Mumtaz Qadri’s teachers: Of mousetraps, and mouse disposal
The problem with mousetraps is, one needs to pre-plan efficient mouse disposal.Less than two weeks after Mumtaz Qadri murdered Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer, the two clerics Qadri said had ‘inspired’ him with their sermons, strolled out of the Rawalpindi Anti Terrorism Court on bail. Since their names hadn’t been mentioned in the Taseer FIR, the lawyer argued, there was no justification for debarring Mufti Hanif Qureshi and Qari Ishtiaq Shah from their… err, day jobs. This time, however, the laws are not at fault. With the Anti Terrorism Act, lawmakers erred on the side of paranoia, rather than just caution. Terrorism, ...
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We do not deserve Shahbaz Bhatti
Minister for minority affairs Shahbaz Bhatti has been brutally gunned down today – joining the list of many to have been killed.Voices of sanity do not do well here in Pakistan. Just when you start thinking things will be okay, that now the maniacs have safely put away Aasia Bibi and they’ve killed Salmaan Taseer so maybe that’s enough to make their point – you are jolted into the reality that is Pakistan. You understand completely and fully, even if you did not that morning when reading the opinions page of The Express Tribune, why George Fulton is leaving. Today’s breaking news ...
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After Taseer: The birth of a liberal movement
After Salmaan Taseer’s assassination, a clear line of distinction was drawn between the liberals and conservatives of Pakistan. This assassination will change the course of Pakistan’s history, and this is not an exaggeration. The outspoken Governor had flaws, but hypocrisy was not one of them. He made a promise to the minorities of Pakistan and fought for it till his last breath. Whether his demand was legitimate according to the constitution of Pakistan or the Islamic law is beyond the scope of this article. Taseer has become a symbol for the liberals and Mumtaz Qadri for the rightists. The rightists ...
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A strange fate has befallen us
Don’t ask me how hard writing has become nowadays as one calamity or the other hits us on a daily basis. Every day there is some accident, every day some tragedy. There was many a calamity one lived through, said Meer, but then one fell in love and discovered that nothing had prepared one for it. The tragedy that visited us Tuesday has stunned not just me but a whole people. The whole country, one might say, has been shaken. Salmaan Taseer has left the world in so unusual a manner. Is this, I ask you, the way to go? I ...
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Salmaan Taseer: An act to be remembered
The first time I was truly scarred was when screenwriters killed off Bambi’s mother in the 1942 Disney animated movie. It was a potent lesson for a child and one that has continued to manifest from the beginning of time throughout history and society. A bitter testimony to what becomes of nobility in our world – remember, it was the hunter that shot Bambi’s mother as she tried to protect her child. The late Salmaan Taseer is not Bambi’s mother and perhaps he is no deer either, but he gave his life for something and one must pay tribute ...
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In the commune: In memory of Salmaan Taseer
Governor Punjab Salmaan Taseer was assasinated by his own guard, a member of the Elite Force, on January 4, 2011 in Islamabad. The assassin, Malik Mumtaz Qadri surrendered himself after shooting the governor with 26 bullets. Qadri said that he killed Taseer because the PPP leader had termed the blasphemy law a kaala kanoon (black law) and supported Aasia Bibi, a Christian woman sentenced to death under the law. The Express Tribune was inundated with a flood of outrage and grief from bloggers and readers. D Asghar Welcome to ‘Pakillistan,’ where we kill indiscriminately, anywhere, any place, any time, any way, when it comes to ...
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Should Taseer’s death be in vain?
I would be lying if I said I’m shocked by Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer’s assassination. Ever since he announced support for Aasia Bibi, a Christian woman sentenced to death over blasphemy allegations, religious zealots had been calling for his head, on the streets, on Facebook groups and in fiery Friday sermons. Of course, no one took that seriously. His own political party deserted him when Prime Minister Gilani, shamelessly playing to the religious right to save the coalition government and his seat, vehemently claimed he would never even think of amending the blasphemy laws. One would expect the prime minister ...
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The noble intentions of Salmaan Taseer
When people pass on, you are suddenly bombarded with memories. Both significant and insignificant, random phrases from different conversations and events flood in. With Salmaan Taseer, the only thing that flashes to my mind is his gallant, challenging smile.The smile that conveyed what his personality was all about – the lack of fear, the conviction in his own opinions, the zeal to do and say what he believed was correct and above all the refusal to back down under threats or pressure. The governor was one of the very few educated politicians who led and lived by his own set of rules. ...
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Understanding how Benazir was immortalised
On the evening of December 27, 2007, we edged along the crowded Shahrah-e-Faisal road in Karachi. A cold winter breeze drifted in from a car window that had been left open for ventilation. Air-conditioners were a redundant luxury now that the temperature had plummeted to a cold extreme. And yet, there was a strong undercurrent of political friction that constantly reminded us that we were living through an era of sweeping changes. There was a flood-tide of expectations from the forthcoming elections. Optimism was virtually a non-entity as suspicion governed thought-processes. Many judicious observers had gone to the extent of stating ...
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The (wrong) path to democracy
The recent statement by Talal Bugti about setting a bounty of Rs1 billion for former president Pervez Musharraf is pathetic, deplorable and highly immature, to say the least. In the same statement, the leader of the Jamhoori Watan Party indicated that Brigadier (R) Masood Malik would act as an approver against Musharraf for the genocide and abduction of innocent people in Pakistan. The statement comes from the sardar of a tribe and demonstrates the typical depth of a tribal leader. There is no denying that the Bugtis have valid grievances against the former president, but asking a person to behead him ...
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