Issues in Governance by Akhtar Ali.

Akhtar Ali writes in Business Recorder  on Issues in improving governance in Pakistan. In part 1 he gives a very humanistic and pragmatic outlook .  He writes
 "A good governance system is expected to be effective and efficient in overseeing, guiding and regulating economic activity and social development, with democracy, consensus, participation of the people, in a transparent manner, keeping people informed of it's decision, under a set of rules and laws to be adjudicated by an independent judiciary, and having a role for media, NGOs, civil society etc. Good government has to be protective and mindful of the religious and ethnic minorities. It should not rule by brute majority and force. It should be sensitive to the historical and heritage issues of its people. It should also be able to conduct itself with its neighbouring countries and participate constructively in the international system, meet its obligations under conventions, treaties and UN resolutions."
http://www.brecorder.com/articles-a-letters/187/1194616/

Issues in Constituency Delimitation in Pakistan.

Akhtar Ali in his bold and candid article in the Business Recorder newspaper discusses the issues and solutions of constituency delimitation in Pakistan.

"Holding of census is a constitutional requirement and the honorable Supreme Court has also not taken any notice.

Word goes by, that the delimitations' basic work was done by the security/intelligence agencies, which usually have all the data, even on voting patterns of Mohallas.
There appears to be some merit in the word that goes by; more the reason to revise the constituency delimitation to eliminate the shadows of Musharraf regime ala Baqiate Zia-ul-Haq. Reportedly, voting lists have been improved by Nadra and are in the process of final compilation.
Constituency delimitation can be done based on voters' list as well.

This time it ought to be done more scientifically and fairly respecting the voting strengths of the constituencies and minimising the variations in size as has been discussed." 

http://www.brecorder.com/articles-a-letters/187/1194140/

Women & Children of Lyari..Children Of A Lesser God.

Dr Meher Zaidi. (An interactive article).

Residents flee Lyari (DAWN).

Armored personnel carriers hand grenaded, heavy assault weapons used mercilessly, three apparently non-criminal youth lying dead on roads, a school teacher injured by bullets inside her home later dying in hospital, children crying and hungry with sounds of heavy gunfire reverberation in background, sounds familiar? Or does it look like a far away place with just news flashing on your television screens? This is Lyari ! The most conflict ridden part, the most dangerous, the most reviled part of Karachi, that huge metropolis, that is the heart of Pakistan.http://dawn.com/2012/04/29/operation-lyari/ http://dawn.com/2012/04/30/panicked-families-fleeing-lyari/
My first introduction to Lyari was when I was a child some 40 years ago when my mother was there on some sort of a mission for APWA( All Pakistan Women's Association). Later in the 60's I became more familiar as she crusaded against the use of drugs in schools and especially those in areas like Lyari. I met women & children from Lyari and instantly became friend with such a gregarious and genuine people as a child usually sees the truth in people.Later on being told of Baluch history by Sardar Gabol, a friend of my parents as he often sat in Lady Dufferin Hospital as a board member and by justice Marri, who gave me a poetry book of Baluch history as translated and collected by him  when I was 14 and taking English tuition for his girls who were my age, I came to know the real people of Baluchistan.This was initially a matriarchal society and was therefore. extremely loving, tolerant and nurturing . Later on as a doctor my patients from Lyari also told me stories and the suffering and endurance that they had to undergo, living as single parents as most of their men had gone to Middle East in Bhutto's employment program. These children grew up in an environment without proper education and mostly urbanized yet poor living conditions.As these families were then mainly socially supported by their relatives who again were less privileged in education and social status clung to their tribal and family roots.
These women and children had to face all difficulties of single parenthood, living without education in an alien urban atmosphere. I am surprised that to this day the University of Karachi or for that matter any in Sindh & Pakistan have not done any research & analysis on such an intense topic of urban integration, drugs & crime. What were the socio-political reasons of this kind of pariah status that Lyari has earned? No research publications. This shows the apathy and disinterested academia and all our politicians have towards our social ills. They think that just by an operation by the police will be able to wipe out the locality off the criminals.http://dawn.com/2012/04/30/four-killed-two-dsps-injured-in-lyari-violence/

Little do they know that decades of neglect has ruined the streets of this township.The criminality has not taken place within a decade. The failed governance model of this township is also an eyeopener and a lamp burner for the political parties like the Pakistan Peoples Party, who do the politics of emotions in this township and the PML-Nawaz which is trying to snatch away its vote-bank and part of which is this Uzair Baloch/Zafar Baloch phenomenon .In recent decade this group has become the strong arm of the Peoples Amn committee away fro the other armed groups such as Ghaffar Zikri & Arshad Pappoo. The "Gubber Singish" Chaudry Aslam (Cop of Karachi) has been attacked in his Defence home by the criminal gangs and had vouched to finish off the Lyari gangs (or some of them).

