March 29, was also no different for the community. At least five people were gunned down and six others received critical injuries when a van carrying people from Hazara community was ambushed on Spini road in Quetta. The assailants still remain ‘unidentified’ and at large as usual. Sajjad Hussain, one of my friends from the community, told this author the horrible incident took place just a few yards from check posts of Frontier Constabulary and police. So what? The security agencies have got hundred other important errands to do.

Available statistics show that around half a million Hazaras live in Quetta while more than 700 – obviously innocent – have been killed so far. The community is generally considered to be peaceful and nonviolent. Who is behind the killings? Intelligence agencies? Banned outfit – Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (Balochistan unit)? Dissident Baloch or activists of Balochistan Liberation Army? Or foreign element is behind the killings of the community?

Whatsoever, don’t worry. The security agencies have been working on some ‘valuable’ leads and culprits will be exposed soon. Wait, please. Brief and tarnished history of our country as it is shows us that back in 1971, our hyperactive security agencies made their best to staunch the uprising in East Pakistan with the help of al-Badar. Yes, you got it. The outfit was an offshoot of Jamat-e-Islami and was tasked to teach a lesson to ‘traitors’ in East Pakistan – now Bangladesh.

Who has imported Punjab-based Lashkar-e-Jhangvi – an extremist outfit obviously – to Balochistan? Is it created on the same lines of al-Badar? We leave these questions better to be answered by people sitting at the helm of affairs. But remember one thing; much touted foreign element behind unrest in Balochistan is yet to be exposed; let alone bringing killers of Hazara community to justice.

However, the most intriguing is the version of locals on the routine killings. My friend Sajjad who left Quetta some three years back owing to life threats opine that most of the attacks on the community take place in Baloch populated areas. The impression is given the community is being eliminated by Baloch dissidents as they are out for Greater Balochistan. Matter of the fact is the community is provoked against Baloch rebels after each incident. It seems as if the ‘secret hands’ want to crush the rebels with the help of Hazara community, this is what the locals say.

Irony of the situation is that federal and provincial governments have never bothered to constitute any ‘high-powered’ inquiry committee to probe genocide of the community. Hyperactive and restless Rehman Malik has also never deemed it worthy of paying a visit to Quetta to get updates on killing of the community. Obviously, the president and prime minister have got dozens other matters of public interest to look into and they issue statements from Islamabad to resolve Balochistan issue. What else can they do?

The complaint of the community has got weight that Chief Justice being a native of Balochistan remains oblivious to the almost daily attacks on the community. Massacre of Hazara community is, indeed, a matter of public interest and we plead to the chief justice through this article to take suo moto notice of the issue to mitigate sufferings of the community. The provincial government and law enforcement agencies should be directed to immediately restore sense of security in the community; otherwise they could also – God forbid – raise slogan for liberation of Balochistan.

Time is running out. Let’s see how and when our public representatives tackle the horrifying issue.

Image via Wikipedia

Guppu.Com | News Alert | Int’l Desk
Source/Credit: Dawn News
By News Agencies | September 20, 2011

QUETTA: Gunmen opened fire on a bus in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan in a suspected sectarian attack on Tuesday, killing around 24 Shia Muslim pilgrims travelling to Iran, police said.

“The bus was travelling to the town of Tuftan when it was attacked,” a police official in Quetta, the provincial capital, told Reuters.

The gunmen were riding on a motorcycle. According to sources the gunmen entered the bus and opened fire, DawnNews reported.

Emergency was declared in hospitals in Quetta. The death toll is expected to rise.

See original post here: Around 24 Shia pilgrims killed in Quetta

Editors Note: We’re launching this new series in the wake of worst on going sectarian crises in Pakistan. We have named it as “Sectarian Emergency!” Please write to us and contribute blog posts / news items on the subject.

Related articles

• Deadly gun attack on Pakistan bus (bbc.co.uk)

Journalist Abdost Rind, who had been working for an Urdu language newspaper, the Daily Eagle, is reported to have been shot repeatedly by unidentified assailants on February 18 while on his way home from work.

“The killing of Abdos Rind raises further concern over the ability of media workers in Pakistan to exercise the fundamental human right of freedom of expression,” said the Director-General of the UN Scientific, Educational and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Irina Bokova.

Rind’s death marks the second media worker killed in Balochistan this year, according to the International Federation of Journalists.

According to press freedom advocacy group, Reporters Without Borders, a total of eleven journalists were killed in Pakistan last year, making it the most dangerous place in the world for the profession.

Here we are listing down the best youth based donating channels which are very trusted and NAMP is continuously coordinating with them.

Pakistan Youth Alliance:

Pakistan Youth Alliance has been amazingly reaching out to the far flung areas, even those areas where no official relief has reached yet. The very trusted source which is bound to make the best use of your donations. Everything is transparent and crystal clear.

