Gujranwala gives the verdict

Sunday 23^rd November 2014, PTI led by Imran Khan hit tsunami at the heart of Noon League political Citadel of Gujranwala despite heavy opposition of sitting Nawaz/Shahbaz Sharif Government. Noon league supporters had prepared themselves to bash this Jalsa by throwing eggs, tomatoes and shoes. (Which their own Zaeem Qadri discredited on news channels) Noon league had to witness yet again a mass of people joining the PTI Jalsa right before their eyes.

So what is this phenomenon of people joining the Jalsa in every city that Khan gives a call for? (Mind you the call for these jalsas is only days apart)According to Noon league and its other statuesque parties, it is just music and fun that people divert to get minds off their stressful lives. Really? If that was the case, one can see the spirit/charged up both men and women enclosures in support of Khan. If it was only an escape from stress, there are better alternatives for people to divert their energies. Noon league cannot comprehend that being in power for the past almost seven years straight now; it has failed to deliver what it promised to their voters. They have disappointed their voters to the point that now people have taken the decision into their own hands.

What is even more comical is the way Federal Ministers start their press conferences with reference to Khan and PTI. Today one such ludicrous “comedy show” was conducted by the Minister of Information Pervez Rasheed. (Only God knows what his disinformation is based upon everytime he calls up a press conf) According to his allegations Khan was misusing “Plane of a Public Limited Company for political purposes through public funds.” Well Mr. Rasheed, if PTI led Government in KP of just 17 months and few days old are alleged of this information you could take out against Khan then Pakistani’s are most happy about it. Thank God there aren’t any Gazillions of rupees of kick backs involved in this, thank God, the PTI led by Imran Khan is not charged with money laundering, thank God, the PTI led Government of Imran Khan is not leeching public money for creating personal properties off shore. In short, thank God, this is all you could dig out! As for the public funds, those refer tax payers’ money; one can see there is no tax payers money involved in this allegation since the said plane is always paid through the party fund. In response Jahangir Khan Tareen of PTI tweeted that “Jahangir Khan Tareen @JahangirKTareen
All payments for plane use are fully documented. Pervaiz Rasheed should expect a legal notice from JDW for defamation.”

Fact of the matter is; Minister Rasheed of Noon league was termed by Mr. Asad Umer of PTI as the “Geobbels of the status quo.” (Pronounced GOBELZ) What does Asad Umer mean by Geobbels? Through history we find out that “Joseph Goebbels was one of Hitler's closest associates and Minister of Propaganda in Germany. Geobbels was a cool, sarcastic & an orator; often humorous. During the World War two, Goebbels tried to boost German morale by writing innumerable speeches, promising wonder weapons and providing projections of a final victory that he knew were pure fantasy. Right until the end of the war he worked to encourage the German people to resist the Allies with all their strength. At the same time he knew that defeat would have dire consequences for Hitler.” By showing the sunny side up, Mr. Rasheed is taking his leader slowly towards doom as the history shows.

This press conference was timed to disrupt the Jalsa coverage by media which was a hopeless attempt by Mr. Rasheed. Neither the media stopped its coverage nor did his press conference leave any impact on the viewers. Instead, one felt sorry for this 70 plus year old gentleman, at his respectable age, and political experience he has one expected a wise, humble elderly who would have guided the young nation to truth instead of falsehood. Todays press conference only showed one thing; that this Government is nervous, scared and beyond confidence. The term “Rigging” haunts them day and night and such powerful jalsa’s are taking away their left sanity.
So while the above mentioned press conference took place, Khan on the other hand, explained the number of deaths in Tharparkar due to the negligence of Sindh Government and the numerous deaths of children in Sargodha Government hospitals due to the negligence of the Punjab Government. His emphasis was again on people’s power, on the right of people to question their governments misdoing, on people knowing all facts, on justice, equality, nepotism, corruption.

The growing number of people attending the PTI jalsas vindicates that they are fed up of false hopes and promises of the present statuesque parties, they want to see and witness change in this corrupted system. Imran Khan is not their relative whom they favor by showing their presence, they want to secure the future of their children, they want this system to take an exit forever, and that is why they chant #GoNawazGo!

Copyright ©2011-2050 Ayesha Zee Khan. Reproduction: Poetry/articles/stories strictly prohibited.

