The Londoner

By Sikander Hayat According to reports published in International press “Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey walked off the stage after an angry exchange with the Israeli president, Shimon Peres, during a panel discussion on Gaza at the World Economic Forum, vowing never to return to the annual gathering.” Israel has probably committed war crimes in Gaza during its latest offensive by bombing civilian shelters and UN compounds and any show of anger towards Israel is just but Mr Erdogan, as prime minister of Turkey, should not have walked off the stage and showed off his anger publically. Turkey prides herself on the power of reason and as prime minister of the Turkish State Mr Erdogan should have voiced his concerns over this issue calmly as he did during the whole of the sitting which also included Secretary General Ban Ki-moon of the United Nations, Amar Moussa, the Arab League’s secretary general and Mr. Peres, the president of Israel. It was only at the end when the mode...

Gwadar is located on the south-western coast of Pakistan , on the Arabian Sea . It is strategically located between three increasingly important regions: the oil-rich Middle East , heavily populated South Asia and the economically emerging and resource-laden region of Central Asia . The Gwadar Port is expected to generate billions of dollars in revenues and create at least two million jobs. In 2007, the government of Pakistan handed over port operations to PSA Singapore for 25 years, and gave it the status of a Tax Free Port for the following 40 years. The main investors in the project are Pakistani Government and People's Republic of China. The Makran region surrounding Gwadar was occupied by an ancient Bronze age people which settled in the few oases. It later became the Gedrosia region of the Achaemenid Persian empire. It is believed to have been conquered by the founder of the Persian empire, Cyrus the Great. The capital of the satrapy of Gedrosia was Pura, which is th...

SRINAGAR: JKLF chairman Mohammed Yasin Malik, a rebel virtually all his life, is set for domesticity. Malik (39), engaged to Mushaal Hussein Mullick (30), a Pakistani painter and a student at London School of Economics, will formally wed in Islamabad next week. Malik was in a jail in Kashmir in October 2008 for his anti-poll campaign when engagement rings were exchanged in Karachi between Malik’s Pakistani representative and Mushaal’s family. Mushaal supports charities and NGOs working on gender issues. Her late father, professor M A Hussein, was an economist of international repute, while her mother is Rehana Hussein Mullick, former secretary general Pakistan Muslim League’s women’s wing. Brother Haider Ali Hussein Mullick is a South Asia policy wonk in Washington DC. Malik is one of the first five JKLF militant commanders who launched “azadi” movement in Kashmir in 1989.

By Alistair Scrutton NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Doubts have been raised about police reports of a foiled attack on India's capital blamed on Pakistani militants, with newspapers wondering if the whole episode might have been staged. The controversy is an unwelcome distraction from India's efforts to bring to book the Pakistanis it blames for November's attack on Mumbai. Police on Sunday said they killed two militants after a car chase in Noida city on the outskirts of New Delhi on the eve of Republic Day. AK-47 rifles, grenades and a Pakistani passport were recovered, according to officials. But the story sounded to newspapers too good to be true. The militants not only conveniently carried Pakistani identification, they also asked for directions outside Delhi with an AK-47 poking out of a bag, and then confessed before dying. The incident came amid heightened tension with Pakistan after the Mumbai attacks late last year. "(The doubts) hurt India's credibility more now...

By Sikander Hayat People who claim to speak for the Baloch Autonomy must make one thing very clear. If it is about peoples’ representation then we have unfortunately not seen such movement so far in Balochistan. The province’s leaders, for all the clamouring about rights etcetera, have woefully fallen short of reforming their social structures. The late Akbar Khan Bugti not only ruled his area like a medieval tyrant, Dera Bugti even today has the worst human development indices in Pakistan. The same is true of other sardars who claim to speak on behalf of the people of Balochistan. Is it possible, before the Baloch nationalists begin to talk about democracy and rights and resource allocation, that they could show themselves up to be “modern” rather than celebrating one of the worst tribal structures one can find anywhere? Walking on burning coal, burying the women alive and all that. This, let it be said, is as important, if not more, than the issue of devolving powers to the provinc...

It certainly is a monumental task for the informed Sri Lankan or for that matter anyone in the neighbourhood of India to keep a straight face when talking about the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) in India. Formed in 1968, the predatory operations carried out by this external intelligence agency of India in the neighbouring countries, is perhaps the best example as to how a geographically advantageous nations bully their little neighbours. A careful study of the RAW would spell out that its modus operandi include multi-nationals, non-governmental organizations and even cultural centres. Among its most ambitious operations that are currently underway is the move to separate Balochistan province from Pakistan by supporting Balochistan Liberation Army. The RAW in Sri Lanka has a pretty colourful record. Having raised, nursed and fortified the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam it later went through phases where it adopted ‘rock the baby, pinch the baby’ approach towards the LTTE. While...

