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Thursday, August 1, 2013

RE: [chottala.com] Women at the crossroad of religion, politics and patriarchy ....



Dear  Bose
People of Bangladesh will not allow Nastik to run the country, these nastic are really harmful to all religion of Bangladesh.
Nastik  means what is understood in general for people. We do not have to pull the academic meaning per say.
 

To: chottala@yahoogroups.com
From: soumitrabose@gmail.com
Date: Wed, 31 Jul 2013 09:16:57 +0530
Subject: Re: [chottala.com] Women at the crossroad of religion, politics and patriarchy ....

 
jamatis use the word Nastik at every drop of their eyelids. It is a sanskrit word. Jamatis and BNP wallas have shown umpteen times their paltry knowledge of Bangla. Can any of them let us know what is the meaning of Nastik as per its etymology?


On 29 July 2013 09:48, Mohammed Jubair <mohammedjubair@hotmail.com> wrote:
 


Your are back again.  With all due respect, these ladies do not represent majority.
These less than 1% ... so called culturally(pre Islamic culture) inspired ladies.
These ladies do not have any agenda and they are not crossroad of religion and politics as you mentioned.
 
Yes, they are actor  of NastiK shahariar Khabir and gang.
 
Also, all hafazat are not perfect, they are human like you and me with option to say right or wrong.
 
Botton line is we would rather respect opinion of  someone other than Nastik.
 
  

 

To: chottala@yahoogroups.com
From: Syed.Aslam3@gmail.com
Date: Sun, 28 Jul 2013 22:12:50 -0400
Subject: [chottala.com] Women at the crossroad of religion, politics and patriarchy ....

 

Women at the crossroad of religion, politics and patriarchyপ্রিন্ট কর
Rokeya Chowdhury   
বৃহস্পতিবার, ২৫ জুলাই ২০১৩


"The large quantity of guilt attached to sexuality in patriarchy is overwhelmingly placed upon the female, who is, culturally speaking, held to be the culpable or the more culpable party in nearly any sexual liaison, whatever the extenuating circumstances.


 A tendency toward the reification of the female makes her more often a sexual object than a person. This is particularly so when she is denied human rights through chattel status. Even where this has been partly amended the cumulative effect of religion and custom is still very powerful and has enormous psychological consequences. Woman is still denied sexual freedom and the biological control over her body through the cult of virginity, the double standard, the prescription against abortion, and in many places because contraception is physically or psychically unavailable to her."
One could hardly resist reading back this 1969 text of Kate Millet after seeing the much talked about video link of the Hifazat-e Islam Chief, Ahmad Shafi.
And what did this elderly man have to say in his 'sermon' in front of a crowd?
* Men should not allow women to study after grade four-five. Women should receive minimum education only to take care of husband's property.
* Women should be homebound and be responsible for the husband's chattel; they should not roam around 'nakedly' (Ulongo).
* Women commit 'zina'(fornication) while out for study or work, that's why, their income does not carry 'barkat'(blessings).
*Birth control should be denounced; even polygamy could be resorted to for enhancement of the Muslim Umma.
*Coexistence of men and women in public allures men and encourages 'zina'.
Kate Millet was not incorrect in her observation that women are viewed as 'sexual object' rather than a person. It is quite astonishing how each of her lines cited above fits into Shafi's sermon. Ironically even in this 21st century, lives of women are essentially tied up between capitalism and patriarchy, while the former treats her as commodity, the latter holds her as a religious pawn.
 