The guys have been fearlessly active in the relief work even though their recent relief convoy to Rajanpur was attacked by the looters. I myself happen to be a part of PYA as I provide them the web/social media support as much as I can.

Methods of donating to PYA:

1) Contact Syed Ali Abbas Zaidi, the chairman of PYA and pledge your contribution now. You can reach him using the email address; info@pya.org.pk and phone number: 0092-333-4532030

2) Donate online to PYA by clicking here

Future Leaders of Pakistan:

FLP (Future Leaders of Pakistan) is another aspiring youth organization that is dedicated to the community service for the betterment of Pakistan. The guys over there have really worked hard to make relief deliveries to many areas including Charsadda, Nowshera, Swat and are now making efforts for the relief of the affected areas of Sindh and Punjab too. I also happened to volunteer in their relief trip to Swat and things were quite transparent. So a good and trusted channel to donate.

Ways to donate through FLP:

Usama Khilji 0092 332 513 3506
Zain Saadullah Khan 0092 345 856 2843
Atif Siddique 0092 333 555 2843
Waleed Riaz 0092 334 517 4577

Zimmedar Shehri

Zimmedar Shehri is also a trusted youth organization which has been actively participating in the efforts of betterment of the society. They actively took part to help the Swat IDPs during the military operation last year.

Contact them to pledge your donations:

Jalal Hussain: 0092 300 8429013 (jalal.hussain@gmail.com)
Murtaza Khwaja: 0092 333 4664373 (murtaza_khwaja@hotmail.com)
Usama Mehmood: 0092 321 4558611 (carrot46@hotmail.com)
Shoaib Ahmed: 0092 321 9439787 (shoaib.ahmed.sa398@gmail.com)
Mubin Kumail: 0092 331 4503309

Pakistan Youth Renaissance

PYR(Pakistan Youth Renaissance) is the brain child of Farhan Masood, the CEO of Solosmart. PYR’s also been helping the flood victims and has been creating immense awareness. They have recently launched an online donations portal through which you can donate online to them. Also, you can contact them at jahanzaib@pyr.org.pk

[Update Aug 31]
SA Relief:

I just discovered the guys over there at SA relief aren’t that old to be excluded from ‘Youth Organizations’ ; ) The guys over there are trusted as I have known them for a long now.

There “Online Donations” system through PayPal/ChipIn is all time hit, so the donations can be chipped in using the box below or by going to their website

Don’t wait, start contributing immediately. Bloggers and Netizens, please help spread the word. I, Farhan Janjua, the founder of NAMP(Netizens’ Action Movement) will continue updating this list and coordination with more of such youth organizations. Stay tuned!

A large number of people including the families of the victims turned up and together we grieved for the loved ones we have lost. We also prayed and prepare ourselves to trigger the relief efforts to support the flood victims. Following are the photos from the vigil. Photos courtesy: Ali Hameed of Shaoor Society.

Disclaimer: Guppu.com is not responsible for the accuracy of the “People Powered News”

Before proceeding any further let me take you to the past, to the winter of 1971. General Niazi is in Dhaka, the capital of East Pakistan, He is the holding the position of the highest military commander in the Eastern Wing of the country. He has just talked to a reporter of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and has ruled out any likelihood of a ceasefire. The staff at Radio Pakistan, Dhaka is relying news about the victories of Pakistan Army on different fronts. Suddenly a mob gathers outside the building of Radio Pakistan chanting ”Amaar Desh, Tumhaar Desh Bangladesh Bangladesh!” (Our country, your country: Bangladesh! Bangladesh!) and “Amaar Neta, Tumhaar Neta Shiekh Mujeeb Shiekh Mujeeb!” (Our leader, your leader: Sheikh Mujeeb Shiekh Mujeeb!). Then within no time warriors of the Mukti Bahini militia arrived at the scene and removed the Pakistan flag from the building and hoisted the ‘Bangla Flag’ instead.

A few more moments and Gen. Niazi surrenders! A person like me who was born well after the Dhaka fall can only imagine the disgrace that this event brought to Pakistan. The pictures and footages that made their way through camera lenses, video tapes and hard drives to my laptop are very depressing. In one of the footages Gen.Niazi is signing a document, Gen. Arora Singh of the Indian Army sitting beside him. Yes indeed the Pakistan Army lost a war due to the blunders of the politicians. But this was no ordinary war, East Pakistan was torn off the West; Bangladesh gained independence and emerged as a new country on the world map. Yes indeed there was a humanitarian crisis in the eastern wing. Yes indeed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and his stubborn attitude and the appetite for absolute power costed Pakistan its disintegration. Yes indeed the involvement of India can be counted as a factor of this great loss, but again the entire blame cannot be put on these factors alone.

Pakistan right from day one was majorly governed by the West Pakistanis, both from the bureaucracy and the military. Irreversible damage was done to the very basic fiber of the state. A state whose founder wanted it to be a Muslim Secular Democracy and a welfare state was converted into a Mullah Minded Dictatorship. The vast majority was deprived of its very fundamental rights.

