Tuesday, November 13, 2007

For Everyone..please read..

V
The past two days have been depressing, both here and around the country. The air is beset with despondency, frustration, uncertainty and doubt. With information sources in disarray, no one knows what to believe, who to trust, what to think. It was to be expected and I will not lie; my mind too has been overwhelmed with confusion. For that is exactly how the oppressors want us to think. They want us to sink ever deeper into cynicism, apathy and self-doubt. They want us to turn away while the country bleeds, to lie listless while the fire consumes the heart and soul of this abused nation.

It is in this frustration, in this dejection, that we must find our strength. The strength to stand up and reclaim this nation from those who have purged it of all that was whole and good. For, my friends, I fear we may not have another chance; this country may not have another chance.

For decades, generations have stood by as this nation was exploited, subverted, pillaged by its own leaders; Leaders who told us to sit quietly while they bled the very soil of this land. We yearned for justice, for peace, for development, for honesty and accountability, but received little. Over the years, many of us lost faith in our own identity – we were no longer ‘proud of being Pakistani’. Skepticism and cynicism became inherent Pakistani traits. Our culture, our traditions, we slowly lost touch with. Successive 14th August’s passed without a whimper; Pakistan, we felt, no longer belonged to any of us.

Today, at the most critical juncture that this country has seen in its turbulent history for decades, we have an opportunity – maybe our last – to change all of that. Today, we have the chance to salvage our country’s future, to save it from destruction, to save it from the very apathy that threatens to devour it whole.

Why are we protesting, people ask me? To usher in another corrupt politician? To open the doors for another dynastic arrangement that exploits whatever’s left of this tattered nation? What are we fighting for?

To them, I extend one simple answer; we are fighting for Pakistan.

We are fighting because soon, there might not be anything left to quarrel over. We are fighting for the country’s future, a future where people are socially and politically conscious, where injustice is not complacently tolerated, where the masses are empowered and equal. Where the most destitute denizens of society can seek the same justice as its rulers. Where corrupt politicians do not dare steal from the nations coffers. We are fighting for institutions that can ensure this, for institutions that prevent the abuse of despotic and political power, institutions that protect our rights. And unless that is ensured, none of Pakistan’s myriad of problems will be solved, however much our Messianic General wishes us to think so. And yes, make no mistake about it; we are fighting savage, unrestrained oppression.

Yes, the fight will be long and hard. Along the way, it will be beset with disappointment, with frustration and restlessness.

But, for once, I want being Pakistani to mean more for me than cheering a cricket match victory, or mindlessly waving a green flag on the 14th of August. I want to ‘be’ this country, to feel one with it, to be proud of it in all respects, to heal the wounds that decades of turmoil have wrought upon its crumbling visage. And, in these darkest of times, I pledge, as Allah is my witness, to do my utmost to make that happen.

And no, this fight does not end with the end of the emergency. This fight continues until we can truly claim to have made a difference. Until we have purged this country of all the anathemas that threaten its survival; from military rule, to corruption, to inequality, to intolerance, to terrorism, to socio-political apathy.

I am making a humble plea now, to anyone listening or reading, my colleagues at LUMS, students, teachers, parents, Pakistanis. Please join us. Please wake up and save this country. It is not the responsibility of one individual; all of us have a part to play. If we let this one opportunity slip us by, history and more importantly, God, may not ever absolve us. We must act with the faith that courses through our veins, with conviction in our beliefs and in the values that we are fighting for. And we must move quickly, for our nation cannot sustain much more. Collectively and Substantively, we must speak out and come out.

In Complete Unity.

May Allah bless us all.

36 comments:

officialwarranty said...

Yes we need to take a stand here and drive out these selfish rulers who consider Pakistan their private property and don't give two hoots about the people!

Frank Partisan said...

Good luck in struggle.

bt said...

Without hope and without despair, with faith, with love.

Anonymous said...

that was beautiful, and uplifting. don't give up hope, we know when something so big happens that its for a reason. its confusing for everyone, but all we can do right now, day-to-day, is to take a stand against obvious injustice. we can't plan out the future, but only pray for it and do what we can in the moment.

aliassad said...

