Sunday 29 May 2016

Current Affairs

What is at the Stake?


“History repeats itself,” is as true as to say that we need oxygen to breathe, and the world has experienced many repetitions of history in broad daylight. Karl Marx as he says, “history is written on the back of the people is as much right as the saying, “The sun rises in the East”.  The present situation of the country is much worse than is stipulated or anticipated by the “leaders” of this war and corruption torn country. A curry of chaos is boiling within the pits of the provincialism and nationalism, the cap is loose but yet intact. This may be considered as dead silence before a tornado. Limits of the exploitation to both the vertical and horizontal planes has long been reached, and the exploited classes are waiting for an outburst. The minority classes are being suppressed, the minority provinces are being neglected, the remote areas, FATA, is being made the playground for the Vested Interests.  Class Polarization is being aired in a systematic manner. It today is a “do or die” or more specifically, “now or never” condition for the country sought for practicing the fundamental principles of Islam freely, of which class equality is the one.
Some stakeholders have also hinted of a “new social contract”. The idea is not novel neither is the term used for the first time in the history of the infant country, it has long been used in the country and its history can be traced back to the creation of the country. How was the East Pakistan deprived of its basic rights, how the Bengali population was exploited by Vested Interests, how the trade was monopolized by 20 families of West, how the biggest contributors to the country’s economy and foreign reserves were bypassed by the ‘powerful’ Big Business. The result was devastating; people gathered under the flag hoisted by secessionists and separationists, and raised their voice for a separate sovereign country, Bangladesh. The people and the “stakeholders” of West Wing are as much responsible for the dismemberment of country, as was sheikh Mujib and his “extremist” followers. What did they demand? They demanded an actual representation of their people in the country, they demanded their money to be spent on them, and these rightful demands when denied gave birth to the famous “Six Point” formula. The Mujib was declared a secessionist and a traitor, but why the real stakeholders of the Western Wing weren’t treated the same way. It was so because, they were powerful, and have enslaved the people of the East as well as of the West.
The same thing is happening again, since the creation of Pakistan, Baluchistan is deprived in the similar manner as was Eastern Wing, FATA is similarly made the target of Vested Interests, Sind and KP are still demanding their rightful representation and acknowledgement in the national mainstream. Four provinces collectively make a Pakistan, not a single province can be called Pakistan. This discrimination if continued in the same way, will burst and create a chaos resulting in the Bengal type civil war in the country, and will be greatly appreciated and funded by the International Players for their own interests. However, if someone says, situation in “what is remained of Pakistan” is not as worse as it was in the East Pakistan in 70’s. A simple reply to this philosophical argument is that, it is “calm before the cyclone”. We are on the brink of an endless dark tunnel of destruction, we are ready to fall in it, but something more powerful is holding us. As the ordinary, down trodden people of the country say, “It may be the hand of God, by the help of whom the country is still intact.”
Personal egoism of the Vested Interests has developed another school of thought in the country, the thought that constitution must be abrogated and a new constitution needs to be drafted. The constitution of 1973, if, as being anticipated, abrogated will lead to two consequences, as Z.A. Bhutto said:
a)      It would mean falling back on Indian Independence Act 1947 passed by British Parliament.
b)      It would also mean that quantum of autonomy voluntarily surrendered to the Federation by the Provinces would revert back to the Provinces in preference to restoration of Indian Independence Act of 1947.
It is obvious from the above interpretation, “the abolition of the federation of Pakistan,” and consequently the provinces will surely demand for a loose federation, a confederation or a complete autonomy. This is what, that will occur if the graveness of the situation is not assessed and remedies are not made today. Everyone needs to step back and let the physician heal his own wounds; Constitution itself is capable of taking the preventive and remedial measures according to the needs of the state and the people of the country. If the remedies are not made today and the horse is let galloping, it will run to the brink of destruction, separationists in the minority provinces and FATA have their spectators’ seats reserved, only they have to do is to lure him to fall in the endless pit of destruction, and we will once again become the victims of “Vested Interests”.
It’d be worth mentioning to share that, the results of the 2008 general elections were a clear indication of the resentment of the people for the state and the system imposed by the Dictatorship. In KP the sweeping victory of the national party showed frustration of the people against the prevailing system. The people were suppressed to such an extent that they wanted their own voice to be heard, provincial autonomy. They wanted their own representatives to govern them, so they voted for the slogan of provincial autonomy, elimination of exploitation and suppression. In Sindh the Peoples Party swept the elections because the people were sick of the government imposed on them by coterie. They wanted to breathe in the free air. In Baluchistan, if the nationalists hadn’t boycotted the elections, and the elections weren’t manipulated to someone else’s favor they’d surely have swept the polls. After the restoration of democracy; real representation of the people in the government settled the issues to a large extent, the tension was relieved. In elections of 2013 the free, unexploited people of Pakistan voted for the change. This was a clear indication for the people trust on democratic process and the democracy. They now know that their problems can only be solved by the true democratic government elected by their own votes.