30 Days & Growing Strong

14^th September marks one month of Dharna or Sit-in of Azadi March PTI. Majority people in Pakistan had a view that PTI supporters would be unable to withstand the harsh realities that they were up against. Many called these supporters “the confused lot” “the disillusioned” “the burger crowd” “the mummy daddy kids” etc. Whatever phrases were coined for these people who belong mainly to the female gender, house wives, students, trained professionals, media personalities, writers, poets, taxi drivers to lawyers, laborers to IT Experts, Engineers to daily wage earners all have proved their critics wrong. They were mocked that they only attend the Jalsa in the evening, the mockers forget professionals would usually return after 5pm to D-Chowk because the working class would contribute to their jobs and society during the day and in the evening protest against the dualities of this Govt. They stood firm in hot humid weather, thunder and rain, tear gas shelling and live bullets, they have shown they will change the course of History for their coming generation.

So what is it that made them withstand?
The message of Imran Khan was clear for them, it made sense to what he said, and his talk of reconstruction, reorganization and reform the corrupted system was the most pragmatic solution they had ever heard. While they had seen and lived the life around corrupted adulterated system of Pakistan, a man who talked of reviving the rotten system felt like a breath of fresh air. A dream every Pakistani has whether he/she lives inland or abroad. Khans words are engraved in the hearts & minds of people, they have literally memorized their constitutional rights that have been repeated by Khan through his speeches in the last 29 days. This one NATION day call by Imran Khan was taken very seriously by those who know they will bring a change.Why are people chanting Go Nawaz Go?

Distribution of Wealth in Pakistan is highly uneven, with the top 10% of the population earning 27.6% and the bottom 10% earning only 4.1% of the income. If one observes this society closely one will notice that Pakistan comprises of three worlds that live within its borders. On the top is the Elite class which is world one of this country. They enjoy the perks of being in power, affluent in resources they often spend their summer vacations abroad, their relatives are mostly in top positions who lend favors at the drop of the hat. For this class breaking the law of the land is no big deal because they do not come into the net of law ever.

Having influential’s to save their backs this class is seen as the most corrupt, law breakers and tax evaders. Landlords enjoy great political power in Pakistan and always clinch the top political positions;
the elite classes have virtually taken over every aspect of life and have left no breathing space for the public. Even the media, which can prove to be a source of activism and hope for the people, is hostage to brutally rich landlords, corrupt industrialists, so-called activists (themselves belonging to strong political or industrialist families), champions of human rights (themselves biggest violators of human rights) and so-called young revolutionaries (coming from elite classes with Ivy League education; common Pakistanis, on the other hand, cannot afford to pay even a couple of hundred rupees to get enlisted in a government school). They exploit common people on one hand and make lame claims about the sufferings of the downtrodden on local & international media. Pakistan’s non-taxpaying elite have disengaged themselves from their need for the state, and are no longer dependent on state resources. The elite have their own schools, hospitals, generators and security. Why should they pay taxes voluntarily to a government whose resources they don’t use?
They earn from Pakistan from which ever means, make properties abroad,  have Swiss accounts, and when they see the noose of law getting tighter they take a flight out of Pakistan anytime.

These elite will not voluntarily contribute to public revenue, although given the extent of tax evasion; they need to do so far more than anyone else. The only way one can expect Pakistan’s tax-to-GDP ratio to improve, is through the concerted and collective political action of those who are vested in Pakistan and they are the middle class people who use the services and are dependent on the resources of Pakistan.

World two is where the middle class (this comprises of upper, and lower) of Pakistan lives, these people are mostly working professionals, or middle cadre entrepreneurs, middle order agriculturists, they abide by the law of the land, pay taxes regularly and are most connected to the country, its politics, its well-being and its stability. This class has given the best of sportsmen, scientists, writers, poets, thinkers, soldiers, artists, media people, Engineers, doctors you name it. These salaried people of Pakistan are most patriotic and engraved with the philosophy of this country. The only way one can expect Pakistan’s tax-to-GDP ratio to improve, is through the concerted and collective political action of those who are vested in Pakistan and they are the middle class people who use the services and are dependent on the resources of Pakistan. It is the working people of Pakistan, as well as the middle classes, who have to gain political power to force the non-taxpaying elite to do so.

Then there are those have-nots or the third world within Pakistan who live below the usual standards of world poverty. Those who have no access to drinking clean water, no education, no health facilities, no equal rights, no equal opportunities who survive on merely one or two meals a day. According to the Human Development Index (HDI) 60.3% of Pakistan's population lives on under $2 a day, compared to 79% in nearby India and 81.3% in nearby Bangladesh, the lowest rate in South Asia after Sri Lanka and some 28.6% live under $1 a day, compared to 24.9% in India and 49.6% in Bangladesh.


