Happy New Year

Happy New Year.
May 2007 bring peace and happiness to all.

"Not so happy Christmas"

Christmas was a big part of growing up in Karachi for me. I went to a Catholic school, which was located in Saddar, home to many of Karachi's Christians. It was perfectly normal to me to be planning and practicing for the year-end Christmas Concert in school (the biggest event of the school year), to be surrounded by Christmas decorations and signs for Christmas sales as I strolled through Bohri Bazar after school let out (or not - sometimes you just have to have that chat and if it means bunking a class or two, so be it). It was perfectly normal to me to have Christian students in my classes. Interestingly, all of them were Goan Christians, who are much more anglicized and more affluent than the other major group of Christians who are usually Punjabi. I'm sure this accounts for some of the hardships that Punjabi Christians report, such as the story I read recently in DAWN. But it can't explain everything, and the fact is that Pakistani Christians are severely discriminated against, in social, cultural, legal, and economic terms.

In "Not so happy Christmas for some," DAWN reporter Sheher Bano Khan tells the story of Bashiran and Shafeeq Masih, who live in Model Colony with their five children. Model Colony is close to Defense, Karachi's most elite neighborhood. Many of the domestic staff that are employed by Defense-walas live in Model Colony, including many Punjabi Christians who are typically employed as sweepers/house cleaners.

"There's no joy for us this Christmas. We don't feel safe," bemoans Bashiran whose husband has gone missing for two days now... Her husband who worked at a nearby factory on a daily-wage basis was somehow falsely accused of theft by a resident of Defense whose house was looted a few days ago by a gang of five. "Whenever there's theft in this area, we Christians are the first to be taken to the police station for interrogation. I don't understand why Shafeeq's name was taken. On December 20, he came home and said that he had a fight with a man and the next thing he knows, he's accused of theft by the same man. Shafeeq hasn't come home since then," says Bashiran.

When asked if she has sought the help of the police, she says:

"Police? Oh no! I think it's best for Shafeeq to stay wherever he is till everything dies down. I'm not going to the police because they don't take Christians seriously."

Bashiran helps paint the picture of Christian life in Pakistan today.

"You want to know how we spend Christmas? How can a family of seven living off Rs4,000 celebrate Christmas? And now with Shafeeq gone, there's no Christmas for us," says a shaken Bashiran Masih.

"Just look at this area. Do you think it's fit for humans? To get one bucket of water my two daughters have to queue for two hours. The sewerage system is so bad that whenever it rains the entire colony gets flooded. You know it doesn't matter because who's living here? Christians and they don't matter!"

A bit further down Shafeeq Masih�s house Bajwa Chowk is festooned with decorative Christmas trappings. Brightly coloured clothes attiring overtly made up faces of shoppers devoted to last minute Christmas buy show no signs of feeling run down by the ramshackled Model Colony. "They are used to this life, but I'm not going to let my daughters be raised in this colony feeling little more than the grime I scrub daily off those huge houses. My eldest daughter worked at a factory for some time. She stopped going because the manager thought it was easier and less risky to make a pass at a Christian girl than a Muslim. Each time she steps out of the house I fear for my 18-year-old. I know there's no one to turn to, no protection and no justice. At least not for us."

There is hope that Shafeeq Masih might come home one day; hope that prior to elections [scheduled for next December] the Model Colony might have a better sewerage system and her daughters might have access to clean drinking water. But should Bashiran expect social integration for her daughters? "You know the term they use for us in this society. It's at Christmas time when we feel most left out. The few Muslims living in this area don't even wish to eat the things sent to them on Christmas by us. Tell me, is that the way to make us feel part of society? We live in ghettoes and work as cleaners. Christmas is just another day which makes me feel that I'm not a part of," Bashiran nods her head in the direction of her door, "that world."

That world is getting worse and worse, for more and more of us. A few days ago, a minister in the Pakistani government hinted that there might be "good news" for Pakistani Christians on Christmas day, but it's unclear what he meant. Perhaps there will be some cosmetic changes to the blasphemy laws, laws which are absurd, draconian, and used only to target religious minorities. But frankly, even cosmetic changes would be welcome at this juncture.

