Farrukh Khan Pitafi’s Official Website

An interesting reading on Pakistan’s prostitution blues (reader discretion advised)

I usually do not carry articles that come in unsolicited mails. The articles on troubling or contentious issues then even have lesser chance to qualify for my website. Yet this mail that I received had verifiable links so I continued to browse and reached the source of the article. The article makes for a sad [...]

I usually do not carry articles that come in unsolicited mails. The articles on troubling or contentious issues then even have lesser chance to qualify for my website. Yet this mail that I received had verifiable links so I continued to browse and reached the source of the article. The article makes for a sad reading because it is on the sexual industry in Pakistan which is so full of exploitation. And while it seems to carry purported facts that we have heard or read from sociologists researching on the issue, I must confess that I have never ever been to or seen places engages in person. The reason is not that I claim to be a saint or else never had any such opportunity. My only reason is that I consider sex slavery (the predominant form of prostitution in Pakistan) one of the worst forms of human exploitation and hence feel repelled by even the idea of loitering around any such place. An unknown fear of an emotional breakdown is what has kept me away from such places. Otherwise I am working journalist who has spent considerable time roaming around the country independently and hence can hardly complain of having no chances. Personally I am bothered ab out issues like rape, forced prostitution or sex slavery rather than sex between two consenting adults. But the shady industry that is burgeoning has in it the strong traces of exploitation. As for the incidents that I have heard or read are like the child prostitution near Bari Imam in Islamabad, the male child prostitution in NWFP’s cinema industry and child sex slavery in Pakistani truck industry, among beggars and in Balochistan. While the matters that I have learned have strong resonance with what Mr William Sparrow narrates below I have issues with his assertion at the end that Pakistan being a “proud Muslim” nation is still in a denial stage. Perhaps he was confusing Pakistan with Iran. The people of Pakistan are fully cognizant of these issues. The state we are in is somewhere between ambivalence and downright apathy. There is need for more sensitizing than mere attempts at raising awareness.