Common Pakistanis have a simple question for this elite:: 

What is the moral standing of these rich classes? If they are so sympathetic to the cause of the poor, why don't they distribute their huge fortunes among the public; this can at least help in the social uplift of some people of society. 

There is immense shortage & high expense of food in Pakistan. The reason for this shortage of food: immense hoarding methods employed by industrialists and food processing industry in connivance with the government.

A common Pakistani is fed up of religious extremism, exploitation by the rich classes; a commoner wants relief, the current floods have shown the Govt. did nothing to improve the infrastructure & machinery of the local authorities, which is now brewing up in the hearts of common people, this is the reason which has kept the crowds at the D-Chowk, this is the reason PM and CM of Punjab were chanted on GoNawazGo on their recent visits of flood affected areas, this is a lava building up, it is sort of a volcano that is about to explode anytime which unfortunately the Government is totally oblivious of.  

 

What does Imran Khan Mean by Freeing the Country of Debt? Definition of 'Odious Debt'

The people of Pakistan in general face Economic crunch, living literally on day to day basis. Basic amenities in the country are at record high prices, people who are attending the Azadi March in Islamabad come on their own will, they agree with the vision of Imran Khan, they support him that is why they show up in large numbers but by implementing those things said by the leader of the second largest party in Pakistan they feel their lives may become more miserable. What is it that they need to understand? How can a nation be made to realize, what they face in future is total darkness created by this illegitimate Government of Nawaz Sharif and his parties of Status-quo which came to power through rigged elections.

Civil Disobedience was announced by Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf is in reality Economic Disobedience. He asserted that under the rule of "these businessmen who only want to make money for themselves, Pakistan's future is bleak." Khan's remarks were directed at Sharif, one of the country's wealthiest man and the owner of Ittefaq Business Group. Observations can be taken through the Brazilian and Turkish protests for the best promotion of growth of democracies. At a basic level, it is true that people in both countries are disappointed with the performance of their governments.

As media reported the protests done in Turkey have been signs of Turkish discontent over restrictions on basic freedoms and the excessive centralization of decision making by the ruling party, not least concerning urban transformation projects. In Brazil, protests have been fueled by general dissatisfaction with corruption, inflation, high taxes, as well as poor public services – including the education and healthcare systems – in the face of excessive spending on sport venues etc. Rising awareness among middle-class youth combined with political desperation and police violence have pushed people onto the streets. In Turkey, the initial protestors in Gezi Park were mainly from the Taksim Solidarity group, a collection of 118 professional chambers, unions, political parties, and non-governmental organizations. In Brazil, the protests were organized by around 40 leftist activists from the Free Fare Movement, and were primarily attended by students of São Paulo. 

                                                                       

In Pakistan; if this is followed by business communities, upper middle class, for they stop giving Income Tax, Sales tax & GST to the Nawaz Sharif Govt it will take months & years to catch all those who didn’t pay. Majority in the ruling party don’t pay their taxes at all. If millions of citizens do not pay, effects on the government will weaken its standing as the condition of the govt. at present is already fragile; it lives on day to day basis.

Foreign Remittances of Pakistani Expatriates stopped can bring a standstill to the economy. In the first part of 2014, Overseas Pakistanis sent $7.79 billion remittances in the first half (July-Dec) of this fiscal year registering a growth of 9.46 per cent over a year earlier, the State Bank reported. Pakistan is among the major countries which receive large amount of remittances like $13.9bn in FY13 If and when the Chairman Tehreek-e-Insaf gives a call for overseas Pakistani’s a complete economic lockdown can happen in the country.

Loans of International Monetary Fund (IMF) to Nawaz Sharif Government have been a bitter pill that Pakistan had to endure. Imran Khan categorically told the IMF in his speech that they should not give further loans to this illegitimate government as this debt will not be paid back by the Government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf once it is in power. How does the Chairman of the second largest party say this? Well, there are examples in the world from where he brings his points forward for citizens of Pakistan to understand completely. Debts taken by a political party in power and not used for the benefit of the masses are called Odious or illegal debt.

Odious or illegal debt is an established legal principle. According to the International Law, debt is to be considered illegal if the government or a regime used the money for their personal purposes to take kick backs in Government nominated projects, which became lesser advantagrous for the people of the country and more beneficial for the party in power (in case of Pakistan it is PML-N) or to oppress the people by force. Moreover; it is borrowed money which was used in ways for personal gains of the political party in power and not for the welfare of the citizens. Countries identified through the use of International Law which suffered from corrupt political parties in power are:: Identified regimes associated with odious debt are Nicaragua, the Philippines, Haiti, South Africa, Congo, Niger, Croatia and other countries whose rulers have looted national funds for their personal accounts or used the money to restrict freedom & liberties of the people and inflict violence on their own citizens. Khan talks about building an economy that serves, protects and promotes participation of the most vulnerable.

