Muzaffar Bhutto, a senior member of a Sindhi nationalist political party in Pakistan, has been abducted for a second time allegedly by plain-clothed intelligence agents and police on 25 February. His wife is concerned for his life, as he is suffering from serious health problems. Amnesty International fears he might be tortured or ill-treated whilst in detention. …
Read more : AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
HYDERABAD, Feb 3: Demonstrations were held in some districts of Sindh on Thursday in protest against the murder of federal minister for minorities` affairs Shahbaz Bhatti. Processions were taken out and rallies were held to condemn the incident. In Hyderabad, Christians and civil society held separate protest demonstrations outside the press club.
A large number of Christian community members, including women, led by Father Daniel Fiaz, senior vicar of the Church of Pakistan, Hyderabad, and Father Samson Sakardin, vicar-general of Catholic Diocese of Hyderabad held a demonstration outside the press club. They described the murder of Shahbaz Bhatti as a national tragedy. …
Read more : DAWN
By Aijaz Ahmed
Excerpt:
The more unusual and astonishing was the participation of the “principled’ opposition leader, Ch Nisar Ali khan and his friendly discussion with ex-military dictator Musharraf’s ‘political adopted babies’ like Ch. Shujaat Hussain and Mushahid Hussain whom PML-N considers its enemies! The sole reason given by the PML-N was the discussion on political developments in of course the ‘national interest’! …
Read more : Indus Herald
Who can check them? — Mir Mohammad Ali Talpur
Excerpt:
…. The ‘establishment’ with its ‘solution by force policy’ has created irresolvable resentment among a majority of Baloch. ‘Balochistan: Waiting for justice’ editorial in Daily Times on February 28 has put the matter in proper perspective, “Pakistan’s security establishment has dealt with Balochistan in a very heavy-handed manner. The largest province of Pakistan has seen little development over the last six decades. Lack of education, infrastructure and political power has alienated the Baloch from the rest of the country, particularly Punjab, which they see as their ‘enemy’. The recent policy of eliminating moderate nationalists, who are in open national politics, is a dangerous trend. Thousands of Baloch have disappeared under mysterious circumstances or have been picked up by unknown elements. They are not only tortured but many of them are killed brutally and their bodies are later found from different parts of Balochistan. This policy adopted by our security establishment is leading to an increase in separatist sentiment among the Baloch.
“It is no secret that neither the federal government nor the provincial government has any real say when it comes to Balochistan. The real power lies with our security establishment, which has a narrow and non-political repressive policy. It is time that they understand that force, repression and killing cannot resolve this issue. A political solution is needed and for that the democratic government needs to run the show. The Baloch have been waiting for justice for decades now. It is time to address their grievances.”
Significantly even Balochistan’s Advocate General (AG) Salahuddin Mengal stated in Supreme Court that, “We are recovering dead bodies day in and day out as the Frontier Corps (FC) and police are lifting people in broad daylight at will, but we are helpless. Who can check the FC?” Who would know better than him about perpetrators of brutal killings of which my old student Faiz Mohammad Marri is the latest victim. Only the iron-will and determination of the people can check the oppressors because history moves relentlessly however brutal the repression. …
Read more : Daily Times
Sindhi opera Ranni Kot Ja Dharrail enthrals audience
By Sohail Sangi
HYDERABAD: Ranni Kot Ja Dharrail (Dacoits of Ranni Kot), an opera concert at the Mumtaz Mirza Auditorium of Sindh Museum proved to be an event of the season in the cultural capital of Sindh, Hyderabad, as a team of artistes filled the air and many believed that Shaikh Ayaz, the great Sindhi poet and versatile literary figure, was reborn.
This was part of events of festival organised to mark the 88th birth anniversary of Shaikh Ayaz.