SEX IN DEPTH
In Pakistan, a dark trade comes to light
By William Sparrow
BANGKOK - Prostitution in the Islamic nation of Pakistan, once relegated to dark alleys and small red-light districts, is now seeping into many neighborhoods of country’s urban centers. Reports indicate that since the period of civilian rule ended in 1977, times have changed and now the sex industry is bustling.
Early military governments and religious groups sought to reform areas like the famous “Taxali Gate” district of Lahore by displacing prostitutes and their families in an effort to “reinvent” the neighborhood.
While displacing the prostitutes might have temporarily made the once small red-light district a better neighborhood for a time, it did little to stop the now dispersed prostitutes from plying their trade. Reforming a neighborhood, instead of offering education and alternative opportunities, appears to be at the core of early failures to curb the nascent sex industry. This mistake would become a prophetic error as now the tendrils of the sex trade have become omnipresent in cities like Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Karachi and Lahore, not to mention towns, villages and rural outposts.
An aid worker for an Islamabad-based non-governmental organization (NGO) recently related a story: quickly after his arrival in the capital, he realized the house next to his own was a Chinese brothel. The Chinese ability to “franchise” the commercial sex industry by providing down-trodden Chinese women throughout Asia, North America and Europe would be admirable in a business sense if it were not for the atrocities - human trafficking, sexual slavery and exploitation - which cloud its practice.
Chinese bordellos, often operating as “massage parlors” or beauty salons, are across Pakistan, even spread even to war-torn and restive locations such as the Afghan capital Kabul. Chinese in the sex industry have developed a cunning ability to recognize areas where the demand for sex far outstrips the supply.
The NGO worker said that after months of living adjacent to the brothel things were shaken up - literally. One evening a drunk Pakistani drove his car into the brothel. Later the driver told authorities the ramming was a protest by a devout Muslim against the debauchery of the house and its inhabitants. The NGO worker, however, had seen the same car parked peacefully outside the house the night before.
The local sex industry comprised of Pakistani prostitutes has also grown in recent years. One can easily find videos on YouTube that show unabashed red-light areas of Lahore. The videos display house after house with colorfully lit entranceways always with a mamasan and at least one Pakistani woman in traditional dress. The women are available for in-house services for as little as 400 rupees (US$6) to take-away prices ranging 1,000 to 2,000 rupees. These districts are mostly for locals, but foreigners can indulge at higher prices.
Foreigners in Pakistan have no trouble finding companionship and may receive rates similar to locals in downtrodden districts. More upscale areas like Lahore’s Heera Mundi or “Diamond Market”, cater to well-heeled locals and foreigners. At these places prettier, younger girls push their services for 5,000 to 10,000 rupees for an all-night visit, and the most exceptional can command 20,000 to 40,000 rupees for just short time.
Rumors abound online that female TV stars and actresses can be hired for sex. “You can get film stars for 50,000 to 100,000 rupees but you need good contacts for that,” one blogger wrote after a trip to Lahore.
“The Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi sex scenes are totally changing and it’s easier and easier to get a girl for [sex],” another blogger wrote. “Most of the hotels provide you the girls upon request.” Bloggers also reported that it is easy to find girls prowling the streets after 6 pm, and foreigners can find young women hanging out near Western franchises like McDonald’s and KFC. Such women, the bloggers claim, can lead the customer to a nearby short-time accommodation.
Short-time hotels offering hourly rates can be found all over major cities, underscoring the profits being reaped by the sex industry.
Pakistan can also accommodate the gay community with prostitution. Unfortunately, this has also given rise to child prostitution.
A Pakistani blogger wrote, “We [ethnic] Pathans are very fond of boys. [In Pakistan] the wives are only [had sex with] once or twice a year. There are lot of gay brothels in Peshawar - the famous among them is at Ramdas Bazaar. [One can] go to any Afghan restaurant and find young waiters selling sex.”
As in many societies, access to technology, the Internet and mobile phones has only facilitated the sex trade in Pakistan. “Matchmaking” websites serve the male clientele, while providing marketing for prostitutes.
The root causes of prostitution in Pakistan are poverty and a dearth of opportunities. Widows find themselves on the streets with mouths to feed, and for many prostitution offers a quick fix. A local Pakistani prostitute can earn 2,000 to 3,000 rupees per day compared to the average monthly income of 2,500 rupees.
Forced prostitution is not rare. Women in hard times are often exploited and pushed into prostitution. Sandra (not her real name), said that after the death of her father she was left alone; friends and relatives deserted her after the grieving period. As a middle-class, educated woman she was surprised to find herself forced into prostitution from her office job.
“My boss initially spoiled me at first,” she told Khaleej Times. “[But] now I am in [the sex industry].” Sandra first thought her boss was being gracious, but quickly learned he was grooming her for sex for his own pleasure, and then acting as her pimp.
Many of Pakistan’s contemporary sexual mores may have evolved from traditional practices. For example, the polygamy permitted in Muslim society stemmed from the need for larger family units, the better to support familial ties and tend for widows. Until such ancient customs are updated, women such as Sandra will continue to be bought and sold.
It’s time for Pakistan to admit that prostitution is doing a roaring trade within its borders, and will continue to prosper until it is addressed in a modern manner. Let us hope that the people and government of this proud Muslim country will stop pretending the problem simply isn’t there.
William Sparrow has been an occasional contributor to Asia Times Online and now joins Asia Times Online with a weekly column. Sparrow is editor in chief of Asian Sex Gazette and has reported on sex in Asia for over five years. To contact him send question or comments to Letters@atimes.com.
(Copyright 2008 Asia Times Online Ltd. All rights reserved. Please contact us about sales, syndication and republishing.)

