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Thursday, August 5, 2010

Why the US and India Demonize Pakistan's ISI


By Sheikh Gulzaar
Org. Logo of ISI
Srinagar, August 5: Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence agency, or ISI as it is popularly known, is seen as their nemesis by those who have tried to undermine the security interests of the country one way or the other. It is no wonder then that in past few years the Americans unleashed a strong ISI-bashing campaign, with India following suit.

The Americans made no bones about their dislike for this agency, blaming it for working against their interests in Afghanistan. The Indians also see an ISI agent behind every rock in Kashmir and in Afghanistan where they are trying to dig their heels. They do not hesitate to pin on ISI the blame for the freedom struggle in Kashmir or for acts of terrorism by Indian extremists. Until recently the Karzai government dominated by the anti-Pakistan Northern Alliance also remained hostile to ISI. 

Not too long ago, under intense American pressure the weak Zardari government made an unsuccessful attempt at neutralizing and subduing this agency in disregard to the existing sensitive regional security environment, by moving it out of the army control and placing it under the controversial and embattled Zardari loyalist interior minister - Rehman Malik. This did not succeed for a simple reason. The role of ISI as the eyes and ears of the Pakistan’s military - the bedrock of country’s security, is critical particularly at a time when the country faces multiple threats to its security. 

Washington's darling in the Afghan-Soviet war

Ironically, this is the same ISI that was Washington’s darling during the 1980s when it was master minding the jihad against invading Soviet forces in Afghanistan. The role that ISI then played was congruent with American interests. The defeat of the Soviet Union would have meant realization of an American dream - avenging the humiliation of Vietnam. They held ISI in high esteem for its competence and professionalism and gladly funneled arms and funds to the Afghan mujahedeen through it. The ISI strategized the resistance and organized and trained the mujahedeen fighters, working in close collaboration with the CIA and the mujahedeen leaders, forcing the Soviets to retreat.

But as soon as the Americans had negotiated a quid pro quo - Russian withdrawal from South America in exchange for safe Soviet exit from Afghanistan, they disappeared in the middle of the night leaving Afghanistan in a quandary. The political turmoil that followed created chaos and instability owing to the failure of mujahedeen leadership, presenting as a result a security nightmare for Pakistan.

Taliban-US-Pakistan relations and the Indian Threat
In this chaos a group of young Afghan religious students, many of them former fighters from the resistance, calling themselves Taliban (in Pushto language Taliban means students), swept through the country with popular support to establish their rule. Interested to keep their presence alive, the Americans maintained contacts and supported them, ignoring their orthodox beliefs, their harsh rule and even the presence of Al Qaeda in their midst. This continued until it was time for the Americans to overthrow their government in order to serve the changing American interests.   

While the Taliban government was in control, Pakistan too maintained friendly relations with them in the interest of keeping its western border secure, extending whatever support it could. The ISI played a role through the contacts it had developed during war against the Soviets.

In the wake of 9/11 things began to change. Having invaded Afghanistan in the name of war on terror, branding Taliban as brutes and their resistance as terrorism, the Americans wanted the Pakistan army and the ISI to join the war.

This posed a serious security concern for Pakistan. It could destabilize the Pak-Afghan border and strain relations with the Pashtun tribes on both sides of the Durand Line, the British drawn boundary that cut through the Pashtun region to divide British India and Afghanistan and which Pakistan had inherited. The fact that Pakistan’s border region, called Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) is autonomous where the writ of the Pakistan Government does not prevail made matters more complex.

Pakistan’s military doctrine is based primarily on meeting the main threat from India on its eastern border while maintaining a peaceful border with Afghanistan in the west. A direct conflict with the Taliban would have forced Pakistan to divert its military assets from eastern to the western front, thus thinning out its defenses against India. This was the last thing Pakistan wanted to do because of its unfavorable ratio of 1:4 against India in terms of conventional forces. Understandably, President Musharraf was unwilling to do the American bidding.

U.S. projection of its military failures onto Pakistan

There always is a problem with powers that begin to act in imperialistic fashion. Their vision of the world becomes colored. They tend to believe that pursuit of their imperialist designs takes precedence over the national interests of those who cannot stand up to them, even if that means compromising their own national and security interests. America had also been behaving as one such imperial power and treated its smaller allies more like colonies. President Musharraf was threatened that in case of noncompliance with America’s wishes, “Pakistan would be bombed into the stone-age”. Musharraf was coerced into conceding to American demands.

Despite the state-of-the-art surveillance equipment and military hardware, the US and NATO forces failed to stop the Taliban fighters from moving back and forth into the unmarked Pak-Afghan border that passes through a treacherous mountainous region to regroup and strike on the invading foreign troops. The American commanders reacted by demanding that the Pakistan army engage these fighters and seal the border. Those with even the slightest knowledge of the area would know that the Americans were asking for the moon. This was physically impossible.

Pakistan army’s operations failed. In the process it earned a severe backlash from the local tribes who resented army’s action against their kinsmen from across the border who sought refuge in their area, as it violated the old tribal custom of providing sanctuary to any one who asked for it, even it was an enemy. The Pakistan army paid a heavy price. More soldiers died in this action than the combined number of casualties that the US and NATO troops have suffered in Afghanistan so far.

President Musharraf under advice of his army commanders and the intelligence community called off the action and resorted to persuasion instead. Through jirgas (assembly of tribal elders) effort was made for the tribesmen to voluntarily stop the influx of Taliban fighters. It didn’t succeed either. This was not to the liking of the American commanders. They blamed the ISI for working against their interests.

Washington accuses the ISI of complicity with insurgents

Washington and the American media frequently alleged that elements within ISI were maintaining contacts with the Taliban and attributed the failure of American troops in combating the Taliban to these contacts. Such allegations were also found to be part of the raw, unverified and even fabricated field reports ‘leaked’ in Afghanistan recently and splashed in the western media. The Americans have in the past also described the ISI to be out of control and demanded of the Pakistan government to purge the agency of Taliban sympathizers.

This is ridiculous. Firstly, ISI is a military organization operating under strict organizational control and discipline where officers are rotated in the normal course. It functions according to a defined mandate, unlike armed forces in some other countries and unlike the CIA which is known to be an invisible government on its own. Above all, Pakistan and its military are committed to weeding out religious extremism as a matter of state policy.
Secondly, if the American troops are so incapable of overcoming a rag tag army of Taliban and if the complicity of ISI with the Taliban can be instrumental in changing the course of the American war, then it is a sad day for America as a super power and the strength of NATO forces becomes questionable.

Thirdly, in the world of intelligence, contacts are kept even with the enemy and at all times. CIA keeps contacts within Russia and other hostile countries. Israel, the great American ally, spies on America itself. It is common for all intelligence agencies to do this in the security interests of their countries. Why then should America expect an exception to be made in case of ISI? Why should contacts that ISI developed with the mujahedeen and the Taliban earlier, and which if it does still maintain, become a source of such great concern for the American administration?
 
Demanding that the ISI subordinate Pakistan security to U.S. interests.

It is strange that America expects ISI to serve the American agenda instead of Pakistan’s interests first. One cannot forget that the Americans have a long history of abandonment of friends and allies and when they repeat this in Afghanistan citing their own national interest, despite their promises to the contrary, why should Pakistan be expected to be caught with pants down? Why Pakistan’s military and the intelligence agency should be expected to abdicate their duty and not do what is necessary to ensure Pakistan’s security in the long term? 

It has often been argued that America expects Pakistan to be actively engaged in the Afghan war in return for the military assistance it provides. The answer is quite simple. The American establishment is doing all that needs to be done in support of its own war and not for the love of Pakistan. The war is theirs, not Pakistan’s. Pakistan should do and is doing what is necessary and feasible, without jeopardizing its own security.

As for the assistance, bulk of the $10 billion that America gave in the past and was branded as “aid” was in fact the reimbursement of expenses that Pakistan had already incurred in supporting the war effort. The rest was to meet Pakistan’s needs for operations in the border areas and for fighting terrorism that arose out of the war. The Americans still owe $35 billion to reimburse the losses Pakistan has incurred due to this war. As for the F16s that Pakistan is getting from the US, it pays for them, despite strict restrictions over their usage.

