Maya Khan: fired for refusing to tender an unconditional apology

Following the citizens’ campaign following up on the outrage against a Samaa TV morning show’s intrusive and unethical programming, and the host  Maya Khan’s refusal to apologise unconditionally, the channel is taking her show off the air and terminating her contract. BELOW: CEO Samaa TV Zafar Siddiqi’s letter in response to our email to him yesterday. This is the power of collective, visible, non-violent action — and of the social media that helped to spread the word. This will not end here. Media consumers in Pakistan are waking up to their own power, and will continue to lobby for an ethical, responsible media.

From: <zafar.siddiqi>
Date: Sat, Jan 28, 2012
Subject: Re: URGENT: People’s Petition and Protest on Irresponsible, Intrusive and Invasive Programming by SAMAA TV

Dear All

Your feedback is appreciated. As a responsible corporate citizen, Samaa TV did what was required under the circumstances. We do not and have not in the past or intend to in the future to take our viewership or reporting requirements without the seriousness that they deserve.

You would appreciate that as an organisation with a functioning management team, we had to conduct certain legal requirements over the past week and internal review processes (which are operational in nature) before procedding further.

As a result of which I can inform you:

1. We asked Maya to apologise unconditionally which she did not.
2. The CEO asked her to do that on friday which she refused.

As a result of which the following will be put in place on Monday,Jan 30th.
1. Maya and her team will receive termination notices.
2. Her show is being stopped from Monday morning.

Our deeds and actions taken since this episode occured are there for the record and hope this will settle issues as far as the station is concerned.

A lot has been written about the race for ratings..Well, we do (not) absolve such behaviour irrespective of ratings that the show was getting.

With best regards and thank you for your understanding.Zafar Siddiqi
Chairman CNBC Arabiya
Chairman CNBC Africa
President CNBC Pakistan

Maya Khan's 'not apology'

Sent Jan 27 21012 by the undersigned, in response to his email (below)

Dear Mr. Siddiqi,

We deeply appreciate your prompt reply and assurance that the kind of show broadcast on January 17th, 2012, ‘Subh Sawerey Maya Ke Saath’ on SAMAA TV will not take place again.

We also appreciate your moral courage in ensuring that SAMAA TV made a public, unconditional apology broadcast on January 24th, 2012. However, we cannot accept Ms. Maya Khan’s words broadcast that morning as an apology. She said she was sorry ‘if’ she had hurt anyone’s feelings without any acknowledgement that what she and her team did was wrong, which involved lying to people, filming them without consent, making fun of aggrieved couples after chasing them, and demanding their nikah namas.
In fact, her nonchalant attitude and words only compounded social and emotional wounds of the aggrieved citizens as she clearly lacked seriousness and genuine concern for the people and families she has caused harm through her deceitful, defamatory, intrusive and invasive programming, a value which is in complete contrast to your assertion that SAMAA TV is a channel with progressive values.

To add salt to the wound, speaking to the New York Times on Tuesday, January 24th, 2012 (the same day as SAMAA TV broadcast her ‘apology’), Ms. Maya Khan ‘rejected her critics, calling them “an elite class that don’t even watch my show,” and said the show merely intended to highlight the dangers that unaccompanied youths face in Karachi’.” (NYT, Jan 26, 2012).

In your email to us you said, “There are certain other directives that have been put into place as of yesterday” (i.e., January 23rd, 2012). Such directives need to be made public.

Subsequent to our correspondence with you, we have been made aware of other programmes broadcast earlier as part of this appalling morning show series, in which Ms. Maya Khan pits mothers and daughters and harangues young girls in the most indecent ways along with her team (as in this show of October 2011). There are probably many other shows that you probably have not yet seen and will be horrified, as we were, on seeing, that objectify women ‘Beti ka Achar) and put them at real risk of being killed for ‘honour’ (‘Beti ki kari’). We do not accept the disclaimers that ran in some of these programmes that SAMAA TV is not responsible for the content.

In the absence of genuine apology and public information about corrective policy directives, and compensation to affected families, we will have to conclude that SAMAA TV is not sincere in its apology, and plans to continue with programming that blatantly violates the constitutional rights of Pakistani citizens as well as basic journalistic ethics and constitutes a case of journalistic malpractice.

In that case, it will become incumbent upon us, as conscientious citizens of Pakistan, to broaden our movement until corrective policies are put in place and made public along with a visible, genuine and unqualified apology from Ms. Maya Khan, specifically taking back her words and actions and accepting her misconducts, not just with regards to the show of January 17th, 2012 but also for previous shows in which she has disrespected families, media consumers and viewers alike.

We, the undersigned, as well as the over 5,000 signatories of the online petition that has been communicated to you, are ready to lobby with corporations (and their international offices if need be), that are advertising on SAMAA TV, asking them to look into this issue before advertising with this program and channel. We also reserve the right to approach to these brands if the need arises.

However, judging by your prompt response and by the apology broadcast on SAMA TV your behest, it appears that you, Mr. Zafar Siddiqi, while being genuinely well-meaning, have been misled by your producers (your senior producer Sohail Zaidi, for example, defended the program and told BBC Urdu Radio that he was not answerable to anyone).

Therefore we urge you to:

1. Make public the written corrective directives and guidelines that have been put in place, proactively leading by example as a channel with conscience which is reponsible and cares about its viewers and their sentiments.

2. Ensure a serious, genuine and unqualified apology from Ms. Maya Khan in which she accepts her deliberate misconduct and violation of the affected people, families, media consumers, viewers and the law.

3. Take this appalling show ‘Subh Sawery Maya ke Saath’ off air, as its very premise is based on the concept of moral policing and interference in people’s personal lives.

4. Ensure that Ms. Maya Khan and all your other reporters, producers and hosts comply with the new directives in future, whether they are part of the news team or the entertainment team.

SAMAA TV has many credits to its name that we appreciate, and we as media consumers, genuinely want to see this channel realise its potential as a truly progressive channel. We assure you that we will support you in the mission to translate quality into greater viewership based on dignity, fairness, respect and equal rights, not tainted by substandard hosts and programming. You may want to have a look at the code of conduct guidelines of the Society of Professional Journalists, to consult while drafting their own guidelines.

Thank you,

Sincerely:

Ali Kazmi, Student, Islamabad
Ali Taj, Hedge Fund manager, Winchester Fund, Cerritos, California
Ally Adnan, Director, Huawei technologies, Dallas, TX
Amna Chishty, marketing consultant, Canada
Asadullah Khan, Head of Programming, Capital TV, Islamabad
Asif Alam, Financial Services Executive, New York, NY, USA
Asif Sattar, Admin Operations at Kiers Facilities Ltd, Slough, England
Dr Awab Alvi, Orthodontist & Social media Activist, Karachi
Beena Sarwar, journalist, Cambridge MA/ Karachi, Pakistan
Danielle Gehrmann, linguist, Sydney, Australia
Hassan Turi, student, Agricultural university, Peshawar
Syed Hussein El-Edroos, Business Development & Training Manager, Islamabad
Prof. Dr. Ijaz Khan, Chairman, Department of International Relations, University of Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Dr Kamran Iqbal, Self Employed · Karachi, Pakistan
Kamyla Marvi, Citizen, Karachi Pakistan
Meera Ghani, Concerned Citizen, Lahore
Mira Hashmi, film critic and teacher, Lahore
Mohsin Sayeed, journalist, Karachi
Muhammad Faraz Faheem, Senior Software Engineer, Karachi, Pakistan
Munnazir Aziz, video producer, Lodhran, Pakistan
Nadia Fazal Jamil, actor, Lahore, Pakistan
Nadir El-Edroos, teacher, London, UK.
Naheed Tofiq Mooraj, Proprietor of Candle Works, Karachi
Naziha Syed Ali, journalist, Karachi
Nighat Dad, advocate, Lahore
Noman Quadri, concerned citizen, Karachi
Dr. Osama Siddique, Law Professor, Lahore
Rabia Akhtar. PhD candidate, Kansas State University, USA/Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Raza Bashir, corporate banking, Karachi, Pakistan
Saadia Toor, professor, New York,
Sahar Habib Ghazi, Journalist, Palo Alto, California
Shah Hayat Ahmad, Citizen, Karachi, Pakistan
Saba Hamid, actor, Lahore, Pakistan
Sabiha Alwy, Educational Psychologist, New York
Shah Nawaz, student, Memon Goth, Malir, Karachi
Shayan Afzal Khan, concerned citizen, Islamabad
Siraj Khan, Financial Executive, Boston MA USA
Tammie Mahmud, Trainer & Education Program Developer, Boca Raton, FL