Story Link: http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/JE17Df02.html

Taseer, PML-N, PML-Q and the People’s Party

Chaudhry Nisar of the PML-N has finally reacted to the appointment of the new governor. Unfortunately not only is it unimaginative but also not quite reflective of the ground realities. I mean how do you call a man, whose only crime is to be part of a caretaker set up, controversial? Sad, very sad. And [...]

Chaudhry Nisar of the PML-N has finally reacted to the appointment of the new governor. Unfortunately not only is it unimaginative but also not quite reflective of the ground realities. I mean how do you call a man, whose only crime is to be part of a caretaker set up, controversial? Sad, very sad. And suppose if he is considered by the PML-N as an ally of the presidency, my contention being that he is bigger than to be the toady of any one group, how would he be any bigger problem than Lt Gen (retired) Khalid Maqbool, the man who actively took part in the overthrow of Nawaz Sharif government in 1999? Mr Taseer is a liberal with a clear history of association with the People’s Party.  He should be considered  just that. Being a successful businessman he has excellent management skills. His appointment is a substantial improvement upon what we had in the past. Why this bickering then? Allies do not speak in tones that we witnessed in Nawaz Sharif’s interview yesterday or Chaudhry Nisar’s press talk today.
Unfortunately the N-league committed a huge mistake in quitting the cabinet and by doing so gave the establishment a chance to exploit the vacuum created. Now it is moving closer to those advisers who have destroyed the political careers of the likes of Imran Khan. Perhaps the party believes that if it behaves in this way it will raise itself in the popularity graph. That might be true in the short term. But in the long run it should be remembered that the anti-incumbency mandate the PML-N is now crowing about was not restricted merely to the the judges’ issue. It was regarding uncountable issues of common interest. PML-N and PPP together could steer the country patiently out of this mess. But if the PPP manages it on its own the N-league would lose in long term.
On the other hand there is movement in the presidential camp too. The President, it is plain, is trying his level best to effect a change at the PML-Q leadership level. Whatever the motives might be we should not forget that had Musharraf and the agencies their role the Chaudhries of Gujrat would never have risen to the top. So what’s the fuss? And our intellectual class instead of making a martyr of them to understand the nature of change. I don’t know about you guys but before the imposition of the martial law my main issue with Musharraf was that he was allowing his post as an army chief to be exploited by such opportunists. After being rejected miserably by the electorate these folks should have resigned already. If they are shown the door and someone like Chattha or Wattoo is given the post it will make a world of difference. Sorry folks if you expected the transition to be full of dramatic changes it is time you realize how change would materialize. We should not be so blinded by the hate of one person that we overlook our collective long term interest.

Salmaan Taseer - New Punjab Governor - A Welcome Development

News has just arrived that Salmaan Taseer has been nominated for Punjab’s gubernatorial gadee. While it is still unconfirmed, contrary to many sentimental types, I consider it a welcome development. Primarily because it shows that the role of army officers, both serving and retired, in government is now ebbing. Lt General (retired) Khalid Maqbool was [...]

News has just arrived that Salmaan Taseer has been nominated for Punjab’s gubernatorial gadee. While it is still unconfirmed, contrary to many sentimental types, I consider it a welcome development. Primarily because it shows that the role of army officers, both serving and retired, in government is now ebbing. Lt General (retired) Khalid Maqbool was an ex-serviceman and I think even Pakistan Army principally agrees that it should have nothing to do with politics. I consider it yet another masterstroke of Asif Ali Zardari. Not only has he replaced an ex-army officer (who would have proven very difficult to remove) with a man who is trusted by the Pakistani establishment, a proof of which is his recent stint as a Federal Minister in a caretaker set up, but who has long term ties with the People’s Party. In one stroke of genius not only has he removed a political liability in shape of Maqbool, but extended olive branch to someone who is not only influential in his own right but also whose loss would have driven the liberal class of the country irreparably.

