Jinnah's Pakistan and Pakistan's Soft Image.

This is the Muslim predicament. The new millennium has not seen the Muslims moving closer to the modern state but revolting against it. The politicians and the people are scared of discussing the problem but they are privately absorbing the debate. The private channels have done a few good things and a few bad ones, always following the market. They have downgraded religion to a mantra by following the istikhara market, but they have also begun discussing religion and its relationship with the state seriously. Is Pakistan being affected by this discourse? Not yet. Significantly, the politicians are staying away from the debate. GEO (January 1, 2006) discussed Islam and the state in Fifty Minutes, Dr Mubarak Ali said that religion did not mix well with the state. He said talk of ijtihad was meaningless because there was no guarantee that any Muslims would accept it. He said every time someone did ijtihad it gave birth to a new sect. He said the two-nation doctrine was no longer valid in Pakistan. The concept of ummah was equally irrelevant. He said if the Muslims wanted to get together they should create a bloc of states but not based on religion. Religion must remain in the private domain. The nation-state was the reality in our times. It was no longer possible to discriminate against the non-Muslims on the excuse of Islam. He said before 1947 ideology had no reference in what was later called the Pakistan Movement. REFERENCE: SECOND OPINION: Who is listening to the ‘new debate’?— Khaled Ahmed’s TV Review - Daily Times, January 21, 2006 New Debate in Pakistan: Religion and State? Hassan Abbas TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2006 http://watandost.blogspot.com/2006/02/new-debate-in-pakistan-religion-and.html SECOND OPINION: Who is listening to the ‘new debate’?—Khaled Ahmed’s TV Review Tuesday, February 21, 2006 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2006\02\21\story_21-2-2006_pg3_3 Jinnah: Speeches and statements 1947-1948 by Mahomed Ali Jinnah (Compiled by Samuel M. Burke) https://www.amazon.com/Jinnah-Statements-1947-1948-Mahomed-Ali/dp/0195790219

Jinnah's Pakistan , Pakistan's Religious Narrative, Secularism, Liberalism, Objectives Resolution and Way Forward with Mr Kashif Baloch for Sujag

Courtesy : http://sujag.org/

How to build Pakistan’s soft image? And why it is necessary? With Rai Saquib Kharal in Lahore ‏⁦‬⁩

General Election 2018 in Pakistan (Tehran Times)

‘Political transition may be smooth but Imran Khan won’t be able to run the country smoothly’ By: Syed Zafar Mehdi July 29, 2018 http://www.tehrantimes.com/news/425917/Political-transition-may-be-smooth-but-Imran-Khan-won-t-be-able

Q. Pakistan Tehreek Insaaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan claimed victory in general election on Thursday amid accusations of rigging and manipulation by rivals. Are other parties being ungraceful in defeat or do they have legitimate grievances?

A: Yes, and it is premature to say anything else because situation is very fluid. The very exercise of elections stands highly doubtful and irregularities are not only reported by national but international media as well.

Q. As you mentioned, there are reports about irregularities. PML-N, the main rival of PTI in this election, has rejected the result claiming rigging. What options do they have now?

A: PML-N is in strong position because Nawaz Sharif and Maryam are back in the country and they have proved everyone wrong, Nawaz Sharif’s narrative is intact and trending as anyone can see in print and electronic media as well as social media. Imran Khan’s very victory is tainted.

Q. As alleged by PML-N, PPP and other smaller parties prior to the election, all the parties were not given a level playing field and PTI was favored over others. Do you think Imran Khan's turnaround in fortunes is largely because of military establishment's blessings?

A: Yes, writing is on the wall and widely reported and even a child can tell that polls were highly mismanaged, rather engineered.

Q. Since most of the parties have rejected the result, do you think the transition of power will be smooth and the new government will be stable?

A: Transition may or may not be smooth but Imran Khan won’t be able to run the country smoothly. He doesn’t have committed ‘original PTI’ with him. He now has the turncoats of every party in the shape of electable and electable are basically carpetbaggers. Imran Khan has lost the moral high ground.

Q. While Khan is considered a non-corrupt and honest politician, he is seen close to army and to the Taliban. Is Pakistan ready for a leader like him?

A: Question is how do you define ‘corruption’? In my opinion intellectual dishonesty is more harmful than financial corruption and Pakistan has suffered due to this intellectual corruption in the last 60 years, particularly judiciary’s intellectual dishonesty.

Q. What are the major challenges in front of the new government?

A: FATF, Pakistan’s International Image, Completion of CPEC and distribution of proper dividends amongst provinces, NFC Award, Missing Persons, Freedom of Expression and last and the most important “complete eradication of decimation of sectarian groups from Punjab, Baluchistan and Upper Sindh. Sectarian organisations are clear and present danger.

Q. Now that PML-N has failed to retain power, do you think Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Sharif have to spend more time in jail than they would have expected?

A: I won’t say that Sharif family is innocent but the trial was also not fair and media was allowed to influence during proceedings. Corruption cases and the way these cases are manipulated and tried in Pakistan is itself a joke, we all know how Musharraf inducted those who were Bank defaulters and thoroughly corrupt and facing NAB enquiries. Therefore, such cases in Pakistan carry no weight.

Q. If Imran Khan becomes the next PM, what would be the focus of his foreign policy, especially vis a vis relations with neighbors India and Afghanistan and America's shadow over Pakistan.

A: It would be a disaster. He or his team has no idea what to do. Imran Khan is totally clueless and amateur as a political leader. 

TEHRAN - Aamir Mughal is a Pakistan-based political commentator and social media activist. He was formerly a senior intelligence officer. In this interview with Tehran Times, he spoke about the general elections in Pakistan and allegations of vote rigging and manipulation.

Attack on Ahsan Iqbal and Playing with Fire in Punjab

One major political party also chose to exploit the issue and continued to do so at both the constituency and national level, ignoring the counsel of several commentators that this was akin to playing with dynamite. You can start this fire but when it gets raging you cannot extinguish its flames. If there is one thing that we seem to be utterly committed to, it is to never learn from history. And our own recent history in particular. Whatever the justification, the policy of nurturing religious militancy has cost us dearly. The images of our brave martyrs, uniformed or otherwise, and their loved ones are a slap-in-the-face reminder if one was indeed needed. All contestants must know that while stoking divisive flames, religious, sectarian or ethnic, may well bring them gains, the temporary advantage of following such a path will lead to hellish consequences. Reference: Need for a campaign code by Abbas Nasir May 12, 2018 https://www.dawn.com/news/1407200/need-for-a-campaign-code

Abrar-ul-Haq and Imran Khan want us to respect these Rogue and Vagabond Clerics - 1