The Indian-Israeli attempt to destabilize Pakistan

While Americans had their issues with ISI, the Indians and Israelis began having their own. The agency exposed the growing Indian and Israeli confluence in Afghanistan to destabilize Pakistan. This happened right under the nose of the Americans and obviously not without their knowledge and consent. India having deployed its troops in the name of infra-structure development in league with Karzai government and with American funding and having established seven consulates along the sparsely populated Pak-Afghan border was engaged in heavily bribing the influential but ignorant and susceptible tribal leaders to spread disaffection among the local tribesmen against Pakistan.

Evidence was also unearthed by ISI about how the Indians bought the loyalties of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a grouping of Pakistani tribesmen from FATA and Uzbek fighters from previous wars who settled in the region. The TTP were influenced by the same orthodox religious beliefs as the Taliban in Afghanistan and were active in propagating them in their own areas. They were recruited to launch terror activities in the urban centers of Pakistan, including the capital Islamabad, and were funded, trained and equipped in Afghanistan jointly by the Indian, Israeli and Afghan intelligence agencies. A group from amongst them managed to gain control of Swat area adjoining FATA through coercion of the local population, which was later cleared by the Pakistan army after a major surgical intervention.

The ISI also laid bare strong physical evidence of Indian involvement in supporting insurgency in Balochistan by way of funding, training and equipping misguided and disgruntled Baloch elements grouped under various names including the Balochistan Liberation Army that was led by the fugitive grandson of the notable Bugti tribal chief – Akbar Bugti. His comings and goings in the Indian consulate at Kandahar and the Indian intelligence HQ in Delhi were photographed and his communications intercepted. Numerous training camps in the wilderness of Balochistan were detected where Indian trainers imparted training in guerilla warfare and the use of sophisticated weapons, which otherwise could not be available to the Baloch tribesmen. Flow of huge funds from Afghan border areas to the insurgents was detected that was traced back to the Indian consulates.

Summary and conclusion
The objective of the TTP, and behind the scene that of the Indians and the Israelis, was to make the world believe that Pakistan was under threat of capitulating to terrorist and insurgent elements who were about to take control of Pakistan’s nuclear assets. Their goal: to denuclearize Pakistan through foreign intervention.

These efforts have not succeeded. Undoubtedly, the army and the ISI played a crucial role in foiling the plots of subversion in Balochistan and the Pashtun region and exposing the foreign hands involved, including those of CIA, RAW, Mossad, RAMA, NATO and MI6. Terrorism may not yet be eliminated but Pakistan faces no existential threat.

It should be no surprise to the Americans, Indians and the Israelis if they find in ISI an adversary to reckon with. It is also not surprising that the ISI is in their perception, a rogue organization, for it has stood between them and Pakistan’s national security interests. Their frustration and ire, therefore, is understandable.(Writer-South Asia)

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Over 100,000 people. One show of outrage. No violence in Pampore Today

By Johan Simith
Srinagar, August 04: One more youth, who was critically injured on Friday last in firing by security forces in the Chanpora locality of Srinagar , succumbed to injuries in the hospital even as mobs continued to defy curfew restrictions in the Jammu and Kashmir capital.

Iqbal Ahmad Khan (18) had received a critical bullet injury on his head during protests in Chanpora and had been admitted to the Soura Medical Institute where after an operation on Friday he had been put on the life support system.

Khan's injury had triggered protests and violence across the Valley on Friday in which so far 28 persons, mostly youth, have been killed and 180 others, including police and paramilitary personnel, wounded.

Since early Wednesday morning, loudspeaker-fitted police jeeps were making rounds in various parts of the city warning residents to stay indoors and not to violate the round-the-clock curfew, which is in force without a break since Friday.

However, mobs defied curfew restrictions in some parts of Srinagar and staged protests against the recent alleged human rights violations.

Thousands of people marched to south Kashmir's Khrew town where a peaceful rally was held in the afternoon.

Shouting pro-freedom and anti-India slogans, people, using all modes of transport available, reached the town where seven persons, including a 17-year-old girl, were killed  in Pampore on Sunday.The youngster clambered up a telecommunication tower and hoisted a green flag as onlookers shouted pro-Pakistan slogans during a protest in Pampore on today.
About 8 km south of Srinagar, the road seems to end. Hundreds of trucks, cars and motorbikes block the path. The men shout "azadi" and "Allah-u-Akbar" (God is great) in collective frenzy, Sheikh Aziz Teray Khoon Say Inqlaab Aachuka. They are all heading to Khrewa-Pampore, about 15 km from Srinagar, for the martyars memorial service.

There's no way you can proceed on the highway; so we take a detour through a dirty makeshift road past the stone quarries, the brick kilns and the shanty tenements of the Bihari labourers. There's Jhelum on one side with thick groves lining the embankment; the other side is lush with paddy fields. On the side, women sing songs saluting the 'martyrs' and kids offer free soft drinks to protestors.

But it's only when one steps into Pampore, famous for its saffron fields, that the real magnitude of the gathering becomes evident. It looks like most of Kashmir has turned up. The political mobilisation seems to have worked. Crowd estimates are always dicey — but some estimate the Pampore gathering at perhaps 1 lac. There's a sea of heads on the streets, rooftops, lanes, walls, even on telephone towers.

Over 100,000 people. One show of outrage. No violence. But there was something that hadn’t been there for a long time: pro-Pakistan slogans, Pro-Sheikh Aziz slogans.Such protest pictures should tell anyone with an unbiased opinion, that support (even military) for the people of  Kashmir is not terrorism, but occupation by Indian troops, is terrorism.
 
“More than love for Pakistan, it is anger against India that makes people raise pro-Pakistan slogans,” explains Sheikh GULZAAR, editor of the Writer-South Asia. “Pro-Pakistani slogans are mostly raised near CRPF and army bunkers and positions. That reveals the state of mind of the slogan shouters”. (Writer-South Asia)

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: Medicinal values of Ginkgo biloba


Medicinal values of Ginkgo biloba

Ginkgo Seed
Srinagar, August 4: This refers to Ginkgo which is in the worldwide  news. Ginkgo biloba is one of the oldest living tree species and its leaves are among the most extensively studied botanicals in use today. In Europe and the United States, Ginkgo supplements are among the best-selling herbal medications. It consistently ranks as a top medicine prescribed in France and Germany.

Ginkgo has been used in traditional medicine to treat circulatory disorders and enhance memory. Scientific studies throughout the years have found evidence to support these uses. Although not all studies agree, ginkgo may be especially effective in treating dementia (including Alzheimer’s disease) and intermittent claudication (poor circulation in the legs). It also shows promise for enhancing memory in older adults. Laboratory studies have shown that ginkgo improves blood circulation by dilating blood vessels and reducing the stickiness of blood platelets. It is our prestige to have Jammu and Kashmir Medicinal Plants Introduction Centre-JKMPIC introduces 500 Ginkgo biloba plants . Now both its male and female plants have been cultivated. As this plant is in high demand throughout world, we can cultivate it on large scale and can make the name of your sate not only in India but all over the world.

More details about  Plants, Seeds at:
http://chenabindustries.blogspot.com

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: Kashmiris being detained for 'anti-national' posts on Facebook"

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: Kashmiris being detained for 'anti-national' posts on Facebook"

Kashmiris being detained for 'anti-national' posts on Facebook"

By: Sheikh Gulzaar /Johan Simith
Srinagar, 4 August :Protests continue in Srinagar, Kashmir, India - 28 Jul 2010 Indian police walk past burning tyres used as a barricade by Kashmiri Muslims during an anti-India protest.

Kashmiris may have become the unintended victims of David Cameron's verbal attack on Pakistan, which has encouraged the hardline Indian establishment to continue to brutalise Kashmiris in the Kashmir Valley, an open-air prison camp much like Gaza.

As a salesman determined to shift as much deadly weaponry as he could, including Hawk fighter bombers, it was not surprising that Cameron chose to ignore the suffering in Kashmir. By blaming Pakistan, Cameron not only fed India's national paranoia about Pakistan, but also shifted the focus away from Kashmir and the increasing death rate of its civilian population, which otherwise might have received some media attention.

Since May this year, when the fresh wave of protests started, nearly 50 Kashmiris have been killed, many of them teenagers. Hundreds of civilians have also been injured, which has created perpetual chaos in Kashmiri hospitals as medical supplies dwindle under prolonged curfew and an embargo on goods. Since Friday, more than two dozen people have been killed, including an eight-year-old boy Sameer Ahmed Rah, who was allegedly beaten by police. In another incident, a teenage girl, Afroza, was killed when police fired on protesters at Khrew, on the outskirts of Srinagar, the summer capital of the disputed region. At least 25 people were wounded, two of them critically, when troops resorted to indiscriminate firing and tear gas shelling in Naaman village in South Kashmir. Nearly 100 miles away, in Baramulla, Indian troops fired at another group of protesters, injuring two more youths.

