The February 12 pledge, terrorism, and the Malala connection

Posted on February 12, 2014 by beenasarwar
Lahore, Feb 12, 1983: Police lathi charge demonstrators. Photo: Rahat Ali Dar

Lahore, Feb 12, 1983: Police lathi charge demonstrators. Photo: Rahat Ali Dar

The News published a slightly toned down version of my article, The Feb 12 pledge. Un-edited text below, followed by a postscript linking this struggle to Malala. More photos at this link.

Renewing the Feb 12 pledge

By Beena Sarwar

Every February 12 we commemorate Pakistan Women’s Day in honour of those who gathered at Lahore’s Regal Chowk on that day in 1983, defying the military order against public gatherings, to protest Gen. Zia’s ‘Law of Evidence’ that upheld the testimony of a male as equal to that of two females in a court of law. The police attacked the demonstrators with batons and arrested several, including the venerated poet Habib Jalib whom Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif is fond of quoting. Continue reading →

Filed under: 'War on terror', Gender | Tagged: , , , , , | 3 Comments »

Those demanding ‘Sharia’ in Pakistan, FYIP

Posted on February 10, 2014 by beenasarwar

Why I do not want Shariah in Pakistan

The Pakistan government is trying to hold talks with the Taliban, who should really be referred to as Fasadis*. There are no women in the government committee, and of course none on the Taliban side. One of the Taliban negotiators pulled out, refusing to participate until the agenda includes the imposition of Sharia law. Here’s a note posted by The Traitors of Pakistan and  Pakistan Votes  on Facebook, ’10 reasons why I do not want Shariah in Pakistan’. I have an additional question to the reasons they listed: 11. Whose Sharia? Each religious sect has its own version. Many of us reject the one propagated by the Fasadis and the Saudi-patronised Takfiris**. Here’s the note, for your information please, as desis say:

Continue reading →

Filed under: Human rights | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

Martyrs and Fasadis. Rest in peace, brave Aitzaz Hasan and Ch. Aslam Khan

Posted on January 10, 2014 by beenasarwar

Screen shot 2014-01-09 at 2.33.58 PMScreen shot 2014-01-09 at 2.37.05 PM TTP: We did it.
JI/PTI: No.
TTP: Yes.
JI/PTI: No. Look, drone!
TTP: Where?
JI/PTI: Who cares? It made you do it.
TTP: It did? Hmmm.
– tweet by @NadeemfParacha

Rest in peace, brave Aitzaz Hasan, schoolboy who sacrificed his life saving his schoolmates from a suicide bomber. Rest in peace, SSP Ch. Aslam Khan, targeted and killed by the coward Fasadis (please let’s not call them ‘jihadis’ or ‘mujahideen’, holy warriors which confers a degree of legitimacy on them). Rest in peace all those innocent souls murdered in cold blood by coward Taliban Fasadis and their ilk. Shame on Jamat-e-Islami and all those who term these criminal Fasadis as ‘mujahideen’ and ‘shaheed’. They’ve made it very clear which side of the fence they’re on.

Filed under: Pakistan | Tagged: , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Devise a long-term strategy for dealing with terrorism: Forum for Secular Pakistan

Posted on September 24, 2013 by beenasarwar

Peshawar-blast-78-Church-killing-suicide_9-22-2013_119340_lRead Omar Ali’s blogpost Three Layers of Confusion.. and their consequences” for a sound analysis of the vicious suicide bombing in Pakistan on Sunday targetting a church in Peshawar, killing at least 81 people, many of them women and children. Among them were six members of one family, including five women and a child.  As Dr Ali points out, “it is not that no action has been taken against them. ..but there is a curious disconnect between these operations and the national narrative being promoted by the same military”.  BELOW: a statement by the Forum for Secular Pakistan urging the government to Devise a long-term strategy for dealing with terrorism

Continue reading →

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Pakistan Elections: Democracy, Dichotomies, and Shades of Grey

Posted on May 17, 2013 by beenasarwar

Here’s the piece I wrote for the Economic and Political Weekly, India, published on the web today, copied below with minor changes, photos and added links.

Lahore, Dec 9, 2007: (L-R): Nawaz Sharif. Qazi Hussain Ahmad and Imran Khan meet to discuss whether to boycott January 8, 2008 polls. "Boycott, and then what?" asked Benazir Bhutto who convinced Sharif to participate in the polls. The rest is history. Photo: Arif Ali/AFP/Getty Images

Lahore, Dec 9, 2007: (L-R): Nawaz Sharif. Qazi Hussain Ahmad and Imran Khan meet to discuss whether to boycott January 8, 2008 polls. “Boycott, and then what?” asked Benazir Bhutto who convinced Sharif to participate in the polls. The rest is history. Photo: Arif Ali/AFP/Getty Images

The recent elections in Pakistan show that the country is finally on the right track notwithstanding the rigging, the violence and the brutal prevention of women from voting in some areas by representatives of all the political parties. The huge turnout of women and first time young voters risking their lives to exercise their right to choose is something to celebrate and strengthen Continue reading →

Filed under: Politics | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Campaign against VDay but not against LeJ

Posted on February 17, 2013 by beenasarwar
After the blast: Children's shoes and a doll on the blood-splattered road at Kirani Road, Quetta

After the blast: Children’s shoes and a doll on the blood-splattered road at Kirani Road, Quetta

The latest bomb blast in Quetta, again targeting Hazara Shia Muslims – over 800 kg of explosives packed in a water tanker – has killed over 70 people so far including women and children. The casualties have been mounting, with over 150 injured. The Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) has again claimed responsibility, barely a month after the blast at Alamdar Road that claimed over 118 lives, including that of our activist friend Irfan Ali, and the unprecedented ‘coffin protest‘ that led to Governor’s Rule in Balochistan.

Let's campaign against love, let hate flourish

Let’s campaign against love, let hate flourish

The hyper nationalist defenders of Pakistan’s ‘ideology’ can campaign against Valentines Day. Even Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority, PEMRA, falls in line, dutifully issuing a letter warning TV channels not to promote Valentine’s Day, as it may “injure” the “morality” of our youth (reproduced below). They can instigate campaigns promoting false accusations of blasphemy, spreading confusion and endangering lives. But catch them saying a word against the ongoing target killing of Shia Muslims –  Continue reading →

Filed under: Human rights | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

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