Life and politics for idiots

The question of Pakistan's population on day of 7 billion

2011-11-01T00:51:00.000-07:00

Today is the day of "celebrating" the day of 7 billion people in this word. Several articles, papers and blog posts have surfaced since the beginning of this year on this topic, for example here, here, here, here, here, here, or here, or here.

Pakistan a country of more than 170 million and high population growth rate and could become the fourth largest country in 2050 with population surpassing 300 million. Our country hence has always been in the forefront of news for this. In the last few months a flurry of articles appeared in different English language newspapers of Pakistan related to (over) population, here, here and here, here. Despite the numerous articles, I decided to blog about this topic because I could not find any recent article that would point out the multitudes of causes behind our population issues.

(For this blog I have mostly used journal articles and survey publications to avoid my personal bias. However, several articles used in this blog, unfortunately, are not available for free access.)

Whenever the question of population growth arises in our country, we tend to think of our family planning program which became part of government policy in the Fifties in first Five-Year Plan but launched as a formal program by the government in 1965. In the last four decades the program has been successful in increasing to universal level about awareness of contraceptive methods and increasing the use of family planning methods from around 6 to more than 30 percent. However despite these successes, our current population growth rate is almost close to 2 and total fertility rate is over 4 and population continues to rise with alarming rate.

While population growth might spur economic growth (esp. when in conjunction with demographic dividend), an unchecked growth with no matching economic infrastructure to subsume the population efficiently can create a burden also (to read more on this check this and this). According to economists the for current rate of population of our country to keep the same standard of living would require a corresponding national growth rate of over 7 percent.

The million dollar question is why population programs in Pakistan haven't been successful? While, it would not be fair to label the Pakistan population program as failure it has been successful in getting almost a universal level of contraceptive knowledge leading to increase in family planning usage which ultimately brought the fertility rates under some checks. However, it is fair to critique that why it has not been successful in meeting its targets consistently from the very beginning. A common comparison of Pakistan's program is done with Bangladesh because at the time when it separate from Pakistan "there were 5 million more people in Bangladesh than Pakistan: ... and as result of their successful program, "by 2050 Pakistan will have 62 million more people than Bangladesh" (Campbell et al. 2007).

The reasons for its lackluster performance is attributed to our government's lack of commitment (including switching family planning between ministries of health and population welfare (which is now moved to the provinces after the 18th amendment)) to meet population goals and in general corruption in the system. Another reason is not being able to spread the reach of contraceptives despite deployment of more than 100,000 Lady Health Workers reaching 90 million population and multitude of smaller health centers geared towards rural areas. The third reason attributed to this (particularly to the stalled family planning usage rate) is the drastic reduction of international donor funding (which is the major funding source) for family planning programs, since the 2000, has not helped either (see also and this).

The program and supply side success has brought Pakistan contraceptive use at 30 percent and a similar proportion of married women also show unmet need for family planning. Combining the current FP usage with unmet need for limiting childbearing (desire to have no more children) would bring up contraceptive use to more than 50 percent! Just to give the reader an idea of how Pakistan fares in the region, the family planning rates of other countries in the region like Bangladesh, India, Iran, Nepal and Sri Lanka are 54%, 48%, 73% , 38% and 68% respectively which are clearly at much higher level than Pakistan.It might be interesting to note that the top method choice in Pakistan is Pakistan Female Sterilization (8%), in Bangladesh it is pill (43%) and in India it is female sterilization (37%). For details on these statistics see various demographic and health studies).

One of the best way to gauge fertility demand is to ask about ideal family size (because some people may end up with than their ideal because of lack of access to family planning). According to the latest demographic survey the ideal family size in Pakistan is 4.1, which is the same as actual TFR. Moreover the demand for larger families continues to persist. "Only 13 percent of women prefer a two-child family and another 14 percent consider three children as their ideal family size." One should ask that why desired fertility has not gone down despite decades of promotion of two children as better family campaigns.

Another strong reason for low use family planning is sex preference of children (which for some reason is not talked about that much in our country), especially the desire to have sons or lack of satisfaction with sex composition of current children. According to one study in order to have one male child people are willing to have as many female children as needed (source missing). The lack of a son or a daughter among one’s living children increases the likelihood that a woman will have another child in all four regions. For example, women who have more than 5 children but no sons, 24% of them still want to have more children, while "among women with three children, 65 percent of those with three sons want to have no more children compared with only 14 percent of those with three daughters." Despite these preferences, I should point out here that abortion (or feticide) based on sex preference is rare in Pakistan.

Other strong indirect factors in contraceptive non use are low status of women, lack of education and formal work opportunity, poverty and a general sense of fatalism and/or religiosity.

Direct reasons of lack of contraceptive use and/or discontinuation of use include actual or perceived side effects of modern contraception (hormonal) and method failure, failure of method (resulting in pregnancy), barrier in access including cost, distance, social stigma, lack of knowledge of a method and its source, religious and social barriers in use of family planning. (For more info see this and this.)

Family planning programs have under fire because some contend that "fertility rates in some countries will drop only when couples decide they want fewer children. And the strongest predictors of a woman’s desired family size are her income, her education level, and her infant’s chances of surviving." The supporters of economic growth and its link to fertility reduction purport that "when the motive is strong, couples will find ways to achieve small families, and state-sponsored family-planning programmes are not a necessary." However, Cleland (2006) contends that though that might be true but "family-planning programmes can accelerate the pace of change". Sharing similar views Bongaarts and Sinding (2009) also noted that "voluntary family planning programs are intended to reduce the number of unplanned pregnancies, but they also legitimize and diffuse the idea of smaller families, thus accelerating the transition to lower fertility."

It is surprising that despite more than four decades of family planning program the ideal family size has remained as high as more than four children which shows that lack of family planning use is not only due to supply side factors but married men and women go through a matrix of choices before opting to limit their families.

Sources:
Family planning: The unfinished agenda.
Fertility in Pakistan: Past, Present and Future.
Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey 2006-07.
Does Family Planning Bring Down Fertility
Future of Pakistan family planning
National Program for Family Planning and Primary Health Care.
Nationmaster database.
Campbell M, J Cleland, A Ezeh, and N Prata. 2007. "Public health. Return of the population growth factor". Science (New York, N.Y.). 315 (5818): 1501-2.
Cleland, J., S. Bernstein, A. Ezeh, A. Faundes, A. Glasier, and J. Innis. 2006. "Family planning: the unfinished agenda". The Lancet. 368 (9549): 1810-1827.

Who is a Kafir in the land of the pure? (not mine)

2011-07-08T17:51:00.000-07:00

Most Sunnis adhere to the Hanafi school of jurisprudence. Only 5 per cent of the country’s population belongs to the Ahle Hadith sect or Wahabis.
The Sunnis are subdivided into the Barelvi and Deobandi schools of thought
The Deobandis and Wahabis consider the Barelvis as kafir, because they visit the shrines of saints, offer prayers, believe music, poetry and dance can lead to god
Barelvis constitute 60 per cent of the population. Deobandis and Wahabis together account for 20 per cent
Another 15 per cent are Shias, again considered kafir and subjected to repeated attacks
Since 2000, the Sunni-Shia conflict has claimed 5,000 lives
Others considered kafir are the religious minorities—Christians, Ismailis, Hindus, Sikhs, Parsis, Ahmadias, etc, who account for 5 per cent of the population
So, 20 per cent of the population effectively considers the remaining 80 per cent as kafir

http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?266157

Street Foods in Lahore, Bhawalpur

2011-04-21T22:44:00.001-07:00

Street Foods in Lahore, Bhawalpur, a set by sepoy on Flickr.

love these pics... wish I could write a recipe book on these street foods!

M. Reza Pirbhai: Blasphemy and the Status Quo in Pakistan

2011-02-14T14:04:00.000-08:00

M. Reza Pirbhai: Blasphemy and the Status Quo in Pakistan

Encyclopedia Iranica

2011-01-23T15:23:00.000-08:00

Encyclopædia Iranica | Articles

Very useful site for all things related to Iranian culture and literature!

Some famour Bangla movies (copied from another site)

2011-01-15T00:44:00.000-08:00

Thought this is quite interesting... Lest I forget the link, it is better to copy the whole thing with credits.. I do not plan to download the movies from the torrent site (link given below)

Mukh O Mukhosh (1956): Abdul Jabbar Khan directed this trailblazer in the history of our cinema. In 1953, at a cultural programme, a non-Bangalee movie producer remarked, "The climate of this land is not fit for making movies." A worked up Jabbar decided to make a movie based on his play Dakaat right away. Making the movie was a challenge itself. The actors and most of the crewmembers had no experience in film; the shooting came to a standstill more than once due to floods. It took two years to wrap up the whole shooting process. The negative was then taken to Lahore for editing and printing and Jabbar was given a hard time there regarding the processing and bringing the final prints home. Eventually the movie starring Purnima, Ali Mansoor, Najma and others, saw the light of day on August 3, 1956 and we got our first "talkie."

Asiya (1960): The first film shot and developed in FDC (Film Development Corporation), Asiya was directed by Fateh Lohani. Focusing on the life of a village belle, the asset of the film was its music, composed by legendary folk artiste Abbasuddin Ahmed (Samar Das and Abdul Ahad also composed numbers for the movie after Abbasuddin's demise during the making of the film). Featuring Sumita Devi, Qazi Khaleque and Shaheed, the film received the prestigious President Award of Pakistan in 1961.

Harano Din (1961): Directed by Mustafiz, the film made a record as the first Bangla movie to run for 25 weeks. The romantic movie also presented the first popular on-screen couple in our cinema, Rahman-Shabnam.

Kancher Deyal (1963): One of the first feature films by the talented director, Zahir Raihan, Kancher Deyal stood out for a number of reasons. Except for a few scenes in the end, the movie was shot indoors, more specifically in a room. The movie revolved around an ill-fated orphan who had to bear maltreatment at her uncle's household. Khan Ataur Rahman's classic, Shyamol Boron Meyeti accompanied by the doe-eyed Sumita Devi's striking gaze, epitomised the quintessential Bangalee beauty.

Shutorang (1964): Directed by Subhash Dutta, Shutorang, introduced one of the most popular leading ladies of Bangla cinema, Kabori. The film fetched Dutta an award at the Asian Film Festival in Frankfurt in 1964.

Roopban (1965): During the 60s when our movie theatres were being dominated by Urdu and Hindi films, filmmaker Salahuddin made Roopban, based on a widely known paala (folklore). Starring Sujata in the title role, the movie was commercially successful and started a genre of Bangla movies based on myths and folklores.

13 No. Feku Ostagar Lane (1966): The first comedy made in this part of Bengal, the movie was directed by Bashir Hossain and featured Razzaque, Sujata, and other noted actors of the day.

Nawab Siraj-ud-Daula (1967): The first movie based on the life of the last sovereign Nawab of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa and the historical events of the Battle of Palaashi was directed by Khan Ataur Rahman. Anwar Hossain played the role of the doomed Nawab. Khan Ataur Rahman and a played other major roles in the movie.

Jibon Thekey Neya (1970): Zahir Raihan directed one of the most feted Bangla movies, Jibon Thekey Neya, featuring Khan Ataur Rahman, Rowshan Jamil, Anwar Hossain, Razzaque, and Suchanda. Raihan made a bold step with the movie by narrating the contemporary political turmoil in the then East Pakistan. The mass upsurge of 1969 was brilliantly captured in the movie by the ace filmmaker. The movie is also special for another reason: the National Anthem of Bangladesh, Amar Shonar Bangla Ami Tomae Bhalobashi was played for the first time in a Bangla movie and the song ignited the sense of Bangalee nationalism among the masses.

Ora Egaro Jon (1972): The first movie released on our Independence War, most of the lead roles were played by actors who actually fought against the Pakistani armed forces. Directed by Chashi Nazrul Islam, the movie is considered to be one of the best feature films based on the Liberation War. Khasru, Sumita Devi, and Shabana portrayed the lead roles in the film.

Rangbaaz (1973): Directed by Zahirul Haque, the movie was a trendsetter for several reasons. Rangbaaz introduced the idea of an "anti-hero" in our cinema. The movie took actors Razzaque and Kabori to new heights of popularity. The song Shey Jey Kano Elona featured in the movie became an overnight phenomenon.

Titash Ekti Nodir Naam (1973): The movie, directed by Writwik Kumar Ghatak, is an in-depth look at the lives and struggles of the community of fishermen living by the river Titash. Featuring Kabori, Prabeer Mitra, and Rozy, the movie received rave reviews both in Bangladesh and overseas.

Shimana Periye (1977): Directed by Alamgir Kabir, the film narrates a developing relationship between two individuals from different social strata, in the milieu of the 1970 cyclone. Bulbul Ahmed and Jayasree Kabir were applauded for their credible performances in the film. Songs composed by Bhupen Hazarika, like Bimoorto Ei Ratri Amar, became hugely popular.

Boshundhara (1977): Based on 23 Number Tailochitra by author Alauddin Al Azad, the movie directed by Subhasha Dutta was another movie that the sophisticated moviegoers appreciated. The movie introduced actor Iliyas Kanchan in the character of the protagonist. Bobita played the female lead.

Shareng Bou (1978): The movie directed by Abdullah Al Mamun was adapted from a novel by noted writer Shahidullah Kaiser. The film based on the lives of people living in our costal areas, was admired by many while stirring up controversy for some bold statements it made. Kabori and Faruk portrayed the lead characters. A song from the film, O Rey Neel Doriya, became one of the most treasured movie tunes in our country.

Golapi Akhon Train-e (1978): A brilliant film made by Amjad Hossain on the oppressed have-nots of rural Bangladesh, Golapi Akhon Train-e, enjoyed a phenomenal success. The movie showcasing talented actors Rowshan Jamil, Bobita, and a also brought to attention the issue of inequitable treatment of women.

Dumurer Phool (1978): The first film made in our country on differently-abled children. Child artiste Shakil was incredibly convincing in the role, so much so, many initially believed he was differently-abled in reality. Directed by Subhash Dutta, the film was honoured at international film festivals.

Shurjodighal Bari (1979): Jointly directed by Mashihuddin Shaker and Sheikh Niamat Ali, the film denotes realism in the most unpretentious way like Satyajit Ray's classic Pother Panchali does. Among films that were financed by the Bangladesh government, this was the first to be released. Set in the post World War II era, the movie depicts the eternal struggles of the exploited poor in our country who often become drifters. Rowshan Jamil, Dolly Anwar, Keramat Moula, and Elora Gohar played the major characters in the movie, which received several National Awards.

Chhutir Ghonta (1980): Based on a report covered by newspapers, the movie narrates the tragic end of child who gets locked in his school-toilet. Directed by Azizur Rahman, the movie became the talk of the nation for the credible performance by child artiste in the lead role.

Guddi (1980): Directed by Syed Salahuddin Zaki, Guddi focused on the contemporary issues, frustrations and inspirations of the urban youth. Known faces of the small screen, Raisul Islam Asad and Subarna Mustafa played the lead characters in the film. Abar Elo Je Shondhya, a song composed by Happy Akhand, which was used in the film, became a major hit.

Devdas (1982): The first film made in the country that was adapted from the timeless work by Saratchandra Chatyopadhyay. Directed by Chashi Nazrul Islam, the film featured Bulbul Ahmed and Kabori in the central roles. Through this movie, a trend of adapting literary works by the masters began.

Boro Bhalo Lok Chhilo (1982): An original movie about the modernised son of a holy man in a rural area. After the cleric's demise, the superstitious locals decide that his son should be their spiritual leader and the movie depicts the educated, rational youth's dilemmas. Hairey Manush Rongin Phanush, a song from the movie was well liked by the audience. Razzaque and Anju were in the lead roles.

Shubhoda (1986): The movie to receive the highest number of National Awards so far, Shubhoda, is a big screen adaptation of Saratchandra's novel of the same title. The film depicted the conservative Hindu society in the early 20th century. Directed by Chashi Nazrul Islam, the movie starred Razzaque, a, and Zeenat.

Beder Meye Jyotsna (1989): Commercially, the most successful Bangladeshi movie till date, Beder Meye Jyotsna revived a keen interest in folklore among filmmakers and audiences alike; a trend that was initiated by Roopban in the 1960s. Starring Iliyas Kanchan and Anju, the movie was so popular that even West Bengal made a version of it.

Chandni (1991): Veteran filmmaker Ehtesham made a comeback in Bangla films with two fresh faces -- Shabnaz and Nayeem. The on-screen couple instantly became heartthrobs of the young movie fans and thus made way for more newcomers in our film arena.

Padma Nadir Majhi (1993): Based on the timeless literary work by Manik Bandyopadhyay, Padma Nadir Majhi was directed by Gautam Ghosh. The movie illustrates the tumultuous lives of the fishermen and their families, living by the river Padma. Beautiful shots of the river, Ghosh's flair for realism and brilliant display of acting skills by noted actors of Bangladesh and West Bengal, including Utpal Dutt, Robi Ghosh, Abul Khayer, Raisul Islam Asad, Champa, and Rupa Ganguli, fetched the movie local and international honours.

Aguner Poroshmoni (1994): Celebrated author Humayun Ahmed's directorial debut, Aguner Poroshmoni is perhaps one of the most poignant narratives of our Liberation War. The cast consisting of seasoned TV actors, Abul Hayat, Dolly Zahur, Asaduzzaman Noor, and Bipasha Hayat made the tale of a middle-class family sheltering a Freedom Fighter in war-torn Dhaka, gripping and convincing.

Dipu Number 2 (1996): Directed by Morshedul Islam, Dipu Number 2, is based on a widely popular book for children by Muhammad Zafar Iqbal. Starring Arun Shaha, Bobita and Bulbul Ahmed, the movie about an adolescent's adventures was well received by the youngsters as well as adults.

Hothat Brishti (1999): A West Bengal-Bangladesh joint production, Hothat Brishti, was directed by Bashu Chatterjee and introduced Ferdaus as a film actor. The movie was premiered on BTV, starting a trend of releasing movies in theatres and holding their TV premiers simultaneously.

Srabon Megher Din (2000): The second movie directed by Humayun Ahmed. Revolving around a folk singer, his love interest and the local aristocratic family's involvement, the movie offered some beautiful folk songs like Amar Gaye Joto Dukhkho Shoy by Bari Siddiqui. Golam Mustafa, Zahid Hasan, Mahfuz, Mukti and Shaon played the main characters in the film.

Kittankhola (2000): Directed by Abu Sayeed, the film was adapted from a stage play by Selim Al Deen. Featuring Raisul Islam Asad and Naila Azad Nupur, the film brings to light the lives of jatra artistes and their struggles to make a living off the dying performing art.

Meghla Akash (2002): Starring Shabana Azmi, Meghla Akash, was one of the first feature films made in the subcontinent that dealt with the issue of HIV/AIDS. Nargis Akhter directed the movie. Moushumi and Ayyub Khan played other major roles in the film.

