Recipients of ISI monies

...Rs10 million were given to Mir Afzal in NWFP province, Rs3.5 million to Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif in Punjab, Rs5.6 million to Lieutenant General (rtd) Rafaqat for advertisement on media, Rs5 million to Jamat-e-Islami, Rs1 million to Begum Abida Hussain, Rs0.5 million to Altaf Hussain Qureshi and Mustafa Sadiq, Rs3.3 million to small groups, Rs5 million to Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi in Sindh, Rs5 million to Jam Sadiq, Rs2.5 million to Muhammad Khan Junejo, Rs2 million to Pir Pagara, Rs0.3 million to Molana Salahuddin, Rs5.4 million to small parties, Rs1.5 million to Humayun Muree, the son-in-law of Bugti, Rs4 million to Jamali, Rs1 million to Kakar, Rs0.7 million to Jam Yousuf, Rs0.5 million Bazinjo and Rs1 million were given to Nadir Mengal.

Source: The News (August 27, 2009)

SC's verdict: the lurking threat of a punch

The verdict both stamps the SC's authority whereby the PCO judges are shown the door, the Nov 3 decision is given an unqualified rejection and thereby becoming another step to setting a precedent to rejecting unconstitutional acts. This by itself is a great leap forward.

Now the Parliament has to step up and legislate what portions/parts of post-Nov 3 actions it wants explicitly 'legalized'. As I view it, the SC has 'humbly' (rather, intelligently) given Parliament the chance to step up and be counted as a pillar of the state. The Parliament must decide, in view of the entire nation and it's vibrant media, if it wants to legalize ridiculous ordinances that clean the slate of the rich and powerful, but refuse to absolve the thousands of prisoners languishing in jails, 60% of whom have served more time than their alleged crime justifies, and still have not heard a verdict of guilt or innocence due to a corrupt judicial system. These ordinances will have be to be legislated. The Parliament is now forced to do its job. Whatsmore, its integrity is at stake.

I don't think the Parliament has any choice left. By wholeheartedly accepting the SC decision, it may have saved itself the embarrassment for now. However, SC has opened the floodgates just enough to let all and sundry know that if the Parliament doesn't get its act straight, the SC has the way clear to proceed with cleaning the stables as it sees fit.

The threat of a potential punch is better than the punch itself.

An assertive judiciary

Amongst some of the other instances highlighted whereby the judiciary is seen to be taking on vested and criminal interests, another story in The News reveals the extent to which the 're-throned' judges are itching to go. It was not long ago that the judiciary was seen as an instrument of oppression, a decadent institution that functioned to deny justice.

So it is important perhaps, to magnify any incident in which we can see the judges taking on the interests of the status quo forces. Having 'non-bailable arrest warrants' issued for 30 policemen including the low-ranking officers is not a regular story. Nor is it usual to see the judges commanding the SSP Police to arrest EDO's, DDO's or Deputy Directors.

The judiciary is finally flexing its muscle. And we ain't seen nothing yet!

Alternative views on Iqbal

From time to time, this blog will attempt to critique Allama Iqbal, considered to being Pakistan's national poet and its leading 'intellectual'. Whereas all great philosophers and thinkers have numerous critics who critique, find flaws and reevaluate their philosophies, testing to see if they stand the test of time and expansion of knowledge, Allama Iqbal has no critics.

On numerous occasions I inquired from the Iqbal Academy (located on 6th floor of Aiwan-e-Iqbal, Lahore) to assist me on a book critiquing Iqbal's philosophy or poetry. However, the only book on 'criticisms of Iqbal' in their computerized database was 'Allama Iqbal's criticism of western philosophy'.

While Iqbal may have 'implored' Muslims of the subcontinent to 'think and contemplate', practically he has proven to be an extremely stagnant force in both the intellectual and philosophical realm. The reasons exist in the ideas expounded in his book, 'Reconstruction of religious thought in Islam', a series of seven lectures.

The only person who has attempted to 'critique' Iqbal without inviting accusations of 'unpatriotism' and such forth is Javed Iqbal, the poet's son. A open, broader discussion on Iqbal's philosophy, its limitations, potential and ramifications is needed.

Pakistanis will eventually come to understand that there is more to philosophy and intellect than Iqbal.

As Iqbal would say, 'sitaroan say aagay jehaan aur bhi hain..." [there are world's that exist beyond our imaginations...]

Countering Taliban Terrorism

The celebrations for the restoration of the Chief Justice had not even begun and the nation was gifted with the exorbitant rise in the plague known as the Taliban.

The lack of justice, collapse of the educational system, the failure to address the basic problems and defend the rights of the disenfranchised had created a vacuum in the state apparatus. The failures of successive government institutions over the past sixty years had become ingrained in the psyche of the population. No one seemed to rise up and offer a constructive, progressive and viable alternative.

In this vacuum, it was thus not surprising that criminal elements would rear their ugly heads. The lure of quick money for the unskilled, uneducated and indoctrinated in a state that had given up its responsibilities was too powerful and easy to give up. Just like criminals have a field day when security lapses, the Taliban and their decadent beliefs had a field day in wrecking havoc in Swat. Preventing children from recieving polio vaccinations, preventing girls from attaining education and banning music are some of the most assinine examples of their decadent ideology.

While understanding this phenomenon is critical to finding a solution, harping about the failures of the past helps no one. Often our political leaders stoop to constantly regurgitating the need to 'understand' the rise of criminals and Taliban. This explanation at some point starts to sound like a justification and becomes not only counter productive but self-defeating. Such arguments lead one into a corner. For example, earlier this year, some opposition politicians were eager to highlight that there is a difference between the problems in Swat and those of FATA. We were told that the militants in Swat are fighting for their brand of religion (and supposedly, justice). In contract, the fight in FATA was a result of the spillover from the failed policies of NATO. Yet, we find the same politicians today, perhaps to score points, link the fight in Swat to drone attacks in FATA because it has become impossible to give credible justification to the loonies operating in black turbans.