On Tue, Jan 24, 2012 at 12:05 AM, <Zafar Siddiq> wrote:

Dear All
I have travelled to Khi to look at this matter and yesterday Maya apologised in her program for this. I can assure this will never happen again. Samaa is a progressive channel.
There are certain other directives that have been put into place as of yesterday.
I thank everyone concerned in bringing this matter to my attention. It’s really appreciated.
best regards

Zafar Siddiqi
Chairman CNBC Arabiya
Chairman CNBC Africa
President CNBC Pakistan

Maya Khan's 'not apology'

So after all the public pressure, Samaa TV apologises, says the programme that was broadcast (moral policing, intrusion of privacy) does not reflect their policy, and that it won’t happen again. The anchor says that the programme host Maya Khan has also apologised – but the apology we are then shown is no apology. Sitting in a bedroom (bedroom??!) with her hair wrapped up in a turban, she smilingly  says she didn’t mean to hurt anyone –

‘agar meri waja se kisi ki dil azari hui mein tahe dil se muafi mangti hoon‘ (IF I have hurt anyone I am really sorry). No acknowledgment that what she did was wrong, that she lied about turning off the camera. So the campaign continues. It’s not about Maya Khan. She can do what she likes at home. But it’s not acceptable when she brings that ‘moral policing’ mentality’ to 24/7 live TV and reality shows – whether it’s her, or Yasir Aqeel of ARY or anyone.
The TV channels must learn that they cannot allow this, media consumers put up with a lot but blatant invasion of privacy is not on, whether it’s done in the name of social morals or religion. Speaking of which, this Oct 25, 2011 show of Maya Khan, in which she pits a sobbing mother versus a defiant young daughter, really takes the cake. “Bach ke rehna, season 2″ – “Do you know where your daughter is?”

In the show, Subah Saverey Maya kay Sath (Early Morning with Maya), the host Maya Khan, charges through a public park looking for dating couples to interrogate. With her is a battalion of other women, who join her in self-righteously lecturing the couples they come across – does your family know you are here, why don’t you meet at home if you are engaged, and, most outrageously, if you are married, where is your nikahnama (marriage certificate)?

When the harassed couples ask for the camera to be turned off, the Samaa team pretends to acquiesce but carries on filming with sound. As several people have pointed out, this intrusive behaviour could result in putting those couples in life-threatening situations in a country where forced marriages and ‘honour killings’ continue to be the norm.

The first time I saw a link to this show was on Jan 22, shared on a facebook group, on Jan 21, 2012. I, and many others, began sharing the Youtube links on facebook and twitter. As it spread, the outrage grew. People were shocked at the level of intrusion and vigilantism on display. From India, came comments on twitter about the Saffron vigilante brigade that has been known to drag couples into temples and force them into instant marriage. Which reminded me that the mentality we are protesting is not limited to Pakistan – see my article ‘Peaceful Pink Panties to Tame Right-Wing Goons‘ about the Sri Ram Sene goons in India. This was in 2009 but I hear they’re gearing up again against Valentines Day… Of course it’s always the poor, who can’t meet in secure hotels and cafes, who are always most vulnerable against this kind of moral policing.

Maya Khan’s antics on Samaa TV triggered off several articles and reports – starting with blogger Mehreen Kasana letting rip in her post (with doodles) An Open Letter to Maya Khan, Jan 22, 2012.

But most importantly, the outrage was channelized into a loosely organised protest. Dozens of people sent in complaints to the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) at the online feedback form, shared quickly via facebook. On Jan 22, lawyer Osama Siddique drafted a brief letter expressing outrage at the  :highly intrusive, invasive and potentially irresponsible behavior on the part of the host – a kind of vigilantism no different than the Lal Masjid variety” (referring to the black-robed women armed with sticks called the Hafza Brigade, associated with the Red Mosque in Islamabad, who went around beating up and terrorizing women whose behaviour or looks they deemed ‘immoral’ or ‘unIslamic’).

The letter protested this moral policing, and pointed out that “this kind of programming is likely to also lead to legal action for violation of dignity of man under the Constitution – which legal action we as signatories will support, propagate and promote.” It demanded an end to “this irresponsible programming”.

A group of citizens emailed the letter to the Samaa head Zafar Siddiqi (President CNBC Pakistan, with which Samaa is affiliated), and an expatriate Pakistani in California, Ali Abbas Taj, uploaded it to Change.org as an petition titled STOP “Subah Saverey Maya kay Sath” vigilantism like Lal Masjid.

Within 24 hours, the online activism had the following unexpected effects:

* In about 24 hours, there were over 2000 signatures, and by the following day 4,800 people, in Pakistan and around the world, had endorsed it.

* Maya Khan’s facebook page was closed, probably in response to the number of comments being made on it. Some of those comments were highly abusive and threatening, which we condemn and have nothing to do with.

* Maya Khan on her show of Jan 23, 2012 acknowledged that what she did could have hurt people and said that was not her intention – but she has not apologised, and appears completely unrepentant and unaware of the dangers of her actions.

* CEO Samaa TV Zafar Siddiqi wrote back to the people who had emailed him saying:  ”I have travelled to Khi to look at this matter and yesterday Maya apologised in her program for this. I can assure this will never happen again. Samaa is a progressive channel.
“There are certain other directives that have been put into place as of yesterday.
“I thank everyone concerned in bringing this matter to my attention. It’s really appreciated.”

The citizens’ response:

* We do not accept Maya Khan’s statement in her show of Jan 23 as an apology. Nor are we satisfied with Mr Siddiqi’s attempts to placate us. We want an unconditional, public apology from both Maya Khan and Samaa TV.

* We do not hold Maya Khan solely responsible for her actions; it is the producer and channel owner who set policy and allow this kind of programming to happen. We want to know what steps are being taken and what policy directives given to ensure this doesn’t happen again.

* Maya Khan should apologise publically not just to viewers but also to the couples she harassed in the park.

* There’s also outrage against a 2010 moral policing show by ARY reporter Yasir Aqeel, who is if possible even more offensive than Maya Khan, and takes harassment to another level. We protest these intrusive tactics by TV channel owners to boost ratings by harassing peaceful, law-abiding citizens.

* We would like to know what ethical guidelines TV channel owners and producers are setting down to ensure that this doesn’t happen.

* We are in contact with the commercial sponsors of television shows and will impress upon them the need to pull advertising from programmes and channels that violate basic media ethics.

BOTTOM LINE: Media is not a business like any other. It carries greater responsibility and we want its workings to be transparent and ethical.

In addition:

A college student in Karachi, started a facebook ‘cause’ on Jan 24 demanding that Maya Khan apologise to the youth of Pakistan, especially Karachi

Some activists began an sms campaign, sharing Zafar Siddiqi’s Dubai cell number with this message: Please send this sms to Mr. Zafar Siddiqui, CEO SAMAA TV if you want to raise your voice against the moral policing by Maya Khan: “Dear Mr Siddiqi, pardon the intrusion. I’m part of a citizens’ group protesting Samaa TV and its host Maya Khan’s irresponsible ‘moral policing’. We expect an unconditional apology, and this show withdrawn or at least suspended until new parameters are worked out. Thank you. “

It hasn’t all been about anger and outrage though. Predictably, Pakistanis have derived considerable mirth from the situation, some of it rather unkindly expressed. There’s this outrageous post by Urooj Zia: Things Maya Missed (relevant to my Pink Chaddis report for IPS linked above).

Some funny graphics were created – like park signs saying “Beware of dog – and Maya Khan” (unkind, yes, but then, people are angry), posted by Arif Iqbal (@eusuphxai on twitter), who also posted this, that I especially liked: a still from the old Indian film “Bobby” with its famous song “Hum tum aik kamre mein band hon…” with the next line changed to “Aur Maya aa jaye” (the original line can be translated as: “what if we were locked up in a room… and the key got lost” – changed to: “… and Maya turned up”

There have also been some really nasty shares, including videos of Maya dancing, and an animation in which she gets slapped, but let’s ignore those for now, with just this comment, that we do not condone abusive language, personal insults or threats of violence.

