Daily Dawn Pakistan (2000) Convicted for blasphemy - A kind, benevolent and honourable Muslim Sufi of a small order has been sentenced to death on blasphemy charges by a court in Lahore. I am an eyewitness to what happened in the court and how the prosecution murdered justice, human dignity, Islamic and contemporary law and all norms of humanity in the name of Islam. Mohammad Yusuf Ali is a staunch Muslim and a scholar of the Holy Quran. He has rendered meritorious services to Islam, Pakistan and humanity in his career. It was only a difference of interpretation which was exploited by extremist mullahs and some Urdu newspapers. Yusuf Ali had already spent two years in jail and now he has been convicted. I was present in the courtroom to assist the defence lawyers. It was barred to the outside world. I am witness to what happened inside and how he has been convicted. The prosecution had based their case on four items: audio cassette of Juma Khutba, video cassettes of Juma Khutba, Yousuf Ali`s purported diary, and one Pir and his few followers, who claimed that he had claimed to be “Muhammad“ in front of them many years ago! There was nothing objectionable in the cassettes, and even according to Qanoon-i-Shahadat, they were inadmissible, as the one who had made these was not known. They were highly edited, doctored and manipulated. The diary was not of Yusuf Ali`s at all, and even the prosecution admitted that they were not sure of its origin. It had no name, no handwriting match, no owner. It was simply alleged on Yusuf Ali and was torn to shreds in its originality and credibility. The Pir and his followers were again torn to shreds, as none of them was the complainant. They never reported the alleged blasphemy to the police or any other authority, which supposedly happened many years ago. Their credibility did not exist at all in terms of contradictions in cross examinations. One of them was on bail on fraud charges. The complainant had all the info on hearsay. He had never met the accused in his life. All his info was through Urdu newspapers. He accused Yusuf Ali of adultery, but even in the FIR, the relevant section was not mentioned for lack of evidence, making the complainant liable to “Qazaf“. His testimony was not admissible at all. Yusuf Ali had categorically, even before the registration of the FIR, made it clear through paid ads that he had not claimed to be a prophet and he was a staunch Muslim. Top religious scholars like Maulana Abdul Sattar Niazi had declared him a true Muslim and asked the charges to be dropped. According to all legal and Shariat requirements he had proved himself to be a true Muslim. Still the prosecution insisted that he called himself a prophet. How can anyone be the judge of someone`s faith? The prosecution lawyers went so overboard that even the judge had to stop them from committing blasphemy in trying to prove Yusuf Ali wrong. Even though Yusuf Ali was on bail, he was arrested one day earlier against all rules, laws and norms. It is extraordinary how the bail given by a High Court was cancelled by the Sessions Court and the accused was arrested. The whole trial was in camera and the media was not allowed in to hear Yusuf Ali`s explanations, his speeches and comments. The media was also barred from seeing the hopelessness of the prosecution witnesses and their lawyers. It was on this quality of evidence that a great living sufi has been condemned to death on so many counts that we have lost count. Now Yusuf Ali is in the line for gallows. Will we wait and let the evil win or raise our voices for our own survival? by Z.Z. HAMID Rawalpindi : Special Thanks to : Convicted for Blasphemy, Zaid Hamid's Article In Daily DAWN 13 Aug 2000 [Original Scan] March 24, 2010 / http://zaidhamidexposition.org/2010/03/24/convicted-for-blasphemy-zaid-hamids-article-in-daily-dawn-13-aug-2000-original-scan/ Regarding Zaid Hamid’s article/letter in Dawn http://grandtrunkroad.wordpress.com/2010/03/18/regarding-zaid-hamids-articleletter-in-dawn/
What are we first of all: Muslim or Pakistani? Is our ultimate commitment with Pakistani citizenship or a global Muslim brotherhood? What kind of Pakistan should we aim at: a progressive multi-ethnic social democracy or some kind of medieval caliphate? FATA continues to be used and abused as a strategic space by the security establishment of Pakistan in violent pursuit of strategic depth in Afghanistan. In short, strategic depth means Pakistan must have a pro-Pakistan government in Afghanistan by any and all means. People of FATA have suffered more than people in any other part of Pakistan due to this policy. They dread and hate ‘strategic depth’. Some people of FATA drew my attention towards Zaid Hamid, who, they said, is a new charm offensive of the military establishment to popularise the notion of strategic depth among the youth from affluent families in the big cities of Pakistan. He is frequently given air time by the electronic media, also an evidence that the media, especially the Urdu media, is not free and has to toe the establishment’s line in security matters. Show biz celebrities have joined him. Those who oppose the strategic depth, especially the Pakhtun, who are the biggest casualty of it, are never given so much media attention. The main concern of the people of FATA vis-a-vis Zaid Hamid is his use of a particularly narrow interpretation of Islam that proposes a belligerent agenda for the Pakistan Army and drawing on controversial Islamic literature. Thus the authenticity of the hadiths — sayings of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) — on Ghazwa-e-Hind that he often refers to in terms of the ultimate defeat of the Indians at the hands of the Pakistan Army is highly questionable. Zaid Hamid claims in his speeches to young people that God determines the destiny of Pakistan. Pakistan will become a grand Caliphate. Pakistan army will cut India down to the size of Sri Lanka. Pakistan will lead the entire Muslim world and its army will be deployed in Palestine, Kashmir, Chechnya and Afghanistan. The corrupt judicial system, consisting of the lawyers and the Supreme Court of Pakistan, will be replaced by an Islamic judicial system that would ensure — Taliban style — speedy and cheap justice. He claims that the current elected set up in Pakistan is implanted by the CIA and prophesies that the current rulers in Pakistan will have their dead bodies hanging on poles in Islamabad, an indirect appreciation of what the Taliban did in Afghanistan with the dead body of Dr Najibullah, the then Afghan president. He openly threatens the nationalists, especially the Pakhtun and Baloch nationalists, for their aspirations. The Taliban government in Afghanistan, he declares, was Pakistan-friendly and condemns its removal by the US in the post-9/11 attack on the country. He glorifies the biggest mass murderer of the Pakhtun — General Zia, the former dictator of Pakistan. Judging by the obscurantist message that he communicates, Zaid Hamid does not seem to be a new invention of the establishment. He is an addition to the long list of people who have been handpicked to promote an anti-people agenda in the name of religion and hate of India, like the people from the Jamaat-e-Islami. What seems to be new is his apparent ‘tolerance’ of the ‘un-Islamic’ lifestyle of the urban youth and in this context there are some interesting discussions about Zaid Hamid on some blogs and mailing lists. One blogger writes that Zaid Hamid is using a new strategy to communicate the same old conspiracy theories to young people. The strategy is that unlike classical Islamic scholars, joining Zaid Hamid’s group does not necessarily require the youth to shed their sophisticated lifestyle and adjust to hijab, a ban on music and gender segregation. The only thing they have to do is to glorify the Pakistan Army, including its pursuit of strategic depth, and hate Jews, Americans and Indians. A writer on one of the mailing lists argues that Zaid Hamid is a Pied Piper for our youth from the prosperous sections of Punjab who have no dreams to be proud of. Zaid Hamid sells the dreams of conquering the world, though they are nonsense, yet still work for the youth who are now caught up in an identity crisis, continues the writer. The writer understands that the fault lies with the leftist intellectuals who have lost direction by joining NGOs and leaving the anti-imperialist struggle open for people like Zaid Hamid or Imran Khan. REFERENCE: analysis: Zaid Hamid and strategic depth —Farhat Taj Saturday, February 13, 2010 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C02%5C13%5Cstory_13-2-2010_pg3_4
Marvi Sirmed and Zaid Hamid on National Security (Shahid Naama – 25th August 2011)
Zaid Hamid, in his show, sets a dangerous agenda for the youth of Pakistan; the very same youth who are living a comfortable life in poverty-stricken Pakistan. They lack any ambitions in life to give it some purpose. This lack of goals is rooted in the identity crisis being faced by the Pakistani youth. The crisis is expressed in questions like these: what are we first of all: Muslim or Pakistani? Is our ultimate commitment with Pakistani citizenship or a global Muslim brotherhood? What kind of Pakistan should we aim at: a progressive multi-ethnic social democracy or some kind of medieval caliphate? Secondly, one has to strive very hard for ideals. If the ideal is the former (multi-ethnic social democratic Pakistan), the youth from affluent families will have to share their riches with the poor, downtrodden fellow citizens. This is very hard for this class of people, otherwise I would at least have seen them working for bringing normalcy in the shattered lives of the people of FATA, who have been living in deplorable conditions in refugee camps for over two years now. In the latter case (caliphate) they can placate their conscience by attaching themselves with the higher ideal without having to give up something from their comfortable lives. The only thing they have to do is to support the belligerent agenda of the military establishment and their poor fellow Pakistanis can go to hell. Zaid Hamid’s campaign is like opium for the young that makes them run away from reality, i.e. Pakistan is a class-based multi-ethnic society that cannot be held together with mere Islamic rhetoric and military ambitions. What is even more dangerous is the fact that Zaid Hamid is glorifying the same Taliban that the people of FATA hold responsible for their massacre at the behest of the military establishment of Pakistan. Case in point, Jalaluddin Haqqani who occupies North Waziristan. I would invite the young fans of Zaid Hamid to take a tour of FATA, or at least FATA IDP camps in various parts of the NWFP, to observe firsthand what the Taliban and the military did to these people. I would remind the youth that people all over FATA hold the generals of the Pakistan Army more than the Taliban responsible for the death and destruction in their area. They view the Taliban — all Taliban, good, bad, Afghan or Pakistani — as a creation of the intelligence agencies of our country. How much more do the people of FATA need to sacrifice for strategic depth in Afghanistan? The never-ending human sufferings in the area could transform into widespread anti-state sentiments. The youth around Zaid Hamid must know that the current pursuit of strategic depth may turn into — as rightly described in this paper’s editorial ‘Strategic death’? (Daily Times, February 3, 2010) –’strategic death’ for Pakistan rather than securing a friendly Afghanistan. REFERENCE: analysis: Zaid Hamid and strategic depth —Farhat Taj Saturday, February 13, 2010 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C02%5C13%5Cstory_13-2-2010_pg3_4
