Ufone Celebrates 11th Anniversary with great Zeal and Enthusiasm

Ufone celebrated its 11th anniversary with great fervor and spirit, with the commitment to remain the best cellular company in Pakistan. Cake cutting ceremonies were held in offices nationwide on 30th January 2012.

Ufone’s CEO, Abdul Aziz congratulated the Ufone family on successfully completing 11 years of achievement.  He also said that “Ufone as an organization is well positioned to realize the benefits of our major strategic growth investments and strong operational execution. At the same time, we remain passionate about positioning Ufone as the leading integrated telecom company in Pakistan providing one of the most affordable and variety of services in the telecom market”.

Finally there is some good news for BlackBerry users in Pakistan. I can clearly see Research In Motion is seriously working in expanding their market all across the world. As a Smartphone is recognized by the type of apps it runs, BlackBerry has been orphaned in Pakistan due to unavailability of the official App Sore called BlackBerry App World. Both paid as well as free content are now available in Pakistan. You can download apps, games and themes from the store via on-device App World store as well as over the Internet from your PC.

BlackBerry users in Pakistan have been very unhappy, not only due to unavailability of App World but also about blocking of the BlackBerry apps that use BlackBerry Internet Services (BIS). These blocked apps include Facebook, Twitter and all other apps that use internet via BIS. This blocking took place in conjunction with blocking of blasphemous pages over the internet. PTA had banned access to those sits and while local telcos could not control or block access via BIS, they blocked BIS altogether.

Last month BIS access was silently restored, first on Ufone and now on other networks as well. This was for sure to facilitate the availability of App World in the country.

Not only BlackBerry users but Mobile App Developers from Pakistan have been highly disturbed and handicapped by the unavailability of the BlackBerry App World and BlackBerry Internet Services. Now we can expect more cool and innovative work from local companies in terms of apps as we’ve seen by Pepper.pk and some other cool start-ups.

Research In Motion and BlackBerry has been in news for past few months for all the wrong reasons while the new CEO Thorsten Heins is of the view that nothing significant needs to change in RIM’s business strategy. Year 2012 is critical for the company’s future success and we are looking forward to some cool new devices, new OS and some new services from RIM in year 2012.

Maya Khan: fired for refusing to tender an unconditional apology

From: Dr Kamran Iqbal (cc’d to signatories below)
Date: Sat, 28 Jan 2012
To: Zafar Siddiqi

Dear Mr Siddiqi,

Thank you for your prompt and courageous response. We appreciate the moral courage of SAMAA TV’s stance. We hope you will continue to lead by example in developing a code of ethics and directives, which you have issued for your channel that we urge, should be made public on your website. You may want to have a look at the code of conduct guidelines of the Society of Professional Journalists, to consult while drafting your guidelines.

Also, we would like to mention here that in Ms. Maya Khan’s team which is being terminated, innocent people should not be axed, and protection for those lower ranking workers, who had no say in what Ms. Maya was doing should duly be taken care of.

We will support you in taking the step to make directives and code of ethics and conduct guidelines made public. As a citizen media consumer group, would promote and spread these improvements in other channels one by one as there had been numerous examples which deserve similar attention and correction and it is clear that flaw has been at policy design level. A group of us would be happy to meet you and/or anyone you designate to initiate a discussion on this if you desire.

We look forward to seeing the directives on your website to share with the public.

Sincerely,

Ali Kazmi, Student, Islamabad
Ali Taj, Hedge Fund manager, Winchester Fund, Cerritos, California
Ally Adnan, Director, Huawei technologies, Dallas, TX
Amna Chishty, marketing consultant, Canada
Asadullah Khan, Head of Programming, Capital TV, Islamabad
Asif Alam, Financial Services Executive, New York, NY, USA
Asif Sattar, Admin Operations at Kiers Facilities Ltd, Slough, England
Beena Sarwar, journalist, Cambridge MA/ Karachi, Pakistan
Danielle Gehrmann, linguist, Sydney, Australia
Hassan Turi, student, Agricultural university, Peshawar
Hira Kamal, concerned citizen and media person, Jeddah
Syed Hussein El-Edroos, Business Development & Training Manager, Islamabad
Prof. Dr. Ijaz Khan, Chairman, Department of International Relations, University of Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Dr. Kamran Iqbal, Founder & CEO, Human Voice Initiative, Karachi, Pakistan
Kamyla Marvi, Citizen, Karachi Pakistan
Kiran Nazish, Freelance Journalist
Meera Ghani, Concerned Citizen, Lahore
Mira Hashmi, film critic and teacher, Lahore
Mohsin Sayeed, journalist, Karachi
Muhammad Faraz Faheem, Senior Software Engineer, Karachi, Pakistan
Munnazir Aziz, video producer, Lodhran, Pakistan
Nadia Fazal Jamil, actor, Lahore, Pakistan
Naheed Tofiq Mooraj, Proprietor of Candle Works, Karachi
Naziha Syed Ali, journalist, Karachi
Nighat Dad, advocate, Lahore
Noman Quadri, concerned citizen, Karachi
Dr. Osama Siddique, Law Professor, Lahore
Rabia Akhtar. PhD candidate, Kansas State University, USA/Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Raza Bashir, Corporate Banking, Karachi
Saadia Toor, professor, New York,
Saba Hamid, Actor, Lahore, Pakistan
Sahar Habib Ghazi, Journalist, Palo Alto, California
Shah Hayat Ahmad, Citizen, Karachi, Pakistan
Siraj Khan, Financial Executive, Boston MA USA
Shayan Afzal Khan, a concerned citizen, Islamabad
Tammie Mahmud, Trainer & Education Program Developer, Boca Raton, FL
Usmann Rana, student, Lahore

