Pakistan's Nuclear Dilemma...Power Or Poof!

As the country of 160 million poor(40%below poverty level),illiterate (35% doubtful stastics) religiously zealous(with violent jihad as an achievable ideal)people celebrate its anniversary of nuclear explosion, I am sitting with my head in my hands both because of a headache but mainly in shame. Whereas most of our naive, almost to the point of bieng retarted people take pride in Pakistani or Islamic bomb, I condemn the capability, the desire even to possess this abominable weapon. How beautiful it would have been if we had been a non -nuclear country.
A dream in which all people took pride in bieng peace loving, peaceful people.Had the foreign policy been that of peaceful coexistence ,we would not have to have such a big army and certainly no nuclear existence would be required.
The nucear programme started and persued by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto came to it's logical conclusion in 1998 as explosions distorted the images of Chagai mountains. The crazy Pakistani nation jubilant in the poisoned drink of nuclear destructive power, ready to install damage on infidel India celebrated. To me and I am sure all the other sane peace loving anti -nuclear people this was a day of doom. The concept of a non-violent Pakistan went down the drain. The spectre of an annihilating Hiroshima and Nagasaki kind of landscape, complete with generations of cancer, tumour infested children and people loomed larged in our peaceful minds.
The Pakistani people generally backed by the ISI, army induced propaganda cheered and cheered and wanted that we should attack India immediately. Some smart people even went on to say let India say one word and we will throw bomb on them as if it was a pale of dirty water. So many years down the line and now the Taleban at our doorstep, very few people have seen sanity. But there is still hope that sanity will prevail. India's hegemonic expansionistic aims would have been contained by China alone but the Pakistanis are crazy and passionate.
This question remains unanswered as to why the nuclear weapon and weapon of mass destruction is claimed to be Islamic! As Akhtar Ali writes in his book Nuclear Stalemate and Conflaguration,weapons of mass destruction are not allowed in Islamic warfare. No women ,children, non-combatants,old,infirm,patients are allowed to be killed or harmed in war. So much so standing crop,fruit orchards are also not to be destroyed by design. There is no permission to use mercenary, clandestine, guerilla tactics either. All those people who advocate or justify use of nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction are rebelling against the injunctions of Islam and are Murtid of the orders of God and Prophet.
The destruction sought by nuclear weapons is for there to all to see in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The horrible stories of destruction and cancer for generations,the consequences faced by the Japanese women and children are there for all to learn lessons from and for people to condemn nuclear weapons.
It is sad that Pakistanis are celebrating this condemnable day. It is sad that the Pakistani society is so intolerant of ideas that advocate peace , non-nuclear status and deweaponisation. We think the USA did a very bad thing by using the nuclear bomb against the Japanese, then why are we celebrating. Why are we jubilant over having the power to use weapons which God has not allowed by order in the Quran.
The religious parties and their followers also advocate and celebrate the nuclear status of Pakistan. This is condemnable!
I will be giving some ideas on what to do in event of a nuclear disaster in future posts,though this is assumptive.The infrastructure to deal in such an event is not present but some things can help.
I can only pray to God that sanity prevails in Subcontinent and both India and Pakistan refrain from using and priding themselves in the use of despisable, abominable nuclear weapons.

Debbie Purdy...An Immensely Dignified Woman.

