Tis the hour of need!

Flood Relief: Opportunity to standardize CSR practices

Are we sinking?

It is the worst disaster in living memory; resulting in mass migration that even exceeds that which took place during partition. While the loss of human lives has not been colossal, the sheer number of families uprooted, livelihoods lost and crops ruined, and not just houses but the washing away of entire villages has disrupted life in a manner that is yet to sink in completely.

Misery has become as widespread as flood-waters with over 20 million people and around one-fifth of Pakistan affected. The ubiquitous image of large swathes of land submerged in water, with roofs of houses barely visible, has become the staple diet of news channels. Dominating the news in equal measure is criticism of the government’s response in relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction work.

President Asif Zardari says development has been pushed back by a decade. The financial loss from the calamity is estimated to be $43 billion while the finance ministry says that there will be zero growth for the next fiscal year and probably many more to come. Inflation has hit the roof and prices of essential items have nearly quadrupled. For instance, the price of one kg of sugar has now crossed the Rs. 100 mark from the contentious and much debated Rs. 50 just a few months ago.

Add to that the country’s perennially bad economic and developmental indicators and it can be safely said that the situation is a ticking time bomb; and unless remedial measures are taken, the situation would continue to deteriorate.

Clutching onto straws:

The country’s top leadership has once again taken out the proverbial begging bowl, with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani conceding that failure of the international community to help would leave the people from flood affected areas vulnerable to the overtures of extremist elements.

But the response of the international community has been lukewarm. When compared to the international community’s response to this decade’s other major disasters, like the tsunami in South-East Asia, Hurraicane Katrina or even the earthquake in Haiti, the contribution to Pakistan’s flood relief pales in comparison.

According to a BBC report, $6.82 has been pledged as donation per survivor of the flooding in Pakistan. The corresponding figure for the Haitian earthquake earlier this year was a whooping $669.60.

Similarly, ten days after the Kashmir quake in 2005, donors gave or pledged $292 million, according to the aid group Oxfam. The disaster in Haiti led to pledges nearing $1 billion within the first 10 days. For Pakistan, the international community gave or pledged $150 million after the flooding began in earnest in late July, according to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, known as OCHA.

Why the Private Sector needs to step forward:

This clearly illustrates that there is a void in terms of relief efforts – which is there for all to see. A visit to any of the numerous relief camps whether on the extremities of Karachi or in small cities across the country will show the pathetic conditions in which flood affectees are currently living.

Lack of expertise in disaster management and the non-existence of planning in relief work have exacerbated the problem. The development sector – mainly NGOs – and individuals have done a commendable job but the sporadic nature of their efforts and a lack of management expertise has diluted the impact of relief work while the limited supply of funds means only a small proportion of the affectees from over 72 districts have received any kind of substantial aid.

The private sector, on the other hand, has the requisite management expertise to ensure that any relief effort is executed in a seamless manner with minimum wastage. But the corporate sector cannot be expected to send their employees to work at reliefs camps at the expense of their usually profitable ventures.

However, companies can partner with NGOs and transfer their expertise to development sector workers through focused and targeted training sessions. Their emphasis on systems, standard operating procedures and efficacious use of resources to ensure profitability can serve as a guiding light for the development sector workers, who often tend to overlook these core values driven as they are by the desire to bring positive change to society.

This problem in the development sector is illustrated by the lack of co-ordination between NGOs working on a similar mandate. Replication and duplication of effort is the most widespread problem in this sector with NGOs often wasting essential resources as they try to outdo the other.

In the current scenario, such ‘reinvention of the wheel’ would be an anomaly. A centralized entity that co-ordinates flood relief activities could eliminate this problem. However, there is no unified platform of NGOs where such decisions could be taken.

It is in areas like these that the private sector can show the way; as there are bodies that represent the interest of multi-nationals and even serve as a lobby group in government policy making.

Embedding CSR – Where do we stand?

Most important of all, the private sector – particularly corporations – have the budgets and resources that could make a phenomenal impact on developmental activities in general and flood relief in particular.

Most organizations have budgets allocated for developmental activities, particularly Multi-nationals as it is usually embedded in the mandate of the parent company due to regulatory requirements. Globally, companies are required to invest a part of their profits back into society to tackle the economic, social, environmental and cultural aspects that are affected by their activities.

For instance, upstream oil companies’ CSR activities focus on areas where the drilling and exploration take place; the marine environment if its off-shore drilling; and the environment in general because of the degradation caused. Similarly, pharmaceutical companies can with focus on the health sector.

CSR activities are not necessarily limited to related fields but can be all encompassing and serve as a company’s contribution to society; often focussing on education and health sectors.

However, companies are yet to internally integrate CSR as one of the core business values in Pakistan, as its beginning point is organizational stakeholders, like shareholders, employees, internal environment, and only then can investments be made in society.

Globally, though, companies are coming up with socially responsible products, such as Toyota’s hybrid cars, General Motor’s hugely profitable Ecomagination initiative or IBM’s Big Green intiative.

In Pakistan, SECP’s recent ‘Companies (Corporate Social Responsibility) General Order, 2009’ sought descriptive and monetary disclosures from companies for their CSR activities. There is no regulatory requirement for private companies to allocate a certain proportion of their revenue or profit for CSR activities.

Need for more comprehensive regulations:

This means that the role of corporations remain sporadic and inconsistent, with companies often taking the easy way out by donating a certified amount (made mandatory due to regulation in the parent company’s country) to an international aid organization or a local NGO – which also tends to dilute the impact of relief work.

This is the practice that is being witnessed in flood-related relief work. Unilever’s (Global) donation of Rs. 138 million (€1 million+) was distributed among World Food Programme, Oxfam International, Save the Children & Population Services International.

Such international entities have a high percentage of administrative cost; which substantially reduces the aid amount that reaches the final recipient.