Matir Moina (2002): Directed by Tareque Masud, the film was initially banned from public screening by the Censor Board as it was deemed too religiously sensitive. The audience experiences the social and political turmoil during the 1960s, religious extremism and prevalent superstitions through the eyes of a young madrasa student. Matir Moina became the first feature film from Bangladesh to be selected for presentation at the world-renowned Cannes Film Festival. At Cannes, it was given the honour of being the opening film of the Directors' Fortnight section, and also won the International Critics' Prize for best film in the section. Jayanto Chatyopadhyay, Rokeya Prachee, child artistes Nurul Islam Bablu and Russell Farazi delivered commendable performances in the movie.

Lalshalu (2002): Based on Syed Waliullah's timeless creation, Lalshalu embodies the age-old tale of superstitions and naive villagers who are exploited by quacks posing as religious leaders. Raisul Islam Asad as Majid was impeccable and newcomer Chandni was impressive. The movie, directed by Tanvir Mokammel, was invited to several international film festivals and was well received by critics and movie enthusiasts.

Bachelor (2004): After years of alienating themselves from outlandish mainstream Bangla films, the educated urban youth headed to the movies to see Bachelor. Directed by Mostafa Sarwar Farooki, the film gives a true to life picture of the contemporary young urbanites and the predicaments they encounter. Popular actors Ferdaus, Shabnoor, and Aupi Karim played the central characters of the film. Songs in the film, composed by ace musicians like Ayub Bachchu, SI Tutul, and Bappa Majumdar added to the attraction.

Jaijatra (2004): Actor Tauquir Ahmed made his directorial debut with the film. Set in the milieu of the Liberation War, the overused theme of young men going to war was not the highlight of the movie. Instead it narrated an amazing tale of human endurance and budding relationships between people of different classes and creed during a catastrophe. Bipasha Hayat's famous histrionics were aptly used in the role of a mother who has just lost her only child in the mayhem created by the Pakistani soldiers' entry to the village. Other major roles played by Abul Hayat, Humayun Faridee, Tariq Anam Khan, Azizul Hakim, and Mahfuz were applauded. The film has been acclaimed nationally and internationally.

source: http://www.banglatorrents.com/showthread.php?t=2994
It seems that the above info is available in another blog: http://www.vabantar.com/Movie_Best_BDmovie.htm

Cafe Pyala: The Real Blasphemers

2011-01-13T17:51:00.001-08:00

I totally agree with this blogger's writeup about the recent assassination of Salman Taseer.

Cafe Pyala: The Real Blasphemers: "'Mera azm itna buland hai ke paraye shaulon ka dar nahinMujhe khauf aatish-e-gul se hai, ye kaheen chaman ko jala ne de'[My resolve is so st..."

(originally posted on 5th Jan. 2011)

The Two Irfans of Pakistani print media

2011-01-07T01:03:00.001-08:00

Just compare the latest columns of Irfan Husain of Dawn and Irfan Siddiqi of Jang both talking about similar issues but poles apart in logic.

More rose petals

2011-01-07T00:58:00.001-08:00

"Qadri finally arrived and was feted with rose petals by supporters for the second day running."
http://www.dawn.com/2011/01/06/taseer%E2%80%99s-murderer-mumtaz-qadri-presented-in-atc.html

Proposed Amendments to Pakistan Blasphemy Law

2011-01-05T23:30:00.000-08:00

I am posting this blog entry by Xavier Williams on the above topic as it not only introduces the proposed amendments to the (now controversial) laws but also provides a historical backdrop of how they culminated into current form, starting from 1927. Please read on....

Sherry Rehman, Member of National Assembly, has through a bill proposed amendments to certain sections of Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) along with a suggestion to introduce two new sections. These provisions prescribe punishments for Offenses Relating to Religion. Her bill also includes changes to Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) regarding arrest, cognizance and trial of offenses under these provisions.

Proposed changes to punishments

Section 295-A was introduced in 1927 apparently after the Ghazi Ilm Din episode to provide punishment for deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs. The maximum punishment under section 295-A was two years’ imprisonment of either description till 1991 when it was increased to 10 years. The bill proposes it to revert it to a maximum of two years.

Similarly, punishment for the offence of defiling of the Holy Qur’an under section 295-B introduced in 1982 by General Zia, is proposed to be reduced to imprisonment up to 5 years instead of life imprisonment.

Another blasphemy law, section 295-C, introduced in 1986 provided punishment of death or life imprisonment and fine for use of derogatory remarks in respect of the Prophet Mohammad. However, a Federal Shariat Court judgment in 1990 (cited as PLD 1991 FSC 10) rendered alternative sentence of imprisonment for life under 295-C inapplicable and death sentence compulsory, after the Court found alternative punishment of life imprisonment under 295-C against the injunctions of Islam. Sherry Rehman’s bill proposes imprisonment of either description for 10 years, or with fine, or both as punishment under section 295-C.

To read the rest of the blog, click here:
http://www.speroforum.com/site/print.asp?idarticle=45216

And, if you want to read the text of the law, here is the link:
http://www.pakistani.org/pakistan/legislation/1860/actXLVof1860.html#f108

PS:
Between 1986 and 2010, 986 people have been charged under the blasphemy laws; 50 per cent of those are non-Muslim. None of the accused has been hanged.
http://networkedblogs.com/cOWGE

Bigotry in my country

2010-12-01T00:36:00.001-08:00

Well where doesn't bigotry exist?

I should not say that only in my des people are radical and ultra intolerant of others. It happens in the most enlightened and the so called civilized societies too. For example take the minaret issue in Switzerland and the Hijab ban in France. However, it seems that we are just caught in the viscous cycle of our recent past. The history that was created at the time when we were fighting the war against communism (Russia) in the name of Islam. The history that was created by half cooked religious ideologies and interpretation of Islam of the Ulama of that time who wanted to make the Hukumat e Waqt happy. The generations coming later are just doomed to live with those laws. Keeping the status quo creates conflicts with the rest of the world and in some cases creates huge potential for human rights violation, like in the recent case of Asia Bibi!! The more problematic part of the whole issue is that when you look deep into the controversial aspect of the Hudood ordinance by reading the Quran and Sunnah you tend to agree more with the side in favor or repeal or amendments. Obviously, one would easily refute my argument by saying that my only my liberal bias can reach such conclusion.

Working with people like myself......

2010-11-21T18:43:00.000-08:00

Do you know that even though all Muslims seem the same, but there are huge differences amongst them when you start rummaging through their societies, culture and laws. Yes, there are as many kinds of Muslims as you can imagine, even though most times we are lumped together with Osama bin Ladin and his ilk. There are differences in how in each society, each sub group perceive and practice their religious ideology (or dogma). Each sub-group shares some basic principals with the other groups but may be dramatically different their understanding of the shariah and fiqh for everything in life like woman's rights, purdah, performance arts, food, etc.

I think the main problem of the Muslim world stems from the fact that though we acknowledge the different interpretations of our religion but we do not tolerate the differences. The Wahabis (aka Salafi, Ahl e Hadis, Demobandi, Salafi) would not tolerate the Barelvis or the Shias. Qadianis (a renegade sect) and are pronounced non-Muslims in several Muslim countries (add ref.) and Ismali Shias are looked at with suspicion because of their devotion to Aga Khan. Sufis another group who are greatly admired for humanity and non violence, are declared non Muslims by several sects. Well, there are smaller groups of liberal/secular/progressive consisting of people from these difference sects, who want to rise above the tussles we have within the deen. And then, we also have those who are so tired of all of this or just are not religious but call themselves Muslims and keep the religion as their cultural and political identity. These groups would perhaps be considered non Muslim by literalists among us. Each sect thinks that they are right and sometimes feels free to declare some other group as Kharij or out of the religion.

I feel frustrated to see that we do not have a Ummah which would act like a body, so that when part is hurt the other parts can also feel it. Each of us is fighting to win the battle for supremacy of our own ideology. May be the Western world is right in ridiculing us!!!

Last Night

2010-10-05T21:07:00.001-07:00

Last night I had one of the worst and most uncomfortable night of my life.... I could not sleep a wink due to still neck.. It got worse with the passage of time at night... I wish I could ask my husband to massage my neck and shoulders, only for few minutes, but did not feel the courage to do so. I feel that he is getting uncomfortable and impatient with my little sicknesses which keeps on manifesting since we got married... He married a perfectly healthy person and all of a sudden this person gets sick all the time and it is annoying for him... I know, he is best I could have gotten as a husband but he cannot love me like a child is loved by a parent... His love is limited, conditional and based on selfish desires.

flooding in Pakistan

2010-09-06T02:05:00.000-07:00

The Journey

2010-08-13T00:42:00.001-07:00

The Journey
Originally uploaded by sami raza

Bangladesh and Pakistan

2010-05-11T15:50:00.001-07:00

There is so much venom in Bangladeshis of all age, size and color, for Pakistanis that I have given up any hope of having any reconciliation between the two countries, at least in my life time. There are strained relationships between many other countries like China and Japan, Indonesia and East Timor, Korea and Japan etc. due to one reason or other, but the amount of open hatred oozed by Bangladeshis cannot be matched by any.

I have felt it, seen it and have been targeted by it in Bangladesh and also in the US and Australia. If you look at different Bangladeshi forums on the internet, you will notice how the young and old alike like to just talk about what Pakistani army did in 1971. To the extent that war crimes are morally wrong, no matter against whom, I find the extension of hatred of the Bongs towards Pakistanis irrational and counter productive for peace in South Asia.

Despite apologies from Pakistan government, on several occasions for the atrocities of Pakistan Army perpertrated on Bengalis (East Pakistanis) in the 1971 War, Bangladeshis have neither forgiven nor forgotten the past. May be the whole nation's collective psyche has nothing else to mull about in the absence of any bright future of the poverty trapped country. A joint hatred towards Pakistan at least gives them a thread of nationalism, commonality and something to be passionate about.

It may take one or two generations for Bangladeshis to come out of their arrested development caused by living in the past and they may realize that channeling their energies to solve real problems of the country like poverty is far more useful in the long run, than to hound the Jamat leaders in the country and mourn 1971. So, may be meanwhile Pakistan and Pakistanis should stop providing apologies for the wrongs of 1971 and let time heal the wounds of the two countries.

My share of conspiracy theory vis a vis Faisal Shahzad

2010-05-07T20:32:00.000-07:00

When 9/11 happened, I kept thinking, who would do it and why. Why and how would/could Muslims carry out such a massive and concerted damage to the super power of the world. Who benefitted by killing five thousand or so American citizens and annihilating two sky scrapers. Not the Muslims, not certainly Iraqis, Pakistanis or any Afghanis--the ones who to date are paying for that. From the very day, I thought why would a Muslim or Muslim group do something like this which would end up exacerbating problems for Muslims and would further taint the already tainted image.

And, now this Faisal Shahzad case. First, thank God it was a failed attempt. I do not condone or provide apologies for any terrorist activities whatsoever. But, then once again, this person who apparently could have been avenging the US drone attacks in Waziristan has done nothing for his "cause" but instead has just almost broken the back of the over-burdened camel. Secretary Hillary Clinton issued a statement saying that in future such acts against US would not be tolerated. Paranoia haunts the Pakistanis who are settled in the USA or those who aspire to do so. FS has to be out of his mind to even believe for a moment that he is going to do any good for Muslims, Waziristan or Pakistan by trying to bomb NYC. It is not even making a statement that he is upset with US involvement in two major and one proxy war. So, my paranoid mind thinks, was he a CIA agent who acted this way to give a bad name to Pakistan. Because, his actions gave the world and particularly USA and India to point their fingers to Pakistan more strongly and say with a louder voice that all roads of terrorism lead to Pakistan.

That is the only explanation that makes any sense to me! What do you say.

Some ideas for research

2010-04-14T03:02:00.000-07:00

1. Counseling of soon to be or newly married couples on reproductive health, lessons to be implemented from Iran, Jordan and Bangladesh experience. It seems that RH-Aid, a Islamabad based NGO initiated by Dr. Tariq Rahim has already started working on this idea by forming a facebook group by the name Premarital Counseling. However the facebook page does not provide any information about the activities of this group.

2. To what extent has the family planning programme achieved its goal of promoting two-child norm? Why is the ideal family size stagnant at 4 despite 5 decades of strong family planning campaigns endorsing of the benefits of two children? The ideal of 4 children is across the board in Pakistan. Women, whether they are from Balochistan or Punjab, from rural areas or urban, have education or not literate, more or less all desire to have four children.

3. What have we gained from the policy recommendations of large scale national surveys conducted so far. The study proposes an audit of the the state of research advocacy in maternal health the last 20 years.

4. Breastfeeding practices. What do people do and why? It is customary to discard first milk of the mother.... Cultural practices like insistence in of giving ghutti (prelactal) as the first feed, because of the belief that it carries on the traits of the person who gives it to the child may pose the newborn to unnecessary infections. A child who was fed ghutti may be breastfed exclusively after wards, but exclusive breastfeeding does not remain exclusive for too long because women believe that the baby needs at least water along with breast milk.

Who should be the advocate?

2010-04-12T05:11:00.001-07:00

This is in direct response to Research and Advocacy Fund Pakistan's call for proposal for research and advocacy projects in Pakistan. The proposition begs the question to learn about what has happened so far to the advocacy recommendations. To what extent the research has been used in advocacy campaigns for policy or program and have materialized into the needed change.

Moreover, there is always a gap between the group conducting the research and the group who are capable and/or are interested in doing the advocacy part. It is rare to see a breed of researchers who are interested and also skilled in such utilizing the findings of their research for advocacy. I think the reasons behind such a gap are lack of realization on the researchers part that research itself is not an end in itself and just "informing" policy makers does not do the job. Secondly usually research grants do not include advocacy/research utilization component and hence researchers keep on jumping from one research project to another without ever thinking about using the results to their full extent. Thirdly, even if researchers are aware of the need of advocacy and also have the resources they may not be capable to do it on their own. In that case if an advocacy firm takes on an issue (such as abortion, emergency contraceptive pill) they may be strong in all aspects of building a campaign but may not know the technical aspects of the issue. Therefore, I think, in general, all research projects should include a component of utilization of findings and the project should not be considered complete till results are shared with with all the macro and micro stakeholders. Moreover, all project proposals should provide benchmarks and goals about advocacy once the results are finalized with clear indication of the responsibilities and time line.

And I think for real advocacy and campaigns which work, the researchers, program managers and communication/advocacy specialists have to join hands.

The gap between findings and policy of family planning in Pakistan

2010-04-12T04:31:00.001-07:00

The latest statistics from Pakistan put Research has shown again and again that people in Pakistan are more comfortable with traditional family planning methods such as withdrawal, safe days and condom (PDHS 1990, 2006-07). These three methods account for almost half of the contraceptive usage in Pakistan (14.5 percent women use either of the three methods while CPR is 29.6 percent).

Non hormonal methods such as withdrawal is the one of the most favorite among most married men and women of the country (Casterline, Sathar and Haque 2001) just because it is free, readily available and has no side effects. The caveats are higher failure rate than hormonal or other barrier methods and dependency upon husband's cooperation to use. I personally consider withdrawal superior over condom and safe days method. For condom usage access (including geographic, financial, social and personal) still remains a barrier, cumbersome to use when sex is a quick act in a room shared with family members, requires storage and disposal after usage both of which may violate privacy for couples in country like ours where most people share sleeping areas with others.

Harmonal methods including pills, injectables and IUD which are considered the best also has worst side affects. Fear of actual and perceived side effects lead to non use and drop out from methods. Based on my personal conversations with colleagues who are involved in family planning research I learnt that withdrawal and condoms are the most favorite and the very same people who promote (in whatever way) hormonal methods would not consider those methods for themselves. A quick look at the latest PDHS data also shows that contrary to the expectation, the users of withdrawal and condoms are more educated, urban and more resourceful than users of injectable and pills. My point is that if people learn how to use traditional methods (Withdrawal, safe days, LAM) and modern methods at the same time, they would most probably go for the later, unless they have completed their desired family size. And, in that case they would go for female sterilization.

Despite such findings, it is baffling to know that the emphasis of our government is always on promoting the so called modern (mostly hormonal) contraceptive methods, all the name of effectiveness. I agree that effectiveness should be important, but in the scenario where accessibility and non-existence of side effects support natural methods and many would rather take chances of pregnancy rather than using a modern family planning method. I think in such cases the benefits of modern methods are seriously undermined where people are willing to go as far as induced abortion due to lack of use. (Please note that in Pakistan almost a million abortions are conducted every year)

Every Mother Counts

2010-04-09T02:34:00.001-07:00

Reproductive health encompasses any factor which has direct bearing on human reproduction and reproductive ability. The spectrum of RH spans from menstruation, sexual health, fertility, child birth and maternal health, breastfeeding and care of the new born, family planning to menopause.

Given the personal and sensitive nature of this terrain, it is a much neglected topic in our country. Be it at a state level or home talking about of RH is mired in shame and cultural taboos. Unmarried youth are especially kept far from any kind of information with the idea that they will come to learn about these things when "time comes", implying after marriage and the child birth. There is no formal mechanism for the youth of Pakistan to learn about any aspect of RH till they are in dire need or have suffered consequences of lack of knowledge. On one hand we are against providing the so called sex-education, which may be a vehicle for imparting life saving information to youngsters of the country and on the other we have certain cultural practices which are harmful and detrimental for health. For example it is common practice in Pakistan to give Ghutti (usually honey, and sometimes spit of an elder) to a newborn, while medical research has proven that the best food for the baby is mother's milk which should be given right after birth.

Considering the nature of distance of Pakistani youth with health issues, the JHUCCP, PAIMAN Pakistan and White Ribbon Alliance Pakistan organized a painting competition on the topic of maternal deaths at the University of Fatima Jinnah Women University, Rawalpindi on 9th April 2010. Thirty students (mostly females) from Fatima Jinnah University, Federal Government Women's College F-7/2, Islamabad, National College of Arts, Beacon House and City School took part in the competition. The paintings were all themed around maternal health and mortality and were created using oil paints on canvass. Average painting was about 3' x 2'.

It was a mega event entitled "Every Mother Counts". Deputy Speaker National Assembly Mr. Kundi, Dr. Nabila Ali the Chief of Party of PAIMAN, Director of National MNCH Program, Dr. Amanullah Khan of White Ribbon Alliance along with the Vice Chancellor of Fatima Jinnah University presided over the proceedings. Dr. Ali shared overall situation of maternal mortality in Pakistan and enlightened the audience about the direct and social causes which contribute to maternal deaths and morbidity. Dr. Khan presented the state of newborns in the country. Dr. Ali and Dr. Khan's presentation on maternal and child health went very well with the students and I am sure they went home with renewed interest in doing something to save the mothers and newborns of Pakistan. After the proceedings, two of the best paintings were given cash prizes, judged by renowned artist Mr. Jamal Shah.

While the paintings were amazing and captured the theme of the plight of maternal health issues (especially maternal mortality) very well, I was seriously disappointed by the "youth perspective" on health status of women of Pakistan, provided by two bright women of the organizing university. The girls had the perfect pitch and delivery in English with an eloquently written text on the topic but failed to deliver what the topic of their presentation promised us--the youth perspective. While listening to the students, I felt that they do not know where and how to access good quality research material related to RH in general and in particular maternal health. I laud their effort and courage in presenting their ideas in that august forum but at the same time I think their talent and time was wasted. If finding the state of health of Pakistani women was so hard, they could have gathered the views of fellow students of the very topic which would actually have provided the "youth perspective" on the topic!!