Mr Obama ,the US president has given stem cell research some freedom. If they find a cure or therapy for Multiple Sclerosis, then brave and immensely beautiful women like Debbie Purdy may not have to resort to assisted suicide. She is a great woman who loves her life , husband and friends. She wants to live on and on and on!The UK government has to give sanctions to assisted death for which she is fighting. Yes, everyone has a right to life and dignified death. In the Stephen Sacur Interview in Hard talk what she said about Mr. Gordon Brown not knowing the real meaning of democracy, was enlightening. She said that if the governments can trust people to make decisions about complicated things like Iraq war and when to push the nuclear button then how can the same people make bad and selfish decisions about putting their loved ones to death for such things as property ?She is so right!Human biengs are usually dignified and caring. They cherish good relationships . Even when in a relationship which is not so happy, if someone suffers , humans tend to become nice and caring.
Women like Debbie are amazing people. They give you that little push to live, enjoy life and do some caring, just when you seemed to lose all interest in living and love for fellow biengs!
Find a cause to take up, like care for children with cancer, tuberculosis,MS,and other serious disease. Find a patient near you and help in any which way you can. Some of the things you can do; give quality time to the patient, read a story, paint a picture, sing a song or play an instrument. find time to accompany the patient to the doctor. Youcan help the family if you know more about the problem.
Always take out time to volunteer.

Rights of the child and racism in Pakistan.

The displaced Sikh children are worried about losing their academic year as they were in schools and colleges in Buner, Swat and other areas. The same views are expressed by the other displaced people in Pakistan.When the military operation started against the militants in Malakand, a lot of students were taking their exams .They just left their homes. Why was this not taken into consideration?The students should have been accomodated immeiately in local schools and colleges ,albeit temporarily. The government should even now give standing instructions to schools and colleges to accomodate these students. The difficulty will be in areas where schools themselves are bieng used as shelter. These schools should be vacated after arranging camps for these IDPs . The students should be properly screened by the school and college administration so as not to include militant mindset persons. Their assimilation should be done on a war footing as frustration breeds violence in youth.
The issue of racism should be immediately addressed. The Frontier people are very peaceful. The Sikhs were living there since centuries. They are as much part of Frontier as any one else. What is this muslim mindset? The local people are not to be blamed. It is the militants that caused all this hatred and Jizya demand. We should get our act together and purge this menace in the society. I mean the Frontier people.

We Love You Pakistan!Really love you!

See the beautiful faces in front page of http;//DAWN.com and hear the song Diyar Diyar as on my twitter post link and you will understand why I love my country so much!This is my free country where I have my freedom. Yes I am Pakistani! I love this beautiful Swat valley country! I love this beautiful Kalam valley country! I love the beautiful, magical Saiful Maluk! Where I spent a beautiful time on my honey moon with my Harvard palat (returned,) brilliant,intellectual husband!The eerie mountains surrounding where I was walking unaware that there were the horsemen families living who would suddenly appear like ghosts,dressed in black, asking for aspirins. I bieng a doctor felt so helpless! when midway between the lake my hubby developed giddines and lack of oxygen which I could not recognise and thought he was just nauseated and where a horseman first made me cross the river and I sat alone with a young Pakistani man from Gujranwala,who kept on asking me if I was a foreighnor, as I was young beautiful Karachiite and maybe looked different!He kept on talking to me till the horseman brought my hubby over also . When we reached the base camp our friends who had brought us to Kalam were worried and it looked like evening . We then decided never to come alone or ever to spend the night. My hubby and I had walked up the hill and enjoyed the ice cold water steams that crossed the road. now we came down in a jeep as he was exhausted. I never went back but there is no words to describe the beauty of Lake Saiful Maluk 3000 feet above sea, with the majestic Himalayan peak of Malika Parbat in background. Will post some of those pics also.
So I love Pakistan because I can never forget the beautiful mountaineous drive to Shangla, where on top of a hill we came across a view so spectacular that even European landscape would stand no chance in comparison!We were amazed to see a European cyclist in a sweat shirt cycling down utterly safe and free!Soaked in sweat and completely obliviuos of those around , he seemed free!
Such was the safe, free Pakistan in 1990!