During the fresh wave of protests, India has adopted an uncompromisingly militant posture towards Kashmiri civilians protesting against human rights abuses. In June, Indian home minister Palaniappan Chidambaram linked stone-throwing Kashmiri youths to members of the dreaded terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba, a charge that was termed as an insult by pro-Indian Kashmiri leader Mufti Sayeed, former Indian home minister and former chief minister of Kashmir. This charge of linking Kashmiri protesters to terror groups in Pakistan was seen by many Kashmiris as an Indian excuse for the continuing murder of Kashmiris.

The new Indian approach denies the civilian status of its Kashmiri victims. Earlier in June, India's home secretary, Gopal Krishna Pillai, questioned press reports that described murdered Kashmiris as innocent civilians. Responding to a particular incident in which Indian paramilitary forces were said to have killed three civilians, he said: "There is a misnomer that civilians are getting killed. They are attacking police pickets. They are unruly mobs attacking CRPF pickets. They [forces] have shown considerable restraint and killed just one person".

The latest response from the Indian Kashmiri chief minister to the growing unrest has been demand for more troops. This is ironic given the fact that Kashmir is one of the most militarised places on Earth. Although the real number of Indian troops in Kashmir is unknown, some reports suggest that the number of Indian forces in the region is 250,000.

The absence of any criticism of the growing repression has emboldened the Indian government to target the Kashmiri population with greater ferocity. When the doctors of the Government Medical College, Srinagar recently protested against growing human rights abuses, the government registered cases against them for rioting and disobedience. Earlier, many leading lawyers and human rights advocates including Mian Abdul Qayoom, president of Kashmir Bar Association, which is the main lawyers' forum, was arrested under the draconian Public Safety Act, which allows incarceration for two years without charge.

This law, along with the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, that gives licence to Indian forces to kill with impunity, have been used to murder or silence thousands of Kashmiris for more than two decades. In an increasingly brutal response, the police even seized trucks of relief goods such as food and vegetables for the inhabitants of Srinagar, a city that has been under curfew for weeks at a time.

The continued focus on al-Qaida in Pakistan and the war in Afghanistan have cast a shadow over the suffering of Kashmiris, which is hardly reported in the international media. In order to contain and control unrest, the government has adopted a heavy handed approach against local journalists, stopping them from reporting the true extent of the suffering inflicted. Kashmiri journalists have been threatened, beaten up and gagged, as the paramilitary forces have refused to honour their curfew passes. In some instances, the government has refused to issue them passes at all.

As a result, many Kashmiri newspapers have had to suspend publication several times, confining them to online versions only. This has compelled a new generation of Kashmiris to articulate their frustration through social networking sites and YouTube in order to make known the torment of Kashmir. Determined to stifle any criticism, the government has now launched a new cyber war. According to the Indian news magazine Outlook India, "there are reports of Kashmiris being detained for 'anti-national' posts on Facebook".

David Cameron's statement blaming Pakistan has been seen as a vindication of a long-held Indian accusation that any unrest in Kashmir is a consequence of cross-border terrorism. As a new generation of Kashmiris take on Indian might with a few stones and their defenceless bodies, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, head of the  pro-Independence Kashmiri alliance, said despairingly: "First they [the Indians] said the guns came from Pakistan. Will they now say that stones come from Pakistan, too?" (Writer-South Asia)


Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: Has Omar Abdullah lost his authority over Kashmir ?

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: Has Omar Abdullah lost his authority over Kashmir ?

Has Omar Abdullah lost his authority over Kashmir ?

Has Omar Abdullah lost his authority over Kashmir?
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Lashkar, ISI Expanding Anti-India Operations in Afghanistan: NYT

Srinagar, August 4: Many Afghan and international intelligence officials and diplomats stationed in Kabul have confirmed that with the help of ISI, Lashar-e-Taiba (LeT) has expanded its anti-India operations into Afghanistan and set up training camps, NYT reports. 

Officials said that LeT is believed to have masterminded and carried out three major attacks on Indian government employees and private workers in Afghanistan in recent months, reports said. 

The New York Times reported that Pakistan maintains that it doesn’t support or help Lashkar any longer but its expanded activities in Afghanistan, particularly against Indian targets, raises suspicion that it has become one of Pakistan’s proxies to counteract India’s influence in the war ravaged country, said reports. 

“Our concern is that there are still players involved that are trying to use Afghanistan’s ground as a place for a proxy war,” Shaida Abdali, Afghanistan’s deputy national security adviser, was quoted as saying. “It is being carried out by certain state actors to fight their opponents,” Abdali was quoted as saying. Experts opine that now the LeT is more of a threat in Afghanistan than even Al Qaeda is, reports said. The paper said that there were a few Lashkar cells in Afghanistan three or four years ago, but they were not focused on Indian targets and, until recently, their presence seemed to be diminishing, said reports. In a recent testimony to the US Congress, Pakistan analysts described the LeT as a terror group ‘having ambitions well beyond India’, reports said. 
   
“They are active now in six or eight provinces. They are currently most interested in Indian targets here, but they can readily trade attacks on international targets for money or influence or an alliance with other groups,” a senior NATO intelligence official, who spoke on conditions of anonymity, was quoted as saying.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

e-Media is Reviving The Kashmir Freedom Moment

By: Sheikh GULZAAR
Srinagar, August 04: These days a term “New Media” is used almost everywhere. But only a few people actually know its meaning. “New Media” means to encompass the emergence of digital, computerized, or networked information and communication technologies in the later part of the 20th century. Most technologies described as “new media” are digital, often having characteristics of being manipulatable, networkable, dense, compressible, and impartial.

People around the world are taking advantage of new media. It is the most effective, fastest and easiest way to communicate with other people around the world. Social networking sites like Facebook, video streaming sites like Youtube and blogs all fall into the horizon of new media.

The traditional media have been covering and reporting about the events occurring in Kashmir for years now. But for last two years, the people have started reporting events on their own, utilizing the new media. Young men using camera mobile phones are recording events all around Kashmir and sharing captured videos and pictures on sites like Youtube.

According to these men, by doing this they are gathering evidences against the Indian Army about their inhumane treatment with the innocent people. And so far they are quite successful. One of the most famous videos shared was shot by Adnan, a 15 years old boy in which aftermath events are shown of the killing of a Sheikh Abdul Aziz & others by a bullet in year 2008. The video was viewed more than 3, 50,000 times in just a few day after its upload.

By the way, this type of reporting is termed as Citizen Journalism. People of Kashmir are communicating their messages with the rest of the world utilizing digital publishing. A group of youngsters which is highly involved in these reporting term it as ‘Cyber Protest’.(Writer-South Asia)

On going freedom struggle now or never for Kashmiris: Hizb

Muzaffarabad, August 3: The Supreme Commander of Hizbul Mujahideen, Syed Salahudin Monday has said that the current phase of resistance movement has ushered the Kashmir conflict into a now or never phase.

Syed Salahudin while addressing in a extraordinary meeting of Command Council, the Hizbul Mujahideen spokesman Ehsan Ellahi in a statement said despite Indian suppression from past 63 years, the current mass struggle has now entered into now or never mode where people irrespective of age and sex are up in arms against India.

While condemning the criminal silence of world over the killing of innocent people in the Valley by paramilitary forces and police men Hizbul Mujahideen, indigenous outfit of Kashmir said that the ongoing freedom struggle has entered into now or never stage.

Everyday dozens of people are being martyred while hundreds are injured,” Hizb chief, Syed Salahudin said,

Terming as unfortunate the recent statement by Britain Prime Minister David Cameron, the Hizb Supremo said that the Kashmir issue was basically created by the United Kingdom. “He should have taken strong note of the human rights violations and the unresolved Kashmir and impressed upon the New Delhi to resolve the issue. Thereby, he would have honoured the tenets of democracy.”

United Nations and the world human rights bodies silence on Kashmir is unfortunate,” he said, adding, incase, United Nations and the other world organizations want to take account of the real situation obtaining in the Kashmir, they should rise above the Indian propaganda and depute a team to decide for themselves as to how the innocents are being killed for raising peaceful protests due to unresolved Kashmir.(Writer-South Asia)

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: On going freedom struggle now or never for Kashmiris: Hizb

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: On going freedom struggle now or never for Kashmiris: Hizb: "On going freedom struggle now or never for Kashmiris: Hizb"

Thousands lost in Kashmir mass graves

Srinagar, 3 August: Hundreds & thousands of unidentified graves – believed to contain victims of unlawful killings, enforced disappearances, torture and other abuses - have been found in   Kashmir.