Granted that in recent days Mr Taseer had chosen to side with Musharraf yet may we ask was it not natural for a liberal man to lean with someone who had brought a message of moderation not extreme, especially in a vacuum where the leadership of the country’s mainstream parties was in exile? Mr Taseer’s newspaper Daily Times, it must be remembered before the second imposition of martial law had continuously argued in favor of engaging the mainstream political class rather than relying on political left-overs or religious zealots. Perhaps this decision can prove to be the beginning of an era when the liberal class of the country can start uniting again to pull the country out of the mess that an eight year dictatorial rule has brought it into. Pakistan People’s Party it must be remembered is a liberal party and any liberal man who has stayed with the party for quite sometime like Salmaan Taseer and Hafeez Pirzada cannot be considered outcasts even though they might have had close friends outside the party.
Let me also make a crucial point here. Those who have been criticizing the Pakistan Democratic Alliance (PDA) comprising PPP and PML-N in failing to integrate absolutely overlook a fact that both parties have formed a coalition even though their leadership agrees that they basically have different set of priorities. Do whatever you like the PPP will remain a liberal party and the PML-N a relatively conservative force. Their coalition is not like the MMA where all religious parties representing same set of principles sit together and yet fail to integrate. The alliance is meant for a transition from dictatorial rule to democracy. Once unfettered democracy is restored in the country, these parties will have the right to pursue their individual agenda independently. Yet I do not doubt that this alliance was meant to last and my hunch is it will during the period of transition. Unfortunately if it is weakened for a while that is basically because of the trigger happy lawyers, parties that boycotted the elections and then regretted on February 18 (and I am not talking of Achakzai or Hai Baloch, who are requested to pull themselves out of the APDM mess), and to an extent the judges. Please remember that there is a key difference between friends and exploiters. While exploiters only use a carrot and sticks policy to obtain what they want from you, friends show tolerance for your momentary failures and help you get on with life despite such failures. Friends don’t impose deadlines on you even though you yourself may have committed the blunder of issuing one voluntarily. By pushing the coalition too hard, the lawyers and the APDM parties have weakened their own power base. But while coming under pressure from these elements the PML-N might have committed a blunder of exiting the federal cabinet in earnest, I am sure it is a pragmatic party and will soon rejoin the ministries once it sees that the people’s party means what it says. I think the PML-N should act wisely by going a bit low key till the time the issue of judges is resolved. However as far as I understand Mr Taseer’s appointment does not present any challenge to the Punjab government. Had the PPP wanted to bring Punjab government under pressure it would have chosen to retain Maqbool rather than bringing in a politician.
I remember that when a few months back when I had published here a list of Pakistani traitors and included all of the caretaker ministers with the exception of Salmaan Taseer and Mubashir Lucman, someone had questioned these two omissions and I had replied tersely that you’d have to wait and see. I think the time has come to show how right I was.
To cut the long story short it is a very wise decision and while we keep losing sanity to emotions from time to time, there is no gainsaying that the reunification of the country’s liberal or even its start is a very very very welcome development. While the damage done by the dictators can one day be undone, the essence of democracy is liberty and freedom. The liberal class then needs to accelerate the process of overcoming the rifts caused by dictatorial rule and their mutual integration. Welcome back Mr Salmaan Taseer and best of luck.

Advertising in Pakistan - What happened to good old aesthetics?

For quite sometime I have been using a metaphor to highlight the lack of proper policy orientation in our country. In several of my columns I have brought to the fore the example of a Lollywood choreographer Pappu Samrat. Mr Samrat directs steps that are fast paced, very angry, highly impossible to perform, yet so [...]