I love pakistan, as I walked safely uphill so many times on Margalla ,newly wed in tight jeans, hair open, gold hoopla earings in my ears,freely every day, holidays, Eid, Shab Barat,(holidays)Ilove my country as I frequently drove alone on the streets of Islamabad, to shop, to pick up my husband after work and we would go up Margalla ,park our car at the Kashmir Point and walk up hill. I love my country as I would walk down Iqbal Shahrah and up the walikng track !
I love my country as it was then free from so much religiuos fanaticism,prejudice and violence against women and children. The pathans were there then also, what happened? Why have our people ,the same people become so bad, so violent, so self righteous?
I cannot imagine doing the same now.The beautiful ,breathtakingly beautiful NWFP has become a no go area for Pakistanis. Who has destroyed our peace and tolerance in the last 19 years? It seems the religiuos right is the culprit, in league with foreighnors. They are the ones who have brought extremism and especially violence against women in our beautiful country. By the way I know arabic language, have read variuos tafaseers(Quarnic explaination texts) including that of Maulana Maudoodi, and hold a vast collection of the tafaseer, islamic literature,law and other books.
I appeal to all Pakistanis to love Pakistan as it was free when I walked freely in my beloved NWFP, amongst our beloved people!

In Search Of Truth!

As I see the beautiful faces of children of displaced people,a question arises in my mind.What is the real story behind this tragedy? I hate the attitudes of almost all our pseudo intellectuals, false religious thekedars, who spin and propagate conspiracy theories. They are who do not want the truth to be found out by the simple,good, honest Pakistanis.
Most of our people are simple,honest, good! They are neither extremist, nor militant,nor bigoted. the frontier people are also the same. When pakistan was created they all chose to be with Pakistan. they have been living and were not questioning any status qou. Now the dishonest people with vested interest have managed to destroy the peace of this region. It has been written much on the militancy by writers,.The truth is available in books. It is only a matter of questioning the politicians and the establishment and providing correct answers to the people.
look what happened in India in the elections. the millions of Indian people have chosen to go forward. they have rejected religiuos bigotry. They have rejected the forces that will not let India progress. This is the same kind of result that the Pakistani people gave last year. they rejected the religious parties as they had done always but for the rigged elections in musharraf era in frontier.The mandate of PPP ,Muslim League Nawaz, and even PML Q was a reflection of the moderate tendency of the people.Not even an year is passed and the conspiracies against political governments have started. The PML Q also again and again said that it will let the govt., rule in peace.
What is the truth in Frontier? This is the question. It seems that the militants were allowed to live ,operate and quietly rule over areas. The Swat peace deal was also done to appease them as long as they did not make a loud noise. The Buner activity somehow caught the eye of civil society and the foreign media, who made the intense noise and finally the army action started.
Maulana FazluRehman is making disgruntling noises because he wants his oil tanker business to continue no matter who the govt., or ruling forces are. he doesnot want to annoy terrorists who may be controlling the truck routes.Mr Aftab Sherpao seems to have given up the ideological fight and accepted fait accompli after so many attacks on him.Mr Imran Khan seems to nurture some desires which we are not aware of, maybe nationalistic,maybe racial of which he has tendencies.
So what is the truth? From what I have read it appears ugly,not good at all! The army and the rightist post Afghan War crowd has quietly let the militants live. The previous dictator,let the militants work quietly and did not do anything to arrest their power fanning activities.So effectively they are all over the Frontier. How many fronts will we open?Is India wrong in asking us to root out our militancy? No it is not! The tragedy is we cannot root it out. We have even failed to contain it. Our Ostrich attitude even did not help to quieten this menace or the noise of hell!
The ordinary folks of Frontier and all of Pakistan , what can they do? The media with their vested interest representatives, prejudiced, ill informed, mostly unprofessional persons, gives highly dangerous ,partial views. The public does not get the true picture.
For instance, the fight between Bangash and Toori tribes or people was not really as much a religious, ethnic rivalry as much as it was a fight to dominate a road route so that they can get
dominance and money. The Bangash were siding up with Taleban. Why? Because in the event of their control their dominance over road is not vanquished.
Today's news in Dawn Newspaper about federal government asking tribal govt., to negotiate with Taleban in association with a mulla, the return of Sikhs to their abodes and business, reflects this hidden understanding and acceptance of power of Taleban.The jizya or tax will be taken by the Taleban and not by the govt.!So this is the truth.
Ordinary people like us who dare to bare are accused to be foreign agents and even anti Islam whereas it is we who are taking the torch forward. Our ancestors gave blood sacrifice to this country . We will not be a traitor to this country. We want this country to be Jinnah's Pakistan...secular,egalitarian,democratic! We refuse the prejudiced, bigotted,tyrannical,dictotarial views which are bringing Pakistan to the state of collapse and polarisation.
If the people of Pakistan are asked today what kind of Pakistan they want ,the answer will be the same given in last year's election.Will the terrorists and religious bigots leave us alone now and go to Hell!