More important, the issue has catalysed some relevant, thought-provoking reports, analyses and discussions, including those listed here:

Wusatullah Khan in BBC Urdu website, Jan 22, 2012: ‘Aap tau naib khuda hain’

BBC Urdu report, Jan 23, 2012: ‘TV channel ka anti-dating squad’

BBC Urdu Radio report, Jan 24, 2012: ‘Sawerey ka chapa’ par sakht tanqeed’ in which Samaa senior producer Sohail Zaidi rejects civil society concerns, defends show, saying, “I am not answerable to anyone”.

Vigil-aunties (a term coined by Anthony Permal) by Bina Shah, Jan 24, 2012: ‘At the very least, the channel and the anchorperson owe an apology, if not compensation, to those two individuals who had hurt nobody on that day when they were ambushed and harassed by the television anchor and her Moral Aunty Brigade. The irony is that she describes herself on her Facebook page as “very fair and honest in her dealings”. I think that girl in the niqab, crying in the park, and her blameless friend, as well as any sane person with a conscience and a respect for other people’s privacy, would beg to differ.’

‘Big Brother (and Sister) is watching you‘ – Nadeem F. Paracha, Jan 23, 2102, on the history of what he calls ‘pussycat vigilantism’ – “This strange phenomenon is not just about simple hypocrisy, it is also and actually about glorifying this hypocrisy through gung-ho acts in which pussycat media vigilantes prey upon soft targets to exhibit their ‘bravery’ but squeak away if ever an opportunity arises to do the same to those who can and will bite back.” He says the first reported case of moral vigilantism that he stumbled upon was reported in Dawn, 1980. Must read.

In the parks of Karachi, by Ejaz Haider, Jan 24, 2012 - “From the terrible scarcity of information we now have a nauseating excess of it.”

Media ethics and responsibility at Afia Salam and Faisal Qureshi’s online talk show Off the Cuff, discussing the need for a legal framework.

p.s. Well before this issue blew up, Hosh media, which aims to bridge the gap between online and mainstream media, sat down with veteran journalist and former Editor of Dawn, Abbas Nasir to initiate “a crash course in some of the stickiest subjects that journalism in Pakistan now faces”. Four of the six part series are online at the Hosh website, that Sahar Habib Ghazi wrote about at The great ethics debate (published Jan 23, 2012).

Updates will continue to be posted on the petition link. Watch this space.

I. A. Rehman, Director HRCP:

National Dialogue on Challenges to Democracy and Role of Civil Society in Pakistan

Joint Declaration: Any attempts to dislodge parliament will be resisted

LAHORE, January 23, 2012: Civil society representative  and concerned  citizens (Intellectuals, legal activists, journalists, women, students trade union activists, religious minorities and academia) of Pakistan from all over the country shared their deep concerns over the current political situation and crises, while talking at a national consultation held in Human rights Commission of Pakistan’s office in Dorab  Patel  Auditorium, Lahore today. The meeting was organized by the South Asia Partnership-Pakistan, to  discuss and analyze the current political situation and challenges to democracy, democratic institutions and system. The panelists were Mr. I.A. Rehman, Secretary General, HRCP, Ms Hina Jillani, advocate, Ms. Khawar Mumtaz, Director Shirkat Gah, Mr. Mohammad Tahseen, Executive Director South Asia Partnership-Pakistan, Prof. Sarfraz Khan, KPK, Mr. Jami Chandio, Sindh, Mr. Kaisar Bengali, Former Advisor to Chief Minister Sindh.

Resolution passed unanimously:

We, the representatives of the Civil Society including non-governmental organizations, labour organizations, academia, women’s rights bodies, and media persons from all over the country (including FATA and Gilgit Baltistan) express deep concern over the current political situation in the country where a crisis is being manufactured on irrelevant grounds ostensibly to subvert the Parliament and to destabilize the democratic dispensation. We unanimously resolve to resist all such attempts through mobilizing citizens of Pakistan.

We AFFIRM our conviction that the principle of parliament being the supreme authority in the land is inviolable and it must not be compromised under any circumstances. At the same time we emphasize that the right of accountability of democratic institutions vests with the people of Pakistan, who shall assert this right in the most effective democratic manner whenever the need so arises.

We REAFFIRM our adherence to the principles of independence of judiciary from the executive but also from individual and institutional biases. We also note with concern that judicial processes are being deliberately used for undermining the role of the parliament as the arbiter of national security and sovereignty. This trend must be strongly discouraged and the courts should not fee compelled to over stretch their domain at the cost of judicial credibility. We EMPASIZE that various institutions of the state must function within their defined constitutional parameters and complement each other rather than work at cross-purposes, to the determent of public interest.

We assert that Sovereignty belongs to the people who have agreed to exercise it through their representatives in a federal, parliamentary, and a democratic system. Any attempt at arbitrarily altering this arrangement is tantamount to an attack on the sovereignty of the people.

We DEMAND from elected parliament and its other institutions to attend to people’s basic needs and give priority to people’s political, social and economic rights as guaranteed by the constitution of Pakistan.

We APPEAL to the people of Pakistan to stand united and firm in support of democracy and to resist all attempts aimed at its subversion. The people of Pakistan have made great many sacrifices for the cause of democracy and they should not let any vested interests trample their right to have a democratic and an elected representative system run the country.

We agree to form a national platform for the protection and promotion of democracy and the rights of the people of Pakistan. We PLEDGE to mobilize civil society organizations for this purpose. We will continue to engage with people and all other like-minded political forces in the country, who believe in sovereignty of people and elected parliament. We will hold provincial conventions by mid-February and mobilized for simultaneous public actions for achieving these objectives. We agree to hold a week of action for saving democracy throughout the country and will mobilize citizens to articulate their resolve for democracy and rights of the people.

(ends)

Read Tazeen on how Atif helped her look “beyond the stereotype of a stern and unyielding tribesman with his intelligence, valour, grace, and self effacing sense of humour. He humanized the area and its people for me, a city dweller who only conjured up images of Hakimullah Mehsud and the likes in reference with the tribesmen from FATA” (A Reluctant Mind: Another foul murder). Also read Daud Khattak’s article highlighting the threats journalists in Pakistan face:

‘Tribal journalist Mukarram Khan Aatif was unaware of the tragedy awaiting him when he called the representative of Reporters Without Borders (RSF) in Peshawar to confirm his participation in a training workshop on “responsible reporting” on the morning of January 17.

Indian fishermen released from Pakistani prisons, waiting to go back

Below, my article on the India-Pakistan prisoners issue published in Aman ki Asha on Jan 11, 2012, followed by a correction from Sen. Iqbal Haider and further clarification from B.M. Kutty. Also please do read Shivam Vij’s thought-provoking and thorough report ‘Why is Gopal Das free and not Dr Chishty?‘, published in Aman ki Asha, and Anahita Mukherji’s report in The Sunday Times of India about how the Indian prisoners were treated in Pakistan (surprisingly well) - Warm memories of time in Pak jail.

Looking a New Year gift horse in the mouth

Pakistan’s release of 183 Indian prisoners on Jan 7, 2012 is a welcome step but it also highlights the ongoing issues faced by cross-border prisoners

By Beena Sarwar

On January 8, 2012, 183 Indians crossed the Wagah border from Lahore, bundled up against the bitter cold, many in shawls gifted to them in Pakistan, eager to return home after being released from Pakistani prisons.

Much hard work, persistence and the humanitarian view taken by the Lahore High Court lie behind their release, termed “a New Year gift” from Pakistan to India.

The story of this particular prisoner repatriation started in October 2011, when advocate Awais Sheikh filed a writ petition before the Lahore High Court seeking the release of two Indians, Satinder Paul and Karale Bhanudas, who remained in Pakistani prisons despite having completed their sentence.

On the Lahore High Court’s order to provide details on foreign nationals held in Pakistani prisons, Superintendent Jail submitted a list of 74 foreign nationals in prison, including 33 Indians, who had completed their terms of imprisonment.

Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court Ijaz Ahmed Choudry in his order of Nov 14, 2011, directed the release the two prisoners on whose case the petition was based, as well as all foreign prisoners who had completed their terms.

Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign affairs cleared six Indian civilian prisoners for release. However, two of them, Sakhi Muhammad and Bhavesh Kanti Parmar, were not released for “unknown reasons”, says Awais Sheikh.

Released Indian prisoners waiting to complete formalities at Wagah. Photo: TOI

On Jan 7, 2012, Pakistan released 183 Indian prisoners, including Satinder Paul Singh, Sanjeet Kumar, Nasim and Sama Yousaf, and 179 Indian fishermen. They were brought to Wagah border on Jan 8th morning. The First Secretary of Indian High Commission along with three other ICH officers and an officer of Pakistan’s Interior Ministry, Islamabad, were also present.