For instances, if Rs.100 is donated to the United Nations; then Rs. 52 will be used for administrative costs while Rs. 48 will go to relief efforts. On the other hand, a Rs. 100 donation to Edhi Foundation would mean Rs. 20 for administrative costs and Rs. 80 for the deserving.

While not all organizations tend to take the easy route, it remains a prevalent practice; and not just in times of such disasters but otherwise as well.

Mobilink is one stand-out example in this bleak scenario. It did a commendable job for the relief & rehabilitation of the affectees of the Kashmir Earthquake. The company invested $1 million in the setting up and running of a relief camp that was completely administered by their own team. And now, the company has donated Rs. 236 million, easily one of the largest donations by a private sector company in Pakistan, which is being used for emergency relief distribution, hygiene kits, shelter, portable health units and dispensaries, and other relief and rehabilitation activities.

Most importantly, the company has confirmed that no cheques were handed over. They are doing everything through their own employees and local NGOs that are involved on the ground and do not have exorbitant administrative costs.

Volunteering personal time is the best donation I can think of. Moreover, the company is using the expertise of relevant teams to drive efficiencies. A corporate procurement executive is far well versed in negotiating with vendors trying to make a quick buck from the crisis and a local contact is of course better suited to identify exact needs on ground.

Such activities appear to be more effective and exhibit genuine concern rather than the Rs. 100 million contribution of Pakistan Petroleum Limited that has gone to the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund.

It also seems that private sector companies are cognizant of this fact; and hence, there has been minimal disclosure in terms of exact contributions made for flood relief. The information that has been made available clubs together the total contributions made and the names of contributing companies. For instance, members of the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce & Industry (OICCI) have provided information that requires decryption, such as:

“..Companies like Unilever Pakistan, Mobilink, Aventis Pakistan, Johnson & Johnson, Nestle Pakistan, Coke and Pepsi contributed cash, besides donating their products for the affected families. Donations comprising food items were around Rs141 billion, while Rs202 million worth of products were also sent by some companies...”

Any queries concerning the exact details and nature of contribution results in the tepid response that the concerned company does not want to gain marketing mileage from their relief efforts. With the exception of Mobilink, the websites of most of these companies do not carry much detail of their donations either.

Time to change tracks!

Considering the overall economic and development scenario of Pakistan, all stakeholders need to come together and synergize their efforts to arrest our nation’s decline and ensure that we do not end up as a failed state.

Amongst all, the corporate sector remains the best-equipped to provide some sort of long-term solution through sustainable projects that can make a significant contribution towards the development of certain spheres of society – geographically, socially, economically, environmentally and also culturally.

No one expects a single organization to shoulder the burden for societal improvement. Rather, a comprehensive plan ought to be put together that not only demarcates spheres but also creates partnerships with reputable NGOs as well as entities from the development and public sector.

Furthermore, the government needs to step forward and formulate regulations that makes CSR a mandatory part of business practice. In case the government fails to take such steps, then the corporate & private sector should exhibit its professional nature and evolved state by forming a self-regulatory body to ensure CSR practices are put into place.

But before the private sector begins the reformation of society or the rehabilitation of flood affectees, it has to make sure that CSR practices are embedded internally and incorporated in their organizational culture.

Because, like charity, CSR also begins at home!

Tales of torturous times

The Partition of the subcontinent in 1947, which resulted in the creation of Pakistan and India, forced millions to leave their homes and head towards an unknown destination. It is the largest mass migration recorded in history with billions crossing the line that divided the two states, while more than half a million lost their lives in the aftermath of hostilities. Tales of Two Cities is a reflection on those torturous times. Two leading journalists, Kuldip Nayar from India and Asif Noorani from Pakistan, attempt to give a personal perspective on the tragedy.

Both men and their families were uprooted from their homes in the events that followed Partition. Kuldip Nayar, who was 24 at the time, was forced to flee his native Sialkot suddenly "leaving the food on the table untouched." Being politically conscious, Nayar's recollections present a detailed picture of not only the leaders and politics of the day but also personal vignettes that elucidate the fear felt by an entire people.

Asif Noorani, on the other hand, was only eight when Partition affected his family. His family moved from Mumbai (Bombay then), three years after Partition, and was shielded from the communal carnage that broke out during those times. He retains his sense of humour throughout the narrative and manages to find a tune from Bollywood – his true vocation being a film and music journalist – to add to his unique description of events.

Nayar, a verteran journalist, was separated from his family while fleeing to the Indian Punjab and vividly describes the pangs of uncertainty separation and felt by him, as if "crushing beneath one's shoes the embers of memory." He experienced the cold brutality of the times first-hand as trains turned into abattoirs and a "story of brutal murder or gang rape did not move me any more."

Noorani had a comparatively safe passage aboard a steamer that docked off Bombay, while he looked forward to the new land with a child's excitement. His essay dwells more on his revisits to India after Partition; the problems faced by Pakistanis traveling to India and vice versa and the reception that he received.

An interesting snippet from one of his visits was during the 1965 war, when the young Bollywood aficionado enjoys the cinema in Bombay while his family back home fears that he might be a prisoner of war. During the visit, he befriends an Indian intelligence officer, Takle (roughly translated into Baldie), and the episode establishes further the latent goodwill that still exists between the two people.

The writers also talk about the metamorphosis of their adopted cities. Both Delhi and Karachi have turned into megacities – a far cry from half a century ago when they were small cities with limited opportunities; however, as both writers point out, the cities were clean back then and did not face so many environmental problems.

The Delhi that Nayar migrated to was inundated by Punjabis, and saw a pre-dominance of the "crudeness and indiscipline" of Punjabi culture over the "dainty, decent culture of Delhi". With population growth, Delhi has experienced infrastructural problems as it grows without any planning; the malls and skyscrapers, in Nayar's words, are destroying the soul of Delhi.