Happy Christmas to all Pakistani Christians, with the hope for a better future soon.

Update: PM Shaukat Aziz attended Christmas Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral on Monday. I believe this makes him the first Pakistani PM to attend Christmas Mass.

Ali Khurshid: TIME Person of the Year

This year, TIME magazine named "YOU" as their person of the year - meaning all of us who are active participants in the internet revolution (especially the social networking sector, such as blogging, etc.). One of the people they profiled is Ali Khurshid, a resident of Karachi. Ali is a photographer who shares his pictures on Flickr.

Personally, I find TIME's pick sort of lame. It almost sounds like they ran out of ideas and decided to go with "this internet thing." Anyway, the upside is that a Karachiite got featured in their most-read issue. Ali's pictures are mostly of the beach - not surprising since that is probably the most beloved site for most Karachiites (it's definitely my favorite part of Karachi). You can check out more of Ali's beautiful pictures here.

Ajay Devgan in Karachi

Ajay Devgan arrives in Karachi to attend the KaraFilm Festival.

Who's Doing Whom in the US

According to the 2007 Statistical Abstract of the United States, 6% of men and 11.2% of women report "same-sex sexual contact." Apparently, this is the first year they have reported this statistic. I don't know if this includes sexual contact between partners or picking up people in a bar or the night that Mrs. Smith in the suburbs got drunk and made out with her neighbor (or was that a porn film?). But I am intrigued that the women report double the contact as men. Wonder why?

Guantanamo Bay Detainees: Where Are They Now?

The AP has released the results of an investigation into the fates of those detainees who have been released from Guantanamo Bay (approximately 350 still remain there). Incidentally, the plurality of detainees at Guantanamo Bay were and continue to be Pakistanis.

According to the AP, the vast majority of released detainees are now free:

• Once the detainees arrived in other countries, 205 of the 245 were either freed without being charged or were cleared of charges related to their detention at Guantanamo. Forty either stand charged with crimes or continue to be detained.
• Only a tiny fraction of transferred detainees have been put on trial. The AP identified 14 trials, in which eight men were acquitted and six are awaiting verdicts. Two of the cases involving acquittals — one in Kuwait, one in Spain — initially resulted in convictions that were overturned on appeal.
• The Afghan government has freed every one of the more than 83 Afghans sent home. Lawmaker Sibghatullah Mujaddedi, the head of Afghanistan's reconciliation commission, said many were innocent and wound up at Guantanamo because of tribal or personal rivalries.
• At least 67 of 70 repatriated Pakistanis are free after spending a year in Adiala Jail. A senior Pakistani Interior Ministry official said investigators determined that most had been "sold" for bounties to U.S. forces by Afghan warlords who invented links between the men and al-Qaida. "We consider them innocent," said the official, who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue.
• All 29 detainees who were repatriated to Britain, Spain, Germany, Russia, Australia, Turkey, Denmark, Bahrain and the Maldives were freed, some within hours after being sent home for "continued detention."

Tear down the prison at Guantanamo Bay. Either try them or let them go.

Janda Khel Vs. Landi Kotal

Imagine you were living in a part of Afghanistan close to the Pakistan border and the Khyber Agency in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (what a truly awful name). Imagine that you were trying your hardest to avoid being blown up by US bombs and being shot at by Pakistani soldiers. And imagine that your electricity supply was erratic and insufficient to meet local demand. What would you do? Well, this is the situation that the residents of Janda Khel were faced with, and they decided to take matters into their own hands. The Janda Khelians disrupted the electricity supply to Landi Kotal by damaging a major transmission line. Problem is, this also disrupts the electricity supply to Janda Khel, because the transmission lines run through Landi Kotal. So Janda Khel has disrupted its own power supply as well. Of course, Landi Kotal residents in turn are demanding that TESCO (Tribal Electricity Supply Company - did you know such a thing existed?) turn their power back on and deny Janda Khel any power at all. Such love, huh?

In Karachi, people sometimes joke that Pathans operate on their own unique and inscrutable brand of logic. This behavior is sometimes (ok, often) the butt of jokes. But really, if you think about it, the people of Janda Khel has responded quite rationally. Since they're not getting electricity anyway, they may as well make their point by engaging in protest that makes the haves realize what it's like to be the have-nots.