Maya Khan: fired for refusing to tender an unconditional apology

Following the citizens’ campaign expressing outrage at a Samaa TV morning show’s intrusive and unethical programming, and the host  Maya Khan’s refusal to apologise unconditionally, the channel is taking her show off the air and terminating her contract. BELOW: CEO Samaa TV Zafar Siddiqi’s letter in response to our email to him yesterday. This is the power of collective, visible, non-violent action — and of the social media that helped to spread the word. This will not end here. Media consumers in Pakistan are waking up to their own power, and will continue to lobby for an ethical, responsible media.

From: <zafar.siddiqi>
Date: Sat, Jan 28, 2012
Subject: Re: URGENT: People’s Petition and Protest on Irresponsible, Intrusive and Invasive Programming by SAMAA TV

Dear All

Your feedback is appreciated. As a responsible corporate citizen, Samaa TV did what was required under the circumstances. We do not and have not in the past or intend to in the future to take our viewership or reporting requirements without the seriousness that they deserve.

You would appreciate that as an organisation with a functioning management team, we had to conduct certain legal requirements over the past week and internal review processes (which are operational in nature) before procedding further.

As a result of which I can inform you:
1. We asked Maya to apologise unconditionally which she did not.
2. The CEO asked her to do that on friday which she refused.

As a result of which the following will be put in place on Monday,Jan 30th.
1. Maya and her team will receive termination notices.
2. Her show is being stopped from Monday morning.

Our deeds and actions taken since this episode occured are there for the record and hope this will settle issues as far as the station is concerned.

A lot has been written about the race for ratings..Well, we do (not) absolve such behaviour irrespective of ratings that the show was getting.

With best regards and thank you for your understanding.Zafar Siddiqi
Chairman CNBC Arabiya
Chairman CNBC Africa
President CNBC Pakistan

PT Report ISLAMABAD, January 28: The social media seems to have played an important role in bringing down the controversial anchor, Maya Khan, who aired footages in her morning show in which some middle class women and men were shown chasing couples, some female clad in Burqa, in a Karachi Park. Through this show, Maya [...]

At approximately 1:15pm, the CEO & Founder of Five by Five Communications announced his intention to quit smoking on his twitter. The announcement has been met with intense panic from the tobacco & drug industry, who fear other marketing and advertising community members who admire the millionaire may follow suit in his honor. The CEO [...]

Local business magnate quits smoking, scares tobacco companies is a post from: PakMediaBlog All Rights Reserved.

Mobilink marks 2012 as the year of ‘Elevating Consumer Experience’

Mobilink has marked 2012 as the year it will create a paradigm shift in Pakistan’s cellular environment by elevating consumer experience to a level that is unparalleled within the local industry. Mobilink’s subscribers already have access to the best cellular service in Pakistan, as a result of the operator’s continuing investment in infrastructure and coverage footprint as well as focus on developing superior customer relationships.

This was highlighted during a presentation made to the media by Rashid Khan, President & CEO Mobilink, where he spoke about the achievements of Mobilink over the past year, and the cellular operator’s strategy for 2012.

A morning show broadcast in Pakistan on Jan 17, 2012, on Samaa, a Pakistani television channel, has catalysed what could well be the beginning of a media consumer rights movement.

In the show, Subah Saverey Maya kay Sath (Early Morning with Maya), the host Maya Khan, charges through a public park looking for dating couples to interrogate. With her is a battalion of other women, who join her in self-righteously lecturing the couples they come across – does your family know you are here, why don’t you meet at home if you are engaged, and, most outrageously, if you are married, where is your nikahnama (marriage certificate)?