Noorani also fondly remembers the Karachi of yore and its people, especially the rousing reception given to Indian Premier Jawaharlal Nehru when he visited the then capital to sign the Indus Water Treaty.

He celebrates Karachi's cosmopolitanism and pays tributes to the various people and organisations working for its betterment. He acknowledges Karachi's multi-faceted problems, but makes a frank confession through Milton's quote, "With all they faults, I love thee still", a sentiment shared by many other Karachiites.

The two writers – both life-long campaigners for better relations between the two countries and its people – also point out the problems faced by Pakistanis and Indians alike to travel to the other country and make suggestions for the same. Nayar could only visit Sialkot after being elected to the Indian Parliament.

Also included in the book is Nayar's revealing interview with Sir Cyril Radcliffe, the man in-charge of drawing the boundary between the two countries. The resources at Radcliffe's disposal and the time-frame in which he delivered are a telling indictment of Britain's attitude in deciding the fate of the subcontinent.

In most Indo-Pak collaborations, one comes across divergent views. While this book also highlights different points of views, the authors are joined together by similar concerns. Both lament with equal measure the state of Urdu. Nayar contends that Urdu lost its case with Partition, and has been its biggest victim.

He bemoans the fact that chaste Urdu is no longer heard in Delhi. Noorani's concern has more to do with the new breed that tries to flaunt its English at the expense of Urdu.

Both the essays, part of a single book edited by David Page, is the fourth in a series that attempts to establish cross-border dialogue. Other titles include Diplomatic Divide, Divided by Democracy and Fault Lines of Nationhood.

The two stories, which unravel in essay form, flow like gentle tales narrated by two wise old men; and serve as an apt reminder of the pain and agony suffered by our forefathers for the deliverance of the Promised Land.

Book : Tales of Two Cities

Author : Kuldip Nayar & Asif Noorani

The Protesting Hypocrites

Over the last few days, the moribund civil society has sprung into action; clamoring support for and expressing solidarity with the people of Palestine. They have taken the admirable step of abandoning cushy arm-chairs and even brought their parakeets onto the streets.

In all likelihood, a befitting culmination to hours of fulmination against Zionist aggression; and the modest turn-out a reflection of the penetration of the electronic medium – the organizers relied on facebook, mass e-mailing and sms-es to gather support.

In a snapshot review of the protest march in the words of the organizer reproduced verbatim: “The streets of downtown Karachi reverberated on Saturday with slogans condemning Israeli brutalities in the Gaza Strip and the international community’s double standards, especially those of the United States, which have already claimed hundreds of innocent Palestinian lives in the besieged territory.

A large number of peace and human rights activists, political party leaders, trade union leaders, lawyers, doctors, journalists, show-business personalities, students and teachers of all genders and age groups, carrying Palestinian flags and banners and placards condemning Israeli brutalities and the US’s alleged abetment in the crime, marched from the Karachi Press Club to Regal Chowk, Empress Market and back to the KPC…”

And so on. Pakistanis have shown a tremendous spirit in recent times for exhibiting a global conscience; and exposing double standards which is the flipside of international diplomacy. However, it is in the side-stepping of their own glaring double-standards that they manifest a hitherto unknown spirit. While a catastrophe of the magnitude as is unfolding in Gaza right now would split asunder the conscience of even the brutally heartless, what belies belief is that the atrocities being perpetuated in the Northern Areas, particularly in Swat, no longer seem to prick the conscience of the concerned gentry.

Collective amnesia has for long been the malady of choice of our thinking citizenry, but Swat – a battleground for nearly 2 years now – appears to have been consciously expunged from memory. In the world of hackneyed clichés, it was the ‘Switzerland of Pakitsan’, the tourist destination of choice of all those who could not afford going abroad and those rarities who find in nature the serenity that consumerist life cannot procure.

Other than in op-ed pieces, this tourist haven has vanished completely from the drawing-room discourse of these social revolutionaries; barring a digression on those rare occasions when wall chalkings threatening Talibanisation are spotted from the arm-chair vantage point.
While numerous welfare funds for the Gaza residents have been established over-night, a blanket or two donated for the nearing a hundred-thousand homeless in the numbing winter of Swat would be a pleasant surprise.

Online portals and unsuspecting inboxes have been inundated in efforts to gather support against Israeli actions, while Swat does not even have a functioning online petition on the famous website of the same name.

Going as far as terming such demonstrations (against Israel) an exercise in futility I will leave to the cynics, no matter how miniscule or negligible an impact it has or none at all. What gets me riled up is that these bastions of civility remain unperturbed by the atrocities being committed in our own backyard. While Kashmir was in arms and street protests were in full sway, there was merely a sound from these self-proclaimed practitioners of universal rights. While Baluchistan has burned and smelted over the course of Pakistan’s existence, they had no qualms in using up its natural gas; never sparing a thought for its ramshackle infrastructure and non-existent educational set-up.

They protest because protests are going on the world over. It fits into their philosophy of jumping on the band-wagon of popular dissent.

Another case in point, which says a lot about the hypocrisy of these patrons of civilised society, was the readiness with which students at Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Pakistan’s premier humanities university, joined hands with the protesting lawyers. Scions of connected families, these protesters were safe in the knowledge that the invisible hand would come to their rescue if they were ever to end up in the fists of the law. However, the region of Swat and the scenic Malam Jabba, visited twice annually by LUMS students, did not elicit even a word of protest from these future leaders of ours. Despite having a much stronger link with the Northern Areas, which hordes of students visit come the time of the quarter break, all ties were forgotten once it was in the claws of obscurantism.

No groups – from among students or the civil society – have stepped forward with ideas or policies that would in some way ameliorate the plight of the nearly one-third of the 1.5 million of Swat who have rendered homeless. No suggestions have been made for setting up of refugee camps and girl schools nearly 200 of which have been clamped upon and closed down.

Let alone present any creative or even practical solution for the misery-addled residents of Swat, our civilised society cannot even streamline its effort – even when it would further their own cause.