However, one man who has humiliated himself in this tragic situation is Ahsan Iqbal’s opponent from the Narowal district, Abrar ul-Haq, the musician-turned politician and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader. In a bizarre attempt to use this attack on one of the most senior and dignified statesmen in the country for point scoring, Abrar ul-Haq offered the minister treatment at his Sahara hospital in Narowal in a tweet as distasteful as it could get. This wasn’t all. Abrar while talking to a TV channel in the aftermath of the attack resorted even to veiled threats to the Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) leaders, saying that the people had been calling him and justifying the attack, and then told the PML-N leaders to stay cautious. It isn’t the first time that Abrar ul-Haq has explicitly tried to woo the extremist right-wing vote-bank. In November 2017, when a number of Labbaik goons had surrounded Ahsan Iqbal’s house in Narowal and in turn had been baton-charged by the police, Abrar in a video message had not only justified the vandalism of the Labbaik activists but had gone on to issue sermons for the PML-N leadership, especially naming Ahsan Iqbal, saying the party leaders were ruining their afterlife. Reference: PTI leader humiliates himself after murder attempt on Ahsan Iqbal https://www.nayadaur.tv/2018/05/pti-leader-humiliates-himself-after-murder-attempt-on-ahsan-iqbal/

Abrar-ul-Haq and Imran Khan want us to respect these Rogue and Vagabond Clerics - 2

The point here is simple: a young man, semi-schooled, indoctrinated, who can’t find employment but can become the president of the youth wing of TLYRA and can come up with Rs. 15,000 for a pistol and Rs. 1,800 for purchasing 50 rounds for his weapon. Pakistan’s history, post-1979, is a testimony to the fact that ‘blasphemy’ is a nuclear option. Unfortunately, almost all major political parties have resorted to it for petty politicking. None seems to realize that starting this fire will engulf everyone. It has also been hyped by unscrupulous charlatans and televangelists. This has reached a point where any semi-schooled man looking for a place in Jannah can take it upon himself to kill whoever he deems to have presumably insulted Islam’s Prophet. But more than that, it is, to quote Mencken, the grotesqueries, chicaneries and theological buffooneries practiced by unethical clerics and large segments of their cretinous followers that is the problem. Perish the thought that others will condemn this act by Abid Hussain. As I write this, there will be many who would be preparing themselves for performing what they think is a sacred task. The accused told the police he was asked by Data Sahib to kill minister Iqbal. According to him he also saw other holy personages in his dream. There, we now have a good test case for psychologists and their Jungian mishmash. Incidentally, the accused also went to Dubai but returned after a month because he didn’t like the “mahol” (environment) there. So, here we have some initial observations. Let’s hope we draw the right lessons from them. Reference: Petty Politicking and the Blasphemy Nuke http://newsweekpakistan.com/petty-politicking-and-the-blasphemy-nuke/ by MAY 08 2018 BY EJAZ HAIDER

Orya Maqbool Jan shower praises on Khadim Hussain Rizvi

1. (C) Summary: While politicians and religious leaders have sought to establish inter-religious peace in Gojra village after the August 1 burning of eight Christians, human rights activists have urged the government to reconsider the blasphemy law, which sparked the killing of a Muslim businessman in Sheikhupura August 4. In an August 6 meeting with A/PO, members of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan warned that the government must punish the perpetrators, and suggested modifying the blasphemy law that allows such incidents to occur. Maulana Abdul Khabeer Azad, the imam of Lahore's Badshahi Mosque, related that he spent the week in Gojra encouraging interfaith reconciliation. He underscored that extremist Brelvi group Sunni Tehreek first sparked the riot, though an Ahl-e-Hadith mosque encouraged the violence. End Summary. Reference: PROSECUTIONS AND PEACE PROMISED IN STRIFE-TORN VILLAGE 2009 August 10, 10:59 (Monday) Canonical ID:09LAHORE165_a https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/09LAHORE165_a.html

Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad says that Supporters of Mumtaz Qadri (Salmaan Taseer's Killer) would vote for Imran Khan

The US gave money to a Pakistani Muslim group that organised anti-Taliban rallies, but which later demonstrated in support of an extremist who killed a leading liberal politician, the US Embassy in Pakistan said Wednesday. US government website Usaspending.gov shows that the group, the Sunni Ittehad Council, received $36,607 from Washington in 2009. A US diplomat said that the embassy had given money to the group to organise the rallies, but that it had since changed direction and leadership. He said it was a one-off grant, and wouldn't be repeated. He didn't give his name because he wasn't authorised to speak about the issue on the record. The grant was first reported by the Council of Foreign Relations on its website. The Ittehad council was formed in 2009 to counter extremism. It groups politicians and clerics from Pakistan's traditionalist Barelvi Muslim movement, often referred to as theological moderates in the Pakistani context. The American money was used to organise nationwide rallies against militants and suicide bombings, the embassy official said. The demonstrations received widespread media coverage, and were some of the first against extremism in the country. The rhetoric at the rallies was mostly focused on opposing militant attacks on shrines, which Barelvis frequent but are opposed by Deobandi Muslims, Pakistan's other main Muslim sect. In 2011 and also this month, however, the council led demonstrations in support of the killer of Salman Taseer, a governor who was killed a year ago for his criticism of anti-blasphemy laws. The displays have appalled Pakistani liberals and stoked international fears that the country is buckling under the weight of extremism. Taseer's assassin, Mumtaz Qadri, is a Barelvi. He claimed he acted to defend the honour of Prophet Mohammed. Reference: US aided Pakistan group which supported extremists January 11, 2012 https://www.dawn.com/news/687293

Meet Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad and his Sectarian Friends - 1 

Meet Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad and his Sectarian Friends - 2 

Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad is a Friend of Sectarian Terrorist Malik Ishaq

1. (S) Summary: A well-placed Deobandi religious leader told Principal Officer in a meeting on March 18 that extremist group Sipah-e-Sahaba (SSP) was increasing its activities in the central Punjab city of Faisalabad, the province's second largest, in collaboration with elements of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and a splinter group from the banned terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM). The cleric reported that SSP had recently launched a pamphlet campaign across the city in which it called for people to take steps to enforce Islamic law including: (1) cease business and social activities at the five daily calls to prayer, (2) remove all sources of ""vulgarity"" such as televisions, cd players, and radios from their homes, (3) seek dispute resolution through local imams rather than the courts, (4) take Friday rather than Sunday as the weekly holiday, and (4) strictly enforce purdah for female family members. The pamphlet states that it comes from SSP with support from the TTP and specifically praises ""the enforcement of Sharia in Swat"" and recommends it as a model for Faisalabad. Reference: 2009: Was Qaddafi funding Sipahe Sahaba? May 25, 2011 https://www.dawn.com/news/631599

Abrar-ul-Haq of PTI wants Pakistan to respect Khadim Hussain Rizvi

Abrar-ul-Haq of PTI wants Pakistan to respect Pir Afzal Qadri

Abrar-ul-Haq of PTI wants Pakistan to respect Pir Afzal Qadri. Yet Again.