When the harassed couples ask for the camera to be turned off, the Samaa team pretends to acquiesce but carries on filming with sound. As several people have pointed out, this intrusive behaviour could result in putting those couples in life-threatening situations in a country where forced marriages and ‘honour killings’ continue to be the norm.

The first time I saw a link to this show was on Jan 22, shared on a facebook group, on Jan 21, 2012. I, and many others, began sharing the Youtube links on facebook and twitter. As it spread, the outrage grew. People were shocked at the level of intrusion and vigilantism on display. From India, came comments on twitter about the Saffron vigilante brigade that has been known to drag couples into temples and force them into instant marriage. Which reminded me that the mentality we are protesting is not limited to Pakistan – see my article ‘Peaceful Pink Panties to Tame Right-Wing Goons‘ about the Sri Ram Sene goons in India. This was in 2009 but I hear they’re gearing up again against Valentines Day… Of course it’s always the poor, who can’t meet in secure hotels and cafes, who are always most vulnerable against this kind of moral policing.

Maya Khan’s antics on Samaa TV triggered off several articles and reports – starting with blogger Mehreen Kasana letting rip in her post (with doodles) An Open Letter to Maya Khan, Jan 22, 2012.

But most importantly, the outrage was channelized into a loosely organised protest. Dozens of people sent in complaints to the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) at the online feedback form, shared quickly via facebook. On Jan 22, lawyer Osama Siddique drafted a brief letter expressing outrage at the  :highly intrusive, invasive and potentially irresponsible behavior on the part of the host – a kind of vigilantism no different than the Lal Masjid variety” (referring to the black-robed women armed with sticks called the Hafza Brigade, associated with the Red Mosque in Islamabad, who went around beating up and terrorizing women whose behaviour or looks they deemed ‘immoral’ or ‘unIslamic’).

The letter protested this moral policing, and pointed out that “this kind of programming is likely to also lead to legal action for violation of dignity of man under the Constitution – which legal action we as signatories will support, propagate and promote.” It demanded an end to “this irresponsible programming”.

A group of citizens emailed the letter to the Samaa head Zafar Siddiqi (President CNBC Pakistan, with which Samaa is affiliated), and an expatriate Pakistani in California, Ali Abbas Taj, uploaded it to Change.org as an petition titled STOP “Subah Saverey Maya kay Sath” vigilantism like Lal Masjid.

Within 24 hours, the online activism had the following unexpected effects:

* In about 24 hours, there were over 2000 signatures, and by the following day 4,800 people, in Pakistan and around the world, had endorsed it.

* Maya Khan’s facebook page was closed, probably in response to the number of comments being made on it. Some of those comments were highly abusive and threatening, which we condemn and have nothing to do with.

* Maya Khan on her show of Jan 23, 2012 acknowledged that what she did could have hurt people and said that was not her intention – but she has not apologised, and appears completely unrepentant and unaware of the dangers of her actions.

* CEO Samaa TV Zafar Siddiqi wrote back to the people who had emailed him saying:  ”I have travelled to Khi to look at this matter and yesterday Maya apologised in her program for this. I can assure this will never happen again. Samaa is a progressive channel.
“There are certain other directives that have been put into place as of yesterday.
“I thank everyone concerned in bringing this matter to my attention. It’s really appreciated.”

The citizens’ response:

* We do not accept Maya Khan’s statement in her show of Jan 23 as an apology. Nor are we satisfied with Mr Siddiqi’s attempts to placate us. We want an unconditional, public apology from both Maya Khan and Samaa TV.

* We do not hold Maya Khan solely responsible for her actions; it is the producer and channel owner who set policy and allow this kind of programming to happen. We want to know what steps are being taken and what policy directives given to ensure this doesn’t happen again.

* Maya Khan should apologise publically not just to viewers but also to the couples she harassed in the park.

* There’s also outrage against a 2010 moral policing show by ARY reporter Yasir Aqeel, who is if possible even more offensive than Maya Khan, and takes harassment to another level. We protest these intrusive tactics by TV channel owners to boost ratings by harassing peaceful, law-abiding citizens.

* We would like to know what ethical guidelines TV channel owners and producers are setting down to ensure that this doesn’t happen.

* We are in contact with the commercial sponsors of television shows and will impress upon them the need to pull advertising from programmes and channels that violate basic media ethics.

BOTTOM LINE: Media is not a business like any other. It carries greater responsibility and we want its workings to be transparent and ethical.