For quite sometime I have been using a metaphor to highlight the lack of proper policy orientation in our country. In several of my columns I have brought to the fore the example of a Lollywood choreographer Pappu Samrat. Mr Samrat directs steps that are fast paced, very angry, highly impossible to perform, yet so naive that they hardly pass for good dancing. In fact quite a few steps are so much visually offensive that you really feel slight tinge of shame and headache growing in your head. I mean folks how can anyone even tolerate watching such stuff. Read the rest of this entry »

Contempt of Court case against Geo - What CPJ has to say

Here is the Committee to Protect Journalists’ email that I just received regarding the contempt of court case against Geo Television. Thought it might interest you.
Pakistan Supreme Court moves to silence media
New York, May 12, 2008—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the Pakistani Supreme Court to drop its efforts to control media coverage. The [...]

Here is the Committee to Protect Journalists’ email that I just received regarding the contempt of court case against Geo Television. Thought it might interest you.

Pakistan Supreme Court moves to silence media
New York, May 12, 2008—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the Pakistani Supreme Court to drop its efforts to control media coverage. The court today ordered Geo TV, the country’s most popular private broadcaster, and its print affiliate, Jang Group, to present all video clips and news articles dating to November 3, 2007, on the controversial issue of reinstating judges sacked last year by President Pervez Musharraf.
The court set a May 22 deadline for Geo and Jang to meet the demand or be held in contempt of court, according to Pakistani media reports. The court said Geo and the Daily Jang, the group’s flagship Urdu-language newspaper, had erroneously reported that Supreme Court Justice Muhammad Nawaz Abbasi had taken part in a recent meeting between government ministers and high court justices. The court, which issued the order on its initiative, is currently controlled by Musharraf appointees.
The court did back down from an earlier, more far-reaching order. On Friday, it directed Geo TV and the Jang Group to stop reporting entirely on the judicial reinstatement issue. The court vacated the original order today after a raucous hearing in which several journalists vowed to disobey the directive.
“The Supreme Court’s decision threatens to reverse the movement toward renewed media freedom that came after elections three months ago,” said Bob Dietz, CPJ’s Asia program coordinator. “The court should be working to uphold freedom of the press, not silencing it whenever a controversial issue emerges in Pakistan.”
Soon after today’s hearing, Minister of Information Sherry Rehman told Mazhar Abbas, secretary-general of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists, that the government did not support the court’s decision and would work to resolve the issue. She made the statement on Abbas’ political discussion program on ARY One World TV.
The judicial issue is a sensitive one in Pakistan. The new coalition government led by Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani has split over the issue of reinstating the judges. Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who supports reinstatement of the judges, has left the cabinet as a result of the split but has not withdrawn his party from the coalition.
The split has threatened Pakistan’s move back to democracy after eight years of military rule under Musharraf. At the same time in November that Musharraf sacked 60 judges who had resisted his government, he closed down all private news broadcasters—about 40—all of which are distributed by cable. Geo was the last major broadcaster to resume broadcasting after it resisted government pressure to sign a code of conduct.

Bob Dietz  bdietz@cpj.org
Asia Program Coordinator
Madeline Earp mearp@cpj.org
Asia Program Researcher
Committee to Protect Journalists
330 Seventh Ave, 11th floor
New York, NY 10001
+1 212 465 1004
www.cpj.org

May 12 - Who stole the show?

May 12 seems to me a cursed day. Last year witnessed the bloodshed of uncountable innocents. Today we are witnessing the blood of democracy being spilled. Some say that the President must be very happy. With due respect I do not think so. While democracy is indeed undergoing serious turbulence, but that doesn’t mean it [...]