This International law has been applied in countries of the world   In December 2008, Rafael Correa, President of the Republic of Ecuador, declared Ecuador's national debt illegitimate odious debt, on the argument that it was contracted by corrupt and despotic prior regimes. He succeeded in reducing the price of the debt letters before continuing paying the debt.

After the overthrow of Jean-Claude Duvalier from Haiti, there were calls for cancellation of Haiti's debt to multilateral institutions, based on the argument that it was unjust odious debt, and that Haiti could better use the funds going towards debt service for education, health care, and basic infrastructure. As of February 2008, the Haiti Debt Cancellation Resolution had 66 co-sponsors in the U.S. House of Representatives. Several organizations in the U.S. issued action alerts around the Haiti Debt Cancellation Resolution, and a Congressional letter to the U.S. Treasury, including Jubilee USA, the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti and Pax Christi USA.

With this in mind, dynamics of politics have changed in the 21^st century; these cases illustrate two fairly universal lessons: first, citizens are unwilling to accept a democracy limited to rig voting alone. They demand free and fair electoral process, a more liberal democratic citizenship with active participation in the decision making process and public governmental accountability. Second, societies across the planet reject the use of undue force by their elected government, and they can (and will) mobilize themselves independently to make their voices heard.

       

British design for Modern Arab flags

The Pan-Arab colors are black, white, green and red. Individually, each of the four Pan-Arab colors were intended to represent a certain Arab dynasty, or era. The black was the color of the banner of Muhammad; white was used by the Umayyad Caliphate; green was used by the Fatimid Caliphate; and red was the flag held by the Khawarij.

Pan-Arab colors were first combined in the flag of the Arab Revolt in 1916. Many current flags are based on Arab Revolt colors, such as the flags of Jordan, Kuwait, Palestine, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Libya, and the United Arab Emirates, and formerly in the flag of the fleeting six month union of the Arab Federation of Iraq and Jordan.

From the 1950's onward, a sub-set of the Pan-Arab colors, the Arab Liberation colors, came to prominence. These consist of a tricolor

of red, white and black bands, with green given less prominence . The Arab Liberation colors were inspired by the use of the Arab Liberation Flag in the Egyptian Revolution of 1952. These appear in the current flags of Egypt, Iraq, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen, and formerly in the flags of the rival states of North Yemen and South Yemen, and in the short-lived Arab unions of the United Arab Republic and the Federation of Arab Republics.

The Flag of the Arab Revolt was a flag used by Arab nationalists during the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire in World War I. This flag seen at the top of the picture was designated by the British diplomat Sir Mark Sykes, in an effort to create a feeling of "Arab-ness" in order to fuel the revolt. Although the Arab Revolt was only very limited in scope and concerted by the British rather than by Arabs themselves, the flag influenced the national flags of a number of emerging Arab states after World War I. Flags inspired by that of the Arab revolt include those of Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Sudan, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, Yemen, the Palestinian national movement (also used by the PLO and by the Palestinian Authority), Somaliland, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic and Libya.

In Aqaba, Jordan

The horizontal colors stand for the Abbasid, Umayyad and Fatimid Caliphates. The red triangle refers to the Hashemite dynasty. Hejaz became independent from collapsing Ottoman Empire as a result of World War I when the Sharif of Mecca made a deal with the British that the Arab population would be instigated to revolt against the Turks in exchange for a unified Arab country. In 1916, the Sharif of Mecca declared himself King of Hejaz as his Sharifian Army participated with other Arab forces and the British Empire in expelling the Turks from the Arabian peninsula.
The Hashemites were allies of the British in the conflict against the Ottoman Empire. After the war ended, the Hashemites achieved or were granted rule in the Hejaz region of Arabia, Jordan, formally known as the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, briefly in Greater Syria, and Iraq.

The Hejaz region had strategic infrastructure, particularly the Hejaz railway, which was put out of operation in the war as it was used to reinforce Turkish forces in the region. The kingdom was annexed in 1925 by the neighboring Sultanate of Nejd under a resurgent House of Saud, and merged into the Kingdom of Nejd and Hejaz, which would eventually be known as Saudi Arabia in 1932

Greater Syria was dissolved after only a few months existence, in 1920. The Hashemites were overthrown in the Hejaz in 1925 by the House of Saud, and in Iraq in 1958 by a coup d'etat, but retained power in Jordan.