Amnesty International has urged the Indian government to launch urgent investigations into the mass graves, which are thought to contain the remains of victims of human rights abuses in the context of the armed conflict that has raged in the region since 1989.

The findings appear in the report Facts under Ground, issued on 29 March by the Srinagar-based Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP). The report details the existence of multiple graves which, because of their proximity to Pakistan controlled-areas, are in areas not accessible without the specific permission of the security forces. Since 2006, the graves of at least 940 people are reported to have been discovered in 18 villages in Uri district alone.

The Indian army has claimed that those found buried were armed rebels and "foreign militants" killed lawfully in armed encounters with military forces. However, the report recounts testimonies from local villagers saying that most buried were local residents hailing from the state.

The report alleges that more than 8,000 persons have gone missing in Jammu and Kashmir since 1989. The Indian authorities put the figure at less than 4.000, claiming that most of these went to Pakistan to join armed opposition groups.

In 2006, a state police report confirmed the deaths in custody of 331 persons, and also 111 enforced disappearances following detention since 1989.

Unlawful killings, enforced disappearances and torture are violations of both international human rights law and international humanitarian law, set out in treaties to which India is a state party. They also constitute international crimes.

Amnesty International has called on the Indian government to unequivocally condemn enforced disappearances in Jammu and Kashmir and ensure that prompt, thorough, independent and impartial investigations into all sites of mass graves in the region are immediately carried out by forensic experts in line with the relevant UN Model Protocol.

All past and current allegations of enforced disappearances must be investigated and, where there is sufficient evidence, anyone suspected of responsibility for such crimes must be prosecuted in fair trial proceedings, with all victims granted full reparations. (Writer-South Asia)

Monday, August 2, 2010

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: Manmohan is fast becoming Jagmohan for Kashmir. Zafarul-Islam Khan

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: Manmohan is fast becoming Jagmohan for Kashmir. Zafarul-Islam Khan

Manmohan is fast becoming Jagmohan for Kashmir. Zafarul-Islam Khan


Kashmir: Act before foreign forces land in Srinagar
The Valley today is a Kosovo-in-waiting. The government should act now before it is too late.

By Zafarul-Islam Khan

New Delhi (2 August 2010): For the last two months only bullets are talking in Kashmir. Dozens of lives, mostly school-going young men and women, have succumbed to the bullets fired by the security forces directly into their chests. Ten such victims have died within the last twenty four hours for pelting stones and violating curfew. The central cabinet?s security committee met last night without the attendance of even the  governor, the de facto ruler, of the state. Today the dummy chief minister of the state was called for a meeting in Delhi and assured that direct central rule will not be imposed on the state.

The situation in the Valley has not deteriorated within a day or two and forces across the border alone are not responsible for the chaos seen in the length and breadth of the Valley. Today?s chaos in the Valley basically reflects the failure of the central government which despite declarations and promises to the contrary, has utterly failed to negotiate with the people who matter in Kashmir, which has thrown in the dustbin the autonomy and self-rule proposals presented by its own trusted hands in the state. Musharraf and even the current Pakistani government have been time and again offering proposals to arrive at a settlement of sorts taking into account the ground realities but visionless people in Delhi have squandered the opportunity. The army bullets once again prove what our enemies claim that India is interested only in the land of Kashmir and not in its people. Manmohan is fast becoming Jagmohan for Kashmir.

The way forward is to sack the childish government of Omar Abdullah, set free all activists and political leaders arrested during the last few weeks, withdraw the army and allied forces from all inhabited areas in the Valley, impose governor raj for a fixed and declared period of six months, accept the autonomy proposal presented by the J&K Assembly during Farooq Abdullah?s tenure in 2000, announce a general amnesty for all militants and welcome those who crossed over into POK, hold a fair election with none barred from contesting and monitored by foreign observers like Jimmy Carter and representatives from the UN, EU, OIC etc and let the real winner rule the state. Meanwhile, India must engage in a serious and purposeful dialogue with Pakistan taking into account the various proposals offered by Musharraf and the current government in Islamabad.

Failure to work on these lines will be fatal. The protests in the Valley are quickly taking the shape of an intifadah which no amount of army bullets will be able to control. Rather, these criminal bullets and their innocent victims will invite foreign intervention. Let the short-sighted strategists in Delhi realise that foreign intervention is no longer a myth. A prolonged protest, wanton wholesale murder of the civilians and children by the security forces and collapse of the dummy civil government will be enough to pass a resolution in the UN to authorise foreign military intervention and the small men in Delhi will not be able to prevent such forces from landing in Srinagar. The Valley today is a Kosovo-in-waiting. Act now before it is too late.
About the author: Zafarul-Islam Khan edits The Milli Gazette and author of several books including Wounded Valley.

IRAN NEXT SUPER POWER

by Pyotr Goncharov
Srinagar: There are reasons to suspect that Iran's nuclear program is neither peaceful nor civilian. Its Natanz (pictured) facility will have 54,000 uranium enrichment centrifuges, and it has already put into operation two cascades with 164 centrifuges each. Iran intends to turn on all of the 54,000 centrifuges. 

There are reasons to suspect that Iran's nuclear program is neither peaceful nor civilian. Its Natanz (pictured) facility will have 54,000 uranium enrichment centrifuges, and it has already put into operation two cascades with 164 centrifuges each. Iran intends to turn on all of the 54,000 centrifuges. What for? Photo courtesy AFP.

Moscow (RIA Novosti) Dec 29, 2006
Iran may become one of the top 10 features of the outgoing year for a number of reasons, including its nuclear dossier and the Holocaust conference, as well as the anti-Israeli rhetoric of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. In short, Iran has made others view it as a regional superpower and the key player in the Middle East.

Its nuclear program remains the top issue, with good reason, because it threatens the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

If Iran implements its nuclear program in the proclaimed format, namely on the basis of its own uranium enrichment technologies, this will deal a death blow to the NPT. Iran's program will trigger the domino effect, encouraging Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan to follow suit.

The bomb is not the issue, as Iran will most likely decide against creating it. But it will hover merely one step away from it, forcing Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan to cover the same distance. Tehran promises to share its nuclear technology with Kuwait and Syria, which, taken together with Israel's 200 nuclear charges, will turn the region into a nuclear powder keg.

There are reasons to suspect that Iran's nuclear program is neither peaceful nor civilian. Its Natanz facility will have 54,000 uranium enrichment centrifuges, and it has already put into operation two cascades with 164 centrifuges each. Iran intends to turn on all of the 54,000 centrifuges. What for?

Russian nuclear experts say this number will allow Iran to produce its own nuclear fuel for 20 nuclear power units. So far, Iran plans to turn on only one unit, at the Bushehr nuclear power plant, which is being built with Russia's technical assistance. The unit is expected to be put into operation in September 2007 and start generating electricity in November. The construction of the other 19 units is not planned so far.

On the other hand, the same experts say, given the political will, the 54,000 centrifuges can be used to create five to seven nuclear charges within two weeks at the most.

Therefore, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) cannot issue guarantees of the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program, although it cannot prove its military goals either. The IAEA has questions to Tehran which it has refused to answer so far, keeping the world on nuclear tenterhooks.

The talks on Iran's nuclear program, as well as endless debates by experts, political analysts and other specialists, have turned into a cliffhanger compounded by Iran's intricate diplomatic embroidery. More than three months have passed since the UN's August 31 deadline, by which Tehran should have stopped work on its first cascade of 164 uranium enrichment centrifuges. Since then, Iran has put into operation a second cascade and announced the intention to increase the number of working centrifuges to 3,000 by March 2007.

It is certainly bluffing, as it does not have the necessary capacity for this. Yet it has played a joke on the UN Security Council no other country has dared to play before.

Ahmadinejad's statements to the effect that "Iran has made a crucial decision and is moving honorably along its chosen path," and that Tehran would consider any Security Council resolution on sanctions as a hostile move are most likely just verbal bravado, which the world has learned to regard calmly.

