Funds for J&K
Sir,
With reference to the proposed US-based lobbying forum to help resolve the longstanding crisis in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), I would like to put forward some suggestions:
First, the activists associated with this lobby should change their priorities. Up till now, they have worked for a political solution to the Kashmir problem on the assumption that the problem of human rights in J&K will be resolved automatically once such a solution is found. But this has not happened thus far. Perhaps it is time to turn the goal around: they should focus on the protection of human rights in J&K, which, in turn, is bound to lead to a solution to the Kashmir problem, given that human rights problems in J&K are inextricably linked to the Indian armed forces.
Second, the lobbying forum will require considerable funds to mobilize people, human rights NGOs and politicians in the US and world community. Its activists should concentrate on encouraging the US-based Kashmiri business community to contribute part of their profits (say, 10 percent) towards the protection of human rights in J&K. Third, there is a huge world market for goods from J&K (pashmina, wool, handicrafts, etc.) throughout the year and especially during winter. This could provide business potential for US-based Kashmiri entrepreneurs who are interested in philanthropy in J&K. Overall, such measures will boost the area’s economy, with positive externalities for its residents.
Hemraj Jain,
New Delhi.
Going up…?
Sir,
When something outrageous is repeated often enough, it tends to become the truth in the eyes of the unsuspecting. This is precisely what has spread doom and gloom about Pakistan and her future among many of us. What is wrong is not the system but some of the people involved in it. If they are corrupt, it is legitimate to ask what we, as responsible citizens, have been doing about all these years.
It is hypocrisy for us to condemn corruption while expecting someone else to eradicate it. It is not simply politicians and bureaucrats who have failed Pakistan, we all have – by not playing our part as we should. Isolated instances of crime and misconduct here and there cannot be extrapolated to reflect on the country as whole. It is true that institutions are not functioning as well as they should – and that includes the military – but we need to put this into perspective.
For instance, the impression created is that Pakistan is a very violent place. In fact, even after taking into account the casualties associated with terrorism, the rate of violent deaths per 100,000 people per year in Pakistan is less than that in the US. The rate of murders in Detroit, Michigan, is seven times greater than in Lahore. The rate of violent deaths in Pakistan as a whole is only a fraction of what it is in almost all of Latin America and Africa, far less than in virtually all of Eastern Europe and only a tenth of that in Russia.
Given this, we need to seriously reconsider and reformulate our opinion of Pakistan being a violent country as a whole – as so many of us have become accustomed to doing. There is every indication now that the worst is behind us. The Economist, which used to write so disparagingly about Pakistan, now suggests that it is a far better place to invest than India. The IMF has shown similar confidence. There can be no better endorsement of faith in the country’s future than China’s recent commitment to invest no less than $46 billion in Pakistan’s infrastructure. No one would stake so much in a country that is headed for failure.
Albert Godin,
Toronto.
ISIS mind games
Sir,
The psychological warfare in which ISIS engages involves the planned use of propaganda and other operations to influence the opinions, attitudes and behaviour of target groups in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia and elsewhere. Their main objective is to win by spreading fresh waves of terror without engaging in full-scale war or achieving any significant victory by fighting at a smaller scale. Despite the recognition that ISIS poses a serious threat in this context, Minister Chaudhry Nisar has continued to deny its presence in Pakistan. Our media, the government, the military and the agencies must take effective measures to counter the spread of this vicious organization.
Manahil Ijaz,
Rawalpindi.
State within a state
Sir,
This is with reference to Khurshid Shah’s remarks concerning a “state within a state” while protesting against Dr Asim Hussain’s 90-day detainment for purposes of investigation. A state is defined as contiguous territory governed by certain laws, in which all institutions perform defined roles to serve the people, protect their lives, property and honour from threats within its geographical boundaries or from external aggression. When an elected executive or any state institution transgresses its defined constitutional role, this is termed as being a “state within a state.” Allotting state-owned land for the personal or commercial benefits of individuals, including paid public office holders (and even if such an abuse of power is carried out by a statutory body) is considered a “state within state.” The serious charges levelled against Dr Hussain need to be probed, ensuring the same level of transparency as for any alleged criminal.