And what of the fact that Janda Khel is technically in Afghanistan? Well, I say that they've been through enough and surely we can give them a little juice. It's not as if that border is very meaningful anyway. The Pakistan-Afghanistan border is non-porous only in the fantasies of George W. Bush.

Landi Kotal, by the way, is the highest point on the Khyber Pass and is a tourist destination. These photos give you a sense of the ruggedness of the region.

Dictators and Those Who Enable Them

The Washington Post is an awful newspaper. I tend to read it occasionally, being my local paper - and every time I read it, I am reminded why it sucks. In today's edition, the editorial reflecting Pinochet's legacy claims the following:

It's hard not to notice, however, that the evil dictator leaves behind the most successful country in Latin America.

This is after the editorial has already admitted that Pinochet was a dictator who took power by force and murdered about 3000 people and tortured thousands more. The editorial goes on to favorably compare Pinochet with Castro; you see, Castro will leave behind an impoverished country while at least Pinochet did something for economic growth! Who cares if it benefits only the corporate class? Who wants to think about the fundamental role the US has played in the impoverishment of Cuba?

And if all this isn't enough, the editorial closes with quoting the-also-recently-deceased Jeanne frickin' Kirkpatrick!

In "Dictatorships and Double Standards," a work that caught the eye of President Ronald Reagan, Ms. Kirkpatrick argued that right-wing dictators such as Mr. Pinochet were ultimately less malign than communist rulers, in part because their regimes were more likely to pave the way for liberal democracies. She, too, was vilified by the left. Yet by now it should be obvious: She was right.

I know one isn't supposed to speak ill of the dead, but Jeanne Kirkpatrick probably caused more death and destruction than Pinochet could have ever dreamed of. Now that's some legacy.

Damn We Love Our Porn

A few months ago it was revealed that Pakistan had the highest number of internet users who were searching for online pornography. (Saudi Arabia was the source for the highest number of searches for gay online porn.) Now comes news that Kelantan province in Malaysia is the source of searches for internet porn. Kelantan is governed by a fundamentalist party that has imposed its version of Shariah and has enforced strict gender segregation. But the good news is that the party is considering the reopening of cinemas. How enlightened.

Alec Baldwin: Defeat Terrorism? Abolish the CIA

Alec Baldwin (yes, Alec Baldwin) has a surprisingly elegant answer to the problem of "terrorism": abolish the CIA.

Hamare Chhote Hindustani Bhai...

New research suggests that Indian men have smaller penises than average. The Indian Council of Medical Research's findings suggest that 60% of men in Indian metros are about an inch shorter than the international average, and another 30% are about two inches shorter. The immediate concern of the study is that condoms in India needs to be resized to reduce the failure rate. This is serious stuff. But it's ok if you chuckled when you read the news. And no wonder I managed to "convert" so many Indian women... ;)

This Is What A Headache Looks Like

A traffic jam on I.I. Chundrigar Road in Karachi on Tuesday, December 5, 2006, apparently prompted by a VIP visit to the city (hint: he wears a uniform). (Courtesy: The Daily Times.)

"Kolachi Dreams"

Kolachi Dreams. I kid you not. That is the name of a new book launched yesterday in Karachi. The book is written by Nadya A.R. At the launch was none other than Shobha De:

According to the Daily Times, the book's plot centers on a young man who becomes a terrorist after his sister is raped and murdered by the landlord of their village. He comes to Karachi and becomes enmeshed in the criminal underworld. Now, I haven't read the book, so I can't be sure about this. But I wonder if the author isn't doing us a disservice. I mean, I think if she had really tried, she could have packed in even more cliches into the novel. Maybe she could have added Osama as a fringe character; a Daniel Pearl-type could have made an appearance. And I'm only scratching the surface here...

Anyway, with a plot like that, it makes perfect sense that Shobha De was at the launch. When asked what she thought of Karachi, she said:

"It seems to me that Mumbai and Karachi are twin cities in terms of people, culture and environment! I wish we lived in a borderless world."

Welcome to the club, Shobha-ji.