In addition:

A college student in Karachi, started a facebook ‘cause’ on Jan 24 demanding that Maya Khan apologise to the youth of Pakistan, especially Karachi

Some activists began an sms campaign, sharing Zafar Siddiqi’s Dubai cell number with this message: Please send this sms to Mr. Zafar Siddiqui, CEO SAMAA TV if you want to raise your voice against the moral policing by Maya Khan: “Dear Mr Siddiqi, pardon the intrusion. I’m part of a citizens’ group protesting Samaa TV and its host Maya Khan’s irresponsible ‘moral policing’. We expect an unconditional apology, and this show withdrawn or at least suspended until new parameters are worked out. Thank you. “

It hasn’t all been about anger and outrage though. Predictably, Pakistanis have derived considerable mirth from the situation, some of it rather unkindly expressed. There’s this outrageous post by Urooj Zia: Things Maya Missed (relevant to my Pink Chaddis report for IPS linked above).

Some funny graphics were created – like park signs saying “Beware of dog – and Maya Khan” (unkind, yes, but then, people are angry), posted by Arif Iqbal (@eusuphxai on twitter), who also posted this, that I especially liked: a still from the old Indian film “Bobby” with its famous song “Hum tum aik kamre mein band hon…” with the next line changed to “Aur Maya aa jaye” (the original line can be translated as: “what if we were locked up in a room… and the key got lost” – changed to: “… and Maya turned up”

There have also been some really nasty shares, including videos of Maya dancing, and an animation in which she gets slapped, but let’s ignore those for now, with just this comment, that we do not condone abusive language, personal insults or threats of violence.

More important, the issue has catalysed some relevant, thought-provoking reports, analyses and discussions, including those listed here:

Wusatullah Khan in BBC Urdu website, Jan 22, 2012: ‘Aap tau naib khuda hain’

BBC Urdu report, Jan 23, 2012: ‘TV channel ka anti-dating squad’

BBC Urdu Radio report, Jan 24, 2012: ‘Sawerey ka chapa’ par sakht tanqeed’ in which Samaa senior producer Sohail Zaidi rejects civil society concerns, defends show, saying, “I am not answerable to anyone”.

Vigil-aunties (a term coined by Anthony Permal) by Bina Shah, Jan 24, 2012: ‘At the very least, the channel and the anchorperson owe an apology, if not compensation, to those two individuals who had hurt nobody on that day when they were ambushed and harassed by the television anchor and her Moral Aunty Brigade. The irony is that she describes herself on her Facebook page as “very fair and honest in her dealings”. I think that girl in the niqab, crying in the park, and her blameless friend, as well as any sane person with a conscience and a respect for other people’s privacy, would beg to differ.’

‘Big Brother (and Sister) is watching you‘ – Nadeem F. Paracha, Jan 23, 2102, on the history of what he calls ‘pussycat vigilantism’ – “This strange phenomenon is not just about simple hypocrisy, it is also and actually about glorifying this hypocrisy through gung-ho acts in which pussycat media vigilantes prey upon soft targets to exhibit their ‘bravery’ but squeak away if ever an opportunity arises to do the same to those who can and will bite back.” He says the first reported case of moral vigilantism that he stumbled upon was reported in Dawn, 1980. Must read.

In the parks of Karachi, by Ejaz Haider, Jan 24, 2012 - “From the terrible scarcity of information we now have a nauseating excess of it.”

Media ethics and responsibility at Afia Salam and Faisal Qureshi’s online talk show Off the Cuff, discussing the need for a legal framework.

p.s. Well before this issue blew up, Hosh media, which aims to bridge the gap between online and mainstream media, sat down with veteran journalist and former Editor of Dawn, Abbas Nasir to initiate “a crash course in some of the stickiest subjects that journalism in Pakistan now faces”. Four of the six part series are online at the Hosh website, that Sahar Habib Ghazi wrote about at The great ethics debate (published Jan 23, 2012).

Updates will continue to be posted on the petition link. Watch this space.

Every thing about her has this surreal symbolism. Even the fact that the Heavens opened up the day she left us in tears of our own.

In our culture, the dearly departed are only mourned but westwards, there is also a certain celebration of life just etched away. If life is about stories well lived and lessons well learnt, it is a tradition worth its weight in gold.

Arfa Karim Randhawa had a rather longish name for such a sweet little kid. The baby fat on her cheeks and those twinkling, inquisitive eyes never left her even as she was on the threshold of adolescence. For someone so special, she was like the daughter everyone felt was their own.