Separated by only a couple of days from the protest against Israeli atrocities of the self-proclaimed silent suave intellectually endowed minority, which goes by the sobriquet of civil society, was another protest against the same Israeli brutality. Students associated with Jamaat-e-Islami also expressed solidarity with their Palestinian brethren.

While reluctance on part of the two groups to synergise their efforts is understandable, if not quite rational, but it was the uncanny similarity in the modus operandi of protesting of these two groups that blows to smithereens the pretence of difference that the civil society clings on to.

The intensity of anger, the sloganeering, the haphazard nature of the procession, the clubbing together of Israel and the United States, blaming it all on a Zionist agenda left one with a feeling of déjà vu. The burning of the Israeli flag proved beyond doubt that no matter how different the social, economic and educational backgrounds are but when it comes to venting anger against their favorite punching bag, we are all the same.

Giving a literary spin to this debate, Big Brother of Orwellian fame appears to be watching; pulling the strings of earthly minions – civil society included. However, there is another similarly somber view of the totalitarian nature of modern reality espoused by Aldous Huxley in ‘Brave New World’. While Orwell feared that modes of information and knowledge will be controlled and stifled such that people will no longer know what the pressing issues of the day are, Huxley prognosticated that there will be such a glut of information that people will fail to discern the relevant from the frivolous; that the level of mass information will reach such a level that the real issues will be buried in the mass of trivialities.

As protests against Israeli aggression gather steam, now a regular feature in major metropolises across Pakistan, while Swat, Northern Areas, Baluchistan, Kashmir and other issues that plague our society lie forgotten or placed on the back-burner, it is Huxley who stands vindicated. The age of mass information lays bare the superficial expression of concern of the civil gentry, if they must be absolved of their hypocrisy.

Return of the Native

When a swarm of black engulfs, I am reminded of Hardy. His writing also had a dark pallor. Everything was depressing. From start to finish. Unlike Chekhov, who mastered the art of short-storytelling. His adjectives were bleak. They were desolate. Hardy is plain negative. He would be for the entire breadth of the novel. And the blackness has returned. It's Ashura time and where my humble abode lies, the blackness hits the skies.

Old Numaish, or the former epicentre of Karachi, the round-about which-is-no-more, adjacent the Quaid's mazaar, is where the Shias have one of their major Mosques, or Imam Bargah, if you must. The entire artery, M.A. Jinnah road that stretches from Bundar Road till Prison round-about, was sealed. Crossing to the other side is a hassle. I had to take a long detour. Travel an extra 15 kilometeres to circumvent the route of the procession.

The shias, however, cannot be blamed as the rest make an equally appalling mess come the time of Eid ul-Azha, when sacrifces are mandatory. Although no detours are required.

However, this Moharram, with the threat of suicide bombing large.....the entry exit points are heavily secured and whether convenient or otherwise, oncomers are forced to take detours.

But the news is that attendance at the Majlis and the Procession is expected to not be as high as of earlier years. The threat of suicide bombing at a public congregation has deflated religious fervour even. It was not always like this. The Karachi of the 90s, with its no-go areas, never scared us of public gathering. Safety in numbers was what we aimed for. That is no longer the case. I wonder whether this change in thinking is post-Benazir assassination or that is when it hit home. After having more blasts in the country than most war-zones, with an increasing number of suicide bombings, 2007 was always going to be the bloodiest year of our collective living memory.

The side-show of the lawyers movement, which would time and again bring life to an abdupt halt, the Lal Masjid spectacle, the musical chairs that the Chief Justice played, the returning-departing-returning political exiles, the bruwahah over the elections, the imposition of emergency rule, media related chicanery, the assassination of the Baluch separatist leader, the still ongoing battles in Waziristan and tribal areas, the never-ending War on Terror and destabilized Afghanistan and Iraq, the rhetoric based in Iran........all this took place in 2007. And for all those who gloat over the upheavels in Pakistan, the assassination of Benazir Bhutto was the crowning glory. The same day, fellow exile-return and less of a darling of the West, Nawaz Sharif was also attacked. There were only four casualties at his rally, and one victim adorned the screen - thanks to the profusing media - having promotional party paraphernalia as coffin. Nawaz, to his credit, hurried to the hospital where Benazir had already breathed her last, and announced boycott of elections.

Its funny how often politicians boycott. Then they enter under protest. Sometimes under duress. My hunch was Zardari wanted participation to ride on the sympathy wave. Atleast thats less cynical than the conspiracy theory doing the rounds in coke-laced get-togethers in drawing rooms of not only the elite, but also some sensible people, that Zardari is responsible for Benazir's assassination.

My boss has a theory that its the knee-jerk Pakistani response to any unnatural death. If it's the husband, thant he wife must have done it, and vice verse. And incase both our dead, you blame the son, as was in the Ismail Gulgee's case.

Whatever be the case, the truth remains that Pakistan is still the clutches of medieval aristocrats and the noble blood is enough to lead the race. And Bilawal was crowned the heir, with a halloween face. It is another scary beginning. His mother, two maternal uncles, and grandfather have met tragic ends. His grandfather and one uncle were sacrificial lambs towards political ends. His mother, a victim of the most gruesome form of political targetting. One can only guess how he will fare. Apparently, he's a martial art expert. Only if he had popped the pill and entered the Matrix would I bet on him. To survive.

Like I would bet on my relationship to survive. The uncanny similarities are there. Like in every facet there are certain parallel developments which are scary. For instance, processions of pro-government politicians never have any suicide bombers knocking on the doors. It's only anti government politicians. The militants allegedly responsible for killing anti-government politicians are busy taking out government soldiers and official militiamen in the tribal areas. It raises the question why don't they target pro-government political rallies. Other than former interior minister, Aftab Sherpao, none of the government allied leaders have come under attack inspite of their huge congregations. The lawyers have been attacked, politicians have been attacked, and a leading political figure has even been assassinated. Inside job, they murmur. "Liaquat Ali Khan's assassin was functioning alone and so is the ISI," says the conspiracy theory floozie at work.