It took them five hours at Wagah to complete the legal formalities at Customs, during which time advocate Awais Sheikh also remained with them. They finally crossed the border at 6.00 p.m.

“It was an unforgettable scene,” says Sheikh. “I bid them a hearty farewell with my best wishes. My apologies to them all for being kept in jails even after the completion of awarded sentence. I wish that sanity would prevail and I pray that my voice reaches the governments of both countries”.

Justice delayed

There are still 276 Indian fishermen in Pakistani jails. “Of these, 83 have already served their sentence but cannot be released because Indian authorities have not confirmed their nationality,” explains Justice Zahid. Foreign prisoners can only be freed after respective embassies confirm their identity.

This is also the case in India, which currently has 440 Pakistani fishermen in custody, according to former Pakistan law minister Iqbal Haider. He says that the nationalities of 285 of these prisoners have been determined, but “no assistance can be provided to the remaining 164 until their citizenship is established.”

Officials at India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) say that India and Pakistan don’t want to detain fishermen from the other country. “Once they cross the border, the legal process begins. The process of verifying nationalities involves visiting a fisherman’s village to confirm his identity. Often the addresses given are incomplete or very remote. It may take a long time to get there,” said an MEA official.

But rights activists say that this verification process, which takes six months to a year, only starts after the prisoners have completed their terms.

The process of verifying a prisoner’s nationality should begin the moment he is arrested by India or Pakistan. “The process should be complete at the time of a prisoner’s release so he does not remain in jail after serving his sentence,” says Jatin Desai.

Justice Zahid blames both countries for the delay in releasing innocent fishermen who inadvertently cross national borders while fishing. “These fishermen are usually given a six-month to a year’s jail sentence. By the time they are sentenced, they have already served the term,” he maintains. “If both governments show interest, the process could be completed in less than a month.”

Both the Indian and the Pakistani Supreme Courts have ruled that keeping a prisoner even for a day after he completes his jail term is illegal.

Iqbal Haider has appealed to the Pakistani and Indian governments to release all foreign prisoners over 60 years of age, and to expedite their respective trials by providing them with legal facilities.

Until such steps are not implemented, the issue of cross-border prisoners will remain unresolved. In humanity’s name, if not to gain the goodwill of thousands of affected people, both governments must cut the bureaucratic red tape and existing, outdated protocols – the sooner the better.

Fishy business

Indian fishermen at Wagah border, bundled up against the cold they're unused to, in their native Gujarat. Photo: Times of India

Both countries routinely arrest each other’s fishermen for transgressing maritime boundaries. Released fishermen are routinely repatriated via Wagah border, from where they have to make the tedious overland journey home.

“Gujarat and Karachi are so close to each other, and yet Gujarati fishermen released in Karachi have to travel all the way to Wagah border, and then from Amritsar to Gujarat. Many are from remote villages, and it takes even longer to reach,” says senior Mumbai-based journalist Jatin Desai, who is joint secretary, Pakistan India People’s Forum for Peace and Democracy. “Why should they not be sent back by sea, along with their boats?”

Around 481 Indian fishing boats lie rotting in Karachi harbour. “Each boat costs around 30-40 lakh Indian rupees. Most fishermen are very poor and an entire fishing village chips in to buy a boat,” observes retired Supreme Court of Pakistan Justice Nasir Aslam Zahid.

Justice Zahid, chairman of the Committee for Welfare of Prisoners and a member of the Indo-Pak Joint Judicial Committee comprising eight retired judges – four each from India and Pakistan examining the issue of cross-border prisoners – points out that “even if both countries release all the captive fisherfolk, others will continue to be arrested.”

He suggests setting up a joint committee of officials from India and Pakistan stationed aboard a ship between the two countries to decide cases of fishermen accidentally straying across the maritime border. “The matter can be settled in the sea itself.”

Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum President Muhammad Ali Shah, hoping that India will also release the Pakistani fishermen in Indian jails, suggests that both countries should allow each other’s fishermen to catch fish at a small scale in 50 nautical miles in other’s waters, rather than criminalising this transgression.

A year ago, India and Pakistan agreed to set up a task force with two members each from Pakistan and India to improve the situation. “Pakistan has already nominated its members but India is yet to do so,” says Jatin Desai.

Indian and Pakistani peace activists in a joint press statement of October 2011 had urged their governments to release the fishermen and their boats. Both governments “need to recognise the fact that these traditional fishermen go to the mid-sea for their livelihood. Arresting them and confiscating their boats means depriving their families from the livelihood, and causing them extreme distress,” said the statement… “The issue of fishermen needs to be seen from the humanitarian, not security angle.”

The POWS issue

Not included in the list of prisoners to be released were the two Sikh prisoners. One of them is Sarabjit Singh convicted for bomb blasts in Pakistan in 1990 even though the FIR does not mention his name but that of a Manjeet Singh (Surjit Singh says he is the victim of a mistaken identity; see report ‘Why is Gopal Das free and not Dr Chishty?’ by Shivam Vij). The other prisoner, who has languished for four decadese, is Surjit Singh, a jawan of India’s Border Security Force (BSF), taken prisoner of war in 1971 and given up for dead in 1974. In April 2011, he was found to be alive, in Kot Lakhpat Jail, Lahore, after Khushi Mohammad, an Indian prisoner released by Pakistan on his return mentioned the names of some of his compatriots still in Pakistani prisons.

Both Sarabjit and Surjit have now spent decades in prison, far beyond life imprisonment terms. Pakistan must repatriate them immediately, as human rights activists and lawyers on both sides are demanding.

In addition, both countries must look into the issue of the ‘forgotten’ prisoners of war.

In June 2011, Brian MacMahon, a former master mariner from India, now based in Australia, appealed to the Presidents of India and Pakistan to make efforts to locate and release the POWs on either side, and if they were no longer living, to provide information and their remains to their families in order to get some closure on their missing loved ones.

He cited the example of Australia, which has brought home the remains of every one of its servicemen missing in action 38 years after the conflict in Vietnam (which ended in 1971).

‘Missing’ Indian POWs who have been ‘sighted’ in Pakistan over the years include Major S. P. S. Waraich , Capt Kamal Bakshi, Subedar Assa Singh, and Wing Commander H. S. Gill. The ‘discovery’ of Surjit Singh ignites hope that they and their other colleagues may similarly be alive and undocumented in a Pakistani prison.

In September 2004, then Defence Minister of India, Pranab Mukherjee told reporters that an estimated “17 army officers, two junior commissioned officers and 19 other rank officers are currently in Pakistani jails.”

There are Pakistani POWs in India too. In June 2010, The Daily Mail Today, New Delhi, reported that 18 Pakistan Army personnel taken as prisoners of war in 1965 and 1971 were still in Indian custody, as confirmed by the Indian Ministry of Defence. This is “contrary to all norms of humanity as well in direct contravention of the Geneva Convention… these POWs also include two Majors who went missing during the wars” (June 24, 2010).

Given the number of cases where missing presumed dead armed forces personnel have been found alive in one prison or another, isn’t it time for both countries to make concerted efforts to get these men back – if for no other reason, then in the name of humanity?

Update – with apologies for the oversight, which was entirely inadvertent – I wrote the piece using the most recent accounts  at hand.

Jan 14, 2012: From Senator (R) Iqbal Haider, Senior Advocate Supreme Court

Dear Beena,

I hope you would not mind, my adding to your information that it was in pursuance of the Orders passed by the Supreme Court of Pakistan in the Constitution Petition No.48/2010 filed and conducted by me, “pro bono”, on or about 30th July 2010, on behalf of Pakistan Fisherfolks Forum and PILER that the Supreme Court had ordered that all cases of fishermen crossing the border should be heard expeditiously, preferably within a period of six weeks and that all the prisoners under the Foreigners Act should be released and repatriated forthwith, if they have completed their sentences. In pursuance of these Orders of the Supreme Court more than 442 Indian fishermen prisoners were released and repatriated in one go.

This has started the process of further release of large number of Indian prisoners from Pakistan and Pakistani prisoners from India.

When our delegation comprising Mr. Kuldip Nayar, Mr. Mahesh Bhatt and Mr. Jatin Desai from India and Mr. Justice Nasir Aslam Zahid, Mr. Karamat Ali and the undersigned from Pakistan were received by Mrs. Soniya Gandhi, the Head of Ruling Congress Party, on or about 9th September 2010, to reciprocate our efforts for release of Indian fishermen, Mrs. Gandhi was kind enough to immediately order release of all Pakistani Prisoners who have completed their sentences and if their nationalities have been identified. As a result hundreds of more prisoners of the two countries have been released since then.