I never had difficulty remembering the long name though — which had 17 letters but in the end, not even one alphabet made up for each of her 16-year tryst with destiny — from the time she first got everyone to stand up and take notice in 2004.

I was living abroad those days and one of the first things I did on a vacation back home was to go to the PTV headquarters in Islamabad and fetch a copy of the first TV interview she gave after becoming the world’s youngest Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) at the age of nine.

The market — including the limited private media — hadn’t yet wisened to the genius so I could only lay a hand on a videotape, not a CD, of the recording through an old acquaintance. To watch and hear the little darling, I had to pull out an old VCR from the attic!

But it was worth every minute, if only for the tremolo in her rendition of an old Bulleh Shah verse. You could be forgiven for forgetting in that profound sweep, that here was a prodigy whose first call to fame was being the world’s youngest MCP!

What — and who — is she, you wondered, even as she cast a spell on you. There was no escape from being awed — as many an obit writer has readily admitted following her demise last Saturday.

Fast forward to last month when one saw the shocking website image of Pakistan’s pride in death’s icy hands, barely recognisable from the sparkling form one had always associated with her.

At year-end, rumours first circulated that Arfa had died but one found out through Ali Nawazish Moeen, another world record holder with 23 A’s in A ‘Levels, that it wasn’t the case and subsequently, some miraculous movement was noted, leading to a fervent hope of recovery.

Microsoft co-founder and former CEO Bill Gates, who was wowed by the prodigy when she visited Microsoft headquarters at his invitation in 2004, contacted her parents and hired a panel of doctors, who advised their Pakistani counterparts through video link.

In the end, hope was short-lived — a bit like the 1990 Robert Di Nero starrer Awakenings, based on Oliver Slack’s 1973 memoir, in which a new doctor tries a chemical cure on a comatose patient. When the first patient awakes, he is an adult having gone into a coma in his early teens. The film then delights in the new awareness of the patients. However, all patients including the protagonist essayed by Di Nero, return to their vegetative state.

Arfa’s 22-day ordeal had captured the hearts and minds of a nation riven by strife and uncertainty. For a country struggling with existential threats, and a breeding ground for bad headlines, Arfa was like a beacon of light.

Even as short a life as hers encapsulated brilliantly the richness of endeavour, capacity for achievement and a heart in its right place. But while this maybe a universal sentiment, she found her way to every beating Pakistani heart because of how much she cared for her country.

For someone so young, Arfa swore by an ambition to improve the lot of her village Ramdewali. Significantly, she was running a computer training centre for the less privileged that she had herself established.

It was an amazing sight — the little Arfa driving home the importance of reading aptitude early and creating a conducive environment for the seed to grow, interview after interview, speech after speech at 10. She would quote from books and authors she read fervently to draw the context. Two years ago, she had run through the entire Oxford dictionary as well — every word and term practiced for comprehension. Arfa was also engaged with Nasa after winning a competition last year.

Removed from the academic, her flight was not imaginary — she earned certification as a pilot from a flying club in Dubai at 10 and remains the youngest recipient of the prestigious President’s Pride of Performance award in the field of science and technology. There were other awards but space constraints do not permit an elaborate appraisal.

Her desire to explore and reach the zenith was evident from a recent mail to former Higher Education Commission chairman Dr Attaur Rehman, where she sought consultation on venturing into “a field where there is more room to explore and which would benefit Pakistan”.

Everyone who met Arfa came away awe-struck by her confidence, never mind the special gift she had in her chosen field. Yet the only time, she was publicly seen emotional was when she said, teary-eyed, during a speech on stage: Pakistan hamari maa hai, is ke beghair hum kuch nahi (Pakistan is our mother, we’re nothing without her).

Words fail me at our loss. RIP, Arfa.

Easypaisa is one of the Pakistan’s largest services that allows you to pay your bills without having to stand in long queues by going to there choosen shops or all at the ease of the plam of your hand.

Easypaisa just extended there network by signing an agreement with WorldCall for payment of bills to facilitate WorldCall customers.

Faisal Khan Sadozai, Head Easypaisa Sales (right) and Babar Ali Syed, CEO WorldCall (left)

We have discussed on the achievements of Universal Service Fund (USF) in past, but underlying the working structure of USF is a lesson to learn. A lesson on building an institution. While many institutions have gone down the line during the present government tenure, USF have moved up the stairs. A recent Business Recorder Research Report discusses USF with a notable point that the organization was in infancy when the current political setup commenced.

There is no paucity of people in Pakistan, both knowledgeable and uninformed, who associate democratic regimes with managerial bankruptcy and institutional ruination.

If historical evidence wasn a reason enough, the current regimes dismal performance has cemented such judgments.