If it wasn't so, how could Mr. Shafi dare to pronounce those derogatory remarks in a land where women workers constitute 80 per cent of the RMG sector which virtually runs our economy? Why is he allowed to roam around freely even after calling for curtailment of women's rights and choices of life? Would it be impossible to charge Mr. Shafi for defaming all the working forces and academia or for instigating violence against women? Can we allow such impunity when we have incidents like Hawa Akhter Jui who had her hand chopped off by her former husband for continuing college against his will or Rumana Monzur, who though being a university teacher had to lose her vision out of sheer possessiveness of her former husband?
Jui and Rumana were courageous enough to survive those gruesome incidents and they have uplifted our morale by their determination. But let us not forget Hena, the 14-year-old rape victim who was held liable for 'fornication' by a 'religious' edict. While the perpetrator successfully escaped the whipping, Hena could not survive the lashes. We have hundreds of Hena dying each year and may be thousands of perpetrators being trained and instigated by the sort of 'Ilm' (knowledge) spread by Mr. Shafi and like. Thanks to this,  we see a school teacher called a 'whore' in a public meeting for denying covering her head and the court has to declare afresh that women cannot be forced to veil. The court has expressed its concern over increasing social and religious vigilance on what women wear. And to our anguish, comes Mr. Shafi calling for restrictions on women's movement and attire in a disparaging language. But moral policing of women or blaming them for 'moral degradation' is not new in Bangladesh. Even, Hifazat-e Islam made a public admission that this is how religious sermons ('waz') have taken place in the country for decades, so why make a big fuss out of it?
This is indeed something that as a nation we should ask ourselves — why have we allowed this so long? Try any video link of 'waz' from Bangladesh available in the social media, if you believe in equality of sexes and races you are bound to be aggrieved and enraged. Why do we allow such nuisance to continue in the name of religion? Why are these 'sermons' available in stores for purchase, why does not the law step in? How does the authorities concerned remain unmoved even when many have expressed anxiety over presence of children in 'waz', which is a common platform to malign women? Why do we take these so lightly when we have alarming rate of violence against women including fatwa inflicted violence, infant mortality and maternal death?
 
These questions bear more relevance as the Hifazat was allowed and still being allowed to campaign for its most degrading 13-point demand in the name of democracy which includes demand for banning of women policy and 'free mixing of male and female'. In the face of huge uproar and protest from the media, civil society and rights activists Hifazat-e Islam said the organisation was not against women's liberty or right to work or education, they are merely demanding segregation of men and women in public sphere:
"There is nothing to prevent women from getting out of their homes, receiving education, and going to work wearing the hijab or dressing in a manner that is modest. For instance if there can be separate colleges and schools for women then it should not be a problem to create separate workplaces for them."
This explanation is an even more serious blow to the constitutional guarantee of equality of access to public life, education and work and freedom of expression irrespective of sexes. Leave alone constitutionality, narrowing down the demand to practicality it becomes apparent that this demand is being pressed to repress and belittle women. Would they go so far as to demand separate roads, highways, bus service, air crafts, and armed forces for men and women? If they are so determined about segregation then why don't they call out all Arabic teachers to restrain from tutoring female students or prohibit male teachers in female madrassahs?
And the rest has been said clearly and aloud by the Hifazat Chief and the organisation on principle has given its approval to what the leader said: "Women should be homebound and be responsible for husband's chattel". Let us take the opportunity to remember that it is the same organisation which not so long ago has publicly assaulted a female journalist, Nadia Sharmin of ETV for trying to collect news in a 'male gathering'. Similarly, the Finanical Express reporter Arafat Ara in Dhaka and Mohona TV Chief Reporter Sumi Khan in Chittagong were obstructed by Hifazat activists. Later the organisation leaders regretted the attacks, but they also requested female journalists not to cover its rally in Jessore.
 