But anyway, in my view, one small thing that the research/NGO sector can do is fill the knowledge gap. I think a handboo and/or website on RH in Pakistan with latest statistics, a short description of the rates and ratios and sources of information and sources of data and information would go a long way in at least spreading information which will hopefully lead to better knowledge and improved attitudes and behavior for RH.

The road to Multan (29 March 2010)

2010-04-08T02:31:00.000-07:00

Let me confess that when I started my journey towards Multan, I had certain pre-conceptions about South Punjab. I was all aware of the recent "Talibanization" of Pakistan, especially the fact that the Taliban brand has taken foothold in Punjab too!!! Hence, I took the road trip with a certain sense of trepidation and adventure and let the driver use the famous and infamous Multan-Mianwali Road instead of the motorway! Yes I did expect to see the roads filled with Go America Go slogans or extra ordinary surge towards Islamization, like wall chalking to enforce purdah, anti movies and music etc. My imagination was fertile with the activities of the Lal Masjid moral police of 2006 and before.

However, as the car moved along and left central Punjab the things I noticed most were large wall advertisements of hakims promising treatment for all kinds of male sexual problems, mobile phones, soothsayers and black magic practitioners who supposedly solve all problems include bringing your lover to your feet and sending you to america! Come Minawali, I notice a impressive university building, NAMAL which will start its first session in Fall this year and is affiliated with Bradford University UK. Had lunch from a roadside hotel. Note it was not a driver hote. My driver thought it was safer and more respectable to take me to a proper hotel. Upon entering the restaurant felt a bit intimidated with the hall full of males in traditional garb and features that are hardened with life. I sensed a momentary unease and made sure that my chador covered my body and head fully and asked to be seated... The manager said that he will find a room for me and pointed to a waiter for help. I said, no I am OK if u can give me a corner place to sit but they insisted and i was taken to a room on the 2nd floor of the hotel. I was told that they are having a party downstairs and i will not be comfortable there. Of course i did not expect any women to attend the party and hence felt better sitting in a room to have lunch... The food, chicken curry (even though they had a selection ranging from all kinds of Pakistani and Chinese dishes) served by a young flirtatious waiter was extremely delicious! The lunch was uneventful otherwise.

Multan was still 4-6 hours away. My excitement started fazing out when i saw several accidents on the way. Combined with the fact that it was hot and i had forgotten my ID card at home I started worrying a bit. To distract myself I took out my camera and started shooting anything that i found interesting and was possible to be snapped!

Throughout the event I did not notice anything peculiarly different than my previous trips to this region in 1998, 2003, 2004 and 2007 with the exception of dryer rivers and inundation of the region with mobile phone company ads. Politeness, piety, purdah, and poverty, seemed the same, perhaps the later perhaps had increased in the last few years. During the whole journey the only thing I could think of was the sufis, saints and the legendary lovers from Punjab and Sindh who seem to be the biggest source of inspiration and comfort for people who live there.

However, I knew that the notorious Pak-Afghan border region of DI Khan and Wana are not too far and could not stop thinking about the terrorism and its causes. I had also heard about the seeping of such ideologies from the borders to Waziristan and then to Punjab. However, at the same time I could not reconcile with the fact that the lovers love stories and sufi teachings could or would embrace any form of Talibanization. Where do I find an answer to such an anomaly, if there is such such thing. Is the desperation for survival so bad for some people that they would give up their traditions of generations of non violence and agree to blow themselves up to kills others? I could not see any form of such desolation. Of course my trip was too short to make any judgment about what was actually going on there. Should I also try to find my answer in conspiracy theories which purports that the streak of violence in Pakistan is mediated by India and Israel! Whatever the answer is, the fact remains that terrorism is a sad reality of Pakistan and terrorists come in all forms, shapes, colors and ethnic groups. Perhaps my I was also bewildered by the fact that we talk about sufism crushing the slafi brand of Islam but I do not see how that could be done when the followers of saints could be lured to the dogma of vengeance and intolerance.

I guess my journey made me realize that more than terrorism, Pakistan's biggest threat is looming crisis of food, water and power shortages for the fast growing population. The general public seem not to care or know about Blackwater, details of KL bill, the Mehsuds and the Bradars. They just want to survive and let others survive.

Perils, Politeness and Paranoia

2010-03-25T22:15:00.000-07:00

I arrived in Pakistan on the 15th of March after a gap of almost two years. Since my arrival the biggest thought on my mind was terrorism. It took me more than a week to stop worrying about suicide and other kinds of blasts. During that period, whenever I passed through security, each step towards towards the metal detector, sight of the men behind sandbags with guns pointed at you, barriers at all main roads of city reminded me of the movie Hurt Locker. I felt like walking in mine field where anything could happen at any time. During that crucial first weeks, any parked vehicle, motorcycle made me think that may be this one could go off... Wandering men/boys on the street made me think of all possible nightmares... I know that all of that is due my paranoia which you develop after spending too many days in a developed and secure society. I did not see or get that sense of anxiety among the general public. If any tragedy happens in any of the border towns or smaller places in far flung areas, no one talks about them except the news channels. If there is a blast in a major city (small or big) there is hoo ha, fear and agitated discussions for few days and all is forgotten as if nothing happened. Life goes on as before.

It sometimes brought tears my eyes to see the people who are involved with security checking--the "fodder" of the society who are at the highest risk to be blown off-- are doing their job with utmost politeness. In my view, some are nice and respectful to the point of risking their lives. Like the last week I had work in a highly secure building. During the few days I visited the place the guards became extremely nice to me just because I was "frequent" visitor, may be because of my gender and also because I treated them with respect and was very forthcoming to getting my belongings checked!!! While it feels really nice to enjoy the respect and trust, but at the same time I feel sorry for my country where we are slowly being forced to forego our culture of Tahzeeb, hospitality, care and trust in the name of security. Of course security comes first, but is there no other alternative? Are we doomed to live in a police state forever? I hope that we do not lose our culture of trust, respect and politeness in the mindless fight of terrorism and the state of paranoia, denial and fear is only for now.

Development Sector in Pakistan

2010-03-24T00:42:00.000-07:00

There is a mafia in the development sector of Pakistan and let me confess, I am part of it. The big sharks are the donors like USAID, UN agencies, World Bank, ADB, DfID, different foundations etc. Then there are big research and program organizations like Population Council, Asia Foundation, FHI, JSI, WPF, Path Finder etc. The third tier would be the large national level "NGOS" like Rozan, Amal, Sahil and many others who get funding from the donors or other the large international organizations. The last tier would be organizations who are working at local level ranging from small one man shows like RH-Aid to large grassroots organizations like Bunyad, Behbood etc.

These organizations have different missions and mandates, however the common denominator among them is "development" which means that they are working towards "developing" our country. We can say that their work is supposed to improve lives of Pakistan's population.

My critique to all of these organizations, especially those who are working on pure or the so called operations research to show what is their dollar for dollar impact for Pakistan. The only measurable and visible impact is on the people who are lucky enough to find work with these organizations. Those staff have no doubt benefited tremendously from the millions of dollars channeled in the name of research and development to our country. In the last 5 years a few hundred million dollars were thrown to the maternal and child health sector. What did the ordinary people of Pakistan, gain from those millions!!!

Leisure

2010-03-10T23:02:00.000-08:00

Leisure is a privilege- especially for girls and women in Pakistan. A girl in a village in Balochistan would spend all her time doing household work like washing dishes, cleaning their mud-floor house, cooking, bringing water, taking care of the young and the old in the family.

Is leisure fun? What is leisure? Does spending time doing nothing, chatting with friends, taking a nap count as leisure. Leisure is something that you do to spend your time enjoyably. It implies that you have the economic and social means to do that.

Taslima Nasrin's Burqa article

2010-03-09T20:26:00.001-08:00

Self proclaimed religious scholar and feminist from Bangladesh (now estranged citizen) landed herself in a fresh series of controversy with her latest views on Burqa Let's Think Again About The Burqa, the traditional covering garb of many South Asian women. This article was published by Outlook India (and others) and immediately sparked off riots resulting in the deaths of 2 civilians in Kannada!

The pushes & pulls of modernity and mediavilsm

2010-03-03T14:13:00.000-08:00

How do you define modernity and traditionalism very much lies with the person who is defining it. To some the dichotomy of modernity and traditionalism is a parallel to the duality of Oriental and Occidental. To name a few, just the notion of use of technology, especially those related to means of communications are very modern, very Western, to those who got them as ‘imported; foreign technological goods. In some cases, to a father in a village in Pakistan watching an advertisement of sanitary napkin while his young daughter is around is a ‘modern’ and ‘foreign’ idea and in this context modernity is of course not taken very positively. A scholar might reflect differently on this and consider the acceptance of a female to lead Namaz (Muslim prayer always led by a male) as "modern". The idea of modernity is also very temporal though there are many who remain fixated with the idea of maintaining the 'purity' of a practice or concept by following the 'words' of the law rather than the 'spirit.' However, with the passage of time there is an acceptance of certain technologies or social norms as traditional which originally started out as radical and modern. For example, though the Muslims do not eat non halal meat (non Kosher) but those residing in Western countries where access to such food is hard or impossible, many Muslim scholars have given the verdict that it is allowed to eat the non halal meat of those animals permitted by Islam. Similarly, there is a considerable amount of debate going on regarding the issue of female seclusion and purdah, both in the Occident and the Orient. Some call it a privilege and some a sign of oppression, and how it is practiced and to what degree it is observed is also a matter of preference for different people and is according to their reading of Islam. While Modernity by itself is a complex, dense and multi-layered concept which does not have very specific contour and shape, I considers the current transition of Muslims towards adoption of more secular values a sign of "modernization".

The question of my religion

2010-02-23T00:53:00.000-08:00

It seems that I do not say Alhamdullah, Inshallah and Mashallah enough. Especially when I watch TV shows these days it seems more pronounced how Western I have become. I love to read the likes of NFP and M Hanif who constantly get battered by readers for their over-liberal views and are labeled by many Pakistanis as CIA agents.

The way things are secularizing in my life, it seems that many of my friends would not even consider me even a "Naam Ka Muslim". For me the biggest religion is humanity, the biggest duty is to help others and be a good human being. God is secondary to humanity! I openly denounce many practices my friends think are necessary to keep their religion like hating infidels, Yahud and Nassara! To me the ideology of hate does not make any sense. On the contrary I believe that an eye for an eye will leave everyone blind in this world. However, having said all that, I also admit that I do not want to give up my Muslim identity. I feel angry at the atrocities hurled at Muslims in Aghanistan, Palestine, Iraq, Pakistan etc. The only difference between me and the self proclaimed good Muslims would be perhaps that I do not agree that a bloody jehad is a solution to solve the issue of the Ummah. Nor do I think that the rhetoric of Islamism, going back to Shariah, adopting Wahbi version of Islam etc. is an answer to our problems. I personally do not see Islam and the West as polar opposites. Yes, there are problems with Western culture but there are problems with our cultures too! I think we need to find a solution for us based on the Islam, but not on Badouin culture. And that solution should be according to the needs of the 21st century in which women are no longer baby producing machines but equal partners of men.

Coming back to my identity, I sometimes think that may be I have gone too far in shedding the layers of what makes my Muslim identity like practices, beliefs, dress, food etc. How far can you go in being liberal and be still considered Muslim, since there is an obvious dichotomy between beling libral and being a Muslim. Thankfully, there are several writers, journalists and bloggers in Pakistan who give me hope that a Pakistani Muslim identity for me is still possible for people like me. And, the biggest hope and solace comes from the sufi poets of this land of pure, who had to fight similar battles in their times but they never gave up their message of humanity and love!

A question of identity....

2010-02-08T11:39:00.001-08:00

What makes a you a Pakistani? Or how do you "perform" your Pakistaniat other than using Inshallah and Alhumdulliah in every phrase... I learnt recently that you also have to show your hatred of the Kafirs like Indians/Americans/Israelis. I also learnt the same goes for many Bangladeshis who "perform" or prove their Bengaliness by Pakistani bashing/hating and holding all Pakistanis accountable for 1971 atrocities... It is a nightmare they do not want to wake up from! As for Indians I don't know who their favorite "others" are, other than Pakistanis.

A Day in the life of a Dhobi

2010-02-02T10:48:00.000-08:00

A Day in the life of a Dhobi in Karachi!

Youth of Pakistan: Herald 2009 survey

2010-02-01T12:09:00.000-08:00

Youth Speak

By Madiha Sattar

Surveys conducted by Razzak Abro, Irshad Akhtar, Qazi Asif, Asif Akhtar, Muhammad Badar Alam, Ali Hazrat Bacha, Bashir Baghi, Hassnain Ghayoor, Ali Hassan, Hameedullah Khan, Mohammad Hussain Khan, Muqaddam Khan, Shahnawaz Khan, Sikandar Bakhtiar Khoso, Nasir Rahim, Verda Adil Shah and Shahzada Zulfiqar

Herald February 2009 Issue If you arranged all 176 million Pakistanis in a line according to age, the person in the middle of the queue would be about 21 years old. This is fairly remarkable, given that the average citizen of this country lives to be 64 — there are as many Pakistanis in the first two decades of their existence as there are in the next four. So while the world’s current geopolitical focus means the country as a whole has been polled on its political opinions time and time again by international and domestic surveyors, what is not really known is how the country’s massive pool of young people – the majority of its future voters, consumers, producers, parents and civil society – will shape Pakistan.

Is this country becoming more conservative as it grows older? Is our future electorate politically engaged enough to make meaningful voting decisions? How has the recent spate of terrorism affected their lives? Will they demand a secular state or a religious one? Will they be able to contribute to the economy? Have they found role models among our major public figures? Are they likely to change family structures, sexual mores and the nature of social interaction between the sexes? What keeps them up at night? And, ultimately, how do they feel about being citizens of the complicated and challenged country they live in today?

Source: Herald Pakistan

Also read Husham Ahmed's analysis of the same on Dawn Blog.

EWCPA cookbook

2010-01-27T16:25:00.000-08:00

I am so frustrated with the recipe collection process for the EWCPA cookbook.. there is no desire and excitement from our so called community to submit recipes, have potlucks etc. Even the people who were initially very excited about the project are lukewarm and are providing only lip service!!

How I spent my time today!

2010-01-26T19:12:00.000-08:00

First of all, today was not a "typical day" for me. At least if a researcher asked I would not refer today as a typical day which could be used as a reference day for a time-use study. However, just for funʻs sake let us assume today was a typical day in my life as a women who is a doctoral student. How did I spend it? How productive was it?
Well, I got up this morning around 8, checked emails and face book (first thing in the morning). then brushed my teeth and had a boring breakfast... then i thought about sending some emails which have been pending for a while, like 6 months... So i set about looking at my gmail email TAGs (labels) to see which emails needed action... It was like a black hole.. I disappeared into the whirlpool of the cyber world for several hours and after reading my emails, favorite blogs, twits, FB statuses, news etc. and tweeting, sending emails etc. it was already past noon. Lunch time, so I go for lunch. Reheat old food and come back to the strong pull of the internet on my laptop.. Then I disappear once again into the cyber world and wake up to real world when the phone rings... It was 4:30 already... I did not go for work or anything else. I left the room 3 times to get food or use the bathroom!! Now I am going to go visit a relative who is in hospital. When I get back it would be dinner time... After dinner, I doubt I would have any energy for any "productive" work!!!

My tardinesses and impulsivenesses

2010-01-20T11:59:00.000-08:00

I am paying about 3000$ for being tardy and impulsive.... It is painful to take out that hard earned cash from savings account and give it to the University of Hawaii cashier, but I have no other choice left... I could have prevented this by being more organized... But anyway, have no choice now.. Better get it done and over with and plan for the future...

What was pain for mother

2009-07-27T01:18:00.001-07:00

21st July 2009 was my mother's 3rd death anniversary, as always, being the bad daughter I forgot about this. I never realized how depressed I would become doing so! Anyway, as part of growing old I am able to understand lot of thins about mother which did not make sense when she was alive!

I learnt why she could bear the pain of being beaten up by her husband but finding out that he has been sleeping with his young secretary broke her heart and soul!!

For her the triple burden of working, managing the household, bearing children with almost no support from anyone was difficult but she did not complain... It was perhaps not as painful as lack of attention and affection from her husband was!!!

I was the bad daughter, always. Always selfish and just took care of my own self but managed to get some education and go ahead in life.... Never took care of her when she was sick!! My younger sister was the one who always looked after her whenever she was sick, but her life was in shambles and she was not doing anything about her... Mother was always upset with her... and to my surprise was ok or even pleased with me... Now, I know why.. For her she did not care if her child took care of HER, for her more important was if the child was able to take care of himself/herself!!!

Before she died, she was in extreme pain and I could see that she felt helpless because of so many reasons (mostly for being cheated by her own brother on her land)... But in that condition, when talking was a big effort she wanted to know if Raazi had uniform for school.....

Dr. Fouzia's Open Letter to the Media on their coverage of Maulana Abdul Aziz's release

2009-04-22T22:30:00.000-07:00

Dr. Fouzia’s Open Letter To The Electronic Media

I was surprised to see the attention, media coverage and airtime directly given to Maulana Abdul Aziz today. Being a concerned citizen who is fearful of the wave of violent takeovers of parts of my beloved country by Taliban, I need to register this request with our media channels.

Just a few days ago the positive coverage given by media to the Nizam e Adal could perhaps be justified given the hope that the peace agreement may stop the violence, given the fact that other methods had failed and given that the Taliban already had a strong hold in those areas. Even then, however, for many of us this was extremely depressing and it felt like a sell out and a bad precedence for future violent takeovers across the country.

In the air time given to Maulana Abdul Aziz, media has inadvertently become an accomplice in bringing the stronghold of Taliban right into the capital, all within a few days of the culmination of their victory in Swat.

We understand that media is free to cover any event and justify it with the standard ethics of journalism. It can make an issue out of a non- issue and a hero out of non-hero, a criminal to some of us, without violating their internal codes. Sometimes sensationalization of issues and graphic depiction of events make us uncomfortable, but we can accept the ‘freedom of media’ justification for it. However we expect you to have maturity in recognizing events that can have explosive implications if fueled through so much media attention.

In the case of the coverage of Maulana Abdul Aziz’s release, khutba and the Friday prayers at Lal masjid the media has helped him to carry his campaign to every nook and corner of the country. In his sermon he directly connected his movement to that of Swat and announced his mission of enforcing a similar system in other parts of the country. What he said once to a few thousand people has been repeated over and over to millions of people, only because of the media. In the garb of shariah we have already seen what he did in Islamabad.. Shops were burnt, people were kidnapped, weapons were used and women were threatened to quit their jobs and follow the system dictated by them. All of these were criminal activities.

In Swat they had to set up an FM channel to spread their message and succeed through the armed assaults on the local population. It seems that in the rest of the country they won’t need any FM channels. They can achieve results that are thousand times more affective, if the electronic media channels continue their indiscriminant coverage of such events.