We all hear from our elders of how after partition in 1947, the courts, the police and the bureaucracy of the nation worked with extreme efficiency. The neutrality ingrained by the colonial system in the rules of governance was still in tact. Rulers, including the generals, took care to follow the law. The judges were seen as figures of worthy of extreme respect. Justice was done and seen to be done in most realms of Pakistan.

If today, that British-built system of justice no longer provides relief, should we all pick up guns and start become, looters, murderers and barbarians? Based on the constant rant bordering on 'justification' of rise of criminals, should Punjabis, who remember better days in the early stages of Pakistan, start to arm themselves? If these politicians were 'revolutionaries', then it could make sense. But they are self-proclaimed borderline reformist at best. Including most of us. We should act accordingly.

It seems the argument presented for Swat's demise to Talibanism is amateurish and increasingly sounds like a point-scoring exercise. Particularly if the fascist policies of Taliban are not treated with the same vehemence as those practiced in Karachi by Altaf Hussain. It is unfortunate that we refuse to see the synonyms between the two fascist entities and instead treat them with unequal ferocity. In fact, the Taliban were out rightly rejected by the people of Swat in what everyone considers was a free and fair election in 2008. Voters went to the ballot box despite threats of being bombed by the Taliban, kicked out parties lead by religious personalities and brought in ANP and PPP.

But knowing about the rise of Taliban terrorism is only one side of the coin. Pakistan's internal collapse was all the more notorious only because of the support of militant outfits that were operating at will in locations outside Pakistan. To date, there is no blunt condemnation of the role of the Pakistan establishment in arming and abetting the 'jihadis'. One the one hand the governance system was allowed to collapse and on the other, the state supported the mushrooming growth of decadence inspired by religion. That decadence was 'acceptable' as long as it was directed outside the frontiers, supported the local dictators or foreign powers.
Pakistan's policy of aiding the rebels in Afghanistan at behest of the West with full financial, moral, cinematic (Rambo III) and political backing is still considered the 'right policy' by many in the country. But today's war on terror suddenly seems unacceptable.

While the 'war on terror' should never have been Pakistan's war, the argument becomes difficult to sustain when the state has been complicit in perpetuating 'non-state' actors to commit their violent acts across international borders. Be it those in Afghanistan in the 1980's or in Kashmir in the 1990's. These 'non-state' actors and those supporting them only hurt Pakistan's ability to become a self-sustaining and respectable nation. The Afghan policy only harmed Pakistan in the 1980's under Zia. The same is true of Musharaf's policies in FATA. Unless we make blanket rejection of our past policies undertaken at the behest of and for the support of non-democratic and external forces, we cannot convincingly claim that this is not our war.

To a large extent we are reaping what we sowed.

If we are to understand the 'problem' we need to call out to amend our past policies as well as reform the state institutions. Taliban ideology is the manifestation of all that is wrong in Pakistan and is the 'jahaliya' of the era. It is the 'dajjal' of our time. The decadent ideology of the Taliban offers nothing but a relegation to a life of swine-hood.

Without a vision where justice is easily accessible, where a standardized school system will not disappoint, where basic health facilities are available, where peasants till their own land and the feudal lord has been decapitated, where men and women learn skills to become economically independent, where minds are taught to be progressive, to love and further knowledge, to make music, poetry, art, to create, without encouraging and establishing these ingredients and mechanisms, the war against barbaric Taliban terrorism cannot be won.

Let's be clear. Military might must be used with vicious force when barbarians forcefully overthrow the sacred legal system of Pakistan. We must support this with the same passion as we support the trial of Musharaf under Article 6 for subverting the constitution. But military might will be futile if it is not backed by plans for a better system as sadly is currently the case.

The spate of terrorist attacks which have begun across Pakistan threaten each of us. Today is our test - just like the two years of struggle to restore the Chief Justice was our test. But now, we must go further and re-imagine Pakistan. This is where the role of all political parties becomes vital as the Army cannot win wars.

Political parties, rather than engaging in point scoring exercises, should develop constructive models that offer us something more than apologetic arguments for reasons for the existence of swine known as the Taliban. Already we can see the superior courts lead by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary working to clean out the corrupt practices and personalities in the judicial system. The uplifting declaration that backlog of cases be cleared and that a case should be resolved within a year gives tremendous hope that this system, our system as ennunciated by the Constitution of 1973 is far superior to anything anyone has ever implemented in this land. The judiciary needs the focused support of all political parties as the CJ cannot clean house on his own. The political parties are the entities that can provide the support. If political parties like Maududi's progeny continue to obfuscate the issue, they are becoming an obstacle to the next critical steps in achieving judicial independence and deserve to be labelled as 'Taliban sympathisers'.

It is surprising that the political parties who were at the forefront of the movement for justice over the past two years have lapsed into bickering over whether Taliban terrorism has justification or not. Instead of this apologetic stance, it would be much better to continue supporting the cause for an independent judiciary by remaining true to this agenda and sticking with it, supporting it and condemning, opposing and rejecting anyone, anywhere in Pakistan who tries to destroy this agenda - be they in black turbans or in khakis.

If PTI and other important national parties take this stand, they will take the air out of any argument for an armed lunacy that is seeking to prop up a decadent and obscene system supposedly practiced in the past. We have a better system and it needs the support of all members of society - parliament, opposition, judiciary, military, bureaucracy and civil society to help reform and work.