A Sindhi private channel and the Sindh culture department organised the concert on Tuesday night. A number of people from various walks of life including writers, intellectuals, activists, women, art lovers and students attended the event. …
Read more : DAWN
Sindh: Karachi as seen by a British soldier sometime between 1942 and 1947: lively street scenes, animals, buildings, life in the Karachi Cantonment, followed by the journey back towards Britain on a troop ship through the Suez Canal. A Movie recorded by British solider Stephen in 1942. The author of the film obviously developed a liking of Karachi – Sindh and its people. A few of the shots at the end of the film may be of Bombay/ Mumbai.
via – Globeistan –You Tube
by Dr Ali Akbar Dhakan, Karachi, Sindh
… Pakistan is a country where only one province get 99% bureaucracy and 99% share in all resources of the country?
Where only people of one province out of four provinces employed and settled throughout the world?
Has there any establishment in the world that not learnt lesson from past mistakes? …
by Dr Ali Akbar Dhakan, Karachi, Sindh
Out of the total strength of high grade jobs in State Bank of Pakistan including Governor,two Deputy Governors, Advisers, consultants, Executive Directors and Directors, the representation of Sindh Rural is NIL.In all, the total number of these posts is more than l000 and the total number of the posts starting from joint Directors to lower staff would exceed ten thousand amongst whom the representation of Rural Sindh will not be more than one hundred through out Pakistan having about 20 offices of State Bank of Pakistan across the country. Now, to whom we may blame, the Government or the management of the SBP who are responsible for such a negligence in victimizing or robbing the people of Sindh.
Gulf News Editorial: Humanitarian bodies must ensure food and medical aid reach those affected by floods
Time has stopped for the hapless survivors in Sindh whose lives were turned upside down by the severe floods that hit the Pakistani province last year.
Surveys carried out in the wake of that disaster have revealed the extent of acute malnutrition in the region. The issue has been highlighted only recently due to prevailing social conditions and the lack of contact between the people and medical experts. Poverty levels have been at an all-time high for decades as a result of which the lives of thousands of children are also at risk.
Unicef has found that the percentage of those hit by the problem is higher than the 15 per cent emergency threshold set by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and on par with the poorest parts of sub-Saharan Africa. It has also been noted that women form a larger part of the overall figure.
While efforts are being made to address this problem, humanitarian organisations must galvanise themselves to ensure that the thousands who have been affected can obtain food and medical relief. …
Read more : Gulfnews
A Case Against Kalabagh Dam: Aziz Narejo
Filling in the Dots: Why PILDAT is Reviving Kalabagh Debate: Introductory Note by Kamran Shafi
Kalabagh Dam is a very bad idea indeed. If ONLY for the reason that 3 out of 4 federating units of this blessed country have rejected it.
I am familiar enough with the Mardan-Nowshera-Charsadda area well enough to know that when without this monstrosity there is water standing along the roads just three feet below the level of the road there has to be a big problem of water-logging already.
I can only hope that sense prevails and that our already frayed federation is not damaged further.
We also must ask the question WHY an organisation whose goal is “to strengthen and sustain democracy and democratic institutions” in this poor country should re-raise a hugely contentious issue like the Kalabagh Dam? Which has been DEMOCRATICALLY rejected by three-fourths of the country.
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A case Against Kalabagh Dam – by Aziz Narejo
A recent seminar in Karachi organized by an NGO, PILDAT has again brought the issue of Kalabagh Dam to the fore. Especially an irrational and unscrupulous statement at the seminar by IRSA chairman (from Punjab) has flared up the emotions among the stakeholders.
Actually he is not alone in this. There is a certain lobby in Pakistan, which continues to insist on the construction of Kalabagh Dam on Indus River ignoring the fierce opposition from the provinces of Khyber- Pakhtoonkhwa and Sindh …
Read more : Indus Herald
Call for separation of religion from state
SINDH – HYDERABAD, Feb 20: Leaders of nationalist and left-wing parties and prominent poets and writers have called for concrete efforts to curb fundamentalism and demanded separation of religion from state and equal rights for minorities.
Speaking at a seminar on ‘Religious extremism and black laws of Zia’s regime’ organised by the “Left Unity” at the press club here on Sunday, they stressed the need for a united front comprising all secular, nationalist and progressive forces for combating fundamentalism and promoting secularism.
Renowned intellectual Mohammad Ibrahim Joyo said that after independence the Quaid-i-Azam had unequivocally declared that religion would be the personal concern of the individual and every citizen of Pakistan would have equal rights. But successive governments in the country violated this principle.