While we recognize the competition between the channels to report the same event and the desire to turn events into exciting and interesting breaking news, there should be some social responsibility. We are very happy that Pakistan now enjoys a media boom and opportunities to hear diverse point of views, we hope that media will not unnecessarily generate sympathies and make heroes out of people who call for armed violence against all who oppose them.

Dr. Fouzia Saeed

A believer in freedom and democracy Please circulate to others

What am I doing?

2009-04-10T02:13:00.000-07:00

From the last few days, I am increasingly thinking that I am wasting time as a PhD student.. What am I learning in the classroom, at my work, from other places in Hawaiʻi.. Nothing that I can think of as useful for better jobs, or the jobs that I can think of... My job currently pays OK (17$ an hour)... But what is my role? I am just a student assistant.. this job could be done by any undergrad.. There is nothing new that I learn.. I have no autonomy to bring my ideas to my work.. If I do they are dismissed by my boss anyway... I feel like I have regressed 15 years in life!!! In terms of studies, I am learning nothing that is of any practical use... At least I canʻt think of any!! I have no consolation.. Yea, may be the nice weather of Hawaiʻi is something for which this is not a bad price.. But I feel really WASTED... I should be improving on the skills and knowledge that I already possess, rather than just try to survive here... I think I should have tried to become ABD long time ago.. Once I am ABD, I should go back to Pakistan and try to find a proper job which gives respect, growth and money, all at the same time, and these are precisely the factors that are missing from the work that I am doing in Hawaiʻi.

Sexuality and Muslim (using Springer widget)

2009-03-23T15:27:00.000-07:00

"muslim youth sexuality"

Islamic Family Law Reforms, conference in Iran

2009-03-07T20:27:00.000-08:00

Conference Report: Islamic Family Law Reforms

By Nigar Ataulla & Yoginder Sikand

Much has been written about Islamic family laws and Muslim women’s status and rights by Western or secular critics and human rights activists, on the one hand, and by traditionalist ulema, on the other. The former are generally bitterly anti-Islamic, and the latter often fiercely patriarchal, and there is absolutely no meeting ground between the two groups. This lack of dialogue between them is one of the major causes for the slow pace of reforms in Muslim family laws in many parts of the world.

It is in this context that a three-day conference recently organized in Tehran, Iran (which I had the good fortune of attending) assumes particular salience. Sponsored by the Tehran-based Institute of Islamic Culture and Thought and the Centre for Women and Family, it brought together over a hundred university scholars, ulema, human rights activists and senior government officials, from mostly from Iran, but also from Lebanon, Iraq, Morocco, Afghanistan, England and India, to discuss various aspects of Islamic family law. More than half the participants were women, including several scholars who had received specialized Islamic legal training in madrasas and universities across Iran. A substantial number of madrasa-trained male Iranian ulema, including some holding leading posts in important government-related organizations, also took part. It was a unique opportunity for university-educated Muslim scholars as well as madrasa-trained Iranian ulema (many of who also have a university training) to interact with each other on a wide range of issues related to Islamic family law and legal reforms. And as an Indian, for me it was the first time to witness a rich and free scholarly discussion between Muslim women rights activists and Islamic scholars and male ulema free of any acrimony and mud-slinging, with both listening respectfully to each other.

In his opening remarks to the conference, Hojjat ul-Islam Ali Rashad, director of the Institute of Islamic Culture and Thought, spoke about the need to understand Islamic family law in the context of what he called the ‘philosophy of the family’ in Islam. In contrast to the West, he said, where family laws and debates about women’s rights centre on the notion of rights alone, Islam stresses the duties as well as rights of both spouses. This point was further elaborated by Maryam Ahmadiya, a senior research scholar and member of the Social and Cultural Revolutionary Council of Iran. She dwelt on what she termed the principle of “ma ‘ruf” or morality, informed principally by religion and urf or socially approved conventions, that should mould family relations, in addition to laws. She defined “ma‘ruf”, which is linked to the Quranic commandment of ‘enjoining what is good’, as moral acts, kindness, loyalty, friendship, respect, moderation, patience, friendship and generosity that, she said, forms the basis of an ideal family, and which, in a sense, are much more crucial than mere laws and legal sanction in maintaining the family unit.

The second session of the conference was devoted to specific legal issues. Farajullah Hedayatnia, an Iranian religious scholar, spoke on the issue of polygamy, focusing particularly on the right that a Muslim wife has to include in the marriage contract a clause forbidding her husband from taking a second spouse. Fatima Bodaqi, an Iranian woman judge from the Iranian seminary town of Qom, spoke about the question of a divorced wife’s residence. She argued that the Islam forbids men from throwing their divorced wives onto the streets, thereby forcing them into destitution. In some specific cases, she argued, the man must leave the house, not the divorced woman. She raised the question of the possibility of a woman enjoying the right to live in the common residence even after divorce till she marries again. In Iran, she said, divorced women can even ask for payment in lieu of wages for work done in the house during the period of the marriage, and this amount is to be decided by the courts.

Hojjat ul-Islam Muhammad Sadeqi, an Iranian Shia alim, presented a paper on ‘temporary marriages’ among some Shias and Sunnis, called muta and misyar respectively, arguing that such arrangements were in some extraordinary conditions a necessity in order to prevent ‘social corruption’. He pointed out that such marriages were not meant to be the norm or to substitute for permanent marriages. A lively discussion followed thereafter, with some participants speaking out against the gross abuse of muta and misyar for sexual exploitation. Aicha al-Hajjami, a speaker from Morocco, argued that there was a need for critical reflection or ijtihad on the matter to stop the practice in accordance with ‘social welfare’ or maslaha. She also elaborated at length on various new provisions in Moroccan law, derived from alternate interpretations of the shariah, that have provided women considerably more rights than before.

The third session of the conference was devoted to discussions on the principles of Islamic family law. Hojjat ul-Islam Ali Doust, a senior professor at the Hauza ul-Ilmi, Qom, spoke about the need for and proper method of engaging in ijtihad on a range of legal issues, including those related to family matters. He pointed out that in the Shia Jafari school of jurisprudence, which is followed in Iran, aql or reason is considered a major source of law and a basis of ijtihad, and said that this could be used in a creative way to deal with a host of legal matters that many Muslim societies are confronted with today, including in the realm of family law. He stressed the need for contextually-relevant ijtihad on family law matters in accordance with the ‘aims of the shariah’ (maqasid-e shariah) and ‘wisdom’ (hikmat), of which justice (adl) is a major component. Muna Zelzela, a woman Member of Parliament from Iraq, stressed the need for Muslim religious scholars and institutions to take issues of gender oppression seriously, calling for dialogue between and benefiting from the legal systems of different Muslim countries to ensure greater gender justice for Muslim women. Hojjat ul-Islam Abdul Ali Tavajjohi, a religious scholar from Qom, dwelt on family courts, and stressed other forms of conflict resolution between spouses before their cases are taken to such courts. Masood Noori, a Professor at Qom University, spoke about rights of children and the concept of children’s ‘best interest’ in Islamic jurisprudence, and called for benefiting from international rights discourses in this matter. Mohammad Mahdi Meqdadi, another legal specialist from Qom, spoke about the prohibition of violence against children in both Islamic as well as international law. Gholam Reza Peivandi, a student of criminal law, presented a paper on children with incompetent parents or guardians and legal issues related to this from an Islamic perspective. It is the duty of the state, he said, to protect such children, and, if need be, even to punish such parents or guardians. He spoke about a bill recently ratified by the Iranian Parliament setting out a comprehensive list of rights of children, including protection from parental neglect and abuse. My own presentation was about a leading Indian Shia alim, Maulana Kalbe Sadiq, and his vision of a Quranically-grounded theology of gender justice.

The valedictory address to the conference was delivered by Gholam-Hossein Elham, the Iranian Justice Minister. He spoke about how Muslim countries and communities in other parts of the world could benefit from the remarkable progress made by Iranian Muslim women in various spheres, including education and employment, in the years following the Islamic Revolution of 1979. Like several speakers before him, he invoked the Islamic principle of ijtihad which, he said, could enable Islamic jurisprudence, including on family matters, to provide answers to new and pressing challenges.

The conference ended with a formal declaration to establish a permanent secretariat, based in Iran, to work on Islamic family law matters and to convene an international conference every two years on the subject, in which Muslim and non-Muslim scholars, ulema and human rights activists could share their views and experiences.

Sri Lankan Team Shooting

2009-03-03T12:36:00.000-08:00

I condemn the shootings on Sri Lankan team in Lahore, near the Gaddafi stadium on 2nd March 2009 and salute the bravery of Pakistani police who gave their lives to save the guests! They are the unsung heroes who we all will conveniently forget while debating who and why of the shootings and the implications for Pakistan's political and cricket future!

اردو

2009-03-01T23:47:00.000-08:00

اردو کیسے لکہیں؟ شکر ہے اب یہ اسان سی بات ہے۔۔۔
عظیمہ

Swat FAQs by IRIN News

2009-02-24T01:04:00.001-08:00

LAHORE, 24 February 2009 (IRIN) -

1. Where is Swat?

The mountain valley of Swat, covering 10,360 sqkm, is in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) of Pakistan, about 170km north-east of the provincial capital, Peshawar, and about 160km north-west of Islamabad. With its clean river, open fields and forests, tourism has traditionally been the main source of revenue for many of its 1.8 million people, most of whom are ethnic Pashtuns.

2. History

In 327 BC, Alexander the Great conquered the area. Around the second century BC, the valley was occupied by Buddhists. From the eighth century onwards, Arabs started to exert pressure from the West and in 1001, the Afghan ruler, Mahmud of Ghazni, launched several invasions of the Indian sub-continent, conquering Swat.

The British colonial rulers of the Indian sub-continent from 1858 to 1947 recognised the state as one of many princely regions in India in 1926.

At Partition in 1947, when Pakistan broke away from India and independence was gained from British rule, the ruler of Swat ceded the state to Pakistan while retaining considerable autonomy. The princely state was abolished in 1969 by the Pakistan government.

3. Present status

Swat is an administrative district of NWFP. The capital is Saidu Sharif but the main city is Mingora, adjacent to Saidu.

4. Origins of the conflict

In 1992, Sufi Mohammad Khan established the Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariah-Mohammadi (TNSM) in Swat, as a party seeking an Islamic order. The party rose to national prominence in 1995, when Sufi Mohammad Khan demanded the immediate imposition of Sharia, Islamic law. Violence followed as paramilitary forces began an operation against Khan.

After Khan's imprisonment in 2002, his son-in-law, Maulana Fazalullah, a former chairlift operator, took over the TNSM at 28. By 2007 he had aligned himself with the hardline Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), setting up dozens of illegal radio stations in Swat from which he preached his message of jihad (holy war).

5. Who are the main combatants?

Fighting in Swat began after Fazalullah in July 2007 ordered supporters to avenge a security force operation to clear militants out of a mosque in Islamabad. Since then, paramilitary forces and troops of the Pakistan army have been fighting militants led by Fazalullah. A brief truce reached in May 2008 brought relative peace but fighting resumed in August. Some 4,000 militants are said to be battling 12,000 troops
[http://www.dawn.com/weekly/mazdak/20090131.htm].

6. How many people have died?

There is no independent confirmation of the number of casualties. The military in January 2009 said 142 soldiers and paramilitary troops had died since the conflict resumed in August 2008. In 2007 the military confirmed the deaths of 230 civilians and 90 military personnel. At the end of 2007 an activist of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) in Swat said at least 400 civilians had died and 1,000 houses destroyed [http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=75903].

7. How many people have been displaced?

According to rights groups and the media, approximately 800,000 of Swat's 1.8 million people have fled. With intensified fighting from February 2009, as the Pakistan government promised to retake control of the valley from the militants, more people are reported to have left. Camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) have been set up in Mingora and other locations by the provincial government.

8. Why is there a threat to girls' education?

Fazalullah opposes education for girls. Since the conflict in Swat began, 170 to 200 schools for girls have been torched or bombed [http://www.dawn.com/2009/01/21/op.htm]. At the end of 2008, Fazalullah banned education for girls. Since then, 80,000 girls are still not in class as schools felt too threatened to re-open after the winter holiday.

Many had dropped out even before in fear of the militants, who in February said they would allow education for girls till Grade 5. The government has promised schools in Swat will re-open soon. Some schools have resumed classes after a truce. Women in Swat have also been ordered via radio stations run by militants to give up work and not to leave home. Men have been ordered to grow beards and wear prayer caps. Some have been killed for failing to comply with these orders.

9. What is the nature of peace efforts?

The NWFP government has agreed a truce with Sufi Muhammad Khan of the TNSM, whereby Sharia law would be imposed and both sides lay down arms. People in the Valley have welcomed the ceasefire. However, two previous accords along similar lines have broken down.

The abduction and killing of a prominent journalist days after the truce [http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Islamabad/18-Feb-2009/TV-journalist-Musa-Khan-Khel-killed-in-Swat] aggravates those fears. Many Pakistanis have criticised the deal, with HRCP warning it offers no guarantees to protect basic liberties and rights of groups, including women. Friction between different militant factions adds to the risks of the truce failing, though for the present it has enabled girls to return to school.

Sources: Newsline magazine; Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, State of Human Rights in Pakistan Annual Reports 1992-2007; Dawn; The News; The Daily Times; IRIN; Economic Survey of Pakistan, 2008.

kh/at/ar/mw[END]

© IRIN. All rights reserved. More humanitarian news and analysis: http://www.irinnews.org

My mother's education and career

2009-02-19T13:24:00.001-08:00

My mother rarely went to school. Not because she did not want to, but because she was needed at home for household chores. And at that time, in the village, even to be enrolled in a school for a girl was a big achievement. So she was content with the arrangement. And she went (or was sent) to school on occasions make sure that her name is not struck off or to take the exams. Her father, a literate man and also a teacher helped her out sometimes at home. She was bright and very interested in whatever she was learning, so despite the irregularities and mostly relying on reading the books on her own, she was able to finish high school and get enrolled in college in Comilla. She was seventeen around that time. About the same time her family thought she is getting too old to get married, and hence a marriage was arranged and she was married off. Of course the marriage did not involve her consent. She had not even seen a picture of her would be husband. Her husband, my father was working in the West Pakistan and he left after the wedding, and my mother was able to continue with her college. Afterwards she moved with him to West Pakistan. She wanted to become a mother but for some reason she was unable to conceive for a while, so she felt she is wasting time at home and was suggested by a family friend to teach in a school. She was the first women in her family to do any work outside her home! She started working, but at the same time she continued reading course work material for bachelors exam. She took the exams just before I was born, but she was unable to pass English (a large majority of students in Pakistan fail in English subject in the BA exams). But then, she had me and there were no role models for her to push towards the value of higher education. She never tried to complete her degree, thinking that her job is only to pass time (not a career) and she is responsibility of her husband. Not her fault. That is how most women think in our country even now a days. So, her education and career both were incidental, not necessary. But, when she became a widow at the age of 31, with 3 kids, no savings or property, and not very helpful in-laws, she realized that whatever job she started as a time pass, is now the only way to survive, but a yolk on her neck which could not take off even when she was dying!!!

Ravi Shankar reads from the Gita

2009-02-12T13:31:00.000-08:00

From the Gita -

THE EARLY DAYS 01 (PAKISTANI FILM)

2009-02-11T15:19:00.001-08:00

Seems like a good film from Pakistan.

IRIN Timeline on Swat turbulance

2009-02-11T08:49:00.000-08:00

PAKISTAN: Timeline on Swat Valley turbulence

LAHORE, 11 February 2009 (IRIN) - Understanding the humanitarian situation in turbulent Swat Valley, some 160km from Islamabad in North West Frontier Province (NWFP), requires some knowledge of the political background to the current tensions and violence.

In 1995 radical clerical leader Sufi Muhammad Khan, leader of Tehrik-e-Nifaz e Shariah-e-Mohammadi (TNSM) in Swat Valley, demanded imposition of Islamic law in the area. Violence followed as the Frontier Constabulary, a paramilitary force, began an operation against Khan. Tourism, a major source of income, was disrupted and 13 militants died in fighting.

After the operation, the NWFP government agreed to enforce Shariah law in Malakand Division (in Swat District). TNSM's main demand - the replacement of regular courts with Islamic courts - was partially met, but arguments over the peace deal led to sporadic violence.

In 2001 Sufi Muhammad Khan took a force of some 10,000 people from Swat and the tribal areas to fight against US forces invading Afghanistan. Nearly 3,000 were killed, while others were jailed in Afghanistan or sent back to Pakistan, including Sufi Muhammad Khan, who was imprisoned. The TNSM was banned by the government.

In 2002 Sufi Muhammad Khan's son-in-law, the firebrand cleric Maulana Fazalullah, emerged as a force in Swat and set up his headquarters at Imam Dehri. Linked to the militant Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), he stepped up efforts to impose hardline Islam.

In January 2003 incidents of violence began to increase in Swat. The Afghan writer Fazal Wahab, whose work was viewed as being critical of Osama bin-Laden and the Taliban in Afghanistan, was shot dead in Swat by unidentified assailants.

Between 2004 and 2007 Maulana Fazalullah set up at least 30 illegal FM radio stations to get his message across. Girls' education and any active role for women in society was opposed. Several schools, music shops and barbers' businesses were attacked.

2007

July 2007 - Violence in Swat increases after Fazalullah urges his followers to launch 'jihad' (holy war) to avenge an operation carried out by the Pakistan military against the Lal Masjid (mosque) in Islamabad, where clerical leaders were accused by the government of harbouring "terrorists".

4 July 2007 - Four civilians are killed and two police wounded by a roadside bomb. In a separate incident a policemen is killed and four others injured in a rocket attack on a police station in the Matta area of Swat District.

12 July 2007 - A suicide bomber kills three police.

13 July 2007 - President Pervez Musharraf approves a plan to deploy paramilitary forces in Swat to crush growing militancy. Troops are positioned in Swat.

15 July 2007 - At least 13 paramilitary personnel and six civilians, including three children, are killed and more than 50 people injured at Matta in Swat District when two suicide bombers ram two cars packed with explosives into an army convoy.

August 2007 - NGOs and international humanitarian organisations are asked by the administration to leave Swat after threats by militants. Attacks on several girls' schools are reported.

30 August 2007 - Seven security forces' personnel are killed as militants attack a checkpoint in Swat. Owners of video centres and barber's shops receive threatening letters.

21 September 2007 - Maulana Fazalullah urged his supporters to attack government officials after a demand to release three militants held after a hotel bombing incident was rejected by the authorities.

October 2007 - Fazalullah sets up his own Islamic courts.

21 October 2007 - Eighteen soldiers and two civilians die and 35 others, including nine civilians, are injured in a bomb blast aimed at a vehicle carrying paramilitary personnel at Nawan Killi, about 1km from Swat city.

26-29 October 2007 - Fierce clashes erupt between troops and militants in Swat, leaving at least 29 dead. Thirteen security personnel are executed by militants.

1-2 November 2007 - Fighting resumes after a brief ceasefire. 60-70 people die after a clash in Khwazakhela town; 48 troops who surrendered to militants are paraded in public.

3-6 November 2007: Militants extend their hold over Swat, capturing key towns including Madyan and Kalam.