A 98.5 by 197 foot version of the flag flies from the Aqaba Flagpole, currently the fifth tallest freestanding flagpole in the world, located in Aqaba, Jordan.

Emphasis on Education in KPK

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa or KPK is the poorest among the other provinces of Pakistan today in terms of economics. The potentials of its citizens are huge when they live in other parts of Pakistan for their honour, pride, bravery & commitment as a workforce & professionals but unfortunately at home these potentials seem to be low as few facilities and avenues are available to its residents. Dispossessed; this land of valiant has faced serious economic, developmental, terrorist, security situation within and governance problems in the past, with Afghan Refugees that it housed & nurtured for decades. Devastation of floods ruined vast agricultural lands, infrastructure, livelihood & properties. With less emphasis given over the years to this area it lagged behind in many fields. Lives of the citizens had been greatly interrupted or disrupted. Eventually it became isolated!

Way before the 9/11; KPK showed great progress, but unfortunately the conflict in Afghanistan left its marks deep not only on the lives of people in KP but it literally made that area a mini war zone,  limited everything for the residents of this area from the basics of education & health facilities too. According to media reports, terrorism, floods & Earthquakes contributed to destruction of over 3,400 schools in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.  A total of 758 schools were destroyed by militants in different parts of the province including 640 schools in Malakand division. 164 schools of these were completely razed to the ground while 476 were partially damaged. 36 schools in Peshawar, Hangu, Bannu, Lakki Marwat & other areas of province were completely destroyed by militants, while 82 were partially damaged. As many as 1694 schools were destroyed by floods. Among them 160 schools were completely destroyed while remaining were partially damaged.

KPK’s new Government was formed after the May 11, 2013 elections in a coalition between Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf & Jamat-e-Islami. PTI with its majority seats & a firm grip on the pulse of the people started taking steps that were not only pragmatic but also brought instant relief to this troubled area. These steps carry long term results in the larger interest, which will bring prosperity back.

In its first year, PTI has done commendable work. Conditions in KP are now much stable as compared to when it took charge; one such example is human rights. Emphasis was made to develop and strengthen health & education in the province. As media reported, PTI’s government declared “Jihad against Illiteracy”, initiating Biometric attendance system, Uniform learning system, Tameer-e-School Emergency, Enrollment drive, Education City & Education Management Information System.

Education is the backbone of any nation & without it none can progress or prosper. For this, civil society, teacher’s union, parents, community elders were taken into confidence, they were made aware of the importance of education for their child at primary level. In all around 5 million children have been enrolled in this drive. Due to poverty & security threats children were not being enrolled in schools throughout KPK previously. Parents had reservations in sending their children for education because girls’ schools in particular had been razed to the ground through attacks by terrorists. KPK’s Government has made an immense movement in this respect by restoring the trust of these families to come forward.

These new steps are revolutionary for this province which has witnessed destruction for a long time. The Biometric Attendance Monitoring system installed for teachers use only in Government schools. This followed by a file tracking system wherein all records of the education department and schools will be computerized. This will ensure availability of every record at all times.
 It has proved to be successful. In time, the teacher attendance has increased significantly which will prove to bring great outcome in the academic learning of children and their overall yearly test results.

“Tameer-e-School” (Construct a School) initiative was another milestone step by KP Government. With little funds to finance humongous task of reconstruction of destroyed schools, for missing facilities such as toilets, additional classrooms, computer labs, furniture, and boundary walls. Basically improve the infrastructure of the school by adding missing facilities. Cover the cost of sustained, safe drinking water in the school. At a later stage in the program, donors are given the option of contributing towards purchase of teaching & learning aids, and playground and sports equipment. This initiative involved affluent individuals and organizations to donate funds for improvement of deserving schools of the province. Initially 1200 schools were targeted.

Just recently a stipend of Rs 200/- per month has been announced for every female student at primary school level as a motivation for the child to come & attend school. This will also work as an enrollment enhancer for girls and give them benefits relatively more than boys.  This will increase the access for female students in basic education.

