Showing posts with label Jang Group of Newspapers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jang Group of Newspapers. Show all posts

Thursday, February 15, 2018

Funeral of Asma Jahangir and Death of Mashal Khan


Ansar Abbasi, Ahmad Noorani , Jang Group, Jamaat-e-Islami and MQM Spewed venom against Late Ms Asma Jahangir & How did she reciprocate ? (Watch Zara Hat Kay Dawn Dated 12 Feb 2018) Shahzeb Khanzada, the upstart News anchor of GEO paid rich tribute to Asma Jahangir while conveniently forgetting the Filthy, Venomous, Life Threatening campaign launched against Late. Ms Asma Jahangir by the Jang Group, The News, Ahmad Noorani (Asma’s tirade against Army - Viewpoint BY Ahmad Noorani Saturday, May 28, 2011 The News) and Ansar Abbasi (Excuse me, madam From whom we seek justice BY Ansar Abbasi Tuesday, November 09, 2010 The News , Daily Jang Wednesday, January 12, 2011, Safar 07, 1432 A.H, Jang Group & Ansar Abbasi Justify Salmaan Taseer Murder Friday, January 07, 2011, Safar 02, 1432 A.H ) ! If that was not enough then the same Jang Group promoted fascists like Zaid Hamid and Ahmed Quraishi from their platforms GEO, Aag TV rather Ahmed Quraishi was a regular Columnist for The News. Don't complain that Mullahs are spewing venom against Asma Jahangir because Mullahs and their Narrative were harboured by snakes like Hamid Mir (We need a ‘made-in-Pakistan’ solution for fighting terrorism - Liberal extremism vs religious extremism — both are wrong BY Hamid Mir Tuesday, January 11, 2011 The News, Hamid Mir on Asia Bibi & Blasphemy Law & Salmaan Taseer Thursday, November 25, 2010 in Jang Group, The News and GEO TV as well Thursday, October 13, 2011, Ziqad 14, 1432 A.H., Liberal fascism? Hamid Mir Tuesday, November 03, 2009 & Hamid Mir Daily Jang Thursday, January 20, 2011 Daily Jang & Thursday November 01 2012 Daily Jang) Absar Alam, yes who can forget Absar Alam's Fascistic Rhetoric against Democracy, Secularism and Progressive Parliamentary Pakistan between 2008 to 2013 when Asma Jahangir was fiercely opposing the Judicial Dictatorship of the then Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaundhry.


There is no limit to the shamelessness of Jang Group, GEO TV, The News International because now they are discussing False Allegation of Traitor after declaring Apostate and Traitor every moving thing around the globe who differ with them . Jang Group woke up when the same lunatic Zaid Hamid filed a petition against several leading Human Rights activists & Journalists in Pakistan and some of them are associated with the Jang Group but what an irony Zaid Hamid who filed this Treason petition *(Reference : SC to hear treason case against journalists The News May 7, 2014) was the same Lunatic who was discovering Allama Iqbal's Pakistan from the platform of the Jang Group with Lunatics like Imran Khan, Ali Azmat and Ahmed Quraishi (The News Discover the Iqbal’s Pakistan on AAG Friday, September 18, 2009). TV Channels in Pakistan without any fear of accountability, checks and balance hurl worse kinds of insults, allegations, religious edicts for paving the way for anybody's murder in the name of Blasphemy, invite leaders of banned sectarian outfits, 24/7 TV tickers loaded with Ethnic, Sectarian, Religious, Ideological bias in a worse possible way and at worse possible occasion to score some cheap points. And Jang Group was the first TV Channel in Pakistan who set the notorious and dangerous trend of inciting masses to commit murder of those who belong to the most marginalized community "Ahmadis" in Pakistan (no matter what anyone say or rant, Ahmadis are still Pakistanis and they have every right on this country and if anyone disagree then he/she must drag Muhammad Ali Jinnah for appointing Chaudhry Sir Muhammad Zafarullah Khan as Pakistan's 1st Foreign Minister) and lest I forget Hamid Mir and Dr Aamir Liaquat Hussain (Two persons murdered after an anchor person proposed the widespread lynching of Ahmadi sect followers September 10, 2008 Asian Human Rights Commission No action taken against Geo TV presenter who incited Muslims to murder members of Pakistan minority on air September 18, 2008 Asian Human Rights Commission, & Ahmadi massacre silence is dispiriting The virtual conspiracy of silence after the murder of 94 Ahmadis in Pakistan exposes the oppression suffered by the sect Declan Walsh in The Guardian Monday 7 June 2010, The rise of Pakistan's televangelists By Mobeen Azhar BBC World Service, Karachi 14 July 2012 & Pakistan.“ 2008: US criticised major media group for irresponsible reporting DAWN.COM | 1st June, 2011) are very fond of spreading hate against Minorities , they even invite Pakistan Nuclear Scientist Dr A Q Khan to spread more hate in an already hate filled Pakistan. Yet this group has the audacity to take a quick somersault whenever they are in hot waters. Pakistani Liberals and Secular are even more shameful than all the Fascists mentioned above because these very Liberals and Secular support the above mentioned Fascists Off and On.


 How Conveniently Pakistani Journalists forget while showering praise on Asma Jahangir




“It was much before Geo and other channels came along,” she recalls during an interlude. “Jang Lahore newspaper had launched one of their hate campaigns against me, the usual one that Asma is an Ahmadi. I woke up and read the paper and it was right there on the front page. Idiots. What do I do? I had young children, I also had a busy schedule for the day, office, court hearings. I knew where Jang’s owner Mir Shakilur Rehman lived in Lahore. I put my kids in the car, drove to his house and barged in. I said, ‘Look I have work to do, I have to go to court. I am leaving these kids with you. You have put my life in danger. If anything happens to me, you are responsible. And if something happens to me these kids will be your responsibility.’” Reference: THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING ASMA For a couple of years, Mohammed Hanif followed Asma Jahangir on her annual fact-finding missions to Balochistan. by Mohammed Hanif | Hasan Zaidi https://www.dawn.com/news/1390063/the-importance-of-being-asma



Zaid Hamid objected the way Islam was violated during Asma Jahangir's Funeral & says that entire Deobandi School of Thought Support Terrorism in Pakistan including Imran Khan ally Maulana Samiul Haq & Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Maulana Tariq Jamil and Last but not the least the Lal Masjid Clerics