Post 2009 Ashura bomb blasts and arson of entire markets of M.A. Road and surrounding areas , the business community was also interested in getting these Lyari gangs under control.
 As the then home minister Zulfiqar Mirza, was the close friend of the leaders of Peoples Amn Committee, he appeared to side up with them and as generally the MQM was the party more vocal for the business community this action was always delayed or never taken. Zulfiqar Mirza is also the husband of  Fahmida Mirza, speaker National Assembly and friend of the president Asif Ali Zardari. The problems of Lyari remained as no serious effort by friends and foes was made to convene any study at a larger level academically to see the reasons for conflict and any means suggested for its resolution .http://karachi.metblogs.com/2009/12/28/pictures-bomb-blast-at-ma-jinnah-road-on-ashura/

http://meer-mehernewspappar.blogspot.com/2009/12/karachi-burns-againon-ashura.html
The power game by the armed gangs in Lyari is the main problem. It has never been tackled or solved or even handled by its political leadership which is to this day with Pakistan Peoples Party (Nabil Gabol at this time).
Now this new turf war was taking place to dislodge the PPP (Zulfiqar Mirza faction backed ) Uzair Baluch group who have threatened to go over to PML-N side. As shown in live television news clips, armed with latest automatic weapons and offering stiff resistance to a relatively less armed and unprepared  police force (Three policemen including SHO Civil Lines lost in first frontal attack on Lyari on first day), many questions arise to the efficacy and efficiency of the operation and the executors.

The president, Asif Ali Zardari has planned to uplift Lyari and prepare ground for his son Bilawal's first triumphant entry into the national assembly. For this end he has made the Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Shaheed University of which an esteemed faculty has been instituted.In order for it to function flawlessly and impart education to Lyariites and outsiders , there is need for impeccable law and order including non-ethnic peace.
This maybe an operation for this purpose also.

This choice of armed assault in urban densely populated area is very damaging for the women, children, old and sick of the area. The elected representatives of this area were so much at distance with their people that they were unable to resolve this issue in a less violent manner and the ganged up leaders had taken the whole community hostage. This happens when the intellectuals and socially responsible distance themselves from politics and popular parties like the PPP chose candidates on basis of muscle power and  feudal to ensure votes. Pakistan is changing in both its rural and urban  politics. Very soon the poor, disenfranchised, down trodden labor, tiller, workers will speak and for towns like Lyari this may be an opportunity to change its criminal label to the one of Free & Fair Revolution. The question is are we prepared? For liberation from elitism and tyranny? Are we prepared as a people?
. 

Pakistan Happenings...An April's Foolery.

Pericles

This last week of April, Pakistan stands at crossroads where the Pakistan Peoples Party once again will have to choose a noose.Either way it will suffer tremendous losses apparently but will again emerge triumphant and more popular after some years of repression.What is it that keeps this party so popular with the masses? In history it will be counted as most loved leaders, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto. In fact it is the emergence of sense of vote and power of vote at the grass roots level which is making this party the choice for people all over Pakistan. As this party will eventually shed off its feudal makeup and move towards more progressive and liberal stance, the poor man will move towards it.The middle class which is small and more urbanized will again prefer to vote for this party as the other choices are too parochial and limited.

Prime ministerYusuf Raza Gilani is used to living in jail. that is not a problem. Ironically the ostracism being practiced by media and some journalists is similar to that practiced in ancient Greeks and Athenians. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ostracism 

The lessons to be learnt here are that evolution of democratic process is taking place in Pakistan's society in a very rapid and interesting manner. This country holds 180 million people in a crazy , wild, passionate, emotional mosaic of ethnicity, politics, social makeup, literacy levels and religious groups. Its scientists from making nuclear bombs to discovering subatomic particles have won many a laurels.Its sages and saints have conquered the hearts of millions.It keeps its ancient wisdom from prehistoric (Mehergarh, Moen-jo- Daro,) to ancient history, Taxila, Harrapa, Gandhara to modern turmoil of an elected democracy which is in strife within itself with tribal, feudal, religious groupings, illiteracy in the modern sense.

