Pakistan under its Ethnic Shadows

#62 by Mantolives

Manto, in many ways the international republic is already becoming a reality.

In the world of finance and trade, e.g. national economies are becoming increasingly open as trade barriers fall. US law firms are practising in China. A Buick sold in America is made up on parts manufactured in China, Germany, Mexico and South Korea. The technical support staff for Oracle is actually based in India. Victoria`s Secret apparell sold in New York is actually produced in Faisalabad. Soccer balls used in FIFA world cup are produced in Sialkot.

EU, NAFTA, SAFTA and ASEAN are a step toward the international economy. In 2005, the Multifiber Agreement and new WTO trade-regime will take effect. This will further integrate all national economies into a global economy.

But this means that all nations are impacted by shocks in one part of the world. The Asian financial crisis in early 1990s impacted Pakistan, India, Germany, South Africa and US simultaneously. Similarly, the US tech meltdown in 2000 caused ripples in tech sectors all over the world.

IMHO, the greatest obstacle to International Republic is absence of an International Government that can address problems like Palestine, Kashmir, environment, human trafficking, trade imbalance between developed nations and developing world and the financial-debt crisis faced by developing nations.

The UN with its Security Council, International Court of Justice, World Bank, Health organization and Human rights organization could potentially play this role... But only if its constituent states have the political will to give teeth to UN resolutions. Most nations who talk about reformation of UN Security Council or effective role of UN today, are themselves reluctant to implement UN resolutions.

UMMMMM!!!!!I love humanism- it is the most liberating philosophy!!!!

#62 by Mantolives on November 19, 2003 6:29am PT

Dear YLH,

I have always wanted to start a discussion board called ``Alternative Constitutions`` in which every individual would be free to construct a constitution for the entire humanity- such constitutions and its principles would be open to debate by all the persons visiting the site- and only those provisions of the constitutions which get the maximum approval would remain on the board for refinement and further debate - rest would die their natural death-
These constructs would include model laws, regulations, ethical codes, moral principles etc. etc. some of which may be inspired by the religious percepts but would nonetheless be HUMAN CONSTRUCTS which would be accepted on the basis of BROAD CONSENSUS- no constitution or legislative priciple would be considered as GIVEN- everything would be open to DEBATE.
Can you provide some suggestions.

mantolives #62 i personally dont feel the need to belong to anything or anyplace. i shall live out my life and try to live it wisely and well as best i can. the only things i consider to be really important are certain values. these values include appreciating things around us (including the human communities we live in) rather than being cynical.

thus, since i happen to have grown up in pakistan and have nearly all my loved ones and friends from pakistan, i tend to appreciate pakistan more than other places. but by now i have lived half my life in the US, and i love this country just as much. when i used to go to thailand, i fell in love with thailand. when in kenya, with kenya. when bangladesh, with bangladesh. life`s too short for it to be any other way.

as for how the nation-states evolve, i think of all the human institutions these are the most frail. nation-states are basically kingdoms without kings. since their roots lie in kingships. what we see evolving is a common human community, planet wide and boundry free. that is the direction i see things headed.

#59 by HisExcellency on November 19, 2003 5:08am PT

I would recommend reading of the paper by Jeffrey SACHS who is a Professor of Economics at Harvard University since the bootlickers think that the General provides the decisiveness in economic matters which other democratically elected leaders did not have:
http://www.oycf.org/Perspectives/6_063000/economic_reforms_and_constitutio.htm

``This paper investigates the relationship between economic reforms and constitutional transition, which has been neglected by many transition economists. It is argued that an assessment of reform performance might be very misleading if we do not recognize that economic reforms are just a small part of a constitutional transition. Rivalry and competition between states and between political forces within each country are the driving forces for constitutional changes. We use Russia as an example of economic reforms associated with a constitutional transition and China as an example of economic reforms in the absence of a constitutional transition to examine features and problems in the two patterns of reform. It is concluded that under political monopoly of the ruling party, economic reforms will be hijacked by state opportunism. The dual track approach to economic transition may generate very high long-term costs of constitutional transition that might well outweigh the short-term benefits of buying out the vested interests. ``

On the other hand you would soon find that the General is playing favourites in ushering the so called reforms which would infact generate various new monopolies and oligopolies as per his playing the game- while leaving the common man to at the mercy of these monopolists- we have seen a lot of these monopolists in Indian context whenever the rules of the game were changed - the most enterprising ones ensured taht they were able to change the rules in their favour (of course with some quid-pro-quo)- and the industry loves such guys who can PLAY!!!!!! That`s why General is bound to be the favourite of some very important monopolists in PAkistan!!! So the boot lickers can now go gaa ga over his REFORMS.

