Archive for the 'People' Category

An Electrifying Address to the Nation by President Pervez Musharraf by Shaheryar Azhar

Published on March 22, 2008 in Pakistan and People. 0 Comments

My Dear Countrymen, Assalaam-o-Alaikum!

Today we - you & I - are, by the grace of Almighty God, making history. For the very first time a sitting government has been voted out and a new government voted in. For the very first time all political parties, but most significantly the losing party, have accepted the results of the elections. For the very first time a peaceful democratic transfer of power took place when I administered the oath to the incoming free and fairly elected government. For the very first time a grand coalition between the two largest political parties, that is, PPP and PMLN has taken place and for that I congratulate Mr. Asif Ali Zardari and Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif. There were other firsts too. Pakistan does not only have the distinction of being the first Muslim country to have elected a woman Prime MInister, Mohtrama Shaheed Benazir Bhutto, in 1988 but now the first Muslim country to have elected a woman Speaker of the house and for that I congratulate Pakistan’s National Assembly and its new Speaker. Continue reading ‘An Electrifying Address to the Nation by President Pervez Musharraf by Shaheryar Azhar’

Dinner With Shaukat Aziz by Nayyer Ali

Published on March 18, 2008 in People. 6 Comments

Last  week I had the pleasure of attending a small dinner with Shaukat Aziz, the former Prime Minister.  In a wide-ranging  two hour conversation, he gave his thoughts and perspectives on a whole host of issues facing the country and offered some insights into the past eight years that I found fascinating.

Aziz, as most readers are  aware, was a prominent figure in Citibank in New York in 1999 when he was asked by Musharraf to be the Finance Minister in the new regime.  The decision to work with a military government was criticized by some, but on the other hand, Aziz had an opportunity to tackle some fundamental problems that plagued Pakistan, and his expertise made him one of few who could do the job.  He accepted and served as Finance Minister for several years, then became Prime Minister in 2004.  Although ultimately Musharraf was in charge, the main domestic and economic policies were designed and implemented by Aziz, and so he was the architect of the reforms that occurred.  He left office in November 2007, and is now on a global  speaking tour, for which he has declined remuneration. Continue reading ‘Dinner With Shaukat Aziz by Nayyer Ali’

Article on Cowasjee: Pakistan columnist doesn’t know the meaning of fear, LA Times

Published on February 15, 2008 in People. 0 Comments

By John M. Glionna

KARACHI, PAKISTAN — Perched in the living room of his sprawling villa, security guards posted outside, Ardeshir Cowasjee is feeling a bit cantankerous about the future of volatile Pakistan.Another leader has been killed. He considers his president a pawn of the United States and accuses him of sponsoring the kidnapping and torture of citizens. Massive vote-rigging in the upcoming parliamentary elections appears certain, he says. Continue reading ‘Article on Cowasjee: Pakistan columnist doesn’t know the meaning of fear, LA Times’

Scotland Yard report into assassination of Benazir Bhutto released

Published on February 8, 2008 in People. 0 Comments

art.blast.gi.jpg

The bomb explodes near Bhutto’s vehicle following a political rally in Rawalpindi.

The conclusions of the inquiry were outlined in a detailed report handed over to interim Interior Minister Hamid Nawaz by Detective Superintendent John MacBrayne, accompanied by a senior official from the British High Commission, during a meeting in Islamabad.

The text of the executive summary of the report is as follows:

On the 27th December 2007, Mohtarma Benazir BHUTTO, the leader of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), died as a result of being attacked in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.

Following discussions between the Prime Minister and President Musharraf, it was agreed that officers from the Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command (SO15) should support the investigation into Ms Bhutto’s death. The primary focus of the Scotland Yard team was to assist the Pakistani authorities in establishing the cause and circumstances of Ms Bhutto’s death. The wider investigation to establish culpability has remained entirely a matter for the Pakistani authorities. Continue reading ‘Scotland Yard report into assassination of Benazir Bhutto released’

The army’s camp-followers by Irfan Husain, The News

Published on February 5, 2008 in People. 0 Comments

IN my column in this space last week, I had expressed my puzzlement over the phenomenon of large numbers of educated, seemingly intelligent Pakistanis supporting military dictatorship over democracy.