Pakistan's people are our most precious assets. It is humiliating that we have to resort to armed force to restore order. Even more that millions of our people have to become homeless and live in a limbo and need all our support. Rather than constantly be swayed by these painful individual events, we should seek to tear out the source of this malaise. Supporting the process of democracy, no matter how flawed and upholding the constitution is the first step. Continuing to support our judicial system (rather than the fairy tales of the past) is another step. Anyone who blatantly rejects the constitution of Pakistan while simultaneously refusing to bring change via democratic means reflects a growth in the cancer. It should be dealt with accordingly.

Dharna till the end

Yesterday's reception of the Chief Justice at the Lahore Airport gave plenty of confidence that the movement for an independent judiciary is not only alive, but regaining momentum. The celebratory spirit defied the despondency that emerges now and then seeing the lack of leadership displayed by the elected members.

Actions determine fates of society and this announcement by the lawyers will have plenty of repercussions. Committing to a dharna this time will set the stage for conflict with two entities. The first supposedly obvious one is with the PPP government heads - namely Zardari. While Zardari has plenty of reasons to prefer an impotent judiciary for personal reasons, the conflict with him will pale in comparison to the forces who have more to lose with an independent judiciary.

The long history of coups and acts of treason, the loss of territorial integrity, the loss of rivers, the attacks on Baluchistan and Lal Masjid and consequential losses of innocent lives, the hundreds of missing persons, illegal tapping of phones, detentions...the list of crimes perpetrated by this entity goes on.

How this entity reacts to the brave lawyers movement for building an independent judicary remains to be seen.

I fear that the PML-N, unwilling to take on this entity, and desiring to save its Punjab government, may bargain to forego the movement to restore the Chief Justice in return for the sacking Governor Salman Taseer.

It'll weaken the movement as far as the support from the Punjab Government is concerned, but it won't be the end. The dharna doesn't need any single political party backing it. Those who hope to scuttle or maul the movement will have to do much more than merely making deals with the parties in the assemblies. The more deals the assembly members make, the less relevantt their assemblies will become.

During the last long march, there were fears of some 'extra-constitutional' methods applied in case the lawyers got too tough. Unfortunatley the lawyers decided not to up the ante. This time everyone is on the same page - there is no middle ground left. It's either the unqualified restoration of the Chief Justice, or a volcanic rise in the movement for an indepedent judicary.

Using songs to hack computers

Whether this report accurately reflects the process hackers use to destabilize computers or not nevertheless achieves the objective of discrediting a business - albeit, one without legality.

www.songs.pk is a famous website music lovers use to download songs - for free. Naturally it was bound to gain popularity since most of the desi land would prefer to acquire the intangibles without having to pay for them.

The accusation made, as per Press Trust of India, by Indian intelligence agencies, is that Pakistani hackers have embedded codes within the songs which when downloaded can provide access to anyone's computer when desired. 1.2 million computers around the world could be at the mercy of a few hackers.

However, songs.pk have issued a notification rejecting such allegations meant to hurt its business of freely providing a service without having to pay.

War hysteria and Pak-Indo tensions are spilling over into the music scene. Already there have been calls within Pakistan to ban the extremely popular Indian films that were regularly shown to sold out crowds which had been helping the cinemas breathe again.

The mindset of Hags

- Zaid Hamid - An exemplary hag

Jindoun Punjabi mai day banday nain duujee beevee lay aandee, tay mai tapee hoee kehndee ay: "Zaroor oas dain nain koi jaadoo toanaa keeta hoiga!"

When a Punjabi hag's husband brought home a second wife, instead of trying to find fault with herself or seeing her husband as the wrong-doer, she immediately began to curse the new wife:

"That witch must have cast a black spell on my husband," she reasoned.


These few words highlight the mindset of many Pakistanis. One cannot even argue that it is the uneducated who revel in conspiracy theories. Browse through any forum on any site related to politics and social issues and these "hags" have seizures against the West, Zionists, and even Nestle. Ironically, most of these "hags" are based in the West and intentionally thriving off the very conditions they vehemently criticize.

Blaming the West for our problems has become a past time.

Knowledge about the intricacies of conspiracies has never really helped anyone other than massage the ego. If anything, delving in such tabloid nonsense can prevent people from spending the efforts in finding solutions to their own problems - problems that have no link nor are a result of the policies of the West.

For example, if we focus on Pakistan, what is preventing the country from achieving 100% literacy? Why has health care not been a priority? Why is most of the population still denied a clean glass of water? Why are cases of polio on the increase in Pakistan? Why does the Army absorb the largest chunk of the budget? What is preventing Pakistan from becoming an integrated nation-state even after 60 years of tumultuous existence? Why is it that throughout these 60 years, components of the states want to break away?

Even a cursory analysis will reveal that the rot has everything to do with Pakistanis themselves rather than anyone else.

For example, Baluchistan faces massive injustice from the Pakistani rulers. Chairman Khan has continuously highlighted the numbers of 300 billion rupees of gas being extracted from Baluchistan while the province's budget is only 18 billion. By some figures 15% of the federal taxes are raised from Baluchistan's resources. This approximately 15% (some figures state 17%) contribution by Baluchistan is not in dispute like the figures of Sindh's contribution by virtue of Karachi being the port of entry. Yet, despite these contributions, Baluchistan gets less than a third back from the federal pool! Whatsmore, before the money is redistributed to the provinces, around 50% of the federal money is used to pay interest, build up the Army and pay salaries. Why should the Baluch not question how the federal budget is being used for the military? What is the utility of spending so much money on the army for the Baluch? What has the Army given the Baluch? If 75% of all armed force recruits come from Punjab, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that such figures will harden the perceptions of injustice in the smaller provinces.