Such an initiative can work wonders as it did so in Bangladesh. The female secondary school stipend program began there as an experiment in 1982 by a local NGO in a single upazila (sub district) with USAID financial assistance under the supervision of the Asia Foundation. A second upazila was included in 1984 and several more subsequently, totaling seven by 1992, when NORAD took over support for the program. The stipend program continued in the name of FESP from July 1992 to December 1996 as a sub-project under the umbrella of the General Education Project of NORAD. The experience of this pilot project was described as highly successful since the actual number of stipends provided far exceeded the projected number at the time of inception.  The number of awardee schools increased by 12 percent in four years of project life. Bangladesh took independence from Pakistan in 1971, their literacy rate of today is: Youth (15-24 years) Male 77.1%, Youth (15-24 years) Female 80.4%, Primary school level male 77.2%, Primary school level female 81.2% (Courtesy; Unicef)

All of these education initiatives in KPK were long overdue. They have taken the right direction, it will contribute to the larger reform efforts of the government in this sector, with the objectives of improving the quality of education, sustaining improved gender equity achieved at the primary level/secondary school level, addressing regional and rural/urban inequities in access, improving management capacity of Ministry of Education at the provincial level and improving monitoring and accountability mechanisms at the community level. The stipend program is seen as one mechanism for improving gender equity and increasing access of girls to education. These girls in future can specially save millions of lives. As Napoleon Bonaparte rightly said, “Give me an educated mother, I shall promise you the birth of a civilized, educated nation"

A Woman Killing "honor"

A highly shocking incident occurred on Tuesday 27^th May 2014 in Lahore when a 25 year old woman was murdered in broad day light in front of hundreds of witnesses, police and her lawyer. Those who murdered were her own family members about 20 in number who despised the idea of “freewill” in marriage; they waited for the couple outside High Court compound with sticks, stones, & bricks. Her father, brothers, ex-fiancé made sure she doesn’t survive this understated sacrilegious act, a cold murder which had numerous witnesses but sadly no one stepped forward to help prevent this kill. Farzana did not belong to a village, she was a resident of Lahore, a city girl, and this incident did not happen in a village, it happened in the heart of Lahore, in front of the house of law. It was a barbaric ambush to kill a woman like an animal in the name of “honor killing”.

This act of “honor killing” by men has murdered (statistics according to human rights group 943 women in 2011, another 869 in 2013, and 500 in 2014; courtesy BBC ) So why is it happening so frequently? Why is it being reported from all parts of the country? One reason being the courts being lenient where family matters are concerned. According to Aurat Foundation’s statistics, collected for its annual reports on violence against women, a total of 557 women were killed in the name of honor in Pakistan for the year 2010, whereas 604 women were killed in 2009, and 475 women were killed in 2008.

Lack of education is one major cause of such growing events. Unfortunately the masses in Pakistan are deprived of not only formal education but also the teachings of Islam that are not properly known to them. How the Prophet (SAW) behaved with his daughters, how he talked about the rights of women is totally unknown to the present day majority Pakistani households. They act and behave as people did in the pagan days before Islam came. When baby daughters were buried alive, since they brought dishonor to the family.

Another factor is society that envelopes around these people. Unfortunately; people make it a point to rub on the fact that “XYZ’s daughter ran away or used her freewill in marriage, she is a bad influence on the rest of the girls”… “Let’s set an example that no such act is followed by any girl in future.” For years down the line, even generations later, references are given of how “she” retaliated. No one has taught these people that the freewill to marriage is given by Allah, so who are they to stop Allah’s command?

Those who came to the courts that day for Farzana had pre-planned to kill her; they knew exactly what the consequences would be of such an act on Mall Road, Lahore. Their motives were clear; the fear of law or police was never on their mind. The only thing on their mind was that they will face the society with their heads held high that they took her out for becoming brave! Unfortunately; women are taken as commodities and not individuals or a person. Men feel they own a woman, like a prized possession. If she dares to have a different opinion, or disagrees with her men (be it her father, brother or husband) they have a right to crush her! The examples of acid attacks are in front of everyone, how young men disfigure young females on the notion that they own her, if she disagrees, disfigure her or simply kill her.

Pakistani society organized on patriarchal lines the history and the present, and one can have a comparative of how it all started. The era of the end 70’s and all of 80’s when General Zia was the President of Pakistan left impact and the effects of his discriminatory policies on women has been devastating. It is vital to understand as this was the time when discrimination against women was formalized by the State and legal impunity for men exploiting and violating women’s rights and freedoms began. The State legalized it through its actions, institutions and through the law.

More devastation for women came in the so called “Islamization” of General Zia, (one wishes proper Islam was enforced instead of bits & pieces that suited men only) which alerted women across the country into taking note of the rights and freedoms that were being taken away from them systematically, women had not questioned how many of their rights were achieved on paper and how many actually filtered down to the majority of women in Pakistan. One of the most disastrous outcomes of the Zia regime was making the women of Pakistan invisible. Zia-ul-Haq and his Government systematically worked towards the removal of women from the public sphere and the perpetuation of the image of the “modest and chaste woman.”