The result came as a surprise to many. People who were told that the Pakistan Army had crushed the Indian Forces in 1965, and that now it has become invincibly supreme and unbeatable. People who believed that Pakistan was to exist forever, regardless of the atrocities and the injustices committed by the state.

Coming back to Facebook now, well the link posted was about Baluchistan. I commented on it and the next time I logged into my homepage I found many comments under my own. They were all of Baloch young men. They were arguing and protesting that Islamabad and Pakistan as a state has failed to deliver the very basic of their rights. Some of them said that Punjabis were exploiting the illiteracy of the Baloch people and the vast mineral resource reserves of Baluchistan. A few of them also reminded me about history, about how the Khan of Kallat annexed Baluchistan to Pakistan in 1947. There were comments against Pakistan; there were slogans of an independent Baluchistan. Some of them even had the images of the Baloch Flag set as their profile pictures. Yes, many of them stood for an Azaad Baluchistan.

We as a nation have to ponder over this issue now. We must learn our lesson from the Dhaka fall. We must stop listening to voices which bracket this genuine struggle of the Baloch people with Zionism and Indian involvement. By saying this I do not mean that India or other forces are not at work in Baluchistan, what I mean is that we have to address this matter in a sane manner. The state is indeed not functioning properly. There is a sense of deprivation in some of the provinces. There are internal and external forces who want to disintegrate Pakistan once again and for the last time.

Lastly, I would like to add that if we want to survive as a nation we have to have a country and a state that counts all its citizens equal. Now is the time to discard all the conspiracy theories that are floating in our media, because tomorrow historians will not blame RAW or MOSAD. They will blame the people of Pakistan, the people who never exhibited the qualities of a nation; the people who always reacted as mobs; the people who time and again blindly supported Military Dictators, Cunning Politicians, Dual-Standard Judges and Ignorant Mullahs!

I have been following his show ‘Brass Tacks’ for more than a year now and have examined his views about Islamic ideology and Pakistani Nationalism. He has also been floating conspiracy theories and linking Illuminati and the so-called New World Order to almost all known problems in Pakistan; Social and political, religious and cultural . He in this hour long show plays PowerPoint-styled presentations showing scanned images of the one dollar bill and of Marlboro Red cigarettes and concludes that the Jews have everything to do with the conflict in Balochistan and Waziristan. This programme is very popular among the well-educated-burger-generation of Pakistan. The host is also a fine-looking female who just speaks to commence the programme then to take breaks and finally to announces the end; the rest of the time it is either Zaid Hamid and Zionism or Zionism and Zaid Hamid!

Mr. Zaid Hamid has also ventured outside the domain of defense and political analysis. Lately he has attempted to interpret and expound a long Persian poem written by a Muslim saint of the medievals, Nematulla Shah Wali. During the course of this TV show Mr. Hamid demonstrated his lack of knowledge of the Persian language and his tangled taste of literature. He was not even able to read the poem correctly.

Ghazwa-e-Hind is the latest one in this row. His supporters most of whom are apparently patriot, loyal and devoted young men but actually are so unaware and unacquainted that they have started campaigning for this cause by sending chain emails and starting facebook groups without even understanding the basic concept of this terminology.

Without going into the critical details, I would like to keep the discussion literally literal. What I mean is that we need to know what a ‘ Ghazwa’ means in the first place. The word ‘Ghazwa’ is usually is used to refer the battles that were fought during the blessed time of the Holy Prophet Muhammad(pbuh), and his very participation in those combats actually made them ‘Ghazwaat’ (plural of Ghazwa). Here I would like to clarify that in Urdu Islamic literature this is the only meaning of the word ‘Ghazwa ‘. Therefore the battles of Badar, Uhad and Hunain were all referred to as Ghazwaat by prominent Muslim scholars and commentators. The battle of Panipat or the Muslim adventures over Andalusia or for that matter the Indo-Pak wars of 1965 and 1971 cannot be called as Ghazwas.

I know that this will not be liked by most of my friends, but I also know that someone has to somehow come up against perpetrators like these. The appetite for emotional reasoning is at its heights in Pakistan and people like Zaid Hamid are like parasites who feed on this urge of the new generation by their charisma and hysterical mode of pursuit. May his soul rest in peace!!

Disclaimer: The views and opinions of author expressed in this article are of the author only and do not necessarily state or reflect those of the administration of Guppu.Com.

The US military is now considering to extend air strikes from the Pakistani tribal areas to the Province of Balochistan. We have witnessed that the US drone attacks were not killing the terrorists, but the innocent citizens of tribal areas. And their coward and aggressive planning to extend air strikes to Balochistan is something that we wont let happen. We Pakistanis gotta stand up and speak, otherwise it may end up into something like what happened in 71 or US will feel no shame in extending the strikes to other provinces also. We just cant remain to be the spectators, I request the Bloggers to join the protest once Again!