Mr Joyo called upon the working class and oppressed people to unite to protect their rights.
He said Sindhis, Balochs and Pakhtuns were oppressed nations. He said that not only “black laws of the Zia regime” but all discriminatory laws should be repealed.
Left Unity secretary Buxal Thallo said that religious extremism was a threat for the country’s progress and called upon all political parties to launch a joint struggle against fundamentalism. …
Read more : DAWN
Mother tongues and dialects
BY ZULFIQAR HALEPOTO – DAWN –
“THE road to hell is paved with good intentions.” This proverb fits in the national language bill 2010, presented by 22 MNAs in the house, demanding to amend article 251 of the Constitution and declare Balochi, Punjabi, Pushto, Shina/Balti, Sindhi, Siraiki and Urdu as national languages.
The Honorable Michael. P. Bell, Mayor of Toledo, Ohio; Toledo Sister City International Organization and Toledo-Hyderabad Sister City Committee to celebrate the auspicious occasion of the signing of a Sister City agreement between the two great cities, Toledo, Ohio and Hyderabad, Sindh.
Sister City relationships involve cultural, economic, and educational partnerships. Members of the delegation from Hyderabad want to invest in medicine, alternative energy, media, and other industries in Toledo.
Read more : Toledo
By: Aziz Narejo
It is a general feeling in Sindh that the province has suffered injustices in almost every field since the inception of Pakistan – from the days of the first Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan to the present PPP led coalition government. Some governments have been outright hostile and hateful to Sindhis while others have not been able to help mitigate injustices due to several reasons. …
Read more : Indus Herald
The language of the program is urdu/ Hindi.
Courtesy: Geo TV (Aapas Ki Baat with Najam Sethi– 14th February 2011)
via – Zem TV – You Tube Link
A broader meeting of political parties and civil society activists from across Sindh held in Hyderabad, which after a detailed discussion over the peace and interfaith harmony and tolerance issues in Sindh as well as in the country took following consensus decisions:
– Formed Movement for Peace & Tolerance (Aman Rawadari Tahreek) initially by 51 representatives of political parties and civil society activists, which selected 15 members Coordination Committee.
– The proposal of Peace Long March was approved by the participants, however, it was consensually agreed that civil society and political parties activists from Punjab and Islamabad should be taken in the loop; and if they support in facilitation and organization of the initiative in the Punjab and Islamabad, it should be carried from Karachi to Islamabad, otherwise the march should be carried from Karachi to the shrines of Sachal Sarmast in Khairpur district or Bhagat Kanwar Ram in Ghotki district.
– District level rallies, marches and Seminars / Jalsas should be organized in Sindh, – Meetings should be organized in Sukkur and Karachi for above proposals, – Meetings should be held with political parties, trade unions, students, intellectuals and academia.
Courtesy: Sindhi e-lists, Sun, February 13, 2011
Read second part of Mir Thebo’s notes from memory. He tells about the Sann Conference, Comrade Hyder Bux Jatoi’s criticism of Syed, the gathering at the Keenjhar Lake, How G. M. Syed sheds tears as Rais Karim Bux sings Shaikh Ayaz, parting of ways of the Communist Party with G. M. Syed, formation of Sindh United Front, how landlords apologized in public, how feudal lords would rush to Syed and then leave him suddenly as they see a new leader on the horizon …
Read more : Indus Herald
Today on 12 Feb, 2011 in Sindh, many Sindhis are proudly celebrating Darwin Day by Paying Tribute to this Global Legend (who changed the Entire Scenario of Human Thinking about Nature and its By-products) through Face Book Walls, with the Hope that in future they will celebrate this Great Event, physically in each and every city Sindh.
Source – The news adopted from FaceBook
– SINDH GOVERNMENT’S GREEN POLICY : MAKING SINDH MORE GREEN AND PROSPEROUS
Here is BBC‘s news story of Ambar shamsi Land for Women in Sindh. Recently She visit Thatta Sajawal meet few land grantee women of Second phase of the Land Distribution regarding Land Grant policy of Sindh government.
