My article: For whom the bell tolls

I dont know how much my readers/visitors have been keeping up with their current affairs and general knowledge, but Pakistan is in dire straits these days because of a blunder on a grand scale committed by our very "moderately enlightened" President, General Pervez Musharraf. He sacked the country's Chief Justice and didnt defer to any higher authority or rule of law while doing so, naturally causing an uproar in the country's legal community, which has now spread to every corner. All are asking for his resignation.

The question then becomes, how many of us here in the West are cognizant of what's going on in Pakistan, a key "ally" of the U.S.? The fact of the matter is, the mass media has yet again proven that it is unreliable and so we are compelled to go to alternative sources for our information. Thank God!

Copied below is an article I wrote for my column, published last week. Apologies for the delay in posting this, but I look forward to comments.

For whom the bell tolls

It was the fall of 1999 when General Pervez Musharraf took the reins of government in Pakistan after a bloodless coup. I was at a friend’s place and as I was leaving, his mother informed us of this tragic change in the country’s political climate. She was worried and sullen and I decided it was in my best interest to head straight home, lest I should worry my family.

At that point, and in the following days – which I frankly cannot remember – we did not see many changes. Same politics, different day. We embraced it and hoped Musharraf’s liberal reform agenda would work wonders. Who were we kidding?

Now over seven years later, we have a competitive economy, a vibrant media, and at least more prosperity than under the Bhutto and Sharif regimes in the 1990s. But it was not until the sacking of Chief Justice Chaudhry that it all hit home for me: this was all an illusion; an army general will always remain a general. His place is on the country’s border. His job? To protect. Not to govern civil society.

When I found out about the public outcry over the way CJ Chaudhry was dismissed, my heart yearned to be with my countrymen. For once, the people who I least expected to take to the streets – were actually first to be seen on them. For once, our civil society could boast of a peaceful protest. I was going to say bloodless, but then I recalled the images of the dozens who were beaten for defending the rule of law, for defending the interests of the masses, for keeping the layman in mind when they fought for that which was taken from them: justice.

Today, Musharraf’s empire is slowly crumbling, eroding at the peripheries, and we all know that what erodes from the borders, slowly but steadily makes its way to the centre. Is this the start of a revolution? God knows we do not need one of those! But I do sincerely hope, for our people’s sake, that change does come. Just like Muslims need reform – not the religion, but those who interpret it – this process must begin from the inside and must remain true to the cause. Collective action must not turn into personal struggle. The struggle will always be one.

In the process, though, I fear that my greatest fear will see its realisation: that Pakistanis will lose heart if they do not see their desired needs met and requirements fulfilled. I hope through this column I can explain to them, that they have already proved whatever they needed to prove, that their voices have come out strong and resilient and that they will not live in fear anymore.

GEO TV’s station may have been vandalised and almost destroyed, but Pakistanis are smart enough to know that intimidation is the first of many tactics a state employs to silence and repress its public. Years ago it happened to Najam Sethi of The Friday Times, and today it happens under Musharraf. He will not remain king forever, but when the next one comes around, we must remain bonded and hold our heads high.

Musharraf wanted so badly that his countrymen adopt the idea of “enlightened moderation”. Today, many more have instead become entranced by violent fanaticism, while many more never even paid heed to his theories to begin with. He was a good talker, but those who talk the talk, do not always walk the walk. Musharraf’s gait should now show us a hint of hesitance and tremor, instead of the arrogance we are accustomed to seeing. He has shaken our world for too long; soon, the quaking will stop.

I can see it in the twinkle of a young child’s eye.

“Hum dekhain gay…Laazim hai ke hum bhi dekhain gay…Woh din ke jis ka waadah hai…Jo Loh-e-Azl pe likha hai…Hum dekhain gay” (We shall see…It is necessary that we shall also see…That day which has been promised…Which is written with God’s ink…We shall see) – Poetry by Faiz Ahmed Faiz, translation by Ayesha Kaljuvee.

