List of the so-called Paid Pakistani Journalists.

“The Supreme Court’s website is not a gossip column,” argued Advocate Asma Jahangir representing Fareeha Idrees and Ramiza Nizami who were shown on the list as members of former prime minister’s entourage in one of his foreign trips, but they never went abroad. President of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists Parvez Shaukat, Shakil Turabi of Sana news agency, Moniza Jehangir and Rauf Klasra had also approached the court. “My grouse is that without verification the court ordered to place the list ‘A’ on its official website to defame people as if they are proclaimed offenders,” lamented Ms Asma. “What constitutional violation a journalist had committed even if he had gone abroad with the prime minister to perform his professional duty,” she asked, adding that the court had given legitimacy to a flawed list by putting it on its website, but it never placed names of 7,500 condemned prisoners on the website. Ms Asma argued that instead of approaching the apex court the petitioners should have filed defamation cases at a proper forum to clear their names. “You cannot put apple and oranges in the same basket and place it before the public,” she regretted. “We should not suffocate this court with self-righteousness.” The counsel argued that the court should clarify its order as no-one should be subjected to a smear campaign. The apex court never sent its registrar before the Public Accounts Committee or placed its accounts on the website, she said. REFERENCE: Media accountability: List ‘B’ contains no names: SC http://dawn.com/2013/04/26/media-accountability-list-b-contains-no-names-sc/

Judges Plots and Public Accounts Committee http://www.scribd.com/doc/99458714/judges-plots-and-public-accounts-committee

Judges Plots and Public Accounts Committee by Aamir Mughal

Permanent Pain In The Neck Pakistani Anchors instead of Lecturing and be-fooling Pakistanis, should have read some history of Intelligence agencies and how Agents work! Now Agents like Dr Shahid Masood would educate Pakistanis on Secret Fund:) Off The Record (Allegations on Media) – 23rd April 2013 http://www.zemtv.com/2013/04/23/off-the-record-allegations-on-media-23rd-april-2013/ Pakistani Judiciary "Protects the Touts" & Insulted the Hapless Widows & Orphans - Judiciary Must follow 19 A of 1973 Constitution & be answerable to the Senate - Double Standards of Judiciary! Hamid Mir & Absar Alam Filed the petition to expose Journalists on Payroll and instead of that, the Supreme Court/Judiciary Insulted the Widows and Orphans and snatched their bread. Judiciary made sure today that "Become a  tout of Intelligence agencies" & prosper but Insult Widows & Orphans - Supreme Court is not telling the senate who are the Dual National Judges in Judiciary. Journalists who were and still are on payroll are missing from this list! One of them is Kamran Khan - who was on the payroll of Military Intelligence for Pak Rupees 7000/ only per month. http://www.zemtv.com/2012/10/24/kamran-khan-exposed/ Kamran Khan was really missed in the above list, he used to perform duties of a Rat or Stool Pigeon for only 500/ Pak Rupees per month - for Intelligence Bureau http://www.zemtv.com/2012/12/30/apna-apna-gareban-flashback-to-1995-96-phone-tapping-scandal-30th-december-2012/ http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xwbty5_apna-gareban-30th-dec-2012_news 

Kamran Khan of GEO TV on Military Intelligence Payroll

 


Kamran Khan of GEO TV on Intelligence Bureau Payroll

Irfan Siddiqui Educating Pakistanis about Secret Funds (Remember Weekly Takbeer) Irfan Siddiqui used to be a Paid Tout of Jamat-e-Islami i.e. Syed Salahuddin (beneficiary of Mehran Bank Funding) and Syed Salahuddin's head was way up the posteriors of General Zia , Hamid Gul and Afghan Jihad and above all a very senior Journalist Mr. Mazhar Abbas thinks that 180 Million Pakistanis are fool and he is taking everyone for a ride by saying "Journalists are trapped and corrupted" , Ah! Innocence! and Journalists are like some school going kids who can be trapped and used as per the whims and wishes, here is an eye opener on Jang Group of Newspapers, The News and GEO TV - Media Gate of Jang Group & GEO TV. http://chagataikhan.blogspot.com/2012/06/media-gate-of-jang-group-geo-tv.html How about reviewing the names of the journalists who received money from Infamous Mehran Bank Scam , 1 - Altaf Hussain Qureshi and 2 - Mustafa Sadiq , Rs. 0.5 Million Reference: We never learn from history - 3 by Ardeshir Cowasjee 11 August 2002 Sunday 01 Jamadi-us-Saani 1423 http://archives.dawn.com/weekly/cowas/20020811.htm Asghar Khan Case Detailed Judgement (Mehran Bank Scandal) http://www.scribd.com/doc/112690424/asghar-khan-case-detailed-judgement-mehran-bank-scandal