The recent release of 179 Indian Fishermen from Malir Jail Karachi was consistently pursued with Pakistani authorities by our team of Mr. Justice Nasir Aslam Zahid, Mr. Karamat Ali, Mr. Mohammad Ali Shah of Fisherfolk and the undersigned. It was due to the consistent efforts of this team that these prisoners were finally released on 7th January’ 12 from Malir Jail Karachi. Any proceedings in the Lahore High Court were not instrumental in release of these Indian Fishermen from Malir Jail Karachi.

I do sincerely appreciate and admire efforts of all members of the Bar or members of the civil society for putting hard work persistently for release of the prisoners as well as for much needed improvements in the relations between our two countries. Warm, cordial, peaceful and open border relations between Pakistan and India is the need of the people of this subcontinent.

The aforesaid is just to put the record straight.

Jan 14, 2012: From B.M.Kutty, Secretary General, Pakistan Peace Coalition (PPC), PILER Center, Karachi:

Dear Iqbal Haider Saheb,

Thank you very much for clarifying how the process of release of India-Pakistan fishermen by the two governments started and how it is still going on, thanks to the untiring efforts of rights activsts like you, Justice Nasir Aslam Zahid, Muhammad Ali Shah, Karamat Ali and others. . Let us also remind ourselves of the fact that  PILER and PFF had been involved in it since 1997 when the first batch of about 500 plus fishermen were released from both sides. Unfortunately, the seemingly unstoppable exercise of arrest and release of poor fishermen on both sides goes on and on. God save the fishermen!!

Faisal Khan (in cap) with Tara Gandhi, giving Khudai Khidmatgar membership to Tanzila. Photo: courtesy TCN

The Khudai Khidmatgar (Red Shirts) movement will be launched in India on Jan 20, 2012, marking the 24th death anniversary of the ‘Sarhadi Gandhi’ Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, with a membership drive, and addresses by distinguished peace activists, writers and poets
Date: January 20, 2012
Time: 3.30-5.30 pm,
Place: 5 Tees January Marg New Delhi
Contact: +91-9911292235 and +91-999050543

Speakers include

Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan: A great and enduring legacy of peace

Prof. V. K. Tripathy, Sadbhav mission, IIT Delhi, Tara Gandhi, granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi, Bharat Dogra, writer and activist, Manimala, Director, Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti, Majid Menon well known human rights activist and Subbar Rao well known Gandhian and president Sarvoday Samaj. Young activist Faisal, Khan (TCN Person of the Year 2011), who is behind the revival of Khudai Khidmatgar movement in India, will present a brief report.

In an email of Jan 16, 2012, Faisal Khan writes: “On January 20, 2011, at the time of launching Khudai Khidmatgar’s nation-wide membership drive at Birla House, Tees January Marg (the place, where Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated), we had not anticipated such an overwhelming response from various sections of society. We had set a difficult target of enrolling 5,000 Khidmatgars (members) by January 20, 2012, i.e., within one year of revival, and started state-wise drive for membership, soon thereafter. We are likely to meet our membership target.

“All Khidmatgars may not be very active right now, but as a Khudai Khidmatgar, each one of us subscribes to, dreams of, and wishes to work towards, a society that is based on justice, empathy, and compassion, and where all-round peace and prosperity reign.

“On 20th January 2012, on the 24th death anniversary of Sarhadi Gandhi, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, Khudai Khidmatgars propose to initiate a wing that will actively work during disasters, man-made (such as communal- and caste- violence) and natural (cyclone etc.), both. It will be a befitting tribute to the sacrifices of Sarhadi Gandhi and Mahatma Gandhi, both, and also send out the signal that Khudai Khidmatgars truly stand for the welfare of humanity.”

SOME MEDIA ON THE REVIVAL OF KHUDAI KHIDMATGARS IN INDIA

1. Frontier Gandhi: A forgotten hero – NDTV, Jan 7, 2011

2. ‘Countering communal poison has to be an ongoing process’ -TIMES OF INDIA, March 16, 2011

3. Khudai Khidmatgar revived with fifty members taking oath to serve the humanity – KHYBER WATCH, Feb 4, 2011

4. Khudai Khidmatgars in India to revive movement, INTERNATIONAL The NEWS, Feb 5, 2011

5. Membership drive of Khudai Khidmatgar conducted in 3 states, TwoCircles.net, April 21, 2011

Salmaan Taseer: The political context of a ‘religious’ assassination

Enforce rule of law, expose hypocrisy of the Taliban mentality

Just over a year ago, Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer was assassinated in the most cowardly manner by a government-assigned security guard. Mumtaz Qadri, a member of the Punjab Elite Force assigned to protect the Governor, pumped 27 bullets into his victim’s back as he headed to his car on the afternoon of January 4, 2011.

The sensational murder was no spontaneous act by an enraged fanatic. It was a well-thought out, cold-blooded plan. Was the executor acting alone, motivated only by ‘religious fervour’ as projected, or is there more to the issue than meets the eye? And even if his act was purely altruistic, should the law of the land not be applied to punish him?

The Governor was already a target of the ‘hate-filled organisations’ as he termed them, well before they saw an opportunity to (ab)use the ‘blasphemy law’ to unite their own until then divided ranks. For this, they needed a target. The opportunity arrived when a trial court sentenced a Christian woman, Aasia Bibi, to death on Nov 8, 2010, for ‘blasphemy’.

A few facts to put this situation in context:

• The ‘religious parties’, historically divided amongst themselves, have never made any significant headway in electoral politics in Pakistan. A democratic dispensation does not suit them.
• Although Pakistan under Gen. Musharraf officially cut ties with the Taliban regime in Afghanistan after 9/11 (reluctantly, the last country to do), it continued to allow the ‘home grown jihadis’ to operate, seeing them as useful to keep the fire smouldering in Indian administered Kashmir.
• In Feb 2008, a democratically elected government replaced Gen. Musharraf’s military regime. The new government eschewed the earlier policy of using non-state actors to achieve its foreign policy objectives – but the security establishment remained wedded to the outdated paradigm of ‘strategic’ depth (i.e. Pakistan’s continued influence in Afghanistan because of a perceived threat from India).

What does all this have to do with Salmaan Taseer and the politics behind his assassination?

Everything. The mindset and political ideology disguised in the rhetoric of religion is furthered by a security establishment that sees its duty as being to protect not just Pakistan’s physical frontiers but also its ‘ideology’, developed along conservative religious lines since the 1965 war with India. This ideology was strengthened during the Afghan war of the 1980s, when a national war of liberation was converted into a ‘holy war’ (as Dr. Eqbal Ahmad pointed out in his talk on ‘Terrorism, theirs and ours’, 1998).

Pakistan’s ‘religious’ organisations flourished and gained strength with Saudi and American backing during the Zia years (1977-1988). They were allowed to function freely during the military-dominated ‘musical chairs’ years in which no government could complete its tenure (1988-1999). As mentioned above, they also had a free rein during the Musharraf years (1999-2008) even after 9/11.

Since the end of the first Afghan war, these organisations have been targeting and killing religious minorities and progressive minded people in Pakistan. The genie released during the Zia years and nurtured under Musharraf was not going to go tamely back into the bottle.

Governor Taseer was already in their sights for his outspoken and rational views on religion and human rights. He had no qualms naming the organisations he suspected to be behind the May 2010 massacre of worshippers in an Ahmedi mosque in Lahore, where over 80 people were killed and scores of others injured.

“These hate-filled organisations – Sipah-e-Sahaba, (Lashkar-e-) Jhangvi — they all have same ideology – Taliban, Al Qaeda…,” he said during his condolence visit.

“They should be prosecuted in the courts,” he said. “Don’t let them off. There should be zero tolerance towards them. No political alliance is possible with these organisations, you can’t go around having them at your political meetings, the Punjab government should prosecute them”.

Five months later the religious parties found a way to unite their ranks by conflating the ‘blasphemy’ issue with the issue of the ‘honour of the Prophet’ (peace be upon Him), when there were protests against the death sentence of Aasia Bibi. The ‘religious’ organisations came out in full force calling for her death because she had allegedly said something derogatory against the Prophet (peace be upon Him).