This process consisted of successive policies at State level that in essence laid out the behavior women should have and roles they were expected to play. By perpetuating discrimination through administrative and legal means, the system worked towards making the position of women insecure, subordinate and inferior to that of men, thereby creating a social change within Pakistan, allowing the underlying patriarchal elements to reign freely, making women extremely vulnerable in society.

The campaign started when “chadder” was made compulsory for all female government employees and women and girls in educational institutions. This was followed by another campaign against obscenity and pornography, which in itself is not an issue, except that the Government equated women per se with obscenity, demanding that women should only be present in commercial advertisements that were relevant to women. The Government then proceeded to perpetuate a certain image of women through the media, defining her as a care-taker in the home and only associated with articles of housework; women could only appear in clothes that completely covered her, and that too only for 25 per cent of the commercial; women could not appear on television during Ramadan. Along with this, pictures of women film stars were banned from newspapers; newspapers held debates on modesty and obscenity; women were generally regarded as synonymous with obscenity, corruption and immorality.

If women were harassed, killed or raped in the streets, or at home, it was because women had provoked these attacks by their speech, action or just their very presence. Television programs started depicting women as the root of corruption; working women were depicted as the cause of lax morality and the disintegration of the family and social values. From official campaigns and government-controlled television, it appeared that the only manner in which the rapid deterioration of society could be checked was by eradicating the presence of women altogether

With 90% women facing domestic violence today, such murders are taken very lightly by the police, lawyers & courts. In most cases; the police (which mostly belong to the mindset of owning a woman rather than taking her as an individual) are often unwilling to implement the law due to the overwhelming social acceptance of the act and the influence of power holders. Often they are reluctant to take the case forward, as mostly the cases are compromised out of court. The police often try to bring about this negotiation themselves, as they feel that it is for the benefit of both parties to avoid the hassle of a court case and settle the matter before taking it to court. Had there been tougher laws and implementation of those laws majority of the deceased women would have been alive today. With the implicit consent of society, the murderers are given protection and impunity from within the community.

One wonders why our religious clerics do not raise their voice against this crime. Why the Government is totally mum on the rising in number of such incidents? Why are people’s representatives quiet on this? Even the women parliamentarians have no word to say in condemnation. Why don’t all the above understand that these crimes have brought our country in disrepute, a bad name, and there is evidence that our failure to contain and address this issue has resulted in a spillover of honor killings to a number of foreign countries in the west primarily through Pakistani immigrant families. Every time such an incident occurs in Pakistan (or elsewhere via Pakistani origin people) the foreign media has a field day on such news.

Hundreds of women in Pakistan continue to be killed every year across the length & breadth of the country with the murderers and perpetrators going scot free! Civil society, including media, legal fraternity, NGO personnel and even Islamic jurists must step forward and raise their voice/concerns over this ever increasing crime.

Our law-makers must reform the existing law concerning these crimes as it is proved to be ineffective and counter-productive; and it is earnestly expected that the leaders and officials sitting at the helm of affairs in legislatures, governments, law-enforcement agencies, as well as, those who hold authority in courtrooms, will see wisdom in several landmark judgments pronounced by the Supreme Court prohibiting honor killings and in addition listen to the last cries for help and justice of those who were killed simply because their only crime was that they were women.

The columnist is a Lahore based freelance writer, author & a poet.

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Pakistan, my land

                                         Unique is the land where I am born

                                 Childhood & growing were to horn
                                Memories of laughter, happiness & pain
                          Each facet of life opened a new challenge yet again

                      A land where Mountains, Rivers & valleys are wellborn
                                 Pines, Mulberry, Walnut, Mango all well known
                            Harrapa, Moenjodaro, Indus, Potohar,Taxila were to gain
                                 History, Economics, and Architecture, now in bane
                     Migrants of Persian, Grecian, Parthian, Arab, White Hun
                            Afghan, Turk, Mughal, Saka all blended and reborn
                             With colours and cuisine not found in any reign
                              Arts and crafts marvelled of the seasoned brain

                         Western Highlands, Karakorum & Pamir mountains warn
                        The height and might of the land & its people with a scorn
                            For the new invaders and enemies will suffer in pain
                              With the Wrath of its men will leave them slain

                          Such is my land with a history so forgone
                             Yet to see a country which bears with a smile in morn
                           For its people have endured much without a complaint
                              With hard work, resilience & a handful of grain