Tonight With Moeed Pirzada (Secret Funds Details Published) – 23th April 2013

 
Tonight With Moeed Pirzada - 23th April 2013 by luckyzemtv

2012 : ISLAMABAD, July 19: Television anchors Hamid Mir and Absar Alam filed on Thursday a joint petition with the Supreme Court seeking an inquiry into the list of journalists and anchors who were allegedly granted favours by owners and administration of Bahria Town Ltd. They have asked the court to direct the Bahria Town and its former chairman Malik Riaz to appear along with a proof of all the persons, including journalists, military officials and bureaucrats and any other individual whom they have tried directly or indirectly to buy favours from. The context in which the petition has been filed is very clear. Soon after real estate tycoon Malik Riaz claimed that he had paid huge sums of money to Arsalan Iftikhar, the son of Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, for possible relief in certain court cases, a leaked conversation between Mr Riaz and two anchorpersons during intervals of a talk show had provoked public anger against the media. The following day a list apparently on the letterhead of the Bahria Town was circulated on social media, containing names of the anchors and journalists allegedly paid hefty amounts by the Bahria Town besides luxury cars, plots, houses and sponsored visits to foreign countries. The petition seeks directions to the Federal Board of Revenue to produce asset and income statements of all media persons under scrutiny and question. It also seeks directions to the Federal Investigation Agency to inquire as to who spread the list of media persons on social media and through short messaging service (SMS). The scope of the petition is wide ranging as it not only challenges the legality of establishment and maintenance of secret fund by the information ministry and seeks the court to summon complete record of the money doled out to various elements along with the purpose, but also pleads for asking the DG of Anti-Corruption of Punjab police to reveal reasons of hushing up a scam involving misuse of Rs640 million government funds. It also questions the legal status of code of conduct for the electronic media and calls for disclosure of assets and political affiliation of TV channel owners. The petition says it was essential that rags to riches story of Malik Riaz be made public as to how an ordinary man over the course of less than two decades became one of the richest man in the country. It questions the dubious nature of land acquisition by Malik Riaz and the Bahria Town and calls for exposing certain criminal element aiding and abetting Malik Riaz as his muscle by their active role in forcibly taking over possession of land from real owners. The petitioners have asked the court to either adjudicate and inquire into the issues itself or to constitute a commission for the purpose. REFERENCE: Journalists, anchors with alleged Bahria Town link: Petition filed in SC to seek probe BY Iftikhar A. Khan | 20th July, 2012 http://dawn.com/2012/07/20/journalists-anchors-with-alleged-bahria-town-link-petition-filed-in-sc-to-seek-probe/

Petition of Hamid Mir and Absar Alam for Media Accountability http://www.scribd.com/doc/138059373/Petition-of-Hamid-Mir-and-Absar-Alam-for-Media-Accountability

Petition of Hamid Mir and Absar Alam for Media Accountability by Aamir Mughal

Now read as to who is addressing the Jang Forum on the Subject of Corruption.

2009: Rampant corruption real problem: Malik Riaz RAWALPINDI: There is no economic problem in Pakistan but the rampant corruption, and if there is no corruption and left alone by the US and Britain, the country could achieve self-reliance within four years. Malik Riaz Hussain, head of Bahria Town, stated this while speaking as chief guest at a forum on problems faced by the Pakistani expatriates in property affairs, particularly in purchase of plots and after that. The event was organised by Daily Jang and Geo News, London, and panellists included Lord Nazir Ahmed, Zubair Gul, Mohsin Akhter and Ahmed Shahzad while Iftikhar Qaiser hosted the forum. “In this regard, we had also suggested some steps through we could have repaid the country’s debt,” Malik Riaz said. “In fact, every big figure in Pakistan is part of land mafia as no poor can grab land of another, therefore, there is a need to lay hands on big fish. All those sitting in the government are part of the mafia, otherwise a law can be passed within 24 hours,” he said. Malik Riaz said that all areas have their own desperados who do not allow setting up of schools in the respective areas so that people could not get education. He said that he did not get education from college or university and has learnt everything from experiences of his life. He said that an under-construction university affiliated with Middlesex University of Britain would start functioning in Pakistan. “After the October 8, 2005 earthquake in Pakistan, the government had no machinery to remove debris and without any request from the government, we shifted our machinery to the quake-hit areas. We have left no room for a fraud in Bahria Town project and any other scheme in which it is a partner. We are always alert about the mafia. Whenever I announce a new scheme, the pocket plots are purchased there in a single night. Then I pay several times more to acquire such plots so that every person can get a plot,” Malik Riaz said. “Under a law of the Punjab government, if anybody purchase 80 per cent land anywhere, he can get the remaining 20 per cent land vacated after payment to the owners,” he added. The Bahria Town chief said that according to his estimates, currently Pakistan needs 700,000 new houses annually whereas the government is building only 250,000 houses. He said that neither he is a political person nor has any intention to join politics. He said he has allocated 75 per cent of his assets for welfare activities while the remaining 25 per cent is meant for his family. “There is nothing to worry about and expatriate Pakistanis should make investment in their homeland without any fear. Only there is a need for purchasing property and making investment in a planned manner,” he said. Malik Riaz said that Bahria Town is the largest housing project in Asia with annual turnover of $1 billion. He said that 20,000 people are employed in the Bahria Town project and thus it is source of income for 100,000 people. He said that Henry Ford, the owner of the American car manufacturer, Ford, impressed him immensely for being a semi-educated person like himself. Quoting Henry Ford that he desired always to be remembered as a philanthropist, Malik Riaz said it is his wish that instead of a real estate tycoon he is remembered as a welfare tycoon. A large number of Pakistani expatriates in Britain attended the forum held in a big hall of the House of Lords. There was so much rush of people that around 150 people stood for two hours while another 150 people could not attend the forum because the management of the hall had stopped them outside the hall. REFERENCE: Rampant corruption real problem: Malik Riaz News Desk Monday, January 19, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=19725&Cat=13&dt=1/19/2009