For some years the ‘blasphemy’ issue had lain somewhat dormant. Now, after many years, a court handed down a death sentence for such a case. Protests against the sentence by human rights and Christian organisations led to counter protests by ‘Islamic’ groups that used the issue to build up their political strength.

The situation was reminiscent of the early 1990s when there was a surge of ‘blasphemy’ cases, and the first ‘blasphemy murder’ was committed. Between 1986, when the law came into effect, and 2010, 1,081 people were charged under it, including 138 Christians, 468 Muslims and 454 Ahmadis, according to the National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP). In all cases investigated by human rights groups, motivations for these cases have been invariably rooted in rivalries or disputes related to money, property or other jealousies.

The High Courts and the Supreme Court have so far not upheld any death sentence passed by a lower court, although several defendants have been extra-judicially killed after being accused of ‘blasphemy’. In the early 1990s this was the scenario:

The frenzy had been building up. Masked gunmen had opened fire after a court hearing in April 1994, wounding Salamat and killing Manzoor Masih, one of the co-accused in the blasphemy case. Glossy, full-colour stickers and posters cropped up all over Lahore, calling for “believers” to find and kill (Asma) Jahangir. In July, a mob outside the Lahore High Court attacked her car. Luckily, she was not in the vehicle but her driver was assaulted and the car smashed. It was a few days later that the letter vowing to hunt down and kill Jahangir was delivered to her office. (Zarteef Khan Afridi: The tribesman who showed the way)

There was no case registered against Governor Salmaan Taseer but the propaganda against him was amplified by the proliferation of the 24/7 television channels and social media. Taseer was publicly projected as a blasphemer. The aggression of one particularly vitriolic television talk show host led the Governor to rebuke her: “You are acting as I am guilty of blasphemy” (watch the programme here and here).

Sunni Tehrik and other extremist organisations held rallies and demonstrations against clemency for Aasia Bibi and against proposed procedural amendments to the ‘blasphemy laws’ that PPP MNA Sherry Rehman sought to table. Put on the defensive, the government as well as opposition figures who had agreed to support the amendments, backtracked, leaving Rehman high and dry, her life under threat.

Zaid Hamid, Hanif Qureshi and others: preachers of hate misleading youth

Mumtaz Qadri was a known figure at such rallies where emotions were being whipped up. He even recited ‘naat’ at some of them – like at this one, just three days before he killed the man he was supposed to be protecting.

These questions arise:

• How was a man who attended such gatherings, who was already known for his extremist views (he had been earlier removed from the Special Branch because he was perceived as a security threat) inducted into the Elite Force in the first place?
• How was such a man assigned guard duty to a high profile target like the Governor Punjab?
• Why did the other guards not expose Qadri or get him arrested when he told them what he was going to do and asked them not to open fire, as he would surrender (as he said in his confession after his arrest)?
• Given that the other guards did not open fire, according to standard operating procedures in VIP guard duty, why were they not charged as accomplices to the murder, even though Qadri said he was acting alone?

Citizens for Democracy (CFD), an umbrella group of several professional and activist organisations formed on Dec 19, 2010 in Karachi, raised such questions in its statement of January 7, 2011. “We reiterate our stand that no one has the right to take the law into their own hands and kill anyone, regardless of whether they are accused of blasphemy or any other crime,” said the statement, endorsed by nearly 70 organisations.

But such voices were drowned in the din of ‘religious’ righteousness.

Qadri’s fellow guards who were detained after Governor Taseer’s assassination were released without being charged, as was the cleric whose inflammatory sermon convinced Qadri to pull the trigger.

Salmaan Taseer’s murder was followed just two months later by the murder of the Minister for Minority Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti, a Christian by faith, who had also been outspoken about the blasphemy issue. No one has been arrested for that murder. The trial court judge who sentenced Mumtaz Qadri to death has fled Pakistan for his own safety. Qadri’s supporters are calling for the death sentence to be commuted, which is somewhat puzzling given that Qadri has stated he is willing to die for his faith and he believes he has done right.

Pakistan has many pressing problems – including the perennial ones of clean drinking water, healthcare, education, shelter and so on that directly impact the people. But on a larger level, there is also clearly an urgent need to enforce the rule of law — charge, try and prosecute the guilty without fear or favour — and to expose the hypocrisy of the Taliban mentality that is tearing the country apart.

Media note: Citizens express concern about Pakistan, safety of human rights defenders

Updated Jan 7, 2012

Prominent writers, doctors, intellectuals, lawyers, artists and journalists from all over Pakistan and around the world have endorsed a statement expressing “grave concern” at the threats to “Pakistani human rights defenders for their stance in the ‘memogate’ case” and “at the danger this crisis poses to Pakistan’s democratic political process that had taken a step forward with the elections of 2008”.

Nearly 200 endorsements from Pakistan and around the world, including some very prominent names, came in within hours of the statement being posted online on Jan 4, 2012.

Well known Pakistani signatories include Pakistan Bar Council Vice President Latif Afridi (the grand old man of Peshawar), historian Ayesha Jalal, novelists Abdullah Hussein (of Udaas Naselein fame), Ali Sethi, and Sehba Sarwar, physicists Dr Pervez Hoodbhoy and Dr A.H. Nayyar, political analyst Dr. Ayesha Siddiqa, senior journalists, editors and columnists Kamran Shafi, Marvi Sirmed (both themselves under threat), I. A. Rehman, Ghazi Salahuddin, Sheen Farrukh, Dr Mohammad Taqi, Beena Sarwar, Naveen Naqvi, Mohsin Sayeed, Naziha Ali Syed, Zohra Yusuf, Adnan Rehmat, Raza Rumi, Rafia Zakaria, Jami Chandio, S. Abbas Raza (editor of 3 Quarks Daily), Adnan Rehmat, Kamran Rehmat, Zofeen T. Ebrahim and Nafees Bazmi, educationists Sadiqa Salahuddin and Prof. Ijaz Khan (Peshawar University), rights activists Farooq Tariq, Hilda Saeed, Khawar Mumtaz, Fouzia Saeed, Arshed Bhatti, Karamat Ali, Kamyla Marvi, Nuzhat Kidvai, Kausar S.K. and Nazish Brohi, lawyers Yasser Latif Hamdani and Ahmad Rafay Alam, prominent actor Saba Hamid, musicians Taimur Rahman (Laal band) and Shahvaar Ali Khan, economist Haris Gazdar, artists Noorjehan Bilgrami, Fauzia Minallah and Rumana Husain, architect Arif Hasan, Shoaib Mir, Amnesty International’s “Prisoner Of Conscience 1984″, and DSF founding members Zain Alavi and Iqbal Alavi, to name some.

Academics, writers and activists from around the world have also expressed solidarity with their beleaguered Pakistani colleagues. They include Indian actor and director Nandita Das, Algerian sociologist and founder of the international solidarity network Women Living Under Muslim Laws Marieme Helie Lucas, Nepali journalist and democracy activist Kanak Mani Dixit, Netherlands-based Indian sociologist Amrita Chachi, Iranian anthropology professor Dr. Shahla Haeri of Boston University, senior Bangladeshi journalist Afsan Chowdhury and right activist Hameeda Hossein, Indian journalist Jatin Desai, South Asia Citizens Web pioneer Harsh Kapoor, documentary filmmaker Tapan Bose, and Siddharth Nayak, President All India Law Students Association, to name some of the more prominent names. Several other Indian journalists, peace activists, and academics who support a strong and democratic Pakistan have also endorsed the statement in solidarity.

The statement says that allowing the elected civilian government in Pakistan to complete its tenure and hand over power to the next government following democratic elections would be a first step in “an ongoing process that is essential to Pakistan’s peace, progress and prosperity in the long run.”

The statement underscores the threats to former Ambassador of Pakistan to the US, Husain Haqqani, his lawyer, former Supreme Court Bar Association President, Asma Jahangir, columnist Marvi Sirmed, senior journalist Najam Sethi and their families, to name some of the journalists and activists at risk in Pakistan. “This is the case with numerous other journalists and activists who face death threats for their outspoken views – and many have indeed been killed in the process… This is essentially the case with anyone in Pakistan who counters or challenges the narrative of the ideological security state,” says the statement.

The ‘memogate’ case “is at the crux of a matter vital to Pakistan’s politics, that is, whether Pakistan is going to be run by a civilian elected government along the lines of a parliamentary democracy that ensures fundamental rights, or along the lines of a ideological narrative dictated by the security establishment that holds fundamental rights subservient to its interpretation of ‘national security’,” says the statement.