By Sikander Hayat I once had a chance to listen to a song by Jaques Brel, a famous Belgian francophone . This song reminds me of the butchers operating in our Pakhtoonkhwa (also known as NWFP) province. What Brel sings about in ‘Amsterdam’ is what these so called warriors of Islam are doing to the innocent women, children and other civilians of this area. Sooner these bastards are crushed the better as these people are not worthy of being called humans let alone Muslims. They want to take my country back to the 14th century and they call it the will of God. Well let me tell you this very clearly, Islam prospered in the 14th century and thereafter because it was the most modern thing the mankind had seen until that time and it kept itself apace with the developments in world and that was the reason that Muslims ruled large areas of this earth until the end of the Ottoman empire which was the most secular empire for a long time while it acquired knowledge from all corners of...

By Jeremy Page Arrogant, ham-handed, startling, impertinent – these are the sort of words used here, with reason, to describe David Miliband's comments on the Mumbai attacks last week. There is another word, though, that applies equally well: correct. Of course it was impolitic to contradict Manmohan Singh, the Prime Minister, by saying that Britain does not believe the Pakistani state directed the Mumbai attacks. As for suggesting that the root cause of such attacks is Kashmir, surely the FCO recalls India's outrage in 1997 when Robin Cook suggested mediating on that issue? For the current Foreign Secretary of the former colonial ruler to make both these points publicly, while on Indian soil, was either deliberately provocative or incredibly naive. Mr Miliband also managed to cause offence with his tone and body language – a schoolboy error in dealing with a notoriously sensitive partner. The fact remains, however: he was spot on. Indian officials admit in private that there ...

Holbrooke, a former ambassador to the United Nations who negotiated the 1995 peace agreement that ended the Bosnian war, faces an array of challenges in dealing with the war in Afghanistan and its tense and fragile border with Pakistan. Here are some of the problems and possibilities for U.S. action in the region: - President Barack Obama has ordered a review of the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan. He promised during the campaign to bolster troop levels there to battle growing violence and a resurgent Taliban and al Qaeda, but new Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said at her confirmation hearing that a broader strategy was needed in Afghanistan that included diplomacy, defense and development. In addition to more troops in Afghanistan, the United States has promised more nonmilitary aid to Pakistan devoted in part to developing tribal areas where al Qaeda militants have flourished. Osama bin Laden and other top al Qaeda militants are believed to be hiding in the mountainous border regio...

Pakistan People Party (PPP) & Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) (PML(N)) are preparing for a contest in March for senate elections. This is going to decide the short term future of the Pakistani politics as the scenarios emerging from these elections will remain on the scene for some time to come. PPP is in a strong position both at the federal level and the provincial level because of a decent number of seats in every province while PML (N) is only represented in Punjab and will have enormous difficulties in making a strong fist of it if it does not find allies in other parties. PML (Q) holds some cards here as it can tilt the balance of power not only at the federal level but at the provincial level as well and PML (N) will have to decide its future course by either deciding to bargain with PML (Q) or standing against it. Politically, the only way PML (N) could hope to save its government in Punjab and mount a powerful and meaningful opposition at the federal level is by a coalit...

By Sikander Hayat No doubt Barack Obama will face many challenges during his term but these in my view are the top ten challenges to confront him. 1. He must somehow bring American economy back to life. This will be a monumental task to achieve in the short term but must happen for Obama to have any chance of re-election in 2012. 2. Improve America’s image abroad which he has done to some extent by just being elected as president but there is a lot of work to be done especially with the allies in Europe. America must listen to its friends in Europe and not take any future unilateral actions that were George W Bush’s trade mark during his presidency. Stop the non sense about “new Europe and old Europe because George Bush found at his country’s expense that the “ New World Order” that his father proclaimed with America as the sole super power with the Warsaw pact countries replacing old allies is dead and even newer world order with China, Russia, Brazil, EU, India and Gulf A...

By Sikander Hayat Pakistan has beaten Sri Lanka in the first of their three match one day cricket series. Pakistan was helped by a powerful batting display by Salman Butt who scored a hundred and Pakistan won by 8 wickets in the end. This was a good showing for a team which has not been able to play any cricket whatsoever in last few months due to visiting team’s concern over playing in Pakistan. This must be a good sign as by having a cricket match in Karachi, involving a foreign team, without any incident is a promising sign and a win by Pakistan cricket team will prove to be a welcome diversion for the population in general.

