Pakistan Link - November 14, 2014

Pakistan Link

VOL. 24/46 - 21 Muharram 1436 H PAGE 11

Afghan President Seeks to Mend Fences ATC Issues Non-bailable Arrest Warrants for Imran, Qadri Islamabad: An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) on Wednesday issued non-bailable arrest warrants for Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) chief Dr Tahirul Qadri, DawnNews reported.

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan said on Wednesday that he would not seek bail from the anti-terrorism court which earlier in the day issued his arrest warrants for attacking the Parliament House and the PTV building on Sept 1.

Addressing the participants of his party’s sit-in at D Chowk, the PTI chief challenged the government to arrest him.

“I have just heard the good news about my arrest warrant. I want to make it clear that I was sleeping in the container on that day,” he said.

Mr Khan said the government had issued his arrest warrant because Mian Sahib was feeling IMRAN, P29

Pakistan on Brink of Victory against New Zealand in First Test Abu Dhabi: Pakistan are two wickets

away from a comprehensive victory over New Zealand in the first test after the tourists slumped to 174-8 in their second innings at stumps on the fourth day in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.

After their first-innings run feast of 566-3, Pakistan declared their second innings at 175-2 to set New Zealand a nominal 480-run victory target in the first match of the threetest series.

Openers Brendon McCullum (39) and Tom Latham (20) made a bright start before Pakistani spinners Yasir Shah (2-49) and Zulfiqar Babar (2-30) wrecked their top order.

The only possible consolation for New Zealand is that they were not beaten inside four days.

The contest could have been over on Wednesday but Mark Craig and Ish Sodhi, both unbeaten on 27, showed the kind of fighting

CRICKET, P29

The Largest Circulated Pakistani-American Newspaper in North America

Friday, November 14, 2014

PAGE 19

PAGE 12

Flying on the Magic Carpet as Azra Sings

New ISI Chief Faces Daunting Challenges

No Terrorist Network in Pakistan: Nawaz

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif arrives in London on a two-day official visit on Wednesday, November 12. Pakistan High Commissioner to UK Ibne Abbas is also seen in the picture

Islamabad: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said that there was no terrorist network in Pakistan at the moment. “We are determined to defeat any

terrorist network and to destroy it. Our forces will fight until every terrorist activity would be beaten,” he said in an interview with German national

daily Die Welt, when asked about reports of terrorist organization Islamic State (IS) in Pakistan.

Dismissing the allega-

tions of Pakistan’s support to the Afghan Taliban, the prime minister said that he did not see any logic behind such accusations. “They are NAWAZ, P29

Pak-US Ties of Great Importance for Stability

United States Ambassador to Pakistan Richard Olson

Islamabad: United States

Ambassador to Pakistan Richard Olson said “a strong relationship between our two countries Pakistan and US is of great

US & Canada $1.00

importance to regional stability and to achieving a more prosperous future for our citizens”.

“One of the most critical ingredients for

achieving regional stability and prosperity is creating a peaceful and stable future for Afghanistan,” Richard Olson said during his address to students at

the National University of Science and Technology (NUST) in Islamabad.

Ambassador Olson emphasized the OLSON, P29

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www.PakistanLink.com Germany May Increase Energy Investment in Pakistan Berlin: Germany is exploring to

increase its investment in Pakistan’s energy sector, provided its companies are assured about the security situation, Chancellor Angela Merkel said at a joint news conference with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif after their meeting on Tuesday.

Ms Merkel said Germany’s KfW state development bank was already involved in projects in Pakistan, including hydropower plants, but added that the security situation was sometimes a deterrent.

“We can look at intensifying these (investments), as long as the conditions are right. It is important that the prime minister (Nawaz Sharif) is successful in improving the security situation and the legal system so that investors feel safe,” she said, adding that the agricultural sector also offered opportunities for collaborative ventures.

Prime Minister Sharif urged German firms to invest in his country. “Pakistan is facing an acute shortage of energy. We believe that over the next three years we will be able to have at least additional GERMANY, P29

Court Asks Govt. to Remove Maryam Nawaz from Loan Scheme Lahore: The Lahore High Court gave the federal government on Tuesday an opportunity to replace Maryam Nawaz with another individual as chairperson of the Prime Minister Youth Loan Program.

“The chairperson has to be changed,” Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah observed during the hearing of a petition filed by Zubair Niazi, a local leader of Pakistan Tehreek-iInsaf, against the appointment.

The judge, however, said the court was showing grace by giving a chance to the government to change the chairperson in a lawful and transparent manner.

During the hearing, deputy attorney general Amir Rehman MARYAM, P29

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OPINION

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Mideast Maze

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n By Mowahid Hussain Shah

2

5 years ago, when asked to comment by the Washington Report for Middle East Affairs on the impending first Gulf War, I posited that “Desert Storm “ (the American name for its military intervention there) would become a Desert Trap.

Now, with America embroiled in Gulf War III, it is a Mideast maze with no exit.

Today, it is ISIS. In Western media, it is termed the Islamic State. The label Islamic State is no accident. It seems contrived to be contrasted with the Jewish State of Israel, which is dubbed as a liberal democracy. It is meant to show that this is actual face of an Islamic State and the actual fate that will befall its inhabitants. It is similar to the ploy used by the apartheid state of South Africa to depict the murderous regime of Idi Amin as an authentic face of a black-run republic.

For global schemers, ISIS serves a useful triple-cross agenda: (1) to empower Israel; (2) to counter Iran; and (3) to divert attention away from the core Palestinian issue, presenting it just as one of many issues.

ISIS is one of the pernicious results of the US invasion of Iraq.

The Obama Administration,

according to former US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, has “lost its way”. Obama has been entrapped in the Middle East, despite fervent at-

has little proximity to the Muslim world. Yet, during the 1970s, the Japanese Red Army operated out of Beirut and launched attacks on

It is the weakness within the mainstream Muslim world that has given ample space for obscurantism to flourish. Despite tremendous resources of oil and gas, the Muslim establishment remains bereft of purpose-driven leadership and could not grasp the big picture tempts to pivot to the Asia Pacific region, namely, to counter China.

The top military head of Japan has warned Japanese citizens not to go the Middle East to fight. Japan has only 180,000 Muslim people and

Israeli targets. To paraphrase Soren Kierkegaard: history has to be lived forward but is understood backward. Premier Abe is moving closer to Modi at US behest to offset China.

It is the weakness within the

Glaring Class Differences in Pakistan!

I

n By Rafiq Ebrahim Winfield IL

t was exhilarating to set foot on the home soil of Pakistan after two decades. Though the temperature, even in the early hours of the morning, was high we felt comfortable in our host’s luxurious house. I later found out that most of the houses in Defense and Clifton areas are stacked with luxury. There are swimming pools in most basements, big screen TVs with the facility of more that 100 channels, TV and guest lounges, more than one dining hall, fish ponds, rock gardens, and a guard with a gun at the entrance.

Wow! An entirely different face of Karachi! Life was never so luxurious when I had left Pakistan to settle in the USA in 1990.

Going out in my cousin’s chauffeur-driven car, we were soon caught in a traffic maze. A minibus passed by speedily just about an inch away from the side of our car, then a scooter driver passed by right in front. We stopped at the traffic signal with the red light, but some other cars didn’t. It was so difficult to manipulate, but our driver was at his ease, smiling. “It is always like that,” he said. “One just has to have a knack at maneuvering, as many drivers simply do not follow the traffic rules.”

We came to Garden East, which was once an area for the elite mostly populated by Ismailis since their main Jamaat Khana was there. Now it is almost a slum. The big housing complexes betray signs of neglect, and the water from gutters overflows the streets. We drove further towards Golimar, Federal Area and Nazimabad and saw housing complexes of the middle class, intermingled with pathetic living places of extremely poor people who live in cell-like structures, without the basic facilities of life.

One cannot help feeling depressed after seeing such dismal sights and visualizing the living conditions on the other side of the ‘great divide’- the Clifton Bridge.

Our driver, Afzal, looking at my face said, “This is the living standard of more than eighty percent of the population. As for me, I hardly manage to live with my family with my present salary of seven thousand rupees (about seventy dollars) a month. My wife is sick. I took her to one of the government hospitals where she was given a referral for some lab work. I took her to a free lab, where after waiting for a couple of hours we were told to go to another lab, as the machine at that lab was malfunctioning. The other lab gave me a bill for 3,000 rupees! ” The next day I visited a local bazaar where I met with a few people. Rahim, who was selling vegetables on a cart, told me that he earns a few thousand rupees a month, selling vegetables in the scorching heat the whole day. “Sahab, this

mainstream Muslim world that has given ample space for obscurantism to flourish. Despite tremendous resources of oil and gas, the Muslim establishment remains bereft of purpose-driven leadership and could not grasp the big picture.

In contrast, it is worthwhile to recall the landmark speech on Palestine by Sir Zafrullah Khan, Pakistan’s Envoy to the UN, before the UN General Assembly on November 28, 1947, wherein he issued prescient and dire warnings on the perilous consequences of inflicting injustice on the Palestinian people.

The same troika that welcomed the Egyptian coup – Israel, the Arab establishment, and US neocons –in effect was also acquiescent on the rise of ISIS. Now the sponsors are upset when they themselves are in the firing line. Meanwhile, Turkey has its own Kurdish conundrum to worry about.

There are some silver linings.

The British parliament voted in favor of Palestine, and Sweden has recognized the Palestinian state.

Even the meek Ban Moon of UN termed the destruction of Gaza “beyond description” after witnessing it first-hand. The Palestinian problem germinated in the corridors of the United Nations, but it may not end there. Such is the labyrinthine spread of the virus of violence.

India Should Realize the Seriousness of the Kashmir Issue n By Syed Nayyar Uddin Ahmad

M

Lahore, Pakistan

r Arun Jaitely and the Indian government are mistaken when they ask Pakistan to either talk to India or the Kashmiri leadership. The fact is that Pakistan and Kashmir are inseparable entities.

Actually, it is for the Indian government to accept the ground realities and decide between war and peace with Pakistani and Kashmiri people.

The Indian government should also be careful while addressing all issues with Pakistan, which it should not mistake for Bhutan or Nepal.

We Pakistanis know very well the true strength of India, which has failed to subdue Sri Lanka, where recently about a dozen Indian fishermen were awarded the death penalty.

Pakistanis also know that the United States has clearly told India that it can’t be a permanent member of the UN Security Council unless it

is our present, and this is also our future. I can’t afford to put my children in school. My son who is ten will soon start working to supplement the household income.”

People who live in these places use minibuses, or sometimes even donkey-carts for their commute. They fetch water in buckets from faraway centers, as they don’t have any water coming to their homes. Good schools are a far cry for their children. And when they fall sick, only God heals them, as medical facilities are difficult to obtain. Most of them are also jobless! Frustrated young men resort to drugs, or commit crimes in their effort to make reality better.

The plight of the masses is deplorable, but what about INDIA, P29 the future? These people have little hope and they see a grim Vi e w s future. and opinIt is the people who make a nation prosperous and proions exgressive, and if more than 80 percent of the population is pressed poverty-stricken and miserable, how can they contribute to by authe progress of the nation? thors and Can’t something be done for them? Surely, our governcontribument can take immediate steps to ease the condition of the tors in armasses. They can put in a fleet of buses, provide clean water, ticles, letters, opinion pieces, control prices of everyday commodities, ensure free educareports, advertisements, etc tion for poor children, provide affordable housing and better appearing in Pakistan Link medical facilities at government hospitals. and Urdu Link are their own.

The affluent class should also come to the fore. In the The paper neither shares USA and other developed countries there is a charitable ornor endorses them and thus ganization at every step and for every cause. People with should not be held responmoney are always keen to launch their own humanitarsible for the views/opinions ian set-ups. But that is not the case in Pakistan. Only of the writers & advertisers. a few genuine humanitarian organizations undertake noble tasks.

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P6 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014

Diary of a Non-Resident Pakistani

n By Syed Kamran Hashmi

R

Westfield, IN

ummaging through the pile of books for my Mac Book Pro on the side of my bed, I struggle to wake up, my eyes still heavy and closed, my mind still sleepy and disoriented. It is five in the morning. The alarm clock has already gone off to remind me to get ready for work.

Once my hand recognizes its surface, I place the sleek, lightweight laptop on my chest, lifting up the display screen from its base.

It comes to life immediately with a slight mechanical noise, its bright light piercing my squeezed eyelids.

Squinted, I start browsing the internet. Is there anything special? Probably not. Then, what am I looking for this early in the morning so eagerly? A business deal or is it the performance of international stock markets for future investments?

Neither one of them. Then, is it the number of likes and comments on a Facebook post? Of course, not. Instead, through the Internet, I try to reconnect myself with the current events in Pakistan from where I left them before I went to bed.

Lately, I realize that a simple habit of following the national news has seized control of my mind like an addiction in which the vicious cycle of drug withdrawals that leads to over-indulgence which results in profound guilt never ends. A routine that does not please me since there is hardly any good news in the media but is guaranteed to make

me a nervous wreck.

Anyway, in the next ten minutes I need to glance at the e-papers.

First, of course the current one, followed by another, then another; at least five of them, I skim through them all taking in the important events. Then, while having breakfast, I read my favorite columns and update myself with today’s political agenda. Only, then I feel satiated.

Sitting in the car on my way, I not only insert the car key in the socket to turn on the engine, I also stick the aux lead into my Samsung Galaxy connecting it with the audio system of the vehicle. Again, I browse through the app of Pakistani politics and click on one of the daily talk shows. Even though, most of them are boring and repetitive, I still enjoy listening to them, a habit that I am contemplating to give up.

In the next 35 minutes, by the time I reach the work place, I have already finished one program. The recorded programs do not contain advertisements, so they run shorter and a little more enjoyable than their original version which contains up to thirty minutes of advertisement time for a one hour long show. I repeat the same exercise on my way home. Equipped with all the latest updates, trust me, I know what is going on in Pakistan moment by moment: Imran arrives in Islamabad, Maulana Tahir Qadri leaves Dharna, Mian Nawaz Sharif meets Asif Ali Zardari, PPP promotes Bilawal as its new Chairman and so on. Sometimes, I believe I am more informed about them than

F m

a professional journalist who covers politics; and can visualize these events so clearly as though they are unfolding in front of my eyes. But, to tell you the truth I don’t live in Pakistan. I live in the United States of America (USA) more than seven thousand miles away from Islam-

law permits me to keep only one, then you know, which one I am going to keep, right? I am totally invested in America. All my kids are born here. Growing up, I am sure they love the country of their childhood as much as I do mine, or may be a little more because they know

If push comes to shove and if the law permits me to keep only one, then you know, which one I am going to keep, right? I am totally invested in America. All my kids are born here.

Growing up, I am sure they love the country of their childhood as much as I do mine, or may be a little more because they know their quality of life would not be better anywhere else abad. I left the country of my birth and my childhood decades ago.

To tell you more, I must admit that I hold dual nationalities, one Pakistani, the other one, American.

If push comes to shove and if the

H

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their quality of life would not be better anywhere else.

In addition, my house, my retirement investments and my life insurance, everything caters to my needs here in the USA. The likeli-

OPINION hood of me moving back to Pakistan, to be honest, is less than the odds of a having a snowfall in Karachi during the summer time. In spite of this harsh reality, my heart longs for a ‘new’ and progressive Pakistan all the time. From five in the morning when I start groping for my laptop till my mind goes numb late at night, I am rooting for that change. If asked my colleagues and friends may even reveal that my soul still resides in Pakistan and only my body has immigrated to the Northern suburb of Indianapolis, unattached and disinterested in the local politics. I cannot disagree. Which is why I may not be able to tell you the name of the Mayor of my city or the name of local Congressman. However, you bet I can expound on every reason for the delay in local body elections of Punjab and Sindh. I can also allude to the rulings of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in its favor and cite you the Constitutional clauses which deal with the issue.

My story should not surprise most Non-Resident Pakistanis as I find a majority of dual nationals following the same pattern even when they have lived outside Pakistan for a quarter century or more. The severity, the shades, and the reasons may be different but the motif, the concern for a stable and progressive Pakistan does not change. I watch Pakistani news channels running all day long in their households. I see them supporting the sit-ins or arguing against it, I listen to their concerns, I feel their passion and I ask myself: Do Pakistanis living in Pakistan appreciate that passion too?

OPINION n By Dr Mohammad Taqi

J

Florida

ihadist terror has struck again, claiming 60 innocent lives at the Wagah border near Lahore. While Jundallah and Jamaatul Ahrar — two reincarnations or splinter groups of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) — were quick to claim credit for the heinous act, there was a third entity blaming the assault squarely on India.

The former director general of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), General Hamid Gul, who is practically a fixture at religio-jihadist parties’ gatherings, was on television pointing a finger at India and its intelligence agency, RAW. The former general obviously did not produce a shred of evidence supporting his assertion but was successful in dividing public opinion at a critical juncture when unity in opposing and condemning jihadist terrorism was badly needed. Whether it is the massacre of Christians at the All Saints Church in Peshawar, slaughter of the Shia Hazara or the Baloch nationalists and Zikris or the attack that just about killed the young Nobel Laureate Malala Yousafzai, it is always the elusive foreign hand that is blamed. When such tough times call for deep introspection, individuals like General Hamid Gul steer the narrative to intangible, unseen and thus impossible to counter forces. It simply never fails. These confusion-sowing characters keep returning like a bad penny just when intense focus is needed to rally against terrorism.

Years after General Hamid Gul’s retirement, a politician is said to have asked him, “General sahib aap asl mein

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 – PAKISTAN LINK – P7

Suicide Attacks: Jihadist and Academic kab retire hon gey?” (When will you actually retire?) One does wonder when exactly this jihadist general will hang up his boots. In fact, another ex-ISI chief, General Ahmad Shuja Pasha, seems to be following in General Gul’s footsteps.

The antics and utterances of these retired generals, including berating the civilian leaders and labeling them traitors, do however provide an extremely useful insight into how disastrously delusional the mindset of at least some of the retired brass is. After all, these fine men do not go cuckoo suddenly after retirement. It is inconceivable that another former ISI chief, General Javed Nasir, would have abruptly joined the Islamist evangelist Tablighi Jamaat right after leaving service. Officers like the late Colonel Ameer Sultan Tarar, aka Colonel Imam, became indoctrinated on the job. Ironically, Tarar was assassinated by the TTP whose antecedents he had helped sire. Scores of Islamised officers, including generals, and the rank and file do actually seem to believe both that India is out to dismember Pakistan and that they and their jihadist proxies — with divine help — are the bulwark against this impending disaster. Contrary to the popular belief that General Ziaul Haq started the Islamisation of the services and society, this delusional thinking has been the formal cornerstone of the Pakistani security establishment’s both inward and outward view at least since General Ayub Khan’s era.

The Pakistan army portrayed India as a regional hegemon out to destroy the “citadel of Islam”, even when Nehruvian India was following a clear pacifist policy. Seeking not just parity with India but actually undoing or at least consistently undermining it became the mantra of

the Pakistani security establishment.

The problem with this insane raison d’être was that with the huge disparity in size and resources between the two countries, Pakistan was simply not going to get its wish. This is where Ayub Khan decided to impart massive doses of a concocted ideology that was equal

The rather liberal history, civics and geography courses taught in Pakistan up until Ayub Khan’s era were rolled into a single subject that came to be known as Social Studies. The subject called Deeniyat (study of religions) became Islamiat (Islamic Studies) under the Western-financed dictatorship of Ayub Khan parts religion, myths, wishful thinking and plain deception. Ayub Khan not only muzzled the free press but also appropriated the education sector a good

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20 years before General Ziaul Haq came along. As A H Nayyar and Ahmad Salim had noted in their 2003 report, ‘The subtle subversion: the state of curricula and textbooks in Pakistan’, Ayub Khan promulgated a National Education Policy in 1959 and, in subsequent years, revised the primary and secondary curricula in which “much emphasis was laid on Islamic studies and religious education”.

The rather liberal history, civics and geography courses taught in Pakistan up until Ayub Khan’s era were rolled into a single subject that came to be known as Social Studies. The subject called Deeniyat (study of religions) became Islamiat (Islamic Studies) under the Western-financed dictatorship of Ayub Khan. After his 1977 coup d’état, Ziaul Haq simply took it a step further and rechristened Social Studies as Pakistan Studies. Zia, however, made it a point that Pakistan Studies and Islamiat were taught all the way through bachelors level, including in professional colleges. He also inducted Arabic as a mandatory subject at the middle school level. Several generations have grown up on this unhealthy, revisionist diet of myths, half-truths and flat out lying fed at the secular schools, not madrassas (seminaries). This heady mixture of divine and temporal took a massive toll on the students’ objective analysis and critical thinking capabilities. Conspiracy mongering is not Pakistan’s national pastime for no reason.

