A Weapon to Wipe Out the Arts

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`pakistan is divided between the rich and the poors now. . .`

pakistan has always been divided between the rich and the poor. and the poor have been subjugated and ridiculed. . .as for the french revolution reenacting itself in pakistan. . .no, i don`t see that happening. a `western-oriented` minority ruling over the majority just by the mere mention of art? good dawgman, pakistan is already being ruled by a minority. .and it is called the military-mullah nexus.

i`ll let you chew on that one for a bit.

MR RAFAY ALAM I have to differ with some of your points; Lahore as you know is a cauldron of people and all this obscenity of fashion shows has been going around for a long time, if I remember correctly your alma mater AKA Lahore American School was the birth place of such things; sowing the seeds of Westren culture in the wombs of young students, I dont blame anyone for their choice but is it necessary to make a majority; who does not want to sccumb to the choice of a minority; who thinks that they are Westerners trapped in a uncivilized and third world country. Yaar give us a break if you want to roam in your house naked, I dont mind but if you want your whole neighbourhood to dress in their birthday suit, then i think they must draw a line. you want to promote art; do it among people who you think are capable of enjoying it and understand it and as far as my thoughts allow me I think majority of Pakistanis are starving and ART does not put bread in their plates.

Art needs a fine tuned mind to be understood, this fine tuning is provided by education and education is possible only when the mind is free of worries and uncertainities. Let me delibrate on this I know you have had privilege of going to very good school and you went to a good Law School and you work for a very good Law firm and have a pretty nice life but tell how many of us poor lot have had that chance of living a day in peace without any worries. We live under constant fear of police and Utility bills what do you think art means for us. It means dodging the howling nightmares of Police brutality if we dont bribe them when stopped at a NAKKA, It means dodging the pangs of hunger when we a are unemployed, it means sleeping through the hot nights in summer when loadshedding begins.

Pakistan is divided between the rich and poors now and believe me poors are becoming a majority and a day will come when majority will rule and heads will roll, Pakistan will become France (I am talking about the historical Revolt, not about the Paris fashion show).

What Pakistan needs is an enlightened and educated young generation, people like you who can make a difference and who need to direct their energies to a different cause, who need to realize that they can turn the life of a large number of people around by declaring that they are Pakistanis living in Pakistan, I damn care what your religious beliefs are but I do care where your loyalties are.

Hammad,

1. No. The Constitution can only be amended by the process prescribed in it (special vote by the National Assembly and the Senate). The Supreme Court, which is a creation of the Constitution, cannot invoke its powers to alter the Constitution, even if it is altering an amendment itself.
2. Yes. There is a record of Parilamentary procedure. At least that`s what I`ve been told. But I wouldn`t expect the record to be accurate, or even up to date.
3. No. I`m toying with the idea, though.

Regards,
Rafay Alam

Great article Rafay. I just had a few questions from the point of view of an activist. The questions are kind of naive because I have zero knowledge of law
1. Is it possible for a pakistani citizen to challenge a constitutional amendment in the Supreme Court on the basis that the amendment erodes the citizens` basic human rights
2. When such constitutional changes are passed in the national assembly, is a public record kept regarding which member voted which way on an issue? The idea would be to inform voters about the choices their elected representatives have made for them.
3. Is there alreay a good legal watch dog operating in Pakistan? Is its information available on the net?

Thanks
hammad

Rafay:

(..sigh...)

...another stick to beat the susceptible into submission while the naked mujras go on unabated for those with the reins…

thnks

…t

It is ironic that the Punjab government seems to be doing this and seems obsessed with ``obscenity`` as Punjabi folk culture has a healthy streak of earthiness and Rabelaisian wit and humour that is a corrective to the pomposities of the holy men and self righteous moralists...I presume it is the same in Pak-Punjab as in India, men and women are down to earth and in private company very at ease with ribaldry and humour of that kind. If you read Waaris Shahs Heer-Ranjha you will know what I mean.

I am still not clear on the definition of a ``local area`` here. However, we had something like your proposed law during our Emergency years, if I recall. It kind of died by itself.

I do presume that folk theatre (of the sort that I witnessed at a cattle fair in a part of Pakistan I was not supposed to visit) would continue to survive in Pakistan, and that, if anything, is the root of theatre anywhere, right? Now this folk theatre consisted of veiled bawdy songs placed before a totally male audience with some men playing the female roles on stage to great applause. I was also told that later in the evening ``record dance`` using real female artistes would be held in the ``uthaad`` part of the rural area. I could not stay back to re-confirm.

It so happens that I also was there to see ``Phantom of the Opera`` in the Islamabad Club, and there too I spot the seeds of emerging theatre and public performances. It is another thing that the loudest applause here, too, was for Mr. Jalal Manzar Bashir playing the role of Isabella.

Arts and entertainment have much to do with individual, family, tribe . . . before they move on to larger canvas. If you continue to have your version of arts and entertainment at home during festivals, celebrations and religious functions, you keep things improving.

That`s what I think.