, the book, Children with Cerebral Palsy imparts valuable information that would induce a better understanding of the nature of the condition, which to an extent can be helped through love and therapy.
The book’s structure leads the reader through the process of assessing a child, planning a treatment programme and working with the family. The reader is encouraged to take note of every detail of the child’s action and behaviour. The writer divides into two separate operations the process of observation and analysis. The illustrations make understanding easier.
Having worked as a therapist for CP patients, Archie Hinchcliffe, the writer, has tremendous experience in the field. He has also conducted rehabilitation courses for therapists in the Middle East, Afghanistan and Africa.
Children with Cerebral Palsy: A Manual for Therapists, Parents and Community Workers
By Archie Hinchcliffe
Vistaar/Sage Publications, B-42, Panchsheel Enclave, Post Box 4109, New Delhi-110017, India. Tel: 91-11-2649 1290-7
Email: marketing@indiasage.com Website:
www.indiasage.com
ISBN 81-7829-229-7
203pp. Indian Rs450
THE book under review is evident of India’s determination to win international sympathy over the Kashmir issue. Few can fault the book on its presentation, or on the way its authors have collated their data. At a glance the reader can derive useful knowledge regarding any of the several organizations struggling to thwart Indian rule in the Valley. But, considering this book is a product of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA) that was created by the Government of India, it is difficult to accept all the information as authentic.
Take just one example: the killing of 35 Sikhs in Chattisinghpora in Jammu on the eve of President Clinton’s visit to India in March 2000. The book lists the massacre as an act of terrorism carried out by the outlawed Laskhar-i-Taiba. While the militant credentials of this group cannot be disputed, the Indian government’s claim that the Lashkar had carried out the massacre has been challenged by other sources. Some of them believe that the killers were linked to the Indian security forces.
Yet, the authors more than once say that there is “credible information” implicating specific groups in terrorist acts across the Valley. That may or may not be true, as they do not throw light on how they acquired the evidence against these groups. The culprit, after all, is not always identifiable — especially when independent observers hold the Indian army and police responsible for much of the violence in the held territory. It is not always the militants who target the civilians.
The fact that thousands of Kashmiris have been killed, maimed and raped by Indian forces — and India has been censured by international human rights bodies for this — has totally escaped the authors’ notice.
So, why is this publication worthy of notice if one cannot completely rely on the information it provides? What this collection of data brings out is the potential strength of these groups had their struggle been from a single platform. While they all agree on one thing i.e. liberation from Indian rule, there is much infighting among them. Even if the Kashmiris remain divided over their goals — to become part of Pakistan or exercise the third option (independence) — at this stage they can ill afford to indulge in personality clashes. If they united as one force, there would be no need to have so many organizations struggling for the same objective.
This publication will capture the interest of the West, which feels threatened by the jihadis of all manners since 9/11. This is also one more reason why Pakistan should catch up in the media war. — Ayesha Azfar
Jihadis in Jammu and Kashmir: A Portrait Gallery
By K. Santhanam, Sreedhar, Sudhir Saxena, and Manish
Sage Publications and Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, B-42, Panchsheel Enclave,
Post Box 4109, New Delhi-110017, India. Tel: 91-11-2649 1290-7
Email: marketing@indiasage.com Website:
www.indiasage.com
ISBN: 0-7619-9785-7
282pp. Indian Rs380
AMNESTY International (AI) is a worldwide voluntary activist movement working for the promotion of human rights. Independent of any government, political persuasion or religious creed, it does not support or oppose any government or political system, nor does it support or oppose the views of the victims whose rights it seeks to protect. All it is concerned with is the impartial protection of human rights.
AI mobilizes volunteer activists to provide support to the victims of human rights abuse. At the moment, it has more than 1.5 million members, supporters and subscribers in over 150 countries of the world.
The Amnesty International Report 2003, which covers the period between January
to December 2002, is divided into three parts or sections. The first comprises a
message from Irene Khan, AI’s Secretary General, along with an overview of
injustices taking place all over the world and the situation at hand. Section
two carries alphabetically listed entries on individual countries and
territories. Each entry gives a summary of the human rights situation in a
country with AI specific human rights concerns there. Mind you, the absence of
an entry on a particular country or territory does not imply that no human
rights abuses of concern to AI took place there. It simply means that the data
was not available. The concluding section gives some background on Amnesty
International and its workings along with the addresses of its many offices
throughout the world. It also reflects the activities AI undertook during the
year in quest of its goals.
Amnesty International Report 2003
Amnesty International Publications, London Website:
www.amnesty.org
Available from Pakistan Amnesty International, NEC, B-12, Shelezon Centre, Gulshan-i-Iqbal, Block 15, University Road, Karachi-75300
Email: amnesty@cyber.net.pk Website:
www.geocities.com/amnestypakistan
ISBN 0-86210-329-0
311pp. Rs300
SARS or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome gripped the world in a state of near panic earlier this year. The first cases were identified in November last year in China but the disease caught epidemic proportion when it spread to Hong Kong in February. Later it spread to 16 countries mostly in Asia but also as far away as Canada. The worst hit were China and Hong Kong, followed by Singapore.
With symptoms similar to flu or pneumonia (fever, dry mouth, breathing difficulty, chills, aches and sometimes diarrhoea), the disease was first treated with antibiotics by doctors. It took them some time to determine that the infection was caused by a virus, and to identify the virus itself. As the disease continued to take its toll, doctors tried their best to come up with a cutting-edge treatment.
The disease is transmitted mainly through person to person contact, via the cough droplets loaded with the virus. Touching infected objects and then touching ones face with unwashed hands also caused the disease. In an attempt to contain the spread of the disease, schools were closed down and quarantine laws were invoked. Anyone who was known to have come in contact with a SARS suspect was put under quarantine for 10 days (the incubation period of the virus).
Steps were taken by governments around the world to protect their citizens from the deadly disease. New travel and immigration measures were adopted to avoid exposure to SARS. On the one hand it helped to control the spread, on the other it had a severe economic impact. In an era of global trade, businessmen shied from travelling to SARS-affected countries, resulting in lower investment. Airlines and tourism were badly hit as was the hotel and restaurant business. With the downward trend in business and trade and resulting unemployment, people from low income classes were the worst hit.
This book provides guidelines for understanding SARS and reviews the strategies that various countries adopted to combat the disease. It also identifies the measures that were not taken though they could have helped in avoiding its spread. The book needs some professional editing. References such as “on Wednesday” and “last week” only point to the inexperience of the authors and may confuse some serious readers. — Rizwana Naqvi
How to understand SARS: An Amazing Story of Public Health Policy Failure
By Muneeza Zafar, Neelam Zafar and Kanwal Zafar
Liberty Books, Hotel Pearl Continental, Club Road, Karachi
ISBN 969-8729-01-1
232pp. Rs150
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