Religious scholar Tahir Ashrafi discussed the complicated religious side of Zaid Hamid. He said that Zaid Hamid was a follower of Yousaf Kazzab, who was once convicted under blasphemy charges. He also cited a book written by Yousaf Kazzab in which he mentioned Zaid Hamid as his companion. Ashrafi said that he has proofs that Zaid Hamid called Yousaf Kazzab (God forbid) Abu Bakar Siddique. He said that after Tousaf Kazzab saga this man disappeared and then again appeared as Zaid Hamid instead of his previous name Zaid Zaman. He claimed that he invited Zaid Hamid many times for a debate on his beliefs, but every time Zaid Hamid never turned up. The views of Mufti Ghulam Sarwar Qadri and Mufti Muhammad Naeem about Zaid Hamid were also aired. Both declared him a liar and Gustakhe Rasool (blasphemer). Reference: (Zaid Hamid is liar, blasphemer, say Mufti Qadri, Mufti Naeem July 23, 2013 The News) Allama Tahir Ashrafi (Deobandi) Mufti Naeem (Deobandi) and Mufti Ghulam Sarwar Qadri are also one of those Mullahs who interfere in anybody's day to day life but least bothered to discuss how these very Mullahs declare each other Apostate, Death Deserving, Infernal and Blasphemers , just going through their Fatwas (religious edicts) against each other would be enough to give anybody a shiver and jolt of their lifetime, particularly Mufti Naeem and his Jamia Binoria, just glance through his website and read his Takfiri Fatwas (Excommunication Edicts)  against Shias, Barelvis, Jamaat-e-Islami, Dr Israr Ahmed, Mawdudi etc etc) and this is not the end, Mufti Naeem and Allama Tahir Ashrafi off and on supported MQM (London)'s head-honcho Altaf Hussain rather Mufti Naeem was an Electoral ally of Altaf Hussain (Reference: Jamia Binoria to support Muttahida in elections December 02, 2007) and that too after Altaf Hussain and MQM gave bloodbath to Karachi in connivance with General Pervez Musharraf on 12 May 2007 and that is not the end, Daily Ummat, Karachi is often quoted on Islamic matters but the same Daily Ummat carried news of Mufti Naeem's connivance in Multi Billion Rupees Modaraba scam. Salafi or Ahl-e-Hadith Clerics are also not far behind, read any of their book on Salat (Namaz) and in particular read the prerequisite they suggest for a Prayer Leader (Imam) and you would know that they dont even consider Non-Ahl-e-Hadith Prayer Leaders (read Deobandi and Barelvis) fit to lead  prayers rather the Ahl-e-Hadith Clerics and their edicts encourage their followers to desist offering prayers behind a Deobandi and Barelvi Imam and some Ultra Orthodox Ahl-e-Hadith compare Deobandis and Barelivs (basically both are the followers of Hanafi School of thought and follow Imam Abu Hanifa) with Ahmadis (Read Qadianis or Qadiyanis).

What Asma Jahangir had said on Lal Masjid Operation



Curious Case of Lt General (R) Amjad Shoaib's Memory Loss (DNA 25th October 2016 Channel 24)



Saudi Arabia and Gulf Countries Financial Aid to the Pakistani Religious Extremists is not a secret rather it was widely published in Wikileaks Cables. References: WikiLeaks cables portray Saudi Arabia as a cash machine for terrorists - Hillary Clinton memo highlights Gulf states' failure to block funding for groups like al-Qaida, Taliban and Lashkar-e-Taiba by Declan Walsh in Islamabad Sun 5 Dec 2010 https://www.theguardian.com/world/us-embassy-cables-documents/242073 https://www.theguardian.com/world/us-embassy-cables-documents/220186 https://www.theguardian.com/world/us-embassy-cables-documents/209234 https://www.theguardian.com/world/us-embassy-cables-documents/242756 Saudi Arabia, UAE financing extremism in south Punjab May 21, 2011 https://www.dawn.com/news/630656/2008-extremist-recruitment-on-the-rise-in-south-punjab-madrassahs  2009: Was Qaddafi funding Sipahe Sahaba? https://www.dawn.com/news/631599 May 25, 2011

 WikiLeaks Saudi Arabia and UAE funding Terrorism in Pakistan (Dawn News)



1 - MAINSTREAMING THE MILITANTS https://www.dawn.com/news/1366753 (by Zahid Hussain Dawn October 29, 2017) 2 - Surrendering to mob rule https://www.dawn.com/news/1373442 (by Zahid Hussain, Dawn November 29, 2017) 3 - The flames of bigotry https://www.dawn.com/news/1372094 (by Zahid Hussain Dawn November 22, 2017) 4 - The capital under siege https://www.dawn.com/news/1370547 (by Zahid Hussain Dawn November 15, 2017) Pakistan army pushed political role for militant-linked groups (in Reuters by Asif Shahzad SEPTEMBER 21, 2017) 5 - US moves to put Pakistan on terror-financing watchlist https://www.dawn.com/news/1389224 (Dawn February 14, 2018) 6 - Anti-terror law amended to ban UN-listed groups, individuals https://www.dawn.com/news/1389042 (Dawn Baqir Sajjad Syed February 13, 2018) 7 - US underlines Pakistan’s ‘deficiencies’ in countering terrorism https://www.dawn.com/news/1389956 (by Anwar Iqbal Dawn 17 February 2018) 8 - Army says troops being sent to Saudi Arabia https://www.dawn.com/news/1389722 (Dawn February 16, 2018) 10 - Air India allowed to use Saudi airspace for Israel flights, says magazine https://www.dawn.com/news/1388046 (Dawn February 08, 2018)

Sami Abraham and Hamza Ali Abbasi have both attacked the way Asma Jahangir's funeral was tackled and they off and on raise finger on everyone's faith, loyalty and integrity , fine, but they should also highlight what does the Islam says about Mix Gathering of Men and Women, Veil



Sami Abraham and Hamza Ali Abbasi have both attacked the way Asma Jahangir's funeral was tackled and they off and on raise finger on everyone's faith, loyalty and integrity , fine, but they should also highlight what does the Islam says about Mix Gathering of Men and Women, Veil