A bizarre superiority complex anchored in Islamo-Arab origins, not much different from Adolf Hitler’s superior Aryan race theory, is inculcated among children right from the kindergarten level. But when the stark real-

ity remains that there is little to show for success or the alleged war victories over what the curricula describe as the “inferior Hindu banya” (petty trader), self-inflicted disasters are rationalized by blaming them on the ‘conniving Hindus’. Over the years Jews, US citizens, Afghans and Iranians have been added to the list of those ‘conspiring’ against the land of the pure. Critical thinking has been stunted so irreparably that no one bothers to question why these ‘conspirators’ that have over 10,000 years of history between them be so scared of a 67-year-old country that has yet to contribute anything significant to humanity. The academic subversion that has gone on in Pakistan is black and blatant propaganda bordering on fascism.

There is absolutely nothing subtle about this travesty of education. Unfortunately, it will not end soon. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa coalition government of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) and the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) has just recently decided to undo the textbook revisions done during the outgoing Awami National Party (ANP) government. The ANP-implemented changes were not really earth shattering but they certainly were baby steps towards sanity that still did not go down well with the PTI-JI obscurantist duo. Pakistan undoubtedly has to fight jihadist terrorism like that perpetrated at Wagah but, unless it chooses to revise and revisit the bigotry, hate, xenophobia, militant jingoism and jihadist dogma taught in its educational institutions, it risks falling further into the extremism abyss.

The PTI-JI-style academic suicide attacks will turn out to be more lethal than any terrorist assault; they must be countered lest another generation is lost to jihadism. (The writer can be reached at mazdaki@me.com and he tweets @ mazdaki)

OPINION

P8 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014 n By Dr Mahjabeen Islam

“

Toledo, Ohio

If it bleeds, it leads” is a saying in the media and stories are splashed across papers and given headlines status on television based solely on the shock and awe they inspire. In the search for ratings, perspective and wisdom are often lost.

A reporter recently wrote a piece about the Medicare fraud of a Pakistani-American physician. (http://www.thenews.com.pk/article-164622-Pakistani-Americandoctor-faces-the-music-for-hugefraud-in-US-Heathcare). It is true that the physician was incriminated with fraud and fined and sentenced to seven years in prison.

The journalistic ethic of reporting factually, minus embellishments, exaggerations and personal opinions, was seriously violated in the report. And had it not had any serious implications or consequences, my column would not be necessary.

Reports in the American media are objective and based on the FBI press release (http://www.fbi.gov/neworleans/ press-releases/2014/louisianapsychiatrist-and-five-otherssentenced-in-258-million-medicare-fraud-scheme) which is deeply surprising considering the pervasive Islamophobia in the United States. As well as an antipathy for Pakistanis.

The Pakistani reporter however tries to juice the maximum

Hating Our Healers from the event. He names an organization that the doctor founded and implies that it was in competition with APPNA, Association of Physicians of Pakistani-Descent of North America, which is not true; it has a different focus from APPNA’s. He then goes on to list the politicians that the doctor had taken photos with, repeatedly implicating PTI politicians.

He then writes: “He had special relations with the former federal minister and current PTI KPK President Azam Swati”. The reader is left hanging: what “special relations”, one wonders? Sexual, fraternal, familial, political or just plain old friendship? Azam Swati might consider this libel.

The report concludes with a fantastic flourish: “As a result of the American government’s campaign to overcome fraud and counterfeit activities many Pakistani born Americans have been nabbed so far and investigations are going on against the concerned individuals.”

My entire medical career of 28 years has been spent in the United States and I try to closely follow all disciplinary proceedings against physicians, especially in the Ohio State Medical Board.

There are over 15,000 physicians of Pakistani origin practicing in the United States. In recent memory there are only two PakistaniAmerican physicians that have been implicated in fraud involving millions of dollars. Otherwise, I must assure the reporter, that

disciplinary actions taken by state medical boards and the American government, cross all lines of national origin, race, ethnicity, religion and gender. The good, the bad and the ugly are found everywhere. And the statement that “many Pakistani born Americans have been nabbed so far” is blatantly false and highly objection-

families are killed. Between 2001 and 2014, 44 doctors were targeted out of whom 40 were killed, most of minority backgrounds.

From the lens of religious hatred we are unable to understand that Pakistan has a dire shortage of physicians and a seriously struggling health care system. Many of the targeted physicians practiced

Despite unpronounceable names and some very Islamic ones, patients in the United States choose Pakistani and Indian physicians due to our reputations of being competent, caring physicians. And it is heartbreaking to so many of us that we cannot give back to the nation that made us all that we are today able.

Skewed and inaccurate reports such as these just add fuel to the fire, for Pakistanis seem to already hate their healers. In no country in the world are physicians injured and killed like they are in Pakistan. The motive sometimes is money. Most often Shia and Ahmadi physicians and their

in underserved areas and some had traveled from the United States to volunteer their expertise in treating patients for free.

My debt to Pakistan and Dow Medical College is an ever-present burden for me. I came to the United States for postgraduate training and had full intent to return. Yet when visits to Pakistan carry the

likelihood of death or disability, moving and practicing there becomes out of the question. Visitors are followed from the airport and with guns-to-temples, made suddenly penniless. Neighborhoods know of a North American arrival and homes are burglarized within the week. In July 2013 I missed the explosion at Data Ganj Baksh’s shrine in Lahore by 20 minutes; it killed 13 people in the same spot at the Anarkali Food Court that we had just left. My family had prohibited my going to Karachi due to the poor security situation, but apparently no place is immune.

Knowing that I could contribute so much in Pakistan with my specialization in Addiction Medicine, I still make plans to practice in Pakistan and my family just relegates my plans to delusional babble.

It is true that physicians are at the apex of the economic pyramid in the United States. But we are proportionately taxed on our incomes and have spent an inordinate amount of time in medical school, residency and subspecialty training to get to where we are.

And we face each spike in Islamophobia that occur more and more frequently now, and our lives are not the luxurious depravity that the reporter implies.

Besieged by myriad problems the Pakistan government is unable to take the lead in safeguarding its citizens, controlling terrorism and specifically the killing of minorities and physicians. It leaves Pakistani society to be proactive in preventing the replaying of

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OPINION

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 – PAKISTAN LINK – P9

Pew Survey 2014: Pakistanis Report Increasing Well-Being but Pessimism n By Riaz Haq

T years.

CA

he number of Pakistanis reporting they are better off now has increased from 25% in 2002 to 51% in 2014, according to a Pew Research Center report based on its 43-nation survey on life satisfaction around the world. However, only 36% of those surveyed in Pakistan express personal optimism over the next five

Among Pakistan’s neighbors, 44% of Indians and 34% of Bangladeshis say they are now better off. Large majorities of Bangladeshis, Thais, Indonesians, Chinese, Filipinos and Indians expect their life in five years to be higher on the ladder than it is today. Pakistanis are considerably less sanguine about the future, but many say they don’t know where they will stand in five years (32%).

Here the key findings of the survey: 1. On average, people in richer countries in America and Europe are generally happier than those in poorer, less developed countries.

2. People in emerging economies, particularly in Indonesia, China, Pakistan and Malaysia with double-digit increases, are catching up with the sense of well-being expressed in richer countries.

3. Money isn’t everything. People prioritize nonmaterial things – such as good health and a quality education for their children – as most important in life.

4. Social and political upheaval takes a heavy toll on individuals’ life satisfaction. The survey particularly cites declining life satisfaction in Egypt and Ukraine.

5. People in Asia and Africa are the most optimistic about the future; Middle Easterners are the least.

There is significant data to support Pakistanis’ belief that they are now better off than in 2002 or 2007.

Pakistan has continued to offer much greater upward economic and social mobility to its citizens than neighboring India over the last two decades. Since 1990, Pakistan’s middle class hasexpanded by 36.5% and India’s by only 12.8%, according to an ADB report titled “Asia’s Emerging Middle Class: Past, Present And Future.”

New York Times’ Sabrina Tavernise described the rise of Pakistan’s middle class in a story from Pakistani town of Muzaffargarh in the

n By Syed Osman Sher

T

Mississauga, Canada

hese days Pakistan is engulfed in a turmoil on the issue of formation of new provinces. Though it has not assumed a serious proportion, yet it may take an ugly turn any moment.

The commotion is more ethnic and political in nature than administrative. The boundaries of administrative regions, however, need not necessarily be fixed within the parameters of linguistic, ethnic and tribal norms, although such considerations may provide a bit of convenience. Its dimension should mainly be determined by optimizing the area and population, and taking care of the aspirations of the people.

Drawing and re-drawing of administrative boundaries, as an affair of State, is not sacrosanct or sacrilegious. Changes in this regard have, in fact, been taking place over time. We may see this process through the perspective of our history as described below that would take us into the antiquity as far back as the dawn of history. According to the Buddhist,

following words: “For years, feudal lords reigned supreme, serving as the police, the judge and the political leader. Plantations had jails, and political seats were practically owned by families.

“Instead of midwifing democracy, these aristocrats obstructed it, ignoring the needs of rural Pakistanis, half of whom are still landless and desperately poor more than 60 years after Pakistan became a state.

“But changes began to erode the aristocrats’ power. Cities sprouted, with jobs in construction and industry. Large-scale farms eclipsed old-fashioned plantations. Vast hereditary lands

“‘Feudals are a dying breed,’ said S. Akbar Zaidi, a Karachi-based fellow with the Carnegie Foundation. ‘They have no power outside the walls of their castles.’”

GeoTV is illustrating this welcome phenomenon of upward social mobility in Pakistan with a series of motivational “Zara Sochiey” videos on young men and women who have risen from humble origins to achieve significant successes in recent years. Each individual portrayed in the series has overcome adversity and focused on acquiring education as a ticket to improve his or her economic and social situation.

GeoTV videos feature a number of young

The Guardian newspaper recently reported that FATA’s Bajaur agency alone has 616 schools with over 60,000 boys and girls receiving take-home rations. Two new university campuses have been approved for FATA region and thousands of kilometers of new roads are being constructed. After a recent visit to FATA, Indian journalist Hindol Sengupta wrote in The Hindu newspaper that “even Bajaur has a higher road density than India.” splintered among generations of sons, and many aristocratic families left the country for cities, living beyond their means off sales of their remaining lands. Mobile labor has also reduced dependence on aristocratic families.

“In Punjab, the country’s most populous province, and its most economically advanced, the number of national lawmakers from feudal families shrank to 25 percent in 2008 from 42 percent in 1970, according to a count conducted

by Mubashir Hassan, a former finance minister, and The New York Times.

men and women, including Saima Bilal, Kashif Faiq, Qaisar Abbas and many others, to inspire and encourage other Pakistanis to pursue their dreams against all odds.

Contrary to the incessant talk of doom and gloom, the fact is that the level of educational attainment has been rising in recent decades. In fact, Pakistan has been increasing enrollment of students in schools at a faster rate since 1990 than India, according to data compiled and reported by Harvard University researchers Robert Barro and Jhong-Wa Lee . In 1990, there were

66.2% of Pakistanis vs 51.6% of Indians in 15+ age group who had had no schooling. In 2000, there were 60.2% Pakistanis vs 43% Indians with no schooling. In 2010, Pakistan reduced it to 38% vs India’s 32.7%.

As of 2010, there are 380 (vs 327 Indians) out of every 1000 Pakistanis age 15 and above who have never had any formal schooling. Of the remaining 620 (vs 673 Indians) who enrolled in school, 22 (vs 20 Indians) dropped out before finishing primary school, and the remaining 598 (vs 653 Indians) completed it. There are 401 (vs 465 Indians) out of every 1000 Pakistanis who made it to secondary school. 290 (vs 69 Indians) completed secondary school while 111 (vs. 394 Indians) dropped out. Only 55 (vs 58 Indians) made it to college out of whom 39 (vs 31 Indians) graduated with a degree.

Education and development efforts are beginning to bear fruit even in remote areas of Pakistan, including Federally Administered Tribal Areas. The Guardian newspaper recently reported that FATA’s Bajaur agency alone has 616 schools with over 60,000 boys and girls receiving take-home rations. Two new university campuses have been approved for FATA region and thousands of kilometers of new roads are being constructed. After a recent visit to FATA, Indian journalist Hindol Sengupta wrote in The Hindu newspaper that “even Bajaur has a higher road density than India.”

Prior to significant boost in public spending on education during Musharraf years, the number of private schools in Pakistan grew 10-fold from about 3000 in 1983 to over 30,000 in 2000.

Primary school enrollment in 1983 has increased 937%, far greater than the 57% population increase in the last two decades.

Unfortunately, there has been a decline in public spending on education since 2008, even as not-for-profit private sector organizations, mostly NGOs, have stepped up to try to fill the gap.

Last year, a Pakistani government commission on education found that public funding for education has been cut from 2.5% of GDP in 2007 to just 1.5% - less than the annual subsidy given to the various PSUs including PIA, the national airline that continues to sustain huge losses.

Clearly, this is not the time for Pakistan’s political leadership to let up on the push for universal education. The momentum that developed in Musharraf years needs to be maintained, even accelerated to get to the goal of 100% literacy and 100% enrollment of all children in Pakistan.

Nothing less will do if Pakistan is to achieve economic competitiveness on the global stage.

Provinces in Pakistan: Historical Perspective Jain, and Hindu religious texts, in the middle of the 6th century BC, there were the following sixteen administrative units in the Subcontinent in the form of kingdoms and republics: 1. Anga (East Bihar) 2. Magadha (South Bihar) 3. Kaši (Benaras) 4. Kosala (Oudh) 5. Vrijji or Vajji (North Bihar) 6. Malla (Gorakhpur) 7. Chedi (between Jamuna and Narmada) 8. Vatsa (Allahabad) 9. Kuru (Thaneswar , Meerut and Delhi) 10. Panchala (Bareilly, Budaun and Farrakhabad) 11. Machcha (Jaipur) 12. Šurasena (Mathura) 13. Assaka (on the Godavari) 14. Avanti (Malwa) 15. Gandhara (Peshawar and Rawalpindi) 16. Kamboja ( Kashmir and Kafiristan) The Subcontinent, however, experienced a new development during this period, i.e., the emergence of Empire. Magadha established for the first time the tradi-

tion of a superior kind of kingship or Samrajya, gradually absorbing first the neighboring states, then swallowing up the rest, till at last it laid the foundation of an empire extending east to west from coast to coast, and up to Mysore in the south and to Hindu Kush and Afghanistan in the northwest, beyond the natural frontiers of India. In those days, it was obviously very difficult to govern such a vast territory from the metropolis of Pataliputra. Therefore, references are found in the writings of Megasthenese, the Greek Ambas-

www.PakistanLink.com

sador at the court of Chandragupta Maurya (320 BC), that the king ruled with the assistance of a Council of Advisers, who “choose Governors, Chiefs of Provinces, Deputy Governors” etc. Chandargupta’s governor, named Pushyagupta, in Surashtra had built the Sudarshana reservoir on Mount Virjayat in Junagadh. There is another reference of Chandergupta’s grandson Prince Asoka (the Great) being appointed the Governor of Taxila during his father’s reign.

Coming to the Mughal Pe-

riod, Baber writes in his memoir, Babarnama: “The regions from Bhera to Bihar that are currently under my control are worth 52 crores (tankas), as can be seen in the following table.” In this table he mentions 31 administrative units from where the revenues of the state were received. Similarly, a historian, Bakhtawar Khan, writes in Mir-at-i Alam about Emperor Aurangzeb: “Under the management and care of this virtuous monarch, the country of Hindustan teems with population and culture. It is divided into nineteen provinces”.

During the British rule, the boundaries of Provinces continued to be drawn and redrawn.

Some interesting facts are as under: • After the conquest, Sind was made part of Bombay in 1847.

• Bombay was divided in 1936, and Sind became a separate province.

• In 1756 Bihar was made part of Bengal.

• In 1803 Orissa was occupied by the British and was also made part of Bengal.

• In 1912, both Bihar and Orissa were separated from Bengal and a new Province of PROVINCES, P10

OPINION

P10 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014 n By Mohammad Ashraf Chaudhry Pittsburgh, CA

M

ost of us today perform the Irkans/rituals of Islam in a very regulated and mechanical manner, accepting their presence for granted. Things, however, were not always so. People know very little about the far-reaching reforms and contributions that were initiated

by Hazrat Umer (r), especially in modern-day administration as well as in the spread of the true teachings and the spirit of Islam.

One of the greatest wishes of our Noble Prophet (s) as well as of the religion, Islam had been that its followers should undergo a positive transformation, a visible and verifiable change in their behavior, in their manners; in their speech; in their day-to-day conduct of business in such a manner that the people of other religions feel tempted to emulate them. .

Hazrat Umer (s) made that dream come true in just over 10 years. We shall look at the reforms introduced by this great Caliph of Islam one by one: 1. When he assumed the office of the Caliphate, he prayed and vowed in these words, “ O God, by temperament I am strict, so soften me; as a human being I am weak, so strengthen me; it is true, Arabs are like the wild, undomesticated camels, and their nostril’s string, reign, has been placed in my hands. I am resolved to put them on the right track”. And he accomplished that impossible dream.

2. He civilized the Arabs by cultivating in them the virtues of truthfulness, honesty, fairness, and tolerance of other people’s religion; he gave them the tongue to speak out without fear in front of the most powerful; he cultivated in them the inner strength of contentment and patience, so that no worldly fame or wealth could impress them. He enacted the religion of Islam as per the wishes and the Sunna of the Prophet (s).

3. His daily expense was of only two Dhirams, tabulated by none else but Hazrat Ali ®. Once he went to call on some elite in the company of Hazrat Munaf bin Qais that an Arab’s camel got

PROVINCES FROM P9

Bihar and Orissa was created • In 1936 that province was divided, and Bihar and Orissa became separate provinces.

• Assam Province was separated from Bengal in 1874, and formed as the North-East Frontier non-regulation province.

• In 1905, Bengal was divided.

• In 1905, Assam was incorporated in the new province of Eastern Bengal and Assam.

• Assam was made a separate province in 1912.

• Andaman and Nicobar Islands were made a province in 1875.

• Baluchistan was organized into a province in 1887.

• North-West Frontier Province was created in 1901 from the north-western districts of Punjab Province.

• Delhi was separated from Punjab in 1912, when it became the

Contributions of Hazrat Umer to the Modern World

loose and ran away. H. Umer began chasing the camel. He even asked Hazrat Munaf to help him.

Haztrat Munaf said what most of us would say, “Why don’t you let this petty task be taken care of by a slave? Why are you tiring yourself in this futile effort?” Hazrat Umer’s ® reply was classic, “Who can be a greater slave than I in the eyes of God?” 4. He brought clarity, understanding and rationality in matters of religion. His motto was: do not go after the appearances and do not be-fooled by a person’s fame and do not you look at a person’s apparent regularity in saying prayers and fasting, but look at his intellect and his truthfulness”.

5. Hazrat Abi bin Kaab was a great Sahabi and was greatly respected. Once people came to see him in great numbers. People would walk with him out of respect when he would desire to leave. Once H. Umer ® was passing by that he saw this scene. When alone, he, Hazrat Umer, inflicted a lash at Hazrat Abi Kaab’s back, who retorted and said, ‘What are you doing?”. “Just for teaching you a lesson as well as to others to not to feel important in one’s own eyes, and to people for not engaging themselves in blind veneration”.

6. Hazrat Umer ® was a born administrator. Once he was the bitterest opponent of the Prophet and Islam. After conversion he became the Prophet’s closest advisor.

Michael Harte even calls him the second founder of Islam, the St. Paul of Islam.

7. He had the guts to even question the Prophet (s) if he was not convinced, just to convince himself because he would not accept a thing unless it made some sense to him and it touched his soul and qalb. For example: During the pact of Hudaiyyibia in 628, he asked the Prophet (s) why he was accepting those apparently humiliating terms of peace: during the Battle of Badr in 624, on the question of the fate of prisoners, he differed with the Prophet (s). Allah later sent the Revelation which almost endorsed Hazrat Umer’s point of view; on the matter of wearing Hijab by the Prophet’s wives. Hazrat Umer always insisted that they should do

capital of British India.

• Aden was separated from Bombay Presidency to become a province of India in 1932; it was further separated from India and made the Crown Colony of Aden in 1937.

• Panth-Piploda was made a province in 1942, from territories ceded by a native ruler.

At the time of Partition of British India in 1947, there were 14 provinces and 562 Princely States, some as large as Kashmir and Hyderabad, each administering its own territory. Of the 14 Provinces, 5 became the territory of Pakistan and 9 remained in India.