Read more : BBC urdu
By Shahid Husain
Sindh: Karachi – The responsibility to preserve and maintain the 5,000-year old city of Mohenjodaro has been transferred to the provincial government, the Sindh Minister for Culture, Sassui Palijo told The News on Wednesday.
The minister said that this decision is in accordance with the current devolution plan in the country.
“Health, education, culture and tourism are being given to the provinces, in accordance with devolution plan, to ensure maximum provincial autonomy,” Palijo said. “The Antiquities Act will also be amended after a long time.”
Palijo further said that the Sindh Government has signed an agreement with UNESCO for the preservation of Mohenjodaro, which happens to be one of the largest heritage sites in the world. “The majority of the funding for the preservation of the site will be provided by UNESCO, while the Sindh Government and others will also make contributions,” said the minister.
Palijo credited Senator Rabbani for playing a vital role in the devolution plan. She said that work will also begin on ‘frozen projects’ that had been neglected for quite a while due to the lack of funding. Mohenjodaro was one of the greatest civilisations of ancient times and flourished on the banks of the River Indus (Sindhu).
“Before the arrival of the Aryans, the people of the Indus (Sindh) had already become a highly developed civilisation that spread over half a million miles. But then the civilsation vanished and all its glory was buried under massive mounds of sand. Excavations at Mohenjodaro and Harrapa proved the maturity and refinement of the people living in both areas. They used cotton for textiles, built large spacious houses and there were a number facilities for the residents, such as public baths ad well as an excellent drainage system. All these factors indicate that in many ways, the Indus Valley civilsation was more advanced than the Persians, Egyptians and Mesopotamians,” wrote former President of the Supreme Court Bar Association and distinguished intellectual, Aitezaz Ahsan in his book called “The Indus Saga and the making of Pakistan. …
Read more : The News
“In the years to come, Pakistan will not only become a problem for itself, but it will pose a danger to the world at large.” — G. M. Syed, 1952, 1953
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More about G. M. Syed » DAWN
http://www.dawn.com/news/1080575
by Chandiramani
Ruins of Moen jo daro : 25 kms. Away from Larkana city in Sindh .. It was inhabited in 2000 B.C , abandoned in 1700 B.C and rediscovered in 1920 ‘ Around 5OOOO people stayed there at one time. Maybe more.
It was probably abandoned due to the floods as river Indus (Sindhu) changes its course very often Declared as Unesco world heritage site, Unesco 1n 1997 gave U.S $1O million for restoration and strengthening the base of the city .
5 artistic seals prove the extent of progress achieved in 2OOO B.C itself . The dancing girl denotes self confidence.
Wayang Kulit of Indonesia bears a lot of similarity to it. Scholars must do research on this similarity .
The priest or the king shows power and dignity and quite a few statues of goddesses were also found at the site.
Shiva was worshipped in this area is proved by phallus shaped stone objects in Moen jo Daro.
Moen jo daro had an excellent drainage system, planned wide roads, two storied houses – made of baked mud. There were also huge granaries for storage.
A great public bath has also been found at Moen Jo Daro with steps going down to a pond. Elliptical disc was found recently which may have been used fork eeping holy water . Pieces of charcoal were found at Moen jo Daro. This will help us to pin point the age of the site. According to latest reports on google all the ancient sites are eroding due to goverment neglect and public aphathy.
It is very heartening to know that Tata’s Fundemental Institute of Research which is highly respected all over the world, is undertaking a research on Moen jo Daro to find out if the city was laid as per astronomical placements of stars at that time like is the case with Borobudut, the largest Budhhist Complex in the world ( In Indonesia ). and Angkor Vat in Cambodia. Moen Jo Daro is a few hours drive from Karachi – Sindh.
According to Makarand Khatavkar who also conducted a lot of research on Moen Jo daro, the layout of the ancient Moen Jo Daro is astonishing and so are the seals.
Some streets in Moen Jo Daro were 33 feel broad, and had markets on both sides. At Moen jo Daro , there is a 5OOO year old well and the workers were drinking water from it.