We need to see the character of Pericles, Themistocles in our new emerging leadership.History repeats itself. Only those nations survive and emerge glorious who learn from history.

The Future Roadmap For Pakistan Peoples Party.

 The Future Roadmap For Pakistan Peoples Party.
Dr. Meher Zaidi.

Pakistan Peoples Party was formed by  Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto in Lahore in 1967 after Pakistan and India 1965 war.Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was elected its Chairman.According to Fakhar Zaman,

. Among the express goals for which the party was formed were the establishment of an "egalitarian democracy" and the "application of socialistic ideas to realize economic and social justice". A more immediate task was to struggle against the hated dictatorship of Ayub Khan,who was at the height of his power when the PPP was formed. Basic principles of PPP enshrined: Islam is our Faith Democracy is our politics Socialism is our Economy All Power to the People The Party also promised the elimination of feudalism in accordance with the established principles of socialism to protect and advance the interests of peasantry. Forty five years on, the party stands again at the place where it first started. With two of its dynamic, popular leaders murdered by forces against its basic founding principles and their power in vested interest , the party needs a new leadership from inside or outside  to gather its ideological force and direct its power to fight the fascist and authoritarian as well as the political forces and re-establish its manifesto. The shift in its ideological lead has made the party into a rudderless ship which may easily sink if the internal issues are not addressed immediately. The old guard of the Pakistan Peoples Party is now getting irrelevant in the context of their vision, direction, corrupt and feudal behaviour. They are getting irrelevant also in the context and background of the changing paradigm of politics in Pakistan. Due to poverty, natural disasters, extremely high cost of living in Pakistan and illiteracy, Pakistan stands as a failed state. The failure of the system to establish sound and solid institutions, defence and provision of basic human rights, the loss of establishment of a just and egalitarian society have together enhanced the urgent need for a leadership which not only represents the aspirations and needs of the masses but also has the capacity to adapt and bring about rapid change in the socio-economic status of the common man. The Pakistan peoples Party must give up its populist lineage and image and defeat the politics of cronyism, sycophancy,feudalism and corruption. It must defend its basic promise of "Roti, Kapra aur Makan" as it still is the most relevant slogan. The present leadership must realize that the days of populist leadership are over and this party has the strongest base to propel Pakistan towards a just and egalitarian society with a promise for the common man. The party must bridge the gap within its internal workers, peasants, and build up its middle class cadres.It must decentralize its working and empower the lower worker. It must strengthen its common base in the agriculture, farmers and traders . It must push towards land reforms. It must fight and purge the feudal mindset from within its ranks.  The present hue and cry from the ordinary citizens in some way reflect the needs of the common man and the party does have it in its manifesto. Benazir Bhutto in her last manifesto did give policy directions to the party but her sad and untimely death left the party under care of an inexperienced leadership which is to this day fighting for survival. It is high time that the political leadership devolved the powers and decision making in the hands of the working class of the PPP. Pakistan is ready for a revolution. Not the kind bieng proposed by Mr. Imran Khan who has not really fought any electoral victories and is ideologically weak.Pakistan is ready for a pragmatic revolution where the entire policies will be wrenched away from an exploitative capitalistic system towards a socialist, just and egalitarian system.The worker, the farmer, tiller and the working classes have to be empowered. Pakistan Peoples Party must seize this opportunity to bring its revolution back.

Pakistan Happenings:Privacy, Civil Liberties, Media Ethics, Morality,Medical Ethics.