India changed the name of ‘Province’ to ‘State’ in the new Constitution of 1950, and now comprises 29 States and 7 Union Territories.

As regards re-drawing provincial boundaries, Pakistan, however, has chosen to stay put. The present composition of Provinces has acquired a sort of sanctity or mini-nationalism such that the people seem to be more

so. The Prophet (s) waited. Later Allah endorsed Umer’s point of view. In the saying of the funeral prayers of the biggest hypocrite:Abdullah bin Abi - again Hazrat Umer (s) differed. He insisted that the Prophet (s) should not do so.

The Ayat came and he was right.

The Prophet (s) always liked his piece of advice.

8. Today we in the month of fasting, perform extra prayers in the form of Taraweeh. It was Hazrat Umer who regulated them.

9. Today we recite the Holy Qur’an and we find it in a beautiful form. It was Hazrat Umer who convinced Hazrat Abu Bakr to start the process and start putting the verses in an arrangement.

10. Till the Muslims arrived in Medina after Hijra in 622, they performed their Arkan in a brief manner. Prayers were said in brief.

I.e. two Rakats except the Mughrab prayers. And there was no formal way to call people for prayers.

It was Hazrat Umer who gave the idea of making the announcement of what we call, Adhan and the Prophet (s) liked that. Even the words were suggested by him.

11. The expansion of Harem and Masjid Nabvi was resisted by many as people held that things should not be changed if they were not by the Prophet. Hazrat Umer started the expansion. He lighted the two holy places of Makkah and Medinah with lamps; paved the floor so that dirt would not soil peoples’ dresses, established rest areas and guest homes on the way to Medina; established daily allowance for the poor, orphans, and handicapped; established dispensaries in all major cities; constructed more than four thousand mosques; in order to make justice readily available, he ordered that mosques be used as court houses; made it compulsory that every Budu and every citizen must know the law of the land; made sure that all were treated on equal basis when in court, and that no discrimination was carried out.

He tested this himself; he created the departments of public works to take care of streets; canals; sanitation.

12. In Namaz Janaza, the four takbeers was agreed upon through him.

deeply ingrained in provincialism than nationalism. Despite administrative inconveniences of maintaining big provinces, and the demand from various sides to have smaller ones, the State is unable to respond properly, because whenever the issue comes up for discussion, it results in a show of political, linguistic, and ethnic fracas.

Undoubtedly, by devolution of powers to smaller units, administration of state affairs may be carried out in a better way. Turkey, whose area is equal to Pakistan at nearly 800,000 square km. is divided into 81 administrative units or Provinces, each headed by a Governor. If one has to believe, Turkish people have the highest possible degree of nationalist sentiments about their country and compatriots.

Pakistan too can make its present districts as the biggest administrative units under the Central Government without facing inconveniences; or, at the most, each province may be divided into three or four units.

www.PakistanLink.com

13. In the utterance of three Talaaq, all at the same time, he declared it a Talaaq i bain.

14. During Hajj while doing Rummi people undertake brisk walk. The reason for doing so was that in the early days, the non-Muslims mocked at Muslims, saying that they had grown too weak to even walk with vigor. The Prophet (s) then asked Muslims to walk briskly to prove on the nonbelievers that they were not weak.

Hazrat Umer later raised the issue contending that as Muslims were not weak now, so what was the need to continue with the practice. He continued, however, saying that he was doing so because it was the Sunnah of the Prophet (s).

15. Same way, kissing Hajr Aswad. H Umer found no logic as a true follower of Tawheed in doing so. He accepted it because it was done so by the Prophet.

16. Same way in the concession of saying Qasr prayers. H Umer contended that Muslims did that when they lived in Khuf (fear) and the paths were not safe. Now there was no such thing, so what was the justification! He took up his concern to the Prophet (s) who satisfied him by saying that it was a reward from Allah.

17. In awarding respect to non-Muslims, Hazrat Umer was very particular. At his deathbed he willed that the new Caliph should safeguard the interests of five people: The Muhajirs; the Ansaars; the Arabs; the people settled in the cities; and the Dhimis (nonMuslims). “Fulfil the duties as ordained by God and His Prophet, and guard the rights of Ahli Zima.

Do not burden them more than their strength.”

18. Hazrat Umair bin Saad, the governor of Hamas once used a derogatory phrase for a non-Muslim which meant, “May God humble you”. Later he felt so ashamed that he came to Hazrat Umer to resign from his post. Hazrat Umer allowed non-Muslims to conduct their lives in the light of their own laws; even allowed them to bear arms. In the regions that the Muslims conquered like Egypt, Syria, Iraq and Iran, the natives were allowed to keep cultivating their land. Soldiers and generals were not allowed to allot any land to themselves. These were very revoIt is believed that in Pakistan many people are desirous of having smaller provinces. The chief hurdle seems to be the Province of Sindh where, under this arrangement, some parts, per force, would have to be administered by those who probably are deemed to have less right on Sindh and Pakistan. Unfortunately, this feeling has recently been openly expressed by the Chairman of a major political party through his slogan: Marson, marson: Sindh na deson, (we will die and die but will not give Sindh). Is the word ‘deson’ tantamount to ceding a territory to an alien people? What are provinces, but administrative units, but what are those units, small sovereign states?

Ironically, detached from its roots as a separate nation in 1947, Pakistan has still to grow as a nation. For this, Pakistan would have to cast away its garb of petty provincialism. Seven decades have already passed; how many more years would it require?

lutionary reforms.

19. Non-Muslims were appointed as accountants and were assigned even teaching jobs. The financial system of Iraq and Syria was followed with modifications.

20. Soldiers were paid on a fixed basis. Hazrat Ali (s) favored this system. Hazrat Umer based the compensation on the character and performance of the soldiers.

21. Once in a Khutba, Hazrat Umer said, “Once I was so poor that I would fetch water to people who would pay me in the form of dry dates. I used to survive on those dry dates.” After the Khutba, the people asked him why he had to say all that. Hazrat Umer replied, “I had started feeling like I was a very important person. Just to rid myself of my ego and pride, it was necessary for me to do so”.

22. Hazrat Umer ® streamlined the teachings of the Qur’an and Sunnah. He nominated qualified people who alone could pass edicts or Fatwas and for this he created the department of Utfah.

Once he even asked Hazrat Abu Huraira his views on a certain matter. On listening to him he said, “Abu Huraira, had you answered it differently, you would not have been allowed to pass any fatwas in life”.

23. Once he fell sick, and it was suggested that he should use some honey. There was no honey at his home. He publicly made the request in the Mosque, seeking permission to take some from Bait ul Mal. The purpose in doing so was to give the message that even the Caliph had no right to use an ounce of honey from the public trust. It was Hazrat Ali who fixed his daily expenses at 2 Dhirams by saying, “That much is enough to help you to lead a simple life, and eat a simple diet”.

24. Even in those days, people indulged in such evils as taking pride in tribes; in their races; in womanizing; gambling, drinking, lying; in short- weighing etc. During his ten-year rule, Hazrat Umer (s) purged them of these evils to a great extent. Lying became a rare phenomenon; an honest way of living became a norm, a habit.

Free speech became the crown virtue of the day.

May Allah bless all of us to emulate the examples of these great role-models of Islam.

HEALERS FROM P8

Despite unpronounceable names and some very Islamic ones, patients in the United States choose Pakistani and Indian physicians due to our reputations of being competent, caring physicians. And it is heartbreaking to so many of us that we cannot give back to the nation that made us all that we are today.

Thousands of expatriate physicians from Europe and North America would gladly move to Pakistan if they had some assurance of security. Imagine the dramatic change that we could bring to health care in Pakistan. But we are at that base level of spewing hatred against physicians and minorities.

And every day there is another nail in the coffin of my dreams to practice in Pakistan.

(Dr Mahjabeen Islam specializes in family and addiction medicine. Email: mahjabeen.islam@ gmail.com)

PAKISTAN

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 – PAKISTAN LINK – P11

China to Invest $42Bn in Pakistan

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif oversaw the signing of 19 agreements and memorandums mostly related to the energy sector as he met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing

Beijing: China on Sat-

urday promised Pakistan investment worth $42 billion, an official said, as Islamabad promised to help Beijing fight what it calls a terrorist threat in its west.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif oversaw the signing of 19 agreements and memorandums mostly related to the energy sector as he met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. Pakistan, a close ally of China, suffers from chronic electricity shortages and Islamabad has long sought investment in coal-fired power stations, which it sees as a solution

to the problem.

Other countries have balked from such investments, sometimes on environmental grounds.

The new agreements pave the way for Chinese state-owned companies to help build at least four new power stations in Pakistan, while the deals also cover the supply and mining of coal, the prime minister’s press office said.

“The deals being signed between China and Pakistan are worth $42 billion. The whole investment is being made by China,” said Amir Zamir, spokesman for Pakistan’s

ministry of planning and development. “There is no loan or aid for the energy projects, but pure investment by the Chinese,” he added.

Pakistan has for decades been China’s closest ally in South Asia, and Beijing is a major trading partner and key supplier of military technology to Islamabad.

Pakistan borders the far-western Chinese region of Xinjiang, which has seen a series of clashes and attacks on civilians that have left more than 200 dead in the past year.

Beijing blames some of the

PM Seeks German Support to Meet Growing Energy Needs

Berlin: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said that Pakistan desires German support to meet its energy needs and economic modernization.

“The highest priority for us is to boost Pakistan’s economy. And the biggest challenge is the power supply. We do not have enough gas and we do not have enough electricity, there are many power outages. Germany can provide us projects that can help to meet our energy needs,” he said in an interview to German newspaper “Die Welt” published on Monday.

The prime minister said that Pakistan was one of the largest wheat producers in the world and one of the major cotton exporters. It had great potential and wanted to sign several deals with Germany during his visit. To a question, he said after withdrawal of international forces from Afghanistan a new era for the war-ravaged country would begin, which was also a new opportunity for the whole region.

“We must work together to defeat terror. We must support each other.

We must not allow militant attacks. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has also declared that he will not tolerate such activities,” he said. To another question, Nawaz said that Pakistan was determined to defeat any militant network.

He said that Pakistan forces would fight until every militant activity has been crushed.

The prime minister refuted allegations that Pakistan supports the Afghan Taliban. “Pakistan is a country that combats the militants and eliminates

their safe havens,” he said. He said that Pakistan had suffered both men and material losses in the war against terrorism.

“Our soldiers have lost their lives in this struggle while approximately 50,000 people have died in the terror attacks; besides Pakistan’s economy has suffered greatly,” he said. The prime minister said there was consensus among all political parties and state institutions for holding peace talks with the Taliban.

“We have taken this initiative very seriously. But militant activity continued and so we had no choice but to fight,” Nawaz said.

He said Pakistan wanted to work hand in hand with the international community and it was on the right track.. “We do not just want a peaceful region; we want to contribute something to make the world a more peaceful and better place to live,” the prime minister said.

To a question about the killing of a Christian couple in Qasur, he said as prime minister he felt that all those who were involved in this act be held accountable. He said that the courts must punish them quickly. Terming Malala Yousafzai a great girl, the prime minister said that the whole country was very proud of her. “Education is a major focus for us and the government wants to increase spending on education from 2 to 4 per cent of gross domestic product by the end of the legislative period.”

He added that this could be an important step to improve the level of education.

region’s violence on an organized terrorist group it calls the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) seeking independence for the region, home to the mostly-Muslim Uighur minority.

Many analysts doubt that any large-scale organization of the kind exists, while rights groups blame the violence on what they call the repression of Uighur language and culture

by Beijing.

Sharif told Xi that Pakistan would “resolutely fight the East Turkestan Islamic Movement terrorist force,” China’s foreign ministry said in a statement following the meeting in Beijing. “We stand behind China on all the core issues like Taiwan and Tibet to human rights, the fight against the ETIM,” Sharif added within earshot of journalists.

Xi was forced to cancel a planned trip to Pakistan in September due to anti-government protests in Islamabad. But the Chinese president visited neighboring India the same month, signing a raft of deals.

Sharif acknowledged “somehow the circumstances led to the postponement of the visit,” adding to Xi: “I believe you will be visiting Pakistan very soon.”

Qureshi Accidentally Steps into Indian Territory

Islamabad: Former Foreign Minis-

ter Shah Mahmood Qureshi today inadvertently stepped into Indian territory while visiting the Wagah border.

Mr Qureshi, who is also Vice Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), visited the border to show solidarity with the Punjab Rangers in the wake of the suicide attack which killed at least 61 people and injured more than 100 last week.

While visiting the border line, Mr Qureshi went for a handshake with Indian officials and in the process stepped across the border.

Private television channels showed that a Pakistan Rangers official rushed towards him and immediately pulled him back on the Pakistan side of the border. The exminister looked a little flustered.

The Wagah border is the main land border crossing between Pakistan and India. It is heavily guarded by the Punjab Rangers on the Pakistani side.

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Newly-Elected Afghan President Seeks to Mend Fences

Last week, Gen Raheel Sharif, Pakistan’s chief of army staff, traveled to the Afghan capital, where he met with Mr Ghani and his top security advisers

Kabul: Afghanistan’s new President

Ashraf Ghani will travel to Islamabad later this week in a bid to reset ties with Pakistan, part of what Afghan and international officials describe as a multipronged effort to revive moribund peace talks with the Taliban.

At stake is Afghanistan’s relationship with its nuclear-armed neighbor. The visit follows travels by Mr Ghani to China and Saudi Arabia, trips described by diplomats and Afghan officials as an indirect push to pressure Pakistan to bring Taliban insurgents to the negotiating table.

Nazifullah Salarzai, the Afghan president’s spokesman, said Mr Ghani would visit Pakistan this week for an official meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. While officials are completing the agenda, Mr Salarzai added, the talks will focus on bolstering economic ties and security cooperation.

“Afghanistan wants to have real and honest cooperation and friendship with this neighboring country,” Mr Salarzai said. “As the president has said, we have this window of opportunity. We want this window to be transformed into a door, then into a corridor, and then into a highway.”

Mr Ghani faces many challenges on the foreign-policy front, but managing the relationship with his country’s powerful neighbor promises to be one of his biggest tests. Afghanistan shares a porous, 1,500-mile-long border with its neighbor, and the Afghan Taliban have long used Pakistani territory as a headquarters and a recruiting base.

A recent Pentagon report to Congress said Taliban insurgents use Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas and Baluchistan province as a staging area to launch operations in the Pashtun-majority areas of eastern and southern Afghanistan. While the Pakistani military launched an offensive this summer to clear out militant sanctuaries in North Waziristan, a tribal area bordering Afghanistan, the report said, Pakistan continues to back “proxy forces” to counter its rival, India, undermining the relationship between Kabul and Islamabad.

The Pakistani government denied these allegations.

Ties between Pakistan and Afghanistan were particularly strained under Mr Ghani’s predecessor, former Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who routinely accused Pakistan of providing support to the Taliban. Early last year, Pakistani, Afghan and British leaders laid out a timeline for seeking a peace deal with the Taliban, but those efforts foundered as Kabul and Islamabad traded accusations over cross-border shelling and other tensions.

Afghan officials and observers say

the inauguration of Mr Ghani offers a chance for the two countries to repair relations. Simbal Khan, a security analyst based in Islamabad, said political and security issues between the two countries would take time to tackle, but progress could be made rapidly on improving trade and other economic linkages.

“This is a chance to restart the relationship, and get away from the negativity of the Karzai era,” said Ms Khan.

Since Mr Ghani’s inauguration in late September, several top Pakistani officials have paid visits to Kabul. Last month, Sartaj Aziz, the national security and foreign affairs adviser to Mr Sharif, met with the Afghan president. And last week, Gen Raheel Sharif, Pakistan’s chief of army staff, traveled to the Afghan capital, where he met with Mr Ghani and his top security advisers.

Afghan and international officials said the meetings went well, and appeared to usher in more productive relations between the two neighbors.

Mr Ghani’s visits to Saudi Arabia and China were the first steps in re-forging the relationship. The Afghan president saw both trips as an opportunity to ask the countries to encourage Pakistan to bring the Taliban into negotiations, diplomats and aides to Mr Ghani said.

“Ghani has a hope China can play a role in their perceived influence over Pakistan,” said a Western official ahead of the China visit, noting Beijing’s longstanding strategic ties with Islamabad.

Officially, Mr Ghani’s trip to Saudi Arabia was to perform umrah, a Muslim pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca. But the Afghan president also asked Saudi leaders to support the peace process during his visit, according to his aides.

“The Saudis have a lot of influence over the Pakistani government and over some extremists,” a senior aide said. “It’s going to be a new beginning in the peace process, it’s very important for Afghanistan because peace and security are our top priority.”

Daud Sultanzoy, an adviser to Mr Ghani who traveled with the Afghan president to Saudi Arabia and China, said the rise of the Islamic State in the Middle East has lent new urgency to regional discussions about combating terrorism.

“The implosion in Middle East areas, the aftereffects of all these problems, have been on his [Mr Ghani’s] radar screen,” Mr Sultanzoy said. “He has … a very comprehensive plan for the countries that should be engaged--for their own sake, and not just for the stability of Afghanistan.” Added Mr Sultanzoy: “The fact that the Saudis and the Chinese have agreed to engage in this process is a major step.”

PAKISTAN

P12 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014

Faceoff between Government and PTI Sparks Fresh Tension

“The ministers are busy in only hollow talk and wasting time. The government actually doesn’t want talks and is looking for an escape route,” said Dr Mazari

Islamabad: The ongoing face-off between the government and the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) sparked fresh tension on Monday as the two sides accused each other of ‘political gimmickry’ on the issue of talks.

In response to the government’s stand on talks, PTI Information Secretary Dr Shireen Mazari claimed that her party had never closed the door on negotiations.

“The PTI has never refused to hold talks with the government. Its chairman Imran Khan has displayed flexibility in his position and made a positive suggestion for a meaningful probe into rigging of last year’s general elections,” she said in a press release.

Addressing a rally in Rahimyar Khan on Sunday, Mr Khan backed off from his demand for resignation of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif if the government agreed to conduct an impartial audit of election results under a judicial commission.

Ms Mazari was responding to the press conference of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, who earlier in the day criticized the PTI chairman for proposing inclusion of officials of the Inter Services Intelligence

(ISI) and the Military Intelligence (MI) in a proposed judicial commission to probe the rigging allegations.

She claimed it was the government which had in the first place made a suggestion for including ISI and MI officials in the commission.

“The ministers are busy in only hollow talk and wasting time. The government actually doesn’t want talks and is looking for an escape route.”

In a hard hitting statement, Dr Mazari accused the government of playing a “political game obvious to even independent observers”.

“Today’s press conference makes it clear that neither does the government believe in dialogue nor is it serious in ending the current standstill because it is afraid of a free and fair investigation,” she said.

Talking to Dawn, a senior PTI leader said it was certain after Mr Dar’s press conference that the government had decided to ignore the “concerns we have over the outcome of the elections”.

“It is a dangerous and frightening development because it seems that the government has decided to confront Mr Khan,” a political analyst said. He said the government

must realize that if something went wrong in the end, it would be held responsible for that.

About Imran Khan’s suggestion, he said, the government should have resumed talks and tried to find some middle ground.

“Having secured unconditional support from all parliamentary parties and the army playing a neutral role during the stand-off, the PMLN, which has a comfortable majority of 190 members in the National Assembly, thinks it has attained an unassailable position vis-à-vis the PTI,” the analyst said while explaining the reason behind the government’s tough stand against Mr Khan.

Jamaatul Ahrar Confirms Death of Commander Peshawar: The outlawed Tehreek-

i-Taliban Jamaatul Ahrar confirmed on Monday the death of their key commander Abu Jandal d during the Nov 9 bombing in Khyber Agency’s Tirah Valley.

TTP Jamaatul Ahrar spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan confirmed to Dawn that Abu Jandal hailing from Mohmand Agency was leading a contingent of 50 fighters to battle the Pakistani security forces with others in Tirah. He added a contingent of about 50 more fighters would soon be on its way to the valley to fight along with others against the country’s armed forces.

He also said that Khyber Agency is a key route for Nato supplies and would be their prime target in the days to come to inflict losses on the Pakistani military and state.

At least 13 militants were killed in the security forces’ latest offensive in Akakhel on Sunday. They included two suicide bombers and a key commander.

Veteran American Diplomat and Pakistan Expert under Investigation Washington, DC: Federal law enforcement agencies are investigating a veteran US diplomat and a longtime Pakistan expert, Robin L. Raphel, on undisclosed allegations, the US State Department said on Friday.

The Washington Post reported earlier that Raphel is under investigation on counter-intelligence allegations, which typically involves spying for foreign governments. She has been placed on administration leave.