Even after all these had happened, what reaction did we get from our Parliament which has female speaker, prime minister, opposition leader, several ministerial positions chaired by women including those from the 50 reserved seats. MP Syeda Asifa Ashrafi Papia of BNP said all that Hifazat was preaching was aimed at "security of women" and Mr. Shafi is being maligned through a 'media coup'. May be this is what is called 'condemnation of the condemner'. A ray of hope ushered in when the prime minister condemned the Hifazat chief, but it was short lived as she could not break through the patriarchal spell and took resort to the same terminology in impugning the opposition leader. We have again witnessed narrow party interest and vote count getting the upper hand over public interest.
And for those who think Hifazat-e Islam activists are some aliens residing in Quami Madrassas only, time has come to do a realty check. Our educational institutions, both private and public, are witnessing an increase of students bearing the idea that there should be seclusion of men and women in work and education. There is also a growing tendency among students to narrow down every aspect of public policy to religion. While giving lectures on Muslim Law, I have had a lot of difficulties dealing with students who would bring a non-authentic translation of the Quran in the class and argue over each and every statutory reform, even ones as harmless as marriage registration. Needless to say the texts referred to are utterly disrespectful to women.
But isn't that something which is bound to happen, because the whole fabric is somehow disrespectful and has an enmity towards women? Isn't it unbelievable that sitting in a law faculty it is not possible to run a Google search with the keywords 'sexual harassment' because it includes the three lettered word 'sex'? Isn't it true that we advertise sanitary napkins 24/7 but we have to carry it wrapped when we buy it? Do we not have a popular song which goes "Chumki choleche eka pothe, songi hole dosh ki tate?" Do we not have TV commercials presenting women as commodity, always craving for luxuries of life, beauty without brain and always belittled by men, be it husband, father-in-law or a fish seller? Don't we have colleagues and teachers and classmates who always try to portray women to be less competent, fragile and timid? Yes, we live in a society where women face systemic discrimination. Here every woman has to play an identity performance, the continuous struggle of proving her worth, for not being considered a lesser being –'woman'. A woman has more to prove, as a competent worker, a home maker, a loving wife and caring mother and more so to pass the social scrutiny of purity, which is tainted every now and then.
No wonder, while Mr. Shafi adds fuel to the fire our administration sleeps on our rights. Even when the existing data shows that most of the fatwa inflicted violence has involvement of Quami Madrasa students, our very own government increases budget allocation for madrassa education each year. Time and again, patriarchy and religion walk hand in hand.  So, let us keep the way for uniform and mass education blocked, let us restrict free flow of information, let us groom the abusers and let us cry on the abused, let us allow Mr. Shafi to preach, let us keep the abuser of our women, Ghulam Azama alive…let us turn back the clock…indeed, we have turned back the clock long ago!
—————————
Rokeya Chowdhury is a lecturer, Faculty of Law, Dhaka University.
http://www.news-bangla.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11511&Itemid=26



আহমদ শফী যা বলেছেন
ইত্তেফাক ডেস্ক

আহমদ শফী যা বলেছেন







13 Jul 2013   12:10:55 PM   Saturday BdST
   

অবমাননা কি পুরুষেরও নয়?


গীতি আরা নাসরীন
বাংলানিউজটোয়েন্টিফোর.কম






Gitiara-nasrinঅধ্যাপক ড. গীতি আরা নাসরীন: সাবেক চেয়ারপারসন, গণযোগাযোগ ও সাংবাদিকতা বিভাগ, ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় gitiaran@yahoo.com


 
 
বাংলাদেশ সময়: ১১৪৮ ঘণ্টা, জুলাই ১৩, ২০১৩
জেডএম/জুয়েল মাজহার, কনসালট্যান্ট এডিটর
http://www.banglanews24.com/detailsnews.php?nssl=41a0a03bbd1fa902a86fee1eebbb457f&nttl=13072013210179

Related:
শফীর বক্তব্য জঘন্য: শেখ হাসিনা

নিজস্ব প্রতিবেদক  বিডিনিউজ টোয়েন্টিফোর ডটকম

ওয়াজে নারীদের নিয়ে আহমদ শফীর বক্তব্যকে জঘন্য বলে আখ্যায়িত করেছেন প্রধানমন্ত্রী শেখ হাসিনা।

http://bangla.bdnews24.com/bangladesh/article646506.bdnews

ANTI-WOMEN REMARKS

PM blasts Hefajat chief

Video: 

Avjøvgv kwdi eqvbÑ wKQz cÖvmw½K cÖkœ ˆmq` gvneyeyi iwk` : mv‡eK BwcwmGm, Kjvwg÷ †fv‡ii KvMR : kwbevi, 13 RyjvB 2013

http://www.bhorerkagoj.net/new/blog/2013/07/13/127244.php


11 Jul 2013   12:55:19 PM   Thursday BdST
   

নারীদের নিয়ে কুরুচিপূর্ণ বক্তব্য শফীর (ভিডিও)


