Sacrificing liberty for safety
I OFTEN wonder why as a citizen of Pakistan I cannot walk the streets of my own country without roadblocks and myriad other obstacles.
I have lived in various countries around the world and traversed through many others, however, nowhere have I seen the people of their respective countries being meted out the abominable treatment that has become the norm here.
For instance, in Karachi and other major cities it is impossible for a person to drive on the streets where foreign embassies and consulates are located.
I do not think that the American government would block a road and inconvenience its citizens in New York, let alone Washington DC, where the Pakistani consulate and embassy respectively are situated.
I am of the view that respect by others can only be forthcoming if we treat each other with dignity and honour.
The first step in this context would be for the government and its concerned organs to accord respect to the citizens.
While our leaders’ official pronouncements invoke equality amongst all people, in reality their actual demeanour clearly distinguishes between those who are ‘equal’ and some who are ‘more equal’.
The problem is that we want to do everything and end up doing nothing.
Every leader talks about turning Pakistan into another Singapore or Malaysia without actually putting in the earnest efforts that leaderships of these two countries have made to continuously improve the lives of their citizens.
If a start was made towards resolving the basic problems, which affect everyone, scrambling to show that something was done would not be required, as the difference would be felt by all and sundry.
Instead of following this simple formula, our leadership studiously ignores the core issues, perhaps because they themselves are immune to the sufferings of ordinary people due to inflation, growing lawlessness, lack of education and healthcare, joblessness, etc.
The finance ministry very succinctly talks about how the impact of its bold economic strategies would be felt in a few years’ time.
Somebody ought to tell the geniuses there that if they had to pay exorbitant utility bills and the high price of petrol out of their own pocket, undoubtedly they too would be screaming inflation from top of their lungs instead of pontificating about macro-economic adjustments and foreign reserves touching the stratosphere.
Saddling the people with issues like constitutional packages, election procedures, degrees, etc. attention is being diverted from things that really matter.
I have not heard any party or politician talking about how they are going to improve the lives of their constituents. They are all embroiled in conspiracy theories and casting aspersions on their rivals.
HASSAN KAMAL
Karachi
Valley: illusions and deceptions
IT is surprising that our leaders in New Delhi are still not ready to accept the reality of Kashmir. Having failed to divert the aspirations of the Kashmiris, for independence from India, they still keep spewing the same old rubbish of ‘cross-border’ terrorism.
While a country like Indonesia was bold enough to hold a referendum in East Timor, and lately even Sudan has agreed to a referendum in southern Sudan, our political pundits in New Delhi think they can dodge the issue of Kashmir, on one pretext or another.
They forget the support India extended to the Mukti Bahini separatists in East Pakistan, and to the majority Hindu LTTE terrorists in Sri Lanka.
If our Congress and BJP leaders feel a ‘divided’ Kashmir belongs to India, they should be bold enough to conduct a referendum in the presence of international observers in Jammu and Kashmir.
That they are not ready to do so betrays their own confidence in that the Kashmiris will ever be with India — except for Farooq Abdullah and his cronies.
The idea of dividing Jammu and Kashmir by some Hindu fundamentalist organizations has also betrayed India’s fears that Kashmiris are not with India. Hence the sudden rush to safeguard the interests of Hindus, Sikhs and Buddhists in Kashmir.
It is about time our leaders in New Delhi behaved like men, and not like ‘boys with toys’. Remembering that ‘one lie always begets another’, it is time India offered a referendum in Jammu and Kashmir monitored by international observers, as was done by Indonesia. The world cannot be fooled any more.
ANTHONY FERNANDES
Mumbai, India
Violence by people and states
This refers to Mr Mahir Ali’s write-up, “Sorry State of Affairs need not to be a never-ending tale” (Dawn July 31) in which he mentions the futility of violence.
This is a myth. In fact, violence is usually the only thing that pays, provided you are more violent than your enemy.
It got the English New Zealand, Australia and America and the lot of the world to build England. Israel was built by violence and survives because of it.
The only people who apologize for it are the ones (a) who lost to people more violent than them — like Germany to Britain and America. Nobody wins wars because of right or wrong, it is a question of who has better killing equipment and a stronger will to kill. (b) Or the apology is hundreds of years overdue when it hardly matters. (c) Or both parties are equally violent, like in Ulster.
If one party can kill at will, like Israel and the USA, they are not going to see violence as futile.
If it had been America’s aim to oust Saddam Hussein, they would have done it, but then there would have been no excuse to keep their troops in the area while the oil lasts.
S. ANWAR
London
Keeping dual nationality possible
I HAVE read in newspapers about a US citizen of Pakistani origin who has been disqualified to contest elections. The Election Commissioner has reportedly stated that according to section 14 of the 1951 Citizenship Act, “a Pakistani national loses his citizenship when he acquires the nationality of another country.”