Her contract with the State Department also expired last week. But she has not been charged yet.

The FBI searched Raphel’s Washington home last month, and her State Department office was also examined and sealed, officials told the Post.

The US administration has also withdrawn her security clearances.

“We are aware of this law enforcement matter,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters after the Post released a short version of its story on Thursday evening.

“The State Department has been cooperating with our law enforcement colleagues,” Psaki said.

Robin Lynn Raphel, 67, was serving as coordinator for non-military as-

sistance to Pakistan before the FBI raid.

The investigation began late last month when she was placed on administrative leave.

Two US officials told the Post the investigation was “a counterintelligence matter, involves allegations of spying on behalf of foreign governments”.

The exact nature of the investigation was not disclosed.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton appointed Raphel the first US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, a position created to assist the US government in managing the region, which had two nuclear-weapon states.

Raphel later served as US Ambassador to Tunisia and in the 2000s was ap-

pointed to or held a number of official positions related to her expertise on South Asia. She retired from the State Department in 2005 after 30 years of service.

In 2009, she rejoined late US diplomat Richard Holbrooke’s Af-Pak team as a Pakistan expert.

Raphel began her career in the US government as an analyst at the CIA and then moved to the diplomatic corps and assisted USAID in Islamabad as an economics analyst. In 1978, she returned to the United States and joined the State Department.

Raphel was a strong advocate for engaging the Taliban, which earned her both praise and scorn in Washington.

She is widely respected in Pakistan for helping improve US relations with the country during difficult periods.

Her emphasis on maintaining good ties with Pakistan and on resolving the Kashmir dispute made her unpopular in India, although she was stationed in New Delhi in her early career.

She was once married to Arnold Lewis Raphel, the 18th US ambassador to Pakistan who died along with General Ziaul Haq, when their plane mysteriously crashed after takeoff from Bahawalpur.

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A

New ISI Chief Faces Daunting Challenges

s he takes over the intelligence service ISI, Lt Gen Rizwan Akhtar becomes one of the two most powerful men in Pakistan, answerable only to the army chief.

While most intelligence agencies concern themselves with threats to national security, the ISI’s remit extends to virtually all aspects of Pakistani life.

Gen Akhtar inherits a highly disciplined and powerful organization with staff and informers deployed throughout the country’s big cities and small towns.

The ISI’s capacity to enforce its will - by brute force when it deems it necessary - makes it the only state institution of which no Pakistani, however rich and powerful, would want to be on the wrong side.

The business and political elite may laugh at the tax authorities, bully the police and manipulate the judicial system - but none of them dare cross the ISI. But for all the authority he will command, Gen Akhtar faces daunting problems at home and abroad.

Pakistan is confronted with Taliban jihadis trying to overthrow the state, Baloch nationalists fighting for independence, and sectarian outfits killing on a massive scale.

The US drawdown in Afghanistan brings added problems: Pakistan faces a period of relative international isolation.

Accusations of duplicity: Many senior US officials are highly critical of Pakistan.

They believe the billions of dollars they pumped into Islamabad after 9/11 - much of it channeled through the ISI - was rewarded by years of Pakistani duplicity.

Some even go so far as to say that Washington’s long war in Afghanistan failed because of Pakistani support for the Afghan Taliban.

Regardless of how fair this charge may be, Gen Akhtar will find many of his US counterparts simply won’t believe what he says. The trust has gone.

Nevertheless, his relationship with Washington will be manageable.

As the new ISI chief knows, the US cannot contemplate the complete collapse of a nuclear state.

In 2008, when he was a brigadier, Gen Akhtar attended the US Army War College in Pennsylvania.

An academic paper he wrote there argued that Pakistan “must aggressively pursue rapprochement with India”.

The comment has led to speculation that Gen Akhtar might reach out to Delhi.

But the paper was written when Pakistan’s then military leader General Pervez Musharraf was offering Delhi compromises on Kashmir: Rizwan Akhtar’s analysis was broadly in line with official thinking in Islamabad at the time.

Increased tension: Today the atmosphere is very different.

The new Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has made frequent visits to Kashmir and his party has talked about rescinding Article 370 of the constitution that gives Jammu and Kashmir special autonomous status.

In recent weeks there has been a significant escalation of artillery fire traded by the Pakistan and Indian armies near the Line of Control.

There is a sense in the international community that the Kashmir dispute has reached a stalemate.

But there is deep, persistent frus-

tration at the highest levels of the Pakistan military that the Kashmir cause has not received more international attention and that the dispute remains unresolved.

Gen Akhtar will be under pressure from many of his military colleagues to be more assertive on the issue, and to stand up to Mr Modi.

But he has limited room for manoeuvre.

Should Pakistan-based militants cross the Line of Control and mount a spectacular attack there would, in all likelihood, be a ferocious Indian response.

Pakistan also faces uncertainty on its western borders.

Ever since the days of the anti-Soviet jihad, the ISI has been a big player in Afghanistan.

Today, the leadership of the Pakistan Taliban, which seeks to overthrow the Pakistani state and which has killed many ISI officers, is sheltering in Afghanistan.

Gen Akhtar will want to keep open Islamabad’s lines of communication with the Afghan Taliban - not least to dissuade them from making common cause with their Pakistani counterparts.

Islamabad may consider the new Afghan President, Ashraf Ghani, an improvement on his predecessor Hamid Karzai, but the ISI is acutely aware that some security officials in Kabul believe sheltering the Pakistani Taleban helps balance Pakistan’s good relations with the Afghan Taliban.

Domestic success: On the domestic front the ISI has notched up significant victories of late.

When the country’s biggest TV channel, Geo, dared suggest that the ISI might have been behind an assassination attempt on its highest profile anchor, the ISI simply called for the channel to be taken off air and it was.

The move has had a significant chilling effect. While Geo TV has seen its audience share and profits squeezed, other channels have understood the ISI’s message and Pakistan’s TV journalists are more timid today than they were.

Although the ISI has reined in the media, it is faced with a highly unstable political situation.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is showing no sign of backing down on his plans to put Pervez Musharraf behind bars on treason charges.

Many in the army consider such an outcome intolerable, and want Mr Sharif removed from power.

That could not happen without the ISI’s close involvement.

General Akhtar has a reputation for being cool under pressure.

Given the dramas that are likely to unfold on his watch, he will need all the unflappability and composure he can muster. - By Owen Bennett-Jones BBC News

PAKISTAN

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 – PAKISTAN LINK – P13

Imran, Civil Society Condemn Murder of Christian Couple

“It is unfortunate that a mob killed a Christian couple in the name of Islam on Tuesday. Those involved in the killing and the government should both be ashamed of themselves,” Imran Khan said while addressing dharna participants on the 84th day of the ‘sit-in’ at D-Chowk

Islamabad: Condemning

the murder of a Christian couple in Kot Radha Kishan near Lahore, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan on Wednesday demanded that the government take strict action against those who have committed the horrific act in the name of Islam.

“It is unfortunate that a mob killed a Christian couple in the name of Islam on Tuesday. Those involved in the killing and the government should both be ashamed of themselves,” Khan said while addressing dharna participants on the 84th day of the ‘sit-in’ at D-Chowk.

“According to the teachings of Islam, the killing of one innocent person is equal to the killing of all humanity while it does not say that the person has to

be a Muslim,” Imran said.

“Allah is Rubul Alameen (God of the Universe), not Rubul Muslimeen (God of Muslims),” the PTI chief added.

Civil society up in arms over brutal murders: Khan demanded that the government take immediate steps to punish the culprits who beat the couple to death and then burnt their bodies for allegedly desecrating the Holy Qur’an.

“Day after tomorrow, the hearing of my case will be held in Lahore, and we are waiting desperately for that day,” the PTI chief told the participants.

“Mr Ayaz Sadiq! Join me for the recounting and don’t use the stay order anymore. If you are successful after the recounting I will congratulate you but if you fail to secure

your seat then you will not be the only one who will resign but the prime minister will resign as well,” the PTI chief said.

Khan also said that the international price of oil has reduced by 25 per cent and the government should reduce further Rs8 on petroleum products as soon as possible.

“The government needs to reduce prices of petroleum and electricity before November 30 otherwise people know how to take their due rights,” Khan warned.

He claimed the prime minister tells lies on the floor of the house and it is unfortunate for all of us that the leader of our nation tells lies.

Christian community protests: People gathered outside the National Press Club on Wednesday and

protested against the killing of a Christian couple in Kot Radha Kishan.

The protest was organized by Pakistan Minority Forum (PMF).

On Tuesday a mob beat up a couple to death and then burnt the bodies in a brick kiln where they were employed.

They alleged that the couple had desecrated the Holy Qur’an a day before the incident. The deceased were identified as Shahzad and Shama.

Participants held a candlelight vigil for the victims and chanted slogans against the killing of Christians all over the country. They demanded that a judicial inquiry should be held into the incident. Representation of minorities in the judicial inquiry should also be ensured.

Chairman PMF Chaudhry Ashraf Farzand, while speaking to participants at the protest, said there was a financial dispute between the owner of the kiln and the couple.

“So many incidents have taken place during the tenure of Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif.

A number of people were killed in Gojra, Badami Bagh and other areas of the province,” he said.

Mr Farzand also appealed to Chief Justice Supreme Court to take suo motu notice of the incident, stating that it was the only way that justice could be ensured.

HRCP Slams Couple’s Murder over Desecration Charge

Lahore: The Human Rights Commis-

sion of Pakistan (HRCP) has expressed grave concern over a mob beating to death a Christian couple at a brick kiln where they worked, in Kot Radha Kishan. The couple’s bodies were later burnt in the kiln.

In a statement that the Commission issued after on the preliminary findings of a team sent to the area, HRCP said: “HRCP is shocked and saddened beyond words by the callous murder of the couple and their unborn child. An HRCP team that went to the site of the tragic killing did not come across any evidence of desecration of the Holy Qur’an.

“It appears that the murdered man, Shehzad, had a dispute over wages, or recovery of advance that the kiln owner had extended to two families of Muslim labourers who had escaped. The kiln owners had asked Shehzad to repay the amount extended to the escaped families because he had introduced them to the owners.

“It appears that Shehzad and Shama, his wife, had been severely beaten up at the kiln and locked up in a room. Some witnesses say that Shehzad had died in the beating. Shortly afterwards, when word of alleged desecration was spread to nearby villages and announcements made through mosque loudspeakers, a mob of hundreds headed towards the kiln.

“Meanwhile, four policemen at a nearby post visited the kiln and demand-

Protesters raise slogans while demonstrating against the Kasur killing in Islamabad on Wednesday

ed that the couple should be handed over to them otherwise they would be killed by the mob that was headed that way.

However, the HRCP team learned that the kiln owners instructed their employees not to hand the couple over and the policemen were also beaten up.

“HRCP is still trying to get the police version and the DPO had said that the police were investigating the matter and around 40 persons had been arrested including the kiln owner.

“We do not want to influence the investigation in any manner. However, HRCP must voice its outrage at the tragic killing and state that the chances of the couple getting any benefit of doubt diminished when they were accused of desecrating the Holy Qur’an. The reli-

gious belief of the victims also apparently did not work in their favour. HRCP earnestly hopes that this fact would not be lost on the authorities and would persuade them to reflect on their obligation to protect all citizens. The inability of the police to rescue the couple despite reaching the site is stark evidence of the state’s vanishing writ. The individuals, whether at the kiln or in nearby villages, who instigated violence against the victims, and those who prevented their rescue must be brought to justice. The exploitation of kiln workers is an essential part of the context of the tragic killing and this incident should lead to accelerated efforts to ensure that slavery-like practices that continue despite a promise in the constitution cease without further delay.”

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Clarkabad: Where Shahzad and Shama Once Stood

Shama was fragile and meek, Shahzad equally unassuming

n By Muhammad Hassan Miraj

W

e were all there by an accident. I, Reverend Robert Clark, Shahzad Maseeh and Shama.

Clark, I discovered, was a mysterious old man, who had travelled almost half of Europe. In the second half of 19th century, he visited Punjab and Kashmir.

As a spirited evangelist, Clark not only managed to set up the first missionary service in Punjab but also established the mission in Peshawar.

In 1877, on initiation of the Lahore diocese, he became the first chairman of the Punjab Native Church council. After a meaningful life, he passed away in the serenity of Kasauli, Himachal Pardesh, roughly a hundred years ago.

In the silence of this night, Clark’s broad countenance and flowing beard added to his magnificence.

He cleared his throat and addressed me….

“Some 150 years ago, it was all barren here. I purchased 1900 acres of land and founded the first Christian village. Their ancestors, he pointed towards the couple standing in the far corner of the room, were very gracious people. They named the village after me. Clarkabad, they called it.”

The couple with us in the room hailed from Clarkabad, worked at the kiln, and by all definitions and labor laws, qualified as modern day slaves.

Though Clarkabad stands beside the road that connects Pattoki and Rai-wind, it is neither that flowery nor royal. People have long forgotten its relevance as the first Christian village and it now manages itself as a suburb of Kot Radha Krishan.

Shama was fragile and meek; Shahzad equally unassuming. The constant struggle to live a life without fear had exhausted them both; leaving them perpetually in fear, this was apparent in their drooping stances. The hope for a better future that once lit up their eyes was long gone.

Shama shifted from foot to foot and Shahzad gave her an angry nod. Their three children had taught them to communicate well through silent nods.

The room was the venue for the

incident that had catapulted Shama and Shahzad into headlines.

Clark continued, “I brought them here with a message of hope.

For almost one hundred and fifty years, this village has stood harmlessly. These residents suffer injustices on a day-to-day basis, despite claims of equality, which the state had pledged in the Constitution.”

There was some uneasiness in the air. Everything was fine until I realized that Shahzad and Shama were looking directly at me … a piercing fixed stare.

I could hear someone telling the faithful to save the religion, on a loudspeaker.

Islam was endangered…endangered by whom?

“Did you know Shama was five months pregnant?” Clark broke my thoughts.

I wanted to speak but my voice choked. The air buzzed with charged voices coming from outside the room.

“And somewhere deep down you knew that they did not deserve this or at least not until a court of law ruled otherwise,” droned on Clark’s voice in the background.

“This incident will not turn the course of history.”

The crowd was equipped with hockey sticks, rods, crow bars and a blind, terrifying rage. I tried counting them but could only make out that the neighboring villages had sent all their men.

At first they tried to break in but the door was locked from the inside. They were motivated only by hatred; bloodlust.

The roof of the structure caved in and with this, everything dissolved into darkness.

“While the world out there will paint a horrid picture of this incident, you will still find my clergymen, rising to the occasion to stand by you when just a handful of miscreants are blamed for this. But, please remember, this lot, who still believes in Pakistan, is also just a handful. You might run out of these people too…”

After a while, as the air cleared, I saw Clark, alone in the corner of the room. A handful of ashes and charred bones occupied the place where Shahzad and Shama once stood.

Clarkabad is another dream gone sour in the land of the pure.

Like Shanti Nagar and Joseph Colony, it will continue to mourn the loss … all by itself. (Muhammad Hassan Miraj is a federal government employee - Dawn)

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PAKISTAN

Homecoming, 100 Years after the Great War

This sign at the Balaksar interchange on the M2 motorway near Chakwal is the only official acknowledgement of Dub village’s place in WWI history

n By Hassan Belal Zaidi

Islamabad: The lawns of the British High Commission in Islamabad are not a place where one would expect to find a war memorial. But on Monday morning, a new plaque sits on the lawns of this outpost of Great Britain on Pakistani soil. On it are etched the names of three gallant, brave and selfless men: recipients of the Victoria Cross.

The plaque is dedicated to the memory of Khudadad Khan — the first South Asian and Muslim recipient of Britain’s highest award for gallantry — Mir Dast and Shahamad Khan, on the centenary of the first truly global war.

At the reception, one gets a palpable sense of just how global the war was from the various uniforms that turned out to honour the memory of these veterans. Representatives of the US Army, the Royal Air Force, French Foreign Legion, the Royal Marines and the Highland Fusiliers, as well as other soldiers from Australia, Canada, Belgium, Poland, Romania, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan and many other countries which contributed fighting forces to the war effort between 1914 and 1918, are all in attendance.

Undivided India, which includes modern-day Pakistan and Bangladesh, contributed 1.2 million men to the war effort, nearly 75,000 of who never made it back.

No place in the entire subcontinent better captures this fighting spirit than the village of Dulmial. Located on the road to Kallar Kahar — a stone’s throw from the scenic Hindu temples at Katas — this little village gave 460 men to the war effort in 1914: nine of whom never made it home.

No single village in the subcontinent has given more men to any war effort.

Just under an hour away, near the bustling town of Chakwal, lies another village. Most people know it simply as a signboard on the M2 motorway, but Dub village is unique. It is the ancestral home of Khudadad Khan, whose legend is known to nearly all residents of this hamlet.

Like his grandfather before him, Abdul Ghafoor Chaudhry is also a familiar face in these parts. Now settled in Mandi Bahauddin, where Khudadad Khan was allotted 50 acres of land in return for his services to the empire, Ghafoor has returned to the birthplace of his grandfather to introduce us to his two uncles; nephews of Khudadad Khan who are probably the last people alive with any memory of the most celebrated hero of their village.

Such was the cult surrounding Khudadad Khan that both his nephews, Haji Ahmed Khan and Subedar Ghulam Subhani, also enlisted in the military, as well as dozens of others from this extended family of military men. Most re-

cently, Mr Subhani’s son, Lt Col Babar Nawaz, is carrying that spark forward.

The nephews regale us with tales of their uncle’s valor on the battlefield and his humble nature at home. The grandson chimes in, saying that the Victoria Cross has become the family’s ‘cross to bear’.

“It is a lightning rod for crazies. There are those who call us from unknown numbers and say ‘Khudadad Khan was a British stooge’. Others are just impassioned collectors who want to buy it from us. How can we explain to them the value this Victoria Cross holds for us?” he asks, rhetorically.

Ghafoor tells us how, because of the constant hounding, he had to move the medal, from Dub to his grandfather’s estate and final resting place in Mandi Bahauddin; then to a bank locker and, finally, to the UK, where it now resides with Khudadad Khan’s other grandson, Ali Nawaz.

He claims that before the state of Bahawalpur became a part of Pakistan, the nawab made a generous offer for the Victoria Cross, but was also turned down. “We won’t let anyone sell it as long as we’re alive,” concludes Ghafoor. His uncles nod in unison.

They walk with us to the site of the ancestral home where Khudadad Khan was born; show us a water reservoir that he helped tap and take us to the village mosque built in his memory. “Grandfather was a conscientious man. After his retirement, he would help people selflessly. God knows how many people he helped enlist in the military. Some of them even went on to become officers,” Ghafoor recalls, his eyes clouding over with a mixture of nostalgia and longing.

From Dub, we take a narrow stretch of tarmac that takes us, via Choa Saidan Shah, to the unremarkable village of Dhulmial. The cannon, mounted on a platform next to a small pond in the middle of the settlement, is the most well-known landmark in the area.

It is recess time in the government schools nearby and schoolchildren mill about, running and playing noisily.

Nearly every child we ask knows where the cannon is, but few can tell us why it is there. At the local government office, we meet Shaukat Iqbal Malik, a former councilor who guides us to the elusive memorial plaque that recounts the village’s contribution to the great war.

Not many visitors get to see the plaque, as it is now housed inside the building of the local girls school. The solemn, solitary red brick pillar stands tall in the glare of the midday sun.

“Today, this village has a population of nearly 30,000. You can imagine that back in those days, 460 men probably meant all the men that were fit and of fighting age. There were nearly as many families in the village back then and most households sent two or more sons to the battlefront,” Malik says.

We leave the village with a greater sense of history than we entered with.

In comparison with the undulating green plains of Chakwal, the carefully manicured and dew-soaked lawns of the high commission offer a stark contrast.

Back at the reception, UK High HOMECOMING, P29

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NOVEMBER 14, 2014 – PAKISTAN LINK – P15

IS Recruiting Thousands in Pakistan, Govt. Warned in Secret Report Karachi: The provincial government of

Balochistan has conveyed a confidential report to the federal government and law enforcement agencies warning of increased footprints of militant organization Islamic State (IS), also known by the Arabic acronym Daish, in Pakistan.

The ‘secret information report’, a copy of which is available with DawnNews, is dated October 31, and states that IS has claimed to have recruited a massive 10 to 12,000 followers from the Hangu and Kurram Agency tribal areas.

“It has been reliably learnt that Daish has offered some elements of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) and Ahl-e-Sunnat Wai Jamat (ASWJ) to join hands in Pakistan. Daish has also formed a tenmember Strategic Planning Wing,” the report from the Home and Tribal Affair Department of Balochistan says.