Sami Abraham and Hamza Ali Abbasi have both attacked the way Asma Jahangir's funeral was tackled and they off and on raise finger on everyone's faith, loyalty and integrity , fine, but they should also highlight what does the Islam says about Mix Gathering of Men and Women, Veil




Sami Abraham and Hamza Ali Abbasi have both attacked the way Asma Jahangir's funeral was tackled and they off and on raise finger on everyone's faith, loyalty and integrity , fine, but they should also highlight what does the Islam says about Mix Gathering of Men and Women, Veil




Recently religious parties JUI-F, JUI-S, Jamaat-e-Islami welcomed the acquittal of those 26 persons who were involved in Mashal Khan's tragic and brutal murder and these are the same parties who are allies of Imran Khan's PTI and Nawaz Sharif's PML-N and off and on accommodated by Pakistan Peoples Party and even by Altaf Hussain and MQM (London)  these are the same religious parties who not only supported General Pervez Musharraf's LFO but also allowed their own Chief Minister of the then NWFP (now KPK) to visit USA and tour US Pentagon and Defence Department and that too when USA was bombing the Taliban Regime in Afghanistan (References: 2007: Fazlur Rehman’s votes were “up for sale” May 31, 2011 https://www.dawn.com/news/633241 Durrani meets US senator July 16, 2005 https://www.dawn.com/news/148041 Qazi, Musharraf talk for 3 hours August 14, 2002 https://www.dawn.com/news/52617 )






Brief History of Tehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi TNSM : To fully comprehend the genesis of TNSM, the politics and economics of the Malakand region (which is TNSM’s primary base) deserve some attention. In northwest Pakistan, three semi-autonomous states—Dir, Swat and Chitral—were amalgamated to form the Malakand Division of the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) in 1970. The laws of Pakistan were extended to the area, sweeping aside old legal systems such as Sharia law in Swat. A legal battle erupted in 1975, however, when a dispute arose between the government and timber merchants about forest royalties in the area. A new judicial order was soon introduced to resolve the problems. This change, however, was incorporated after violent street protests were orchestrated by powerful landowners who had a monopoly on forestlands and wanted to pursue their vested interests. Getting the attention of the state through violence and armed conflict became an unhealthy precedent. Failure of the Pakistani state to tackle these issues in a timely manner created political confusion and religious groups found an opening for their agendas. Sufi Mohammad, an activist of Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), followed the situation closely. After returning from the successful Afghan jihad in the late 1980s, he was more convinced of his religious ideals. His exuberance, according to Pakistani journalist Amir Rana, led him to create TNSM on May 10, 1989. The very name of the organization framed its manifesto and agenda in unmistakable terms. His networking and experience in Afghanistan meant that on top of his battleground experience, he had no dearth of resources or religious motivation. Reference: The Black-Turbaned Brigade: The Rise of TNSM in Pakistan Publication: Terrorism Monitor Volume: 4 Issue: 23 By: Hassan Abbas November 30, 2006 10:15 https://jamestown.org/program/the-black-turbaned-brigade-the-rise-of-tnsm-in-pakistan/


People Like Osama Bin Laden and Imran Khan Never Die



Khan argued that such operations were radicalizing Pakistani youth, not just among the poor but also among the educated, middle classes. Dialogue, policing, and intelligence gathering should be the cornerstone of anti-militancy efforts in the tribal areas instead of the use of military force, Khan contended. 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. Khan also claimed that the Lal Masjid operation was similarly stage managed by Musharraf. He called for an end to Pakistan's "insane military action" in the tribal areas, adding that the Army has failed to secure any significant areas of South Waziristan despite GOP statements to the contrary. Reference : CODEL LYNCH'S MEETING WITH PAKISTAN TEHREEK-E-INSAF (PTI) PARTY LEADER IMRAN KHAN Date:2010 February 6, 11:26 (Saturday) https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/10ISLAMABAD301_a.html



Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani Deobandi Fatwa against Asma Jahangir's Funeral and Taqi Usmani's Haram (Unlawful/Forbidden) Islamic Banking