Please coordinate with us at pakvoices.net

Anonymous said...

We are a group of 24 business executives across 12 countries around the world. We occupy positions on Wall Street, World Bank, Washington, Asian Dev. Bank Manila, Islamic Dev. Bank Jeddah and various fortune 100 corporations in several countries.

Yess you guessed correctly. We are LUMS Alumni !

Now a few notes of caution this tinpot regime:

1. If any attempt is made to invade the LUMS campus, you will find us at the main gate, standing in linked arm fashion. Your forces will enter LUMS campus only after trampling over us.

2. If any attempt is made to foist a dud General to administer LUMS, this will be met with silent resistance. We will sit on his office floor and resist by all other peaceful means.

3. If any attempt is made to intimidate our Board of Governers, that too will be publicised and resisted by above means.

We are presently 24, and prepared to travel to Pakistan at short notice. We are in touch with hundreds of other LUMS Alumni around the world so you can actually expect a much larger upheaval.

Lay off LUMS.

Anonymous said...

This is a brilliant piece. You guys at LUMS are our inspiration. The whole country is giving your examples. Now the trend has been set, we have to keep the fire burning while making sure that we do not burn out.

Anonymous said...

I read about you in The News recently! Inspiring effort to the say the least my friend!:)
May I request you to help us out in coordinating whatever virtual resistance we have, and converting into street power through emails. We are doing our utmost to streamline all efforts on internet, mainly through preparing a database of emails of all volunteers for peaceful street protests, who will be notified on email on short notice to avoid govt. crackdowns, while also ensuring their safety by not sharing any other personal information, e.g. cell nos., addresses etc. Kindly spread the word as far as possible, and ask everyone willing you know to send an email to

commanderofthefaithful@hotmail.com
commanderofthefaithful@yahoo.com

Let’s take our efforts seriously, and make them work together! We shall resist terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including state terrorism! Assalamoalikum!

Anonymous said...

my LUMS colleagues are requested for participation in the email id database effort,
their resistance in the face of adversity is commendable, i wish i cud say the same for institutes like IBA,
nevertheless im sure the ripple effect shall spread before we know it inshaAllah, provided we act united and safely.
Stay safe and Assalamoalikum!

Guru said...

Very well written. I already told you to count me in. If you need me to put something on my blog page or any specific message or in case you are planning to go for any specific step, let me know but remember one thing! "dont forget that we shouldnt do anything which harms out country image and all protests should be held keeping in mind the decency" i have already protested against the comments of The Telegraph against the President of Pakistan. I dont like him but i dont want anyone else to degrade the post of President of Pakistan. No matter how he is but we should not set an example for others to follow and hence i strongly protested the three journalists who used abusive language against our President (its the designation and not the person that matters here)
http://thelandofpure.blogspot.com/
Regards

MH said...

This fire will soon engulf AKU.. only a matter of days..

Muhammad Asif Abbasi said...

Guys,

Perfectly put. I think its time we wake up. We have had enough of these thugs, looting our beloved country, and have bought it to the brink of another disaster like 1971.

If need arise, we need should be prepared to lay our lives for this homeland which has given us everything.

People say, that "Pakistan is a Crowd, and not a Nation". We need to rise to the occasion. If we don't do it now, we will never be able to do any thing about it.

Anonymous said...

I am an Undergrad student at McGill University - Canada and have been deeply disturbed with the ongoing plundering thats ravaging my beloved Pakistan. For 60 years, we have sat back and seen unworthy men run the country as they desire - for 60 years we have been silent. Let this not be one of those times. The future of this country is in the hands of its educated youth. We are infinitely better and honest than those uneducated mongrels who call themselves politicians. Let us all realize Jinnah's dreams...!

My dear country, for you is everything!

Anonymous said...

Out with musharraf
Out with bhutto
Out with nawaz shareef



We support Imran Khan!

Anonymous said...

I know LUMS finals have started. after they end, ppl will go homes for the quarter break. any plans on how to keeep this struggle going during the break?