It states that the IS plans to attack military installations and government buildings in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in retaliation to the army-led Zarb-i-Azb operation in North Waziristan and also plans to target members of the minority Shia community.

The Balochistan government called for heightened vigilance and security measures in the province as well as the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to prevent and pre-empt such attacks. It has called for sensitizing law enforcement agencies on the issue and increased monitoring of LeJ members.

The warning comes days after six top commanders of the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), including its now defunct spokesman Shahidullah Shahid, announced their allegiance to IS’s caliph Abu Bakar Al-

Baghdadi Al Qureshi Al-Hussaini. The Taliban spokesman said he, along with TTP chief for Orakzai Agency Saeed Khan, TTP chief for Kurram Agency Daulat Khan, TTP’s Khyber Agency chief Fateh Gul Zaman, TTP’s Peshawar chief Mufti Hassan and TTP’s Hangu chief Khalid Mansoor, had announced their allegiance to Abu Bakar Al-Baghdadi.

Earlier in the week, Shahidullah Shahid was replaced by Mohammad Khurasani as the new TTP spokesperson The Islamic State’s presence has not been officially established so far.

Perceived threat? Security expert Dr Ejaz Hussain believes that Pakistan faces a perceived threat from the IS but it can mature into a real threat if they succeed in aligning themselves with the splinter groups of mainstream militants, including the TTP. “If the Pakistan security apparatus fails to check their footprints, it could be a setback for them in future. It appears that the IS wants to focus on Pakistan and Afghanistan, particularly the time when US forces begin to withdraw from Afghanistan. If not checked, IS will pose a major threat to South Asia and the Persian Gulf,” Hussain told Dawn.

Wall-chalking: Wall-chalking has begun to appear in support of IS in some cities of Pakistan, including Karachi and Khanewal.

Police in Khanewal said it had registered a case against unknown persons for engaging in wall chalking and was also investigating their presence. However, police in Karachi have not registered any case.

P16 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014

THE TASTE YOU WON’T FORGET

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Please fill out this form and email it to: matrimonialservicescommittee@gmail.com or matrimonial@icsgv.com. Entrance fee of $30 per candidate is required by Nov 20th. Registrations submitted after this date will require $35 until the closing date of Nov 27th and late registrations will be saved for the next event. Tickets will not be sold at the door. Doors will be closed promptly at 4:00 pm. Please make checks payable to the “ICSGV” and mail to the treasurer, Abrar Syed with the form enclosed to the Center’s address. Payments will also be accepted via credit card or PayPal at ICSGV.com. Include “ICSGV Matrimonial Event” in the memo and confirmation receipt will be emailed to you. Parents/Guardians are not allowed in the banquet hall with the candidates but will be seated in the adjoining restaurant area.

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COMMENTARY

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 – PAKISTAN LINK – P17

Imran again Asks PM to Form Commission

Ambassador Olson Meets Prominent Community Members in LA

Sheikhupura:

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan has again warned the Pakistan Muslim League-N that if a judicial commission to investigate allegations of rigging in the last general elections is not formed

by Nov 30 his party will make it difficult for Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to run the government.

Addressing a public meeting at the Government Guru Nanak High School ground in Nankana Sahib, about 40km from here, on Wednesday Mr Khan asked his supporters to reach Islamabad in large numbers on Nov 30 “in order to create a new Pakistan”.

He said the government had agreed to five of the six demands he had raised at the beginning of his protest campaign against rigging, but now it was backtracking on a demand which had already been accepted.

“I have evidence that Finance Minister Ishaq Dar had agreed to form the judicial commission. According to Article 190, officials from any agency can be a part of the investigation,” the PTI chairman remarked.

He said the government was raising power tariff frequently to repay the loans it had obtained from the International Monetary Fund.

Mr Richard Olson, US Ambassador to Pakistan, met prominent community members during his recent visit to Los Angeles. Photograph above taken on the occasion shows (from left) Saleem Adaya, Feroze Fakhri, Ambassador Richard Olson, Adnan Khan, and Sameen Farooqui

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WOMENS WORLD

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 - PAKISTAN LINK

WOMEN

P18 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014

By: Sadaf Jabeen

C

ooler temperatures mean the opportunity to wear more makeup and to play with darker colours and assorted prints.

The right choice of make-up and colours can do wonders to your looks. You need not look drab and dull. You can look gorgeous even on cold wintry day.

Play it cool: Spice up cold winter days with dazzling makeup that will enhance your natural beauty and make you stand out from the rest of the crowd.

Natural and subtle makeup always looks so hot and feminine. Removing the blush from your makeup routine allows you to focus on creating your flawless canvas. If you must use the blush then highlight your cheeks with a blush in pastel or pale pink colour and finish your makeup with glittery lipgloss.

Flirtatious eyes: With winter makeup going minimal this season, eyeliner is the focus.

Winged, edgy, geometric - anything goes! Add a little drama and flirty touch to your look by creating cat eye makeup. This is the best way to add dimension to your eyes and complete your evening makeup. You can easily create cat eye makeup with eyeliner or you can also combine dark eyeshadow hue with eyeliner for more spectacular look. Just punch up your eyeliner routine and make it the star of your makeup look.

Foundation in focus: The most important thing about winter makeup is proper skin care that will keep your skin moisturized and flawless. In winter our skin becomes more vulnerable and needs more care because low temperatures affect it in a negative way. So when it comes to foundation you should cer-

tainly look for a new one which will protect your skin from dry and cold weather. Also, try to find loose powder which will hydrate your skin and make it soft and smooth.

Fun with prints: Prints are all about having fun with fashion and embracing the joy and romance of winter. It goes without saying that gorgeous prints form the basis of fashion trends in every season and they make a great fashion statement. Fashion's ongoing love affair with prints continues for Winter 2014 with a myriad of designers offering up their take on the iconic patterns. Be prepared to embrace your inner woman with floral, geometric, graphic and digital prints.

This season winter prints have come in solid colours and vibrant hues.

Spanning between the extremes, assorted prints for winter 2014 go from super-subtle, to super-brassy, appearing modern while looking

back at the nineties, clashing with other colours but always emerging as one perfectly polished conjunction.

The winter 14 collection: When it comes to keeping up with trends, one of the easiest and most effective ways to amp up your wardrobe is by investing in a trendy print or colour. There's something oh-so-stylish about wearing smart prints during the colder months of the year and - lucky for us - designers thought the same thing this season. Recently, Kayseria, Pakistan's premier high street and fabric brand has launched the first series from its new Master's Collection - a series of capsule collections drawing inspiration from the works of renowned masters in the various arts.

The first series is part of the Winter 14 collection and is a tribute to the British textile artist Harry Wearne. Several prints in the collection are based on his work from the 19th century, presenting a

www.Pakistanlink.com www.PakistanLink.com

unique fusion of Eastern and Western traditions. The Master's Collection aims to pay homage to different artists by combining their work with the aesthetics of Kayseria to create unique high street pieces.

The Winter 14 collection further includes tribal-themed pieces based on the historic Silk Route and Moroccan traditions. More contemporary designs have been inspired

by Hermes prints. The colour palette is based on the seasonal forecast and uses a rich indigo influence to make the collection more versatile for all age groups. Each of the 90 designs in the collection is available in 2 colour variations.

Along with the variety of colours, Winter 14 also presents a wide array of fabric with new materials such as wool, silk wool, twill wool , wool herring bone, silk wool herring bone and 100 % pure wool check featuring prominently.

Courtesy The News

COMMUNITY

Community Link

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 – PAKISTAN LINK – P19

Friday, November 14, 2014

VOL. 24/46 PAGE 20

n By C. Naseer Ahmad Picture by Morris Simon

S

PAGE PAGE22 17

egum PAGE 21

CAIR San Francisco Annual Dinner Draws Large Crowd

SALAM Fall Banquet a Resounding Success

Flying on the Magic Carpet as Azra Sings

D

Azra with Jerome Barry and ambassadors of Bosnia, Croatia and Macedonia

of peace,” said Secretary of State John Kerry from an ornate room in the US Department of State building across the street last year. From a diplomatic perspective, it was US Diplomatic effort known as the Dayton Accords that brought an end to the carnage in the Balkan and peace in the region. Participation in the event by ambassadors from Croatia and Macedonia is an evidence of the peaceful environment that resulted from the US diplomatic efforts.

There are many beautiful embassies in Washington but none is closer to the US Department of State that the Embassy of Bosnia and

For news, updated round the clock, visit

How to Treat a Family Member with Dementia

arajevo is thousands of miles away from the corner of 21st and E Street Washington but as Azra sings at the Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina, one is flying like a bird on the magic carpet – from Baghdad to Andalusian hills - through the streets of Sarajevo, Mostar, and Belgrade and all over the world.

Who needs to ride on the Dreamliner or any other jet plane, when the poet’s dreams come alive and one travels through time all over this beautiful world?

The guns of August 1914 unleashed by a maniac’s bullets have been silent for a very long time.

But who wants to remember the bloody past – the World Wars, Srebrenica and all that gory stuff?

Grudges don’t build future but bridges do.

The Embassy Series – founded by Jerome Barry – is an organization that builds bridges across cultural and religious divisions.

Soothing music and the sublime lyrics of poets connected the humanity gathered all around from different ethnic, religious and linguistic backgrounds. But for those who could not resist shedding some tears – moved by their emotions over the poetic words - there was the “Kleenex Corner” set up by Her Excellency Ambassador Jadranka Negodic. The joys were universal facilitated by the cultural bridge – made possible by the Embassy Series - and one heard many in the audience sing along with Azra and her band of musicians.

Yes, languages matter but then again they also don’t. “Music is the international language

21 Muharram 1436 H

Herzegovina. Though, we were all here in what is known as Washington’s Foggy Bottom neighborhood. But, there was nothing foggy on the crisp cold evening of November 7, 2014.

The beautiful views of Abraham Lincoln Memorial and the Potomac River from the US Institute of Peace, a short walk away go hand in hand with the appreciation of the beauty of the human spirit that gave refuge to the Jews of Andalusia in yesteryear. Azra sang like a bird Bembaša, which is considered the unofficial anthem of Sarajevo and is a devotional Hebrew song still heard in the Sarajevo Synagogue.

www.PakistanLink.com Azra came to the United States as a refugee and works as a psychologist in Boulder Colorado.

She is a singer of traditional Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to the program notes “her singing reflects the lyrical melancholy of Sevdah, intertwined with elements of Balkan folk and Gypsy Jazz.”

“Sevdah” is perhaps what “Ghazal” might be for the music lovers in Pakistan and India. With Sevdah, Azra has proved to be a captivating performer - “a dramatic mezzo-soprano, with unique ornamentation and expressive singing style.”

Her album “Azra Sings” contains 14 tracks of traditional songs from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Croatia and Serbia. With her beautiful voice, she has charmed audiences around the world, in concerts, academic events and vocal workshops.

“So which part of Lahore did you spend your childhood in? Gulberg?” asked Azra’s uncle. “Yes, Gulberg,” said a Pakistani writer.

“I don’t know if you have ever been to a place called ‘Murree’, in Pakistan?” asked Azra’s uncle again. “Yes, I spent part of my childhood there too.” So small is our world.

On the walk to the Foggy Bottom metro stop some were signing “The shadows follow me And the night won’t set me free But I don’t let the evening Get me down Now that you’re around me” No it was not Perry Como or Don MacLean but perhaps the shadows of Omar Khayyam, Ghalib, Sheikh Saadi, Hafez and Rumi – they were all there, at least in spirit.

Leadership Forum with American Muslim Communities

ear Friend,

Every week is busy at MPAC, but last week was especially busy! For the past couple of years, the American Muslim community has been facing challenges regarding issues of national security, surveillance, foreign policy and public perception.

The day following the midterm elections, American Muslims from around the country came together to strategize how we can collectively overcome issues that impact our communities. In partnership with the New America Foundation, we convened over 50 American Muslims from across the nation for a leadership forum called “Policy Challenges and Opportunities Facing American Muslim Communities.”

These community leaders, together with experts, thought through the issues we are facing and found solutions to build a framework of principles and goals for working together. When difficult issues arise, often times we talk past each other and not to each other. The purpose of this forum was to talk directly to one another about our community’s challenges and opportunities. This was our inaugural policy leadership forum and we hope

The leadership forum highlighted the need for communities to come together to develop a set of priorities around the various policy issues that are consequential to how we live as American Muslims

to continue expanding this group and bring more leaders to Washington, DC to advocate on behalf of American Muslims.

Throughout the day, we spoke frankly with each other and in the afternoon Shaarik Zafar, the

State Department’s Special Representative to Muslim Communities, engaged with us. Following the leadership forum, we had a more intimate meeting in the West Wing at the White House with President Obama’s Homeland Security Advisor Lisa Mo-

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naco. In the meeting, American Muslim leaders and experts discussed the impact of mass surveillance, problematic trainings in law enforcement and government agencies, and how to partner closely with government agencies to develop community-based countering violent extremism (CVE) programs.

This leadership forum highlighted the need for communities to come together to develop a set of priorities around the various policy issues that are consequential to how we live as American Muslims. In a diverse community such as ours, we will not have the same strategies and approaches to our advocacy, but we can share the same goals and sets of principles that will make our communities safer and our country stronger.

The day portion of the leadership forum consisted of three robust panels: 1) The Nexus between National Security and Civil Rights • Rabia Chaudry, Fellow for New America Foundation’s International Security Program • Alejandro Beutel, Independent Researcher • Heather Hurlburt, Director of New Models of Policy Change at the New FORUM, P29

COMMUNITY

P20 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014

CAIR San Francisco Annual Dinner Draws Large Crowd

“Rooted in faith: Growing through service” was the theme of this year’s annual banquet of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) held at the Convention Center in Santa Clara on November 8, 2014

n By Abdus Sattar Ghazali

“

Rooted in faith: Growing through service” was the theme of this year’s annual banquet of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) held at the Convention Center in Santa Clara on November 8, 2014.

Amy Goodman, the host of Democracy Now, was the keynote speaker. Addressing the 1,000 plus guests, she emphasized the importance of popular movements to preserve civil rights. Amy recalled that Nihad Awad, the Executive Director and co-founder of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), was among the five most

prominent American Muslims who were under NSA surveillance. She pointed out that leading US civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was also a victim of NSA’s dragnet surveillance.

She praised the role of whistle blowers whose revelations often forced the government to change its policies. For example. after the Associated Press revealed the New York Police Department’s blanket surveillance of the Muslim community and Mosques, the NYPD was forced to dismantle its surveillance section known as the Demographic Unit. She stressed the importance of independent media since the mainstream or corporate media is often

biased. It may be pointed out that Goodman is the first journalist to receive the Right Livelihood Award, widely known as the ‘Alternative Nobel Prize’ for “developing an innovative model of truly independent grassroots political journalism that brings to millions of people the alternative voices that are often excluded by the corporate media.

Nihad Awad, the executive director of CAIR, briefed the audience about his organization’s work since its establishment in 1994 in Los Angeles. Under Awad’s leadership, CAIR has grown into a national institution. From humble beginnings in 1994, CAIR now has 28 offices across the country and em-

ploys 109 staff members, including 29 attorneys and 47 media spokespeople.

Imam Siraj Wahhaj of Masjid Al-Taqwa in Brooklyn, New York, who launched the fundraising drive, stressed the importance of CAIR’s civil rights advocacy efforts for the Muslim community in the post-9/11 America.

Imam Wahhaj, who was the first person to give an Islamic invocation to the US Congress, urged the guests to donate openhandedly.

His appeal motivated the audience to contribute generously to meet the target of $ 250,000.00. A large number of people donated anonymously.

Zahra Billoo, Executive Director of CAIR-SFBA, who was the spirit behind the successful banquet, recalled her first donation to CAIR when she was a college student. She said it took one year to meet her donation commitment.

Athar Siddiqee, President of CAIR-SFBA, welcomed the guests and said that 2014 was a very busy year for his organization. He said he was proud to say that CAIR-SFBA has surpassed its record of handling civil rights complaints and published a civil rights report.

The CAIR banquet program included screening of two videos about the work of CAIR national and CAIR-SFBA in the last 20 years.

Muslim Friday Prayers to Be Offered at National Cathedral Washington, DC: Washington National Cathedral and five Muslim groups have announced today the first celebration of Muslim Friday prayers (Jumaa) at the National Cathedral on Friday, November 14.

Leaders believe offering Muslim prayers at the Christian cathedral shows more than hospitality.

It demonstrates an appreciation of one another’s prayer traditions and is a powerful symbolic gesture toward a deeper relationship between the two Abrahamic traditions.

What: Muslim Friday Prayers at Washington National Cathedral When: Friday, November 14, 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

Who: • The Rev. Canon Gina Campbell, director of liturgy for Washington National Cathedral • South African Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool • All Dulles Area Muslim Society • Council on AmericanIslamic Relations • Islamic Society of North America • Muslim Public Affairs Council

• Masjid Muhammad, The Nation’s Mosque Where: Washington National Cathedral, North Transept Media RSVP: Natalie Butz, West End Strategy Team, natalie@ westendstrategy.com, 202-7767700, by Thursday, November 13 The opportunity grew out of a trusted relationship between the Cathedral’s liturgical director, the Rev. Canon Gina Campbell, and South African Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool, who met while planning the national memorial service for Nelson Mandela.

Rasool, who is also an Islamic religious thinker and leader, brought together Muslim leaders from the All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS), Masjid Muhammad (the Nation’s Mosque), the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), and the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) for this historic event.

“Deep relationships come out of prayer,” said Canon Campbell.

“Different connections come out of being in prayer--beyond the political or academic.”

Ambassador Rasool thanked

Campbell for the Cathedral’s generous offer to use Friday prayers as a beginning to a deeper conversation and partnership.

“This is a dramatic moment in the world and in Muslim-Christian relations,” said Rasool. “This needs to be a world in which all are free to believe and practice and in which we avoid bigotry, Islamaphobia, racism, anti-Semitism, and anti-

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Christianity and to embrace our humanity and to embrace faith.”

The Cathedral has welcomed Muslims in the past, often at interfaith services and events, as well as at the Interfaith Conference of Greater Washington’s annual concert and specific programs such as the 2008 Ramadan Iftar at the Cathedral College. But this is the first time the Cathedral has invited

Muslims to come and lead their own prayers in a space known as a house of prayer for all people.

Planners hope that the people around the world will take note of this service and the welcome extended by the Cathedral so that Muslims everywhere will adopt a reciprocal welcome of Christians

by Muslims.

Media are invited to arrive by 11:30 a.m. Muslim and Cathedral leaders will be available before and after for interviews. Following opening remarks about this historic event, the prayers and sermons will begin at approximately 12:20 and conclude before 1 p.m.

Worshipers are being invited from the five Muslim communities. Limited seating will be available for invited observers and media.

The prayers will be offered in the north transept, an area of the Cathedral with arches and limited iconography that provide an ideal space--almost mosque-like--with the appropriate orientation for Muslim prayers.

The prayers will also be webcast live from the Cathedral’s website, www.nationalcathedral.org

COMMUNITY

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 – PAKISTAN LINK – P21

SALAM Fall Banquet a Resounding Success in Sacramento

The SALAM Muslim community is multi-ethnic and trans-sectarian and pretty much All-American. This was reflected in the gathering

T

n By Ras H. Siddiqui

he Sacramento Area League of Associated Muslims (SALAM) held its fall fundraising banquet event with a large gathering at the Citrus Heights Community Center on November 1st targeting the removal of a $300,000 bank loan which is currently being paid with interest.

The loan which was taken out to fund the now complete (and very beautiful) SALAM Mosque has been shrinking steadily from its original amount of over $1 million about five years ago and to this current stage. The challenge before the community was whether the Masjid would now be interest-free after this event.

The SALAM Muslim community is multi-ethnic and trans-sectarian and pretty much All-American. This was reflected in the gathering here as Asif Haq, the emcee for the evening and SALAM Board Member, called everyone’s attention by giving a short introduction of the schedule

for the evening and then inviting Tulaib Zafir to the stage. Tulaib delivered an inspiring recitation from the Holy Qur’an which was followed by its English translation by Sister Muzhda Ferouz .

The official welcome was given

by Dr Anne Kjemtrup, the Chairperson of the SALAM Board. It should come as no surprise that the SALAM has a female Chairperson because over the years this organization has been all-inclusive and some would even say “cutting edge”. Dr Kjemtrup officially welcomed everyone on behalf of the SALAM Management Team to this event. In her short speech she provided an overview of SALAM and enumerated what keeps her and others here and why newcomers may want to come and join the organization: Family (her son and daughter attend or have attended the school here), Social Activity (including a youth feeding the homeless event), Sunday School which has over 300 students (one of the oldest and longest running in the region), and The Sharif Family Com-

munity Library (coming online).