Abrar-ul-Haq of PTI wants Pakistan to respect these Scholars like they respect our Mothers

Moral of the Story: In simpler terms, in Ahmad Raza’s endeavours, we see Islam entwined with the local cultural moorings evolving through the historical process. What Ahmad Raza failed to guard against was the exclusion and takfir. In his famous fatwa Husam al-Haramain ala Manhar al-Kufr wa’l Main (The Sword of the Haramain at the Throat of Kufr and Falsehood), which was written in 1902 but became public in 1906, Ahmed Raza denounced several individuals in the early twentieth-century India. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian was the first on Ahmad Raza’s lists of kafirs (infidels). He was followed by some eminent Ulema from Deoband denomination like Rashid Ahmad Gangohi, Muhammad Qasim Nanautawi, Ashraf Ali Thanvi and Khalil Ahmad Ambethwi whom he described as Wahabis. Among the twelver Shias and the organisation of the Ulema known as the Nadwat al-Ulama, he accused some specific people of kufr. This is the situation right now when two Barelvi factions are trading fatwas, calling each other kafir. One shudders to think about the prevalent situation invested with the possible likelihood of sub-sectarian violence among the Sunnis. Reference: Religious modernism and Barelvi creed by Tahir Kamran December 3, 2017 http://tns.thenews.com.pk/barelvi-creed/

Who Attacked Ahsan Iqbal?

Who Attacked Ahsan Iqbal

URL : https://youtu.be/2ljiAK7eadA

Courtesy : http://ibcurdu.com/  

Channel : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDczqqldMc-nZgOD_pGD4tQ 

Why quoting Sufis and Clerics to plead your case is dangerous in Pakistan?

Why quoting Sufis and Clerics to plead your case is dangerous in Pakistan?

Curious Case of Imran Khan, Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman & MKRF

Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan on Tuesday broke his silence on reports of his plans to marry again in a series of tweets, accusing former Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif of being behind the "vicious" campaign. Sharif denied the allegation and said he would not stoop so low. Pakistan’s political circles have been abuzz with speculation about the 65-year-old chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf marrying for a third time after an English daily reported on Saturday that he had married a woman who was his spiritual guide. The party issued a statement on Sunday that said Khan had only proposed marriage to Bushra Maneka, a divorcee and ‘pir’ (faith healer). Khan tweeted, "For 3 days I have been wondering have I looted a bank; or money laundered bns in nation's wealth; or ordered a model-town-like killing spree; or revealed state secrets to India? I have done none of these but discovered I have committed a bigger crime: wanting to get married." Reference: Imran Khan says Sharif behind ‘vicious’ campaign over his plans to marry again by Imtiaz Ahmad Jan 10, 2018 (Hindustan Times) Did Imran Khan secretly get married for 3rd time? Aides deny media report : Jan 06, 2018 (Hindustan Times)

In a series of tweets, the 65-year-old former cricket captain said that he was only concerned about “his children and the very conservative family of Bushra begum.” He alleged that the “vicious, gutter media campaign” was being led by NS [Nawaz Sharif] and MSR [Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman], adding that it did not bother him. Shakil-ur-Rahman is the founder of Geo Television Network. In another tweet, he told “NS & MSR” that their vicious campaign has only strengthened his resolve to fight them. (Hindustan Times Jan 09, 2018)

To start this good activity from home, Mir Khalil-ur-Rehman Foundation (MKRF) and Imran Khan took joint steps with the name of “Pukaar” to help the flood affectees. “Pukaar” is gathering on one platform the philanthropists and those who equally share grief of their countrymen. Telethon “Pukaar” will be presented on Geo TV with the collaboration of Imran Khan and Mir Khalil-ur-Rehman Foundation today (Sunday). The personalities who will be present in Telethon include Lollywood actress and director Reema Khan, renowned director Sayed Noor, model and actress Mahreen Raheel, actress and writer Bushra Ansari, Behroz Sabzwari, Javed Shaikh, singer Jawad Ahmed, SM Munir, Saba Pervez and Imran Khan. Noorul Hassan and Sahir Lodhi will host the telethon. Geo viewers could give donations for flood victims and talk to their favourite personalities in the telethon from 3pm to 8pm today (Sunday). A mega welfare initiative was launched by the Mir Khalil-ur-Rehman Foundation under the banner of “Pukaar” for the relief and rehabilitation of the 2005 earthquake victims. “Pukaar” is not only of the Mir Khalil-ur-Rehman Foundation and Imran Khan, but it is “Pukaar” (call) of time, religion and humanity. REFERENCES: MKRF, Imran Khan, other celebrities in Geo telethon (The News August 22, 2010) MKRF, Imran Khan raise £105k for flood victims (The News October 13, 2010) MKRF, Imran send 2,000 bags of seeds to AJK flood victims (The News October 25, 2010) Geo glimpses for Eid (The News September 11, 2010) Pakistani delegates attending the seminar are National Security Advisor Mahmud Ali Durrani, ex-high commissioners to India Shahid Malik, Aziz Ahmad Khan, journalists Najam Sethi, Cyril Almeida, Ejaz Haider, retired naval officer Hasan M Ansari and Tehreek-e-Insaf’s Shafqat Mahmood. Indian experts include ex-foreign secretary Shyam Saran, former high commissioner to Pakistan G Parthasarthy, ex-ambassador to the US Naresh Chandra, Vice Admiral (retd) B R Rao, journalist-academic Raja Mohan, academic Radha Kumar, Lt Gen (retd) B S Pawar and Srinath Raghavan of New Delhi’s Centre for Policy Research. Reference: Two-day Aman Ki Asha strategic seminar begins today (The News December 2, 2012)

 Imran Khan and Mir Khalil ur Rahman Foundation MKRF

Imran Khan and Jang Group of Newspapers including its TV Channel Geo often scratch each others back and both of them deserve each other. People have short memory and their attention span is even more short like for example take this Memogate which was actually invented by the same Jang Group of Newspapers and its head-honchos Shaheen Sehbai and Mohammad Malick and Imran Khan conveniently used that worthless Jang Group's Cock and Bull story in his Lahore Rally in 2011 and yet both the Jang Group and Imran Khan have the audacity to badmouth each other for mudslinging and interfering in each others private lives  which is actually a hobby of Jang Group and Imran Khan both! Not only that but the Jang Group has the history of sabotaging every political government since early 70s, their Urdu columnists are particularly religious bigots, hate-mongers, ethnic bigots, rumor mongers and they were vicious from 2008 to 2013 when they were playing footsie with the Twice PCOed Fraud Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry who with other Judges of the Supreme Court weakened Parliamentary System and interfered in executive branch of the state and became State itself and Imran Khan and his yahoo horde PTI were foot soldiers in Judiciary's War on the Parliament. 