#60 by rsaxena

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....you can see many pakis desperately trying to find an identity by apeing arabs and iranians....it has everything to do with finding an identity....get real
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The people living in Pakistan have been Muslims for centuries. So I think your grumbling is rather late.

BTW, Pakistanis are not the only ones ``apeing Arabs and Iranians``. There are about 1.5 billion Americans, Europeans, Indians, Africans, Afghans, Indonesians and Chinese who have a similar ``identity crisis``. Perhaps they should all start apeing Hindus... then the identity crisis will disappear, right??

tahmed

I don`t think you understood what I said. Besides you will appreciate that since other than being born here and having friends here since I live here, I have a rather special interest and sense of belonging... besides when you say I have affection for Pakistan ... that is also a sense of belonging...

I don`t share your disgust of the nationstate... I believe Humanity is in the process of organization... and the nationstate is a highly evolved form of that organization... the next step is to establish a Republic of Nationstates... and that is what I mean by the International republic ... the question is will we be ready for the Republique Internationale as Pakistanis? Will the Pakistani nationstate enter this Republic with honor and dignity... for this we need to make Pakistan work ...


Ballu khan

Great idea....

But I think the UNHRC is a great place to start.

-YLH

an interesting news report here......could this be the REASON why mush-e-ruff banned terror-r-us groups from pakistan....


The headline screams
{
Synagogue rubble yields a passport

Officials in Turkey examine Pakistani document and find another body}

the report is available at KRT NEWS SERVICE website!

re: hisIdiocy

{The people living in Pakistan have been Muslims for centuries.}

so?...being muslim alone is not an identity without a culture associated with it...unless you think sharia is culture...

Manto, Romair, Urstruly

You are nationalists, not ethno-centric. And so am I. This is the common thread that binds us.


HisExcellency, Adnan_Rafiq, Rozaiba

You guys are like the patient who refuses to acknowledge his illness, knowing little that, if left untreated, the illness will kill him.


Manto, 1

No, Yasser, I’m not after an “ideology” to define Pakistan. As someone said: it’s there. Period.

I left Pakistan 30 years ago at a fairly young age. Growing up in Pakistan (Karachi) in the late 60s and early 70s, I never experienced ethnic polarization. Of course, I knew many children who belonged to different ethnic groups. But it never occurred to me, or to them, that we were anything other than Pakistanis. It was only at Chowk that I noticed the fierce ethno-centric polarization advocated by some, even at the cost of breaking up Pakistan. The readings in Western media and books only confirm my perception. I wrote this article to bring this issue out in open, which, in my opinion, is a taboo in Pakistan media.


PunjabiZulu, 2

I agree. It’s the Center in Pakistan that’s the problem.


Momekh, 6

So, in your opinion, declaring war on another country and bloodshed is the only way to unite Pakistan? But, wait, didn’t that happen in 1947, 1965, 1971...then why has this issue surfaced again?


SyedAhmed

I think you are the only one who understood and acknowledged what I said in the article. You very clearly see the problem, which is quite evident at Chowk. Thank you for your very good comments.




Tahmed, 11

I’d like to hear from you to answer you own question: ``What does it mean to be Pakistani?`` Perhaps you can write an article for Chowk highlighting your main arguments, then we can open a debate on it. I’d really like you to do that.



Dost Mittar, 37

It’s not the most Pakistanis I’m worried about. It’s the handful of educated demagogues who worry me, the demagogues who influence the illiterate masses with their demagogy.


The Rest of You...

Thank you so much for reading the article and your comments. Most of you pointed out that it is the lack of democracy that is the root cause of the ethnic problem in Pakistan. To me, a lack of democracy is not “the” cause it. If democracy is not led by a Nationalist Leader, but by an ethno-centric leader (such as ZA Bhutto or Nawaz Sharif) elected to the highest office, an “ethno-centric democracy” will not solve the ethnic problem but would heighten and exacerbate it.

Pakistan`s lack of cohesiveness is primarily because of the way the provincial units are treated by the Federation. The Pakistani federal structure is a mess, resource distribution is lopsided, favouring certain parts of certain provinces over others. You have an idealogy which discriminates against any expression of ethnic groups languages, and you have unwieldy provicnes which make little ethnic, administrative or geographic sense. you have a Punjabi majority in the lower house and a Pashtun pluraity in the upper house. This does not make for a a workable system. Too add to this you have masisve overcentralisation, in Islamabad, and a betrayal of all the promises made at the time of the `73 constitution, the abolition of the concurrent list and the separation of the executive from the judiciary.