“SALAM is our spiritual home,” she said. SALAM is where everyone is welcome.” She said that it is one of the most ethnically diverse Mosques in the area.

Next, two young men and a young lady from the community received scholarships generously set up by three local educators, the Professor Ayad Alqazzaz Scholarship and the Professor Metwalli and Rosalie Amer Scholarship. One can never underestimate the importance of assistance of this nature because it can make a real difference in the lives of young people attending college in our community. Many young people drop out of their studies due to financial stresses since their families are not able to fund their education.

It is also interesting to note that the people who set up these scholarships are, or have been, college professors.

Another tradition that has continued at SALAM has been the recognition of members from within the local community for their unique contributions to SALAM and the

DICE and IBA Come together for INVENT-2014

I

n By A.H. Cemendtaur

n one his satirical essays Mushtaq Ahmad Yusufi wrote a tongue-in-cheek sentence about the discontent of Englishmen: anytime the English see a need for something they cannot find in existence, they quickly invent a contraption to fulfill their particular need. Dr Khurshid Qureshi, a Michigan-based Pakistani engineer, wants his countrymen to be afflicted with similar discontent.

DICE (Distinguished Innovations, Collaboration and Entrepreneurship— http://www.diceinnovationportal. com/ ) Foundation, a non-profit organization founded by Dr Khurshid Qureshi has been working to foster a culture of innovation in Pakistan. DICE is an innovation platform. Since 2007 an annual DICE Competition & Exhibition event has been regularly held in Pakistan. In these events student competitors display their innovative projects and win prizes. DICE Foundation’s activities are being financially supported by the Pakistan Council for Science and Technology (PCST); the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO); and the British Council.

In parallel to what DICE has been doing, a similar activity has been taking place at the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) in Karachi. Through an annual event dubbed INVENT, started in 2011, IBA’s Entrepreneurship Society (IBAES) had been providing enterprising students a chance to increase the visibility of their innovative ideas and take the ideas to the next logical step: a business based on the new idea.

It was only natural for DICE and IBA-ES to come together and do a mega entrepreneurial event together. This year’s INVENT is that very program. DICE-INVENT 2014 will be held at the IBA campus, December 19-20 . Entrepreneurs wanting to participate in the competition have been submitting their project write-ups to the organizing committee. Winners of the competition will be given cash prizes along with a chance to use IBA’s incubation facilities for the commercial-use development of their ideas.

Read more about DICE-INVENT 2014 at http://diceinvent.com/

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community during the banquet. The SALAM Distinguished Award at this event was presented to Dr Amin and Sister Linda Elmallah, an honor which they humbly accepted. Congratulations to them once again.

SALAM’s Financial Position was detailed next at the podium by Waseem Bawa who in his effort paved the way for the fundraising segment. In five years the SALAM community has been able to bring down their interest-bearing debt from approximately one and a half million dollars to the current sum of $300,000.

Interest-free loans provided by the community total over $800,000 and also need to be paid back someday.

Over $400,000 in interest has been paid to the bank thus far and the target at this time is to make no more interest payments by paying off the $300,000 loan immediately and to make the Mosque interest-free.

The theme for this banquet evening was “Seeking Calm in Chaotic Times” and to address the topic and a lot more was Dr Altaf Husain, a man who wears many hats including

being a board member at ISNA. Dr Husain demonstrated both humor and intellect in abundance and not only did he deliver the keynote but also very ably conducted the fundraising, all the while making the audience laugh. Now that is something rare; people parting with their money and laughing about it! Needless to say, Dr Altaf Husain was very effective in his appeal as just over $200,000 in checks and pledges were collected at this event.

After dinner, more laughter followed as Mohammed “Mo” Amer brought his comedy act to the stage.

In this, one of his many appearances in the Sacramento area over the years, he was as funny as ever. From his Palestinian roots, the use of olive oil to cure everything, from being stateless to becoming a US Citizen, facing bigotry, not looking “like an Arab” and other topics, all were fair game in his presentation.

In conclusion, the event was a resounding success with over 2/3rd of the interest-bearing loan amount funded which can now be paid off.

COMMENTARY

P22 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014

Don’t Deploy Arguments to Justify the Somersault on Kashmir n By Dr Ghulam Nabi Fai

O

Washington, DC

nce again, Kashmir is a living proof that it is not going to compromise, far less abandon, its demand for Azaadi (freedom) which is its birthright and for which it has paid a price in blood and suffering which has not been exacted from any other people of the South Asian subcontinent. Compared to the sacrifice Kashmir has had to endure, India and Pakistan themselves gained their freedom through a highly civilized process.

That is a most poignant truth. But even more bitterly ironical is the contrast between the complex and decades-long agony the Kashmir issue has caused to Kashmiris, to Pakistan and to India itself and the simple, rational measures that would be needed for its solution. No sleight of hand is required, no subtle concepts are to be deployed, and no ingenious deal needs to be struck between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif with the endorsement of the more pliable Kashmiri leaders. The time for subterfuge is gone. All that is needed is going back --- yes, going back --- to the point of agreement which historically existed beyond doubt between India and Pakistan and jointly resolving to retrieve it with such modifications as are necessitated by the passage of time.

That point of agreement is the one India as well as Pakistan, each independently, brought to the United Nations Security Council when the Kashmir dispute was first internationalized. In fact, the Security Council itself took that point as the basis of the resolutions it later formulated.

The point was one of inescapable principle- -- that the future status of the State of Jammu and Kashmir shall be decided by the will of the people of the State as impartially ascertained in conditions free from coer-

W

cion. The two elements of a peaceful settlement thus were, first, the demilitarization of the State (i.e. the withdrawal of the forces of both India and Pakistan) and a plebiscite supervised by the United Nations.

With propositions of such clarity and character accepted, what room was left for the dispute to arise? This question is bound to evoke divergent answers and it entails the

side the State made her doubt her chances of winning the plebiscite, she changed her stand and pleaded that she was no longer bound by the agreement. Of course, she deployed ample arguments to justify the somersault. But even though the arguments were of a legal or quasi-legal nature, she rejected a reference to the World Court to pronounce on their merits. This is how

Confidence that a real peace process is being launched would be inspired by the ending of repressive measures within the Indian-controlled area by both the federal and the state authorities. If sincerity is brought to the process in place of cheap trickery, the dawn of peace will glow as never before over the subcontinent risk of reopening old recriminations. However, it would be disingenuous to avoid it altogether. It is apparent from the record of the Security Council that India articulated the principle, accepted the practical shape the Council gave to it, and freely participated in negotiations regarding the modalities involved. However, when developments in-

the dispute became frozen with calamitous consequences for Kashmir most of all, with heavy cost for Pakistan and with none too happy results for India itself.

However, despite the passage of decades, nothing has been irretrievably lost.

The principle that the disposition of the territory in dispute must be in accordance

with the will of its people can still be implemented as truly as it would have been in 1950. As a matter of fact, it can be done better now because we are not as oblivious now as all sides seemed to be earlier of the unique heterogeneity of the State of Jammu and Kashmir --- one of the most bizarre products of 19th century British colonialism. Recognizing the existence of several different ethnicities, each with its own history and its affiliations, and the right of each to determine its future without constraint not only from India or Pakistan but also from one dominant region within the State on another, we are not likely to commit the fallacy of one-size-suits-all. The plan of action that would ensure for all components of the State as it existed on August 15, 1947 equal representation and equal freedom to decide whether to continue the status quo or to opt for a new dispensation is not difficult to work out. It can be done by a joint committee composed of the rightly qualified people from India and Pakistan who would consult Kashmiri representatives and also, as necessary, experts from the United Nations.

What is visualized here is not a charade to be enacted by the respective Foreign Offices of India and Pakistan and the pretense of a so-called peace process, which merely means the bureaucratization of the dispute.

What is desperately needed is an affirmation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of the necessity of taking new measures to effect the settlement of the dispute within a reasonable timeframe. To that end, India and Pakistan must together prepare a plan for the demilitarization of the State with safeguards for security worked out together.

Confidence that a real peace process is being launched would be inspired by the ending of repressive measures within the Indian-controlled area by both the federal and the state authorities. If sincerity is brought to the process in place of cheap trickery, the dawn of peace will glow as never before over the subcontinent.

How to Treat a Family Member with Dementia This Holiday Season

hether it’s Mom, Dad, Grandma or Grandpa – or your spouse – the “holiday quarter” can present special challenges for families with a loved one suffering from dementia.

“We have an expectation that loved ones should never change from the person we’ve perceived them to be for years, but everyone changes significantly over an extended period, especially those diagnosed with dementia,” says Kerry Mills, a sought-after expert in best care practices for people with dementia, which includes Alzheimer’s. November is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month.

“Dementia encompasses a wide range of brain diseases, which means it’s not the fault of a Grandma if she has trouble remembering things or gets flustered. Empathy for what she’s experiencing on the level of the brain will help your relationship with her. Do not expect her to meet you halfway to your world; you have to enter her world.”

Spouses have a particularly difficult time coping with their partner’s dementia, Mills says. A spousal relationship is a team and is central to the identities of both people. So, while you’re paying special attention to a parent’s or grandparent’s condition, extend it to his or her spouse, she says.

Families tend to have a hard time coping with a loved one’s dementia during holiday gatherings. Mills, coauthor with Jennifer A. Brush of “I Care, A Handbook for Care Partners of People with Dementia,” (engagingalzheimers.com), offers tips for how to interact with a loved one – say, Grandma – whose brain is deteriorating.

• Do not get frustrated. “First, do no harm” – the excellent maxim taught to medical students, is also a great first principle for

those interacting with Grandma, who may be experiencing a level of frustration and anxiety you cannot comprehend adequately. She simply doesn’t have access to certain details, but she is still a conscious and feeling person who has plenty to offer. If you get frustrated, she’ll pick up on it.

• Dedicate someone to Grandma during the gathering. Of course, loving families will want to include Grandma in the group, but be careful not to overwhelm her with attention.

Her brain, which has trouble processing some information, could use assistance – a liaison to help her process things. Grandpa could probably use a break; her son or daughter may be

the best handler during a gathering.

• Give Grandma purpose; give her a task in the kitchen. Keep Grandma, who may’ve been prolific in the kitchen in the past, engaged! Simple tasks, such as mashing potatoes or stirring gravy, may be best. Engage her in conversation about the food. If it’s Grandpa whose suffering dementia, include him in a group. Give him a cigar if the other men are going outside to smoke. Engage him in a conversation about football, which may allow him on his own terms to recall details from the past.

• Use visual imagery and do not ask yesor-no questions. Again, asking someone with Alzheimer’s to remember a specific incident

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23 years ago can be like asking someone confined to a wheelchair to run a 40-yard dash – it’s physically impossible. Don’t pigeonhole her.

Direct Grandma in conversation; say things to her that may stimulate recollection, but don’t push a memory that may not be there. Pictures are often an excellent tool.

• Safety is your biggest priority. Whether during a holiday gathering or in general, Grandma may commit herself to activities she shouldn’t be doing, such as driving.

“She’s been driving for decades, and then she develops a memory problem, which not only prevents her from remembering her condition, but also how to drive safely,” Mills says.

“This major safety concern applies to any potentially dangerous aspect to life.”

“Currently, there’s a stigma with the condition, but I’d like to change the baseline for how we regard dementia,” Mills says. “As with other medical conditions, Alzheimer’s should not be about waiting to die – patients often live 15 years or more after a diagnosis. It should be about living with it.”

About Kerry Mills: Kerry Mills, MPA, is an expert in best care practices for persons with dementia both in the home and in out-of-home health care residences and organizations. She is a consultant to numerous hospitals, assisted livings, hospice, home care agencies, senior day care centers and nursing homes. In her twelveyear career in health care, she has served as executive director and regional manager for numerous long-term dementia facilities. She is an outspoken advocate for persons with dementia, lecturing in Hong Kong, Canada, China, Europe and the United States. Her book, coauthored with Jennifer A. Brush, “I Care,” (engagingalzheimers.com), is the 2014 Gold Award Winner of the National Mature Media Awards.

COMMENTARY

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 – PAKISTAN LINK – P23

Obama’s Nuclear Weapon

n By Nayyer Ali MD

I

n roughly three months President Obama is going to destroy the Republican Party as a national institution (it will be reduced to its Southern and Western rump). It all comes down to the trap he has laid for the Republicans on immigration. When the House refused to even take a vote on the Senate bill last year, it meant that no immigration reform would ever come out of Congress. This has freed Obama to take executive action, but he has had to wait till after the midterms before he unleashes the havoc about to come down.

Obama has already taken some steps via executive action. Before the 2012 election he began DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), which basically said that undocumented immigrants who were brought to the US as children will no longer be subject to deportation and could lawfully work or attend university. When he did DACA via executive action it was at that time in response to Republican refusal to vote on the DREAM act, which freed him up to deal with the problem directly, and despite some carping on talk radio, the Republicans swallowed it. Even now their candidates run in terror when confronted on the campaign trail by DREAMers (children with undocumented status who often only can speak English and were raised in the US).

So around January or so, he is going to do the same thing for the rest of the undocumented. If you are here, have no criminal record, and want to work, he will stop deportations and allow work permits. This de facto legalization (but not amnesty, as they will not have green cards much less a path to citizenship) will be wildly popular with liberals and Latinos. As the economy is now generating strong job growth the average American will not see this as an economic threat. But it will drive the

F

rom Kamptee to Dallas: one information professional’s journey across cultural boundaries: India, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and United States / Zahiruddin Khurshid. Bloomington, IN: Xlibris Corporation, 2013. 256 p.

Available from all leading bookstores in the United States and across the world in three formats: ISBN 978-1-4836-3723-5 (hard cover); 978-1-4836-3722-8 (soft cover); 978-1-4836-3724-2 (e-book) From Kamptee to Dallas is a personal account of Zahiruddin Khurshid’s life and background history of his family from 1857 to 2013.

Khurshid was born in the family of Sarpanch Mohammed Khurshid Haq on February 8, 1947. During the last 66 years, he lived in four different countries with diverse cultures -- Hindu India (1947-1964); conservative Pakistan (1964-1974) and Saudi Arabia (1974-2011) and free and open United States (2011-present).

The first two chapters covering 40% of the book are biographical information about Khurshid’s ancestors, grandparents, parents, and siblings. He traces the roots of his family in Mao Nath Bhanjan in Northern India. In the aftermath of the infamous uprising of 1857, the English forces started committing atrocities against the local population and destroying their assets and businesses. The residents decided to leave the place and headed in different directions. The group that moved eastward and decided to settle down in a small town on the banks of the river Kanhan was led

by Khurshid’s great grandfather, Abdullah, who was also their Sar-

Republicans insane. They will have no choice but to completely oppose this at the level of every elected official, and it will include everyone running in the 2016 primary. This will be the death knell for the Republicans. Because Obama’s executive action can be overturned by the next President, the 2016 election will

will have to explicitly vow to undo Obama’s act in order to win the nomination.

The 2014 midterms won’t really alter this dynamic. If the Dems have held the Senate, Reid will bring the Senate bill back to the floor and either McConnell votes for it or he filibusters but regardless, Boehner can’t allow

Obama’s popularity is at a low point for the moment. But the economy is finally picking up speed, and the worst of the Great Recession is behind us. The country is no longer at war, and I expect that Obama’s popularity will rebound next year. Acting on immigration will be a major boost for him, and place the Republicans in an impossible bind that guarantees a crushing defeat in the 2016 election pit a Democrat in favor of the policy continuing, and a Republican aggressively committed to reversing it. The Republican wipeout with Latinos will be epic, and will drag down every blue state Republican Senator and many Congressmen with it. This will be a bullet they can’t dodge, because any Republican that refuses to condemn and oppose Obama will be primaried, and the 2016 Presidential nominee

it to see the light of day. If the Dems have lost the Senate, Obama just has to say put up or shut up, if you don’t like my executive action, then the Republicans just need to send me a comprehensive immigration bill, which they can’t possibly put together with the Ted Cruz Tea Party faction in charge of immigration.

One more Presidential election that puts 70% or more Latino voters on the Dem side will

consign the Republicans to permanent minority status, until an utterly changed Republican Party can take shape, but it may be it just limps on for another few decades representing the reactionary third of America but never holding the White House again, and losing the Supreme Court in the next decade as conservative Justices Scalia and Kennedy pass on and are replaced by liberals.

Actually, regardless of how the midterm elections turn out, Obama has had an extremely successful and consequential Presidency. When he came into office the economy was staring into the abyss of another Great Depression, while the country was embroiled in two unpopular wars, and all three big automakers were on the verge of bankruptcy.

He not only dealt with those problems but achieved a Democratic goal of near-universal health insurance that has been impossible to achieve for despite 50 years of trying.

While the Republicans have been able to block him from any significant legislative goals for the last few years, and look set to continue that for the last two years of his Presidency, Obama still has the capacity to make history on his own. On top of dealing with the 10 million undocumented immigrants, he has major unfinished business in foreign policy, where he can act without Congressional legislation. I hope Obama has the courage to finally close Guantanomo Bay, and to reach a nuclear deal that restores normal relations with Iran.

He can also put major pressure on Israel to achieve a two-state peace deal with the Palestinians, and he needs to fashion a good outcome of the Iraqi and Syrian conflicts.

Obama’s popularity is at a low point for the moment. But the economy is finally picking up speed, and the worst of the Great Recession is behind us. The country is no longer at war, and I expect that Obama’s popularity will rebound next year. Acting on immigration will be a major boost for him, and place the Republicans in an impossible bind that guarantees a crushing defeat in the 2016 election.

Book Review: From Kamptee to Dallas panch (leader of Panchayat), a local system run by a group of elders, notables and respected people of the community.

The head of this group is chosen based on the leadership quality, education, good moral character, and who can be trusted by the community as leader. The title of Sarpanch remained in his family for more than 100 years until 1963 when his father died. Anis Khurshid, who was next in line to become Sarpanch, had already migrated to Pakistan and after the demise of his father, he also brought the rest of the family to Pakistan in 1964-1965 with the exception of two sisters who were married and their husbands preferred to stay in India.

While he prepared biographical information of each member of his family in three to four pages, the most comprehensive write-up of 26 pages is about his eldest brother and ideal teacher, Anis Khurshid, whom he considers the pride of Pakistan.

He devoted his whole life for the development of Library and Information Science (LIS) in Pakistan and upgraded the image and status of librarians in the country and abroad. He was a national figure, free from any prejudices or biases.

He was an extraordinary person and despite serious illness and resulting handicaps, traveled to places both in and outside Pakistan for presenting papers in conferences, giving lectures at seminars and workshops, consulting, and attending meetings.

Recognizing his enormous contributions to LIS in Pakistan and introducing Pakistan librarianship at the

international level, the Government of Pakistan honored him with the President’s Pride of Performance Award. The document at the end of his biography, Anis Khurshid as seen by his colleagues, friends, relatives, and students, shows that he was a true professional and was accorded recognition not only by his fellow citizens, but also by library scholars and academics from all over the world.

Of the members of his own family, Khurshid admires his wife for being supportive of him particularly by sparing him from handling domestic matters and taking care of three children. For this reason, all of them are more close to their mother than father. His eldest daughter, Nazish is a computer science graduate of the Faculty of Engineering Science & Technology at Hamdard University in Karachi. She is married to a wonderful boy. They

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have a lovely and intelligent son and live in Dubai. While Shahzad was in the 11th grade in school, he got admission to an undergraduate program in computer engineering at KFUPM. After completing his education. Shahzad went to Dallas to join the Graduate School of Management at the University of Dallas (UD). He received an MBA degree with specialization in Supply Chain Management in 2007. Immediately after graduation, he got a good job at Siemens. The youngest daughter is intelligent and was selected on the spot by a healthcare company that recruits doctors for their clients.

Beenish works as a liaison between doctors and potential employers.

She has excellent communication skills that help her in dealing with the clients.

Khurshid tells his own story in detail starting from India where he lived for 16 years before migrating

to Pakistan in 1964. He studied at Rabbani School, which had highly qualified and very experienced teachers. Of them, he admires his maternal uncle, Hameed Jamal, who was his class teacher in grades 10 and 11. He wrote a long piece about his qualities as a person and a teacher. In Pakistan, he lived with his eldest brother Anis Khurshid for about a year and moved along with two brothers, mother, and a younger sister in a house that they bought from the money brought after selling the property in India. He studied at Jamia Millia College and then moved to the University of Karachi to do his BA Honors in Economics. Later, he decided to register in Master’s program in Library Science (MLS). One of the reasons for Khurshid to change his subject from Economics to LIS was his confidence that someday his brother would arrange his admission with some financial aid to study at an ALA-accredited library school in the United States. He worked very hard with the goal to top the merit list, but fell short of two marks due to the manipulation of his internal evaluation (IE) marks by one or more of his teachers who did not want the gold medal going to the Khurshid family.

