Is it a change of heart by MQM?
MEDIA WATCH
What Trump, Fiorina and Carson lack
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HE MQM has made an appeal to the establishment to forget the bit ter past and grant it clemency like the general amnesty offered to the angry Baloch people. The request by the MQM, the first of its kind, after arrests of its innumerable workers on charges of target killings, kidnapping, extortion and getting training in India, deserves sympathetic consideration. However, it has to be seen whether it is a change of heart by the MQM to join the national mainstream or a shrewd move to get out of the most difficult situation, since its establishment, to get absolved of charges of heinous crimes, as it had been taking advantage in the past by joining coalition governments at the centre and Sindh. At this point of time when hundred of cases of all sorts of crimes including killing of policemen and rangers, traders and innocent citizens like burning of Baldia Factory are in courts against the butchers having MQM identity and proof of following pro-India policy, the party has come under severe criticism and to forgive and forget is not as simple. The party had been claiming its street power by forced closure of businesses, but the failure of its latest shutter down call exposed it in the eyes of the people as no body paid any heed to it when assured of full security by the Rangers. We would say that if the MQM wants to say goodbye to its past, it will have to show its sincerity on all counts including handing over of criminals to the authorities and admit the mistakes. It is no more a secret that some of the key members in its London Secretariat are Indian nationals who are taking decisions and the Karachi Rabita Committee just rubber stamp them. The MQM appeal also mentioned healing the wounds of Mohajirs, but we may say that Mohajirs are highly respected across the country as well mannered, educated and patriotic and they have no complaints of any sort. The MQM should make a review of the situation in Karachi before and after its establishment. It was known as a city of lights, people enjoying night life and peace but all this became a dream when MQM office bearers overstretched their powers and took up arms to force the peaceful citizens to submit to their authority and dictates.
Foreign contours of terrorism in Pakistan B
ADABER terrorist attack jolted the nation but the dastardly act has further strengthened national resolve to fight out the menace of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Credit goes to the law-enforcing agencies, which are said to have identified those behind the gruesome incident and according to reports, ground is being prepared to take up the matter with Afghanistan. It is not only acknowledged in Pakistan but also appreciated all over the globe that the indiscriminate operation being conducted by our Armed forces against terrorists in every nook and corner of the country has broken their back. However, Badaber was comparatively safer target for terrorists and they took advantage of its vulnerable location. But the attack also highlights the fact that terrorists still has the capacity to hit and it will be a long drawn war against terrorism and extremism. The Armed forces and law-enforcing agencies, we are sure would ultimately succeed in rooting out terrorists but we must keep in mind that the problem has its foreign dimensions as well and these should also be taken care of. In the first place, terrorism in this part of the world sprung from foreign invasion of Afghanistan and now Pakistan is also considered to be an enemy by terrorist outfits as the country is lending its full support and cooperation to the United States in the war against terror. Secondly, some foreign powers are involved in sponsoring terrorist activities to destabilize nuclear Pakistan and our neighbouring country has openly declared that it would use all tactics to block implementation of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The so-called ‘civilized’ world is presently pursuing the policy of containment of China but Pakistan is seen to be providing a big opening to Beijing to the outside world. There are others who have their own axe to grind in Balochistan, they are against Gwadar port that threatens their geo-strategic and economic interests. Under these circumstances, the nation and the government will have to fully understand and be prepared to fight this war on several fronts.
MNS shows solidarity with UAE P
RIME Minister Nawaz Sharif, on Sunday, undertook a short visit to Dubai to offer condolences to Sheikh Muhammad bin Rashid A Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai over the sad demise of his son. He was also accompanied by some key Ministers, which highlighted the nature of relationship between the two countries. Entire Pakistani nation was grieved over untimely death of son of the UAE leader and expressed solidarity with the bereaved family and people of UAE. President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif sent messages of condolence and solidarity to the UAE leader but in view of the closeness of relations between the two countries, the Prime Minister rightly decided to visit Dubai personally to meet Sheikh Rashid Al Maktoum. Pakistan itself was passing through an agony caused by Badaber tragedy, which increased Prime Minister’s domestic engagements, but despite that he paid the visit and rightly so. Apart from exemplary bilateral relations, it is also a fact that Mian Nawaz Sharif and Mian Shahbaz Sharif have personal relationship with Gulf leaders and the visit was, therefore, necessitated. Relations between Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have been embedded with bonds of religion, history, culture, common faith, shared values and commercial linkages. Cultural, social and historical connection between Pakistan and the UAE date back to the 5,000-yearold Harappa civilization of Indus Valley but these became formal and gained strength following independence of UAE in 1971. Since then, the two countries have been cooperating not only in different areas to their mutual benefit but have also identical views on a number of regional and global issues. They have all along been supporting each other’s cases and stood by each other like a rock during difficult times. The visit of the Prime Minister, as per reports from UAE, has been received well and hopefully this would help further cement bilateral goodwill and ties.
