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Taking the Wheel
May 26, 2011 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Sumayyah Meehanm, TMO
Most women in America don't think twice about hopping in their cars and hitting the open road to run errands, pick the kids up from school or simply enjoy a long leisurely drive. However, in Saudi Arabia, women are still banned from driving despite several high profile incidents over the years that has thrust the global media's attention on the issue. This past week the issue was once again brought into the limelight as a female Saudi Arabian citizen took to the wheel and later posted the video on the popular social-networking site YouTube.
With her brother in the passenger seat, 32-year-old Manal al-Sharif, took a short spin that landed her in the slammer. The drive was deliberate as al-Sharif herself revealed in a recent interview in which she lamented her frustration for not being able to find a taxi one night, "I had to walk on the street for half an hour looking for a cab. I was harassed by every single car because it was late at night and I was walking alone. I kept calling my brother to pick me up, but his phone wasn't answering. I was crying in the street. A 32-year-old grown woman, a mother, crying like a kid because I couldn't find anyone to bring me home." Al-Sharif learned to drive in the United States and holds a driver's license from America. However, in her homeland, only men are issued driver's licenses.
According to Saudi Arabian authorities, al- Sharif broke several laws after she got behind the wheel including, "bypassing rules and regulations, driving a car within the city, enabling a journalist to interview her while driving a car, deliberately disseminating the incident to the media, incitement of Saudi women to drive cars, and turning public opinion against the regulations." Scores of Saudi citizens have rallied behind al-Sharif and begun to question the veracity of the driving ban on women especially when there is nothing on the books that legally bars a woman from driving.
Soon after her incarceration, a Facebook page was erected entitled 'We are all Manal al-Sharif: a call for solidarity with Saudi women's rights' The page has already garnered 19,000 likes. Another fan page related to the women's driving ban in Saudi Arabia is also getting a lot of support, to the tune of 6,000 likes so far, albeit for all of the wrong reasons. The page encourages Saudi Arabian men to beat their female relatives with a heavy brocaded rope known as the "Iqal", which adorns the Saudi Arabian men's headdress, should any of the women demand driving rights.
Al-Sharif remains in prison and her fate is yet to be determined. Some analysts have predicted she will stay in prison for five days, however it remains to be seen if she will face further penalties for deliberately flaunting the driving ban. Meanwhile, another Saudi Arabian woman copied al-Sharif's drive this week and was swiftly arrested at a local supermarket. However, she was only held for a few hours and released.
Musharraf wants to enter into Pakistani Politics with a Big Bang
May 13, 2010 by TMO · Leave a Comment
I will surely be in Pakistan before the next General Elections for one last contest: Musharraf in Houston
"You have mentioned in your English and Urdu newspapers that return of Musharraf is imminent. Now I will have to prove this statement," said former President of Pakistan General (Retired) Pervez Musharraf, while talking to Pakistan Chronicle & Pakistan Journal Newspapers Publisher Tariq Nehal Khan and Marketing & Distribution Manager Mohammad Jameel Siddiqui, at luncheon held in his and his wife Mrs. Sehba Musharraf's honor at the residence of famous Houston Attorney Nauman (Noami) Hussain. One day before this luncheon meeting, General (Retired) Pervez Musharraf and his wife had reached Houston and had meetings with members of a reputable think tank.
Large number of Pakistani Community and American personalities were present on the luncheon occasion, including Stephen Prentiss Payne, a most famous American lobbyist from Houston, Texas, who has been Mr. Musharraf's lobbyist in Washington, D.C.; Counsel General of Pakistan in Houston Aqil Nadeem and his wife; Former City Councilman Masrur Javed Khan; Former Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Dr. Naseem Ashraf and many more. Sumptuous luncheon of Mezban Restaurant and Demasis Mediterranean Restaurant was served.
Naomi Hussain introduced Pervez Musharraf as the person, who after President Bush said either you are with us or with the terrorists; stood besides USA. Musharraf started his ten minutes presentation by thanking Naomi Hussain & his wife and everyone in the large gathering and said whatever he did after 9/11 was first in the interest of Pakistan, then of the world and of course USA.
Talking about his political future, he said disinformation is being implanted into various Pakistani media that when I recently visited Washington, D.C., not a single important person met me. If it is not for privacy issues, he said he would have mentioned the names of top officials, with whom he had concrete talks; and that would have meant restless days and sleepless nights for these persons, who are merely doing false propaganda.
Former President Pervez Musarraf said that ground realty is recently I started my face-book and got the most clicks by any person in a day in the whole world, resulting in an interview with Becky Anderson of CNN in London England. I do a Q-&-A session every 14th day on my face-book and 85% of the people want me to return to Pakistan and play a positive role in the political arena of Pakistan. Several seasoned and credible politicians of Pakistan recently met him in Middle East and everyone wants his return. Nature is with him in that he is the only alive notable personality of Pakistan, who has the chance to take politicians, bureaucracy and arm-forces of Pakistan together and that present & future of Pakistan needs a personality, who especially has these credentials.
He said at present with no real responsibilities and traveling to various places for speaking tours, he is living very peacefully and in serenity. But when calls to return for the betterment of Pakistan reach him, they make him to think hard and he is at presently considering to remain living comfortably or returning to Pakistan and work hard to make the country the best in the world. He said he is strongly inclined to return as Pakistan comes first; for sure before the next national elections and final word will be coming from his camp within the next two months.
"I just do not want to return and be a mediocre player in Pakistani politics. I want to return with a big bang and give Pakistani people a real third choice in politics, where present government has failed miserably in resolving issues and problems have compounded, while on the other hand, we have Nawaz Sharif & PML (N). Mr. Sharif has some kink in his brain, as he is always confronting with some; previously with 4 Generals and presently making agreements with the government but then at time becoming angry and at other times remains quiet. I have called Mr. Sharif a Closet Taleban, who as in Urdu we say have beard in the tummy; he is most dangerous for Pakistan and for everybody. I am sure I will able to provide the most viable Third National Choice in the next elections. Pakistan deserves better leadership and if I do not try, that will not be good. I am not scared of failure. I will give it the best try," said Musharraf amidst applause.
General (Retired) Pervez Musharraf said there is figure of Pakistan, who is more than 25 years veteran politician, but now-a-days dormant (he said he does not want to give his name). When recently he called him to get suggestions about future and referenced the scene from a famous cowboy movie, where only one bullet is left and person is contemplating to go back for one last fight or not. Musharraf was told by this politician that it is better to go back for one last fight and he may very well find this dormant politician besides him.
Former President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf said the way so many people have here to Naomi's home, similarly people in other cities, like recently Chicago have met him. But all this effort is scattered. He said if you see him to work hard for Pakistan and Pakistanis, it is necessary that those who are in favor of my thumping return to Pakistan, collect their resources and efforts.
Protest Against Renaming NWFP
April 15, 2010 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Mahvish Akhtar, MMNS Pakistan Correspondent
Most cities of NWFP are under fire because of the protest against renaming the province Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Protests and rallies took place in cities such as Abbottabad, Haripur, Mansehra, Oghi, Balakot, and Garihabibullah.
Protestors set fire to tires on the streets in different areas of Abbottabad and Mansehra. People gathered around official buildings and the PML-N secretariat. The police fired teargas and shells in order to disperse the crowds.
Situation got completely out of hand in Abbotabad and Hazarawhere protestors came out in thousands and disrupted the normalcy of life in the city. The crowd was setting fire to vehicles and tires and was very restless. The protestors threw stones at the police and set fire to police cars along with one Edhi Foundation ambulance and smashed billboards.
The Karrakuram Highway and most main roads and streets had to be completely closed off. Children who were in school could not leave school and had to go through a lot of trouble to get home.
According to the police things were completely out of control, so in order to control the situation the police fired shots and killed seven people while 200 others were injured. The police say that they did not have a choice and the act was purely self defense.
District police chief Iqbal Khan told journalists that police opened fire in self-defense after a number of people who were a part of the protest rally took over the Mirpur police station. Even though there was a ban put on protests rallies people still came out and protested under section 144. Section 144 prohibits assembly of five or more persons, holding of public meetings, and carrying of firearms and can be in effect for up to two months. It also gives the courts the power to issue orders regarding apprehending or arresting any person or persons related to the violation of the ban.
However, according to the protestors the police opened fired at them and did not discriminate as to who gets hurt in the process of them trying to discourage the crowds from gathering.
A unanimous resolution in the legal community demanded the government to declare Hazara a separate province and arrest DIG and Commissioner Hazara who ordered the firing, which left seven protestors dead on Monday.
On the request of high court bar association Hazara Division, the lawyers boycotted the court proceedings. The lawyers also took out a protest rally, and marched through various roads gathering at the Zafar Ground.