The young Fatima Bhutto has also been ranting in rant-able quarters about things inconsequential. She even ended up in Lyari for three hours. And writing articles that are labelled ghostwritten by editors of competing publications.


2008 has arrived and along with it more blasts. The first one...targetting public places in Urban centres was in Lahore...killing more than 23 policeman and a few civilians. After that, there have been two more in Karachi, one in Peshawar, and more expected over the next 2 days. Already more than 100 people have died and more than 500 injured.

Further casualties are on the way. Emergency time again. But in hospitals. All is the same in Pakistan.

For better or worse

It has been more than three weeks now since the emergency was imposed. Television channels have come back on air - barring one, for which, rather conveniently, I work and, hence, have time to prattle - and the same tripe has returned to TV screens, minus gory scenes of torso-less heads attributed to suicide bombers of immatur age.

Politicians are singing the same songs, so are the members of the administration. The ballads and slogans are pro-poor....and promises abound. Civil society is also returning to its previous role of silent apathy, barring a few miscreants who defy commonsense and hold vigils outside press club praying for a return to democracy. (Seven people in all.....)

And the incumbents are out in full force, addressing mass rallies, influencing opinion, promising reforms and transperancy, and other things that no one really believes but listens to happily.

Even Nawaz Sharif has returned, for better or worse. After his aborted attempt around a month back, this time he came with the blessings of the Saudi monarch....and in his special plane. The sacred approval enabled him to land in Lahore.....and march back to his Model Town home, which had been given over to the social welfare department and had become a shelter for the homeless. Now those poor souls are back on the street.....as the government has taken reconciliatory measures and occupying abandoned homes isn't easy as laser transplants on the scalp and growing hair in marsh land. Let's see if the media follows their trail, or they are forgotten as quickly as our outstanding cases against politicians in power.

Though, Benazir says Nawaz Sharif's safe return highlights the effectiveness of "National Reconciliation Order".......hoping that cases against her will also be written-off.

It's like giving a woman married for nine months and happy with her care-free life full of fun, frolic and party two options: Either get babies or rabies.

Which is the course Britney Spears plans to follow. She is planning to adopt a pair of Chinese twins. To make up for the loss of parental custody of her two kids...and also losing visitation rights after endangering their lives after a cocaine binge. Cynics (me?) say the plan is to get good press afer Madonna and Angelina's success.

And that's why Altaf Hussain is also expected to return. After Benazir and Nawaz's successful return, although like Madonna, who got into trouble with Malawian authorities for trespassing certain laws, Nawaz, too, got into hot-waters with the Saudi king for sneaking out incognito. But this time, he didn't circumvent authority and will soon be sprinkling General Mushy with Aab-e-ZamZam and verses from the Holy Quran.

But will the return of the ex-persona no grata result in a political short-circuit? The equation stands changed now.

Benazir continues to loose chunks of her voter-base with every statemet she makes. She has already promised Pakistan to the Americans. She has also promised to wipe out extremists elements. She has also promised to purge the Army of extremist elements and send them packing back to the barracks, like a mule with the tail tied between the legs and bleeding from the ass. She also says that she will empower the poor, get women her rights, safeguard the minorities, provide provincial autonomy and everything other 'positive claim' that will make it into the news.

Nawaz has made similar claims....he has returned to the nation to save us...to save democracy...and save the poor from being short-changed by the leaders-elect or select.

Altaf Hussain has been making teh same claims from his cave in England...

Even Imran Khan has joined in the chorus, but he has a cancer hospital to his credit and a past that is free from acts of duplicity that was second nature to the three leaders mentioned before him.

President General Musharraf will soon become President Musharraf once he takes oath and takes off his uniform. While there will be no strip-tease, there might be a stripping of dignity as the politicians will attempt to reconcile differences and become part of an alliance....with the sworn in President.

The myth of unity of political parties will remain, however, as a distant reality. And each-other will be blamed.

Street Fighting Man

Sang Mick Jaggers...allegedly after hearing Tariq Ali address an anti-war rally in London. Tariq Ali is Pakistan's preeminent student leader......back in the 60s when there was still life in nations.

Whether you like French fries or otherwise, you gotta admire their courage, although they dumped Vietnam on the Yanks and committed other fouls in the battle-ground of realpolitiks. But the people - with or without their fixation of cheese and wine....having been pioneers in movements of the mind...and hearts, too. 1968 is celebrated in campus history as the Year of the Barricades. The anarchist zeal of French students nearly brought down the government of France's most famous post-world-war-2 president: Charles de Gaulle. Anti-Vietnam protests in teh US followed.....and while in France intellect bloomed, in Yankee-land, too, it showed dissent. And thanks to that, we had the hippie revolution and hopes of sex, drug and rock n roll.

Even in Pakistan, there were protests against Ayub Khan.....whether masterminded by the executed Zulfi Bhutto is another debate.....but the student uprising alongside civil society was the major factor in Ayub giving up power. Tariq Ali's book, Street Fighting Years: Revolution in the 60s is a rather interesting read and makes one nostalgic for that age...when honest revolt reigned.

But lets snap and return to the present and the conundrum that our society is. Master Mush has made another promise....that general elections will be held by Feburuary 15, 2008 as promised. He has made quite a few promises in the past, too, to the people of Pakistan...and in particular to fellow stakeholders or political allies and failed to deliver. General Zia, the senior most dictator with 11 years to his credit, also pulled off similar deeds. Musharraf has pulled level with Ayub, who both have 8 years of service as head of all affairs under their belts.