Meet the Conspiracy Theorist Zaid Hamid (Talaash – 20th July 2013 Dunya News)
Zaid Hamid and his followers will not shy away from using religious texts of doubtful authenticity, with totally wrong and self-serving interpretations, to promote war. But the Pakistani youth is no more willing to be at the receiving end of this twisted interpretation of Islam -- Zaid Hamid is the latest tool in the arsenal of the Pakistani security establishment to misguide, brainwash and indoctrinate the Pakistani youth, to win support for its belligerent agenda. To achieve his nefarious designs, especially to instill bellicosity and flare up anti-India emotions, Zaid Hamid delivers sermons on private television channels, gives inteviews and holds seminars and workshops in universities to impress and influence impressionable young minds. In order to authenticate his message of attacking and conquering India, Zaid Hamid repeats, ad nauseum, a set of ahadith [sayings of the Prophet (PBUH)] of doubtful authenticity about Ghazwa-i-Hind. Through such a medium, he tries to make his audience and viewers believe that conquering India is indeed a sacred duty of the Pakistani Muslims. Most religious scholars do not consider these ahadith to be authenic. Some who do consider them authentic say that the predictions and prophecies made in them have already been fulfilled during the first century of Islam, and are not at all applicable to what Zaid Hamid would like us to believe — the invasion of India by Pakistan. These scholars contend that none of these ahadith are found in the ahadith books considered to be the most authentic by the Sunnis, books like Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Daud, Ibn-i-Maja, Tirmidhi and Muwatta. Two of these ahadith appear in the collections of ahadith by Imam Nisai but not in Sunan an-Nisai al Sughra, the book considered to be among the Sihah-e-Sitta. The others are not even found in the reliable collections of respected muhadiseen (compilers of ahadith). These scholars also argue that Imam Nisai died in 915, after the death of all other respected muhadiseen to whom Sihah-e-Sitta are attributed. It, therefore, does not make much sense that we have these ahadith being narrated through Imam Nisai, but not through any of the other respected muhadiseen who lived before him. REFERENCE: VIEW: Zaid Hamid and Ghuzwa-i-Hind BY Tayyab Shah Thursday, March 18, 2010 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C03%5C18%5Cstory_18-3-2010_pg3_6
Another argument put forward by these learned men is that the chain of narrators of these ahadith contains people like Baqiyyah, Asad ibn Musa and Hushaim who have been declared as unreliable, untrustworthy and abominable by experts like Al-Zahabiy, Ibn Hajar and Al-Uqaily. It is clear that not even one of these chains of narrators consists of people who are reliable enough for us to say, with any degree of confidence, that the narratives under consideration are correctly ascribed to the Prophet (PBUH). They also add that, considering the reward for participating in this war and the importance of it, as these ahadith tell, they should have been narrated by more companions of the Prophet (PBUH) and should have been included in more books of the ahadith. These scholars also draw attention to the fact that none of these ahadith are found in any of the collections of ahadith, which the Shia Muslims consider authentic. This raises the question: did the Ummayads/Abbasids, considering their expansionist designs, invent them? It should also be noted that the Ummayads did reach Sindh, a part of Hind back then. Many scholars believe that it is possible that these ahadith are not genuine at all and that they might have been fabricated at the time of Muhammad bin Qasim’s invasion of Sindh in order to justify it. These scholars also note the fact that we do not have any historical report telling us about the use of these ahadith in the past by Muslim rulers or conquerors, even those who did invade India or waged a war on it and claimed to do it for religious purposes. If they were respected and authentic ahadith, we should have such historical reports. It would have been very easy for Muslim conquerors of India like Mahmud of Ghazni, Shihabuddin Ghauri, Timur, Nadir Shah and so on, to present the ahadith about the Ghuzwa-i-Hind, and use them to justify their attacks on the country. The scholars associated with their courts could well have suggested these to them had they wished. However, no such mention is made about this in history books. In the 18th century, the well-known Islamic scholar Shah Waliullah of Delhi invited the Afghan king, Ahmad Shah Abdali to invade India and drive out the Marathas, which he accepted, yet Shah Waliullah, too, did not use these ahadith as a part of his argument. Those who consider these authentic argue that the battle against India that these ahadith predicted was fulfilled in the early Islamic period itself, and is not something that will happen in the future. They also add that it is quite likely that the predicted Ghuzwa-i-Hind took the form of an attack by an Arab Muslim force on Thana and Bharuch, in coastal western India, in the 15th year of the Hijra calendar, during the reign of the Caliph Umar. Some scholars also argue that these ahadith could, possibly, have been fulfilled in the form of missionary efforts by some of the Prophet’s (PBUH) companions soon after, during the reign of the Caliphs Usman and Ali, in Sindh and Gujarat. Other ulema consider these predictions to have been fulfilled in the form of the attack and occupation of Sindh by Arab Muslims, led by Muhammad bin Qasim in the 93rd year of the Islamic calendar, which then facilitated the spread of Islam in the country. In any case, these ahadith do not talk about Pakistanis fighting Indians. They talk about Arabs on an expedition to India, after which they conquer it. The above clearly shows the extent to which Zaid Hamid and his supporters will go to further their agenda. They will not shy away from using religious texts of doubtful authenticity, with totally wrong and self-serving interpretations, to promote war. But the Pakistani youth is no more willing to be at the receiving end of this twisted interpretation of Islam, as was amply demonstrated by the students of Islamia College University, Peshawar, when Zaid Hamid tried to address them. REFERENCE: VIEW: Zaid Hamid and Ghuzwa-i-Hind BY Tayyab Shah Thursday, March 18, 2010 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C03%5C18%5Cstory_18-3-2010_pg3_6
Please note that Ms. Nasreen Pervaiz (Former Government Servant of Pakistan) was on a payroll of Brigadier (R) Imtiaz (Former Official of ISI and then Director General Intelligence Bureau)
Kamran Shahid and Zaid Hamid (On The Front – 21th July 2013)
Conspiracy theories and their authors become a cause for concern when they begin to hallucinate and can no longer distinguish between their own flights of imagination and the world around them. When they hijack a whole nation or community into another world, then they ought to be held accountable These are very troubled times. Such times are a bonanza for conspiracy theorists because they know how best to simplify extremely complex situations while simultaneously grossly exaggerating the evil ingenuity of the plotters, and thus create thorough confusion. If such confusion can generate panic, then the conspiracy theorist has earned his living through real hard work. The art then is to top it off with an ending that results in the defeat of the evildoers. Such stuff is the bread and butter of writers of mystery stories and thrillers. Their works help shed everyday boredom, even if only for the moment.
Conspiracy theories and their authors become a cause for concern when they begin to hallucinate and can no longer distinguish between their own flights of imagination and the world around them. If such delirious moments only carry them into a world of make-believe, then the harm is limited. However, when they hijack a whole nation or community into another world, then they ought to be held accountable. When such characters appear in popular talk shows or, much worse, begin exploiting TV channels to present programmes full of war games and prophecies against a demonised group of plotters threatening the existence of a nation — nay, a universal community such as that of the Muslims — then I believe such persons should be held accountable for taking people on a ride with their yarns. By now the readers must have guessed that I have no other person in mind other than Mr Zaid Hamid. Initially I was reluctant to comment on the farce he pedals in his talks and his TV programmes. The reason is that one can end up giving more importance to individuals than is due. On the other hand, the danger is that the angst and fears that run deep in Pakistani society will push our society even deeper into a pathological state of mind or national outlook. The daily bomb blasts by remote control or by suicide bombers, the galloping rate of unemployment and politicians who specialise in making a mockery of democracy and responsible governments have taken a huge toll on the spirits of the Pakistani people. Last year when I visited Lahore I took a long walk beginning from Anarkali up to Lohari Gate and then eastwards till I came to Mochi Gate. Then I walked down to Gawalmandi, from there I went down Nisbet Road till I came to Lakshmi Chowk. I can tell you that for the first time in my life I felt that Lahore was in mourning. People could not take any longer all the betrayal of hopes for a Pakistan without want and hunger.
Mr Zaid Hamid’s grand conspiracy has a happy ending, however. The Muslim world and the Islamic Ummah in general and Pakistan in particular are the victims of a Zionist-Brahminical-CIA-Mossad-RAW-MI5-MI6, and all the rest, plot, according to this celebrated defence and security analyst. Our only true friend is China. The latter of course is still wedded to Marxism-Leninism and thus to atheism, but that does not matter. Just as there are good and bad Taliban, there can be good and bad atheists. Is that not logical? Once upon a time, I remember, the Chinese with their special eye shape and high cheekbones, we were told, were the people that Islam would fight, also accordingly to some prophecies. That was of course when Pakistan and China had not become friends, whose friendship was later described as higher than the Himalayas. So, there is a season for prophecies — some come in while others go out.
Mr Zaid Hamid tells us not to worry. Pakistan is a nuclear power and the defeat of Hind (India) has been prophesied 1,400 years ago. It will not only be the end of India but Israel and the US and all other evil powers, including Russia. Pakistan and China and some true Muslims will triumph in the final father of all battles — the mother of all battles is dead since a long time, I believe. Hopefully then we will convert all the Chinese, otherwise what is the point?