Another very striking point was that no weapons of war were found at Moen Jo Daro.
Now about the script;: The Indus script has been known for the last century but until today it has not been deciphered.
However the studies by TIFR scientists and other world institutes suggest that Indus people wrote in a literary style and the script may have been written close to spoken languages like Tamil and Sanskrit .. The linguistic structure of the Indus (Sindhu) script suggests this .. Now the efforts are on to understand the grammatical structure of the script.
We are also sons of the soil: Dr Farooq Sattar
Dr Farooq Sattar is the Deputy Convener of the Muthaidda Qaumi Movement, the third largest political Party in Pakistan with a large support base in the country’s largest city Karachi. He is a doctor by profession but gave up his medical career to serve the people of Pakistan and most particularly Sindh with its stronghold in urban areas of Sindh like Karachi and Hyderabad.
An outspoken and flamboyant personality, Dr Sattar can be best be described as the pilot of the MQM or driving force steering the party ahead in an intelligent and organised manner to move things forward under the guidelines of the party leader Altaf Hussain who is in self imposed exile in London. …
Read more : The Capital Post
…. I like G. M. Syed but not his fanatic followers because if you differ with them even slightly, they will consider you an enemy of Syed and Sindh. I have few memories of G. M. SYED and his politics that I can share with you.
According to Wikipedia, G. M. Syed was a political leader who pioneered the Jeay Sindh movement for the freedom of Sindh from Pakistan. He is regarded as one of the founding fathers of modern Sindhi nationalism. In 1930 he founded the Sindh Hari Committee, later led by Hyder Bux Jatoi. …
Read more : Indus Herald
About the author : Mir Thebo has played a prominent role as a leftist, progressive political activist for at least four decades in Sindh & Pakistan (60s-90s). He will be writing on personalities & events & also share with you his views on many issues from the past.
by Munawar Ali
We have been in social cum political turmoil as far as I remember from childhood to now. We always hear and read unpleasant news again and again. We wait for these ruthless leaders to do miracles for us, which is never gonna happen unless we have totally new set of new ideas and faces which is not foreseeable in near future. This makes us only feel bad.
What we should do then? I think instead of wasting our time and getting gloomy after reading and hearing useless and hurting political news, we should concentrate on the uplifting of people especially youth. Help them get better education, guide them and help them get out of the negative mindset and work hard to achieve their goals. This will eventually help society come out of the century hold traditions and illiteracy and ignorance and hopefully enter into 21st century.
Only talking will not do good for us as it has not done any good for last 50 years of our useless political struggle. Which has only divided us and weekend us. Politics is important but if we do not have education and positive thinking, nothing will work. We have wasted time and our youth, please no more waste and empty slogans. Do social work and practically make difference.
Courtesy: Sindhi e-lists/ e-groups, Sat, February 5, 2011
To prevent a Chad-like situation
The national dailies have reported from Islamabad (Jan. 27) by quoting UNICEF as saying: “Pakistan’s Sindh province, hit hard by last year’s floods, is suffering levels of malnutrition almost as critical as Chad and Niger, with hundreds of thousands of children at risk, UNICEF said on Wednesday (Jan 26)”. …
Read more : The Nation
Pakistan was a creation of British Mind … Jinnah was used..
by Kavalier
I want to clarify first thing first and that is that I am no anti-Pakistan, no anti Jinnah, etc etc…. I purely wrote these lines by thinking from another point of view and for healthy and constructive discussion, based on historical facts and logic.
The title says it all and I dont think there is more to it , but just by reading/listening some of the great politicians of that time and unbiased historians would reveal many a things which can be analysed with little common sense…
Jinnah was no saint that he can not make mistakes. He made some grave mistakes and the worst after division of India was that he did not develop any kind of leadership under him which left morons to govern the new land. He was intentionally or unintentionally advocating the British and landlords of united India (now waderas/sardars of Pakistan, who are ruling till now).
Religion was just a slogan to create an environment in masses and was effectively used by British and Jinnah ….. and they learned it well that people of sub-continent are more emotional for religion than required and it can be seen even today… At that time,they witnessed this “Khilafat Movement” and kept it in their minds to use it whenever required.
