0
AS we flew in to the spanking new Suvarnabhumi Bangkok airport early on the morning of Feb 2, Tahir shook me awake. “Look,” he said, “lights, bright lights; millions of them!” Sure enough, there they were, bright as anything electric lights bright white and yellow; and neon signs in a thousand shapes and colours.
Was this the capital of Thailand, home to at least 55 multinational corporations who have their Asian headquarters in this city, and to hundreds of international companies? Was this Bangkok, the premier city of the country of Thailand which rates far higher (78) than the Fatherland (136) in every department of the UNDP`s HDI report?
Was this veritable Christmas tree the city that was seemingly so much more advanced technologically than any of ours, even our metropolis of Karachi, that was so bright with electricity-driven lighting? Where was all the much-vaunted progress as defined by our General (retd) Musharraf?
Both Tahir and I became downcast and despondent, for not only were we old and good friends with Bangkok and Thailand in general, our good and great friend Prapa and his lovely family live here. It was apparent to us that Thailand was in dire trouble; its industrialisation down; its economy obviously in a downward spiral.
When we got to the hotel and rested awhile, we noticed that the electric power didn`t even `go` once; there was not one single fluctuation. Neither did the hotel shake and shudder with the vibrations of its own electricity generators in the basement. It was as if there was no shortage of electric power at all.
We then went to the Sky Train station hoping against hope that the trains were not running (for they too run on electric power) as one little sign that our favourite country was not in very serious trouble indeed. No such luck. The trains were running, exactly on time; even the escalators and lifts were working!
Desperate, we began to look for other little signs of progress, anything to tell us that things were not as bad as they seemed. We began to look out for lines of people clamouring for rice at food stores; or queues of cars and taxis waiting for hours for CNG; or brawling women carrying little children in their arms, fighting for a bottle of cooking oil.
None of it! No shortage of staple foods; none of energy; nor of petroleum products nor CNG nor anything. The baht is 30 to the US dollar up from 40-something only last year; there is a sense of well-being; the people are as gentle and mild and friendly as ever. But where was development?
So there you have it Thailand`s had it, poor country. Would that it was on the road to stupendous progress and industrialisation like our own Fatherland with its half-hour electric load-shedding every half-hour! Well serves them right for not having brilliant leadership like the Land of the Pure has been blessed with.
I have to stop thinking of Thailand`s troubles, however, and turn my attention homewards. I have often said that you can go to the ends of the earth to forget the strife and trouble and tragedy that is our lot every single moment of our lives, but it will follow you.
We Pakistanis live it day in and day out, no matter where we are. Immediate example whilst the release of Aitzaz Ahsan and Justice Tariq Mehmood and Ali Ahmed Kurd on the very day of our departure lifted our spirits, everyone and Charley`s Aunt knew they would soon be back `in`.
Sure enough, the very next time I checked the news from home on the net, I found that the three were indeed `in` again, leading one to surmise that the great big former General and Commando must be in very serious trouble to be threatened by these three peaceable, gentle men.
Might one ask, however, just what the Commando intends to do with the three? Are they to remain in custody forever and aye? Are the godfathers of the present set-up, the US White House and its handmaiden, the US State Department in Richard Boucher et al, alright with this blatant disregard of human rights?
Or is it the case that every thing the Commando does is quite alright with the American administration? Are they buying General (retd) Musharraf`s assertion that he is keeping these three leaders of the lawyer`s movement for the rule of law and Constitution locked up because they might disrupt the elections?
Well, cowboys, what happens AFTER the elections when there might be even more conflict in the country as a result of most probable rigging? Will these three gents stay locked up? For how long?
Let us leave the Americans out of it for a moment; what about the superior judiciary that graces the benches of our superior courts? Will they not act suo motu at what is happening so unashamedly and brazenly? Or will they never act against the Commando`s high-handedness because they are beholden to him?
A word about my last week`s article on Benazir`s being `very unpopular` with the army, according to General (retd) Musharraf. I got 14 emails in response; 12 of them appreciative and from people who simply did not know enough of the past. Two were critical, one as usual almost abusive.
The point to note is that the article was deliberately provocative to encourage rebuttals based on facts. For it is high time that we faced up to the facts. I have not received a single email saying that even one of my facts was wrong or twisted.
Bushism of the week “We`re going to — we`ll be sending a person on the ground there pretty soon to help implement the malaria initiative, and that initiative will mean spreading nets and insecticides throughout the country so that we can see a reduction in death of young children that — a death that we can cure.” — President George W. Bush, Washington, DC, Oct 18, 2007
PS In the army that I knew and loved to bits, two subjects were forbidden in the officer`s mess ladies and politics. Whatever in the world has happened to it now?