The need of the moment is to assess the serious threats to the federation of Pakistan, both internal and external. If the suppression is not eliminated, and exploitation continued, there will be no second chance left. This can easily be done by the democratically elected government, to take all the stakeholders on board for the formulation of National Foreign Policy and strategy to cope with internal threats to the unity of the federation by national consensus. The use of force may create desired results for a while, but it also creates a lot of vacuum, which if not filled by the people centric policies can cause huge damage. By force you can win the piece of a land, but for winning the hearts you need to make revolutionary steps for making the lives of public better. For winning hearts of people you need to introduce them to the national mainstream, you need to give them opportunity to play their part, you need to give them the chance to place their problems on the table. Or the results of the use of force may not be more different than those in our neighboring Afghanistan. It is the last chance for all our national leaders to sit on one table and resolve the issues once and forever, and be amongst the makers of the history.

Friday 29 April 2016

Life's Beautiful


Clouds are looming over my head all around, carried away...moving back and forth...changing their directions inconsistently, due to the abrupt surges of merciless cold wind. Nature strikes with lightning and thunder, with all her might to frighten the humanity of her powers. It's going to rain, let's take cover. It is going to be a dark cold night. There are people who are praying, as the perceive a sense of nature's brutal hand striking to erase the population because of the sins and ill practices they are soaked in. 
Others are happily enjoying the beautiful colors of the atmosphere they are suspended in, they see positive in every situation of life, irrespective of how harsh and not easy to withstand they are. 
There are people who take it as a chance to relate it to the thunderstorms, hurricanes, tsunamis of grief blowing all within their bosom, they are the poets, the writers, the most tormented trait of people residing within the same sphere of life.
After a few couple of hours, sky is now clear, full of beautiful twinkling stars. The strong wind has now turned into a gentle, soothing breeze. Fragrance of the wet soil touches the nostrils and travels through the nerves and the adrenaline starts pumping. It's gonna be an awesome night. 
Morning breeze blows, birds are out of their havens for the search of food for themselves and their little helpless offspring. The same is the matter with the mightiest creature of the world -- the one who claims to be master of the planet -- and rightfully is. There is a hustle and bustle in the offices, in the market places, people are busy in running their errands, some are making for their living, and some are enjoying the beautiful colors of life. Some complain about the unjust distribution of powers and wealth to the mankind, just because they have not got a good sum. Others have taken it for granted and think that it was what they deserved. Some are kind, others are terribly bad.
There live the people in the most privileged parts of global sphere, The Powerful North, they enjoy the best facilities, good healthcare, fast conveyance, high standards of living, safe food and water, immune of the calamities. They can talk freely, express what they wish. They consider earth a paradise to live on.
On the other hemisphere of the same globe, the mankind is pressed under the load of poverty, illness, terrorism, injustice, poor law and order, food scarcity, water shortage. They have got no right to express their freedom of expression and will, and they are comfortable with it. They just want peace. They have got no hope to wish for the magnetic trains, huge ships, flying jets. They even don't go skiing and hiking for fun. They are the filth of the earth.
Good and bad, it coexists --- and it is what that makes it opposite, if one is gone the opposite will automatically seize to exist.