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Afghan soil used in Badaber attack a group of thirteen terrorists stormed Badaber camp base on Friday morning killing as many as 29 people including several personnel. AnMohammad Jamil security other 30 were left injured Email: mjamil1938@hotmail.com while all 13 attackers were killed during clearance operation of security forces. FGHAN President Ashraf Sixteen PAF soldiers were martyred in Ghani’s spokesperson dis a mosque while offering morning missed the reports that the prayers, while seven others were Friday’s terrorist attack on Pakistan martyred in a barrack near mosque. “A Air Force’s Badaber base camp in captain died leading counter-attack Peshawar was planned and controlled against raiders and two soldiers were from Afghanistan. In a statement is- also killed,” DG ISPR said. The government is contemplating sued on Saturday, the presidential spokesperson categorically said “Af- to dispatch a high-powered delegation ghanistan is not behind Badaber at- to Kabul to discuss the situation with tack. Afghanistan government has Afghan authorities. Initial investiganever allowed nor will it ever allow tions show that the Badaber attack was its territory to be used against other “planned, controlled and executed” states.” On Friday, Director General from Afghanistan. A senior security Inter-Services Public Relations official said the government will (ISPR) Major-General Asim Bajwa present Kabul with the ‘hard evidence’ had said that the attack on Pakistan shortly. “Pakistan will convey to AfAir Force (PAF) Badaber camp ear- ghanistan that it will no more tolerate lier in the day was planned and con- such attacks emanating from its soil,” trolled from Afghanistan. He did not said the official, adding that Pakistan say that Afghan government had had long been pushing Afghanistan to planned the attack, but Mullah eliminate the ‘terrorist sanctuaries’ of Fazlullah and his thugs ensconced in the TTP from its territory. In DecemKunar in liaison with some elements ber 2014, COAS General Raheel Sharif of NDS and India RAW are using had dashed to Kabul and demanded Afghan territory to launch terror at- tough action against masterminds of APS attack. And Afghan President tacks in Pakistan. Asim Bajwa, while talking to Ashraf Ghani had assured that his govmedia said: “We expect the Afghan ernment would not allow Afghan terrigovernment was not involved in tory to be used against Pakistan. A day before the terror attack on preparation or execution of attack.” Anyhow, Afghan government has Badaber camp, Karachi police had urged Pakistan to continue coopera- claimed to have foiled an Eidul Azha tion for elimination of terrorism from terror bid in the city by arresting a top the whole region. But it can’t be one plotter of suicide blasts known to have way affair, and Afghanistan has to brainwashed youths in carrying out take action against TTP, and stop ac- attacks on various government and cusing Pakistan for every terror act defence installations. The Counterin Afghanistan. On Friday morning, Terrorism Department (CTD) said: “It
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has arrested the Karachi boss of Tehreek-e-Imaraat-e-Islamia Afghanistan from Orangi Town. According to the CTD officials, Omar Hayat alias Mavia Darwesh, was arrested during an intelligence based raid. Two suicide jackets and two bombs were also recovered from his possession. In August 2012, Al Qaeda – a fractured organization and Tehreek-e-Taliban ‘combine’ had struck at PAF Kamra Base, but operational preparedness of the armed forces, courage and conviction of the PAF could eliminate all the nine terrorists. However, there is good news giving hope for peace in Afghanistan. Mullah Abdul Mannan and Mullah Yaqoob, brother and son of Mullah Omar respectively declared on Tuesday allegiance to the group’s new chief Mullah Akhtar Mansoor. According to a statement, the family members announced their allegiance in a meeting, and vowed to follow instructions of the new Taliban chief Mullah Akhtar Mansour. They had earlier refused to accept Mansour’s leadership, who was elected as the group’s new head following the confirmation of Mullah Omar’s death in late July. Of course, there is a strong lobby within the Taliban to pursue the process of negotiations. Pakistan and Afghan governments had also stated that the peace talks were started with the approval of the Taliban’s powerful leadership council. Mansour was leading the council, until he was formally appointed as the new supreme leader by the end of July 2015. Quite a few Afghan leaders who are familiar with Akhtar Mansour insist that he is a moderate and pro-peace personality; hence the dialogue process could move forward. After having been elected as new Taliban chief, Mullah Akhtar Mansour had suspended talks between the Taliban and
Afghan government, but did not close the option of peace talks. In an audio message he had mentioned that the Taliban would use “military and political options” to achieve their goals, and the Taliban political commission will work along with other commissions that renewed hope for the revival of the suspended talks. In fact, it was Akhtar Mansour who had sent the top three Taliban leaders for talks with Afghan government. However, the unity government led by President Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah has to showcase its sincerity in holding meaningful talks with the Taliban. Some Northern Alliance elements led by CEO Abdullah Abdullah do not wish to see Taliban having a share in the government, as they do not wish to share power with the group. Unless they change their attitude, peace in Afghan will remain elusive. Of course, some of the Taliban are opposed to negotiations with the Afghan government. Anyhow, the position of the new Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour has been strengthened with the oath of allegiance of Mullah Omer’s family. Mullah Shehzada Shahid, spokesman for the High Peace Council reportedly has said that he believes the Taliban’s new chief is pro-negotiations and peace. “I am confident that under Mullah Akhtar Mansour’s leadership, the peace talks will gain momentum and there would be a strong possibility of positive and logical results,” the spokesman told Xinhua. Haji Deen Muhammad, who led the Afghan government team in the first round of talks with the Taliban, said Kabul wanted to convert the talks into a formal dialogue process, which is a good omen. —The writer is a senior journalist based in Lahore.