Tehran fears sanctions, or else why did Ali Larijani, head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, rush to Moscow shortly before the planned stopover in Moscow by U.S. President George W. Bush? Tehran thought President Bush and Vladimir Putin would discuss the Iranian nuclear dossier, and feared that Bush would convince Putin to vote for harsh sanctions against Iran. Tehran needed Russia's support, and Larijani received it. But nothing lasts forever.

Putin later said that Russia's support to Tehran was aimed at encouraging it to maintain relations with the IAEA so as to clarify the nuclear watchdog's questions and restore the world's trust in the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear programs. But it appears that Tehran is not willing to resume talks, at least not now.

On December 23, the UN Security Council voted on the Iranian resolution. The permanent members of the council, who form, together with Germany, a six-country group on Iran, have coordinated sanctions against Iran. The resolution proposed by the European Trio, which is negotiating with Iran on behalf of the European Union, differed radically from Russia's stand.

Moscow argued that the sanctions should cover only the areas that worry the IAEA - enrichment-related and reprocessing activities and work on all heavy water-related projects, and the development of nuclear weapon delivery systems.

The Security Council heeded the Kremlin's arguments, but future developments are almost impossible to predict, especially considering the "Persian motifs" in Tehran's foreign policy. One way or another, Russia's neighbor, Iran, will continue to play a key role in the region, and this is the main result of the story with its nuclear dossier.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and may not necessarily represent the opinions of the editorial board. Source: RIA Novosti

The Dream of Anti-Islam Forces: India,US, UK, Russia, France, Germany



by Dr. M. Amir Ali, Ph.D.
Introduction. It is a dream of anti-Islam forces to get rid of Islam from the face of the earth but they know the impossibility of their dream coming true. Therefore, they have resigned themselves to live with Islam but a modified one in the mold of Christianity, a religion of a few private rituals. Anti-Islam forces want to redefine Islam and they want Muslims to accept it. They have been working on this project for the last three centuries with a lot of success. Their last three centuries of persistent efforts has given rise to pseudo-Islamic cults, new sects, sects redefined, and corrupted orders within Islam.

It is not a secret that various anti-Islam forces are working in tandem and in coordination with each other to remove the Islam of the Qur'an and Sunnah from people's lives around the world. They will tolerate a ritualistic Islam in the mold of Christianity but not real Islam. The question may be asked, "who are these anti-Islam forces?" This author has written an article on this topic; for a detailed discussion, see "ISLAM IN AMERICA: ROUGH ROAD AHEAD", published in the MESSAGE INTERNATIONAL, February 2000. A brief introduction is given below.

Anti-Islam forces may be divided into three groups: (a) Secular Fundamentalists, (b) Zionists and Hindu Fundamentalists, and (c) Christian Fundamentalists. All three work together, support each other in full cooperation, and each group has its own area of work delineated. All three groups put together constitute only under 4% of the American population or under 10 million individuals. However, these people enjoy tremendous power and sway over the people. Over 96% of the people are ignorant believers and followers of anti-Islam forces. It is possible to break the bond between anti-Islam leaders and their ignorant followers through massive education by the Muslims.

Anti-Islam leaders come with titles like Dr., Rev., Prof., etc., which carry an air of authority when they speak. However, when they speak they give informed individuals the impression that they, perhaps, have their doctorates and specialties in bigotry and demagoguery. A few examples of these hate-mongers include, Dr. Robert Morey, Dr. Anis Shorroush, Rev. Pat Robertson, Rev. Billy Graham, Prof. Sam Huntington, Prof. Daniel Pipes and many others.

Secular Fundamentalists are those intellectuals who see religion as irrelevant in peoples' lives but they tolerate religion if people have private beliefs in some kind of God or gods. Some of these people may have some loose belief in some kind of god or gods but they do not see its relevance in the social, economic, and political lives of the people; these may even include the clergy. They are particularly against Islam because they perceive that this religion tries to become an established system of life competing with secularism. Naturally, secularists try to destroy Islam completely; they have an agenda. Secular Fundamentalists is the largest of the three anti-Islam forces and the most powerful because its proponents include politicians, media people, businessmen, professors, teachers and a section of the common folk in the West. These are the people who are running governments, UNO and its branches, banks, multi-national corporations, think-tanks, universities, school systems, charitable foundations, and much more. They control almost the entire wealth of the planet earth. But Allah is more powerful. Secularists use academically-oriented tools to create hate of Islam. These are the generals of the anti-Islam war. These bigots and demagogues are found among professors, specialists, gurus, academicians of universities, and other think-tanks. It should be understood that not every Secular Fundamentalist is an Islam hater but a majority among them are, overtly or covertly. Islam haters use the academic media of research papers, educational material, publication of books, publication of articles in professional journals, and magazines. Thus, they influence the top echelon of the society.

Zionists and Hindu Fundamentalists fear Islam for their own protection. They perceive that the expansion of Islam will destroy their ideologies and their political domains. These are pragmatists and their reasoning for carrying out anti-Islam activities may be summed up as the following:

1. The more Islam and Muslims are demonized, the better the Zionists and Hindus look. Dehumanizing and demonizing Muslims has its own rewards. It gives them the legitimacy to kill Muslims, bulldoze their property, oppress them, and arrest and torture Muslim activists. How often it is that one learns of the killing of a rat as news in the newspaper or TV news program. However, the killing of Muslims makes no news, let alone, the headlines. Whereas, when a single Zionist or a Hindu is hurt or killed by a Muslim it makes resounding headlines in the West. Palestinians in their own land, Muslims in Kashmir, and Chechens in Chechnya are suffering but the powerful West has become mute and blind to their sufferings. To add insult to injury, they emphatically label Muslims as being "terrorists". A stark contrast to Western policy toward Muslims is evident in the case where East Timuris, a Christian and animist minority in Indonesia, burned mosques, killed dozens of Muslims, and marched in the streets. The West stood up in their support and forced their independence upon Indonesia. The Western double standard at play is obvious in that the Palestinians, Kashmiris, and Mindanao Muslims have been demanding their independence for decades and West calls them "terrorists" and helps their oppressors. In October 2000 over 100 Arab youths were killed by the Israelis using American taxpayer-paid guns. A large percentage of the murdered Arabs were teen-age children but no one is questioning Israel or blaming Israelis. When two Israeli-trained assassins who were sent to kill Arab leaders were caught and subsequently killed, it made headlines all over the world. Trained assassins are "peacemakers" and children ages 6 to 16 are "terrorists". Only the ignorant will buy this kind of distortion and there are many in the U.S. due to myopia, laziness, indifference, laxity, and complacency of the Muslim masses and their leaders, particularly those Muslims living in the West. Muslims living in the West have tools and power available to them to change the situation forever and reverse the environment from anti-Islam to pro-Islam.

2. Israeli and Hindu Fundamentalists dehumanize Muslims and portray them as being brute terrorists while the actual perpetrators of terror, namely, the CIA, Israel, and India receive financial, military, technological, and espionage aid from the U.S. administration and Congress. Reportedly, Israel receives from the U.S. government over six billion dollars annually in aid. That is a $1,500 reward granted annually from the American taxpayers for every Jewish male, female, and child living in Israel. This is the reward for colonizing Palestinian land and displacing Palestinian people. The cycle of repression of Muslims is strengthened using American help in the form of guns, tanks, helicopter gunships, missiles, espionage training, intelligence information, and generous economic aid. Muslims living in the U.S. can change this policy through their involvement in the political process; surely, there will be a lot of resistance against the Muslim entry but Muslims have to fight it out and cut out their niche in the American government and exert their influence. There are many success stories of Muslim empowerment at the local level when they became active, for example, in Santa Clara, CA, Bridgeview, IL, Morton Grove, IL, Brooklyn, NY, and the senatorial race in New Jersey in addition to others. Muslims living in those areas were able to turn the tide from anti-Islam to neutrality or pro-Islam. The isolationism proposed by some ignorant Muslims is a recipe for a slow suicide and is in effect a request to be subjected to the same fate that Muslims suffered in Spain, Bosnia, Chechnya, and Kosova. As a result of Muslim involvement, Congressman Tom Campbell (Republican, CA) presented a bill in Congress to stop all forms of aid to Israel; the bill was supported by only 12 congressmen but it was a first attempt. If Muslims become active in American politics, the day when Tom Campbell's bill is passed will not be far.
3. The Zionists and Hindus fear the increasing population of Muslims in the U.S. They see that with the increasing Muslim population, Muslims will eventually become politically and economically a factor and that scares them the most. Zionist influence in America is drawn from Jewish involvement in the political process through giving money, time, and talent for politicians. It is estimated that for every dollar American Jews spend on politicians, Israel receives over one thousand dollars from the U.S. government. This process yielded them, not only money for Israel, but opportunities of becoming politicians themselves. Now, Jews are in the government and running the government at local and national levels enjoying influence beyond their proportion in population (under two percent). Jewish involvement in the political process has changed their position, that is, from the most hated people around the 1900s to the most powerful people in the year 2000. Actually, it took Jews in America less than sixty years (two generations) of hard work to accumulate the power they have. These anti-Islam forces are working as hard as possible to keep the growth of the Muslim population in America in check and certainly, Muslim political participation in check. They are already spreading rumors that Muslim political participation is outright dangerous and should not be encouraged. This group uses the media and entertainment industry to create hate of Islam and Muslims. There are some Muslim groups, like Hizb At-Tahrir, Tanzeem-e Islami, Tablighi Jamaat, and others who have come out actively against Muslim political participation thereby fulfilling the dream of anti-Islam forces. It is strange, what happened to the commonsense, intellect, and wisdom of our sincere brothers? In their naïveté, they are becoming enemies of Islam despite their love and sincerity for the deen of Allah. Although their sincerity and love of Allah is unquestionable, they are nonetheless positioning themselves right into the opportunistic hands of anti-Islam forces.