Information Minister Mian Iftikhar said that judiciary inquiry would be held to look into this matter. He also added that there were "hidden hands" and "unseen elements" behind the violent protests and rallies. He also commented that it is acceptable for people to view their opinions and show their dislike of a decision. It is the right of the public to come out and demonstrate peacefully he added. However he also said that acts of violence and criminal activity will not be tolerated. Mr. Iftikhar also said that burning of vehicle and vandalizing property and material will not be over looked. He emphasized that the culprits who committed these crimes will be found and will be given due punishment.
The Minister claimed, "We contacted prominent leaders of different parties in Hazara division and assured them that the provincial government would address their concerns over the renaming of the NWFP as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, but not a single leader came forward for talks." He appealed to political parties, their leaders and the public to stay calm and try to resolve this matter by identify the culprits who committed these terrible crimes so that they could be brought to justice.
The President of The National Awami Party, Afrasiab Khattak said that Asfandyar Wali, Nawaz Sharif are meeting soon and will sort out the reservations on renaming the province. He urged political parties to resolve this important issue through negotiation and the decision should be made by a consensus. He also noted that there is no deadlock of political parties over the renaming of the province.
Tension in Abbottabad is still at a high and all government and private institutions remained closed on Tuesday April 13, 2010 due the uncertain situation in the city. It meshed with the complete shutter down protest in Hazara. People blocked streets and made sure the rules of the protest was being implemented.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) local chapter had announced that it would hold a convention at the Fawara Chowk on Monday apparently to counter the anti-Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa campaign launched by the Action Committee for Hazara province. The latter is headed by a former district Nazim of Abbottabad, Sardar Haider Zaman Khan, and includes political leaders mostly from the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q).
The bill was drafted by an all-party parliamentary committee headed by Pakistan Peoples Party's Senator Raza Rabbani. This bill was passed unanimously on Thursday April 8th 2010 by all the 292 members of the 342-seat National Assembly who were present and must also be approved by the required two-thirds majority of the 100-seat Senate before President Asif Ali Zardari signs it to put it into effect.
Even after all the problems and opposition surrounding it the bill was tabled in senate regardless of all this. The aims of bill include a return to a genuine parliamentary form of government with the transfer of some key presidential powers to the prime minister, enhance provincial autonomy and provide for a parliamentary oversight of the appointment of superior court judges.
Could Pakistan's NorthWest Frontier Province Become Afghania?
January 21, 2010 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Dr. Mohammad Taqi, Pakistan Link
At this time in the constitutional history of Pakistan, there apparently is a lot in a name; a name for the NWFP, that is.
Two major political parties of Pakistan, viz. Awami National Party (ANP) and Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N), have nominated a five-member committee each, to meet, and hopefully agree, upon rechristening the NWFP.
In and of itself this may not be a major development for the rest of Pakistan, but on its resolution apparently hinges the forward movement in repealing the 17th Amendment to the 1973 Constitution. The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is likely to bless the consensus developed by the ANP and PML-N.
The North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) was so named, when in November 1901 the Viceroy of British India, Lord George Nathaniel Curzon, the First Marquess of Kedleston, carved out the Peshawar, Dera Ismail Khan, Bannu, Kohat and Hazara districts from the Punjab province and consolidated them into one administrative entity and appointed Sir Harold Deane as its first Chief Commissioner.
The chief commissionerate was abolished in 1932 and the NWFP became a Governor's Province with the then Chief Commissioner Sir Ralph Griffith continuing as the first Governor. Sir Sahibzada Abdul Qayyum became the province's first minister. The first general elections under the Government of Indian Act 1935 were held in 1937 and Sahibzada Abdul Qayyum was elected the first chief minister of the province.
Four of the districts originally incorporated into the NWFP had sizable non-Pashtun and/or non-Pashto speaking populations, Hazara being the most important such district. However, large proportions of the Hindko speakers of Hazara and Peshawar City trace their lineage to Pashto or Persian-speaking Afghans.
While the demographic makeup of the Peshawar city, Kohat and Dera Ismail Khan has changed favorably towards the Pashtun ethnicity and language over the last thirty years, the Hazara – now a division – remains very much a Hindko-speaking region.
Hazara has also been the bastion of various incarnations of the Pakistan Muslim League and remained so in the 2008 elections, returning six Muslim Leaguers to the National Assembly of Pakistan from its seven allocated seats; hence the PML-N's intense focus on Hazara in the renaming process.
The ANP, on the other hand, has been consistently demanding a change in the province's name since the party's inception in 1986. The term Pukhtunkhwa was introduced in its current political context right around that time.
Pukhtunkhwa certainly is a term that has not only been used politically to describe the land of the Pashtuns but was also deployed frequently by the twentieth century Sufi poet Amir Hamza Shinwari and later by the more politically attuned poets like Ajmal Khattak, Qalandar Momand and Rehmat Shah Sael who gave it currency. It thus has significant cultural and popular history in contrast with the exonym NWFP.
The ANP had proposed this name as an alternative to the more political – and to some a secessionist – term Pashtunistan. Pashtunistan had its origin in the duel between the All-India Muslim League and the Khudai Khidmatgar Movement, where the latter proposed that the NWFP and FATA remain independent – under the Pashtunistan banner – than join Pakistan or India.
The Pashtun nationalist movement and its leaders remained 'outsiders', from 1947 through the mid-1980s, as far as the power politics of Pakistan go. The call for renaming the NWFP had then remained one of the rallying points for the ANP's "National Democratic Revolution", a neo-irredentist modification of the Leninist theory of the same name. Irredentism by definition being "a policy directed towards the incorporation, of irredentas – territories historically or ethnically related to one political unit but under the political control of another-back into their historically or ethnically related political unit".
In due course the Pashtun nationalist movement, which in the NWFP essentially meant the ANP, was absorbed into the mainstream Pakistani politics, after forming a coalition with the PML of Nawaz Sharif in 1990, the party was formally initiated into the Islamabadian realpolitik and its leaders rehabilitated as "patriotic" Pakistanis from a hithertofore "traitor" status.
The issue of renaming the NWFP has, however, continued to be a point of contention between the ANP and the PML-N not least because of the different ethno-linguistic demographic that each draws its support from. Each side had its reservations entrenched in the irredentism – real or perceived – of the other.
Over the last several years, efforts have been made by many to arrive at a consensus name for the province. The proposed alternatives have ranged from Gandhara – the ancient name of the region, Khyber, Abaseen, Neelab, Peshawar and Afghania. Each of these names has had its supporters and critics.
Going back to Gandhara is considered by some to ignore centuries of sociological evolution that the people of this region have gone through. Khyber, Abaseen, Neelab and Peshawar represent a geographical nomenclature that is devoid of the ethnic, linguistic, religious and cultural connotations.
While geographical renaming has been a common practice in the post-colonial nation-states, it is rather a reverse sociological evolution to use geographic landmarks to name regions where a peoples' identity is also an issue. The Pakistani provinces like Punjab or Sindh did not gain their names in this fashion. The geographical landmarks developed their significance over the ages and people inhabiting those regions subsequently drew their name and identity from these landmarks and regions.
Within the last two weeks, the PML-N has proposed a slate of three names, i.e., Abaseen, Neelab and Pukhtunkhwa-Hazara whereas t he Chief of the ANP, Asfandyar Wali Khan has given a mandate to his committee to agree upon Pukhtunkhwa, Pashtunistan or Afghania.
Among all the names proposed by the two parties Afghania is one entity that has no political baggage attached to it. Indeed Afghania is the word represented by the letter 'A' in the acronym PAKISTAN as originally coined by Chaudhry Rehmat Ali in his 1933 pamphlet "Now or Never".
In his later book " Pakistan : the fatherland of the Pak nation", Chaudhry Rehmat Ali calls the word NWFP an "official but nondescript" term used for the province of Afghania.
In addition to the ANP President's standing offer to accept Afghania as the province's new name, its central leader and key ideologue Senator Afrasiab Khattak had also written a well-argued article supporting this name.
There could potentially be a question about having a province named Afghania right at the border of Afghanistan and a few may balk at this. However, from Allama Iqbal and Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah to the religious parties of Pakistan, everyone has acknowledged the strong ties of languages, culture, religion and trade between the two adjoining regions. If anything, Afghania would only strengthen and bolster these relations.
Afghania as the new name for the NWFP will not only be acceptable to all people of this region but will also bring to close a chapter of imperial history. It is in sync with the wishes of the founding fathers and the will of the people today. ANP and PML-N have the initiative in their hands; now or never, as Chaudhry Rehmat Ali would have said.
The author teaches and practices medicine at the University of Florida and can be reached at email@example.com.
US 'Biggest' Threat, Say Pakistanis
August 13, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Owen Fay, Al Jazeera
A survey commissioned by Al Jazeera in Pakistan has revealed a widespread disenchantment with the United States for interfering with what most people consider internal Pakistani affairs.