Imran Khan, Mansoor Ijaz, Memogate, Husain Haqqani and Jang Group (Part 1)

Imran Khan blamed by Pakistan US envoy for links to army plot : Pakistan's embattled US ambassador has blamed legendary cricket captain-turned politician Imran Khan for linking him to an alleged plot to oust its powerful army and intelligence chiefs, according to a government source. Reference: (By Dean Nelson, South Asia Editor 21 Nov 2011 Telegraph) ------ Imran Khan while declaring any moving thing a traitor conveniently forgot what he unloaded against Pakistan Army and that too in front of US Congressional Delegation, "Quote" Noting that he was recently in Swat, he went on to accuse the Pakistan Army of extrajudicial killings, summary executions, and "sexual humiliation" of residents in some villages. Khan urged the USG to seek "alternative points of views" about what is happening in the tribal areas of Pakistan, and he recommended speaking with General Orakzai, former NWFP Govenor, for starters. Khan charged that the GOP is "blinded by dollars," and consequently lacks an accurate view of what is happening on the ground. He further claimed that the GOP "whips up the threat of the Taliban" in order to get more money from the U.S. He claimed last year's Swat operation, which he termed a "debacle," was one such exaggeration that was "stage managed" in order to gain U.S. funds; there was no imminent threat of militants marching on Islamabad, he said. Reference : CODEL LYNCH'S MEETING WITH PAKISTAN TEHREEK-E-INSAF (PTI) PARTY LEADER IMRAN KHAN Date:2010 February 6, 11:26 (Saturday) "Unquote"

WASHINGTON, Nov 3: A senior US official responsible for counter-terrorism on Tuesday directly accused Pakistan of supporting training of militant groups in Afghanistan as well as providing "material support" to some of the Kashmiri militants. "There are numerous Kashmiri separatist groups and sectarian groups involved in terrorism which use Pakistan as a base...We have repeatedly asked Islamabad to end support of terrorist training in Afghanistan," Michael Sheehan, State Department's coordinator for counter-terrorism, told a Senate Foreign Relations sub-committee. The sub-committee hearing was called and presided over by Senator Sam Brownback and the list of experts who testified included a former CIA officer in Pakistan Milt Bearden, president of Stimson Centre Michael Krepon, John Hopkins University Central Asia Institute chairman Dr Fredrick Starr and a Pakistani- American businessman and columnist Mansoor Ijaz. Mr Sheehan recently visited India to coordinate US-Indian responses to terrorist threats but when asked whether he would also visit Pakistan soon, he said: "Hopefully." "Pakistan has frequently acknowledged what it calls moral and diplomatic support for militants in Kashmir who employ violence and terrorism against Indian interests. We have continuing reports of Pakistani material support for some of these militants," Mr Sheehan said. He named several Pakistan-based militant Islamic groups including Lashkar Taiba, Harkatul Jehad Islami and Hizbul Mujahideen, which, he said, "operate freely in Pakistan and support terrorist attacks in Kashmir." Asked by Indian and Pakistani journalists after his hearing whether he found any change in the policy after the overthrow of the Nawaz government, Mr Sheehan said: "We are still waiting for their responses and it is too early to judge whether there is any change." When a correspondent pointed out whether it was "business as usual" with the military government, he crisply said "no" but added: "We hope to work with them on all these issues." REFERENCE: US says Pakistan raining militants Shaheen Sehbai DAWN WIRE SERVICE Week Ending : 06 November 1999 Issue : 05/45 https://asianstudies.github.io/area-studies/SouthAsia/SAserials/Dawn/1999/06nov99.html#ussa

 Imran Khan, Mansoor Ijaz, Memogate, Husain Haqqani and Jang Group (Part 2)

Shahbaz promises Mansoor Ijaz full security in Lahore (The News January 27, 2012) Nawaz seeks fixation of memo case hearing after 20th (April 15, 2012 The News) Mansoor Ijaz says he will also expose ISI (The News January 29, 2012) Nawaz moves SC to place Haqqani on ECL (November 25, 2011 The News) A section of press reported last year that Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had been forcing the Mehran Bank authorities in the past to register a case against Hamid Asghar Kidwai for stealing documents regarding political bribes from 1990 to 1994. Despite playing at the heart of the Mehrangate, Kidwai got lucrative position during Musharraf’s regime when he remained High Commissioner and Permanent Representative of Pakistan at the United Nations Environment Programme in 2003-2004. Even after the restoration of democracy in 2008, Kidwai enjoyed the status of Roving Ambassador until Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani sacked him with two others from the same position on February 11, 2009. The Mehran Bank scandal also known as Mehrangate was a major political scandal in the history of Pakistan between 1990-1994 in which senior politicians and political parties were found to have been bribed by the Pakistan Army and intelligence officers, from ISI, to prevent the re-election and to destabilise the government of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). Initiated by the then army chief Mirza Aslam Beg with the alleged support of President Ghulam Ishaq Khan, payments of up to Rs140 million were made by the then Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director-General Lieutenant-General Asad Durrani and Corps of Engineers Engineer-in-Chief Lieutenant-General Javed Nasir via the owner of Mehran Bank Yunus Habib. Intelligence funds were deposited in Mehran Bank in 1992 propping up what was an insolvent bank as a favour for its owner’s help in loaning money to the Inter-Services Intelligence in 1990 that was used in the creation of the right wing alliance Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI) and bankrolling the campaigns of many opponents of the PPP. The scandal subsequently broke after the new ISI Director-General Lieutenant-General Javed Ashraf Qazi decided to transfer the intelligence fund back to state-owned banks as per official rules. Reference: Mansoor Ijaz gets Kidwai’s surety to visit Pakistan (The News January 19, 2012) Timeline: From NRO to Memogate (Dawn January 16, 2012)

 PTI Leader Dr Babar Awan on Imran Khan, Sita White Affair and Illegitimate Love Child Tyrian

A U-S court has ruled that cricket star Imran Khan is the father of a five year child. The ruling came from a Los Angeles court after ex-girlfriend Sita White filed a lawsuit claiming Khan's paternity over her daughter Tyrian-Jade.White says Khan should apologise to the Pakistani people for misleading them during his election campaign that he had no children before he married Jemima Goldsmith. A Los Angeles court on Wednesday said Imran Khan wasn't playing cricket and added it was time he owned up to being the father of Tyrian-Jade White. The former Pakistani cricket star has denied fathering the five-year-old American girl with British heiress Sita White who now lives in L-A. But the court went with the daughter of Lord "Gordy" White - and gave Khan the official stamp of father. The ruling came after Khan failed to respond to a paternity suit and a request to take a bloodtest. Reference: A U-S court has ruled that cricket star Imran Khan is the father of a five year child. (Associated Press Archive Date: 08/13/1997)  It is official now: Babar Awan has quietly conceded before the Election Commission through the latest nomination papers for the Senate slot that he is neither a PhD doctor nor had acquired any education from Saudi Arabia, contrary to his past declarations in 2006. Not only he mentioned holding a doctorate degree earned from the fraudulent Monticello University of United States, in previous papers for Senate seat, he continued using the title ‘Dr’ with his name. Even his twitter identity is @DrBabarAwan, not amended to-date. But in latest nomination papers, he is Zaheerud Din Babar only, without the prefix ‘Dr’. 