Random Thoughts..Looking For Answers!

As I see the images of lush green valleys of Swat and malakand,the army helicopter landing on beautiful hilltop,on great heights of Peochehar, my mind wanders to people,philosophers ,thinkers like Hegel, Marx.They were also trying to understand, find answers. passionate people,in quest of truth! Persons of significance in history are all people who did great scolarship in trying to find answers in relation to existence, and human condition...people like Marx, Hegel, ,they produced great works and questioned.

I am also trying to understand in my such a small capacity as to what is really happening to us Pakistanis.After reading books by Ahmed Rashid , Jason Burke and so many others who have written on the subject of Taleban and Islamists, I want to understand this concept,this movement as an ideology not with romantic inclination to justify or embrace it, but cold calculated non-west point of view. One thing I am clear of is that I would never ever be convinced of choosing any ideology that professes violence as a means of its popagation. It has to be intellectual debate and that is all.

As Dr Tariq Rahman explains in Dawn newspaper(14th May issue 0that there is a question that poor people are joining Taleban and there is a romantic urge to adrress this issue. He explained the answers in common man's language.(The irony is that English newspapers are read by such a small population and now these learned writers have to use simple plain language ,previously it was difficult ideas and language which the reader had to understand!).I was not so satisfied by the answers though I agree.

The debate now is intellectual!

Marx writes...that Proletariat is the class with chains which needs total redemption.He places the

redemption and humanity's freedom in economic terms. unlike Hegel whom he followed intellectually ,he does not bring the religion or suprahuman concept into his liberation and freedom theories. The Islamists or Taleban like groups are putting the Hegelian concept back into Marxian concepts. Their backers in our cities and many of our so called religious political parties justify that lack of oppotunity,poverty,etc are behind this phenonmenon .I question this .

Does the system the tribal areas are living in does not provide them with life sustaining activities. What we are seeing through contemporary tv images ,there is an infrastructure of roads ,schools, hospitals,police and administration buildings,

qiute good modern living,the people are goodlookin,nutritionally stable,not emaciated and deficient.The children and women are expressionally ok,do not look chronically anguished. Their system appears to have been working for them. This question of Taleban bringing in prosperity and adressing poverty issues appears a lie, a sham.These people are steadfast muslims,content in their expression of religion,This Taleban assault on their practices appears to be annihilatory, not reformist. Again the means are violent.

The third thing and very important that shariat should be the overall Law/system, and not the constitution of Pakistan... The people have accepted Pakistan as the state ..these Taleban ,are they secessionist? Are they non-tribal? How do they take tribes which are non-breaking systems in the frontier going to decimate themselves and become modern ?middlle classes as in urban societies or as in Marxist proletariate??

These Taleban sympathisers are a confused lot. They need first to shun the politics of violence as a means to achieve any goal. This debate has to be solved through intellectual discussion only. Is the Taleban like mentality questioning the state of Pakistan? What did Pakistan came into existence for? Why did the frontier regions vote for Pakistan?

If the Frontier people want Shariat implementation, then what are the means ?Do they have to be violent and by shaking the foundations of state? And this has to stop somewhere!Is the current war effort not a reflection of the difficulty faced by us as a people by not adressing the issues of justice and egalitarian distribution of power and wealth, not adressed at intellectual level(parliamentarians sorry most of them are illiterate and are not trained to lead or read anything).