নিউজ ডেস্ক
বাংলানিউজটোয়েন্টিফোর.কম
Video URL: 

নারীদের নিয়ে কুরুচিপূর্ণ বক্তব্য শফীর (ভিডিও)
আল্লামা শাহ আহমদ শফী

ঢাকা: হেফাজতে ইসলামের আমির আল্লামা শাহ আহমদ শফী নারীদের স্বাধীনতা, শিক্ষা ও চাকরি সম্পর্কে কুরুচিপূর্ণ, সভ্যতা ও উন্নয়ন বিরোধী মন্তব্য করেছেন। ইন্টারনেটে প্রকাশিত একটি ওয়াজ মাহফিলে ভিডিওচিত্রে তার এ ধরনের বক্তব্য পাওয়া গেছে। বর্তমান বিশ্ব যেখানে নারীদের স্বাধীনতা, স্বনির্ভরতার ওপর জোর দিচ্ছে, তিনি আছেন উল্টো পথে।

ওয়াজে নারীদের তিনি তুলনা করেছেন তেঁতুলের সঙ্গে। তেঁতুল দেখলে মানুষের যেমন জিভে জল আসে তেমনি নারীদের দেখলে 'দিলের মইধ্যে লালা বাইর হয়' বলে মন্তব্য করেছেন তিনি। আল্লামা শফির ওই বক্তব্য নিয়ে সোশ্যাল মিডিয়া ফেসবুকসহ নানান ব্লগে এখন সমালোচনার ঝড় বইছে। বিভিন্ন শ্রেণী-পেশার মানুষ ওই বক্তব্যের নিন্দা জানাচ্ছেন। এ বিষয়ে এরই মধ্যে নারী নেত্রীরাও প্রতিবাদ জানিয়েছেন।

শফীর মতে, নারীদের কাজ হলো আসবাবপত্রের যত্ন নেওয়া, সন্তান লালন-পালন করা, ঘরের মধ্যে থাকা। ...... 

Watch Video at:   http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=R-cd6P-u4WY
Read details at : http://www.banglanews24.com/detailsnews.php?nssl=dcc6eb2145ef8a8f576cb97b62e79359&nttl=11072013209787
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    19 hours ago - নারীদের স্বাধীনতা, শিক্ষা ও চাকরি সম্পর্কে হেফাজতে ইসলামের আমীর আল্লামা শাহ আহমদ শফীর দেওয়া কুরুচিপূর্ণ বক্তব্যের প্রতিবাদে রাজধানীতে মানববন্ধন হয়েছে। ... মানববন্ধনে অংশ নিয়ে নাট্যকার রোকেয়া প্রাচী বলেন, "আল্লামা শফীর মতো একজন ধর্মপ্রাণ মানুষ নারীদের নিয়েএ ধরনের বক্তব্য দিতে পারেন না। এ বক্তব্যের ...













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[chottala.com] RIGHT WING DEATH SQUAD IN BANGLADESH

Well it seems their is right wing death Squad in Bangladesh..they are selling people and exporting man power from Bangladesh..it seems they are taking special interest in Mixed religion couples..such as Husband Moslem, wife Hindu or wife Hindu Husband Moslem or Buddhist etc.many are Aga Khanis too.I think they are finding it cheaper to just kill them in Bangladesh many be in other countries too..they sell the dead ones..and many are revived and migrated to many countries as Jews..and seems Flourishing Business and Dr Md Yunus Garmeen Bank and its associate Banks are..very devout in this thru their Bank network..

If any one wish to post experience with this type of right wing death squad may just put the story on the web..