Natural gas from Sui, Baluchistan was discovered in the early 1960's. Rawalpindi was connected to this resource in the same decade. Quetta first began to benefit from Sui natural gas in 1995. Similarly, while the gas in Sui began to be extracted much earlier, is there any rationale to giving Baluchistan the old rate of 22 rupees per KG of gas whereas Punjab's natural gas earns it 110 rupees and Sindh 185? Point is, with such drastic numbers before us, is it any wonder why the Baluchis should seek out right independence?

And in relation to this article, do foreign powers accused of having an 'evil eye' even need to do anything more to convince the Baluch they are better off independent? Yet, unfortunately many are more concerned to project and portray foreign intervention as the cause for secessionist movements and all other major ills the nation faces. These 'conspiracy theorists' hurt Pakistan by taking away our focus from the real problems which in turn cripples the vision to find solutions.

In short: when we no longer wish to be held accountable, why expect the politicians to be held accountable? We are an educated lot and should be cognizant of distraction tactics by those who insist that the real cause of Pakistan's mess lie outside its borders.

It is fine to seek possibilities of who else is making use of the problem - but the source and the solution to the problem lies only in us. The futile obsession with conspiracies supposedly emanating from the West is detrimental to the health of society. For every one such external conspiracy, there are 100 real internal causes of instability. Time would be better spent trying to fix the myriad of internal causes rather than entering analysis-paralysis by illusions of problematic external stimuli.

A haggin' hag never helped anyone's cause. Pakistan has been kind to hags giving them ample air time and turning them into celebrities. Dr. Shahid Masood took off with his program 'End of Times' and currently TV1 is entertaining Zaid Hamid as the supremo hag whose diatribe offers no solution and no return. While television is a business and there is nothing wrong with enjoying the tantrums of these Jerry Springers/Pat Robertsons/Rush Limbaughs of Pakistan, as politically aware individuals of a country that has self-destructed, we should be seeking solutions rather than myopic explanations of these depressed individuals.

Riding with the leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf

By Fraz Shafique [Courtesy Insaf Action Committee (IAC)]

www.insaf.pk

November 21, 2008

We arrived at the Lahore Airport with Punjab President Ahsan Rashid and former ISF Lahore convener Mohammad Madni. Madni had his task cut out for him as he was receiving non-stop calls on his two mobile sets from Lahoris wanting to join the party during the membership campaign.

"It takes me around 5 minutes to finish one call and by then there are a dozen missed calls in my phone log," stated the firebrand activist.

As we approached the arrival section a dozen ritalin-alert military men, with raised rifles ready to pull the trigger at the hint of danger, emerged surrounding a short man dressed in a suit and wearing sunglasses. My first thought was why a seeming bureaucrat deserved such a heavy security dedication.

"Who would waste time trying to do anything to him?" inquired Ahsan Rashid.

Turns out, the VVVIP was the defense minister of the country. While the PTI Punjab President had a point, the minister had built a resume of consistent gaffes that at the very least warranted a slap or two from the general populace. While we were still weighing the basis for the unbelievable security provided to the defense minister, Chairman Imran Khan walked out by himself, without any fanfare - other than the excited porters who ran toward him for a hand shake. Chairman Khan would be shaking a lot of hands today.

We got into Ahsan Rashid's car with Information Secretary Omar Sarfraz Cheema taking the driver's seat. Lahore President Mian Mehmood ur Rashid and Political Secretary Saifullah Niazi completed the passenger list. Mehmood ur Rashid briefed the Chairman on the incredible success of the Lahore membership drive as we headed toward our first of six camp stops across the metropolis of Lahore opposite the General Hospital on Ferozepur Road.

"Allah has really helped us with this drive," humbly stated Mehmood ur Rashid.

"But Zardari has also been a big help," observed Chairman Khan in a tone not so much thankful as helpless.

"People are so fed up of his government and that factor is also reflected in the big numbers we're seeing join PTI!"

We arrived at our first camp and were quickly surrounded by Chairman Khan's admirers. One of the massive floats began blaring patriotic songs while PTI flags proudly rose into the air.

Throughout the journey, the phones of the PTI leaders kept ringing.
"Khan sahib, you must have dinner with us!" declared Mehmood ur Rashid.

"Yes! Sooner the better - I am famished!"

Mehmood ur Rashid called up the owner of Butt Sweets family restaurant at Laxmi Chowk and ordered chicken karrahi to be prepared for the team.

"Make sure the chicken you slaughter is no more than 1.5 years old!" thundered Mehmood ur Rashid for the xth time to the owner of Butt Sweets. Chairman Khan laughed and readily agreed with the Lahore President's taste.

In spotless Punjabi, the Chairman heartily declared: "Sanu buddha kukarr naeen langda!"

Our next stop was Chuhngi Amar Sadhu further along on Ferozpur Road. This was one of the camps that wasn't planned but due to the euphoria, residents emerged and insisted they too wanted to take part in the growth of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf in Lahore. This is an area of the city seldom frequented by the media but bustled with the general laborers and transporters. The camp was also the most organized in terms of crowd management and the scenes of supporters seeking to have their membership cards signed by Chairman Khan were less chaotic.

After an appraisal of the camp and congratulating those who had taken the initiative to launch it, we left for the stop off College Road. Located in Township, it was in the middle of an extremely congested market. The location also offered the most rewards in terms of memberships obtained. It was manned and run by Dr. Shahid Siddiqui who has been active in assisting with welfare activities in the city. As we left the bustling localities leaving behind the loud sloganeering in favor of the PTI leader, Mehmood ur Rashid wiped his forehead and revealed an interesting tidbit political adversaries were spreading, perhaps indicating a sense of panic in their ranks.

"The latest word on the street is that the Jewish lobby and ISI are supporting Tehreek-e-Insaf," informed Mehmood ur Rashid.

"That's certainly news. Why would ISI want to support us if this government is proving to be more than sufficient?" responded the Chairman.