We have to address so many issues urgently. Pakistan is moving in a very fast forward manner and the West instead of studying this amazing Nuclear nation has to debate its existence in the manner Hegel, Marx and other philosophers,historians looked at the questions of social existence and not just the narrow, ill concieved, political prism of War On Terror and some such slogans.

It is high time we as Pakistanis and those who are muslims amongst us realize that if we decide to choose a narrow , violent ideology as our Messianic message then we are doomed to be exterminated by the rough and cruel hand of history. Let it be known that only those people are remembered by people in good terms, who are honest in their quest not violent!

Random Thoughts.

My last post on this blog was about Al Mashriqi.It was based on a perception after reading a book and reflecting on the current political situation in Pakistan.I am desperately trying to arrive at a clear picture both of the socio-political and religio-cultural makeup of our country.It seems that we are instead of knitting a fabric,or a woolen garment for our society have managed to really tangle the fibre, and are either making holes(polarisation) or breaking the thread completely!
My view on Al Mashriqi may become more clear after I finish the book (retrieved from my husband's library) Al Mashriqi- The Disowned Genius by Syed Shabbir Hussain, published by Jang Publishers.This is a well written book and will set my inflammed and tortured mind at peace, I hope!
My friend the radio talk jounalist Mark Parton (www.2cc.net.au Radio Canberra)asked me as to why I almost said that Was Islam Our Problem? in one of my posts. The reason I posed this question was that for division of I ndia and formation of Pakistan ,otherwise the two nation theory muslim majority states were the reason for this theory.Now 60 years hence and having the majority muslim state, we are now bogged down and literally bieng torn apart(religious and ethnic polarisation) by the Wahhabism and Taleban,kind of onslaught. Where will this stop? It has to stop somewhere!The context was this and not the religion of Islam itself! I think the western mind also now really needs to start training itself to see Islam and the muslims in seperate political, cultural and ideological frames. The muslim people are so diverse in their cultural aspects,eg., Indonesia, and their context to political existence so varied, muslims in India, muslims in Phillipines, Muslims in USA, Britain.I think the Ummah concept in the context of a single political entity is to be blamed for the misunderstanding and now the recent Khilafat or Caliphate concept of Al Qaeda thinking!
As the Pakistan army starts its much awaited and needed operation in Swat, the plight of the IDPs in Rawalpindi,Islamabad needs to be urgently addressed. The West should actively help Pakistan in taking care of thier needs. This is not a matter of routine humanitarian help.This will be a help for fighting the ideology of Al Qaeda and talebanisation,as the IDPs have to be satisfied when they return.

Allama Al-Mashriqi-An eye-opening study!

As I sifted through the pages of Maulana Allama Inayatullah Al- Mashriqi, a political biography, My eyes literally popped out and brains were Shown a devastatingly bright light - Charon Tabaq Roshan as they say in urdu. This thesis-book by Prof. Aslam Malik is published by Oxford University Press ,Pakistan. It seems though naughtily said that the Allama was Fasad Ki Jar.I do not mean deridingly but he seems to be the fountain head of the modern Jehadi+ Militant liberation of Kashmir, modern Taleban movement , as becomes evident as you read this thesis -book.
Al-Mashriqi appears in my life as my husband's friend Tanvir Azhar's maternal grand father. So a romantic angle in reading this biography was there, but lo and behold , as I read and the very brilliant, passionate, upright ,leader and thinker's life unfolded I was firm in my belief that he is the father of the modern, Islamist,anti-India, militant jehad in Kashmir, ironically Jamaat e Islami, Munawwarul Hassan kind of mindset.