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[chottala.com] Jamatee Islam






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[chottala.com] খালেদা জিয়া বুধবার পবিত্র ওমরাহ পালন করেন। বিএনপির চেয়ার পারসনের কার্যালয় থেকে পাঠানো ছবি।



ওমরাহ করলেন খালেদা জিয়া
অনলাইন ডেস্ক | আপডেট: ১৮:১০, আগস্ট ০১, ২০১৩


বিরোধীদলীয় নেতা ও বিএনপির চেয়ারপারসন খালেদা জিয়া পবিত্র ওমরাহ পালন করেছেন। সৌদি স্থানীয় সময় বুধবার দিবাগত রাত দুইটার দিকে তাওয়াফ শুরু করেন খালেদা জিয়া। ওমরাহ শেষে তিনি পবিত্র মক্কায় ফজরের নামাজ আদায় করেন। খবর বাসসের।

ওমরাহ শেষে খালেদা জিয়া দেশ, জাতি ও মুসলিম উম্মাহর সুখ, শান্তি, উন্নয়ন ও অগ্রগতি কামনা করে বিশেষ দোয়া ও মোনাজাত করেন। এ সময় সফরসঙ্গী হিসেবে ছিলেন খালেদা জিয়ার ছোট ভাই শামীম এস্কান্দর, তাঁর স্ত্রী ও দুই সন্তান, বিএনপি চেয়ারপারসনের উপদেষ্টা মোসাদ্দেক আলী, বিএনপির ভাইস চেয়ারম্যান শমসের মবিন চৌধুরী, বিএনপির অর্থবিষয়ক সম্পাদক আবদুস সালাম এবং বিরোধীদলীয় নেতার একান্ত সচিব এ এস এম সালেহ আহমেদ।

খালেদা জিয়া পবিত্র ওমরাহ পালনের জন্য গত ২৭ জুলাই সন্ধ্যায় সৌদি আরবের উদ্দেশে ঢাকা ত্যাগ করেন। ৭ আগস্ট তাঁর দেশে ফেরার কথা।


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[chottala.com] Embassy of Bangladesh--National Mourning Day--15 August 2013



Dear member (s) of Bangladesh community :
In observance of the National Mourning Day, marking the 38th martyrdom of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Embassy of Bangladesh in Washington, DC will hold a discussion meeting and doa mahfil at the Bangabandhu Auditorium of the Embassy.

All are requested to attend.
Time: 07.00 PM, 15TH August, 2013, Thursday
Venue:  Bangabandhu Auditorium,
Embassy of Bangladesh
3510 International Drive, N.W
Washington, D.C. 20008
Sincerely
Nirupam Dev Nath
First Secretary ( Political & Culture)
Embassy of Bangladesh   
3510 International Drive, NW
Washington DC 20008, USA
Phone: ( 202) 244-3658


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[chottala.com] Appeal to British and Pakistani Governments - stop supporting MQM



Altaf Hussain, the notorious MQM leader who swapped Pakistan for London

Altaf Hussain lives in London but leads Pakistan's powerful, controversial MQM party, which has millions of supporters. He has also been acccused of inciting murder and violence in his home country

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/29/altaf-hussain-mqm-leader-pakistan-london?INTCMP=SRCH

Pakistan's most vibrant, vivacious and popular 24-hour news channel, Geo TV, generally has little difficulty recruiting staff. Its headquarters are in Karachi, Pakistan's so called "city of dreams" – a massive, sprawling conurbation with 20 million residents seeking a better life. And yet there was one vacancy recently that Geo TV could not fill. The channel wanted a lookalike for its popular satirical show, in which actors play the parts of the country's leading politicians. It was a job offering instant stardom and good money. And not a single person in Karachi was willing to do it.

The man Geo TV sought to satirise was Altaf Hussain, the leader of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM). And the reason no one applied was the fear that if Altaf Hussain were unamused by the performance, the actor playing him would be murdered.

Anxiety about the MQM is not restricted to Pakistan. One member of the British House of Lords who has been openly critical of the MQM recently said: "If I went to Karachi now I would be killed." Another peer has similar worries: "This is one issue I don't ask questions on. I have my child to worry about."

The man who has everyone looking over his or her shoulder does not even live in Karachi. For more than 20 years, Altaf Hussain has operated from the north London suburb of Edgware, beyond the reach of Pakistani prosecutors. He is almost completely unknown in the UK: his four-million-plus devoted supporters live thousands of miles away.