What will happen to all the nuclear weapons that the enemies of Islam possess? Their total is in the thousands! Well, they will become un-useable or explode in their own countries so the Islamic forces will not be responsible for the genocide of billions of members of the human race. In any case, such details, which disturb the elegance of a simple but sensational conspiracy theory, have to be ignored. The green flag will fly atop the Delhi Fort as it should have had we not created Pakistan and denied ourselves that opportunity 63 years earlier. Is there any chance that such prophecy may not hold or rather that no such prophecy has existed in the past and it has been manufactured by Mr Zaid Hamid to support his grand theory, which has already declared a Muslim victory? I think such questions should suffice to explain to interested readers to distinguish between conspiracies and conspiracy theories. Attributing so much power to the Zionists or Mossad also makes no sense. The way Mossad has messed up its crime in Dubai when a hit squad was sent to assassinate a Hamas leader only shows that such an agency cannot sometimes manage even simple operations. RAW is even less likely to pull off an attack on Pakistan with impunity. Recently the Taliban killed a number of CIA operatives in Afghanistan. If Mossad-Raw-CIA were to join ranks, would they perform better or is it likely that in the absence of a common chain of command they can mess up things even more? I do not know. But I do know that neither Mr Zaid Hamid nor his theory allow for an error, and in any case whatever initial advantage these evil agencies and powers may have, our victory is a foregone conclusion. That is exactly a conspiracy theory. Another thing to keep in mind is the following: conspiracies by their very nature are secretive and oftentimes catch their targets off-guard. ‘Et tu, Bruté?’ (Even you, Brutus?), exclaimed Julius Caesar, as his best friend joined other plotters and stabbed him to death. Of course his (Julius Caesar’s) wife, Calpurnia, had been seeing such a nightmare many times, Shakespeare informed his readers. So, maybe one can see visions about such happenings. In any case, conspiracy theories that have already exposed the culprits and punished them and defeated them are just flights of the imagination, or, could be deep dives into a bottomless void inside the belly of the earth. REFERENCE: view: Conspiracy theories and theorists —Ishtiaq Ahmed Tuesday, February 23, 2010 http://dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C02%5C23%5Cstory_23-2-2010_pg3_2
Lloyd’s of London, the world’s oldest insurance market, said claims before tax from superstorm Sandy will probably cost between $2 billion to $2.5 billion. The estimate is consistent with total insurance industry losses of between $20 billion and $25 billion, Lloyd’s said in an e-mailed statement today. The London-based market said it expects a “minimal impact” on its member capital, while the central fund won’t be affected. Homeowners and businesses are seeking payouts on policies to help cover losses from Hurricane Sandy, which lashed the densely populated U.S. Northeast coast on Oct. 29, causing a storm surge, extensive flooding and damage to property, after hitting the Caribbean and Bahamas. Total market losses could be as much as $25 billion, Zurich-based Swiss Re Ltd. (SREN) has said. “It has been much more of a loss for insurers than for reinsurers, specialty insurers in particular, which is what Lloyd’s is” said Christopher Hitchings, a London-based analyst with Keefe Bruyette & Woods Ltd. Zurich Insurance Group AG (ZURN), Switzerland’s biggest insurer, said on Dec. 17 that claims from Sandy could be as much as $700 million. Lloyd’s member Catlin Group Ltd (CGL) estimated Sandy-related losses at about $200 million and Novae Group Plc (NVA) said net costs of the hurricane could be as much as $30 million. “The Lloyd’s insurance market remains financially strong and while claims from this storm could still evolve over time, the market’s total exposure is well within the worst-case scenarios we model and prepare for,” Chief Executive Officer Richard Ward said in the statement. REFERENCE: Lloyd’s Estimates About $2.5 Billion Hurricane Sandy Claims
By Carolyn Bandel - Dec 19, 2012 http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-12-19/lloyd-s-of-london-sees-up-to-2-5-billion-hurricane-sandy-claims.html
Mapping Hurricane Sandy’s Deadly Toll: At last count, officials were attributing more than 100 deaths to Hurricane Sandy. Some patterns emerged in mapping the deaths in the region. Elderly residents were hit especially hard, with close to half of the people who died age 65 or older. In New York City, the majority of deaths occurred in Queens and on Staten Island, and most people perished at the height of the storm, drowned by the surge. In more inland areas, downed trees were more often the cause of death. The days after the storm were also deadly, as people tried to clear away storm damage or used poorly ventilated generators to ward off the dark and the cold. Some victims’ names have not been released, as the authorities seek to reach their families. REFERENCE: Mapping Hurricane Sandy’s Deadly Toll Published: November 17, 2012 http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/11/17/nyregion/hurricane-sandy-map.html
Jang columnist, Nusrat Mirza, instead of invoking the wrath-of-god explanation, has concocted a fantastic conspiracy theory. He blames Sandy on Haarp. Having taken credit for introducing his readers to Haarp, in 2010, he blames Haarp for the deluge that devastated Pakistan in 2010 as well as the flooding in Japan last year that caused Fukushima nuclear melt down. Even the earthquake in 2006, according to our columnist, as well as the natural tragedies [not mentioned] that struck Haiti, Iran, China, and Iran have been caused by Haarp. Since imagination has a limit even in the case of conspiracy theorists, hence, our conspiracy theorist appears at odd with his own formulations. His conclusion, therefore, is indeed vague. We are informed, ‘Having devastated its own people on 9/11, this is for the second time on October 29, that the USA is putting its people in trouble. However, if the aim is to trigger another world war, we do not know. Or perhaps there is some other mala fide intention, only the time will tell.’ REFERENCE: Sandy as god’s wrath Thursday, 15 November 2012 by Farooq Sulehria http://www.viewpointonline.net/sandy-as-gods-wrath.html
"QUOTE"
"Whenever the U.S. Spaceplane X-37B is Sent Into Space – A Natural Disaster Occurs Somewhere in the World"
"Whenever the U.S. space plane X-37B is sent into space, a natural disaster occurs somewhere in the world. Last year, on April 22, this shuttle was launched into space to spy on Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Korean waters, and if needed, to attack anywhere. Also, this spaceplane can make use of HARRP technology [out of Alaska], and natural disasters can be artificially brought about. "After the plane's launch into space, Pakistan was hit by an unusual monsoon on July 26, 2010, which brought extraordinary destruction... During that monsoon, Pakistan suffered a loss of $43 billion; 2,000 people died, and around one-fifth of the country was submerged in floods. However, it was fortunate that the country's nuclear weapons program remained safe during that disaster, and had also been safe during the 2005 earthquake, by Allah's grace. "Although the earthquake struck the country's mountainous region [in Pakistani Kashmir], some people say that it was an artificial one, and that HARRP technology was used to cause this earthquake. According to some people, certain powers believed that Pakistan's nuclear assets were in this mountainous region; the Khushab nuclear assets [in Pakistan's Punjab province] would have probably been the target of the flooding. This is believed because it is being said that the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan also were artificial, because this tragedy occurred just six days after the U.S. X-37B spaceplane was launched into space on March 5, 2011." "The U.S. Objectives Are to Continue Its Domination Of the World – And Not To Let Another Power or Group of Powers Challenge Its Domination"
"Three Japanese nuclear reactors have been affected due to this, and radiation has started [leaking] from these reactors. It can be seen that fingers are being pointed only at the U.S. for the Japanese disaster; this is because Japan was, in collaboration with some other countries, trying to replace the U.S. dollar with a new currency for international trading. The Japanese emperor has met three times with the Chinese president in this regard.
"As per a Nibira TV report, former Japanese finance minister Heizo Takaneka was warned to hand over the Japanese financial system to the U.S. or else his country could be attacked with an earthquake. This news could be viewed on YouTube. If this news is true, then it means that the U.S. objectives are to continue its domination of the world – and not to let another power or group of powers challenge its domination. For this purpose, it has challenged the entire world and is engaged in the loot and plunders across the globe. "For now, its targets are only Muslim countries because they are weak and rich and [their rulers are] serving sentences of old age. It gave birth to a wave of change in the Islamic nations. Only Libya resisted the U.S.-sponsored change. In Egypt, Hosni Mubarak quit but the army took over, which is more beneficial to the U.S. Most intellectuals of the world say that this behavior by the U.S. is motivated by political objectives, not by religious zeal." Reference: Nusrat Mirza on Japan, Earthquake, Tsunami and Haarp 23 March 2011 Daily Jang http://jang.com.pk/jang/mar2011-daily/23-03-2011/col5.htm
"The World Wll Have to Decide Whether Pakistan's 2005 Earthquake and 2010 Floods... and Now Japan's Tsunami... Were Natural or Artificial Disasters" "The world will have to decide whether Pakistan's 2005 earthquake and 2010 floods, the [2004] Indonesian tsunami, and now Japan's tsunami in March 2011 were natural or artificial disasters. "The point is if these were natural disasters, then why do the Americans say that such changes can be introduced in weather, which can bring rains or can cause earthquakes or can melt the engine of a plane from a distance of 250 kilometers with a small ray? [They also claim] that a wall of beams like the Great Wall of China can be erected around a specific country, area or region. But prominent U.S. scientists have not let the theory be widely circulated, fearing that if this viewpoint of theirs were accepted it could lead to the breakup of the Panet Earth.
"However, the U.S. government tasked the Pentagon with leading this theory to its logical conclusion. The Pentagon established an extremely powerful transmitter on a 123-acre plot of land, some 200 miles from Alaska, and fixed 72-meter-tall antennas on 180 towers, through which 3 billion watts of electromagnetic waves could be transmitted at a frequency of 2.5-10 megahertz." "Today, 'Rulers' Are Coming to the Forefront and, Using Science, Are Causing Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Weather Alterations, Changes in Airplanes' Routes, Plane Crashes, and Floods" "In addition to this, the American Star Wars, and to cause changes in weather, the U.S. could introduce changes from this station in Alaska in the earth's low but decided level of atmosphere wherever such seasonal changes are needed. This can bring about climatic reforms within a range of several hundred miles. "Every invention in the U.S. needs to be patented, and when doing so the invention's functioning must be defined. The HARRP's patent number is 4,686,605. The critics of the HARRP have named it 'a burning flame gun.' According to this patent, this technology is a tool that could introduce changes in the weather anywhere in the world and can stop or change routes of missiles and can interfere in the satellite system of a party or impose its own system on that party. "Through this technology, the intelligence signals of others could be controlled and missiles or aircraft could be destroyed, or their routes diverted; it could bring aircraft to heights or lower them again. The method set out in the patent says that this technology makes a single or many particles, places them in blocks... of the upper earth, which could introduce change in the weather. According to this patent, making weather more or less extreme or… creating artificial warmth would be possible, as would be changing the upper part of the earth, or changing the absorption pattern of sunlight for throwing extreme sunlight or increasing its warmth on a part of the world. (An article of mine on this issue was published in Roznama Jang on August 28, 2010). "Why in 1970 did [U.S. official Zbigniew] Brzezinski say that they had moved the gravity of power to the U.S. and would not let it shift again to Eurasia? He had also said that due to the U.S. technological advancement, a society would emerge which would remain under control and would follow instructions, and that society or people on the surface of the world would live by the orders of those who would have knowledge of science. "Today, 'rulers' are coming to the forefront and, using science, are causing earthquakes, tsunamis, weather alterations, changes in airplanes' routes, plane crashes, and floods. Therefore, it can be said that the U.S. has carried out a second nuclear attack on Japan. The Nibiru [sic] TV anchor asked the U.S. Air Force to destroy the station in Alaska that causes earthquakes and tsunamis, as 500,000 people have been killed so far due to this." REFERENCE : Renowned Pakistani Columnist Nusrat Mirza Accuses U.S. Of Artificially Causing Japanese Earthquake: 'The U.S. has Carried Out a Second Nuclear Attack on Japan'
March 29, 2011 http://www.blacklistednews.com/Renowned_Pakistani_Columnist_Nusrat_Mirza_Accuses_U.S._Of_Artificially_Causing_Japanese_Earthquake%3A_'The_U.S._has_Carried_Out_a_Second_Nuclear_Attack_on_Japan'/13288/0/31/31/Y/M.html Nusrat Mirza on Hurricane Sandy and Haarp Jang 2012 http://e.jang.com.pk/pic.asp?npic=11-02-2012/Pindi/images/06_07.gif
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Columnist Nusrat Mirza of Nawa-e-Waqt (11 September 2002) wrote angrily that “Daily Times” had unfairly criticised his column on Iran’s relations with Russia. He called the writer of this column “Patay Khan”, an extremely unsavoury epithet in Urdu. He wrote that a few writers in English considered the writers in Urdu ignorant and brainless, just like the “toadies” of the British raj of yore. He further stated: “Most writers are aware of their own identity before writing and they are drunk with the wine of nationalism, knowing full well who their addressees are and what the objective of writing is. Some others write after sensing where their support will come from. Some look to America, some to their own nation, without breaking links with their own religion and without being scared of the ‘greatness’ of America. The purpose of attacking Urdu writers could be to attract attention to the new “Mummy-Daddy” newspaper, or it could be to suppress anti-Americanism in Pakistan just as the Jewish lobby prevents criticism of Israel in America. America is arrogant about its power; Khaled Ahmed is arrogant about his knowledge and wisdom. America is like a ‘mast’ elephant, so is Khaled Ahmed. His allegation of a low IQ against General Mirza Aslam Beg was irrelevant. Anyone who is even a little anti-American in Urdu becomes the victim of his narcissistic anger.” The column goes on to explain how Nusrat Mirza keeps himself abreast of global events by reading English sources.
Nusrat Mirza was not “criticised” in “Daily Times”, only supplementary “facts” were added to his opinion. One should look at the original item to see if his extreme personal ire is justified. It should also be noted that America was neither defended nor praised. It is quite possible that an opinion expressed in Urdu looks unimpressive when presented in English. Here goes: “Columnist Nusrat Mirza wrote in “Nawa-e-Waqt” (29 August 2002) that America was angry with Russia for doing business with Iran and was worried about the Central Asia states aligning with Russia and among themselves to defeat the American plan of grabbing control of oil and gas in the region. America was able to manipulate Kazakhstan and Tajikistan but these states will lose everything by allowing America to take away their oil and gas. Israel was rendered ineffective (bay-wuqat) in the Arab world by Pakistan’s acquisition of nuclear before September 11. America was buying Arab oil without proper pricing (bay-bhao) but the possibility of Iran becoming nuclear power and Pakistan’s nuclear weapons trickling (chchalak-kar) into Arab hands worries it. America stands to lose the Central Asian mineral wealth and suffer weakening of Israel in the Middle East, which it cannot tolerate; therefore it will soon go to war.