November 2007: The Pakistan military intensifies its operation in Swat. Helicopter gunships pound villages. Thousands flee the valley. There are conflicting accounts of casualties, but dozens are feared dead.

28 November - 6 December 2007: Security forces say militants have been forced out of Swat and many key leaders arrested. Key centres such as Imam Dehri are seized. Hundreds are feared dead in the operation; 500,000 of Swat's 1.8 million people are reported to have fled.

23 December 2007 - Fourteen die in a suicide attack on a military convoy near Mingora, Swat's main city. Sporadic violence continues in Swat, including attacks on shops, schools and government buildings.

2008

January 2008 - Low-level violence between troops and militants continues in Swat.

29 February 2008 - Forty killed and more than 75 wounded when a suicide bomber targets the funeral of a police officer in Mingora.

1 March 2008: Militants behead a 22-year-old man accused of passing on information to the security forces.

April 2008: NWFP government launches a fresh peace process, setting up a committee to initiate dialogue with different groups of militants. Militant leaders, including Fazalullah, re-enter Swat. Maulana Sufi Muhammad Khan of the banned TNSM is released.

21 May 2008 - Taliban militants operating under Fazalullah in Swat District sign a 16-point peace agreement with the NWFP government and agree to disband their militia; they also denounce suicide attacks and stop attacks on the security forces and government buildings.

June-July 2008 - Attacks on schools and other buildings continue in Swat. Militants say the government refused to keep its part of the peace deal by retaining troops. At least 50 girls' schools are reported to have been attacked by militants in 2008. Thousands of girls quit school, fearing for their safety.

27-30 July 2008 - Fierce clashes erupt again, after incidents involving the killing of military personnel.

August-December 2008 - The military moves tanks, heavy artillery and helicopters into Swat to combat militants. Hundreds are reported killed in heavy clashes. Reports of atrocities by militants increase - including the killing of women who decline to stop work and public beheadings of those accused of spying. Human rights activists say 60 percent of Swat's 1.8 million people have fled. Thousands of homes are reported to have been damaged and 150 schools destroyed.

December 2008: Press reports say the militants control 75 percent of Swat. Fazalullah announces a ban on education for girls.

29 January 2009: Pakistan's government announces a new strategy to combat militancy in Swat and pledges to ensure girls resume schooling. Schools for girls remain closed in Swat after the winter break leaving 80,000 girls out of school. Militants are reported to have seized control of almost all of Swat.

31 January 2009: Fazalullah, leader of the TTP in Swat, says he will relax the ban on education to allow girls to attend school up to grade 5. The ban had been met by a nationwide outcry.

February 2009: Renewed military offensives are reported against militants as the Pakistan Army pledges to regain control of Swat. Mingora said to be under government control. Fierce fighting continues and more people flee.

(Sources: Dawn, The News, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan State of Human Rights in Pakistan annual reports, and the South Asian Terrorism Portal, run by the Institute of Conflict Management, New Delhi)

kh/cb[END]

© IRIN. All rights reserved. More humanitarian news and analysis: http://www.irinnews.org

Shalamar Gardens

2009-02-10T10:45:00.001-08:00

Shalamar Gardens
Originally uploaded by BeeCay

Pakistan known mainly for its problems with terrorism is home to several majestic pieces of architecture!!! This is just one...

The shoe

2008-12-21T18:44:00.000-08:00

This Shahtoon cartoon was published by the News Pakistan on

Mumbai and My Twitter

2008-12-08T01:59:00.000-08:00

I have been twittering a lot on the Mumbai terrorism issue. Here is the link
http://twitter.com/azeemax

Obama mania

2008-11-05T19:50:00.000-08:00

Here is a nice sand dune created in India to commemorate Obama's win:

Marrakech pictures 2008

2008-09-24T15:03:00.000-07:00

Visited fabled city of Marrakech in August 2008 for 6 days. The city takes you back on a journey to the lands and times of Arabian Nights with its mazes, amazing costumes, elaborate haggling, interesting food cooked in tagines etc... Here are the pics:

Wave of blasts hit Indian capital

2008-09-13T15:49:00.001-07:00

Five suspected bomb blasts have been reported within minutes of each other in markets in India's capital, Delhi.

read more | digg story

Bhulle Shah and Rumi on universalism

2008-03-05T17:14:00.000-08:00

Here are the translations that I lifted from two different websites.. Both of these pieces of poetry seem very similar in ideas and it is fascinating for me.. Was wondering if anyone has done an analysis comparing their work.....

The Kafi of Bhulle Shah (1680-1757, Punjabi Sufi poet)

Bulla Ki Jaana Maen Kaun Says Bulla,
who knows who I am!
I am not in the mosque of the believer,
Nor in false rites.
I am not in the pure or the impure.
Neither Moses nor Pharaoh.
Says Bulla, who knows who I am!

I am not in the vedas or holy books,
Not in drug or wine.
Not in the drunkards wasted intoxication,
Not in wakefulness or sleep.
Says Bulla, who knows who I am!

I am not in sorrow nor in joy,
Neither in clean nor unclean.
I am not water, I am not earth,
I am not fire, I am not air.
Says Bulla, who knows who I am!

I am not from Arabia or Lahore,
Nor from India or Nagaur.
Neither a hindu or muslim from Peshawar,
Nor do I live in Nadaun.
Says Bulla, who knows who I am!
I cannot be unearthed in the mysteries of religion.

I was not born of Adam and Eve.
I am not the name I assume.
I am not in stillness, not in movement.
Finally, I only know myself.
I cannot know any other.
Who could be wiser than I?
Bulla asks, who then, stands here?
Says Bulla, who knows who I am!

Now the Rumi poem (1207-1273, Persian Poet and Sufi):

What can I do, Submitters to God? I do not know myself.

I am neither Christian nor Jew, neither Zoroastrian nor Muslim,

I am not from east or west, not from land or sea,

not from the shafts of nature nor from the spheres of the firmament,

not of the earth, not of water, not of air, not of fire.

I am not from the highest heaven, not from this world,

not from existence, not from being.

I am not from India, not from China, not from Bulgar, not from Saqsin,

not from the realm of the two Iraqs, not from the land of Khurasan

I am not from the world, not from beyond,

not from heaven and not from hell.

I am not from Adam, not from Eve, not from paradise and not from Ridwan.

My place is placeless, my trace is traceless,

no body, no soul, I am from the soul of souls.

I have chased out duality, lived the two worlds as one.

One I seek, one I know, one I see, one I call.

He is the first, he is the last, he is the outer, he is the inner.

Beyond "He" and "He is" I know no other.

I am drunk from the cup of love, the two worlds have escaped me.

I have no concern but carouse and rapture.

If one day in my life I spend a moment without you

from that hour and that time I would repent my life.

If one day I am given a moment in solitude with you

I will trample the two worlds underfoot and dance forever.

O Sun of Tabriz (Shams Tabrizi), I am so tipsy here in this world,

I have no tale to tell but tipsiness and rapture

Zindagi say dartay ho? (Noon Meem Rashid)

2008-03-03T14:15:00.000-08:00

Zindagi say dartay ho?
Zindagi to tum bhi ho, zindagi to hum bhi hain
Zindagi say dartay ho...
Aadmi say dartay ho?
Aadmi to tum bhi ho, aadmi to hum bhi hain
Aadmi zubaan bhi hay, aadmi bayaan bhi hay, us say tum nahi dartay...
Harf aur manay kay rishta-e-ahan say aadmi hay wabasta
Aadmi kay daman say zindagi hay wabasta, us say tum nahi dartay...
Ankahi say dartay ho?
Jo abhi nahi aayi us ghari say dartay ho, us ghari ki amad ki agahi say dartay ho?
Pahlay bhi to guzray hain dor na rasayi kay, bairiya khudayii kay
Phir bhi ye samajhtay ho haich arzumandi ya shab-e-zuban bandi hay rahay khuda wandi
Tum magar ye kya jano...
Lab agar nahi hiltay, hath jaag uthtay hain
Hath jaag uthtay hain rah ka nishan bankar
Noor ki zuban bankar
Hath bol uthtay hain subh ki aazan bankar
Roshni say dartay ho?
Roshni to tum bhi ho, roshni to hum bhi hain
Roshni say dartay ho...
Shahar ki faseelon par daiw ka jo saaya tha, paak hogaya akhir
Raat ka libada bhi chaak hogaya akhir
Khaak hogaya akhir...
Ashdahan main insaan say fard ki nawa ayii
Raat ki sadaa ayii
Rah-e-shauq main jesay rah ro ka khoon lapkay
Aadmi chalak uthay
Aadmi hansay dekho, shahar phir basay dekho
Tum abhi say dartay ho?
Haan abhi to tum bhi ho, haan abhi to hum bhi hain
Tum abhi say dartay ho...

Akbar's Secret Room

2007-12-06T14:43:00.001-08:00

Akbar's Secret Room
Originally uploaded by Stuck in Customs

"stuck in custom" makes an interesting point about Akbar's secret room in Fatehpur Sikri, near Agra india.

Flickr

2007-12-06T14:41:00.001-08:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Pakistan's Pervez Musharraf prepares to drop army role

2007-11-28T15:04:00.001-08:00

The Pakistani president, General Pervez Musharraf, conducted what the Pakistani military said was a round of farewell calls to the country's armed forces Tuesday, a day before officials say he will relinquish his role of chief of the army.

read more | digg story

"The Country is Normal"

2007-11-19T12:01:00.000-08:00

I have been tired of reading about the so called most dangerous country in the world (Pakistan)depicted as engulfed in near-war and terrorism and total civic chaos and unrest... There is virtually no news of life going on as normal in the media.. In this scenario this particular letter presents a completely different picture of Pakistan which is a refreshing break from the typical journalism... Here is an excrept:

The country is normal

PUBLIC response to protest calls of political parties against the imposition of emergency and the PCO is ridiculously poor. Common man’s life in the country is unaffected. Marketplaces are wide open, public transport plying in full and shoppers are busy buying what they need unhampered. Similarly government offices as also private sector organizations and schools, colleges and universities are functioning normally.

So, a handful of lawyers, journalists, human rights activists and hired workers of political parties, I understand, cannot make any difference to President Pervaiz Musharraf’s programme of what he calls smooth and peaceful transition to democracy. More..

Iftikhar ready to meet president for judiciary's cause

2007-11-09T10:52:00.001-08:00

After about a week of speculations on the role of the pre-emergency Supreme Court of Pakistan's upcoming verdict on the legitimacy of the rule of Gen./President Musharaf, we hear for the first time from the MAN himself. Chief Justice speaks up denying the link...

read more | digg story

Citizens Challenge Emergency Rule in Pakistan

2007-11-08T10:47:00.001-08:00

A record on dissenting views and public action, peoples initiatives from Nov. 3, 2007 on.

read more | digg story

Emergency in Pakistan, Nov. 2007

2007-11-04T10:30:00.000-08:00

There is a lot out there regarding the what and why of the current state of affairs in Pakistan. In general the Pakistani media, intelligentsia and unhappy politicians, has taken a negative stance on the whole scenario.

Here are some highlights from various sources on the question of what and why.

Musharraf tries to stifle outcry over emergency rule
By Simon Cameron-Moore and Zeeshan Haider Sun Nov 4, 6:18 AM ET

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Police detained hundreds of Pakistani opposition figures and lawyers on Sunday as military ruler President Pervez Musharraf tried to stifle the outcry over the imposition of emergency powers. Read more

Times of India
US prepares to live with another Pak coup
4 Nov 2007, 2250 hrs IST,Chidanand Rajghatta,TNN

WASHINGTON: The Bush administration has signaled that it will be business as usual with Pakistan despite the declaration of emergency and a crack down on civil liberties by its military ruler Pervez Musharraf.

The US provides almost $ 2 billion in annual aid to Pakistan, including of lethal weapons systems like F-16s fighter jets and Cobra helicopter gunships, ostensibly for the war on terror. Pakistan is now Washington's third largest overall aid recipient in the world after Israel and Egypt.

Daily News (Pakistani Newspaper)
Musharraf’s second half-baked martial law
By Ansar Abbasi

ISLAMABAD: General Pervez Musharraf has earned the dubious distinction of being the first-ever Army chief in the country’s history to have suspended the Constitution twice and imposed a half-baked martial law against his own government.

Interestingly, on both occasions he took this extra-constitutional step to secure his own office — previously as the Army chief and now his Presidency.

No matter what justification he offers, everyone knows that Saturday’s suspension of the Constitution was aimed at countering the anticipated judgment of the Supreme Court against his re-election as the President of Pakistan. All and sundry, he was sure that the 11-member larger bench headed by Justice Javed Iqbal was all set to nullify his October 6th re-election for the next term. Read on

Dawn Editorial on the 4th of Nov., 2007
Another move towards absolutism

SO we are back to square one. Back to Oct 12, 1999. All the gains over the years have gone down the drain. All this talk about the forward thrust towards democracy, about the impending 'third phase' of the political process and the lip service to the sanctity of judiciary turned out to be one great deception. The people have been cheated. In a nutshell, one-man rule has been reinforced, and there is no light at the end of the tunnel — a tunnel that is dark and winding with an end that is perhaps blocked. The reports about emergency rule were denied umpteenth times by President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz. The denials were bogus. From now on it would simply be a waste of newspaper space and channel time if ever a denial by this government is printed or aired. Read on

Daily Dawn, Cowasjee Corner on 4th Nov., 2007
Law, order and justice
By Ardeshir Cowasjee

DAY after day it is becoming increasingly obvious — to ourselves and to the rest of the world which has any interest in us — that we have recently climbed down from the treetops but have yet to lose our tails.

Power and pelf remain the name of the game — the order of the day. Our ‘leaders’, those who assume power unto themselves utilising whatever means may be necessary, lose little time in deciding that they are the ‘chosen ones’ (some even invoking the name of the Almighty).

House Passes Superferry Bill

2007-11-02T11:03:00.001-07:00

The Hawaii Supperferry issue has escalated into a complex legal battle...

read more | digg story

Book recommendations

2007-10-21T03:20:00.000-07:00

The What Should I Read Next? website suggests items you might like reading based on real readers' recommendations. I searched for The Kite Runner and these were the results: The Bookseller of Kabul - Asne Seierstad Family Matters - Rohinton Mistry Snow Flower and the Secret Fan - Lisa See House of Sand and Fog - Andre Dubus III Year of Wonders - Geraldine Brooks The Amateur Marriage - Anne Tyler Strange Fits of Passion - Anita Shreve Snow in August - Pete Hamill Pope Joan - Donna Woolfolk Cross Shes Come Undone - LAMB