It's difficult to know how many murder cases have been registered against Altaf Hussain, but perhaps the most authoritative number was released in 2009 when the then Pakistani president General Pervez Musharraf implemented his National Reconciliation Order, granting most of the country's senior politicians an amnesty. One of the biggest beneficiaries was Hussain, against 72 cases were dropped, including 31 allegations of murder. The MQM rejects all the murder charges lodged against Hussain.

When Pakistan was created in 1947 it had a population of 70 million. As well as the Bengalis in East Pakistan (who split away to form Bangladesh in 1971) there were four main indigenous groups: the Sindhis, the Baloch, the Pashtuns and the Punjabis. Partition brought a new element: Muslims who had fled Hindu-majority India. They were called the Mohajirs and most settled in Karachi, which was then the capital of Pakistan. This is the group represented by the Mohajir Qaumi Movement or, as it's now named, the Muttahida (United) Qaumi Movement or MQM.

At first the Mohajirs fared well. As many had spearheaded the campaign to create the country, they slipped naturally into leadership positions. But their disproportionate influence could never last. By the 70s a political backlash, especially from Punjabis and Sindhis, was in full swing and many Mohajirs found themselves unable to secure jobs or even places in schools and universities. For a group that thought it had the right to govern, it came as a heavy blow. And the first man to exploit the Mohajirs' sense of grievance was Hussain.

In 1988 MQM candidates broke through, and suddenly the party was the third largest in the National Assembly and has dominated Karachi politics ever since. Hussain has periodically flirted with demands for some kind of territorial settlement: "When everyone else had a province," he said in March 1984, "we said the Mohajirs should have one too." But for the most part he has accepted that such a demand is plainly unacceptable to the rest of Pakistan and has restricted himself to demands for greater Mohajir rights within the existing national framework.

The MQM's most vocal critic today is cricketer-turned-playboy-turned-Islamist-politician Imran Khan. In 2007, portraying himself as the man who dared to confront even the most entrenched political interests, Khan paid a visit to the Metropolitan police in London to hand over, he claimed, evidence of Hussain's wrongdoing. Apparently unimpressed with the quality of that evidence, the police did not bring any charges and Khan let the issue drop. But in May this year when one of his best-known party activists in Karachi, Zahra Shahid Hussain, was shot down outside her home, Khan openly accused the MQM of her murder. Thousands of his social media-savvy supporters were encouraged to complain to the British police. More than 12,000 did so and the police responded by, for the first time, formally investigating Altaf Hussain's London activities.

There are a number of strands to the Met's inquiries. First there is the issue of whether the MQM leader is using his London base to incite violence in Pakistan. In assessing that, the police have a huge amount of material to sift through, much of it online. At his birthday party in 2009, for example, he regaled his guests with a remark aimed at Pakistan's rich landowners and businessmen: "You've made big allegations against the MQM. If you make those allegations to my face one more time you'll be taking down your measurements and we'll prepare your body bags."

Because he is in London, Hussain addresses rallies in Karachi over the telephone. Crowds gather to listen to his voice through loudspeakers. In one such speech he had this message for TV anchors: "If you don't stop the lies and false allegations that damage our party's reputation, then don't blame me, Altaf Hussain, or the MQM if you get killed by any of my millions of supporters."

Most of his threats have been aimed at people in Pakistan but at least one was directed at the UK journalist Azhar Javaid who asked a question once too often. At a press conference in September 2011 Hussain warned Javaid that his "body bag was ready".

Adressing those whom he accused of denying the Mohajirs their rights, in December 2012, Hussain ranted: "If your father won't give us freedom just listen to this sentence carefully: then we will tear open your father's abdomen. To get our freedom we will not only tear it out of your father's abdomen but yours as well."

Partly because of the difficulty of establishing unchallengeable translations of Hussain's words, it might be months before the police decide whether to recommend a prosecution. In the meantime there is talk of a private prosecution. Long-time MQM critic George Galloway MP recently set up a fund to pay the legal fees of such an initiative.

