The Achiever - Imran Khan-Trust him for Change
Let's try Imran Khan
Admit it, whenever Imran Khan is on TV, you do stop in your channel surfing tracks and listen to him. You do that, don t you? No matter how much you criticise him or ostracise him, love him or hate him, you do listen to him, don t you?
The problem with admitting that you are an Imran Khan fan especially in front of the wise ones, is that you can t do so without being labelled and stereotyped. If you are an Imran Khan fan then you are bound to be either a starry eyed undergrad waiting for Pakistan to happen or a retired wannabe with shattered delusions of grandeur, and no sense of the world at all. And if you are a woman fan (God forbid) then you may as well make the word gullible your second name! The female fan stereotype glares you in the face and all your arguments go down the stereotypical drain. What you are left with in the end, is a concluding statement that begins with the phrase: But I know it in my heart that...
Talk about feeding the stereotype.
So here is a scenario. You are sitting down for a drawing room chat on Pakistani politics. There is Left on your left, Right on your right, and then there is the leftover American tail in the middle. (Or was it the leftover, American helicopter s tail in the middle?) Well, whatever it is, you are sitting down to chat and suddenly you, in your naiveté, make the pronouncement: I think Imran Khan should win the next election.
The left turns right, the right turns left and the leftover American tail turns a beet root red. Everyone starts talking at once, and nobody can make sense of what s going on.
The right has reservations about Mr Khan s past left wing affiliations (social as well as familial). The left, on the other hand, has reservations about Mr Khan s present right wing associations (Jamaat-e-Islami any one?). The leftover American tail has just plain flight reservations (of the business class variety), and all these reservations along with his past and the present and the leftover American tale (not tail mind you) together make a case against Imran Khan s politics.
And then pitch in the conspiracy theorist and the liberal sceptic. He doesn t know it but he is being used by the establishment , says the liberal sceptic. His dharnas are nothing but ISI sponsored advertisements for PTI and the jihadist media, it asserts.
And the jihadist media is actually the Zionist Indian nexus with links in the establishment having links with the Al-Qaida people who, by the way, are all non Muslims because autopsy of the dead bodies of the suicide bombers say so (wink), says the conspiracy theorist.
Duh! says the American tail.
Thud, says the indignant Right.
And all you can do is to ignore the rest, just look at the liberal sceptic and wonder if it would be the same thing to call a liberal sceptic, a sceptical liberal.
But before one digresses into the linguistic nitty gritties of what better captures the essence of a liberal sceptic, let s get back to the bottom line. And the bottom line is that Imran Khan might sound like a broken record, especially if you listen to him three days in a row, yet Imran Khan is the one person(along with Sheikh Rasheed of course) who does stop you in your channel surfing tracks and makes you listen.
He is the only person who talks about justice, humanity and self-esteem, the next best slogan after unity, faith, discipline and better than roti kapra aur makaan, don't you think?
And then he is the only person who gives you unconditional hope for a better future.
And my question for the left and the right and the liberal sceptic is: What is wrong with giving hope to our people?
I repeat the question: What is wrong with giving hope to our people?
Actually the idea of a progressive road map for Pakistan is so ridiculous for some that the talk of a better future becomes a symbol of foolishness. For others, the minor glitch that Imran Khan used to have girlfriends in the 80s is an obstacle that might hinder the progress of Pakistan until the curse is over. This might make you wonder at the eternal question of why the right is so afraid of girls and girlfriends, but then again I warn you, you d seriously digress if you take that route.
The only places where you would find unflinching support for Imran Khan and plenty of counter arguments for the left and the right and the liberals of all kinds, are the places of learning and education; the places where you find young people who compete for grades, write research essays and dream of making money; who are fond of books, sports, American TV serials and social networking, and have ideals for a better future for Pakistan. Diverse combination of things, I know, but better than rigid and self-made markers of good and bad. These people are not necessarily against girls and girlfriends either, and believe that Pakistan has much more sinister things to worry about than considerations of a cricket sensation s love life in the 80s.
And these are the people who tell you that Imran Khan is a cricketer par excellence, an orator who inspires them, and a philanthropist who makes them optimistic. These are the people who would post on facebook those pictures of him sleeping on the floor in the middle of a sit in; unafraid, undeterred, and without bulletproofing or security of any sort.
And these are the people who don t turn, right or left or a beetroot red when you tell them that you think Imran Khan should win the next election. They simply turn around and say;
You think so too?
Cool!
By Adiah Afraz, an academic. Email: adiahafraz@ gmail.com
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WebpageTranslator
US drone strikes fueling terrorism in Pakistan: Imran Khan
KARACHI- Pakistan's opposition leader Imran Khan has said that the United States' war on terror is breeding extremism and terrorism and termed US drone attacks in the tribal regions a breach of country's sovereignty.