His radical break from the past practice has gone unnoticed even by the PML-N, the main rival party that has not challenged this contradiction in his previous and present nomination papers. The Supreme Court that has directed him to produce educational credentials after suspending his legal practice license seems to have forced him to submit a statement of facts in the nomination paper. As for Babar’s case is concerned, he declared under oath in the 2006 nomination papers, a long list of his qualifications. Babar then disclosed that he did his Matric in Science in 1971 from Board of Sargodha; Intermediate in Humanities from Board of Sargodha in 1973; BA in Arts from the University of Punjab in 1975; Masters in Economics from the University of Punjab in 1978; DAL in Arabic Islamic Law from King Saud University, KSA in 1982; LLB from University of Karachi in 1986; and PhD in Criminal Law from the “Monty Cello University USA” in 1998 session. He also wrote his full name as “Dr. Zaheerud Din Babar Awan.”Awan, interestingly misspelled the fake Monticello university in his nomination papers as “Monty Cello” from where he affirmed to have done his doctorate degree. He claimed to have done his PhD in Criminal Law from “Monty Cello University USA” in 1998. Notwithstanding his declaration of PhD degree in 2006 paper, a photocopy was not submitted unlike other educational certificates annexed with the documents. His DAL from King Saud University was not shown either. Reference Babar Awan finally concedes he is no doctor from any university (The News February 18, 2012) PhD matters: Fake it if you can’t make it (The News by Umar Cheema March 1, 2016)

Confusion ensues when you mix religious rhetoric with politics & this is the case with Pakistani politicians since Jinnah to the present lot and Imran Khan is no exception , he tries to ride many boats at the same time e.g. he claims to be real heir of Jinnah and Iqbal, Sufi, Mullah, Secular, Liberal, Democrat, Patriot, Leftist, Progressive etc.etc and all this ends up in confusion. Yesterday, he participated in Finality of Prophet-hood Conference in Golra Punjab to strengthen his vote religious bank particularly the Barelvi votes in Punjab but browse his last 10 years interviews which he gave to the international media on Religious Extremism, Misuse of Blasphemy Law, Murder of Salmaan Taseer, Basic Human Rights for the Marginalized Communities in Pakistan, Religious Persecution in Pakistan, Terrorism and Taliban , and his every interview create more confusion and problem then solving the existing one (evident in the 3 video clips below). If Imran Khan wasn't enough, we also have the worst kind of time serves and opportunists i.e. Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) whose center of attention is Punjab and Punjab alone and they are least bothered that their footsie with Mullahs will not only ruin Punjab but shake the very foundations of Pakistan because core of Religious Extremists is based in Punjab and so far no long term action is taken against them.       

Imran Khan, Taliban and PML-N (Part 1)

SSP leader who fixed bounty on Taseer given PML-N ticket (The News May 7, 2013) LeJ terror suspect contesting on PML-N ticket (The News May 6, 2013) 55 charged terrorists allowed to contest polls (The News April 24, 2013) CM Shahbaz wants Taliban to spare Punjab (The News March 15, 2010) Leading Faisalabad-based Deobandi scholar and IVLP alumnus Maulana XXXXXXXXXXXX called on the Principal Officer on March 18 to discuss his concerns regarding what he termed as ""growing extremist activity"" in Punjab's second-largest city Faisalabad. XXXXXXXXXXXX claimed that in the last month he has observed a dramatic increase in propaganda activities from Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP). He believed that this increase coincided with a number of visits to Faisalabad from activists both of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and a splinter group from the southern Punjab-based Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM). XXXXXXXXXXXX believed that the activists were involved in recruiting for TTP militant operations in the FATA and NWFP through madrassas in southern Punjab and hoped to replicate that success in Faisalabad. XXXXXXXXXXXX noted that SSP leaders had long-standing ties with JeM, as both were Deobandi organizations that had collaborated in the past in anti-Shia and anti-India activities. XXXXXXXXXXXX shared with Principal Officer an Urdu-language sticker that he claimed he had confiscated from several of his madrassa students in Faisalabad. The sticker, which he stated was also being printed and distributed as a pamphlet, praised the implementation of Sharia law in Swat and exhorted Muslims to pursue the same sort of Sharia law in Faisalabad. It then recounted five steps that every Faisalabad based Muslim should take to begin the process of implementation in the district. The steps were: : (1) cease business and social activities at the five daily calls to prayer, (2) remove all sources of ""vulgarity"" such as televisions, cd players, and radios from their homes, (3) seek dispute resolution through local imams rather than the courts, (4) take Friday rather than Sunday as the weekly holiday, and (4) strictly enforce purdah for female family members. Maulana XXXXXXXXXXXX shared that he had received reliable information that SSP leader Maulana Ludhianvi was on a fundraising trip to Tripoli sponsored by the Libyan government. XXXXXXXXXXXX claimed that Ludhianvi had made contact with Libyan officials in the guise of working against Iran and Shia agents in Pakistan. (Note: SSP was originally founded as a violent anti-Shia organization and has, in the past, received extensive foreign funding from a variety of Sunni states, including Saudi Arabia. End Note). According to XXXXXXXXXXXX, Ludhianvi was scheduled to return to Pakistan in ""a few days"" and was bringing with him a ""donation"" from the Libyan government valued at nearly 25 million Pakistani rupees (approximately $312,000) that XXXXXXXXXXXX was certain would be used to increase further SSP activities. Reference: 2009: Was Qaddafi funding Sipahe Sahaba? (Dawn May 25, 2011) Shahbaz and Nisar secretly meet Kayani (Dawn October 03, 2009)

 Imran Khan, Taliban and PML-N (Part 2)

Imran defends KP govt's Rs300m grant for Darul Uloom Haqqania (Dawn June 22, 2016) Sami says alliance with PTI will block victory of ‘secular forces’ (Dawn December 07, 2017) PTI, JUI-S agree to prepare ‘joint strategy’ for elections (Dawn November 20, 2017) Mullah Omar is an angel-like human: Samiul Haq (Reuters Published: September 15, 2013) TTP does not want to enforce Shariah at gunpoint, says Imran (Dawn March 27, 2014) Imran Khan says Pakistan was 'humiliated' over Osama bin Laden, and his killing was 'cold-blooded murder' Imran Khan, the former Pakistan cricket captain, says Osama bin Laden's death was "cold-blooded murder" and argues that the West should pull its forces out of the region. (Telegraph by Peter Oborne in Islamabad 08 May 2011) Pak army rented out to US for $1.5 bn: Imran Khan (Indian Express Islamabad | Published: July 7, 2009)

 Imran Khan, Taliban and PML-N (Part 3)

