Baithak Desi May 13: South to South, Ghamdi, Anjum Niaz, Manora Mandir, Headlines, Cartoons

Bouncing in and out of muddy pot-holes, I noticed something fairly unusual in Pakistan. In a nation with perhaps the most feverish cricket obsession in the commonwealth, it is almost a strange sight to see boys play anything else. Instead of multiple cricket games being played on dusty pitches, in the decrepit streets of Korangi, one of Karachi's city's violent, sprawling slums, I saw hundreds of children, instead, playing soccer. From South to South: Refugees as Migrants: The Rohingya in Pakistan


I have stopped believing strongly since long that Javed Ahmed Ghamidi’s exposition of Islam, more or less like Mutizilite Islam in medieval times and Progressive Islam in modernity, is a fad that will fizzle out automatically with time; however, I still doubt that sometimes. It is primarily a better understanding of traditional Islam, cornerstone of which is Ilm al-Ikhtilaf, which moved me to drop my prejudiced (most probably) contention. Persevered deliberation made me realise that Ghamidi’s Islam, which I often call Contemporary School and which may going to be widely recognised as Islahi’s School, is a movement that would prove to be good for intellectual rejuvenation of Islamic thought; a kind of renaissance, which according to Javed Ghamidi himself began with Shibli Naumani in Indian Subcontinent.
Ghamidi’s interpretation of Islam: Is it a fad that will fizzle out with time?

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She (the US Ambassador) told the audience that the spread of anti-Americanism in Pakistan, especially among the middle-classes, surprised her. "I suspect that those who oppose American engagement in Pakistan have limited understanding of how our partnerships – economic assistance and financial interactions – changed the lives of everyday Pakistanis in real and positive ways." then Anjum Niaz adds:

Out comes an avalanche of American largesse in the shape of military hardware (for the khakis), stipends and scholarships (for the elite); study tours (for the pushy); media joyrides (for the willing), sexy junkets (for the fun-starved politicians), Ivy-league training courses (for wangling bureaucrats) and truckloads of other stuff most of us don't even know of. Pakistan is the third-largest recipient of American aid after Israel and Egypt. Ambassador Patterson, then, has every right to wonder why Pakistanis look such a gift horse in the mouth!

And then she quotes a former US Ambassador:

Having retired from US Foreign Service, Ms Chamberlain currently serves as the President of the Middle East Institute. Listen to what she said last September when releasing the report titled "Perilous Course: US Strategy and Assistance to Pakistan." "First, our assistance and policy is not focused enough on people and their most pressing concerns or aspirations. Secondly, the report offers a straightforward explanation as to why a coherent and effective policy toward Pakistan has eluded us. In a word, it has been our own lack of clarity of purpose. Third, the report hammers home the horrifying truth that we have no plan B for Pakistan. The other example of a foreign adventure in which we stubbornly rejected the advice of many to develop a plan B was Iraq. The consequences there are now painfully evident. My final point is that the report makes the right conclusion that we must be realistic in our aid goals. US assistance will not be able to remake Pakistan, but it could be useful as catalyst for change."
The solitary reaper - Anjum Niaz


KARACHI: Despite Pakistan’s rich heritage of historical and archeological sites, very little work has been done for their restoration and preservation. This became more apparent after Daily Times visited a small pyramid-shaped Hindu temple, the ‘Shri Varun Dev Mandir’ in Manora.

The temple looks westwards at the Arabian Sea. Its beautiful architecture and appearance is in decay due to a complete lack of care. Its walls and rooms serve as a toilet for the locals of Manora’s sandy beach. In addition, the humid winds are eating away at whatever is left of the structure. The rich carvings on the walls of the mandir are slowly eroding to vagueness. Manora mandir being used as toilet: caretaker By Shahzad Shah Jillani

Headlines


Who cares: C’wealth lifts Pak suspension
(btw I said the same thing when they suspended Pakistan)
PAKISTAN : Elected Gov't Unable to Deal With Taliban Groups
ToI: Don't Waste This Chance
Play flute or jet-set: Asif Zardari leaves for Dubai from London
And the new Finance Minister is? No new ministers: Asif Zardari
It is all in their Playbook: Crumbling coalition
Not blaming Musharraf? Dark omens
This is also in the Playbook: Reconciliation and national rebuilding
And who will bell the fat cat? On trimming the defence and civilian budgets
What the fox said to the hen: Rehman wants law and order maintained ‘at all costs’