While various public sector institutions bled (or “weakened” in the Presidents opinion) in recent years, there are very few functioning public sector organisations left.

One such organisation which weathered political whirlwinds and managed to stay on course all these years is the “Universal Service Fund”.

More interesting is the fact that USF was in infancy when the political transition took place in 2008.

USF was established back in 2006 as per the Ministry of IT and Telecoms USF policy of 2005, and commenced its operations in 2007.

In line with World Bank recommendations, it was modelled on public-private-partnership.

The funds board of directors draws representations from government, IT and Telecom sectors and consumer groups.

The government acts as a trustee and monitors the fund performance.

The funds overarching goal was to bridge the digital divide in Pakistan through development of ICT infrastructure in those un-served and under-served areas which were commercially unviable for telecom operators.

To make the voice telephony and data services available and affordable in such areas was central to the funds objectives.

Telecom operators contribute 1.5 percent of their adjusted revenues to the fund, while part of proceeds from “Access Promotion Component” (APC) also land into USF account (maintained at MoIT).

Following the PPRA rules, USF-funded projects are advertised to licensed operators and are bid against.

USF subsidises projects in areas such as rural telephony, broadband and optical fiber cable networks.

For over four and a half years now, USF has contracted projects worth Rs.17.1 billion, in an open and transparent way.

Notwithstanding the slowdown in subsidy disbursals in 2010 and much of 2011, USF is regarded by the sector as a success story as it has achieved some major milestones (see the illustration).

The fact is that the USF experience offers some valuable insights into the process of institutional-building and public-private-partnership in a country like Pakistan.

Despite governments involvement and multimillion dollar contracts, not once has the fund or any of its officials been charged with malpractice.

The governance structure of the fund has largely kept political pressures at bay.

The organisations former CEO, Parvez Iftikhar, happened to be its very first employee.

He literally started this organisation from scratch, set up the office premises, and built a team of professionals to run the fund.

Parvez vacated his post just last month, leaving behind a vibrant and functioning institution which has a lot to cherish and even more to look forward to.

USF takes its funding from licensed telecom players, identifies projects within the sector, invites the same players for bidding, and then subsidises major portion of the project cost.

Though the government controls the fund, it cannot impose its decision arbitrarily.

The Planning Commission should seriously look at this model for under-developed sectors, rather than being all over the place and achieving very little.

For smooth functioning of the fund, its operational and financial autonomy must be protected.

In addition, both the telecom operators and relevant authorities must step up.

Currently, many mobile operators appear reluctant to participate in USF projects due to security issues and higher operating expenditures in remote areas.

The proposed subsidy on operating expenditures must offer some incentive to change that.

Moreover, USF board meetings must be convened regularly so that activity picks up.

Towards that end, government is the one in need to get its act together.

Here is hoping that with a new CEO in charge, USF may continue pursuing its mandate!

The report first appeared in Business Recorder.

By Ahsan Kureshi

A friend, who shares my ‘liberal’ perspective on almost all things, inquired why I was surprised on what had happened. ‘Shouldn’t we be used to all this?’ His question got me thinking. Are we actually so drowned in the wetsand of fanaticism that the call of an auction of the ‘Holy weapon of Qadri’ was not even a head-turner? Are we bent upon staying fearful and oblivious to all that we deem as absurd? Is a debate on the said topic too much to ask for? Too volatile of a question with a ‘playing-with-a-knife’ consequence? Indeed and sadly yes; atleast, that’s what it seems.

What saddens me today the most is the biases of the pioneers of the ‘freedom-of-speech’ manifesto, the media. The morning newspaper (5th Jan) that greeted me today, the most widely read English daily, proved to be a rude shocker. Not a single headline, news item, editorial or article mentioned Salman Taseer’s name. Except for a small box of gratitude via a hefty payment by a cable company the deceased was an ex-CEO of, not a single paragraph was dedicated to the man. The online blogs and articles however were a relief but in terms of impact, their voices are still a whisper.

On turning on the television however, I was surprised to see all the major channels shy away from the topic of Mr Taseer. Disappointed, I tweeted a renowned anchor, questioning him of the reality of media’s freedom and warned him on how him following suit in his program later at night, would leave many of us discouraged. Almost childishly, I hoped the tweet would invite a rattling of the conscious and the taboo topic would be discussed. Later that night I watched the same ‘champion of freedom’ speak selfishly on the ‘safe’ topics of Babar Awan and Hussain Haqqani while sitting in Lahore, home to Mr. Taseer’s heartbroken family.