The polling was conducted by Gallup Pakistan – a separate organisation affiliated with the US-based Gallup Inc – and more than 2,600 people took part.
Interviews were conducted across the political spectrum, and represented men and women of every economic and ethnic background.
The resentment was made clear when residents were asked if they support or oppose Pakistan's own military offensive against Taliban targets.
Keeping with recent trends a growing number of people, now 41 per cent, support the campaign.
About 24 per cent of people remain opposed, but an additional 22 per cent of Pakistanis remain neutral on the question.
That number changes quite significantly when people were asked if they would support government-sanctioned dialogue with Taliban fighters if it were a viable option.
The same 41 per cent said they would still support the military offensive. But the number of those supporting dialogue leaps up to 43 per cent.
So clearly, Pakistanis are, right now, fairly evenly split on how to deal with the Taliban threat.
However, when asked if they support or oppose the US military's drone attacks against what Washington claims are Taliban and al-Qaeda targets, only nine per cent of respondents reacted favorably.
A massive 67 per cent say they oppose US military operations on Pakistani soil.
"This is a fact that the hatred against the US is growing very quickly, mainly because of these drone attacks," Makhdoom Babar, the editor-in-chief of Pakistan's The Daily Mail newspaper, said.
"Maybe the intelligence channels, the military channels consider it productive, but for the general public it is controversial … the drone attacks are causing collateral damage," he told Al Jazeera.
The consensus of opinion on US military involvement is notable given the fact that on a raft of internal issues there is a clear level of disagreement, which can be expected in a country of this size.
When asked for their opinions on Asif Ali Zardari, the Pakistani president, 42 per cent of respondents believe he is doing a bad job. Around 11 per cent approve of his leadership, and another 34 per cent have no strong opinion either way.
That pattern was reflected in a question about the Pakistan People's Party (PPP).
Forty-one per cent of Pakistanis say they support the offensive against the Taliban
Respondents were asked if they thought the PPP is good or bad for the country.
About 38 per cent said the PPP is bad for the country, 20 per cent believe it is good for the country and another 30 per cent said they have no strong opinion.
Respondents were even more fractured when asked for their views on how the country should be led.
By far, the largest percentage would opt for Nawaz Sharif, a former prime minister, as leader. At least 38 per cent back him to run Pakistan.
Zardari received only nine per cent support, while Reza Gilani, Pakistan's prime minister, has the backing of 13 per cent.
But from there, opinions vary greatly. Eight per cent of the population would support a military government, 11 per cent back a political coalition of the PPP and Sharif's PML-N party.
Another six per cent throw their support behind religious parties and the remaining 15 per cent would either back smaller groups or simply do not have an opinion.
Babar told Al Jazeera that Zardari's unpopularity was understandable given the challenges that the country had faced since the September 11, 2001 attacks on the US.
"Any president in Pakistan would be having the same popularity that President Zardari is having, because under this situation the president of Pakistan has to take a lot of unpopular decisions," he said.
"He is in no position to not take unpopular decisions that are actually in the wider interests of the country, but for common people these are very unpopular decisions."
The level of diversity disappears when broader questions of security and military intervention are posed.
In the same way that most Pakistanis right now reject what they see as US military interference, they strongly oppose US policies as a whole.
The respondents were asked what they consider to be the biggest threat to the nation of Pakistan: 11 per cent of the population sees the Taliban as the largest threat, while 18 per cent believe it comes from India.
But by an overwhelming margin, 59 per cent of respondents said the greatest threat to Pakistan right now is, in fact, the US.
That is a number worth bearing in mind the next time the US claims its military campaign is succeeding.
Pakistan–Towards Theocracy?
March 19, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
Courtesy Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy
Women in burqas and children from the Bajaur and Mohmand agency areas wait to be registered at a refugee camp near Peshawar in January. Today a full-scale war is being fought in FATA, Swat and other "wild" areas of Pakistan, with thousands dying and hundreds of thousands of displaced people streaming into cities and towns.
FOR 20 years or more, a few of us in Pakistan have been desperately sending out SOS messages, warning of terrible times to come. Nevertheless, none anticipated how quickly and accurately our dire predictions would come true. It is a small matter that the flames of terrorism set Mumbai on fire and, more recently, destroyed Pakistan's cricketing future. A much more important and brutal fight lies ahead as Pakistan, a nation of 175 million, struggles for its very survival. The implications for the future of South Asia are enormous.
Today a full-scale war is being fought in FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas), Swat and other "wild" areas of Pakistan, with thousands dying and hundreds of thousands of IDPs (internally displaced people) streaming into cities and towns. In February 2009, with the writ of the Pakistani state in tatters, the government gave in to the demand of the TTP (Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, the Pakistani Taliban Movement) to implement the Islamic Sharia in Malakand, a region of FATA. It also announced the suspension of a military offensive in Swat, which has been almost totally taken over by the TTP. But the respite that it brought was short-lived and started breaking down only hours later.
The fighting is now inexorably migrating towards Peshawar where, fearing the Taliban, video shop owners have shut shop, banners have been placed in bazaars declaring them closed for women, musicians are out of business, and kidnapping for ransom is the best business in town. Islamabad has already seen Lal Masjid and the Marriot bombing, and has had its police personnel repeatedly blown up by suicide bombers. Today, its barricaded streets give a picture of a city under siege. In Karachi, the Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM), an ethnic but secular party well known for strong-arm tactics, has issued a call for arms to prevent the Taliban from making further inroads into the city. Lahore once appeared relatively safe and different but, after the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team, has rejoined Pakistan.
The suicide bomber and the masked abductor have crippled Pakistan's urban life and shattered its national economy. Soldiers, policemen, factory and hospital workers, mourners at funerals, and ordinary people praying in mosques have been reduced to hideous masses of flesh and fragments of bones. The bearded ones, many operating out of madrassas, are hitting targets across the country. Although a substantial part of the Pakistani public insists upon lionising them as "standing up to the Americans", they are neither seeking to evict a foreign occupier nor fighting for a homeland. They want nothing less than to seize power and to turn Pakistan into their version of the ideal Islamic state. In their incoherent, ill-formed vision, this would include restoring the caliphate as well as doing away with all forms of western influence and elements of modernity. The AK-47 and the Internet, of course, would stay.
But, perhaps paradoxically, in spite of the fact that the dead bodies and shattered lives are almost all Muslim ones, few Pakistanis speak out against these atrocities. Nor do they approve of military action against the cruel perpetrators, choosing to believe that they are fighting for Islam and against an imagined American occupation. Political leaders like Qazi Husain Ahmed and Imran Khan have no words of kindness for those who have suffered from Islamic extremists. Their tears are reserved for the victims of predator drones, whether innocent or otherwise. By definition, for them terrorism is an act that only Americans can commit.
Why the Denial?
To understand Pakistan's collective masochism, one needs to study the drastic social and cultural transformations that have made this country so utterly different from what it was in earlier times. For three decades, deep tectonic forces have been silently tearing Pakistan away from the Indian subcontinent and driving it towards the Arabian peninsula.
This continental drift is not physical but cultural, driven by a belief that Pakistan must exchange its South Asian identity for an Arab-Muslim one. Grain by grain, the desert sands of Saudi Arabia are replacing the rich soil that had nurtured a rich Muslim culture in India for a thousand years.. This culture produced Mughal architecture, the Taj Mahal, the poetry of Asadullah Ghalib, and much more. Now a stern, unyielding version of Islam – Wahabism – is replacing the kinder, gentler Islam of the sufis and saints who had walked on this land for hundreds of years.
This change is by design. Twenty-five years ago, under the approving gaze of Ronald Reagan's America, the Pakistani state pushed Islam on to its people. Prayers in government departments were deemed compulsory, floggings were carried out publicly, punishments were meted out to those who did not fast in Ramadan, selection for university academic posts required that the candidate demonstrate knowledge of Islamic teachings, and jehad was declared essential for every Muslim.
Villages have changed drastically, driven in part by Pakistani workers returning from Arab countries. Many village mosques are now giant madrassas that propagate hard-line Salafi and Deobandi beliefs through oversized loudspeakers. They are bitterly opposed to Barelvis, Shias and other Muslims, who they do not consider to be proper Muslims. Punjabis, who were far more liberal towards women than Pashtuns, are now also beginning to take a line resembling the Taliban. Hanafi law has begun to prevail over tradition and civil law, as is evident from recent decisions in the Lahore High Court.
K.M. Chaudhry/AP
Pakistan's Ministry of Education estimates that 1.5 million students are getting religious education in 13,000 madrassas. These figures could be quite off the mark. Commonly quoted figures range between 18,000 and 22,000 such schools. Here, students at the Jamia Manzoorul Islam, a madrassa in Lahore.