Coincidentally drafted on the day of assassinated Governor Punjab Salmaan Taseer’s first death anniversary, the statement notes that “Too many people in Pakistan have fallen to the ideological monster unleashed by the establishment pursuing a narrow, ideological interpretation of ‘national security’. It is time for a fundamental paradigm shift in Pakistan’s politics, to allow the nation to fulfill its potential as a progressive, forward looking South Asian nation at peace with its neighbours and the world. We urge the Pakistan government, judiciary and security establishment to play their constitutional roles, cooperate with each other and focus on re-establishing the rule of law and in order to make this possible.”

“In the meantime,” it concludes, “be aware that the world is watching to ensure that no harm comes to those who are taking a stand towards this end.”

Endorsements received by the time this was sent to the media on Jan 5, 2012 are listed alphabetically below (more signatures are coming in and will be updated at the link http://tinyurl.com/05012012):

(Signatures that came in after this was sent to the media on Jan 5, 2012 are being added to the earlier list below, alphabetically)

Endorsed:

1. A. Chhachhi, Sociologist, Netherlands
2. A. Kamal, Economist, Pakistan
3. Aazar Ayaz, Executive Director The Researchers, Islamabad
4. Abbas Syed, Secretary, South Asian Workers Alliance Canada, Toronto, Canada
5. Abdul Ghafoor Chaudhry, Social Activist, Canada
6. Abdul Hameed Nayyar, Physicist, Lahore
7. Abdul Hamid Bashani Khan, Barrister, Solicitor & Notary Public, Canada
8. Abdullah Hussein, Novelist, Lahore
9. Adnan Rehmat, Executive Director, Intermedia Pakistan,
10. Afsan Chowdhury , Research Associate. York Centre for Asian Research, York University Toronto. Canada ,
11. Aftab Ahmad, Director Administration, Ibt, Bahrain Swat
12. Afzal Tahir, Kashmir International Front/United Kashmir Journal, London, United Kingdom,
13. Ahmad Nadeem Gehla, Lawyers For Democracy, Lawyers
14. Ahmad Rafay Alam, Lawyer
15. Ajmal Jan, Student, United Kingdom
16. Ali Arqam, Blogger, Social Activist, Peshawar
17. Ali Kazmi, Student, Islamabad, Pakistan
18. Ali Sethi, Writer, Lahore
19. Ali Waqas, Ceo, Delton Solutions, Islamabad, Pakistan
20. Ali Zeeshan Ijaz, Researcher
21. Amar Sindhu, Human Right Activist, Hyderabad, Sindh
22. Ambassador Dr. Muhammad Shahid Amin Khan, World Chairman International Human Rights Commission, Islamabad
23. Amina Samee Bari, Homemaker, Ireland
24. Ammar Yasir, Marketing Head, Tea Break Networks, Karachi
25. Ammara Durrani, Citizen of Democratic Republic of Pakistan
26. Amna Buttar, Synergy International, Lahore, Pakistan
27. Anita G. Aquino, SPMUDA Global, Bahrain
28. Annie Syedah, Student, United States
29. Anthony Permal, Senior Markeing Manager – Oil & Gas, Defence, Dubai, UAE
30. Anushka Jatoi, Student, Karachi
31. Arfana Mallah, Human Right Activist, Hyderabad, Sindh
32. Arif Hasan, Architect/Planner, Chairperson Urban Resource Centre, Karachi
33. Arshad Khalil, Director Admin & Finance , Peshawar Pukhtonkhwa
34. Arshad Mahmood, Human Rights Activist, Islamabad, Pakistan
35. Arshed Bhatti, Civil Junction, Islamabad
36. Asad Ullah Jan, Citizen, Peshawar Pakistan
37. Asghar Mayo, Lawyer, Lahore
38. Asif Khan, Earth Day Network, Washington DC
39. Attaullah Beg, NCHD, Hunza
40. Ayesha Humayun Khan, Citizen of Pakistan,, Dubai
41. Ayesha Jalal, historian, Boston/Lahore
42. Ayesha Siddiqa, Political Scientist, Pakistan
43. Ayyaz, Analyst
44. Azhar Hmed, Citzen
45. Aziz Narejo, Editor, United States
46. Badri Raina, Columnist, Delhi, India
47. Beena Sarwar, journalist
48. Celine Ramsey, Citizen, Italy
49. Dervaish Khan, Student
50. Dr Abdullah Qureshi, Medical Doctor, Verona,Italy
51. Dr Arif Azad, Development Consultant, Islamabad
52. Dr Haseeb Ahmad, Medical Doctor, Jeddah Saudi Arabia
53. Dr Pritam Singh DPhil, Reader in Economics, Faculty of Business, Oxford Brookes University, UK
54. Dr Waseem Sarwar Malghani, Consultant Gastroenterologist/ Medicare Hospital, Multan
55. Dr. Ijaz Khan, Professor of International relations, University of Peshawar
56. Dr. Ilmana Fasih, physician, health activist, blogger, Canada
57. Dr. Mazhar Ali Bari, CEO of Solarprint/Physicist, Ireland
58. Dr. Mohammad Taqi, Physician & Columnist
59. Dr. Osama Siddique, Law Professor, Pakistan
60. Dr. Sandra H. Tarlin, Poet, Usa
61. Engineer Jameel Ahmad Malik, Central Chairman, Communist Party Of Pakistan (Cpp), Attock Cantt.
62. Faisal Mahmood, Officer in National Bank, Malir
63. Fakhar Ul-Islam, Project Manager, United Kingdom
64. Faraz Sheikh, social activist, Lahore
65. Faris Shirjeel, Student, Rawalpindi
66. Farooq Sulehria, Student, London
67. Farooq Tariq, spokesperson Labour Party Pakistan, Lahore
68. Farrukh Azfar, Physicist: University Of Oxford, Oxford, Uk
69. Fauzia Viqar, Shirkat Gah, Lahore
70. Fauzia Yazdani, Policy Advisor, Islamabad
71. Fayaz Ahmad, Historian, Peshawar
72. Fazil Jamili, Poet, Journalist
73. Fouzia Saeed, human rights activist
74. Geet Chainani, Doctor, Karachi
75. Ghazi Salahuddin, journalist and columnist, Karachi
76. Ghulam Hussain Soomro, Law Student, Pakistan
77. Githa Hariharan, Writer
78. Hamad Ur Rehman, CEO/ a human and social rights activist., Lyallpur.
79. Hameeda Hossain, Chairperson Ask, Bangladesh
80. Harbans Mukhia, Former Rector, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi
81. Haris Gazdar, researcher
82. Harry Pasha, Director, AZCom, USA
83. Harsh Kapoor, South Asia Citizens Web (sacw.net)
84. Hilda Saeed, Women’s rights activist, Pakistan
85. Hilde Jacobs, Pensioner and book writer, Germany
86. I.A. Rehman, senior journalist, Director HRCP
87. Ibrahim Sajid Malick, Technologist, New York
88. Ibrash Pasha, Pakistan Peace And Solidarity Council, Pukhtunkhwa
89. Imran Munir, Instructor/Simon Fraser University, Vancouver,Bc, Canada
90. Iqbal Alavi, social activist
91. Irfan Mufti, South Asia Partnership Pakistan, Lahore, Pakistan
92. Islam Uddin, Art Activist, Khairpur
93. Jami Chandio, Executive Director Centre For Peace And Civil Society & Editor Quarterly Journal ‘Freedom
94. Jatin Desai, Journalist, India
95. Javed Anand, Muslims for Secular Democracy, India
96. Jehan Ara, Blogger & Activist, Karachi
97. Kamran Rehmat, Editor, Islamabad
98. Kamran Shafi, Columnist,
99. Kamyla Marvi, Citizen, Karachi
100. Kanak Mani Dixit, Editor, Himal Southasian, Kathmandu
101. Karamat Ali, Labour Rights and Peace activist
102. Kausar S Khan, WAF Karachi,
103. Khadija Ali, Lawyer & Human Rights Activist,
104. Khadim Hussain, Bktef, Peshawar
105. Khalid Iqbal, Development Consultant, Islamabad
106. Khawar Mumtaz, Shirkat Gah. Pakistan,
107. Khurram Islam Khan, Young’S Association Sr. Member , Rawalpindi
108. Khurram Khalid, Director Herbion Canada, Toronto