Journalists and Ghost Writers on Payroll http://www.scribd.com/doc/137329548/Journalists-Ghost-Writers-on-Payroll

Journalists & Ghost Writers on Payroll by Aamir Mughal

Bolta Pakistan (Details of Secret Fund by supreme court) – 22nd April 2013

 
Bolta Pakistan - 22nd April 2013 by Malik_Jee

Shaheen Sehbai (Present Group Editor The News International of Jang Group/Geo TV) on January 05, 2000: The integrity check should simultaneously be launched by the peers of the profession at whatever forum they think would be appropriate. Perhaps this first hurdle may be the only big hurdle and may never be crossed. The peers, naturally those who come out unscathed and "clean", should sit down to formulate lists of those who have been publicly demonstrating a lack of intellectual, moral and professional integrity. Big names like Minhaj Barna, Mushahid Hussain, Maleeha Lodhi, Wajid Shamsul Hassan, Nazir Naji, Ataul Haq Qasmi, Ayaz Amir, Hussain Haqqani, Irshad Ahmed Haqqani, Najam Sethi, Nasim Zehra, Jamiluddin Aali and many others who sought or accepted political, diplomatic or government jobs, or joined political parties as activists, should be asked to explain why they did not quit journalism to do so and why they continued to use the profession to get, keep or regain lucrative jobs or positions of power. How do they retain, or claim to retain, their objectivity and credibility, once they have demonstrated their political ambitions. In the least they should have apologised to the profession. Some of them have been going in and out of journalism so frequently as if the profession was a revolving door only to be used when they needed a push to restore their lost position of political, economic or administrative influence and power. Some others, like the once-revered Minhaj Barna, who led the trade union movement of journalists and whose "Barna Group" of Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists still exists, accepted so petty, temporary and at times demeaning jobs that the entire profession could only hang its head in shame. Scenes when stalwarts of the profession like him were seen waiting outside offices of petty bureaucrats in Islamabad’s corridors of power, to get an extension of their foreign assignment were, to say the least, despicable, bringing no merit to Pakistani journalism. I would never forget a supposedly well known name in today's op-ed pages who, in order to "please" a lady ambassador in Washington, turned himself into her private photographer and started taking her pictures with all those present at a grand farewell dinner thrown at her official residence. For three hours this newspaper columnist behaved like a personal privately hired professional. He even carried his "act of sycophancy" to the next day at the airport where people went to see her off, clicking rolls and rolls of pictures with the ambassador sitting, standing, waving and smiling at every Tom, Dick, Harry and Larry. Even junior embassy staffers started making jokes about this senior journalist and his "buttering skills". To his ultimate disgrace, he was never obliged by the slick ambassador, despite his publicly self-demeaning conduct. But later these very skills worked well with the successor political government and he landed a cushy government job in Islamabad. The moment the government was ousted, his columns started attacking his previous employers. Still he retains his claim to be an "impartial and objective" analyst and writer and does not include himself in the long list of trapeze artists that crowd the media circus in Pakistan. REFERENCE: Who will Bell the Bad, Fat Cats? by Shaheen Sehbai January 05, 2000 http://www.chowk.com/Views/Who-will-Bell-the-Bad-Fat-Cats TEXT http://chagataikhan.blogspot.com/2009/10/shaheen-sehabi-on-accountability-of.html

Nayyar Zaidi (Also contributed for The News/Jang) January 27, 2000 : This article is in response to Mr Shaheen Sehbai's Who will bell the bad, fat cats?. The author would like to clarify that it is not a personal attack, but an attempt to question the ideas and personal allegations expressed in the above article. In the words of the author, What proof did Mr Sehbai offer that the 12 people mentioned in the article had become millionaire(s) overnight and that the wealth they allegedly earned was unlawful?  "Who will bell the bad, fat cats?" This is a model piece of journalism i.e. it "reflects superficial thought and research, a popular slant and hurried composition...as distinguished from scholarly writing."(Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language). We all live in the proverbial glass house. Of course, anyone may decide if and when to cast the first stone. You have recklessly exercised that option. It is one thing to "measure" someone by a "yardstick". However, it is downright cruel to flog people publicly with what you may misguidedly characterize as a "yardstick". You refer to Minhaj Barna as "the once-revered...who led the trade union movement of journalists... (but) accepted so petty, temporary and at times demeaning jobs that the entire profession could only hang its head in shame...." Barna Saheb is still revered! What is a "petty" and "demeaning" job? Did he put an honest day's work in whatever job he held? Was he qualified for the job, no matter how petty and demeaning? It is better to do a demeaning job than to demean the job one does.

The "entire profession" of journalism ought to have hung its head in shame not because Barna Saheb allegedly sought and accepted "demeaning jobs" but because he had to do so. He did so much for this "entire  profession" and yet none of its self proclaimed vigilantes came to his rescue in his old age and in his time of need. What do you want? Journalists of "integrity" should murder their families and then commit suicide in their twilight years simply to please hypocrites among their ranks? Without responsibilities, we are all capable of being very bold. It is the welfare of those whom we love that makes us stoop--sometime to our own disliking. There is no such thing as objective and/or independent journalism. Let me give you an insight into the proper use of analogies because an analogy contains the genetic map, so to speak, showing you exactly the nature of the beast.