“This much is fact: Russia’s latest deals with Iran have aroused ire in Washington. It is also true to say that America would like to counterbalance the domination of Russia in Central Asia. Yes, America is interested in getting its oil companies access to this regional market. From here on, the map becomes complex. China too wants America to get into Central Asia to counterbalance Russia as well as the Islamic threat. This is what the newly independent writers on strategy say in Beijing. America has a military connection in most of the Central Asian states through NATO. It does joint military exercises in the region in cooperation with Russia. The Central Asian states are linked to Russia formally; some of them have formed a group of common interests among themselves. At another level they are joined with China, Russia and America to counter terrorism of the Islamic variety. Yes, it is true that America is in competition with Russia over the route of the pipeline that is to go from the Caspian littoral to Europe. Why should the Americans be particularly seen as influential in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan? They could be more influential with Kyrgyzstan than with Tajikistan. They are definitely influential in Uzbekistan which has given them bases to operate out of. (Uzbekistan keeps its gold in New York, just as Pakistan keeps its foreign exchange reserves there.) It is immensely influential with Russia through the IMF, but Russia wants to earn dollars in Iran against America’s wishes. The same goes for China which agreed to MTCR constraints then gave Pakistan the missiles it had undertaken not to give. China denies it broke the MTCR pledge and continues to enjoy a big trade surplus with America.
“How has Pakistan’s bomb rendered Israel “bay-wuqat”? Israel is still doing the terrible things it has always done, and Pakistan is “bay-wuqat” since 1998 when it tested because of a total lack of investment. The thing to consider is what will the Arabs do if either Saddam or Iran came into possession of a nuclear bomb? With Israel there will be a balance of deterrence, but the Arabs will be totally helpless. Whose help will they seek in the face of two nuclear powers with territorial claims? Obviously, America, as they did in 1991.
“The column says America will physically grab oil and gas as property. That is not the pattern. America wants contracts. It will get them if they give a better deal to the Central Asians who want to diversify their dependence on Russia anyway. Why should Pakistan’s nuclear technology go “chchalak-kar” to anyone? The past pattern is that low-IQ generals like Aslam Beg tried this dangerous hankie-panky in violation of Pakistan’s written pledge and were brushed aside by Pakistan’s political leaders. The prediction that America will soon go to war is a loose speculation. President Bush is finding it impossible to attack Saddam Hussein, given a near-total rejection of everyone it counts on as its allies. That it will go to war in Central Asia to grab oil and gas is equally far-fetched.”
Mr Nusrat Mirza has flown off the handle, calling names where he should have stuck to facts. That’s the style. The “Mummy-Daddy” newspaper he thinks “defends” America against criticism is the most ‘anti-American’ daily in Pakistan on the basis of the content of its opinion. We only devoutly hope that this criticism of America is not unfairly levelled, is dispassionate and is offered without prejudice. * REFERENCE: SECOND OPINION: The opposite of truth may be another truth Friday, October 11, 2002 Khaled Ahmed’s Urdu Press Review http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_11-10-2002_pg3_6Daily Jang Monday, March 11, 2013, Rabi-us-Sani 28, 1434 A.H. http://jang.com.pk/jang/mar2013-daily/11-03-2013/col8.htm
Nusrat Mirza writing on the front page of ‘Nawa-e-Waqt’ (11 May 2002) stated that the killing of the French nationals in Karachi could be a punishment to France for being so anti-American. France could have been targeted by America because it is no longer very enthusiastic about its alliance with the United States under NATO. France is openly criticising America these days. Speculation is based on patterns of past behaviour. The speculation in Pakistan is that India could have done it. Most people buy that because of the pattern of behaviour established in our experience of covert and overt war with India. If anyone is to believe that the United States got the Frenchmen killed to punish France, some pattern of behaviour among the states of the Atlantic Alliance should be available. It won’t do to refer to CIA covert operations of the past. REFERENCE: Second opinion: Down with the ‘Loyal Muhammadans’! Khaled Ahmed’s Urdu Press Review Friday, May 17, 2002 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_17-5-2002_pg3_5
Columnist Nusrat Mirza wrote in “Nawa-e-Waqt” (October 2, 2002) that America wanted to establish its bases (adday) on Siachen as India and Pakistan fight each other. It wants to electronically control the entire region from Siachen. Its targets are China, Russia, India and Pakistan so that none of them makes an anti-American alliance to foil its aim of grabbing the minerals found in Central Asia, Afghanistan and Iran. It makes other countries go to war, interferes in the internal affairs of states, gets leaders killed and instigates rebellions. If Pakistan could do something to protect its honour from America, it must do so. The buzz was that America wanted Kashmir for itself, from where it would electronically spy on our friend China. This was spread by our spooks when confronted with American support to the “third option” in Kashmir. In India many politicians subscribed to the same thing. Mulayam Singh Yadav had an elaborate theory about how India and Pakistan would be deprived of Kashmir by the United States. Josef Korbel in his book Danger In Kashmir first found Communist leader Ghulam Muhammad Sadiq propounding this theory in Kashmir for the first time in 1949. Now we see America as an ally of India. We no longer think it will deprive India and grab Kashmir for itself. It is more plausible that it will get India (in return for the inhabited Kashmir) to give it bases on the Siachen Glacier. We are sure that Siachen is the only place in the world from where the American electronic gadgets can control the region. What about the satellites? How will the Americans grab the minerals of Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan? At present, they can’t seem to get hold of Osama bin Laden and the Taliban, and can’t seem to figure out how to get the warlords to behave. Iran will be anti-American for a long time although President Khatami is a moderate. Soon Iran may become a nuclear power. Pakistan’s mineral wealth is gas but there is not much of it left for which America may attack it. Central Asian resources will be given out on big contracts, which will earn Central Asians a lot of much-needed dollars, and the American companies will get these contracts because of America’s political clout and technological superiority. Is America trying to get India and Pakistan to fight another war? On the face of it, it is desperate to prevent it. The columnist prefers to leave it to the readers to figure out how Pakistan may save its honour from being sullied by rascally America. REFERENCE: SECOND OPINION: The growing obsession with blasphemy Khaled Ahmed’s Urdu Press Review Monday, October 07, 2002 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_7-10-2002_pg3_4
Columnist Nusrat Mirza wrote in “Nawa-e-Waqt” (October 22, 2002) that America always attacked states that were weak and had no means of attacking America. Hence there was no suspicion of American defeat. It thereafter used propaganda to isolate the victim country and then used sophisticated weapons to destroy it. After Iraq, it may attack Saudi Arabia, Iran or Pakistan. It must be stopped from going ahead in Iraq. This is the thinking of the brave. Pakistan has always been brave, attacking an enemy it cannot defeat. Even after it was defeated in 1971, it is still brave, taking on foes that can fight back. Alas, strategy is not made that way. You don’t fight someone who can fight back. First make sure that it is isolated and weak, then attack so that you win. The brave man on the other hand doesn’t fear defeat and is often defeated. The coward never loses because he never takes on someone equal in ability to fight. America is a coward that will not lose. Pakistan is brave and loses all the time. Last time Pakistan lost was when our brave Mullah Omar vowed that he would defeat the Americans in Afghanistan. The Americans killed 5,000 Taliban and 3,000 innocent Afghans. * REFERENCE: SECOND OPINION: The other face of the MMA Khaled Ahmed’s Urdu Press Review Friday, November 01, 2002 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_1-11-2002_pg3_6
Columnist Nusrat Mirza wrote in ‘Nawa-e-Waqt’ (6 November 2003) that Foreign Office had not formulated Pakistan foreign policy on the basis of its permanent self-interest but on short-term advantage. It had done the right thing by siding with the United States during the cold war and then getting the US and China to unite, but was not afterwards able to ensure Pakistan’s benefits. It got Pakistan into the big global gambles where the country was used by others as a pawn. The last great blunder was the adoption of America’s war against Al Qaeda as its own war. This was the most dangerous gamble striking at the very root of Pakistan’s identity as a state. Pakistan exploited America to confront India, then got money and weapons out of America during the Afghan war. In return, it gave heroin to America and made its nuclear weapons in defiance of American law. In short, all states look to their self-interest. How is the Foreign Office responsible for the anti-Al Qaeda policy? This was made by General Musharraf when President Bush rang him up. REFERENCE: Second Opinion: How Islam is used by us —Khaled Ahmed’s Urdu Press Review Friday, December 05, 2003 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_5-12-2003_pg3_6
And as far HAARP (High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program) is concerned.
COMSTECH is the Organisation of Islamic Countries’ highest scientific body. It has received millions of dollars from OIC countries, including Pakistan. Comstech’s magnificent headquarters are located on Constitution Avenue in Islamabad. It has been headed by Dr Atta-ur-Rahman since 1996. Although its performance has been consistently mediocre, the organisation has now descended to an all-time low. Recently Dr Rahman published an eye-popping article entitled HAARP (Dawn, Oct 17). The article claims that a physics research project, based in Alaska, may have been used by the US to trigger earthquakes globally, and could also have caused the catastrophic floods in Pakistan. Dr Rahman concludes with a chilling question: “Is the HAARP then, a harmless research tool — or a weapon of mass destruction far more lethal than nuclear weapons? We may never know.” Given Dr Rahman’s prominent place in Pakistani science, and that he is fellow of the Royal Society, one must consider seriously his claim that HAARP can cause earthquakes and floods. But even the briefest examination makes clear his claims make no scientific sense. HAARP stands for High Frequency Active Auroral Research Programme. Its website states it is a research programme run by the University of Alaska in collaboration with various US colleges and universities. If HAARP is a secret military project conceived by evil and diabolical minds, it is hard to see why visitors, including foreign nationals, are said to be allowed on site. The website says that the last open house was on July 17, 2010. At least on the face of things, HAARP does not have the trappings of an American secret weapons facility. (Google Earth, which I used, blacks these out.) Readers will see a field of antennas, as well as some cars and two ordinary looking buildings.
No security barriers are visible. This does not appear to be a classified project. But, of course, appearances can be deceptive. So let us simply use common sense and physics. Assume therefore that the power of the transmitters is many times that declared on the website (3.6MW). This may mean HAARP could potentially disrupt radio communications during war, or blind incoming missiles. But science cannot accept Dr Rahman’s claim that “It (HAARP) may also affect plate tectonics causing earthquakes, floods through torrential rains and trigger tsunamis.” Does the good doctor believe in magic and demons? How else can massive tectonic plates be moved by radio waves? Will HAARP tickle a sleeping subterranean monster that awakes and sets off earthquakes? This kind of thinking was what irate and ignorant village mullahs used after the 2005 Pakistani earthquake. They blamed cable television, after which followers smashed thousands of television sets. Weather change simply cannot be caused by HAARP’s radio waves. The effects of a puny 3.6MW radio transmitter on the ionosphere can only be detected with sensitive instruments. Even these are almost completely washed out by a constant stream of charged particles from the sun that hit the earth during daytime. To see HAARP’s effects would be like trying to see a candle a mile away in blazing sunlight. Today, even the most powerful lasers and radios are millions of times weaker than needed to heat sizeable portions of the ionosphere. (Of course, producing hotspots in tiny volumes anywhere is not a problem, but these have zero effect on the weather or earthquakes.) Perhaps in some future century a laser might be able to do this job.
