Where are Pakistan’s Refuseniks and Whistleblowers?

#20, pakfin:
How do you mean?

They may share commonality of views and sometimes become tools of each other but derive their powers from different sources.

Care to elaborate?

Posts 14, 15. What a lot of us forget is that the maulvi and the military are one and the same.

One of the questions here is what do the masses do when they have the chance? During whatever brief patterns of psuedo democracy that we have seen, observe the voting patterns. The rural areas generally vote for their local influentials, who are generally more secular than many others. The cities with higher literacy rates end of voting for fundamentalists and terrorists.

When certian people raise their voices against injustice, these people are not heard and receive very little support from the so called educated classes as well as the masses. You may go and try to fight for the right of the masses, but will face very little success as it will not only be the vested interests that fight against you, but also the opressed masses that you will be fighting for.

No, Mr Nasir, there are a handful of honourable exceptions at least in military who sometimes bluntly refuse to comply with unlawful orders of the top command – at the cost of their career and future. Previously, due to strict control on the flow of information and because to certain institutional reasons these cases normally didn’t get publicity and they simply fade away into obscurity without ever getting any acclamation for their uprightness.

Now when stifling of news has become much more difficult, I can already give you one recent example:

The country`s top brass are obviously deeply concerned at the situation, but are compelled to push on with the operation as the United States is applying heavy pressure on Islamabad to remain committed. As a result, cracks are already appearing within the army as some ranks are unwilling to take on their countrymen. In one publicized case, a major refused to fly a helicopter gunship.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/FC25Df04.html

Pakistan has had plenty of whistleblowers during the last 15 years. Yunus Habib (of Mehran Bank Scam fame) and Qazi Family (who exposed Nawaz Sharif`s corruption) are just a few examples. Did their expose accomplish anything??

None of the politicians who reaped the benefits of Mehran Bank scandal was disqualified or sentenced to prison. Altaf Hussain became the head honcho of Karachi. Farooq Leghari became president and later formed his own party. Qazi became an effective proxy for the Pak Army. Nawaz Sharif became Prime Minister twice. Hamid Gul used that wealth to build a political career. All these beneficiaries of Mehran Bank scandal grew from strength to strength... whereas the hapless whistleblower (Yunus Habib) is serving a 20-year jail sentence.

Pakistan`s refuseniks and whistleblowers have learnt their lesson the hard way, but its a lesson they won`t forget for times to come. Every time, they exposed corruption or nepotism in high office... another corrupt politician (usually from the opposition benches)exploited the expose to become a Minister. Faces changed but corrupt practices never changed. Those who replaced corrupt leaders, soon became more corrupt than their predecessors.

Government officials who often refused to carry out illegal orders during the 1950s and 60s were replaced in the 80s and 90s by willing collaborators who decided that it was better to join the rat-pack and make some dough, instead of taking a principled stand and losing your job.

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#14, sobia:
That`s what you think. You need to define what Pakistan is. Is Pakistan, the politically inclined jihadi Muslims? Or, moderate and tolerant and thus -elevated people Islamic faith?

inquirer, if musharaf is any lover of pakistan, he should shoot himself in the head.

#12, ballukhan:
Military is no ideal ruler but if Musharraf is any lover of Pakistan, he should pack up all of the Mullahs, deny all material assets they heve swindled and send them to Kaalaa Paanii!!

That is the first step towards the beginning of restoration of the fundamental requirement for dvelopment of sane life in Pakistan.

``Our foreign policy run by generals and intelligence agencies has failed,`` said Mahmood Khan Achakzai. ``The military should go back into the barracks.`` (Additional reporting by Raja Asghar)
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/SP341698.htm

Now this is interesting- the jehadists want army to go back to barracks- but do they want democracy??????????? This is just opportunism. I am all for Mush spanking the arses of these jehadists for now.

whistleblowers need the support of society

to see the story of an indian whistleblower who paid with his life see

S K Dubey Foundation

Another important thing is that we wait and expect someone else to have that moral courage. How many of us ourselves have displayed this sort of courage? At any level? Will WE refuse to comply or blow a whistle when our time comes? Will we drop out of a school will poor values or leave a job because the environment is corrupt even though we might be benefiting from the situation or at least aren`t harmed? Before imposing moral values on the society, one must ask themselves.

And how many of us support someone who has displayed the courage to refuse to do wrong? There are so many instances I could count from first- or second-hand experience where one is left alone for telling the truth, and the best one gets is ``silent support.`` I am certain we can

Second, bravery alone does not do it, one also needs to be wise.