Donald Trump and Islamophobia who speaks out while others dodge behind the usual platitudes. There are, unfortuShahid M Amin nately, many Americans who Email:shahid_m_amin@hotmail.com seem to share the anti-black and anti-Muslim prejudices that Trump so crudely articuONALD Trump is loud- lates. It is possible, of course, that mouthed, ill-mannered, Trump is seen by some of these supflaunts his riches, and is full porters simply as good entertainment, of prejudices —anti-Muslim, anti- as a pugnacious, straight-talking, hipblack, anti-Latinos and anti-women. shooting politician who has caught the He dislikes immigrants and would public imagination for the time being, like to throw them out of the USA. but when serious politics will be done, He has little clue of international re- the same voters would abandon Trump. lations. He literally puts his foot in They may ask themselves as to whether the mouth every time he speaks. Con- Trump could be trusted to hold highest ventional wisdom suggests that such office when he would have his finger a candidate should be nowhere near on nuclear button, or when serious success in a serious political contest. policy decisions have to be taken on Yet, Trump has emerged as the lead- internal and external issues. Logic suging Republican contender for next gests that this should be case, but this year’s Presidential election. His cam- could also be a case of wishful thinkpaign rhetoric has been inflammatory ing. So far, Trump has defied all preand disparaging but, evidently, he dictions of his imminent demise as a knows his audience. A recent ABC serious Presidential contender. Of particular concern are the antiNews/Washington Post poll placed Trump significantly ahead of the Muslim prejudices of candidate crowded Republican field, with 24 Donald Trump. This week, at a New percent supporting him, and Scott Hampshire meeting, Trump nodded Walker and Jeb Bush trailing with 13 along and even seemed to agree when a supporter declared, “We have a proband 12 percent respectively. The media is lapping him up be- lem in this country, it’s called Muscause their ratings increase every lims. When can we get rid of them?” time Trump opens his mouth. For a The man declared President Obama debate between the Republican can- to be a Muslim. He added: “We have didates on September 16, CNN was training camps growing where they asking for $ 200,000 for a 30-second want to kill us.” Trump has since been prime-time ad, nearly 40 times its severely criticised for not correcting normal rate. Some other channels, the questioner and for seeming to which had previously black-listed agree with him. Actually, the quesTrump, are joining race. According tion about the alleged Muslim trainto one observer, “he is great for news ing camps was not incidental. The media because he’s so polarising, en- Trump campaign later insisted that tertaining and different. For the cable this was the question that Trump was responding to when he said, “We’re news outlets, this is huge.” It seems that many American going to be looking at that and plenty voters see Trump as the anti-estab- of other things.” The Trump supporter was talking lishment, unconventional politician
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about a conspiracy theory going on farright fringes of American political discourse: that Muslim American communities are sheltering secret terrorist training camps in the US. According to journalist Jenna Johnson, writing in the daily Washington Post, “fears of ‘Muslim training camps’ have simmered on the far right for years, especially since the rise of the Islamic State” (Dae’sh). The Fox channel, which is notorious for its anti-Muslim views, has aired programs claiming that Muslim Americans are organizing secret paramilitary communes poised to commit acts of terrorism. This conspiracy theory prompted far-right violence in the past. Earlier this year, the FBI arrested a Tennessee man named Robert Doggart who was plotting to lead a far-right militia on a killing spree against a heavily Muslim community in New York state. Doggart believed the community was a “Muslim Jihadist Training Camp,” according to a comment on his web site. He wrote, “Given the recent beheading of an American Journalist by the treacherous ISIS group, the Islamic networking that is underway in America, and the threats directed at us, there is no choice but to engage this topic, face-to-face, on location.” The implication of the conspiracy theory is clear viz. that the 2.6 million Muslim Americans are not equal citizens who follow a different faith, but rather a frightening enemy within that must be confronted, violently if necessary. Calls for a mass ethnic cleansing campaign against Muslims are merely the next step in that horrifying logic. Like much of the rising tide of Islamophobia in America, this conspiracy theory has been around for a while but has grown since the emergence of ISIS, helped along by US media that frequently equates ISIS with all Muslims and suggests that