Chaudhry Nisar admits his wife, children are US citizens (Dawn September 13, 2011) Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan assured the US in 2008 that he and his party were pro-American. According to a US embassy cable released by WikiLeaks, “Saying that his wife and children in fact are American, Nisar did admit that he went to the US Embassy in London to renew his daughter’s passport because he wanted to avoid being seen at the US Embassy in Islamabad.” More telling, however, is Khan’s stance on US military action within Pakistan, and how the PML-N would act to remain “publicly credible”. Khan reportedly avoided saying that the PML-N opposed either air attacks or US ground action, contrary to its reaction over the May 2011 raid in Abbottabad by a US Navy SEALs team which killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. Reference: WikiLeaks: Chaudhry Nisar did not want to be seen at the US embassy in Islamabad (By Saba Imtiaz Published: September 11, 2011 Express Tribune) Calling the drone strike that killed Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud on Friday “an attack on regional peace by America,” Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan Saturday said bilateral ties with the US will now be reviewed. Speaking to a press conference after concluding a high level meeting at the interior ministry, he vowed to raise the matter at international forums including the United Nations. The minister said that five permanent members of the UN Security Council will also be contacted on the issue. Reference: Pakistan to review US ties after ‘attack on peace,’ says Nisar (Dawn November 02, 2013) SC dismisses request to omit observations against Chaudhry Nisar from Quetta carnage report (Dawn Haseeb Bhatti January 16, 2018) Federal Minister for Interior Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan Friday expressed ‘deep grief’ and concern over the execution of imprisoned political and religious leader Abdul Quader Molla of Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) in Bangladesh. In a statement, he said executing Molla after a delay of 42 years to the events of 1971 was very unfortunate and tragic and some circles are declaring it a judicial murder. Molla became the first person to be hanged for his role in the country's bloody 1971 war of independence when he was sent to the gallows at a prison in the capital Dhaka late Thursday. REFERENCE: Jamaat leader’s hanging in Bangladesh ‘saddens’ Nisar (Dawn December 13, 2013)

Of Cold War, Domestic Espionage, & Wiretapping

Civil society, politicians often raise hue and cry over the political work and operation by Intelligence agencies and to some extent their apprehensions are right on the mark but saying this that in “Civilized World” there are some Laws and Regulations for these operations particularly in connection with Telephone Tapping and Bugging, is far from reality . I wouldn't condone or support any political duties or charter for Intelligence Agencies unless Human Life is in danger, Threat to the Integrity of the Country or  to Sensitive Installations, such political duties must totally be the charter of Provincial Special Branches of Police. Political Duties or Operation affect the morals of Intelligence operatives and affect their operational capabilities in their genuine area of operation and i.e. Counter Intelligence or Operations within their country to counter the operations launched by hostile forces , what is being done in Pakistan that almost every Intelligence Agency and Police too are detailed on Political Duties thereby causing huge financial losses to national exchequer and criminal neglect to their actual duties which is ultimately to restore Order in the state.

Telephone Tapping and Bugging - 1 (Apna Apna Gareban 30/3/15)



Telephone Tapping and Bugging - 1 (Apna Apna... by SalimJanMazari

 Telephone Tapping and Bugging - 2 (Apna Apna Gareban 31/3/15)

 

Telephone Tapping and Bugging - 2 (Apna Apna... by SalimJanMazari

Since the days of General Ziaul Haq the use of Spy Agencies in Political Duties to make or break political parties and manipulate politics of the country has only harmed the country in a worse possible way and I will hold General (R) Mirza Aslam Beg, General ® Hamid Gul, General ® Asad Durrani, General ® Mahmud, Major ® Aamir , Brigadier ® Imtiaz , General ® Javed Nasir etc responsible for playing with the fate and destiny of this country and bringing country to the threshold of dismemberment . These Numskulls I mentioned earlier have no shame to admit on record that they have been in connection with US Central Intelligence in one way or another and in some cases with Mossad as well and then these very gentleman brag that they actually countered the Western Spy apparatus from harming Pakistan as if we are all some fools and cannot read what harm these gentleman have done to the federation by manipulating Pakistani politics via creating Ethnic and Sectarian goons in every province to counter those political parties who represent Federation, does Mehran Bank Scandal ring any bell?

To keep the record straight, the Civil Society, Journalists & Politicians need lots of reading about domestic espionage in the alleged Civilized World e.g read Patriot Act, Church Committee Report, Cointel Pro of FBI and particularly after Wikileaks and latest Edward Snowden leaks and list goes on and on. Why these politicians conveniently forget what they do with their political rivals in Pakistan via these Intelligence Agencies which they later condemn. Journalists should also accept the blame that these very journalists who complain about Intelligence agencies are often found promoting some of the very unsavory characters the names I mentioned above as “Guarding Angel or Knight in shining armour” .

References:

1 - Hamid Gul accepts responsibility for creating IJI http://www.dawn.com/news/760219/hamid-gul-accepts-responsibilty-for-creating-igi OCT 30, 2012

2 - MQM was established to counter Sindhi nationalists: Beg http://archives.dailytimes.com.pk/national/05-Sep-2009/mqm-was-established-to-counter-sindhi-nationalists-beg 05 September 2009

3 - Only bean-spilling spooks can tell why http://www.dawn.com/news/850868/only-bean-spilling-spooks-can-tell-why SEP 01, 2009 by Zaffar Abbas

4 - 13 spymasters gather to stare at each other http://www.dawn.com/news/858125/13-spymasters-gather-to-stare-at-each-other OCT 09, 2009 by Azaz Syed

5 -  "Intelligence agencies are well-equipped to tackle subversive politics" By Aoun Sahi http://jang.com.pk/thenews/aug2009-weekly/nos-02-08-2009/dia.htm#5

6 -  Victimized for loyalty By Hafizur Rahman DAWN - Opinion; April 10, 2002 http://www.dawn.com/news/1062948/dawn-opinion-april-10-2002

7 -  Reforming the Intelligence Agencies in Pakistan’s Transitional Democracy Frédéric Grare http://carnegieendowment.org/files/pakistan_intelligence_transitional_democracy.pdf

8 - MQM in broad accord with Gul From Ather Ali DAWN WIRE SERVICE 20 July, 1995 https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/spa/zohkohb0i282t94/Area%20Studies/public/SouthAsia/SAserials/Dawn/1995/20Jly95.html#mqmi

9 -  Asghar Khan case verdict: An interesting peek into minds of then military bosses http://www.dawn.com/news/762661/sc-verdict-in-the-asghar-khan-case-an-interesting-peek-into-minds-of-then-military-bosses NOV 09, 2012

10 - Brig Imtiaz's arrest demanded for communist leader's murder http://archives.dailytimes.com.pk/national/31-Aug-2009/brig-imtiaz-s-arrest-demanded-for-communist-leader-s-murder by Amar Guriro - 31 August 2009

11 - Sectarianism the Players & the Game by Azmat Abbas http://www.scribd.com/doc/184839525/Sectarianism-the-Players-the-Game-by-Azmat-Abbas 

12 - Amnesty International Report on Shia Genocide in Pakistan 2002 http://www.scribd.com/doc/178645945/Amnesty-International-Report-on-Shia-Genocide-in-Pakistan-2002

13 - Asghar Khan Case Detailed Judgement (Mehran Bank Scandal) http://www.scribd.com/doc/112690424/Asghar-Khan-Case-Detailed-Judgement-Mehran-Bank-Scandal 

14 - Human Rights Crisis in Karachi (1996 Amnesty International) http://www.scribd.com/doc/258709822/Human-Rights-Crisis-in-Karachi-1996-Amnesty-International