Media is called a watchdog, correct? The analogy of a watchdog tells us that it is definitely "owned" to protect certain specific interests. A watchdog is always on a leash. The owners must ensure that the dog doesn't relieve itself on the property of others just because it perceives itself as an "independent dog"! The watchdog is supposed to bark only at strangers and outsiders. If it barks at the owners or at fellow dogs, it becomes an irritation--not to be tolerated indefinitely. The day it bites or attempts to bite, it is put to sleep. For the time being, I am leaving your subtleties alone. But tell me, since when has someone trying "to please a lady...in Washington" has required observers to send a reference to the Journalistic Accountability Bureau (JAB)?

You are from Peshawar. Be understanding of the fundamental human right that "Har Bandey Nu'n Dil Peshauri Karan Da Hukk Hai" (Sorry folks, this cannot be translated). As for taking photographs at a farewell dinner or at the airport, let me say that "parting is such sweet sorrow" that I don't blame anyone for preserving it on the film for pure academic pleasure later on. You accuse "stalwarts of the profession" of "waiting outside the offices of petty bureaucrats" to "get an extension of their foreign assignment". Every journalist is not fortunate enough to have an unabashed practitioner of nepotism as an uncle at a major newspaper. Please understand that God Almighty did not allow us to choose our parents. The same goes about uncles! So, don't rub it in! The Pakistani "journalists" living or stationed here (in the West)have no right to judge their distant peers who live and practice journalism in a totally different environment. The only exception would be those who come out in public moaning and groaning about being victimized. We do not need an Altaf Hussain of journalism in United States! If you wish to hold peers accountable, a proper way is to evaluate their work and products. This can be done by taking specific stories and columns and measuring them with the "yardstick"of journalistic and linguistic principles. This may be done in a "media watch" type of column. Using your own approach, of suspecting the motives (the hidden agendas), please consider this (and correct me, if I am wrong): The DAWN-USA.com is a business for profit web-site owned by you and/or your immediate family. You have advertisers who sponsor on the basis of "traffic" to the web-site. Your advertising rate also depends on the number of people who visit.

Please answer these questions, if you have any respect whatsoever for your own "credibility", if any, and "integrity", if any:

1) Are you losing your main source of income (DAWN Correspondent) in near future and, therefore, need to boost your income from other sources (like your web-site business)?

2) Have your web-site revenues fallen to a point where advertisers may withdraw unless you boost the traffic?

3) Or, you already have or plan to ask the advertisers to increase their rates because of the purported or anticipated increased traffic to your web site (as a result of this reckless attack on the professional integrity of your peers and others)?

It is this last possibility that disturbed me enough to oppose your approach. You may continue this disconcerting approach simply to maintain traffic to your web-site. By wilfully using a "popular slant" (see para three) you may be trying to increase your income at the expense of other peoples' reputations. This sort of attack is not protected by First Amendment, to the best of my belief. Please consult your lawyers (if it is Maggio & Kattar, please show it to them for your own sake, please). I give unsolicited advice only when I believe that irreparable harm could be caused to someone, if I (temporarily or forever) held both my peace and piece! The added controversy that may follow my response, may help you in the short-run, increasing "traffic" to your web-site. Perhaps, you used the term yardstick only as a figure of speech. It is one nasty instrument in real life. It is 36 inches long, it is very stiff and, if applied ruthlessly, it causes unbearable pain. This is why the prudent amongst us do not ask for it! REFERENCE: Only A Rat Asks Who Will Bell The Cat! by Nayyar Zaidi January 27, 2000 Nayyar Zaidi is a Washington-based writer and commentator on South Asian and Islamic affairs. He has been a subject matter expert for CNN since 1986 and has also appeared on major networks like CBS, ABC, PBS. http://www.chowk.com/Views/Only-A-Rat-Asks-Who-Will-Bell-The-Cat TEXT http://chagataikhan.blogspot.com/2009/11/nayyar-zaidi-jang-group-vs-shaheen.html

AAJ TV (Business Recorder) Promoted GAY Culture in Pakistan.

 

How Conveniently The Moral Brigade in Pakistani Media Forget and this time it is AAJ TV "Chief Mullah Anchor" Absar Alam (Earlier in Dunya TV, The Nation and earlier then that Jang Group of Newspapers/GEO TV) - itni na barha paaki-e-damaN ke hikayat daman ko zara daikh zara band-e-qaba daikh`! On Friday [13th July 2007], Pakistani Private TV Channel AAJ relayed an episode of Begum Nawazish Ali [hosted by Ali Saleem (a pronounced Transsexual, he while giving an interview to an Indian Channel NDTV in 2006 opined that “he considered himself a Transsexual) ]. I won’t say much about the interview but the prominent participant was Naimatullah Khan Advocate and another was a Female Model [she was not in Veil]. While Jamat-e-Islami since the last 60 years has made life a hell in Pakistan by conniving with several Military Dictators [the latest is Musharraf Regime through supporting his LFO/17th Constitutional Amendment] their members and that too senior members what to talk of Junior Members don’t even know the basic rudiments of Islam. Read below the Quranic Verses and Sunnah while keeping in mind the interview given by Naimatullah Khan to Begum Nawazish Ali: Begum Nawazish Ali & Naimatullah Khan - Jamat-e-Islami http://chagataikhan.blogspot.com/2008/11/begum-nawazish-ali-naimatullah-khan.html