Anyhow, the announcement, it is believed rather cynically and by me, has been made to appease international detractors. Condemnation of imposition of emergency was swift, as is generally the case...and Master Mush got a call from Uncle Sam's honcho and even PastMaster Bush said to reporters he was expecting return to normality in Pakistan. Britain, Germany, Norway and the UN were other nations that condemned the imposition of emergency and the black-out fo the media. Human rights groups were up in arms.

As it is, Pakistan is notorious for suicide bombings, honour killings, military coups, mass poverty, target killings, terrorism and increasing itnernational debt...and now images are flashing on screens of news-channels across the world of memebrs of civil society engaged in pitched battles with law-enforcement agencies. While civil war is unlikely to break out anytime soon, as Pakistan is more of a police-state than it is made out to be, and the population more pathetic than it is generalyl believed to be, there are still fears that this showdown can only get worse with time.

The lawyers have already been protesting for a while....ever since the CJ got sacked. They celebrated for a while when he was re-instated but now he is back under-house arrest and once again back to politicizing the entire campaign. So the lawyers are back protesting on the streets.

With the imminent elections, political campaigns are also underway....and with Benazir's arrival, things have heated up. The suicide bombing attempt at Benazir that killed nearly 150 people has only reaffirmed the victim mentality of the footsoldiers....and after Benazir was placed under house arrest yesterday to keep her from holding a scheduled rally and address in the army dominated city of Rawalpindi, the Jiyalas - as the die-hards call themselves - are all set for a showdown.

But the most alarming development, though some say the most lofty, is the gathering momentum of student protests. While governemnt universities have long been hotbed of political violence, the private campuses were rather sterile. But now it's students from these private universities only - that cream of middle class that aspires to work hard - has taken on themselves to emulate the Street Figthers of the 60s..

And while the politicians and lawyers are old hand - no judgements on the sincerity or nobility of their protests - and can submit to authority when facing the literal axe, the students are unlikely to show similar discretion. The student protests of '68 turned into an uprising when a student was shot-dead by the police. But then, the value of street-life wasn't rendered useless. However, now, it's a different story....and I fear martyrs, as much for them as for the legacy left behind.

Everyday, protestors are rounded up. Lawyers are already going missing. More than a 1000 PPP party-members were arrested in Rawalpindi....an attempt to puncture BBs hot air balloon. Public congregations are disbanded under the provisional constitution - section 144 being imposed, which entails that four persons cannot discuss anything in public. Civilians can be arrested and detained without a warrant....and the Army Act has been amended, which means civilians can be tried in military courts if the authorities feel the act was deterimental for the Pakistan Army. And as Master Mush is teh Chief of Army Staff, all protests against him are detrimental for the Army....meaning, I can be court martialled, too. Even you, if you read this and they trace your IP. I must go take a leak. I hope the the flush isn't bugged.

Anyhow, the confrontations are taking place. Everyday. Police is always beating up lawyers...though sometimes they show some balls, too...especially when students come to their aid. But if you are protesting, you are bound to be picked up. If you talk to the media, even than you are picked up. By people in plainclothes. Suddenly, from nowhere, 15-20 men will emerge in white kurta-shalwar, hold you by the scruff of your neck, and drag you off.

If you are in the middle of a protest, they will come running and surround you, pushing and shoving, lead you towards a police van. If you resist, they will beat you up. Even if you are a woman.

Though, today, it was made clear that even teh women force had been instructed to use brute force. Quite a few ladies had their heels broken, and one probably has a swolled jaw after a forecful slap that was captured on tape and will probably make headlines in international media once they catch on.

Otherwise, vocal protestors are isolated from the group and thrashed - whether the media looks on or not. Even foreign journalists have faced the heat. A canadian reporter got caught up in a baton-charge....but the agencies retreated as the white-skin intimidates. Which is rather sad....Aitzaz Ahsan, a lawyer of unquestionable talent and integrity, who also represented the Chief Justice and is a Senator of the PPP, is now in solitary confinement....and when he was leading a lawyers' protest against the sacking of the Chief Justice, the highhandedness of the plainclothes policeman was seen by the entire world. They picked him up and ran....to be out of reach of the following lawyers....The man is above 50 and highly respected. They treated him like a schoolboy playing truant.

Cricketers shouldn't blame. You never get due respect in Pakistan. Unless, ofcourse, your father is in the forces.

Musharraf is the new Shah; Pakistan is Iran in the 70s

It's official now.......even right-minded American politicians think that Musharraf is behaving like a sulking King. Well, it's not official, because it's not Bush who made the statement. But a White House hopeful did....and the world is fast-catching on. Democrat Joe Biden was to make the statement while giving his address at some college. He wants US focus to shift from Musharraf and be directed at the people of Pakistan....as they have a strong democratic tradition. Someone needs to explain to Senator Biden that Pakistan has spent a greater part of its history under a military dictator - and will continue to do so as long as his great nation allows political expediency to supersede democratic or popular will.



However, his comparison surely is interesting....and make me hopeful. Can a popular student uprising hold American diplomats hostage at the American consulate? Who will be our firebrand clerical leader? Not Qazi or Fazl for sure. We need someone not tainted by petty politics. The two Islamist leaders have switched sides and flipped loyalties too often and too fast for anyone to believe in them for too long. (Long in Pakistan is realitively short.) In my head, there's only one solution: O-S-A-M-A! He's more popular in Pakistan than Musharraf...so why not?



And the senator's argument also makes sense. The moderate element, the same one with a strong tradition of democracy, will get fed up soon and join forces with the extremist and then we will have a scripted Islamic Revolution. Only we are already a nuclear power and Israel will be wiped off like Dresden and maybe some obscure jew will write his Slaughterhouse-Five or a day in the Kibbutz or something similar. There will be no nitpicking with IAEA inspectors and total destruction expedited.

Our cricketing hero..es.

"O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done;
The ship has weather’d every rack, the prize we sought is won;.."