                          Jinnah made this country of talent and sworn
                      Iqbal thought it would be the citadel of Islam for govern
                                   Minorities shall flourish without a strain
                                  Treasures of nature shall open their drain

                           Oh Lord, Pakistan is my home I so deeply adorn
                       Play writes, Martyrs, freedom lovers, Scientists who shorn
                                The shape of a nation all in a beautiful chain
                              Keep it safe, long living, with equality maintain

(The above poem was published in my Anthology of Poetry "Building Bridges" in 2011)

Balochistan Needs Us

BLA Militants destroyed the historical landmark "Quaid-e-Azam Residency" in Ziarat, Quetta. Three rockets fired between the Friday-Saturday night which left the two storey National Heritage completely ruined. A policeman got killed in this attack. Saturday afternoon; according to media reports, "Four Frontier Constabulary (FC) personnel and Deputy Commissioner Mansur Kakar were martyred as a result of a terrorist siege at Bolan Medical Complex. Reports of four nurses were also amongst those killed in the attack. Earlier, at least 14 female students were killed in a blast which targeted the bus of a women’s only university in the city. The improvised explosive device was planted inside the bus." 

With media reports slowly pouring in; the nation was told 25 people were killed in terrorists attacks at a women's university bus and Bolan Medical Complex on Saturday. As the victims were being shifted to the Bolan Medical Complex, a second blast struck the emergency ward where several terrorists stormed the complex laying siege to it. Four FC personnel, the city’s DC and four nurses were lost lives in the attack. The Medico Legal Officer of Bolan Medical Complex who was seriously wounded in the attack later succumbed to his injuries.             

Pakistanis across the country and abroad who saw the events on television unfold were dumbstruck, frustrated and angry on this inhuman attack. The scenes looked like those from a battlefield somewhere in the Middle East or Afghanistan. The messages given in these attacks were quite simple to understand, the national heritage, women of this country along with men have no value to the  enemy. A foe that is hell bent to destroy the morale of this nation, bit by bit. 

Alot has been written on Balochistan, enough statements have been hurled on media by the politicians. A vague policy on this province will not do anymore. The newly elected provincial Government needs back up in actions and not words, we are already too late. The stakeholders namely; the democratically elected government, the leading political parties, the Army, the interior ministry, the responsible citizens of this country, media persons etc should sit together and find a unilateral solution, bring all on board and resolve this menace of terrorism which is taking lives of innocent people. It is beyond time now, serious accountability of criminals must take place, a transparency of changed policies must happen NOW. Undefined policies create misperception and allow the foreign forces to exploit the situation to implement their long-term agenda against the state of Pakistan.                                                                                                                                                

   

Majority of the Baloch (Baloch and Pakhtoons who live in Balochistan) want to stay and be part of Pakistan. What they demand is to develop the province, create jobs like all the other provinces of Pakistan. GOP (Government of Pakistan) MUST start and complete development projects in Balochistan which should include Education, health, industry etc. Pakistan Army has done a commendable job in Balochistan and as a result in the last two years almost 12000 Balochs have joined Pakistan army.

With the democracy now in place a professional army to back the civilian administration, Balochistan will see rapid and positive developments in the next few months. There never was and never will be any truth in Balochistan breaking away from Pakistan. The handful Sardars who only hold three districts out of thirty are using Baloch youth to keep the province lawless are being heavily backed by foreign accounts to break off from Pakistan. Killing Baloch nationalists and youth is not the panacea. They are being supplied by ammunition which should now be exposed to the world. Enough of vagueness. 

If you look all throughout history, the stakeholders have to learn to sink their egos, agendas and histories, and recognize the common issues that unite them.

Pakistan Government must confidently put the trouble makers on the spot by proposing a coherent plan saying: “This is what we want. This is how we’re going to get from here to there”. They must show what they stand for.  One should analyse & understand  who is the beneficiary of missing persons or else killing of the Baloch masses.  

A socio-economic activity & development of the province would 

play a major role in calming the situation. There is a dire need that representatives of the federal and provincial governments along with responsible bureaucracy must visit the province physically to know the real problems and to address grievances on spot. These visits should not be restricted to Quetta and to meet the political allies, but meant to reach over to those aggrieved parties, irrespective of political affiliation. These groups should have a mandate to decide things on ground and later in consultation with the respective government should initiate long-term projects. The Baloch youth,  irrespective of their education or qualification should be given jobs to absorb them in the larger Pakistani society.

Its time for action, for owing your own people, for giving them what they rightfully deserve.