Mehmood ur Rashid had ensured that PTI membership drive came in with a bang and while it continues, there is bound to be a reassessment of the party by the opposing forces. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf was a tide that could only rise. How does an opposing party deal with an entity that can go nowhere but up? To repeat a phrase voiced during the Presidential election in the United States, "How does one fight a movement?"

"I have ordered another 40,000 membership forms," said Saifullah Niazi after stating that the initial ones had run out in under one week.

The issue of resources cropped up - it was bound to. Although well managed and within the limits specified by PTI Lahore, the amounts add up once the rest of Pakistan is brought into the picture.

"If we had the resources the other parties have, we could have done so much more," stated Ahsan Rashid. However, he highlighted that for each member PTI takes in, it will translate into on average four additional household votes. Therefore, if PTI Lahore manages to secure 150,000 members during the two week drive, it will mean a whooping 700,000+ votes securely placing PTI in position to win the most seats from Lahore in the next elections.

"Furthermore, since we're seeing that 80% of the members are from among the youth, we have secured a solid vote bank that is most aggressive about seeking change as their future directly depends on it."

We arrived at the Icchra camp to loud cheers and supporters sprinkling flowers at the Chairman and his accompanying leaders. At this camp Irfan Hasan, another young firebrand member delivered his speech imploring members of society to join PTI. PTI Vice President Ejaz Chaudhary was also persent to prop up the workers of the party.

Often times during the trip Ahsan Rashid seemed preoccupied with the future strategies for the party - financial and logistical - as the Lahore membership campaign had proven to being exceptionally well executed and was delivering results in the main Punjabi city.

"Go for Rawalpindi next. We've got some good workers there like Sadaqat Ali Abbasi and the Islamabad team can assist as well," was the suggestion of the Chairman. "Faisalabad needs a proper ground force first."

For Ahsan Rashid, the cities to target in Punjab were many. Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Sialkot, Gujranwala and Multan to name a few. While the PTI leaders were confident of sweeping NWFP, Punjab's status had been unclear until this membership campaign perhaps due to the role of the largest party in the province.

As we disembarked from the Allama Iqbal bridge we entered the heavily populated outliers of Old City Lahore. This was a hardcore constituency of the provincial government. It was at least. Billboards, flags and posters were plastered in the area with pictures of the Chief Minister and his son who had gotten elected unopposed. The Lahore city's apparatus was unhappy seeing PTI launch this campaign but Ahsan Rashid had gotten the permission from the CM, who perhaps did not realize the PTI campaign would be so successful and launched with such methodical execution. The success of the campaign in the heart of the political capital can set the example and pave the way for the other cities of the nation to replicate.

Unfortunately, and it was bound to happen, the PTI leaders were stuck in a horrendous traffic jam. Chairman Khan informed us that he had not had lunch and was extremely hungry now. Tempers also flared up with at the visibly poor behavior of the traffic which had turned a small road that could barely handle two lanes, into one with five lanes.

"Why don't the traffic police go down the line and fine anyone who breaks the rules. That way there won't be any of these jams!" sensibly reasoned the occupants of the car. Mehmood ur Rashid looked vexed that so much time was being wasted. His mobile phone battery ran out while he was trying to ask someone at the destination camps for an alternate route.

In the meantime, different topics were discussed such as making PTI a strong institution by having elections within the party in a few months time. Chairman Khan was adamant about internal elections as this was the only way to establish permanent change. Omar Sarfraz Cheema gave some damning statistics about the results of the emerging water shortages due to the Chenab river being dammed by India. Millions of acres of arable land would be effected he revealed. There was also an emphasis on ensuring proper media coverage of the rally to conclude the campaign on December 1.

After half an hour the traffic began to move at a crawl and we turned toward Misri Shah from the 'Do Moriya Bridge', beyond which the Old City begins. The camp at Misri Shah and in Shadbagh were both run by Usama Rana who along with his boisterous supporters brimmed with confidence and courage.

"I promise PTI will sweep this part of Lahore," he declared without any hesitation.

After the upbeat tours of the last two camps, Mehmood ur Rashid insisted that Chairman Khan devout one day for the heart of Lahore, 'undruun city' - the Old City, in the last day of the campaign before the December 1 rally. This has been the call of many PTI Lahore activists who know the symbolic significance of winning the walled city region. The 'undruun city' is to Lahore what Lahore is to Pakistan.

It had been a long day - perhaps longer for Chairman Khan as he rapidly emptied the containers of raita and mint chatni with a spoon while waiting for the karrahi - but an equally rewarding one. As the PTI leaders drove through the metropolis into the congested alleys and streets, the seeds they had planted, were beginning to germinate.

"If Muhammad can't get to the mountain, the mountain will come to Muhammad" - with the launch of the membership drive, PTI has gone to the masses. The dedicated workers of the party have shown determination during the most difficult of times and stood by their leaders. We often hear of Chairman Khan inspiring the workers. But as this campaign continues, it is the workers who are inspiring the leadership.

From policeman to insanity

I stood on the pedestrian bridge just outside the shrine of Hazrat Data Gunj Bux holding my camera waiting with my friend for the arrival of Chairman Khan who was going to sign up new entrants to the party in the camp just below us as part of the two week membership drive of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Lahore. In the distance I could make out two minarets of the Badshahi mosque but the dust-filled haze of the noon atmosphere wiped the visibility of Minar-e-Pakistan.

I do not have a professional camera, but I have always felt the depth of history, culture, and human spirit in the areas of 'undroon' Lahore. The richness of this area unleashes equally rich emotions - creative, sorrowful, jubilant - a comprehensive kaleidoscope.