Dr Rahman says he is uncertain if HAARP could equal a nuclear weapon or perhaps be even more destructive. But if it is actually the super-weapon that he alleges, then the laws of physics will have to be overturned. Physicists will have the sad task of unlearning all that they know and burning their useless books. With a heavy heart, I shall return all my physics degrees. Scientists sometimes disagree — this is how scientific disputes are resolved. But it is worth asking if at least some genuine scientists support Dr Rahman’s claims. He provides no examples. Instead, he quotes President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, who accused the US of causing the Haiti earthquake. While I admire Chavez for standing up to political bullying by the US, I am not sure he knows anything about plate tectonics. In fact, his claim caused seismologists to crack up with laughter. Dr Rahman also quotes a 1999 committee of the European Union Parliament that called for HAARP to be examined by an international independent body. I do not know if any of the committee members were scientists. But 11 years later, the EU has not called for further investigation, nor alleged that HAARP has caused natural disasters. The good doctor enthusiastically endorses the statements of Dr Nick Begich, one of HAARP’s most vocal critics, and refers to him reverentially as a scientist. But Begich’s website says that he obtained a doctorate in traditional medicine from The Open International University for Complementary Medicines in 1994. In other words Begich is not a scientist, but a homeopath who obtained a mail order degree. Yet another quoted “authority” is the arch conspiracy theorist, Michel Chossudovsky, a retired professor of economics in Ottawa. In Dr Rahman’s pantheon of ‘experts’, none has published a scientific paper in a reputable science journal that demonstrates a connection between ionospheric physics and any weather or subterranean phenomenon. In short, Dr Rahman’s claims about HAARP are based on pseudo-science promoted by conspiracy theorists who blame America for all grief in the world. Once science loses its objectivity and becomes enslaved to any kind of ideology or political opinion, it becomes useless. Quack science does not just cost money. It also confuses people, engages them in bizarre conspiracy theories, and decreases society’s collective ability to make sensible decisions. One must therefore seriously question whether a pseudoscience organisation like Comstech deserves lavish funding from poor Pakistanis. We have better things to spend our money on. As for the world of science: it will not even notice Comstech’s demise. REFERENCE: Case of bogus science By Pervez Hoodbhoy 16th November, 2010 http://dawn.com/2010/11/16/case-of-bogus-science/
Balkanization, or Balkanisation, is a geopolitical term, originally used to describe the process of fragmentation or division of a region or state into smaller regions or states that are often hostile or non-cooperative with each other, and it is considered pejorative. The term refers to the division of the Balkan peninsula, formerly ruled almost entirely by the Ottoman Empire, into a number of smaller states between 1817 and 1912. The term however came into common use in the immediate aftermath of the First World War, with reference to the numerous new states that arose from the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Russian Empire. The term is also used to describe other forms of disintegration, including, for instance, the subdivision of the Internet into separate enclaves, the division of subfields and the creation of new fields from sociology, and the breakdown of cooperative arrangements due to the rise of independent competitive entities engaged in "beggar thy neighbour" bidding wars. ------- The collapse of the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics radically changed the world's economic and political environment. No other conflict of interest dominated the post World War Two world like the cold war did. One man is credited with ending the cold war, Mikhail Gorbachev. This however was not the biggest event Gorbachev was responsible for. The end of the cold war was just a by-product of the other major event he was involved with. That is the fall of communism in the USSR and the collapse of the USSR itself. Gorbachev a communist reformer was appointed General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1985. His appointment followed the death of three previous Soviet leaders in three years. Leonid Brezhnev was first to go followed by Yuri Andropov and Konstantin Chernenko. Not being able to afford another short term leader the old guard appointed the youthful 56 year old Mikhial Gorbachev as General Secretary. From the outside it seemed as if this great superpower self destructed in only three months. The USSR's demise is of course more complicated than this. The break up of the USSR can be traced back to Gorbachevs appointment and his early reforms. Gorbachev introduced a wide ranging program of reform. His major reforms were glasnost, perestroika and democratisation. These reforms allowed the problems of the USSR to be uncovered and become public knowledge. Ethnic unrest, economic inefficiency and historical atrocities were the major challenges Gorbachev faced. How he dealt with these challenges and how successful he was is examined in this report. REFERENCES: Balkanization http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balkanization#cite_note-0http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/balkanizedhttp://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/50323/Balkanization The Collapse of the Soviet Union by James Graham http://www.historyorb.com/russia/intro.shtml
2011: KARACHI: In a speech marked by a discernible reduction of bellicosity, Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain said on Wednesday that the Army and the Rangers be deployed in Karachi on a full-time basis to stop it from frequently descending into violence. Mr Hussain set alarm bells ringing late on Tuesday night when he asked the beleaguered people of Karachi — where more than 300 people were killed last month alone — to stock up on ration for at least a month. He said the people must do that even if they had to sell valuables. That the major portion of the Wednesday speech by the MQM chief was in English indicated that he sought to address the international audience in addition to his party’s senior leaders and general workers at the Lal Qila ground in Azizabad. This impression was strengthened by a statement issued by British Foreign Office Minister for South Asia Alistair Burt after speaking to Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad over the phone. Mr Burt expressed his concern “at the continuing violence and loss of life that Karachi has faced in recent weeks”. He said: “I warned that inflammatory statements from any political party risked making the situation worse and that all political leaders and their parties have a duty to refrain from inciting violence and to reduce tensions and restore calm. “Our Deputy High Commissioner in Karachi, Francis Campbell, has met representatives of all main political parties in Karachi to encourage them to work towards stability in Karachi and the wider region. I have asked my officials to reiterate these points directly with the leadership of the MQM and to discuss our concerns.” REFERENCE: Altaf wants army to quell violence By Mukhtar Alam | From the Newspaper August 4, 2011 http://www.dawn.com/2011/08/04/altaf-wants-army-to-quell-violence.html Blood borders How a better Middle East would look By Ralph Peters http://www.armedforcesjournal.com/2006/06/1833899
A superpower is a state with a dominant position in the international system which has the ability to influence events and its own interests and project power on a worldwide scale to protect those interests. A superpower is traditionally considered to be a step higher than a great power. Alice Lyman Miller (Professor of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School), defines a superpower as "a country that has the capacity to project dominating power and influence anywhere in the world, and sometimes, in more than one region of the globe at a time, and so may plausibly attain the status of global hegemony." It was a term first applied in 1944 to the British Empire, the Soviet Union and the United States of America. Following World War II, as the British Empire transformed itself into the Commonwealth and its territories became independent, the Soviet Union and the United States generally came to be regarded as the only two superpowers, and confronted each other in the Cold War. REFERENCE: Superpower http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superpower#cite_note-stanford-0 China an Emerging Superpower?By Lyman Miller http://www.stanford.edu/group/sjir/6.1.03_miller.html
LONDON: Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Chief Altaf Hussain has said that international powers were hatching conspiracy for the division of Pakistan, Geo News reported. Addressing an emergency meeting of Rabita Committee in London and Karachi, MQM Chief said that whatever being done in Karachi is a conspiracy against the integrity of Pakistan. Altaf said that he would accept martyrdom but never compromise on his ideology and mission. He asked the party activists to chalk out future plan under his teachings if former would have been killed. He told that they know everything about the game being played against them. Altaf further said that Urdu speaking people could not be made slaves forcibly, adding that they are peace loving people and want to live in the same. REFERENCE: International powers conspiring to divide Pakistan: Altaf Updated 9 hours ago http://www.thenews.com.pk/NewsDetail.aspx?ID=22385&title=International-powers-conspiring-to-divide-Pakistan:-Altaf
2012: ALI PUR: Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani on Saturday said that creating a Seraiki province was the only possible solution to the problems and sufferings of the people of South Punjab. Addressing a public meeting here in Ali Pur, the prime minister said: “The creation of the Seraiki province is not only your right, but my promise to you.” “Seraiki province is the only solution to your problems as you will have your own assembly, your own chief minister and your own courts,” said Gilani. “I promise you, on behalf of President Asif Ali Zardari – who is also in Multan today – that your rights will be fulfilled,” added the prime minister. “Some elements are working against us because they know that if we will remain in the government we will take the decision to form a Seraiki province,” he said. “I was given many offers. I was even offered to become prime minister when I was in jail, and told that neither Benazir Bhutto nor Nawaz Sharif would return to the country. But I refused them all,” said Gilani. Moreover, the prime minister said that 100,000 new jobs would be created with the upcoming budget, which is due to be announced next month. REFERENCE: Gilani reiterates commitment to Seraiki province Agencies 14th April, 2012 http://dawn.com/2012/04/14/gilani-reiterates-commitment-to-seraiki-province/
MQM welcomes announcement by President Zardari for creating Seraiki Province
MULTAN: President Asif Ali Zardari said on Sunday that he would advise the federal government to set up a Seraiki bank and asked businessmen and entrepreneurs to submit a proposal within a week. During a meeting with the business community of southern Punjab, the president said the proposed bank would address financial problems of businessmen of southern Punjab. He said the banks had been manipulated for political purposes in the past but his government was determined to ensure a financial system without political interference. Talking to a delegation of the Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association, President Zardari said the government was trying to overcome electricity and gas crises and expressed the hope that positive results would be achieved by June 30. He assured the ginners that the government would remove all hurdles in cotton export and would take steps to increase foreign exchange earnings. Addressing a press conference, the president categorically said the government had no intention of abolishing the death penalty because it was part of the Constitution. He said the companies which had invested in the energy sector because of government efforts were forced to wind up their projects owing to false allegations of corruption. Mr Zardari said allegations levelled by former president Farooq Leghari and Ehtesab Bureau chief Saifur Rehman against the Benazir government were now being levelled against the present government. Without naming the PML-N leaders, the president said they were organising protests against electricity loadshedding in their strongholds. He said Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani was facing criticism because he had taken up the cause of Seraiki province. He said powers were transferred to the provinces because the policies pursued by the centre did not yield results. “The capacity of provinces will be increased through evolution and eventually they will be able to deliver,” he said. He said he was the first president to surrender powers willingly and after that Nawaz Sharif called him to say that it was unbelievable that he had surrendered his powers. Mr Zardari said he had spoken in favour of the Seraiki province because giving identity to the nationalities was in accordance with the Constitution and PPP manifesto. Replying to a question about the water dispute with India, he said although his visit to India was a private one, first issue that he raised with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was that of water. Talking to a delegation of intellectuals, President Zardari said that giving identity to nationalities was essential because denying it caused a sense of deprivation. He said Bengalis were denied their rights and their identity and as a result they adopted a course which even the army could not reverse.“We are not doing politics on the issue of Seraiki province. It concerns stability and integrity of the country,” he said. He said poverty and non-development in the area engendered terrorism and a delay in creating Seraiki province will strengthen extremism in the region. He said the people of Seraiki belt had turned against Takht-i-Lahore and they want their own identity and province and the PPP would give them their rights. He said the PPP had no agreement with the PML-Q that the new province would consist of only three divisions of southern Punjab. He said other Seraiki districts would also be included in the province according to people’s wishes. APP adds: The president also met a delegation of ulema and mashaikhs and called upon them to work for religious harmony and assist the government in preventing the youths from falling into the trap of militants. He called upon them to highlight the real message of Islam which preached peace, harmony and tolerance. Mr Zardari said limited job opportunities and poverty in the area encouraged militants and extremists to mislead the youths and use their talent for their nefarious objectives. The ulema and mashaikhs assured the president of full support to the government in the war against militancy and in its efforts to wean the youths away from extremism. REFERENCE: Zardari advises govt to set up Seraiki bank 16th April, 2012 http://dawn.com/2012/04/16/zardari-advises-govt-to-set-up-seraiki-bank/
