Save Your Home First

The beautiful city of Karachi is now the center of crime in Pakistan.

If you regularly follow the social media, you must have known that how our traditional media is under the attack of criticism from social media users over many issues. Currently they are taunted over their ignorance over the issue of massacres of rohingya Muslims in Burma. Every body I see is posting about the negligence of our government on this issue. Everybody is trying to realize you how important it is for you to raise your voice over this issue. Happenings in Burma are clear violation of human rights and there surely is a need to raise voice so that innocent people can be saved. There is a need for muslim countries and United nations to do whatever possible to stop this. But though i`ve nothing against these people on social media raising the issue of Burma and abusing media and Pakistan government, I do have some questions......

Since my childhood I have been seeing the protests and rallies supporting the Kashmirs I have seen all religious parties speaking for the freedom of Kashmir. I have heard Ulemas urging the people in mosques to go for a Jihaad in Kashmir. Well there is a confusion about how much right do Pakistan have to claim Kashmir and what do the people of Kashmir want but  I have no problem with all these people speaking for Kashmirs. But still I have some questions.....

Baluchistan is the largest of the four provinces of Pakistan, constituting approximately 44% of its total land mass. This region of our country is full of natural resources. A big share of our national income is courtesy these resources of  Baluchistan. The biggest natural gas field in Pakistan is located in Baluchistan. But for last 64 years this province has been the most underprivileged in Pakistan. They never had their share of those great projects planned for all other provinces of Pakistan At most of the places educational institutes are non existent and even if they are present in some regions, they are low in facilities. There exists nothing like law. But how many pages or posts do you see on Facebook about rights of Baluchistan How many tweets are there protesting about injustice with Baluchistan?

Now Baluchistan never got the rights it deserved but unfortunately it is not the only problem for Baluchistan. The peole go missing there rather mysteriously and if their relatives are lucky, they will find brutally tortured and bullet-ridden body at maximum. For most of the people even this courtesy of returning the dead body do not happen.  And the most shocking and rather sad thing is that all these people are actually going in torture rooms of pakistani agencies and military forces. Though I have great respect and love for my army but unfortunately many incidents have been reported by the national media where Paksitan amy killed protesters and has done many things which do not come under the law. The state agencies do not follow any law and you can never feel safe in baluchistan because it can be your turn any day. And once you are picked by these agencies, safe return is very difficult if not impossible. I recently read a satement of army cheif of Pakistan about solving baluchistan issue politicaly and I hope and wish that this could actually happen. But the question is why all those people criticizing media about burma issue are silent about these things in baluchistan. Do the lives of baluchis are worthless? Where are those people who see people dying in the whole world but can not see people dying in thier own country?

Over 700 Hazaras have been murdered in last few months in baluchistan. Thousands of Hazaras have been permanently disabled by terrorist attacks. No terrorist has ever been brought to justice by the Pakistani Government. Responsibility for most of these attacks has been claimed by outlawed group Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, who have gone as far in their hate preach as declaring the community “wajib-ul-qatl” or deserving of death in their edicts handed out in the Balochistan province. But the security forces have failed to stop these acts for last ten years. And this is what human rights commission of Pakistan has to say on this issue,“HRCP unequivocally condemns the attack and is shocked by the authorities’ inability or unwillingness to act against terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, which has repeatedly claimed responsibility for these attacks. The promised probe into the attack must also look into charges of support for the terrorists among the security agencies." And now how many people do you watch on social media raising their voice agisnt it. Where are those religious parties and ulemmas? Why don`t they give fatwas of jihaad aginst those who are killing these hazara people? Why don`t they give fatwas against those people who are killing people in Baluchistan?

Than their is the "City of lights". The life of a common man in karachi is the cheapest thing in the city. The gang wars are common in the city which is called the economic center of Pakistan. You don`t only have to pay tax to government. There are many other gangs who need your money for thier important tasks. Now for years this has been happening with this most important city of Pakistan but how many voices have you heard on social media about these issues. How many political or religious parties have practically done anything for this situation.?