Are the lines from a Walt Whitman poem....but I remember them chiefly because of 'Dead Poets Society", an academy-award winning movie. The poem was written to pay homage to the assassinated American president, Abraham Lincoln....and was also translated into Hebrew by an Israeli poet to be sung at Yatzak Rabin's memorial. But that's mere referencing from popular culture.

I also want to pay homage....to our cricketing heroes. To my captain, who has to be Imran Khan - also because it was his leadership that brought Pakistan it's most glorious sporting moment, and also because he is a class act with a personality that shines through even when quelching mud. Okay, that's a misplaced metaphor but I am in the mood of waxing poetic, and there's something called poetic license, too.

I am euphoric because Pakistan just pulled off its greatest run chase - and the glacier on the cake is that it was against our arch-rivals; our perennial-foes; the nation we have been raised to hate: India.

We had lost the first match like a circus lion doing the rounds......atleast I felt worse than the sprawling on the floor boxer knocked out by Tyson without having a chance to throw a punch even. We had put up a decent total in the 1st ODI....atleast by the standards of Gwalior....but the Indian batting line-up showed its superiority...and our bowling attack its mediocrity when fighting for a lost cause.

But today......chasing a mamooth 322......we showed class. Which was shown earlier by the Indian batsmen. Tendulkar was in blazing form. The way he accelerated the scoring rate remins one of the cliche 'form is temporary; class is permanent', although the man of every moment was rather unlucky to get out on 99 - for a third time. That's another unique record for the master blaster.

Umar Gul bowled with a lot of heart and was instrumental in putting the breaks on the Indian scoring rate by taking the key wicket of Tendulkar. All our bowlers chipped in and although Harbhajan blasted a quick-fire 35 at the end, we were able to keep the Indian total to a lot less than what appeared when Tendulkar held sway.

Our reply started off in jitters as usual, as we haven't had a stable opening partnership since the times of Saeed Anwar and Aamir Sohail. Salman Butt played some stylish shots but perished to a concentration lapse. But there was Younus Khan....who scored a majestic hundred, and though Youhana failed for once, 20-20 man Misbah finally put in a worthwhile ODI innings...but they both perished before completing the job. And in came the man who reflects the Pakistani temparent most honetly - the evergreen Shahid Khan Afridi...and for the first time in his life, he was able to hit the winning runs. A memorable win.......especially in context of the overall gloomy scenario that engulfs Pakistan, a state of emergency being imposed, and rumours rife that the Army Act can be amended. Which essentially means, dear unsuspecting chootyas(or civilians), that civilans can be court martialled. Our very own Guntanamo bay.

But returning to paying homage....to certain cricketers who are a mere haze in the head. I remember dozing off between deliveries as Pakistan battled England in the '92 world cup final. It was Ramazan. It was the most glorious moment of my life...too bad I was very young then.

But one year down the line......November 5, 1993: It was the Australasia Cup final, and Pakistan was playing the mighty West Indies...with its intimidating pace-attack. But out-stepped the indomitable Basit Ali ....relatively unknown but hailed in Pakistan as the next Javed Miandad...as much for his unorthodox playing style and the fact that he, too, hails from Karachi. He smashed a century of only 67 balls.....the second fastest at that time. But Basit Ali was destined to be a flash in the pan.....as his knock of a lifetime was un-done by Brian Charles Lara - who scored a magnificent 152....laced with a record 21 boundaries, emulating the great Viv Richards, which was later bettered by Saeed Anwar in his record breaking 194 against India.

But back to Basit...he was dropped for Shadab Kabir....a prolific batsman on the domestic circuit...but his first three innings fetched him three ducks and I don't think he ever got another call from the selectors. But that was the end of Basit, too, who was also mired in controversy after blaming certain team-mates of match-fixing. So Basit Ali vanished off the screen...but I still retain the memory of him bludgeoning the West Indian pace quartet.

While there are numerous stories regarding his sudden dumping by the Pakistan Cricket Board.....and the ethnic and sectarian preferences within the team, all I want to remember is him hooking and driving Ambrose all over the park. That is the memory in my head....all the rest is claptrap.

O Captain! My Captain! You should have been.

So it goes

It's bedlam in cuckoo-land once again. The army is the inherited clock that grandpa handed down as a reminder of better times, when shit had to be taken in a hole, and if water wasn't at hand, green-leaves did the job what tissues do till now for the white-rascals.

Actually, that's not how it is. What really has happened is a 'State of Emergency' has been imposed in Pakistan. President General Master Musharraf believes that the only way to save the country is by imposing emergency and so it goes, as was Vonnegut's catch-phrase. But more about the true master later. Let's first have a bird-eye view of political developments at home.

While Pakistan had been simmering with political apathy for too long, when the Chief Justice of Pakistan was brought in the firing line, the lawyers went bonkers. That resulted in a prolonged confrontation, and the CJ was reinstated....and while trying to get re-instated, he too carried out a full-fledge paraded campaign which resulted in a lot of collateral damage. But we don't talk about collateral damage and I will continue the tradition due to inherited dogmatism.....or carnal sloth, as you consider fit.

So, the CJ was hearing cases agaisnt Mush's regime and had a fair idea of cutting him down to size. High-ranking generals and police officials from Islamabad were summonded to the courts and made answerable for their actions and consequently censured. The case of missing persons, more than 200 documented cases, were also opened and slowly, but surely, the details of their whereabouts were coming to light. Newton's third law of motion, every action having an equal and opposite reaction, was holding true and Mushie might not be getting back as good as he gave, but surely his honchos were.

However, its Mushie who weilds the axe and the rest are barren trees with auburn hair and orange leaves.....or So It Goes.