3. Christian Fundamentalists see Islam as a world competitor in winning the hearts and minds of the people around the world for their respective religions. The conversion (reversion) rate to Islam is abhorrent and terrifying for them. In addition, Christian Fundamentalists are more Zionists than the Jews of America. This group works at the gutter level creating lies and deception against Islam and Muslims and selling it to the masses directly. They create hate of Islam and Muslims and work so that Bosnia-like situations are created and the holocaust of Muslims takes place right here in America. Their goal is to remove Islam from the West, which includes the Americas and Europe, and they fight Islam in the Muslim-majority countries as well. These are the foot soldiers of the anti-Islam movement. The Christian Fundamentalists attack Islamic aqeedah, practices, history, and civilizations; they distort everything Islamic and misrepresent it to their listeners and readers. These people use Christian TV and radio, publish books for common people, as well as brochures, tracks, and pamphlets. Furthermore, their leaders with the title "Dr." appear live in churches and deliver talks filled with bigotry against Islam and Muslims. While Muslims are ignorant of these activities and oblivious to whatever is going on around them, by the time they find the results, it will be too late to do anything about it. It will be Bosnia right here in America. Those Muslims who are against reaching out to the non-Muslim population are fulfilling the dreams of anti-Islam forces. Again, this author finds Tablighi Jamaat is openly guilty of opposing the reaching out to non-Muslims. This author has experienced a lot of antipathy from these people during his travels from New York to California for the purpose of mobilizing the Muslim population to perform outreach work.

Muslims themselves contribute to islamophobia but this is not due to spite for Islam but rather to their own ignorance of Islam but this is not the topic of this paper. This author has written an article on this topic that is unpublished but privately circulated. The solution to the problem of anti-Islam forces is the education of Muslims and American masses about Islam and Muslims and thus pulling the rug from under the feet of the anti-Islam forces, that is, denying them an audience who would believe them. The Muslim mission is like a bicycle that has two wheels. A monocycle is incapable of going very far or fast enough. One wheel of the bicycle is the education and reform of the Muslims and the other wheel is outreach to the non-Muslims, both tasks must be done simultaneously. The policy of the Tablighi Jamaat, which consists of going on a monocycle, has no evidence in the Qur'an or the Sunnah. They will be able to contribute many sheep to the herd but will not contribute to bringing out leaders who will lead the Muslim Ummah, restore dignity to Islam and Muslims, and establish the rule of Allah in this earthly life.

The Dreams: Anti-Islam forces would love to see a modified Islam that would include the following:
1. Removal of Jihad from Islamic teachings. This is the scariest part of Islamic teachings that a fighter is a ghazi or shaheed; it is win-win situation for a Muslim mujahid. The West is willing to support any kind of Islam that does not have Jihad in the meaning of qital in its theology. A mushrik values two things most, his life and his property, the things that a true Muslim cares the least about in the Way of Allah. Remind yourself of the Hadith of wahn, the disease that will destroy Muslims and will render them subjects of their enemies. They welcome Qadiyanis, Tablighi Jamaat, Sufis, and similar other groups. These Muslim groups, by their opposition or silence about Jihad in the meaning of qital, are fulfilling the dream of the enemies of Islam. Qital is a part of Islam but it is relevant only in its place and time; it is not for everywhere nor for every time there is opposition to Islam. Muslims have a duty to attempt and exhaust all peaceful means before resorting to qital. On the other hand, those who incite to qital for every Muslim problem are also fulfilling the dreams of their enemies because this gives them an opportunity to project Islam as advocating terrorism and war.

2. Removal of politics as a part of Islam. There are two things under this topic: (a) Separation of politics and "religion", which is the fundamental dogma of secularism, and (b) discouraging Muslims from political participation in the West, which is a wish and a dream so that Muslims do not gain power and do not disturb the power of the Zionists and Christian Fundamentalists. The separation of politics from religion is rooted in the brutal rule of the Catholic Church over Europe lasting over one thousand years in the name of religion. Secularists see Islam in the mold of Catholicism, which is foolishness on their part and those Muslims who support them.

Political participation of Muslims in America is hated by anti-Islam forces because this will change the status quo and Muslims will begin to gain political power in the U.S. They love the movements of Qadiyanis, Tablighi Jamaat, Sufis, Hizb At-Tahrir, Tanzeem-e-Islami, and similar groups who agree with the enemies of Islam in maintaining the status quo through their opposition to political participation. These groups (anti-political participation Muslims) make the dreams of the anti-Islam forces come true. If Muslims become active in politics in an organized manner the power of the Zionists and Christian Fundamentalists will dissipate in time and Muslims may gain the position of dictating their policies domestically as well as globally. Please do not tell me that allowing the enemies of Islam to realize their dreams against Islam is part of the teachings of the Qur'an and the Sunnah of the Prophet(S). The absence of Muslims from politics leaves the field wide open for the enemies of Islam to work freely without any resistance and obstruction.

3. Removal of Islamic Economics. Here again there are two things: (a) Separation of economics of the country from religion, in this case Islamic teachings, and (b) Preclusion of the Muslim establishment of economic institutions based on Islamic economics. It terrifies these people that the Muslims should become successful in their economic endeavors because that will be the end of the capitalist economy which supports the exploitation of the weak and the ignorant and greed is a virtue.
An interest-based economy is un-Islamic whereas a capitalist economy is interest-based. Capitalism is rooted on the exploitation of the needs and ignorance of the people. Islam makes it Haram. In addition, trading in alcoholic liquors, swine products, gambling, and prostitution are Haram in Islam. Islamic economics will demolish the entire structure built upon capitalism. Tablighi Jamaat and Sufis are fulfilling the dreams of anti-Islam forces by adopting silence in this area and that is not the Sunnah of the Prophet(S). Anti-Islam forces would like to see either the Muslims casting away the principle of Islamic economics or adopting silence as the above- mentioned Muslim groups have done.

4. Modified Muslim social life. Anti-Islam Forces would like to see that Muslims drop Hijab and objections to the free mixing of genders. They would love to see that Muslims begin dancing the way it is done in the Western culture and adopted by many eastern societies, including some westernized "Muslims". They hate to see educated Muslim women wearing hijab and staying away from westernized social parties. On the other hand, they love to ridicule those Muslim women who are closeted in their homes and, if they go out at all, they wear complete covering (burqa or abaiya or chador). Rejecters of Hadith is the group that has adopted a western-style social life and this pleases the West. On the other hand, Tablighi Jamaat has become extremely oppressive of their women by denying them the opportunities of education and intellectual growth. Tablighis even preclude their women from going to the masajid and listening to the speeches of their own scholars. They do not understand that the first five or six years of a child shape his/her personality, this is the period he/she spends with the mother. The mother is the first teacher of a child and builds up the personality of that child. An oppressed, ignorant, frustrated, and angry mother is going to become selfish, living day by day for the security of her food and shelter till her last day comes. This kind of mother is going to raise a child in her mold: selfish, angry, frustrated, ignorant, and with no ambition for excellence or a vision for himself, his family, or his people. Conversely, a mother who is educated, Islamically informed in the Qur'an and Sunnah, happy, and a visionary with leadership qualities, will raise children who are educated, happy, and visionary leaders. For a thousand years, Muslims have oppressed their women, kept them ignorant, and suppressed and as a result, we have raised a whole Ummah that is selfish, ignorant of Islam, mediocre in their profession, short-sighted, devoid of vision for their people, and lacking in leadership qualities. The whole Muslim world is ruled by such selfish brutes who are able to become brute dictators with the help of the West but cannot lead because their ignorant mothers did not train them for such tasks. Tablighi Jamaat and the likes of them want to maintain this sorry state of affairs for the Muslim Ummah and are happy with keeping the reins of world power in the hands of anti-Islam forces. No wonder these people can obtain visas to any country in the West whereas many good Muslims are black-listed or quietly denied entry and if they enter somehow, they are arrested and jailed under one pretext or another.