Muslims are an inherently a violent people. The conspiracy theory also feeds into far-right fears about demographic change, and a belief that, as white Christian Americans lose their demographic dominance, they will come under a physical threat as well. These fringe extremists see the world as divided into racial and religious groups, and believe that they are already under imminent physical danger from people who look different from them. Within that warped worldview, pre-emptive violence against their perceived enemies would be entirely justified. That thinking led Robert Doggart to plan to attack innocent families in New York. So while Trump’s campaign is claiming that he only agreed with call to “look into” Muslim training camps, there is no mistaking that when far-right groups talk about “getting rid” of Muslims, or even just Muslim training camps, what they are actually talking about is large-scale discrimination and perhaps even violence against Muslim American families. This is not a problem of just the far right. The fact that Trump was asked such a question suggests that this episode is a direct outgrowth of anti-Muslim incitement and bigotry that has been promoted for months on right-wing channels like Fox News. It is not only a problem of Trump and the far right, but rather a problem of the mainstream right. It is the extension of Islamophobia that appears regularly even on the mainstream outlets. Their coverage openly entertains subtler Islamophobic prejudices, such as the idea that Muslims are a threat to the West. — The writer served as Pakistan’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, the exSoviet Union, France, Nigeria and Libya.
F one thing is perfectly clear among Republicans, it is that many want nothing to do with establishment politicians. In a CNN poll released Sunday, Donald Trump, Carly Fiorina and Ben Carson held the top three spots, with a combined 53%, for the GOP presidential nomination. What the three have in common is that none has ever been elected to anything. In recent congressional elections, meanwhile, Republican voters have favored insurgent outsiders who’ve taken political confrontation to new levels. All this raises one question: Why? It’s not hard to see why voters are so eager to try something, or someone, new. The American standard of living has stagnated, causing faith in government to plummet even as the national debt has soared past $18 trillion. Establishment politicians brought the nation the Watergate scandal and illadvised wars in Vietnam and Iraq. But traditional politicians also brought us victories over fascism and communism, the GI Bill, civil rights legislation, Social Security and Medicare. They were not the ones who killed a promising deficit-reduction deal in 2011 and a bipartisan immigration reform bill in 2013. They are not the ones refusing to pass legislation now to build highways and finance exports. All of the nation’s presidents have had some previous government experience; the vast majority served in elective office, and a handful made their marks in the military. To be sure, experience outside of government — in business, law, education, science and business, to name a few areas — is highly useful. In particular, the backgrounds of Trump, a real estate developer, and Fiorina, a former corporate executive, could come in handy at the White House. But a president with extensive business experience and none in government is a bit like an unusually fast quarterback who lacks in passing fundamentals. Figuring out how to deal with Congress is hard, even for presidents who had served there. Navigating a chaotic and bewildering foreign policy landscape is even harder. At least part of President Obama’s troubles stem from his foreign policy inexperience and his lack of deep relationships with people on Capitol Hill. The startat-the-top GOP front-runners have much to learn, as evidenced by Trump’s preposterous plan to deport 11 million undocumented immigrants, Fiorina’s intemperate boast that she wouldn’t talk with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, and Carson’s intolerant statement Sunday that a Muslim should never be president of America. We doubt that Carson, a retired neurosurgeon, would turn to an amateur if he had a serious medical condition. Frustration among American voters, particularly among Republicans, is real. Even so, a neophyte president who has never spent a day in public office seems an unlikely source of salvation. — USA Today
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Pope’s Cuba visit
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HE visit of Pope Francis to Cuba has given more hope to the process of reconciliation between the United States and Cuban governments. After all, it was the pope who had hosted delegations from the two sides at a secret Vatican meeting to seal a deal after 18 months of closed-door talks. Since then, the leaders of the two countries have launched a process aimed at normalising ties in various fields. The Vatican has long opposed the US embargo on Cuba on the grounds that it hurts ordinary Cubans the most. The Vatican hopes the rapprochement will eventually result in the lifting of sanctions. The visit also reflects the improved standing of the church in Cuba, where about a quarter of the population is considered practicing Catholics. Pope Francis is known for speaking his mind on various issues and has been on record criticising Cuba’s Communists. Though he does not have meetings with dissidents on his official schedule, his choice of words will be closely watched for references to human rights and the church’s freedom to operate. — Gulf News To deceive one self is very easy. —Proverb