Who is a Shaheed (martyr) in Jamia Hafsa Operation 2007-07-11T22:17:00.000-07:00 We the people of the Islamaic Repubic of Pakistan cannot decide who is a Shaheed and who is not, in the battle of Lal Masjid and the recent Operation Silence.. The government is declaring all of its own casualties (army, rangers etc) as shaheed and anyone who is killed from the Lal Masjid/Jamia Hafsa side as "killed".... And, of course they have to do it, otherwise how can they justify their actions.... But, thinking philosophically and religiously, how do we know who is really a shaheed and who is not!!! In this scenario, at least the media should not take government's side in ''judging' who is really a shaheed..... Because, according the my observation, so far the media has emerged as the strongest voice for common people's sentiments and is the only source of any credible information...... but by doing so, they act like a mouthpiece of the government, rather than an independent entity.. May be we can leave it to history to decide that who was a martyr in this battle.... Some blogs and news about the Jamia Hafsa Issue 2007-07-11T21:33:00.000-07:00 (sorry for the haphazard arrangment) Selected blogs: http://pakistaniat.com/2007/07/03/pakistan-readies-for-battle-curfew-imposed-tanks-and-special-forces-called/ http://www.chowk.com/ http://islamabad.metblogs.com/ Some News Pieces 12 July: 73 bodies recovered at end of mosque siege, (Guardian) Shaukat Aziz, Pakistan's prime minister, declared victory in the fight for the Red Mosque yesterday as commandos gained control of the compound after a 36-hour battle. "The operation is over," he said after the last rattle of gunfire echoed from the Islamabad mosque. Civilian casualties were lower than expected, he said, and no women or children had been killed. 12 July: Bodies found at Pakistan mosque (BBC) Soldiers overran the mosque amid fierce gun battlesThe Pakistani army says it has found 73 bodies inside a mosque compound in Islamabad, after fierce battles between soldiers and gunmen inside. Officials said the Red Mosque, or Lal Masjid, complex had been cleared of militants but troops were combing the area for booby traps and explosives. 10 July: Seeing red in Pakistan (The Hindu) Once the dust has settled on the violent Lal Masjid episode, many will argue that Pakistan's General Pervez Musharraf could have handled things differently. Already a 37-party political alliance, comprising among others, Nawaz Sharif's PML-N and Imran Khan's Tehreek e-Insaf, has been set up which has condemned Operation Silence in which the Pakistani army has taken on fundamentalists holed up in the mosque. More than 50 militants and at least 10 soldiers have been killed so far..... July 4 morning According the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP): http://www.app.com.pk/en/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12084&Itemid=2 “The government has set the Wednesday [4th July] 1100 hours deadline for Lal Masjid student to surrender their weapons, said Secretary Information and Broadcasting Syed Anwar Mahmood.Briefing media, the Secretary Information said, the government has offered a safe passage to women and children of Jamia Hafsa and has ensured them full protection.” From youtube: 4th July 2007 : Massive Street Battle in Pakistan's Capital Army versus Muslim Militants (http://www.juancole.com/2007/07/massive-street-battle-in-pakistans.html) The following video is embedded in the above blog: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4e_wPpaYqo March 31, 2007 Pakistan: "Moral" Muslim Women Kidnap And Tie Up Baby http://www.westernresistance.com/blog/archives/003668.html (historical context of the rise of the Jamia Hafsa) Fact Box from Reuters http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSL0446561920070704 (Reuters) - The head of a radical Pakistani mosque at the centre of a stand-off with security forces, Abdul Aziz, was arrested on Wednesday while trying to escape clad in a woman's burqa, officials said. Here are some facts about the mosque, where hardline Islamist students have been confronting the government since January: - Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, is regarded as a symbol of radical Islam in Pakistan. It was established in 1965 by Muhammad Abdullah, a cleric believed to have had close ties to dictator General Zia-ul-Haq. - About 5,000 students study at the two madrasas (seminaries) attached to the mosque. - The mosque is well known for its criticism of the government and anti-U.S. and pro-Taliban sentiments. Abdul Aziz took over as the chief cleric after the assassination of his father, Abdullah, in 1998. - He issued a fatwa, or religious decree, in 2005 declaring that Pakistani soldiers killed fighting militants in the northern tribal areas could not be given Muslim funeral rites. - After the July 2005 bombings in London, police attempted to raid the mosque and the adjoining seminary to investigate its link with one of the bombers. Security forces were prevented from entering the compound by baton-wielding women. - The mosque has been at odds with the authorities since January when female students occupied a library next door to protest against the destruction of mosques illegally built on state land. The students also pressured owners of music and video shops to close. TIMELINE OF RECENT EVENTS: March 27 - Burqa-clad female students from the mosque's Jamia Hafsa school abduct three women they accuse of running a brothel. The women are released after they "repent". Background story of the Red Mosque from Guardian (Western and Modern Version) The Red Mosque is at the heart of fears that "Talibanisation" is spreading in Pakistan. Its students have tried to violently impose their strict social code on the capital by abducting prostitutes, threatening CD shop owners and defying police. They are led by brothers Abdul Rashid Ghazi and Abdul Aziz, who boast of meeting Osama bin Laden. Until Tuesday Musharraf was reluctant to take them on, saying he feared violence could spread. But critics accuse him of manipulating the crisis to bolster support among Western allies. - Guardian Unlimited © http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=312991&area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__international_news/ A brief timeline of the Jamia Hafsa from Geo website http://www.geo.tv/important_events/lalmasjid/pages/urdu_news.asp Text of HRCP Press Release on Lal Masjid incidence 2007-07-11T20:20:00.001-07:00 Press Release 10th July, 2007 Probe into Lal Masjid bungling must LAHORE: A high-level, independent inquiry into the Lal Masjid operation, the clumsy manner in which it was carried and the deaths of an as yet undisclosed number of persons is essential. HRCP is appalled by the killing of so many, by the disproportionate use of brute force and the arbitrary action taken to deal with the situation. The question of the long delay in the conduct of the Lal Masjid operation, the confusion over the game plan under which ulema and government members conducted negotiations with Lal Masjid clerics and the lack of a clear-cut strategy regarding those who voluntary surrendered must also be probed. The absence of a coordinated plan in this regard hampered the operation and added to the confusion prevailing amongst people across the country. The homage paid by government members and others over the last many years to clerics such as those running the Lal Masjid and the obsequious manner in approaching them has also quite obviously emboldened them. The situation at the Lal Masjid did not crop up overnight. The build-up of arms and the training in their use imparted to students had obviously continued for years, with the help and connivance of authorities. It also defies belief that the authorities learnt of the presence of alleged militants within the masjid only hours before the operation. The whereabouts of these individuals should not have been unknown to the vast intelligence network based in Islamabad. Even now other seminaries exist, where militants are trained and arsenals of arms stocked. The existence and location of these seminaries are well known to authorities Indeed, the violent events seen at the Lal Masjid are an outcome of the collusion between the military and militants backed by the clergy that has continued for decades. The allegation that women and children were used as a human shield by militants at the Lal Masjid is appalling. Such exploitation of children by seminaries must end and an investigation made into the exemption granted to the seminary from regulating and monitoring its pupils. The government, with its ham-handed handling of the situation, has in fact created the potential for further problems ahead. The deaths of so many at the hands of State forces may act only to pave the way for greater extremism in society and support for the violent cause militants espouse. Asma Jahangir Chairperson Jamia Hafsa 'Operation' 2007-07-04T00:34:00.000-07:00 8.28 am Pak Stanadard time, Thursday the 12th of July. This is the 10th day of the Jamia Hafsa "Operation" and the Lal Masjid battle... During these last 12 days I went through totally different set of opinions and solutions for the so called problem... Initially, when the Lal Masjid issue started in the afternoon of the 3rd of July, I thought it is just a minor skirmish between the government and the 'militant' students of the attached seminary Jamia Hafsa.. I was totally with the government and passionately advocated for eradicating militant Islam from Pakistan and was of the view that who are these people to start self policing the nation, when we have fully functional state to do that.. And, that the state has right to establish is writ, whenever and wherever someone tries to create a state within state... However, with the passage of each minute, hour and day the situation became worse and worse and the fact and figures muddier and muddies... In the beginning, I was really angry at the government for allowing the problem to grow at this proportion that and not taking any severe action early on, like in February when the students took control of the adjacent students library and later in March their attack on a brothel racket run by "Aunty Shamim" and on 23rd (?) June the abduction of 6 Chinese women from a massage parlour which proved to be the straw that broke the back of the camel. In this context, the government deployed rangers (late June ??) in the nearby areas of the mosque and the madrassa (I saw the rangers and student militants holding their positions on 1st of July (from the Sunday Market) and after another incidence of the seminar students' snatching of guns from some policemen from a nearby area, the government launched its retaliation with tear gas... The others answered with their Kalashnikoves.... Exchange of fires continued off and on.. the whole G-6 sector was under curfew all of a sudden, giving no chance to the residents to prepare for emergency or leave the area, if possible....During the stand off of 10 days, the government lost some of its precious officers, unknown number of students died, ~1200-1400 students surrendered (many of whom were taken to adiala jail and unknown places).... ... However, 10 days down the line and a faithful reporting of the private television channels, Geo, ARY and AAJ I am angry at government only and want to really believe in the conspiracy theory that this was all a sham to divert media attention from other burning issues affecting Pakistan, like the case of Chief Justice, pre-monsoon floods devastating Balochistan and Sindh, and most importantly the All Parties Conference (APC) which was held in parallel in exactly those days on the Lal Masjid operation was on its peak. I don't have any questions to the Officials of the Lal Masjid, and assuming they were militants, I absolve them from any responsibility of answering the nation. However, I want to question the government of Pakistan (and I am not alone in this), that how come they had no clue about the collection of such huge level of artillery and armaments in Lal masjid and Jamia hafsa complex, located in the heart of Islamabad.... How come they did not know anything about the movement of foreign militants living there and where was government when they built this sophisticated seminary for girls, on an illegal land, fitted with its own underground bunkers and underground cells which are inter-connected and further connected with the top minarets... This construction, collection of arms and training of students in warfare did not take place in days... I cannot believe that Pakistani intelligence was not aware of it!!!! The issue started on 3rd July and continued in a stand off situation till the night of 9th of July when the government was apparently trying to break a deal with the deputy Khatib of Lal Masjid Maulana Abdur Rashid Ghazi (shaheed now).... and somehow a twist in the negotiations happened in the late hours and around 3.30 am the government decided to declare that the negotiations has failed and launched "Operation Silence" against Jamia Hafsa... The building stated collapsing under heavy shelling and firing of bullets... The mother of Maulana Ghazi died around 7-8 am and he himself parted with life around 11 am.. The so called operation is complete now.. Now the government is "washing" the seminary to remove all traces of atrocities and innocent lives gone... The media is still not allowed to go there as the government is fully aware that the sentimental nation of Pakistanis may revolt against the state if they 'see' all that blood and body pieces.. I think this is the saddest period in history of Pakistan, not in terms of casualties, but in terms of the treatment of our government of the ordinary people. At the moment, the media seems to be very neutral and is challenging the government on its intelligence failure and collateral damage, and government is blatantly avoiding answers or accepting the fact that they were really unaware of such level of sophistication warfare machinery in the heart of the capital. Let's see what happens now... I am not very hopeful.. Already many of ordinary people think that "this was done" to make the USA and UK happy.... And, to prove those people right, 2 F-16 fighter planes reached Pakistan exactly the moment when the death news of Ghazi Abdur Rashid was announced on television. There are many other events which people correlate and in the absence of a credible source of information, I don't blame people believing in conspiracy theories... While there are many who are appalled at the attack of a mosque and seminary, at the same time there are others who firmly believe that government should crush such movements so that in future no one should dare to stand against the state. I think this event has created the biggest chasm in the civil society of Pakistan and may escalate into a full fledged civil war. World Bank Reproductive Health Strategy 2007-05-16T12:26:00.000-07:00 World Bank Reproductive Health Strategy Serra Sippel, Center for Health and Gender Equity on May 8, 2007 - 8:45am The Bush administration has gained notoriety for using women's health as a pawn in catering to its ultra-conservative political base. Particularly noticeable is its attempts to narrow the scope in which international agreements and agencies address sexual and reproductive health and rights, such as attempting to remove references to reproductive rights and access to reproductive health services in UN documents, cutting off U.S. funding for UNFPA, and trying to restrict WHO positions on abortion and generic drugs. To this administration, women are always dispensable. Read the complete blog: http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/blog/2007/05/08/world-bank-reproductive-health-strategy Plus: You can access the final HNP Strategy document here: http://www.genderhealth.org/pubs/FinalHNPStrategy.pdf . The report Annexes can be accessed on the World Bank website . The failure of Pakistani feminism by Rafia Zakaria 2007-05-16T10:23:00.000-07:00 The failure of Pakistani feminism, by Rafia Zakaria JH represents failure of Pakistani feminism — Rafia Zakaria The Jamia Hafsa women have made a conscious choice to be part of a violent and radical campaign. But this choice represents the failure of Pakistani feminism to formulate an equally compelling, competing discourse that could truly empower them The pictures of burqa-clad, baton-wielding women of Jamia Hafsa have made it to the newspapers and TV channels across the globe. For those Pakistanis who do not support their militant brand of vigilante justice (and there are many), these women are a bold and taunting illustration of the increasing Talibanisation of Pakistani society. Questions abound. But the most important one has not been asked: why would these women choose a militant and radical brand of Islam, one that ultimately preaches the subservience of women, as their vehicle to political action? Answering this question, and analysing why these women have launched a campaign that so brazenly challenges the state reveals important truths about the state of Pakistani feminism and its failure to provide a political and ideological discourse that could avert this very scenario. It is important to pay close attention to the extremist discourse that has attracted these women. According to newspaper reports, the women of Jamia Hafsa are not just from Islamabad; most belong to religiously conservative families from all over Pakistan. The fact that they have travelled and live without their families in the madrassah represents the legitimising power that religious conservatism has provided them. By donning the burqa and adopting the radical and fundamentalist interpretations of Islam espoused by the Lal Masjid establishment, they have rid themselves of the shackles of familial restriction in a way previously unknown to them. While it is true that the power they wield with the burqa and the stick is ultimately designed to impose an order that would all but eliminate their power in the public sphere, it is nevertheless heady and intoxicating in its ability to transform these women from being the receivers to becoming the perpetrators of violence. The association of women’s empowerment with wealth and moral laxity is a disease that has afflicted Pakistani feminism for decades, the founders of it being women from the elites, who needed a social cause to ease the boredom of long days spent in luxurious villas. In recent years, with the advent of the NGO boom, Pakistani feminism has to some extent redefined itself and expanded its denizens to include liberal, educated middle-class women in urban areas. Despite this, it still remains largely limited to those who can speak the language of women’s rights as a result of English-medium education and the freedom afforded by liberal middle-class families who do not frown on co-education or working outside the home. But few within the liberal NGO cadres have attempted to challenge the virulent combination of Islamic literalism and traditional patriarchy or engage with women from religiously conservative families. Also, disturbingly absent from the NGO discourse are uneducated women; women who work as maids in urban homes, poor women, rural women and those who have to wear the burqa so they will be permitted to get an education. When these poor, rural or religiously conservative women do appear in the discourse of Pakistani feminism they appear always as the victim, being defended or empowered by their more educated, liberal counterparts. Other categories of women are somehow never envisioned as the stalwarts of the struggle towards women’s empowerment. Indeed, many women who professionally champion feminist causes never seem to realise the relevance of issues of economic equality and human dignity when dealing with their own female domestic workers. This double standard of who defines Pakistani feminism was most evident in the wake of Mukhtar Mai’s ascendance to fame and popularity. Many “empowered” Pakistani women spoke publicly about how they were offended by the fact that Mukhtar Mai, a rural and uneducated woman, was representing Pakistan internationally. This double standard and the resulting elitist and exclusionary concept of Pakistani feminism that emerges from it, is in many ways at the heart of the Jamia Hafsa issue. In narrowing in on women excluded from the discourse of the NGO-brand of Pakistani feminism, Maulana Abdur Rashid Ghazi and his brother Abdul Aziz have accomplished a number of things. First they have, by manipulating the religion, provided these women with a moral vehicle through which they (women) can transcend familial objections and partake of social and political activism. Second, through the use of Islamic doctrine, the Lal Masjid agenda is making a compelling critique of the economic disparities in Pakistani society and capitalising on the belief that women’s empowerment is a cause only for the wealthy and irreligious. What is often critiqued as “immoral” is the economic exploitation of those who are neither members of the feudal elite nor the political and military classes bestowed with favours. The recent fatwa against Nilofer Bakhtiar, federal minister, is an apt illustration of the strategy. While aimed at the immorality of hugging her French coach, it also makes a compelling statement about the disconnect between a minister for women’s affairs who can go paragliding in France while millions of women in her country cannot leave their houses without a black shroud covering their faces. (Lal Masjid authorities have since denied issuing any fatwa against Ms Bakhtiar.) This analysis is not meant to illustrate the viability of radical Islam as a vehicle towards women’s empowerment. If anything, I have taken pains to show the tragedy of how the Lal Masjid clerics have manipulated the powerlessness of women to further a grotesquely extremist agenda whose ultimate goal is to subjugate these women even more. The purpose is to show how current discourses in Pakistan on women’s empowerment have to tread beyond the comfortable confines of hotel symposia and rallies; they need to develop strategies that engage the vast swathes of excluded women. The Jamia Hafsa women have made a conscious choice to be part of a violent and radical campaign. But this choice represents the failure of Pakistani feminism to formulate an equally compelling, competing discourse that could truly empower them. Rafia Zakaria is an attorney living in the United States where she teaches courses on Constitutional Law and Political Philosophy. She can be contacted at rafia.zakaria@gmail.com full text is avialble on Daily times. Pakistan - a state at war with itself, By Lal Khan in Lahore 2007-05-16T09:57:00.000-07:00 It is a long scathing commentary on the state of affiars in Pakistan. Agree with most of the description (especially the history) and analysis....I don't think Pakistan can have a succssful socialist movement. Pakistan - a state at war with itself, By Lal Khan in Lahore Tuesday, 15 May 2007 Marxist.com Pakistan - a state at war with itself The situation in Pakistan is marked by the ongoing war in Afghanistan and the tribal areas of Pakistan, the insurgency in Balochistan, the nationalist movement in Sindh, the rise of fundamentalist terror, suicidal attacks, bomb blasts, female Islamic fanatical vigilantes challenging the writ of the state, cross-border terrorism in Kashmir, serious suicidal attempts on Musharraf's own life, the crisis of the judiciary and now the beginning of the civil war in Karachi and elsewhere. This is to name just a few events in the ongoing turmoil in Pakistan. Yet these brutal forces of black reaction that are trying to blow society apart are mostly creations of elements deeply linked the Pakistani state. After the derailment of the 1968-69 Revolution in Pakistan, the ruling classes brought the vicious Zia military dictatorship to power in 1977 as an act of vengeance against the challenge put up by the working classes to the exploitative rule of capitalism. They were eleven years of the most brutal nightmare in the 60 years of Pakistan's traumatic history. In his recent book, "Frontline Pakistan" Zahid Hussain writing about that period states "Afraid to face a free electorate and having no mandate to govern, the general turned to Allah." Faced with a rising mass revolt Zia used religious fundamentalism to prolong his reign of terror. In this he was fully supported by the Americans. In this period the CIA was involved in the counter-revolutiona ry "Jihad" against the left wing PDPA government in Afghanistan. The Zia dictatorship was the main executioner of this operation, not just with American consent but with their full support. General Zia infiltrated Islamic fundamentalism within the State and throughout society. Zia-Ul-Haq moved to Islamise the Pakistani army, weaning it away from its secular British traditions. Islamic philosophy became part of the curriculum at the command and staff colleges. With billions of dollars from the US and Saudi Arabia pouring into its kitty, the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) was turned into a parallel structure wielding enormous power over all aspects of government. Even after Zia's demise, and the so-called democratic interlude of the Benazir and Nawaz Sharif regimes, the stranglehold of the ISI never eased. There were still no significant changes in the control of ISI over foreign policy, the nuclear program and other vital aspects of the state when Musharraf took over through a bloodless military coup in October 1999. Even after 9/11 the ISI continued its logistical and other support for the Islamic fundamentalists' mercenaries in Afghanistan, Kashmir, Central Asia and Pakistan itself. Musharraf did try to rein in the intelligence organizations but with little success. Some of the more fanatical operatives were sidelined, but many more remained in important places from where they have continued to help their reactionary protégés. In the 2002 elections the ISI had assured Musharraf of a friendly parliament and along with the newly fabricated Pakistan Muslim League (Q) they manufactured the Islamic Alliance MMA that was