Anonymous said...

came across some very disturbing news. govt sealed off shaukat khanum hospital. please see links:
http://desicritics.org/2007/11/11/192348.php

this is news in hindustantimes:

http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/FullcoverageStoryPage.aspx?id=e6e3582e-069a-494e-a51c-4ae7c27802e0EmergencyruleinPakistan_Special&MatchID1=4585&TeamID1=1&TeamID2=8&MatchType1=1&SeriesID1=1151&PrimaryID=4585&Headline=Imran+Khan's+hospital+besieged

its shameful for pakistan that the entire world is watching this badmashi...such a disgrace and humiliation. this shows musharraf will resort to anything to suppress us!

Anonymous said...

i saw the flyer imran khan is distributing to students on facebook. can someone give a link so we can read the text?

Anonymous said...

plz see the link from the LA Times. discusses LUMS role in emergency in detail.

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-fg-pakyouth12nov12,1,2908126.story?coll=la-news-a_section&ctrack=1&cset=true

Anonymous said...

LUMS VC summoned by Governor Punjab?
http://riseofpakistan.blogspot.com/2007/11/lums-vc-summoned-by-governor-punjab.html

can someone confirm this plz and keep us updated. thanx

Anonymous said...

absolutely right. it is high time that we do something however how are we supposed to let our parents let us out on the streets if the need be...since many parents i know are scared of the police and are afraid for their children, especially girls.any plan or suggestion for that?

Anonymous said...

Restoring democracy is the most important thing at this time - even if it means cooperating with corrupt politicians. Once democracy is restore, corruption, terrorism and other things you had mentioned can be eradicated easily by
1. Excercising right to vote
2. Voting right people
3. Running for lower house yourself in case you dont find 'right people'

So, for now let us concentrate on restoring democracy.

Anonymous said...

Graduated in 1987, when the octopus of dictatorship was grabbing and pulling at the routes of awakening/ awareness.
'13 nov for everyone' has brought tears from my eys spontaneously.
God bless you.
I am sending the link of the emegencytelegraph to all of my friends, keeping many slips of links printed and handing over to all my friends and contacts.

Democracy is the life for Pakistan,
charges of corruption on democartes are tactic of the dictator to disorganise us hold on to power. Are these dictators and their collaborators not corrupt?

Anonymous said...

For those of you concerned about permission or such from parents, well they are a disillusioned generation. If they had done the right things long ago,we would have been much better off. Now its our turn to do what they didn't do in their time.

M. said...

Link for Imran Khan's letter:

http://bp3.blogger.com/_ypFQz7sVMBU/RzdhkKHqHzI/AAAAAAAAACY/zflGxva6ias/s1600-h/ImrantoStudentsNov10English.jpg

MH said...

Imran's letter, just a low-sized version for slower connections:
http://thegraffiti.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/imrantostudentsnov10english1.jpg

Anonymous said...

Before protesting you should first ponder if the next so called democratic leader will be good or bad for pakistan. What exactly is your plan? Protest, protest and more prtoest? Then what? Deal with 4 years of Benazir corruption?

Corruption is alright if it is under a democratically elected PM?

LUMS people should first try to retain its graduates from fleeing the country as soon as they graduate...

I am all for Imran Khan but if you are not delusional you know that he will never be elected...

Anonymous said...

Please help Pakistani student's effort @ www.BoltaPakistan.com

Together all of us can make a big difference.

Anonymous said...

zahid: we are fighting for institutions: an independant judiciary and media which coulr rein in the power wielded by the corrupt generals and politicians. the success of the west is their institutions, where corruption is rampant but no one is above the constitution.

if at this time of action you still want to have excuses not to act, then two words: lay off. we are not here to convince now, we are here to act.

Anonymous said...

What this damn dictator Musharraf has done to the country on 3rd NOV is an insult to intelligence. He and his coterie have tried to enslave us. But they will be defeated inshallah. What is required is that we remain firm in our resolve to do something about it. We need to coordinate and muster public opinion against the unconstitutional and illegal actions of the bloody army chief and the blood sucking army. Like someone said " Every country has an army, the Pakistani army has a country". The army is eating away our resources and gloating on our progress. It is corrupt to the hilt and tainted with blood sweat and toil of millions of Pakistanis. What has it to show for itself, nothing except always illegally interfering in the affairs of the country to advance the military's business interests, at our expense. Dr. Ayesha's MILBUS is an eye opener.

