February 6, 2010
Skyline of Karachi. Image from Flickr by Kashiff. Used under a Creative Commons License
On February 5, 2010, two suicidal blasts struck the metropolitan city of Karachi killing 15 people and leaving 70 wounded. The first attack mainly targeted the Shia mourners traveling to join the Muharram processions. The second blast took place outside the emergency department of Jinnah Hospital, where the injured were being shifted. The attacks came 40 days after the Ashura bombing that killed over 40 people. Unfortunately, Karachi has had a history of violences of both ethnic and sectarian nature.
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February 5, 2010
Nationalism is best understood in contrast to patriotism. Patriotism is simply love for one’s country, whereas nationalism is the sense that one’s nation is the best, often because it is more sacred than other nations. For the past few months, ‘Wake Up Pakistan’ – a campaign targeting this country’s youth – has been making waves both in the mainstream and social media.
The campaign aims to bring about an ideological revolution in Pakistan:
Pakistan today is in the eyes of the world, what we do and what we don’t will decide the future of Pakistan and the generations to come. We face internal and external threats which are shaking the very foundations of our motherland. Never before were we in such a dilemma, never before did our soil need us more and never before were we called upon to unite. We are not afraid but we are in danger. We have to WAKE UP!
The youth-oriented campaign promises to revive the ideology of the Quaid-e-Azam and Allama Iqbal. Spearheaded by Zaid Hamid, and supported by fashion designer Maria B and popular rock-star Ali Azmat, the country-wide campaign has comprised lectures at various educational institutes and has gathered quite a fan following.
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January 22, 2010
The most heart-warming news I have heard in a while came amidst one of the most devastating incidents – the earthquake in Haiti, which has cost an estimated 200,000 lives. Given the scale of death and destruction in Port-au-Prince, it is not surprising that the media has flooded the Haitian capital, documenting each detail as the catastrophe unfolds. Indeed, it is the most news-worthy incident in recent times. For that reason, I was overwhelmed when I came across a certain rescue incident involving Australian media crews.
On Monday, an Australian News crew rescued an 18-month-old baby from underneath the rubble, signifying that at times life comes before the job of a journalist.
Richard Moran, a cameraman with the commercial Nine Network, put down his camera and lifted pieces of concrete out of the way while Nine’s interpreter and fixer Deiby Celestino climbed into the tangled mess to retrieve the child. Keep reading →
January 15, 2010
In the first-ever, one-on-one interview by any US president to the Pakistani media, President Barack Obama assured Pakistan that the US had no desire to seize Pakistan’s nuclear weapons or to send US troops inside the country. However, in the same interview he avoided commenting on drone attacks. While answering questions on the South Waziristan offensive, he candidly suggested that there are decisions that ultimately need to be made by the Pakistani government and the Pakistani people.
The position of the US is that they are partners in the process of seeking to root out extremism and increase development in Pakistan. Yet, the US government and intelligence agencies also believe that the use of drones is “their most effective weapon against Al Qaeda.”
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January 12, 2010
Transgender rights represent a relatively new frontier in civil liberties activism. In Pakistan, eunuchs have historically been disregarded and marginalised by mainstream issue advocates. The discriminations against eunuchs reveal our petty-bourgeois mentality that is mostly reluctant to recognise gender deviance.
Over the years, the complete isolation of eunuchs from the very fabric of our society has denied them access to education, employment and health care – a direct violation of fundamental rights. Instead, they are forced to beg, dance, and enter prostitution as the only means of livelihood. Forms of discrimination impacting them include housing discrimination, discrimination in public accommodations, and violence, rape and forced prostitution. Discriminatory behaviour has also forced eunuchs to resort to living in isolated colonies, shunned by society.
To demystify the shrouded lives of eunuchs here, we must begin with an understanding of our society. Ours is a society with a blatant male privilege – the patriarchal orientation reigns supreme as an institution that organises much of life, exhibiting a natural preference for sons over daughters. While we battle against gender discrimination, transgendered children have little or no space in the social set-up.