Sit-in suspends NATO supplies International News Network
Protesters in Pakistan block trucks, demand end to drone strikes CNN International
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Attack on naval base precursor of threats to nukes: Imran
Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Imran Khan Monday said that the attacks on the key naval base could be a precursor to further such attacks on our strategic assets including Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal.
Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Imran Khan Monday said that the attacks on the key naval base could be a precursor to further such attacks on our strategic assets including Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal.
He stated this on Monday, while reacting to Sunday’s night Karachi tragedy in which 11 personnel of Pakistan Navy and four of the terrorists perished besides destruction of two high-tech aircraft in PNS.
“At a time when our internal security stands compromised due to hundreds of Raymond Davises roaming the streets of Pakistan with an international agenda to declare Pakistan a failed state, the Mir Jaffars and Mir Sadiqs ruling Pakistan are bending over backwards to destroy the country to remain in power on foreign crutches,” he observed.The PTI chairman said that the massive participation of people from all walks of life in the PTI sit-in (Dharna) at Karachi is proof of the fact that the people of Pakistan are united in their efforts to regain the lost national sovereignty. They want to bring an end to the murderous drone attacks, and stop the double-faced politics practiced by the ruling party and the so-called opposition in parliament, he added.
The Karachi Dharna condemns the continuing drone attacks in the face of the Joint Resolution of the Parliament which was yet another attempt to hoodwink the people by the incumbent rulers, fully aided and abetted by a complicit opposition.
“At a time when our internal security stands compromised due to hundreds of Raymond Davises roaming the streets of Pakistan with an international agenda to declare Pakistan a failed state, the Mir Jaffars and Mir Sadiqs ruling Pakistan are bending over backwards to destroy the country to remain in power on foreign crutches,” he observed.The PTI chairman said that the massive participation of people from all walks of life in the PTI sit-in (Dharna) at Karachi is proof of the fact that the people of Pakistan are united in their efforts to regain the lost national sovereignty. They want to bring an end to the murderous drone attacks, and stop the double-faced politics practiced by the ruling party and the so-called opposition in parliament, he added.
The Karachi Dharna condemns the continuing drone attacks in the face of the Joint Resolution of the Parliament which was yet another attempt to hoodwink the people by the incumbent rulers, fully aided and abetted by a complicit opposition.
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Imran announces ‘Pakistan Bachao Aur Hukoomat Hatao Tehreek’
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Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan has announced the ‘Pakistan Bachao Aur Hukoomat Hatao Tehreek’ (Save Pakistan and Remove the Government Movement) and expressed no confidence in the resolution passed in a joint session against drone attacks.
He was addressing a gathering on the second and concluding day of the sit-in on Sunday on the Native Jetty Bridge to block Nato supplies and drone attacks.Thousands of people joined the two-day protest.
The movement, he said, will start from Lahore and appealed to all like-minded political parties to join hands with the PTI to get rid of the corrupt rulers.
In the second phase, Khan said, we would protest in Islamabad and besiege the Parliament House. He said the parliament had failed to get its resolution against drone attacks implemented as on the very next day of passing of the resolution, drone strikes killed several innocent people in the trial area.
He condemned the hypocratical attitude of the government, saying on the one hand it is adopting a resolution against drones while on the other it has ‘fixed its match’ with the United States.
The prominent political leaders who attended the sit-in included Jamaat-e-Islami leaders Mohammad Hussain Mehanti, Dr Meraj-ul-Huda Siddqui, Sunni Tehreek Chief Sarwat Ejaz Qadri, Anwer Gujjar and the Sindh National Front was represented by Mumtaz Ali Bhutto who read out his message conveying that Sindhis are with Imran Khan as they see him as only saviour who could steer deprived Sindhis out of the present turmoil. Qamar Bhatti of Sindh Taraqqi Pasand Party also shared similar sentiments that Sindhis are fed up of the corrupt rulers and wanted to get rid of the present government for which he supported Imran Khan and vowed to continue supporting him.
Imran Khan said that the rulers are corrupt therefore they would avoid accountability against any state institutions and officials. He said that his party would emerge victorious in the next general elections as people are tired of hypocrite and dishonest rulers. He said that the success of todayís congregation has proved that masses wanted a revolution and not only change of faces to run the country.
Today country is facing severe crisisî he said and asked the gathering that under these circumstances which option is opened to them. The crowd present on the occasion pointed fingers on Khan who they see as the savior of the country.