The fear that comes with this topic scares me today like it never did before. I was never afraid to speak rather loudly on how wrong Qadri was on murdering one rational voice amid the clamor, I was hopeful. This changed today.

The existence of such mindsets that tend to translate the horrendous murder as an act of piousness irks me. The advantage of number the said population has over the opposite side leaves little to be expected. What’s worse is that Quaid’s secularity and his vision for the secular nation that he proposed would probably never see the light of the day. In a country where the shackles of conservativeness and dogmas bind us to the extreme, intellectual debate shall forever remain a taboo.

Qadri shall soon walk the streets a free man and the voices that shall continue to protest would forcefully become the Tariq Ali’s of this generation. Nothing much will change.

Lastly, I would like to apologize to the Taseer family on behalf of everyone of us. Nothing said or done can bring back the loss of the progressive mind that this nation desperately needed. The complete show of disregard by all the key players in all the walks of life disappoints me more than it would disappoint most. Mr Taseer had high expectations from this country, he would be grieved to see it as shameless as it is today. For this and so much more, I apologize.

Ahsan Kureshi is an economics student from Lahore.

Citizens’ statement of concern about the democratic process in Pakistan democratic and safety of human rights defenders, to be released to the media on Jan 5, 2012 (to endorse, please enter your information in the form at this link)

We, the undersigned, express our grave concern that Pakistani human rights defenders are being threatened and intimidated for their stance in the ‘memogate’ case. We are also concerned at the danger this crisis poses to Pakistan’s democratic political process that had taken a step forward with the elections of 2008.

No elected civilian government in Pakistan has yet completed its tenure and handed over power to the next government following democratic elections. If the current government manages to do this, it will be a first step in an ongoing process that is essential to Pakistan’s peace, progress and prosperity in the long run.

Those under threat include former Ambassador of Pakistan to the US, Husain Haqqani, who returned to Pakistan and tendered his resignation in order to ensure a free and fair inquiry into the ‘memogate’ matter that he is accused of engineering.

The so-called ‘memogate’ affair revolves around a letter that Amb Haqqani is accused of sending to then US Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mullen allegedly at the behest of Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari, seeking American help to prevent a military coup in Pakistan. Mansur Ijaz, an American businessman of Pakistani origin, delivered the note to former US National Security Advisor Gen. James Jones to pass on to Adml Mullen allegedly at Amb Haqqani’s behest. Amb Haqqani has denied writing any such memo at anyone’s behest or asking Ijaz to deliver it to anyone.

Amb Haqqani has been barred from leaving the country, which is a denial of his fundamental right as a free citizen of Pakistan. Under threat both by the ‘religious’ extremists and the security agencies, he is currently a virtual prisoner confined for his own safety to the Prime Minister’s residence.

Also facing threats is his lawyer, former Supreme Court Bar Association President, Asma Jahangir, who has termed the Supreme Court judgment of Dec 30, 2011 a “victory” for the security establishment that she alleges is behind the case.

Amb Haqqani’s wife, Farahnaz Ispahani, a Member of Pakistan’s Parliament, also threatened, is currently in the US where she had come for medical checkups. Columnist Marvi Sirmed, who has written fearlessly against the ‘religious’ extremists and in support of Amb Haqqani, has also been receiving threats, Columnist Marvi Sirmed, who has written fearlessly against the ‘religious’ extremists and in support of Amb Haqqani, has also been receiving threats, as has senior journalist Najam Sethi. There are numerous other journalists and activists who live under threat for their outspoken views; some are forced to seek politial asylum abroad. This is essentially the case with anyone in Pakistan who counters or challenges the narrative of the ideological security state.

Without going into merits of the case, obvious contradictions in the ‘evidence’, or political motivations behind it, it is evident that it is at the crux of a matter vital to Pakistan’s politics, that is, whether Pakistan is going to be run by a civilian elected government along the lines of a parliamentary democracy that ensures fundamental rights, or along the lines of a ideological narrative dictated by the security establishment that holds fundamental rights subservient to its interpretation of ‘national security’.

Too many people in Pakistan have fallen to the ideological monster unleashed by the establishment pursuing a narrow, ideological interpretation of ‘national security’. It is time for a fundamental paradigm shift in Pakistan’s politics, to allow the nation to fulfill its potential as a progressive, forward looking South Asian nation at peace with its neighbours and the world. We urge the Pakistan government, judiciary and security establishment to play their constitutional roles, cooperate with each other and focus on re-establishing the rule of law and in order to make this possible.

In the meantime, be aware that the world is watching to ensure that no harm comes to those who are taking a stand towards this end.