5. Opposition to Outreach to non-Muslims. Da'wah to non-Muslims is a duty of all Muslims because this promotes and propagates Islam. Anti-Islam forces hate this activity of Muslims most because the spread of Islam and any rise in the influence of Muslims is contrary to their wishes and designs. Anti-Islam forces love Tablighi Jamaat and Sufis who do not reach out to the non-Muslims to convey the message. Naturally, the members of these Muslim groups are able to obtain visas easily to countries all over the world. By opposing or adopting silence against Da'wat ila-Allah to non-Muslims is fulfilling the dreams of anti-Islam forces. Hizb At-Tahrir is quite vocal in their slogan of "Khilafa is the solution" but they have no workable plan to bring it about, not even in the Muslim-majority countries. I would like to see their plan to establish Khilafa in places where Muslims are living as 2% of the population such as in the United States. The West is not the place for raising emotional slogans of "Khilafa is the solution" and hyping up a few young people with fiery speeches. If their speeches are for establishing Khilafa in one or more of the Muslim-majority countries, they should go to those target countries and work there. All these people do is create more problems and obstacles for those who have plans to bring about a change in the West, as much as is possible, without any bloodshed.

6. Stop forbidding evil. Islamic teaching is Amr bil-ma'roof wa nahi 'an al-munkar meaning enjoining good and forbidding evil. Forbidding evil is, in essence, reminding people to abstain from their evil deeds, which they may take as criticism. From a secular point of view, evil must be defined by law; whatever is divinely defined as evil is not necessarily an evil. For example, drinking liquors, gambling, fornication, and homosexuality are acceptable norms in the West and they should not be labeled as "evil". From the western point of view, Tablighi Jamaat is a wonderful group of Muslims because they have taken out nahi ‘an al-munkar and replaced it with sukoot 'an al-munkar meaning silence about evil. Tablighi Jamaat is fulfilling the dreams of anti-Islam forces. In the secular culture, all evils that are not defined by law as crimes are wonderful, creative acts. Nudity is creativity, pornography is creativity, homosexuality is an alternate life-style, adultery is consensual adult creativity, and now here comes another imaginative act, incest is creativity. Tablighi Jamaat prefers to adopt silence on all these matters rather than reminding the society about these evils and work to remove them from the society. The Muslims of Tablighi Jamaat and Sufis are wonderful, moderate Muslims loved by Daniel Pipes and Sam Huntington.

7. Stop studying and living by the Qur'an and Sunnah. It is becoming common knowledge among informed Westerners that those Muslims who study Qur'an and Sunnah and try to live by them are catalysts of change within the Muslim Ummah. Such people earn the wrath of the West, they are awarded titles such as Wahabi and Fundamentalist extremists, and are the targets against whom the West subsidizes movements. This author has heard many times from Sufi leaders that the goal of their lives is to fight to remove "Wahabism", a non-existent ghost. Sufis do not work for the goal of their lives as being that of earning the pleasure of Allah but rather gain the pleasure and good graces of the enemies of Allah through their fight against Wahabism. The term "Wahabism" was coined by the British in the 1820s to destroy the reform movement of the Shahidayn in India through sowing hate and dissension within the Muslim Ummah and in this the British were very successful. The people who call mankind to the Qur'an and Sunnah are bringing meaningful change in the Muslim societies worldwide and this upsets the West. The true revival of Islam among the Muslims is possible only through the Qur'an and Sunnah. Only rote recitation of the Qur'an rather than studying keeps Muslims tame. Tablighi Jamaat and Sufis are fulfilling the dreams of the West from within by discouraging study of the Qur'an and Sunnah. The West would love to see Muslims blindly follow a leader who does not call people to study the Qur'an and Sunnah but follow him blindly. According to Tablighi Jamaat and Sufis, asking proof from the Qur'an and Sunnah is a taboo. Such religious leaders can be bought and sold to the highest bidder thus controlling people becomes easier. People who are ignorant and follow like sheep in a herd are much easier to control than those who seek knowledge from the Qur'an and Sunnah rather than hearsay opinions.

With respect to Muslim-majority countries, the West has the following dreams in addition to the above-mentioned points.

Israeli Resolution. In the early 1970s the government of Israel passed a resolution to keep all Arab (Muslim-majority) countries, singly or any combination thereof, weaker than the State of Israel. This resolution was adopted by the Democratic Party in total and a slightly weaker version was adopted by the Republicans. It is obvious that these American political parties have joined the enemies of Islam and Muslims and they are pursuing the following strategies.

8. Educational and technological backwardness and mediocrity. It is the earnest hope of the West that Muslims not become educated or technologically advanced but remain mediocre in their work and professions. Research and development and excellence should remain within the circle of non-Muslim people. Muslims should only be consumers of development and production of the non-Muslim world. Fortunately for the West, there are Muslim groups that promote mediocrity, consumerism, and staying in the masajid as much as possible - the West loves it.


The West is trying to keep Muslim-majority countries in the column of net importers of consumer-finished products and exporters of raw material so that they remain dependent upon industrially advanced non-Muslim countries for finished products and purchasers of raw material. The West is trying as much as possible to keep Muslim societies backward in education, technology, and industrial products whether heavy industry or consumer products. As long back as 1973 when King Faisal stopped selling oil to the U.S., Henry Kissinger reportedly told Saudis that they may drink oil when they get hungry because the U.S. would not sell them wheat. The U.S. government wants to keep every Muslim-majority country at bay with that kind of threat. Muslims cannot change such stupid policies of the U.S. government until they get involved and rise upward through the ladder of power. Get involved and gain influence. Muslims need not beg but demand and dictate after removing anti-Islam forces from the position of power. It can be done and it should be done. For the Muslims, the rise to power in America is not going to be a bed of roses.

9. Denying military technology. The West would not mind if Muslim majority countries have a police force with a few sticks and guns to kill their own people and to keep them as herds of sheep who stay in line and remain loyal to the puppets of the West. The peace process between the Israelis and Palestinians showed their real intent. The deal was that the Palestinian police would be given a few simple guns to keep the Palestinian population under control and for use against their own people. A credible force of defense against an enemy is not allowed for any Muslim-majority country. When Iraq developed a credible force, it was bombed to the stone age. The West has been conspiring with Israel, India, and Russia to bomb Pakistan to the stone age, as soon as possible. India and Israel can develop nuclear bombs but the same technology is denied to Pakistan and Iraq. Israel, India, and China can develop their own missiles and airplanes but Pakistan and Iran are not to develop these technologies. Those who oppose Muslim participation in American politics want the status quo, that is, keeping Muslim countries weak and maintaining the hegemony of the West, Israel, Russia, and India over Muslim- majority countries. Only through involvement will Muslims be able to change the policies of the West. Muslims should have the vision of becoming the government of the West and pursue it with tunnel vision.

10. Globalization. This is the tool, which is being sold to Muslim countries to stunt Muslim culture and replace it with western culture. Dr. S.M. Kureshi of Pakistan has written a book under the title, "WESTERN FUNDAMENTALISM IN ACTION"; it is worth reading.

It appears that "globalization" was developed to stunt the resurgence of true Islam and the rising aspirations of Muslims to regain their past glory of being the world power to which others would have to reckon with. Globalization includes maintaining the hegemony of the West in all areas of life, particularly, cultural hegemony. Some Islamic movements are trying to remove the bad influences of the Western culture and replace them with true Islamic norms, lost gradually under the colonial rule of Europe. The West is using all tools available to her to implement globalization. Unless Muslims reach the policy-making chambers, they will have no control over such hazardous movements. Those Muslims who oppose Muslim involvement in U.S. politics essentially want to give free rein to the West in their implementation of globalization. For whom are these people working in their ignorance? Are they working for Islam or anti-Islam forces? You decide!