In the Pakistani lower-middle and middle-middle classes lurks a grim and humourless Saudi-inspired revivalist movement which frowns on every expression of joy and pleasurable pastime. Lacking any positive connection to history, culture and knowledge, it seeks to eliminate "corruption" by regulating cultural life and seizing control of the education system.
"Classical music is on its last legs in Pakistan; the sarangi and vichtarveena are completely dead," laments Mohammad Shehzad, a music aficionado. Indeed, teaching music in public universities is violently opposed by students of the Islami Jamaat-e-Talaba at Punjab University. Religious fundamentalists consider music haram. Kathak dancing, once popular with the Muslim elite of India, has no teachers left. Pakistan produces no feature films of any consequence.
As a part of General Zia-ul-Haq's cultural offensive, Hindi words were expunged from daily use and replaced with heavy-sounding Arabic ones. Persian, the language of Mughal India, had once been taught as a second or third language in many Pakistani schools. But, because of its association with Shiite Iran, it too was dropped and replaced with Arabic. The morphing of the traditional "khuda hafiz" (Persian for "God be with you") into "allah hafiz" (Arabic for "God be with you") took two decades to complete. The Arab import sounded odd and contrived, but ultimately the Arabic God won and the Persian God lost.
Genesis of Jehad
One can squarely place the genesis of religious militancy in Pakistan to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 and the subsequent efforts of the U.S.-Pakistan-Saudi grand alliance to create and support the Great Global Jehad of the 20th century. A toxic mix of imperial might, religious fundamentalism, and local interests ultimately defeated the Soviets. But the network of Islamic militant organisations did not disappear after it achieved success. By now the Pakistani Army establishment had realised the power of jehad as an instrument of foreign policy, and so the network grew from strength to strength.
The amazing success of the state is now turning out to be its own undoing. Today the Pakistan Army and establishment are under attack from religious militants, and rival Islamic groups battle each other with heavy weapons. Ironically, the same Army – whose men were recruited under the banner of jehad, and which saw itself as the fighting arm of Islam – today stands accused of betrayal and is almost daily targeted by Islamist suicide bombers. Over 1,800 soldiers have died as of February 2009 in encounters with religious militants, and many have been tortured before decapitation. Nevertheless, the Army is still ambivalent in its relationship with the jehadists and largely focusses upon India.
Education or Indoctrination?
Similar sentiments exist in a large part of the Pakistani public media.. The commonly expressed view is that Islamic radicalism is a problem only in FATA and that madrassas are the only jehad factories around. This could not be more wrong. Extremism is breeding at a ferocious rate in public and private schools within Pakistan's towns and cities. Left unchallenged, this kind of education will produce a generation incapable of living together with any except strictly their own kind. Pakistan's education system demands that Islam be understood as a complete code of life, and creates in the mind of the schoolchild a sense of siege and constant embattlement by stressing that Islam is under threat everywhere.
The government-approved curriculum, prepared by the Curriculum Wing of the Federal Ministry of Education, is the basic road map for transmitting values and knowledge to the young. By an Act of Parliament, passed in 1976, all government and private schools (except for O-level schools) are required to follow this curriculum. It is a blueprint for a religious fascist state.
The masthead of an illustrated primer for the Urdu alphabet states that it has been prepared by Iqra Publishers, Rawalpindi, along "Islamic lines". Although not an officially approved textbook, it has been used for many years by some regular schools, as well as madrassas, associated with the Jamiat-ul-Ulema-e-Islam (JUI), an Islamic political party that had allied itself with General Pervez Musharraf.
The world of the Pakistani schoolchild was largely unchanged even after September 11, 2001, which led to Pakistan's timely desertion of the Taliban and the slackening of the Kashmir jehad. Indeed, for all his hypocritical talk of "enlightened moderation", Musharraf's educational curriculum was far from enlightening. It was a slightly toned-down copy of that under Nawaz Sharif which, in turn, was identical to that under Benazir Bhutto, who inherited it from Zia-ul-Haq.
Fearful of taking on powerful religious forces, every incumbent government refused to take a position on the curriculum and thus quietly allowed young minds to be molded by fanatics. What might happen a generation later has always been a secondary matter for a government challenged on so many sides.
The promotion of militarism in Pakistan's so-called "secular" public schools, colleges and universities had a profound effect upon young minds. Militant jehad became part of the culture on college and university campuses. Armed groups flourished, invited students for jehad=2 0in Kashmir and Afghanistan, set up offices throughout the country, collected funds at Friday prayers, and declared a war without borders. Pre-9/11, my university was ablaze with posters inviting students to participate in the Kashmir jehad. After 2001, this slipped below the surface.
For all his hypocritical talk of "enlightened moderation", General Pervez Musharraf's educational curriculum was far from enlightening. It was a slightly toned-down copy of that under Nawaz Sharif which, in turn, was identical to that under Benazir Bhutto, who inherited it from Zia-ul-Haq. (From left) Zia-ul-Haq, Benazir Bhutto, Nawaz Sharif and Musharraf.
The madrassas
The primary vehicle for Saudi-ising Pakistan's education has been the madrassa. In earlier times, these had turned out the occasional Islamic scholar, using a curriculum that essentially dates from the 11th century with only minor subsequent revisions. But their principal function had been to produce imams and muezzins for mosques, and those who eked out an existence as "moulvi sahibs" teaching children to read the Quran.
The Afghan jehad changed everything. During the war against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, madrassas provided the U.S.-Saudi-Pakistani alliance the cannon fodder needed for fighting a holy war. The Americans and the Saudis, helped by a more-than-willing General Zia, funded new madrassas across the length and breadth of Pakistan.
A detailed picture of the current s ituation is not available. But, according to the national education census, which the Ministry of Education released in 2006, Punjab has 5,459 madrassas followed by the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) with 2,843; Sindh 1,935; Federally Administrated Northern Areas (FANA) 1,193; Balochistan 769; Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) 586; FATA 135; and Islamabad capital territory 77. The Ministry estimates that 1.5 million students are getting religious education in the 13,000 madrassas.
These figures could be quite off the mark. Commonly quoted figures range between 18,000 and 22,000 madrassas. The number of students could be correspondingly larger. The free room, board and supplies to students, form a key part of their appeal.
But the desire of parents across the country is for children to be "disciplined" and to be given a thorough Islamic education. This is also a major contributing factor.
For the rest of this article, please visit our website: www.muslimobserver.com.
Madrassas have deeply impacted upon the urban environment. For example, until a few years ago, Islamabad was a quiet, orderly, modern city different from all others in Pakistan. Still earlier, it had been largely the abode of Pakistan's hyper-elite and foreign diplomats. But the rapid transformation of its demography brought with it hundreds of mosques with multi-barrelled audio-cannons mounted on minarets, as well as scores of madrassas illegally constructed in what used to be public parks and green areas. Now, tens of thousands of their students with little prayer caps dutifully chant the Quran all day. In the evenings they swarm around the city, making bare-faced women increasingly nervous.
Women – the Lesser Species
Total separation of the sexes is a central goal of the Islamists. Two decades ago the fully veiled student was a rarity on Pakistani university and college campuses. The abaya was an unknown word in Urdu; it is a foreign import. But today, some shops in Islamabad specialise in abaya. At colleges and universities across Pakistan, female students are seeking the anonymity of the burqa. Such students outnumber their sisters who still dare show their faces.
While social conservatism does not necessarily lead to violent extremism, it does shorten the path. Those with beards and burqas are more easily convinced that Muslims are being demonised by the rest of the world. The real problem, they say, is the plight of the Palestinians, the decadent and discriminatory West, the Jews, the Christians, the Hindus, the Kashmir issue, the Bush doctrine, and so on. They vehemently deny that those committing terrorist acts are Muslims or, if faced by incontrovertible evidence, say it is a mere reaction to oppression. Faced with the embarrassment that 200 schools for girls were blown up in Swat by Fazlullah's militants, they wriggle out by saying that some schools were housing the Pakistan Army, who should be targeted anyway.
Abdul Rehman/Reuters
This high school at Qambar in the Swat valley was among the 200 schools for girls destroyed by the S wat Taliban led by Mullah Fazlullah.
The Prognosis
The immediate future is not hopeful: increasing numbers of mullahs are creating cults around themselves and seizing control over the minds of worshippers. In the tribal areas, a string of new Islamist leaders have suddenly emerged: Sufi Mohammad, Baitullah Mehsud, Fazlullah, Mangal Bagh…. The enabling environment of poverty, deprivation, lack of justice, and extreme differences of wealth is perfect for these demagogues. Their gruesome acts of terror and public beheadings are still being perceived by large numbers of Pakistanis as part of the fight against imperialist America and, sometimes, India as well. This could not be more wrong.