15 - Operation Cleanup Against MQM 1992 - 1 http://www.scribd.com/doc/259781709/Operation-Cleanup-Against-MQM-1992-1

16 -  Operation Cleanup Against MQM 1992 - 2 http://www.scribd.com/doc/259781642/Operation-Cleanup-Against-MQM-1992-2

17 - Operation Cleanup Against MQM 1992 - 3 http://www.scribd.com/doc/259781510/Operation-Cleanup-Against-MQM-1992-3

18 - Operation Cleanup Against MQM 1992 - 4 http://www.scribd.com/doc/259781573/Operation-Cleanup-Against-MQM-1992-4

19 - Operation Cleanup Against MQM 1992 - 5 http://www.scribd.com/doc/259798975/Operation-Cleanup-Against-MQM-1992-5

20 - Afaq says he, Altaf got money from Younus http://www.dawn.com/news/704058/afaq-says-he-altaf-got-money-from-younus MAR 19, 2012

21 - Aslam Beg likes to remind visitors that he was one of a group of army officers trained by the C.I.A. in the 1950’s as a “stay-behind organization” that would melt into the population if ever the Soviet Union overran Pakistan. Those brigadiers and lieutenant colonels then trained and directed the Afghan jihadis. In the Land of the Taliban By ELIZABETH RUBIN Published: October 22, 2006 http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/22/magazine/22afghanistan.html?pagewanted=all

22 - CIA trained Pak army officers for Soviet invasion: Gen Beg http://archives.dailytimes.com.pk/national/23-Oct-2006/cia-trained-pak-army-officers-for-soviet-invasion-gen-beg October 23, 2006 by Khalid Hasan

23 - Pakistan got Israeli weapons during Afghan war http://archives.dailytimes.com.pk/main/20-Jul-2003/pakistan-got-israeli-weapons-during-afghan-war July 20, 2003

24 - Charlie Wilson’s war by Masood Haider DAWN - Features; July 23, 2003 http://www.dawn.com/news/1064817

25 -  Church Committee Reports http://www.aarclibrary.org/publib/church/reports/contents.htm

26 - US agency spied on Muhammad Ali, Martin Luther King http://www.dawn.com/news/1045922/us-agency-spied-on-muhammad-ali-martin-luther-king SEP 28, 2013 ED PILKINGTON

27 - COINTELPRO is an acronym for the FBI’s Counter Intelligence Program, which was used in the 1960s to monitor, manipulate and disrupt social and political movements in the United States. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the Black Panthers, anti-Vietnam War activists, and the American Indian Movement were among the program’s targets. Democracy Now! has extensively covered COINTELPRO and its aftermath, as well as similar tactics still used against today’s generation of political activists. COINTELPRO http://www.democracynow.org/topics/cointelpro

28 - Mufti Shamzai — a profile http://archives.dailytimes.com.pk/national/31-May-2004/mufti-shamzai-a-profile 31 May 2004 

29 - Ex-CIA chiefconfirms Pakistan was bullied http://www.dawn.com/news/244946/ex-cia-chiefconfirms-pakistan-was-bullied ANWAR IQBAL MAY 01, 2007

30 - Zulfikar commission suggested law to legalise IB working http://www.dawn.com/news/707007/zulfikar-commission-suggested-law-to-legalise-ib-working MAR 31, 2012

31 - It`s never a quick fix at the CIA http://www.dawn.com/news/488045/itaes-never-a-quick-fix-at-the-cia SEP 02, 2009

32 - How a jilted Karachi woman saved Pak N-programme by Rauf Klasra Thursday, May 28, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=22396&Cat=13&dt=5/29/2009

33 - Brig Imtiaz reveals CIA plots by Ansar Abbasi Tuesday, September 01, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=24241&Cat=13&dt=9/1/2009 

34 - Demand to reopen Abbasi murder case AUG 10, 2009 http://www.dawn.com/news/949184/demand-to-reopen-abbasi-murder-case 

35 - The politics of Brigadier ‘Billa’ BY Tahir Hasan Khan Monday, August 31, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=195836&Cat=4&dt=8/31/2009

Hate Speech in Pakistan and Misplaced Priorities in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Facebook has blocked the popular page of a liberal Pakistani rock band and others that criticise the Taliban, allegedly at the request of the government. Rock band “Laal” was formed in 2007 and their Facebook page has more than 400,000 likes, with users frequently joining debates on issues ranging from feminism to the role of the army in politics. But it has been inaccessible to users from inside Pakistan since Wednesday. Other pages like “Pakistani.meem” which describes itself as pro-democracy and secularism and “Taalibansarezalimans” have similarly been blocked in recent days. “Facebook didn’t even inform us. I realised when I noticed no activity on our page,” Taimur Rahman, Laal’s lead guitarist, said. Facebook confirmed the move on Friday, saying Laal’s page had been blocked inside Pakistan at Islamabad’s request, under an agreement to limit access to “material that violates local laws”. A Facebook spokeswoman said: “While we never remove this type of content from the site entirely, like most internet services, we may restrict people from accessing it in the countries where it is determined to be illegal. “Before we restrict the content, we take significant steps to investigate each unique claim, consult with local counsel and other experts in the country, and will only remove content in the most limited way possible,” she added. According to a page on Facebook that deals with government requests, 162 pieces of content were restricted for viewership inside Pakistan between July and December 2013. “We restricted access in Pakistan to a number of pieces of content primarily reported by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority and the Ministry of Information Technology under local laws prohibiting blasphemy and criticism of the state,” the page says. Pakistan blocked YouTube in 2012 following the release of a film that was critical of Islam. Websites for Baloch separatist movements are also banned. Shahzad Ahmad, director of the Bytes For All organisation that campaigns for free speech, said: “The is a mass murder of free speech in Pakistan.” Yasser Latif Hamdani, a lawyer, added: “This is a grave mistake by Facebook. Also for the Pakistani government to make such requests is illegal and unconstitutional.” Pakistan’s agreement with Facebook came to light last year when a senior official from the PTA was summoned by the Lahore High Court in a case concerning the YouTube ban, but its terms have not been made public. Reference: Rock band’s Facebook page blocked at govt request By AFP https://www.dawn.com/news/1111163/rock-bands-facebook-page-blocked-at-govt-request

Banning Dr. Taimur Rahman and Others in Pakistan (Awaam - 7th June 2014)

 

Banning Dr. Taimur Rahman & Others in Pakistan... by SalimJanMazari

 LAHORE: Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid said here on Sunday that the ban on YouTube would be lifted soon because a software had been developed for blocking content that hurt people’s sentiments. The video sharing website was blocked in September 2012 after its administration and Google Incorporation refused to comply with a request by Pakistan and some other Muslim countries to remove a blasphemous video from the site. About the demand for checking broadcast of foreign content by some private TV channels, Mr Rashid asked civil society, owners of media houses and professionals to come up with proposals for resolving the issue because any step taken by the government could be construed as an attempt to gag the media. He said that he feared that discretionary powers could open the door to misuse of authority by officials. REFERENCE: YouTube ban to be lifted soon By The Newspaper's Staff Reporter Published Mar 17, 2014 http://www.dawn.com/news/1093717