ISLAMABAD, June 11: Maulana Taqi Usmani, who remained ad hoc judge of the Shariat Appellate Bench of the Supreme Court for two decades, was removed from the bench because of his financial interest in holding that all interest-based banking was un-Islamic. A federal government official told Dawn that Maulana Taqi Usmani, a renowned figure in the field of Shariah, particularly in Islamic finance, held advisory positions in over a dozen financial institutions practising Islamic banking and finance. The fact that he had financial interest in holding that “all interest-based banking is un-Islamic,” disqualified him from sitting on the bench. The official said that allowing Maulana Taqi Usmani to sit on the bench was a violation of the well-known principle that “no person can be judge in his own cause.” The official said that Justice Taqi Usmani currently held the following positions: Chairman, Shariah Board, Citi Islamic Investment Bank, Bahrain; Chairman, Shariah Board, Amana Investments Ltd, Sri Lanka; Vice-Chairman, Shariah Board, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, Abu Dhabi; Member, Shariah Board, Dow Jones Islamic Market Index; Chairman, Shariah Board, Al-Meezan Commercial Bank Ltd; Vice President, Darul-Uloom Karachi; Deputy Chairman/ Permanent Member of Islamic Fiqh Academy, Jeddah; Chairman, Centre for Islamic Economics, Pakistan, since 1991; Chairman, Shariah Council AAOIFI; Chairman, Shariah Board, IslamiQ.com; Chairman, Shariah Board, Saudi American Bank, Jeddah; Chairman, Shariah Board, HSBC, Global Islamic Finance, London; Chairman, Shariah Board, Robert Fleming Oasis Fund, Luxembourg. He was also a member of Shariah Board, Faisal Bank, till recently. When approached to get his version, Maulana Usmani said that since he had no grievance at all against his removal from the Shariat Appellate Bench, he would not like to probe into the reasons. He further said that he would not indulge in the controversy whether or not those reasons were correct. Reference: Usmani’s monetary interest led to his removal June 12, 2002 https://www.dawn.com/news/42482 ------> RAWALPINDI: Describing the existing Islamic banking by any name as against the Shariah and forbidden, religious scholars belonging to Fiqhi Majlis, Karachi, have decreed that banks working in the name of Islamic banking are not different from other banks and dealing with them is illegitimate. The decree was issued in a meeting at the Jamia Farooqia in Shah Faisal Colony chaired by Maulana Salimullah Jan, President of Tanzeematul Madaris and Wafaqul Madaris, and attended by reputed religious scholars from all over the country. The meeting also discussed in detail the status of Islamic television channels in accordance with the Shariah and described their research and experiences in the light of questions and problems received at their respective centres. Some scholars also presented their research papers in this regard. On the occasion, Maulana Salimullah Jan said that the religious scholars were contacting banks that had been claiming to practice Islamic banking and did research on the prevailing banking practices in the light of the Holy Quran and Sunnah.
He said they also held meetings with modern economic experts. He said after detailed consideration, the scholars unanimously declared the Islamic banking and television channels as illegitimate. The scholar also said the kinds of pictures of a living being so far introduced were liable to be dealt with in accordance with the religious commandments. He said the launching of any type of television channel or participation in any television programme declaring it was needed for preaching had also been declared illegitimate. He said the scholars appealed to the Muslims to avoid television like other deeds forbidden by the Shariah. The participants of the meeting included Mufti Abdul Hameed Deenpuri (Jamia-al-Aloom Islamia, Banori Town), Mufti Habibullah Sheikh (Jamia Islamia, Clifton), Mufti Rafiq Ahmed and Mufti Saif Alam (Banori Town), Mufti Abdullah (Khairul Madaris, Multan), Mufti Ghulam Qadir (Darul Aloom Haqqani, Akora Khattak), Mufti Ahmed Mumtaz (Jamia Khulafa-e-Rashdeen, Karachi), Mufti Zarwali Khan (Jamia Ahsan-al-Aloom), Mufti Ehteshamul Haq (Jamia Rasheedia, Turbat, Mekran), Maulana Saeed Ahmed Jalalpuri (Alami Majlis Khatam-e-Nabuwwat), Maulana Dr Manzoor Ahmed Mengal (Jamia Farooqia), Mufti Hamid Hassan (Darul Aloom, Kabirwala), Mufti Abdul Ghaffar (Jamia Ashrafia, Sukkur), Mufti Saaduddin (Jamia Ilmia, Lakki Marwat), Mufti Gul Hassan (Jamia Rehmia, Sarki Road, Quetta), Mufti Rozi Khan (Darul Afta Rahania, Quetta), Mufti Qazi Salimullah (Darul Huda, Khairpur), Nazir Ahmed Shah (Jamia Farooq-e-Azam, Faisalabad), Mufti Saeedullah (Jamia Arabia Naeemul Islam, Quetta), Mufti Samiullah (Jamia Farooqia), Mufti Ahmed Khan and others. Reference: Islamic banking, TV channels against Shariah, declare religious scholars (Saturday, August 30, 2008 News Desk The News)


Jamat-e-Islami (JI) founder Abul A’la Maududi’s son, Syed Haider Farooq Maududi led the Funeral Prayers of Asma Jahangir (Bol Network 15 February 2018)





 Like Chaudhry Sir Muhammad Zafarullah Khan, Maulana Mawdudi also didn't participate in Jinnah's Funeral prayers and this is not the end, Mawdudi didn't even offer the Funeral Prayers of his own benefactor Allama Iqbal (Reference: Allama Iqbal, Quaid-e-Azam, Perwez, Mawdudi and Tehreek-e-Pakistan by Chauhdry Habib Ahmed, page 736, Published in 1981 Faisalabad , Punjab Pakistan) and according to Khaled Ahmed "Given the prestige of Miss Jinnah, she was allowed to dispose of all the property of her brother (as a Sunni she would have title to only one-half) and continued to do so till her death. After her death her sister Shirin Bai arrived in Karachi from Bombay, converted from Ismailism to Twelver Shiism, and laid claim to Jinnah’s property. It is at this point that the rest of Jinnah’s clan, still following the Ismaili faith, decided to challenge the authenticity of Jinnah’s Shia faith. The High Court, which had earlier accepted Miss Jinnah’s petition, now balked at the prospect of declaring the Father of the Nation a Shia. Needless to say, the case is still pending in Karachi. But Miss Jinnah’s conduct showed that she was an observing Shia and took her brother’s conversion to Twelver Shiism seriously. Why had Jinnah converted? It develops that he did it on his secular principle of freedom of religion. According to court’s witness, Syed Sharifuddin Pirzada, Jinnah broke from the Ismaili faith in 1901 after his two sisters, Rehmat Bai and Maryam Bai, were married into Sunni Muslim families. It appears that this happened because the Ismaili community objected to these marriages. It also appears that the conversion to Isna-Ashari (Twelver) Shiism happened in Jinnah’s immediate family, and not in the families of his two paternal uncles, Walji and Nathoo. 

The court proceedings bear evidence of the last rites observed by Miss Jinnah immediately after her brother’s death. Witness Syed Anisul Hasnain, a Shia scholar, deposed that he had arranged the ghusl (last bath) of Jinnah on the instructions of Miss Jinnah. He led his namaz-e janaza (funeral prayer) in a room of the GovernorGeneral’s House at which such Shia luminaries as Yusuf Haroon, Hashim Raza and Aftab Hatim Alavi were present, while Liaquat Ali Khan, a Sunni, waited outside the room. After the Shia ritual, the body was handed over to the state, and Maulana Shabbir Ahmad Usmani, a breakaway alim of the Deobandi school of thought who supported Jinnah’s Pakistan Movement but had recently apostatised the Shias, led his janaza (funeral) according to the Sunni ritual at the ground where a grand mausoleum was later constructed. Other witnesses confirmed that after the demise of Miss Fatima Jinnah, clam and panja (two Shia symbols) were discovered at Mohatta Palace, her residence. Witnesses appearing at the Sindh High Court in 1968 to affirm Jinnah’s sect were Mr I.H. Ispahani, a family friend of Jinnah and his honorary secretary in 1936, and Mr Matloobul Hassan Syed, the Quaid’s private secretary from 1940 to 1944. Mr Ispahani revealed that Jinnah had himself told him in 1936 that he and his family had converted to Shiism after his return from England in 1894. He said that Jinnah had married Ruttie Bai, the daughter of a Parsi businessman according to the Shia ritual during which she was represented by a Shia scholar of Bombay, and Jinnah was represented by his Shia friend, Raja Sahib of Mahmudabad. (Raja Sahib was a close friend of Jinnah but differed completely from him in his belief. He was a devout follower of the Twelver Shia faith and ultimately chose to migrate from an independent India to Najaf in Iraq. His friendship with Jinnah has puzzled many. Apparently, the only bond they had was of the Shia faith.) He, however, conceded that Jinnah was opposed in the Bombay elections by a Shia Conference candidate. Ispahani was present when Miss Fatima Jinnah died in Karachi in 1967. He himself arranged the ghusl and janaza for her at Mohatta Palace according to the Shia ritual before handing over the body to the state. Her Sunni namaz-e janaza was held later at the Polo Ground, after which she was buried next to her brother at a spot chosen by Ispahani inside the mausoleum. Ritualistic Shia talgin (last advice to the deceased) was done after her body was lowered into the grave. (Jinnah had arranged for talgin for Ruttie Bai too when she died in 1929). Reference: Sectarian War: Pakistan’s Sunni- Shia Violence and its Links to the Middle East; published by Oxford University Press, Karachi (Review was Published in The Friday Times December 24-30, 2010 - Vol. XXII, No. 45) and Pakistan: Behind the Ideological Mask : Facts about Great Men We Don't Want to Know by Khaled Ahmed (Published in 2001 by Vanguard Press, Lahore Pakistan