The jehadists have longer-range goals. A couple of years ago, a Karachi-based monthly magazine ran a cover story on the terrorism in Kashmir. One fighter was asked what he would do if a political resolution were found for the disputed valley. Revealingly, he replied that he would not lay down his gun but turn it on the Pakistani leadership, with the aim of installing an Islamic government there.
Over the next year or two, we are likely to see more short-lived "peace accords", as in Malakand, Swat and, earlier on, in Shakai. In my opinion, these are exercises in futility. Until the Pakistan Army finally realises that Mr. Frankenstein needs to be eliminated rather than be engaged in negotiations, it will continue to soft-pedal on counter-insurgency. It will also continue to develop and demand from the U.S. high-tech weapons that are not the slightest use against insurgents. There are some indications that some realisation of the internal threat is dawning, but the speed is as yet glacial.
Even if Mumbai-II occurs, India's options in dealing with nuclear Pakistan are severely limited. Cross-border strikes should be dismissed from the realm of possibilities. They could lead to escalations that neither government would have control over. I am convinced that India's prosperity – and perhaps its physical survival – demands that Pakistan stays together. Pakistan could disintegrate into a hell, where different parts are run by different warlords. Paradoxically perhaps, India's most effective defence could be the Pakistan Army, torn and fractured though it may be. To convert a former enemy army into a possible ally will require that India change tack.
To create a future working alliance with the struggling Pakistani state, and in deference to basic democratic principles, India must be seen as genuinely working towards some kind of resolution of the Kashmir issue. It must not deny that the majority of Kashmiri Muslims are deeply alienated from the Indian state and that they desperately seek balm for their wounds. Else the forces of cross-border jehad, and its hate-filled holy warriors, will continue to receive unnecessary succour.
I shall end this rather grim essay on an optimistic note: the forces of irrationality will surely ca ncel themselves out because they act in random directions, whereas reason pulls in only one. History leads us to believe that reason will triumph over unreason, and humans will continue their evolution towards a higher and better species. Ultimately, it will not matter whether we are Pakistanis, Indians, Kashmiris, or whatever. Using ways that we cannot currently anticipate, people will somehow overcome their primal impulses of territoriality, tribalism, religion and nationalism. But for now this must be just a hypothesis.
Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy is Professor and Chairman of the Physics Department, Qaid-e Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan.
Iftikhar Chaudhry Welcomed in US
November 26, 2008 by TMO · Leave a Comment
NEW YORK, Nov 17: Deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry received a standing ovation from a huge crowd of Pakistani-Americans in Brooklyn (New York) on Sunday evening.
Justice Iftikhar who has come to the United States to receive awards from New York Bar Association and Harvard Law School did not address the crowd.
Former President of the Supreme Court Bar Association Aitzaz Ahsan said in his speech that in order to make Pakistan truly independent and honourable nation restoration of the deposed chief justice was a pre-requisite.
"He is a symbol of independent judiciary which all Pakistanis want," he said.
The meeting was organised by Pakistani-American lawyers led by Ramzan Rana.
The organisers repeatedly appealed to the audience not to raise political slogans. However, slogans were raised against President Asif Zardari's position on the restoration of judges.
At one stage, some people repeatedly called for Mr Ahsan's resignation from the PPP.
After ignoring them for some time, Mr Ahsan shot back, "I will not resign from PPP. I'm the Pakistan People's Party!"
He said Justice Iftikhar had maintained judicial restraint and never responded to criticism from some politicians or to opinions expressed in television talk shows.
He said Justice Iftikhar's restoration was all the more important because if it was not done there would never be an independent judiciary in the country.
Mr Ahsan said Pakistan's top political leaders, Asif Ali Zardari, Mian Nawaz Sharif, Asfandyar Wali and Maulana Fazlur Rehman, had made written and oral commitments with the nation to restore all deposed judges, but so far that promise had not been fulfilled.
Earlier Justice Chaudhry was received at JFK by a large crowd of Pakistani American Attorneys, Political activists and members of civil society.
A Doomed Presidency
September 18, 2008 by TMO · Leave a Comment
A doomed presidency: With the army poised for a coup and the Taliban winning hearts, Zardari doesn't stand a chance
Courtesy Peter Preston, The Guardian
Forget labels. In reality, two giant parties struggle perennially for power in Pakistan. One is the politicians' party, whose candidate, Asif Ali Zardari, has just been elected president. The other is the army party, which prefers bazookas to ballot boxes. Democracy in this pivotal country is a frail blossom. And Zardari is as frail as they come.
The crude apology for a party system in Pakistan is 60 years old and shows scant sign of changing. First, the politicians have an election and govern for a while. When they falter, the generals take over. Ayub Khan, Yahya Khan, Zia ul-Haq, Pervez Musharraf – they come and go, punctuated briefly by elected prime ministers (mostly called Bhutto). It's a malign sort of game, growing perilously close to an endgame now. Indeed, President Zardari's inevitably brief tenure may well be the end of it all as a third party – young, idealistic, fervent and brave – begins to tip the board over. You may not have heard the Taliban so described before, but that doesn't mean that brute force isn't with them.
In the wake of Benazir Bhutto's murder by hands unknown last December, the Pakistan People's party had a triumphant election. It possessed just enough numbers in the national and provincial parliaments to deliver the presidency, but you'd be hard pressed to invent a more hopeless, doomed prospectus.
This president isn't a politician. He's a businessmen who's been haplessly entangled in too much monkey business over the years. Nine years in prison for corruption on trumped-up charges? Perhaps they have never been fully, fairly investigated, but to too many Pakistanis he is Mr Ten Per Cent. He vows to fight against the Taliban and defend US interests, even when they include US special forces staging bloody raids inside Pakistan's borders. He promises to put right a broken, increasingly beleaguered economy, and to spend another $15bn of American aid wisely and well. But what comes next will be failure, unpopularity and a new tide of sleaze allegations.
A year or two down the line, the men in braid will sense a familiar opportunity and mount another coup. Washington, glad to have the military back at the top, will find another $15bn. The army will buy more guns, and feed more of its private bank accounts. The looting of Pakistan's hope and Pakistan's future will proceed on schedule.
The twin supposed champions of democracy – Zardari and Nawaz Sharif – couldn't have made a lousier fist of the past eight months: any sense of national interest was lost immediately in an orgy of squabbling. The governing party couldn't have chosen a worse candidate for commander in chief (retaining most of Musharraf's powers). And Nato's American leadership, insisting increasingly shrilly that feebleness in Islamabad will give Waziristan's cross-border invaders free rein in Afghanistan, couldn't be hastening the demise of democracy more idiotically.
Zardari announced his arrival – to the Washington Post – as a warrior from Sind bent on destroying the 'Lahore-Islamabad oligarchy'. The oligarchs scheduled for destruction are Sharif and a military top brass trapped between a new leadership they despise and a religious insurrection that is beginning to dismember the nation.
Yet the Taliban, whom the generals must defeat to get America's billions, are much more than a gang of terrorist thugs. They are also a madcap reform movement of young men disgusted by corruption and the godless wheeler-dealers they think have drained the purity out of Jinnah's 'pure state', and the success they're experiencing in the borderlands and beyond shows that many ordinary Pakistanis agree with them. It's a battle for hearts and minds and, on his record, Asif Ali Zardari is the predestined loser of last resort.
What Now, Pakistan?
August 21, 2008 by TMO · Leave a Comment
Courtesy Peter Symonds
Effectively abandoned by his domestic allies and international backers, Pakistan's military strongman Pervez Musharraf formally resigned yesterday as the country's president rather than face impeachment proceedings that were due to commence this week.
Musharraf's resignation followed more than a week of behind-the-scenes manoeuvres involving US, British and Saudi officials as well as the Pakistani army to pressure the government to grant the former dictator immunity from prosecution. While Musharraf denied that he had been given any favours in return for his resignation, there is little doubt that a deal has been reached to allow him a "dignified exit."
The writing has been on the wall since Musharraf's Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) suffered a humiliating defeat in national elections in February at the hands of opposition parties—the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). Musharraf is widely hated for his nine years of dictatorial rule and support for Washington's "bogus war on terrorism" that has triggered what amounts to a civil war in Pakistan's tribal border areas with Afghanistan.
For months, the Bush administration and its allies pressed the PPP-led coalition government to collaborate with Musharraf, which the PPP endeavoured to do. The PML-N and its leader Nawaz Sharif, who was ousted as prime minister by Musharraf in a military coup in 1999, sought to exploit popular opposition by demanding impeachment and the reinstatement of 57 supreme court judges sacked by Musharraf last year. Sharif pulled the PML-N ministers out of the cabinet in May and threatened to leave the coalition completely if agreement could not be reached on these issues.