Fellow citizens let us get together and root out everything that is unconstitutional and tyrannical.

We must be steadfast in our determination to rid our beloved country of this menace.

Salute to our honest judges. Salute to the lawyers for their sacrifices. Salute to civil society. Salute to students.

Best regards.

rnadel said...

This is a terrific post. I'm the News Director at NowPublic.com. We would love to help you spread the word. We have some Pakistan coverage see here: http://www.nowpublic.com/tag/pakistan%2520protest
But we want more.

If you want to contribute email me at rnadel(at)nowpublic(dot)com and I'll give you instructions. Or just go here: http://www.nowpublic.com/node/add/package

nota said...

"It always seems impossible until it's done" -- Nelson Mandela

Casey Bowman said...

I live in Minneapolis, and I heard Imran Khan on my car radio this afternoon. Khan called from his car while on the move. He plans to come out of hiding on Wednesday and lead a rally at Punjab University. Have you seen the movie High Noon? You can hear what Khan had to say here. He communicated clearly what's at stake with regard to the independence of your judiciary.

Looking for Ritzy Red Ghararas said...

Dear neem revolution,

we are with you! we are with you!
we as lums alumni have vowed to not rest till you all rest. We as lums alumni know and share the responsibilities we have as young and educated people.
the lums alumni is working hard outside of Pakistan to get the word out on the student movement and to organize protests. We care about the future of Pakistan and we care about all of our rights.

Keep writing - it reminds us why we are burning the midnight oil to keep this movement rolling...

Anonymous said...

this is what the indian ppl are saying:
Pakistan army is for hire...give it money and it'll kill its own ppl! how humiliating is that!

Unknown said...

Hats off to you guys....Its high time we stand up and do something about our very own motherland.....I am ashamed adn jubilant at the same time that something that i so darly wanna do is being done by something.....


Best of luck and God bless Pakistan

Unknown said...

Whatever 'The Neem Revolution' and all other fellows said is true, up to the mark and highly appreciable.

But I have been looking for something... do you know what is that??? ... indeed a practical plan. What are we going to do to get rid of the oppression.

I share the views of the author regarding the feelings of oppression, disgust, exploitation and injustice been injected to our blood. Our nation is under severe punishment for a long time now for an unknown crime.

But, I can see light at the end of tunnel. The new generation of Pakistan is not at all ready to accept the obsolete notions of dictatorship, failed democracies, oppression, extremism, corruption, dirty politics and then branding all the fuss as the HOLY and GREAT NATIONAL INTEREST.

We are sick of this unholy national interest.

But as said... where is the practical solution... what is the plan to execute, where to go from here, what to do????

Why afraid of brutal security forces? Why not go and take them head to head? Why not an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth? Is it that difficult?

You know why people are afraid of coming out? Do you think they are afraid of police or arrest or unfair trial?

No not at all... what has happened in the past few months, has been unprecedented... somebody planned a very cruel thing... somebody filled the hearts and minds of our people with fear... just to make sure that they forget to come out to express their views, just to teach them a lesson if they ever even think of raising their voice, protesting against barbarian rule...

Yes, the worst attack was when a leader of a popular political party came back to Pakistan and she was attacked... hundreds killed, hundreds maimed... Yes the Suicide Attacks.

The stage was set when somebody smelt a popular uprise... A mosque was targeted, children used, a religious school destroyed and a chain of suicide attacks in the country were arranged. That was the start of brutal suppression.

Somebody has gone too far in his bid to don't know what. An enemy or what?

Please use this forum for some practical solutions.

While I greatly appreciate the guftar been presented here, but we badly need kirdars. Please suggest solutions through this forum.

Masjid tou bana de shab bhar main, eman ke hararat valoon nay
Man apna purana papi hay, barsoon main nimazi ban na saka

Iqbal bara updeshak hay, man batoon main moh laita hay
Guftar ka yeh ghazi tou bana, kirdar ka ghazi ban na saka