On two occasions British judges have found that the MQM is a violent organisation. In 2010 a Karachi-based police officer sought asylum in the UK claiming the MQM was threatening to kill him in revenge for his having registered a case against one of its members. The judge, Lord Bannatyne, granted asylum and in his judgment accepted that: "the MQM has killed over 200 police officers who stood up to them in Karachi".

The figure is often cited by the Karachi police themselves, and refers to those officers who were closely involved in Benazir Bhutto's anti-MQM crackdown, Operation Clean-up. It came in 1995, during Bhutto's second government. Unable to rely on the slow, intimidated and corrupt courts, which were always nervous to convict MQM defendants, the security forces resorted to hundreds if not thousands of extrajudicial killings of MQM activists. Many of the police officers responsible have subsequently been murdered. MQM, however, refutes any allegations of inciting violence from London.

When asked about these allegations, MQM issued the following statement to the Guardian: "We'd also like to point out here that it is the MQM that has been the worst victim of violence in recent history of the country. The Taliban and other jihadi elements have killed scores of MQM members … "

As well as the incitement investigation, the British police are currently running another MQM-related inquiry. It concerns the September 2010 murder of a senior MQM member, Imran Farooq, who was stabbed to death outside his flat in Green Lane, Edgware. For the UK authorities, his murder crossed a red line. London is open to outsiders – but they have to leave their violent politics back home.

The Counter Terrorism Command have launched a massive and sustained investigation into Farooq's death. In December last year they raided the MQM's Edgware offices where they found substantial thousands of documents. Since most of the material is in Urdu and some, from MQM lawyers, is subject to client privilege, assessing it is extremely time-consuming. But with 12 officers working on the case full-time and a whole range of specialists available to carry out specific tasks when needed, the police are still showing real determination to trace Farooq's killer.

In its statement to the Guardian, the MQM said: "MQM understands that as part of that ongoing investigation, the Metropolitan police have interviewed several hundred people. MQM has assisted the ongoing police investigation whenever it has been requested to do so. A number of MQM party members have also voluntarily offered to be witnesses to assist the ongoing police investigation. Mr Altaf Hussain, MQM's party leader, has not been arrested nor charged with any criminal offence. The police are treating Mr Hussain as one of a large number of potential witnesses in their investigation and not as a suspect."

Right from the start the police raids in the investigation have produced rich material. Shortly after the 2010 murder the police found a significant number of papers stashed in Farooq's home. Some of the documents gave credence to the confessions made by a number of suspected MQM militants in Karachi. Repeatedly, MQM activists there had told the Pakistani authorities they were trained in India. Asked on numerous occasions over a period of several weeks about its relationship with the MQM, Indian government officials have failed to make any statement on the matter. Recent police raids have turned up £150,000 at the party's Edgware's offices and £250,000 at Hussain's house in Mill Hill.

The police say they are making significant progress in the Farooq murder case and have an ever-clearer understanding of what they believe was a conspiracy to kill him. Their investigation, however, is complicated by the fact that the MQM has supporters deep within the Pakistani state who want to protect it, and more cynical actors such as Pakistan's main intelligence agency, the ISI, which want to control it.

However, the recent elections in Pakistan have left the MQM politically weaker and there is a distinct possibility that the government of Nawaz Sharif will be less protective of the MQM than the last administration.

Aware that Farooq's killer or killers may be thousands of miles away and, the British Police believe, back in Pakistan, the UK investigation has focused on who might have ordered the murder. Having promised full co-operation with the British authorities Hussain has also complained that he is the subject of a witch-hunt and a conspiracy.

Recent British police actions have included the arrest (he is now bailed until September) of Altaf Hussain's nephew, Ishtiaq Hussain. The police won't divulge why he was arrested. Intriguingly, Altaf Hussain also let slip that he himself and MQM were being investigated for money laundering. This is now one of the most active elements of the British police's work. The question is: where does all the money seized in the raids and that used to buy the MQM's extensive UK property portfolio come from? In the statement to the Guardian, the MQM deny the laundering allegations.

"It is reiterated here that the party, its leader Mr Altaf Hussain or any other member of the Party has never dealt with any money that is the proceeds of crime. MQM's legal team has already submitted effective answers to questions concerning the cash seized from the party's office, whereas legal responses would be submitted shortly concerning the cash seized from Mr Altaf Hussain's residence."