Confronting a steady loss in support for the government, PPP leader Asif Ali Zardari finally announced plans on August 7 to impeach Musharraf. Opinion polls showed overwhelming popular support—some 75 percent of respondents—for ousting the president, which was reflected yesterday in spontaneous celebrations in the streets of Pakistani cities. While Zardari declared impeachment would commence, no formal charge sheet was presented to parliament, however, allowing time for a deal to be worked out behind the scenes.
Considerable international pressure was bought to bear to end the impasse without initiating impeachment proceedings. While reluctantly recognising that the president had to go, the last thing that Washington wanted was any public airing of Musharraf's crimes and anti-democratic methods. Any such probe threatened to expose the extent of US involvement with the Pakistani security forces in the suppression of Islamist groups inside Pakistan and war being waged against armed militia in the Afghan-Pakistani border areas supportive of anti-occupation insurgents inside Afghanistan. The CIA and FBI may well be implicated in the hundreds of "disappearances" for which Musharraf and the army are allegedly responsible.
Having relied on Musharraf since the US occupation of Afghanistan in 2001, the Bush administration was also concerned that the fragile Pakistani government would fail to continue to back military operations against Islamist militias in the Federally Administrated Tribal Areas (FATA). After winning the February election in part by branding Musharraf as a US stooge, the coalition government initially proposed to end the fighting by reaching peace deals with the various armed groups—a move that was sharply opposed in Washington.
Senior Bush administration and Pentagon officials have mounted an intense campaign to pressure the Pakistani government into taking military action in the border areas. There is every sign that Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani was issued with an ultimatum during his trip to Washington in July—either take action against anti-US guerrillas, or the US military would. In response, Gilani declared that the US "war on terrorism" was "our war".
Just one day before impeachment proceedings were announced, the Pakistani military launched a major offensive into Bajaur agency. Intense fighting is now taking place in areas from the Swat district, through the Peshawar districts, to the Bajaur and Kyber agencies. After 12 straight days of air and ground bombardment, it is estimated that up to 300,000 people have fled the border areas. The timing points to a tacit understanding with Washington to initiate extensive military action in return for US backing to remove Musharraf.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was fulsome in her praise of the former Pakistani dictator yesterday. Musharraf, she declared, had been "a friend of the United States and one of the world's most committed partners in the war against terrorism and extremism". It was precisely Musharraf's decision to withdraw Pakistani support from the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and his backing for the ongoing US occupation that was one of the major factors in the collapse of his initial post-coup support.
British and Saudi officials have also been engaged in closed-door talks to secure a deal that would allow Musharraf to resign in return for immunity from prosecution and other assurances. Saudi Arabia's powerful intelligence chief Prince Muqrin bin Abdul Aziz arrived in Islamabad over the weekend and was reported to have threatened to withdraw oil subsidies worth $5 billion a year unless Musharraf was allowed to leave gracefully.
Likewise the Pakistani military, while publicly insisting that it would stay above politics, nevertheless quietly made clear its opposition to impeachment proceedings—a point underscored yesterday by the decision to give Musharraf a final guard of honour.
If Musharraf were to be tried for breaches of the constitution and other crimes, then the army top brass on which he rested during his nine years in power also risked being implicated. As Najam Sethi, editor of Pakistan's Daily Times, commented to the Guardian: "Nobody wants the Pandora's box opened up. The issue of impeachment is really a non-starter."
An unstable government
While Musharraf has now stepped down, the political crisis in Islamabad is certain to intensify. The two major coalition parties—the PPP and PML-N—are longstanding and bitter rivals. As a number of commentators have noted, opposition to Musharraf was the main glue holding their alliance together. Even on the immediate issue of Musharraf's future, there is no agreement.
PPP officials have hinted that a deal was reached to give legal immunity to the former president as long as he agreed to go into exile. At this stage, spokesmen for Musharraf have indicated that he wants to remain in Pakistan and has plans to take up residence in a villa being constructed outside Islamabad. In his hour-long televised speech yesterday, Musharraf delivered a strident defence of his period in office, insisting that he had done nothing wrong and blaming the government for the deterioration of the country's economy. The PPP certainly does not want Musharraf within striking distance as opposition grows to its rule.
The PML-N continues to insist, publicly at least, that Musharraf should be charged and prosecuted for his crimes. Last week Sharif told a meeting in Lahore: "How can safe passage be given to someone who has done this to Pakistan?" There are also differences between the two parties over the reinstatement of supreme court judges, in part because PPP leader Zardari fears that the judges may allow the revival of corruption convictions against him.
Another immediate bone of contention will be Musharraf's replacement as president. He has been formally succeeded by the chairman of the Senate, Mohammed Mian Soomro, a close ally who was prime minister until the election in February. A new president will be elected via country's electoral college—the national assembly and four provincial assemblies meeting together. Zardari is known to have ambitions to fill the post, but such a move will be forcefully opposed by Sharif. The constitution drawn up by Musharraf gives the president considerable power, such as to sack the government and to make key appointments, including the army commander.
More fundamentally, the government now faces the same dilemmas that confronted Musharraf. It is under intense pressure from Washington to intensify military operations in the border areas with Afghanistan where the army has largely lost control. Gilani faces the prospect of being branded a US puppet and rapidly losing support. Any retreat risks the prospect of unilateral US military action, which would also trigger a popular backlash against the government.
At the same time, the Pakistani economy is being hit by rising oil and food prices as well as weakening demand in the US and Europe for its exports. The annual inflation rate is running at a 30-year high of nearly 25 percent; the Pakistani rupee has fallen 22 percent against the declining US dollar this year; and in the past five weeks, the country's foreign exchange reserves have dwindled by nearly $US1.1 billion to $10.15 billion, mainly as a result of the cost of imported oil. The trade deficit has ballooned by 53 percent to $20.7 billion for the 2007-08 fiscal year that ended in June. The share market has slumped by 30 percent since April.
Share values and the rupee rose yesterday on news of Musharraf's resignation, but further political turmoil will rapidly reverse those gains. Rising prices will only fuel social unrest and opposition to the government. While Musharraf's resignation is being presented in the Pakistani and international media as a step toward democracy in Pakistan, both the PPP and PML-N have a record of autocratic rule. Whatever its final makeup, the regime holding the reins of power in Islamabad will not hesitate to use anti-democratic methods to suppress any political opposition to its policies.


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All my Bartlett pears are coming in at once. I have been eating 2 a day but can't keep up. Anyone have a good recipe for pears. I asked for low calorie, especially low sugar, because I have just been told I am pre diabetic.
Thanks. |
Follow-Up Postings:
- Posted by ginger_st_thomas (My Page) on Sat, Sep 9, 06 at 20:19
PEARS MELBA (serves 4) 3 cups water 3" cinnamon stick 1 tsp vanilla 1 1/2 TBL fresh lemon juice, reserving 1/2 tsp One 1x3" piece of lemon zest 4 large pears, stems intact, peeled, halved & cored 1 TBL cornstarch 10 oz frozen raspberries, thawed, drained, reserve juice 1 cup low-fat cottage cheese 2 tsp sugar Mint leaves In large skillet combine water, cinnamon stick, vanilla, 1 TBL lemon juice & zest. Bring water to high simmer; add pears & poach, covered, 10 minutes. (Can be prepared up to this point, covered & chilled overnight.) Add cornstarch to reserved raspberry juice; heat until slightly thickenened. Add berries: cool. FRESH AUTUMN PEAR BREAD (1 loaf) Preheat oven to 350°. Butter a 9" loaf pan. PEAR CRISP (serves 6) Place pears in a greased 2 qt baking dish. Toss pears w/lemon juice, cinnamon & nutmeg. In a bowl, combine flour & butter until mixture resembles crumbs. Add oats & brown sugar. Stir well; sprinkle over pears. Bake in a preheated 375° oven for 20-25 minutes or until browned & pears are tender. Serve w/ice cream or whipped cream.~~Food for Thought |
ginger_st_thomas - Thanks. The pear crisp and bread recipes sound really good. I'll give the pears melba a try when I am feeling more adventurous. Clare |
- Posted by ginger_st_thomas (My Page) on Sat, Sep 9, 06 at 20:46
Hope you like them! |
Here's one we really like and I'm sure the Bartlett pears would work just fine: Baked Pears 2 Anjou pears butter 2T sugar 4T cream Peel each pear, halve, and remove core. Generously butter a baking dish just large enough to hold the pears (I use individual dishes) Sprinkle dish with half of the sugar. Place pears cut side down. Sprinkle with remaining sugar. Bake at 375° for about 20 minutes and remove from oven. Pour cream evenly over pears. Return to oven and bake 15 minutes more. Serve hot or warm. Serves 2. |
roselin32 - Thanks, that sure looks easy and sounds good too. Clare |
It really is easy and I made this for a friend, not knowing he didn't like pears and he loved it. Hope you do also. |
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WoW | 5 Comments |
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Countdown to Wrath Giveaway: Day 3 - BlizzCon Polar Bear Mount {WoW}
Nov 10th 2008 8:01AM mount me
Center your tanking {WoW}
Mar 30th 2008 6:11PM Why do you have four healthstones?