May 12 seems to me a cursed day. Last year witnessed the bloodshed of uncountable innocents. Today we are witnessing the blood of democracy being spilled. Some say that the President must be very happy. With due respect I do not think so. While democracy is indeed undergoing serious turbulence, but that doesn’t mean it is the end of it. Democracy as we have seen during the times of the Martial Law has its ways to survive and so does dissent. If yesterday a dictator wearing uniform equipped with the powers of emergency could not weather the storm will he do so now? In my humble view then it was Musharraf who lost on February 18, it was Musharraf who lost on May 12 2007 by exposing his true colors and it is Musharraf who has lost today. You do not understand? Just consider this.
Musharraf last year lost whatever good will he had. When you call the human rights abuses by your allies as the display of the people’s power, you may not know it but everyone understand you are losing marbles. He was perhaps the only generalissimo who had to withdraw his martial law in the shortest span of time. No because of any change of heart but because he could not sustain the pressure both from within and without. Benazir Bhutto was one person who used her lobbying skills to force Musharraf to not only end emergency but also to doff the uniform. Someone did not like her this role and hence executed her.
If he is surviving thus far it is because he has very strong foreign allies. These allies rush to London to intervene when there is a chance that Nawaz Sharif and Zardari will attain synergy to confront Musharraf. The dictators in Washington are supporting the dictator in Islamabad. But one needs to remember that every dictatorship has an end. The dictators in Washington are soon to be ejected from their power cockpits. Our retired general is now facing a clear deadline. He will now fret the month of November when the United States votes to change its leadership. After that all the delayed tragedies that he thinks to have cheated out will start materializing. And as for his cronies, there is one question one needs ask: What will happen to you once he is gone?
Sheikh Rashid is just celebrating a bit too prematurely. He thinks that his prophecies have been fulfilled. Not quite sir. Sheikh sahib if you remember you had claimed that you’ll be a minister in the cabinet that ensued the interim set up and in this very space I had challenged that what to talk of the cabinet I do not see you even in the parliament. Let me tell you what will become of your predictions. You say you don’t see the coalition completing its term. I don’t see you living that long. You predict about the return to the government and distribution of meal in shoes, I don’t know about others but that might be true about the rightful owners of Lal Haveli whose rights you have so effectually usurped. I can be wrong about your life, but I assure you that you’ll never return to the parliament or government. As for the current set up let me tell you it will survive now, after the budget and even after the US elections. I have learned something form history too.

An appeal to Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry

 Respected Sir,
The country is passing through the most taxing times. Democracy seems under tremendous pressure, lawyers have endured terrible financial losses, media again is standing on a forked path. In such a situation everyone is looking towards you for your intervention and leadership capacity. Sir, chances are that on the issue of the restoration of [...]

 Respected Sir,
The country is passing through the most taxing times. Democracy seems under tremendous pressure, lawyers have endured terrible financial losses, media again is standing on a forked path. In such a situation everyone is looking towards you for your intervention and leadership capacity. Sir, chances are that on the issue of the restoration of judges the ruling coalition may get strained. If this happens it would be a terrible loss for the democratic future of the country. Perhaps there is need to pay heed to what Asif Zardari is saying. If this war is for the institution building of the country then use of an executive order will only complicate things further. It will set a precedent that any government can experiment with the judiciary through executive orders. I am sure you do not want that to happen.
Sir, I am among those who raised their voices almost immediately after the first attempt to sack you. Now as someone who has been part of the struggle I can only urge you to advise your supporters to step back for a while and let the institutions strengthen. Rest assured that this country will not forget its heroes and that you will eventually be restored. We need an act of selflessness from you to prove to the ruling coalition that your war is not merely for self preservation.
Expecting your intervention,

A Pakistani Citizen

Don’t panic - Coalition isn’t going anywhere - PML-N needs to think things through

It seems that we the citizens and the voters of the country are more concerned with saving the country than the coalition partners. Why should we not be for they are sitting in the parliament with our votes. But before I get to the details of the issue let me reproduce here a small anecdote [...]