facilitated into getting into parliament. These mullahs later played a decisive role in getting the 17th amendment passed which legitimized Musharraf's presidency in military uniform. The military continued to patronize the religious right. This explains why veiled and armed women from the Jamia Hafsa can march into a children's library in Islamabad while they are still under their enforced occupation. This could also be why the regime backs down and watches helplessly as those vigilante women assume the role of morale patrons and policing and illegally abduct women and children in the heart of Pakistan's capital. Apart from religious prejudices the Zia dictatorship and the ISI created other organizations along linguistic, ethnic and chauvinist lines to drive a wedge into the class unity of the proletariat. The most significant was the creation of the Muhajir Qaumi Movement (MQM) based upon the Urdu speaking immigrants who had moved to Karachi and other cities from UP, CP and other provinces of India. This transmigration was the result of the reactionary partition of the Subcontinent in 1947 on a religious basis. The British imperialists in connivance with the local Hindu and Muslim elite leaders committed this gruesome crime in which more than 2.7 million people were slaughtered in ethnic frenzy. The British and local ruling classes were terrified that the national liberation struggle would pass over into economic and social liberation through a Socialist Revolution. The rise of the MQM was also due to the ebbing of the revolutionary tide that had peaked in the late sixties and early seventies. But the whole process was guided by the agencies of the state. Karachi, which was also known as the Petrograd of Pakistan, has been in the throes of ethnic and sectarian conflicts for almost three decades. The leaders of other national, ethnic and linguistic communities also had a role to play in propping up their own financial interests by whipping up chauvinistic violence between different communities in Karachi. The MQM and the Jamat-i-Islami are in the forefront of fomenting this reactionary frenzy. MQM is a coalition partner of the present Musharraf dictatorship, the governor of Sindh and other important functionaries of the government also belong to the MQM. Over the weekend of May 12-13 more than 40 people were killed and hundreds injured, one television office was ransacked and the city was under the control of an armed mob belonging to the MQM. This is not the first time that the MQM has been involved in brutal killings and genocide. This ethnic chauvinist organization has neo-fascist tendencies like the Islamic fundamentalists, and has a history of involvement in extortion, robberies, crime, plunder and assassination in its power belts. Incidentally Musharraf is also a Muhajir (immigrant from India). On May 12 the suspended chief Justice of the Supreme Court was to visit Karachi and address the Sindh Bar. Various political parties had been trying to use this campaign of the lawyers to foist their own political agenda on the movement. Many rallies were planned to welcome the Chief Justice. But the MQM planned with its own government to crush this movement. Hence, the police and state forces stayed away when the MQM vigilantes went on a shooting spree in different areas of the city. The irony is that MQM also organised a huge rally to mourn those who had been killed in this violence! But the problem for the state is that the Frankenstein monsters that it has created are now getting out of control. Not only is the orgy of violence carried out by the MQM creating a serious law and order problem, but the stooges of the state, the Islamic fundamentalists, MQM and other reactionary outfits are now involved in bloody clashes between each other. The Chief Justice and the Supreme Judiciary who endorsed Musharraf's rule and who have been acting as a safety valve for the regime, now have also fallen apart and the important pillars of the state are colliding with each other. The campaign around the suspended Chief Justice has attained such significance because there is a burning resentment against the regime throughout society. The dominant political parties are not offering any alternative economic programme. Hence, the vacuum. But historically, due to the corrupt character of the Pakistani ruling classes, they have had to rely on the state more and more to cover up their crimes and corruption. In this process the state, and especially the army, interfered in the economy more and more. Now the largest business entrepreneurs and tycoons in the country are the army generals. The black money made from the drug trade and arms smuggling, the operations during the Afghan Jihad of the 1980s and later, all brought in large sums of finance capital into different institutions of the state, especially the army and the ISI. These different sections of finance capital represented within the state's military and civilian bureaucracy are now in conflict with each other. These contradictions have now exploded with such intensity that they have brought the conflicts within the state out into the open. The tragedy is that the PPP is not offering the masses a clear way out from this atrocious situation. It is ironic that while being the traditional party of the masses, its leadership is afraid of the mass movement and is avoiding coming out with the radical socialist programme that is enshrined in its founding documents. Hence the flux and stalemate. Lenin once said "Politics is concentrated economics". The turmoil and convulsions that have gripped the Pakistani state, society and politics are in reality the reflection of the terrible conditions of the economy itself. The present regime has been able to amass the largest trade deficit and the biggest current account deficit in Pakistan's history. According to the latest World Bank survey 74% of the population lives below the poverty line. The rate of inflation for food products has crossed the 15 % barrier; 82% of the population is forced to use non-scientific medication; 52% of children never get enrolled in a proper primary school; half of those enrolled leave school before completing their primary education and the situation is much worse for girls. Three quarters of the population live below the minimum wage of Rs 4000 (48 euros) per month. The infant mortality rate in Pakistan is the highest in the Subcontinent (88 per thousand births). There is rampant unemployment and according to "The News", the main English language newspaper, a further 10,000 people fall below the poverty line every day. Amongst the 34 poorest economies Pakistan is ranked 17th in education and last, i.e. 34th in health in terms of allocation against total expenditure. During 1990-2005 the average share of health spending as a percentage of GNP was 0.68 % and that of education 1.99 percent. In the last sixty years of Pakistan's existence spending on social welfare has been the most neglected. Between 1947 and 2005 the total budgetary allocations have been the following: Foreign Debt and interest repayment - 34.5%; Defence (Military expenditure) - 23%; Total Development - 20.5%. And these are the official figures. Most of the so-called development expenditure is siphoned off by the corrupt bureaucrats, the government and the private contractors and other go-between elements. The regime has been following so-called "trickle down economics" dictated by imperialist financial institutions with a ferocious zeal. The higher the growth rates the greater the social decline. Electricity shortages and load shedding create further problems. There is an energy shortage of 2,500 megawatts. This is not only creating hell for the people in this scorching heat but industry and agriculture are suffering. The policy of privatisation has resulted in a greater outflow of profits than the Direct Foreign Investment coming into the country. For every one dollar that comes into Pakistan 14 dollars are taken out. Now there is not much left to privatise and the total foreign reserves can only sustain 8 to 10 weeks of imports. With the micro and macro indicators showing a dismal and terminally sick economy the prospects of any social and political stability are very bleak to say the least. This economic decline will further aggravate the crisis resulting in greater conflagration and social convulsions. The Musharraf regime is hanging by a thread, one push and it will fall. The Islamic fundamentalists have been exposed, especially after the experiences of their governments in Baluchistan and Pakhtoonkhwaa (North West Frontier Province). The MQM's present violent acts are also the result of their desperation due to the rapid decline in their support especially in Karachi. Being in power at both federal and provincial levels they have totally failed to improve the lot of the impoverished masses. The nationalists in Sindh, Baluchistan, Pakhtoonkhwaa and other areas are splintering and are being reduced to small sects due to their total adherence and compliance to capitalist economics and politics. Benazir Bhutto and the Musharraf regime have been involved in covert negotiations to reach a deal to form a pro-American, "liberal" regime. For the time being this deal has been buried by the explosive events in Karachi and elsewhere. If Benazir forces the PPP into a deal with the Musharraf dictatorship this will demoralize the party activists, but such a regime would be very short lived. The extreme right wing in the state and establishment will not accept her either. The overthrow of such a coalition government would be the beginning of the end for Benazir. Already there is resentment and dismay amongst the PPP ranks. This will explode if Benazir comes to power on the basis of such a conciliatory set up and as the economic crisis intensifies. The perspectives in Pakistan are complex. The state and society are riddled with all sorts of peculiar contradictions. Reactionary forces, albeit superficially, seem to dominate in certain spheres of society. A more vicious and reactionary dictatorial regime is not ruled out, but even if it should come to power it would be very short lived and crisis ridden. It would not last long. The underlying social resentment can explode in a proletarian upheaval as it did in 1968-69. But this time it would be on a much higher plane and with a greater intensity. The reaction of the masses in Karachi and throughout Pakistan in terms of spontaneous strikes shows the potential of the movement and the wrath of the masses that is building up against this regime and despotism in general. The picture of Pakistani society as portrayed by the western media is not only erroneous but also deceptive. The Pakistani proletariat can surprise the world. When the working class moves it will be a decisive moment for the Marxists who have become a considerable force even at the present time. If the PPP leadership is forced to come to power through a movement that overthrows the Musharraf regime such a movement would be pushed radically to the left from its inception and the Marxists can become a major force during the course of such a movement. A PPP regime on a left basis would come into conflict with the state right from the beginning. And such a conflict could only be resolved through a revolution or a counter-revolution. Pakistan is a failed economy, a failed society and a failed state. Capitalism is dragging it ruthlessly towards barbarism. Now the very survival of society and even civilization depends on the success of a Socialist Revolution. If the Pakistani Marxists work with dedication, and correct strategy and tactics, a Socialist victory is entirely possible in the wake of a mass movement of the workers and poor peasants. A successful Socialist Revolution in Pakistan would open the floodgates of revolutionary upheavals throughout South Asia. Lahore, May 14, 2007 democracy? 2007-05-07T18:57:00.000-07:00 the French election results to me were not a "clear victory" for Sarkozy and defeat of Royal. He got 52% votes, while still leaving a 48% voters who voted AGAINST him. Statistically that is a significant number... but the principles of democracy makes you a winner even if it is by one vote. But, is that fair? Why the definition of democracy can't be changed to some CLEAR win, like a at least a difference of 20% between the leading opponents... 3quarksdaily 2007-05-07T18:56:00.001-07:00 An American women who embraced Islam and became a Pakistani writes about sufism... 3quarksdaily Online Matchmaking 2007-05-06T19:36:00.000-07:00 Online matchmaking is a big thriving business, with clients from all over the world. With the rise in presence and usage of internet, it is not a surprise that people are choosing internet to help them find a potential partner.. But, to me, coming from a very traditional culture, where most people, 'still' have arranged marriages, this is old wine in a new bottle. Cricket: Pakistan out, Woolmer dead 2007-03-18T16:45:00.000-07:00 This is really eerie!! On St. Patrick's day (2007) Pakistan's team was defeated by the Irish and sent out of the tournament... This is a major blow for a team which aspires to win the cup every time around... Then to make things further worse, in the evening their coach Bob Woolmer was found dead in his room.. So far the authorities say it is a natural death.. But, he was 58, considerably healthy.. and most people don't see any reason for such sudden death! Further development of the story was that first his death was declared as a murder by strangulation and the first to be doubted were the Pakistanis team!!! However it took several months of investigation before they declared on 15th May, 2007 that: "A UK government pathologist has concluded that Bob Woolmer was not murdered, according to the Times newspaper. Dr Nat Carey said after studying autopsy material that death was not by asphyxiation from strangling, it said." The Pakistanis were jubilant but appalled at the same time on this team and several Pakistanis demanded the ICC and the govts of UK and West Indies to apologize for mud slinging Pakistanis in the murder case. Pakistani Politics a Rant 2007-03-07T11:44:00.000-08:00 Political Blog by a female from Pakistan http://humaimtiaz.blogspot.com/ Let's Burn The Burqa by Taslima 2007-01-24T20:29:00.000-08:00 Magazine| Jan 22, 2007 opinion Let's Burn The Burqa The Quran does prescribe purdah. That doesn't mean women should obey it. TASLIMA NASRIN My mother used purdah. She wore a burqa with a net cover in front of the face. It reminded me of the meatsafes in my grandmother's house. One had a net door made of cloth, the other of metal. But the objective was the same: keeping the meat safe. My mother was put under a burqa by her conservative family. They told her that wearing a burqa would mean obeying Allah. And if you obey Allah, He would be happy with you and not let you burn in hellfire. My mother was afraid of Allah and also of her own father. He would threaten her with grave consequences if she didn't wear the burqa. She was also afraid of the men in the neighbourhood, who could have shamed her. Even her husband was a source of fear, for he could do anything to her if she disobeyed him. As a young girl, I used to nag her: Ma, don't you suffocate in this veil? Don't you feel all dark inside? Don't you feel breathless? Don't you feel angry? Don't you ever feel like throwing it off? My mother kept mum. She couldn't do anything about it. But I did. When I was sixteen, I was presented a burqa by one of my relatives. I threw it away. The custom of purdah is not new. It dates back to 300 BC. The women of aristocratic Assyrian families used purdah. Ordinary women and prostitutes were not allowed purdah. In the middle ages, even Anglo-Saxon women used to cover their hair and chin and hide their faces behind a cloth or similar object. This purdah system was obviously not religious. The religious purdah is used by Catholic nuns and Mormons, though for the latter only during religious ceremonies and rituals. For Muslim women, however, such religious purdah is not limited to specific rituals but mandatory for their daily life outside the purview of religion. A couple of months ago, at the height of the purdah controversy, Shabana Azmi asserted that the Quran doesn't say anything about wearing the burqa. She's mistaken. This is what the Quran says: "Tell the faithful women that they must keep their gaze focused below/on the ground and cover their sexual organs. They must not put their beauty and their jewellery on display. They must hide their breasts behind a purdah. They must not exhibit their beauty to anybody except their husbands, brothers, nephews, womenfolk, servants, eunuch employees and children. They must not move their legs briskly while walking because then much of their bodies can get exposed." (Sura Al Noor 24:31) "Oh nabi, please tell your wives and daughters and faithful women to wear a covering dress on their bodies. That would be good. Then nobody can recognise them and harrass them. Allah is merciful and kind." (Sura Al Hijaab 33: 59) Even the Hadis --a collection of the words of Prophet Mohammed, his opinion on various subjects and also about his work, written by those close to him-- talks extensively of the purdah for women. Women must cover their whole body before going out, they should not go before unknown men, they should not go to the mosque to read the namaaz, they should not go for any funeral. There are many views on why and how the Islamic purdah started. One view has it that Prophet Mohammed became very poor after spending all the wealth of his first wife. At that time, in Arabia, the poor had to go to the open desert and plains for relieving themselves and even their sexual needs. The Prophet's wives too had to do the same. He had told his wives that "I give you permission to go out and carry out your natural work". (Bukhari Hadis first volume book 4 No. 149). And this is what his wives started doing accordingly. One day, Prophet Mohammed's disciple Uman complained to him that these women were very uncomfortable because they were instantly recognisable while relieving themselves.Umar proposed a cover but Prophet Mohammed ignored it. Then the Prophet asked Allah for advice and he laid down the Ayat (33:59) (Bukhari Hadis Book 026 No. 5397). This is the history of the purdah, according to the Hadis. But the question is: since Arab men too relieved themselves in the open, why didn't Allah start the purdah for men? Clearly, Allah doesn't treat men and women as equals, else there would be purdah for both! Men are higher than women. So women have to be made walking prisons and men can remain free birds. Another view is that the purdah was introduced to separate women from servants. This originates from stories in the Hadis. One story in the Bukhari Hadis goes thus: After winning the Khyber War, Prophet Mohammed took over all the properties of the enemy, including their women. One of these women was called Safia. One of the Prophet's disciples sought to know her status. He replied: "If tomorrow you see that Safia is going around covered, under purdah, then she is going to be a wife. If you see her uncovered, that means I've decided to make her my servant." The third view comes from this story. Prophet Mohammed's wife Ayesha was very beautiful. His friends were often found staring at her with fascination. This clearly upset the Prophet. So the Quran has an Ayat that says, "Oh friends of the prophet or holy men, never go to your friend's house without an invitation. And if you do go, don't go and ask anything of their wives". It is to resist the greedy eyes of friends, disciples or male guests that the purdah system came into being. First it was applicable to only the wives of the holy men, and later it was extended to all Muslim women. Purdah means covering the entire body except for the eyes, wrist and feet. Nowadays, some women practise the purdah by only covering their hair. That is not what is written in the Hadis Quran. Frankly, covering just the hair is not Islamic purdah in the strict sense. In the early Islamic period, Prophet Mohammed started the practice of covering the feet of women. Within 100 years of his death, purdah spread across the entire Middle East. Women were covered by an extra layer of clothing. They were forbidden to go out of the house, or in front of unknown men. Their lives were hemmed into a tight regime: stay at home, cook, clean the house, bear children and bring them up. In this way, one section of the people was separated by purdah, quarantined and covered. Why are women covered? Because they are sex objects. Because when men see them, they are roused. Why should women have to be penalised for men's sexual problems? Even women have sexual urges. But men are not covered for that. In no religion formulated by men are women considered to have a separate existence, or as human beings having desires and opinions separate from men's. The purdah rules humiliate not only women but men too. If women walk about without purdah, it's as if men will look at them with lustful eyes, or pounce on them, or rape them. Do they lose all their senses when they see any woman without burqa? My question to Shabana and her supporters, who argue that the Quran says nothing about purdah is: If the Quran advises women to use purdah, should they do so? My answer is, No. Irrespective of which book says it, which person advises, whoever commands, women should not have purdah. No veil, no chador, no hijab, no burqa, no headscarf. Women should not use any of these things because all these are instruments of disrespect. These are symbols of women's oppression. Through them, women are told that they are but the property of men, objects for their use. These coverings are used to keep women passive and submissive. Women are told to wear them so that they cannot exist with their self-respect, honour, confidence, separate identity, own opinion and ideals intact.So that they cannot stand on their own two feet and live with their head held high and their spine strong and erect. Some 1,500 years ago, it was decided for an individual's personal reasons that women should have purdah and since then millions of Muslim women all over the world have had to suffer it. So many old customs have died a natural death, but not purdah. Instead, of late, there has been a mad craze to revive it. Covering a woman's head means covering her brain and ensuring that it doesn't work. If women's brains worked properly, they'd have long ago thrown off these veils and burqas imposed on them by a religious and patriarchal regime. What should women do? They should protest against this discrimination. They should proclaim a war against the wrongs and ill-treatment meted out to them for hundreds of years. They should snatch from the men their freedom and their rights. They should throw away this apparel of discrimination and burn their burqas. (Nasrin, a Bangladeshi writer, currently lives in Calcutta) __._,_.