Name that pet {WoW}
Dec 23rd 2007 11:22PM My scorpid is named Eric....as is my Cat.....and my bat.....actually all my pets are called Eric.
Two Bosses Enter: Moam vs. Hakkar the Soulflayer {WoW}
Dec 9th 2007 2:12AM Hakkar wouldn't be able to drain from moam himself as moam would be in stone form during that phase. Rather he'd only be able to drain moam's adds, which would add up and eventually keep hakkar ahead of moam's dmg untill enrage timer, and then it's all over.
Two Bosses Enter: Chromaggus vs. Shade of Aran {WoW}
Sep 20th 2007 6:49PM I think you'll find that it's Aran's son that can one shot dragons.


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Welcome to the Web Site of Community State Bank. Community State Bank is an independent, locally owned financial institution located in Paton, Iowa. We appreciate the opportunity to serve you, our customer any way we can. With the personal touch only a hometown bank can provide we're here to help you meet your needs and finance your dreams. Thanks for taking the time to visit our web site.
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Spend an hour with Connie and some members of her hilarious cast as she teaches you how they found out Science is Magic and Magic is Science. This popular program includes incredible magic and hands-on learning. All supplies are provided and the laughter is free. Good for all ages. No registration is required.
This is the ultimate class on the basics of flight! Being a former helicopter pilot himself, Captain Vic has a great love for all flying things and it shows in this program. There are many different types of flying machines, some are lighter than air, some are heavier than air. Some are powered, and some are not, but they all face one similar problem, how to overcome the force of gravity. In this class we will discover how man learned to do this through observation, experimentation, and trial and error.
In this interactive program, we explore the tools and adaptations that different raptors use to be successful in the wild. The program features live birds - a hawk, an owl, and a falcon - all species that are found here in Colorado. This program concludes with a discussion on the important roles of these raptors in the environment. No registration is required.
Do you want to read the same book as all your friends this summer, and then meet the author to talk about it? Savvy is the Youth One Book, One Denver title for 2014. Author Ingrid Law will visit the library for a lively discussion of this citywide book club selection! No registration is required.
She came from Outer Space and crash landed at your library! Now Ann Lincoln will have to "Fizz, Boom, Read" in order to blast off back to her home planet. Perfect for ages 3-10. No registration is required.
Join children's songwriter and performer Mr. Shine for a fun filled musical program featuring original songs, exciting puppets, and even some mysterious magic! No registration is required.
Did you know that every second of every day you have an elephant's-worth of weight on your shoulders? You don't notice it, but it's always there, and it's caused by…air! The air around us is always pushing on us, with almost 15 pounds on every square inch of our body. We are literally being Crushed by Air! Come see the science behind this natural and everyday phenomenon. This assembly includes the Air-Zooka, cans crushed by air, human-size shrink wrap and more. Limited to 60 participants. Tickets will be distributed at the Ask Desk starting one hour prior to the program (1 p.m.).
Get ready for "Seven Boxes of Terror," a program for teens like no other you have ever seen before! It's like stories around the campfire - jumping at shadows and being scared out of your wits. But in this program the stories happen right in front of you, and some cases they actually happen TO YOU. It's too much fun. Be there! For grades 6-12. No registration is required.
After we investigate atoms, molecules, and polymers, we will explore the fun side of chemistry, doing some very visually exciting demonstrations that will amaze one and all. For the hands on portion of this program we all will make one of the coolest polymers around, "Glow Slime." No registration is required.
Master Magician Mark Strivings is at it again! He's been tinkering in his lab and will be showing you some of his crazy contrivances, daffy devices, wacky widgets, goofy gadgets and all kinds of fabulous flummery! It's magic like you've never seen before and so much fun it shouldn't be legal! Be there! No registration is required.
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Wii U is unlikely to "dramatically outperform" PS3 and Xbox 360, according to Shigeru Miyamoto.
Discussing the difficult balancing act between launching a powerful yet affordable console, the Nintendo design legend told GameSpot: "We're very sensitive to pricing because people have generally only a certain amount of their spending that they'll devote to entertainment.
"But at the same time, you have these technological advances, and you have the needs of being able to take advantage of that technology, and those result in increasing costs and things like that."
He continued: "So when you look at what we're trying to do this time, which is I think maybe to a certain degree somewhat reckless, because we're trying to include this somewhat kind of tablet-like device - this controller with the screen. We're trying to do that by finding the right balance between the CPU and the GPU, the graphics processor, and bringing all of that together with the ability to take advantage of the HD capabilities of the system, and wanting to do the most that we can on that front as well.
"We're very sensitive, of course, to trying to do all of this at an appropriate price. So I don't know that we would be able to sit here and say that it's going to necessarily dramatically outperform the systems that are out now. It's part of the balance that we strike in terms of trying to find entertainment that is new and unique."
Nintendo isn't ready to open up about its Wii U pricing strategy, but president Satoru Iwata has said you won't be getting the new console on the cheap.


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Contact Audrey's: (310) 440-4505 Welcome!
*Zoom in where available by hovering over the image above.
Baseman wearable art! You'll be too cool for school with these temporary tattoos. The sheet features nine designs:
Hickey the Bat is a friendly and loving fruit bat who longs to be a vampire bat, brave and strong. Hickey gets his name because his teeth aren't strong enough to break skin—he can only leave you a hickey!
The Butterfly is the result of a Metamorphosis, as played out at La Noche de la Fusion, from a cocooned caterpillar to a vibrant and triumphant butterfly.
Dumb Luck is a goofy, optimistic rabbit who, in search of luck, cut off his foot so he could carry around his own lucky rabbit's foot.
Ah, the Enlightened Chou—his life story is one of hard-earned wisdom and love, similar to that of the Buddha. Fearful of offering his love because of the harm inflicted upon other ChouChous, he saves the world by becoming the Enlightened One, collecting all its negativity and hate.
The All-Seeing Eye of Providence appears on many of Baseman's characters including Toby and his secret society of Magi. The Eye offers protection and is a reminder to think good thoughts and to perform good deeds.
Skeletons play a great role in Baseman's art—representative of human frailty and vulnerability, they are both physically and emotionally exposed.
Veritas (Latin for "Truth") is one of the Magi in Toby's Secret Society. Omniscient, the Magi are the Keepers of Our Memories.
Gefilte is inspired by one of Baseman's favorite dishes. According to Baseman, "Homemade gefilte fish tastes like love and heaven, but gefilte fish out of a jar tastes horrible."
Hotcha Cha Cha is a mischievous little devil from the Garden of Unearthly Delights who steals the innocence of angels by collecting their halos. In fact, hotchachacha, he's got a million of 'em!
Exclusive to Audrey's Museum Store at the Skirball.
Instructions included on the back side.
Ingredients are 100% non-toxic and FDA approved.
Apply baby powder to help soften glossiness. Tattoos last between 2 days and 2 weeks, usually 8 to 15 days. To remove, use baby oil, rubbing alcohol, or tape.


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We're planning to rebuild the deck that sits in the backyard to the east of the garage. The previous owners used to have a climbing rose on the garage wall that overhangs the deck, which was beautiful but thorny (I don't like plants that want to hurt me). We're thinking of installing a trellis on the back of the garage to hide the hideous baby blue siding (unpaintable). Then we want to plant some clematis (Is it clematii? I never know.) to climb said trellis. 1. We were thinking of Huldine for this job. Does that seem a good choice? We're hoping it will robustly scale the trellis without necessitating the use of a ladder too often. Is that crazy? 2. Would you interplant something else for the contrast? I'm worried that Huldine will just overwhelm anything else. 3. How many plants would you use for a 20' garage? We don't need it to fully cover the wall, but don't want it to look skimpy, either. 4. I'm pretty sure this will be enough sun, since it gets full blast all day until noon. If anyone disagrees with me, let me know. I'd appreciate any other thoughts. I've grown a few clematis very successfully in the past, but I've never tried anything on this scale. Thanks! |
Follow-Up Postings:
Most of my clematis are planted two feet apart and do well with that spacing. I am a clematis collector and with over 90 varieties now I need to space them closely. I don't find combinations any more difficult to care for than single plantings. I also mix different pruning varieties, 2s and 3s. Either the 2s are treated as 3s and all cut back near the base each year or the 3s are cut back and those branches pulled off when they are crisp while the twos are not cut back until the spring when new growth shows. If you put trellis in the search box on this forum you will see many types of trellis from homemade to those from stores. Recently I added clematis along a 25' deck by adding the wire to the deck supports (10' ft high), just nailed it on. Along the back of my garage I have a homemade trellis that is about a foot from the wall. Prefer not to actually grow plants on the wall itself. Can't remember the variety but someone paired Huldine with a purple/wine colored variety to bring out the color of the back of Huldine. At the MN Arboretum I have seen Henryii grown by itself on a large wall and it was beautiful. Do not know how many plants that were planted to make that display. I like a riot of color so put many different varieties along my deck putting ones next to each other that would compliment or bring out a feature of the one planted next to it. If you still want a rose you might find one that isn't too thorny and plant clematis with the rose. No suggestions of varieties as I am not a rose grower. Some people like to put Betty Corning close to a sitting area or entrance as it is slightly fragrant, though I have not noticed a fragrance with mine. There are many good photos of combinations on this forum. Also don't forget to check out the gallery for more photos. Good luck and keep us informed of your choices and progress. please. |
This is very helpful. Thanks so much! |
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SATO Acquires Majority Stake In Okil, Russia's Leading Label Manufacturer
SATO, a global leader in barcode printing, labelling, and RFID solutions, announced recently that it has taken a majority stake in Okil-Holding, JSC, acquiring approximately 75% of all shares issued.