With a condescension that is increasingly grating to the Pakistani public, Washington and London produce a regular flow of statements expressing concern about various Pakistani human rights abuses. But the whole issue of human rights monitoring is suffused with double standards. The abuses listed by the US and the UK are in fact little more than diplomatic ammunition held in reserve and deployed should the need arise.

The UK itself has questions to answer. It has resisted repeated Pakistani requests to hand over Hussain so that he can stand trial for murder in Pakistan. Hussain arrived in London in February 1992 and just three years later, Benazir Bhutto – then prime minister – was asking for London's help. "I think the British government has a moral responsibility to restrain Mr Altaf Hussain and say you cannot use our soil for violence," she said. Eighteen years later, Imran Khan's appeal was strikingly similar: "I blame the British government. Would they allow someone to sit in Pakistan and threaten people in the UK? They know about his track record."

If Hussain were a suspected London-based jihadi, many Pakistanis believe, he would have been arrested years ago.

Pakistanis point to other instances where they believe the UK has favoured Hussain. In 2002 he was issued with a UK passport. Off the record, British officials admit that the process by which he obtained nationality was flawed – a decision in January 1999 to grant him indefinite leave to remain in the UK was made as a result of a "clerical error". Despite repeated questions, the Home Office has refused to disclose what that error was.

Most Pakistanis dismiss the idea of a clerical error as risible. They point to a letter No 10 received from Hussain as evidence of how the UK and the MQM have tried to conceal the true nature of their relationship. Written just two weeks after 9/11, in it Hussain says that if the UK wanted hundreds of thousands of people on the streets of Karachi denouncing terrorism he could lay that on with just five days' notice. He claimed he could also organise human intelligence on the Taliban and could set up a network of fake aid workers in Afghanistan to back up Western intelligence gathering efforts there.

After a copy of the letter appeared on the internet, the MQM denied its authenticity. Disclosures under the Freedom of Information Act have established that the letter is in fact authentic. Faced with that information, the Foreign Office admitted it had received the letter.

As Hussain suggests in the letter, British interest in the MQM is largely driven by the perception that the party offers a defence against jihadis. But there is more to it than that. The MQM is British turf: Karachi is one of the few places left on earth in which the Americans let Britain take the lead. The US consulate in Karachi no longer runs active intelligence gathering operations in the city. The British still do. When it comes to claiming a place at the top table of international security politics – London's relationship with the MQM is a remaining toehold.

And there's something else. The FCO's most important currency is influence. Successive Pakistani governments, when they are not demanding Hussain's extradition, have included his parliamentary bloc in various coalition governments. From the FCO's point of view, it's a great source of access. Right on their doorstep, in London, they have a man with ministers in the Pakistani government.

For its part the UK government insists there is nothing unusual about its contacts with MQM and that its meetings with MQM officials are: "a normal part of diplomatic activity around the world". I spoke to a British official recently about the MQM and asked why the UK government, so keen to declare its commitment to human rights, seemed so willing to deal with the party despite officials privately saying that it uses violence to achieve its goals. She said: "There is one thing I can assure you of – it's not a conspiracy." Which in a sense is true. It's not a conspiracy. It's just policy.

Owen Bennett-Jones is the author of Target Britain



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[chottala.com] BARBARISM IN BURMA: NO USE IN TEACHING A NAZI LIKE BURMESE MILITARY REGIME!



No use in teaching a Nazi like Burmese racist military regime!

In Burma, time for lecture should be over. It is time for action against the genocidal racist military working behind President Thein Sein. People uprooted now are in concentration camps. Government wants these people either to be killed by the mob led by monks or be vanished from the earth. US ambassador is giving good and impressive lectures, now Canadian and European countries also sending officials to lectures to these war criminals. Did they change to use police and the security personnel to stop the violations? No. Please check the following video:

BARBARISM IN BURMA
Video: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=487424034664691&set=vb.100001912960155&type=2&theater


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