Al-Mashriqi romanticised a Muslim Ummah concept,though this really began and ended in British India.He wanted all Muslims to unite under his ideal in Khaksar tehrik.He even befriended and attracted Wazir tribes to unite in Islamic state, with an Afghan King, though I fail to really understand this concept(maybe I need to read more about him). He wanted a peaceful Pakistani march to India.He set up Jehad camps on way to this in Wagah.
Maulana Maudoodi did not agree with him both in his interpretation and his political representation of Islam, but ironically the modern Jamaat E Islami is not only literally following his ideals but literally using his teachings and words like 'Lal Qila Pe Jhanda Garhen Ge!'(We wiil put our flag on Red Fort'). Ironically the jehad for liberation of Kashmir,its modern militancy, all seems to be the bright star of Al- Mashraqi's regimental(?Hitlerian,fascist kind of picture for his Khaksar Tehrik). it is amazing to read from history how one man's mentality and edicts and passionate beliefs have influenced so many in Pakistan from poltical parties to governments to militants to religious zealots. It is equally amazing as so little people know that it is all his thinking and desires that we are following.
A brilliant mathematician, his genius was diverted towards leading the muslims of India towards a supremacy status. Ironically what he wanted to achieve in educating the Indian Muslims,apparently has now become an ideology of sorts, unknowingly.
If we really dig deeper into the mind of the allama,will we find answers as to what really is plagueing Pakistan. What kind of mentality we need to leave behind and what kind of peacful co-existeance we need to achieve with India. Even Indians should understand that Pakistan is now a reality and in order to go towards regional peace and ensure a progressive march in future,how we need to clean the cobwebs of unfounded ,unwanted emotions and passions.Both nuclear armed states should take lessons from history, freedom from British Raj, but where freedom from sectarian,racist monsters?
Nehru released the banned Samag Savak and Maha Bhasha parties to counter Al-Mashriqi, but when will this stop? Nehru was Congress, does it reflect secularism and clean politics?
this kind of mindset is continuing on both sides. This has to stop now. There is regional peace not Akhand anything!

Nizam E Adl Dilemma-3.

As the Pak army secures road and areas near Daggar,Buner, Maulana Sufi appears. The ANP government quickly identifies Kazis and installs the Nizam E Adl regulation. We bewildred citizens see Muslim Khan,spokesperson for Tehrike Taliban say confusing things or maybe real truths like we will fight for Nifaz E Shariat till d0omsday,Pathan,muslim never lays down arms, and see frightening pictures of men with sophisticated weaopons and double cabin cars, roam and parade freely across Swat. What is really happening? The ANPP government is warning everyone not to jeopardise ther efforts. A day back after appearing from disappearing act Mulla Sufi had declared that this peace deal was only to be done if the army stopped its operation. Let us see what happens. Meanwhile ,the army is trying to get control of most areas in Buner.
The other bewildering disclosure by Muslim Khan is what is to happen to the release of thier prisoners? This was part of deal. So still we are in a state of denial about the nature of Taleban. Is Islam our problem?

The Nizam E Adl Dilemma-2.

As the armed forces rightly try to take out armed ,terrorist militants declaring themselves as Tehrik e Taliban, Pakistan, many including media people are trying to make a din as to how innocent these people are. Their innocence and simplicity has been explicitely exposed in their snake like behaviour. As soon as the Sufi-ANP government deal or drama about Nizam E Adl implementation started, the taleban moved into Buner, started recruiting young men and boys, from there,consolidating their fighting posts. They displaced many people and occupied their houses,including those of Tribal lashkar head whom they had killed earlier . The army after much delay and on insistence by God knows who started the operation.Now the Sufi,bieng so clever or has clever Taleban advisors,disappeared for two days. Now he appears and asks army to stop operation and forget about the implementation of Sharia, and try to implement peace.
The army is rightly trying to take out the militants,they should not stop. They should finish this menace.The people who have been displaced are victims of war that the terrorist have imposed on Pakistan.The pro-taleban people should realise that these are occupying forces,well equipped,bieng armed by well organised forces.They are no rag tag army,they are well trained, moving to occupy territory.We should side up ideologically with Pakistan only.The rightist forces should openly dissociate from Taleban and other terror groups.There is no issue of Islam here.
The army should be suported here for doing a good job.We should not ask them to stop.