Datamax-O'Neil Partners With Eclipse Corp DocOrigin Software
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VXi Corporation And SYNNEX Corporation Announce Distribution Agreement
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New SYSPRO USA Container Tracking Module Indicative Of SYSPRO Manufacturing, Distribution Expertise, Says Analyst
SYSPRO, a provider of best-of-breed, award-winning enterprise resource planning (ERP) software for on-premise, mobile and cloud-based utilization, has announced that the new SYSPRO USA Container Tracking Module, recently previewed at an analyst gathering in Boston, exemplifies SYSPRO's dedication to market leadership.
LLamasoft And CHAINalytics Partner To Provide Integrated Access To Freight Market Intelligence
LLamasoft, the global leader in supply chain design software and solutions, and Chainalytics, a recognized global leader in supply chain consulting, analytics and market intelligence, recently announced the integration of Chainalytics' proprietary Freight Market Intelligence Consortium (FMIC) data with LLamasoft's Data Guru data analytics application.
Lowry Solutions Employee Graduates From Wayne State's Vehicle Supply Chain Management Certificate Program
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How Improving Vendor Performance Can Yield Higher Retailer Profits
The relationship between vendor performance and retail profits is inextricable, and improving it yields big wins for both parties.
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Acuity Or Ratio: How Do We Properly Staff Our Organizations With Nurses?
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Mobile 2014: Best Bets And Epic Fails In Retail Mobility
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Like a pressure cooker locked down too tight, however, the forces acting on supply chain are only building greater pressure, from shifting consumer behaviors to demands for omni-channel service. And those forces won't be easing up anytime soon. While the retail supply chain has been designed and refined to serve one channel only — stores — most retailers are looking to other channels, digital channels that only increase retailers' need to become more seamlessly omni-channel, like mobile.
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Down To Earth Inventory Every successful business knows exactly what products are in stock — or how to get that information quickly. Down To Earth Inventory calculates quantity changes — sales, transfers, restocks, and credits — along with special pricing for promotions and contracts. Features allow increase or decrease pricing across the board, serial and lot tracking, kits created from component items, and more.
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CoPilot® Live™ Professional
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Janam XM66 Handheld Mobile Computer
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Bible in Basic English (BBE) | New International Version (NIV) |
1 And the Pharisees and Sadducees came and, testing him, made a request to him to give them a sign from heaven. | 1 The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested him by asking him to show them a sign from heaven. |
2 But in answer he said to them, At nightfall you say, The weather will be good, for the sky is red. | 2 He replied, "When evening comes, you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,' |
3 And in the morning, The weather will be bad today, for the sky is red and angry. You are able to see the face of heaven, but not the signs of the times. | 3 and in the morning, 'Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.' You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. |
4 An evil and false generation is searching after a sign; and no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah. And he went away from them. | 4 A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah." Jesus then left them and went away. |
5 And when the disciples came to the other side they had not taken thought to get bread. | 5 When they went across the lake, the disciples forgot to take bread. |
6 And Jesus said to them, Take care to have nothing to do with the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. | 6 "Be careful," Jesus said to them. "Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees." |
7 And they were reasoning among themselves, saying, We took no bread. | 7 They discussed this among themselves and said, "It is because we didn't bring any bread." |
8 And Jesus, seeing it, said, O you of little faith, why are you reasoning among yourselves, because you have no bread? | 8 Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked, "You of little faith, why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread? |
9 Do you still not see, or keep in mind the five cakes of bread of the five thousand, and the number of baskets you took up? | 9 Do you still not understand? Don't you remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? |
10 Or the seven cakes of bread of the four thousand, and the number of baskets you took up? | 10 Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? |
11 How is it that you do not see that I was not talking to you about bread, but about keeping away from the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees? | 11 How is it you don't understand that I was not talking to you about bread? But be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees." |
12 Then they saw that it was not the leaven of bread which he had in mind, but the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. | 12 Then they understood that he was not telling them to guard against the yeast used in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. |
13 Now when Jesus had come into the parts of Caesarea Philippi, he said, questioning his disciples, Who do men say that the Son of man is? | 13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" |
14 And they said, Some say, John the Baptist; some, Elijah; and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets. | 14 They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets." |
15 He says to them, But who do you say that I am? | 15 "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" |
16 And Simon Peter made answer and said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. | 16 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." |
17 And Jesus made answer and said to him, A blessing on you, Simon Bar-jonah: because this knowledge has not come to you from flesh and blood, but from my Father in heaven. | 17 Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. |
18 And I say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock will my church be based, and the doors of hell will not overcome it. | 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. |
19 I will give to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatever is fixed by you on earth will be fixed in heaven: and whatever you make free on earth will be made free in heaven. | 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." |
20 Then he gave orders to the disciples to give no man word that he was the Christ. | 20 Then he warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ. |
21 From that time Jesus went on to make clear to his disciples how he would have to go up to Jerusalem, and undergo much at the hands of those in authority and the chief priests and scribes, and be put to death, and the third day come again from the dead. | 21 From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. |
22 And Peter, protesting, said to him, Be it far from you, Lord; it is impossible that this will come about. | 22 Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. "Never, Lord!" he said. "This shall never happen to you!" |
23 But he, turning to Peter, said, Get out of my way, Satan: you are a danger to me because your mind is not on the things of God, but on the things of men. | 23 Jesus turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men." |
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, If any man would come after me, let him give up all, and take up his cross, and come after me. | 24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. |
25 Because whoever has a desire to keep his life safe will have it taken from him; but whoever gives up his life because of me, will have it given back to him. | 25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. |
26 For what profit has a man, if he gets all the world with the loss of his life? or what will a man give in exchange for his life? | 26 What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? |
27 For the Son of man will come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he will give to every man the reward of his works. | 27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. |
28 Truly I say to you, There are some of those here who will not have a taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom. | 28 I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom." |
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain. (The Bible in Basic English Version Online) | Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica. All rights reserved worldwide. (New International Version Bible Online) |


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(09-25-2011 06:35 AM)talkntribe Wrote: I would love to pick up that crowe. You want some santana cards? I have a santana relic not listed. I never list my pc but would do something for trevor
(09-25-2011 12:54 PM)franciscomarina Wrote: Open offer sent.
(09-25-2011 08:24 PM)alto4life Wrote: Sent you a counteroffer. If we strike a deal I'm shipping out all my trades tomorrow. Lmk!


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- Forum: How Do I?
- Thread: Help a novice please!
As a novice, you probably do not have an airbrush - try canned lustre sprayhttp://www.globalsugarart.com/product.php?id=20036&name=Lustre%20Spray%20Pearl%20by%20PMEit works beautifully. Just like when you spray paint, you need to do several THIN coats so it doesnt go on too think and drip.Good luck on your cake!


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Ladies Hooded Softshell Jacket - Various Colors
Item #: 137464
|Model #: 30-L3137S
The perfect all weather jacket is made from versatile softshell fabric that is water-resistant with lightweight warmth and comfort.
Free standard shipping for online orders.
Softshell is a 3 layer fabric made from a stretch outer layer and a soft silky pile inner layer that are then bonded together with a water-restant membrane in the middle.
- 3 layer softshell
- Water Resistant Membrane
- Soft Luxurious Pile Inner
- Detachable Hood
- Zippered Pockets
- Contrast Trim Details
- 93% Polyester-7% Spandex
- Machine Washable; Water Resistant
- Fasten all closures before washing. Machine wash cold gentle cycle separately. Do not bleach, do not use fabric softener.
- Tumble dry low, Do not iron. Do not dry clean.
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Warranty Information
This product is covered by the Sam's Club Member Satisfaction Guarantee.There is no additional information available for this item.