It seems that we the citizens and the voters of the country are more concerned with saving the country than the coalition partners. Why should we not be for they are sitting in the parliament with our votes. But before I get to the details of the issue let me reproduce here a small anecdote from my personal life. This small example will essentially manifest my views on future of democracy in the country.
As you all know I am a journalist/ columnist. It was about ten years ago that I joined Pakistan Television as a producer/ reporter. PTV being one of the country’s most inertia ridden organization in those days was really a taxng experience. Since it was quite an early stage in my career and the atmosphere was really frustrating I got chickened out and left within an year. In those days no private channel had starting functioning. While my decision was justifiable I had some great benefactors who had developed disliking for me, in the long run it was proven wrong. While I did indeed quit and had to change profession for a while, some of my batch fellows just in resisting the temptation to quit have progressed really steadily. Asma Sherazi of ARY One World, Mateen Haider of Dawn News, Syed Anwar Hussain of PTV and Waheed Hussain of Waqt TV are all personal friends and batch fellows who are enjoying an advanced stage in their careers. Just because I managed to re-enter the TV arena quite late I am now posted in Multan not in Islamabad where I started my television career and spent more than ten years of it. The project that I am working for namely Geo English is failing to launch thanks to the successive governments’ censure. Queer how trigger happy attitude can take you years back in career. Had I not quit then I would have at least been working in a city of my choice.
Why did I quote this lengthy story here? Well just to emphasize the virtue of patience. My career issues are not such grave or irreversible problems as they hardly have any substantial impact on the lives of millions. That is not the case with democracy. When democracy is derailed you are thrown light years back from where you hardly ever recover. Nawaz Sharif and his peers towards the end of their last rule made some controversial decisions which brought the country to the current dictatorial rule that doesn’t seem to end easily. I have one point to make. Impatience is never rewarded and usually it brings an end to the otherwise durable future possibilities. While I have criticized Mushahid Hussain for his strange somersaults I have to grudgingly concede one of his recent points. He has said that in politics you don’t give deadlines. Deadlines were a mistake. When you give deadlines you rule out the possibility of any unforeseen developments. Same kind of mistakes took place in the past and it is owing to a similar mistake that the political/democratic class finds itself stranded today.
What the political class chooses to do is its prerogative. However it is important to understand that the circumstances for the political class are too taxing. If the politicians want the current set up to fail it is quite their own choice but remember this. The window of opportunity granted to the democratic class might be present today but it may not reappear again. It is also clear that the government is under enormous foreign pressure. How many times US Deputy Secretary of State travels to the UK to meet two politicians discussing Pakistan’s national issues? Hardly ever. You have to understand that the current government in view of those pressures is doing quite good. And when I say this there is already proof that the democratic government has accelerated its pace. As for the answer to the problem I have this to say. You don’t need to panic. The US establishment is going to be reformed thoroughly in November. The pressures we are facing will not be there in a few months. Barack Obama has said that the US committed a mistake in supporting a dictator. Hilary has blamed Musharraf for the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. McCain also is a pro democracy sober man. The days of the neo-cons are numbered. So are the days of their foreign lackeys. So any democratic group needs not to panic. If our reforms are delayed they will only be implemented more thoroughly. If I were the head of the PML-N I would have made sure that I didn’t play the establishment’s game. The establishment wants the two parties to part ways. If the PML-N thinks that after the end to the present order it will be given a chance to win in the elections it should think again. The establishment has a grudge against this party too. Within no time both the parties would be projected as immature and opportunistic. The establishment would claim that the PML-N decided to quit the federal cabinet because it did not want to present the budget. The establishment would persecute all the parties that want democracy in the country. It is true that if the PML-N does not quit the federal cabinet it will face criticism at the hands of the lawyers’ movement and the politically immature elements like Imran Khan and the Maulvis. But remember this. It was the same Imran Khan who had misbehaved with the Nawaz Sharif when he in consultation with Benazir Bhutto refused to boycott the elections. Since the forces actually talking directly of the judges restoration called for a boycott and Nawaz Sharif did not it is wrong to say that its only mandate was to restore the judges. A little bit of patience would restore judges and also bring democratic forces to the fore.  A little bit of loss of face with long term investment in democratic future will help a lot and is not a very bad option. Perhaps it is time to test our idol also. CJ Chaudhry Iftikhar, is he is any different from the sitting judges should call for patience and support of the democratic government. If he doesn’t do that he will be held responsible for the future of the country too. But PML-N would do best to stay the course. Both the parties can always apologize to the nation for giving unrealistic deadlines. That for the future of our children is not a huge sacrifice. Please trust me you will not repent once the results start showing.