Urstruly may have quoted wrong examples, but he is also right with a few things: why, as a society, we are more concerned with what has not been- rather than appreciate what is? People who have refused, people who have blown whistle are plenty, believe me, but they are unsung heroes.

Right on, dude! There are no whistle blowers in Pakistan because people here have no conscience left anymore. Everyone is trying to make ends meet, by hook or crook, and they don`t give a damn about what the military is doing at the government level or what the bosses are doing in offices. Working in corporate Pakistan is torture. The maskabaazi, the makhan lagana, the ass kissing, butt wiping, is absolutely ATROCIOUS! Pakistan mein kisi ki zindagi ki qadar nahi, kisi ki sharafat ki qadar nahi, kisi ki education ki qadar nahi. The only way the military goons can keep us happy is by bringing the Indian cricket team here to distract everyone from what really is going on in the country. And we the dumb numb stupid fools have stopped questioning, stopped speaking out. If any man has the courage to speak out, he is thrown in jail and tortured, or his kids killed, or his wife raped. Such is the Land of the Pure.

Hmm at what level is the writer refrring to, strictly the military? I believe the last high profile resignations from the military was during the 1977 PNA agitation when a few brigadiers refused to fire on civilians.

I also remember the present foreign Minister as being one of the few who openly opposed the Shariah bill Nawaz Sharif wished to introduce. this was despite the fcat that Nawaz was the effective badshah of Pakistan at the time.

Pakistan has become intellectually very sterile, in the end you require a certain level of intelligence, resources and conviction to challenge ones party or institutions wrong policies. You face being labelled a traitor or anti Pakistani as well as the very real threat to you and your families well being. that is a very heavy price to pay and I don`t blame people for prefrring to show their disgust by leaving the country.

Pakistan will have to repudiate the very foundation on which it is built before Hassan Nasirs concerns can be addressed let alone met.

Tsk tsk tsk Romair; slander and name calling is a sure sign of moral bankruptcy and weakness. It means you have nothing much left to argue with. As far as I know Senator Hashmi was not in Zia government but in Jonejo government - there is a difference. And what has Javed Hasmi got to do anything with Najam Sethi case? You just made it up to fill in the blanks in your mind. However, you conveniently overlooked Nawabzada and Justice Aftab`s name. Let me name one more such un-sung hero: Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani

They have been all put to sword!

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As confirmed by urstruly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Urstruly #1: ``Who is senator Javed Hashmi;... All these people are whistleblowers and prisnors of conscience.``

Javed Hashmi is about as much a prisoner of conscious, as you are a voice for anti-American revolution. Both of you have used the system, that you criticize. In your case, you are still using it.

Let me tell you who Javed Hashmi was. Javed Hashmi was a member of the Zia-ul-Haq cabinet. He was also a part of the Nawaz Sharif govt., and was, (I believe) on the forefront of arresting Najam Sethi from his bedroom and putting him into jail, and trying to get him convicted for anti-Pakistan activities.

What goes around, apparently, comes around.

I don`t think Javed Hashmi should have been arrested. However, one really has to laugh, when someone points to people like him as a prisoner of conscious. Where was their conscious when they were jailing others? They are hypocrites.

I resent this article.

Who is senator Javed Hashmi; who is Justice Aftab; and who was Nawabzada Nasuralla Khan Sahib. All these people are whistleblowers and prisnors of conscience. Most of the Paksitanis who write here are masochists who take pleasure in self-flegallation. If you cannot support these people are trying to do something then keep your mouth shut.

Not everybody in Paksitan is a hypocrite. The fact is that the oppression of the Pakistani people has crossed the known limits. People are dragged from their beds and sent to interrogation centers. Under new police act, goverment can detain any one for one year without disclosing his whereabouts and without giving him an access to legal council. People are being handed over to foreign countries without a right of fair trial and in strict violation of constitutional guarantees and simple human rights. The threat that anyone can be charged with the member of Al-Qaida is formidable. Who gives a fine guck if he clears his name or not. His name is never cleared anyway. This is the jungle we are living in which these madar chod faujis have created for us. As if that all is not enough na pak fauj starts bombing its own citizens with total disregard for women, children, old and sick. Despite all this hardship and oppression if some people are raising their voice of dissent, then we should fall on our knees before them and thank them for they have answered the call to their conscience.