Khrushid worked briefly in Pakistan and moved to Saudi Arabia in 1974 to join the then College of Petroleum & Minerals, now King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals Library in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia as Librarian II. He tells the readers how he developed himself from a copy cataloger to become senior manager. He takes pride in his contributions to library automation, including supervising retrospective conversion of the card REVIEW, P29

COMMENTARY

P24 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014

Dulmial - ‘The Village with the Gun’

From left: The Dulmial cannon, Dulmial officers by the cannon (1925), and memorial at the base of the cannon

n By Dr Irfan Malik and Michael Noble The Centre for Hidden Histories University of Nottingham, UK

A

nineteenth century cannon sits at the centre of a Pakistani village. Here we take a look at the story of the Dulmial Gun.

Dulmial is a village approximately 100 miles south of Islamabad, in the Salt Range region. A century ago, the area was part of British India, which meant that its inhabitants were drawn into the Great War on the side of the Allies. A settlement steeped in military history, Dulmial sent 460 of its men to fight in the British Army, including both of Dr Malik’s great grandfathers. The largest single participation of any village in Asia. Nine gave their lives.

In recognition of the significant military service and sacrifice, the British Government in 1925 offered

n By Tahir Ali Boston

Shrewsbury: The New England Cricket Association (NECA) just finished off their ‘hard tennis ball’ cricket season. A total of 18 teams contested for the final spot. Similarly, ‘hard ball’ Massachusetts State Cricket League (MSCL) was not too far behind closing on their season finale. A week earlier the junior league – mainly comprising of second generation kids under 16 – completed their season.

Cricket is now becoming increasingly popular in Massachusetts. However, cricket is not new to Massachusetts. The cricket tournaments go back to 1867, and were played for 30 years in Needham just a few towns away from Shrewsbury.

The team Albion Cricket Club was ranked third in the cricket tournaments played at the time. This time period can be likened to the movie ‘Lagaan’ where the British brought their favorite sport wherever they went: South Africa, Australia, India and, of course, United States.

Nitin Vaidya, wrote on Aug. 31, 2014, “In recent decades [cricket] has undergone a resurgence fostered by immigrants from countries of the British Commonwealth.

There are at least 32 teams of skilled amateur adult cricket players registered with the Massachusetts State Cricket League (MSCL) and an additional number that are part of the New England Cricket Association [NECA].”

Cricket celebrities in Town: Former Pakistani cricketer Yousuf Yohana visited Massachusetts.

Shaheen XI and MSCL and other players participated in the celebra-

Dulmial an award of their choosing.

The man in-charge of choosing was Captain Ghulam Mohammad Malik, the highest ranking and most decorated soldier of the village. The Captain was a man of great experience, having commenced his military life in the Derajet Mountain Battery and participated in Lord Robert’s famous march from Kabul to Kandahar in 1880. His photograph and achievements are documented in the book

by Brig. Gen. Graham ‘The History of the Indian Mountain Artillery’ in 1957. A career soldier, he eschewed the British offers of land, money and water facilities, choosing instead to have Dulmial’s contribution recognised with the presentation of a cannon.

The British agreed and provided Dulmial with a twelve pounder.

The cannon itself was made at Carron ironworks, in Falkirk, Scotland in 1816. Its stand was built in Cossipore Gun Foundry, India under the

Capt. Ghulam Mohammed, Sirdar Bahadur, who accepted the cannon on behalf of the village

leadership of Captain A. Broome, in 1847. The gun was first collected from the First Punjab Regimental Centre in Jhelum, from where it was

carried by train to Chakwal. There the gun was dismounted and loaded into a cart to be pulled by three pairs of oxen for the remaining 28 km.

The roads were semi-mountainous and the passage was difficult. It would take the ox carts two weeks to cover the distance. After 5 km, at Choa Saiden Shah, the route became more difficult still and Dulmial had to dispatch 5 additional pairs of oxen to relieve the initial 6 and complete the gun’s journey.

Safely in Dulmial, the gun was placed at the center of the village and a photograph was taken with the local commissioned officers. It remains there today, a reminder of the contribution that Dulmial made in the First World War. Dulmial is now known as the ‘village with the gun’ in Pakistan, but is rather less well-known in the UK. This is because little has been written or published about the village in English. Dr Irfan Malik, in collabo-

Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar

ration with Michael Noble, The Centre for Hidden Histories, University of Nottingham aims to research the First World War history of the village as it played such an impressive part during that period. Since that time Dulmial has continued to produce many generations of high ranking, distinguished Army officers. It is our intention to bring this hidden history to a wider audience and help to share the reasons of just what a nineteenth century Scottish cannon is doing in the Salt Range region of Pakistan.

After informing the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London of Dulmial’s significant history, several representatives of the village have been invited to attend the First World War Centenary reception at the British High Commission, Islamabad, Pakistan, in November 2014. It marked a great honour and privilege for the inhabitants and descendants of Dulmial. tion. In one of the pictures Najeeb is shaking hands with Youhana as Fazal Alam and Shujaat look on.

Indian team player Suresh Raina was also in town. In one of the pictures he is seen with with yours truly. Both Lokvani and Indian News carried the news. Anil and Ranjani of Lokvani Magazine also visited the venue. Upendra Mishra of New England Indian News sums it up as follows: Indian Cricketer Suresh Raina is in Boston and will meet and greet cricket fans and enthusiasts at 7:00

There are at least 32 teams of skilled amateur adult cricket players registered with the Massachusetts State Cricket League (MSCL) and an additional number that are part of the New England Cricket Association [NECA]” pm on Thursday at a restaurant located at 1000 Boston Turnpike (Route 9) in Shrewsbury, MA, said organizer of the event Tahir Ali. Raina is visiting Boston to visit a family friend and touring the United States, Ali said, adding that there is no entrance fee and everyone is welcome to meet and greet the Indian cricketer. “I just want Suresh to get a proper tribute and maximize participation,” Ali said.

“I just do not feel it proper to have a hindrance between the national hero and his fans. Suresh also was gracious enough to agree with me on this. So we are on the same page.”

www.PakistanLink.com

SPORTS SPORTS

NOVEMBER 2014– -PAKISTAN PAKISTAN NOVEMBER 14, 14, 2014 LINKLINK – P25

Players Could Return Early From Corruption Bans

DUBAI: The ICC has approved changes to its anti-corruption code which will allow banned players to return to domestic cricket before the end of their penalty if they meet certain criteria.

The amendments have been previously discussed by David Richardson, the ICC chief executive, and were ratified at the latest board meeting in Dubai.

They are currently most relevant to the Pakistan trio of Mohammad Amir, Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif who were banned for their parts in 2010 spot-fixing case at Lord's.

However, of the three only Amir, who

is currently 22, appears to have a decent chance of being allowed to return before his ban ends in September 2015.

The PCB has previously been in discussions with the ICC over relaxing Amir's ban which momentarily prompted talk of an unlikely return for the 2015 World Cup but the player himself admitted that was not realistic but will now hope to at least be able to return to a cricket pitch ahead of next September.

"The revised Code makes provision for a banned player to gain an early return to domestic cricket in certain circumstances," the ICC

Djokovic, Wawrinka Enjoy Romps in World Tour Finals

Two-time defending champion Novak Djokovic extended his indoor winning streak with an impressive 6-1, 6-1 win over Marin Cilic.

LONDON: If any ticket holder had got stuck in the queue for an ice cream at the O2 Arena recently - the action might have been all over by the time they returned to their pricey seat.

Stanislas Wawrinka pummelled Tomas Berdych 6-1 6-1 in 58 minutes before the evening's main course turned into fast food as world number one Novak Djokovic needed two minutes less to send newcomer Marin Cilic packing by the same score line.

Defending champion Djokovic can clinch the year-end number one ranking if he wins his next two Group A matches and few would bet against the Serb doing that.

As for Czech Berdych and Croat Cilic, they have a day to lick their wounds before meeting on Wednesday in a match each must win to keep their hopes of reaching the semi-finals alive.

Singles were the most one-sided contests since the Tour Finals

arrived in London in 2009, eclipsing Roger Federer's victory over Rafael Nadal in 2011 for the loss of three games.

Djokovic extended his winning streak indoors to 28 matches with a clinical demolition of U.S. Open champion Cilic, one of three debutants at the season-ender.

Cilic won the first five points but what happened next was painful viewing for fans of the 26-year-old, including the Croatia soccer team, in town for a friendly against Argentina, who arrived during the first set to cheer their man.

Djokovic picked Cilic apart with relish, claiming his 11th victory over him in 11 meetings and sending a reminder to the newest member of the grand slam club that the ruling class are not ready to roll over yet.

"It's been a great, great match," Djokovic, who barely broke sweat, said on court. "I haven't played here for 12 months, it's great to be back.

It was a great performance. J

chairman N Srinivasan said. "When exercising his discretionary powers in this regard, however, the Chairman of the ACSU will consider a number of factors, including the level of remorse shown by the player, his/her cooperation with the ACSU's education programme and/or if the player has helped the ACSU by disclosing all information that, in turn, has helped it to enforce the AntiCorruption Code in respect of others engaged in corruption conduct."

Butt was handed a 10-year ban with five years suspended and Asif seven with two years suspended. The pair will be 31 and 32 respectively next September but there are doubts as to whether they have complied with all the conditions of their suspended bans.

Other amendments to the anticorruption code including giving the ICC the ability to suspend players for other "exceptional circumstances" such as when charged by police - and also for players to voluntary suspend themselves after being charged under the Code, but who have yet to be suspended by ICC, and the period of that voluntary suspension would be credited towards the ultimate ban should a player be found guilty.

An option has also been introduced to allow a player to admit an offence early in the process and agree a penalty to avoid the need for a full tribunal. J

Saeed Ajmal Named in Pakistan's Provisional Squad for World Cup LAHORE: Suspended off-spinner Saeed Ajmal has been included in Pakistan's provisional World Cup squad of 30 players but it is subject to him clearing the informal biomechanics test in the United Kingdom.

Ajmal who is already in the UK is scheduled to undergo the informal test recently with former Pakistan spinner Saqlain Mushtaq accompanying him. Ajmal recently also reiterated his confidence that his corrected bowling action would be cleared in the tests as he was now straightening his arm within the 15 degrees allowed by the ICC. "I have worked very hard on removing chinks in my action and once this stage is cleared I am sure I will resume playing international cricket again soon," he said.

But the national selection committee headed by Moin Khan apparently is not so confident as while sending a provisional list to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for submission to the ICC, it has included Ajmal's name subject to his clearing the informal test.

"If he doesn't clear the test then he will not be part of the provisional squad," one PCB official told PTI. Ajmal's bowling action was initially reported by the match officials during the first Test against Sri Lanka at Galle in August.

Later he failed a biomechanics test ordered by the ICC and was suspended from international cricket.

For the last two months he has been working on correcting his bowling action the help of Saqlain and other experts.

A reliable source said the selectors had however included the names of discarded senior players Shoaib Malik and Kamran Akmal in the provisional squad without any pre-conditions. J

www.Pakistanlink.com www.PakistanLink.com

Introducing ICC’s New President: Najam Sethi

KARACHI: Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Najam Sethi will take over the International Cricket Council's (ICC) presidency from next year after the PCB's nomination was approved by the ICC board.

Sethi enjoyed a troublesome stint in the PCB due to a lengthy legal battle between him and former chairman Zaka Ashraf, with PCB patron Nawaz Sharif in favour of Sethi taking the position.

"The ICC Board accepted the PCB's nomination of Najam Sethi for the ICC Presidency," read an ICC press release. "Sethi's nomination will now be ratified by the General Council at the 2015 Annual Conference, following which he will take over from Mustafa Kamal as the ICC President for a period of 12 months."

World Cup prize money, playing conditions decided The ICC Board, under the chairmanship of Narayanaswami Srinivasan also approved the breakdown of the 2015 World Cup's prize money.

A total of $10 million, an increase of approximately 20% over that of the 2011 World Cup, will be distributed.

Should a team win the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 without losing a single match, it will receive $4.02 million as prize money, while losing one match on their way to the championship will reduce the prize money to $3.975 million.

"The mega event's playing conditions were also confirmed by the board which says that the Decision Review System [DRS] will be used in all 49 matches of the tournament and there

MR PRESIDENT: Sethi enjoyed a troublesome stint in the PCB due to a lengthy legal battle between him and former chairman Zaka Ashraf, with PCB patron Nawaz Sharif in favour of Sethi taking the position.

will be reserve days for the knock-out phases only," added the same press release. "There will be no super over in tied matches in the knock-out phases.

In case of a tied quarter-final and semifinal, the side that finished in the higher position in the group stage will progress. If the final is tied or there is no result, then the teams will be declared joint winners."

Illegal bowling actions drive to continue The board also endorsed and reiterated its support for ICC's no-tolerance policy in dealing with suspected illegal bowling actions. It also complimented the members for supporting the process and proactively identifying and addressing bowlers with suspected illegal bowling actions at domestic levels. J

Bangladesh Target Historic 3-0 Sweep CHITTAGONG: Bangladesh have a rare opportunity in Chittagong to answer some of the most commonlyasked questions fired in their direction.

Can they maintain their form and consistency? Do they have it in them to sweep the series 3-0? And having already secured the series, how will they react as a unit in the final game?

These are scenarios completely new to the hosts, so the fans will be eagerly awaiting the team's response in the third Test.

But what would truly excite the Chittagong faithful is the prospect of

yet another all-round show fromShakib Al Hasan, and seeing their hometown hero Tamim Iqbal back in form. By becoming only the third player after Ian Botham and Imran Khan to score a hundred and take 10 wickets in the same Test, Shakib has regained his exalted position in the country, and will be feted duly at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium where large crowds are expected.

The fans will also get to see firsthand Bangladesh's new-look spin attack, which has caused Zimbabwe a lot of misery. J

COMMENTARY

P26 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014

Concentrate Your Picks to Reap Big Gains n By Saghir Aslam Rawalpindi, Pakistan

(The following information is provided solely to educate the Muslim community about investing and financial planning. It is hoped that the Ummah will benefit from this effort through greater financial empowerment, enabling the community to live in security and dignity and fulfill their religious and moral obligations towards charitable activities) “Diversify.” It’s the financial industry’s mantra for lowering your investment risk. In reality, it puts your portfolio at risk of mediocre results.

Sure, investing in a dozen stocks can ease the overall damage should one of them tumble and catch you off guard. But the same strategy also greatly lowers the chance of cashing in on a winning stock. In the end, you boost the risk of loosing out on a huge gain even if you do pick a great stock.

Suppose you had $5,000 to invest and you split that evenly among five stocks. All your picks turn out to be winners and rise 5%, 10%, 20%, 50% and 100%. They’d give you a 37% overall return, impressive by most standards. But what if you had chosen just the best two of those stocks? Your narrow portfolio would have jumped 75%.

Casting even a slightly wider net can drastically reduce your results.

There’s a better way to manage downside risk than by indiscriminately buying a large basket of stocks. Start

with the best stocks in the market.

Then put in place an iron-clad rule of limiting you initial losses to 7% or 8% on a single investment. The approach keeps you out of trouble even if only one out of four purchases generates modest gains of 25% or 30%.

Focus your time, energy and money on the best-quality goods on the market. During a bull market, only a fraction of the thousands of stocks out there will double or triple in price.

This year is no exception. Only 124 stocks that started the year above $12 a share have at least doubled. These outperformers represent just 1.4% of the more than 8,000 issues.

The first step is to confirm that we’re in a bull market. Then look for the best stock in a leading group.

Check its fundamentals: Does it have a product or service that surpasses its rivals? Is the management solid? Is profit growth strong and even accelerating? Are sales growth, after-tax profit margins and return on equity also high? Usually, only one or two companies in a group can meet all of these requirements.

Check a stocks’ technicals. Is it carving out a bullish chart pattern?

What do institutional investors-the main movers of the market-thinks about the stock?

Finally, there’s the task of timing your buy. As outlined in recent columns, you want to buy at the moment a stock breaks out of a base.

It’s a lot of work to find and buy a leading stock. Can you really put in all the effort necessary to assemble a portfolio of 25 or 30 stocks?

As a rule of thumb, own no more than two stocks if you want to invest $5,000 in the market. With $10,000, two or three stocks is appropriate, and with $25,000, three or four.

Review your stocks at least once a quarter. For best results, you should review it monthly even weekly depending on the amount of investment you have and the time you want to invest to manage your money and hopefully have it grow. Check and see if it is performing up to your expectations. Are all of your fundaments still in tact? Once again, set up your plans. Follow your plans. Stick with it and you will find that with the proper discipline you will InshAllah reach great rewards. Which performed the best? Are the earnings still looking good? What’s happening in the various industry groups? Prune the laggards from your portfolio and shift the money into emerging leaders.

If you’ve got a stock that’s turning into a big winner, you might try to buy more shares at appropriate times. Add to your position after the stock corrects and breaks out of a new, well-formed base. Or you might pick up a few shares when the stock pulls back and finds support at a long-term trend line or moving average.

The goal is to concentrate, not diversify. It’s better to master a few, wellchosen stocks than be at the mercy of a crowd of average investments.

You must decide if you want to go with this strategy or go with the advice of earlier articles to diversify, diversify, and diversify. You must decide what you plan is. It is either that you concentrate on a few stocks or diversify.

But you still must follow your stocks closely. Get out of the losers early. Stick with you winners. But most importantly you must not deviate from your plan and InshAllah you will reap great rewards.

(Saghir A. Aslam only explains strategies and formulas that he has been using. He is merely providing information, and NO ADVICE is given. Mr Aslam does not endorse or recommend any broker, brokerage firm, or any investment at all, nor does he suggest that anyone will earn a profit when or if they purchase stocks, bonds or any other investments. All stocks or investment vehicles mentioned are for illustrative purposes only. Mr Aslam is not an attorney, accountant, real estate broker, stockbroker, investment advisor, or certified financial planner.

Mr Aslam does not have anything for sale.)

www.PakistanLink.com

West Africa Ebola Crisis The most widespread epidemic of the Ebola Virus in history is currently going on in the West African countries of Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia.

Hidaya Foundation is partnering with local organizations on the ground and will be providing medicines, food, and other necessary supplies to help with the containment efforts and treating the sick.

Donate Zakat & Sadaqah to help families affected by Ebola

Hidaya Foundation 866.2.HIDAYA | www.hidaya.org Hidaya Foundation is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) charitable organization with Tax ID # 77-0502583

Exchange Rates for Currency Notes* Countries

USA

S.Arabia UK

Japan Euro UAE

Buying Rs.

Selling Rs.

101.1 26.94 160.19 0.8800 125.69 27.52

101.30 27.00 160.51 0.8818 125.94 27.58

(*November 11, 2014)

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RELIGION

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 – PAKISTAN LINK – P27

Theology and Ethics of Human Relations in Islam

Gems from the Holy Qur’an

n By Dr Muzammil H. Siddiqi

O

People! Be conscious of your Lord, who created you from a single Person, created, of like nature, his mate, and from them twain scattered (like seeds) countless men and women.

Be conscious of God, through Whom you demand your mutual (rights), and (respect) the wombs (that bore you): for Allah ever watches over you. (al-Nisa’ 4:1) O ye who believe! stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to Allah, even as against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be (against) rich or poor: for Allah can best protect both. Follow not the lusts (of your hearts), lest ye swerve, and if ye distort (justice) or decline to do justice, verily Allah is wellacquainted with all that ye do. (AlNisa’ 4:135) O People! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into races and tribes, that you may know each other (not that you may despise each other). Verily the most honored of you in the sight of God is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And God has full Knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things). (al-Hujurat 49:13) Freedom, justice, equality, peace and harmony among all human beings are important topics; we should talk about them all the time and remind ourselves and others to live by these values everywhere. There is a special reason to talk about these today. Today is the 40th anniversary of the death of a great Black American Hero, Martin Luther King who was killed on April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tenn. He gave his life fighting against discrimination and injustice.

He gave his life for freedom, equality and civil liberties. As we celebrate his birth and his life, we also honor his mission for which he lived and gave his life. People of all religions and cultures should take his message seriously.

I shall talk briefly about the theological and ethical perspectives on human relations in Islam. I shall also say a few words about the implication of these principles for our life today.

From the translation by Muhammad Asad (Leopold Weiss) (Recently, a media talk show host, well known for his anti-Muslim bias, saw it fit to make scornful remarks against the Qur’an on TV. In these columns, selections from this Holy Book will be published, so that unacquainted readers of the Pakistan Link may be able to judge for themselves.)