Sunday, June 8, 2014

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



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

Monday, May 12, 2014

Curious Case of Memogate, Treason and Jang Group


Reuters says on Allegations and contentious or vituperative attacks: We can never allow our sources to make allegations, contentious statements or vituperative attacks behind a cloak of anonymity. It weakens our credibility and gives the sources an opportunity to benefit at our expense. It is fundamentally unfair to the other party and thus biased. If quoting unnamed sources on one side of a conflict about what is happening on the other side, use them only for facts, not opinions. If a source wants to make a vituperative attack on an individual, organisation, company or country he or she must speak on the record. We may waive this rule only if the source is a senior official making a considered policy statement which is obviously newsworthy. A story must make clear both that the informant has volunteered the information and that he or she is an official. If the person will not speak on that basis we should not use the story. Such a story might begin: "Gaul accused Rome on Wednesday of practicing genocide against its ethnic minorities." The second paragraph would then read something like this: "In news briefing a government official, who declined to be identified, said...". Reference:  Reuters Handbook of Journalism http://www.trust.org/contentAsset/raw-data/652966ab-c90b-4252-b4a5-db8ed1d438ce/file



Recently the Judiciary has allowed Zaid Hamid petition in SC against Jang Group and SAFMA wherein he alleges that certain people in Jang Group are Anti Pakistan and on this the Jang Group has reacted and started asking 20 questions, I would just quote from Jang Group very own archives wherein the Group Editor of the News Mr. Shaheen Sehabi, Resident Editor The News Islamabad Mohammad Malick (who is now MD PTV) and their countless minions --> and they call themselves Journalists uloaded similar Allegation without even a formal enquiry and they not only influenced the Judiciary by relaying 24/7 Marathon Transmission loaded with worse king of mudslinging, misreporting and highly unethical campaign on a matter which was in the court of law and that too without any genuine legal ground, read the news and watch the footage & do note the Imran Khan and Mohammad Malick (now MD PTV and then resident editor The News of Jang Group) connivance in Memogate and also note the use of word "Traitor" by Khawaja Muhammad Asif. 

Memogate, Treason and Jang Group

 

Memogate, Treason and Jang Group by SalimJanMazari


 The PML-N Friday, through a Civil Miscellaneous Application (CMA), requested the Supreme Court that Pakistan’s High Commissioner to UK, Wajid Shamsul Hassan; Shaheen Sehbai, Group Editor, The News, and Muhammad Malick, Editor, The News, Islamabad, also be made respondents in the memo case being taken up for hearing from December 19. ISLAMABAD: The PML-N Friday, through a Civil Miscellaneous Application (CMA), requested the Supreme Court that Pakistan’s High Commissioner to UK, Wajid Shamsul Hassan; Shaheen Sehbai, Group Editor, The News, and Muhammad Malick, Editor, The News, Islamabad, also be made respondents in the memo case being taken up for hearing from December 19. In their petition, PML-N leader Ishaq Dar and Khwaja Asif contended that an impression was created by the civil authorities that Pakistan knew nothing about the Abbottabad operation in advance. However, they stated that Shaheen Sehbai, Group Editor of The News, in his story on December 8, 2011, while quoting interviews of Pakistan’s High Commissioner in UK, Wajid Shamsul Hassan, with CNN, BBC and NDTV revealed that Pakistan had known about the May 2 raid at least 8 to 10 days in advance. The report further revealed that Pakistan knew the operation was going to happen and assisted in terms of authorisation of the helicopter flights in our space. Similarly, the report, while quoting the ambassador’s interview, also stated that Pakistan knew about bin Laden’s location and helped the US reach him. The petitioners further submitted that another report of December 8, 2011, submitted by Ms Mehreen Zahra-Malik also quoted Mansoor Ijaz alleging that Pakistan’s former Ambassador to the US, Hussain Haqqani, and President Asif Ali Zardari had prior knowledge of the United States stealth mission to eliminate Osama bin Laden. The PML-N leaders also informed the apex court that another senior journalist. Mohamamd Malick, Editor of daily The News, had authored numerous informative reports on the subject and two reports dated November 18 and November 20, 2011, were co-authored along with Sehbai. The petitioners requested that the court ensure Wajid Shamsul Hassan’s appearance through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which may be directed to ensure that the ambassador, once in Pakistan, not be permitted to proceed abroad unless exonerated by this court or any commission so appointed for the said purpose by this court. They contended that Wajid, being the person who had admitted on May 2, 2011, to having prior knowledge of the May 2, 2011, Abbottabad operation was a necessary party. The PML-N leaders prayed to the apex court that their application be allowed, and the three persons, including Pakistan’s High Commissioner in UK Wajid Shamsul Hassan, Shaheen Sehbai, Group Editor, The News, and Mohammad Malick, Editor, The News, Islamabad, be added as respondents in the noted petition and be summoned for assisting this court for the effective adjudication of the matter in issue. They prayed that the apex court direct the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to ensure the presence of Wajid Shamsul Hassan in the court. It is pertinent to mention here that a larger bench of the apex court headed by the chief justice is resuming from hearing from December 19 petitions filed by PML-N Chief Mian Nawaz Sharif. In compliance with the court’s earlier order of December 1, 2011, Chief of the Army Staff (COAS), DG ISI, Secretary Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Secretary Ministry of Interior, Defence, Cabint Division and Federation have submitted their replies in the memo case while President Asif Ali Zaradari, another respondent in the case, has not yet filed his reply. Likewise, the administration of the Supreme Court has ordered extra security measures for December 19 as the memo case is being taken up by the larger bench of the apex court. REFERENCE: PML-N wants Wajid summoned by SC in memo case BY Sohail Khan Saturday, December 17, 2011  http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-2-82798-PML-N-wants-Wajid-summoned-by-SC-in-memo-case