Ansar Abbasi and  GEO TV on Swat Girl Flogging

 
Ansar Abbasi & GEO TV & Swat Girl Flogging by SalimJanMazari

Recently the Media Regulatory Authority in Pakistan PEMRA has slapped a ban on GEO TV and subsequently the GEO TV sued Ministry of Defence and ISI http://www.dawn.com/news/1110985/geo-news-sues-isi-for-defamation , Only in Pakistan that Journalists and Media Houses Obstruct Access to Information and not only that they hurl command as to what should Pakistanis read, watch and listen and the same Media Group raise hue and cry when they are at receiving end . 2012 On Saturday, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority directed local Internet service providers to make YouTube accessible. But by the afternoon, Geo, a private television news network that wields immense influence, reported that anti-Islam and blasphemous material was still available on YouTube. The criticism was led by Ansar Abbasi, a right-leaning journalist who often speaks out on morality and religion. Yielding to the criticism, Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf then ordered providers to again block access to the video-sharing site. The flip-flop drew an immediate rebuke from users and led to a flurry of jokes on Twitter about the government’s dithering and backtracking. “YouTube is a huge convenience for users, who benefit from it for educational as well as entertainment purposes,” Zubair Kasuri, the editor of Flare, a Karachi-based telecommunications magazine, said in a telephone interview. Mr. Kasuri expressed surprise over the government’s failure to install an effective firewall mechanism despite having months to do so. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/30/world/asia/youtube-ban-lifted-in-pakistan-for-3-minutes.html?_r=0

Quite an Irony that Pakistan Telecommunication Authority doesn't object on several venom spitting sectarian websites in Pakistan but suggest rather arbitrary ban Harmless Laal , Taimur Rahman and many other and even more amazing that Fedral IT Minister Ms Anusha Rahman suggestion that Council Of Islamic Ideology must be consulted on You Tube Ban whereas the same Council also encourages Child Marriage and if we accept Anusha's argument then we must also follow CII on Child Marriage in letter and spirit http://www.dawn.com/news/1107849

Taliban Journalists of Pakistan

 
Taliban Journalists of Pakistan by SalimJanMazari

Several activists questioned why Facebook had not blocked other Pakistani pages that incite sectarian violence, religious extremism or hatred against minorities. As examples, they pointed to pages administrated by supporters of Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat, a notorious sectarian groups that has supported attacks on Shiites; the sectarian militant group Lashkar e Jhangvi;and the Red Mosque, where a violent stand-off between extremists and government forces in 2007 left over 100 people dead, and where a recently opened library is named for Osama bin Laden. “These pro-Taliban pages are spewing hatred, and we are the people they shut down,” said Mr. Taimur Rahman , the singer. “It’s insanity.” REFERENCE: Facebook Under Fire for Temporarily Blocking Pages in Pakistan By DECLAN WALSH and SALMAN MASOODJUNE 6, 2014 http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/07/world/asia/pakistan-facebook-blocked-users-from-political-pages-and-outspoken-rock-band-laal-against-taliban-.html

How Dr Aamir Liaquat Hussain AND GEO TV Incited Masses (BBC Urdu)



How Dr Aamir Liaquat Hussain & GEO TV Incited... by SalimJanMazari

Pakistan Hate Speech Report 2014 by Bytes For All http://www.scribd.com/doc/228566361/Pakistan-Hate-Speech-Report-2014-by-Bytes-For-All Bytes for All : URL : “Hate speech: A study of Pakistan’s cyberspace http://content.bytesforall.pk/sites/default/files/Pakistan_Hate_Speech_Report_2014.pdf

Pakistan Hate Speech Report 2014 by Bytes For All by Aamir Mughal

Jang Group and GEO TV Murdered Salman Taseer (Abbas Athar BBC)

 
Jang Group & GEO TV Murdered Salman Taseer... by SalimJanMazari

 ’یہ قاتل میڈیا ہے‘ آخری وقت اشاعت: پير 10 جنوری 2011
http://www.bbc.co.uk/urdu/multimedia/2011/01/110110_abbas_athar_media_taseer_uk.shtml?bw=bb&mp=wm&news=1&ms3=22&ms_javascript=true&bbcws=2

Karachi, June 07, 2014: The uncontrolled spread of hate speech on the Internet and social media is reaching dangerous levels, threatening society on many levels. The first detailed research into online hate speech in the Pakistan context – “Hate speech: A study of Pakistan’s cyberspace” – was launched today at Avari Towers, in Karachi. Jahanzaib Haque, Editor, Dawn.com and author of the 63-page study presented the principle findings and recommendations, which consisted of two independent phases of research - an online survey on hate speech responded to by 559 Pakistani Internet users, as well as a detailed content analysis of published material and comments – both textual and iconographic – on high impact, high reach Facebook pages and Twitter accounts frequented by local audiences. [Key findings can be found on page 2 below]. Haque says “The need for such a study was paramount, given the real world impact online hate speech is having in Pakistan, whether that be the well-organized anti-Malala campaign online, how social media fueled sectarian divides during the Rawalpindi riots, the arrest of a professor on grounds of alleged blasphemy for posts run on Facebook, and even the most recent online campaign of hate against media persons. Clearly the issue needs to be addressed, but without regressive action such as state-led censorship and bans.” The event was attended by parliamentarians, leading media practitioners, journalists, human rights activists, civil society, researchers and major stakeholders in the online space. A panel discussion on the issue included Ch. Muhammad Sarfaraz, Deputy Director FIA, Cyber Crime Circle Lahore, Senator Saeed Ghani, Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarian (PPP-P), Faisal Sherjan, Director Strategy and Planning at Jang Group, Barrister Salahuddin Ahmed, President, Karachi Bar Association, and Gul Bukhari, B4A Gender Programme Manager. “We at Bytes for All hold Freedom of Expression very dear as an inviolable fundamental human right, but often see it being fettered in false paradigms of morality, security, national interest or even hate speech,” says Shahzad Ahmad, Country Director, Bytes for All Pakistan. “For the reason that speech is regularly gagged in Pakistan under these guises, and the fact that hate speech is the only real threat to Freedom of Expression, we felt it important to study online hate speech in Pakistan, to define it using the best standards, and obtain some idea of its incidence in the country. This is important to ensure hate speech becomes clearly defined, and not confused with national security, religious sentiment, morality or decency.” Ahmad further adds that, “We are proud to say this study is the first of its kind in Pakistan, and will form the basis for many more such studies to take this important work further. Much work in the coming years has to be done in this area to ensure that this threat does not impinge upon the freedoms we hold so dear.” REFERENCE: Press Release: Bytes For All launches Hate Speech: A study of Pakistan’s cyberspace posted by Admin on Sat, 06/07/2014 - 14:19 http://content.bytesforall.pk/node/134