DIVIDING Sindh along ethnic lines — the ‘Mohajir’ south in Karachi and Hyderabad versus the ‘interior’ of the province dominated by Sindhi speakers — is an idea fraught with the most dangerous of consequences. But, as reported in this newspaper yesterday, in Urdu-speaking neighbourhoods of Karachi and partly Hyderabad, the demand for a Mohajir province has grown in recent months, backed by a Mohajir province movement whose leadership has yet to reveal itself publicly. With graffiti on walls proliferating and the odd rally held in support of the so-called Mohajir province, suspicion has fallen on the MQM as the architect of the movement. While the MQM has officially tried to distance itself from the campaign, particularly via supporting a resolution in the Sindh Assembly against the division of Sindh, it has not condemned the Mohajir province movement. Party leaders have spoken of the growing sense of frustration among Urdu-speakers in the province that they are not getting their due share of resources and jobs from the state. That has only served to heighten the suspicions of Sindhi nationalists, who are bitterly opposed to the idea of dividing Sindh and who have deep misgivings about the MQM’s intentions, particularly since the MQM introduced bills calling for the creation of new provinces in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa earlier this year. If Sindh, especially its urban areas, is to be spared a terrifying round of violence between those who count Urdu as their mother tongue and native Sindhi speakers, both the MQM and the Sindhi nationalists have to act quickly. On the MQM’s part, it needs to go beyond demonstrating that it has no active role in the movement and address suspicions that it is not really averse to such a campaign. On the Sindhi nationalists’ part, their habitual reactionary ways need to be curbed. Their hostility towards the MQM, no matter what that party does or doesn’t do, only serves to keep ethnic tensions in Sindh at an uncomfortably high level. In recent times, Altaf Hussain has repeatedly spoken of recognising that Mohajirs were ‘new’ Sindhis and in a matter of generations would culturally and socially become indistinguishable from the ‘old’ Sindhis. Reaching out to Sindhis in that manner was unprecedented for the MQM, but the Sindhi nationalists have been dismissive of the overtures. That Karachi is a tinderbox always seemingly on the verge of an ethnic, sectarian or political breakdown is known to everyone. Talk of a Mohajir province only serves to complicate an already fiendishly complex problem. Mohajir and Sindhi nationalist leaders must work to reassure each other at this uneasy juncture. REFERENCE: Dangerous idea http://dawn.com/2012/05/22/dangerous-idea/
Talks to Dr Shahid Masood in Geo programme ‘Mere Mutabiq’; Mustafa Azizabadi of MQM surprised at heinous allegations against third largest political party - News Desk - RAWALPINDI: Operation clean-up that began in the interior Sindh on May 20, 1992 was originally targeted against dacoits but the scope was widened to the urban areas including Karachi to do away with the impression that it was against Sindhis. The operation in the urban Sindh was launched on June 19, 1992 and on the same day army raided MQM central offices at Al-Karam Squire and ‘90’ in Karachi. Responding to Dr Shahid Masood’s questions in the Geo News programme ‘Mere Mutabiq’ Brig (retd) Asif Haroon recalled that the operation in the interior Sindh was inevitable as the area was paralysed because of the law and order situation. The MQM was hesitant over the action but Nawaz Sharif was adamant and insisted that it had to be carried out. Brig Asif Haroon admitted that the 1992 briefing with regard to Jinnahpur was given without the map of Jinnahpur. The situation in Karachi had also deteriorated because of the ongoing operation in the interior Sindh. It had also tarnished army’s image because of certain actions and to do away with this situation it was taken to Karachi. Taking part in the programme, Mustafa Azizabadi of the MQM refused to accept what was stated by Brig Asif and said to carry forward some opinion without verifying its authenticity is enough to believe that he is wrong. He said the utterances of Brig Asif Haroon are contradictory also. He was surprised as how such heinous allegations were levelled against the third largest political party of the country without any basis. He recalled that at that time the MQM Quaid Altaf Hussain had challenged to produce the said anti-state documents in the Supreme Court of Pakistan along with proof. He had also announced that if the charges were proved against him, he might be hanged at the Minar-e-Pakistan in Lahore. He recalled that ISPR had also refused to support the claims and declared that army had not found any conspiracy concerning Jinnah Pure. Dr Shahid Masood asked Asif Haroon as to where from he had received the Jinnah Pure maps that he had produced at that time. He reminded him that now his seniors are maintaining that such maps had never existed. Asif denied the statement and said that he had never presented such maps neither he had seen them. He said it began on July 17, 1992 when a briefing was held at Malir Cantonment in view of the operation clean up in Sindh. Some of the generals from Rawalpindi present there were keen to secure first hand knowledge about the happenings in the interior Sindh. Asif admitted that MQM was assured that the operation was against dacoits in the interior of the province. When asked as to ever he saw the Jinnah Pure map or it was in his knowledge, Brig Asif said he never saw them but revealed that in one of the briefings at Hyderabad the GOC had informed that posters and documents pertaining to Jinnah Pure were recovered during a raid at the MQM Unit office at Kotri. Setting aside claims from Brig Asif, Mustafa Azizabadi maintained that on June 19, 1992, army and rangers raided offices at Al-Karam Squire and ‘90’ in Karachi and the action continued for almost 15 days. The offices were burnt down and army and rangers pickets were set up there. But no one claimed to have found any thing pertaining to Jinnah Pure between June 19 and October 11. He ridiculed the statement of DG Rangers Gen Safdar that came the other day claiming that such documents were recovered in large number, rather in thousands. He referred to the conflicting claims from Gen Safdar and that of Gen Asad Durrani, former ISI director general who say that no such recoveries were made. Mustafa asked Asif to reveal as to who had misused and exploited him. When Dr Shahid Masood asked Brig Asif to elaborate the situation, he said when he met Gen Naseer Akhtar the other day he found him annoyed over the emanating of several disclosures. He asked me to handle the situation carefully. The other day I contacted Brig Mumtaz in Hyderabad who could not confirm the availability of such documents despite initial confirmation. The corps headquarters and the ISI desk also denied possession of any such literature. Mustafa Azizabadi maintained that the conflicting and baseless arguments confirm Brig Imtiaz’s version that the Jinnah Pure issue was simply a drama. It was also a sheer joke with a large section of the society. To a question from Dr Shahid Masood, Br Asif Haroon said he might agree that everything might be a fabricated story. Over this confession, Mustafa Azizabadi said now he leaves everything to the people of the country to ponder as to how things were fabricated to get declared MQM an anti state entity. He said like Jinnah Pure drama and torture cell cases were also visualised and publicised under a planned programme. However about the torture cells, Brig Asif Haroon said he was responsible to press briefings only and taking the media to places where the concerned officials claimed to have recovered them. He recalled finding of three torture cells, one of them being in the Lines Area. REFERENCE: Brig Asif says he never saw ‘Jinnahpur’ map Wednesday, September 02, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=24259&Cat=13&dt=9%2F2%2F2009
ISLAMABAD: If history has any relevance in our politics then the Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) ñ so closely allied today — were daggers drawn over the Jinnahpur conspiracy in 1992 and the PPP was accusing the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) of cover-up while the then-Nawaz Sharif government was pleading complete innocence. Reports carried by leading newspapers on the issue during 1992 show the Nawaz-led IJI government had completely denied the existence of Jinnahpur conspiracy but the PPP-led PDA (Pakistan Democratic Alliance) opposition charged the government of covering up the MQM’s conspiracy. However, the Jamaat-e-Islami, a coalition partner in the government, once moved an adjournment motion in the National Assembly to discuss the Jinnahpur conspiracy. It was no less than opposition leader Benazir Bhutto, who had accused the Nawaz regime of trying to cover up the conspiracy of the MQM which, according to her, wanted to make a separate homeland with the support of India. The incumbent President, Asif Ali Zardari, had also demanded action against Jinnahpur planners.
Today though the MQM targets the PML-N for the Jinnahpur conspiracy, during those times MQM Chief Altaf Hussain was even found hailing the Nawaz government for exposing Jinnahpur. Altaf Hussain also demanded a probe into the matter by the Supreme Court. Similarly, the PML-N, which today passes the buck on the Army and intelligence agencies to have created the Jinnahpur drama, during those days insisted that the plot was a figment of imagination of the PPP. The then-interior minister Chaudhry Shujaat was also reported to have said the Army used to operate as per the directive of the government. In order to have a true sense of the political divide of those times and the position of different political parties on the issue of Jinnahpur, briefs of statements and reports of newspapers of different political leaders and analysts on the issue are reproduced here. Jang Karachi quoted Benazir Bhutto on July 6, 1992 as saying if Beharis are settled in Sindh it would pave the way for Jinnahpur and Sindhudesh. She said Sindh had proved to be waterloo for the past rulers and it may also become the same for Nawaz Sharif. July 18, 1992 Jang Karachi reported Brigadier Haroon, the Army spokesman, as saying in a press briefing that the MQM had planned a separate homeland. The News of July 17 quoted him as saying there were confirmed intelligence reports, revealing the MQM plans. The map of the planned country was also discovered during the operation, he claimed.
On Oct 11, 1992 Jang Lahore ran a story filed by its reporter Azhar Sohail which talked of the Army high command providing documentary evidence to the government that the MQM was planning to create an independent state called Jinnahpur comprising Hyderabad, Thatta, Badin, Karachi and all those areas of upper Sindh that are oil rich. The report said the corps commander meeting in a recent meeting discussed the issue and decided to provide all the material to the government. Politician Meraj Muhammad Khan was reported to have said on Oct 12, 1992 that the Jinnahpur map issue is a fraud. A day later, Shaheen Sehbai, who is presently Group Editor of The News, reported for Dawn “A House losing its temper” and wrote in his Press Gallery, “The opposition was pressing for a debate on Jinnahpur, the supposed brainchild of the MQM to separate Urdu-speaking areas from Pakistan.” The same day The News reported the voting out of NA motion by the treasury benches on Jinnahpur. The News also reported the then deputy opposition leader Farooq Leghari to have said the prime minister (Nawaz Sharif) was involved in the Jinnahpur conspiracy and claimed that the government opposed motion on the issue because it did not want to go into details.