Friedrich Nietzsche believes that we have to assess the value of our values since values are relative to your goals and yourself. He emphasizes the need to analyze our moral values and how much impact they have on us. The problem with morality, according to Nietzsche, is that those who were considered “good” were the powerful nobles who had more education, and considered themselves better than anyone below their rank. Thus, what is considered good is relative. A “good man” is not questioned on whether or not there is a “bad”, such as temptations, lingering inside him and he is considered to be more important than a man who is considered “bad” who is considered useless to making the human race better because of the morals we have subjected ourselves to. But since what is considered good and bad is relative, the importance and value we place on them should also be relative. He proposes that morality itself could be a danger. [9] Nietzsche believed that morals should be constructed actively, making them relative to who we are and what we, as individuals, consider to be true, equal, good and bad, etc. instead of reacting to moral laws made by a certain group of individuals in power.
 Media in Pakistan is blatantly mushrooming. Sometimes like a cloud of dust and debris which when fall make the earth ashen and grey. Just like a nuclear fallout. Sometimes like the sweet sticky but harmless residue of a cotton candy.There are anchors who are responsible and educated and then there are anchors who are irresponsible , brash , who have no understanding of ethics, privacy and civil liberties.These latter anchors and morning show hosts are hosting and airing programs on television channels which are a shame on the channel they are aired on. The issues of moral policing, hypocrisy,morality, right to privacy http://privacy.org/about/ , are unclear in the minds of these hosts and the public and audience are  left to their mercy. The producers and directors of these shows are either irrelevant or are not aware of the dangers they are causing themselves.
Recently a host on a morning show raided a park in Karachi and with a team of many men and women chased and humiliated many young men and women who were present there. Video  which shows the program which has caused furore amongst a very small segment of society who understand the right of individual to privacy and its guarantee under the civil liberties as enshrined in the UN  Charter of The Human Rights. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights#Universal_Declaration_of_Human_Rights
http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/
http://www.humanrights.com/#/home
The issues in privacy debate now on social media in Pakistan is about what to do about the few public spaces that are accessible to women and men in only big cities like Karachi and how to protect the individual's freedom. The public spaces that are present in smaller towns are either occupied by drug addicts and are not used by women and children due to gender/ religious suppression.Many have protested but this is has a smaller audience.http://thingsmayamissed.tumblr.com/post/16402313027/dear-the-maya-jee-those-are-pink-chaddis-you
http://blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/9975/an-open-letter-to-maya-khan/comment-page-4/
http://tribune.com.pk/story/325990/vigil-aunties/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_ethics
It is high time that the right to privacy by individual is protected in Pakistan and the individual freedom of speech, thought, opinions and belief are respected as enshrined in Universal declaration of human rights.As it is the space for tolerance and liberal thinking is shrinking in Pakistan at an enormous speed.Before little space is also engulfed by intolerance and bigotry we may get some individual space for breathing.

Pakistan Happenings :Women In Political Pakistan.

Women  In Political Pakistan.

An interactive Article  By  Dr Meher Zaidi

Pakistan has entered the middle of the 21^st century ill prepared and poorly armed to face the gigantly immense challenges facing its polity, political future and economic well being. Its literacy rate not being improved as much as it should have been. The quality and quantity of education has not been up to a standard increasing competence and direction for development to take place. http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/pakistan_pakistan_statistics.html

More than 50% of population in Pakistan is women and girls. They are laborers, agricultural workers (Haris, tillers ), teachers, doctors, nurses, scientists etc.  They are amongst the most suppressed, vulnerable groups facing social sanctions, religious prejudice, inequality, gender discrimination, violence, economic prejudice and political suppression. Pakistan must understand that in order to increase its Competitiveness Index it needs to fast track its policies for women development and empowerment and bring Women’s Issues in mainstream politics. (

Up five places, Pakistan (118th) partially bounces back from last year’s significant drop in rank. Yet, in
several categories, it remains one the poorest performers of the developing Asia region, and indeed of the
entire sample of economies. It is particularly worrisome that Pakistan earns its lowest marks, with no sign of
improvement, in the most basic areas of competitiveness, namely institutions (107th), infrastructure (115th),
health and primary education (121st), and the macroeconomic environment (138th). In order to benefit from
the scale advantages associated with its significant market size (30th), Pakistan will have to decrease regu-          
           
                    Country Highlights of The Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012 © 2011 World Economic Forum
10
latory rigidities in the labor market (now ranked 136th) and reduce barriers to domestic and foreign
competition in order to render the markets for goods and services more efficient (93rd). Last but not least,
boosting the technological ) http://www.weforum.org/issues/global-competitiveness 

 In an enlightening interview in Herald (October 2002, http://herald.dawn.com/), Ms. Hina Jilani http://www.cartercenter.org/peace/human_rights/defenders/defenders/pakistan_hina_jilani.html ,in answer to a question as to how will the increase in women’s seats in the parliament be beneficial, she says that the increase will help understand women’s problems better  and also erase the discrimination against women.She was critical of the small number of seats sanctioned at the time and said that she stood for bringing women’s issues in mainstream politics. This is an issue which has matured for open debate now in Pakistan. Mr Imran Khan now emphasizing on good governance, corruption free society, rule of law has to bring these issues in mainstream political arena. This issue of bringing Women’s issues in mainstream has to be seen in the paradigm of Economic dynamism and  competitiveness.