Other than the sole purpose of dividing the sub continent, there was no religion in Jinnah’s life, he was the same sort of moderate or even more than the present day ‘s moderates…. He was brought up in England and was much much impressed by them and their culture… Today we say that how can a person coming from abroad, lead us as he is no from masses, but Jinnah was not from masses as well…. He was also the same protocol hungry as today s politicians are… This can be confirmed by anyone who was alive in Karachi when Pakistan was created and he/she saw the motorcade of Jinnah.
He was secular minded, who always use to wear the modernized clothes like westerners, even after the creation of Pakistan, and the shoes he used to wear were also from Europe (branded at that time). His personal views about religion (the thing we call religion/or we are brain-washed in the name of religion) are very much evident from his public life. The way he brought up his daughter, the way he went for “Love marriage” with a non-muslim and the way he allowed his daughter to marry a non-muslim, all speak up for his inclination towards religion and personal life. Even his speech (which is ridiculed by many these days) after creation of Pakistan’s parliament signifies what he was thinking about the new country and what will be the law of the land. …
Read more : Siasat.pk
Ram Jethmalani, was born September 14, 1923, in Shikharpur, Sindh (now in Pakistan)) is an eminent Indian lawyer and politician. He spoke about Sindh & Jinnah. He said that “When Jinnah qualified for the Bar, he came to Karachi to practice. Jinnah belonged to the community of Khojas who were rich merchants and he expected to have a ready-made clientele in Karachi, Sindh. He (Jinnah) went to a firm of Hindu lawyers in Hyderabad called Harichandra and Co., Old Harichandra had interviewed him and once he said that he was perfectly qualified to practice, they had to settle the terms. Jinnah wanted hundred rupees, but the old Hindu miser was unwilling to go above seventy-five. I have always said, even in public, that Jinnah was not the cause of India’s partition, but that old Hindu miser.”
Ram Jethmalani also spoke about Sindh being the cradle of Sufism, the gentlest and finest of the fine form of Islam. He said that it was synonymous with the Kashmiriyat of Kashmir. Shah Abdul Latif, one of the greatest poets, was a product of Sindh. “We had developed a great synthesis between the two communities, that as a Hindu youngster, I would get my new clothes on Eid (a Muslim festival) and Muslin youngsters would get their clothes on Deepavali ( a Hindu festival). Even when Partition had happened, and hundreds of thousands of people were getting killed in Punjab, but the Sindhi Muslim never killed a single Hindu.”
“Speaking for myself, for the sake of safety, I had brought my family to Bombay, but I had gone back to Sindh and continued my practice in the hope that things would become normal. I stayed till February 1948 and by that time a large influx of Muslims had came from Bihar and other places from India to Sindh and that was the cause of great tension because they wanted Hindu properties.
“In February, when I was arguing a case in the Magistrate’s court, my Pathan driver came in and said that the locality where I was living was in danger. I found on the way back that nobody was being hurt physically, but preparations had been made to rob all the property by new comers from India, to create fear and force Hindus to migrate. That is exactly what happened.”
He said his partner during his practice in Karachi was a secular Sindhi Muslim gentleman and a great scholar – A. K. Brohi, who later piloted the first Constitution of Pakistan. “Seeing the incidents of February 1948, Ram Jethmalani said that he could no longer bear the responsibility of my safety. Then I left and settled down in Bombay and started practice.”
wonderful lyrics! wonderful singing! finally a best & truly heart touching song!
Hyderabad – Sindh : Recently some members of National (Federal) Assembly from treasure and opposition benches has presented a private member bill on national language issue. Members have mixed various dialects and mother tongues with national languages status. In this regard on Tuesday, 01-02-2011, a rally was organised by Sindhi Adabi Sangat (Markaz) in front of Hyderabad Press Club under the slogan of ‘Sindhi Bboli Qoumi Bboli’ (Sindhi Language should be National language). This rally was a start of mobilization of people on national language issue. Procession was attended / participated by a large number of leading writers, intellectuals, linguists, civil society, lawyers, peace and human rights activists, and poets.
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