Malala’s Nobel Peace Prize – a different perspective
Not pro-Malala, not anti, just different …
To be fair to her, Malala did not ask for the Nobel Peace Prize. Nor did she lobby for it. But in all probability her handlers did, intensively; for what would be the crowning glory of 2 years hard work put into Project Malala. Intelligent as she is, I wonder if the thought has ever occurred to her in this period, for even a moment, that she has been cast in the lead role of a complex narrative which really has little to do with female education in Pakistan?
Malaysia, Truly Asia
A friend of mine intends to take some time out in Kuala Lumpur on her own, just for a break from work. I am not sure if she intends to move around Malaysia or just stay in the capital itself. But I will urge her not to restrict her experience to just Kuala Lumpur, even if I regard KL as one of the finest cities I have set foot it anywhere in the world.
The Wanderer
I start with a quote by J.R.R. Tolkien, English writer, poet and more (The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings), the quote resting in the depths of the sub-conscious and brought onto memory’s front page again, recently, by Ifra Khaliq of Lahore in an unexpected but wholly pleasant way.
See https://www.facebook.com/IffsGallery
Where you from? Part 2
PRELUDE
It is difficult not to draw comparisons as you wander round the world. Sure, each country may be having its own set of problems and negatives which the traveler journeying to that land may not be able to observe or experience in the short time he or she is there. But nevertheless, the experienced eye is able to see and assimilate a lot even in a few hours, leave alone a few days. For example, coming from Karachi it was impossible not to appreciate that the electricity did not go off once in the four days I spent in Saigon. Or notice that in spite of being crowded and noisy, Saigon was admirably clean and completely devoid of plastic bags or litter in the streets and devoid too, of the inevitable scavengers that litter attracts – feral cats and dogs and crows and kites.
Where you from? Part 1
NOTE FOR READERS: I had the good fortune to travel to Vietnam some 5 or 6 years ago. This article, in two parts, was written then and published somewhere that I cannot now recall. I am sharing it here pretty much as it was written up then and as such some things mentioned are already a part of history. Nevertheless the article is overall as relevant today as it was then. I hope you enjoy reading it.
The slide into chaos
Prelude
In elections 2013 I voted for the PTI candidate from my constituency NA250. At that time like millions of others, one was tired with the PPP’s shenanigans and was hoping (against hope) for change. The PTI candidate won, and that is the last one has ever heard of him. To my observation and knowledge he has done absolutely nothing for this constituency in the past 14 months or so. For the provincial assembly seat I noted for independent candidate Jibran Nasir, who I did not know or had even heard of before.
Paradise by any other name …
Many years ago, in a conversation at an international tourism convention, a Sri Lankan delegate remarked passionately, ‘you have to be born lucky to be born in Sri Lanka.’ The true meaning of this assertion becomes clear to you, within a day of your arrival on this teardrop island south of the Indian subcontinent massif. Sri Lanka by another name could well be called Paradise.
Trouble in Paradise
I was walking past the room called Pakistan on the 13th floor of World Tower, when through the open door I heard the sound of protracted sobbing. Instinctively I stepped into the room to see Democracy sitting in a dark corner, her hands clutching a kerchief to her face and sobbing uncontrollably. It was a distressing sight. Especially as I quite liked Democracy.
Happy Birthday Pakistan?
Opinions differ regarding how the country’s 68th birthday should be observed. One side advocates celebration with patriotic, no-questions asked fervor. The other side counters that the nation is in a deep morass and there is really nothing to celebrate. While one does wish to rejoice on such an occasion, too much blood and tears have flown, and continue to flow, in this country on a daily basis, to allow the soul genuine exuberance. This is the sad reality.
The oldest living city in the world
I visited Syria in 2011 with my family. It was a peaceful, safe and friendly country. To our experience the people were by and large happy and contended, even if the regime by Western reckoning was authoritarian. How much has happened since then. An ancient and beautiful country has been destroyed by international vested interests who created, financed and armed a rebel army to overthrow the government.
In this section, I share with you an article that I had written back then on returning from Syria. I cannot recall with certainty if it was published in some newspaper. Probably was.