Since writing it, I met Shaukat Aziz, our ex-prime minister who is presently living in London. After our conversation, many pieces of the puzzle have fallen into place. As he insisted that the interview was to be off the record, I am professionally bound not to quote him. But I am allowed to say that I have seldom met anybody as complacent and self-satisfied as he is. Continue reading ‘The army’s camp-followers by Irfan Husain, The News’

Honorable Chief Justice of Pakistan Responds to the Allegations

Published on January 30, 2008 in Judiciary and People. 1 Comment

[What a brilliant rejoinder from the Chief Justice! The President really hasn’t been doing himself any favours by maligning the Chief Justice all over the world. This is a very well written letter and, more importantly, the Chief Justice has carried it off with integrity. ]

AN OPEN LETTER TO:

His Excellency
The President of the European Parliament,
Brussels.

His Excellency
The President of France,
Paris.

His Excellency
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom,
London.

Her Excellency
Ms. Condaleeza Rice,
Secretary of State,
United States of America,
Washington D.C.

Professor Klaus Schwab,
World Economic Forum,
Geneva.

All through their respective Ambassodors, High Commissioners and representatives.

Excellency,

I am the Chief Justice of Pakistan presently detained in my residence since November 3, 2007 pursuant to some verbal, and unspecified, order passed by General Musharraf.

I have found it necessary to write to you, and others, because during his recent visits to Brussels, Paris, Davos and London General Musharraf has slandered me, and my colleagues, with impunity in press conferences and other addresses and meetings. Continue reading ‘Honorable Chief Justice of Pakistan Responds to the Allegations’

Benazir: no hidden stooge of the government

Published on January 9, 2008 in People and Politics. 0 Comments

Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Amber Darr

On Dec 27, Benazir Bhutto was brutally and tragically murdered. Her death is a national loss, not because of what she may have delivered as a politician but for what she represented. Her image was that of a highly educated and sufficiently westernised and liberal leader who had the potential to free Pakistan from the yoke of military rule and lead it into democracy. Her image was also that of an eastern woman who despite her fragility had the courage to stand up to military dictators and despite her strength had the gentleness to nurture a family. For a country that is fast becoming synonymous with gun-wielding terrorists, her image was important. Continue reading ‘Benazir: no hidden stooge of the government’

Bhutto Assassination by Gwynne Dyer

Published on January 2, 2008 in People and Politics. 1 Comment

Benazir Bhutto did five years of hard time in prison, much of it in solitary confinement, after her father, Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was overthrown and hanged by the worst of Pakistan’s military dictators, General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq. But she was a woman who liked her privileges and her luxuries, and she was never a very effective politician.

I got to know Benazir Bhutto a bit in the mid-1970s, when she had finished her degree at Harvard and was doing graduate work at Oxford University. She actually spent much of her time in London, in a grand flat she kept just off Hyde Park.

If you knew a lot of people in town who took an interest in Middle Eastern and subcontinental affairs (I had been studying at the School of Oriental and African Studies), and you weren’t too old or too boring, you were likely to end up at her flat once in a while, at what some would call a salon but I would call a party.

A fairly decorous party as those things went in 70s London, to be sure, with everybody showing off their sophisticated knowledge of the region’s politics and nobody getting out of hand, but definitely a party. The hostess was well informed and quite clever, and she obviously had money coming out of her ears. We knew her dad had been prime minister of Pakistan before Zia overthrew him, of course, but she was neither a serious scholar nor a budding politician. Continue reading ‘Bhutto Assassination by Gwynne Dyer’

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari: From freshers’ week to the political front line

Published on January 1, 2008 in People. 11 Comments

Here’s an article on Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and what is visible about him from his facebook profile.

Rachel Williams
Tuesday January 1, 2008
The Guardian

To his friends at Oxford in the autumn, he was Bilawal Lawalib, just another ordinary teenage student enjoying the social whirl of his first term at the university. To the rest of the world he is the shy-looking 19-year-old contending with a future as the head of Pakistan’s greatest political dynasty. Continue reading ‘Bilawal Bhutto Zardari: From freshers’ week to the political front line’

My heart bleeds for Pakistan. It deserves better than this grotesque feudal charade by Tariq Ali, The Independent

Published on December 31, 2007 in People and Politics. 3 Comments

Six hours before she was executed, Mary, Queen of Scots wrote to her brother-in-law, Henry III of France: “…As for my son, I commend him to you in so far as he deserves, for I cannot answer for him.” The year was 1587.

On 30 December 2007, a conclave of feudal potentates gathered in the home of the slain Benazir Bhutto to hear her last will and testament being read out and its contents subsequently announced to the world media. Where Mary was tentative, her modern-day equivalent left no room for doubt. She could certainly answer for her son. Continue reading ‘My heart bleeds for Pakistan. It deserves better than this grotesque feudal charade by Tariq Ali, The Independent’

« Older Entries