Monday, October 31, 2011

Imran Khan's Great Game of Sorts.

All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages. William Shakespeare.
His rally was much awaited , well, as he is so attractive to the media.So I was not surprised when his coolly "choreographed" well orchestrated rally came as a television show with the right songs being played between pauses and all the singers and bands for youth. Then there was the stage finessed flag and scene changing. The Pakistan flag coming up as the nouveau leader comes to the podium. His speech was also well "choreographed" with the right amount of time to lambast the "old" politicians and then he gave some time to the program that he claims will change and save Pakistan. Some salient features like Thar Coal, Getting money back from Swiss and foreign accounts and land reforms seemed attractive .But are they enough? The answer is no. He even asked the USA to help them withdraw from Afghanistan. How was he going to do that? Is he in links with Afghan Taleban? And how?  He keeps his hand on the anti-American pulse of some people of Pakistan and says that we will after coming into power be friends with all the world including USA but will not take dictation from them. What is he talking about? When in power? Or are the elections being rigged this time  to bring him into power? From the Pakistan flag coming up the stage background and the Pakistan Bachao Rally being organized at Minar e Pakistan despite the Nawaz League's strong opposition it seems that some third force is backing Mr. Imran Khan. This is too obvious. The azme Alishan campaign on a tv channel is part of the same game. Pictures of allama Iqbal in the background, Minare Pakistan as the venue, give the clues of the choreographer. The only positive side is that the corrupt may now be under some pressure.  After the hopeless display by the Pakistan Tehrike Insaaf in Sindh in last years floods, the Sindhi people will never vote for this wolf in a sheep's clothing(simily) especially as he so despises and hates the other large urban party leadership.It seems that for the time bieng Mr. Imran Khan's rally will remain an entertaining focus on some issues like corruption, negotiating with the Taleban and a third force inspirational populist hero presentation despite the Washington Post's claims of large crowds http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/pakistani-cricket-hero-imran-khans-rally-against-government-draws-large-turnout/2011/10/30/gIQAfbLIWM_story.html and The Sidney Morning Herald's same claims http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/pakistani-cricket-hero-imran-khans-rally-against-government-draws-large-turnout/2011/10/30/gIQAfbLIWM_story.html 

Monday, October 17, 2011

Pakistan Happenings...The Bites Of October2011.

Better to have beasts that let themselves be killed than men who run away. 
Jean-Paul Sartre 


Life in this happening country seems such a vortex. Confusion abounds,hollow promises prevail, a daze bordering on stupor is what young men think is a hope for the future. Punjab rises almost like paper tigers, one sided, limp. The call for protests on the streets by lonely, lonesome, single and single handed leaders like Sheikh Rasheed, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Jehangir Tareen,falls on the really deaf ears of the poor, hungry, illiterate, exploited masses who cannot see them as they neither have television sets nor any electricity. The scions and paper, oops sorry tigers/ lions of Punjab give call for anarchy. Come out on the streets and do what? Break public property? Poor people of the Punjab, especially the jigar daran of Lahore; being cut to sizes like moths by the deadly Dengue virus. The public hygiene and the public health that was single handedly governed and "improved" by Mr. Shahbaz Sharif exposed.The older brother making convenient "Shamiana" trips to Sindh to show his presence, failing to satisfy any rain/flood affected people. Calls for a third force being exposed by Nadeem Mallick http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nadeem_Malik_(Pakistani_journalist)
in his talk show Islamabad tonite.So who and what constitute a third force?The PML -F as it is a small Pir Pagara power party cannot bring about revolution.Sheikh Rashed of the small Awami Muslim League dreaming or rather stuporing about an Arab Spring in Pakistan as if the Zia ul Haq Arab/ Foreign assault on Pakistan is not enough for a lifetime.
And the fascistinating ,oops the fascinating brilliant politics of Sindh. Mr. Zulfiqar Mirza giving television speeches/ interviews bordering on blasphemy in his , uh , so charming, naive, immature way. Giving challenges almostlike a little spoilt boy who really does not know what he wants to achieve and diverting attention albeit for a few seconds from the real plight of the peasants, workers, small traders of Sindh who have now according to the Oxfam and World Food Program, no food to eat. Diverting attention by trite issues like do not like the faces of MQM boys from grave issues like severe malnutrition , almost no doctors and lady doctors in Sindh, bad infrastructure like roads and bridges in Sindh, total lack of machinery for water removal, which the Sindh government should have obtained on a permanent basis after the 2010 floods. Despite pleas by sane people to improve the irrigation department and bringing about meaningful governance on waterways and their infrastructure, the Sindh government was busy somehow managing to appear to do some work in this area. The tragedy of Indus Right Bank, the displacement of millions of people, the indignity of their camp life and their courageous return to their villages and towns has not even been recognised by the "smart, ready for sacrifice" Sindh politicians. Instead of concentrating on real development and restructuring they are concentrating on fighting turf wars in Karachi and Hyderabad.
A sane voice calls out. This is not the time for fight. No time for revolution. Do not become like the court of  King Louis XVI  but more like Louis the IVth http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_XIV_of_France.
As far as men go, it is not what they are that interests me, but what they can become.
Jean-Paul Sartre 
Is there hope in such a bleak , well, hazy scenario? Yes , if we start doing serious politics, not stupid politics. The politicians need to become sane. My God that is not demanding too much or is it?They need to read more for one.They need to listen more for two. And definitely they need to act after informed discussion and debate in order to survive in this fast moving world.
Everything has been figured out, except how to live.
Jean-Paul Sartre 

So go figure out how to live and not how to destroy by ignorance and corruption.




Freedom is what you do with what's been done to you. 
Jean-Paul Sartre 

Free the people from oppression, tyranny and disease. Give them education. Give them pens and not guns.Give them the chance to live. Give them health and not death.http://mehernewspappar.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-strategies-adopted-by-international.html

http://mehernewspappar.blogspot.com/2011/05/current-state-of-post-flood.html