Endorsed (listed alphabetically; names still coming in are being updated; please endorse at this link):
• A. Chhachhi, Sociologist, Netherlands
• Abdul Ghafoor Chaudhry Social Activist Canada
• Abdul Hamid Bashani Khan, Barrister, Solicitor & Notary Public, Canada
• Abdullah Hussein Novelist Lahore
• Afzal Tahir Kashmir International Front/United Kashmir Journal, London, United Kingdom
• Ahmad Rafay Alam, Lawyer
• Ali Kazmi Student Islamabad, Pakistan
• Ali Arqam Blogger, Social Activist Peshawar
• Ammar Yasir, Marketing Head, Tea Break Networks Karachi
• Annie Syedah Student United States
• Anushka Jatoi Student Karachi
• Asif Khan Earth Day Network Washington DC
• Ayesha Humayun Khan Citizen of Pakistan Dubai
• Ayesha Jalal, historian, Boston/Lahore
• Ayesha Siddiqa, Political Scientist, Pakistan
• Beena Sarwar, journalist
• Faisal Mahmood Officer in National Bank Malir
• Faraz Sheikh, social activist, Lahore
• Farooq Tariq, spokesperson Labour Party Pakistan, Lahore
• Fazil Jamili, Poet, Journalist
• Fakhar Ul-Islam Project Manager United Kingdom
• Fayaz Ahmad Historian Peshawar
• Ghazi Salahuddin, journalist and columnist, Karachi
• Hamad Ur Rehman CEO/ a human and social rights activist. Lyallpur.
• Haris Gazdar, researcher
• Harsh Kapoor, South Asia Citizens Web (sacw.net)
• Ibrahim Sajid Malick, Technologist, New York
• Dr. Ijaz Khan Professor of International relations University of Peshawar
• Dr. Ilmana Fasih, physician, health activist, blogger Canada
• Iqbal Alavi, social activist
• Irfan Mufti South Asia Partnership Pakistan Lahore, Pakistan
• Kamyla Marvi Citizen Karachi
• Khawar Mumtaz, Shirkat Gah. Pakistan
• Kiran Nazish Journalist, Activist, Lahore
• Karamat Ali, Labour Rights and Peace activist
• Meera Ghani, Environmental and Peace Activist, Belgium
• Mehmal Sarfraz, Journalist, Lahore
• Mehr Alwy Finance Manager UK
• Michael Renner Researcher U.S. / Germany
• Dr. Mohammad Taqi, Physician & Columnist
• Muhammad Idris Khattak Researcher OSI Pakistan
• Mohsin Sayeed Journalist Karachi
• Moniza Inam, journalist, Dawn, Karachi
• N. D. Pancholi, Secretary, Indian Renaissance Institute, Ghaziabad (UP), India
• Nadeem Yousafi Businessman Peshawar, Pakistan.
• Noman Quadri, student
• Noorjehan Bilgrami Artsist Karachi
• Dr. Osama Siddique, Law Professor, Pakistan
• Pervez Hoodbhoy, Physicist
• Dr Pritam Singh DPhil, Reader in Economics, Faculty of Business, Oxford Brookes University, UK
• Qurratulain Zaman Media Consultant, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung
• S. Abbas Raza, Editor, 3QuarksDaily.com
• S. M. Naseem, economist
• Saba Hamid, Actor, Pakistan
• Saba Quraishi, activist, United States
• Sabahat Ashraf (“iFaqeer”) Communcator. Citizen. Fakir. Silicon Valley, California
• Sadiqa Salahuddin, educationist, Indus Resource Centre, Pakistan
• Saleha Haque Student University of Salford, UK
• Sana Saleem Activist, Blogger Karachi
• Sarah Suhail Lawyer
• Sehba Sarwar Writer
• Shahla Haeri, Associate Professor of Anthropology, Boston University
• Shandana Mohmand, Political Scientist, UK
• Shahnawaz Student Karachi
• Shama Noman Educationist
• Shayan Afzal Khan, Citizen and activist, Pakistan
• Shahzad Ahmad Country Coordinator, Bytes for All, Pakistan
• Siddharth Nayak Managing Director , The Jurists ; President : All India Law Students Association New Delhi
• Soulat Pasha director Titan Energy Karachi
• Tahera Ahmad Physician Germany
• Tahir Saeed Senior clinical psychologist Ireland
• Tazeen Project Director, Intermedia
• Waqas Ali CRSD Peshawar
• Yasser Latif Hamdani, Lawyer
• Zeeba T. Hashmi Citizen Lahore
• Zohra Yusuf, human rights activist
• Zulfiqar Shah, The Institute for Social Movements, Pakistan Hyderabad