109. Kiran Nazish, Journalist, Activist, Lahore,
110. Krishna Lal, Counselor, Hyderabad
111. Latif Afridi, Vice chairman, Pakistan Bar Council, Peshawar
112. Mahvish Inayat, Student, London
113. Malala Yousafzai, Student, Pakistan
114. Maliha Husain, Program Director, Mehergarh, Islamabad
115. Malik Omaid, Concerned Citizens, Lahore
116. Malik Rashid, Taxi Driver,
117. Manisha Gupte, Social Activist, India
118. Maria Khan, Student, Johns Hopkins University
119. Marieme Helie Lucas, Algerian sociologist , founder of Women Living Under Muslim Laws (WLUML)
120. Marium Soomro, Student, New Jersey, Usa
121. Max Babri, Concerned Citizen, Lahore
122. Mazhar Arif, Executive Director, Society for Alternative Media and Research (SAMAR), Islamabad
123. Meera Ghani, Environmental and Peace Activist, Belgium
124. Mehmal Sarfraz, Journalist, Lahore
125. Mehr Alwy, Finance Manager, UK
126. Mehre , House Hold, United States
127. Michael Renner,, Researcher, U.S. / Germany
128. Mohammad Zia-ur-Rehman, Chief Executive AWAZ CDS-Pakistan
129. Mohsin Sayeed, Journalist, Karachi
130. Momin Khan Momin, Editor Aahang Radio Pakistan , Karachi
131. Moniza Inam, journalist, Dawn, Karachi
132. Moolchand Kolhi, Student, Pakistan
133. Muhammad Amjad, Struggle, Glasgow Uk
134. Muhammad Haider Imtiaz, Lawyer, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
135. Muhammad Idris Khattak, Researcher OSI, Pakistan
136. Muhammad Younis, E/Vice President Al Maryam Development Trust and Member of HRCP, UK Bradford
137. Muhammad Zaeem, President Scholars Forum Ppp, Oklahoma University,Ok
138. Muhammad Zubair, Assistant Professor, USA
139. Mujib Mashal, Journalist
140. Mukesh Meghwar, Mehergarh (Volunteer Coordinator), Hyderabad, Pakistan
141. Mukul Dube Delhi Writer, editor, photographer
142. Mukul Mangalik, Associate Professor Of History, Ramjas College, University Of Delhi
143. Munawar Ali Bhatti, Urban Services , Lahore
144. Murtaza Razvi, journalist, Pakistan
145. Musarrat Hasan, Mpa Punjab Assembly, Lahore
146. N. D. Pancholi, Secretary, Indian Renaissance Institute, Ghaziabad (UP), India
147. Nadeem Yousafi, Businessman, Peshawar, Pakistan.
148. Nafees A. Bazmi, Editor Inqilab (Jang Group), Lahore
149. Nandita Das, Citizen, Actor.Director, India
150. Narjis Ahmed Khan, Coordinator,Aasha, Legal Aid Centre Karachi, Karachi
151. Naushad Shafkat, Lawyer, Karachi
152. Naveen Naqvi, Exec Dir Gawaahi, Karachi
153. Naveen Qayyum, Staff Writer At The World Council Of Churches, Geneva, Switzerland
154. Nawabzada Hashim Ali Khan, Pakistani, Islamabad
155. Naziha Syed Ali, journalist
156. Nazish Brohi, Independent, Researcher
157. Noman Quadri, Student
158. Noorjehan Bilgrami, Artsist, Karachi
159. Nuzhat Kidvai, WAF, Karachi
160. Pervez Hoodbhoy, Physicist
161. Qurratulain Zaman, Media Consultant, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung,
162. Rafia Zakaria, Columnist Dawn
163. Raheem Bari, Student, Ireland
164. Ram Puniyani, All India Secular Forum, Mumbai
165. Ramzan Chandio, The Nation\Staff Reporter , Karachi Pakistan
166. Ravi Hemadri, Peace Activist, New Delhi
167. Ravi, Wadhwani, Earth, S.S.
168. Raza Rumi, Writer,
169. Rehan Hussain, Student, Uk
170. Rizwan Ahmad, Activist, Blogger, Sydney
171. Rizwan Razvi, COO, Young Moajid (Pvt) Ltd., Karachi
172. Rohini Hensman, writer and activist
173. Rumana Husain, Jaal / NuktaArt, Karachi
174. S. Abbas Raza, Editor, 3QuarksDaily.com
175. S. M. Naseem, economist
176. Saba Hamid, Actor, Pakistan,
177. Saba Quraishi, activist, United States
178. Sabahat Ashraf (“iFaqeer”), Communcator. Citizen. Fakir., Silicon Valley, California
179. Sadaf Ahmad, Assistant Professor-Anthropology, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS)
180. Sadiqa Salahuddin, educationist, Indus Resource Centre, Pakistan
181. Saleha Haque, Student, University of Salford, UK
182. Salman Naqvi, Citizen,
183. Samina Zafar, Artist, Geneva
184. Sana Saleem , Activist, Blogger, Karachi
185. Sarah Suhail, Lawyer,
186. Seema Jaffer, Citizen, Pakistan,
187. Sehba Sarwar, Writer,
188. Shafqaat Haider, ACCA, USA
189. Shagufta Naaz, Editor, Karachi
190. Shahla Haeri, Associate Professor of Anthropology, Boston University
191. Shahnawaz, Student, Karachi
192. Shahrukh Ghazali, Student, Berkeley, Ca. Usa
193. Shahzad A Shaikh, Director Bokhara Palace Ltd, Karachi
194. Shahzad Ahmad, Country Coordinator, Bytes For All, Pakistan
195. Shama Noman, Educationist
196. Shamoon Hashmi, Media Host
197. Shandana Mohmand, Political Scientist, UK,
198. Shaukat Khan, Engineer, Canada
199. Shayan Afzal Khan, Citizen and activist, Pakistan
200. Shoaib Mir, Amnesty International “Prisoner Of Conscience-1984″, Lahore
201. Siddharth Nayak, Managing Director , The Jurists ; President : All India Law Students Association, New Delhi
202. Soulat Pasha, director Titan Energy, Karachi
203. Stephanie Rudat, Social Entrepreneur/Activist, United States Of America
204. Suhailkhan Khan, None Free Lance, Usa
205. Suleman Khan Kakar, Human Rights Activist, Islamabad, Pakistan
206. Sunil K. Vaidya, Oman Bureau Chief Gulf News, Muscat
207. Susan Marie, Susan Marie Public Relations, New York, USA,
208. Syed Ali, Retired Industrialist
209. Syed Hussein El-Edroos, Business Development & Training Manager, Islamabad
210. Syed Jaffer, Concerned Citizen
211. Syed N Abbas, Acca, Pakistan
212. Syed Nadir El-Edroos, Teacher,, London
213. Tahera Ahmad, Physician, Germany
214. Tahir Saeed, Senior clinical psychologist, Ireland
215. Taimur Rahman, Musician (LAAL) and College Professor
216. Talal Naeem, Student, Netherlands
217. Tapan Bose, Documentary filmmaker and human rights defender
218. Tarek Fatah, Muslim Canadian Congress, Toronto, Canada
219. Tariq Rahman, Bnu , Lahore
220. Tayyab Tariq, Stanford University, California, Usa
221. Tazeen , Project Director, Intermedia,
222. Umair Khan, Student, Usa
223. Umar Farooq, Businessman/Social Activist, Canada
224. Veerji Kolhi, Coordinator, Hyderabad,Sindh
225. Waqas Ali, CRSD, Peshawar
226. Waqas, Student, Karachi
227. Yameema Mitha, educationist, Islamabad/Dublin/Cambridge
228. Yasir Cheema, National University Of Singapore
229. Yasser Latif Hamdani, Lawyer
230. Yasser Noman, citizen, Pakistan
231. Zafar Karimi, Journalist , Karachi
232. Zafar Mirza, International Civil Servant, Geneva
233. Zahid Ali Messo, Bhandar Sangat, Hyderabad
234. Zain Alavi, Retired Businessman, Karachi
235. Zainab Raza, Development Practitioner, Karachi
236. Zakir Hussain, International Marxist Tendency , Manchester (Uk)
237. Zeeba T. Hashmi, Citizen, Lahore
238. Zofeen T. Ebrahim, Journalist, Karachi, Pakistan
239. Zohra Yusuf, human rights activist
240. Zulfiqar Ali Khan, Higher Education Department GoKPK, Peshawar
241. Zulfiqar Shah, The Institute for Social Movements, Hyderabad, Pakistan.