Few days ago it was revealed that Prince Harry had called one of his cadet friends at Sandhurst academy a “Paki” by saying that “I have a Paki Friend as well”. Now being a Pakistani who lives in UK, I have always been amazed by the sensitivity shown by the whites and the browns over the use of this word when in Pakistan itself slogans like “Paki Power” , “proud to be Paki” and “don’t mess with the Pakis” are frequently used during cricket matches played in Pakistan. The word Paki was first used as a short form for Pakistani when many immigrants arrived in the UK from Pakistan in the early 60s. Then later on it was started to be used for all brown people (immigrants from all of the subcontinent and from Uganda and Kenya). I can understated the unease of the Indians at being called Paki when clearly they are not from Pakistan but I cannot understand it when people from Pakistan start oos and aws at being called or referred to as Pakis. People from Afghanistan are Afghanis, not Afghan...

By Sikander Hayat Pakistan has scored some major diplomatic wins with British Foreign Minister David stating categorically in New Delhi & Islamabad that contrary to Indian claims no part of Pakistani state was involved in Mumbai attacks. Indian media is calling it a diplomatic disaster for India which has after weeks of campaigning not been able to convince anyone in the international community that Pakistan is involved in atrocities. First US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and now British Foreign Secretary David Miliband, has supported Islamabad's case that anyone from Pakistan found to be involved in the attacks could only be tried in Pakistan. This has led a reluctant Pranab Mukherjee to beat a retreat and instead seek "a fair trial" in Pakistan. Islamabad has already initiated the process to bring to justice any culprits found on is soil. The remarks on Kashmir by British Foreign Secretary David Miliband are indicative of a realisation that seems to be gradu...

By Sikander Hayat Muhammad Asif’s case is turning into an enigma now as nobody knows the extent to which he will be penalised and until such time when this case is concluded, the situation is increasingly becoming embarrassing for the Pakistan cricket board (PCB). I personally believe that Pakistan cricket is paying the price of persevering with Shoaib Akhtar, who has single headedly destroyed the discipline of the team and proved to be a disaster for not only himself but a force of destruction for any young fast bowlers who played alongside him. Shoaib Akhtar used drugs and made people like Asif think that drugs were after all not such a bad option. He must never return to Pakistan cricket in any shape or form for the future of the Pakistan cricket. It has always been the case with Pakistan cricket that when one generation was at its peak, it nurtured the next generation e.g. Sarfraz Nawaz helped Imran khan Immensely and then Imran helped Wasim & Waqar who in turn polished Shoaib’...

By Sikander Hayat Israel has hit UN compound in Gaza with three white phosphorous bombs which was inhabited by 700 Palestinian women, children and elderly people fleeing from the blanket bombardment by the Israelis on Gaza. The compound was on fire and the fate of the people taking refuge there is still unknown. UN’s Ban Ki Mun has called this a grave attack on civilian population and condemned it but Western leaders are absolutely silent and by allowing Israel to flout international laws of war are actually becoming partners in crime. World must understand that the fire of terrorism which is burning us all is fuelled by the images like that of coming out of Gaza. Preachers of hate like Osama Bin Laden have already stated to use this as a propaganda tool to recruit more people to his evil cause. Even David Milliband, the British foreign secretary admits that the Palestinian suffering at the hands of Israelis and the USA’s direct collusion with Israel to that end is the biggest recru...

By Sikander Hayat I don’t usually laugh while reading newspapers but there are some gems which you just cant resist and one of these was the assertion by the a part of Indian establishment that India should “do a Gaza” on Pakistan. To those very few of you who don’t know what that means; India should take similar action against Pakistan what Israel is doing against the Palestinians. I could not stop myself from smiling for few moment and here is why? If Israel knew that there will be no Israel to speak of if it attacked Gaza, there would not have been any action of any kind. Heck, Pakistan is not even Lebanon, where Israel suffered a humiliation recently. India has attacked Pakistan three times before and not even able to get an inch of this land eventually. ( Even Bangladesh decided to remain independent and not part of India ). India is still the same wounded beast that it was in 1947, trying to right the perceived wrongs that it suffered then. Still not able to accept the sovereign...

By Sikander Hayat I have just come back from Pakistan and here are my impressions about the state of the country. I was located in Multan, a city which is part of the Saraiki speaking belt and is situated in Southern Punjab, and Multan was completely peaceful with people busy doing business and making their lives. Same was case with Lahore, capital of the Punjab province and Islamabad (the federal capital of Pakistan). Pakistan is a country with 170 million people and about 8 times larger than Great Britain so some instances of serious nature do take place here and there but saying that Pakistan is going to fail in one way or another is a deeply flawed argument which is full of holes in it. Pakistani economy is vibrant and resistant to any recessionary pressures from outside world mainly because its fundamentals are strong and overseas Pakistanis who are feeling the financial crunch in their adopted countries are bring the money back into the country. Even in Multan, international ban...