Jang Group Role in Memogate

 

Jang Group Role in Memogate by SalimJanMazari



The treasonous memo! By Shaheen Sehbai & Mohammad Malick November 18, 2011 - ISLAMABAD/DUBAI: From a smoking gun to a smouldering fuse, the mysterious memo earned many sobriquets even before its precise contents were known to anyone but a handful of highly secretive power players involved in its drafting and communication. The (in)famous, rather possibly game-changing, Mike Mullen memo, ironically contains six mutinous articles and is now being revealed after Admiral Mike Mullen also confirmed its existence and 'remembered' having received it at the height of the OBL crisis. After days of huddles between the troika and other major power players of the country resulted in a resignation offer by President Zardari's closest foreign and domestic policy adviser and Ambassador to the US, Husain Haqqani, the memo has acquired the importance of a political nuclear bomb. The memo was sent to Mike Mullen through mutually trusted contacts by US businessman Mansoor Ijaz, who claimed doing so at the behest of an unnamed senior Pakistani diplomat, who has now been identified as none other than Mr. Husain Haqani. The memo is said to have been approved by the President of Pakistan. Chief of the Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani reportedly endorsed and seemed convinced with the evidence that Mansoor Ijaz has provided to the army and took this up in his latest one-on-one meeting with the president. Sources say without offering many options, the president was 'asked' by Gen. Kayani to immediately summon Haqqani for further enquiries. The President, who earlier through his spokesman had simply shrugged off the whole affair while rubbishing Mansoor's claims, readily obliged and Haqqani was summoned to Islamabad. So far however, the ambassador is still staying put in Washington on the officially offered explanation that he is finishing up prescheduled diplomatic commitments. 


Besides the Memo, the electronic correspondence between the diplomat and Mansoor Ijaz has also become available in full and is a graphic account of dates, time lines, words, and even emoticons, which are normally used by youthful SMS users. Part of this conversation was recently released by Mansoor Ijaz to the media in his almost 3,700 word long statement. All communications between Haqqani and Mansoor have now been transcribed from the cell phones and made available to The News. The Memo has reached The News from more than one source, both within Pakistan and from abroad, and is nothing short of being offensively repulsive, offering an alarming insight into a power-corrupt mindset willing to compromise national interest for petty personal power gains. It is, arguably, a document crafted by soul-less conspirators who clearly have no shame and dignity, no national pride or respect. The originator, writer, approver and the ultimate beneficiary of the Memo all look like vicious anti-state collaborators and traitors hiding under the garb of national leaders and proving themselves to be decision-makers occupying positions they never deserved and should never have been allowed to occupy in the first instance. All that has come in bits and pieces in the media so far are simply peanuts as compared to the 929 words of the Confidential Memo, which has been obtained and confirmed to be authentic by The News. Couched as a "Briefing for Admiral Mike Mullen," each word has a deep meaning and each sentence carries an offer, a plan, an incentive to demolish national security apparatus of Pakistan, play havoc with its nuclear assets, allow American boots on Pakistani soil and help and abet the US in accusing and proving the Pakistani armed forces and intelligence agencies guilty of "complicity" in the Osama bin Laden affair, his secret stay in Pakistan and his mission. To top it all and make such an investigation into a foolproof nutcracker, the memo also invites US authorities to hand pick the investigators panel. Aping Camp-Justice style justice, the memo also assures its recipient that the investigation process, "will result in immediate termination of active service officers". In other words, byebye to a recalcitrant Kayani, adios to a hardnosed Pasha? The memo brazenly accuses the Pakistan Army leadership of "brinkmanship aimed at bringing down the civilian apparatus in Pakistan" and calls the time it was written in May 2011 as "a 1971 moment in Pakistan's history" when the armed forces had been defeated in East Pakistan and civilians led by ZA Bhutto had gained the upper hand over the military. 


And what do the drafters of this treasonous memo have in mind for changing the security paradigm of Pakistan? In lieu of prolonging their own stay in power, the authors of the memo promised the US administration to replace the, "National security adviser and other national security officials with trusted advisers that include ex-military and civilian leaders favourably viewed by Washington". Talk of being his master's voice. The Memo talks of creating a "new national security team" which promises to give "carte blanche" or a blank cheque to the Americans to carry out Osama-type military raids inside Pakistan and any operation on Pakistani soil. Could there be a greater violation of national sovereignty? One wonders. Clearly the authors of the memo did not give two hoots about at least two unanimous resolutions of the national parliament, which categorically forbade any violation of Pakistan's sovereignty by a third country and any action by it against Pakistani citizens inside Pakistan. Not only this but the memo also promises that the US would be given the "green signal" to not only track down people on Pakistani soil but also to kill them if so needed. The memo stands in clear defiance of the binding resolutions adopted by the Constitutionally elected parliament. In a criminally dangerous development, the memo presents as an equivocal fact that the top al-Qaeda leadership is based inside Pakistan when the authors promise to hand over the likes of Ayman Al Zawahiri, Mulla Omar etc. This angle alone would have qualified Pakistan to be declared a rogue terrorist state but try telling that to a duo with vaulting ambitions who appear to have no qualms of destroying the state in order to perpetuate their stay in office and continue with loot and plunder. As an icing on the cake, the authors of the memo also promised to bring Pakistan's nuclear assets under a "more verifiable, transparent regime.. For those in the know, this translates into retooling the entire setup and providing unrestricted access to Pakistan's nuclear assets to United States, something that has long figured high on the US wish list. This offered concession also fits in neatly with the framework softly being pushed through the slower and circuitous Cooperative Threat Reduction regime (CTR) That the move to place our nuclear assets at the mercy of the US and its 'friends' has direct security consequences for Pakistan vis-‡-vis India, among other serious concerns, is clearly no priority for the authors. And understandably so because their only concern was to stay in power no matter how. Let the country pay the price of their avarice. What political repercussions this memo will have on the power politics of Pakistan is too early to predict but what has been established is that the military establishment is not happy at all with what was going on and the Opposition will jump on the government with a relentless campaign to bring the culprits to book. Will the President stick to his guns and refuse to abandon his man in Washington? Or will he move with ruthless efficiency and speed to sever any possible incriminating link? Will the expected sacking of the envoy signal the end of the crisis or mark the beginning of the next and possibly fateful phase? The political landscape is waiting for some more aftershocks, it appears. What is certain however is that the heat from the smouldering fuse is being felt by the keg. REFERENCE: The treasonous memo! By Shaheen Sehbai & Mohammad Malick November 18, 2011 - Updated 834 PKT http://www.thenews.com.pk/article-26760-The-treasonous-memo