AAJ TV and Gay/Lesbian Promotion

Begum Nawazish Ali with Bobby Darling & Sahir Lodhi-Promo

URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmsKw25uXjs

Ali Saleem, aka Begum Nawazish Ali, aka BB – son of a retired army officer – always evokes very strong reactions. Although his Benazir Bhutto impersonation may be his claim to fame, the Meera he has been doing lately tops that. Both acts, whenever performed, have always brought the house down, with the audience rolling over in hysterical laughter. Currently hosting The Late Night Show with Begum Nawazish Ali on Aaj TV, Ali chats up invitees comprising the who’s who of the Pakistani literati, glitterati and chatterati. Whether it arouses disgust, curiosity or appreciation, the drag show is undoubtedly the talk of the town. The same can be said of Ali’s not-so-clean break with Geo TV and the subsequent court battle that ensued over the intellectual property rights of Begum Nawazish Ali. Apart from impersonations and drag, Ali also dabbles in writing and has penned Aap Jasai Koi, a series aired on HUM TV starring top models Aminah Haque and Iffat Rahim. Ali says he has “always wanted to be on stage,” and his ultimate fantasy was to “die performing on a glass stage in the middle of a vast sea with the whole world watching!” At some level, he feels he is spiritually connected to “the dancing girls from kothas” which he believes is the reason for his supreme confidence. Labelled a drag, a eunuch, a cross-dresser – Ali is firmly entrenched amongst the ever growing coterie of people Pakistanis generally love to hate. Over to Ali…REFERENCE: People, Q & A Interview: Ali Saleem By Sohema Rehan 7 January 2006 http://www.newslinemagazine.com/2006/01/interview-ali-saleem-2/ 

Gay Sufis:)

Abu'l Faraj ibn al Jawzi (508 AH-597 AH) classical work 'Talbees Iblees' [Devil's Deception - Translated Dr. Bilal Philips] , which offers the Ibn Jawzee's views on the machination of Satan [Iblees] Translated By D.S. Margoliouth Edited By N.K. Singh Published In India. Jang Group's Alleged "Intellectual" Dr Safdar Mehmood mock the Islamic Sharia in the garb of Sufiism (2nd and 3rd July 2011 Daily Jang Editorial) actually Jang Group and Dr Safdar Mehmood have committed Blasphemy and Violated Islam's Blasphemy Law. Jang Group/Geo TV Promote "KUFR (Disbelief) & Bida'at (Innovation) but LECTURES. http://chagataikhan.blogspot.com/2011/07/jang-groupgeo-tv-promote-kufr-disbelief.html  I hope Dr Safdar Mehmood and Jang Group of Newspapers follow the Sufiism in letter and spirit as defined by Ibn al Jawzi.

Aaj TV (Business Recorder) Promoted Gay Culture in Pakistan - 1 (Aaj Ki Khabar 5 July 2011)


URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20E70AkxkFQ

Lahore, Pakistan - "I'm a drag queen, darling…not an extremist…and I still say if Pakistanis had more self-respect, we'd be even more anti-American," says Ali Saleem, who glosses his lips and dons a sari each week to interview celebrities and politicians on his TV program Begum Nawazish Ali, a talk show sensation in Pakistan. "I'm not speaking religion; it's common sense." From politics to culture, Ali says American intervention in Pakistan has “brought nothing but sadness” by supporting dictators and rendering Pakistan’s people impotent, constantly looking to the outside world, particularly the U.S., for help solving its own problems. He sees his TV show as an attempt to rekindle a sense of pride and responsibility in his viewers. He uses our interview to call for a boycott of all American goods and cultural products. Pakistanis must “Turn within for inspiration.” That’s what Ali did. Growing up in an army cantonment on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border during General Zia ul-Haq’s years, Ali always knew he was a woman and “would just sit and pray for hours and hours in one place and say again and again to Allah, ‘Make me a girl, please make me a girl.’” Allah seemed to be listening. In the late '80s Zia ul-Haq’s plane mysteriously crashed, the Cold War drew to a close, and Ali’s first muse, the 35-year-old Benazir Bhutto, became Prime Minister. “I fell head over heels in love with her,” Ali says and discovered his uncanny ability to impersonate Benazir. He achieved a modicum of parlor fame performing “my Benazir” before his friends at school and later in elite theaters around Karachi.

But as years passed by, he fell deep into depression, unhappy living out his fantasies through the façade of another. He claims to have attempted suicide 17 times. But one day a surgeon in Lahore associated with a new private TV station took him aside and told Ali there was “a true diva within,” dying to come out. When Musharaff liberalized the airwaves in 2003, it did. Ali stopped impersonating Bhutto and developed “the woman I was born to be” before the camera. Begum Nawazish Ali was born. Ali tells me this story in his hotel room over cigarettes and fried shrimp at 2pm. He just woke up but is still tired. He drank a lot the night before. The conversation turns to sex. “Any man off the street will be open for sex with another man, trust me, but ask them if they’re gay and of course they say no. In a way, Pakistan is much more open than it’s given credit for,” Ali says, despite draconian anti-sodomy laws and routine abuse of gender minorities. I ask about the sexual revolution in the West, and drag TV hosts from the UK and U.S. Were they influences? “Not at all!” he exclaims. American “jeans, t-shirts, Coca-Cola, great.” But it’s not about Americanization, Ali emphasizes. “Pakistanis are evolving their own way forward.” In fact, those who link internal sexual struggles too closely with the U.S. can actually do the movement a disservice by propagating the myth that homosexuality is derived from Western licentiousness, says Ali. He says homegrown heroines like Begum Nawazish Ali must give the underground gay scene public voice, not U.S. calls for gender equality. “America just cares about its interests, not about principle,” says Ali. “You can’t trust it. It’s selfish and cold.” What Pakistan needs is a warm local face of difference, be it a male, female, or both. REFERENCE: Begum Nawazish Ali - Drag Queen Defies U.S. Posted by Amar C. Bakshi on August 14, 2007 http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/postglobal/america/2007/08/begum_nawazish_ali_drag_queen.html#more