The federal government says that the law has exemptions for countries with which Pakistan has dual nationality agreements and that the US law does not permit dual nationality.
This is totally incorrect. The US Supreme Court has stated that dual nationality is a status long recognized in the law and that a person may have and exercise the rights of nationality in two countries and be subject to the responsibilities of both.
I think that it is the Pakistan government that is intentionally creating hurdles for US citizens of Pakistani origin. Not allowing dual nationality is a loss to Pakistan only.
SAMEER QURESHI
Austin, USA
Social causes of rape
RECENTLY, many rape cases have been reported in the Pakistani press as well as in the American press. As a member of Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), I want to tell the readers that rape or sex against consent is not only a crime against the victim, whether it be a woman or minor, but a crime against the whole society and humanity.
In the United States, about 200,000 rapes are committed annually and reported. Nearly the same number is not reported.
Girls as young as six are kidnapped, raped and then murdered. Nearly two-thirds of all criminals had an alcoholic drink before committing such crimes. The similar pattern of alcohol abuse is also being seen in the villages of Pakistan and by the militant Hindu mobs in Indian riots.
Law enforcement and uniform application of law is a top priority. Women and children must be protected by the government which takes the responsibility to do so. However, women must not rely totally on the protection of the law-enforcement agencies but take their defence into their own hands.
The best defence is not to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Therefore, they must avoid such situations and parties where drugs can be introduced to them and their consciousness changed. In addition, they should learn martial arts to protect themselves.
The most important aspect of rape prevention is education of men, especially of young boys, for respect of women so that when they grow up they do not become criminals.
They must learn to treat women with the same respect as they would have for their mothers and sisters.
Muslims must understand that Islam stops a sin at its inception.
The holy Quran says, “thou shall not come near adultery.” Thus in Islam, everything which may lead to adultery, is also prohibited.
In the same context is pornography, soft or hard, on TV, movies and internet which is becoming more available in Pakistan as in the rest of the world. It has contributed to sexual crimes.
Ted Bundy, the serial killer/rapist, wrote in his memoirs from prison that pornography had contributed to his addiction of killing women (42 of them) after committing rape. So, not only social scientists and religious scholars but also government officials must make a note of it and find ways to combat this addiction in order to protect the victims of rape.
DR SHAHID ATHER
Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
US press
IN a New York park, a young boy was attacked by a savage dog. A passerby happened to see that and came to the rescue. Having tackled the vicious dog, he strangled it to death.
A reporter of a New York paper was watching all this and took snap shots for a front page picture in the next day’s issue. Approaching the hero, he says: “Your heroic feat shall be published in tomorrow’s paper under the headline ‘Brave New Yorker rescues boy’.
“I’m not from New York,” replied the hero.
“Oh in that case we’ll change the headline: ‘Brave American rescues boy from savage dog’.
“I’m not American either,” replied the brave hero.
On being asked about who he really was, the hero replied: “I’m a Pakistani.”
Well, the next day the headline on the front page of the New York paper said: “Muslim Fundamentalist strangles dog to death in New York park. FBI investigating possible link to Al-Qaeda.”
A PAKISTANI
New York, US
Hepatitis C vaccine
I READ with interest the announcement of Al-Khidmat Foundation (Dawn July 28) about the launching of a vaccination campaign against hepatitis B and C.
It has been reported that a single dose of hepatitis B and C is available in the market for Rs350 for adults and Rs250 for children.
To the best of my knowledge, there is no vaccine available to protect against hepatitis C virus infection.
I would be grateful to Dr Badshah, chief of the Foundation, if he could let us know the name of the vaccine’s inventor and the company marketing it.
If this vaccine exists, it will be of great value for the cause of protection against HCV infection. And if it doesn’t exist, people should not be misled.
DR ZEENAT HUSSAIN
Chairperson, Z. H. Foundation
IT students cheated?
THE great hype that has been created in our country regarding Information Technology has been exploited by educational institutions.
I am among the first batch of 22 students who were admitted to the Bachelors Honours programme in computer sciences at the Kinnaird College, Lahore.
In our first year (1998), we were assured that the college would get degree-awarding status ‘soon’. After four years of completing all course requirements, the college is still without a charter and without the right to award a degree.
All our aspirations regarding our professional lives have been shattered by the great handicap of not being able to prove 16 years of education.
Not only this, the local universities require that we give them a final date on the issuance of our degrees for admission to the master’s programme.
Kinnaird College has no affiliation of any sort with other universities that may grant a degree, not even the Punjab University that usually examines and awards degrees to students of colleges that do not have the authority to do so.
The students have approached the principal and the department dean a number of times only to be brushed off with the curt rebuff that the college ‘cannot award degrees’. There have also not been any fruitful attempts to affiliate with a university which can do so.