Army thinks govt’s Taliban policy has failed, says Sethi Aapas Ki Baat on Friday News Desk Saturday, May 10, 2014 To a question on a treason plea filed in the Supreme Court, Sethi said the petition was filed before the then SC CJ iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry but he had rejected it. “Most people in the petition belong to Geo. Some people have managed its admission in the court which included people who oppose Geo. Some newspapers and two secret agencies are also behind it. ISI is against Geo for its severe criticism. I believe the SC will hear it to reach a conclusion whether these people are traitors or not. I hope the court will dispose of the man with the red cap after admonishing him. If this case continues, many people will reach the court with similar cases. I think the court will rubbish the case and the mover,” he observed. To another question on the rules and regulations for the media, he said the media would not accept any code of conduct. “However, the media itself should evolve a regulatory authority. I think Geo and Jang, being the biggest group, should lead from the front. If you insult others, they will pay you in the same coin. We will have to present the truth, not mix our thoughts with the reality and not make news out of our wishes,” he added.Some newspapers and two secret agencies are also behind it. ISI is against Geo for its severe criticism. I believe the SC will hear it to reach a conclusion whether these people are traitors or not. I hope the court will dispose of the man with the red cap after admonishing him. If this case continues, many people will reach the court with similar cases. I think the court will rubbish the case and the mover,” he observed. To another question on the rules and regulations for the media, he said the media would not accept any code of conduct. “However, the media itself should evolve a regulatory authority. I think Geo and Jang, being the biggest group, should lead from the front. If you insult others, they will pay you in the same coin. We will have to present the truth, not mix our thoughts with the reality and not make news out of our wishes,” he added. REFERENCE: Army thinks govt’s Taliban policy has failed, says Sethi Aapas Ki Baat on Friday News Desk Saturday, May 10, 2014 http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-2-249293-Army-thinks-govts-Taliban-policy-has-failed-says-Sethi Princess and the Playboy 1996 BBC http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xubf0i_princess-and-the-playboy-bbc-1996_news


Najam Sethi joins Geo/Jang Group : Friday, January 07, 2011 KARACHI: Renowned editor, political analyst and anchor Najam Sethi has joined the Geo/Jang Group as group adviser political affairs. Najam Sethi will host three weekly shows on Geo TV and write regular news analyses and commentary for Jang Group of Newspapers, including The News. Najam Sethi is the recipient of three international press freedom awards, including the Golden Pen in 2009 from the World Editors Forum representing 17,000 of the world’s leading newspapers. He was awarded the Hilal-e-Pakistan, Pakistan’s highest civil award, in 2010. Najam Sethi was educated at Government College Lahore and Clare College, Cambridge University, UK. He was declared Alumnus of the Year 2011 by Cambridge University and appointed Eric Lane Fellow of Clare College, a first for a Pakistani. Newsweek International described him in 1999 as a “Crusading Editor” for exposing and fighting against corruption in high office. He was imprisoned in 1975 by the regime of ZA Bhutto, by the regime of General Ziaul Haq in 1984, and by the government of Nawaz Sharif in 1999 for opposing their policies. His forthcoming book series to be published in 2011 is titled: ìFrom Plunderland to Blunderland: Pakistan under Benazir, Nawaz, Musharraf and Zardari, 1988-2010î. Najam Sethi writes op-ed columns for various international newspapers, including Wall Street Journal, is a frequent speaker at international conferences and is the chairman of the Pakistan Publishers and Booksellers. Najam Sethi is also an international Trustee of the Asia Society, New York, and Leaders Project, Washington DC. The Geo/Jang Group said it was delighted to have such an eminent and popular media personality on its platform. “He will add depth, balance, objectivity and neutrality to the wide spectrum of views available on our platform,” said a spokesman for Geo TV. REFERENCE: Najam Sethi joins Geo/Jang Group Friday, January 07, 2011 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=3168&Cat=13&dt=1/7/2011


Najam Sethi on Media Ethics (Aapas Ki Baat - 9 May 2014)



Najam Sethi on Media Ethics (Aapas Ki Baat - 9... by SalimJanMazari

President Asif Ali Zardari confers civil, military awards on outstanding individuals on 24 March 2011 and one of those outstanding gentlemen was Mr Najam Sethi http://archives.dailytimes.com.pk/national/24-Mar-2011/president-confers-civil-military-awards-on-outstanding-individuals

Najam Sethi is a riddle wrapped up in an enigma never ceases to amaze. He is liberal anti-establishment, pro-establishment and pro-PPP, all at the same time. Kinda similar game is played by Altaf Hussain. - Najam's inclusion in Laghar Cabinet in 1996 (as pronounced by Zardari) after Tummandar dismissed his own (PPP second government) - What we have here that Alleged Awami Government is awarding Tamghas (Medals) to the likes of Najam Sethi - In good book of Zardari or not but he is absolutely in the good books of State Department and Rawalpindi.