Photo Courtesy: Dawn-White Star
In fact, when it comes to analysing the life of a eunuch, we find ourselves immensely confused owing to gender-role socialisation which is rampant in our society. It’s safe to assume that our understanding of genders is not only discriminatory, but we are also clearly confused about the spectrum of gender. It is this unfortunate condition that has led to the marginalisation of the eunuch community and forced them in to the world of sexual exploitation.
Despite years of discrimination, the eunuch community has survived the taunts, humiliation, and savagery, and continues to fight back. Islamist jurist Dr Mohammad Aslam Khaki joined their struggle as he filed the petition for the welfare of the unfortunate and vulnerable community abandoned by society. Dr Khaki’s activism led to the Keep reading →
December 30, 2009
It was just last week that I argued with a friend about possibility of canceling Muharram processions. I proposed that the scholars must pass a fatwa, keeping in mind the law and order situation, to avoid processions this year. Of course, I said all this knowing that no such steps would be taken in order to avoid hurting religious sentiments. A majority of my Shia friends and acquaintances believed the same: the procession must go on regardless of the security threat, we must not fear and kowtow to the terrorists.
My concern, when I made the argument against processions, was the aftermath of a possible terror strike. The scars from sectarian clashes in the 1990s continue to remind Karachiites of the chaos such attacks engender. In a strange way, when Karachi is peaceful, its citizens are always waiting for the coin to drop.
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December 24, 2009
The military offensive in South Waziristan has been deemed successful: speaking to the press, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani announced the completion of the South Waziristan offensive, and stated that the army will now focus on the Orakzai area. However, continued attacks on major cities and high security zones suggest that many fighters have fled the war zone and are being sheltered in cities across the country. The absence of a sound strategy to combat the infiltration of militants in otherwise peaceful areas is adding fuel to the fire.
As the army forges on, the chances of more fighters fleeing to cities becomes higher. It appears to be a vicious circle of collateral damage: every time the military vows success, it is met with deadlier and more well planned attacks in urban areas beyond the tribal belt that result in heavy civilian casualties. Meanwhile, the recruiting of militants continues everyday and more people are being won over with the ‘this is not our war’ line of reasoning.
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December 13, 2009
As a part of the medical profession, I am aware of the pressures one faces in the workplace. The emergency room is buzzing with patients round the clock, demanding treatment and asking to be prioritised. Often, patients expect doctors to be God-like, capable of diagnosing and treating the disease in the same breath. Doctors are also expected to provide medications that act more like magic potions than pharmaceutical drugs. In case a medical practitioner fails to do so, he or she is snubbed and pronounced a good-for-nothing. Of course, despite the high expectations, doctors make mistakes too, which in the medical profession can prove to be fatal.
The fact is, doctors work with a very thin margin for error. In Pakistan, medical practitioners have earned a bad reputation due to an increasing number of reported cases of negligence. Most of our hospitals lack proper equipment, and far too many lack properly trained physicians, which makes it all worse.
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December 4, 2009
As a child, I was not able to play sports due to a congenital heart disease. It was way too much stress for me to take which eventually led to my exemption from sports through out my school years. As my friends played endlessly in the scorching heat, I would sit on the bench working on an assignment or scribbling away on my notebook. It was only natural for me to feel left out of all those enthusiastic chatters about upcoming tournaments, game tactics and the new sports being introduced as we moved to higher classes. Needless to say Thursday was the most favourite day for everyone else but me. With timethough I had finally become more creative with using the free time on my hand. It was then that I met Sonia, who became my best friend in primary school; she had hearing disabilities that also affected her speech greatly. Sonia’s problems struck a chord making me realize that my problem was only a petty one compared to other things people had to face. People who had disabilities worse than mine. I would not even call my illness a disability even though it pretty much felt that way. Not being able to participate in the routine stuff kids my age loved to do, seemed like a lot back then.
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