Ali Malik Tariq,
Lahore.
Cricket triad
Sir,
This refers to recent reports that the Pakistan cricket fraternity has not been as forgiving as the ICC towards the three disgraced cricketers, Muhammad Amir, Muhammad Asif and Salman Butt. The ICC has cleared them to return to international cricket after September 2015, but many former cricketers have expressed their displeasure at this decision. Former England skipper Michael Vaughan has even suggested that the three players should have been banned from the sport for life. It seems many cricket fans also agree.
Pakistani cricketers have long been criticized for their alleged involvement in match fixing and it seems as though almost every international cricket event is followed by accusations of spot fixing. There is no doubt that the Pakistan team has, on many occasions, lost or won for no apparent reason. This is unfortunate because it means that Pakistan’s name is constantly associated with corruption in world media headlines.
The PCB should seriously evolve a strategy to check such instances of match fixing and impose lifetime bans on all those found to have been involved in any such cricket scandals. Such players bring dishonour to their country by putting up their own integrity for sale.
Aamir Aqil,
Lahore.
Toasting your health
Sir,
Few well-wishers of the health of this country would not welcome the dissolution of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC). As a consistent critic of the PMDC over the past 30 years, I am one of a large number of senior health professionals and educators who have voiced their concerns but helplessly watched, with great sadness, the declining standards of medical and dental education and the mess the organization has created. Originally tasked with ensuring high-quality education, the maintenance of ethical standards and good practices, and the provision (in conjunction with the Health Ministry) of policy guidelines for the intake, requirements and utilization of health manpower, the PMDC has long been the problem instead of the solution.
The role of its first secretary, a Grade 23 bureaucrat, in setting the trend for the self-serving and nearly terminally ill organization it is today, is well documented. At a time when there were almost no private health institutions, he was one of the very few senior officers ever to be convicted for massive financial impropriety. Over the years since, the PMDC has degenerated into a club of what, in medical parlance, we call “Mutual Haemorrhoid Scratchers”. Today, a plethora of private health factories is churning out progressively increasing, expensively inept, graduates. The talented few who can migrate to form the health workforce of developed countries, while over half of those that remain – for lack of opportunity – use their qualifications for better marriage prospects or otherwise squander their expensive education.
The government, through the Health Ministry, has consistently failed in its prime function of providing safe, effective and affordable healthcare – even at the basic levels – delivery systems to the people of Pakistan. I am not sure their motivation is any more altruistic than that of the PMDC. However, one hopes the interim team set up under the former AFIC chief will have mercy on the profession to which they pledged (hopefully) “non-Hypocritic” oaths.
Let there remain a total moratorium on new institutions (supposedly again in force) until national health manpower needs and utilizations have been reassessed. I strongly recommend that, apart from those elected within the last couple of years or so, all council members associated with the PMDC over the better part of the last fifteen years be debarred for 10 years. No one without a major postgraduate qualification should be entitled to be on the council. To ensure that the PMDC represents the profession, but is able to assess and deliver on national healthcare needs, it should also comprise demographic and planning experts, medical educationists, healthcare management professionals, technocrats, and finance, social welfare and senior legal experts. These persons should be tasked with reviewing the PMDC statutes and the implementation of rules and regulations.
If we are serious about producing graduates of a consistent standard and quality, it is not necessary to inspect institutions – a practice that solely generates revenue. Priority should be given to instituting a National Qualifying / Registration Examination like the NTS or GRE and as is done abroad. With a little effort and in a short span of time, this will level the entire playing field and weed out the good from the bad institutions. Finally, the role of the PMDC’s senior employees over the past fifteen years needs to be critically reviewed.
I hope the profession – and through it, the country’s health education and health delivery systems – will benefit from a radical overhaul.
Dr Mervyn Hosein,
Karachi.