Dawn on Oct 14, 1992 carried MQM Chief Altaf Hussain’s statement in which he called for a Supreme Court probe to investigate the charges of Jinnahpur against the MQM. The same newspaper reported on Oct 15 about two separate adjournment motions moved by the PDA and Jamaat-e-Islami members to discuss the Jinnahpur conspiracy. In a press conference on Oct 17, the then key minister of Nawaz regime Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said Jinnahpur plot did not exist. “The government would not allow anyone to subvert the rights of Muhajirs. It is baseless that we have ever discussed the creation of the so-called Jinnahpur with the MQM,” he was quoted to have said. Nisar also dispelled the impression that the whole MQM was a terrorist organisation and insisted the good and bad people were in every party. He asked Altaf Hussain to respond to the allegations levelled against his party. The same day ANP Chief Ajmal Khattak said there is no truth in the reports that the MQM had planned anything to break Pakistan or to establish Jinnahpur.October 19 newspapers carry ISPR press release, conveying Army’s denial of the knowledge of the Jinnahpur plan.
“The Army had no evidence concerning the so-called Jinnahpur plan, it is clarified that the newspaper story in question is baseless. The Army has neither handed over to the government any document or map as reported, not is it in possession of any evidence concerning the so-called ‘Jinnahpur’ plan. It is also factually wrong that the matter was discussed at any meeting of the corps commander.” But the same day Benazir Bhutto in a statement in the National Assembly said the government was consciously covering up the Jinnahpur conspiracy and is backing up the MQM from day one. Nawa-e-Waqt quoted her as saying the motive of the organisation (MQM) is to create a separate homeland with the support of India. She demanded of the removal of Nawaz Sharif from the government for supporting, abetting and financing the dismemberment of Pakistan. She said it was of no use to blame Altaf Hussain. “His partner, supporter and guide Nawaz Sharif must go,” The News reported on October 19. The same day the then-interior minister Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain was reported to have said in the National Assembly a day before that Jinnahpur is a non-issue and the brainchild of the PPP. Farooq Leghari, however, demanded judicial probe into the plot and contended that disclosure of the Jinnahpur plot had exposed the MQM’s anti-state activities which needed further investigations. Shaheen Sehbai in Dawn’s “From Press Gallery” wrote on October 19, “Jinnahpur is all fiction”. “Including the opposition leader, Benazir Bhutto, could hardly produce anything about the much trumpeted Jinnahpur beyond newspaper clippings or a reported statement of an Army spokesman made in front of a team of Islamabad journalists. Even that was said to have been denied by the Army,” wrote Sehbai.
The News of Oct 19 also quoted Asif Ali Zardari to have desiring action against Jinnahpur planners. “Zardari said the denial of the plan made by the leader of the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad was meaningless,” the newspaper read. In his report “The last refuge of a scoundrel”, Nusrat Javed, senior journalist, wrote in The News on Oct 19, “A military spokesman, Brigadier Haroon, told this to a group of newsmen visiting Karachi in mid-July that there were confirmed intelligence reports that some of the MQM leaders were trying to create a separate state. This correspondent was present at the Army briefing in Karachi where such allegations were made and one reported about them like the rest of the newsmen present. Reference to Haroon’s allegations demands another simple answer, i.e., whether the Nawaz government agrees to the perception expressed by a senior Army officer?” Tariq Butt of The News on October 19 also reported of Benazir Bhutto’s accusing the government of cover-up. “When Interior Minister Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain described the Jinnahpur conspiracy as a dangerous figment of the PDA’s imagination, opposition MNAs accused the government of being a party to the plot,” the story filed by Butt read.
The same day Nawa-e-Waqt ran a story quoting Benazir Bhutto to have said the Army had uncovered the Jinnahpur conspiracy but the government was silent on the issue. Dawn on October 21, 1992 reported Altaf Hussain to have been praising the government. The report headlined, “Altaf hails govt for exposing Jinnahpur”. According to the report, the MQM chief said the government (of Nawaz Sharif) and its agencies in the same effective manner should display a positive attitude to review the baseless allegations levelled against the MQM to bring about an improvement in the present constitutional and political crises, particularly in Sindh.” Oct 21, 1992 Jang published a story based on Asif Ali Zardari’s statement that was though appeared conflicting with the PPP stance at that time, suits today’s politics of the PPP and the MQM. The newspaper reported Mr Zardari to have said in a court premises in Karachi that the Jinnahpur scandal was created to malign the MQM. The same day Dawn reported Farooq Leghari to have been refuting the government’s claim that Jinnahpur was a figment of imagination of the PPP. He also demanded constitution of a high-powered commission headed by the chief justice of Pakistan and comprising all the four high court chief justices to look into the matter. Several years later on December 14, 1998 The News carried a statement of Altaf Hussain on the same issue. Altaf Hussain demanded probe into reports about Jinnahpur and said the separate Jinnahpur state allegations was a well-planned conspiracy which was used as a message for the Muhajir community that they would continue to be victimised if they did not demand a separate state. REFERENCE: Where PPP, PML-N and MQM stood on Jinnahpur in 1992 Ansar Abbasi Thursday, September 03, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=196297&Cat=2&dt=9%2F3%2F2009
ISLAMABAD: No matter who has authored the script of the ongoing Brig Imtiaz tamasha, engulfing the political arena, the establishment that includes the military-led intelligence agencies and the Pakistan Army have emerged as the main villains, presumably as the authors of the fiasco wanted. Nawaz Sharif and his party are uncomfortable; demand for Musharraf’s trial has been sidetracked at least for the time being; the MQM gets into a position where it believes that its stand is vindicated but the Jinnahpur controversy also created an opportunity for its opponents for a much open criticism of the party and its policies; the issues like the scrapping of 17th Amendment have now become more complex with the two leading parties setting up for a political confrontation after the PML-N finds the Presidency behind the current smear campaign against its top leadership; however, President Asif Zardari is least affected by this recently started political wrangling. It rather has favoured him by temporarily silencing the guns that were targeting him and the government from all around for their alleged misrule, on charges of corruption, the sugar scandal and the reported ruining of the state institutions.
The PML-N, which is badly hurt by the revelations about the alleged provision of Rs3.5 million to its party chief Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif by former ISI chief Lt-Gen (retd) Asad Durrani, is pointing its finger at the president to have been the architect of the get-Nawaz campaign. However, the Presidency has strongly refuted these charges but different presidential aides are issuing the kind of statements that apparently show the presidency is getting amused with the situation. However, what is interesting is the unanimity between all these warring political forces showing their abhorrence over the role of the establishment in country’s politics. But in a strange dichotomy except the PML-N, the other two major warring political forces — the PPP and the MQM — are not interested in proceeding against Gen (retd) Musharraf under Article 6 of the Constitution. As one scans through the debates that took place in different talk shows of various private television channels after the recent emergence of the Jinnahpur controversy, the establishment is found to be the target of all.
The MQM, which had been the most trusted supporter of Gen Musharraf during his nine years rule, says that its Quaid Altaf Hussain is not returning to Pakistan because of the establishment. The PPP, too, said that the military operators and intelligences agencies have not been adhering to the command of the civilian governments whereas the PML-N is of the view that it has repeatedly found the establishment and Army chiefs overstretching their mandate. While appearing as a guest in one of the talk shows, PML-N information secretary Ahsan Iqbal has said it has been a harsh reality in Pakistan that policy decisions on some specific security and international issues have not been taken with the consultation or consent of the civilian government. He quoted the Kargil issue as one example and urged upon the need of rationalising the power structure in such a manner that no step could be taken against the wishes of the democratic government. He said the PML-N differed with former Army chief Gen (retd) Aslam Beg after he issued a statement on the Gulf war that did not match the government’s policy. He said similarly Gen (retd) Asif Nawaz exceeded from the mandate he was given before launching the military operation against criminals, dacoits and anti-social elements in Sindh in 1992. Another Army Chief Gen (retd) Jehangir Karamat, he said, was removed because of his statement on the setting up of National Security Council. He said the PML-N government differed with Gen (retd) Musharraf on the Kargil issue. Senior PML-N leader Khwaja Muhammad Asif was of the view that the military-led intelligence agencies have been extremely powerful and instrumental in the making and breaking of the government. On the issue of the military operation in Karachi and the target killings there, Khwaja Asif said the agencies were mainly responsible for that. He said in both the 1992-93 and 1995-96 operations in Karachi, these were the military intelligence agencies that had played the important role.
Interestingly, it was Khwaja Asif, who admitted that had the agencies not been so powerful MQM Quaid Altaf Hussain would have now been in Pakistan. Khwaja Asif said Altaf Hussain’s apprehensions towards the intelligences agencies, are barring him to come back and lead his party, which according to the N-leader would serve the political culture better. Khwaja Asif also pointed out that the present situation in the tribal areas, Balochistan, Northern Areas and in Southern Punjab is also the outcome of what the agencies did during the last 20-22 years. The PML-N leaders have been distancing itself from the 1992 military operation against the MQM and insisted that it was the Army which had overstepped. In return, the MQM leaders, too, were mainly complaining to the PML-N and its leader Nawaz Sharif over his silence and the failure to stop the 1992 military operation against the MQM. MQM leader Haider Abbas Rizvi endorsed Khwaja’s views and said Hakim Saeed was killed by the agencies but the MQM was blamed for his murder. He lamented that the MQM workers were killed in an extra-judicial manner; military courts were created to try Muttahida workers, who were punished illegally and in violation of the Constitution through summary trials by these courts.
Rizvi said in the 1992 operation what he called the Haqiqi terrorists were riding in military jeeps during the Army’s operation against the MQM. “It was all planted,” he said, and lamented the then-prime minister could not do anything to stop the operation. Wasim Akhtar, another MQM leader, said in one the private channel that it’s a pity that the largest political parties of the country are today still dependent on Army and America. Dr Nadeem Ahsan of the MQM said MQM workers do not want Altaf Hussain to come back. He said the MQM Chief’s life is facing threats from the enemies of Pakistan. When asked to name these enemies, he pointed to both internal and external forces. When further probed, Dr Nadeem Ahsan initially named the Taliban and later said, “There are some other forces too. You can also name establishment.” When asked if the MQM fears from the establishment, he said, “Yes”. PPP information secretary Fauzia Wahab, too, in a talkshow talked of the political influence of the ISI which, according to her, grew after the agencies exposure in the Afghan war against former Soviet Union. Wahab, who is generally considered as her master’s (President) voice, said during the Afghan war the ISI became very resourceful and developed new technologies, which the agencies has to use somewhere to prove its worth. Referring to the history and also finding it true in the present day Pakistan, she said one thing is clear that in Pakistan democracy never got strengthened and the civilian authority has never been maintained. She said in her view there does not exist any central authority. Fauzia Wahab also added the 1992 operation is the reflection of the fact that the military operators at that time were not ready to concede the supremacy of the civilian leadership. She, however, believed the military interventions can’t be stopped by hanging a dictator but by improving the performance of parliament and through the vision and greater assertion of the political leadership. Dr Firdous Aashiq Awan, another PPP leader, blamed the establishment for the PPP government’s “mistake” to launch operation in Karachi against the MQM in 1995-96. REFERENCE: Establishment — the main target in current fiasco Ansar Abbasi Wednesday, September 02, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=24254&Cat=13&dt=9%2F2%2F2009
LAHORE: The much trumpeted 1992 operation clean-up in Sindh had actually been launched against the backdrop of the infamous ‘Major Kaleem kidnapping case’, when a serving Army major was abducted and tortured, allegedly by a group of activists belonging to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (which was then known as the Muhajir Qaumi Movement). While the MQM leadership has recently blamed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif for the 1992 operation and asked him to apologise for the atrocities committed during his tenure, it remains a fact that the MQM high command had held at that time the military leadership responsible for the action, saying it actually wanted to avenge the honour of Major Kaleemuddin. As a matter of fact, Major Kaleemuddin of the Field Investigation Unit (FIU) of the Army had been tasked to restore peace in the trouble-stricken Landhi area of Karachi. He was abducted on June 20, 1991, along with a few subordinates, while in civvies ñ the night when the MQM-Haqiqi led by Afaq Ahmed made an abortive attempt to take over Landhi offices of the Altaf-led MQM, called Muhajir Khel. This led to a bloody gun battle between the two MQM factions, killing many from both sides.