So its my question to all those people blaming eveybody about the negligence in burma issue why don`t they talk about massacres in Bluchistan. Why don`t you speak for hazara people. Why don`t you put pressure on media and government for the peole of Karachi? Why don`t the mullahs, urging the youth to do jihaad in kashmir and in burma, ask thier followers to do jihaad aginst the people killing my countrymen? I`ve seen reports in newspapers about rallies for burma Muslims. This is a good thing because they are our brothers but why their are no rallies for the people of karachi and baluchistan? The religious parties of this coutry regularly organize rallies and marchs for the kashmir. Why are they ignoring their own country?  Why are you all genius people on social media not protesting about the massacres in Pakistan? I guess they are busy in rather much important task of defending their political parties. Or they are busy in abusing media.

All these things do not mean that I am against speaking for muslims in burma or speaking for human right violations in kashmir. I sure do have a feeling for these muslims, the brothers of ours. But I can`t stop myself from thinking first for my own country. I always think of Pakistan first. So do care for muslims in Burma, do care for Kashmir, do care for whole world but first do care for your own country. Please save your home first.

[M.ARSLAN]

Pakistan First

Despite countless different problems in Pakistan, both the big opposition parties are rather focusing on accusing and abusing each other.

We heard how social media fueled the whole arab spring. Though in Pakistna there is nothing like arab spring, because apparently this time around we want to bring change with our votes, but the social media has become extremely active here in recent times. With the general elections round the corner, some analysts have gone to the extent of predicting that social media will influence public opinion more than on-the-ground campaigning.

Until recently PTI has an almost complete grip over the whole social media. And PTI has been often mocked as party of internet users. But recently we`ve seen that PTI`s internet popularity has also inspired other major political parties to enter in this ground. And though one of the largest parties of Pakistan PPPP is still almost non-existent on social media, PML(n) has made quite a space for themselves. Its a good think because it provides chance to millions of users to share their political views with each other and to discuss manifestos of diffrent parties. But it has been observed that social media has rather effected negatively.

On ground both these parties,PTI and PML(n), are busy in dirty game of abusing each other, without realizing coultless problems that we as a nation are facing. But rather more unfortunately , this phenomena of abusing each other is going more strongly among the supporters of these two parties on social media. The supporters of both parties see their leaders as angels who can not do anything wrong. They feel it their duty to defend every wrong and right of their leader. And they have gone so far in this practice that it seems to me like their parties are more important to them than their country. And Its not about supporters of any single party, this phenomena is common amongst all parties.

I have decided to vote for PTI in next elextions and i had been a vocal supporter for PTI or should I say i am a supporter of PTI. But I never thought that Imran Khan can never do anything wrong. He clearly had made many wrong decisions recently. He came up with a vision for youngsters and new people and honestly now these things are quite difficult to find in PTI. I wanted him to stop accusing others and presnt his own policies and manifestoes but until recently the focus of his politics is basicly on accusing and abusing others. But I`ll not go deep into his policies because my focus is on what his supporters are doing in social media. Firstly they want everyone to praise PTI. And if any journalist or analyst expresses his views against some policy or decision of PTI, firstly he`ll have to face abuses and then whole social media will be full with photos and posts that will suggest that he has been paid by PML(n). Same is the case with PML(n) supporters.

There is nothing like ethics that these people follow. They`ll abuse the leaders of other parties and they never feel any hesitation in entering into personal lives of those politicians. I rarely see them discussing policies, most of the times the discussion is centerd around useless topics. They`ll discuss on why Ik is drinking water with left hand, why jamima is still meeting Ik, Imran`s children are jews, Nawaz sharif has affairs with foreign journalists. They accuse each others leaders baselssely and they don`t need any proofs.

The problem with all this is that all these peole have forgotten that basically everbody wants improvement in Pakistan. We have nothing to do with these leaders. We support them because we like what they say and what they present for Pakistan. If one party comes up with something good for Pakistan, why not to praise its policy even if you are supporting the other party. And if your own party has a wrong policy on some issue why to defend it. We should speak against it because it is Pakistan that matters to us not these political parties. But what you see on social media is that every body is madly defending everything that comes from party that they are aupporting whether its good or harmful for Pakistan, it does not matter.

My request to all these people on social media is to support Pakistan and think for Pakistan. Because for all of us there should not be anything more important than Pakistan and we support political parties for the sake of Pakistan. So raise above parties, be a Pakistani.

[Muhammad Arslan]

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