In the end why do constituent units join a federal structure? Why should South India stay a part of a union in which they drag poorly developed corrupt Northern states with them? or Why would California and New york stay part of the US federation? Simple because they think they gain more out of it..than by staying separate...while almost all citizens of Pakistan accept Pakistans existence, many seem to be obsesed with the idea of a unitary state where none ever existed and otehrs believe they are being robbed of everything they hold dear by staying on in an Pakistan in it`s present form...

godot: [ ... You guys are like the patient who refuses to acknowledge his illness, knowing little that, if left untreated, the illness will kill him. ...]

No one`s denying the illness. But I think we have a tendency to exaggerate its seriousness. I don`t find your article insightful because although it paints a picture which is bleaker than it really is, it never offers any solutions or suggestions.

Also, myself being an expatriate, I tend to take the views of those who jumped ship long ago with a grain of salt.

P.S. Hope you don`t take it as a personal attack as I can relate to many of the other issues you have talked about on Chowk. Just don`t agree with this one. :)

#59 by His Excellency

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The reputations of Asif Zardari (Mr.Ten-Percent) and Nawaz Sharif (Mr. Bank Default) made it very difficult to attract remittances and investment from Pakistanis living abroad.
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This is, at best, a red herring. The King`s party (PML-Quisling) floated by the military has its own share of Mr. Bank Defaults (the Chaudhris of Gujrat, for example).

Pakistan`s military, in general, and General Pervez Musharraf, in particular, have absolutely nothing against high percentagers. The King`s party (PML-Quisling) isn`t exactly known for the probity of its leaders.

The buck has always stopped at the GHQ for at least the last quarter of a century, if not since 1958. No one became a PM in Pakistan without the military`s acquiescence/sponsorship. Not even the military bothers to to hide that fact. The Generals openly brag abut the money disbursed to get the right PM ``elected``. The PM comes to power via the military and leaves the stage whenever the military kicks it out.

And when it comes to accepting percentages, the military itself has the highest stake by virtue of the power wielded by it.

Admiral Mansoor-ul-Haq for his French submarine deal or General Jehangir Karamat for his Ukranian submarine deal surely out-rank any Mr. Ten-Percent in the civilian sector.

Brigadier Aftab Siddiqui (Bilal Musharraf`s father-in-law) was hired at 2% profit for 25 years as ``consultant`` for Pindi-Peshawar Motorway (M-3) Project. He was also sold 12 sick units over 3 years!

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http://www.satribune.com/archives/sep30_oct06_02/P1_bilalmusharraf.htm

South Asia Tribune
September 30 - October 6, 2002

Musharraf`s Close Relative Paid in Rs 7bn Motorway project
Special SAT Report

ISLAMABAD: The first solid proof of involvement of General Pervez Musharraf`s close relative, his son Bilal`s father in law, in a multi-billion rupee road construction contract, has come to light.

The proof was provided by the owner of the construction company, Husnain Construction, at a news conference at the M-3 Motorway site near Islamabad last week. Surprisingly it has remained buried without any discussion in the mainstream Pakistani media, although leading newspaper Dawn published portions of the incriminating statement on Sept 26 in a very subdued manner, hiding the disclosures under a positive statement by the National Highway Authority Chairman, Major General Farrukh Javed...........

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http://www.dawn.com/2002/09/26/top17.htm

DAWN, Karachi, Pakistan
26 September 2002 Thursday 18 Rajab 1423

More motorways to be constructed: Tenders being issued
By Our Staff Reporter

.....Sheikh Yousaf, owner of Husnain Construction, which is the contractor for M-3, explained the phases for which his company passed for converting the M-3 project from the Built, Operate and Transfer (BOT) plan to the government funded project.

When asked as to how much his company had been helped by Brig Aftab Siddiqui (Rtd), father-in-law of Bilal Musharraf, he said the gentleman had worked with his company as a consultant.

Mr Yousaf said it was originally agreed that he would get two per cent of the profit from the project for 25 years, but since the project had been converted to a government funded plan, Aftab Siddiqui was no longer with his company. The cost of M-3 is Rs7 billion.

He, however, said Mr Siddiqui had been paid for the `services` which he rendered, but refused to give more details.

Everything was documented, and the payments to Mr Siddiqui had been made through cheques the copies of which had been provided to `` a number of government departments,`` he said. Then his son rushed to the stage and asked Mr Yousaf not to answer more queries on the subject.

Mr Yousaf said the company was heading the consortium of the Pakistani construction companies called PAMIC, and added that they were completing the project to show that the country had the expertise to construct the motorway.

He said it was the first contract of its kind which had no escalation clause.

When asked as to how many projects his company had fetched in the period of military government, he avoided giving straight answer, and said that whatever his company had got was on merit. He admitted that he had purchased about a dozen sick industrial units......