During the last fifty years two persons were most influential in the formulation of American foreign policy. During the Eisenhower era, John Foster Dulles, then Secretary of State, formulated the policy that was Capitalism-centered; it was anti-Communism and anti-Islam. When it was suggested to him to work with Islamic movements to destroy Communism, he rejected the idea saying that Communism was a daughter of the West whereas Islam was an alien. During the Nixon era, Henry Kissinger, an immigrant Jew from Europe, maneuvered himself into the position of Secretary of State. Kissinger's policy was Zionism and Israel-centered and, naturally, it was anti-Islam, anti-Muslim and anti-Arab. Perhaps, it was Kissinger who inspired Israel to pass the resolution of keeping the Arab (Muslim) world weaker than Israel so that American political parties could adopt in their planks. He developed or contributed to the policy of dividing the world into regions of influence (hegemony) with the U.S. on top, like on the top of a totem pole. He chose Israel to be the masters of the Middle East, from Morocco to Iran. India was chosen to be the master of South Asian countries and Japan was selected to rule over the Far East. He chose the Republic of South Africa (then a white, racist regime and an ally of Israel) to be the master of sub-Sahara Africa. The same policy is being followed by the U.S. government and Europe in the year 2000. Kissinger engineered the implementation of Dulles' plan of breaking Pakistan into two pieces. Kissinger planned further break of Pakistan into four pieces and his policy is being followed by the successive U.S. governments. Muslims must get into the power and put a stop to such anti-Muslim policies. Globalization is the extension of the same old policies of Dulles and Kissinger. Only through involvement, will the Muslims be able to change these corrupt and racist policies.

In conclusion, it is an earnest appeal to our beloved brothers in Islam who associate themselves with Tablighi Jamaat, Hizb At-Tahrir, and those who agree with these parties to re-examine their policies and strategies. The founders of these movements were sincere and good people but their policies and strategies were developed during the colonial period. Had they been living in our time, traveled in the West, this author is sure that they would have changed. They would have never agreed to fulfill the dreams of anti-Islam forces the way their perceived followers are intent on doing. Besides, many of these policy and strategy issues are not a matter of Shari'ah but rather a matter of Ijtehad. Let us work together to change the world by bringing justice and equity as we have learned it from the Qur'an and the Sunnah.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: Medicinal plants of India Directory ver.02 released

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: Medicinal plants of India Directory ver.02 released

Medicinal plants of India Directory ver.02 released

Medicinal plants play an important ROLE IN HUMAN LIFE TO COMBAT DISEASES SINCE TIME IMMEMORIAL. The rural folks and tribals in India even now depend largely on the surrounding plants/forests for their day-to-day needs. Medicinal plant are being looked upon not only as a source of health care but also as a source of income. The value of medicinal plants related trade in India is of the order of 5.5 billion US$ (Exim Report-1997) and is further increasing day-by-day. The international market of herbal products is estimated to be US $ 62 BILLION. India share in the global market of medicinal plants trade is less than 0.5%. In view of the innate Indian strengths, which include diverse eco-systems for growth of medicinal plants, technical/farming capacity, strong manufacturing sector, the medicinal plants sector can provide a huge export opportunity after fulfilling domestic needs.

he present e-book also covers systematic account of most different plants with pictures used in medicines. It covers Medicinal Plants containing alkaloids, steroids, flavonoids, glycosides, terpenoids, additives and other active matabolites.

It also contains details of Govt. Schemes for Medicinal Plants. We hope that this e. book will be useful not only for technologists, professionals, but also for farmers, traders, students, NGOs, institutions, exporters and importers of Medicinal Plants.
The CD-based book costs Rs. 550/-
(Also available on online e-mail edition)
Payment: Demand Draft//MO only in favour of "International Information Resource Centre",
Mailing address: POB: 667 GPO Srinagar SGR Jammu and Kashmir 190001
Ph:09858986794,01933-223705
e-mail:iirc@rediffmail.com

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: Pampore : 5 civiliens killed 32 injured

Writer-South Asia is updated every minute of every hour with the latest news, features,analysis: Pampore : 5 civiliens killed 32 injured

Pampore : 5 civiliens killed 32 injured

By: Johan Simith
Pampore, 1 August : Five  person was killed and 32 others, including 13 Indian troops, were injured in clashes between protestors and Indian forces which opened fire in Pampore area in the outskirts of the city on Sunday.

Also, protesters set the Tehsil office and Tehsildar's house on fire  in Pampore. Indian National Flag burn by protesters & waving Go India Go Back Flag.

Earlier in the day, clashes broke out in Baramulla between the people and the security forces.

People defied the curfew in north Kashmir town and Pampore and took to the streets. They also allegedly clashed with the security forces. Around 12000 people have blocked the NHA1 at Galander on Srinagar-Jammu National Highway.

The number of people who have lost their lives in violence since Friday has gone up to seven after one person was killed in clashes between protestors and security forces which opened fire in Pampore area in the outskirts of the city early in the day.

Curfew remained clamped in violence-hit Kashmir Valley as Indian forces maintained a close vigil on the situation, which continued to be tense.

Curfew was imposed in nine districts of the Valley - Anantnag, Srinagar, Baramulla, Kulgam, Budgam, Bandipora, Pampore, Awantipora, Khrewa, Sombora Ganaderbal, Shopian and Pulwama - while prohibitory orders are in place in Kupwara district.

1000 of Groups of protesters took to the streets and tried to block the Srinagar-Jammu Highway when security personnel intervened, police said.

Indian Security personnel then opened fire in which three persons were injured, they said, adding one of them succumbed to his injuries.

5 civilians were killed and 32 people, including 30 policemen, injured yesterday in clashes between protesters and security forces. With today's death, the number of people killed in violence since Friday has gone up to seven.

Saturday, July 31, 2010

Three civilians killed in troops firing in Sopore, Pattan

Srinagar, July 31, 2010: Indian paramilitary forces opened fire to quell protesters, leaving at least three persons dead and 50 others injured. Several on them received bullet and tear-gas shelling injuries.

Police say paramilitary soldiers have fired on thousands of demonstrators in Kashmir, killing three men and injuring at least 50 others, as protests against Indian rule spread across the region.

Authorities imposed strict restrictions on the movement of people to protest against the killing of youths in firing by police and paramilitary forces since June 11 this year in Srinagar, Sopore, Baramulla, Islamabad areas.

Two people were killed when opened fire on a mob at Aramgarh village of Sopore, in Baramulla district this afternoon.  Shoukat Ahmad Chopan and Mohammad Ahsan Ganai were killed and a dozen others injured when Indian CRPF paramilitary forces opened fire on a mob in Sopore. Chopan and Ganai succumbed to injuries on way to hospital.

Doctors at the Shri Maharaja Hari Singh (SMHS) hospital in Srinagar said two youth, Ahsem Ganai and Showkat Chopan, were brought dead. Out of 50 injured in clashes, 10 suffered bullet injuries and were undergoing treatment in different hospitals. The condition of two of them is stated to be "critical", officials said.
India paramilitary forces used brute force and stopped people who took to streets shortly after Friday prayers and were heading towards Sopore town.  However, the protesters denied IIndian armed personnel in uniform opened fire, resulting in injuries to seven persons who were rushed to hospital. 

A police officer, on condition of anonymity, said troops fired on protesters chanting pro-freedom slogans in Pattan, Kreeri iand Sopore towns. Two people were killed in Sopore and one died in Pattan, the officer and a local doctor said.

According to reports, two youth were killed and a dozen persons received bullet injuries when paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and Railway Protection Force Personnel (RPF) opened fire on a group of demonstrators at Amargarh in Sopore after Friday prayers.

Witnesses said the two men were shot when forces opened fire on a demonstration in Sopore town, both died on the way to hospital. "Both men had bullet wounds and were dead by the time they reached us," a doctor in Srinagar's main hospital told Writer-South Asia

Six people including a teenager identified as Iqbal Ahmad Khan was critically injured in Chanapora area of Srinagar city, when CRPF troopers opened fire on mob there on Friday morning.  The 22-year-old Iqbal Ahmad Khan son of Abdul Majid Khan who, among several others, was injured in firing by paramilitary forces in Chanapora Friday morning continues to be in a critical condition.  Medical Superintendent (MS) of the Soura Institute of Medical Sciences Dr Amin Taabish told media men that Iqbal's condition was still "unstable and critical". He did not elaborate further on his condition.