Being autonomous, the college has been charging us a non-subsidized fee of Rs28,000 per semester and even then there have been glaring irregularities in the management of the undergraduate programme.
The course work not having been planned from the start was gradually worked out from the prospectuses of other universities as we went along.
Students were asked to devise the courses for the next semester and even induct teachers by requesting them on personal basis — an added worry for students accompanying the academic pressures associated with a professional degree courses like this.
We have written to the Punjab Governor, the Minister for Science and Technology and the Chairman, PITB, but no steps have been taken in this regard.
I am sure that granting autonomy to a university does not entitle it to fleece students in the name of IT education. It must be checked by the government.
MOMINA AZAM
Lahore
Next premier
RAMBLER (Dawn, July 28), while describing a dinner hosted by Maj-Gen Ijaz Ahmad Bakshi, Director General of National Accountability Bureau, Karachi, in honour of the Bureau’s chief, Lt-Gen Munir Hafeez, writes: “...Governor Mohammedmian Soomro was there as well. He came and stayed until late despite his preoccupation with his own election to the national and provincial assemblies. He does not make hasty exits from military parties or where the generals are.”
I think the last line amply qualifies Mr Soomro to be the next prime minister of Pakistan, as per the recent constitutional reforms under discussion. Has anyone doubt?
HAFEEZ AKHTAR
Lahore
Humiliation
THE electricity, gas and telephone utilities are owned by the government and are not accountable to the people. Where in the world is such treatment meted out to citizens in civil societies?
Isn’t it the responsibility of the government to respect and protect their citizens from humiliation?
For how long do the people of Pakistan will have to pay the price for their patience?
ENGR S.T. HUSSAIN
Lahore
Share in water
A NEWS story (Dawn July 11) captioned: “Sindh draws more water than its share” reads less a news item and more a biased.
It leaves the impression that all the scarcity of water in the country is due to unruly behaviour of Sindh which is the only province that breaks the laws while Punjab is portrayed as a follower of the agreement.
The ground realities are just contrary to this view. Only one point will suffice to prove it.
The reporter mentions that as per IRSA Act, all provinces are required to get certification from the Authority for any new water project.
Three provinces, Punjab (Greater Thal Canal), NWFP (Pehur Canal) and Balochistan (Kachhi Canal) have followed the rule while Sindh didn’t get any certification before starting new projects.
The Water Accord-1991, which created IRSA, also fixed quota of water for the province. For the last five years, Sindh government is consistently and persistently demanding its share according to the accord but Punjab, with full support from the Centre, has been refusing to follow the accord.
Regarding the certification of IRSA for the new projects, the inauguration of Thal canal construction work by President Musharraf and approval of the project by ECNEC are self-explanatory moves.
ABDUL KHALIQUE JUNEJO
Karachi
Idea to revive economy swiftly
I HAVE developed an idea which, if implemented properly, can earn up to US$10 billion in foreign exchange for the country, with approximately 50 per cent realizable within three to four months of its actual launching and the remainder within four to five years, depending upon the final profile of the basic idea.
The whole thing can be implemented without a single rupee being spent by the government. It involves a gigantic building programme and will generate up to two million new jobs in the country, paid for directly by overseas Pakistanis, for four to five years.
Also, it will lead to a genuine economic revival through a trickle-down effect on all aspects of the economy. It has been discussed thoroughly with a number of overseas Pakistanis, who have all approved it enthusiastically, subject to suitable guarantees to be offered by the government.
The savings in the rupee component alone will be up to Rs100 billion per annum for four to five years, which could be used by the government for undertaking infrastructure and power projects, kept pending for want of funds.
Copies of my scheme were sent to a large number of high government officials, both civil and military, over the last two years and a bit but without any response.
It seems that our government departments and high-ups, including the military, cannot digest any indigenous or home grown ideas for quick economic recovery.
Their imagination ends at the doorsteps of the IMF and the World Bank. We are prepared to go on taxing our people into rags, or to stand on our heads, in order to qualify for a measly few hundred million dollars of the so-called tranche from the IMF.
But an idea, which could raise billions of dollars in foreign exchange, and actually turn around our economy, without any additional expenditure by the government has gone abegging for more than two years.
Ideas can move mountains and change the destinies of nations, but it needs forward-looking rulers, in order to welcome and analyze them.
All economic experts agree that only direct foreign investment can rescue Pakistan from economic stagnation. But India, by massing its troops on our borders, is directly discouraging such foreign investment.
Well, here is a scheme made to order for ensuring huge direct foreign investment by overseas Pakistanis.
Having beaten my head uselessly against the bureaucracy for over two years, I have come to the conclusion that the only chance for my scheme lies in its somehow reaching President Musharraf and I am sure that he will immediately understand all its ramifications.
A RETIRED ARMY OFFICER
Lahore