On that day I met a gentleman clothed in decades old rags wandering back and forth aimlessly across the bridge. He had a large unkempt beard and teeth with traces of dark horizontal lines running across them. Despite his unimpressive appearance, he remained in a consistently joyous and kind-hearted mood. In the center of the bridge he kept his belongings tied in a large dark green bed sheet. The value of the items must not have been significant for he would often wander down the stairs and randomly greet anyone passing by in the street below with a beaming smile for lengthy periods of time.

As I was taking pictures of some of the billboards of the area, he came up to me and asked to take his picture. He made some comments which I couldn't understand but I nodded in any case.

Then he said that he's not had a decent meal for a long time.

I said I was surprised at his comments as Data Sahib never lets anyone go hungry. He stated that the food from the shrine gives him an upset stomach and causes indigestion so he prefers better quality food.

Despite my reluctance to be convinced of his difficulties due to his dietary habits, he remained cheerful and did not stoop to begging.




I took a closer look at his name tag which happened to be a policeman's ID card. His name was Sarwar and it seemed he had an interesting story to tell about a journey from being a policeman and rising in the ranks to that of insanity. But before I could ask, Chairman Khan arrived with loud cheers and I rushed for the stairs leaving the ex-policeman contentedly stooping over the bridge to catch a glimpse of the national hero.

20 Percent Magic

As a contestant for a political office, when you have a monopoly on a group or community that has a > 20% vote bank, you are in a solid position to win the election. It's not a rule set in stone, but it's something that has figured into the books of political strategists.

This is why I would assume it is possible for some political parties that may be abhorred in certain 'majority' communities, to end up winning the highest offices.

With a monopoly on 20% of a vote bank secure, there is very little a party to candidate must do to win. All that's really required is another 30% - if it's a two way race - even less if there are multiple candidates. The opponent(s) meanwhile needs to do much more.

This explains why the PPP always maintains its vote bank. It has the solid support of the Muslim and non-Muslim minority communities. Shias, Christians, Hindus etc. - all non-Muslims almost exclusively vote for the PPP. Add the Sindhis to the mix and you can see why the PPP, even when it is at its most unpopular lows, can win at least 20% of the vote. On average days, it can win 30-35%. In Pakistan that is sufficient to become the largest party and lead a coalition government.

In the Indian state of West Bengal the Muslim population is > 20% of the vote bank and this is one reason the leftist win. In Kerala, large groups of minorities help the leftist control the levers of power.

20% seems to be a number that is just right. A number that is not too big to warrant the minority community from making an exclusively separate party. And it's not too small to be ignored. A political party or candidate can use their monopoly and merely try to win a few more people over to secure victory.

I would assume this may also work in Obama's favor in today's elections in the South where the black community is bigger than the 20% figure in some states. Perhaps the Christian conservative blocks play the same role for the Republicans in the same region. However, I would be interested in seeing how much these two blocks work to secure victory for their candidates.

Imran Khan appeals for Sasta Tandoor Project

In-camera briefing: Making the army subservient

This step by the government is only the first of series that should be taken so that the Army can be forced to see the parliament as the source of executive authority rather than the GHQ.

I don’t think we should be expecting wonders on the first day - what I am hopeful for is that this will ‘wet the beak’ of the politicians and they will seek more such sessions from those who have deliberately and foolishly lead Pakistan away from the process of democracy.

Some more sessions of the military generals being forced to answer questions and finally, for once in this country’s history, made to sweat for their actions, and we will have the beginning of the end of the Army’s role as the arbitrator of Pakistan’s destiny.

Anyone who thought that merely restoring the judiciary would complete the revolution was living in a fool’s paradise. I was one of those who thought along these lines as well. The obstacles in having an independent judiciary with heroes like CJ Iftikhar Chaudhary restored are not really those placed by Zardari or the parties allied to him. It is the GHQ. Zardari and his cohorts with their allegations of corruptions do not have anywhere near as much to lose as the GHQ if an independent judiciary was given the power to clean up the rot and answer for all the great blunders - all of which were lead by the military - East Pakistan, Kargil, Siachin, and the policy on Afghanistan.

The step to convince the military to answer questions by parliamentarians is a first in starting the process to hold the Army finally accountable.

Already the politicians, particularly the opposition ones, have started to demand more answers.

Sources: The News, Dawn

Curbing army's role

Until and unless the army is made subservient to the civilian governments, the option for backdoor entries to power will remain.

It is unfortunate Musharaf wasn't tried for committing treason at least twice. There were a number of other charges he could have been tried on. For example, admitting to 'sell' Pakistani citizens to the USA or having them 'disappear' under the excuse of WoT.

Trying Musharaf was the proper thing to do and would have been popular.

Zardari's strategy to completely shut the Army out seems over ambitious and could prove fatal for him. Here's what it looks like:

1) Isolate the establishment and the Army by leaving them without any collaborators. Thus the logic behind making an alliance with the MQM, ANP, Q-League, and an uneasy one with N-League in Punjab.
2) Keep the Pakistan Army busy in the western border regions
3) Show the western powers, particularly the USA, that he is their most reliable ally
4) This isolates the Army both internally and internationally.
5) In this situation, sign a deal with India on Kashmir.

Once Kashmir no longer remains an issue, it'll destroy the basis for keeping a large Army. That will lead to justification in budget cuts for the armed forces.

Zardari has completed the first four steps. Let's see if he can complete the strategic plan.

Zardari's master stroke in Punjab

PPP increases wheat support price to 950 rupees per 40kg.

A little history:

ZA Bhutto is remembered by the rural voters - particularly of the Punjab - not so much for his ideological mumbo jumbo, but for the fact that he gave people a means to earn 'roti, kaprra, makan'. Namely the policies of providing everyone with a passport so people could go to the Middle East during the oil boom and send remittances, electronics goods, etc etc.

Secondly, and perhaps more relevant to today, was the fact that Bhutto gave farmers parity pricing for crops such as cotton and rice. This was a heaven sent opportunity as the farmers were nearly doubling their income by getting international prices for their produce.