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#59 by HisExcellency

++++
[military govt] is neither beholden to feudals, nor dependent on the business community for its survival. It therefore makes sense to delay restoration of full-democracy until the present economic reforms are complete.``
++++

Pakistan`s military dictatorship is anything but anti-feudal. That is why feudalism has survived, nay, thrived even though the military has been the unquestioned ruler of Pakistan (directly or behind civilian facades) continuously for at least the last quarter of a century.

President Pervez Musharraf, his army and the King`s party (PML-Quisling) that provides a civilian facade for the military dictatorship are all into perpetuating the feudal system. Here`s an excerpt from a recent article from the Musharraf zamana:

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http://www.dawn.com/2003/03/20/op.htm#2

DAWN, Karachi, Pakistan
20 March 2003 Thursday 16 Muharram 1424

No land reforms any more!
By Sultan Ahmed

Ex-Prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto did not say so that openly, while sustaining feudalism in reality but Mir Zafarullah Jamali has said categorically there will be no land reforms under his government. .....

..... What that means is that feudalism is safe and sound in Pakistan, while it has vanished from the rest of South Asia, including India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. And that is almost inevitable when a landholder like Mir Zafarullah Jamali is the prime minister, Ali Mohammad Maher is chief minister of Sindh, Jam Yousuf is C.M. of Balochistan and Chaudhri Pervaiz Elahi is the C.M. of Punjab. .....

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Dr. Hamid Hussain has written extensively on the fauji-feudal synergy in Defense Journal (Karachi) and Covert Action Quarterly (Washington DC). He was most perspicacious when he wrote:

``The system of allotting agricultural land to serving and retired military officers have ..... contributed to the wedding of senior army officers to landed interests and corresponding class commitment.``

In fact, as Dr. Hamid Hussain has pointed out, it is Pak military that now epitomizes the worst of feudalism:

``In Pakistan, preferential patronage and threat of coercion are the two principle instruments through which work is accomplished. This means that local government will provide prompt services to the lands of the Army officers. In the case of irrigation and
water supply, paved roads and timely provision of seeds, fertilizers and pesticides, preference is given to army officers` properties.``

And recent articles (by Pervez Hodobhoy, for example) on the Okara Military Farm has shown that the military is as determined as the ``best`` of the hereditary feudal lords to retain its feudal privileges.

How coercive the military can be to protect its corporate and feudal interests was amply illustrated in recent articles on the Okara Military Farm. Here`s something to mull over by anyone who might have have the illusion that the military feudals are more benign than the heriditary feudals:

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The Friday Times, Lahore, Pakistan
August 15-21, 2003

EDITORIAL
Okara peasants, military and national interest
by Najam Sethi

..... the arrogance of the OMF (Okara Military Farms) can be gauged from the text of some letters written by senior officials to relatives of the allegedly offending tenants threatening them in clearly unlawful terms. We are in possession of two letters sent to the OMF ``employees``, dated Aug 26, 2002, and Jan 24, 2003, by the farm officer, a major. These show the mindset of the military authorities towards the Okara tenancy issue in particular and civil-military relations in general. In one of the letters, the major writes in English: ``It has come to our notice that your parents/relatives living in chaks of Mil Farms are involved in anti-state activities. You are directed to motivate your parents/relatives to desist from anti-state activities and to co-op with the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Rangers. If you will not do this for the state, appropriate disciplinary action will be taken against you.`` .....``

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#74 by rsaxena

++
being muslim alone is not an identity without a culture associated with it...unless you think sharia is culture..
++

Language, literature, dress, value system and rituals make up the culture of a society. All ethnic groups of Pakistan have their own language, literature, dress, values and rituals despite being Muslims. We don`t ride camels in Pakistan. We don`t wear big white robes and black headgear like Arabs. We don`t speak Arabic. We don`t enjoy camel and horse races. We don`t have to.

You are perhaps not aware of Pakistani icons like Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, Bulleh Shah, Khushal Khattak, Sultan Bahoo, Madho Lal Hussain, Baba Fareed, Bahauddin Zakaria, Shah Shams and Data Ganj Bukhsh. None of these were Arab. Yet they all preached one form of Shariah or the other.

PAKISTAN

P assionate is this embrace of freedom
A uthentic in its vision of nationhood
K indness is the Indus, tears of happiness on a parched land
I nspiring the beauty of the snow capped Karakorams
S alient is the diversity, total appreciation a difficult task
T ested are the limits of a peoples` romance
A utographed by a new generation of Sufi mystics
N inetynine names of god on there lips

By

Ras H. Siddiqui