Princess and the Playboy BBC 1996

 

Princess and the Playboy BBC 1996 by f1499110548


Dawn Prime Ministers Adviser on Political Affairs and Accountability, Najam Sethi DAWN 26 December 1996 Cabinet split over recovery from defaulters - The officials have said that Ms. Bhutto and Mr. Zardari took pains to avoid creating a documentary record of their role in hundreds of deals. How this was done was explained by Najam Sethi, a former Bhutto loyalist who became the editor of Pakistan's most popular political weekly, Friday Times, then was drafted to help oversee a corruption inquiry undertaken by the caretaker Government that ruled for three months after Ms. Bhutto's dismissal in 1996. Mr. Sethi said Ms. Bhutto and Mr. Zardari adopted a system under which they assigned favors by writing orders on yellow Post-It notes and attaching them to official files. After the deals were completed, Mr. Sethi said, the notes were removed, destroying all trace of involvement. REFERENCE: HOUSE OF GRAFT: Tracing the Bhutto Millions -- A special report.; Bhutto Clan Leaves Trail of Corruption By JOHN F. BURNS Published: January 09, 1998 http://www.lib.virginia.edu/area-studies/SouthAsia/SAserials/Dawn/1996/26Dc96.html#cabi and http://www.nytimes.com/1998/01/09/world/house-graft-tracing-bhutto-millions-special-report-bhutto-clan-leaves-trail.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm

TalkBack with Wajahat Khan Farooq Ahmed Leghari (Dawn News 2007)



TalkBack with Wajahat Khan Farooq Ahmed Leghari... by SalimJanMazari

Ladies and Gentlemen, The President! Posted on Thursday, October 3, 1996 in The Friday Times (Editorial) http://www.najamsethi.com/ladies-and-gentlemen-the-president/


FEB 22, 1999: The Pen Is Mightier... Pakistan's press is certainly freer than before though it labours under the shadow of the government. BY NAJAM SETHI NAWAZ Sharif has never liked the press. He once said newspapers only cause trouble. When he was prime minister the last time (1990-93), he had a short fuse and gave the press a hard time. Numerous cases of vandalism by ruling party thugs against newspapers and journalists were reported across the country. Takbeer magazine's offices in Karachi were burnt down. A sedition case was lodged against the editor of The News in Islamabad for publishing a poem in the letters column which Sharif didn't like. And so on. I had a particularly nasty experience in 1992-93 because, apart from the investigative stories of corruption in government, Sharif didn't warm to a weekly satirical column about him in my paper. Armed thugs were sent to rough me up but I escaped their clutches. I was advised my safety couldn't be guaranteed if some ruling party loyalists decided to bomb my office. Income tax notices flew thick and fast. Anonymous phone-callers abused my wife and threatened rape and kidnapping. My paper survived only because Sharif was booted out of power a couple of months later. Pakistani politicians like Sharif who are originally products of martial law have a special love-hate relationship with the press. They adore it when in opposition and abhor it when in power. Their problem is that they cannot come to terms with a Pakistani press which has come to savour and guard its independence after forty years of censorship under various authoritarian regimes. Pakistan's press is certainly freer today than ever before. But it continues to labour under the shadow of the government. One, the government controls the bread and butter of newspapers newsprint imports are banned except for the press but the government retains a tight grip over newsprint quota. Two, as the government is one of the biggest sources of advertising, the press can't afford to shrug off its main source of revenue. Three, the government can use its vast coercive apparatus to browbeat the press or muzzle it if it remains unrepentant. In the final analysis, therefore, the press in Pakistan is free only to the extent that the government in power respects the rules of democracy or the judiciary, as the custodian of fundamental rights in the last resort, is strong enough to resist encroachments on democracy. If the government is authoritarian and the judiciary weak or divided, the press is a prime target for repression. Some of us have been shrieking murder since Sharif assaulted, divided and weakened the judiciary in 1997. With the judiciary out of the way, we reasoned, it was only a matter of time before the press would come under Sharif's heel. The worst has now come to pass. The Jang group of newspapers has become the focus of Sharif's unmitigated wrath. By lashing out at the largest media group, Sharif is sending a stern warning to the small fry. The siege of the Jang group is unprecedentedly vicious. Its bank accounts have been frozen, newsprint godowns sealed, hawkers harassed, journalists threatened, stiff income tax notices served and sedition cases lodged against three editors. All that remains is for the group's newspapers to cease publication, its owners to be arrested and its journalists packed off. The confrontation began like this. A column by Irshad Haqqani, Lahore Jang editor, kicked up a veritable storm in Islamabad in July 1998. Haqqani wrote advisedly about the need to revamp the government's ad-hoc decision-making system and suggested the army might have a small but positive role to play in it within the parameters of the democratic system. Islamabad reacted angrily by freezing ads to the Jang group. Then came the proverbial straw which broke the government's back. In October, army chief Gen. Jehangir Karamat suggested a National Security Council to tackle the country's mounting difficulties. The Jang group ordered a telephonic survey of public opinion: an overwhelming majority were all for the proposal. Two days later, Karamat was sacked. On the third day, Sharif stood before the national assembly and blasted those who wanted to derail democracy. And ordered senator Saif-ur Rahman, a loyalist who runs the controversial Accountability Bureau, to teach them a lesson. Jang was number one on the good senator's hitlist. We know the rest, thanks to the charming indiscretions of the senator, who was taped by the owner-editor of the Jang group, Mir Shakilur Rehman, when he brandished the threats. Among other demands, the government wants the Jang group to fire 16 top editors and reporters. Where does the press, and in particular the Jang group, go from here? Forward. There is no choice. Here was an Urdu newspaper whose editorial comment pages were often conspicuously tilted, as a matter of policy, in favour of the government. Indeed, a number of highly paid hacks blindly loyal to Sharif were put on its payrolls expressly to keep Islamabad happy. Yet it fell foul of an autocratic regime when it tried to steer a marginally less devoted path. Imagine what might happen to a more outspoken paper (like mine) if the Jang group were to bite the dust. Saif-ur Rahman claims he is only going after tax dodgers, not impinging on press freedom. This is a hollow, self-righteous claim. The biggest tax dodger and loan defaulter is the senator's boss, followed by scores of fellow compatriots in the national assembly, including industrial robber-barons and feudal landlords who have scooted away with Rs 200 billion in public money, without as much as a scratch on their backs. The press is in for a rough time. It would do well to remember a fact of life. Governments are fated to come and go but the press is destined to go on forever. REFERENCE: The Pen Is Mightier... Pakistan's press is certainly freer than before though it labours under the shadow of the government. BY NAJAM SETHI http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?207042