___ Life in Pakistan, December 2006 2006-12-22T03:50:00.000-08:00 I am in Pakistan after 5 months.... Almost the same time has elasped since mother's death... While I write, I can't help but notice how dusty the city has become, due to the construction of roads and massive deforestation.... I have already caught a cold. I Feel tired, fearful and frustrated. Mother's legacy is still continued.. And her second husband is trying his best to deprive me and my sister of any share in her insurance and other funds.. First of all, the government of Pakistan "discovered" that in the land of the pure, personal Will and nominations do not hold valid, and everything is divided according to "Sharia"... Which means that husband gets 1/4 of the total, parents get 1/6... And the rest is distributed among the children in such a way that boys get double the share of girls... According to that distribution, I would get 6% (if I get anything).. But the latest is the discovery that insurance is distributed according to income, and hence anyone earning Rs. 2,000 (~35US$) is not eligible to receive anything. I fear that this stipulation has been highlighted by the husband of my mother who has been consulting lawyers since the day she died, to get the maximum benefit, by hook or crook. So wherever sharia is beneficial for him he will bring that forward and wherever it is not, he will come up with some other intricacies of the law. I don't understand how can he even claim to be the husband whereas he got a second wife 7 years ago and since then was not living with my dead mother... And she is the one who suffered financially and emotionally because of him.. he did not provide her with any money, and they did not have any physical relationship for the past many many years (because he could easily get younger bodies for that)... In that situation, we the sisters were there.... Of course, our presence was not enough for her happiness, but we did what we could do best, because we felt it was our responsibility... Now when she is dead, we are being treated as if we did not have anything to do with her.. Even the law of Islamic Republic of Pakistan is siding with this corrupt man.. Had it not been for Ashfaq, who works for police, I would have felt threatened for life in this country... Now, I know that God forbid, if anything happens to me... My friends know who my enemy is and they are powerful enough to take him to justice.. But alas, they cannot help me now, because to deal with corruption you need to be more corrupt!!!! Another legacy that poor woman left was a big piece of land in the outskirts of Murree, a district close to Islamabd... The land is worth 3.5 million rupees. The papers were with the property dealer when mother died.. He has been saying that the land will be sold any day.... But we are still waiting for the last 5 months.. He faces threats for life as well from Mr. Bahauddin.. But let's hope that he can sell the land.... We intend to distribute the money according to "Sharia"... (To avoid any complications)... The land of the pure seems to be land of the man, where not only the social but the legal structures side with men.. Women, who do not have support of any (strong) man can be exploited to the extreme.. And to prove my point I just want to note what the whole cases of Mukhtaran Mai and Dr. Shazia.. Who were raped but when they created a fuss they were branded as enemies of the state and the religion. Saving mothers of Pakistan 2006-12-21T01:10:00.000-08:00 Safemotherhood Pakistan Alliance, the brainchild and passion of Dr. Farid Midhet partnerd with the globbal white ribbon alliance, recently. The launching was celebrated yesterday in Pakistan Isntitute of Medical Sciences, Islamabad auditorium. I was lucky enough to join my colleagues on this auspicious occassion. Here is am em from Dr. Farid about the event: Dear Friends, Today we launched the White Ribbon Alliance, Pakistan, to join the global struggle to save mothers' lives. The simple ceremony was held in the MCH Training Center Auditorium of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Islamabad. We started with recitation from holy Quran by Fayyaz. Fayyaz was also our moderator, and did a superb job at that. Dr. Nabeela and I then presented a brief scenario of maternal and neonatal health in Pakistan, and a history of our Alliance. Then four real life stories of maternal deaths were shared by close relatives of the deceased women. This was followed by recognizing all mothers present in the audience by presenting them with garlands. In the end, Imtiaz Apa recited her famous poem on Mother. All participants pledged at least three actions they will do to promote safe motherhood in Pakistan. The ceremony had no Chairperson, no Chief Guest, no Kenote Speaker. The stage chairs remained empty throughout the ceremony. We will share with you all a detailed report shortly. I could not resist to share with you all the first report. This ceremony was made possible by Dr Gahzala Mahmood's genoursly offering the premises, and by the efforts of Dr. Nabeela and her excellent team of professionals. My personal thanks to the organizers and participants. Best wishes, Farid Midhet Phone: +92(0)51 265 0523 (Work) 447 0563 (Home) Mobile 0300 856 3072 fmidhet@pk.asiafound.org; fmidhet@gmail.com ________________________ article on bikini vs. the burqa (not mine) 2006-10-26T02:06:00.000-07:00 The Debauchery of American Womanhood: Bikini vs. Burka By Henry Makow Ph.D. On my wall, I have a picture of a Muslim woman shrouded in a burka. Beside it is a picture of an American beauty contestant, wearing nothing but a bikini. One woman is totally hidden from the public; the other is totally exposed. These two extremes say a great deal about the clash of so-called "civilizations." The role of woman is at the heart of any culture. Apart from stealing Arab oil, the impending war in the Middle East is about stripping Arabs of their religion and culture, exchanging the burka for a bikini. I am not an expert on the condition of Muslim women and I love feminine beauty too much to advocate the burka here. But I am defending some of the values that the burka represents for me. For me, the burka represents a woman's consecration to her husband and family. Only they see her. It affirms the privacy, exclusivity and importance of the domestic sphere. The Muslim woman's focus is her home, the "nest" where her children are born and reared. She is the "home" maker, the taproot that sustains the spiritual life of the family, nurturing and training her children, providing refuge and support to her husband. In contrast, the bikinied American beauty queen struts practically naked in front of millions on TV. A feminist, she belongs to herself. In practice, paradoxically, she is public property. She belongs to no one and everyone. She shops her body to the highest bidder. She is auctioning herself all of the time. In America, the cultural measure of a woman's value is her sex appeal. (As this asset depreciates quickly, she is neurotically obsessed with appearance and plagued by weight problems.) As an adolescent, her role model is Britney Spears, a singer whose act approximates a strip tease. From Britney, she learns that she will be loved only if she gives sex. Thus, she learns to "hook up" rather than to demand patient courtship and true love. As a result, dozens of males know her before her husband does. She loses her innocence, which is a part of her charm. She becomes hardened and calculating. Unable to love, she is unfit to receive her husband's seed. The feminine personality is founded on the emotional relationship between mother and baby. It is based on nurturing and self-sacrifice. Masculine nature is founded on the relationship between hunter and prey. It is based on aggression and reason. Feminism teaches woman that feminine nature has resulted in "oppression" and that she should convert to male behavior instead. The result: a confused and aggressive woman with a large chip on her shoulder, unfit to become a wife or mother. This, of course, is the goal of the social engineers at the NWO: undermine sexual identity and destroy the family, create social and personal dysfunction, and reduce population. In the "brave new world," women are not supposed to be "nest" makers, or progenitors of the race. They are meant to be neutered autonomous creatures that indulge in sex for physical pleasure, not for love or procreation. At his press conference on Sunday, Donald Rumsfeld said that Iranian women and youth were restive under the rule of the Mullahs. He implied that the US would soon liberate them. To Britney Spears? To low-rise "see-my-thong" pants? To the mutual masturbation that passes for sexuality in America? Parenthood is the pinnacle of human development. It is the stage when we finally graduate from self-indulgence and become God's surrogates: creating and nurturing new life. The New World Order does not want us to reach this level of maturity. Pornography is the substitute for marriage. We are to remain stunted: single, sex-starved and self-obsessed. We are not meant to have a permanent "private" life. We are to remain lonely and isolated, dependent on consumer products for our identity, in a state of perpetual courtship. This is especially destructive for woman. Her sexual attraction is a function of her fertility. As fertility declines, so does her sex appeal. If a woman devotes her prime years to becoming "independent," she is not likely to find a permanent mate. Her long-term personal fulfillment and happiness lies in making marriage and family her first priority. Feminism is another cruel New World Order hoax that has debauched American women and despoiled Western civilization. It has ruined millions of lives and represents a lethal threat to Islam. I am not advocating the burka but rather some of the values that it represents, specifically a woman's consecration to her future husband and family, and the modesty and dignity this entails. The burka and the bikini represent two extremes. The answer lies somewhere in the middle. Henry Makow is the author of A Long Way to go for a Date. He received his Ph.D. in English Literature from the University of Toronto. He welcomes your feedback and ideas at h...@savethemales.ca. http://www.savethemales.ca/180902.html some airlines from the mekong region 2006-10-26T00:08:00.000-07:00 i this Air Asia is the best for travelling within mekong region plus indonesia and malaysia.. Then orient airways and bangkok airways (thai) both provide good deals for some routes... lao airlines and vietnam airlines could be considered but they are not well reputed.. iFaqeer 2006-10-23T21:47:00.000-07:00 iFaqeer!! I wish i could be like him... Free will and the love of God 2006-09-25T14:52:00.000-07:00 why do we need religion? is it due to some spiritual yearning, that is embedded in our human nature (if we have a nature) or is it a socially construted tool to control the masses? Democracy and the colonial mind 2006-09-21T13:17:00.000-07:00 The current election campaign in the US, Hawaii and especially Hale Manoa make me wonder about the spirit and purpose and the process of achieving democracy. The biggest problem with this form of government is that it takes all votes equal, regardless of the capacity of making the right decision, assuming that everyone is equally capable and predisposed to choosing a leader and understanding what is leadership. I wonder, how in a diverse culture such as ours, where many students are 'used' to authoritarian regimes and/or dynanistic/farce democracies can make rational choice about a leader. It seems that most of us are still in the process of evolving into democratic beings.. Historically, we have had too long a history of living in totalitarian regimes. Now, we think of a leader, someone who can lead us, even if that means on the leash, rather than someone who we identify with, someone who we can relate to us, someone who is more akin to us, someone who can easily empathise with us. But, somehow, we think that we need someone who is 'different', 'better' who can control, someone more 'aggressive'. This is obviously a manifestation of a mind which evolved in a colonial culture, which has drilled in our mind that the leaders are inherently different than the followers. We get upset when a washerman gets elected as a Nazim in Pakistan, because he will now have more power over some technocrat. But, hey, he is chosen by the people, he is a better representative (as per the doctrine of democracy)... But, no people would rather go for the remains of some erstwhile ruler (ie Benazir, Sonia, Khalida, Hasina etc.), rathar than even trying some 'commioner'. That is not possible to change, even in theory, that let's stop and question the basis of a 'state' and who should govern us. Pakistan has been palying hide and seek with sham democracy since its creation, and in the 60 years of its life, 5 decades were passed in military rule, but people are somehow complacent. Barely managing to survive (one third of the country lives in chronic poverty), they have other worries, like what will they eat next day, than who is the head of state, when Musharraf will take of his uniform, what is deccetralization, trickle down effect of high GDP growth rate. They would be dead anyway, when the benefits of 8% growth rate makes even the first dent in their lives. The point of this is to think the usefulness of democracy, a government of the people by the people for the people, without educating the 'people' the principles and purpose of this type of government. new political problems of pakistan 2006-09-18T12:50:00.000-07:00 well it was Balochistan some times ago, then killing of Bugti and making him a provincial hero.. and now it is the Hudood (Islamic) laws which needs to be changed for their obvious contradictions, big loopholes and deviation from Islam. For example, rape victims who cannot produce four (male) witnesses who saw the "act of penetration" to prove that they were raped, are by default tried for adultery/fornication. Or anyone (including family members) who are upset with someone can find fake witnesses and accuse them of adultery/fornication. As a result of which, majority of female jail inmates in Pakistan are awaiting trials for Zina cases!!! Mother died 2006-07-27T03:46:00.000-07:00 on the 21st of July, 2006 mother died.. it was rather sudden though she was sick for a while... but i was not expecting that she would leave this world.... What a terrible thing is death... there are many regrets.. but am getting so much support from so many people around the world that i can't really be unhappy... The height of heat 2006-07-10T01:49:00.000-07:00 The last few days were the worst period of the year. Islamabad experienced a heat index of 50 degrees celsuis.... What needs to be done for Pakistan 2006-06-26T23:34:00.000-07:00 The country is infested with many problems...the root causes: poverty and overpopulation. At the time of independence in 1947, the population was around 30 million, which has increased five folds in the last 5 decades and the demographic forces are dragging the number up to 300 million in 2050. At that time we would perhaps be the 3rd in terms of population, right after India and China. But, with the level of resources we have, at that time, we would most probably be at the bottom of the ladder in economic and social development. What should be done in this scenario? We cannot curtail the population growth drastically. For that we would have to follow the rights based approach which means that the people should make their own choices about the number of children they want to have, the timing of having children and what methods to use for either spacing or stopping childbearing. And, then there is the question of what programs should take priority-- should we strive for universal education, water and sanitation, primary health, infra structure or population control? This is a billion dollar question. My answer is that we need everything. But, if we really need to make a hierarchical list, then population planning (control is the wrong word) and primary health care should top the list. Then comes economic reforms, universal primary education, governance, environment issues, water management etc. It seems that most people can take care of themselves if the conditions are right, for example in the absence of government supply of water or natural gas, people pump water from underground and buy gas cylinders... In the absence of (good quality) health and education services, the affluent classes go to the private sector for their needs as they can afford it, and why shouldn't they! But, the real problems are for the chronically poor of this country, those who cannot even have two meals a day, let alone send their kids to schools and buy medicines. They live in one room households, with no water, no natural gas for cooking, do not have access to schooling (for various reasons), and cannot afford health care. In a resource poor country like ours, we should take into account the needs of those people. The programs and policies should have a long term vision and thinking in should take a holistic approach as we are not living in island and in order to survive we need all the basic necessities which are linked with each other anyway. For example, who can deny the links between deforestation and overpopulation, water shortages and poor governance, democracy and freedom of media, media's role in behaviour change etc etc. In short, Pakistan needs leaders who are good managers, not politicians who are fighting over whether trouser and shirt is Islamic or not. At present, we all have to be realistic and solve the problems of basic survival needs of the people, and that solution has to be long term, sustainable and acceptable by the people. loney among friends!!!! 2006-06-26T23:26:00.000-07:00 Though I have a number of friends in Isloo, but at times I feel really lonely.... Don't have a single friend who would be interested in the things that I am interested in, like hiking, movies, cultural activities etc. The only activitiy that I do with my friends is visiting their homes, eating food, drinking tea and chit chat about general life. I guess the only friends with whom I enjoy most are Mehmood and Hammad and both are not in Islamabad, at present..... It is perhaps easier to be your own friend.... have a car and do whatever you want to do!!!! Or perhaps find a 'activity' partner... But how do you do that in Pakistan... I mean, finding a partner is not hard, even keeping him is also not that difficult.... But mantaining a platonic relationship and still not affecting the relatioship is almost impossible. Most guys here do not understand the meaning of NO.... They think a woman's NO is actually a secret YES, because women are not supposed to take interest in SEX!!! "Culture" in Isloo 2006-06-13T22:42:00.000-07:00 Islamabad, considered a cultural dead city is finally growing up and you find various cultural activities to take part in. Some of the good places to look for are: Islamabad Cultural Forum Pakistan Academy of Letters Pakistan-India Forum for Peace and Democracy Civil Junction Art of Living Activities Asian Studies Group The best would be to read the "What's On" column in the daily News, especially on Saturday and Sunday. Other than that several activities are announced through bill boards and banners through out city, so pay attention to those. Hudood Ordinance 2006-06-13T04:15:00.000-07:00 It was refreshing to watch the debate on Hudood Ordinance on Geo Television Channel. At least someone for the first time had the guts to lay their fingers on this topic on which the whole nation seems to be super sensitive. While the debate showed that there are Islamic scholars and lawyers in Pakistan who may dare to discuss such a topic in a non emotional manner. However, it was pretty obvious that there is still a section of society which is paranoid about such a debate lest it legtimizes consensual sex in the countyr. They think such a debate is a foreign agenda to tear the fabric of our society!! Islamabad sizzling 2006-06-13T03:43:00.000-07:00 Recently the temperature is stuck around 40 degrees C (108 F)... Our house is like a oven (having no AC). And on top of that someties there is power outage. Don't know how people sleep at night in this weather. But I should not complain... There is running water and electricity, a luxury for the middle and poorer classes of the country... There is no regular 'loadshedding' here, at least in our area. In Karachi, they are saying that there is daily loadshedding of electricity for many hours. Water is a problem all over the country, including the bold and beautiful Islamabad... Only in our area Naval Colony we are no facing any serious water shortages as they have dug a new well. I wonder what will they do after a few years, when even this new well dries up. All over Islamabad, people are digging wells with motor pumps (as a result water pipe prices have suddenly sky rocketed). People are concerned for their own water, their own electricity and own comfort. Their actions are motivated by personal interest and only for the present... No future oriented thinking. Living in the present is good but our actions that can have far reaching affects should share some responsibility for future. We owe at least something to the future generations. In the public discourse, I haven't observed any paranoia, fear, anger or just a heated discussion on the water problem. People are happy to dig new wells or discuss the dam issues. It seems that perhaps we are waiting for an emergency to take any action. Or we are too scared to face the reality!!! Art of living 2006-06-07T04:52:00.000-07:00 Yesterday I joined the art of living Islamabad, Pakistan chapter basic course. The course is basically about Pranayama (life force) and how we can enhance the pranayama within us. This is supposed to release stress, tension and depressions. Here are some of the teachings. Life is dependant on four things: air (breath), water, food, and environment we live in. And in order to live truly harmoniously we have to balance our lives by avoiding things that reduce the prana. For example, things that we consume regularly like tea, coffee, cigratte, all have prana reducing agents and should be avoided as much as possible. (I can't stop tea drinking). Similarly, meat (all kinds, including fish) should be avoided as meat takes about 78 hours to digest and depeletes lot of prana! 7 layers of the self: body, breath, mind, intellect, memory, ego, and self. The first 6 layers are different for all, but we are all the same at the level of self, which is the spirit or God. The breathing exercises would help us all achieve that level. Earthquake blues 2006-06-06T21:51:00.000-07:00 Even though it has been 8 months since the earthquake of October 2005, people I meet still talk about it... The picture they draw of the experience is horrific and horrendous. It seems that the experience has definitely punctuated the lives of the people strongly, making them think about life and its purpose, seriously. Thank God that I have not heard of any casualties of people that I directly know of with the exception of Shahnaz Kapadia, a middle aged widow, who lost her elder son and is struggling with the life of the younger one. The stories of the fall of margalla towers only is enough to realize the unpredictibility and uncertainity of life. Fate has been really cruel to some people, and there is no rational justification to understand that why those innocent people had to lose their lives or thier limbs, and in such harsh manner, fighting tons of rubble. I do not know of any direct stories of Bagh, Muzaffarabad and Balakot (the whole city was destroyed). But I did hear stories showing the best and the worst of humanity. While so much aid came from all over the world and the country and so many people went to help with the relief work, there were people looting the crushed houses, abducting children, merchants hiking prices of even such things as the shrouds for the deadbodies. I could not believe that the price of KAFAN would sky rocket as the demand surged all of a suddent. In that moment of national disaster, I would have thought that KAFAN prices should have come down!!! Anyway, it seems that in terms of relief and rehabilitation, no stone was left unturned.... My friends and other people who visited the affected areas said that there were enough food, clothes, blankets and medicines etc. One friend commented that she has never seen such nice blankets in her entire life. Thanks to the international community for their immediate support. And, thanks to America too!!! A special mention is needed as I heard stories of special efforts of the American army, doctors and nurses. Someone said that most of the relief and search efforts would not have been possible without American assitance and their sincere support. But alas, the people of Kashmir even then fired on american aircrafts!! Well, coming back to margallah towers in Isloo, the whole tower, even thee portion that was unaffected looks haunted. Noone lives there now, a place which used to be one of the most expensive places to live is frequented by ghosts now...the broken tower breaks your heart everytime you look at it reminiding of all the people who were burried under tons and tons of rubble, never to come back or only to survive sans arms or legs or both. How fragile and strong are human beings!! 9/11 hangovers 2006-05-30T01:14:00.000-07:00 visited the bookshop Mr. books (the oldest bookstore of Islamabad). The books that were highlighted in their shelves gave me a sense of deja vous-- they were mainly related to Islam, terrorism, Pakistani authors writing in English. Most of the books are also part of my amazon.com orders and wishlist. Why is it so? Is it that I am reading what every Pakistani is reading? I doubt. This is perhaps a manifestation of some other malice... Something that is eating the so called moderates.. The price of being a Muslim in the post 9/11 period. It seems the modern Muslim who wants to distinguish himself/herself from the overly liberated or fundamental lot has to be apologetic for all the misdeeds committed by those groups. They are trying to bridge the west and the east by pretending that there is no clash of civilization and an understanding between these two worlds is possible... Notable figures in this regard, that I can think of right now, are people like Fareed Zakria and Isra Nomani! Welcome to Pakistan 2006-05-30T01:04:00.000-07:00 well i am back to Pakistan, hopefully for 5 or 6 weeks... I see many changes in Islamabad, most notably a well managed traffic thanks to the introduction of the Motorway police that does not spare anyone... and enforces the law blindly. It seems that everyone is happy with this change.. Heard that this is one of the many initiatives of SSP isloo, Dr. Taimuri who is the best thing that has ever happened to Islamabad... however, there is another person who may contest this title, chairman CDA mr. kamran lashari! His work is clearly visible in the city.... the streets are well marked, the city is cleaner than before, there are more maps and sign boards all over and most of all more cultural and social activities happening in the city.. But there are several who consider him corrupt and incompetent.. the biggest blame which i have heard so far is baring isloo of its green belt and mindless construction.. Don't know if that is enough to not give him any credit for all the good work he is doing.... other things notable... the biggest is heat and scarcity of water... Too many cars on the road... all the three are increasing day by day and i wonder what will happen in the next few years!! It seems we are moving towards a big ecological disaster! Life is as boring as before... things have become more expensive.. ie petrol is now 60 rupees per liter! Gold is 15,000 rupees per tola! These things should not bother me.. but indirectly that impacts the prices of basic commodities and makes it difficult to mantain the guise of SOFED POSHI!!! Expert Development Jobs 2006-04-30T04:31:00.000-07:00 Expert Development Jobs Rambling on 2006-04-29T18:52:00.000-07:00 Rambling on Having fun at Jay Hubert's birthday 2006-03-29T02:23:00.000-08:00 They are playing twisted at the party.. it is a great game to involve people quickly... the beauty of this game is that almost anyone can play this game and really enjoy as the rules are not difficult but winning requires physical flexibility and mental agility!! Another highlight of the party was that Jay did a extampore parody on brokeback mountain them and sang a song with his Texan hat! Gekko in big island 2006-03-29T02:19:00.000-08:00 never thought i would see a gekko in real life.. it is so vibrantly green thaat at first i thought it is artificial... then when i saw two of them and that they seem to be using thier brains to move i realized i am looking at hawaii's official lizard (or something).. and that it is beautiful!1 2006-02-18T23:44:00.000-08:00 I would like to travel in the mekong countries during june-august, 2006.... visa, money and saftery is a big concern for me.. as for time.. i would have pelenty of time, as i am not taking any classes during that period... it is one of dreams to be a back pack traveller for 2 months continously...... i am so much looking forward to that..