Aaj TV (Business Recorder) Promoted Gay Culture in Pakistan - 2 (Aaj Ki Khabar 5 July 2011)


URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H06BWiUiNTc

KARACHI, Pakistan, Jan. 2 — Ali Saleem may have devised the perfect, if improbable, cover for breaking taboos in conservative, Muslim Pakistan. In a country where publicly talking about sex is strictly off limits, Mr. Saleem has managed not only to bring up the subject on his prime-time television talk show — but to do so without stirring a backlash from fundamentalist Islamic clerics. And he has done so as a woman. When Mr. Saleem takes to the airwaves, he is Begum Nawazish Ali, a coquettish widow who interviews Pakistan’s glitterati and some of its top politicians. A real woman could not possibly do what Mr. Saleem does. In the unlikely event a station would broadcast such a show, the hostess would be shunned. And taking on the guise of a married woman — whose virtue is crucial to her whole family — would be equally impossible. But apparently a cross-dressing man pretending to be a widow is another matter entirely. It is something of a mystery why a man who openly acknowledges he is bisexual is a sensation here. Traditional Islamic teaching rejects bisexuals and gays, and gay Pakistanis have few outlets for a social life. The gay party scenes in Lahore and Karachi are deep underground.

Mr. Saleem has his own theory for his popularity: he thinks Pakistan has always been more open than outsiders believed. It is true that Pakistan is, in a sense, two countries. There is urban, and urbane, Pakistan, where Western mores are more accepted, although nudity would never be seen on television or scantily clad women on billboards. And then there is rural Pakistan, where Islam is generally practiced with more fervor. It is also true that the Pakistani president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, is relatively tolerant about what the media can show and cover, including politics. Although General Musharraf came to power in a bloodless coup by the military in 1999, he has been more open to political criticism in the press than some of his democratic predecessors. Mr. Saleem, 28, is thrilled with his success for reasons that are both political (he is proud to be breaking ground in bringing up tough subjects) and profoundly personal. “My biggest high is to see myself gorgeous in the mirror” he said recently while reclining in a makeup-room chair. As a beautician outlined his eyes, adding glitter and eye shadow, he said, “Maybe, yes, I am a diva.”

It is hard to judge how successful Mr. Saleem’s show is — there is no form of Nielsen ratings here. And there are clearly people who find the show revolting. But by many measures, it is a success. Television critics have been generally supportive, and the show, which has been on a year and a half, has a prime-time slot despite its name, “Late Night Show With Begum Nawazish Ali.” Mr. Saleem said it was named for its racy content, usually shown late, but he said the network scheduled it earlier hoping for a hit that would bring in more advertising revenue. Urbanites, meanwhile, seem not to be able to get enough of the once-a-week show, which is rerun twice each week. They have showered praise on Mr. Saleem’s portrayal of a middle-aged widow who, in glamorous saris and glittery diamonds, invites to her drawing room politicians, movie stars and rights advocates from Pakistan and India. With fluttering eyelids and glossy lips, Begum Nawazish Ali (Begum means Lady or Mrs. in Urdu) flirts with male guests using suggestive banter and sexual innuendo. With female guests, she is something of a tease, challenging them about who looks better. Questions are pointed and piercing. Politics, democracy and saucy gossip are enmeshed in her conversation. Mr. Saleem sees the show’s acceptance and commercial success as a testimony to the tolerance and moderation of Pakistan, a country often seen by the outside world as teetering on the edges of militancy and extremism.

Colorful and witty, Mr. Saleem is open about his own sexuality and sprinkles his conversation with gender-bending phrases. “My life fluctuates between two extremes,” he says. “I always say this: I am a man and I am a woman. It is two gender extremes, and I am constantly trying to balance it.” He is unabashed at the criticism that his show often borders on raunchiness. “Sitting senators have sent requests to be on the show,” he says. Mr. Saleem has also been willing to take on tough political subjects. He is openly critical of the army’s role in ruling Pakistan, for instance. His show is not the only one pushing the envelope on that and other touchy subjects. In another network television program, “Aalim Online,” religious scholars from Shiite and Sunni sects sat side by side and responded to viewers’ queries on different issues from their respective viewpoints. Television talk shows and news programs have also openly criticized the policies of previous governments on their support for the Taliban and on their policies in Kashmir, which both India and Pakistan claim. President Musharraf’s policies and the role of the powerful Inter-Services Intelligence, or ISI, have come under fire on talk shows and analysis programs, something unimaginable some years ago.