The Theological Perspective: Human honor and relations in Islam are emphasized on the basis of three main principles given to us very clearly in the Qur’an. These are the principles of Unity, Equality and Diversity.

1. Unity: First principle is that there is only one God who has created all people. God of all humanity is One and the same. God does not want any mistreatment and injustice to any of His creation.

2. Equality: All human beings are equal because in their origin they are the children of one and the same parents: Adam and Eve. Thus all human beings are related to each other as one family; and they are equal.

3. Diversity: God has given human beings differences of genders, races, colors and nationalities. Thus human beings have diversities and these diversities are not an evil or curse but a blessing for human beings. They should respect these diversities and enjoy them.

The Ethical and Moral Per-

spective: On the basis of these three main principles Islam lays down a whole system of ethical and moral rules of behavior and guidelines. It teaches that all human beings are free and they should be treated with honor.

Justice and fair dealings are necessary for all human societies. Muslim jurists have identified five basic rights of all human beings. They are also called ‘Maqasid al-Shari’ah’ (the Objectives of Islamic Law).

These objectives must be protected and promoted both for the benefit of the individuals as well as societies: 1. Life (al-nafs): Life of every human being is sacrosanct and must be protected. “Whosoever kills one person as if he has killed the whole humanity.” (al-Ma’idah 5:32) 2. Family (al-nasl): People have right to have families and their families should be respected.

3. Property (al-mal): People have rights to their properties and possessions. No one should take another person’s property without his/ her consent.

4. Dignity and Honor (al-‘ird): Every human being should be respected.

No one should be abused, accused or defamed. People also have right to their privacy.

5. Religion (al-din): Every person has a right to practice his/ her religion freely.

There should be no compulsion or coercion in the matters of religion.

To implement these principles in our life: In our

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global village we need these principles much more now than at any other time. We must emphasize the freedom of all people, the human rights of all people, economic and social justice for all humanity. We should start this from our homes, our families, our neighborhood and cities but we should not stop there; we should carry on this work the whole humanity as one family.

In our world today there should be no place for prejudice and propaganda against any culture and religion. We should emphasize freedom with dignity and responsibility.

1) We have special duties towards our parents, spouses and family members 2) We should be kind and caring towards our neighbors 3) We must be charitable and helpful for the poor and needy 4) We must treat all people with justice and fairness 5) We must not exploit others or show aggression against them 6) Must not make sarcastic remarks, call others with bad names or show prejudice to them because of their color, gender or race.

7) Must not misrepresent other people, their religion or culture or spread false rumor against anyone.

In a Hadith it is reported that the Prophet – peace be upon himused to say after the Salat in his du’a: “O Allah, our Lord and the Lord of everything. I bear witness that you are the Lord, alone without any partner. O Allah, our Lord and the Lord of everything, I bear witness that Muhammad is your servant and your messenger. O Allah, our Lord and the Lord of everything, I bear witness that all human beings are brothers to each other. O Allah, our Lord and the Lord of everything, make me sincerely yours and also my family at every moment in this life and in the Hereafter. O the Lord of Glory and Honor, Hear my prayers and accept them. Allah is Great. Allah is sufficient for me and He is the best helper. Allah Akbar al-Akbar.

(Sunan Abu Da’ud,1289)

About the translator: Muhammad Asad, Leopold Weiss, was born in Livow, Austria (later Poland) in 1900, and at the age of 22 made his first visit to the Middle East. He later became an outstanding foreign correspondent for the Franfurter Zeitung, and after his conversion to Islam travelled and worked throughout the Muslim world, from North Africa to as far East as Afghanistan, India and Pakistan. After years of devoted study he became one of the leading Muslim scholars of our age. His translation of the Holy Qur’an is one of the most lucid and well-referenced works in this category.

Chapter 19, Verses 27 - 36 And in time she [Mary] returned to her people, carrying the child with her.

They said: ‘O Mary! Thou hast indeed done an amazing thing!

O sister of Aaron! [ 1 ] Thy father was not a wicked man, nor was thy mother a loose woman!” Thereupon she pointed to him.

They exclaimed: “How can we talk to one who [as yet] is a little boy in the cradle?”

[But] he said: “Behold, I am a servant of God. He has vouchsafed unto me revelation and made me a prophet, and made me blessed wherever I may be; and He has enjoined upon me prayer and charity as long as I live, and [has endowed me with] piety towards my mother; and He has not made me haughty or bereft of grace.

“Hence, peace was upon me on the day when I was born, and [will be upon me] on the day of my death, and on the day when I shall be raised to life [again]!

Such was , in the words of truth, Jesus the son of Mary, upon whose nature they so deeply disagree.

It is not conceivable that God should have taken upon Himself a son: limitless is He in His glory!

When He wills a thing to be, He but says unto it “Be” – and it is! ________________ Translator’s Notes [ 1 ] In ancient Semitic usage, a person’s name was often linked with a renowned ancestor or founder of the tribal line. Since Mary belonged to the priestly caste, and hence descended from Aaron, she was called a “sister of Aaron” (in the same way as her cousin, Elisabeth, the wife of Zachariah, is spoken of in Luke I.5 as one “of the daughters of Aaron”).

CLASSIFIED & MATRIMONIAL

P28 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014

Classified Section Business Opportunity Grizzly Pears & Burger 2211 Sierra Hwy Actom, CA Off of Highway 14, with 2 drive thrus Priced at $649,000 for the property and business. No beer and wine. Feel free to leave a message for Muhammad (661) 299-5209

Household work, cooking, for a senior at: Villa Anaheim 3303 West Lincoln Avenue Apt. 150 City of Anaheim, CA 92801.

Call Abdul-Ghani 714/995-8610 with Social Security, California ID.

Job Opportunity at the Consulate General of Pakistan, Los Angeles Position: Consular Assistant Job Description: i) Duties involve office job as well as outside activities at odd hours Qualification: i) Preferably an undergrad diploma/degree ii) Proficiency in use of Microsoft Office and Excel

LOCATION AVAILABLE IN ARTESIA, CA Best location available for fast food restaurant - in the heart of Indian

Apply along with resume and copy of legal status document.

Address: 10850 Wilshire Blvd, suite 1250 Los Angeles, CA 90024 Email: consularassistant@pakconsulatela.org Fax: 310-441-9256

and Pakistani community - on Pioneer Blvd. in Artesia, CA. For

Preference will be given to those candidates who reside in close proximity to the consulate.

more info please call 562-205-5880.

Support the Community by Supporting Pakistan Link.

To Advertise or Subscribe in the most popular Pakistani-American newspaper “Pakistan Link” Call 714-400-3400

Matrimonial Link We are looking for a suitable match for our sister. Born in Karachi, Pakistan, in 1986. Cast UP, India, Urdu Speaking, Sunni -Hanafi - Deobandi. Fair complexion, height 5’-2” - Master’s Degree Holder, Canadian Citizen.

Contact phone # (647) 779-1765.

We are looking for a suitable match for our 35 year old MD daughter.

She is born/raised/ educated in USA. Works as a clinical faculty at a prestigious university on East Coast. She is slim, fair complexioned and moderately religious.

Never married. Serious inquiries from US residents only. Please contact us with personal, professional and family details in full confidence at

smasian2014@gmail.com

I am looking for a potential husband. I am a 44 year old female, looking for a sunni muslim male 45 to 55 years old. I have been divorced. If interested email me at pktan923@gmail. com or call me at (408) 6181126 or (443) 271-8817.

42 sunni muslim male, 5’4”,divorced with one child. For details please contact 401 648 5786. US Residents/Citizens only Asslam U Alakum, looking for a good match for our sister. Our sister is from Pakistan, 34 years old, Sunni Muslim, 5 ft 5”, never been married, Associate in Arts/Vocational Nursing, US Permanent resident. Family oriented, practicing Muslim, good family values.

Please contact us at: marriage916@gmail.com or 214-699-9430

Place Your Matrimonial Ad Today Buy 3 Get 1 FREE! call: 714-400-3400 or

Urdu-speaking sunni Muslim parents seeking compatible match for their US born daughter, 25, 5’7”, slim/fair, 4 year college graduate, professional.

Applicant must be educated and professional with sound family background & religious/ cultural values. Reply at 54musafir@gmail.com

Email: Sales@pakistanlink.com Pakistani Sunni Muslim Male, 32, US. Seeking Simple Sunni Muslim woman to get married in sunnah

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way who follows the basic Islamic

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rules eats halal pray. 5 Times a

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day, Send Bio-data with recent photos. age 21 to 35 US Residents/ Citizens only Please contact sunnahwaynikah@yahoo.com

Read Pakistan Link and Urdu Link online at www.pakistanlink.com www.PakistanLink.com

PAKISTAN REVIEW FROM P23

catalog and two-system migrations from DOBIS/LIBIS to Horizon and from Horizon to Symphony. About his 36 years service at the KFUPM Library, the following comments of two of his former deans sum up his capabilities and performance: Dean Dr Saleh Ashoor: “He is a true professional who actively participated in the creation of the Special Libraries Association--Arabian Gulf Chapter (SLA-AGC) and presented about 10 papers in various conference and won the Best Paper Award at SLA-AGC Conference in Abu Dhabi in 2000. He has contributed more than forty articles to twenty-five, or more journals. After reading his biography, I feel he has matured as a writer. I consider his book an authentic and valuable document on the history of the KFUPM Library, about the people responsible for making it a leading library and the factors behind the current decline of its standing among academic libraries of the Middle East. His criticism of several administrative decisions and deviation from the mission and goals of the library and his recommendation to bring back the old glory require serious discussion and debate. I felt honored when Khurshid called and invited me as the most appropriate person to write the foreword of his book. He worked with me for about fifteen years and was always ready to carry out any additional tasks I assigned to him. In the early years of our automation history, Zahiruddin Khurshid was the most valuable member of our library staff, who accomplished some challenging tasks, including retrospective conversion of the card catalog and implementation of the Arabic version of DOBIS/LIBIS.” Dean Dr Talal Maghrabi: “I am very pleased to know about your forthcoming autobiography. Knowing you and your passion and commitment for the profession, I am sure it will come out as a good work.

I know that you are really a great man and a dedicated professional.

I feel honored to have worked with you...”

The last two chapters are about Khurshid’s one year at Pratt Institute where he studied Library and Information Science. For more details about his days at Pratt, readers are directed to his first published article in Library Scene, the KFUPM Library newsletter, available at https://www.researchgate.net/ publication/267329087_Cultural_ shock. He briefly discusses the impact of living in diverse cultures on his life. He also takes exceptions to the negative attitudes of some professional colleagues to be objective in evaluating the quality of any publication. There is no room for personal judgment when scientists and scholars are using one of the journal quality measuring metrics, such as Thomson Reuter’s Journal Impact Factor (JIF), or one of the Google Scholar Metrics (GSM) called the h-Index. Unfortunately, prejudices and biases have taken over professionalism, fair play, and objectivity among the librarians fraternity in Pakistan. So much so that some of our friends taking advantage of their role as members of the editorial boards or the panels of reviewers of several LIS journals, make sure that the manuscripts of some authors are not accepted for publication by any journal. They should avoid such malpractices because people are watching them. - AMF

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 – PAKISTAN LINK – P29 INDIA FROM P4

resolves the Kashmir problem with Pakistan.

So, the fact is that it is in India’s own long-term strategic interest to be at peace with Pakistan; which obviously can’t be achieved without resolving the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN resolutions and the aspirations of the people of Kashmir.

Indian policy makers must, repeat must, be cognizant of the fact that it cannot gain anything by its newly adopted policy of verbal and military aggression. Pakistan is NOT made of the material which can be subjugated by India.

Mr Arun Jaitely, you can’t have your cake and eat it too.

HOMECOMING FROM P15

Commissioner Philip Barton announces that the plaque honoring the three Victoria Cross recipients will soon be moved to a spot near the National Monument at Shakarparian. This makes more sense than hiding it away on ‘foreign soil’. For the rest of the country, the memory of these three men is a much-needed reminder that sometimes, there are causes much bigger than oneself that one has to fight for. For the families of these all-but forgotten heroes, it is a long-awaited homecoming. - Dawn FORUM FROM P19

America Foundation • Suhail Khan, Director of External Affairs at Microsoft Corporation • Moderator: Haris Tarin, MPAC Director of the Washington, DC, Office 2) Media, Public Perceptions and Narrative building • Alex Cole, Vice President of Hattaway Communications • Zeba Khan, Writer • Dalia Mogahed, Director of Research at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU) • Moderator: Hoda Elshishtawy, MPAC National Policy Analyst 3) Impacting Foreign Policy: Challenges and Opportunities • Dr. Shadi Hamid, Fellow at Brookings Institution for Middle East Policy • Dr Nayyer Ali, Middle East Expert, MPAC Board Member • Amjad Atallah, Regional Director for the Americas at Al Jazeera Media Network • Moderator: Haris Tarin This leadership forum was just the beginning of us paving the road for American Muslims to work together and ultimately move our country forward.

We hope you’ll continue to support our work in order for us to implement the recommendations from this forum on your behalf.

Sincerely, Salam Al-Marayati, MPAC President CRICKET FROM P1

spirit that was lacking in some of their team mates.

They will return at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium on Thursday hoping to delay an imminent defeat.

Earlier, Pakistan declared their second stint in the middle as soon as opener Mohammad Hafeez (101 not out) brought up his sixth test century. This was the fifth successive occasion when Pakistan declared their innings, underlining their new-found batting depth on the slow, turning pitches in the United Arab Emirates.

Hafeez, who fell four runs short of his hundred in the first innings, made amends in the second and

celebrated the landmark by bowing down his head in submission to the Almighty. His unbeaten 130-ball knock included 12 fours and two sixes.

Younus Khan (28), who has recorded three centuries and a double ton in his last five innings, was trapped leg before by leg-spinner Sodhi, who had earlier dismissed Azhar Ali (23) in similar fashion.

McCullum and Latham, who scored his maiden test century in the first innings, added 57 runs for the opening stand before Pakistan’s slow bowlers took over.

Yasir sprinted to take a diving catch off left-arm spinner Babar to dismiss Latham before the leg-spinner trapped McCullum leg before to jolt New Zealand.

Ross Taylor became Yasir’s second victim of the innings, departing in the same fashion at the stroke of tea.

Once Kane Williamson (23) fell to Hafeez in the day’s final session, New Zealand’s middle order also caved in with left-arm paceman Rahat Ali dismissing Jimmy Neesham and BJ Watling off successive deliveries.

NAWAZ FROM P1

completely irrelevant and absurd. I would rather say we are a country that combats the terrorists and eliminates their safe havens,” he claimed.

He mentioned that approximately 50,000 people had died in the terror unleashed in Pakistan and they included soldiers and civilians. The economy too had suffered big losses.

“Why should we support terrorists? This is absolutely wrong and makes no sense,” he said. He informed that just days ago, 60 people had died in an attack in Lahore and the idea that “we cooperate with terrorists is unimaginable. We fight them.”

He said that the government had initiated talks with Taliban very seriously following a consensus on the issue among all political parties and state institutions.

However, the terrorist activities continued and there was no choice but to fight.

To a question about Pakistan’s security policy after the international security assistance force withdraws from Afghanistan, the prime minister said, “This begins a new era for Afghanistan, which is also a new opportunity for the whole region.”

“We must work together to defeat terror. We must support each other. We must not allow terrorist attacks,” he said, adding Afghan president Ashraf Ghani had also declared that he would not tolerate such activities.

A Milestone in Bilateral Ties: Terming the pledged Chinese investment over $40 billion as a “milestone” in the history of Pak-China relations, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said it would help address the long lingering energy crisis in Pakistan.

Speaking to media representatives upon arrival in London, he set aside the impression that the investment from China was a loan, saying, “It is not a loan, but Chinese investment, which would benefit Pakistan a lot and further strengthen

www.PakistanLink.com

Pak-China ties”.

He was appreciative of the Chinese government for their decision to make such a huge investment to help Pakistan meet its energy requirements. Prime Minister Sharif was confident that owing to his government’s serious efforts, the energy crisis would be resolved during the current tenure of the PML-N government.

The prime minister termed his meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel as positive and hoped that German companies would also make investment in Pakistan’s energy sector.

To another question, Nawaz Sharif mentioned the appreciation of the rupee against the dollar as well as the record upward trend in the country’s stock market as positive economic indicators.

OLSON FROM P1

importance of cooperation between the US, Afghanistan, and Pakistan in order to support regional stability and prosperity.

The Ambassador spoke about the results of the Declaration of Enduring Partnership signed between the Government of Afghanistan and Nato in 2010 to provide a longterm security, economic, and political support to Afghanistan and the importance of regional efforts in its continued success.

“An increasingly stable Afghanistan that is at peace and enjoys productive relations with its neighbors will be an effective counter-weight against extremism. A stable Afghanistan is also conducive to economic development in South and Central Asia,” Olson remarked.

Ambassador Olson also emphasized that the US and Pakistan have to “set future events on a positive course and seize opportunity for a brighter future in Afghanistan”.

The US envoy encouraged Pakistan to continue its efforts in strengthening relations with Afghanistan, adding, “There is much work to be done together on important issues, such as security, trade and economic ties, reconstruction and rehabilitation, and regional cooperation.”

Olson reaffirmed the enduring US commitment to Pakistan and the region, saying, “The United States will remain engaged; we see our role in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the region as one of a sustained commitment that is in our own national security interest as well as that of the countries of the region.”

The US ambassador called upon the students at Nust to play their role in leading Pakistan to-

wards a more stable and secure future.

“You have an opportunity now to choose a better future, and put aside the differences of the past.

Pakistan is a young society, and so is Afghanistan. Young people in both countries can make the choice now to set the course for a positive and constructive direction...”

IMRAN FROM P1

threatened by the PTI’s plan to hold a public gathering in Islamabad on Nov 30.

He said if he was arrested the public gathering would be the largest in the history of the country in his absence.

“It will be very easy for me to stay in jail because I have already been residing in a container for over three months, but I tell you, Mr Nawaz Sharif, that you will have to pay a heavy price for my arrest.”

Imran Khan said an investigation could prove that it was a fixed match and the insiders had played an important role in carrying out the attack on the PTV building.

He said PTI workers were not involved in the attack. “I myself had asked my supporters to stay away from the PTV premises.”

The PTI chief was ecstatic after learning about the resignation of Maryam Nawaz as chairperson of the youth loan program.

“I congratulate my workers that the change has come because I have just heard that Maryam Nawaz has resigned as chairperson of the Prime Minister’s Youth Loan Program,” he said.

GERMANY FROM P1

capacity of about 4,000-5,000 megawatts of electricity,” he said, adding that it would increase further in the long term.

MARYAM FROM P1

presented the academic credentials of Ms Maryam, but withdrew them after failing to answer a query whether the PhD degree was conferred or honorary.

He said the details presented before the court were collected from the Internet.

Justice Shah also expressed wonder over the combination of degrees – MA (English Literature) and PhD in Political Science – earned by Maryam Nawaz.

Following the Court’s observation, Maryam Nawaz, daughter of PM Nawaz Sharif, announced that she had decided to resign voluntarily from the post, DawnNews reported.

In a statement Maryam Nawaz said that she will tender her resignation to the prime minister upon his arrival from recent official foreign trips.

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

NOVEMBER 14, 2014 - PAKISTAN LINK

ENTERTAINMENT

P30 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 14, 2014

T

he trio Ali Zafar, Ranveer Singh and Parineeti Chopra, after taking over all major television shows to promote the release of their much antici-

pated film Kill Dil, have now picked up paint brushes to bring their creative side out on the streets of Mumbai.

Painting pro Ali Zafar sprayed his Kill Dil poster

look on a white wall.

Parineeti and Ranveer chose to paint keywords used in the film's digital promotional campaign.

As soon as those in their

surroundings realised that the graffiti artists were none other than the Kill Dil actors, a sea of people gathered to catch a glimpse of their favourite stars and the interesting activity.

Ali Zafar, who seemed really pumped up at the event, confessed: "I was going to paint my son's bedroom wall in our new house... might as well practice a little bit".

About the film, Ali said: "This is my favourite look I have played in any film so far. I haven't done any kick ass action on screen in the past, so really excited for this one. Let's hope people like the film."

Speaking on the occasion, Ranveer Singh said: "I am trying to make a hit film. We have worked really hard to make this film, and we are looking forward to its release now. We have made this film with our heart and soul, and it's an entertainer. So, I hope that people like it".

Directed by Shaad Ali and produced by Aditya Chopra, Kill Dil also stars Govinda and is slated for release on November 14.

Courtesy Dawn

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