These were the real reasons ZA Bhutto and PPP made Punjab their bastion.


Back to today, I think everyone was caught off-guard with the latest policy offered by Zardari's PPP.

The wheat support price has been raised to 950 rupees - nearly twice what it was not long ago (and up from 650 recently). After accounting for the elimination of subsidies in costs of input(s), this could easily translate into a 200 rupees plus increase in profits / 40 kg (mann) for the farmers come April.

70% of Pakistan's population is rural. It'll be interesting how the other parties sway the rural vote-bank. Of particular interest is how the PML-N responds. PPP is targetting to win Punjab back. It could not have come up with a better or more powerful policy than to increase the wheat support prices for producers.

Economically speaking, one should never hurt the producers. In that respect the PPP's policy is sound too. However, they'll offer a 10 billion subsidy to the consumers - namely those of the cities so that the prices for roti for the city folks don't go through the roof. But the city folks are only 30% of Pakistan.

But it seems like the PPP is more interested in the rural vote bank than the urban one. If no other party comes up with alternatives to PPP's wheat price initiative, it'll leave everyone else fighting for the smaller urban votebank. PML-N, PTI, JI etc will further end up in a war to canabalize each other's voters in the city.

I am sure the PML-N realizes the gravity of the situation. The ground may just slip from under their feet. But so should we in PTI. There is an anticipated district to district march of Chairman Khan later this month. What should we offer during those visits?

In the end, this competition is great for the Pakistani people and just goes to show just how and why democracy is beautiful. PTI opened just 3 tandoor in Lahore and PML-N and Shahbaz Sharif was running around trying to get the 100's of tandoors of Lahore and Rawalpindi to lower prices to 2 rupees per roti.

The political parties and their leadership know that they must work for their constituents. We may have an imperfect democracy, we may still not have the most important element of an independent judiciary, but it doesn't mean the people are out of reckoning.

Zia Mohyuddin's Faiz missing

Caption: The missing CD

I checked half a dozen shops including all the ones in Fortress, Wapda Town and Johar Town but had no luck in finding Zia Moheyuddin's recitation of Faiz's poetry. The CD's were available, but once you ask the shopkeepers to test play them, it ends up being someone else's recitation. All SHAHZAD Audio stores had this problem. Since some of these folks haven't heard of Faiz's poetry, to them Zia Moheyuddin is probably reciting Faiz in that exquisite style of his.

The futile search taught me an important lesson: Even pirates can fuck up.

However, I found a poor audio quality CD from one of the stores in Liberty. Will have to make do with this and extract the small rendition of a poem for the current documentary am working on.

Hailstorm Hits Lahore

A vicious hailstorm hit Lahore with hail the size of golf balls raining down across the plains of the Punjab. The rice paddies are likely to suffer from this onslaught. The rice crop was already estimated to witness a large loss due to India's storing of the Chenab water at the Baglihar dam.

The hailstorm though bringing in pleasant weather, doesn't bring any good tidings and only adds to the economic problems of the country.

Turkey: The model for Pakistan

It is no secret that the Turkish people have an enormous reverence for Mahomed Ali Jinnah or Cinnah as written in Turkish, honoring him with Cinnah Avenue, a major artery in Ankara. It should not be surprising as both Jinnah and the founder of modern-day Turkey, Ataturk, were modernist Muslims educated and tailored in the western traditions. Both dedicated their lives to uplift the economic and political cause of their people. The similarities between the two men also include both being members of minority communities within the religion of Islam. Jinnah was an Ismaili-Shia, a community following Imam Agha Khan while Ataturk, born in Salonika, was a Muslim of Albanian-Macedonian parents. Their roots outside of mainstream Islam were significant in determining their modernist, secular ideology which was accutely aware of the 'tyranny of the majority' and desiring of equal rights for those whom demographics did not favor.

But more than this, it was the economic degradation of their communities that encouraged them to lead their people.

In pre-1947 India, the Muslim population was primarily illiterate with little or no significant role in commerce, which was almost exclusively owned by a non-Muslim majority. Jinnah however, was part of the coastal Ismaili Muslim community which unlike most Muslims, was more interested in enterprise and bourgeoise professions and thus could grasp the need to set up a state - be it within the Indian union or without - whereby the members of his Muslim community could have opportunities allowing them to gain a stake and representation in the economic system.

In similar respects, the Young Turk movement, of which Ataturk was a member, also aimed to establish a state where the Muslims held economic power. Due to the abhorent decadence of the Khilafat-e-Usmania, the Muslim community had become the equivalent of 'white trash' of the Khilafat while the minority communities like the Armenians and Greeks prospered as they opted to adopt western legal codes. The biographies of Ataturk and the early 20th century indicate how the non-Muslim Ottoman neighborhoods were well lit with paved roads and had the best schools and hospitals. It was Ataturk's desire to see the majority Muslim community achieve the same modern life style denied to them - a denial he and many of the Young Turk movement linked to the Khilafat's archaic legal codes and traditions.

Unfortunately, while Turkey has stuck to the ideals of Ataturk, Pakistan has quickly forgotten Jinnah's almost single-handed struggle to build a prosperous nation. While the Islamic-bent AKP party of Turkey today ferociously supports Turkey's union with the European Union as part of Ataturk's modernist legacy, Pakistan is fraught with internecine civil war, religious bigotry, a self-destructive obesession against India, and whose Army is now wrecking havoc against its own people in the FATA region, for a war fought on someone else's behalf. Whereas Turkey has always stood up for its national interests and been the only country to militarily attack Europe since WW II (through a military assault it forcefully occupied 40% of Cyprus in the 1970's) and refused $25 billion in aid from the United States to assist in the war against Iraq, Pakistan has capitulated in a dramatically tragic manner to the whims of foreign powers.