That is not to say that anything goes. The restrictions on print media are generally tougher than for broadcast journalists, and some subjects are considered clearly off limits. Owais Aslam Ali, secretary general of Pakistan Press Foundation, an independent media research center in Karachi, said that “on things of consequence, restrictions remain.” He said that included reporting on the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, where the Taliban and Al Qaeda are taking refuge. Mr. Ali said there also were unstated restrictions on reporting about Baluchistan, the southwestern province where a low-level civil insurgency has long simmered. “This is a big black hole as far as media is concerned,” he said. “Parameters have been set. You cross those parameters at your own peril.” Mr. Saleem, who in the guise of Begum Nawazish Ali often gets away with questions to politicians that print journalists might be wary of, said his show would not have been a possibility earlier. “I owe Begum Nawazish Ali’s existence, in a certain way, to General Musharraf,” he said. But he appears to know his own limits. He shrugged when asked if he should not invite the general himself on the show, appearing to indicate that he knew that was one taboo he could not break. But it did not stop him from flirting with the idea, especially after General Musharraf made himself so open to the media during his book tour of the United States last year. “I would love it if Musharraf would come on the show,” he said. “If he can go on Jon Stewart’s show, then why not?” REFERENCE: Karachi Journal When She Speaks, He’s Breaking All of Islam’s Taboos By SALMAN MASOOD Published: January 3, 2007 http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/03/world/asia/03karachi.html?n=Top%2FReference%2FTimes+Topics%2FSubjects%2FS%2FSex 

Aaj TV (Business Recorder) Promoted Gay Culture in Pakistan - 3 (Aaj Ki Khabar 5 July 2011)


URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EH9y_pBvb7s

By day, Ali Salim's chin is covered with stubble. He wears scruffy jeans and feeds his taste for cigarettes. But at night he puts on a sequined sari and high heels and transforms himself into Nawazish Ali -- catty chat-show queen and South Asia's first cross-dressing television host. "She's every woman's inspiration and every man's fancy," said 27-year-old actor Salim, his nails painted gold and his eyebrows plucked after filming the latest episode of "Late Night with Begum Nawazish Ali," a risque show at the leading edge of Pakistan's unlikely television boom. His creation -- a snobby, gossipy middle-aged woman who flirts with her guests and flashes her dead husband's jewels -- has captivated a young audience eager for satirization of Pakistan's staid politicians and unafraid of sexual ambivalence. The show is perhaps the most notable example of a television explosion triggered four years ago when Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf ordered deregulation of the airwaves. It is also pushing at the boundaries of what is considered acceptable in this conservative country. Every Saturday night, politicians, show-business types and even Islamic leaders crowd onto Begum (Mrs.) Ali's velveteen couch for conversation that veers from sympathetic to smutty to downright bitchy. On one recent evening, Ali sneered at the lipstick worn by an actress, then turned to Aitzaz Ehsan, a well-know Supreme Court lawyer. "Would you mind if I call you 'Easy'?" she purred, batting her eyelids. "It's so much easier on the tongue." Another guest was Naimatullah Khan, a former Karachi mayor and member of the Jamaat-e-Islami party. Khan appeared on the show seated beside a leading model, although he, like other guests, claimed he did not know he was going to be interviewed by a cross-dresser. "I'm trying to show that we can all connect," Salim said at the Aaj television studios in Karachi, Pakistan's bustling largest city. "At the end of the day it's like a threesome -- it's an awesome time." Salim's show is not the only one that is revolutionizing television viewing -- and exerting growing influence -- in this Islamic society. More than 40 stations have sprouted up, and the larger ones now wield powerful clout in news and politics. For example, a recent report on Geo TV, the largest private station, about two teenage boys who had been unjustly imprisoned caused the country's chief justice to intervene to get them released. "I've never seen so much freedom of expression," said Azhar Abbas, head of news at Geo TV.

Conservative clerics have taken to the airwaves, debating the finer points of the Quran. "You even see the religious people coming on screen with better haircuts and trimmed beards," said Abbas. But the concept of a man in drag hosting an hourlong show on Saturday night has really pushed some buttons. "I am in shock," wrote one blogger on a local Web site shortly after the launch of "Late Night" eight months ago. Fans say the show is a breath of fresh air but admit the pun-driven humor sometimes wears thin. "The fact it exists is worthy of celebration, but what it does is not that hot," said Ali Dayan Hasan, a human rights activist. Salim says the show gives a light, frivolous face to Pakistan -- in contrast to the images of poverty, fanaticism and abuse of women he says Western media tend to focus on. "Every time I turn on BBC or Fox News, there are bombs going off in Pakistan. It's so pathetic. But we are a people with a rich culture and a rich tradition. And we are people who just want to have fun," he said. There is also a sharp political sensibility behind the saucy humor. Begum Nawazish Ali pokes fun at Musharraf, President Bush and Pakistan's religious right. "That's why we wanted to do it in character -- because she can get away with things a real person cannot," he said. The son of an army colonel, Salim started off with impersonations of Benazir Bhutto, the former prime minister now living in exile in Dubai. "She represented hope, that the sun would rise in this part of the world. Even today I respect her. So the Begum is pro-Benazir," he said, adding with a Nawazish-like titter, "although I do find the general (Musharraf) very handsome."