However, the Haqiqi group was forced to flee after the Altaf group unleashed all its fire power in the gun battle. A few hours after the abortive attempt by the Haqiqi group, Major Kaleemuddin was abducted from the Landhi area by armed activists of the MQM, who allegedly took him to a torture cell and subjected him to ‘mistreatment’. The Major Kaleemuddin kidnapping case is still described by many in the establishment as the bedrock of the subsequent military operations carried out against the MQM under the Sharif and the Bhutto governments. Altaf Hussain and several other MQM leaders and workers were subsequently accused of being involved in the kidnapping episode and named in the FIR registered on June 24, 1991. Altaf left Pakistan in December 1992. But there are different versions of what exactly happened to Major Kaleemuddin. Some of the MQM leaders had claimed after the incident that the abductors were under the impression that MQM-Haqiqi leaders ñ Afaq Ahmed and Amir Khan - had returned to the port city at the behest of the agencies and that the major was present in Landhi to supervise the establishment-sponsored operation against them. During the court trial, many of the accused had claimed that since the major was in plain clothes, he was mistaken by them for a Haqiqi activist and subsequently roughed up. But as soon he had revealed his identity, the major was allowed to go.
However, according to the prosecution, Major Kaleemuddin, along with three other Army officers, was patrolling the Landhi area in an Army jeep when 20 armed youths took them hostage after seizing their weapons. The Army men were taken to a place called Muhajir Khel in Landhi where they were allegedly tortured and kept for seven hours and rescued when the police reached the place. The accused charged with kidnapping the Army officers and torturing them included Altaf Hussain, Saleem Shahzad, Dr Imran Farooq, Safdar Baqri, Nadeem Ayubi, Ayub Shah, Aftab Ahmed, Ismail alias Sitara, Ashraf Zaidi, Sajid Azad, Ashfaq Chief, Javed Kazmi, Haji Jalal Asghar Chacha, Rehan Zaidi and Mohammad Yousuf. Whatever the truth might be, the then-Army high command’s keen interest in the prosecution of the accused gave an impression as if the traditional martial pride of the Khakis - that nobody gets away with bashing up an Army officer ñ was at work. Gen Asif Nawaz had been the Corps Commander Karachi at that time who got promoted as the Army Chief in August 1991, right before the start of the military operation.
A special court for suppression of terrorist activities (STA), led by Justice Rafiq Awan, began hearing of the Kaleemuddin kidnapping case in March 1993 and delivered judgment on June 9, 1994. The court had convicted Ashfaq Chief, Javed Kazmi and Haji Jalal and sentenced them to 30 years of rigorous imprisonment, besides imposing a fine of Rs 20,000 each under the Pakistan Penal Code, the Hudood Ordinance. All other accused, including Altaf Hussain, were declared absconders and sentenced to 27 years jail and a fine of Rs 30,000 each in absentia. Almost three years later, following the 1997 general elections and the subsequent decision by Altaf Hussain to join hands with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, all the convicted MQM leaders and activists challenged afresh their conviction and sentences before the Sindh High Court. Their appeal was heard by a division bench, which found the case as one ‘of almost no legal evidence’. Relying on the provisions of the Suppression of Terrorist Activities Act, 1976, the bench upheld on trial in absentia as well as the right of the absentee accused to file an appeal. Dealing with evidence, the bench observed that the eyewitnesses’ account did not inspire confidence and the evidence of the complainant was, in particular, full of contradictions.
The bench, comprising Justice Nizam Hussain Siddiqui and Justice Abdul Hameed, noted that it is difficult to believe, a group of 15 or 20 boys could disarm four trained soldiers. Therefore, all the accused were acquitted and three convicts serving their term were ordered to be released immediately. But it is interesting to point out that after AQ Halepota, one of the counsels for the MQM leaders, concluded his arguments before the court, the then-advocate-general Sindh Shaukat Zuberi submitted that numerous omissions and contradictions had been made during the trial of Major Kaleemuddin’s kidnapping and torture case and that he would not support the convictions of the accused by the STA court. The verdict came hardly a week after the then-prime minister Nawaz Sharif had travelled to London to meet Altaf Hussain. To recall, the MQM and the PML-N had been coalition partners at that time, before finally falling apart following the assassination of Hakim Mohammad Saeed in Karachi. Major Kaleemuddin had subsequently challenged the acquittal of the MQM leaders and activists by the Sindh High Court. But the petition was dismissed as withdrawn by the apex court on August 13, 2007, mainly due to non-prosecution, as neither the petitioner nor his counsel had turned up. REFERENCE: MQM shifts blame for 1992 operation from military to Nawaz Amir Mir Wednesday, September 02, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=24255&Cat=13&dt=9%2F2%2F2009
LAHORE: The decision to launch the infamous 1992 operation clean-up in Sindh was largely taken by the military establishment immediately after the retirement of General Mirza Aslam Beg as the Army chief and the elevation of the then chief of general staff General Asif Nawaz Janjua to his place in August 1991. General Janjua had been the corps commander Karachi for three years from April 1988 to March 1991 before being elevated as chief of general staff in April 1991 for a brief period, only to be made the 10th chief of army staff three months later on August 16, 1991. And the operation clean-up was launched shortly afterwards. A careful scanning of the Pakistani newspaper files between 1989 and 1992 show that a proposal to send in the Army to ‘clean up’ Sindh was first floated in 1989 when Ghulam Ishaq Khan was the president of the country, Benazir Bhutto the prime minister, General Aslam Beg the Army chief and Lt-Gen Asif Nawaz the corps commander Karachi. However, difference of opinion arose after Ghulam Ishaq and General Aslam Beg opposed the suggestion. It was during his tenure as the corps commander Karachi that Asif Nawaz shot to prominence. Sindh at that time wilted under the most violent period in its history. Ethnic battles between Sindhis and Mohajirs were a routine affair and Asif Nawaz was often asked by the civil administration to deploy his troops to impose curfew and break the civil strife.
On one such occasion, Lt-Gen Asif Nawaz had to personally come forward as a guarantor between two ethnic extremist groups to ensure a safe swapping of the hostages from both sides, who otherwise would have been killed. Therefore, he had floated a proposal to the PPP government in 1989 for carrying out two separate operations in urban and rural areas of Sindh against extremist elements in the Mohajir Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Al-Zulfiqar Organisation as well as against criminals and dacoits who had been enjoying the protection of influential political personalities and landlords. However, Beg reportedly voiced his opposition to the proposal and simply dragged his feet by demanding Herculean powers from the federal government for the Army under Section 245 of the Constitution.
Even otherwise, there were elements in the Bhutto government who argued that a genuinely impartial military operation, cutting across party and ethnic lines, as envisioned by Asif Nawaz, would shake the foundations of the entire political edifice. However, the ground work preceding the military operation in Sindh was eventually started in August 1991 soon after Aslam Begís retirement and Asif Nawazís elevation by Ishaq Khan. After taking Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif into confidence, the military high command had issued directives to the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Military Intelligence (MI) to prepare secret reports on the activities of dacoits, criminals, terrorists as well as political elements patronising notorious elements in Sindh. A separate cell was formed within these agencies to focus on the activities of the Altaf-led MQM, but with precise directives that these reports should remain completely impartial and credible.
However, problems began to crop up when Prime Minister Sharif was informed by the intelligence agencies that some provincial ministers allied to his Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI), President Ishaqís son-in-law Irfanullah Khan Marwat, several prominent Pirs of Sindh, then chief Minister of the province Jam Sadiq Ali and some key members of the PPP and the Altaf-led MQM were all involved in criminal activities. Subsequently, the leaderships of different political parties were informed of these intelligence reports and asked to purge their parties of such elements as early as possible. In response, the PPP high command publicly severed its links with Al-Zulfiqar while Altaf Hussain deemed it fit to expel Afaq Ahmed and Amir Khan from the MQM. However, Nawaz Sharif was advised by his close aides that so many politicians from Sindh have been named in the intelligence reports as criminals that if they were rounded up, the Jam Sadiq-led coalition government would simply collapse; the PPP would seize power in Sindh and the PML-led government in Islamabad would be plunged into a serious political crisis. Sharif was also warned that any action against criminal elements of the Altaf-led party by the Army could prove counter productive, despite the fact that intelligence reports had described the MQM as “a state within a state”.
Nonetheless, General Asif Nawaz Janjua was determined to move ahead with his plan of an operation clean-up in Sindh to cleanse the province of criminals. By that time, the infamous kidnapping and torture of Major Kaleemuddin by MQM henchmen had already taken place. In May 1992, a month before the operation was officially launched, the original plan was reviewed by the GHQ and it was decided that a direct clash between the Army and the MQM should be avoided.
Therefore, the MQM-Haqiqi was launched. But the intelligence move backfired and severely damaged the credibility of the Army. During a high-level troika meeting hardly two weeks before the operation clean-up, General Asif told Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that although many MQM, PML, PPP and Pagaro League members were on the criminal list, the Armyís first and foremost target would be dacoits in interior Sindh. However, as soon as the operation was launched, Nawaz Sharif was taken by surprise as the Army opted to raid the Nine Zero headquarters of the MQM in Azizabad to arrest dozens of its activists and leaders who were wanted for their involvement in criminal and terrorist activities. By that time, while sensing the gravity of the situation, Altaf Hussain had already fled Karachi for London. As pressure mounted on Nawaz Sharif by the component parties of the IJI, he decided to give a clear cut message to the Army by travelling to London to meet Altaf Hussain on June 19, 1992 when the operation clean-up was at its peak in Karachi and Hyderabad. And his move explicitly meant to distance himself from the operation clean-up of the Pakistan Army that was being directed against one of his important coalition partners in Sindh — the Altaf-led MQM. REFERENCE: General Janjua — the man behind 1992 operation Amir Mir Friday, September 04, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=196562&Cat=2&dt=9%2F4%2F2009