Akhtar Ali in his new book Pakistan’s Development Challenges, federalism, Security & Governance  http://developmentpakistan.blogspot.com/2010/06/new-book-pakistans-development.html , writes in the chapter “Competition & Competitiveness”  that “Competitiveness in international markets & elsewhere would come about first from promoting  social mobility, reducing invisible barriers, eliminating class monopoly, releasing millions of human beings from social bondage of one form or the other. It is not just the poverty and economic conditions; it is the socio-political apparatus that may have to be overhauled. The politics of corruption and favoritism must end. “ He further elaborates how this disparity can be bridged over . My emphasis is on bringing the over  50% female population into the picture. As said by the learned author unless  the labor wages are brought out of the “cheap, low” paradigm into international competition , the issues of poverty, falling out of competition and social mobility will not be resolved. Both industrial and business community needs to understand the politics of competition and international competitiveness and of course the female input in economic productivity.

Agriculture contributes 26% to the GDP in Pakistan. The agriculture worker ( and thank God agriculture in Pakistan is neither fully mechanized and corporatized) is underpaid, overworked and un-insured. The women due to increased vulnerability (pregnancy, childbirth, nutritional deficiency, low literacy, social practices, lack of easy access to justice, population overload in family unit, poverty) also contribute to low agricultural productivity. This needs to be again addressed as a mainstream political issue. Akhtar Ali again in his forthcoming book (available on Amazon http://www.amazon.ca/Pakistans-Development-Akhtar-Ali/dp/1466225041), emphasizes Land reform package  and water rights. These will surely improve the socio-economic conditions of rural population in general and women in particular. These suggestions on land reforms are not those that bring about social turmoil as envisaged by some  Tehrik- e- Insaaf politicians in public discourse. They are viable and doable options as presented in his book in detail.  http://www.insaf.pk/

Benazir Income Support Program is one such program which intends to bring about some fiscal relief to women and poor families in Pakistan. http://www.bisp.gov.pk/events/co-responsibility%20cash%20transfer%20Presentation.pdf .  Their Waseela –e –Taleem program is scheduled to be launched in early 2012 but it seems that Pakistan due to its extremely bad luck has once again embroiled itself in issues like the memo gate and the NRO whereby the incumbent government instead of focusing on these social sector programs is again on the defensive and its  attention divided. This program should continue and be part of the policy programs by whoever forms the new government. Pakistan needs to continue its   development and social emancipation policies. Another point to be emphasized is that whenever there is discussion and debate on the issues of development aid , the politicians start a verbal diarrhea against aid as if it is pariah dog. Aid in the context of social development has to be taken from the international community because due to our fat defense budget we are not allocating any funds for social sector development. Till such time we are generating these funds ourselves we will have this chicken –egg  problem of low social indicators (Poverty, health, literacy and education) and Pakistan’s inability to come out of its problems (Failed State, Lack of Freedom etc). http://www.underminingdemocracy.org/pakistan/

As Pakistan enters the middle of this century aware of its problems and its people are aware of the solutions to bring about an egalitarian  change in its politics, armed with education and economic vibrancy, the people who paint a doomsday picture will be dis-illusioned.  Pakistan’s judiciary, armed forces and above all politicians need to understand the emergency of bringing the politics of women in the mainstream.

Update 20th January,2012 : DAWN newspaper headlines Women's Commission Bill Passed By National Assembly http://www.dawn.com/2012/01/20/womens-commission-bill-passed-by-na.html .The significance of passing this bill at this time is that an even groundwork is available to remove the hurdles and barrriers of socio-economic and social injustices to provide a smooth transition of the women polity in development and economic prosperity.This bill is a major step by the parliamentarians to improve the lot of women in Pakistan. The government with its allies and the opposition has made it possible now for the women issues to be handled by a more adequate and informed class of individuals to handle the women's issues and fast track the issues instead of slow pace of work which took decades to be resolved.Its preamble highlights the understanding the parliamentarians have of the issues and we hope that democratic dispensation of the governments will continue in future.
 “promotion of social, economic, political and legal rights of women” as provided in the Constitution and “in accordance with international declarations, conventions, treaties, conventions and agreements relating to women, including the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women”.