the End of a Lal Masjid Drama

What we have seen in the last half a year was an effort of Talibanization by the Lal Masjid administration. it seems like that it will come to its end any time now. the two brothers running the show have succumbed to the governmental pressures. one of the brothers have been caught while leaving in a Burqa; the other has been in hiding and, as the latest reports suggest, he has given signs of surrender.

one of the girls, talking to BBC told that even women were being trained like commandos. listening to her, it seemed that  she had been brainwashed to the extreme. the Madrassah should be closed down till an indefinite period. one Army general gave it state sponsorship and made it a center of Jihadi efforts. we hope another will do the right thing and close it down.

the operation should have been taken a long time ago. but better late than never.

2nd Young Leaders Workshop 2nd -5th July 2007 at Embassy Inn, Karachi.

The 2^nd Young Leaders Workshop started on the 2^nd of July 2007 at hotel embassy inn, Karachi. The workshop is organized by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation. The workshop will continue till 5^th July 2007.The moderator for this workshop is Miss Gulmina Bilal.

an agent of positive change

the US has said that Pervez Musharraf is an agent for positive change.

I am just wondering if the people at the state department have been watching PTV* these days!!

*PTV is short for PAkistan Television, the government’s mouthpiece.

closing down the channels.

The cable operators said that they will shut down the channels that broadcast anything against army or judiciary.

the move comes at a time when the censorship in this country is inching up every day. A ban on the book of Dr. Ayesha Siddiqa was already in place and now comes this. why is the communication of free thought in this country considered such a pernicious commodity?who is going to decide what  is against any of those institutions? and why should any criticism of these institutions be taken as something against them?

all this just means that the country is becoming something akin to a Oceania(1984). and the day is not far when we will have our own ministry of truth.or perhaps we already have one by another name.

ghosts haunt us.

we had not yet recovered from the incidents in Karachi when a Bomb went off in Peshawar killing more than 20 people.

in all through this Chaos, I have been trying to understand what is this that has gripped our country. it was not like that even in the 80s and 90s. nations remember their decades for good deeds; we remember them for the destruction that these bombs cause. who is responsible? the terrorists? the police? the citizenry?

perhaps its time that we analyzed what choices we made in the past. The Ghosts of Afghan war still haunt us. we can not bring back the dead, but we can surely avoid these blasts in the future.

Karachi Burns

the loss of 37 lives in Karachi a couple of days ago left every heart saddened. we at the freedom gate  pakistan, deeply regret this and hope those who were responsible would be dealt with.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan(HRCP) issued a statement that the MQM should be disarmed. we believe that would the right choice. it is time that no more innocent blood be shed.

God, I am so heavy hearted, i cant even write any more.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN PAKISTAN

In the Constitution of Pakistan 1973 has guaranteed fundamental rights to women, Under Article 25 there shall be no discrimination on the basis of sex.

As many as 44 countries have enacted legislation on domestic violence. While Pakistan does not have specific legislations on it, there are sections of the Pakistan Penal Code and other laws that can be used to invoke justice for the victim, Still domestic violence is not a crime against state, no special laws in Pakistan has been drafted having special remedies and procedures. Violence against women is perpetrated when legislation, law enforcement and judicial systems is condoned

Muhammad Usman Ghani

light at the end of the tunnel?

the judicial crisis in the country have lengthened. While the hearings continue, the chief justice has continued to tour the country. he has been addressing the people and has been getting a warm welcome everywhere. from what is evident from these rallies, it seems that the people are tired of the system;they want a change.

and that change seems to be in the personality of the chief justice. he has warned against dictatorship and has said that the rule of law should prevail. people think he is right.

what we see is some light at the end of the tunnel. it seems like the people are awakening from deep slumber. it seems like they now know they will have to fight to get their rights. they know it is the right time.

but we have seen in the past is that so many promising things have gone to waste. so the question is: is this light at the end of the tunnel a good thing or is it going to be another hope-killing train.

we can only hope for the best. only time will decide which way the tide turns.

MK

Communication Skill Training Workshop

Indeed it has been a great experience and an ample opportunity for me to learn the art and tactics of communication skill from Tauseeq Haider and Irfan Ahmad Urfi, I firmly beleive Gulmina is also a good communicator. Communication being an integral part of our personality more we are good at communication more people learn from us and easly perceive our object of speech or message that we want to deliver to them. Again i am greatful to FNF for providing me with the golden opportunity to explore my skills and overcome my shortcomings which had so far made me bad communicator. Even in daily practice at Court I can easily convince Judge with my sounding arguments by applying the communication skills tactics.

Unique Usman

Fifth IAF Alumni meeting @ Islamabad

They have come from four corners of Pakistan. They are young, old , men and women. They are lawyers, journalists, academicians , students but most important they are liberals and graduates of the International Academy for Leadership of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation. More than one hundred and fifty Pakistanis have gone to the Academy and have learnt different skills. Some have learnt “how to question” ,some have “de-learned” but all of have experienced! The 5 IAF Alumni meeting will conclude on March 20th when the new Director of the IAF Ms. Lumm ( hmm.. lets see did I get the spelling right?) will be there to interact with all of us. Watch this space for more details.