Progress in Benazir Bhutto UN probe issue - News Most Welcome!

I have just returned from a press talk of Foreign Minister Shah Mahmud Qureshi and while the talks are still deadlocked on the issue of the judges’ restoration there is heartening signs of progress elsewhere. The Foreign Minister told us that not only has the Foreign Office sent its deliberations to the Prime Minister with [...]

I have just returned from a press talk of Foreign Minister Shah Mahmud Qureshi and while the talks are still deadlocked on the issue of the judges’ restoration there is heartening signs of progress elsewhere. The Foreign Minister told us that not only has the Foreign Office sent its deliberations to the Prime Minister with the summary for requesting the UN to probe Benazir Bhutto’s assassination and the premier has signed it also. The request will be formally forwarded to the UN for deliberation and the FM would travel to the UN to press the matter further. It is good news. Great news actually. It implies that the government despite impasse on a few important issues has moved forward on matters that may define our future history. As I have said it earlier this matter is not only critical to the future of democracy in the country but also vital because in the coming days blame game could engulf the entire state and even Mohtarma’s own party. Now it is evident that the party is not playing a puppet of the establishment. If the request is finally forwarded to the UN it would be an evident defeat of the establishment.
There are other indications that the party is actually bolstering its stance in the foreign policy arena and asserting itself. A clear example is the US decision not to send General Hood to Pakistan as its military representative. It is strange that while the establishment had such great reservations on sending the probe request to the UN, it had no objections on Hood’s placement in Pakistan. Hood is know for his human rights track record at Gitmo. When we have the right to be critical of the government’s performance on matters, it is also our responsibility to applaud whenever some improvement takes place in policy matters. I believe that if the government keeps improving its position on such matters all lingering issues like that of the judges restoration would quite soon be resolved. The party’s allies would have to watch these developments closely for their decision to quit coalition may not damage democracy. I am glad that the political class is now reminding the establishment that it will not tolerate the blood of national leaders any further.

Benazir murder, establishment’s game plan, our foreign peers and the fallout

When Sheila Jackson, the woman co-chairing the Pakistan caucus in the US Congress applauds the PPP’s functioning and complains about the PML-N it is something of a giveaway. Imagine what policy of the party is being applauded when there is broad consensus in Pakistani civil society circles that the party seems unsure on every policy [...]

When Sheila Jackson, the woman co-chairing the Pakistan caucus in the US Congress applauds the PPP’s functioning and complains about the PML-N it is something of a giveaway. Imagine what policy of the party is being applauded when there is broad consensus in Pakistani civil society circles that the party seems unsure on every policy matter? The policy then being applauded is that of tolerance towards Pervez Musharraf and his machinations. Remind me what is a caucus (for more on topic see this wikipedia entry) and what is a Pakistani caucus doing in a foreign parliament? Lobbying? But lobbying for whom? Certainly not for us. When a party is actually arguing that this person is good for us and that one is not (ever wondered who is us in this case?), folks it certainly is not working for us. The question then arises who do I think is this caucus serving? Apparrently by us it means the US. But things are not absolutely as they appear. The services of a lobbying group are hired by states to bolster one’s cause. That essentially implies that the group essentially does what it is requested to. In this case this caucus formed during the days of Musharraf regime, meant to act for Pakistan’s cause, has been hijacked by a dictator. When an autocrat stays in power for eight years all the state’s institutions tilt towards him and hence his personal interest is misconstrued as the interest of the nation. The entire setup hence has started inhaling its own propaganda that not Pakistan but Musharraf is inevitable for the world peace. How does it sound to you? Eerie to us but perfectly normal for the world. Read the rest of this entry »