Article: Dubai tours offer positive view of Islam

This is an interesting concept that i'm sure Saudis and Israelis are using, and is one that Pakistanis should use too - especially because of their high profile in the media. I've been giving a lot of books on Pakistan to interested friends recently, and have seen their facial expressions change vivdly as they peruse the different sections of the books. Reliance on mainstream media must be changed. Thank God for alternative media!

Dubai tours offer positive view of Islam

Leader funds mosque tours for Western visitors to clear up misconceptions

The Associated Press

Updated: 12:51 p.m. ET Oct 24, 2006

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - With tensions high between the Western and Islamic worlds, Dubai's leaders are trying to help with an unusual new form of tourism in this Gulf Arab boomtown best known for shopping and sunbathing.

Dubai's leader, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is funding mosque tours for Western visitors that aim to clear up misconceptions about Islam, especially that the religion condones violence. The ultimate goal is defusing strains between Muslims and Christians that rose after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in the United States, and the war in Iraq.

The hope is that tourists can spread understanding of Muslims in their home countries.

"They are our messengers," said Abdallah bin Eisa al-Serkal, a 40-year-old real estate salesman who moonlights as director of the Sheik Mohammed Center for Cultural Understanding.

The tours of Jumeirah Mosque have grown over a decade from irregular gatherings of a dozen people to five-times-weekly tours of a hundred or more.

Now, the government-linked center wants to expand inside the United Arab Emirates and beyond with an eye on the more than 1 million Westerners, mostly Europeans, who visit every year.

It has budgeted $2.7 million for a multimedia center devoted to Islam and Arab culture at the mosque. The center is also expanding tours to seven more mosques in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, capital of the Emirates.

On a recent Sunday, about 100 Western tourists reclined on perfumed carpet under the soaring dome of the Jumeirah Mosque to listen to al-Serkal describe the beliefs of 1.5 billion Muslims, with references to common themes in Judaism and Christianity.

He explained the idea behind Ramadan fasting — sacrificing things you like — and demonstrated Muslim prayer technique: standing, bowing, kneeling, sitting and then pressing his forehead to the carpet.

Then he revealed the contents of his prayers. Standing, he cleared his mind of anything related to work. Kneeling he recited a bit of the Quran. Prostrate, he whispered "glory to God in the highest." And sitting he prayed for his parents.

Tourists had plenty of questions, asking about the differences between Sunni and Shiite sects, and between Christianity and Islam, as well as Islam's problem with violent extremists. Two of the 19 hijackers in the Sept. 11 attacks were from the Emirates.

Briton Steve Smith, 53, who works for the London Underground train system, said al-Serkal's message didn't explain how suicide bombers could use Islam in 2005 to justify killing 52 commuters.

"This message is all peace and happiness. As an English person I see the bad side of it. How can you equate one with the other?" Smith asked.

Al-Serkal said Muslim lands suffer from extremist "psychos and crazy people."

An American woman asked why men and women worship separately. Al-Serkal responded by separating men and women on opposite halves of the mosque and aligned them shoulder to shoulder, like Muslims at prayer.

He asked a Belgian man, "If a strange woman has her shoulder pressed against yours, are you going to be able to concentrate?"

"No," the Belgian replied.

Separating men from women prevents distractions, al-Serkal said.

It isn't just tourists who seek answers about Islam in Dubai. The Jumeirah mosque recently hosted 180 U.S. Navy sailors and an American businesswomen's group.

The center has managed to turn its Ramadan fast-breaking dinners into a vogue event for Western diplomats and dignitaries.

Eventually, the center wants to open branches in Europe and North America. Al-Serkal stressed that he wants only to improve the West's view of Islam, not chase converts.

Al-Serkal's message did make some headway. Belgian Lode De Busscher, 43, and his Slovak wife Zdenka Ochodnicka, 33, said they now questioned their "very negative" opinions of Muslims in Belgium.

Ochodnicka said she was scared when arriving in Dubai seeking women veiled and men in traditional Arab robes. After a few days, she realized Dubai was safe and that her negative impressions stemmed from television.

"When anything is Muslim, it's automatically negative," Ochodnicka said. "Maybe it shouldn't be that way. That's why I'm glad I came here. Now I'm open to this."

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15400715/