Celebrities, politicians and national figures such as Mukhtaran Bibi, a gang-rape victim turned human rights activist, have flocked to the show. Imran Khan, the playboy cricket star turned conservative politician, has been a notable exception. "Anyone with too many skeletons won't come onto the show," said Salim with a grin. His character frequently has been compared with Dame Edna Everage, the cross-dressing creation of Australian comedian Barry Humphries. Salim says he is honored by the comparison, though he has seen only stills of Dame Edna on the Internet. "From what I know, we are not the same. Her show is loud and brash; mine is more soft and sober. It's not about a guy in drag, it's about the woman in me." As a child, Salim says, he fantasized about growing up to be a woman. Yet he spurns any association with hijras, Pakistan's "third sex" of cross-dressing men, eunuchs and hermaphrodites. "This whole conversation about sexuality is so passe, darling. There is no similarity or comparison with hijra. They are deprived men with no sexual identity, not seen as a man or a woman," he said. Salim says he has neither a boyfriend nor a girlfriend, although he joked that the director's wife "worries I will steal him off her." The show has received no hate mail, he said. But that doesn't mean it suffers from the biggest television crime -- being dull. "That's why people relate to the show. She does things others will never do," Salim said. "But my only agenda is love. Live life to the fullest, and live it to the best." REFERENCE: Pakistan's late-night, cross-dressing TV star Declan Walsh, Chronicle Foreign Service Wednesday, May 17, 2006 This article appeared on page A - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=%2Fc%2Fa%2F2006%2F05%2F17%2FMNG5KIT1E71.DTL#ixzz1RQatSlIJ 

Note: Imran Khan's Party's Point of View on "Gays" is quite opposite of what Imran Khan does with GAYS:)

Ejaz Chaudhry condemns questionable gathering arranged by US embassy (Urdu) By Arsalan T. Ghumman Monday, July 04, 2011 http://www.insaf.pk/News/tabid/60/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/7013/Ejaz-Chaudhry-condemns-questionable-gathering-arranged-by-US-embassy.aspx 

Begum Nawazish Ali what he want to introduce to us

URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaAddZ7it-Y

Begum Nawazish Ali, who hosted chat shows in Pakistan, now is set to extend her popularity in India with his show ‘Begum’ (9X) where she will invite a celebrity to engage in discussion. Not many know that Ali is a bisexual. Ali Saleem (Begum’s original name) presents a picture of demure, feminine beauty with perfectly coiffed hair and impeccable make-up. It is tough to tell that Ali is a transsexual, until she speaks, in husky, manly drawl. She is in Delhi to promote her chat show on channel 9X that airs on 15th December. “I interview people from different professions doing interesting things, with an element of fun,” smiles Begum. Her first interview was with Bollywood actor, John Abraham. “He is such a cutie,” says Ali. "Every actor wants to reach out to people. Hence, when I was offered the opportunity to present a show here, I was excited. I will try to get guests from different fields so that they reach out to my audiences.” Begum says that she has interacted with lot of women during his early years have had a strong influence on him.

“I have always been impressed by independent women and want my persona as Begum to instill confidence in women to live the way they want to,” says Ali. When asked how people relate to Begum as a bisexual in closed country, Ali replies, “People on the roads like food vendors, taxiwalas find Begum Nawazish very amusing. Anything that is fun and entertaining is a welcome addition in their lives.” refusing to actually undergo a sex change operation, Ali says, “Begum Nawazish Ali is an extension of me, something I have dreamt of since childhood. The Begum is an expression of me as a woman. I love being Begum! It satisfies my exhibitionist streak in me, since I like to entertain and capture attention.” Quite a mysterious man, isn’t he? “No no,” Ali added, “I am dubbed as a mystery man by many. But I am not so.” It takes Ali two and a half hours to get dressed everyday. Ali says, “I’m comfortable the way I am. And I feel like there’s an Anarkali, a Mumtaz Mahal and a Noor Jehan in me.” When asked about Bollywood offers, Ali says, “There are a few offers but nothing has been finalised. Mahesh Bhatt is a close friend. Pooja (Bhatt) is very keen that we work together, so lets see.” Right now, her focus is on Indian TV and Ali hopes to interview cricketer MS Dhoni and Abhishek Bachhan. REFERENCE: Pakistani Begum Nawazish Ali To Host On Indian TV Submitted by Ashok Rao on Tue, 12/11/2007 http://www.topnews.in/pakistani-begum-nawazish-ali-host-indian-tv-28801 

GEO TV/Jang Group also "Provide Space to Gay Community"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmhvKwtT1RQ

ISLAMABAD: The US Embassy has arranged the first ever gay, lesbians and transgender pride celebration ceremony in Islamabad and assured its participants that Washington would continue to support their cause here in Pakistan. The US Embassy issued a press release on June 26 in which it made it public that Charge d’ Affaires Ambassador Richard Hoagland, and members of Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies (GLIFAA) hosted Islamabad Embassy’s first ever gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) Pride Celebration on June 26. It further states that this gathering demonstrated continued US Embassy support for human rights, including GLBT rights, in Pakistan at a time when those rights are increasingly under attack from extremist elements throughout Pakistani society. Over 75 people including mission officers, US military representatives, foreign diplomats, and leaders of Pakistani GLBT advocacy groups attended the ceremony. In formal remarks, the charge d’ affaires underscored President Obama’s May 31, 2011 GLBT Pride Proclamation: “We rededicate ourselves to the pursuit of equal rights for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity”. Addressing the Pakistani GLBT activists, the charge d’ affaires, while acknowledging that the struggle for GLBT rights in Pakistan is still beginning, said: “I want to be clear that the US Embassy is here to support you and stand by your side every step of the way”. REFERENCE: US Embassy holds gay, lesbian ceremony in Islamabad Mehtab Haider Sunday, July 03, 2011 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=7171&Cat=13&dt=7/3/2011