While Jinnah and Ataturk had many similarities and would not mind enjoying a glass of Turkish wine if they met, there is a massive gulf between the leadership of Pakistan and Turkey today. What can Pakistan learn from the successful model adopted by Turkey? What does modern day Turkey have to teach us?

Prime Minister Erdogan's AKP party started its journey assisting the poor members of the urban Turkish landscape. One of the projects was to offer bread at break-even cost to the poor who were severely effected by hyper inflation. The scheme became so successful, that private bakeries went out of business. More importantly it catapulted the AKP party (then known as Welfare Party) into the mainstream of Turkish politics.

In a similar attempt, Chairman Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf is also attempting to find resonance amongst the urban poor of Pakistan who are the suffering from exorbitant food inflation. Thus the Sasta Tanduur project has been set up in much the same fashion as the Turkish party's. However, the Sasta Tanduur project goes a step further by offering subsidized roti which results in each tanduur incurring a daily loss. This loss is expected to be fulfilled by the appeal for donations voiced by Chairman Khan.

Aside from aggressively reaching out to those bruised by faulty economic policies, the other major example to learn from the Turkish Republic is to stand up to foreign powers. Completely redefining the war we are currently fighting is critical as persisting with policies in which our military is massacring our own people will lead us down the path of self-destruction.

Finally and most importantly, the fact that Turkey has pursued a pro-development economic policy beneficially tied to the West without forfeiting its sovereignty is worth emulating. Today, Turkish consumer electronics firms rank among the top three in terms of sales in many of the household product lines.

Standing up for the poor and against foreign powers are the hallmarks of good leadership which Chairman Khan has shown and which our nation needs to adopt. While we cannot be a replica copy of the Turkish Republic, the fundamentals of standing up to western powers and focusing on the have-nots of our society deserve to be copied so that one day, Pakistan too will mirror the glorious image of its founder, Mahomed Ali Jinnah.

Published for www.insaf.pk

Ramzan kay side-effects

It is quite possibly the most unproductive month of the year. This repute is so well established, even foreigners who are looking to invest in the country cross this month off their calendar knowing nothing is going to get done.

While purists will insist the purpose of Ramzan has already been defeated by the unanimous alteration in behavior, it nevertheless is celebrated – with the accompanying advertisements, promotions, and songs – with some degree of fervor mostly propped up I should add by marketing companies looking to fully use the event for profit maximization. The reality is that more and more people no longer see the need to observe this pillar of the Islamic faith.

Last night during iftari, a table discussion took place where it was asked if there was a reason to mandate Ramzan. Putting aside the 1400 years of reasons revealing the importance of fasting, one person suggested that allocating the month to fast was a response seeking to adjust for the annual scarcity faced by the desert outposts like Mecca and Medina. Although it was point out that the early Muslims depended on the lunar and not solar calendar as they were not an agrarian culture like that of Mespotamia, Indus or Nile, and so didn’t follow the crop harvesting schedule, it was suggested that the inconsistent camel caravans transporting food and trade patterns may have affected the Arabs to make this move. Another person asked if the pre-Islamic Arabs also fasted. As many of the traditions of the pre-Islamic Arabia were adopted/accepted by the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) under the declaration that they were actually Abrahamic traditions, mandatory fasting could also fit into this schema.

While there is probably some economic rationale to mandating a month to fast and decrease food input (almost all actions have an economic rationale), what is clear today is that this month doesn’t really fulfill any economic reasoning. Excuses like how the body lowers its cholesterol, fat and improves health are apologetics offered. The very fact that economic productivity declines to zilch is an indictment of what this month has been rendered as.

While a large majority remains committed to celebrating this month, those who seek productive behavior are quietly ignoring it. Eventually I see some form of relaxation occurring from the edicts of future ulema-e-Islam on how to ensure people obey the fast without going completely hungry for 12 hours a day.

When behavior disturbs economic activity, there is always a measured reaction that occurs in society to bring it in line with economic rationale. It is unlikely that a people will become more ‘spiritual’ and observe the month like it was supposed to have been observed and work with the same vigor they do the rest of the year. What is likely are people ignoring the fast due to the inconvenience it posts or the ulema-e-Islam stepping and providing avenues of leniency and additions to what is permissible while one is fasting so that people’s bodies can at least get some work done.

UPS units do roaring business

Ulterior Power Supply units have become a household feature over the past few months due to frequent power outages. The basic unit will power a few light bulbs and a few fans when WAPDA supply is cut. The UPS recharges when there is power coming from the 'main' (supply).

While the UPS are a perfectly natural reaction to the power shortage, the behavior reflects a degree of predictability in Pakistanis. The disconnect between themselves and their government becomes apparent. For a variety of reasons the people have little faith in government and expect very little from. There is no consideration given to the fact that the people have always been paying an ever increasing amount of what they earn to the government through a plethora of taxes and therefore should expect at least the basic provisions. The unwillingness to hold the government responsible while continuing to pay up has made us a rather compliant lot. Pakistanis prefer to make quick fixes rather than trying to spend energy on altering the fundamentals of the nation.

The innocent looking UPS is a reflection of a quick fix. It eases life for those who can afford it. WAPDA can be damned. KESC can be damned. When it comes to reforming national institutions, we are helpless, hopeless and humbled. If the ever dependable market economy provides an easy way out, we'll take it.

Expect to spend a minimum of 30,000 rupees for one unit which includes the UPS and two Exide batteries. Also expect to pay up for 'service' charges as there is a regular requirement for adjusting the unit - which is a minimum of 500 rupees per month. In case of a battery malfunction, a likely possibility, a new one could cost as high as a whopping 5,500 - it used be almost half that only a year a go.