Reacting on Obamaís recent interview that the US would again act unilaterally inside Pakistan if another militant was found in the country, he said which law on earth allows any one to violate sovereign territory and integrity of other country.
He said the sit-in had heralded a new era which has proved that people wanted revolution and they would support PTI, which is the only ray of hope in darkness. The protest has sent a message to the US that people of Pakistan are not coward and would retaliate if the territorial boundaries of the country were violated.
He said that drone attacks were carried out with the assistance of three- president, prime minister and Army who ëfixed matchí with the United States. He said the protest would convey to the US that ìwe will not be cowed down by drone attacksî.
Khan said that if his party were came into power it would finish the terrorists and assimilate the tribal people into the mainstream. He said it was the worst time for the country and the nation had been made subservient to the Americans. The killing of nine people in Quetta, including a pregnant woman, at the hands of our military has sent a wave of anger amongst the people. He said the rulers and military were continuously telling lie that they were terrorists.
The May 2 incidents had brought shame outside Pakistan and disgrace to oversees Pakistanis who are the assets of the country as they transact large amount of foreign reserves. For the sake of their own vested interests they made nation subservient to the US.
Khan also mustered the support of some of the right-wing parties, including the Sunni Tehrik and Jamiat-i-Ulema Islam, and the Sindh National Front and Jamat-e-Islami. They were carrying PTIís flags and photographs of Aafia Siddiqui and chanting anti-America slogans on the occasion.
The movement, he said, will start from Lahore and appealed to all like-minded political parties to join hands with the PTI to get rid of the corrupt rulers.
In the second phase, Khan said, we would protest in Islamabad and besiege the Parliament House. He said the parliament had failed to get its resolution against drone attacks implemented as on the very next day of passing of the resolution, drone strikes killed several innocent people in the trial area.
He condemned the hypocratical attitude of the government, saying on the one hand it is adopting a resolution against drones while on the other it has ‘fixed its match’ with the United States.
The prominent political leaders who attended the sit-in included Jamaat-e-Islami leaders Mohammad Hussain Mehanti, Dr Meraj-ul-Huda Siddqui, Sunni Tehreek Chief Sarwat Ejaz Qadri, Anwer Gujjar and the Sindh National Front was represented by Mumtaz Ali Bhutto who read out his message conveying that Sindhis are with Imran Khan as they see him as only saviour who could steer deprived Sindhis out of the present turmoil. Qamar Bhatti of Sindh Taraqqi Pasand Party also shared similar sentiments that Sindhis are fed up of the corrupt rulers and wanted to get rid of the present government for which he supported Imran Khan and vowed to continue supporting him.
Imran Khan said that the rulers are corrupt therefore they would avoid accountability against any state institutions and officials. He said that his party would emerge victorious in the next general elections as people are tired of hypocrite and dishonest rulers. He said that the success of todayís congregation has proved that masses wanted a revolution and not only change of faces to run the country.
Today country is facing severe crisisî he said and asked the gathering that under these circumstances which option is opened to them. The crowd present on the occasion pointed fingers on Khan who they see as the savior of the country.
Reacting on Obamaís recent interview that the US would again act unilaterally inside Pakistan if another militant was found in the country, he said which law on earth allows any one to violate sovereign territory and integrity of other country.
He said the sit-in had heralded a new era which has proved that people wanted revolution and they would support PTI, which is the only ray of hope in darkness. The protest has sent a message to the US that people of Pakistan are not coward and would retaliate if the territorial boundaries of the country were violated.
He said that drone attacks were carried out with the assistance of three- president, prime minister and Army who ëfixed matchí with the United States. He said the protest would convey to the US that ìwe will not be cowed down by drone attacksî.
Khan said that if his party were came into power it would finish the terrorists and assimilate the tribal people into the mainstream. He said it was the worst time for the country and the nation had been made subservient to the Americans. The killing of nine people in Quetta, including a pregnant woman, at the hands of our military has sent a wave of anger amongst the people. He said the rulers and military were continuously telling lie that they were terrorists.
The May 2 incidents had brought shame outside Pakistan and disgrace to oversees Pakistanis who are the assets of the country as they transact large amount of foreign reserves. For the sake of their own vested interests they made nation subservient to the US.
Khan also mustered the support of some of the right-wing parties, including the Sunni Tehrik and Jamiat-i-Ulema Islam, and the Sindh National Front and Jamat-e-Islami. They were carrying PTIís flags and photographs of Aafia Siddiqui and chanting anti-America slogans on the occasion.
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Drone strikes were a comparative rarity when President Bush was in office, but have been dramatically and repeatedly escalated by President Obama, usually in retaliation for attacks by militant groups. This has led CMC to term the..