Tuesday 19 April 2016

An Ultimate Remedy

I've got domestic problems, financial problems, I am unable to perform at my college, I am depressed, sleepless. I have to take a decision but I am not sure about it. I have got a multitude of things happening around me, some good, and many of them are those I don't like.
Life's Mechanical, a cycle inside the other, complex, eroding with time, breaking down at one instant and the other. It's erratic, sometimes the errors are negligible, breaking your backbone when repeated. 
Everyone wants to lead a happy life, avoiding the wretches, but the happiness itself takes its toll. It comes at a very big price, which most of us are not in position to pay all the time. There are the moments we have to compromise, with the sad realities of living, even the billionaires. You have to look happy even if you have your heart bleeding deep inside. You have to maintain a fake smile even if your spirit is dying, believe me, it's the worst that man ever comes up to.
Silence, meditation, self abandoning, this is what that cures all the diseases and discomforts, either physical or spiritual, without costing anything, even a smile, a word of kindness, an act of sympathy. It gives you a chance to talk to your own soul., a long unending chat, an uninterrupted talk with your spirit. I don't need to be fake with my own heart, i don't need to be shy of my own self. Soul - I can discuss each and every matter with her, ranging from small daily life things to the deep and complex philosophical subjects of life. I can talk with her irrespective of what she might think of me, a loser, a retard. She asks me to do something, i don't have to be aware of her intentions. I don't have to blame anyone, if her scheme fails to deliver. She brings me close to the nature, closer to where i belong, to where i have to go at the end. She gives me strength to fight the brutalities of the world. She allows me to think and rethink and think again, about my own self, my own beliefs, about the falsehood of the materialistic designs of the world....She takes me to the beautiful world of imagination,
She's awesome in her entirety.
Silence is the ultimate cure.
Meditation is the ultimate remedy.

Friday 15 April 2016

Life worth living

It's a hot summer day, a child with a heavy bag, filled with books and notebooks is returning home after a long arduous school day. He is talking to himself about what he should have said to his teacher in response to her queries about the fight he had with his class-fellow, what will he do when he gets home, what excuse will he make for his broken pencil. A person appears from behind him and the child thinks about him to have heard all what he was saying that makes him feel guilty. 
A child sitting in a classroom with his friends and foes all around. The books and the writing materials scattered all around, the sounds of the large wooden stick ticking on the teacher's desk after regular intervals followed by loud authoritative voice coming from behind the "huge" spectacles. The early morning calls for waking up and doing the breakfast, preparing for the school. The homework, ink spread all around, the pens, pencils, rulers.....complete mess. I can recall all those things so accurately that if it were yesterday when they happened. 
Sixteen years have passed and i am still standing on the same place from where i started my journey. Goal-less, without having any directions, no idea of what i have or will be doing next. The same mechanical movement, under the pressure of time and circumstances which i have long withstood. I still wonder if miracles do happen, if the stories of the people who started with meager amount of capital or resources and became billionaires in the coming few years to be correct to their essence, if the saying, "time changes it all" befits all that inhabit the planet earth, if the famous "Aladdin Lamp" still exists or not, if the every person's life has a unique cycle of events which one can't escape, if it's possible for a man to transcend the physical space of being. All these things comes into my mind at once and then vanish at all. A single whistle of joy erases all the miseries, pain and the sufferings of my body and the spirit. A lonely blinking star lights up the heavens of my life. A little spark calms my freezing mind and the shivering soul. Is this what, that happens to all of us, or is just a special case, i am thinking.
I can write, on and on, paragraphs, pages, books. Of what use are my words, kills the story teller.  

Taher Shah (angel) appears and says, "It is Life."