India is being re-colonized by the western imperialists through multi-national corporations who have enough local collaborators. These local collaborators are looting the poor left, right, and centre. In spite of this mess, it is carrying on. FDI approval of the government has been suspended. This is due to certain institutions which have come up over last half a century. However, the present state of affairs in Pakistan can be compared to the famous Arabian Nights fable of Ali Baba and his forty thieves! They have produced only looters and violent men and have totally failed to build any institutions except ISI (Inter-services Intelligence)! Zardari is re-incarnation of Ali Baba and the people surrounding him are the forty thieves of the story. He is now having heart problems and may have to quit soon. However, it is worthwhile to see the details of his worth. Asaf Ali Zardari, a Balochi from a tribe based in Sindh is worth $ 1.8 billion according to Wikipedia. “He is reported to have estates in Surrey, West End of London, Normandy, Manhattan, and Dubai, as well as a 16th century chateau in Normandy. In Britain, he used a common legal device—the purchase of property through nominees with no family link to the Bhuttos. His homes in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad are called Bilawal House I, Bilawal House II, and Zardari House respectively”.
“He bought a 365-acre (148-hectare) 20-bedroom luxury estate in Rockwood, Surrey in 1995 through a chain of firms, trusts, and offshore companies in 1994. The country home's refurbishment abruptly ended in October 1996, shortly before the end of his wife's second term. He initially denied for eight years that he owned the property and no one paid the bills for the work on the unoccupied mansion. Creditors forced a liquidation sale in 2004 and the Pakistani government claimed the proceeds because the home had been bought with money obtained through corruption. However, he stepped in to claim that he actually was the beneficial owner. As of November 2008, the proceeds were in a liquidator bank account while a civil case continues. The estate includes two farms, lodgings, staff accommodation, and a basement made into an imitation of a local pub. The manor has nine bedrooms and an indoor swimming pool. He had sent large shipments from Karachi in the 1990s for the refurbishment of Surrey Place. He has faced allegations from various people, including the daughter of Laila Shahzada, that he acquired stolen art to decorate the place. He earlier had plans for a helipad, a nine-hole golf course, and a polo pony paddock”.
Zardari is just an example. There are many “lords” in Pakistan owning thousands of acres of land and tremendous wealth who rule over the poor landless serfs. All the top politicians own huge landed estates. Nawaz Sharif with his Itefaqh group is worth $ 1.4 billion! Benazir Bhutto, Nawaz Sharif, Junejo, Jatoi, Leghari, Chowdarys, Wazirs, and others own lands exceeding 30 to 40 thousand acres each. Most of the politicians are quite well off and have huge properties and set ups. One of the opposition political leaders is popularly called “Dieslu” because of his penchant for Diesel Permits. Almost entire top brass of the Army comes from these “Aristocratic Families”. The upper classes feel it prestigious to be part of the Army, which controls every aspect of life. Apart from this there are Waderas in Sindh and Tribal Chiefs in Balochistan and North West Frontier Province. These Tribal Lords have their own private armies and even prisons. They have large bonded labour under their control. They indulge in “Honour Killings” of women as well as in rapes sanctioned by village elders (Mukhtara Mai). The literacy is quite low. Apart from the landlords, they have a clergy, which too keeps the ordinary people at the low end by indirectly persuading them to accept their lot as a matter of destiny, the will of God. At the time of advent of Islam, the Arabs too were in a dark age. They had over three hundred Gods inside the Kaaba and they would bury their daughters alive. Some similar tribal customs mentioned above are prevalent in many parts of Pakistan which is supposed to be an Islamic State.
As if this shameless loot was not enough, the land of the pure is these days beseeched by mindless violence of all types. There is hardly any day when there is not a suicide bomb blast. Cross firing is a daily affair in Karachi. People seem to have gone crazy with guns and bombs. Muslims are killing Muslims. The height of irony is that the official security guards can kill the person they are supposed to guard! There are dozens of militant organisations armed to the teeth moving around freely. In fact, there are rogue elements inside the Army as well as the elite intelligence organisation ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence). Bin Laden could not have lived for almost 5 years without inside help! In spite of more than 60 years of their stay in a free state of their own choosing some people still call themselves “Muhajir” (Refugees)! In contrast the people who got displaced from Pakistan to India are running the country here. In fact, the present Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh himself is a refugee.
It is really pathetic that the dream of Dr. Iqbal and Muhammad Ali Jinnah has turned sour! They had sincerely and honestly envisioned a home for the Muslims of the sub-continent where they could grow up in true Islamic way. However, a handful of the greedy and materialist feudal persons have turned it into a den of looters and violence. They have pawned everything to western imperialists who used them as per their own requirements and are now abandoning them at their sweet will. They brought the country to the point of disintegration. The Americans are bent upon preventing any Muslim country to rise as it can be a threat to the Jewish Israel! After destroying Iraq and Libya, they are aiming for Pakistan and Iran. There is only one way forward. Pakistan needs something like an “Arab Spring” against Ali Baba Chalees Chor and other feudal dacoits and thieves. Instead of fighting other peoples’ wars, they have to introspect and set their own house in order first. Let us hope Imran Khan and some other well wishers in Pakistan are able to motivate the people to usher in such a revolution!  


(Feedback at www.kashmirfirst.com)

Lastupdate on : Tue, 6 Dec 2011 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Tue, 6 Dec 2011 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Wed, 7 Dec 2011 00:00:00 IST