While all this was happening, bomb blasts were taking place regularly over the scattered land mass of Pakistan. Swat, once a tourist haven, has now become a terrorist hide-out. Taliban style banning of barber shops and bombing of video-stores have become more frequent in the regions of the North West Frontier Province. Clashes between armed forces and terrorists also increased in frequency. While a stand-off had been achieved between lawyers and generals and civilians and forces (though civilians can only be credited with sitting down....their general stance on all issues of note); and the need of the hour became toe-ing a tough-line against militant insurgents, which some claim, is the creation of the Pak Army & ISI and has now turned into a twelve-head hydra or the sapola of fables.....

Anyhow, Master Mush got really upset with all the developments and decided to impose a 'state of emergency'.......the Chief Justice was once again fired, the constitution was abrogated, fundamental rights usurped and a dictatorship in place.

The ire of Master Mush was directed wholeheartedly at the Judiciary, who were blamed for creating such a scenario that had brought the nation on the brink of disaster. All cable operators were asked to shut-down all news channel and the only channel in operation is the state-run PTV.......

The media-folks were also blamed for not being co-operative with the government and giving rise to dissent. The terrorist issue was already a thorn in teh butt. Basically, most of the things were going wrong, and if he allowed it to continue, that would mean, the 'nation would be committing suicide', and being a pious muslim and a responsible Pakistani, he couldn't see that happen.....and so it goes.

As expected, there were scattered protests. The Lawyers came out in full force and were met wtih full force and ended up with bloody heads and broken toes. Human Rights Commission of Pakistan members were rounded up. Political leaders were rounded up. Political activists were rounded up. The government claims 500 people are in temporary confinment but even eternal optimists can't refuse a number of 5000...while cynics claim that unmarked graves are already being dug.

As I mentioned earlier, with all channels off-air, PTV had a field day. The national channel has received a lot of slack for never measuring up to it's competition and being a failure ever since it's monopoly was removed and other channels were introduced. It was PTV's opportunity...to have a few laughs of it's own....however, tehy failed to put the ball into the empty net, so to speak. It's bland transmission continued and updates about the coutry's situation were given through tickers...that eternal line at the bottom of your tv screen that sometimes provides momentary respite.

But PTV had it's coup d'etat. An exclusive interview of Master Mush addressing the masses...that would be shown live the world over. PTV had the opportunity to make up for its failures. But Victor Hugo said, history repeats itself....sometimes as a farce, and that's what the speech and PTV coverage more seemed like.

My personal observation was that the initial frame included Master Mush, Master Jinnah's hanging portrait (homage to founding father is must) and the national flag. While Musharraf ambled, Master Jinnah was slowly zoomed out, and then the flag, leaving the focus only on Musharraf and showing some nervousness and sweat. But his nearly 40-minute monologue lived up to expectations and lacked anything of substance. And we all returned to watching football matches as sports channels weren't taken off-air.

But back to the political scenario, Master Mush also introduced a temporary constitution,
or PCO (provisional constitutional order) which sounds more like a martial law.

Out fo the 17 judges of the supreme court, 7 called it legal. All were put under house arrest. 4 of them took oath under the PCO and one of them was appointed as the new CJ and the rest assured of privileges beyond expectations....or so the envious man is led to believe. For finding favor with clinging dictators has its perks, too.

America has taken up a rather soft-tone....with Condi Rice being most vocal, but she's caught up with the Mid-East process and can be spared. (Which reminds me: Apparently, the latest meeting of Olmert and Abbas in Annapolis is going to come up with a definite plan of compromise, says Condi. Chuckles or skittles, anyone?)

However, unofficially, Master Mush's honchos have claimed, rather smugly, in American newspapers, that whatever the American's think of the act, they will always opt for stability instead of democracy, as that meets the needs of political expediency.

However, there has been some murmurs that American aid to Pakistan might be come off...which was quickly discredited, though one mission that was set to visit Pakistan has been suspended. But we Pakistanis don't like Americans interfering and they can go to hell, says the Mullah on the street. And death to Israel, too. Unfortunately, our clergy is unlike that raised in Buddhist temples and will never know the meaning of peaceful dissent. And Jemima Khan said that Benazir isn't Aun Sung Suu Kyi - which is equally valid.

I would like to add my bit, too. Our people are unlike any other, too. We lack political consciousness and personal will. In an attempt to gauge the dissenting pulse...which sometimes I feel within me, too...I made my way to the Karachi press club. Media-men from all around were gathered...discussing ways of making themselves heard. Some of them had just gotten beaten up for raising anti-Mush slogans.....and a few arrested as well.

When I reached, the first rights of passage had been administered...and people were cautious. They were trying to devise a plan...but getting to the point where plans startedd being devised took sometime, too. Finally, squatting on the grass, numerous voices were heard. The young girls were vocal, the aunties were scheming, while the boys made jokes and the old men passed cynical judgements on the state of affairs.

There was no agreement on the form of protest, with the eventuality being that the protesters who a few minutes back were willing to court arrest, trickled out like milk from syrupy leaves...neither nourishing nor ....anything else, unless you're a banana planter celebrating 100 years of solitude.

But it was decided that there will be another protest tomorrow...and we promised to show our faces. Maybe we will come in the line of fire, too, Master Mush style, get baton-charged and have some scars to compete against martyrs.

While emergency rule continues, so do breaking news. Everything is suddenly of ten-times the importance. Shaukat Aziz says elections might be delayed. Mushahid Hussain, another one of Master Mushs honchos, says that he advised against the imposition of emergency and it could only end in a catastrophe. Benazir is saying a lot of things but as teh channels are off air, it doesn't really matter how she tries to tap on the emotional aspects of those listening agape.

Rest is fine. But we are ignoring what's happening on the world front, but I will hopefully return tonight with a comprehensive analysis of the Italian mafia chief who has been arrested and the Leftists fighting for their rights in isolated positions in far-off Indian provinces and American defense secretary visiting China...or teh reacting from Vladimir Putin's visit to Tehran.

All things are worth the money....so it goes, said Vonnegut. I want to write his obituary, you know. And Master Mushs....and Benazirs, too.....so it goes.